The noon sun lazily shone over the White City.

With the reflection of the white walls, the entire city seemed to be bathed in a sacred light. People lived in order.

It must be said, "order," which just a few years ago was merely a basic requirement for a city, has now become a luxury.

In an era when gods and demons are frantically meddling in human affairs, maintaining order in a city is extremely difficult. After all, the chaos they can cause is something average human lords cannot handle. The White City surely also has spies planted by gods and demons, but they have not yet shown themselves, hidden somewhere unknown. This is likely thanks to Yilin's status as the allegiance of Gray.

Though Gray, the Lich King, has disappeared, Yilin still maintains contact with Richie and Jones, which also means that the White City is the place where these two factions find it easiest to exert their power, while it is most difficult for the forces of gods and demons to intervene.

Of course, how long this stability can last, no one knows. After all, except for the White City, other places in the Beishier Duchy have already begun to show signs of unrest.

Yilin's status as the allegiance of Gray will not be useful forever. The crisis is approaching step by step, and under a terrible larger situation, the White City cannot remain unaffected.

At least for now, things are still okay.

Though the number of conscripts has exceeded the historical peak, soldiers can be seen everywhere on the streets, and the number of blacksmith shops is increasing day by day, people's lives have not been greatly affected.

Except for Erwin's family.

...

Sunlight streamed through the three open windows onto the ground, leaving dappled shadows.

A long table was set in the castle banquet hall, with one person seated at each end: Yilin and Erwin.

Yilin wore a light blue long dress, looking very plain. In contrast, Erwin, dressed in a black formal suit, appeared even more luxurious than Yilin... This was undoubtedly forced upon him by his father. For something as significant as meeting a lord, it was already courteous enough that his worldly father didn't wait personally at the castle gate; how could he possibly let Erwin come in casual clothing?

At this moment, both were eating lunch with their heads down.

Yilin looked calm and composed, as if it were an ordinary leisurely time, eating her food in small bites. Of course, for her, receiving a potential knight was just part of the routine.

Erwin seemed a bit nervous, occasionally looking up at Yilin, unable to maintain the rhythm of his eating. The more he looked, the more fascinated he became.

It must be said, Yilin was indeed beautiful, especially with her long silver hair and that coolly alluring aura. It was indeed easy for men to be enthralled, even young men just coming of age were no exception.

Gradually, Erwin found himself somewhat entranced.

"Is your family running a blacksmith business?" Yilin suddenly broke the silence.

"Ah?" Erwin was startled and quickly replied, "Yes... Yes, we have three blacksmith shops."

"Three?" Yilin slightly raised her head to glance at Erwin and continued, "Then you are iron merchants. There are indeed many blacksmith shops in the White City now, most of which mainly deal in weapons."

"Yes, in fact, Duke Beisher, you are our family's biggest client." Hesitating for a moment, Erwin added, "If we get the orders, that is. Sometimes we don't get the orders and also do other businesses, like for the Isaac Royal Family, or with other lords. My father can't always get the orders."

While speaking, Erwin awkwardly smiled.

"Have you always been in the weapons business? I mean before the weapon trade became so prevalent."

"My father was a blacksmith before, our family has been in the blacksmith business for generations. In recent years, as the demand for weapons increased, we started our own blacksmith shops, and they grew more."

"A weapons merchant training his child as a knight is quite reasonable. The weapons business has been good over the years, so your father has enough money to train you," Yilin lightly smiled, took a sip of soup, and continued, "So your family has always lived in the White City, and you grew up here, right?"

"Yes, I grew up in the White City."

"Then are you willing to become my knight and pledge your allegiance to me?"

"Cough cough cough!" Caught off guard by Yilin's sudden question, Erwin choked, staring wide-eyed at Yilin.

The air seemed to freeze for a moment, and Erwin's face flushed red. Yilin didn't speak either, just kept eye contact with him.

The standoff persisted.

After a long while, Yilin waved her hand to signal the maid to clear the empties of the sweet soup and softly said, "Why? Is my question so hard to answer? You participated in the selection, yet are unwilling to pledge your allegiance and become my knight?"

Yilin widened her eyes.

Erwin felt even more awkward, only able to reach up to scratch his face, softly saying, "It was...my father sent me."

"So you didn't intend to go?"

"No... Actually, I wanted to go too. I want to know how far I am from the level of a real knight. Practicing alone is exhausting."

"Is that all?" Yilin asked.

Erwin took a deep breath, answered bravely, "Yes, that's really all there is to it."

Yilin silently gazed at Erwin until his scalp tingled.

The maid brought in desserts, and after she served Erwin one, she was about to serve one to Yilin, but Yilin waved her hand, indicating she didn't need it.

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