I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 302 The Prelude to the Assassination
The night wind lifted the silver-embroidered cloak and ruffled Auckland's gray hair. His fingertips gathered in the void, and the light of the seventh star in the north leaked through his fingers, much like the stardust he had shaken from the cedar branches of Waterladnoy when he was fifteen.

The attendants, who had been waiting patiently behind him with gold ribbons, were all loyal followers of the old king who had fled from Bagnia to Minicia.

Some were only seventeen years old, still in military school, when they hastily ended their studies and went into exile abroad. Others were old and frail, even older than the old king, their withered fingers barely able to hold the gilded tray.

The oldest of the Leonards even needed to use an ebony cane, the top of which was inlaid with a sapphire from the Bagnian royal treasury, a gift from Oakland to honor his loyalty.

Aside from these jewels, the old king had nothing else.

"Your Majesty, the banquet is about to begin. Are you ready?"

An elderly servant asked respectfully, his voice trembling slightly, a mixture of uncertainty about the future and nostalgia for the past.

Tonight's banquet is very important; it concerns whether the old king can return to Bagnia soon and once again become the glorious ruler of all Bagnians.

No one was complacent; even the elderly Leonard roused himself, in his own words.

"As long as the banquet is a success, even if I were to be embraced by Mother Earth tomorrow, it would be worth it. In any case, I want to be buried in the royal cemetery and sleep alongside the kings of all time."

Although the Bagnians love to work away from home, and countless people die on the battlefield, they have an extremely strong sense of belonging to their homeland. As long as a comrade survives the battlefield, they will do everything in their power to bring the dead back to the mountains of Bagnia.

Aside from the Bagnians, people from other countries cannot understand their way of thinking. Regardless of their religion, even Bagnians who have emigrated abroad, as long as they still consider themselves people of the mountains, they will have their descendants take their ashes back for burial after they die, or scatter them in rivers and streams.

Auckland nodded, but his gaze drifted into the distance. He thought of the forest in Waterladnoy, where towering cedars, their branches laden with glistening icicles, shimmered silver in the moonlight.

He hadn't seen them for almost three or four years.

For some reason, Auckland felt uneasy and his heart was pounding tonight. That's why he went up to a high place to look at the Northern Star before the banquet started, a habit he had developed since childhood.

Whenever Auckland was troubled, angry, or fearful, he would look at it, and his heart would calm down... It must be that the kings of all ages were watching him through the North Star.

After watching for a while, Auckland reluctantly turned and went into the house. During this process, the servants came forward one by one to put a crown on him, tie a cloak on him, and carry a scepter beside him, acting like a king.

However, just as he was about to go down the stairs, Auckland suddenly remembered something.

"Take off my crown."

He told Leonard that the duty of this loyal royal veteran was to safeguard and protect the crown.

"Your Majesty, how can this be allowed?"

Leonard was shocked. His wrinkled hands gripped the ebony cane tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force.

"Tonight's banquet is so important that you must attend as king, and wearing the crown is a necessary courtesy."

“It is precisely because the banquet is so important that I should not wear the crown.”

Auckland patiently explained to the old minister.

"Tonight the King of Minicia will appear, and I will wear the crown, which means that I am equal to him... However, I must now bow my head to him. Holding my head high will bring praise, but not help."

The old king sighed.

The servants following behind him all lowered their heads, and young Edwin bit his lip, his eyes reddening.

They understood the deeper meaning behind the old king's words... This crown, which had carried Bagnia's glory for a century, had to be temporarily removed for the sake of the hope of restoring the kingdom.

Well, the servants didn't include Prince Chris in their list, since they knew his situation better than the Minieses and Bohemians.

As royal attendants, they all know who did right and who did wrong, and they can't fool themselves.

After Leonard sighed as he removed the crown from Oakland, the team continued their journey.

As the group arrived at the gilded doors of the banquet hall, Auckland, who was walking behind two young sword-wielding attendants, could already hear the singing and music drifting out from inside.

Sonnets under the Moon are beautiful poems and were a favorite tune of the Miniese court.

Auckland paused slightly as the melody reminded him of Bagnia's "Cedar Ballad"... a song sung by young girls gathering pine resin in the forest, each note imbued with morning dew and pine resin.

On the contrary, poems like the Sonnet under the Moon are not common in Baghnia. They seem too ornate and pretentious, and are incompatible with the simple and honest nature of the Baghnians.

However, he had to adjust to all of this tonight. He took a deep breath, composed himself, and then gestured for the servants to open the door.

The doors slowly opened, and beams of warm light shone from the banquet hall, illuminating the silver-embroidered cape from Auckland, making it appear exceptionally dazzling.

At the same time, the chanting of poems praising knights and love became increasingly clear, accompanied by the melodious sound of the lute.

Auckland squinted slightly, letting his pupils adjust to the sudden brightness. Inside the banquet hall, the light refracted by the crystal chandelier danced on the gilded walls, like a golden ocean.

The singing was beautiful, high-pitched yet gentle. In Auckland, one could even hear that the singer had added a lot of bohemian singing techniques and made some minor adaptations.

She sang very well, but Auckland didn't like it.

However, even if he doesn't like something, he won't show it on his face.

"Your Majesty, please." A young attendant whispered a reminder. Auckland nodded and stepped into the banquet hall.

There weren't many nobles in the banquet hall because the banquet was held in such a hurry that, apart from the local nobles of Tavičić, outsiders simply didn't have time to arrive.

Even so, the Miniese nobles, dressed in their finest attire and gathered in small groups, were still very excited. They had only learned after attending the banquet that a very important figure would be making an appearance that evening… and this important figure was clearly not the old King of Bagnia. The old king had been in Tavitsky City for over two months, and the local nobles were already quite familiar with him.

"His Excellency Auckland of Bagnia has arrived!"

The announcer's call to the king's name briefly halted the conversation in the hall. The nobles stopped talking and focused their attention on Auckland. Their gazes held curiosity and scrutiny, but even more so, respect for the exiled king.

The air was filled with the aroma of expensive perfumes and roasted grouse, mixed with the rich fragrance of wine. Auckland nodded slightly in acknowledgment, then slowly walked to his seat.

As Auckland sat to the right of the head of the table, everyone who looked at him smiled... because it meant that the important person coming was definitely of a higher status than the former.

As for who it was, the nobles had a general idea.

Alibaba, who was singing loudly in a corner of the banquet hall, and Ye Aonaihe, who was playing the lute, exchanged a glance and communicated through online ordering and communication software with the help of their smart assistants.

+This old guy came in through the main entrance, not the Rose Hall entrance on the east side. His hair was chestnut brown, not black, and he didn't look much like Chris. +
He sat to the left of the main seat, which was important, but not the main seat. This old fellow must be a high-ranking nobleman from Bagnia.
+ Continue waiting.
The performance continued, and the atmosphere among the nobles at the banquet gradually returned to its previous liveliness.

However, their eyes all held a hint of anticipation as they waited for the important figure who was about to appear.

The banquet table was laden with delicious food and fine wine, but no one's attention was on it.

Auckland took the crystal glass from the waiter, the amber liquid swirling gently within. He noticed the lute player… a prominent scar on his right index finger, a mark left from long-term use of the bowstring, something that could not have been caused by a plucked string instrument like the lute.

This made Auckland somewhat suspicious, but before he could ask any questions...

"You also have an interest in music?"

A lady in a lake-blue gown sat down beside him, the broom embroidered on her fan trembling slightly with her movements, interrupting Auckland's thoughts.

It is impolite to ignore a lady's advances, especially a noblewoman's, no matter where you are. Even a king cannot disregard noble etiquette.

Auckland smiled slightly at the beautiful, voluptuous lady.

"In Waterladnoy, we are more accustomed to the harmony of pine trees and streams."

His gaze swept over the musicians tuning their instruments in the corner.

"However, the sonnets of Minicia are indeed unique."

The lady covered her mouth and chuckled, but upon hearing a certain sound, she suddenly straightened her back, causing the music in the banquet hall to stop abruptly, and everyone's gaze to turn towards the door.

"His Majesty the King has arrived!"

The guards, dressed in plate armor, stood by the door and sang loudly. With a resounding announcement, the large door on the east side of the hall, carved with roses, swung open with a bang.

First to emerge from inside were two rows of fully armored knights, clad in thick plate armor that concealed even their faces. Their breastplates were engraved with a deep blue scimitar whale pattern, the emblem of the Minisian royal family.

The knights' heavy iron boots pounded on the marble floor, producing a unified, resounding boom that was as awe-inspiring as war drums.

Auckland's fingers gently traced the rim of the glass, noticing that the guards were not wearing ceremonial swords at their waists, but rather sharpened combat knives.

He glanced at Leonard standing behind him, and the old man nodded almost imperceptibly... These "honor guards" were all elite Royal Guards, not just for show.

As the last knight lined up on both sides of the red carpet, the banquet hall fell into an eerie silence. Even the lute player, Ao Naihe, in the corner held his breath, his fingers unconsciously plucking the strings.

After that, an elderly man dressed in a formal suit embroidered with gold thread slowly entered. The diamond crown on his head shone brightly in the candlelight, causing the five players fifty meters away on the other side to squint at the same time.

+The main person?+
+It's obvious! This old guy looks so much like Chris—his eyes, pupils, even the corners of his mouth…and his hair is black too! +
+...Don't worry about too much, just decide when to make your move.
"Wait until he gets closer. He's too far away. If we make a move now, he might turn around and escape from the hall. If the knights close the door, we might not be able to catch the old man."
The elderly man, dressed in beautiful robes, walked slowly toward the main seat. His steps were slow but firm and powerful, exuding a kingly air.

Well, that's the opinion of other locals, but the five players on the opposite stage, including Ye Aonaihe and Alibaba, just thought the old man was crazy, walking so slowly and putting on airs. He secretly rolled his eyes.

+That's about it. Let's get started once he sits down.
How do we take action? We don't seem to have any weapons.
Immediately, Ye Aonai also felt a bit of a headache. He had forgotten that when they entered the castle, in order to deal with the guards' inspection, none of the five of them had brought any weapons, nor could they bring any.

Concealing weapons inside musical instruments is a good option, but unfortunately, doing so would disrupt the instrument's center of gravity and tone, affecting the performance.

Furthermore, the size of the instrument meant that it couldn't hide anything large inside; at most, it could only hide something like a dagger.

just forget it.

What should I do?
Wait until he's seated, then grab the weapon from the guard next to him. Be quick; don't give the old man any time to react.
……

As Auckland Lin watched Albert III approach, his heart began to pound harder and harder, as if a giant were drumming in his chest. Every step Albert took felt like it was striking Auckland's nerve endings, and the oppressive feeling surged like a tide.

What happened? What was it that I didn't expect?
Albert wants to kill me!?

No, there's no reason. I still have some use to him. Besides, he wouldn't need to go to such lengths to kill me. Doing it at a public banquet would only damage his reputation and wouldn't bring him any benefit.

What happened...?

Suddenly, Auckland remembered something he had overlooked. He immediately looked at the five musicians on the corner stage, just as Albert took his seat.

Ye Aonaihe's thumb slammed down on the strings, the piercing noise shattering the tranquility of the banquet hall and making Auckland realize what he was worried about.

"Bagnians!!!"

(End of this chapter)