before he was crowned king

Mrs. Mary stood by the broken mosaic window. The thorns and vines clinging to the window sill filled her surroundings like a woven net. The colored glass was scattered on the ground, like gemstones of different colors, reflecting colorful floating light.

Opposite her, a man as delicate as a sculpture stood on a temporary tower of thorns, looking down at her coldly and indifferently.

The sudden change stimulated Mrs. Mary's nerves, and made her completely elegant and detached from her usual noble appearance.

"Duke Oscar," Madam Mary raised her chin slightly, "let me ask, are you crazy? This is Rose Manor. Using such a large-scale magic in the capital, according to the imperial code, your behavior is no different from rebellion, Queen His Majesty will depose your title, and you will be wanted throughout the entire empire."

"Madam Mary, Her Majesty the Queen will understand." Duke Oscar's lips moved slightly, his voice was steady, "This is human nature. Any father who sees his child being abused like this will do something unreasonable."

The corners of Madam Mary's mouth twitched, and the man's righteous words made her laugh a little.

She looked towards Duke Oscar. Not far away, a frail girl was lying on a soft vine net like a baby. The frosty white moonlight shone on her exposed skin, and the black and blue scratches on it were shocking.

"I don't understand what you're talking about. Lilian is just sick, and no one will abuse her for no reason." Mrs. Mary looked directly at the man in front of her.

"Then where did these injuries come from?"

"She made it herself, and the doctor can prove it." Madam Mary said without a trace of panic, "After the death of my adopted son Sean, Lilian went completely crazy, and she often used self-torture to relieve her inner pain."

"Mary Victoria, you have left these absurd remarks to Her Majesty the Queen to judge." Duke Oscar said expressionlessly, "I will easily let you off this matter, including the entire Cabed family."

Madam Mary gritted her teeth slightly, and her blood-red nails sank into her palms.

"Duke Oscar, do you really want to make things so ugly?" Madam Mary's voice was like a mallet made of ice, "Break into private land at night, destroy manor buildings, use magic in the capital...Even if Her Majesty the Queen tolerates any of these , you will be expelled from the gray wall, and stay in your remote fief forever..."

The bang sound exploded in an instant, and all the vines that invaded the room slammed towards the walls on all sides like a giant python at the same time, as if after an earthquake, there was a huge hole at the end of the building, on the gray-white wall. It is covered with cracked branch patterns, and it looks like it will be crumbling at any time.

The servants in the manor ran out like panicked birds and beasts, and the dozen or so members of the patrol team who were just playing cards rushed out with the equipped guns. Dozens of pitch-black gunshots directly frightened them speechless.

"Everyone keep quiet and arrange them in order. There are no timid servants in the Cabed family." As the most experienced butler of the manor, Thomas, who has always been kind, walked out of the panicked crowd, his old face Putting on a rare serious expression, the corners of his lowered mouth formed a sharp arc.

"Are you all guests from the Duke of Frederick's house?" The old butler Thomas stood in front of the crowd, his eyes found a familiar face under the firelight, "Mr. Lin, long time no see. Can you Come out and explain?"

"Nice to meet you, Thomas, you seem to be getting old." Some thin young people came out with a smile on their faces.

"Time flies, but it is a pity that it failed on you and Duke Oscar. After so many years, it has not left a mark on the faces of the two of you." Toms' voice was very emotional.

Lin Lin revealed a hint of a meaningful smile, but did not speak.

"What's going on now? The Duke of Oscar is a frequent friend of our master Yeshi. What made you point at the gate of our manor with dozens of firearms? It seems too dangerous."

The figure standing on the steps just now disappeared.

Like a flawless magic trick, Thomas has appeared behind Lin Lin.

"Mr. Lin, these things are harder to control than knives, so please open your mouth and let them all put it down." Thomas put his hand on the young man's shoulder and said earnestly.

There was a cold sharp point on Lin Lin's back, and as a housekeeper, he knew that it was a wide knife, often used to handle luxurious fish dishes.

"It's useless for you to threaten me like this, Thomas. They absolutely obey the Duke's orders." Lin Lin's voice was soft, "Even if you slice me up in front of them, it won't change anything."

"My knife skills have regressed a lot. Mrs. Mary doesn't eat raw or cold things."

"That's a pity. I still remember the slices of meat you cut back then. They were as thin as flower petals."

"That's sashimi." Thomas corrected with a slight frown.

"I know it's Toyo's specialty to pair it with spicy yellow-green sauce." Lin Lin said with a smile.

"That's mustard." The old butler lowered his head, and his black leather shoes crushed the green plants that were climbing up.

The two chatted slowly about some past events, and it looked like a long-lost reunion between old friends. In fact, as competent servants, they were all waiting for a hands-on order.

Murderous aura filled the air, ready to explode.

At this moment, the night suddenly brightened.

The flame greedily climbed up the thick vines, and soared above everyone's heads like a fiery snake.

"Everyone get out of the way!" Thomas let go of Lin Lin, giving priority to directing the situation on the scene.Lin Lin also raised his hand, signaling those who held the torches to retreat.They all knew that if there were heavy casualties, the nature of the matter would change completely tonight.

"Looks like it's almost over." Lin Lin raised her head and said.

"You're done, what I've left behind is a mess." Thomas felt distressed as he looked at the dilapidated manor.

"To each other. When the queen's judgment comes down, the compensation fee will be sent in a few days. You should renovate this place in advance." Lin Lin comforted.

"It's also a good idea. The style of this manor has been maintained for too long, and it's time to change it."

"I've wanted to move a few cherry blossom trees a long time ago. Although our name is Rose Manor, we can't just plant this kind of flower." The old butler scratched his silver-white hair, looking at the messy garden under the firelight, with a look on his face. Like a professional old gardener, it seems that he has carefully planned the future layout of this manor.

The sea is all over the sky, and the depressive bright red is approaching.

Unable to move, he could only wait desperately for the flames to consume the last of his consciousness.

Alex's whole body trembled, as if in order to avoid the desperate situation of being wiped out, his will ordered him to turn around immediately.

The pain of falling to the ground woke him up completely.

Alex's handsome face took a breath, and the cicadas and birds sang, bringing him back to reality.At this time, what was at the same level as his eyes was the naturally growing weeds and the pile of dry firewood that had been burned long ago.

"Are you so dishonest when you're sleeping?" Someone stood in front of him and said.

Eriks looked up and saw the golden hair shining in the dawn. He straightened up from the ground with embarrassment on his face.

"Good morning." Alex patted the dust off his body and coughed lightly, "I'm sorry, Sean, but I rarely do this."

"Having a nightmare?" Sean handed the black-haired youth a water bag filled with warm water.

"Probably, I can't remember." Erics broke his neck, and there was still some dizziness and discomfort in his head, "It seems to be a fire or something."

Sean's eyes drooped slightly, and he walked towards the horse, "Don't worry, I won't tell the story. It's dawn, and it's time to hurry. We're going to get there today."

"Thank you so much." Alex looked helpless, put his luggage on his back, and followed Sean's footsteps.

After riding westward for four or five hours in a row, Sean and Alex stopped at a post house, planning to buy some fresh food that had just been cooked.

They are not short of money, and if they have the conditions, there is no need to treat themselves badly to eat dry food that is hard to swallow.

"Good luck. We want to buy some food from you." Sean said to the middle-aged man standing in the posthouse.

"Go further, we don't have any extra food here." The middle-aged man said in a very irritable tone, "Not a single potato!"

Alex frowned.

"We'll pay you a gold coin," Sheen continued.

The middle-aged man was stunned for a while, and then he put the gold coin in his hand, "Pork and mashed potatoes, we only have this, we have nothing else to choose."

"Okay, take two." Sean didn't have too high a request, and Alex and Alex found two simple chairs and sat down around the dilapidated wooden table in the posthouse.

The middle-aged man quickly came over with two plates. The things on the plates did not look very delicious, at least far from being worth the high price of a gold coin.

"Please be more considerate, this is already the best food here." The middle-aged man spread his hands, "It really doesn't work, I'll give you two more glasses of ale."

"No need." Sean refused directly, and said lightly, "If you can tell us where Baron Toland's castle is, we won't ask you for the extra money."

"Do you know Lord Tolan?" The middle-aged man's voice trembled a little, as if he was suppressing some kind of fear in his heart.