I will be crowned king

Clovis City, Outer City, Renai Welfare Home.

In the evening, the invited Viscount Bogner drove to this welfare home jointly owned by the royal family and the church to attend a charity gala hosted by the Franz family.

As soon as the golden-red four-wheeled carriage stopped outside the black iron gate, Mrs. Coney, who was guarding outside, immediately greeted Viscount Bognar, who was in formal attire.

"Good evening, Viscount Bogner."

Although it was their first meeting, the warm and hospitable Mrs. Coney was still cordial, as if both parties had already known each other:

"It's a great honor for you to take time out of your busy schedule to be our guest. I heard that there was an emergency meeting of the Privy Council this morning, so I thought you would definitely not be able to come!"

"No one would dare to shirk the dinner hosted by the Franz family, even if summoned by the king, right?" The serious Viscount Bogner made a rare joke and took the pipe from the servant:

"Has it started yet?"

"There are still fifteen minutes left. The time for your arrival is particularly perfect." Mrs. Corney responded slightly flatteringly. Her eyes accidentally glanced at the girl who got off the carriage behind the Viscount, and her pupils suddenly shrank.

This is a very petite girl, who looks to be at least thirteen or fourteen years old. She is wearing a light pink cake skirt. She has light brown loose curly hair and emerald green eyes. Her fair skin is sparkling, and her small and delicate facial features are like a doll. , so cute that once you see it, you won’t want to look away.

"Who is this……"

"My...a distant great-niece."

In an instant, Viscount Bogner suddenly showed a somewhat panicked look, and subconsciously blocked the girl behind him: "I happened to be visiting relatives in Clovis City, so I took her out for a walk."

"Ah~ What a lovely little girl." Mrs. Coney nodded enthusiastically, and smiled at the Viscount very flatteringly:

"As cute as she is now, I'm afraid she will even be compared to the daughter of the Franz family in the future, right?"

"Haha... you are such a humorous and kind-hearted lady." Viscount Bogner, who was biting his pipe, had regained his mood, and pressed the brim of his hat with his right hand to signal to the other party:

"Can you lead us to the banquet hall? Little Leah can't wait."

"Oh! Of course, of course!"

Mrs. Coney smiled repeatedly and greeted the little girl enthusiastically: "The shortcut to the banquet hall is over here. Dear Miss Leah, please come with me. Don't get lost."

The two of them walked through the gate under the guidance of Mrs. Coney, stepped on the old stone pavement that had been cleaned by the children of the orphanage, bypassed the waiting crowd at the main entrance, and entered the hall directly.

The brightly lit hall of the orphanage is no longer as simple as it used to be. The walls are hung with curtains in the style of the Circle of Order. Various sterling silver church ritual utensils and badges are placed under the four walls. There is an elegant atmosphere floating in the air. Incense fills the atmosphere with elegance and tranquility.

The banquet is about to begin, and the spacious hall is already packed; guests with luxurious clothes and extraordinary temperament can be seen everywhere, carrying expensive wine and champagne and looking around the orphanage.

Although it was only a small charity gala held temporarily, because it was hosted by the Franz family, the scale was already comparable to many wealthy dinner parties; the number of guests was not only large, but also their level was clearly high.

Stepping into the hall, Viscount Bogner had already seen many familiar faces from the past; many guests were even like him, who had been at the Osteria Palace in the inner city in the morning and appeared in this nearby palace before evening. A welfare home in the outer city.

After greeting a few familiar friends and exchanging pleasantries, Count Bognar, whose expression was always a bit nervous and unnatural, quickly avoided the crowd and took the girl's little hand to a relatively quiet window. forward.

In Clovis-style banquets, secluded locations like this are generally regarded as "private meeting places"; as long as someone is standing there, surrounding guests usually do not approach.

Even so, Viscount Bognar, who was biting his pipe, looked around cautiously, and after repeatedly confirming that no one was listening around him, he relaxed slightly, and carefully looked back at the lovely girl behind him:

"Are you...confirmed that you really want to do this?"

"Of course." The girl drank the juice gracefully, but even an ordinary-sized goblet was too big for her, so much so that she needed two hands to hold it:

"It's just a party, not a church service. What do you have to worry about?"

"I know I know."

The old Viscount's previous arrogance was completely gone, and there was even a hint of awe in his eyes when he looked at the girl: "You know this is a banquet of the Franz family, and there might be something..."

"Judge."

The girl interrupted softly, and her smart emerald green eyes slowly turned and glanced at a young man sitting in a formal suit in the corner of the hall, holding a glass of champagne and pretending to look at his pocket watch:

"Cole Dorian, acting head of the Order of Truth...he's sitting right there."

Um? !

Viscount Bognar was startled, and he suddenly looked back in the direction the girl was pointing with the bottom of the goblet.

The young inquisitor who was "discovered" looked a little shocked, but he put away his pocket watch in the next second, smiled at the Viscount with a wine glass in his hand, and turned around calmly to leave.

"What's wrong?"

The female judge Sera looked at the strange expression on Cole's face and asked expressionlessly.

"I...exposed." The young judge twitched the corner of his mouth, his expression extremely complicated:

"I don't know why, but Viscount Bogner looked at me just now as if he had seen a ghost."

"How can a nobleman who is slightly involved in the underground trade of enchanted items have a second expression when he discovers that there is a judge at the banquet?"

Sierra glanced at him with an expression that said "You're asking questions knowingly": "I didn't know, but you actually care so much about what others think of you?"

"I only care about whether I, the acting person in charge, can successfully become a regular person..." Cole muttered in a low voice:

"Also, you completely missed the point of the problem!"

"Oh?" Sera raised her head seriously: "The point is... do you want Viscount Bognar to apologize to you?"

"I--?!"

Cole almost lost his breath: "I mean, Viscount Bognar is a little weird today... I can't tell you what it is specifically... In short, it's not normal!"

"Well, that's not normal..." Sera nodded slightly and thought for a second:

"You mean that he actually saw through your elaborate disguise at a glance, or that he didn't pretend that he couldn't notice your presence?"

Cole Dorian: "...You actually came here to deliberately tear me down, right?"

"I just think someone's nerves are overly sensitive." There was a flash of arc at the corner of Sera's mouth:

"With Captain Lawrence's letter of recommendation, it's only a matter of time before you become a regular employee - it's not necessary for you to win recognition by completing a few major cases as quickly as possible."

"It's not necessary for others, but for myself... it's necessary."

Cole Dorian murmured in a low voice, a complicated look flashed in his pupils: "Otherwise, why should I inherit his position and wield the ax gun he left behind?"

After the words fell, he silently turned around and walked towards the door.

The female judge who stood still had the same expression, her eyes lowered, and her eyes never left Cole's back for a moment.

Looking at the back of the young judge disappearing from the crowd, the cute girl slowly picked up the empty goblet, stuck out her little tongue, and licked her upper lip with great enjoyment.

"Don't worry, my Lord Viscount." The girl handed the cup to the anxious Bogner:

"As long as you don't do anything unnecessary, they won't notice anything unusual; or, are you actually planning to..."

"Absolutely not!"

The panicked Viscount Bogner almost dropped the cup on the ground.

"I know." The girl smiled sweetly:

"My father has mentioned many times that Viscount Bognar has always been the most loyal friend of Lund Manor."

"You are ridiculous."

Bogner, who was chewing his pipe, put the cup on the table, took out his handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead: "I'm just curious as to why you suddenly decided to attend this little charity party tonight. What about...Miss Thalia Rune?"

Viscount Bognar lowered his voice involuntarily.

"Ah, that's because..."

At this moment, there was a sudden commotion outside the hall door.

The guests who were still chatting and laughing all looked back, looking at the direction of the sound with expressions of flattery, admiration, or curiosity.

The girl who stopped speaking suddenly turned her attention to the beautiful figure walking into the door.

She was wearing an imperial-style white dress, with her long, silky hair pulled up high; her simple and solemn look became even more pure against the backdrop of a crowd of gorgeously dressed guests, and her elegant temperament made people unable to even look directly at her, as if One more look at it will make you feel blasphemed and ashamed.

Sophia Franz.

Looking at this "mistress" who was like a star, the lovely Thalia narrowed her eyes slightly.

At the same time, Sophia, who had a faint smile on her lips and a calm posture, did not notice the gaze of a certain girl... She was trying her best to suppress her excitement so as not to show it in front of so many guests.

Just an hour ago, she had just received the latest letter from Anson Bach - one step ahead of "Souvenir".

The development of the Hantu War was simply unimaginable.

After annihilating the Guards Corps led by the Imperial Knight Louis Bernard at the foot of Eagle Point City, the Storm Division, which went south non-stop, overwhelmingly defeated the counterattack launched by the Principality of Paya, one of the Seven Cities Alliance.

In just two days, a country was destroyed!

The smoothness of the battle has exceeded Sophia's expectations. She originally thought that the Storm Division, which had just ended the war in Eagle Point City and was eager to expand and reorganize, would spend a lot of time in repairs. As an investor, she needed to find ways to spend on military expenses during this period.

But according to the smug tone of that bastard, he has no intention of stopping at all; on the contrary, he wants to march directly into the Republic of Carindia and capture the most prosperous coastline of Hantu in one fell swoop!

This is really... Should I praise him for his confidence, or should he be complacent?

In comparison, "dear" brother Ludwig seems to be unlucky.

In the pursuit at Eagle Point Pass, it was "very regrettable" that only a small force thrown out by the remnants of the Guards Corps as bait was annihilated. The real main force had already jumped out of the encirclement net arranged by Ludwig before the Southern Army launched its blockade. Successfully retreated to the hinterland of the Elf Kingdom of Yser.

Not only that...the entire logistical preparations of the Southern Army Corps, which was hastily launched to pursue the enemy, were so chaotic that on the third day the artillery unit was in a dilemma of lack of shells. At one time, the entire army only had five six-pound infantry cannons available.

Insufficient firepower prevented an effective blockade of key roads, and was one of the reasons that ultimately allowed the remnants of the Guards to retreat smoothly.

Ludwig faced a very embarrassing situation. The Southern Army could not advance or retreat. He could only camp on the spot east of Eagle Point Pass and re-establish a supply line.

It is expected that it will take until mid-June for the Southern Army to launch an offensive against the hinterland of the Yser Elf Kingdom.

And it's not just this problem that he has to face... News has come from Clovis's eastern fortress, and it seems that there are signs of large-scale mobilization of troops on the border of the Yser Elf. At least half a legion of troops are already moving towards it. Hinterland retreat.

In other words, if Brother Ludwig doesn't hurry up, the Guards Corps that he just defeated will probably make a comeback soon.

So... so unlucky.

Thinking of this, Sophia's heart began to beat faster, and she could no longer control the corners of her mouth that turned up, and she didn't even notice it herself.

"...Pfft haha!"

Relaxed and joyful laughter suddenly sounded in the ears of all the guests at the same time.

Then, the whole hall fell silent.

At that moment, Sofia, who realized that she had lost her composure, stopped and immediately looked back at the embarrassed maid Angelica and the stunned guests.

In that short thousandth of a second, Franz's eldest daughter, whose thoughts were racing, quickly concealed her expression, and then smiled at the people around her:

"I'm really sorry. When I think that the wish I have worked hard for so long can finally come true, I really can't restrain my inner joy. I was a little bit rude and made everyone laugh."

After hearing Sophia's explanation, the surrounding guests all showed understanding smiles like elders.

The noble eldest daughter of Franz is actually as nervous as an ordinary little girl. Coupled with her generous and unabashed behavior, many of her peers feel cordial and admirable.

Only Angelica keenly noticed a trace of surprise flashing in her master's eyes.

What's going on? She had obviously concealed it very well until just now, so why didn't she even show any signs... Sophia, who was puzzled in her mind, looked at Mrs. Coney who was following closely behind her with a smile:

"So, can we start?"

"Of course!" Mrs. Coney stuttered in excitement, holding back her heart that was about to jump out of her chest and facing the many guests present:

"Everyone - please allow me to announce to everyone that the Charity Gala of Renai Welfare Institute has officially begun!"

Accompanied by enthusiastic applause, the calm Sophia walked to the stage and looked at everyone present with a faint smile.

At that moment, as if by some kind of intuition, she suddenly felt that a pair of eyes had been watching her from a corner since she entered the door.

A pair of emerald green eyes!