Blood Holy Scripture: True Ancestor Charlotte de Castel

Charlotte felt unbelievably busy.

It was as if she were a boss who hadn't been to the company in a long time; one by one, everyone was lining up to see her.

Yet, despite the appearance of popularity, not a single one truly cared for her—they all had ulterior motives.

However...

The Bold family?

The Duke's family?

A flicker of interest crossed Charlotte's mind.

The Bold family was the ruling family of the Bold Duchy and were the ones to whom the Castel family owed allegiance.

By the way, the two families were also related by blood.

Firstly, the ancestors of the Castel family were a branch from the Bold family, considered a collateral line.

Secondly, the second wife of the former Bold Duke, Lady Catherine, was Charlotte's own aunt.

Strictly speaking, Charlotte was of the same generation as the current Duke.

Well... although in reality, the two differed by several decades.

In the fragmented memories that Charlotte inherited, the few times her predecessor had left Castel Manor were mostly to visit her aunt at the Duke's mansion.

However, Lady Catherine had been dead for many years.

And her predecessor had not left the manor for ten years.

Charlotte thought of the nobles who had been chased off by the female knight earlier.

If she remembered correctly, they seemed to have claimed they were representing the Duke's mansion...

Could it be... they were the ones?

Charlotte pondered thoughtfully.

Internally remarking on her own popularity, she nodded lightly and said obediently,

"Please let them in."

The door was pushed open once again, and several nobles clad in luxurious garments entered the sickroom.

As Charlotte expected, they were the same group that Captain Kara had kicked out earlier.

"Miss Charlotte, we meet again. After so many years, you've become more and more beautiful,"

said the portly nobleman at the forefront, his face wearing a kindly smile as he performed a standard noble courtesy.

Then his expression sobered, turning mournfully grave as if performing a face-changing act from Sichuan opera,

"The events of last night have already reached the Duke's mansion. The Duke grieves for the Castel family's misfortune and is filled with righteous anger,"

"In the morning, the Duke had already urged the Demon Hunting Institute to investigate thoroughly, swearing to root out every last Bloodline Deceit Demon from Bold and bring them all to justice!"

"Rest assured that no matter what happens, the Bold family will always be the strongest support for the Castel family!"

The portly nobleman was filled with righteous indignation, his expression earnest.

Charlotte, however, slightly shrank into her blanket, adopting a bewildered and timid expression.

She cocked her head, her large eyes seemingly full of question marks:

"Excuse me... who are you?"

The portly noble's breath hitched.

However, it was the young noble swordsman standing behind him who couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter:

"Pff, Bruno, I told you, it's been ten years, how could the young mistress of the Castel family possibly remember you?"

Upon saying this, the swordsman stepped past the portly noble and approached Charlotte.

He was about to speak when suddenly, he seemed to remember something and mimicked the portly noble's gesture in performing a noble courtesy.

Charlotte continued to play the part of a wary little animal, pretending to be a naive and timid little girl.

However, inside she was quite calm, analyzing the identity of the person based on their behavior.

Let's leave the portly noble aside for a moment.

His deacon garb was too conspicuous; clearly, he was a steward or similar at the Duke's mansion, and he likely held a minor title like Viscount or Baron.

What intrigued Charlotte was the swordsman.

From Charlotte's inherited memories, the swordsman's actions were far from standard, but it looked like he did his best.

This must be someone who had recently become a noble and was also a powerful Transcendent.

Her conversation with Dean Lawuer had given her a bit more insight into the nobility of this world.

In Mireya, nobles virtually monopolized transcendent powers, and it was common for natural-born Transcendents to be recruited by nobility. Some could even leapfrog to become new nobility with titles.

Looking at the swordsman's obviously high-quality and splendid attire, particularly the lion emblem of the Bold family that only direct family members could wear on his right chest, Charlotte further refined her assessment:

This was a new noble recently acknowledged by the Bold family, now a direct family member.

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Charlotte, I am Laino de Bold,"

said the noble swordsman.

*Cough cough cough*... *cough cough cough*...

The portly noble beside him coughed urgently, giving significant looks.

The swordsman paused, then promptly realized his mistake, scratching his head with a slightly embarrassed air,

"Um... Laino de Port..."

"de" is a common nobility title infix in the names of the New Moon Kingdom's nobles, indicating "belonging to" or "from" when followed by a surname, and it's essentially a symbol of nobility.

For example, Charlotte herself: Charlotte de Castel, which in plain terms means "Charlotte from the Castel Domain."

In the New Moon Kingdom, the best way to judge a noble's status is to see whether there is a "de" between their first and last names when they introduce themselves.

Clearly, this new member of the Bold family had yet to get used to his noble status.

When he reintroduced himself, he was so nervous he even misspoke the surname "Bold."

The fat noble was about to lose his mind.

It was as if he had donned a mask of pain; he instantly covered his face and desperately whispered in low voice,

"It's Bold..."

Swordsman: ...

The young noble's expression froze, then his face flushed red.

His expression underwent several changes before he blurted out in defeat, cursing:

"Damn it! Nobility is such a hassle; to hell with Bold!"

The fat noble's eyes bulged, and he instantly clutched his head, nearly fainting.

However, the young swordsman no longer cared:

"Alright, Bruno, stop staring at me with those small eyes of yours; no matter how wide you stare, they will still be small!"

"And stop lecturing me; even if the old man were here today, I wouldn't care."

"I've said it many times, if I'm not used to it, then I'm not; there are too many rules at home, being a mercenary is much more comfortable!"

After speaking, he looked at Charlotte again and quickly said:

"Miss Charlotte, let me reintroduce myself; I am Laino."

"As you can see, I was once a free mercenary, recently returned to the Bold family and unfamiliar with everything; please forgive any offense."

"I came here not only to visit but also to deliver an invitation on behalf of the old man."

Abandoning the pretense of nobility, the young swordsman completely let loose and finally relaxed.

He took out a golden silk-wrapped invitation from his chest and subconsciously tossed it to Charlotte.

But noticing her bandaged hands and feet, the swordsman quickly adjusted his action and gently placed the invitation in front of her:

"Half a month from now is the old man's birthday; he will be holding a birthday banquet at the Duke Mansion, inviting all Lower Nobles and some other lords from the Kingdom will also be present."

"Damn! To be honest, I feel like I'm crazy for delivering a birthday invitation now! After all that happened yesterday, now is not a good time..."

"But the old man insisted that I deliver it, saying it's important for the future of the Castel family, especially after the incident at Castel Manor."

"Miss Charlotte, I know you're sad, in pain, afraid... But we must always look forward. "

"Mercenaries have a saying: Life is a shitty adventure, and only the most determined bastards can shout, 'Damn it all,' while embracing beauties and treasures on their victorious return."

"You represent not just yourself, but the Castel family as well; please, be strong."

"Alright, I... cough, have said my peace, and the invitation has been delivered; I won't impose further."

"I wish you a speedy recovery! Goodbye!"

The young swordsman named Laino spoke rapidly, turned, and left without catching his breath.

Charlotte, Lotti, and the fat noble were stunned.

However, just as he was about to leave, Laino stopped, turned his head to study Charlotte closely and after a moment of contemplation, he said:

"Miss Charlotte..."

"You are very beautiful and lovely, truly as the legends describe, more beautiful than any girl from any race I've ever seen, and surely you will captivate nations in the future."

"Having seen the beauty of the Castel family, if it had been in the past, I could have bragged to my companions for years!"

"But because of that, please be more cautious..."

"Natural beauty and wealth are a deity's blessing but also a curse."

"Especially when one doesn't possess the strength to match them..."

"They can bring not only joy but also disaster."

"When it comes time to let go of certain things, one must let go without delay!"

Having said his piece, Laino didn't elaborate further but opened the door and left with a flourish.

The fat noble was momentarily dumbfounded, then apologizing to Charlotte, he bowed and turned, running to catch up:

"Oi, Lord Laino, wait for me! Please wait for me!"

They arrived quickly and left just as fast.

In the blink of an eye, only Charlotte and Lotti remained.

Lotti, full of remorse, looked at Charlotte, who was lost in thought:

"I'm sorry... Miss Charlotte, I didn't expect him to be so rude... I shouldn't have let him in, I've scared you, haven't I?"

Saying this, the beautiful priestess shook her head, frowning:

"Bastards remain bastards, lacking in any noble upbringing; he's truly tarnished the face of the Bold Duke!"

A Duke's bastard, huh...

Charlotte mused thoughtfully as she looked at the Duke's invitation in front of her.