Chapter 78: Lord of Galic, Count Everly O’Gilbert

During the following time, Jiang Zhe and the others stayed in the castle’s reception room.
The room was simply furnished, with only ordinary decorations—though there seemed to be a bit too many weapons and equipment.
On the walls on either side of the door hung two long swords and two battle axes, while on wooden racks in the four corners of the room were sets of knightly armor. On the east wall, atop a table, lay a slender knight’s sword, and beside the table were two sets of heavy cavalry armor.
No matter where he looked, Jiang Zhe felt it was somewhat strange to rest in such a reception room.
Not to mention Mr. Black, the butler of the O’Gilbert family, standing solemnly at the door… Was this really a visit? It felt like he was under surveillance.
Indeed, though Mr. Black was quite old, he still exuded great presence—likely a renowned knight in Galic in the past. But no matter how imposing you are, there’s no need to stand motionless at the door. At least sit down and chat a bit!
The girls whispered among themselves, especially Lelira, whose behavior was the epitome of nobility. It was clear she was nervous, constantly adjusting her posture to appear perfect.
Allen, on the other hand, stood in front of the armor in the room, examining it closely, nodding or shaking his head from time to time. He wanted to take out the knight’s sword on the table facing the door to compare it with his own, but after thinking about it, he decided against it—after all, hadn’t Mr. Black been watching his every move with eagle-like attention?
Relatively speaking, Jiang Zhe was the most low-key, lying on the sofa with his eyes closed, dozing off. Unfortunately, though he usually felt sleepy, he was now full of energy, with not a hint of fatigue. This unusual vigor made him uncomfortable, though his sitting posture was rather awkward—Mr. Black had already frowned at him three times.
Clearly, the werewolf Connel also found the oppressive atmosphere in the room uncomfortable. After sitting down and standing up a few times, he finally walked over to a small shelf in the south corner of the room, where there was a bottle of red wine—the only one in the entire room.

Just as Connel was holding the wine bottle, searching for a corkscrew, a hand suddenly reached out from beside him and took the bottle from his grasp. Who else but Old Black? Under Connel’s astonished gaze, Old Black took out a corkscrew from his pocket with his right hand, which was wearing a white glove, and swiftly opened the wine bottle. Then he took a clean glass from the shelf, poured a small amount into it, and handed it to Connel.
“Uh, thank you…” Connel took the small glass of wine, staring at it in a dazed expression. It was clear that this werewolf wasn’t used to drinking from a glass—he usually drank straight from the bottle. Just by watching him lick his lips, it was evident that the small amount of wine was barely enough for him. So Old Black poured him another glass, his expression unchanged as always.
“No need to go to such trouble,” Connel said, coming back to his senses. He finished the glass of wine and then took the entire bottle straight from Old Black’s hands, took a big gulp, and smiled, saying, “This is much better!”
Now it was Old Black who was stunned. Though he didn’t say anything, his expression clearly showed his dissatisfaction with these “friends of the young master.” Well, to be precise, he was dissatisfied with their behavior and manners.
Look at that child with dark golden hair lying on the sofa—what posture is that? He’s practically lying down… How rude!
And look at that taller child with light yellow hair, moving the furniture around the room without permission. Is that acceptable? If he weren’t constantly watching him, he might even pull out that knight’s sword… Impolite, utterly impolite!
The little girls, on the other hand, were well-behaved, talking in soft voices… Hmm…
But what about that burly man with a rough appearance? Is he also a friend of the young master? Good heavens, does he think that’s just ordinary ale?
“…” Old Black shook his head slightly and sighed silently, saying nothing.
At that moment, the door was pushed open with a bang. In Old Black’s eyes, his young master rushed in in a hurry. After cheerfully calling out “Thors, Allen,” he couldn’t help but cough deeply.
“Huh?” Scott, who had been wearing a joyful expression, froze instantly. He turned to look at Old Black, calmed himself down, pushed his glasses up, and spoke to everyone in the room in a calm and steady tone, “It’s an honor to see you all again, my friends!”

“…” Looking at that strange tone, Jiang Zhe and Allen exchanged a glance, too stunned to speak, let alone the girls. Of course, that included the werewolf uncle who was happily drinking from his bottle. Seizing the awkward atmosphere in the room, Old Black forced a smile and said, “Young master, I assume you’ve completed your lessons with the mentors, right?”
“Of course, Black!”
“That’s great. Your friends have been waiting here for a long time—I think you have a lot to talk about with them.” With that, Black walked to the door and said to Scott and the person holding the handles of the two doors, “I should go prepare dinner and inform the old master about this. If nothing goes wrong, he’ll invite your friends to dinner too. You’d better get ready!” After saying that, he stepped back and closed the door.
“Phew!” As the door closed, Scott let out a sigh of relief. Looking at everyone’s strange expressions, he showed a rare look of embarrassment and said awkwardly, “If you want to laugh, go ahead. Don’t look at me with such pitying eyes—that’s you, Allen!”
“Hehe!” Putting the knight’s sword back in its place, Allen leaned against the table and said cheerfully, “You know, buddy, before I met you, I swore I’d punch you hard when I saw you. But seeing you look so pitiful now, I suddenly can’t bring myself to do it. Hahaha!”
“Hmph, well then, I guess I owe you an apology!” Scott rolled his eyes irritably before walking over, surprised, and saying, “How did you guys come here? When that soldier came to report earlier, I couldn’t believe what I heard…” He glanced around and froze when he saw Connel, then said to Jiang Zhe in surprise, “Has Professor Hodde not come? Who is this…?”
“Professor Hodde hasn’t come because we didn’t tell him,” Raviya said with a smile, introducing Connel, “Scott, this is Jean Connel, a friend of mine and Thors’!”
“Oh,” Seeing Jiang Zhe nod, Scott smiled knowingly and said politely, “Nice to meet you, Mr. Connel!”
Connel chuckled and raised his bottle playfully, saying, “I’m glad to meet you too, kid! You know, I’ve always had a prejudice against noble children, but what happened just now… has made me change my mind a bit!”
“Right, right!” Allen chuckled and patted Connel’s back in agreement.

“There’s nothing I can do,” Scott said with a wry smile as he sat down on the sofa across from Jiang Zhe, pushing his glasses up. “My grandfather always hoped I would become an honest and brave knight—humble, honorable, willing to sacrifice, brave, compassionate, honest, spirited, and just…”
“Wow!” Allen exclaimed in surprise. He was well familiar with the eight virtues of a knight.
Glancing at Allen, Ravia asked curiously, “Is it like this every day? Repeating… um, these lessons? When did it start?”
“Heh,” Scott smiled faintly, pushing his glasses as he recalled, “I think it started not long after I arrived here.”
“Not long after you arrived?” Lisa asked, tilting her head at Scott. “Wait, isn’t Galkik your hometown?”
“That’s right!” Scott said with a smile. “But I wasn’t born here…” He stood up, walked over to the window, and pointed southwest with a melancholic expression. “There’s a small town called Hard on the border between Galkik and Jacensburg. That’s where I was born… I came to Alikok at the age of six. My grandfather always wanted to train me to be an excellent knight, but I personally prefer magic… curse magic!” There was a strong hint of hatred in his voice as he said the last four words.
Glancing at Scott, Jiang Zhe, who already had some idea of what was going on, changed the subject. “By the way, Scott, how’s things with the rebellion?”
“Oh,” Scott snapped back to reality, pushing his glasses up and speaking calmly, “I asked my grandfather about this. Galkik is currently observing the rebellion in Jacensburg—my grandfather suspects this rebellion isn’t purely about Jacensburg, so they don’t plan to get involved for now. He’s directly contacted the royal palace in Sassen, waiting for the king’s orders…”
“What about the rebels?” Allen asked curiously. “Weren’t they saying the rebellion in Jacensburg has spread to Galkik?”

“Yes!” Scott nodded and pointed westward. “There are probably thirty thousand rebels gathered in a small town called Castle, outside the Galk border. The rebels have taken control of this town and have engaged in several small-scale conflicts with our Galk border troops. As you know, a single small town can’t provide enough food for those rebels. Plus, due to their fear of the Royal Knight Army, I think they hope to enter Galk territory, but they’ve been repelled. There are also about ten thousand more rebels near Mount Annitz in the south, with the same intention. As for the rest of the rebels, they’ve retreated toward places like Gron and Altak—after all, they have no chance of winning against the Royal Knight Army! As for some fleeing civilians, my grandfather has temporarily settled them near the cities of Malinson, Manny, and Jenkins. There’s a Galk fortress there with around twenty thousand troops stationed, so nothing serious should happen. Some civilians have also fled to Allicok… But don’t worry, this is the foremost border fortress—nothing will go wrong!” With that, he glanced at the group and said with a smile, “If I have time, I think I can show you around this city—although there’s not much to see…”

“No,” Allen said in a strange tone, holding up his hand to stop Scott. “Don’t, it will delay your lessons, future knight sir!”

“Allen!”

“Haha!”

Glancing at the children, Connel smiled and shook his head. After finishing the red wine in his bottle, he wiped his mouth and asked, “Kid, I want to ask you—is there a city called Wardrob in the vicinity?”

Frowning, Scott turned to look at Ravia. Seeing her looking at him apologetically, he said thoughtfully, “Wardrob? I don’t remember Galk having such a city. Although I don’t know much about Galk either, I do remember the names of its main cities—Are you sure it’s a city?”

“Isn’t it?” Connel frowned and sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he said solemnly, “I’m not very sure either. Wardrob might be either a city or a place name. I’m searching for this place. If you know anything, please tell me!”

“This…” Scott paced around the room a few times, shook his head, and said, “I’m sorry, I really don’t remember such a place…” Then, as if he remembered something, he added, “If you’re sure the place you’re looking for is in Galk, I think you can ask my grandfather. He’s been here for decades—no one knows Galk better than him!”
“Oh, really?” Connel was stunned for a moment before standing up and saying, “Alright! Where is your grandfather now?”
“Well…” Scott looked at Connel awkwardly, about to speak when Lavia suddenly stood up, gave Connel a reproachful look, and said, “Let me go!”
After giving Lavia a deep look, Connel sighed slightly and said apologetically, “I’m sorry, kid! That place is very important to me… Could you please ask your grandfather for me?”
“Sure,” Scott nodded blankly before regaining his composure and smiling. “Actually, you can just ask him in person—if I’m not mistaken, my grandfather will probably invite you all for dinner later!” As he spoke, he seemed to remember something and quickly turned to look at Allen, Jiang Zhe, and the girls, finally fixing his gaze on Allen.
Facing Scott’s strange look, Allen asked curiously, “Hey, what’s the matter?”
“Well…” Scott pointed at Allen and Jiang Zhe’s equestrian outfits and said oddly, “I think you’d better change into other clothes. Lavia, Lisa, Lelira, and Senior Dia—you too!”
Looking down at his own clothes, Allen said oddly, “What’s wrong with these? Aren’t they fine?”
“Fine?” Pointing at the burn marks on Allen’s chest, Scott sneered, “You’re not planning to meet my grandfather in these, are you?”
Allen glared at Jiang Zhe irritably and shrugged helplessly. “But I brought these with me!”
“That’s not a problem,” Scott said, sizing Allen up before pushing his glasses up. “I remember I have a large-sized suit. You can try it on later!”
“Okay!” Allen nodded reluctantly.
“And Sos!” Turning back to point at Jiang Zhe’s wrinkled equestrian outfit, Scott shook his head. “Clothes aren’t the main issue. My grandfather prefers cleanliness and neatness. I think you’d better change too—your build is similar to mine. You can pick any set you like!”

“Well…” Jiang Zhe looked at Scott awkwardly; he had never worn a suit before.
“Go give it a try, Thors!” Lisa said, smiling at Jiang Zhe and nudging Ravia beside her. “Avi, what do you think?”
“Well… what does it have to do with me? If he wants to change, let him.” Ravia glanced at Jiang Zhe and said mockingly in an expectant tone, “I think it’s better not to change. He’ll look terrible in a suit.”
“Hehe,” Lisa giggled and whispered in Ravia’s ear, “Really? You actually want to see Thors in a suit, don’t you?”
“W-what?”
“But your expression says otherwise!”
“Huh?” Ravia stared at Lisa in surprise, panicked, and covered her face, whispering, “Is it… that obvious?”
“Very obvious!” Lisa replied softly.
Ignoring Ravia and Lisa who were whispering to each other, Jiang Zhe glanced at Dia, who was smiling at him. Nodding, he said, “Alright—just a try. If it doesn’t fit, forget it!”
“Your size is pretty much the same as mine. How could it fit?” Scott turned around with a smile and glanced at Connel, about to speak when he was interrupted.
Connel smiled at Scott and said teasingly, “Hey, kid, don’t you also want me to change clothes? Hehe—I just want to ask if your grandfather knows about Wardrobe. Then I’ll leave. You don’t need to bother further!”
“Well… okay!” After all, Scott wasn’t familiar with Mr. Connel, so he didn’t say much. His goal was simply to make his grandfather feel a bit fond of his friend on their first meeting.
A few minutes later, Scott returned to the guest room with Jiang Zhe and Allen, who had changed into their clothes. Leaving aside Allen, who kept muttering, Jiang Zhe, wearing a suit for the first time, clearly left the girls in awe.
The white shirt, black suit, and his dark golden hair gave him an indescribable charm. Not only Dia but even Ravia was momentarily stunned.
“Wow, Thors is so handsome!” Lisa exclaimed jokingly.
“Impossible!” Jiang Zhe looked awkward at his suit and said strangely, “I feel something’s off. Maybe we should change back?”
“No, we agreed on this!” Scott pushed his glasses up and smiled.

“Be satisfied with that!” Allen patted Jiang Zhe’s shoulder irritably and said, “You can still choose freely; you’re far luckier than me…” He ran a hand through his hair, winked at Lisa, and said, “Lisa, isn’t he much handsomer than the guy next to you?”
“Giggle,” Lisa giggled and casually glanced at Ravia, whose face was slightly red, before saying cheerfully, “He’s quite handsome, Allen, but not as handsome as Thors… Hehe!”
“Hey, that’ll hurt my feelings…”
A few minutes passed. Ignoring Allen’s attempts to win sympathy by complaining in front of Lisa, Scott took out his pocket watch and glanced at it, then warned, “Allen, be careful later. My grandfather is a very… very traditional man. He won’t tolerate your jokes!”
“Okay, okay!” Allen shrugged irritably.
Looking at everyone, Scott walked around the room a few times before, as if suddenly remembering something, saying, “By the way, don’t use magic here. My grandfather has a prejudice against magic—he’s a proper knight!”
“Got it…”
“Um… don’t talk during meals. My grandfather was raised differently from us. The older generation considers talking while eating to be very impolite…”
“Understood…”
“And…”
“What else?” The others looked at Scott impatiently.
“Uh…” Scott, rarely looking embarrassed, pushed his glasses up and said awkwardly, “No… nothing else!” He took out his pocket watch again and checked the time, saying, “Alright, don’t forget what I just said. Um… thirty seconds left.”
As Scott was counting silently, Old Black pushed open the door and came in. Hearing Scott’s counting, he was slightly surprised before saying humorously, “If it’s not my watch that’s fast, it must be yours that’s slow, young master! But my watch was calibrated three hours ago, so…” He stepped forward, took Scott’s pocket watch, adjusted it to the correct time, and handed it back, saying, “You should also check the time regularly. As a noble, you must manage all your time properly, young master—twenty-seven seconds slow!”
“Uh, yes… thank you!”

Smiling slightly at Scott, Blake glanced at the people in the room. When he saw Allen and Jiang Zhe, he froze for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his face. Then, he extended his hand and said politely, “My lord invites everyone for dinner. Please follow me!”
“Twenty-seven seconds…” Allen exchanged a glance with Jiang Zhe and wore a strange expression, clearly still shaken.
A few minutes later, the children finally met Galleck’s lord, Scott’s grandfather, Count Avery O’Gilbert.
Before meeting this important figure, both Allen and Jiang Zhe, as well as Ravia and Lelirra, were curious about the count who defended the northeast from barbarians. They tried to guess what kind of person he was based on Old Blake and Scott, but it must be said that when they actually saw him, they were still surprised—somewhat disappointedly.
He seemed like an ordinary old man, without any awe-inspiring presence or sharp gaze; utterly ordinary.
The old man was dressed in a Galleck army uniform, clean and wrinkle-free, with all buttons fastened, including the one at the collar. His neatly combed gray hair gave him an appearance that straddled between simplicity and strictness.
Watching the count sit at the long table with a serious expression and closed eyes, the children grew nervous, as Scott had repeatedly warned them about certain things.
But soon, that nervousness dissipated when the old count opened his eyes, looked at Scott and his companions, stood up, and said with a smile, “Oh? You’re my grandson’s friends? Well, please sit!”
Stunned, Allen whispered to Jiang Zhe, who was also in a daze, “Yeah… isn’t he quite friendly?”
That guy Scott… was it really necessary to exaggerate so much?