Scene 223 The Cat and the Drunk Man

Sandburg is located on the bank of a small lake called Stroy to the west of Rushta. At the turn of summer and autumn, the lake here reflects the castle and the distant skyline with the snow-capped Hazelroy Mountains, against which the towering mountains stand. The forest and the reflection of white maples are one of the most famous viewing spots near the imperial capital, but it is also a royal forest garden.

However, the imperial royal family does not often live here, and often only spends the entire long summer here to escape the heat. After the Silver Queen Constance came to the throne, the castle was used for a shorter period of time, not necessarily once every two or three years. Even if she went there, she often only stayed. Less than a month.

But even so, there are still groups of servants in the castle, and there are always guards. As early as half a month ago, a group of mountain maids were replaced in Sandburg. Coupled with the Flame Blade Knights who switched defenses with the Forbidden Army, this place has gained a lot of popularity.

But tonight, this ancient and elegant castle standing on the lakeside was unusually quiet.

The silver moon 'Timis' moved slowly over the nearby forest. The long shadow of the white maple extended forward with the movement of the moonlight, crossing the fence and the forest avenue, leaving a shadow on the city wall.

The wind pushed the clouds above the night. After a while, the shadow on the city wall squirmed, slowly rising from the ground, and gradually formed into a woman dressed as a witch wearing a veil.

The woman stood by the battlements for a moment and looked doubtfully into the courtyard. The courtyard was completely dark, and there was no light in the stables on one side. There were no sentries or patrolling guards on the city wall.

If it were this time on a normal day, the servants would have gone to bed long ago, but at least there would still be a minimum level of defense in the castle, so it would never be as dead as it was right now.

She frowned and walked towards the edge of the city wall. At that moment, the moonlight pouring down from the clouds seemed to be substantial under her feet, forming steps. She descended step by step and came to the courtyard.

A faint silver glow centered on her body and spread in all directions, sweeping across the entire castle in the blink of an eye.

The woman raised her eyebrows. He seemed to realize something, but it was at this time. She suddenly glanced behind her in the direction she came from.

As if she heard something, she was about to leave, but at this moment, a look of shock and anger suddenly flashed in her eyes. She raised her right hand, and a palm-sized crystal ball suddenly appeared in her palm. Several pictures were constantly switching on it, like a fleeting glimpse. If an ordinary person had no time to see clearly, she just blinked and one of the pictures was engraved in her eyes. inside.

If Brando were here, he would definitely recognize that it was the scene inside the Cat and Beard Hotel.

The woman raised her hand, and the crystal ball in her hand instantly turned into a silvery dust.

She herself also shattered, like broken glass, melting into the moonlight in an instant.

As soon as the woman's front legs left, a few small black shadows landed on the city wall behind her.

Those are some cats.

The black cat at the front had a big bow tied around its neck. It looked around curiously, and when it opened its mouth, it heard the characteristic sweet voice of the sugar bowl: "It's weird, why is there no one? Even if it's the Knights The people were lured away by the adults, at least there will be guards in the castle?"

A yellow and white tabby cat behind the black cat suddenly looked nervous after hearing this, and quickly reminded softly: "Shh. Keep your voice down, Miss. It's not good if there is no one. Do you want to attract everyone?"

"Babasha, what are you afraid of? Didn't we confirm that the knights of the Flame Sword have left long ago, either to support the lord in their battle or to deal with those strange guys in the city. Anyway, anyway It won’t be here. The remaining guys combined are no match for me.”

"Miss. Don't be afraid of ten thousand, just be afraid of the unexpected. It's better to be cautious." Babasha looked around nervously: "This is the empire, don't forget Agatris and the others are here too."

"There's no one here." Sugar Bowl, who had turned into a black cat, glanced at the castle immersed in darkness indifferently. She raised her head, sniffed around with her nose, and said doubtfully: "But there is something strange in the air. It smells like someone of our kind has been here. It’s strange, I can’t be sure. Does that woman have such a powerful guy? Could it be the King of Witches?”

Babasha was startled: "That woman can't be here."

"Well," Sugar Bowl nodded: "It's indeed not her aura. It's strange. Is there such a powerful guy among the witches of our generation?"

"It's better to get down to business quickly, miss..."

Sugar Bowl jumped up, jumped off the city wall lightly, and landed steadily on the grass in the courtyard, just like a real cat, without making a single sound.

Behind her, including Babasha, three witches who turned into cats also jumped down one after another. They walked around the courtyard but found no one.

"There is no one here, miss." The one who spoke was the white cat behind Babasha. Although it looked the smallest, the voice it made was that of a middle-aged woman.

"That woman is indeed unreliable. Be careful, miss. This may be a trap."

When Babasha heard the word trap, the hair all over her body stood up. She glanced back subconsciously, but the courtyard was as quiet as ever.

"Relax, Babasha. Even if there is a trap, it is aimed at the lord. The Silver Queen has no interest in you, an old woman."

"Miss," the white cat who spoke before suddenly spoke again: "There are still people in the castle."

Sugar Bowl nodded, and she also noticed: "Front left, third room."

She walked elegantly to the window of the room. With a slight jump, she jumped onto the window sill, stretched out her paws to fiddle with it twice, and opened the window a crack. A strong smell of alcohol suddenly hit her face.

"So I hate drunks—"

…

Hobbes Barak was indeed an alcoholic. He was a dwarf from Ambros, a heavy drinker, but he was also the best horse trainer in the entire empire. The royal family hired him to be Sandburg's equestrian. On weekdays, he didn't dare to drink. No matter how careless the dwarfs were, they would never dare to take the royal family's strict rules seriously, not to mention that he cherished this job very much. .

Not to mention how rich the collection of Her Majesty the Queen's stables is, just being the strongest royal horse trainer in the empire is enough to make him extremely proud.

But today is a special case. The Imperial Guards were all replaced by the knights of the Flaming Sword, and the servants in the castle earlier were also transferred because he had to help take care of the knights' horses. So was left, the results a few hours ago. The knights also left.

Now he was in charge of the empty castle.

He didn't dare touch the royal wine cellar in the basement, but the several large barrels of fine wine stored in the kitchen were no problem. Although they were not as good as the royal collection, they were enough to satisfy his addiction.

He was lying dizzy on several bags of flour. He had long lost track of how much wine he had drunk. It seemed that there was a small barrel of dwarf spirits, then three bottles of Landfer liqueur, and a bottle of whiskey. The alcohol seemed to form a thick cloud, wrapping him in it.

Hobbes Barak burped. This was the life he pursued. He had a dream in a daze. He dreamed that he had made enough money and returned to his hometown to build a unique wine cellar. The cellar contains a variety of rare wines, from the 366-year-old Griffin's Feather, Felice's Black King, to the famous Cold Moon Wine. This wine was produced in the Year of the Cold Moon and was almost destroyed by a snowstorm that winter, but it developed a unique cold taste. It is the top collection of various royal families and noble families.

He dreamed that he was hosting a banquet, and it was full of guests, including famous drinkers and people from the upper class. The long table covered with white cloth was covered with various silver plates, which were piled with food from all over the world. There are famous wines and brightly colored fruits and vegetables, and a black cat with a bow tie walks around among them.

Hobbes Barak was stunned for a moment, almost thinking that he had seen it wrong. Why was there a black cat on the dining table? He couldn't help but rub his eyes subconsciously. It turned out that there was not only one cat on the table, but two white cats. A tabby cat.

He couldn't help but sit up, subconsciously preparing to get angry at the servants in his dream. But before he could speak, he saw the black cat speaking to him:

"Hobbes Barak," the black cat stretched out his paw and slapped his nose with a look of disgust on his face: "Damn drunkard, I'll give you a few words, otherwise I'll send you to hell!"

The dwarf horse trainer's eyes widened. The cat actually spoke human language. He shook his head, thinking that he was indeed dreaming.

But a moment later, he suddenly woke up, and everything in his dream disappeared. The surrounding environment turned into a dark kitchen again, and the small space was filled with the strong smell of alcohol and raw meat.

On the wooden table directly opposite him, there were exactly four cats standing there, headed by the black cat, staring at him with eyes that glowed in the darkness.

"Ghost!"

The dwarf screamed in fear, kicked his legs and crawled backwards, hitting the bucket behind him with a bang. There was a loud rustling above his head, and the various spice jars originally placed on the shelf suddenly overturned and hit him. A slap in the face.

"Pfft," Sugar Bowl couldn't help but laugh out loud at this guy's stupidity, but she quickly put on a straight face and said, "Hobbes Barak, did you hear what I said."

Witches are good at manipulating dreams and have already known each other's names in dreams.

But the dwarf horse trainer was so frightened that he broke into a cold sweat. Meeting a black cat in Warnd in the middle of the night was not a good sign. Some rural legends often believe that black cats are messengers of death like crows, and these animals that often bring bad luck often It would be even worse if it was associated with witches.

Hobbs Barak had no idea that the witches in front of him were actually several witches, but he was extremely frightened in his heart. When he contacted the black cat from before, he just thought that the other party was indeed the messenger of death, coming to send him to hell. of.

Did you drink yourself to death?

He couldn't help but feel sad in his heart.

Sadly not enough.

"Let me ask you a question," but Sugar Bowl didn't care what he thought. Her eyes exuded a charming light, as if it could make people dream: "Where is the mistress here?"

…

Palazzo San Conti, Garden of White Roses——

Two columns of knights slowly stopped outside the gate of the Rose Garden. It was midnight at this moment, and there was no one on the Imperial Avenue. Rows of oak trees stood on both sides of the avenue, casting dark shadows on the ground.

Outside this solemn palace is a large open meadow. There are no other buildings within a few hundred meters. They are all royal gardens. However, the knights who arrived late at night still woke up the residents in the distant blocks.

The citizens used the cold light of the moonlit night to secretly look through the windows in the direction of the Palais de San Canti. They could clearly see these knights in black clothes and armor from a distance - they were not the Forbidden Army, nor the Knights of the Flame of the Temple. Who were they? Why did the Duke's bodyguard arrive so late?

In the Palace of Saint-Contipe, there was also a gaze falling on this group of knights.

Constance could clearly see the Rose Garden and the Imperial Avenue from the floor-to-ceiling arched window of her study. She was sitting behind her desk. The crystal ball in her hand had long lost its previous light, and she could no longer see anything on it. The scenery of the mountains and forests near Hanlu Manor became dark, with a trace of moonlight reflected on the edges.

There was no one in the room at this moment. Only the Dragon Queen stood silently in the darkness. She did not speak, and Her Majesty the Queen did not speak. She looked through the glass of the window and looked at the two rows of knights who were closely guarded. black carriage.

She watched as the car door was opened by a knight, and a maid stepped out of the car first. She had long fiery red hair and bronze skin, which were typical features of mountain people.

The maid bowed slightly after getting out of the car, and then helped a princess in costume down.

That was her countess.

Only then did the Silver Queen show a proud look.

"When will our Prince arrive?" she asked.

"On the way, Your Majesty." The Dragon Queen replied in the darkness.

"The ministers have been waiting in the hall for a long time," she said after a while, "Your Majesty."

"It doesn't matter," replied the Silver Queen, "leave me alone, Gwendolen."

The Dragon Queen nodded, but did not move.

"Those rats are making quite a fuss today."

"Yes, I asked just now. The city guards were attracted by the fighting over there."

"Then go and tell my dear Knight Commander what he should do now."

The Dragon Queen nodded.

"Go ahead and come back before the main meal begins. This is the theme of today's banquet."

Only then did the Dragon Queen's figure retreat into the darkness, then there was the sound of the door opening, and finally with a 'click' all the sounds turned into silence.

Constance looked out the window at the night scene silently without saying a word.

"...You were once the kindest princess of the Cruz people, if you are still willing to return to the right path."

"I have never been more convinced that I am on the right path than now."

"Paranoia has obscured your vision, Your Majesty."

"On the contrary, you are the ones who can't see the way forward..."

A fantasy seemed to extend before her eyes.

…(To be continued)