Imperial Crown.

Chapter 387 The Scent of Gold Coins

Ming Nagar, the city of dreams.

It can satisfy all the fantasies of anyone on the mainland about a prosperous city.

The sheer city walls can make any leader who has made some achievements gain the title of a famous general.

Inside the towering city walls are buildings that are even taller than the walls, and every section of them is a masterpiece that would amaze artists.

The surging crowd at the city gate was enough to shock every self-proclaimed economist.

There is only one kind of person who would be incited to anger - that is the human supremacists.

Because here, you can see different races walking on the same road in harmony.

Humans, scaly lizardmen, bearded dwarves reeking of alcohol, furry Shadowfang orcs who looked like big upright dogs, mermaids sitting in the big water tank at the back of the carriage, and even a glimpse of elves and drow.

Even Raven was stunned for a long time by the magnificent scene.

“Get out of the way, get out of the way—”

A giant carriage pulled by four horses came to Raven against the flow of people. The wheel hubs of the carriage were wrapped in carefully embossed gold, and the coachmen were all dressed in silk clothes. Raven quietly observed him with the Eye of Truth and found that he was actually a level 4 knight.

The carriage stopped in front of Raven, the door opened, and a dwarf less than 1 meter tall jumped down from it. His body proportions were perfect, he was simply a scaled-down adult.

If you only look at his facial features, he's even a bit handsome.

"Goddess of Luck's big toe is on top." The dwarf looked at Raven with amazement in his eyes:

"You are Lord Raven, right? My God, I didn't expect you to be so young!"

As he spoke, he took off his hat and bowed:

"I am Pierre, under the order of His Majesty, and I have come to welcome you into the city!"

Long before arriving in the royal capital, Raven had done his homework. Although this Bailer was just a dwarf, he was a favorite of His Majesty the King and the most beloved court jester.

So Raven dismounted and nodded, "Mr. Pillar, you are so polite. I didn't expect you to come and greet me in person. This is such a rare honor!"

"Haha, everyone says that Lord Raven is very difficult to get along with because he is so successful at a young age. It seems that the rumors cannot be trusted." Pierre laughed:
"Then please get in the carriage and follow me into the city. The guards and servants you brought with you will naturally be arranged to stay there."

Raven knew that it was impossible for all the soldiers he brought with him to follow him into the city, so he nodded and gave the order, then turned to Pillar and said:

"Okay, Mr. Pillar, let's go!"

Just as Pierre was about to agree, he suddenly froze:

"Um...ah, Lord Raven, I don't think I made it clear enough, that is...the gifts you brought don't have to go into the city with you."

Because he saw that most of the soldiers and servants brought by Raven had left, but there were still more than 20 carriages left behind.

"I understand that." Raven smiled and said, "The gifts for His Majesty and the nobles have already been transported away. The goods on these 20 carts are the goods I plan to sell in the city."

"Ah?" Pierre scratched his ears. "What did you say?"

"Goods." Raven blinked and said innocently, "Is it not allowed to sell goods in Mingnaigar City?"

"Ah this..."

Pierre was stumped.

There were many nobles who came to the capital from the countryside, and Raven was not the first one that Pile received.

But he was the first one to come to the capital to sell goods.

And it can pull 20 large trucks at a time!
You are here to be crowned, can you be more serious?

For a moment, Bailer really didn't know whether to admire Raven's big heart or to mock his ignorance.

This is Mingnagar, what kind of things are there? I'm afraid these 20 carts of goods will be completely smashed in the hands of this baron!

But it was their first meeting, so it was not appropriate to talk too much, so Pierre had to swallow his complaints:
"No problem! Let's get in the car!"

Bailer's carriage was large and comfortable, like a mobile mansion.

Vesdon, Hyena, Julia and a few other personal guards followed behind on horseback.

Since getting on the carriage, Billy hasn't spoken, and Raven hasn't spoken either.

It was their first meeting, and Pellegrini was a favorite of the King, so he would not be easily flattered. Even if Raven could swallow his pride and try his best to please the court jester, it might not bring him anything in return.

So Raven turned his attention to the streets of Mingnagal.

Along the way, in every city I passed through, the more prosperous the streets were, the dirtier they were.

Shit and piss always flow into the street.

Apart from human activities, the biggest source of pollution is horse-drawn carriages and ox-drawn carts used as means of transportation.

The animals pulling carts don't follow any rules and their feces can be seen everywhere. On the main roads of big cities, horse manure can accumulate to a depth of half a foot in a day.

But the streets of the royal capital were different. They were clean and tidy, without any annoying odor.

Although there were royal emblems on the carriage, passers-by would just give way spontaneously but would not bow to greet, apparently they were already used to it.

"Lord Raven, please." Pile handed over a cup of hot tea.

Raven took it subconsciously, took a sip, and then froze in place.

What is this smell?

The base is the popular black tea in the empire, but it obviously contains a lethal amount of sugar and a lot of salt, and even has a strong aroma of star anise and cinnamon.

It was just like taking a sip of hot pot water.

"Lord Raven, how does it taste?" Bailer blinked with eager anticipation.

"Uh...very good!" Raven responded with gritted teeth, then downed the remaining tea in the cup in one gulp.

Fortunately, I didn’t eat much in the morning, otherwise Raven would have vomited all over the floor.

"If you like it, drink more!" Bilal immediately filled another cup of tea for Raven.

The smile on Raven's face froze.

After making a choice between "vomiting inside the carriage" and "vomiting outside the carriage", Raven finally cast his eyes on Piller's face:
"Why don't you drink?"

Pierre spread his hands:
"It tastes disgusting, I don't like it."

???

Raven stared at Bailer, not knowing what expression to make for a moment.

You don’t like it, and you come to persuade me?

"Haha!" Piler smiled and apologized before Raven got angry:

"Sorry, sorry, it was just a joke."

As he said that, he quickly changed the cup for Raven:
"This time it's pure blood tea, there's absolutely no difference."

"But I'm not trying to trick you. The way you drank before was the mainstream in the capital."

"That's how it is in the capital. There are some rules that everyone knows are inappropriate, but they have to follow them."

"Besides, you used selling goods to fool me before."

Raven heard the warning in Pieter's words, and felt a little amused in his heart - are the people in the royal capital so vengeful?
"Mr. Pillar, I'm not fooling you."

“Those 20 trucks are really the goods I plan to sell.”

Now, Pillar was a little hesitant. He had read all of Raven's information before coming here, and knew that Raven was not only an outstanding leader, but also an outstanding businessman who would not do business at a loss.

"What exactly did you bring this time?"

Raven smiled and shouted outside, "Hyena, go get item number 1!"

Soon, cargo No. 1 appeared in the carriage.

It looked like a board covered with white silk.

"Here it is, Mr. Pillar, please take a look." Raven said as he uncovered the silk covering the goods.

"hiss--"

Bailer took a deep breath, his eyes full of surprise and astonishment.

It was a mirror. The surface of the glass was clearer and more realistic than any other mirror Pile had ever seen, even a magic mirror.

"Angel's Glory!?" Pile rubbed his eyes.

Although he had heard of the name before, he had only seen the real thing in the King's bedroom.

Of course, the Angel's Glory in front of him was only 70 centimeters long, far from being comparable to the one hanging in the Royal Court that was several meters long and wide, but it was also amazing enough!
"How much do you plan to sell this for?"

Raven smiled and said, "19999 gold coins!"

This price instantly cooled down Piller's originally enthusiastic heart.

It is true that the royal capital is luxurious and the nobles are extravagant, but that does not mean that the nobles are all fools.

Although a de facto ceasefire has been reached with Insa, everyone knows that this is only a temporary peace, and all the nobles are now strengthening their military forces.

2 gold coins are enough to arm about 20 heavy cavalry or 100 heavy infantry.

Although Angel's Glory is good, it is debatable whether it is worth that much when measured.

Raven didn't seem to notice that Pierre's enthusiasm had waned, and he immediately launched a strong sales offensive, revealing a smile that only a profiteer could show:

"This is a specialty of our Eagle Territory. It can't be found anywhere else except in the Nord Province!"

"Of course, I'm not afraid to tell you the truth. The public selling price of this thing in Nord is 9999 gold coins. But after all, I've been on the road for a year, so I have to calculate the cost!"

"How about this, 9999 gold coins, you take it and just consider it as making a friend, how about that?"

Although Pile still felt it was not worth it, on the one hand, the Angel's Glory was indeed a good thing, and on the other hand, Raven was so eager, he couldn't not give him face!
9999 gold coins, buy it, at worst you can sell it at a small loss!

"Okay, thank you Master Raven."

"That's too repulsive." Raven raised his teacup: "Since you bought the Angel's Glory, we are friends."

"Cheers to our friendship!"

Pierre had no choice but to raise his glass in response.

After taking a sip of tea, I felt something was wrong - isn't this my carriage? Why does it seem like I'm the guest?
Fortunately, this doubt did not last long.

The carriage soon arrived at its destination and stopped at the door of an inn called "Emerald Hall" on King's Road.

Piler smiled and said, "Although the enthronement ceremony won't be too far away now that you have arrived in the capital, there is no need to rush. There is still some time."

"It must have been very tiring all the way here, so take a good rest tonight. I'll come back tomorrow and take you to appreciate the charm of the royal capital!"

Raven thanked them with a smile, then moved in with the help of the hotel staff.

This is a hotel with a real royal sign. Only earls from all over the world and envoys from other countries are qualified to stay here.

Inside the towering walls are independent medium-sized buildings.

Each building is as big as any viscount's castle, and its luxury is beyond the reach of even an earl.

At least, there was no such luxurious decoration in Earl Tyrone's castle.

To put it simply, the reliefs on the walls, the decorations on the doors and windows, and the skirtings at the corners of the floors are all decorated with gold.

There is even a soundproof magic circle in every room that can be activated automatically.

Just as Raven was about to take a break, an invitation was delivered to him.

The signer was "Domi Shiva Farrell", who invited Raven to his house for a cocktail party five days later.

His middle name, Shiva, indicated that he was an earl, but Raven had never heard of his name.

I'll wait until Piller comes tomorrow and ask him about it.

Just as he was about to take a break, there was a knock on the door. After getting Raven's approval, Weston poked his head in and said, "Brother, Hyena and I are going out for a walk. Do you want to come with us?" Raven shook his head and said, "I'm a little tired. You guys go by yourselves."

Weisdong asked again: "Well, do I need to bring anything?"

Raven said, "No need for that. You should be more careful. The king is no better than Nord. You should be more tactful in what you say and do."

"Okay!" Weisdon smiled and closed the door.

When he walked outside, the hyena waiting nearby came up and asked, "What did you say, my Lord?"

"When has my brother ever treated us unfairly?" Weisdong laughed and turned to say, "Thor, Julia, let's go!"

The group of four left the Emerald Hall just like that.

The sky gradually darkened, and the magic street lights began to shine on the spacious and clean streets.

Men and women were walking on the street. The men were wearing slim-fitting stockings and tights, while the women were wearing long skirts of various styles that Weston had never seen before. Regardless of the severe winter weather, they wore skirts that were revealing everything.

They are even more open than the women working in the bathhouses in Nord Province!
Visdon was okay, he had seen and eaten it before; Hyena followed Raven all year round, and it was not uncommon to see all kinds of high-end beauties.

Only Thor was like a weasel in a chicken coop, his eyes were fixed on those women, which attracted all kinds of pointing and criticism.

"Don't embarrass yourself!" Patting Thor on the shoulder, Weston glanced at him dissatisfiedly: "If you continue like this, you can go back first!"

Thor was about to retort.

He didn't want to go out with Weisdon in the first place.

But after looking at Julia who was bowing her head beside him, he still held back and whispered:
"……knew!"

After a tiring journey, now that we have arrived in the capital, we must relax.

And since the purpose is to relax, of course you have to drink some wine.

So Weston had already found out the target, a tavern called "Dragon's Throat".

The sign is a lifelike black dragon head. Whenever a customer passes by, the dragon's neck will snap and fake light and flames will occasionally spurt out of its mouth.

"This..." Thor was a little scared when he saw it: "How about we change to another one?"

Even the signboard requires magic, how much money is involved?
Weisdon was actually a little nervous, but he didn't want to lose face, so he coughed and said:

"My dear brother, you are going to become a count soon. You'd better stop being a country bumpkin like me. I don't need you to spend money anyway!"

As he said that, he was the first one to push the door and walk in.

The capital city is bustling with people, and there are always many outsiders. Therefore, although the clothes of Visdon and others showed that they were from other places, they did not encounter any scenes of being looked down upon.

The maid led the four people to their seats and asked, "What would you like to order?"

As she spoke, the maid couldn't help but cast her eyes on Julia.

Although they all came as Raven's guards, it was not convenient to move around in armor in the royal capital, so they all wore casual clothes.

Julia's tall and majestic figure could not be concealed even by the specially customized plate armor, let alone ordinary clothes, so even if she was wrapped very tightly, she was still very eye-catching.

It almost flowed out of Julia's arms.

So much so that the maid began to wonder if Julia had something hidden on her body, or if she had the blood of the Wild Hoof Orcs, or Minotaur.

"This is our first time in the capital too. Do you have anything to recommend?" The maid was startled by the voice of Visdon.

"Oh, yes!" The maid quickly took out the wine list and put on a professional and enthusiastic smile: "This is the best tavern in the entire capital. We have whatever kind of wine you want."

"Of course, if you want to try something new, for drinks, we recommend Angel's Tears, which only costs 1 gold coins per bottle."

"This is the most famous wine in our empire in recent years. It comes from the hometown of Baron Raven, a hero and famous general of the empire. Even in the entire capital, it is extremely rare!"

Several people looked at each other and smiled almost at the same time.

Although Angel's Tears are expensive in Nord, they are not this expensive!

Weisdon even felt it was a bit of a pity. Since the journey was too long and the wine could not withstand the wind and sun, they did not bring the Angel's Tears with them this time.

If I had known this earlier, wouldn't I have made a fortune by loading it onto more than a dozen trucks?
"Forget about the Angel's Tears." Weisdong said, "Give us some special ones from the capital."

"What food do you recommend?"

The waitress wasn't surprised that the Angel's Tears wasn't sold, because although the wine was beautiful, it was indeed too expensive.

"As for the drinks, I'll serve you 'Tyrant's Blood'. Although it's not as mellow as Angel's Tears, as a strong wine, it has a unique flavor."

“As for food, I especially recommend the 'Gold Coin Burger'!”

"The idea of ​​this food also comes from the 'Wallace Hotel' in the Eagle Territory, but it has been specially improved in the capital and is very suitable for the 'Blood of the Tyrant'. Would you like to try it?!"

Weisdon nodded, took the wine list himself, showed it to everyone, and ordered some other snacks.

Everyone, including Hyena, was a little hesitant about ordering - it was too expensive!
Although the Tyrant's Blood is not as good as the Angel's Tears, one bottle costs 16.79 gold coins, and the price of the gold coin burger is as high as 98 gold coins.

This meal would cost a local knight one or two years' net income!
It's not easy to live in the royal capital without some financial resources!
But there is no wrong way to spend money. If the consumption is expensive, the service will also be impeccable.

Just heard a few bangs!

Colorful streamers were flying in the sky and musicians in the tavern were playing cheerful tunes.

A team of five people came out from the kitchen to deliver food.
The two people in the front held a huge gold-plated tray, and the two male waiters on the sides held huge bread knives and forks. The waitress who came before was walking in the front, holding a bottle of crimson hero's blood in her hand.

With the accompaniment, he walked to the table.

Weisdong swallowed his saliva: "Do you smell it?"

The hyena sniffed and asked in confusion, "What?"

Weisdong said: "The smell of gold coins!"

The plate was brought to the table, the lid was opened, and a rich meaty aroma wafted out.

The gold coin burger really lives up to its name!

The top layer of bread was fried to a golden brown and had the portrait of King Keynes XVI printed on it.

The meat in the middle is juicy, and the yellow-brown sauce is filled with fine gold powder, as if gold was crushed and stuffed in, flowing down the edges.

It doesn't look like food, but rather like a golden sculpture!
Two male waiters nearby cut the huge burger with bread knives, and another one divided it up and put it on everyone's plate.

The waitress poured wine for the four people and said with a smile, "Everyone, please enjoy!"

Weisdon was about to try it when he found that these people had not left.

He also spent a lot of time in entertainment venues, so he knew what this meant, so he took out a few gold coins and threw them to the waitress.

The waitress hadn't left yet.

Weisdon had no choice but to use the same trick again and gave the other person a total of 18 gold coins as a tip before he left.

When he looked back, Thor had already started eating.

Weisdon, who originally wanted to say something, could only sigh and start to deal with the burger on the plate.

I have to say, it tastes really good - after all, if anyone spends more than 100 gold coins just to eat a burger, the taste can't be bad.

"What a pity." The hyena suddenly said, "The Baron is not here."

"The most important thing is to have someone to pay the bill!" Weisdong joked, then sighed: "It's not that I didn't call you brother, but you also know that from before and after the funeral until now, when has he ever come out to have fun?"

This sentence made the originally relaxed atmosphere become a little depressing.

Just as Weston said, from the time Nancy passed away to the preparation and holding of the funeral, and then to the departure, it took nearly a year and a half.

Apart from necessary social activities, Raven basically would not go to any leisure occasions. Even when drinking, he would lock himself in the tent.

"Hey! That chick!" A drunken voice sounded, and three drunken men came up. One of them with a big beard said:
"Come here and have a drink with us brothers!"

As he spoke, his wanton gaze kept tugging at Julia's chest.

Julia covered her chest.

Weisdong stood up and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, if you want a drink, I can treat you..."

"Who do you think you are to treat us to a drink?!" The bearded man in the lead pressed his finger on the emblem on his chest:
"Did you see that? Now you know who we are, right?"

"No matter where you are from or why you are here, today you are here!"

"I see you have seen the world, so let this woman go now and let us brothers serve her comfortably. No matter what the problem is, it won't be a problem!"

As he said this, he stretched out his hand, which still had oil stains on its nails, and grabbed Julia's chest.

"Don't!" Weisdon shouted.

But it's still too late.

Julia ducked down flexibly to avoid the man's dirty hands, then she used her right leg to leap forward and elbowed the man in the upper right part of his stomach, where his liver was!
"Ow—"

The bearded man's face suddenly twisted, his mouth opened, and he began to vomit violently.

"How dare you hit people!?" The other two big men were furious and drew out the long swords at their waists. Red and yellow fighting spirits quickly burned on the sword blades.

Julia, however, took advantage of the situation and did not show any mercy. She risked a cut on her shoulder and immediately rushed into the arms of the man on her right, then she clenched her fingers into a fist and hit the man's throat.

The man's eyes rolled back and he fell forward into his companion's vomit.

At the same time, there was a bang.

The big man on the right was also hit on the temple by Weston's punch and fell to the ground unconscious.

Screams rang out in the tavern, and someone shouted:

"Guards, Guards!!"

"Someone come! Kill someone!!"

Thor and the hyena were both a little embarrassed; they had just stood up and didn't expect that the battle was already over!
That’s right, how could these guys who lived a life of luxury in the royal capital compare with Vesdon and Julia who had fought with real swords and guns?
"What are you standing there for?" Vesdon, who was experienced in tavern fights, grabbed the plate in front of him and knocked down a guard who wanted to come up to maintain order.

"Run!"

Julia, Hyena and Thor didn't know, but Visdon, who had done his homework, knew clearly what the emblems on the three people represented.

The shield-shaped emblem has an amber background and a bronze rattlesnake is entwined with a purple crystal in its mouth.

That is the emblem of the Queslan family, one of the eight great dukes of the empire!
If you don't run now, when will you wait?
Fortunately, all of them were extraordinary people, and they were not wearing armor, so they ran as fast as flying, and soon they returned to the Emerald Hall.

"Don't tell anyone about what happened tonight." Weisdong looked at the three people seriously and said:
"Just pretend it never happened, understand?"

"I will explain it to my brother in person."

The three of them nodded.

Weisdong also breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Julia. Although the wound on her shoulder was not big, it was still bleeding: "Can I help you treat the wound?"

"No need, I can do it myself." Julia shook her head and refused: "I'm not seriously injured."

Knowing Julia's temper, Weston stopped forcing her. He returned to his room, washed up, and went to bed.

Silent all night.

After all, it was a tiring journey, so Weston slept until noon the next day. Just when he thought he had gotten up late, he came to the hall and saw Raven sitting there, spreading a layer of jam on the bread.

"Brother, we encountered some trouble yesterday..." Weisdong sat opposite Raven and told him what happened last night.

When Raven heard this, he didn't say anything special, but just said, "I understand."

Although the Queslan family is powerful, the people who can cause trouble in the tavern are definitely not the core members of the family, which is easy to deal with.

It just requires a suitable opportunity and occasion to make things clear, so as to prevent people below from making mischief.

"Raven, I knew you would sleep until now!" There were clattering footsteps, and Piller appeared in the hall:

"After you've eaten and drunk enough, I'll take you to a place where you can have a good look!"

……

(End of this chapter)