"Who are you people really? What do you actually want? This is the Gruglu family's estate! You..." Before Shelley could finish her sentence, a cloth was shoved into her mouth, and she was tied up and thrown into the center of the living room like the others.
The elderly Count Gruglu sat crookedly, tilting his head back, and coldly eyed the one-eyed man leading the group.
Step by step, the one-eyed man walked to Count Gruglu, personally removed the cloth from his mouth, then sat on a nearby chair with his arms folded, sneering at the count.
"Our investigation is thorough. Normally, after this time, no one else but these people here would enter or leave this house. You can only blame yourself for not mingling with your neighbors. It won't be until seven in the morning. At seven o'clock, the paperboy comes to deliver the newspapers, but he just drops them in the mailbox and leaves. The first person to enter this house will be the vegetable delivery person around seven-thirty. Until then, no one will discover anything wrong here. And now, it's precisely seven-thirty. So, we have twelve hours to have a good chat."
Shelley struggled and looked at her grandfather in terror.
Count Gruglu nodded at her from afar, signaling her to stay calm, then turned to face the one-eyed man again, lightly saying, "What do you want to talk about?"
His tone was as indifferent as if he was having a casual family conversation.
"Don't you want to ask who we are and why we're tying you up?"
"If you want to say it, you'll say it yourself. I don't need to ask. If you don't want to say it, asking won't help. But I speculate you're not here to kill me."
"How do you know?"
"Guess."
"Guess? You're speaking as if you're the one who tied me up." Taking a deep breath, the one-eyed man continued, "Alright, I'll be direct. We have only one purpose in binding you: to make you write a letter to your fief, requesting them to send troops to support the Beisher family against the King."
"Support the Beisher Family... but you're not from Yilin."
"How do you know we're not?"
"Guess." Count Gruglu smiled as he replied.
"We don't have time for your nonsense. Will you write it or not?"
"I won't."
"You!" The one-eyed man was so furious that he clenched his teeth, but he had no choice. Containing his anger, he commanded, "You must write to live."
"You're mistaken, I'll survive no matter what." Count Gruglu smiled and said, "Let me tell you about my preparations. First, search this house all you want; you won't find my seal anywhere. Second, the correspondence between me and the fief is coded. If I want to write something you don't want me to, that's too easy. Third, I have already willed that after my death, my title and fief will pass to my son, and the will has been notarized by the Archbishop. Even the King cannot interfere. If the fief doesn't receive my letter for a week, my son will automatically become the new Count Gruglu. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"If you don't agree to support the Beisher Family today, I will kill you!" the one-eyed man roared, drawing his sword.
"It seems you still don't understand what I'm saying." Count Gruglu leaned softly against the fireplace and said coolly, "How could Edward III send someone like you?"
Upon hearing this, the one-eyed man's face turned pale.
Not only the one-eyed man but everyone present, including Shelley, widened their eyes slightly.
...
At this moment, "The Knight's Guide to Success: Sequel" was reaching its climax.
Gray screamed with excitement as the plot twisted and turned. Not only that, he now had a new theater companion—Bone Horse.
"The plot is just amazing!"
"Hiss—!"
"Here it comes, my favorite line: 'All evil will be accounted for, and all souls will ascend. The sunlight illuminates every corner, leaving no shadow behind!' It's so... so cool!"
"Hiss—!"
"The Knight is in grave danger! What will happen next? It's so tense!"
"Hiss—!"
The Knight and his horse tightly embraced. Can you imagine a horse shaking its legs? The floor creaked. The theater owner was almost having a heart attack, afraid the floor might collapse at any moment.
The box seats were fairly spacious, but squeezing in a horse made it quite cramped.
In the entire theater, more eyes were on Gray than on the stage. Even the actors occasionally glanced at Gray.
The Black Cat crouched awkwardly at the side: "Haven't you already seen this? What's there to be so excited about?"
"I've seen it, but it hasn't!"
"Hiss hiss!" Bone Horse chimed in.
"Come on! High-five!"
Bone Horse quickly raised its hoof in cooperation.
So, the entire theater watched in shock as Gray high-fived his horse.
"Why am I so unlucky to know these two idiots?" The Black Cat lowered its face in exasperation.
*Who could understand the pain of being the only sane person... oh no, the only sane cat, in a crazy group?*
Just then, Gray suddenly let out a "Huh."
"What is it?" asked the Black Cat.
"My book is missing."