Warhammer Divine Throne-Chapter 629 - 277, Annual Leave at the Winery (Part 1)

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As December arrived, the Winter Festival came.

Laine once thought that this year's Winter Festival would see everyone around him gathered together. Having become a Count this year, he could finally enjoy a reunion meal.

However, in reality, Laine was overly optimistic. By early December, not only had Surya already returned early to Helunhilde, but even Teresa and Veronica were ordered back to the Jialan Council.

This time, it wasn't due to internal conflicts in the Jialan Council or anything else. Veronica and Teresa had legitimate reasons for returning. Every five years, the Jialan Council holds a large-scale assembly, re-electing and nominating members of the Elder Council. Teresa had already discussed this with Veronica. Because of Laine's rapid ascent, Jialan Speaker Margarita had planned to add Veronica to the Elder Council. Both Veronica and Teresa needed to participate in this grand Witch gathering, which was expected to last three months.

Before leaving, the female sorcerer Mogiana left her with a mountain of "Winter Festival homework," including three essays each no less than twelve inches long, a several-hundred-word introduction in complete High Gothic Language, and reading three epics about the Brittania Holy Grail Knight written in High Gothic Language, each requiring an annotation of no less than two parchments.

Looking at the mountain of parchment and the thick books wider than her thumb, Teresa turned pale. However, Mogiana's orders were absolute, and she had no choice but to leave with heaps of homework.

Before the Winter Festival, Laine held an annual meeting to affirm the year's achievements and reward the knights who had made contributions. After the meeting, the Count found himself alone. Most of his knights already had families, and even those few without families would stay home to pray or spend the festival with their lovers.

Laine himself did not have much sense of the Winter Festival, so his attitude towards celebrating it was simply as a holiday and an opportunity to rest.

In mid-December, on the first day of the Winter Festival holiday, today's weather was extremely cold. The howling cold wind swept through the Count Glamorgan's domain. Although the sky was gloomy, the peasants and Free People were celebrating a rare good time of the year, decorating brightly and thinking of ways to celebrate the arrival of the Winter Festival.

The winery near the Count's castle was also bustling. Durand, the winery manager, was paying wages to the vineyard workers. Besides leaving a few workers to take care of grape vines during the winter, most workers received ample vacation time.

As the head of the Count's Vineyard, Durand was already a middle-aged man in his thirties. He wore a round cap, a gentleman's black suit, and a brown bear fur coat. Although thirty-something wasn't very old, his eyes showed signs of aging. Born into a declining Knight Family that couldn't afford to equip him as a knight, he ended up running the Marquis Ascot's winery as a steward.

Later, Baron Laine Macado arrived. The Marquis Ascot handed over Durand's ownership to Laine without hesitation.

Over thirty, Durand truly felt the sense of being uprooted. Laine was the Lady's Divine Chosen Champion, and his arrival left Durand feeling both anticipatory and apprehensive.

Fortunately, Laine placed considerable importance on the Wine Castle. Despite his busy schedule making him rare to visit, he prioritized the renovation of the Wine Castle and development of the winery. New canals and high walls were completed within just over a year, and the vineyards underwent expansion and cultivation. From the Winford Court, expert winemakers brought the finest grape varieties and cutting techniques at no cost, finally giving Durand a chance to prove himself.

Later, Durand realized that the Winford Court wasn't doing it out of charity; they were just paving the way for their own young lady.

And now, Durand was in a state of morbid excitement, knowing why.

Two shining figures clad in full plate armor approached. They wore Cross Helmets and splendid surcoats. Their family emblems illustrated their family's history and glory, and the Longsword at their waists shimmered in the winter air. On the top of the helmet, the family crest, and the armor patterns, the golden Holy Grail emblem denoted their identity.

They were the glorious Holy Grail Knights. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Yes, since spring this year, twenty Holy Grail Knights had been stationed in the winery, filling the residents of the Count's Domain with pride. Many Holy Grail Pilgrims flocked to the winery and Lake Fairy Tower for pilgrimage, forming a unique tourism economy.

After prolonged contact, Durand realized that the Holy Grail Knights weren't as distant and unreachable as imagined. Their life was relatively simple, often doing only a few things like eating, sleeping, praying, and patrolling in a day. The Holy Grail Knights' life wasn't as ascetic as people imagined. They demanded fine food and wine and occasionally sought young women to satisfy needs. Some Holy Grail Knights formed relatively stable relationships with Mercy Goddess priests and Lake Goddess Saintess stationed at the hospital. However, few married, as the Lake Fairy did not prohibit the Holy Grail Knights from marriage, but all Holy Grail Knights prioritized the Goddess's mission and guarding the Goddess's Holy Land.