Chapter 259: The Key of Avalon, the Demise of the Goddess of the Mist

The sky in London is always gloomy. The sudden rainstorm yesterday caused smoke and clouds to cover the whole city.

However, an edict from the royal family seemed to clear up the fog and caused an uproar among the nobles.

"By decree of the King, Yeats Browning is promoted to Earl?"

At Lannister Manor, the Lord of Lannister was sitting at one end of the long dining table enjoying breakfast.

He examined the parchment letter that the messenger had sent urgently, his brows slightly furrowed, a strange look flashed in his majestic eyes, and he said, "It seems that His Majesty values ​​this Ye Zhi...Juan very much. He will become a strong competitor for you. Don't underestimate him."

June was sitting at the other end of the long dining table. Upon hearing this, she sighed softly in her heart.

'Father, you obviously don't know that Ye Zhi already has the strength to kill a five-ring hero. I can't possibly be his opponent!'

June picked up a piece of fried egg with a fork and put it into her mouth, a little absent-mindedly. There were many things she was not comfortable telling her father.

"Fortunately, he and I are friends... I just hope that Your Majesty can lend him a hand and not let him face the threat of Lord Blood Spider alone!"

Lord Lannister was concentrating on the letter and didn't notice his daughter's strange behavior. He looked thoughtful and said:

"From now on, everything north of the Great Wall is the territory of Morningfrost Ridge... Such an earl is already qualified for the Lannisters to make friends with him, June, June?"

"Ah? What's wrong, father?"

"Go to Silver Birch Manor later and take my handwritten letter and a box of jewels with you. Say it's a gift from the Lannister family to the new earl." The Duke stroked the jeweled ring and said calmly, "If the Lannisters want to achieve great things, they must not miss any allies they can win over."

"Yes, sir!" June agreed happily.

Silver Birch Manor.

Early in the morning, there was an endless stream of messengers coming to the manor to visit and congratulate.

Yeats was not only a poet chosen by the goddess of art and youth, but also an earl appointed by the king himself. He held an important position in the northern provinces and had a bright future.

Befriending him became the consensus of the nobles in Lundu City! The lobby of the manor became quite lively. Fokasi was responsible for entertaining the envoys from various families, distinguishing the family crests of the guests, and recognized that many nobles had laughed at the young master in the past.

As time went by, these people either sent messengers to deliver gifts or visited in person, with a certain degree of fawning and flattery in their smiles.

Phocas stood in the crowded antechamber, surveying the crowd and saying:

"The young master has to prepare for the duel event at the competition, so he cannot greet you in person. I hope you can forgive me."

"Haha, of course I should."

"I wish Earl Yeats good luck in the athletic competition!"

"The chosen poet of God is also good at swordsmanship, just like the great God of Light. I think young Master Ye Zhi seems to have been favored by the God of Light!" a dwarf boasted.

Suddenly someone in the crowd sneered.

The dwarf gave the sneering man a questioning look, his face slightly irritated.

That person was the messenger of the fanatic Duke of Alba. He said frankly: "The God of Light is just a false god. The Lord said, let there be light, and then there is light in this world! In my opinion, Earl Yeats should be baptized and convert to the Church as soon as possible. This will be the blessing of the Kingdom of the Golden Lion - goodbye!"

After saying this, the messenger turned and left, leaving the hall in silence as everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

Fokasse saw this and knew that religious conflicts were very intense in all parts of the continent. Even the Duke of Browndi suffered greatly from it and even lost his hereditary duke title.

The Bronti family suffered a huge blow and almost collapsed.

Fortunately, in Yeats, Fokasse saw hope for revitalizing Brondi!

"My lord has ordered a banquet to be prepared for you in the side hall," said Phocas. "Please take your seats, distinguished guests, to show the count's kindness."

The tense atmosphere was eased.

Laughter and joy rang out in the hall again.

The messengers praised Yeats highly.

"Thank you, Lord Earl!"

"How generous of you, Lord Earl!"

"There are always some noisy people who try to ruin the Earl's mood, but Earl Yeats is a generous man with the virtues of a knight! Gentlemen, please--"

"please."

In the living room.

Yeats personally made a cup of black tea for June Lannister.

June crossed her slender legs, took a sip of the black tea, and smiled, "You are an earl now, even my father thinks highly of you, he has always been very proud of you.

"You still have the opportunity to enter the Golden Lion Kingdom's cabinet and become an important official of His Majesty. This is something that small nobles like barons and knights cannot achieve!"

"I met with His Majesty yesterday and talked to him about the Blood Spider Lord, and got a lot of important information. And the reason why he conferred me a higher title was as a reward for me beheading the Blood Clan Marquis." Ye Zhi frowned and said:

"In addition, I have seen with my own eyes... His Majesty's health is not ideal."

Hearing this, June's face darkened and he said worriedly:

"If something happens to His Majesty at this critical juncture, there will be no one to manage state affairs, the vampires are surrounding us from outside, and the identity of the successor is unclear. This is really worrying."

Ye Zhi glanced at June and said, "I have something to say, but I don't know if I should tell you..."

June glanced at him and said unhappily, "Aren't we friends who have been through thick and thin together? Why are you still hesitating?"

Yeats said, "Well, what I mean is that if something happens to King Lionheart, your father will have a chance to ascend the throne, and you should be happy."

June glared at Yeats and said, "Would I be happy if the Golden Lions were in turmoil? A nobleman should be noble, honorable, and patriotic! Between power and honor, I will always stand on the side of honor!"

Yeats was stunned. She never thought that the ambitious Duke of Lannister could raise a daughter like June. The reason why June risked her life to help was also closely related to her good upbringing.

"You're right, try the ham I made and don't be angry."

Yeats cut a slice of air-dried ham himself and placed it on June's plate.

"How can you have afternoon tea with ham?"

June muttered, but still took a sip, then her eyes lit up.

"It's delicious! Yeats, did you make it yourself?"

Yeats smiled and nodded.

"This taste... is very subtle, not like pork. Could it be venison?" June chewed with a suspicious look in her eyes.

"It's the leg meat of a dead vulture." Ye Zhi said.

June was stunned.

Ye Zhi smiled and said, "The principles of decay and fermentation are exactly the same, and ham is a classic fermented food, so I made the dead vulture into ham, which has a unique flavor."

June's face turned blue, then white, and she almost vomited. She slowly put down her plate and gritted her teeth, saying, "Yates Bronte! I'll kill you!"

Seeing the fighting spirit burning in June, Ye Zhi shouted.

"Wait a minute! Don't you feel that your Tree of Life has changed?"

June was stunned for a moment, closed his eyes and examined his soul realm, and asked curiously: "What changes?"

"Your resistance to the power of the plague has increased. This is the effect of this [Air-dried Dead Eagle Ham]." Ye Zhi said calmly, "As the top food chef on the continent, I have a say in this regard!"

June's face was full of suspicion. Although she couldn't confirm it, she subconsciously felt that Yeats's words were quite credible.

"So I have to thank you?" June sneered.

Ye Zhi waved his hand and said, "Brother, you're welcome!"

June's eyes were complicated.

Although Earl Yeats is extremely intelligent and has the ability to leap levels and kill powerful enemies...but he seems to have a special liking for "cooking food with monsters"!

June sighed and said, "My father asked me to come here to give you a gift. We will meet at the competition some other day. Although I am not as good as you, I will do my best."

Ye Zhi nodded slowly and said:

"Come to think of it, the Lionheart King should announce the candidate for the crown prince in these few days."

"Really? He has made up his mind? Who do you think the crown prince will be?" June asked in surprise.

The heir to the medieval royal family was not necessarily the king's offspring. In many cases, he could be inherited by a distant relative, depending on the complex inheritance law.

But the crown prince of King Lionheart will definitely be a princess. Yeats read the script and said frankly: "It will be his eldest daughter, Renee."

"Her?" June frowned and said, "Don't you know? Renee's biological mother committed adultery, so Renee's birth is controversial. According to the law, she has been deprived of the right of inheritance. Even if the king declares her the crown prince, the dukes will never agree!"

"That was in the past. Now the blood clan has infiltrated the six duke families. As long as the Lionheart King uproots the blood clan, the power of the dukes will be hollowed out, and the power and prestige of the Lionheart King himself will rise to an unprecedented level." Ye Zhi said:

"Before he passed away, he could have used the prestige gained from getting rid of the vampires to force the amendment of the succession law and make Renee the crown prince again!"

June hissed, "Modify the inheritance law? Oh my god, why didn't I think of this trick?"

In her eyes, Ye Zhi became more and more unfathomable, as if everything was under his control, even the unpredictable King was within his expectations! Ye Zhi pondered and said, "In short, in the eyes of His Majesty, the vampires' mischief is not a bad thing. It gives him an opportunity to strengthen his royal power."

June's eyes flickered, and he said, "I understand what you mean. Getting rid of Lord Blood Spider is the top priority. Now that we know that His Majesty is on the same side as us... then, what should we do now?"

"Wait." Ye Zhi said briefly.

"Wait? Waiting for what?" June was puzzled.

"The fifth-ringed Marquis is already the limit of our resistance. The sixth-ringed Blood Spider Lord is definitely not something we can contend with. But now, the Blood Spider Lord's left and right arms have been eliminated by us. As long as the Sword in the Stone is in the hands of His Majesty the King, the Blood Spider Lord's plan to steal the country will not succeed. Instead, the risk of being exposed will increase day by day."

Ye Zhi analyzed, "When Lord Blood Spider sees the situation is critical, he may take action himself to ensure that nothing goes wrong, but this is precisely an opportunity to achieve a surprise victory. Once Your Majesty uses the Sword in the Stone as bait to lure Lord Blood Spider into the trap, I will go straight to Suffolk Manor and find the evidence!"

"Okay!" June's blood boiled after hearing this, and he stood up and hit the table. "If you can really eliminate the Blood Spider Lord, Yeats, I swear that you will be Lannister's lifelong friend. As long as you are here, the Lannister family will never go to war with the Brondy!"

It was a powerful statement coming from the heir to one of the two main contenders for the throne, the Lannisters.

Ye Zhi nodded slowly and smiled:

"We are not just waiting here. The duel tournament is about to begin. Your Majesty will definitely make some arrangements for this duel tournament. Let's participate together... I look forward to dueling with you."

Look at Yeats's outstretched right hand.

June was stunned for a moment, then she held it tightly, her cheeks flushed, and she said loudly:

"Let's compete. Am I afraid of you?"

*night.

There was a dead silence at Suffolk Manor.

Under the wine cellar, on both sides of the long and narrow passage, torches on the stone walls suddenly lit up.

Please...collect 6...9...books...!

The firelight illuminated a figure.

He wore a cold iron mask with a deep gaze, and carried an unconscious woman on his shoulders.

If Peren were here, he would be horrified, speechless with fear, and would point his finger at the figure to testify.

It was this figure, exactly the same as the one he saw that night, holding hostages! At the end of the passage was a secret room. The iron door of the secret room was opened, and a strong smell of blood wafted out, and horrifying torture instruments were placed inside.

The torture instruments of the Middle Ages are terrifying. Humans were so cruel to their own kind that it is unimaginable, including sawing, crushing wheels, and nail chairs. Among the many torture instruments, there is an exquisite iron cabinet.

On the iron cabinet was carved the face of a beautiful woman, who looked 70% like the Duchess. The Iron-Masked Man gently touched the iron coffin, as tenderly as a lover's caress.

Squeak——

The iron coffin opened on both sides and was filled with dense iron nails on the inside.

The Iron-Masked Man placed the unconscious girl into the coffin. The hinges made a dull sound, and the coffin closed. Blood flowed into the kettle through the pipe connecting the coffin.

The Iron-Masked Man picked up the kettle and disappeared. A few breaths later, he came to an exquisite wooden door with a tray in his hand.

Knock knock.

"Come in." A lazy voice sounded.

The Iron-Masked Man pushed open the door, knelt on one knee, held up a tray with exquisite glassware and scarlet liquid like red wine, and said respectfully:

"Your aperitif, my lord."

"Leave it there."

Behind the screen, the beautiful figure arouses people's reverie. She holds a thin tobacco between her fingertips, takes a deep breath, and slowly exhales the hazy smoke.

The Iron-faced Man did not dare to look up, and whispered, "Sir, you seem to be troubled."

"I underestimated someone."

The voice was full of fatigue, yet carried a fatal temptation, and seemed to come from the nasal cavity.

"Who is it?"

"The new Earl of the Golden Lion Kingdom."

"Yeats Brontë?" The Iron-faced Man was startled and thought, "Could it be that he killed Drasta and was then conferred the title of Earl?"

The figure chuckled twice, then spoke slowly.

"Yeats is very much to my liking. I really want to keep him by my side."

The figure behind the screen speaks in a lazy tone.

"But he is too smart, and the fewer smart humans there are, the better."

The Iron-Masked Man was stunned for a moment, with a hint of jealousy in his voice.

"I don't understand, how could he kill Drasta? There must be something wrong behind this!"

"This is exactly what I neglected."

The figure behind the screen said calmly, “However, the Black Prince’s Ruby has restored some of the power of the Blood King’s Spear.

"The Sword in the Stone is the key to the plane of Avalon, and I must obtain it.

"This time, I'm going to do it myself to make sure nothing goes wrong!"

*Etinburgh Cathedral, Northern Province.

The Gothic church points to the sky, majestic and magnificent.

The sunlight shines through the stained glass window, illuminating Archbishop Tolbin who is praying with his eyes closed on the altar.

A figure walked into the church.

When the Duke of Alba saw Torbin, he was like a lost lamb who saw the way home. A glimmer of light appeared in his eyes, and he stepped forward quickly and said, "Father Torbin, I have come to confess to you."

Tolbin had a handsome appearance and a friendly smile that could even be considered a poster for a priest. He said in a gentle voice:

"Then please follow me to the confessional."

The Duke of Alba's face relaxed, his eyes were moved, and he followed Torbin to the confessional.

"What do you want to confess to the Lord?"

"I suppressed a group of ignorant mobs, and my hands were stained with the blood of ignorant people. I came here to confess to God."

"Everyone makes mistakes, but as long as you sincerely repent, God will forgive your mistakes."

"I am sincere."

"That depends on how sincere you are. You know, indulgence is a way to reform yourself." Tolbin said gently: "Money is Mammon's means of tempting people, but someone can bear this sin for you."

In short, repentance is simple, just spend money to buy indulgences!

"Of course!" said the Duke of Alba devoutly. "I will soon have it done. In my humble opinion, this church also needs renovation."

Tolbin nodded with a smile.

Torbin didn't know whether the gods would forgive his mistakes, but the goddess of mist had already forgiven him.

The money that the Duke of Alba uses to atone his sins will be used by Torbin, the Archbishop of the Cult of the Mist, to strengthen the Cult of the Mist.

Cheating and deceiving also costs money. No matter how disorganized and undisciplined the Mist Cult is, daily operations may cost a lot of gold coins. For this reason, Tolbin disguised himself as the Archbishop of Holy Light and made great contributions to the Mist Cult with the merits of indulgences! The Duke of Alba left with many thanks.

Tolbin looked at his back, looked up at the sky, and suddenly remembered the recent rumors.

Yeats Brown had become an earl, and his prestige in the northern provinces was rising.

When Tolbin prayed, he had received an oracle from the Goddess of the Mist about the identity of Earl Yeats: he was also a member of the Mist Cult and was chosen by the Goddess of the Mist! At first, Tolbin was still suspicious whether the Goddess of the Mist was fooling him again.

The Mist Goddess has a history of this—

She even deceived her own believers! A Mist believer turned out to be a high-ranking earl in the kingdom, which really shocked Tolbin.

As expected of the Chosen One of the Mist God, even His Majesty the King could not see through his identity as a Mist believer! As a fellow Mist believer and having seen the extraordinary qualities of the Chosen One of the Mist God at the festival, Tolbin had special respect for Yeats and secretly ordered people to take care of the glass business in Morning Frost Ridge.

A large amount of glass is needed to build the church, and almost all of this material was purchased from Morning Frost Ridge!

Follow the habit of prayer.

Tolbin went to the sanctuary in the church where the sacrificial vessels were kept and lit special candles.

The sanctuary was suddenly filled with a white mist that remained at ankle height.

Immediately, Tolbin knelt down, immersed his body in the mist, and prayed to the altar where the cross had been placed but was now empty.

"In the name of Kirigakure, we must give and take, raise hopes and crush them. Even when we cannot lie, we cannot tell the truth..."

In the past, the mist would rise up and cover the entire room, and sometimes the whispers of the Mist Goddess could be heard in the mist.

However, the mist suddenly dissipated.

Tolbin stood there in a daze, an expression of extreme fear on his face.

He was horrified to find that the blessing of the mist in his body was fading.

As if the goddess of mist had died, the mist divinity in the soul realm quickly disappeared! Tolbin was shocked and confused, and murmured: "The goddess of mist...she has fallen?!"

Tolbin's expression was moved. He suppressed his panic and took a deep breath.

After the Goddess of Mist was promoted to a medium-level divine power, She has rarely performed miracles on the continent.

And now, even the remaining mist divinity on the continent is disappearing, as if the mist goddess has really died! Tolbin paced back and forth in the room, feeling a little worried.

If the Goddess of Mist really falls, the consequences will be disastrous!

The power of illusion will be swallowed up by the Goddess of Magic, and even the Mist Cult will lose its foundation and disappear completely! The more Tolbin thought about it, the more worried he became. He suddenly stopped and clapped his hands, saying, "I have to go to Lundu - Earl Yeats, he is the chosen one of the Goddess of Mist."

"I have to meet with him and tell him the news of the Mist Goddess's demise. Let's see how he reacts!"

Tolbin pondered for a moment, and actually felt a little bit of anticipation, as if he found it quite interesting. He said with a smile on his face, "Hmm... the expression of the Chosen One will surely be quite interesting!"

(End of this chapter)