The order in which the game is played is determined by the seven people’s mutual humility. Shade was ranked in the middle, fourth place. He felt funny in his heart when he saw his opponents taking off their coats one after another, wearing white shirts and looking like they were gearing up.
He had played many Rhodes games at banquets, but this was his first time playing this coin-tossing game.
“I wonder what Mia is doing now.”
When I was bored, I thought of my cat, and then I suddenly wanted to laugh. Because the enthusiastic and deliberately showoff look of his opponents at this time really looked like a cat that wanted to eat in the middle of the night, so it tried its best to show affection to him by coquettishly:
“The nobles of Huntington are really interesting.”
The crowd gathered and talked about Her Royal Highness the Princess’s banquet game.
The first person to appear was the 20-year-old Mr. Miguel Hersius, the youngest son of Marquis Hersius. The young gentleman wears a white shirt and a warm brown vest.
Holding the coin, the servant blindfolded him in front of the starting line. Then, amid the cheers of the crowd, he waved his hands around and then threw out the first coin:
“Go!”
“Oh!”
He threw it with so much force that the coin flew directly over the coffee table and almost hit the wife of the mayor of Huntington who was sitting on another sofa. People burst into laughter, and the plump lady also laughed and cursed softly in a gentle voice. Even Princess Margaret covered her mouth and chuckled, which made the atmosphere even more lively.
The blindfolded Mr. Hersius couldn’t see anything, but when he heard the roar of laughter, he knew that he had definitely missed. So, he held a gold coin in each hand and threw it forward at the same time.
This time, I knew how to control the power. Unfortunately, the two gold coins just hit the table and then rolled aside.
The second Baron Galal appeared, now 29 years old, with two very delicate beards under his nose. He also held the coins and blindfolded the servant, then took one of them and shook it tentatively. The gold coins reflected the light of the gas lamp, and Shade was also guessing whether the opponent could make the shot:
“May God bless you!”
Baron Gallar said softly, and then raised his hand violently. The coin was thrown high into the sky, almost hitting the ceiling. After falling in a parabola, it flew accurately to the table, and then with a clanging sound, it actually landed in the glass.
“Baron Gallar, you’ve been hit!”
Someone said immediately, and then there were applause and cheers. Regardless of whether it was a hit or not, people enjoyed the process rather than the result.
Because I was just blindfolded and knew the specific location of the cup, it was not surprising that the first one hit. But then the baron had no such luck. The remaining two gold coins touched the coffee table table but failed to touch the glass.
The third person who appeared was the grandson of a duke, but Shade didn’t hear the other person’s identity clearly. This young gentleman was more cautious than the first two. After missing the first shot, he adjusted his hand movements according to the sound in time to make the second shot hit accurately. As for the third one, although it hit the edge of the glass, it bounced and the gold coin fell on the table. This was indeed a pity.
“Next is Mr. Holmes from Delrayon.”
Hearing the princess’s maid calling his name, Shade walked out of the crowd. Like the three gentlemen just now, he got the coins first, and then asked the servant to help him cover his eyes. The piece of cloth was tied very firmly, and the cloth itself was very thick, so there was really no possibility of peeking:
“This kind of game is really not as interesting as Rhodes.”
Xia De thought to himself, holding two gold coins in his left hand and twisting the third one in his right hand to throw. He also followed the example of his opponents, taking off his coat and wearing only a white shirt. Under the bright crystal lamp and gas lamp, his well-proportioned figure attracted many people’s attention.
[Down. 】
Shad’s hand moved slightly downward.
[Slightly to the left. 】
Shad’s hand moved slightly to the left.
【Relax your muscles, yes, relax some more. 】
Xia De adjusted his strength.
【Vote. 】
The gold coin was thrown forward casually. Under the gaze of people who were either joking, nervous, or looking forward to it, the gold coin fell directly into the glass at the far vertex of the triangle. spinning in the quilt.
“Very good! Hit!”
Xia De heard this answer with satisfaction, and the voice in his ear also reminded softly:
[Marguerite Anjou is applauding you. 】
“So why did she invite me?”
【Relax a little, turn left, then right, okay. 】
The second gold coin was thrown out by Shade immediately. Before people even stopped applauding for the first time, they saw the gold coin accurately falling into the second goblet again:
“Hit again!”
This time it was a man’s voice. He seemed to be a member of the group of vampires just now, who also came to watch the banquet and games here.
Xia De held the last coin in his right hand, and after a moment’s hesitation, he gently tossed it forward. When he took off the cloth in front of his eyes, he saw a gold coin lying in each of the three goblets.
He clutched the strip of cloth and walked towards the coffee table amidst people’s celebrations. The ladies on the sofa also praised Shade. Of course, this was not only because he ended the game early, but also because his handsome appearance and temperament really made people like him.
“Congratulations, Mr. Holmes, you did a great job.”
Princess Margaret said softly and asked the servant to hand the three gold coins to Shade. Then she took off her earrings, took out the jewelry box, and gave it to Shade.
Girls like to use jewelry boxes to store jewelry, unlike Shade who puts everything directly into his pocket or turns it into a toy and puts it in his pocket.
Although I don’t know how much the pair of earrings is worth, Princess Margaret’s generosity also impressed Shade. After taking the jewelry box, he respectfully expressed his gratitude and praised Princess Margaret’s beauty in broken Kasenlik.
It was all so etiquette and tradition that even if Shad, a Delarian, won the banquet game, no one would say anything. Princess Margaret left Shade behind to say a few words, so that the noble girls who were very interested in Shade could ask him about the situation in the New World and Delrayon.
Soon, the melodious sound of the cello sounded, signaling the beginning of tonight’s dance party. It’s half past eight now, more than an hour before the banquet ends. The people around them dispersed to enjoy tonight’s banquet. However, when Shade wanted to turn around and leave to find Mr. Bernhardt who was still playing cards over there, the princess stopped Shade again:
“Mr. Holmes, the dance has begun. Since you have won the game, are you interested in dancing with me?”
“Huh?”
Xia De was a little surprised and hesitated whether to agree. The opponent’s witch power is very pitiful. If he dances with gloves on, he doesn’t have to worry about his specialness being discovered. This is only possible with direct contact. He hesitated because he didn’t know what the princess wanted to do.
“Oh, Your Highness, you were not in the game just now, so you added this bet!”
Before Shade could speak, Mr. Miguel Hersius, who was the first to throw the gold coin, hurriedly objected.
At this time, there were many people gathered in the sitting area of the sofa. When Mr. Hersius saw everyone looking at him, he blushed and said:
“Your Highness, you never dance easily with anyone at a ball, how can you dance with this Delarian”
These nobles of the Southern Kingdom still have some opinions on the Delarians, especially after Shade defeated them just now.
Marguerite Anjou, who was wearing a crown, frowned with dissatisfaction. Of course, Mr. Hersius could see that the princess was unhappy with his words, so he quickly added:
“I want to bet Rhodes with this gentleman. If he wins, I have no problem with it! The most important part of the banquet game is Rhodes. I think Mr. Holmes will not refuse to agree. .”
“Ha, after coming to this world for so long, I finally encountered this kind of thing!”
The foreigner thought with some joy in his heart, while the people around him talked quietly, no one objected or catered.
Princess Margaret, who is about to lead a delegation to visit Tobesk, said she would not allow conflicts between domestic nobles and foreign gentlemen at her farewell party. She deliberately opened her mouth to reconcile, but Shade suddenly said:
“You want to bet Rhodes with me?”
He stared at the other party, and while Mr. Hersius felt a little nervous, he slowly took out his Rhodes deck.
I apologized to the young girls around me, and then sat across from the princess. He leaned forward slightly, slapped the deck of cards on the table, held the top of the cards with his right hand, and pulled them gently. The cards were arranged in a fan shape on the coffee table.
Pick up the card at the end and gently move it to the right. The card with the back facing up will smoothly become face up. Then, move the card to the left again and turn the card back to face up again. . He put the cards back together, rinsed them a few times, and patted the rearranged deck on the table:
“How to play?”
He asked with a smile.
“Yeah”
Mr. Hersius, who was shocked by Shade’s “performance”, pursed his lips and hesitated for a moment, then shook his head decisively:
“I respect the princess’s thoughts. Sorry, sir, I was abrupt just now.”
After saying that, he turned around and left. This kind of exit was considered decent, but if he really played cards and lost, it would be a real loss of face.
“What happened?”
Mr. Bernhardt, who heard the commotion here, finally came over.
“Nothing, someone wants to bet Rhodes with me.”
Shade said, Mr. Bernhardt first greeted Princess Margaret who was standing up, and then asked Shade in surprise:
“Bet Rhodes with you? Who is so bold?”
He knew very well that Shade was the champion of “Big City Player 1853”, and he had seen Shade’s card skills and luck at the [Sin Mansion].
“It was Mr. Miguel Hersius, but he was scared away!”
Someone said, followed by a burst of laughter, and the atmosphere of the ball became more lively.
“Viscount, is Mr. Holmes very good at cards?”
Princess Margaret asked curiously, and the middle-aged vampire noble tried hard to find the words:
“Your Highness, that’s not a question of whether he’s good or not. That’s because Mr. Holmes often played Rhodes with those rude sailors on the ship, so he developed good card skills. What’s more, his luck has always been No one can compare.”
“So that’s it.”
The princess with long blond hair chuckled and said. After Shade took back his cards, he extended his hand to the princess:
“Your Highness, it is an honor to dance with you. Please forgive me, I am not good at this.”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Princess Margaret put her hand on Shade’s outstretched palm, and then walked towards the crowd dancing to the music together.
Mr. Bernhardt was left standing there alone, very puzzled as to what happened while he was playing Rhodes:
“Princess Margaret of Anjou, hasn’t she always been polite to men?”
On the other side, Shade and Princess Margaret started dancing right under the crystal chandelier. Kasenrik’s dance music is relatively soothing, or the current one is more soothing, so it doesn’t require too strenuous movements.
But even so, Shade is still controlling his steps very carefully, moving according to the “slow four” steps taught by Lesia, and Princess Margaret seems to be very good at dancing.
Shad’s right hands are together, the **** and ring finger are slightly bent inwards, tightly clasping the edge of Princess Margaret’s skirt under the left shoulder blade, and holding the princess’s right hand slightly. This kind of contact area is not large, because the princess obviously does not want to have too much contact with Shade.
Sure enough, there was a reason why she invited Shade to dance. Amidst the sound of the violin, the princess said very cautiously:
“Mr. Holmes, I’m sorry to involve you. I once heard Mr. Bernhardt say that you have had a long adventure in the New World and have extraordinary attainments in swordsmanship, marksmanship, and riding. That’s why I invited you. You participated in the game just now.”
Needless to say, it goes without saying that when the princess asked Mr. Bernhardt to hide the goods, the latter “bragged” a little about his friend.
“Then you invited me to the game because”
“That pair of earrings.”
She lowered her voice to prevent a third person from hearing:
“Betting with earrings is not my own idea, it is the idea of my cousin, the annoying Yin Lin.”
She was talking about Yinlin Cullen, the daughter of Duke Crum Cullen, who had been sitting next to Princess Margaret just now. This lady’s mother is the sister of the contemporary King of Carsonlik “Lion Lain”, so she is Princess Margaret’s cousin.
“That was a birthday gift from my mother, so”
She said a little embarrassed, and then Shade understood:
“After you finish this dance, wait half an hour. I will wait for you in the courtyard, and you will send a maid to take away the earrings.”
“I’m really sorry for involving you in this matter.”
The princess apologized again, but Shade didn’t think there was anything wrong with it. Everyone has relatives who are helpless but do exist. Of course, strangers do not have them. This kind of contradiction and conflict between aristocratic girls, which eventually turned into a jewelry dispute, is actually very common in contemporary court novels, but Dorothy thought similar plots were “boring and cliché”.
So, Shade didn’t plan to tell Dorothy or Lesia the story of tonight’s Kasenlik-style banquet. After all, this story is too boring.
“Mr. Holmes, are you satisfied with this banquet?”
The princess asked again, probably to lighten the atmosphere.
Xia De thought for a while, but he still didn’t forget Lesia’s “prank”:
“It’s very good, especially the food. Mr. Bernhardt recommended the green salad to me. The sweet onions, purple cabbage and Huntington’s radish tasted very good.”
So, Princess Margaret stopped talking to Shade about food until the dance ended.
Shadow and Princess Margaret just danced once and then parted politely. The princess returned to the sitting area of the sofa, apparently not wanting to dance the second dance, while Shade found Mr. Bernhardt, the rather upper-class vampire seed lord, who was greatly surprised by Shade’s performance. :
“You’re really good at dealing with young girls.”
He didn’t feel there was anything wrong with this, but was surprised by Sha De’s methods:
“There are actually some rumors among the nobles of Willondale that this Royal Highness Margaret is not very close to men.”
Mr. Bernhardt lowered his voice while holding the wine glass, and then made a strange expression. Shade nodded clearly, knowing that this was because Margaret Anjou never gave up on becoming the apprentice of the great witch.
Although they had agreed to exchange the pair of earrings, in order not to attract attention, Shade did not leave immediately. Instead, he and Mr. Bernhardt watched people playing Rhodes.
Mr. Bernhardt has some bad luck tonight, so he doesn’t plan to play cards anymore. Shade didn’t want to attract attention at this banquet anymore, so he didn’t get involved.
However, Mr. Bernhardt mentioned that when Shade went to Miss Sylvia, a woman joined the card game and left after winning two special cards in a row.
Nowadays, the trend is open, but it is very rare for women to openly play cards with men at banquets. Mr. Bernhard informed Shade of this interesting incident, and then pointed out the location of the woman to Shade.
She did not dance with anyone, but chatted with a middle-aged gentleman who looked like a scholar, standing by the window looking at the night view of the courtyard. Because only the back can be seen, there is no way to judge the age. The lady was wearing a long dress with black top and red bottom, and her hair color was a rare light blonde that was close to white.
They were a little far away from Shade and Mr. Bernhardt, but Shade still frowned slightly:
“Circle Warlock?”
“That lady is a ring wizard?”
Bernhardt looked over with some interest:
“I’m pretty sure she didn’t cheat when she played cards just now.”
“There are quite a few ring wizards at this banquet.”
Shade whispered, Mr. Bennhardt nodded and said nothing more:
“As long as they don’t cause trouble, aren’t we here just to attend the banquet?”
“Yes.”
Shad looked in the direction of Princess Margaret again, and was very sure that there was no ring warlock around her:
“In one hour, this banquet will be over. I hope everything is safe.”
————————Digression——————
PS: The extra chapter “The Missing Three Gold Coins” that appeared last night corresponds to the incident mentioned in Chapter 839.