Chapter 537: Act 285 – Discovered?
Brendel raised his head and displayed the most charming smile to the crowd present— even the harshest etiquette officer could find no fault in this ‘noble smile’, which could be considered a model of insincerity among all nobles in Erluin. This was his only response to Dejyar; he had no fear that Dejyar or Duke Anlek would cause him trouble here since he had defeated Dejyar in a fair duel, witnessed by at least three prestigious witnesses including Marquis Julian. The fact that he did not kill Dejyar could already be hailed as mercy.
Those who could mingle in such a venue were certainly not dull-witted. The crowd quickly reacted, “It’s him! He cut off Dejyar’s hand in one strike!” The hall erupted with murmurs.
“How could he be so young!”
“By Martha! I’ve heard of the Highland Eagles’ ability to manifest elements since I was young, but this young man defeating Dejyar…?”
“Is that even possible? He can’t be over twenty…” The guests discussed among themselves, their whispers swirling like a gust of wind, rapidly spreading throughout the crowd. The astonishment rippled outward, even the noble Princess Grifian couldn’t help but cast a surprised glance at Brendel. Duke Anlek raised an eyebrow, openly revealing his gloomy expression, while Duke Seifer’s fox-like face showed a hint of amusement.
Dejyar’s face was as dark as a lead plate; he merely lost his voice upon seeing the enemy he had desperately sought appear before him, forgetting the circumstances around him. As the defeated party in the duel, he would only bring ridicule upon himself by secretly seeking revenge in the noble circle, and crucially, Duke Anlek would absolutely not allow such disgrace.
“That’s right, I also heard that High Priest Wood personally baptized him!” As the Highland Eagle clenched the hilt of his sword, another bombshell was dropped from the crowd. This revelation shocked the hall even more dramatically than the first.
The speaker was a gentleman who was astonished to find the hall going silent the moment he spoke. It was an immense honor that the High Priest of Ampere Seale had personally officiated a baptism for someone; the last person to be baptized was already deceased, but there still remained descendants of that person in the hall— the eldest son of Earl Gray Mountain stepped forward, unable to contain his curiosity. The last exception for the High Priest’s baptism was a concession to the King by the Temple of Fire, but what was this for now?
“A baptism, does that mean he is a Temple Knight?” After a long pause, someone exclaimed in disbelief.
Brendel was slightly taken aback; he never expected these inquisitive guests to guess the matter in this direction. The Temple had two honorary titles, and the title of Temple Knight was only awarded to those who contributed to the Temple and possessed the strength of elemental manifestation. However, Brendel was a Temple Knight; while the names were similar, the difference in strength was absolutely vast.
“Of course! Without the strength of a Temple Knight, how could he defeat Dejyar?”
“That’s exactly right.”
Such an outrageous speculation received almost universal acknowledgment from the crowd, and events unfolded like a runaway horse from the very beginning. Even the Earl’s daughter looked at him with some astonishment, her eyes filled with disbelief, “You, you are the mysterious swordsman who defeated Dejyar in one strike?”
Wait, what is this about defeating Dejyar in one strike? Where did such an outrageous rumor come from? Brendel clearly underestimated the power of gossip; in fact, by the end of the day, the rumor had transformed into him having pinned Dejyar against the wall of the Andefurler, even making a hole in that historical site. People loved fantastic tales, but he never thought he would become the protagonist of such a story.
He quickly signaled to Dierphir to avoid this young lady embarrassing herself. All eyes were now focused on the two of them. Everyone in attendance was clever, especially several officials from the Temple, who could spot any inconsistency that might reveal clues.
“What do we do now?” Dierphir, also caught off guard by Brendel’s identity, couldn’t help but ask in a low voice.
“Of course, we just walk in like this, no need to pay any mind; just pretend I’m your vassal and adviser,” Brendel smiled.
“I can’t afford such a capable vassal,” the Earl’s daughter shot him a glare.
Brendel internally cried out in despair. “Miss, you are currently playing a male role; could you display a bit of an actor’s professionalism?” However, he kept silent on that, merely offering her a helpless smile. The two slowly walked into the hall, drawing nearly everyone’s attention— servants followed behind them, and Nia and Rong Ning were inside, along with Julian in disguise. These three had golden-tier strength that couldn’t be hidden from most of the experts present, and the formidable strength of the Yan Fortress family immediately sparked another round of gossip.
But this time, the focus of the discussion was on whether this mysterious and powerful family’s return to Erluin’s noble circle was a blessing or a curse—
“I didn’t expect it to be the Yan Fortress people,” Marquis Julian mused as he watched Brendel and Dierphir disappear behind the railing. No wonder, no wonder it was hard to trace their origins; he suddenly connected some dots in his mind— the Yan Fortress, being outside the noble powers of Erluin, was a little-known secret to most people, but as a member of Erluin’s royal family, he had heard some rumors about this mysterious family; back in the day, when Erluin became enemies with Cruz, it had engaged in decades of struggle under the leadership of the late King Eke, with the Queen Wind’s Temple and the Temple of Fire subsequently drawn into the conflict, which evolved into a great war. The outcome was unexpected but remained etched in the memories of the Erluin people for generations. Erluin only continued to exist because of a compromise between the two temples, with the temples sealing away their secrets, leading the Yan Fortress to become a neutral buffer zone between the Empire and Erluin.
The heir of the Yan Fortress was never an Erluinian nor a Cruzian; this neutral party was only sponsored and favored by the two temples. The reasons for this were not well understood even by Marquis Julian, but that did not prevent him from speculating. The temples were indeed making moves; in an instant, Marquis Julian linked High Priest Wood’s anointment of Brendel with the entire matter, drawing a false conclusion. However, he was completely unaware that he was walking into a dead end, instead believing he had grasped the crux of the situation.
The Marquis soon thought of another person and couldn’t help but show a smug smile. He tapped the railing and spoke to his servant, “Come, let’s go meet this earl.”
“My lord?”
“The other day, I heard his followers refer to him as lord; if I’m not mistaken, he must be the real heir of the White Heron family.” Marquis Julian smiled, “He certainly wouldn’t expect to see me here; I really want to see the expression on his face when he sees me.”
Although Marquis Julian was known for being wild and unruly in noble circles, his subordinates now looked at each other in confusion. Their master was about to act recklessly to provoke a mysterious and powerful family simply to see the other party’s expression, even knowing he might be facing that mysterious lord— what kind of mentality was that?
However, Marquis Julian was somewhat disappointed when Brendel showed no surprise at all upon seeing him, as if he had already anticipated— in fact, he had known he would be here. Brendel extended his hand and said an old saying from the Jiufeng people, “A fight leads to acquaintance, My Lord Marquis.”
Fortunately, although Marquis Julian was unruly, he still inherited the knowledge and eloquence typical of the Corvado family. He was momentarily taken aback before deciphering the meaning of the words, then smiled, “Lord Earl, you truly are a remarkable person.”
Brendel, with a serious face, corrected him, “No, you’re mistaken. This one is my lord.” He guided Dierphir forward, causing the Earl’s daughter to redden a bit because he had tugged at her sleeve. She secretly gritted her teeth, thinking she must show this self-important fellow a lesson, but then felt a little deflated as she couldn’t think of any way to embarrass a Temple-recognized Temple Knight.
‘No wonder he isn’t afraid of me exposing him; he’s clearly in cahoots with the Temple,’ Dierphir was relieved that she had not acted rashly.
Marquis Julian did not expect Brendel to be so nonchalant and dismissive; in truth, Brendel had no connection with the Yan Fortress family. But Marquis Julian thought otherwise; he looked at the Earl’s daughter, whose expression kept shifting, and his suspicions only deepened. Yet, even so, he still smiled and replied, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lord Earl.” His demeanor was elegantly different from when he was in the Temple.
It was a pity that the Earl’s daughter was still lost in her thoughts and didn’t even know how she responded. After Marquis Julian, the nobles came to greet this heir of the mysterious and ancient family one by one, mostly just exchanging pleasantries. However, what surprised Brendel was that even Duke Anlek and Duke Seifer came over to offer their greetings, making him internally exclaim that this mysterious family indeed exuded immense allure.
By Martha, these two ducal lords nearly represented the pinnacle of power in Erluin; logically, they could completely disregard a privileged earl and maintain their dignity. But what truly made Brendel’s heart race was that he saw the royal faction moving towards them; that was not the key point; the key was that the ministers of the royal faction were surrounding the pearl atop the crown of this kingdom— Princess Grifian.
“This is terrible.” Brendel’s heart began to race uncontrollably. The Princess had once been the spiritual pillar for all Erluin players, and this kind of adoration and fervor even surpassed the respect for the Valkyrie. Because she was the one who perpetually inherited the will of Erluin; one could say that without her, there would be no future New Erluin. Although history had passed, that profound memory remained eternally.
In Amber Sword, Brendel had only seen this Princess from a distance a few times in public; he was merely a player, always observing from the sidelines, but he still remembered the overwhelming scene. Every Erluinian had a special affection for this Princess, and he was no exception.
Brendel had come to meet this Princess, but he did not expect this meeting to come so swiftly.
“Uh… I’m not ready for this.” Brendel couldn’t help but want to wipe the sweat from his forehead— if he had any.
Princess Grifian had already approached.
The hall of the manor had never been this quiet before, and this eerie silence finally alerted Freya, who was dozing by the carriage. She shook her head and blinked her eyes awake. “Awake?” Nemeses turned her head back, a rare warmth in her dark eyes, and smiled generously.
“Ah… I’m sorry,” Freya said, startled, “I accidentally…”
“Don’t worry,” Nemeses replied, “If you’re too tense, you’ll tire yourself; it’ll be fine once you get used to it.”
“Even so…” Freya revealed a frustrated expression, furrowing her brows. She ran her hand through her long brown ponytail and then bent down to check her sword, “I will be careful, senior sister.”
Nemeses nodded and then glanced towards the manor.
“What happened?” Freya couldn’t help but ask.
“That young earl from last night.”
“They came too?” Freya couldn’t help but look up in curiosity, but then her eyes widened in shock, “Ah! B-B-Brendel…” She trembled and pointed at Brendel, almost unable to believe her eyes. The face she had seen countless times in her dreams now appeared so clearly before her— making her almost believe she was still dreaming.
Nemeses immediately sensed something amiss; she turned her head, frowning, “Who did you recognize?”
“Ah… no…” Freya was momentarily at a loss for how to respond. This was too much; she thought Brendel was being exceedingly annoying, causing her trouble, whether in Buche or Ridenburg, and now again. How should she respond? Should she tell Nemeses that was Brendel? Unfortunately, she couldn’t even confirm whether it was truly him. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her as she recalled those two sneaky individuals she had seen last night were indeed Brendel and Julian.
So that’s the case.
The future Valkyrie’s expression shifted, but Nemeses, keenly perceptive, had already picked up on a hint of something unusual. She suddenly awakened and asked, “Is it those two from yesterday? Did you recognize them? They aren’t from the Yan Fortress family, are they?”
“Ah!” Freya stared at Nemeses, how did she not say anything?
The Knight Commander had already obtained an answer from Freya’s reaction; she swiftly drew her sword and turned to everyone, whispering, “Those people are suspicious, follow me to protect the Princess.”
Wait! Freya watched the scene in a flurry, wondering how it had turned into this.
……(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly votes; your support is my greatest motivation.)
