(Isekai穿越 + Medieval Western Fantasy Magic + Food + Management + Micro-mystery elements. CP is Andre Lu Huntington, Vice Captain of the Royal Knights.)
A gourmet detective novel with dual...
Chapter 59: Viscount and Baron (Part 1)
Andre Lu Huntington had a very eventful day.
After Jiang You took Jericho out, Andre went to the basement again.
He first carefully recorded the magic circles left by Mi You for refining liches and summoning souls, as well as related on-site evidence, using the photo crystal according to the rules and regulations of the Knights' case handling. Then he searched for clues again. After finding nothing, he followed the normal cleaning process of the Kingdom Knights and cleared away the remaining traces of magic in this "scene".
This was the proper procedure for the Kingdom Knights. While cases could easily hit dead ends, life still had to go on. After recording the scene, it had to be handled as quickly as possible. Dangerous magic circles couldn't be left unattended. Whether it was reused by a criminal or accidentally triggered by a passerby, it could lead to disastrous consequences.
But as he was cleaning, he always felt something was strange, so he stopped and recalled everything that had happened since he first broke open the door of the house.
Scenes emerged one after another in his memory. After a while, Andre sighed, "This skeleton is not simple."
You have to understand that the authority of the Kingdom's Knights during this era was comparable to that of the Jinyiwei during the peak of the Ming Dynasty. They could arrest and torture anyone they disliked, breaking into homes, beating people up, disrupting people's lives day and night, and disrupting their businesses... These were commonplace practices.
The knights were incredibly powerful. Those born into wealthy families were accustomed to lawlessness, and commoners who had fought through immense competition to secure official positions were no better, eager to profit from any opportunity. They ignored due process, only seeking to extract the most from the people first. As for whether the suspect was dead or alive, innocent or the true culprit, they naturally had a way to deal with it.
Andre is naturally not such a person. He joined the Knights of the Kingdom with great ambition and vowed to correct this evil trend for King Huntington.
But this skeleton lich didn't know what kind of person he was.
She saw the Kingdom Knight coming to investigate the case, but she was not surprised or panicked. She easily resolved the tense conflict between the two, and took advantage of the situation to show her innocence and legitimacy. She also used the rose glutinous rice balls and fermented rice to show her strength, which subtly changed her position in his mind from a "suspect" to a "usable resource".
"This lich skeleton is not as innocent and easy to bully as she appears to be."
On the surface, he was cheerfully pretending to be stupid, but in fact, he knew people's hearts very well... It seemed that the lich had been giving in, accommodating, cooking and helping, but in fact, he was the one who was being led by the nose.
Although he proposed every step himself, the bricks he stepped on were actually quietly laid by the lich... showing off his cooking skills, demonstrating his ability to identify the scent of emotions, then leading him to the neighbor next door, allowing him to "keenly" discover the injustice, and then naturally using this case as the starting point for his first attack in Eston West City.
Coincidentally, the person who suffered from the injustice of the case was also the supplier that Jiangyou urgently needed to get to know... She didn't spend a penny, and just by clacking her upper and lower jaws, she negotiated the first business deal.
Of course, Andre admitted that he also played a role in adding fuel to the fire.
Andre touched his chin and laughed: "Interesting."
He didn't mind finding a clever partner. The two of them could use each other's strengths... well, it was mutual benefit and mutual assistance. A wolf-like enemy was always better than a pig-like teammate. Furthermore, this lich looked more like a friend than an enemy, more like an unlucky guy who had been accidentally dragged into this whole incident.
"Surrounded by powerful enemies, I have stumbled upon a helper."
This bone lich obviously has her own little plans, but Andre doesn't care. He also has other plans in mind. The two of them are almost the same.
At the moment, it seemed that the lich had put all her scheming into this brewing workshop, solely focused on running her small business. This didn't affect Andre's plans, and he didn't mind trying to help her out.
After cleaning the magic circle in the basement, Andrei threw the rag into the bucket, checked the time with magic, and sighed: "It's time to go meet the city lord."
He washed up, put on his shiny armor, led the tall horse Diego out from the backyard, and galloped all the way to the city lord's mansion.
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Baron Augustin von Neumann, the lord of Eston West, was a member of the German clan left over from the old dynasty. Although people said that the German clan had declined since the new king took office, he himself did not think so.
He was wealthy and powerful, ruling over a major city, five small towns, and seven villages. He had even secured a seat on the Kingdom's Parliament, a burgeoning political power, and commanded a regiment of knights. While not as wealthy as a nation or possessing a vast military force, any disturbance would keep King Huntington awake for three days.
"Sir, Viscount Andre Lu Huntington is here to report. He is already waiting in the front hall." The butler, with his gray hair and beard meticulously greased with hair oil, stood upright in a butler's uniform and reported expressionlessly. It was obvious that he was a servant of an old aristocratic family.
"Just tell him to wait." The baron, sporting a beer belly and dressed in burgundy velvet pajamas, waved his hand lazily, adorned with jeweled rings. "He's just King Huntington's dog... what kind of viscount? Ha, without land, money, or soldiers, what kind of 'noble' is he?"
"Master, do you want me to send someone to..." The butler raised his hand with a wooden face and gently stroked his neck.
"Oh, no, no. We can't do things too roughly!" The baron sank half of his body into the soft sofa. He put down the wine glass in his hand on the table beside him and picked up an opened letter on the table. "Look at this, the official bulletin just sent this morning."
The housekeeper took the letter, opened it, and his expression changed slightly: "This, this is..."
"That old dog Huntington hasn't just sent me a 'viscount' who doesn't deserve the title. He's sent such a dog to all the territories of the German clan. Old Baron Pengerton on the border is a hot-tempered fool... just like you, only thinking about venting his anger, not caring about face, and even less about the overall situation.
"He killed that 'Viscount'... Tsk tsk, over thirty knights besieging one man, it was quite a bloody battle. And yet, Huntington sent troops to surround his territory the next day. Not only that, but the Rock and Iron Giants across the border destroyed his farms, causing him considerable losses. Miraculously, innocent civilians suffered no casualties..."