The next day, Naina Brendel, dressed in a black ceremonial robe and wearing decorative carbon iron gauntlets, boarded a luxurious four-wheeled carriage with a team of guards and servants, and left Kaki's Lord's Castle early in the morning. He went to the Flower Alley in the Torreford District to visit Count Tangerine.
The gate of the garden mansion was as busy as a marketplace. Outside the new metal fence, merchants gathered together and chatted with each other. Countless mercenaries were looking forward to it. The messengers of several mercenaries were also lingering around, unwilling to leave.
Of course, there were also outlaws. Many vagrants and bandits were hiding in the shadows, staring maliciously at the scenery in the garden.
Why are there so many people?
Naina was puzzled. Seeing this scene, he did not immediately enter the Flower Alley. Instead, he sent a servant to investigate.
Soon, the servant came back with a report and inquired about the situation.
This noble was said to be from a free trade city-state in the central region. He was quite rich and extremely generous, and became famous in a short period of time. However, in a place like Kaki's border, wealth was not a good reputation, and it immediately attracted the covetous eyes of countless people.
When Count Tangerine first arrived, under the temptation of wealth, many rats that usually hid in the dark swarmed over. These vagrants and bandits joined forces, and relying on their numbers, they actually planned to directly rush into the garden and rob it.
In the end, more than a hundred people did not even get to see the Count's face, and they could not even get close to the noble's mansion. The Count's servants were quite valiant, just like a well-trained elite army. With only thirty servants, they cut off the limbs of these vagrants and bandits and threw them into the sewage river.
Under the deterrence of blood, the bandits with evil intentions did not dare to act rashly. However, they still lingered around, looking for an opportunity.
As for the mercenaries, they were attracted by the Count's generosity. It was said that the commission of the Count's servants was ten times that of ordinary dangerous mercenaries. Serving this noble for a year was equivalent to a lifetime of hard work.
These people gathered here were all eager to serve the Count. Although the Count's servants had proven their valiance, the men still hoped that they could be the lucky ones to be the first to be hired.
As for the merchants, they were not in the same world as the bandits and mercenaries. They were waiting for the manager of the mansion to come and purchase goods. It was said that if that person needed something, even if the price was 50% higher than the market price, as long as there was stock, the manager of the mansion would immediately agree to buy it.
"So, this Earl Tangerine has only been here for a few days, but he has already gained a lot of support in the outskirts of Kaki?" Naina raised her eyebrows and asked in a loud voice.
The attendants didn't dare to respond. Young Master Naina was very well-mannered, but his raised eyebrows already showed that he was faintly angry.
The guest overshadowed the host!
He cursed in his heart.
After a long while, Naina finally suppressed the anger in his heart. He calmed himself down and put on a gentle smile. He was what people called an old aristocrat. He was particular about being polite and maintaining honor and dignity, at least on the surface.
"Go and knock on the door," he said.
The carriage moved forward slowly. The Brendel family's flag caused the crowd outside the mansion to fall silent. They immediately retreated, but did not leave and continued to observe the alley.
When the attendants went forward to inquire, Naina also looked inside. From the carriage, he could see the outer walls of the mansion, a corner of the inner garden, and servants wearing uniforms coming and going.
It had to be said that if the layout of the garden was personally arranged by that noble, then his aesthetic sense was indeed superior. Whether it was the layout or the mood, or the choice of flowers and plants, as well as the arrangement of the fountain, Naina Brendel, who was born noble, could not find any fault with it, and even praised it.
It was like the design of the Empire where the sun never sets.
Naina was secretly shocked. He yearned for the Empire in the south that never sets, so he had read books about it.
Naina did not know that at the same time he was looking at the garden, a pair of eyes was also looking at him.
"The Brendel family's flag is finally here."
Caesar stood in front of the window and studied the visitor from a distance. He was more careful than Naina when he was looking at the mansion and garden.
"This guy is not Roy."
He made a disappointed gesture and began to walk back and sit down again. "This face is definitely that of a noble. His cheekbones are wide and protruding, his forehead is high, his eye sockets are deep, and his mouth is thin and thin. This guy is somewhat similar to Roy, but he looks older."
"Is he here?"
The little girl Luna was flying up and down around him. She had changed out of her favorite emerald green knee-length dress and put on a dark black gauze dress. She said excitedly, "Caesar, Caesar, I'm a little nervous. How should I behave? Should I change my personality?
Should I be firm and cold, or should I be humble and timid? "
"You just have to be the same as before."
Caesar patted her head. After using his human disguise, it was much easier to do this action. "These humans have never seen you before. How would they know what the Forest Fairy beside the Black Dragon is like?"
"And you don't need to show your face. Just show your face and show your existence."
Bringing the Forest Fairy with him would not arouse the Black Dragon's suspicion and expose his disguise. Instead, it would make them believe that he had nothing to do with the Black Dragon. This was a reverse thinking, and Caesar was very familiar with it.
At this time, the servant disguised as a shapeshifting monster came to report.
"Invite him in. Remember, 'invite'. Don't forget human etiquette." Caesar agreed.
"Please don't worry, Your … … My Lord."
The shapeshifting monster retreated.
When Naina Brendel walked into the guest hall, his footsteps were heavy and stiff, as if he was meeting a prince. He really could not guess what kind of person the other party was, so it was more appropriate to maintain a dignified manner for the first meeting.
Other than the red velvet scarf around his neck, the Earl's eldest son was dressed in black from head to toe. Only the buttonholes of his inner shirt were inlaid with thin red rims, which complemented the scarf and showed off his exquisite aristocratic style.
"Greetings, Sir."
Although Naina Brendel had great self-control, when he bowed to return the greeting, he could not help but look at the other party with obvious curiosity.
The other party's attire was extremely simple, but even the most picky old noble would not be able to find a single flaw. His entire body exuded an elegant taste. His upper garment, gloves, and boots were all made by masters, and the quality was extremely expensive. Most of them were made of the highest quality buckskin.
As he spoke, Naina played a trick. He did not call the other party Count, but used the general term 'Sir'. This would lay the groundwork for him to find out the other party's identity later. This was the most important thing, and the purpose of his visit was this.
Naina would definitely not have too much contact with a person of unknown origin. Even if he ruled out the possibility that the Black Dragon was in hiding, the other party could still be a spy sent by Duke Lionheart.
So this time, Naina did not think of anything else, and only wanted to find out the other party's background.
Caesar also knew this. If he wanted to come into contact with Roy and the other core members of the Brendel family, he estimated that he would have to go through this obstacle first.
This guy had thought of using force to threaten him, but after thinking about it for a while, Caesar gave up on this idea. With the Brendel family's performance in the last war, if the Black Dragon's true identity was exposed, it was hard to say if force would be effective.