Formal attire is required for attending a formal banquet. Leisia asked the carriage to go directly to the clothing store on Silver Cross Avenue. She had prepared more than one set of formal attire for Shade in advance for the wedding banquet next Tuesday. Today was a good time for him to try on one set. If it didn't fit, he could change it.
So, with the help of Leicia, Xia De packed up for a long time before officially setting off for the wine capital of the South.
The dinner was quite large and was scheduled to start at seven o'clock. When Shad walked out of the underground wine cellar of the White River Valley Vineyard, half of the setting sun could be seen in the western sky, hanging at the end of the wilderness.
Mr. Bernhardt and Shade had arranged to meet here because his estate was nearby, but when Shade arrived, the middle-aged viscount had not yet arrived, so Shade walked around the estate, thinking that he would have a chance to find Miss Sylvia again and ask Princess Margaret indirectly whether the estate could be sold. Although he did not plan to run a vineyard himself, the hidden wall in the wine cellar was worth spending his savings on.
The White River Valley Vineyard is not large, including the manor, wine cellar and nearby land. On weekdays, it is managed and maintained by two or three servants of Mr. Bernhardt. As for the winemaking and grape planting, they are all Mr. Bernhardt's own workers. His family is also famous for its wine.
Mr. Goodwin, the old servant who looked after the manor and warehouse, was also a vampire and was deeply trusted by Mr. Bernhard. Although he didn't know why Shade always appeared in the underground wine cellar, he was very loyal and pretended to know nothing. He also introduced Shade to the situation nearby.
Standing on the high ground of the manor and looking at the surrounding vineyards and farmland, the scenery is particularly pleasant even in early winter. Shade plans to take his cat to see the scenery here before the first snow falls. It's a pity that the cat doesn't like to go out, and Huntington is not a safe place at the moment.
At least, safer than Fort Midhill.
Hearing "her" voice in his ears, Shad nodded and listened to the old servant praising the scenery here.
"Speaking of which, when I arrived at Coldwater Harbor in the summer, the Scarlet Order had already begun the Sea Return Ceremony; when I arrived at Midhill Castle in early autumn, the problems in the narrow space had already begun to emerge. And now Huntington, apart from the illegal organizations that exist in every city, there is nothing special."
Tobesk, Coldwater Harbor and Midhill Castle, which were visited by outsiders, all suffered major changes. When Shade, the "audience", arrived in the city, a story would surely begin. But this time, Shade did not notice any problems in the local area.
“I wish the city of Huntington peace.”
He thought silently in his heart, facing the slightly cold wind between autumn and winter, and heard "her" laughter.
Mr. Bernhardt attached great importance to this banquet. Not only did he hang a large metal emblem of the Bernhardt family on the side of his carriage, but he also wore a formal dress that was obviously expensive. Because the temperature was a bit low at night, his formal dress had a fur collar and was thickened.
However, Shade, who had knowledge about the vampire race, clearly remembered that compared to humans, the vampire race was not afraid of the cold at all.
The banquet was held at the Rothschild estate in the center of Huntington where the princess was staying. The estate was the royal family's private property in the local area and occupied a considerable area even in the city center where land prices were expensive.
On the way from the eastern outskirts of the city to the large manor, Mr. Bernhardt excitedly told Shade about the rumors he had heard about the banquet, and was certain that this banquet would be enough for the nobles of Huntington to discuss for many years:
"The cost of the banquet is borne by the royal family. In order to show the importance of this visit, they have specially prepared quite high-end ingredients. In fact, Her Highness Margaret's luggage has been transported to the airship. They will leave immediately after the banquet. I really hope that we can hold the banquet on the deck of the steam airship as originally planned, but unfortunately the weather is too cold."
Mr. Bernhardt said this excitedly, and planned to introduce his vampire friends to Shade later.
The airship prepared for the visiting delegation of Princess Margaret of Anjou had landed this morning and was ready to depart after an inspection in the afternoon. Therefore, the banquet would not be held until very late and was expected to end at ten o'clock, giving the princess and her entourage enough time to board the airship.
Just as Mr. Bernhardt said, this extremely important farewell banquet invited many prominent nobles from Willendel and Huntington. When the carriage they were riding in drove along the ramp to the high point in the city center, Shade had already noticed that there were many nobles' private carriages traveling with them. Mr. Bernhardt was able to identify the owners of those carriages quite familiarly and introduced Shade to the past and traditions of these families.
Although Mr. Bernhardt was only a viscount, the Bernhardt family was the oldest noble family in the area. According to this upper-class vampire, the Bernhardt family had already taken root in this land before the emergence of the United Kingdom of Carsenrick.
The carriage drove along the streets of the city, and the gas lamps on both sides were lit up as the sun set. When Mr. Shade and Mr. Bernhardt arrived at their destination in the last rays of the setting sun, the gas street lamps on both sides of the newly decorated Rothschild Manor were already lit.
The dim light illuminated the city in the dark and the manor standing on the horizon. Gentlemen and ladies dressed in formal clothes passed by the street lights and chatted with each other. The gas street lamps in Huntington City were three gas lamps hung on a street lamp pole. This elegant black gas street lamp was also popular in Delarian, but only in Huntington City did it remind Shade of grapes.
Carriages were not allowed to drive directly into the manor, and since they did not arrive very early, they still had to walk a few dozen meters. After getting off the carriage, Mr. Shade and Mr. Bernhardt visually checked each other's collars and buttons, and then the two gentlemen politely walked to the gate of the manor.
The royal guards stood straight on both sides of the manor's fence gate, and the old butler of the manor was responsible for greeting the guests and arranging servants to lead them into the manor. When Viscount Bernhard appeared, the old butler with a hunched back recognized him immediately, but he did not recognize "Mr. Holmes" who came from outside.
Mr. Bernhardt wanted to use his own invitation to take Shad in, but Shad took out the one given by Miss Sylvia.
The old butler took a look at the invitation and looked at him in surprise:
"I didn't expect you to be a special guest. Please come in."
As he spoke, the young servant led the two people towards the manor courtyard. Outside the square stone brick path was an evergreen bush that was still green in early winter. In the middle of the path was a fountain statue of a knight reining in his horse, which divided the path into two roads on the left and right, and then closed behind the statue. The fountain was still working, and four long streams of water were sprayed from the top of the knight's helmet, eyes, and the mouth of the horse. Amid the gurgling sound, the sound of a violin could be faintly heard from the mansion.
As the other guests stepped onto the trail, Mr. Bernhardt lowered his voice and asked in surprise:
"Is this the invitation from Miss Sylvia?"
He knew that Shad didn't know many people locally.
"Yes."
Shade nodded cautiously, observing these nobles of Carsenrick, while Mr. Bernhardt was shocked:
"You are really amazing. You can even provoke a lady like that... But why am I not surprised at all?"
Although he had lost some of his memories of the night of the Battle of Middleburg, the things that had left a deep impression on Mr. Bernhard still influenced his judgment in his mind. Compared to Shade's pursuit of the angel-level relic, the Red Butterfly Twins, the witch certainly could not surprise him.
"That Miss Sylvia admires me very much."
Xia De explained softly, and added:
“I really appreciate my talent.”
He saw a middle-aged man in clergy clothing walking in front of him. He seemed to be a high-level sorcerer. Then he saw a middle-aged lady with a small bat symbol floating above her head and a pearl necklace hanging on her chest coming from behind and greeting Mr. Bernhardt warmly. This was a middle-level sorcerer. Then, at the door of the mansion, a young man holding a glass of wine and arguing with others about the rise and fall of Carsenrick's traditional culture passed by them. This was a low-level sorcerer.
"Where do so many ring sorcerers come from?"
Together with Mr. Bernhardt, Shade officially entered the magnificently decorated hall. They saw the crystal chandelier hanging from a high place, the dazzling array of gold and silver utensils placed on the long table, and the staircases on both sides that had been set up for the princess's next speech:
"This banquet will probably be quite interesting."