It was already a few days before I returned to Ark Harbor again. Sitting in the carriage, Alan lifted the curtain and looked out. When I came back this time, there was no welcoming honor guard, no flying bunting, and no welcoming people. All Alan saw was a faint sadness hidden in the corners, in the depths of people's expressions, or in the dim daylight. Even the people walking on the street seemed to walk softer than usual, as if they were afraid of disturbing anyone.

"It seems that the Earl's situation is not optimistic."

Sitting on the other side of Alan, Lucy withdrew her gaze from the window. He looked at Alan again: "What are you going to do?" ”

"Fulfill my previous promise." Alan didn't think about it, so he said.

Next to Lucy, Adele said disapprerovingly, "Do you really regard Oban as a friend?" Don't forget who we are, the situation is now in our favor, and you should take his eldest son into charge. First control from behind the scenes, and finally take over the foundation and territory of Oban. Add Daniel's territory, and we have a better start. ”

"I know who I am and I know where I am. But Adele, sometimes, some things, you can't always put interests first. Since I promised Oban, I will not go back, this is the least moral obligation for a dying man. Alan's eyes drooped, and his gaze fell on his knees.

Adele shrugged her shoulders and said, "Okay, morality." What you men always talk about, I'll mention it. You are the head, of course you have the final say on how to do it. ”

"After meeting Urban, we'll go back to Storm City, and probably Earth again. Now that this place is basically stable, we have to consolidate and develop next, and then we have the spare strength to continue to advance northward and further expand our territory. I would like to take advantage of this time to go back and prepare for the exchange of goods between the two places, and a regular route under federal protection must be determined, as well as some business partners. At this point, probably Leon can help. Alan smiled.

Adele rolled her eyes and said, "I hope that guy doesn't lose his life in the surface war." ”

"No, it won't." Alan has a lot of confidence in Leon.

At this time, the carriage drove into the White Castle and stopped in front of the square. Alan cleaned up, straightened his clothes, and got out of the carriage. Lucy and Adele followed behind him, and Mace, the butler who had been waiting for a long time, hurriedly greeted him: "Lord Alan, you are finally here." ”

Alan nodded and asked in a deep voice, "How is the situation with the earl?" ”

Mace smiled wryly: "It's getting worse, hey." We have called in the best doctors, including the master you sent. But the earl's condition still did not improve, and even, every day became more and more strict. The Count was in his bedroom, and today he wanted to make his will official. I specially invited a few witnesses, and you were the only ones left. ”

"Please lead the way."

Lucy and her guards were taken to rest in the other rooms of the castle, while Alan and Mace walked briskly through the corridors of the Inner Castle, and the whole White Castle was shrouded in clouds, even the sunlight that shone through the windows on the carpet seemed so pale. In the corridor outside the Earl's bedroom, several chairs were set up for the visiting guests to rest. When Alan arrived, there were already several people sitting outside the hallway.

Among them were the earl's eldest son, Gilles, the viscount, Grear, the earl's wife, and Jora. Seeing Alan, Jora greeted him first. She had an unconcealed tiredness on her face, her hair was not as shiny as before, and her eyes were full of red threads. It seemed that all the hard work of taking care of the Count these days was written on her face, and Jora nodded and said, "You are here, my brother is waiting for you." ”

Alan nodded, and Mace had already entered the bedroom to report. After a while, he walked out and said softly, "Lord Allen, the Earl invites you in." ”

Hearing this, the people in the corridor looked different. Graar hung her head to hide the resentment in her eyes. Gilles, on the other hand, looked a little anxious, but his mother bowed her head and wept. Under the eyes of mixed meaning, Alan pushed open the bedroom door, and a puff of air mixed with the pungent smell of medicine, a faint hint of blood, and other smells poured out. The room was lifeless, and the eyes of death were already fixed here, and even the air was lifeless.

The bedroom is covered with a dark red carpet, a color that normally looks noble, but now it has a sense of heaviness that cannot be ignored. The entry is a set of sofa sets for lounging, with elegant wallpaper decorated with a rose motif that extends further into the room. After a set of partitions that were clearly oriental, Alan first saw a large bed with a rich gold plated stand, covered with snow-white trousers, and on either side were hanging yarns that had been put away. The Count of Orban was sitting on the bed, making a soft pillow on his back. He seemed to be in good spirits today, flipping through a book of poems with one hand and laying the other flat on the edge of the bed. Baggins was giving him an injection, and the two maids next to him acted as nurses, changing the bandages on Oban's chest with water.

As soon as those almost black-dyed bandages entered the clear water, they immediately turned into an oppressive dark red blood halo, and it was quite uncomfortable to see that Allen's chest was blocked by something. The bedroom was quiet, and both the Baggins and the maids were light in their movements. Only the sound of the Count's heavy breathing sounded, it was like a leaky bellows, and it sounded like the Count was struggling with every breath.

Hearing the movement, the Count looked up. A smile barely screwed out of his golden paper-like face, and Oban said in a hoarse voice, "You're here, friend." ”

He looked at Baggins, "Master, I want to talk to Alan alone. ”

Baggins nodded, waved his hand to let the two maids go down with their things first, and came to Allen's side and whispered, "I just gave him an injection, for a pick-me-up." But don't talk about it for too long, the count still has to make a will, which will consume a lot of his energy. ”

"I know."

When everyone was gone, Alan walked over to the bed and brought a chair to sit down. Oban held out his hand to him, and the Count's palm trembled slightly, like an old man in the wind. Alan sighed softly in his heart, and reached out with both hands to hold the Earl. Oban smiled: "I have made friends all over the world in my life, and I have a wide range of contacts, covering half of the empire. Although the position of the territory is far from the south, it is far from the prosperity of politics and commerce in the north. But I believe that one day I will also stand on the throne of the Imperial Court, and my Ridley family will eventually become a famous family in the Empire. ”

Speaking of this, Oban smiled bitterly: "But this qiē, after all, is like a bubble in the sun, disappearing in the air." ”

Looking at the emaciated earl on the bed, Alan felt a slight sadness in his heart. It is true that Oban has not achieved much in terms of personal force, but he can be regarded as ambitious. But now, full of ambition can only be depressed step by step under the torture of illness, which is indeed sighing to say.

"After I die, the two Earls of Rykerd and Kent will surely take advantage of the opportunity. These two guys were put in the past, and there was nothing to worry about. But Gilles is still too young to be a girl, but after all, she is only a girl. Moreover, the Marquis of Iron Spear has already heard back, and Huo Yi said that he will do his best to do a good job in the marriage. As soon as Gila left, Giles could not stand alone. There's also Grar, whom I was going to dispose of after the end of Daniel's war. But now, you can't do that. However, keeping him by Gilles' side is always a hidden danger. Oban shook his head and sighed, and from his words, it was not difficult to hear the internal and external troubles of the territory.

Originally, Oban had already made arrangements for these problems, but unfortunately his time was running out, and many plans were not implemented at all.

Alan patted the back of his hand and said, "I will do my best to help Count Gilles." ”

Hearing him say this, Oban squeezed out a smile: "Sir Allen, from the day you joined me, I knew who you were. The dragon told me to be wary of you, because you are an ambitious man. One day, when I can't hold your ambitions here, maybe I'll become the object of your conquest. So I have some arrangements that were originally reserved for you. But I didn't expect that now you are the only person I can trust. ”

"If you want to go further, Rhein is an important bridge for you. But you can't trust him too much, and my advice is that maintaining the right relationship of interest with Rhine is conducive to the development of your career. Ou Ban Zhengse said: "With your ability, the hereditary earl should not be a problem, I think the imperial marquis is your real target." If you can step into the Holy Realm, then the empire may have a fifth duke. ”

Alan didn't comment either, just laughed it off. Oban had already overestimated his ambitions as much as possible, but Oban didn't know where his identity came from, so he didn't know the blueprint in Allen's heart, and the Bylegon Empire was just a phased goal.

Oban wanted to support his body, but Alan hurriedly helped him up. He smiled and said, "If you can come today, I'm in a much better spirit, so let's make a will." Alan, please go outside and call the relevant people in. ”

A moment later, the relevant figures designated by Oban walked into the bedroom one after another. In addition to the people in the corridor before, there was one more clerk. Naturally, Alan gave up his place next to the bed to the clerk so that he could take notes. The Count's wife threw herself on the edge of the bed on the other side of Oban, and was already holding the Count's hand and weeping silently.

Oban wiped the tears from her face and said softly, "I invite you to come today to be a witness for me." I'm no longer able to do it, so I'll have to make arrangements for the rest while I can still talk. Every decision I make is deliberate and unaffected by other third-party factors. Therefore, after my death, this will must be carried out and carried out. If anyone disobeys, I will entrust Sir Alan with a heavy punishment. Sir Allen will be the witness and defender of this will, and I grant him the right to uphold the execution of this will. Force may be used when necessary. This is the first clause of the will! ”

Everyone looked at Allen in unison, and no one expected that Oban would trust Allen so much.