scepter

Chris's face was pale, but it wasn't unhealthy white, but from being bored in the house without seeing the sun.

His words stunned Yannick for a long time, he didn't know how to react, so he could only repeat his words stupidly: "Have you finished the medicine?"

"Yes." Chris turned and went up to the second floor, "Come up and have a look."

Yannick followed him into the pharmacy, his mind was still stuck in the confusion just now, thinking about what he had to say.

"...You don't need to take what they said just now to your heart." Facing the eloquence that the Pope could speak with eloquence, after thinking for a long time, he could only come up with this sentence.

"They don't deserve my attention." Chris said with a paralyzed face.

Yannick didn't know what to say. Before he came, he thought he would take the opportunity to have a showdown with the other party, and set the relationship on the basis of strictly abiding by the teacher-student contract.Don't let Chris have another chance to cross the threshold, but after seeing him, Yannick found that his method would not work.

The side effect of too high IQ is too low EQ. The mage in black in front of him is a typical case.

The reason why he likes to be strong at every turn is because he doesn't know how to express his emotions at all. Those normal pursuit methods used by normal people are completely useless to Chris. He will only do what he thinks is right. Things, and then automatically block people or things you don't like or are not interested in.

This kind of personality allows him to focus on the study of magic until he achieves great success, but it also makes him rejected by the world or society, because he doesn't know how to adapt to the rules and communicate with others.

To put it bluntly, it is a bit of a character flaw.

So you can never try to reason with a person with a flawed personality. As for the use of force... Yanick weighed it up, and sadly found that his chances of winning were very small.

What's more, the scene he saw just now made Yannick's heart soften a little.

Chris' character, in the final analysis, is caused by his life experience.

If he could grow up in a normal environment, he wouldn't be able to grow up like this.

Thinking of this, Yannick sighed, no amount of anger could come out.

Chris saw that the other party was meditating because of his own words, and walked over to him strangely, leaning towards his forehead.

No fever.

Only then did Yannick come back to his senses.

"Chris, I want to talk to you."

Chris nodded: "I have something to tell you too."

Yannick coughed: "Then you go ahead."

Chris looked at him: "I apologize to you for the things I did to you before."

Yannick was taken aback: "You mean..."

Chris: "Sex with you."

Yannick: "..." Can you stop being so straightforward?

Chris: "Tiko told me that you will be very unhappy if you do this, and you can't use force to treat someone you like."

Yannick: "...Thank you Tico."

The brown eyes looked at him seriously, and Yannick could almost see his own reflection in these eyes.

"Yannick, I like you very much, please date me on the premise of getting married."

"..." The silver-haired bishop felt a little pained, "Is this also taught by Housekeeper Tico?"

"Oh, yes, according to his own words, he used this sentence to capture his wife."

The silver-haired priest twitched the corner of his mouth: "With all due respect, this sentence is 20 years out of date, thank you."

The mage in black rarely showed a confused and dazed expression, which made him look a little innocent.

Without an instruction book that could be scripted, he was a little at a loss as to what to do.

Yannick looked at the potion bottle he was still holding in his hand, and couldn't help softening his heart: "If you want to pursue a person, there are many ways. You don't have to force it. You can stay by his side for a long time..."

Seeing the other party's eyes brighten up, he almost wanted to slap his own mouth.

"...Chris, listen to me, I can't accept you for the time being, at least I don't feel the way you feel about me, and we are still a teacher-student contract. Strictly speaking, I have to be the same as before. I also call you a teacher, if a teacher falls in love with a student, it will be unethical, do you understand?"

The black-clothed mage was expressionless: "Where did you hear that opinion? It's only unethical between immediate relatives?"

"..." Yannick forgot that this is not his original world. In Olin Continent, there is no rule that teachers and students cannot form partners, but the contracts cannot be superimposed. After signing the teacher-student contract, I want to form If you are a partner, you have to terminate the partnership contract first and then re-sign the partnership contract.

Why did he suddenly have the feeling that Chris was playing a big game of chess from the beginning?

But judging by his emotional intelligence, it's definitely not like he can come up with such a far-sighted solution.

The silver-haired priest was very tangled.

"Since Tico said that you can't be forced..." Chris frowned, as if he regretted this way, "Then I will ask for your opinion first, and I hope you will not avoid me in the future."

"...Okay. But I'm leaving the Garter Empire soon." Looking into his serious eyes, Yannick felt that there was something wrong with the rhythm of the conversation, hey, didn't he originally want to explain his position and then refused!

"Why?" Chris asked.

Yannick talked about his visit to the Pope in the Papal State, "The Pope seems to be aware of our relationship."

"He knew we had sex?" the black-clothed mage asked.

"...No," Yannick had a headache, and only then did he realize that his words were a bit ambiguous. "I mean he may know that we have a close relationship, and may even know your mage status."

"He has no evidence," said the mage in black. When encountering something that has nothing to do with EQ, the tendon of his IQ returned to normal. "And my external identity is only the nobles of the empire. It is normal for priests to interact with nobles."

"Although this is the case, we'd better pay attention to one thing. I am going out this time, not just for a friendly visit."

Chris: "What does he want you to do?"

"...to spread the faith." Yannick felt his ass hurt when he thought about it. "And it is likely to go to the front line, where the undead haunt."

Belief in this kind of thing is nothing more than deceiving ignorant civilians. Like the upper-class nobles of those countries, they naturally have their own interests. As long as the interests are the same, we are good friends. Otherwise, the nobles can go to the mage to seek alliances. Anyway, the mage is also trying his best to win the alliance of the nobles.

"I'll go with you." Chris obviously sensed the danger of the journey.

"No, no need," Yannick shook his head, "This time I am bringing a group of attendant priests, there are too many people, it will be inconvenient for you to show up."

Chris: "I don't have to show up."

"..." Yannick thought for a while, and said to him seriously: "Chris, I am very grateful for your love, but I am a man, not a woman who needs to be protected all the time, and this task is very important to me. It’s very important to me that there may be various unpredictable situations, and I may not be able to find the time to deal with our relationship at all.”

"Oh," Chris thought for a while, "Then I'll put a mark on you, and then just use the teleportation scroll to teleport it."

Sure enough, he is a rich man! "...Wait, I didn't mean that!"

The mage in black looked at him with a little confusion in his eyes, and a serious listening expression on his expression.

"... Whatever you want." Yannick completely gave up the possibility of normal communication with him.

In fact, low EQ is still good. At least Yannick faces the Duke of Blood. Even if he becomes a kitten pretending to be silly and cute, he can't produce a little bit of soft-heartedness. Moreover, the Duke of Blood with too high EQ has so far defined the position of the silver-haired priest. , and is still on "Favorite one-night stand partner".Yannick obviously understood this very well, so his trust in Chris was unknowingly much higher than that of the Duke of Blood.

Of course, in the future, the Duke of Blood, whose credibility has fallen below the bottom line, will regret it after realizing this.

However, that is already a matter of the future.

The heir of the Garter Empire, the little prince Tang En, who was just three months old, is fat and white. He laughs when he sees everyone. It is not an annoying thing to be the godfather of such a little guy, but it is very regrettable for Yannick to get along with him The time is not long, according to the Holy See's ceremony to bless the little guy, after the two officially become godfather and son, he will leave the Garter Empire temporarily and set off for the first stop, the Principality of Mecklen.

Speaking of which, the bishop of the Duchy of Mecklen was not the first to respond to his visit, but this country has a special affinity for Yannick.

When he was hunted down all the way and fled from the Principality of Santos to the Principality of Mecklen, he used a fashionable oriental saying to describe him as panic-stricken like a bereaved dog. It was this country that gave him a sense of security and allowed him to stay. Remember every face in Jed's town.

Compared with the people he met later, they were either mages or nobles. Those small town residents can be said to be nothing special, but they took him in and gave him a peaceful life, and he was able to calm down and think. In the future, this friendship is very precious, and Yannick will always remember it in his heart. Even if he is inconsistent with his appearance and is not afraid of calculating others, he will never forget those who have shown kindness to him.

Out of this wonderful feeling, Yannick chose the Principality of Mecklen as the first stop of his mission. He even thought about finding an opportunity to pass by the town of Jed to visit those kind town residents.

The Garter Empire has a good relationship with the Principality of Mecklen. It is said that the first Grand Duke of the Principality of Mecklen is related to a certain emperor of the Garter Empire, so the two countries even set up a magic teleportation array for each other. However, the teleportation array was not set up in the imperial capital. The teleportation array on the side of the Garter Empire was set up in a small town on the outskirts of the empire, and the destination of the teleportation was also said to be located in the outskirts of the capital of the Principality of Mecklen.

This kind of teleportation array is two-way. In order to ensure national security, permanent officials and soldiers are stationed outside the teleportation array. You need to show a valid identity certificate issued by any country, and you can pass it first.

At this time, some people may ask, the officers and soldiers on guard are just ordinary people, if there happens to be that kind of magical and vicious person who kills them all and then forcibly passes through, what should we do?This kind of situation is not completely absent, but it is very rare, because if someone does this, then he will break the rules and become a wanted criminal on the entire continent. At that time, he will be pursued by the secular power, the Holy See, and the Magic Guild. Kill, so no one in their right mind would do such a thing.

After the invasion of the undead, many countries closed the teleportation array, and only kept a few parts, and invited people from the Holy See or the Magic Guild to sit in it to increase its security. In the event of an unexpected situation, the teleportation array can be closed in time.

The land area of ​​the Principality of Mecklen is about half the size of the Garter Empire. From a geographical point of view, the latitude here is higher, and the climate is colder than that of the Garter Empire all year round. The thick robes here are not only not cumbersome, but just keep warm role.

In terms of wealth, Mecklen is at the lower-middle level among mainland countries. From the small town that Yannick and the others just arrived, this small town is located on the outskirts of the capital, about four days away from the carriage, which is not too far away. Far away, as the post station of the teleportation array, it should have been a prosperous place extending in all directions, but as far as Yannick and the others saw, although there were many hotels opened and the trade area was very lively, the living standards of ordinary residents in the town It's very average, although it's not to the point where it's hard to survive, but it's not necessarily rich.

Sophia was also in the group of priests—she broke through Earl Marin's layers of defenses, and directly made her father so angry that she came out happily to join the public tour group, oh no, it was the group of priests.

Looking at the small town in front of her, she wondered, "Why is this?"

The town is clearly divided into two areas, one is an old residential area, and the other is a business area connected to the teleportation array. Many businessmen use this as a transit point for short-term business transactions. All the shops in the business area It is also mainly based on short-term rentals, which is convenient for businessmen from all over the world to trade with each other.

The two areas form a stark contrast.

"Because the Duchy of Mecklen has a high tax rate, and it only targets civilians in the country." Alfred said, he had lived in the Duchy of Mecklen for a while before.

"Why?" Yannick and others were very surprised.

"The government imposes high business taxes on domestic businessmen, so that the common people of the Duchy of Mecklen generally don't engage in business, and the businessmen who have already made money emigrate to other countries, so it appears' The strange phenomenon of "the country is rich and the people are poor."

"If everyone is driven away, what income does the government have?" Sophia couldn't understand this kind of thinking. You must know that in the Garter Empire, the national taxation standard is calculated according to the annual income of each family. The higher the income, the higher the taxes that need to be paid. Of course, there will be false reports and concealed reports, especially the situation where the nobles use their privileges to evade taxes, but overall it is still fairer than Mecklen's taxation method.

"Who knows! Maybe those aristocratic gentlemen think that their wallets will be bigger." Avery spread his hands.

The Principality of Mecklen expressed a very high standard of welcome to the arrival of the new bishop of the Garter Empire. A high-ranking priest and two middle-ranking priests have already been sent to greet him in the small town.

The leading high-ranking priest is called Owen. He is tall and thin, just like many priests of the Holy See, with a bit of reservedness. Of course, he is still very polite and respectful when facing Yannick.

From this small town to the country of Mecklen, you have to take a carriage. The carriage was sent by the church. As the host, Owen consciously followed Yannick into the same carriage. Bart, Beck, and Sophia were also in the same carriage. As for the others, they dispersed to other carriages.

It couldn't be seen from the outside, but Yannick was surprised when he got into the carriage, there was nothing special inside.

Like all noble carriages, the seats inside were covered with thick velvet mattresses, and the pillows were dark green with gold trim, which happened to be very similar to the color of Yannick's robes.But different from other carriages, these seats can be put down to form a big bed, and a small magic lamp above the head will automatically adjust the brightness according to the light inside. A table was set up, and the table seemed to use some kind of shock-absorbing device, even when writing letters while the carriage was driving, there was no hindrance.

As for the food, let alone, the drawer under the table is full of various delicacies, many of which are put in after cooking, and can be eaten after heating with the stove, and the stove is fixed next to the table.

Yannick didn't say anything yet, Bart and Beck were amazed, and even Sophia, the count's daughter, was eye-opening.

Seeing their expressions, Owen couldn't help being a little proud: "Your Excellency Hill, this is our bishop's special carriage. After he heard about your arrival, he generously lent this carriage. We shall all spend our time in this carriage, without going down at all."

Yannick said with a smile: "I have never seen such an exquisite carriage in the Garter Empire. It is really amazing. It seems that I have a lot to learn from Bishop Michel."

Owen also showed a smile: "On behalf of Your Excellency, I would like to thank you for your praise. Your Excellency has prepared a grand welcome ceremony in the capital to welcome you. I believe that you will have a very pleasant time in the Principality of Mecklen." Time!"

"It just filled me with anticipation!"

While Yannick and Owen were being courteous, the others finished marveling at the interior of the carriage and became interested in the outside. At this time, the carriage had already left the town, galloping on the path, with rice fields passing by on both sides.

"Your Excellency Owen," Sophia asked, "I remember it seems to be a five-day journey from here to the capital. Why don't we have to get off the bus? Are there any other towns on the way?"

When they first met, they had already introduced each other once. Owen was puzzled by why the daughter of an earl of the Garter Empire would follow a priest to visit other countries, and even murmured in his heart about the relationship between the two. There, he couldn't be too negligent.

"Yes, but they are not as big and poor as the town we stayed in just now, so there is nothing to see. If you stop there, the treatment you get will be many times worse than in the car." Owen laughed, "But You don’t need to worry, the capital of Mecklen is still very prosperous, and there are no poor people.”

After arriving in the capital five days later, Yannick and others understood what Owen said.

The entire country of Mecklen is divided into two parts, one east and one west. There are five city gates in total. The east side is the residence of ordinary citizens, wealthy businessmen, and nobles. There is a city gate connected, but it is generally impossible for people from the west to be allowed to pass through the east.

Owen seemed very satisfied with this status quo, and he even said to Sophia pointedly: "I heard that the imperial capital of your country did not impose such restrictions, so that those poor people have the opportunity to mix into noble residential areas. Disgraceful, and not safe for nobles."

Sophia said unceremoniously: "But Priest Owen, with all due respect, this approach will only intensify the conflict between the two classes. If one day those poor people rise up to resist, it will be difficult to handle."

Owen smiled disapprovingly: "This is something you nobles should consider, and it is not our Holy See that makes such regulations, but the nobles of Mecklen. Even if there is such a day as you said, those lowly poor people will not Will dare to offend the Holy See."

Sophia wanted to say something more, but Yannick gave it a wink, so she had to give up. She also realized that she was a little meddling. Anyway, this is the internal affairs of the Principality of Mecklen, and it is not her turn to intervene.

Just from the first impression, the country of Mecklen, together with the priests here, seem so different from the Garter Empire.

Just like now, they are in heaven, and one step to the left is hell.