Chapter 178: The Bostafa Family's Banquet

After everyone had arrived, a butler responsible for welcoming guests came near the head table and informed a middle-aged man in bright noble attire, who was in charge of the internal affairs of the Baron's family, of the situation; this man then whispered the situation to the Baroness herself, who was at the head table.

The Baroness nodded to indicate she understood, then used a sterling silver spoon at hand to tap the golden wine goblet, producing a crisp metallic clinking sound.

The prominent figures in the city, who had been whispering to those beside them after taking their seats, all stopped talking, and the hall fell silent for a moment.

Jier straightened his body and cast his gaze over the seated crowd, discovering that besides some personnel from the Merchant Guild, there were high-ranking members from over a dozen churches—minus the Church of the God of the Dead—aged craftsmen wearing badges, tall middle-aged men in uniforms with solemn expressions, and some individuals whose origins could not be discerned.

But regardless, those who could be invited on short notice were certainly important figures in Suishi Cheng with influence and status, and who could be contacted at any time.

"Everyone, the reason for inviting you all here on short notice today for this banquet is primarily to welcome this brave and steadfast young Knight. He is a young Knight from the Northwest Province; although young, he is willing to reach out for the weak, never wavers when facing evil, and resolutely defends the survival and dignity of us Humans! At the same time, the Bandit problem in Duoen Town that has troubled you all for so long has also been resolved by our young Knight in the past two days. He led his own Warriors and hired Dwarf mercenaries to crush the force gathered by hundreds of Bandits, and personally captured at least half of them."

Pausing, the Baroness then revealed some news that others did not know: "As for the remaining Bandits, there is more good news; after a long period of hesitation and procrastination, Duoen Town has finally taken action and is preparing to clear out all the remaining Bandit lairs at once. This main artery of the important Shanglu from Suishi Cheng to the west is finally completely clear, making it convenient for you all to travel and conduct business."

Finally, she reached out to signal Jier to stand up: "Let us welcome the young Knight from Kendall County in the Northwest Province, Sir Qiao Jier!"

After speaking, the Baroness personally thanked Jier, and Jier immediately stood up, flattered, to return the gesture.

Subsequently, starting from the head table, members of the Bostafa Family rose one by one to welcome Jier and say a few words of gratitude, and Jier responded and returned the gesture one by one.

It was somewhat complicated and troublesome, but Jier, immersed in the atmosphere, felt it was not bad; after all, it was others thanking him, and the more Jier listened, the more he felt satisfied.

When it came to the churches, the high-ranking Priests of the Sun God Church and the Agricultural God Church even vied with each other to address Jier with special titles, letting others understand that Jier was not just a young Knight from afar, but also deeply connected to these two churches.

It was just that most people only had Faith in or were close to one divine church; they had not expected that Sir Jier would have such a good relationship with both the Agricultural God Church and the Sun God Church, and it seemed he held a certain status in both?

The middle-aged Priest from the Agricultural God Church addressed Jier as a Warrior of the Agricultural God, while the Priest from the Sun God Church even unusually addressed Jier as a Sun Child!

Some people from the churches or those with deep ties to the churches were slightly surprised; this "Sun Child" was a very rarely used method. Because it required a church Priest with a certain status and ability to voluntarily abandon all their own abilities and power related to the deity and transfer them to an outsider who did not share their Faith.

To the Priests, this was a more terrifying thing than killing them.

But they had actually seen one today, a method that hadn't been seen used in over a decade; it was truly rare.

Therefore, in the eyes of these people from the divine churches, Jier was likely an existence even more rare and unusual than the few alien Dwarves nearby.

Everyone present, whether they knew him or not, whether they were related or not, thanked Jier one by one, and Jier returned the gestures tirelessly.

When he sat back down, he felt light, a smile hanging on his face unconsciously; if nothing else, the gratitude from these weighty big shots made Jier feel very satisfied, no less than swinging his sword to slay over a hundred enemies.

After the flow of gratitude was over, the evening banquet naturally began.

This hall, simulated with Dwarf Magic to resemble natural scenery, immediately began to play light and pleasant music under the waving command of a butler. Jier looked over and saw that a small pavilion capable of diffusing music had been set up in the corner of the hall, where several skilled musicians were playing expensive instruments.

Jier had seen these people earlier, sitting in the corner of the hall, but they were served by dedicated servants; now it seemed they were well-known musicians temporarily called in to perform music.

After the music started, a large number of servants also arrived in the hall with their chins held high and chests puffed out, serving dish after dish of appetizers to the tables of those present.

When he had just sat down, Jier had been asked about his food preferences by the manservant attending to him, and at the same time, the food preferences of the several Dwarf mercenaries had been asked; the food served now was exactly what Jier had mentioned earlier.

Because he was a Knight, he was not particular about food, as long as the quantity was large; after all, Knights usually had to obtain more Life Energy than ordinary people through food and accumulate it.

As for the several Dwarves, Jier had traveled with them for these days and also knew their dietary preferences.

The old Dwarf liked to drink a little wine, and he was also very particular about what he ate; after all, he was a member of a great family, so he was as particular as he could be about food. It was just that conditions hadn't allowed for it before, so he had let it go. At this moment, Jier helped the old Dwarf order a few snacks with complex preparation; after all, he was old, and although he was particular about food, he couldn't eat much. As for the drink, after asking the old Dwarf, Jier ordered him a bottle of crisp, refreshing white table Wine.

"Shishou" was a Dwarf Miner, so he was not particular about eating; he would usually work out with his friends who were believers of the God of Strength when he had nothing to do, so Jier ordered him a solid portion of pan-fried steak and a large glass of vegetable juice.

The Bostafa Family's kitchen could make anything, and juicing vegetables was even simpler; similar juicing tools had long existed, all kitchenware evolved from the Potion-making tools of apothecaries. Ordinary people might not have heard of or used them, but for a wealthy lord's family in Suishi Cheng, their kitchen certainly had such things.

As for the unfamiliar Dwarf Wild Priest of the God of Strength, Jier also whispered to ask about his dietary preferences and ordered him a portion of gravy flatbread as a staple, with the rest at his discretion. As for the drink, this Priest did not drink alcohol, and the doctrine of the Dwarf God of Strength did not allow believers to drink alcohol, saying that drinking was bad for the body and damaged nerves and muscles.

The appetizers for the banquet were refreshing fruit and vegetable slices sprinkled with spices, as well as several small portions of meat served in sequence, all of which were delicious and rare parts of the animals.

This was something everyone had; it would be served regardless of whether they ate it or had dietary restrictions. If the dining guest did not eat it, they didn't have to touch it, and after a while, the servant attending to them would see the dish was untouched and would take it away, replacing it with other types of dishes.

After everyone had eaten a few dishes while talking, a Bard dressed in bright and gorgeous clothing walked to the open space in the middle of the banquet.

The other party had flashy decorations, vibrant colors, wore a wide-brimmed leather hat with fluffy feathers of some bird, and the edge of the hat was adorned with several Gem Pendants; he wore a gorgeous, decorated half-mask on his face and had a smile on his lips, causing many people present to look over.

Jier guessed that this person was a famous local Bard, which was why many people stopped eating as soon as he appeared, preparing to enjoy the Bard's performance.

He, of course, did not care about this person's performance; Jier only focused on chewing the delicious and unlimited steak, the most tender part of the beef, which was supplied to him in almost unlimited quantities at this banquet.

Of course, Jier was not just eating meat; some vegetables to aid digestion were also sent over after being blanched in meat broth by the chef. Jier used his fork to put the vegetables from his plate into his mouth in one bite, chewing them carefully before swallowing.

Only then did he notice that the musicians who had been providing background music for the hall had stopped playing their instruments and were staring at the Bard performing in the center with unfriendly expressions.

Because this Bard had brought his own musical performance team. At this moment, the newly arrived performance team was playing their instruments vigorously on the other side of the hall, accompanying the Bard's performance in the center.

This Bard, whose name Jier could not recall, performed several acts in a row, including a recitation of a soulful love poem, a segment of a long poem about a heroic story of slaying evil with professional accompaniment, and a song with accompaniment and dance.

How to put it, this person's skill was truly superb; just reciting a poem praising love in public could make the scene silent with exquisite technique, and almost everyone stopped eating and talking to listen intently to him tell of love.

Many women present had tears in their eyes, and some big shots with sad emotional histories even slightly covered their faces with handkerchiefs.

It was as if there was Magic.

Jier himself felt nothing; in his view, love was very beautiful, but that kind of ethereal thing was far less fragrant than the beef Bone Marrow on the plate in front of him right now.

After the Bard finished his performance, he walked around the hall, shaking hands and talking with some guests who liked him and the servants serving the guests in the hall. When he walked up to Jier, this twenty-something-year-old male Bard, whose features were hard to see but who was clearly exceptionally handsome, stared at Jier for a while.

"It seems my skill still has shortcomings, otherwise you, a Knight, would not have only focused on dining and ignored my performance?"

Jier shrugged, the armor plates on his body making a clattering sound: "I am only seventeen, and I have always devoted my body and mind to martial arts and combat; as for love, it is like a distant Spirit, I have always heard people talk about it, but I have never seen it with my own eyes."

The Bard understood then, and he nodded with satisfaction: "That explains it, Sir Jier. I wish you a happy and fulfilling love experience in the future. I believe that by then, you will certainly be able to understand and experience the beauty and entanglement of love just like most people here."

"Perhaps." Jier slurped, sucked clean another piece of fatty and delicious beef Bone Marrow, and casually threw the clean bone onto the plate to the side, making a clanging sound.

Unwilling to say anything more to a boorish warrior like Jier, the Bard turned to greet others.

After the Bard finished his performance and left the stage, the famous musicians in the corner of the hall continued to play some light, lively, and joyful music.

This kind of music was different from the music that accompanied the Bard's performance just now; it was music very suitable for assisting everyone in dining and talking, which could make people feel refreshed but not overly excited, and it would not be too noisy to affect the conversations of some big shots present.

Moreover, each piece of music was not long and changed frequently, making people feel that the background music was not too long or annoying, and music with a bit of novelty would appear every once in a while, making people interested.

It seemed that in order to compete with the Bard who had performed alone just now, those famous musicians, after asking the Baroness for permission, specially performed a unique specialty of each person.

The others stopped playing, and in turn, one musician would use all their skills to spill out beautiful music through the instrument in their hands.

After each person had played once, they would pair up to create a new feeling, and finally, they would play together, pushing the music to the limit of their coordination.

This won the praise of many elderly big shots present, who sent invitations and tokens to the musicians, preparing to invite them to perform at banquets they would host later.

The Baroness, as one of the elderly members, even rewarded the musicians with a gift.

In fact, she didn't really like some of the lovey-dovey things the Bard had performed earlier, but some of the younger generation in the family liked them, so she could only nod or applaud along. And this kind of superb skill in pure instrumental performance was what someone of her age and status appreciated.

Because she knew clearly that these true arts possessed powerful strength.

After all, as for how the Saint Hors Kingdom came to be, these Nobles knew it all too well.

During the subsequent banquet, the Bostafa Family even invited Dwarf mercenaries to demonstrate their martial arts in public, allowing everyone present to witness and learn about the alien Dwarves.

After all, Suishi Cheng itself was developed upon a copper mining and smelting center abandoned by the Dwarves. To say nothing else, the sturdy castle of the Bostafa Family where everyone was currently located was a peculiar, sturdy structure left behind by the Dwarves in the past.

Regarding this matter, Jier asked the old Dwarf in a low voice; although the old Dwarf did not like it, they publicly claimed to be mercenaries working for money, so it was difficult for them to refuse this kind of performance-like behavior.

"How about this, I will have 'Shishou' perform, how about that? His strength is not small, it should look quite effective?" the old Dwarf asked tentatively.

Jier felt there was no problem, so he told the others, and next, this Dwarf Warrior who was a Dwarf Strength God Believer would demonstrate the powerful strength of an excellent Dwarf Warrior.

This kind of performance immediately attracted everyone's interest, including the Bard who was still talking to several female members of the Bostafa Family.

The Baroness smiled: "Then let us see just how great the strength of this young Dwarf lad is. I hope it is a great strength that can make people feel astonished."

Jier corrected the Baroness's statement: "Apologies, my lady. This friend of mine is no longer a young lad; in fact, Dwarves have long lifespans, and this friend of mine is already over two hundred years old. In the four-hundred-plus-year lifespan of a Dwarf, he cannot be considered a young lad."

Everyone was surprised, astonished that 'Shishou', who looked like he was only in his middle youth, was actually over two hundred years old!!

This was even longer than the time since the establishment and heritage of some of the families present; when the ancestors of the families from twelve or thirteen generations ago were just born, this Dwarf called 'Shishou' was already active somewhere in the world.

Subsequently, everyone turned their gazes toward that old Dwarf with a gray beard and a wise face; they really wanted to know just how old this Dwarf, who looked aged, actually was.

The Baroness, who was no longer young, stared at the Dwarf even more, her face full of envy and regret.

Seeing that everyone was very curious about the old Dwarf's age, Jier consulted the old 'Tiequan' and then told everyone: "This aged Dwarf friend is the leader of the Dwarf mercenaries under my command; he is called 'Tiequan', and he is already over four hundred years old. Among the long-lived Dwarves, he is also considered advanced in age."

"Gods above, over four hundred years old?" This was the exclamation made by the Priests.

"If one had started investing four hundred years ago, let me calculate, just how much wealth could be accumulated in four hundred years?" This was the matter the Merchants cared about most.