Lord blessed by the elves

Chapter 132 Scarlett

A smile of satisfaction, even tinged with pride, spread across Reyes's face as he began to recount to his old friend the astonishing changes he had witnessed upon returning to Lion's Tooth Territory:

“Haha, let me tell you, Martin, my territory has changed dramatically!” He talked about the newly cultivated farmland, the neat road layout, the amazing high-yield new crops of cassava and purple sweet potato, the excellent weapons that Kruse had improved the forging technology to create, and even mentioned the unique mustard sauce that sparked the deal at breakfast.

He concluded with a tone full of pride: "In short, even if I don't achieve military merit and be promoted to this baron, I believe that under Kruze's rule, Lion Fang Territory will definitely surpass that old codger Haynes' Wolf Hair Knight Territory in no time!"

Viscount Martin listened quietly, his initial curiosity gradually turning to surprise, and finally a meaningful smile appeared on his face. He realized that Reyes's eldest son's abilities and potential probably far exceeded his previous imagination.

The future of the Reyes family in Lionfang Territory might truly take a completely different and more glorious turn because of this young man's emergence. This is undoubtedly extremely favorable news for their political allies.

"By the way, speaking of which, your son Kruze is almost eighteen, right? It's time to start thinking about future partners." He enthusiastically began his pitch, "What do you think of my second daughter? She..."

"No! Stop right there!" Before Martin could finish speaking, Reyes's expression changed slightly, and he quickly waved his hand to stop him, as if he had heard some extremely dangerous advice. He lowered his voice with lingering fear and said, "Have you forgotten what Scarlett's personality is? If she finds out that we dared to arrange a marriage for her son behind her back... especially... she would definitely jump out from some unknown corner and chop us both up!"

The mere mention of the name "Scarlett" sent a chill down Martin's spine, clearly impressed by the woman's "methods." He shrank back, his matchmaking enthusiasm instantly waning.

Seeing his old friend's reaction, Reyes explained with a smile, "I'm not trying to be mean, old friend. Your second daughter... is naturally of excellent character, but... she perfectly inherited your father's looks, and Scarlett, as you know, is a complete looks-obsessed person."

He phrased it rather tactfully, but the meaning was clear—your daughter's appearance probably wouldn't meet my wife's standards.

Upon hearing this, Martin glared at Reyes, somewhat annoyed, and retorted defiantly, "Looks-obsessed? As if you're that good-looking yourself!"

Reyes said irritably, "Back in my youth, I was one of the most handsome men in Campino County, at least in the top three!"

However, Martin was clearly no pushover either. His eyes darted around, and he unexpectedly added insult to injury. His gaze swept over Reyes's face—a face now far removed from the word "handsome"—and he said meaningfully:
"But then again, those two lads, Kruze and Rezal, really know how to pick their own features. They perfectly avoided the influence of your bloodline and completely inherited Scarlett's looks."

These words, like a precise arrow, instantly pierced through Reyes's newly risen sense of pride.

His smile froze, and his expression turned somewhat sullen.

Scarlett's appearance is quite ordinary, and she is obsessed with looks, so she has an almost obsessive desire to improve the appearance of her descendants.

After a few seconds of silence, Reyes sighed helplessly, his gaze softening as he said in a self-comforting tone, "Thank goodness, thank goodness our Elena didn't inherit her mother's looks; she's pleasing to the eye." But then, he let out an even deeper sigh, admitting with a complex mix of pride and resignation:
"Sigh... In the end, it's still Scarlett's bloodline... that's too strong." This sentence contained too many unspoken meanings, including admiration for his wife's outstanding genes, as well as a deep longing and awe for his unconventional wife.

The two old friends looked at each other and saw a mixture of helplessness and amusement in each other's eyes.

Marriage is never a simple matter in aristocratic circles, and for the Reyes family, there seems to be an additional layer of invisible pressure from their distant "appearance-obsessed" mother.

Led by the city hall attendants, Kruse, Rezael, and Elena were taken to an elegantly decorated lounge next door to wait.

In the corner of the lounge sat a musical instrument that looked both unfamiliar and somewhat familiar to Kruse.

Its appearance is somewhat similar to the piano in Kruse's memory, both having keyboards, but the overall structure is more delicate, and the wooden shell is carved with intricate patterns, which is completely different from the heavy feel of a piano.

"What...musical instrument is this?" Kruse asked the attendant beside him, with a mixture of uncertainty and curiosity.

The city hall attendant beside him maintained a professional smile and respectfully replied, "Your Excellency, this is a harpsichord. Is this your first time seeing one?"

“Harpsichord…” Kruse nodded thoughtfully. The name stirred a ripple in his mind. He seemed to have heard it somewhere before. The name was very similar, but he couldn’t recall the specific details for the moment.

At this moment, Elena squeezed in as well. The little girl was full of curiosity about new things and looked up at me, asking, "Big brother, what is this pretty big wooden box? It has lots of little compartments on it."

Kruse pointed to the attendant beside him and answered on his behalf: "This attendant said it's called a harpsichord."

This city hall attendant is a low-ranking civil servant, mainly responsible for miscellaneous tasks such as reception, guidance, and message delivery.

However, in Campino, this is considered a stable and respectable job. Many illegitimate sons of minor nobles, or second or youngest sons of knightly families, would try to obtain such a position as a starting point for entering officialdom or making a living.

Seeing that the two young noblemen seemed interested in this, the attendant, eager to demonstrate his knowledge, began to explain with great enthusiasm:
"This harpsichord is played by striking the keys with your fingers, which activates a sophisticated mechanical device inside the instrument. A special small pick is then used to pluck the strings, which in turn produces vibrations and sounds," he said, gesturing as he spoke. "It is this unique mechanical movement that allows the harpsichord to produce such beautiful and melodious tones."

"There are many kinds of harpsichords," the attendant continued, clearly quite knowledgeable about them. "There are large harpsichords with a wide range; and there are more complex double-keyboard harpsichords, which have a wonderful function that can automatically merge the notes of one octave into another."

(End of this chapter)