Women only affect my ability to spread the fire

Ah, this.

This is really heavyweight information.

Russell raised his eyebrows secretly.

At first, Margaret tried hard to restrain herself from showing her surprise, but then she changed her mind and thought that if it were Eleanor, she would scream and express her shock.

"What? This is impossible!" Margaret said in shock, even though she heard me shouting that I didn't listen.

Ludwig sighed and said, "Listen to me patiently, Eleanor. Not only the royal family, but the entire Kingdom of Usedom is in a state of chaos after the Great Retreat."

According to Ludwig, the demons did not launch a large-scale attack in the twenty years after the Great Retreat. In the absence of sufficient external pressure, Usedom fell into internal division.

Originally, the Burgundian royal family relied on the knight class to control military force and the church to control ideology, and used these two legs to walk and hold power.

But after a series of failures, and even a "great retreat" that abandoned most of the country's territory, both legs had problems at the same time.

Although the performance of Knight Protector William Wollhausen during the Great Retreat was one of the few bright spots, the loss of more than two-thirds of the country was still a failure.

A large number of fleeing knights not only lost their fiefdoms, but also lost their morale. The class qualities that were previously barely maintained by a sense of honor and fiefdoms were completely gone forever.

But the name "Fugitive Knight" is too ugly. If it is shouted out in front of people, it will often lead to a bloody massacre - it seems that testing their swords on civilians who are gossiping is their last way to maintain their fragile and ridiculous dignity.

Therefore, they were also contemptuously called the Landless Knights.

The landless knights need territories and manors, and they need rich supplies to lick their wounds and recover.

However, those old knights from the east who had not lost their territories in the great retreat were absolutely unwilling to give up their fiefs and manors.

Although the landless knights suffered heavy losses, the local knights, who had always been politically marginalized in the kingdom, also suffered heavy casualties in that war.

The landless knights were numerous and had always held the upper hand politically, while the local knights had an economic foundation.

So neither side could do anything to the other and could only compromise with each other. However, as the situation worsened, the conflict between the two sides became more and more intense.

This was just the situation for the knights. The situation for the church wasn't much better.

In fact, ideological work actually pays more attention to practical results.

When you win, God will naturally bless you, but once you fail, don't blame yourself for not being effective enough. People will find other ways out.

Some people turned to local wizards or shamans for help, while others remembered Vitolos, the wizard kingdom before the great retreat, and began to explore spells and seek comfort from them.

Some people thought that the demons were too powerful. Since we couldn't defeat them, we might as well join them. So they founded an underground demon worship cult, which was very popular for a while.

This is only the situation outside the church. There are also countless heresies, big and small, within the church that need reform.

The priests all had the same idea about religious reform; after such a devastating defeat, they had to make changes - but how exactly to make the changes required a good debate.

Therefore, the priests set up the Inquisition externally, using weapons of criticism to severely suppress all kinds of heretics. Internally, they also quarreled every day in the cardinal conference, using the weapon of criticism to fully exchange views on how to carry out religious reform.

And this internal struggle will naturally affect the royal family as well.

"Although His Majesty the King uses superb political skills as a paperhanger, your brothers have long been won over by different factions, Eleanor." Ludwig sighed.

"But I didn't take sides, so what does this have to do with my death?" Margaret continued to play her naive role.

Ludwig became increasingly helpless: "It's because you didn't take sides, Eleanor."

"You are particularly favored by the two majesties. Your brothers are worried that if another brother marries you, the situation will be unbalanced, so they all tacitly agree."

"Your Majesties have yet to discover who the mastermind is, but all your brothers acquiesced to this, allowing the poison designed for you to pass through numerous inspections and find its way into your mouth, Eleanor."

Margaret didn't agree with Ludwig's statement at all.

If it weren't for the king's own intention—or at least his acquiescence—Eleanor would never have been poisoned. Otherwise, the king himself would have died long ago.

"What? Are they my brothers?"

Eleanor's tone showed heartbreak and disbelief.

Ludwig couldn't help feeling relieved when he saw that his "lover" was finally willing to listen to him patiently about the affairs within the kingdom.

As expected, he is still a person who has experienced death...

Ludwig thought with relief.

Normally, whenever Ludwig wanted to quietly remind Eleanor to be wary of her brothers, she would impatiently change the subject to music, painting, or other arts, but she had no patience for politics.

Eleanor originally took a liking to Ludwig because of his good painting skills.

Ludwig, feeling very relieved, continued to persuade her: "Yes, Eleanor. Why do you think I chose the Walhausen family for you?"

I want to know too! We have no grudges, right?

Margaret frowned and asked innocently, "Yes, why?"

"Because the Knight Protector is a truly wise man. He stays away from the royal city of Gritzburg and patrols the border every day, thus staying away from the vortex of conflict."

"As long as he doesn't get involved in these power struggles, he will be the target of everyone's efforts. After much thought, I think only the wings of His Excellency the Knight Protector can protect you, Eleanor."

Ludwig said earnestly.

Thank you! My brother was able to protect her, but that's no excuse for you to try to harm me!

Margaret almost couldn't resist rolling her eyes.

No, I'm afraid if I continue talking to this bastard I'll draw my sword and kill him.

Margaret shook her head and said, "You, what you said is too complicated. I, I need to think about it carefully. Let's meet again later..."

"But we haven't spoken for a long time, Eleanor." Ludwig quickly stepped forward and tried to persuade her to stay.

"No, let's stop here today." Margaret said as she subconsciously took a step back.

Ludwig had long been accustomed to Eleanor's pulling and did not take this step back seriously.

However, the half sentence Margaret quietly left out struck him like a thunderbolt.

This half sentence seemed to be blown by the evening breeze, with a sigh and a pause: "Alas, Ludwig, Miss Margaret you chose is good in every way, except that she already has a lover..."

The author says:

Author's words: I'm getting better, Tangtang is resurrected!

118 Returning Home at Midnight

These were not nice words, and Ludwig's heart sank.

"Wait, what do you mean?" the young knight asked anxiously.

Ludwig's breathing became rapid, and he subconsciously stretched out a hand towards "Eleanor" who turned around and staggered away with her hands covering her mouth, but he failed to stop his "lover" from her panicked steps.

In fact, if Margaret hadn't covered her mouth tightly, she would have laughed out loud at the sight of the anxious and flustered Ludwig.

Let you try to plot against me! Go ahead and be scared!

A sense of revenge surged into Margaret's heart.

Only the stunned Ludwig was left standing there stupidly with his hand stretched out.

Ludwig's mouth dropped open, his movements frozen like a statue.

The evening breeze in late winter and early spring was still cold. The cold wind blew past, blowing up a few dead leaves and messing up Ludwig's carefully groomed hair.

The cold wind also awakened Ludwig from his petrified state.

No, that's not right! What happened during the day? What did Eleanor mean by that?

Ludwig had an ominous premonition in his heart, but deep down he still stubbornly refused to believe that his guess was true.

No, Eleanor is a noble princess, not someone so casual! I want to ask her, to find out clearly!

Ludwig made up his mind, calmed himself down, took a step forward, and quietly followed behind "Eleanor".

When Ludwig thought about how he had always hidden in the dark to protect Eleanor before, and today he was lurking in the dark to follow Eleanor, a feeling of absurdity and confusion came over him.

It seemed like everything had changed in just one day.

This made Ludwig a little absent-minded, and his feet made a little noise.

But Ludwig was not worried at all that Eleanor would be aware of his presence, as she had never noticed his secret protection before.

If it was really Eleanor instead of Margaret walking in front, perhaps Ludwig would not be exposed.

But what Ludwig didn't know was that the person he was following was not Eleanor, but Margaret, the sister of the Protector of the Kingdom Knight William Wallhausen.

Even if Ludwig was following closely, Margaret, who came from a family of scholars, would still be able to notice.

Now Ludwig was absent-minded and his steps were disorderly, as if he was drunk. To Margaret, Ludwig's tracking was as conspicuous as a firefly in the dark night, full of loopholes.

Good thing you came. I haven’t let out enough anger yet.

Margaret smiled slightly, and her originally brisk steps paused, continuing to remain heavy as if she was worried about something.

"I sneaked out while Russell was sleeping without telling him. He won't notice, right?" Margaret whispered softly, just loud enough for Ludwig to hear.

Can you explain it clearly? Who are you hiding this from? What do you mean by sneaking out? Are you already sleeping together?

Ludwig became even more anxious. He was so angry that he wanted to jump out of the darkness and ask "Eleanor" for an explanation.

But by this time, "Eleanor" had already walked around the corner hesitantly.

Ludwig could clearly see that a guard was dozing off against the gate. The guard's head was shaking, and it was obvious that he would wake up at the slightest movement.

Ludwig hesitated for a while, but still did not jump out, but was extremely anxious.

Russell, who was following behind Ludwig, smiled knowingly.

Oh, Margaret wants to put on a show... She wants to torture this brat.

Originally, Russell wanted to kill Ludwig silently with a sword in secret. This guy used the idea of ​​resurrection from the dead to revive his own woman. He deserved to die.

In fact, Russell's hand was already on the sword, and Ludwig's life was already in countdown.

However, Russell realized that he was not the only bystander of this bloody drama tonight, there was another uninvited guest lurking in the darkness, so he restrained himself from taking action.

However, Margaret's heartbreaking mental torture obviously had a better effect, so Russell changed his mind and let Ludwig live a few more days.

At this time, "Eleanor" had already tiptoed and opened the door, and the wooden door made a creaking sound that made her teeth ache.

"Eleanor" stared nervously at the dozing guard, her eyes revealing panic. She held the door with one hand and covered her mouth with the other hand to prevent herself from shouting out of nervousness.

The sound of the wooden door stopped the guard's head from shaking up and down. "Eleanor" was extremely nervous. Her hand stopped gently. Now the door was just opened a crack.

Even Ludwig couldn't help but get nervous for Eleanor. Since Eleanor was afraid of being discovered, Ludwig was even ready to throw his sword to kill the guard.

After it quieted down, the guard immediately fell asleep again. He leaned his head back against the wall, opened his mouth wide, and snored loudly.

"Eleanor" breathed a sigh of relief quietly. She gently patted her plump breasts with the palm that was originally covering her mouth, causing a surge of vibrations.

Then she proudly opened the door completely amid the guard's snoring and walked in quietly.

Ludwig felt a gust of night wind blowing past, but he didn't know that it was Russell, the god of death who had just wanted to kill him, who passed by him like the wind and returned to the room.

Ludwig felt that the door was more like a giant beast that wanted to devour his lover, and it was filled with an ominous aura.

He saw Eleanor quietly and proactively walk into the dark abyss, and he couldn't help but feel anxious.

When the door clicked shut, Ludwig couldn't help but emerge from the darkness. He walked quietly to the door and heard Eleanor's crisp footsteps coming up the stairs.

No, that's not right. Miss Margaret and Russell lived together! They lived in the same room on the second floor!

At this point, Ludwig could no longer play the ostrich. He impatiently opened the door, then, suppressing his anxiety, he tiptoed in.

What Ludwig didn't know was that after he quietly went upstairs, the door was opened for the third time and another person followed in quietly.

Even though the gate was opened three times, the guard was still snoring loudly.

It must be said that the guards' defenses were practically useless. This made the third visitor frown in dissatisfaction, but she didn't say anything and followed quietly.

In fact, after the third visitor walked in, the guard who had been pretending to be asleep also breathed a sigh of relief.

The guard was awakened when Margaret pretended to be weak and opened the door, but he smelled the fragrance of flowers.

The guard, knowing that noble women liked to use perfumed powder, realized that the person opening the door was a lady.

The guard was completely awake in an instant. He imagined a lot of confusing gossip in the aristocratic circle, so he forced himself not to open his eyes.

The less he knew about the messy affairs of the noble lord, the safer it would be for a small person like him - a guard who was arranged by Elda to stand guard for the distinguished guests would certainly not be so ignorant as to not even have such a little bit of understanding.

The person who opened the door next was a nobleman who smelled strongly of men's hair wax, and the guards also heard the sound of his boots.

This is a noble gentleman, and I don’t know how many pounds of hair wax he has on his head.

The guard calmly snored in his sleep while commenting in his mind.