The Mighty Dragons Are Dead

Liszt didn’t immediately dig deep to interrogate Paris about her background.

It was like fishing with a long line, where the line cannot be tight at all times, as it could snap due to a big fish’s struggle. What needed to be done was to relax it occasionally, and then tighten it again, constantly trembling, wearing out the big fish’s strength, and finally pulling it ashore.

Lord Landlord’s life was quite boring.

Therefore, Liszt had plenty of time to enjoy this method of manipulating people’s hearts. A landlord who couldn’t manipulate people’s hearts wasn’t a qualified landlord. Whether it was using the temptation of benefits, the seduction of honor, or even the threat of binding, these were all means of manipulation.

After lunch, he met with Old Geronte again and told him, “Go remind Mrs. Harriet that keeping Maggie from leaving is actually quite simple. Just let her sister Paris stay in Fresh Flower Town as well.”

Old Geronte, now an official of the town, was full of energy, “Lord, perhaps it would be better if I spoke to Dennis about it and let Dennis remind Harriet.”

Dennis was Mrs. Harriet’s husband.

“That works.”

Old Geronte took the order and left.

In the afternoon, Liszt thought Maggie would take the day off to accompany her sister. However, to his surprise, Maggie came to the castle to start her apprenticeship with the other young maids and young manservants.

“Mr. Carter, call Maggie here.”

“Yes, Sir.”

After Maggie arrived, Liszt directly asked, “Maggie, why don’t you go spend time with your sister? You can take the day off.”

“Lord, I want to work, work, stay in Fresh Flower Town… I don’t want to leave.” Maggie was both happy and troubled. Her long-desired sister had indeed appeared, but she didn’t want to leave Mrs. Harriet’s family, nor this beautiful town, and the compassionate landlord.

She might have been young, but she had seen the landlord of her hometown, sitting atop a tall horse, frequently using a whip to lash at the serfs.

Once, her father had been harshly whipped ten times by Lord Landlord.

But in Fresh Flower Town, she had never seen Liszt lash anybody—even if there were lashings, they were officials punishing the misbehaving commoners—in her simple view, a compassionate landlord deserved to be followed by everyone.

“Don’t worry, Maggie. As long as you don’t want to leave, both Mrs. Harriet and I will let you stay. Go back and spend time with your sister now; I’ll have Mr. Carter give you half a day off.”

“Lord, can I really stay?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm!”

…

Maggie happily took her leave to find her sister.

The two sisters strolled around Fresh Flower Town all afternoon. Maggie shared the peanuts she had fried in the castle kitchen, and then Paris gave her a pendant.

The pendant wasn’t very pretty because it didn’t have gemstones or crystals hanging from it, but two wrinkled leaves, one larger than the other.

“Keep it with you, Maggie, and don’t ever lose it.”

“What kind of leaves are these, sister?”

“The large leaves with wavy edges are oak leaves, while the small elongated ones are mistletoe leaves,” Paris explained. “Mistletoe is a plant that parasites on oak trees. It represents hope and abundance, while the oak symbolizes strength and resilience.”

Maggie understood and tucked the pendant into her clothes.

“Sister, are you going to leave?”

“Maggie, come with me, let’s go home.”

Maggie hung her head, “But Mom and Dad were killed, and our village was destroyed. What is there to do if we go back?”

“This… I will protect you,” Paris struck a pose with her arm bent and bicep flexed. “You have to believe in your sister’s strength. Even though I’m not a magician, I am more powerful than one.”

“But I think Fresh Flower Town is quite nice. Lord Landlord will protect us, and besides, I have a new mother now. Mrs. Harriet is my mother.”

They still had dinner at Mrs. Harriet’s house that evening.

Paris once again brought up the idea of taking Maggie away. This time, Mrs. Harriet, who had been tipped off, quietly asked, “Paris, why are you so insistent on taking Maggie away with you? She’s just a nine-year-old girl; how can she adapt to a nomadic lifestyle?”

“I will take good care of her, Mrs. Harriet.”

“Of course I know that, you’re her sister, but have you considered…”

“Considered what?”

“Staying in Fresh Flower Town,” Mrs. Harriet said with a smile. “If you’re not in a rush to leave, you could stay in Fresh Flower Town, couldn’t you? I’ve lived here for twenty years, it’s peaceful and undisturbed. My son grew up and got married here, and he will soon have children. Maggie can grow up here, too.”

Paris had never thought of this.

But after a moment’s pause, she found the proposal indeed interesting – she had traversed great distances to Coral Island with the aim of saving her sister sold into bondage, but now her sister was living well. What then was the meaning of rescuing her, and why insist on taking her sister away?

“I will consider it, Mrs. Harriet, thank you for your hospitality.”

That night, Paris didn’t bring up taking Maggie away again. She still lodged in the noble district, and of course, Liszt very generously waived her lodging fee – he had been kept fully informed about the progress between Paris and Maggie through Old Geronte and others.

Knowing that the situation had stabilized.

“Probably tomorrow or the day after, Paris will actively request to stay… if she has no pressing reason to return to the outside world,” Liszt mused.

But to Liszt’s surprise, Paris came to visit the castle the same night.

This time, she didn’t use invisibility to sneak in but instead presented herself openly and was asked by Carter to wait in the hall. When Carter knocked on the door of the study to ask for instructions,

Liszt, who was reading, nodded calmly, “Let her come to the study, and while you’re at it, make two cups of milk tea.”

Shortly after, Carter led Paris in.

Once seated, she got straight to the point without any preamble, “Baron, I was a thief mercenary in a Mercenary Corps within the Maple Leaf Duchy, and although I’ve left, I still retain the status of a registered mercenary. I wonder if you would need to hire a mercenary to work for you.”

The Maple Leaf Duchy, like the Duchy of Sapphire, is one of the vassal states of the Steel Ridge Kingdom.

“You mean to say, you plan to stay in Fresh Flower Town to take care of Maggie?” Liszt nodded. “Well then, first, make a complete self-introduction. You said you’ve killed nobles, and I am a noble, so I need to ensure that your stay in Fresh Flower Town won’t cause trouble.”

“Rest assured, I’ve indeed killed a fair number of nobles, and I’m wanted in the Maple Leaf Duchy, but no one will come all the way to this remote island country to trouble me,” said Paris bluntly as she picked up the milk tea and took a sip. “It tastes very good, definitely produced by top-quality cows… If you want to hear my story, there’s nothing to hide. To avoid an arranged marriage, I left home at fifteen in search of a magician to learn magic.”