Chapter 1305: Chapter 1305: Country Wedding
Margaret spoke, then told Shard the specific time and place of the wedding banquet. It was somewhat like the wedding banquet of Lecia’s sister that Shard attended in late autumn, which lasted almost the entire night. No one had any mandatory tasks; people just needed to enjoy the beautiful moment.
Even a princess’s wedding banquet can be fun, not to mention this kind of wedding banquet for a "remote countryside" noble’s daughter. It is said that such banquets are also good opportunities for secret affairs.
"I have to visit the Stonemason Guild tomorrow morning, and this time it’s an official visit, so I won’t be going with you tonight."
Margaret said, then smiled and asked Shard:
"So, are you taking another date?"
"I’m just going to meet Osenfort, so there’s no need to bring a date. Besides, you know, I don’t want anyone around me to have contact with him, he..."
Shard looked at Margaret seriously; it was best not to reveal this matter before confirming the demon’s identity:
"It is really dangerous, so when your people and the Grey Glove’s people conduct the preliminary investigation, do not directly contact him."
Shard didn’t intend to stay long at a stranger’s wedding banquet, nor did he plan to eat there, so he had dinner with Margaret before heading to the estate where the wedding was held.
It was Mason Manor located on the western side of the city. Since Randall Valley City originated from the eastern part, nobles with estates in the western part are generally considered as nouveau riche, looked down upon by the local aristocrats.
The bride was the daughter of Baron Mason, and the groom, the firstborn of a declining baron family, was Magila Enriques. Although both came from baron families, their statuses were not compatible. The bride’s father, Baron Mason, managed the banking industry and was a rather wealthy noble. However, Shard heard from Margaret that the two young people grew up together with deep affection, hence their elders allowed Miss Mason to marry him as soon as she graduated from art studies in Velindale.
Shard sincerely blessed such a marriage.
Although such a lively banquet would still send out invitations, in reality, as long as you could offer your blessings and dress appropriately, anyone could attend the banquet. Shard, therefore, prepared a gift, an odd stone sculpture bought from a souvenir shop on the roadside as he rode out of town, which was a specialty of Randall Valley.
And as he walked along the country path, seeing the silhouette of the manor, the lively banquet had already begun.
"Hope not to waste too much time."
He thought inwardly, for the Osenfort Estate was in the east of the city, and he wouldn’t get the statue today if he wasted too much time here.
Upon entering the estate smoothly, he found that although it was winter, tents were still erected in the courtyard. Colorful flags were hung between tents, and inside there were either banquet games or long tables filled with food for people to enjoy.
Laughter and clinking glasses echoed, and the banquet seemed to have reached the most lively moment.
Randomly asking around for the whereabouts of Prince William Anjou surely wouldn’t yield results, as this might even be seen as ill-intentioned after the prince attack incident. So Shard directly entered the manor house, thinking that the prince, discussing matters with businessmen, would be in the best lounge.
But after searching around, he discovered young couples mingling, people engaged in illegal trade, and even a young woman crying alone, but not the prince.
Shard could only step outside from indoors again and finally found William Anjou and Ston Osenfort in the back garden.
The groom was accompanying the most distinguished guest as they walked out of the barn, from which bursts of laughter erupted, who knows what was happening inside.
Shard just happened to run into them, and Prince William Anjou, having only a vague impression of "John Hua," who played Roder Card at Earl Granger’s banquet, did not recognize him right away, especially since Shard was wearing different clothes. But the tall and burly man, looking more like the prince’s bodyguard, Ston Osenfort, spotted Shard immediately.
He whispered to the prince, then detached from the group and walked towards Shard.
The two watched His Highness the Prince leave, and Shard was surprised to find that one of the attendants following the prince was a Circle Sorcerer, roughly Three Rings. This could not be a Circle Sorcerer from the Church sent out unless the royal family member was clearly under attack from Supernatural Power.
Thus, Shard could only conclude that His Highness the Prince, for his own safety, managed to hire a Circle Sorcerer short on money as a bodyguard from who knows where.
"Never expected to see you here, who sent you?"
Only after the others had walked away did Osenfort speak. The two moved under a leafless tree to talk, this place was a higher ground in the manor’s backyard; since no activities were arranged nearby, there was no kerosene lamp lighting, making it particularly dim.
Osenfort folded his arms; Shard always thought this was an indication of insecurity, while Shard himself watched the people in the courtyard enjoying themselves:
"What do you mean who sent me? You commissioned me to find something, I found it, then had to wait a whole morning without any result, of course, I came by myself."
Shard replied and then realized that Osenfort’s question might have another implication:
"Actually, it was your old butler who suggested I come into town to find you."
Osenfort snorted, and Shard continued:
"I didn’t say I came to return the item. My visit was because of the statue; your old butler said that no one is allowed to touch the statues in your room without permission, so he directed me to find you directly. I searched all afternoon in the city before hearing you and William Anjou were attending the banquet. So leisurely, aren’t you~"
"You don’t need to get upset with me. I naturally had my reasons for not meeting you at noon today."
Osenfort said, extending a hand towards Shard, but Shard did not hand over the emblem:
"No, no, I can’t give it to you now."
"What, are you thinking of backing out? Or do you want more reward?"
The burly man turned his head, speaking as if joking among friends, but his expression was frightening.
"Of course, I’m not backing out. I just want the statue you have, the one by Edward Marcus, and I’m not joking about it."
Shard stared into his yellow eyes:
"You said you’d give me information on [Genesis: Earth] in the end, but how do I know you’re telling the truth? Offering a part of the advance payment will allow me to take action, raising my motivation; that’s quite a reasonable thing. I spent a week finding the badge, Mr. Osenfort, you wouldn’t want me taking a year to find the final earring, would you?"
Both sides were silent, staring at each other for half a minute, before Ston Osenfort spoke up:
"The statue is worthless, you can go to the estate tomorrow to retrieve it yourself. But you must ensure that you find the third item before spring arrives."
"Alright."
Shard nodded, reaching into his pocket to retrieve the "Carsonrick Third-Class Battle Hero" badge:
"See if this is what you’re looking for."
Ston Osenfort took it, glanced at it twice, and nodded:
"Yes."
Still maintaining an expressionless seriousness, after the inspection, he unexpectedly tossed it back to Shard:
"Return it to me along with the last earring when you find them."
Shard noticed the first item, the obsidian ring, was at that moment on his hand.
"I can keep it safe for now. But aren’t you curious how I found it?"
Shard waved the badge, Osenfort shook his head:
"I hired you to find things for me, not to tell me stories. How you found it, what does it have to do with me?"
Shard chuckled, pocketing the badge:
"You’re indeed a strange fellow, but since I agreed to your commission, I won’t lie. Please wait for my good news, and hopefully the final sapphire ear pendants aren’t hidden in a stranger place."
With that, he intended to leave; given that Osenfort said to retrieve the statue tomorrow at his estate, he thought he could go home for a rest today. Of course, saying goodbye to Luviya before leaving would be good.
But the man behind him called him again:
"John Watson, you’re a Circle Sorcerer, right?"
Shard halted and turned to look at him:
"Does whether I’m a Circle Sorcerer matter to our commission?"
He mimicked the other’s previous phrasing, but to his surprise, Osenfort seemed unbothered and pondered for a moment:
"It truly doesn’t matter, I just meant to warn you, although I’m an ordinary person, don’t think of playing any tricks on me."
Osenfort didn’t look at Shard, but at the crowd enjoying themselves under the lights.
"Can I interpret that as a threat?"
Shard asked, and the other shook his head slightly, looking at the crowd with a curious expression:
"Interested in staying for half an hour to watch an interesting play with me?"
Shard had initially wanted to interact more with him, so he took out his rarely used pocket watch and pretended to check the time:
"If it’s only half an hour, I think there’s no issue."
Both left from under the tree together, spotting His Highness the Prince alongside groom Enriques, laughing and chatting with a group of young ladies not far away.
The appearance of Carsonrick’s Prince at such a countryside nobles’ wedding was naturally exciting for the young ladies attending. But it seemed William Anjou wasn’t very interested, responding merely out of courtesy.
Thus, Ston Osenfort walked over, and his mere presence caused the young ladies to stop speaking excitedly out of fear. Seeing Osenfort initiating a conversation with the Prince, appearing as his friend, they discreetly departed.
Just as Miss Lathis mentioned, this person has a poor reputation locally.