"Esteemed Mr. Peter, upon hearing the delightful news that a member of the Vladimir family has come to visit Ural City, and with today's blizzard having cleared to fine weather, I would like to invite the nobles of the city to a winter hunt in the forest belonging to my estate, to celebrate the approaching arrival of spring and to welcome our distant guest. Would you do me the honor of attending?"
"Carlina Lotnikov."
It was a beautifully crafted invitation — the paper was stiff and fine, covered in patterns of sunflowers in full bloom. Written upon it in elegant, delicate strokes was Shahran script, distinctly different from the Common Language. A faint, sweet fragrance wafted from the invitation, and as one read it, the image of a mature, beautiful lady carefully writing with a Feather Pen seemed to materialize before one's eyes.
"Baroness Carlina…" Lucian had only just heard this name at noon from Sergey, a suspected swindler, and now he had received her invitation. Although he harbored no fear of any fraud ring given his own strength, he still felt a measure of hesitation.
After lunch, Byelov and other caravan members including Lina came to chat with Lucian. Seeing that he had fallen silent after reading the invitation, they asked curiously, "Mr. Peter, which noble of Ural City has invited you? Hehe, on this entire journey, if not for your noble status, how could we possibly have arrived in Ural City so quickly?"
Lucian had received similar invitations on many occasions. Upon learning that a member of the Vladimir family had entered their territory, many lords would invite him to visit out of curiosity and a desire to make connections. In order to avoid drawing undue attention and to maintain the courtesy and social enthusiasm expected of a proper noble, Lucian had essentially accepted every such invitation with pleasure.
Although once these lords learned that "Peter" was merely a baronet's son who had not yet inherited a title, their attitudes would invariably turn remarkably cold — just the fact of their invitations alone had saved Lucian, and the four or five caravans he had joined along the way, from a great deal of difficulty and allowed them to travel smoothly through the Shahran Empire.
"It's an invitation from Baroness Carlina." The Shahran Empire was vast, encompassing twenty-three provinces and over a hundred counties, each county home to many nobles. As a result, Lucian was only familiar with Count Veit, the great lord of Ural County — minor nobility like a baroness was difficult to investigate individually. He answered Byelov and the others' questions frankly, hoping to learn the details from these merchants who had long traded in the Kinov Province.
Byelov's face was flushed from drinking black hawthorn wine at lunch, and the tip of his nose had turned an even deeper red. He burst into hearty laughter. "So it's Baroness Carlina! Mr. Peter, she is a renowned beauty of Ural County, and what's more, she's a widow — she inherited Baron Lotnikov's title and considerable fortune. Countless young nobles dream of winning her favor and claiming the title, the estate, and the beauty all in one stroke."
The tipsy man's expression and gaze were strangely suggestive, as if hinting that Lucian had stumbled upon romantic luck — perhaps he could savor the beauty's charm, or even go a step further and win her hand in marriage.
Regardless of age, most men could not resist this kind of teasing when such topics arose.
A golden-haired, blue-eyed girl in the caravan named Irina chimed in with a somewhat sullen air: "Baroness Carlina is known among the nobility as the 'Black Widow' and the 'Vain Fox,' because she herself comes from a noble family and is the niece of the Count's second wife, yet she abandoned many young nobles who pursued her in order to marry Baron Lotnikov for his title and fortune — a man a full forty-six years her senior, a widower with no heirs. And in less than five years, Baron Lotnikov, who had been relatively healthy, grew frail and sickly before soon passing on to the Lord's embrace."
Though the proper form of address was Baroness Carlina, the people of Ural County still habitually referred to her as Baroness.
"Irina, don't go spreading those rumors," a rather composed gentleman in the caravan reminded her with a stern expression. This was no tavern, no wilderness — it was a high-end inn in Ural City. And the nobility of the Shahran Empire were far more decadent and barbaric than those in the southern Church-controlled regions. There were frequent incidents of nobles being whipped for speaking ill of others at private gatherings.
Byelov waved his hand dismissively. "It doesn't matter. Without the tacit approval of the nobility, how would Baroness Carlina's affairs have spread so widely? They want to scare off other competitors. In any case, to them, what does it matter what Baroness Carlina's character is or what her reputation is? What matters is the title, the fortune, and that lovely body."
"But Baroness Carlina really does have poor character," Irina continued, clearly disliking the baroness. "It was barely half a year after Baron Lotnikov passed away before she started incessantly inviting young nobles to banquets and balls — extravagant and decadent."
Lucian smiled. "In any case, since the baroness has extended an invitation, and the caravan won't be departing for several days yet, a proper noble certainly cannot refuse the host's generous hospitality."
It was precisely because of his noble status that Lucian had been able to reach this point, two provinces away from the Vorlite Principality, so smoothly. But equally because of that status, he now had to attend many unnecessary social engagements — a fair trade of pros and cons. Since Baroness Carlina had also invited other nobles, this winter hunting party should pose no real danger. As for any scams or schemes, as long as one resisted greed, one would not be swindled.
Besides, his main objective was to pass through the Shahran Empire — strictly speaking, he himself was something of a con artist.
The gazes of several caravan members grew complicated — some smiled with amusement, some cast ambiguous teasing looks, some pouted unhappily, and others looked down with disdain, wearing expressions that clearly said: just as I expected, another hypocritical noble……
Lucian adjusted his attire, rose with a smile, and politely took his leave. "Everyone, see you tomorrow."
As he spoke, he quietly closed the book *An Actor's Self-Cultivation* that had been open in his Soul Library.
…………
The earth stretched out in a vast, white expanse. Needle-leaved trees periodically shed their snow as several fierce black Ural hounds roared and dashed across the snowy ground, driving hares and other prey — now clad in grey-white winter fur — out of their hiding spots, sending them fleeing in panic.
Suddenly, a long arrow traced a graceful arc from the distance, striking a grey long-haired hare with perfect accuracy.