Chapter 152: Talking Skeletons, Visit from the Earl's Son
Rand didn't know whether other skeletons could speak, but this skeleton should be able to speak.
After controlling the skeleton man, Rand led his men back to the base of the Royal Guards. Since they would be staying in the royal city for a long time, Rand prepared a few pots for the base and even cooperated with the restaurants in the royal city to provide extra meals for the Royal Guards.
The skeleton was tied up with iron chains. Although its hands and legs were blown off, this thing was at the level of a senior professional after all, and Rand did not want to give it a chance to escape.
"Tell me, what is your purpose?" Rand moved a stool and sat in front of the tied skeleton.
Thess went to be the local bishop, Thrai was serving as Fenris' deputy, and Tanr was probably robbing in the Snow Fox Territory. For a moment, no one was there to move the stool, so Rand had to move it himself.
The skeleton made a mechanical sound, as if some alchemical voice machine had been installed in its skull: "Kidnap you."
"Then what."
"To force you to admit that Lord Stag is the traitor."
"Count Feihu asked you to come?"
"no."
Rand asked a lot of questions again. When it came to what the skeleton wanted to do recently, he would tell it, but when it came to the Scourge Cult, he kept silent and ignored the threat of death.
Rand asked Ellie next to him: "Is there any way to make the skeleton feel pain?"
Ellie thought for a moment: "Take its money."
"Uh uh, is there any way to make him feel pain physically or spiritually?"
Ellie thought for a moment and said, "The ritual vessels of the Torch Church, or the cattle and horses you made, should be fine."
Rand listened to Ellie's advice, and after some effort, he found someone in the royal city to buy him a Holy Fire Torch. The Torch Church was actually having a promotion now, and when he bought the Holy Fire Torch, he got a gift for testing.
The skeleton trembled and began to beg for mercy, but he wouldn't say anything.
Rand roasted it with the holy fire of the Torch Church for a while, and it cooperated by screaming, but still didn't say anything.
Because he was very interested in this information, Rand tortured the skeleton all night long, and only gave up at dawn, but it seemed useless. The skeleton did not seem to be completely fearless of death, but it seemed to attach great importance to the secrets of the Scourge Cult, and at least was willing to protect them with his life.
Although Rand didn't know whether this thing was alive or not.
The Scourge Cult can also be considered a sect. In theory, all gods' powers are harmful to the undead, but the power of the god Scourge Apostle, the First Resurrected, the Silent Skeleton, and the Prophet of Evil Flame is an exception.
In other words, not all divine powers are harmful to the undead, but it is another attribute of the divine power that can cause harm.
Rand had tested it when he was in the hideout. The power of the goddess of abundance, the power of the god of struggle, and the power of the goddess of torches were all particularly harmful to the undead. These three powers would also harm each other.
Well, if we understand the power of the undead as the power of the god Scourge, then the theory makes perfect sense, and it is just the mutual exclusion between the powers of the gods.
The first expansion pack of the game "Deep Moon" is "Rebellion of the Realms", and the third expansion pack is "The Sacrifice of Grand Duke Vladimir". The second expansion pack sandwiched between these two is "Land of Chaos".
The protagonists of this expansion pack are the Cult of the God of Struggle and the Cult of the Apostles of Scourge.
During the chaos of the nations, the fighting between human countries brought countless wars and killings, followed by plague, famine, and death.
The split of the Torch Church and the gradual decline of its influence also led to the rise of these cults.
But I didn't expect that the Scourge Cult has already started its activities, and no one knows what they are doing in the royal city of the Frost Moon Kingdom.
Although the Torch Church has begun to retreat across the board, there are still bishops stationed in the royal city of the Frostmoon Kingdom. Rand plans to ask someone to see if there is any way to make the skeleton speak.
After ordering the guards stationed here to take good care of the skeleton, Rand returned to the mansion with Ellie.
When the door of the mansion was opened, Olenna, dressed in casual clothes, was seen cleaning the mansion.
"Oleanna, just let the maids do this kind of thing." Rand said helplessly. At this point, he had never used a maid. When he was in the hideout, the place he lived in was just a small space in the sacrificial room, which he and Olenna could clean.
As for the lord's hall, Rand usually cleans it with the believers during worship time.
But I have never used a maid.
But Rand will definitely not stay in this mansion in the royal city for long. After finishing things here, he will return to his hideout.
It would indeed be better if a maid stayed here to clean, otherwise the next time something happened, the mansion would probably be filled with dust.
Olenna rarely rejected Rand's proposal, saying that she could handle such matters.
Ellie looked at it and said she could help, too.
Rand didn't understand why Olenna and Ellie were against him hiring a maid, but since they didn't seem very willing, Rand didn't insist on having a maid. After all, it was just cleaning the house, so it would be a bit harder if he did it himself.
The mansion was not small and had a small garden. The time that Rand and Ellie spent away at the ball was not enough for Olenna to clean the mansion by herself.
Rand looked at his dress and prepared to change his clothes to help.
Rand had just changed into casual clothes with Ellie when there was a knock on the door.
He is the eldest son of the Earl of Bucks.
He is really handsome, too dazzling, with the same standard blond hair as Earl of Stag, a well-trimmed suit, and angular three-dimensional facial features.
A standard Western handsome guy.
Seeing that it was Rand who opened the door, Mr. Eldest Son put one hand on his chest and saluted: "Lord Rand, my father asked me to come and tell you something."
Rand made way to allow the eldest son of the Earl of Stag, named Shelan, to enter the mansion.
"What's the matter? I just happened to have a problem here." Rand asked him to find a chair to sit down, and he also dragged a chair to sit down.
"You go first?"
"You go first."
In fact, Rand is younger than Shelan in front of him, but the other side has been treating him as an elder, which makes Rand feel helpless.
Although it is true that Rand is now a father-like figure, at least when Earl Stag and Marquis Black and Brown talk to him, they do not treat him as a child, but discuss with him as an equal.
"Earl Flying Fox was attacked and is said to be seriously injured. The king has sent a doctor and a priest to treat him."
Upon hearing the news, Rand's first reaction was that Count Feihu staged this incident himself, but then he thought that he would not be seriously injured, so he wondered what the situation was.
"Has the murderer been caught?" Rand asked.
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"No." Shelan explained in a serious tone. His father, Earl Stag, had personally emphasized to him the attitude towards Viscount Rand, and had also told him many stories about Viscount Rand. Even though Rand looked about the same age as him, he was still a little nervous when he spoke.
"According to the initial investigation, it should be the work of some kind of undead. Strong necromancy energy was found at the scene, and Count Feihu's wounds also had obvious necromancy energy." Shelan continued to recite the sentences that he had repeated several times in his mind.
"So he's really seriously injured?"
"Yes, Lord Rand, it is also quite a difficult situation for the king's physician and priest."
Rand said he understood, and then said: "I also encountered an undead here, an undead thief, whose strength can be classified as a senior professional."
To be honest, this level of combat power is too much of an underestimation of Rand, but it is also normal. The Scourge Cult should not have the right intelligence, and Rand is only a viscount, and a newly promoted viscount with no background. In theory, he should not have senior professionals as guards, let alone the most senior professionals.
As for Count Feihu, the one who went there might be the highest-level undead, or even more than one.
But it’s a pity that the old guy survived.
Looking at the eldest son of the Stag Count who was sitting there and showing that he was listening carefully, Rand continued, "After torture, it turned out that it was something from the Scourge Cult. The plan was to kidnap me, but unfortunately it failed."
So thinking back to the scene at that time, the undead thief should have had companions to assist him, but they did not show up because they saw that the undead thief was easily caught. Otherwise, it would not be easy to capture Rand under the protection of the royal guards.
Shelan said that he understood everything and wrote it down.
Rand also nodded, then smiled and said, "Would you like to stay for dinner?"
This was a habit from his previous life, especially since Shelan treated him like a respected elder, which made him feel like he was in the role of an elder.
Shelan naturally didn't dare to refuse. He nodded and sat there restlessly.
Olenna naturally prepared the ingredients and pulled Ellie over to prepare them.
Rand was left facing Shelan somewhat awkwardly.
If Shelan didn't treat him as an elder, he actually had a lot of topics to talk about, such as what the entertainment venues in the royal city were like.
According to Rand's understanding, a prosperous metropolis like the Royal City should have many entertainment venues. It is not possible that the entertainment of the nobles is only dances and banquets.
Isn't there a so-and-so area? There is also a theater. Rand didn't like watching this kind of theater performance in his previous life, but he is interested now. Entertainment in this world is really scarce. He didn't feel it when he was under work pressure before, but now that he has come to the royal city, he has been bored to the point of torture in the past few years.
It would be better to find him something to do.
Unfortunately, Rand couldn't say it now. Shelan treated him as an elder, which in another sense was equivalent to putting him on a pedestal, and many things were difficult to say.
And Shelan didn't dare to chat. As for his elders, he was usually given orders and he didn't know what to talk about.
Fortunately, Ellie and Olena were not slow in preparing the food. The kitchen should have already prepared some food, and since it was breakfast, it wouldn't be too much trouble.
Milk, baked white flour buns, and egg rolls.
Sugar was added to the milk and the fishy smell was removed. Steamed buns were Rand's idea. Steamed buns were simpler to make than bread. At least he knew how to make steamed buns and the specific techniques. After he couldn't stand the smell of alcohol in bread anymore, he invented steamed buns.
Since there had been trade between the hideout and the territory of Earl Stag before, Shelan was familiar with the dishes of the hideout, so he was not at a loss as to how to eat the food.
But he was surprised that Rand's dining was so simple and not extravagant.
For the nobles, extravagance is a virtue, because the food for the servants is the leftovers of the nobles. If they are too frugal and eat all the food, the servants will starve.
And the two women whom he dared not look up at should not be servants or waiters, otherwise they would not be qualified to sit at the table. So, Lord Rand actually has no servants.
Shelan secretly took note of it, thinking that he could give Rand a few maids with decent looks in the future.
Although they were probably not as beautiful as Rand's two female companions he saw at the ball, people who were used to eating delicacies from land and sea might not necessarily dislike some down-to-earth, ordinary and simple food.
(End of this chapter)