At night, the halls of Redwater City Castle were glowing with light. Servants carrying wine gla.s.ses were walking through the crowd. Musicians were singing softly while plucking on the strings of their instruments. Enticing dishes were set on the table one by one, and goblets filled with red wine shone brightly.
The n.o.blemen and women split into groups of two or three and chatted happily with wine in their hands. Edith was the focus of people"s eyes. She was moving around in the hall with Earl Delta and very much seemed to enjoy such a social event.
Brian, however, felt totally alienated from the whole crowd.
He felt the collar of his bottoming s.h.i.+rt choking him and his slim fit coat restricting the movement of his arms, not to mention the extremely uncomfortable pointy toe high heel boots on his feet. He could not really understand how come the n.o.bles could dart around on the very slippery floor wearing those shoes.
Brian could not help but envy Van"er who did not have to suffer from this as the guard of the First Army"s battalion,
but he immediately stood taller when he thought that Edith had reminded them that they were here to represent His Majesty Roland.
Someone suddenly patted his shoulder, saying, "You look quite tense. Is this the first time you"ve come to attend a banquet like this?"
He turned around and found that it was Sir Eltek who dressed in broad shoulder formal attire with a white scarf around his neck, looking completely different from his everyday look.
"Relax, you don"t have to be so nervous."
"I"m not..."
"It"s not a bad thing. No one is good at everything. It"s not a big deal," Sir Eltek threw up his hands and said.
After a moment of silence, Brian asked, "where is Lord Iron Axe?"
"He"s escorting the witches, Miss Iffy and Miss Sylvie. They seem as popular as Miss Edith." Eltek pointed to the other side of the hall and said.
Brian looked at that direction and saw the witches. They also looked very stiff in the dresses that Edith found for them in the last-minute rush. However, they were still attractive and seemed to be even more beautiful than the Pearl of Northern Region. "Those people have no idea who they are, and Lord Iron Axe is actually not protecting the witches," Brian said.
"Oh, is it?" Sir Eltek shook his beard a little.
Brian nodded and explained. "To be more accurate, he"s protecting the n.o.bles. If Miss Iffy is irritated, they"ll suffer."
They then looked at each other and giggled simultaneously.
"Look, now you"re relaxed and natural."
"I..." Brian froze for awhile and said, "thank you."
"Hah, you"re welcome," Sir Eltek said and then he beckoned a servant. He picked up a gla.s.s of wine and turned to Brian, asking, "would you like a drink?"
"No... His Majesty has said that a military man on duty should never drink wine."
"No wine, even when he"s resting?"
"It"s a rule."
"Alright." Sir Elteck sipped the wine alone and added, "what a pity."
"You think..." Brian hesitated and continued. "What Miss Edith has said is true?"
"Such as?"
"A knight should never refuse invitations to such occasions at his will, because he represents His Majesty."
"Uhm... That"s true." Sir Eltek nodded and said.
Brian felt dejected, suddenly saying, "I"m not qualified to be a knight. I can"t behave in such a natural, relaxed manner like her on these kind of occasions."
"It"s okay," Sir Eltek said while spreading his hands. "Some people are just naturally good at it and some are not. Indeed, a knight who stands out at a banquet can bring his lord glory, praises and even diplomatic advantages, but that"s not all about being a knight. Actually, my son is also bad at social events for the n.o.bles."
"You mean... Dawn Glory?"
"Yes, he seldom spends time with the other n.o.bles and was even frequently absent from social events held by the lord. However, no one can deny that he"s an excellent knight."
"I don"t know this side of Mr. Ferlin," Brian said in great surprise.
"There"s a lot you don"t know about him." Sir Eltek smiled and added, "he"s stubborn as a stone. He filled me with rage by marrying a civilian woman. I cut him off at that time but then I found out that I was wrong. I could find no fault with Ms. Irene. She"s as good as any n.o.ble lady, except that she doesn"t have a n.o.ble t.i.tle. It was hard for both of them at that time." Sir Eltek stopped and changed the subject, "I heard that you fought a b.l.o.o.d.y battle against the rebels to protect the grain preparation for Border Town?"
"Uhm... Actually, it was Lady Nightingale who stopped them. If it was not for her, I"m afraid I"d already be dead in the bas.e.m.e.nt." Brian said with a little embarra.s.sment.
"But at least, you stepped forward, right? It"s much braver than most of the other n.o.bles who have only the t.i.tles but not the courage to fight against their enemies. I think that His Majesty did not dub you a knight for your social skills. You"re a qualified knight as long as you remain who you are."
"I see," Brian felt touched and said, "thank you for telling me that."
"It"s all right. Take it as a casual chat between us. Seeing you reminded me of Ferlin, so I couldn"t hold my tongue," Sir Eltek said while touching his beard.
After a while, Brian asked in a m.u.f.fled voice. "So, what about the other thing that Miss Edith has mentioned? The social activities of the n.o.bles are boring and dull..."
"You really care about her, don"t you?" Sir Eltek watched Brian with interest.
"No, no! I"m just curious." Brian promptly waved his hands and explained, "she disapproved of these kind of activities at that time, but now you can see that she seems to enjoy it very much."
"Well," Sir Eltek smacked his lips and said. "What should I say? Some people can handle everything properly, even when they don"t like to do some of those things. I think Miss Edith is a strong performer among those people."
"Properly cope with unenjoyable things?"
"It"s not a rare thing," Sir Eltek shrugged and continued. "They"re gifted and naturally good at many things, but that doesn"t mean they like everything that they have to do. After all, as a Duke"s daughter, social skills are already in her blood."
"His Majesty needs someone like her," Brian sighed.
"Maybe," Sir Eltek said noncommittally, "But that doesn"t mean His Majesty doesn"t need other kinds of people. As I"ve said before, no one is good at everything. Focusing on what you"re best at is not worse than covering everything, as there"s a limit to a man"s energy. That"s why you"re also well recognized by His Majesty..." Eltek paused momentarily and added, "I think he"s right based on the changes I"ve seen in the City of Neverwinter."