Chapter 192 (1/2)
Chapter 192 Under the curtain of the night
About 50 people had come, they were all dressed in armor which was sparkling in the sun. Standing in lines of 8 with flags on all sides, three of them displayed the insignia of the royal family: the gray tower with the two pikes. Additionally, on one side there was a flag with a tower and a horse’s head on top. Carving through the memories at the back of his mind, he remembered that this was likely the symbol of the Hawes family of the northern border.
One of the cavalrymen stepped out of the ranks and yelled: “I am Lehman Hawes, the messenger of King Timothy. With me, I have brought the resolution of the King, pull down the drawbridge.”
“Your certificate?” Petrov stretched his head forward and asked loudly.
Hearing his question, the cavalryman took a bow and arrow from his back, tied a piece of paper to the arrow and shot it directly to on top of the city wall.
One of his guards immediately went over and picked up the arrow for Petrov. When he unfolded the parchment, he saw some faint crisscrossing golden threads embedded at the bottom of the document, and there at the lower right corner was the seal of the royal family, which indicated that he was indeed the new King’s messenger.
Seeing this, Petrov took a deep breath and shouted, “Lower the bridge and open the gate.” He could already roughly guess the content of the so-called resolution – it was undoubtedly related to Roland Wimbledon. Since the other party wasn’t a fraud, they also had no reason to refuse the new King’s envoy. Otherwise it was equivalent to declaring the new King, and the Kingdom of Graycastle as their enemy. And in case this news were to spread out, the other families would certainly come to target the Honeysuckle territory without any hesitation, and the currently suppressed undercurrent would instantly rebound.
However, since Timothy had only sent 50 people to inquire about the situation in the Western Territory, one of the Prince’s speculation had been confirmed – the new King, at present, was unable to rule over the Western Territory.
Since the Prince, His Royal Highness, was able to repel the Duke’s coalition who had more than a 1000 soldier, I’m afraid that these fifty people can only return without having any achievement.
Of course, His Highness has to be informed about this development as soon as possible.
Thinking until here, he called the Knight from before, “Westeros, take three short-tailed horses with you, interchange them during the ride, so that you can reach Border Town as early as possible. When you’re there tell His Highness that Timothy’s men have come.”
“As you bid,” Westeros nodded.
As the Knight turned around and left, Petrov sighed. “Let’s go and meet the new King’s envoy.”
…
When Petrov appeared at the city gate, with the exception of the ten people riding at the front, whose spirits seemed to be trembling with excitement, the rest of the Cavaliers all seemed a little sluggish, they were sitting with a crooked body on their horses, as if they could fall off any time.
“Welcome, Sir Lehman,” Petrov welcomed him with a nod. “I’m the stronghold manager belonging to the Honeysuckle Family, Petrov Hull.”
The word ‘stronghold manager’ left a bad aftertaste in his mouth. If he had really been in charge of the Western Border, being the Duke of the stronghold, he would never have had to salute towards an envoy. He wouldn’t even need to greet him at the gate. Instead, he could just stay inside the Lord’s castle, waiting for the other party to come to him.
“I have heard of your name at the Cold Wind Range, ‘Acting Duke’.” Lehman dismounted and walked over with a smile. “The Western Border is indeed a strange territory, even after assembling a vast army, Duke Ryan actually couldn’t conquer such a small town. Moreover, he even lost his own life, which is a rare circumstance for the Kingdom of Graycastle. Of course, for the Honeysuckle Family, this must have been good news.”
Petrov automatically ignored the irony coming from his words, “Are your men alright? They look to be a little… unwell.”
“Don’t mind them,” Lehman glanced backward, “They probably haven’t acclimatized themselves after rushing through the whole journey, they will be better after some rest. To be honest, this region is just too hot.”
“It’s only because the North is too cold,” Since the other person seemed to not to care about the matter, Petrov was too lazy to pay attention further to the subject. “I’m wondering why sir envoy has come from the Cold Wind Range, rather than from King’s City.”