Maria and Margaret / Behind the Business

After taking a bite, the bear-man threw a punch into the air.

"Great, that's the taste!"

More than ten years ago, a group of smugglers smuggled several cases of wine from Great Yan, which sold for a considerable price in Ursus.

I never had the chance to try a cup, but I was fortunate enough to have heard of its name – Burning Knife).

I only realized how well-deserved its reputation after having a drink with it today."

After finishing his drink, Xiong Ren finally spoke.

Seeing this, the other people in the bar also tried to ask for a drink.

However, the owner said that he didn't have any more signature drinks available.

Meanwhile, what was Suika doing? She was curiously savoring the glass of gin beside her.

That's right, gin is also known as gold or gin spirit.

This wine tastes very refreshing when drunk neat.

In the West, this type of wine is often used as a base spirit, in addition to being drunk neat. So the owner also gave Suika a small glass of several suitable pairings so she could mix and match as she pleased.

Just as the bar was making a ruckus, the door was pushed open, and a blonde girl walked in.

"Uncle Koval, you promised to help me with the armor this afternoon, why are you drinking again..."

The girl's clear, crisp voice caught Suika's attention.

Upon looking over, the blond hair seemed somewhat familiar to Suika for a moment.

"Oh, Little Mary, don't worry."

It's just a glass of wine. Don't you know what kind of person your Uncle Koval?

This little bit of wine will only make my mind more active.

Upon seeing the girl, the bear-man reached out and patted her on the shoulder with a loving gaze.

The girl greeted everyone around her, clearly a "regular" here.

After greeting everyone, she spotted Suika in the crowd.

The girl frowned slightly.

"Uncle, how can you sell alcohol to children!"

Hearing her rebuke, the bald boss, who looked fierce, touched his nose.

"I didn't sell alcohol..."

"Then what's with the wine glass in front of her!" The girl clearly didn't believe the boss's excuses.

Suika looked at the girl

"Sister, please don't scold the boss. He really didn't sell me any wine."

Our exchange is legitimate.

"Yes, yes, this young lady brought some rare wines and is exchanging them with us," the shopkeeper hurriedly added, continuing Suika's words.

The girl stared at the boss with a look that said, "Do you believe me or not?"

"Really, you should try it. I guarantee you won't find another wine like this in the entire Kawaleriel, except for the one I have here."

Suika was so confident because there was almost no communication channel between Great Yan and this place, and the wine simply couldn't be transported here.

Chapter 235 Maria and Margaret

After all, the two routes from the Great Yan were either through Ursus or across Kazdel through Leithanien and Victoria.

The former's relationship with the Great Yan was already tense, and he rarely saw caravans. Moreover, would this kind of wine even have a chance to leave Ursus?

As for the latter... even if Leithanien and Victoria were to pay the required tariffs to allow passage, Kazdel wasn't a place where just anyone could leave in previous years.

Therefore, it's possible that a small amount of Burning Knife might have leaked out before the Kazdel Civil War, but after the war, trade routes were basically cut off, so this specialty of the Great Yan was no longer seen here.

"I?

"I'll pass... I don't drink..."

Upon hearing Suika's words, the girl waved her hands repeatedly.

"That's a pity..." Seeing that the other party was not drinking, Suika did not continue to persuade him, but instead put away the wine gourd and tucked it into her waistband under everyone's gaze.

After she put the gourd away, a clear sigh echoed through the bar.

"My name is Maria, Maria Nearl. It's nice to meet you!" the girl then introduced herself.

"Nearl, which Nearl?" Suika asked deliberately.

"Yes, young lady, if you've heard of the Nearl Family of Kazimierz, Little Mary comes from that Nearl," a somewhat elderly-looking knight said with a smile.

"Grandpa Forgwald ~" the girl said sweetly.

"Alright, alright, you tell me yourself." The old knight chuckled and sat back down, but his attention shifted when Suika mentioned Nearl.

"Maria Nearl ... Looking at you now, you do indeed resemble Margaret." Suika spoke after sizing her up, instantly silencing the atmosphere in the bar.

"You've seen my sister, where is she!" Maria grabbed Suika's hand immediately upon hearing Suika's words and asked anxiously.

Don't worry, and don't be anxious.

Even in Terra, the Radiant Knight's strength is top-tier; the dangers of the wilderness are insignificant in her presence.

And she's doing quite well now...

Wait a minute.

Suika took out her phone. She had met the three Apostles before when she was on Rhodes Island and had given them gifts.

As a thank-you gift, it was a one-on-one group photo with each of them.

Suika pulled out the photo of herself and Margaret and handed it to Maria.

"This is a photo of me with the Radiant Knight himself, just two months ago."

Looking at her sister in the photo, Maria's eyes immediately filled with tears.

Although she seems to be having a lot of fun and being cheerful all day, heaven knows how much pressure she's under.

Previously, her older sister was there to support them, but Margaret was deported from the country because of her status as Infected, and the Oversight Council continued to suppress the Nearl Family. They have already sold off most of the things they could sell.

When she herself didn't know what to do, Suika brought news of her sister, which immediately made her feel much less stressed.

"It really is Margaret! Where is she now?" The old knight walked up behind Maria, intending to comfort her, but after seeing the person in the photo, he looked at Suika in surprise.

Upon hearing the old knight's words, many people who knew Margaret came over curiously. After seeing Margaret dressed neatly in the photo, they all sighed that her temperament was still there, and she was still the same Radiant Knight.

"May I ask where you met Margaret?" The old knight gently placed a hand on Margaret's shoulder to soothe the girl's emotions, while glancing at Suika.

Maria, having recovered from her initial agitation, wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye.

"We've lost touch with my sister for a long time. Could you tell me what you know about her?"

"I've only met the Radiant Knight once, and we're not very familiar with each other. Logically speaking, I shouldn't be the one to reveal her whereabouts."

But since you are her family, of course I can tell you news about her.

Suika took out two epaulets and pinned them to her clothes.

Let me introduce myself first.

My name is Ibuki Suika, and I am from the Great Yan Lungmen.

"A Catastrophe Messenger"

At this point, Suika pointed to one of the epaulets. Those who had seen the insignia of the Catastrophe Messenger nodded to Maria and the others, indicating that Suika was right.

"Of course, I also have another identity right now, which is that of an operator of Rhodes Island... This is the symbol of Rhodes Island." Suika pointed to the symbol of the Catastrophe Messenger, which is a triangle combined with a tower below the symbol of the Calamity Messenger.

"And the place where I first met Margaret was Rhodes Island."

"A technology company from Rhodes Island? Columbia?" The old knight frowned. In his opinion, only technology companies from Columbia liked to use such strange names.

"No, no, no, Rhodes Island is a pharmaceutical company that was founded less than a year ago and focuses on developing drugs to treat and control Oripathy."

Margaret is also a member of this company, just like me...

Maria's eyes flickered upon hearing Suika's words.

The others also fell silent.

It wasn't surprising to them that Margaret would join this type of company.

After all, that's Oripathy. Just look at how hard those Infected have fought on the field ever since the Commercial Union allowed them to enter the competition, all for the money to treat their illness, even though Margaret is Radiant Knight.

However, a significant amount of money is still needed to address Oripathy.

Given her capabilities, joining such a company is actually the best choice.

After all, Margaret is very famous and wouldn't be used as a guinea pig by unscrupulous pharmaceutical companies.

Instead, they would seriously treat her, because as long as her condition was brought under control and the news spread, the reputation of the Radiant Knight would bring substantial profits to the company called Rhodes Island.

"Can I keep one of these photos?" Maria asked Suika with some reluctance.

"I'll print one for you!" Suika had previously discovered that her Wind God Polaroid could connect to her phone and print the photos on it. Although she didn't know how it did it, she had to admit that she was quite satisfied with Kappa Heavy Industries' products.

"May I?"

"It's guaranteed!"

As Suika spoke, she connected the two with a data cable, and soon a brand new photo appeared in Maria's hands.

"Thank you... Grandpa Koval... for today..." Maria, now only wanting to go home and tell her aunt and sister the good news after receiving the photo.

The bear-man craftsman waved his hand. "You're not focused on the project right now. Even if you wanted to learn, I wouldn't dare. Go back and tell Zofia the good news..."

"You just mentioned that many of the people here are retired knights, so you must know a lot about Knight's Tournament competitions," Suika asked the remaining knights after Maria left.

Chapter 236 Behind the Business

"Well, young lady, listen to my advice."

Just watch the Knight's Tournament; never get involved in the gambling.

Every year, countless people come to Kawaleriel, gamble away fortunes at the casino, and end up losing everything.

Kazdel's Knight's Tournament may appear glamorous on the surface, but beneath lies a bottomless abyss...

Upon hearing Suika's words, the old knight looked at her seriously and said...

They had a natural affinity for the girl who brought them news of Margaret.

"Ah, betting? I don't gamble, I'm just curious."

"That's what Suika replied."

"What are you curious about?"

"Leaving aside others, you should be able to see the difference in strength between the two contestants."

Excluding the occasional unpredictable upsets by underdogs, making a small profit in most matches should be no problem.

But..."

Suika pointed to everyone's clothing and then spoke.

"It's easy to say, but in reality, the participants for each competition are only announced close to the start of the competition."

Let alone us, even the contestants don't know who their opponents are. For example, the guests for tomorrow's exhibition match will only be announced before the competition. Moreover, the people who go on stage have no idea who they will be facing before they step onto the stage.

To paraphrase those bastards from the Commercial Union, 'The unknown is just the beginning of the game,' pshaw!

A middle-aged knight with a limp, standing nearby, muttered curses.

"Huh? Isn't tomorrow's exhibition match between the Candle Knight and the Frost Knight?"

Suika took out a letter, puzzled. The letter had been delivered to her door by the waiter that morning. Inside was a ticket to tomorrow's exhibition match, and the letter clearly stated that the two sides in the exhibition match were the Candle Knight and a person named Frost Knight.

"How could this be... Where did you get this letter? Let me see it..."

Damn, the tickets are definitely real, but didn't the Commercial Union say they randomly selected the Cavaliers for the game that morning?

Fuck, I shouldn't have believed a single word from those bastards.

After taking the letter and ticket from Suika and carefully reading through them, the old knight cursed with a dark expression.