After a while, Petrov raised his head, “This contract and what you told me yesterday, is basically the same, but there is one thing…” He pointed to the end of the contract, “Your Royal Highness, shouldn’t I write my father’s name here? The Count is after all the representative of my family.
Roland smiled, “Of course not, it was you, not your father, who talked with me about the post as representative, so it’s naturally to write your name at the end of the contract.”
For a moment Petrov became startled, he couldn’t believe what he had heard so he asked: “Your Highness, you don’t mean that — ”
“Yes, you will take over the place of the Duke and rule over the stronghold,” Roland nodded. “If you’re able to fulfill the contract, you can continue to rule over the city even after I became the King.” Here he paused and smiled, “But if you break the contract, you will meet the same end as the Duke — since I was able to break into Longsong Stronghold once, there is no problem to do it for a second time. Let’s work well together, Mr. Ambassador.”
The dungeons of the castle were not so dark and wet as the prison of Border Town, maybe the Duke didn’t want to turn his basement into a haunted house, or smell the nauseating stench as soon as he descended the stairs. Generally speaking, the dungeon was still relatively clean. The cells were also differently decorated accordingly to its grade, some were empty, some were not only decorated with a bed, they even had a wardrobe, a desk and chandeliers were also readily available. Probably the cells were also a place for the Duke to keep some of the nobility, so the basic etiquette had to be guaranteed.
Roland also found a special cell in the corner, within it stood a large bed taking more than half the room, there were also chains hanging down from the ceiling, but the chain for the neck and hands were wrapped in layers of sheepskin and on the wall hung a variety of whips.
As the most valuable prisoner, Lord Hull was naturally in the best cell. If someone didn’t focus on the external iron railings, they could think this was a luxury bedroom. Furthermore, he also had to share the room with Count Maple Leaf, Viscount Wolf, the eldest son of the Wild Rose Family and the second son of the Elk Family, together with the Ryan family these were the six ruling family of the Longsong Stronghold — of course, the Ryan Family had been destroyed by Roland, so his wife and his sons were kept in a cell next door.
When the other people saw that the Prince had appeared in the dungeon, the nobles stood up, not waiting for them to start their questioning, Roland began first: “I will take Count Honeysuckle with me, so you can come out. As for the rest of you, we are still waiting for the ransom, the moment they pay I will let you out.”
“Father,” shouted Petrov at the moment when he saw him, then he glanced at his friend, and then to Roland, “Your Highness, I didn’t see the name of Count Elk on the list, if he died on the battlefield, the eldest son of the Elk Family should be now the head of the family, but at the moment he isn’t at home, so there is no one who could take over this job and Rene cannot be redeemed. But if you let him out, he could go home and organize his self-redeeming? I am willing to give a guarantee for him.”
“Do you mean the eldest son of the Elk Family, Jacques Medde?” Roland shook his head. “He already came back. Not only did he come back to the stronghold, no he even came to the castle yesterday, but… I don’t believe he will pay the ransom.”
Hearing this, Rene dashed to the front of the cage, “Why?”
“He said since you didn’t protect your father on the battlefield, it was the same as you being his executioner.”
“Why did he say this, the one who killed our father —” Rene immediately closed his mouth.
Roland didn’t take his outburst seriously “What you wanted to say, that it was obviously me who killed the count, right?” He went in front the cage. “Previously to the Months of the Demons, your father sent intruders into my castle, trying to burn my food reserves,” said Roland. “And now he followed the Duke onto the battlefield, taking his knights to attack my territory. I merely started a counterattack, to repel the invaders. But now I’m the murderer? Shouldn’t it be Duke Ryan who had ordered your father to act be the one who gets condemned? In addition, if it were not for Hills’s statement that you did not know anything about the attempt to burn my food, you would already be a dead man by now.”
“…” Rene was left speechless.
“Your Royal Highness,” Petrov asked, worried. “If his brother doesn’t pay the ransom for him, will you kill Rene?”
