"Grandfather Fagle, on behalf of my grandfather, I raise this cup to you. May you enjoy good health and all the best." Tiro, the grandson of Teirhaus, dressed all in white, raised his glass, smiling at Fagle.
Fagle drained the good wine in his glass and laughed heartily, "Grandson! Don’t be shy, I’ve heard about your early achievents. Today, they are indeed no exaggeration! At such a young age, you were even noticed and accepted as a nominal disciple by the Northern Sword Saint. Your grandfather is truly lucky! You are far better than my grandsons who are without promise and only know how to wine and dine all day."
Upon hearing Fagle ntion the Northern Sword Saint, Tiro’s eyes imdiately revealed a look of reverence, he humbly said, "Grandfather Fagle, I am just a nominal disciple of my venerable teacher. If I am lucky enough to be formally accepted by him in the future, that would be my true fortune! However, how could we younger generation be compared to you? I’ve heard from my grandfather that you single-handedly quelled the rebellion in the entire Duru province and earned the position you hold today through your achievents. Compared to you, what do my little achievents count for? My grandfather said, if his inheritance of the title hadn’t been higher than yours at the beginning, there’s no way he could catch up to your achievents."
Sitting beside Tiro, Tifya looked at her adoptive brother calmly handling Fagle, and a faint smile appeared on her pretty face. Their objective for this visit was to let Tiro interact more with this major official, to establish affections. Tiro, being young and promising, was already chosen to be the direct heir of Teirhaus. These were the tests he has to face. Until now, his responses had been very appropriate.
Already tipsy, Fagle’s face lit up when he heard Tiro’s words. Who doesn’t like their heroic past being complinted? He laughed heartily, "Did Teirhaus really say that? It’s surprising that the old guy still rembers the events from two decades ago. I’m getting old, ti waits for no man! The world will belong to you young people in the future."
At this mont, a servant walked up to Fagle and whispered, "Sir, there’s a man outside claiming to be a rcenary, and he says he’s been entrusted to deliver a gift to you."
Fagle was in the middle of an enjoyable conversation with Tiro and naturally felt displeased at being interrupted. He didn’t have a good impression of rcenaries, considering them as lowly citizens. He said impatiently, "Can’t you see I have guests? Just let him leave the gift behind. Do I have to deal with such things personally?"
The servant answered fearfully, "But he insists on eting you and says he has to hand over the item personally. We’ve tried sending him away several tis with no success. He’s skilled, and several of the gate guards have been beaten by him."
Fagle snorted, "How dare he make trouble here? He’s quite audacious! Fine, then let him in and let him wait at the door. I want to see what this rcenary is capable of."
The servant went down to carry out the order. In a while, he led a tall young man with black hair and black eyes to the outer hall. The young man’s simple clothing was torn in several places, making him look very down-and-out. He was holding a wooden box in his hand. Although he looked shabby, he had such a presence that was impossible to ignore - his bright black eyes were sparkling. Tiro and Tifya exchanged glances. Wasn’t he the beggar they had given alms to not long ago? How did he beco a rcenary? And how dare he co to the City Lord’s Mansion to provoke them?
Fagle was also sizing up the disheveled young man. Being able to securely hold the position of Duru Governor, he naturally had good judgent. Although the young man was dressed plainly, the character he revealed told Fagle that he wasn’t just an ordinary young man. Intrigued, he motioned the servant to bring the young man in.
Ah Dai had spent quite so ti outside the door trying to persuade the servant to announce him. When he arrived at the entrance of the hall, he recognized the girl sitting by the table in the hall - she was the one who had given him alms, a familiar face. His mind was still lingering on that when the servant was already leading him into the hall. Ah Dai’s raggedness contrasted sharply with the opulence of the hall. Besides Fagle and the girl in white, Tifya, everyone else was looking at him with disgust.
Setting down his wine glass, Fagle looked Ah Dai up and down and asked, "Why do you insist on giving the item to personally?"
Ah Dai glanced at the Tiro siblings and said, "I’m a rcenary. The job I took required to do so. This is the gift, please accept it." Saying this, he handed over the wooden box.
The servant held the box in front of Fagle. Fagle smiled faintly, "I am curious to see what this gift is. Open it."
The servant responded and lifted the lid of the box. With a soft popping sound, a pink smoke erupted from the box, carrying a heavy sweet scent. The servant had no ti to react and inhaled a breath of the smoke subconsciously. His mind went dark and he imdiately collapsed. Fagle instinctively knew sothing was wrong, held his breath, and slapped his hand outward. A pale green fighting spirit erupted from his palm, dispersing the pink smoke. Although his reaction was quick, he still inhaled a trace of the toxic smoke, and an instant sense of dizziness sent a shock through his heart.
Surprised at the scene, Ah Dai saw the scattered poison smoke drifting towards him, so he imdiately circulated his True Qi throughout his body, keeping the pink smoke out.
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