Marquis Frankimir looked at the girl and then at the boy.
His gaze wandered around the shop and the old woman, quickly realizing what had happened.
A moment's hesitation flashed across his face, but it soon settled into a calm, cold tone:
"I don't care what happened between you before, now get back to your respective tribe's quarters! With guests of the Castel family present, do you want them to see the North as a joke?"
Upon hearing Marquis Frankimir's words, the boy respectfully complied, then threw a provocative smile at the girl.
Astrid grew even angrier.
Marquis Frankimir seemed to reprimand both sides, but in reality, he was taking sides.
"What? Do you have a problem with that?"
Marquis Frankimir glanced at the stubborn-looking girl and asked coldly.
Astrid's lips tightened even more.
She looked at the flags of the Castel family and the Holy Royal Court fluttering in the back of the procession, then at the boy in front of her with a mocking face, her fists clenching slightly.
Then, to a series of gasps, she suddenly cut her palm with a short sword, tore off a corner of her robe, soaked it in blood, and threw it in front of the boy:
"Gunnar of the Forest Sea Tribe, I—Astrid of the Free Tribe Alliance, in the name of Northern honor, issue a challenge of honor to you!"
At this scene, Marquis Frankimir immediately became furious:
"You fool! Astrid! Do you think I wouldn't dare to lock you up? Guards! Take her down and lock this pagan in the castle's cells!"
As the guards were about to act following Marquis Frankimir's orders, a gentle voice suddenly sounded from behind:
"Your Highness, please wait a moment."
Hearing this voice, Marquis Frankimir's anger immediately subsided, and he turned around to see Sebastian, who had approached, his expression somewhat embarrassed:
"I apologize... Lord Sebastian, our Northern children are a bit discourteous. My apologies for any offense."
"No harm done, I actually rather admire the martial spirit of your nation."
Sebastian waved his hand and then looked interestedly at the young man and woman confronting each other.
From the first glance at her, he almost recognized her.
She was one of the lost believers visualized by the True Ancestor during the issuing of the Oracle, also the one he was commanded to contact.
It's indeed a small world; he had been pondering how to cleverly utilize the resources of the Northern nobles to find his target, yet he stumbled upon her shortly after entering Winter Castle.
With this thought, Sebastian's gaze turned to the shop and the old woman not far away.
His sight lingered on the Totem sculpture the old woman held.
That Totem sculpture looked very familiar to him, mainly because it resembled the Holy Emblem of the True Ancestor too much, almost like a thorny rose with half of it erased.
Almost instantly, Sebastian realized.
The lost believers the True Ancestor wanted him to find were likely these people.
And the reason they were lost was probably that they had long since lost the true Holy Emblem, unable to establish contact with the deity.
His gaze wandered among the people, finally settling on the girl.
The girl looked defiant and was also staring at him.
Sebastian could clearly sense the girl's strength.
The girl was not bad in terms of power, seeming no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, but she was only a step away from the tier-entering; advancing might only need an opportunity, and at this age, she already had quite the potential.
Of course, she couldn't be compared with the True Ancestor.
And her character was a bit too reckless and impulsive.
Furthermore, the way she looked at him was not quite right.
Sebastian could see the emotions in the girl's eyes.
Anger, hostility, vigilance...
All of them were negative; not a single positive sentiment was there.
Sebastian touched his nose, roughly guessing why.
Perhaps, they saw him as a lackey of the Holy Royal Court.
He was not upset in the slightest.
On the contrary, he was somewhat pleased.
Clearly, many of the lost believers of the Northern Land still held firm faith; they only needed to reconnect with the True Ancestor.
With that thought, Sebastian withdrew his gaze and looked toward Marquis Frankimir, smiling:
"Marquis, was that... something akin to a Yonette Knight's duel, a Northern honor challenge?"
Marquis Frankimir subconsciously nodded and then hesitated for a moment, shaking his head:
"They are just children's antics."
"Ha, Marquis, from the look on the young lady's face, she seems quite serious. As I understand it, a Northern honor challenge is a battle where Northern warriors stake all their honor. Since she has made her choice, regardless of age or gender, I think it must be respected."
After speaking, he turned towards Astrid and, amid her vigilant and surprised gaze, gently asked:
"You're called Astrid, right? You wish to issue a Northern honor challenge to him, what do you want to wager?"
Astrid looked at Gunnar with an ugly expression and said:
"If I win, I want him to apologize to Grandma Stella and compensate for all the damages to the shop!"
"And... if you lose?" ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ Nove1Fire.net