Imperial Crown

It was the first time that Raven saw Old Gordon so entangled. He was quite curious and said gently: "Don't be nervous, tell me slowly, what's the matter?"

"It's like this, sir." Old Gordon pushed his monocle: "I have a granddaughter named Fiona. I recently called her back to Eagle Castle. I hope you can agree to let her stay and help me deal with some chores."

"Of course no problem." Raven said: "The position is temporarily set as your assistant, and the annual salary of five gold coins, how about it?"

"My Lord Baron, I will always remember your generosity." Old Gordon's expression was slightly moved.

As a butler, he has the power to recruit his own assistants, and in return, this salary must be paid by himself.

But now Raven has offered a salary of five gold coins per year, which means that Fiona has been appointed as an official employee of Eagle Castle.

Raven has never even seen Fiona's face. Of course, this decision is not based on her knowledge, ability or appearance, but on trust and care for this old retainer.

"Fiona, come in quickly, meet the Baron." Old Gordon turned around and called.

A few seconds later, the door opened a little, and a slender and bony arm held the door frame and slowly pushed the door open.

Fiona walked in just like that.

The light silver hair inherited from Old Gordon was scattered behind her head, and the hair on her forehead was quite thick, but it had a dry feeling like straw.

The skin on her delicate oval face was tight, and the big round-framed glasses were placed on her small nose bridge, and the lenses were as thick as the bottoms of two wine bottles.

The fox-like slender light gray eyes were nervous and a little smart, and her thin lips were slightly pursed.

She lowered her head and hunched her chest. She was wearing a very neat and bookish robe. Her hands were crossed and hung at her waist, and her fingers were as slender as chopsticks.

The whole person gave Raven the feeling of...

thin.

As thin as a lightning bolt.

Just being looked at by Raven, she quickly shrank behind Old Gordon like a frightened puppy and grabbed the corner of his clothes.

This made the latter feel very embarrassed, frowned, raised his hand to his mouth, and coughed twice.

That means - speak quickly!

But Fiona still didn't make any sound, but just pulled harder with her hands, pulling Old Gordon's clothes until they were almost deformed.

"My Lord Baron, Fiona is just too nervous. She definitely doesn't mean to disrespect you!" Old Gordon was angry, anxious and helpless, so he had to bite the bullet and explain: "Don't look at her shyness, but she graduated from the Nord National Academy of Arts. She has some attainments in rhetoric, law and economics, and she is very efficient in doing things."

Raven would not compete with a little girl. After thinking for a while, he suddenly said: "The Nord National Academy of Arts is the only university in the Nord Province besides the Church Academy, right?"

"I heard that the tuition there is not cheap. No wonder you always live a tight life."

Although not as good as Eric, a first-level extraordinary, Old Gordon, as the butler of Eagle Castle, has an annual salary of 30 gold coins, but his life is very simple. In addition to two sets of well-maintained butler robes, he rarely even buys clothes.

In this era, men are generally valued over women. Old Gordon was able to support Fiona until she finished college, which shows his love and attention for this granddaughter. Recalling her to Eagle Castle also shows his confidence in the future of the Griffith family.

"After all, I only have this granddaughter." Old Gordon showed a slightly embarrassed smile: "My lord, if you don't have any instructions, I'll take my leave first!"

Raven nodded: "Okay, go, remember to sort out the accounts I want."

"Yes, my lord!" Old Gordon took the order and turned away. Fiona followed him like a puppy, and didn't dare to look at Raven until the end.

Raven's eyes followed her until they were blocked by the door, and then he turned his eyes back.

Although it was just a glimpse, Raven still observed a lot of information.

For example, her fingers were white and slender, and she had never done heavy work at first glance, but the first knuckle of the index finger of her right hand, near the thumb, had a thin layer of callus, which was the mark that could only be worn out by holding a quill pen for a long time.

This shows that she is indeed good at copywriting, at least she writes enough words.

Hunching her chest and lowering her head is an instinctive self-protection action, and judging from the curvature of her spine, she is used to doing this.

This shows that Fiona is not doing well in the college, and it is even possible that she is excluded because of factors such as family background and appearance, so she has developed this habit.

The lenses as thick as the bottom of a bottle not only show that she has poor reading habits, but also mean that she has read a lot of books. Perhaps because of this, Fiona, who is not good at socializing, was able to graduate from Nord National Academy of Arts.

Her thin figure and slightly dry hair show that her nutritional intake is very problematic. Old Gordon will not deduct her from the food, which means that she has a morbid rejection of the activity of "eating".

In this way, Fiona's image in Raven's mind became clear: an introverted, unspeakable, food-averse, and extremely socially anxious academic bully.

"Tsk, if this continues, I will soon be anorexic!" Raven muttered and rubbed his stomach.

During this period, his schedule became increasingly full, even too full, with almost no time for leisure. Moreover, since Simon had not returned for a long time, he was always angry and his appetite was getting worse and worse.

However, in this era, especially in winter, it was difficult for even the nobles to eat fresh vegetables. The only thing they had to eat every day was bread, which was disgustingly greasy.

"Forget it, stop reading!" Raven stood up and left the book on the table: "Get something to eat!"

On the other side, Old Gordon took Fiona back to his office.

As soon as he closed the door, his expression darkened:

"Fiona, you really disappoint me!"

"Before I went in, I said well that I wanted to show off in front of the Baron, but you didn't even say a word! You're going to embarrass me with this old face!"

"Didn't you say hello and say three words to Patty when you came here? Although the total number of words didn't exceed ten words, you still fulfilled your courtesy!"

"Why did you act like that at the critical moment, huh?"

Fiona lowered her head and remained silent.

The more he saw her like this, the angrier Old Gordon became, and he said angrily: "Fiona, my good granddaughter, you are already 19 years old, can you stop treating yourself like a child?"

He wanted to continue to reprimand, but looking at Fiona's hands twisted together, Old Gordon still softened his heart and sighed: "Oh, I sent you to Hovey City before because Baron Donald's level of management of the territory is really... Hi, you should know what I mean."

"Baron Raven is now in charge of the Eagle Territory. He is ambitious, courageous, and capable. Under his leadership, the Griffith family will surely rise!"

Having said this, Old Gordon showed a trace of exhaustion and sadness on his face: "Grandpa, I am already over sixty years old. How long can I live even if my body is strong? Three years, five years, or eight years?"

"Only now, while I am still alive, will he look at you more for my sake, and you can take this opportunity to occupy a place in the Griffith family."

"This way, even if I die, you will still have someone to rely on!"

Fiona finally reacted. She raised her head with fear in her eyes: "...scared."

"Afraid? What's the use of being afraid?" Old Gordon shook his head and said, "No matter how scared I am, people will still die. I will always go to see the Lord of Light."

"It's scary..." Fiona shook her head: "Baron Raven...it's scary!"

"Terror? What nonsense are you talking about?" Old Gordon glared and reprimanded: "Baron Raven has a conscience and knows how to consider his subordinates. He is rare among nobles. How dare you call him scary?"

"His soul, and his eyes." Fiona bit her lip, her voice as low as a mosquito, but with a trembling fear: "It's as if he can see through all my secrets, and there are still things in him. Surrounded by a kind of frightening energy!"

"This..." Old Gordon was stunned.

He suddenly remembered that before Fiona's parents died in danger, she had said similar mysterious and incomprehensible words.

Gordon Sr. sent Fiona to Hovey City because he did not want Donald, who was obsessed with "magic research", to notice his granddaughter.

"You are not allowed to say these words to anyone, do you understand?" Old Gordon told him very seriously.

"Well, I will only tell Grandpa." Fiona nodded.

"Eh..." Old Gordon let out a long sigh: "My good girl, grandpa doesn't know what you saw, but there is one thing I can't get wrong."

"The Baron is a leader worth following and a person who is good at breaking the rules."

"I know that you have always wanted to use your talents and make a career, but you are just a woman of commoner origin. Looking at the entire continent, except for the Baron, no other noble can help you realize your value!"

He slowed down his voice and said earnestly: "So, whether it's for grandpa or for yourself, you have to work hard to face the baron and show your talents. Can you promise grandpa?"

"Well..." Fiona bit her lip, her breathing gradually quickened and then slowed down, as if she was having a fierce psychological struggle. Finally, she raised her head, looked into Old Gordon's eyes and nodded vigorously: "I understand, grandpa, I will definitely not disappoint your expectations!"

"Grandpa believes in you." Old Gordon showed a kind smile: "You have come all the way and you are tired. The room should be almost tidy. You should go back and rest first."

"Didn't the Baron give you the task before?" Fiona asked, "I'll help you handle it."

"If you can be so natural when talking to others, then you are really helping me." Old Gordon laughed and pushed the monocle: "Go on, you are already thin, don't collapse from exhaustion!"

"Yeah!" Fiona nodded: "Grandpa, you should also pay attention to rest!"

Patty was already waiting at the door. When Fiona came out, she took her to the room that had been tidied up.

The room is located on the west edge of the second floor, not far from Old Gordon's office. The area is not very large, but it is enough to accommodate a large bed, a dresser, a wardrobe and a desk, and it does not appear crowded. .

Click.

The door was gently closed, and Fiona's eyes fell on the bed.

Her uneasy eyes suddenly softened.

…