Hearing Antonio's words, Rod didn't seem to react on the surface, his poker face once again played its role at this time, but those nobles who originally planned to take the opportunity to come over and get close to Rod changed their faces after hearing Antonio's request, and then their eyes widened in disbelief and stared at the young man in front of Rode.

They didn't understand why Antonio had the audacity to provoke Rhodes at this time. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that at this celebration banquet, in addition to the strength of the military and the three major families, it is Rhodes who has benefited the most. Lydia bestowed upon him the title of Earl, and also gave him Glen Bell, which was not a fertile and fertile place, because Glen Bell was originally a mountain territory near the Land of Atonement, where there was not even a place where humans gathered, it could almost be said to be a wasteland, so even if Rhodes obtained this territory, it would only extend the extent of his power in the Land of Atonement outward by a narrow mountain range. However, in the Duchy of Moon, one of the principles of dividing the territory is to reward it on the spot, which means that unless it is a rootless nobleman who has no territory of his own, the reward territory will basically be chosen close to his own territory. If it was before the Midsummer Festival, Rhodes still wanted to choose a territory from the south, but after the Midsummer Festival, he himself chose the Land of Atonement (which is only a part of the territory), then according to the rules of the Duchy of Moon, Rhodes would no longer be able to fight for the southern territory. And now Lydia is giving Rod Glen Bell, in fact, it is just a separation of the Land of Atonement from Parfield and merging it into Glen Bell, so that Rod can be regarded as a lord with an officially independent territory.

Fortunately, the place chosen by Rhodes was on the periphery of Parfield, and this division and merger was only a matter of form, if it had been changed to the central or core area of Parfield. I'm afraid that Rhodes will have to accept the choice of either giving up the bounty or giving up the fortress and choosing a new territory——— but I don't know if Rod will agree to do so.

If it weren't for the Holy Cross, the other nobles might just think it was a consolation prize for Rhodes, but when you look at it with the Holy Cross, the meaning is different. The Glen Bell Mountain Collar is a long, narrow T-shaped mountain range that connects Parfield, the Plains of Philan and the Silent Lands. It is then connected with the Eastern Yamabara. With the exception of Parfield, the Plains of Philon and the Silent Lands are all direct territories of the Crown. And anyone with a discerning eye can see that Lydia gave Rod Grenbel this time, in fact, she is taking this opportunity to give him a chance to extend the territory, if Rod makes any more achievements in the future, then one of the Philon Plains and the Silent Land will definitely belong to Rhodes according to the principle of local reward. At that time, in terms of territory area alone, Rhodes will be enough to compete with the other three major families of the Duchy of Moon, and what does this mean. Isn't it clear to everyone?

Although Antonio's performance this time is also very good, and he has won a rich award, and he can be regarded as a dazzling star in the new generation, but compared to Rod, he is still a little too far behind, what is the reason for Antonio to provoke Rod in person?

Some nobles were surprised, but others were not surprised. At this celebration banquet, it can be said that all the people who have contributed to the Principality of Moon during the civil war have been gathered. Among them, there are many young and talented youngsters, who have strength, self-confidence and pride. Such people will always have conflicts, and in their opinion, Rod's performance is not very outstanding, and if Lydia only gave his domain and the earl a reward, then they can only pinch their noses and admit it. However, His Royal Highness the Grand Duke actually gave this young man the Order of the Holy Cross?!!

That's the Holy Cross!!

They worked so hard to get what they couldn't get with no amount of blood and sweat, but they were actually taken away by Rhodes, can they hold back?

Antonio is one of them.

In fact. The moment he saw Rhodes receive the Holy Cross, Antonio felt that the anger in his heart could no longer be suppressed, he did not think that this young man could be better than all of them in any way, he did not even have formally trained soldiers under his command, this time he simply went to battle with a group of mercenaries. What combat power can a group of mercenaries have? Archduke Lydia deserves such respect for him?! And what about yourself? He spent so much effort and so much effort, and the Plains of Flowers was attacked by the Southern Army many times, and if it weren't for his desperate resistance, I am afraid that the Fortress of the Plains of Flowers would not be able to hold out at all. But even so, he was not able to obtain the Holy Cross, so why did this kid get it?!!

Fortunately, the only trace of clarity in his mind made Antonio calm down, and he didn't question this in front of Lydia, he also understood that no matter how unhappy he was, Lydia awarded this medal to Rhodes was unanimously approved by the royal family, if he dared to jump out and question Rhodes unworthy, then it would be tantamount to denying Lydia and the royal family in person, he was not so stupid, he was really desperate for hatred. What's more, Lydia is not the kind monarch she used to be, she values her authority very much, and anyone who dares to challenge her authority will end up miserable——— reformers are not still cold?

But Antonio didn't just come to trouble him because Rhodes was unqualified and unworthy of the Holy Cross, for him, this was just a flashpoint on his raging anger, and for him, the most hated thing was that this bastard dared to snatch his goddess!!

Rod didn't know what Antonio was thinking, and he didn't care, on the contrary, after hearing Antonio's challenge, Rode's first reaction was to raise his gaze, past the man standing in front of him, and look at Marlene who was standing not far away. Rhodes had encountered this situation once before, but that time he didn't make a move, and Marlene didn't need him to do it, because she didn't belong to anyone else, so she didn't need anyone else to decide her fate. But this time..................

"Okay."

Rod nodded without hesitation, and simply agreed to Antonio's request for a duel.

He didn't care what the other party had to do. In fact, after Marlene came to his side and received the Order of the Holy Cross, Rhodes was already keenly aware that there were many "envious, jealous and hateful" eyes among these nobles, of course, these five words on the forum were more of an exaggeration. But now, this "envy, jealousy and hatred" is real. Especially that "hate". This is normal, Rod doesn't think it's strange, he hasn't experienced similar situations before, but in a more civilized modern society, everyone no longer practices the practice of throwing gloves around to duel, more "Hey, that little white face, come here, we'll see you in the back of the teaching building after class." Those who don't come are bad seeds! ”

But when you think about it, there doesn't seem to be much difference other than the undead.

There are many people who look at him unpleasantly and are dissatisfied with him, and the man in front of him is also one of them, but he doesn't care, the ancestor said well, kill the chicken and make an example. I don't have a headache yet, how to find a chicken. This is sent to the door by itself, and it doesn't have to be a tyrannical thing.

I heard that Rod actually agreed. The surrounding nobles suddenly became solemn and uneasy, the Williams family is not a particularly powerful force in the royal party, but it is also an old nobleman, Antonio has always been a high-profile star, but in this year, his light has dimmed a little. was pressed by Rod and Marlene. Originally, everyone also expected the new generation of the Duchy of Moon to cooperate sincerely and unite as one. But they didn't expect that Rhodes and Antonio would directly tear their faces and fight in public on such a formal occasion!

This is not the rhythm of solving problems between two gentlemen in private! Duel in such a public setting. This also means that no matter which side fails, the loser will never be able to hold his head up in this circle! The most important thing for nobles is pride and honor, and if they fail on such occasions, it will be a lifelong enmity!!

For a while, many people looked at the two worriedly, and some even looked at Lydia uneasily, hoping that His Royal Highness the Grand Duke could come forward to dissuade him, Williams was an old nobleman and had intricate connections in the aristocratic circle. And Rhodes is a rising star who has suddenly risen, and he is inextricably linked with the Shania family. They managed to overthrow the reformers, but it has not been two days since their birthday, so is this about to usher in new troubles and struggles?

Unfortunately, although Lydia noticed the fight, she did not step forward to stop them as the others expected, on the contrary, the archangel looked at the two with interest, she stretched out her cheek, leaned on the throne curiously and lazily, as if enjoying an interesting drama, and the smiling expression did not even change in the slightest.

After getting Rod's affirmation, Antonio no longer had any scruples, he stepped forward directly and saluted Lydia respectfully. Lydia smiled and nodded, and didn't say much, but even so, everyone already knew Lydia's attitude. After getting Lydia's affirmation, Antonio turned to face Rod, and then, his face was slightly gloomy, and then a cold light flashed, and soon, Antonio drew the long sword at his waist and aimed it straight at Rod.

"Come, Sir Elant, for the sake of glory and pride, I am here, sworn by the honor of the Williams family! In front of Miss Shania, let's prove who is worthy of this glory! ”

Antonio's words were a pun, and everyone immediately understood. Immediately, there were many young aristocrats who applauded there, and they were also the same as Antonio, they were quite dissatisfied with Rhodes actually snatching the goddess in their hearts, especially when they thought that the beautiful eldest lady was arrogant in front of them, but in front of Rhodes, she smiled so sweetly, such a bird——— how could this enviable bastard not be stabbed to death by the sky thunder and let the kitchen knife die!!

However, in the face of Antonio's provocation, Rod's face did not change at all, he just stood there, with his hands behind his back, leisurely looking at Antonio in front of him with his long sword pointed at him, as if he was looking at an idiot. Then, he snorted coldly.

"Hmph."

Just when everyone heard this cold snort, suddenly. They saw a flower in front of them, and then they saw an overwhelming cold light burst into the sky like fireworks, whistling towards Antonio.

In the face of Rod's sudden attack, Antonio was also surprised, although he also expected that Rhodes would make a move, but he didn't expect him to say that he would fight. There was not even the slightest hesitation. Not to mention that Rhodes was empty-handed before, and he didn't even have a weapon, in such a blink of an eye, he actually felt that the sword qi had reached in front of him, and the howling chill even made his cheeks feel a slight pain.

Where did he get the weapon from!?

At this time, Antonio didn't have time to think about this problem, but as an outstanding figure among the younger generation of the Duchy of Moon, he was by no means in vain, facing the surging sword light in front of him. Antonio was stunned for a moment and reacted quickly, then he shouted angrily, and the long sword in his hand immediately danced, and soon saw the long sword in his hand burst out with dazzling soul brilliance, tightly closed like a shield towards the sword light in front of him.

"Dingdingding!!dingding"

A series of weapon clashes sounded, and everyone's eyes widened, only to see the dense sword light constantly staggering and impacting, and sparks kept coming out from time to time. The heavy sword shadows even wrapped the figures of the two people in it, and for a while, there was only the sound of two swords intertwined in the banquet hall. But the fierce exchange only appeared for a moment, and then suddenly disappeared, and then everyone saw Antonio quickly withdraw from the sword circle, his face was solemn, even a little pale, but the long sword in Antonio's hand did not retreat at this time. As if maintaining a contradictory forward and backward rush, he stabbed forward!

And almost at the same time, I saw that the stars that had been in the sky suddenly converged into a dazzling snow-white and bright sword light, and just like that, they stabbed at him along the route of Antonio's retreat. Immediately afterwards, Antonio was seen to stomp on the ground with his legs, and then he raised his sword horizontally, accompanying Antonio's movements. The longsword, which looked unpretentious, suddenly burst into the brilliance of magic——— it seemed that this was not an ordinary weapon.

"Bell ————!!"

The sword slammed into Antonio's long sword, and the heavy sound made even made people feel a shake in their hearts, and some nobles who were not strong enough even felt their hearts suddenly start beating in a panic, and a particularly uncomfortable feeling that almost wanted to vomit suddenly emerged from their bodies.

Blocked!

After blocking this blow, Antonio was happy in his heart, at first Rod's rush did surprise him, but although Rod showed a fierce momentum, and waves of attacks seemed to be like waves, but Antonio relied on the anger in his chest to block the opponent's attack. And now, Rod's powerful blow has been blocked by himself, and the opportunity cannot be lost, and the loss will not come again! Now is the chance to fight back!

Thinking of this, Antonio's body suddenly made a mistake, and while the impact fluctuations from the sword had not disappeared, he suddenly leaned over, and then grasped the hilt of the sword with both hands, and swung forward hard, and soon, Antonio felt that the opponent's long sword was blocked by himself to the side, which also made him secretly happy in his heart. But Antonio's face did not show the slightest joy, on the contrary, the movement in his hand did not pause in the slightest, after swinging away Rod's attack, Antonio stabbed forward, and even the man with the sword turned into a violent hurricane, rushing forward!

"Ah————!!h

But at this time, Antonio suddenly heard the exclamations of the surrounding people, and with this sudden exclamation, a sharp and exciting pain came from behind Antonio, almost completely relying on the rich combat experience on the battlefield, in the moment of feeling this pain, Antonio hurriedly forcibly stopped his movements, took advantage of the situation to roll and rub the opponent's attack to dodge, and then the long sword in his hand swung again, slashing heavily at the sharp blade that suddenly attacked from behind.

"Ding ————!!"

With a soft sound, it was only at this time that Antonio saw that what was attacking from behind was a chain sword that was as black and slender as a poisonous snake, it swung through the air like a long whip, and after being slashed by Antonio's blow, it slid away as if it had a fresh life, and suddenly looked like a poisonous snake swimming in the air.

Wait a minute!!

And at this time, Antonio was suddenly shocked.

From the side?

But by this time, it was already too late.

The cold, whistling sword qi instantly erupted behind Antonio, he only felt that it seeped into the bone marrow, and the incomparably cold sword qi whistled and hit his defenseless back, and then, Antonio felt that he flew into the sky, the back was burning with pain, the scenery in front of him began to blur, and then it was shrouded by countless starlight——— and in the next moment, the only thing Antonio could feel was endless pain.

"Boom!!"

As if time had been completely stopped, Antonio didn't know how long it had been since he said that he had fallen heavily on the ground, and he could feel the coldness of the marble floor on his chest, and at this moment his body was completely out of control, Antonio raised his head, and was surprised to find that his whole body was full of scars, and the luxurious dress passed down in order to participate in this banquet had become tattered at this moment, and the long sword that should have been held in his hand was only half cut off...... … Antonio groaned and tried to raise his head, but what he saw was the face of Rhodes standing in front of him, his hands behind his back, without the slightest expression. Immediately after, he heard the other party's indifferent words.

"It's over, Mr. Williams."

With these words, Antonio only felt that the world world around him began to gradually become dim, and then he closed his eyes like this, and fell into an endless coma. (To be continued.) )