After the crown prince returned to the royal city, he did not show up for two days. It is said that he was tired from fighting outside for several months, so he needed to rest quietly for a while.
Everyone saw no sign of Garlan for two days, and according to the news in the palace, Prince Heimos stayed in Prince Garlan's palace for the past two days.
This scene can't help but make some people start to murmur.
Could it be... Prince Heimos wanted...
However, two days later, Garland appeared in front of everyone.
Shemuer, who represented the priesthood of Shamash, and Sage, the head of the royal knights, followed him and accompanied him to meet ministers and handle government affairs. Kai, the guardian knight of the prince of Gallan, Hoth also quickly began to take over the military forces in the royal city.
At the same time, Heimos kept silent all the time, without saying a word, just quietly following Garlan's side, showing a posture like a knight guarding the other party.
As a result, the suspicion that had just poured out of everyone's heart disappeared immediately.
In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed in a hurry.
Thanks to the efforts of Garland and everyone, the severely damaged royal city and surrounding areas are recovering quickly.
The ban on the surrounding areas of Wangcheng has been lifted, and the roads in all directions that were once blocked are allowed to pass through again. The anxious businessmen who were so anxious because the commercial roads were cut off finally breathed a sigh of relief and rushed to Wangcheng with their caravans.
There were also some timid businessmen who wanted to wait and see for a while, but when they heard that the crown prince had issued an order for commercial tax concessions within half a year, they immediately ignored them, and almost couldn’t wait to swarm from all directions.
The bright spring sun shines on the land of Aaron Landis, and on the road extending in all directions with the king city as the intersection center, countless people and horses begin to travel, and it is even more lively than before. Some roads are so crowded with caravans that there are blockages in some areas.
The 'blood' in those thick 'vessels' and countless tiny 'vessels' began to flow again.
This majestic city, located in the center of the entire continent and known as the 'heart of the continent', once again began to beat vigorously.
The royal city of Aaron Landis was more prosperous than ever.
…
The wide Eya River flows silently, encircling the gorgeous palace that shines golden in the sun, and then turns into a waterfall behind the high cliff behind the palace and falls into the boundless sea.
On this day, the small court in the palace stood on the high platform, with three sides open, and countless huge lotus-headed stone pillars supported the court. In the courtyard, you can vaguely see the beauty of the waterfall falling into the sea in the distance.
In the small court, Garlan was listening to his subordinates reporting to him the things that had been dealt with during this period of time.
"Your Excellency Kareni has sent a message that the Gasdad's robbery in the west has basically been cleaned up. Now, he is stationed at the stronghold on the western border and is building a fortress."
Shemuer, who received Kareni's message yesterday, said.
"Because our country has always had friendly relations with Canal and we have never fought against each other, we do not pay much attention to the defense of the west. But now Canal has been controlled by our enemy Gasdad, therefore, Your Excellency Kareni Considering the war to come, it was deemed necessary to build military fortresses at key points in the west."
The Gasthods slew their king, bringing down two of their armies.
And they slew the prince of the Gasthards, destroying his army of hundreds of thousands.
The two sides have forged a deadly feud with different Dai Tian.
From then on, the western frontier is bound to be a constant war.
The priest continued: "In addition, Your Excellency Kareni also asked me to report to you that in order to rebuild the Sixth Legion, please allow him to recruit soldiers on the western frontier."
Garland nodded.
"You reply to my letter and agree to his request."
The boy's bright eyes looked at Xie Mu'er, and there was a hint of apology in his eyes.
"Also, I would like to express my apologies to Kareni, who should have spent his life in his own city, but now he has to work hard to shoulder the heavy responsibility of the western frontier, all because of my incompetence."
He says,
"But in this situation, he is the only person who can reassure me of entrusting the western border with the important task."
"Yes, Your Highness, I will convey your words to him."
Xie Muer bowed slightly.
"However, Your Excellency Kareni must be very unhappy to hear your apology."
The stubborn and upright old man has always been a man who will not admit defeat.
'My health is very good, what's so hard about this. '
After receiving the letter, the old man must have said so unhappily.
However, Kareni did not say anything about what Gallan said that he was the only person who could trust him with heavy responsibilities, and he must be very satisfied in his heart.
Probably imagining how the stubborn old man would react, Garlan smiled, then turned his eyes to the other side.
The head of the royal knights, Sarge, took a step forward after receiving Gallan's gaze.
"The royal city is currently very stable, and none of the ministers and nobles have behaved abnormally."
The defense of the royal city has been taken over by Kaihos and the first army he led. The robbers who emerged from the chaos of the war in the surrounding area of the king city were cleared by him during this period of time.
And the every move of the nobles and dignitaries in the royal city has been closely monitored by the royal knights.
"Prince, those civilians have almost been repatriated!"
Before Garlan asked, little fat Tal jumped out impatiently, wagging his tail vigorously to claim credit to his prince.
"I personally supervised it, and absolutely no one can embezzle your money—"
In order to defend the royal city, Heimos used his first tactic of 'hardening the wall and clearing the field'. Although this tactic had a great effect, it inevitably caused considerable damage to the people who were driven away.
Now that the war is over, it will cause a lot of trouble if the people who have been forcibly displaced have been crowded into the royal city or other large cities as they are now.
Therefore, after Gallan took over the royal city, he immediately set about escorting those refugees back to their original homeland.
He allocated funds, gave them the necessary financial subsidies, and helped them rebuild their houses if their homes had been burnt down in the first place.
In order to prevent officials from getting their hands on the sizable sum, Garlan put Tarr in full charge of the matter.
There was Tar, who was extremely sensitive to numbers and property, and sent more than a dozen tall, burly and inhumane priests of Shamash to assist, almost cutting off the possibility of officials embezzling in this matter.
No one can take from him what the prince (allocated) gave him!
Don't even think about a single copper plate!
The little fat man, who vowed to guard his belongings for his little prince, thought aggressively.
Kaijos also said: "His Royal Highness, Tasda and Elson decided to let the army return to the country the day after, leaving only a few representatives of the two countries here."
"Understood, a banquet will be held tomorrow night to entertain the generals of the two countries."
After Garlan finished speaking, he paused and mentioned something to his subordinates.
"Both the First and Sixth Corps have been rebuilt, and only the Third Corps remains."
At the beginning, King Camos led all the First Legion and the cavalry of the Third Legion to the west, but they were all destroyed.
In the later battle of defending the royal city, more than half of the infantry units of the Third Army Corps who stayed in the royal city were killed or wounded, so the Third Army was almost abolished.
"Want to rebuild the Third Legion?"
Kaijos asked, "But, Your Highness, who do you intend to command the Third Legion?"
The commander-in-chief of the six major legions is not someone who can be appointed casually. That person must have enough merit and reputation to be recognized by the officers and men.
Almost by default, only those who have established great military exploits and become famous among the soldiers and were named cavalry commanders are qualified to command the legion.
However, there were very few people who could be promoted to cavalry commander Aaron Landis, and nearly half of them died in the battle of Judas City. Now the few remaining cavalry commanders have commanded legions. Even the rebuilt Sixth Legion could barely let Kareni in command at the moment.
After all, this veteran has been on the battlefield for many years and served the king of the two dynasties.
Now the prince wants to rebuild the Third Legion, but if he can't find a general who can command it, how to start the reconstruction
"His Royal Highness, if you don't have such a great military honor and reputation, even if you force the appointment, the soldiers will not recognize it. I am afraid that there is no such general in Aaron Landis today. Therefore, the reconstruction of the Third Legion is best first. hold off…”
"No, there is one person that everyone will recognize."
Garland interrupted Shemuer's words.
He turned his head and looked to the other side.
He says,
"Heimos, the Third Legion will be handed over to you, okay?"
Heimos, who had been sitting quietly in the chair, raised his eyes, his golden red eyes and Gallan looked at each other.
After a while, he nodded.
"it is good."
he said simply.
Everyone was stunned for a while.
It was only then that they realized that although Heimos did not have the name of a cavalry commander, it was because he was a prince himself. If it was a matter of merit and reputation, he was definitely not inferior to any cavalry commander.
If he is the commander of the legion, he will definitely be recognized by all the soldiers.
only…
Xie Muer and Sage looked at each other silently.
…
…
Taking into account the habits of the Tasda and Elsons, the banquet for them was not held in the ornate hall, but in the open-air courtyard.
Tall palm trees stand straight around the courtyard, and the lush branches and leaves are more and more verdant in the light of the night.
Different from the previous open-air banquets, this time, the entire spacious courtyard is ingeniously separated into two blocks by the long dining table and the columns wrapped with green vines.
And the purpose of the separation... is to prevent the Tusda male warrior and the Elson female warrior from fighting at the banquet.
Although they have fought side by side for so long, the two peoples are still very hostile to each other, and there is always a fight every few days.
In general, both sides have their own winners and losers, and no one can beat the other.
It is precisely because of this knowledge that the Tapti female officer in charge of this banquet specially ordered to separate the generals of the two sides in this way.
Perhaps it was because of the arrangement of the banquet hall that I felt the painstaking efforts of the female officials, or perhaps because of the presence of the Crown Prince Garlan, both parties were restrained.
The two sides ignored each other, each in their own half, eating food comfortably, chatting and laughing with their companions leisurely.
Shulos didn't need to attend this banquet at first, but in order to mingle with Elson's female warriors, the bard had the cheek to follow.
At the banquet, he made the most of his strengths as a bard, playing the lute and singing songs.
On Elson Island, among the warrior-dominated Elsons, the profession of bard does not exist at all.
Therefore, many Elson female warriors gathered around and listened to Shu Luos singing with a novelty.
Surrounded by these female warriors with a rare wild beauty, the bard was immediately excited, and he simply sang the song of courtship that was widely circulated on the mainland.
"That's an old legend."
"The chapters of immortal love are spread over the land of Aaron Landis."
…
"Where the sun shines, she descends by the clear stream."
"The wind proclaimed her beauty, the water kissed her toes, and the water reflected her face."
"The goddess of love and beauty... Her presence overshadows everything in the world."
…
"That look made her fall in love..."
"... the mad love burns up and burns her down..."
…
When Garland finished chatting with the Tastar generals and came to Elson's side, he saw the bard showing off his colorful feathers and singing voice like a courting flower peacock.
The young man burst into laughter.
He didn't bother, just stood aside, drinking the juice in his hand, and listening to Shulos playing and singing with great interest.
The long and penetrating song of the bard echoed in the night sky with the sound of the lyre.
"The beautiful goddess knelt down in front of her beloved, and confided her love to the boy with the most beautiful voice in the world."
"... If I can't be by your side, it's no different from death to me."
"My beloved..."
"You know... my heart beats because of you... can you feel... my soul exists because of you..."
Garlan choked out the juice he had just drank, and coughed for a long time before he could breathe.
"Your Highness?"
The maid who served next to him was startled, and quickly wiped the juice splashed on his hand with a towel.
"Are you all right?"
"Cough, cough, it's okay."
When he finally regained his breath, Garlan handed the juice to the maid.
After hesitating for a while, he couldn't help but ask.
"Cough, that... what did he sing just now?"
"Huh? Don't you know? It's a courtship song that is widely circulated on the mainland."
Most people know it, and she, a believer of Aphdomil, knows it even more.
"In the legend, Avtomir once came to the world, met the most beautiful boy in the world, and fell in love at a glance, she desperately pursued the beautiful boy and prayed to him for his love. "
"This is the song of the goddess courting that beautiful boy."
The maid narrowed her eyes with an intoxicated expression on her face.
"There are still many people who use the words in the song to woo their loved ones... Ah, 'My heart beats because of you'~~ Don't you think this is particularly heartwarming?"
"Cough-cough-cough!"
"Your Highness, don't you have a cold?"
Seeing that Garlan's face started to turn red from coughing, the maid was a little flustered.
"Cough—no, I'm fine, I just choked."
"But… "
The maid's words were interrupted by a voice coming from the side.
"Your Highness, are you free now?"
When he finally regained his breath, Garlan turned his head and saw the brown-haired priest who had walked up to him.
"Xie Mu'er, is something wrong?"
"Yes, please come with me, I have something to tell you."
Garlan nodded, turned to instruct the maid to wait in place, and then walked with Xi Muer to the secluded place next to the courtyard.
Tall palm trees shrouded this place, and the light from not far away was blocked by the dense canopy, making this place a little dark.
Garlan followed Xie Muer here, only to find that Sage was also here, standing under a tree waiting for them.
Seeing Garlan coming, Sage stepped out from under the shadow of the tree and bowed slightly to salute him.
"Do you have something to tell me?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
The head of the Royal Knights, who never knew how to go around the corners, said bluntly,
"As for the commander-in-chief of the Third Army, please reconsider."
Garland paused.
"...Do you think that Heimos is not qualified to be the commander of the Third Legion?"
he asks.
"No, in all fairness, if it weren't for His Highness Heimos as a prince, he would have been promoted to cavalry commander for his merits, and he would be well-deserved even as the commander-in-chief of the First Legion."
Sage said,
"However, Your Highness, because of his status as a prince, I don't think he is suitable to control the Third Army."
"Any legion is not suitable for the person who has the right to inherit the throne - for the stability of the throne - you should take this into account."
The boy was silent for a while.
Then, he turned his head and looked at Xie Muer who was standing beside him.
"You think so too?"
The priest of Shamash stood on the grass, the shadow of the tree swayed on his face, and the angular face still had the usual awe-inspiring look.
"His Royal Highness, according to the practice of the royal family of Aaron Landis, after the crown prince takes the throne, other princes must go to the canonized city. Without the king's call, they are not allowed to enter the royal city one step."
He says,
"When you succeed to the throne, His Royal Highness Heimos should go to Menister City and take over as the city lord."
Although Xie Muer did not speak out, his words clearly expressed his meaning.
Sage continued: "Also, compared to the Legion Commander, perhaps His Royal Highness Heimos is more interested in the Lord of a City..."
After all, the city lord is the complete controller of a city, and he is not under the jurisdiction of anyone except the king, and has a higher status than the legion commander.
"Do not."
Garlan interrupted Sarge.
He said, "I won't let him leave the royal city."
Xie Mu'er frowned, he opened his mouth and seemed to want to say something, but he didn't know what to think, so he closed his mouth again, and didn't speak.
And Sage continued without giving an inch.
"His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, please understand one thing - it has been very dangerous since ancient times to let the prince who has the right to inherit the throne stay in the royal city."
As the head of the Royal Knights, his duty is to protect the stability of the throne.
"You, who are about to ascend the throne, shouldn't be so emotional! You should order His Highness Heimos to go to Menister City as soon as possible—"
The black shadow of the tree swayed gently on his face, and the boy was silent for a while.
Then, he shook his head again.
"Do not."
Garland said, in a very firm tone.
He doesn't want to.
It wasn't for fear that the order would anger Heimos.
Rather...
He raised his eyes, and his golden pupils looked at the two of them.
"I need him."
He says,
"I need him by my side."
…
The person who once terrified him, at some point in time, had become an existence that gave him great courage and support.
A presence that reassured him.
Heimos said he wanted to be by his side.
But Heimos didn't know.
He also needs him.