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Hearing this and looking up to see who had arrived, Rodney and Dominic hastily stood up and bowed respectfully:
"My Lady!"
Don Quixote immediately stood up as well:
"My Lady!"
Rodney and Dominic didn't dare say another word and quickly took their leave.
Don Quixote looked at the woman before him, matching her face to the information in his head.
Lady Annabel Manderly—now Annabel Locke—the daughter of Lord Wyman Manderly.
Through a political marriage, she had wed Ser Donnel Locke, the eldest son and heir of House Locke of Oldcastle.
She was also one of the hosts of this banquet.
Lady Annabel took a goblet of fine wine respectfully offered by a maid. Once the maid stepped away, she smiled slowly:
"Ser Don Quixote, I hear the Bloody Hand Mercenary Company you lead is the most reputable and capable mercenary band in White Harbor?"
A lot had happened over the past three months.
For instance, Don Quixote had completed eight more mercenary contracts.
After finishing those eight contracts—some hard, some easy—he had earned a total of 2026 Gold Dragons and eight magical items.
The five large sacks of Frost Spirit Rice had already been consumed.
Successfully giving Don Quixote's vitality and mental strength a massive boost.
[Name: Don Quixote]
[Identity: Knight]
[Spirit: 2.97]
[Vitality: 4.12]
The immense strength of his vitality reflected the overall physical superiority of his body.
To put it plainly, his static, one-handed grip strength was enough to crush a man's wrist bones.
As for a man's throat or windpipe, he could easily flatten and shatter them with a simple squeeze.
While he wasn't quite at the level of crushing a human skull bare-handed, he was getting much closer.
And the explosive impact of his punches and sword strikes was utterly terrifying.
Fully geared, he could effortlessly crush ten competent knights attacking him all at once!
Meanwhile, his powerful mental strength had massively boosted his learning capacity.
For comparison, it used to take him an hour to fully grasp a book. Now, it only took him half an hour.
Aside from the five consumed sacks of Frost Spirit Rice, there were three other magical items.
The first was a magical scroll.
[Ironclad Secret:
A mysterious contract scroll forged by a master mental mage over three grueling months.
By dripping the target's blood and writing their name on the scroll.
The target will never reveal a single secret of the scroll's owner, even unto death!
If triggered passively, the target will temporarily forget the owner's unspeakable secrets!
If triggered actively, the target's mind will instantly shatter. Unless healed by mystical power of equal strength, they will irreversibly become a drooling madman.]
The second magical item was a mystic blessing, which had already dissolved into a beam of white light and merged with Don Quixote's body.
[Seafarer's Blessing:
A devout blessing from a mysterious seafarer!
You, the blessed!
On your next ocean voyage, you shall not fear the roaring tides or churning waves!
You shall not fear the all-concealing fog or the hidden reefs lurking in the abyss!
You shall not fear the isolation of the long night or the unknown shores beyond!
During your voyage, you will miraculously receive three gifts from the sea.
Gift One: The curious gaze of the nearest local marine creature.
This creature will ignore storms and tempests, watching over your voyage to come.
Gift Two: A flash of inspiration.
Please, for a moment, trust your instincts.
Guided by your instincts, you will not lose your way.
You will sail straight to your destination! And you will avoid every single hidden reef!
Gift Three: A warm embrace.
Lonely in the long night, you will stumble upon fellow seafarers.
Trust them!
They are undoubtedly good people!
They are undoubtedly masters of seafaring lore!
They undoubtedly love the sea!
Because wicked men, green boys, and those who hate the sea cannot approach you on this voyage!
So, trust them!
They will be excellent companions on your journey!]
The final magical item was a spear.
[Spear of Courage:
Total length: 3.2 meters. Net weight: 10 kilograms.
The spearhead is forged from a mysterious metal, folded and hammered a hundred times over.
The shaft is a single, knotless piece of premium magical wood, straight as a plumb line, its thickness uniform from tip to butt with near-obsessive perfection.
This is a legendary spear from a world of knights.
The spear's power scales with the wielder's courage, granting at least a threefold increase in strength.
Bolstered by magical power, the piercing kinetic energy of the Spear of Courage rivals that of a heavy lance.
It can punch straight through a full suit of plate armor!
And it can even slay certain magical beasts!]
Completing those eight contracts didn't just bring system rewards.
The Bloody Hand Mercenary Company had finally built a solid reputation among many merchants in White Harbor.
Simply put.
Right now, among the sellswords and hedge knights of White Harbor.
The Bloody Hand was the talk of the town!
————
Don Quixote answered frankly:
"My Lady, I wouldn't dare claim the Bloody Hand is the most reputable company in White Harbor.
"But the reputation we do have has been recognized by the vast majority of merchants here!
"And I can absolutely guarantee—the Bloody Hand is the most capable mercenary band in the city!"
Lady Annabel nodded, offering no judgment.
After a brief silence, she continued:
"I assume you've heard about the terrible events that occurred near Oldcastle."
Don Quixote thought for a moment before replying:
"Those raiders deserve the block!
"They respect neither the Old Gods nor the New, and they spit on the laws of the lords.
"They're a pack of wolves wearing human skin!
"By all the Gods, I hope they face severe punishment for their crimes!"
"They will regret their actions very soon!" Lady Annabel's smile vanished, her voice turning cold:
"This time, White Harbor and Oldcastle will join forces to completely wipe out the raiders in the surrounding lands!"
As one of the five major cities in Westeros and the North's only trade hub and maritime gateway.
White Harbor controlled the vast majority of the North's maritime trade, fleet power, and wealth.
While Oldcastle was a coastal fortress.
It lacked the deep-water harbor conditions of White Harbor.
Its regional trade and maritime defense relied heavily on White Harbor.
Economically and militarily, it had long been under White Harbor's influence and umbrella.
Because of this, House Locke of Oldcastle consistently aligned its political stance with House Manderly of White Harbor.
Both were technically equal sworn bannermen to House Stark of Winterfell, answering directly to the Warden of the North.
But in reality.
The will of House Manderly often became the will of House Locke.
This was cemented by tied interests.
Like political marriages.
Often, the plans of House Locke required the approval of House Manderly of White Harbor.
Don Quixote immediately replied:
"Since Lord Wyman and Lord Ondrew have made their decision.
"Then these raiders will soon receive the harsh justice they deserve!"
Lady Annabel nodded and added:
"However, for certain reasons, we cannot pull too many guards from White Harbor and Oldcastle.
"So my father hopes that the sellswords and knights making a living in White Harbor will also do their part!"
...So this is why all these mercenaries, knights, and merchants were invited to this banquet?
Don Quixote quickly scanned the room.
The vast banquet hall was filled almost entirely with White Harbor's more reputable knights and merchants.
And they were all currently surrounded by members of House Manderly.
...