The town was not big, so there was no need for a carriage to go to the Baron's Mansion. Chen Hansheng, Kalanda, Glade, and two guards, Chang Yujie and Jose, walked to the tallest house in the town.
Chang Yujie, like Wang Zifeng, was a warrior who had acquired low-level Dou Qi in the Dou Qi school of Qin Mu and Kalanda. He was originally a military training sergeant, and long-term training made him the best among the first batch of Dou Qi awakening students. Jose was originally a mercenary warrior under Kalanda, and he just awakened Dou Qi last year, but his rich experience as a mercenary gave him very good practical strength.
For Chen Hansheng, the ones going deep into the tiger's den today are the most elite forces in his hands.
The Baron's Palace is a three-story small castle, with a blue-gray rock exterior wall, no decorations, and straight lines. The top of the castle is covered with battlements for shooting arrows, and there is even a catapult on the second floor platform. It fully demonstrates the owner's martial spirit. If there are more towers, the outer wall is thicker, and there is a moat, this will be a real fortress.
Chen Hansheng walked to the door of the Baron's Mansion and touched the storage ring on his hand. This rare item was distributed to him because he wanted to expand the area. The good things prepared for everyone in the castle were hidden in it. And Chang Yujie beside him only had a space bag in his arms.
Seeing the butler Robin coming out, Chen Hansheng calmed himself down, behaved like a representative of the Mage Tower, and looked at the other party calmly.
"Welcome Lord Chen and his party to the Baron's Mansion. Please follow me." Robin said.
The five followed Robin into the courtyard and through a garden to the main entrance of the small castle, which was guarded by warriors all the way.
After entering the castle, Robin said to Chen Hansheng: "We have prepared food for your guards in the side hall. They can dine with the soldiers of our family."
Chen Hansheng winked at Chang Yujie, and the latter and Jose followed a guard away.
Then, Robin led Chen Hansheng and the other two into the main hall. There was a rectangular hall with a platform in front. There were two rows of long tables under the platform, one horizontal and two vertical. Many guests had already arrived. Most of them were dressed in military uniforms and talking in groups of three or five. When the three entered the hall, most people stopped talking and looked at them. One of them, a tall and strong middle-aged man, came over, saluted like a knight and said, "This is Mr. Chen, right? I am O'Farrell."
"Mr. O'Farrell, we finally meet." Chen Hansheng returned the greeting and introduced, "These two are my deputies, Kalanda and Glade."
After everyone exchanged greetings, the baron said, "I heard that Mr. Chen has a lot of things he wants to talk to me about. Today is a good opportunity. After the ceremony and dinner, we can have a good chat."
"Of course. I'm always at your service, Mr. O'Farrell." said Chen Hansheng.
"All the people who came here today are nobles from the surrounding area. You can get closer to each other. In my opinion, as neighbors, getting along well is the most important thing." The baron waved his hand, and three young men who looked very similar came over. They were all tall and strong. The oldest looked to be in his twenties, and the youngest was only in his early twenties. "These are my second, third, and fourth sons, Ackley, Israel, and Hahn. Ackley and Israel are both serving in the King's Northern Legion, and Hahn stayed with me. My eldest son is an official for the Duke of Greenwood City, learning how to manage a territory. The fifth son is a knight squire for the Duke's heir, Julieta."
The baron ordered, "Ackley, accompany Mr. Chen around and get to know the people from the surrounding area. You are the oldest and are familiar with the nobles. Your brothers and I still have some preparations to do."
After the baron and his two sons left, Ackley was left alone. After the baron left, he looked at the three of them and said with a smile, "You are the ones who hid Doris?"
Chen Hansheng's eyes flashed. He didn't expect that Ackley would actually bring up this matter here. Isn't he afraid of making the situation awkward
"Mr. Ackley, Doris lives with us, but I would like to ask you about this matter. What exactly happened to Irene?" said Chen Hansheng.
"Oh? So it's Mr. Chen who took Doris in. That girl is a rare beauty." Ackley praised.
"No, I have nothing to do with her. They are my townspeople now, and I want to prevent their family from encountering any more accidents." Chen Hansheng said.
"Hmm, I see. Does that mean I still have a chance to pursue Doris?"
"Are you pursuing Doris like you pursued Irene?" Karanda couldn't stand it anymore and said sarcastically.
"My beautiful lady, you must have misunderstood something. I never pursued Irene. Doris is more to my taste than her. I just care about beautiful things. At that time, I wanted to remind her that someone else had taken a fancy to her. If it were me, I would cherish every woman I touched and would never let her fall to that point." There was a bit of disdain in Ackley's words.
"Not you? Could it be your brother? You can't fool anyone by saying that Irene stole something." Kalanda said.
Ackley spread his hands. "I can only say that some young people are too impatient, but there's nothing we can do about it. They'll get better with more experience. As for Irene, I can only say that fate didn't favor her."
Chen Hansheng was really disgusted by these understatements. Seeing Kalanda's red face, he was afraid that he could no longer suppress his anger. He changed the subject and said, "It seems that if there is a chance, I will ask Mr. Ackley about the situation at that time. However, let's focus on the ceremony first."
Ackley said, "Of course, this is exactly what my father wants me to do. Look, the one wearing blue armor and holding a long sword is my brother-in-law, Baron Suarez. The one wearing black armor is Sir Paragus, the representative from Greenwood City. The one wearing a red wizard robe is Mage Pera from the Red Lotus Tower. She is the disciple of Mage Susanna..."
After introducing everyone present, Ackley pointed to the stage in front and said, "Lady Susanna of the Red Lotus Tower will hold a ceremony here in a while to accept my sister Jenny as a magic apprentice. By the way, Lady Susanna is also a great beauty."
As soon as he finished speaking, a female magician in a red robe, leading a little girl of about sixteen or seventeen, entered the hall from the side door.
Ackley said, "It looks like the ceremony is about to begin."