Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 849: Princess and Wine

Chapter 849 -849: Princess and Wine

“The Lady of the Lake?” frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

The Vampire Kind frowned slightly and nodded slowly:

“This is a local folklore, I heard similar stories when I was a child. Tales like a hero seeking power and pulling out a treasure sword after trials, or a sage seeking wisdom and obtaining an ancient tome after trials. These stories seem plausible and have been passed down locally for generations.”

He paused for a moment:

“Before I left here in early autumn, rumors spread in the black market that someone had actually encountered the Lake Goddess. If you need more detailed information, I can help gather it. Tomorrow, I will provide you with the information I can gather by then.”

“That is really too much trouble for you.”

Shard raised his glass and lightly clinked it with Mr. Benhart:

“Also, since I’ve come to a new city, could you introduce me to the local black market? I’m very interested in seeing their specialties.”

“No problem, the number of Circle Sorcerers in Huntington City is no less than that in Midshire Fort.”

“So, besides the True God Church, are there any notable Circle Sorcerer organizations here?”

Shard asked, and Mr. Benhart thought for a moment:

“There aren’t any within the urban area. To the east, there are vast vineyards and farms with few permanent residents. But to the west, in the Pantanal Swamp Area, there is the Pantanal Voodoo Society formed by the swamp natives. These people are peculiar and excel in using toxins and plague-related Arcane Techniques. Their beliefs are also inconsistent, with some even worshipping the Pantanal region itself. Because they polluted the underground water near Huntington City years ago, they were put on the wanted list by the Church of Nature. Of course, there are some decent folks among them, but when dealing with such people, never casually accept their water or food.”

“Is this ‘Pantanal Voodoo Society’ very powerful?”

Shard asked again, and the Vampire Kind thought for a moment:

“The organization has members throughout the entire Pantanal Swamp Region. They profit by selling rare herbs and animal products from the swamp. If you’re interested in exploring that swamp and wetlands, and you see small houses in the desolate forests or herbalists growing herbs on the outskirts of remote villages, most of them are members of the Pantanal Voodoo Society. However, this organization only operates in this region, and it’s rare to see their traces in other parts of the Old Continent and the New World.”

Shard indeed had never heard of this organization before:

“The Voodoo Society should have High Ring sorcerers, right?”

“Of course, they do, the highest being Nine Rings. The organizational structure of the Voodoo Society is very loose, so the organization itself is full of contradictions and is not as tightly structured as most organizations we know.”

Mr. Benhart shrugged:

“You know, where there are people, there will be disputes. It’s normal.”

The two chatted enthusiastically about the local situation. As someone who had lived here for many years, Mr. Benhart was very talkative and even wanted to invite Shard to his manor outside the city tonight.

Today was Thursday, and Shard had no plans, so he was about to agree when a club waiter hurried over, bent down, and whispered a few words to Mr. Benhart, who looked surprised:

“Oh, I see. It’s my honor. I’ll go right away.”

He put down his glass, hastily wiped his mouth with a napkin, and while combing his hair, he apologized to Shard:

“There is an esteemed guest upstairs who wants to see me, Mr. Watson, please continue dining here. This meal is on me, I’ll be back as soon as possible. Yes, it’s that person… Is my hair messy now?”

“Not at all, it’s very good. Do you need a comb?”

Shard understood that “that person” referred to the Princess. As he spoke, he pulled a wooden comb from his pocket and handed it over:

“You should go on up.”

He understood this and was very curious about what Princess Margaret Anjou wanted with this Vampire Viscount.

Mr. Benhart combed his hair nervously as he followed the servant, leaving Shard to continue his meal. Although he was a distant relative of the Anjou Royal Family, he didn’t often get to meet members of the Royal Family.

Shard thought Mr. Benhart would be away for a long time, but before he had finished his Huntington secret honey-glazed grape steak, Mr. Benhart returned with a worried expression.

He handed the comb back to Shard and took the napkin from his servant to tie around his neck again. Shard believed his expression now practically said, “I’m very curious,” and Mr. Benhart, understanding this, said with some frustration:

“It’s still about that matter.”

He pointed to the Tobesk visit news on the table, and Shard nodded:

“Although such diplomatic mutual visits are very important during peacetime between two countries, it shouldn’t involve you, right?”

“No, no, it has nothing to do with me. It’s Princess Margaret Anjou visiting Tobesk and wanting to prepare gifts in her personal capacity, so…”

Mr. Benhart shook his head:

“Someone just mentioned to Her Highness that I have some fine wines here, and since I manage the White Valley Vineyard for the Royal Family, Her Highness asked me to bring some of this year’s batch from the cellar.”

Although Shard had seen the wines in fermentation, the cellar still had wine from previous years stored. The exchange of gifts between the Anjou and Cavendish Royal Families didn’t require the Princess to prepare them herself, but since she wanted to personally gift important nobles and officials in Tobesk, she had to handle it herself.

“What’s difficult about that? Isn’t there a lot of wine in the cellar?”

Shard asked, and Mr. Benhart shook his head:

“Indeed there is, but the quality…is very poor.”

The very distinguished gentleman carefully chose his words:

“Because of the climate in recent years, the quality of the grapes produced by the White Valley Vineyard has been declining year after year, which is also the reason for the shrinking profits. So, every summer, when I send the vineyard’s wine to Velindale…”

He pursed his lips and raised his eyebrows at Shard. Shard knew this involved some private matters and immediately said:

“I won’t say a word.”

“The vineyard can incur losses, but sending out such awful wine would be too embarrassing. The summer wines of these past few years have actually been produced by my own winery.”

Mr. Benhart leaned in and spoke quickly, glancing around after he finished speaking.

This was actually a minor matter. Although Mr. Benhart’s actions weren’t entirely correct, they weren’t entirely wrong either. He maintained his dignity, received subsidies for managing the vineyard, and the Royal Family received decent red wine.

“So, the Princess thinks the wine from the winery is excellent?”

Shard asked with a smile, and the middle-aged noble sighed:

“Yes, and the problem is that this summer, my own estate’s batch of wine has already been completely sold out, not a single bottle left in stock.”

This was a very awkward situation. Mr. Benhart could admit the source of the red wine he sent each year, but that would be very embarrassing for him. So, he planned to purchase a few bottles of good red wine at a high price for Margaret Anjou to take to Tobesk.

Of course, the second princess of the Royal Family was highly knowledgeable in wine tasting, so Mr. Benhart had to find good wine that the princess had not yet encountered, or she would immediately notice the inconsistency in the wine’s origin.

This matter wasn’t complicated, but it wasn’t easy either, which is why Mr. Benhart felt somewhat embarrassed at this moment.

Shard didn’t expect that this gentleman, who had even participated in the Divine Descent Event, would be troubled by such a trivial matter, so he proposed:

“Good wine? I don’t think you need to look any further. I have some excellent wine here.”

Helping this gentleman was a minor effort for Shard, and he would need Mr. Benhart’s assistance for many matters in this city in the future.

Saying this, he first had the vampire servant nearby fetch two new goblets, then reached into his pocket. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, he pulled two bottles of red wine from inside his coat and placed them on the table.

Mr. Benhart raised an eyebrow:

“You carry wine bottles with you when you go out?”

“No, no, I rarely drink. But when you go out, how can you not bring some wine with you?”

Shard joked, distinguishing between the two bottles of wine:

“Not this one, this is apple wine, this one is grape wine.”

He handed the bottle of apple wine to the returning vampire servant, indicating for him to pour the wine for the two of them:

“Viscount, I know these two bottles of wine don’t look very appealing.”

After all, even the wine bottles were reused.

“But please try this bottle of apple wine.”

Shard said confidently. Mr. Benhart leaned back in his chair and said:

“Alright, I rarely drink apple wine. I hope it will surprise me.”

Wine brewed by Blood Wine Brewing didn’t have transcendent traits, but any type of wine would have the same crimson color as red wine.

Mr. Benhart looked at the wine in his goblet, which resembled liquid rubies, and couldn’t help but praise:

“This color, it’s truly astonishing. It’s a noble color.”

Shard had already taken a sip of the apple wine, he actually regretted that Blood Wine Brewing could only make wine and not non-alcoholic juices:

“Please have a taste.”

“Just by looking at the color, I can tell it’s…why is apple wine this color?”

He hesitantly brought his nose closer and took a gentle sniff. The vampire’s keen sense of smell fully registered the rich aroma of the high-quality wine. For a moment, it felt as though the room was spinning. Mr. Benhart took a deep breath, leaning back with wide eyes:

“Oh my God, this is really strong!”

The latter half was in Carsonrick slang, and Shard hoped his translation was accurate:

“This isn’t something like Milestone’s Blood Brew, your reaction is too exaggerated.”

Although he knew there would be such an effect, Shard still smiled, unable to help feeling a bit proud at this moment.