After the slave owners went bankrupt, they all wanted to keep me as a mistress.

Mu Qiu's eyes lit up, and he looked in the direction of the sound.

But then he saw several pale-faced, unsteady-stepping young men, clearly showing signs of excessive indulgence, gazing at Mu Qiu with adoration.

"To satisfy his lewd desires, he specially brought his favored maidservant to such an elegant ducal banquet... What a despicable person he is!"

"Yes, His Majesty the Duke is an upright man, a true paladin! He despises lewd people the most, yet this man dared to do such an indecent thing at His Majesty's banquet. How can we not admire his obsession with lewdness and his lewd spirit!"

"Such blatant vulgarity is also a kind of high class! Vulgarity to the extreme is elegance, and vulgarity to the extreme is high class."

"High-class, so high-class!"

"This is a true role model for us all!"

Mu Qiu: "..."

He looked around and realized that none of the nobles had brought maids with them. Even those who did come with female companions were all adorned with jewels and finery. When the maids from the castle approached, the nobles maintained an elegant and proper demeanor, and none of them touched the maids inappropriately.

Only with him did Vera nestle in his arms, restlessly twisting her hips back and forth, while Fiona kept moving closer to him, her high, rounded breasts rubbing against his arm.

Is this right?

Isn't this right?

For a moment, Mu Qiu wondered if he had come to the wrong place.

Aren't the nobles in this other world a little too proper?

With so many beautiful maids surrounding them, shouldn't they all be laughing and embracing the maids?

Oh no, he seems to have really become the most vulgar nobleman here!

Just then, the melody played by the band in the orchestra pit in front of the banquet hall suddenly changed, becoming more solemn and magnificent.

The conversation gradually subsided, and everyone's eyes turned to the side door next to the main seat, which was slowly opening.

A man walked out with steady and powerful steps, surrounded by several nobles who were dressed in equally luxurious clothes and had an extraordinary aura.

He looked to be around forty years old, with a handsome face, well-defined features, and meticulously combed hair. A few elegant strands of silver hair were mixed in at his temples, and his expression was solemn, making him look like an upright and incorruptible paladin.

If one did not know beforehand, it would be hard to believe that this man, who looks to be in his prime, is actually the Duke of Blaine, who is over sixty years old.

He walked to the head seat and swept his gaze across the room. Everyone whose eyes fell upon him unconsciously straightened their backs slightly.

When his gaze swept over Mu Qiu's area, Duke Blaine's thick eyebrows visibly furrowed.

But seeing where the other person was, he was about to speak, but then he held back.

This is the seat for VIPs at the temple.

The other party came with an invitation from the saintess.

Why would the temple deliberately invite such a vulgar young nobleman to his banquet? Could it be that the temple is trying to warn him?

The Duke of Blaine's mind raced, but on the surface, he maintained an imposing and dignified demeanor.

"Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,"

Duke Blaine spoke, his voice loud and magnetic, clearly resonating throughout every corner of the banquet hall.

"Welcome to my humble abode for tonight's dinner."

He raised the glass offered by the waiter and continued, "May the Mother Goddess bless us, may our friendship endure, and may the wine and joy of tonight remain in our hearts forever. To your health, and to the prosperity of the City of the Earth—cheers!"

"For the Duke's health! For the prosperity of the City of the Earth!"

All the guests responded in unison, raising their glasses in a toast.

After the banquet began, the Duke of Blaine did not remain seated at the head of the table. Instead, he moved freely between the tables, holding a wine glass and engaging in conversation. He would sometimes whisper to a wealthy merchant and sometimes offer a witty compliment to a noble lady, appearing completely at ease and adept at social interaction.

However, Mu Qiu noticed that the Grand Duke's gaze and the time he spent looking at them were clearly more focused on the men and women in the banquet hall who exuded a heavy aura and carried a faint murderous intent even in a relaxed setting.

There were only about ten of these people, scattered in various places, but without exception, they all exuded powerful energy fluctuations.

Clearly, they are all legendary professionals!

Moreover, judging from their appearance and characteristics, almost all of them are human.

When the Grand Duke spoke with them, his attitude became more solemn, and the conversation lasted longer, as if it were more than just small talk.

Even Mu Qiu's pupils contracted slightly when his gaze swept over a relatively quiet corner of the banquet hall.

There sat an elderly man dressed in simple gray robes, his eyes closed in meditation.

He looked unremarkable, as if he were just an old servant who had come with some nobleman to freeload.

But Mu Qiu vaguely sensed that the old man's magical power far surpassed that of those legendary professionals!

This is... that epic-level professional?!

Judging from his appearance, he seems to be a spellcaster!

"Hero, I'm back."

At that moment, Lilith's alluring voice suddenly rang out from beside Mu Qiu.

A thought struck him, and he turned to look, only to see Lilith standing by the dining table, picking up a piece of pastry and putting it in her mouth.

But no one around, including the old man who was resting with his eyes closed, noticed Lilith's presence.

"Lily?! You're back?"

Mu Qiu was pleasantly surprised.

Lily did not appear while the saintess was nearby.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the saintess left, Lily appeared!

"Yeah, I just went to take care of something."

Lilith chuckled softly.

In reality, it's a case of kings not meeting kings, and succubi not meeting succubi.

The saintess happened to have a succubus mark on her lower abdomen, which allowed him to vaguely sense her presence.

It should be noted that even ordinary saints would find it difficult to detect her aura; only the most powerful among the saints could discover her presence!

The fact that the saintess was merely a legend was enough to vaguely sense her presence, all thanks to the succubus markings on her body!

Those dungeon equipment pieces actually had nothing to do with the succubus. It was just that Lilith touched those pieces of equipment a few times while she was standing next to them, so that the equipment also acquired a small amount of her aura.

If she had stayed by the Demon King's side, the Saintess might have become wary of him, which is why she didn't appear.

"By the way, Hero, would you like to hear what they are saying?"

Lilith snapped her fingers, slightly slowing down the flow of time throughout the entire space, and said with a light laugh.

"Can you let me hear what they're saying?"

Mu Qiu was taken aback.

He was indeed curious; the duke seemed to hold these auctions frequently, and they all seemed to be aimed at legendary professionals.

I wonder what they were talking about?

Although eavesdropping on other people's conversations is a bit impolite, these days, any hero who doesn't break into people's homes to open treasure chests is a good hero. What's wrong with listening to a conversation?

"of course can."

Lilith snapped her fingers again, restoring the flow of time to its original state.

“Hero, now you can hear their conversation, hehe... This duke isn’t as upright as he seems.”

Ok?

Is Lily implying something?

Mu Qiu turned his head to look in the direction of the Duke. At this moment, he could also hear the conversation between the Duke and the legendary professional in the distance.

The first sentence he heard made Mu Qiu raise his eyebrows.

"Your Grace, are you sure you want to continue?"

……

PS: There were fewer updates yesterday, so this two-in-one long chapter is to make up for yesterday's update. There will be another 10,000 words update today!

Chapter 112 Let heroes investigate heroes, let good men investigate good men!

Continue? Continue with what?

Mu Qiu's eyes flickered slightly. He shifted his gaze a little and pretended to chat with Fiona, who was sitting upright next to him but was actually secretly twirling the tablecloth with the tip of her tail. However, his attention was focused on Duke Blaine and the blond bard beside him not far away.

“Mr. Lorenzo, I need your help.”

The Duke's deep voice slowly rose.

Mu Qiu could see their mouths opening and closing, but the people around them seemed not to hear their conversation, obviously using some kind of magic to shield their surroundings.

The man called Lorenzo was a handsome, blond, curly-haired man.

He lazily crossed his legs, and upon hearing Duke Blaine's words, he simply elegantly raised the crystal glass in his hand, admiring the luster of the amber liquid in the glass under the light, took a small sip, and a playful smile played on his lips.

"Your Grace, I am truly flattered by your words."

“The bishop of the Sakashin Order, the ‘Son of the Mist,’ fell in the capital two weeks ago.”

Duke Blaine lowered his voice even further, as if whispering: "As luck would have it, the one who caught him was none other than the 'Iron Rose' consul, known for her impartiality."

Lorenzo paused almost imperceptibly in his swirling of the wine glass.

He slowly put down his wine glass, his fingertips tapping unconsciously on the table, and sighed:

"The Child of the Mist... has actually fallen in the capital."

"That governor is best at interrogating prisoners. No one knows if the Mist Child will reveal our secrets."

He raised his eyes to look at the Duke opposite him, his tone becoming more serious: "Your Grace, it might not be too late to stop now."

"If we wait until the investigation team from the capital arrives before trying to clean up the mess, it will be too late."

"late."

Duke Blaine's throat bobbed, his voice dry. "Just three days ago, the investigation team from the capital set off. In a week at most, the sound of their hooves will echo through the streets of Earth City."

"Your Grace, are you sure?"

Lorenzo leaned forward slightly, his languid expression instantly replaced by surprise and doubt, causing the surrounding illusion barrier to ripple for a moment.

"Yes, the news is true."

Duke Blaine gripped his wine glass tightly, his knuckles turning slightly white, but he quickly forced himself to relax, revealing a relaxed expression of complete control: "However, Mr. Lorenzo, you don't need to worry too much. The Royal Eyes of Silence have not made any moves yet. This investigation team was sent by the Iron Law Institute."

Both the Imperial Iron Law Institute and the Silent Eyes are intelligence organizations under the Empire.

The Iron Law Institute was primarily responsible for internally reviewing nobles and officials, and collecting intelligence within the empire.

The Eye of Silence is a secret agency directly under the royal family, answering only to the current emperor. It is the main department responsible for handling foreign intelligence work, border defense, and matters related to the Hero Team, and possesses power that surpasses all other agencies.

Although nominally an intelligence agency primarily responsible for foreign affairs, cases that are too difficult for the Iron Law Institute to handle are often transferred to the Silent Eye for processing.

Upon hearing that the investigation team came from the Iron Law Institute, Lorenzo's furrowed brows relaxed slightly.

Although the Iron Law Institute was equally troublesome, the pressure was clearly less than that of the Silent Eye, which was directly under the emperor and had the power to execute first and report later.

Since the capital city did not send the Silent Eyes, but instead the Iron Law Institute conducted the investigation, it means that the Children of the Mist have not revealed everything about them, and they are currently safe.

"Your Grace...how do you intend for me to help you?"

"Of course... let's get started!"

Duke Blaine's gaze turned cold, completely devoid of the gentleness he had shown moments before.

"Are you crazy?!"

Lorenzo nearly lost his voice, but his legendary level allowed him to instantly control his emotions and magical barrier. He took a deep breath and lowered his voice:

"That's an investigation team sent from the capital! Your Grace, even if you dare to take action, I don't have the guts!"