Chains were tied around Lucian's ankles, preventing him from moving.
—Whether it was getting out of bed or catching up with Vader who was stumbling out of the room.
Lucian sat on the bed, staring blankly at the side of the bed where Wade had just sat. There, there was still a stain of bright red, splattered blood.
That was the blood flowing from Vader's chest.
But why is Vader bleeding? Why is he injured? Why is he bleeding
Lucian placed his hand on his chest. The wound from the dagger had healed, and under his skin was his heart beating naturally. He suddenly felt his heart beating faster and faster.
As if he realized something.
This conjecture was absurd and extreme, especially after he saw the charred and desolate land without flowers in Wade's spiritual world.
But he...
“Do you want me to stab myself again and give it a try?” Lucian muttered.
If there was someone here who knew the truth, he would definitely stagger at his words... Lucian looked at the dagger that was still stained with his blood, and ultimately did not do it.
"Don't you hate me?" he thought.
His mood was sometimes cold, sometimes sad, sometimes happy, but in the end...
He couldn't help but laugh cautiously.
The pale and thin face finally smiled again after a month, a smile that contained disbelief, cautious and secret joy, complacency, and a tiny, cunning sense of victory.
Lucian pulled a piece of cloth down and carefully wiped the dagger that was stained with his blood. He knelt on the bed and wiped it carefully until it was clean.
Then, he picked it up, kissed it with his soft lips, and pressed his rosy lips against the cold blade, again and again, with cunning, happiness, and cherishment.
…
The castle's butler Spencer walked hurriedly, followed by his servants, and his destination was the emperor's lounge.
The lounge smelled of blood.
The court physician bandaged Wade tremblingly, and stood on the other side holding his own hand. Wade's originally white face was now as white as paper, his lips were black, and his face was slightly blue.
Everyone knew that he had lost a lot of blood.
Percy, the military advisor who was also in the palace today, also rushed to the palace after hearing the news. During the six months that Wade disappeared, he, Duke Hall, and Butler Spencer had been working together to consolidate Wade's throne.
One of the attendants was very anxious. He said, "Your Majesty, how did you get injured? You have to know that your body is the highest treasure for the entire empire. Who hurt you..."
Wade said nothing. Percy, wearing a monocle, said, "Who else could it be? Your Majesty, I have to say, I really don't understand why you tolerate him doing this to you..."
In the past, Percy would never say this. But since Vader brought the queen back, although he became more irritable, he seemed to have more humane aura. That was why he dared to say this to him.
In his opinion, the relationship between these two people simply unreasonably lowered all of Wade's judgment.
"Go out and do your business, Percy," Vader interrupted impatiently.
Vader's mind was clearly not here, and this was clearly telling his personal military advisor not to interfere. Percy paused for a moment, and finally left with the extra attendants.
Butler Spencer also entered the room at this time. Compared with Percy and the others, he was a gentler and more loyal elder. He was not just a butler hired by Wade. When Wade and Lucian were still young, he had met the two children several times.
"I thought you might need something to drink," Spencer said, asking the waiter to bring some soup.
Wade finally finished the bowl of soup. His complexion was a little better, but his body was still weak. Spencer sat beside him, wiping the dust off a statue with a handkerchief. Until Wade uttered a soft "tsk".
His voice was filled with self-mockery and disgust. Spencer spoke up at this time: "Aren't you going to tell the Queen?"
"Tell what?"
"Tell him you're hurt for him," Spencer said.
Spencer didn't tell the whole story of the injury, but he obviously saw everything.
Wade glanced at Spencer. The old butler's blue eyes were as gentle and wise as ever. Wade sneered and finally said, "Lucian..."
He paused, and then continued: "Lucian... is a very pushy person. I can't let him know. He should... pay some price, suffer some torture, so that he can be better and more obedient..."
Stay with me, he thought.
"He needs to be more afraid of me," Vader said. "Fear will make him respect me more. He needs to be a little scared. That's right."
He said as if talking to himself: "He needs to be a little scared."
"But have you thought about how to explain your injury to him?" the butler said calmly.
Vader: …
He scratched his head in annoyance, messing up his black hair. The terrifying, bloodthirsty devil in the eyes of others now turned into a troubled teenager. Finally, he sneered and said, "What explanation? I don't need any explanation."
Butler: “Oh…”
"He doesn't have the guts to ask. Lucian." Wade sneered, "I made sure he didn't have the guts to ask."
"… But." The housekeeper said slowly, "I didn't know that Her Majesty the Queen actually committed suicide."
Vader: …
Vader stopped talking.
For Lucian, escaping from the world by death was a very common thing, but this time his suicide was obviously not like the past.
He was committing violence on himself, torturing himself and leading himself to death.
Wade began to feel his head throbbing again. He began to worry about Lucian's mental state, and felt bad for the countless messes between them. At the same time, he felt angry because he was once again worried about Lucian's failure to live up to expectations.
He hated him so much, he thought.
Since he hated him so much, how could he let him see that he loved him, and how could he show weakness to him just because he was holding a dagger against his chest.
He couldn't let himself appear like this, always being played around by Lucian.
The butler quietly watched Wade's increasingly gloomy, yet unpredictable expression, and wisely chose not to speak at this moment.
Finally, Wade felt like he wanted to pound Lucian once more to vent his anger. Only then would he be in absolute control and feel satisfied.
But at this time... He felt that he didn't want to see Lucian again in the next few days.
It's not out of shame or embarrassment, he told himself.
The butler waited for Wade to finish his psychological struggle, and said to Wade at the right time: "Your Majesty, you may need to rest for a week these days. As for Her Majesty the Queen, I will send the right person to take care of her."
Wade looked up at him coldly.
The butler added: "I don't think you would want Her Majesty the Queen to see you looking so weak at this moment."
Vader: …
Of course, he couldn't let Lucian see him weak. In Lucian's eyes, he must always be strong and have a strong deterrent effect.
He wanted Lucian to always be afraid of him.
Wade then said "hmm" and stopped talking to the butler.
"After my wounds are healed, I will let him know the consequences of committing suicide casually." He told himself gloomily and firmly, "Lucian, don't think that you can get anything from me by committing suicide... get any mercy. I don't want him to think that he can threaten me and can go further. I want him to be punished."
"I'll let him know what happens if he dares to leave me."
He told himself this over and over again, and finally he felt that his chest didn't hurt as much.
And at that moment, when he thought Lucian had left completely... the empty fear was also hidden deep in his heart.
"That's right." Wade added, "I can't let him know that I'm injured, and I can't let him know about the spell."
The housekeeper said, "Yes."
…
Lucian stayed in bed obediently. Now his system was naturally blocked, and he couldn't find anyone to talk to, but his mood was no longer as confused and desolate as before.
Although the burnt black spiritual world without a single flower still pierced him like a thorn, Lucian seemed to feel that he could find some turning point.
Some unbridled turns.
But before that, Lucian still wanted to find out what happened to the injury. He guessed that not all injuries could be transferred to Vader... After all, Vader had used many tricks on him in the past few days.
All the questions should be asked to Vader, Lucian thought blankly with a secret feeling.
The first thing he waited for was two puppets. They helped Lucian put on his clothes and took off some embarrassing accessories on him. After Lucian put on his clothes and stopped wearing those accessories, he saw the butler Spencer.
This was the first time Vader allowed someone else into the room.
"Where's Wade?" he asked Spencer.
The kind butler said, "His Majesty Wade has been very busy these days. He sent me to take care of you."
Lucian was silent for a moment and nodded.
The butler could see that Lucian was much thinner now than when he saw him half a year ago, but his temperament had also changed a lot. If the Lucian in the past was a flower in bud, he now looked like a fruit that was about to ripen.
Like a flower that has bloomed to its fullest and is about to wither, every petal is stretched out in its most gorgeous glory.
"Is he unwilling to see me, or is he afraid to come and see me?" Lucian asked again, his voice seemed to be shrouded in smoke.
"Your Majesty doesn't want you to know." The butler said sincerely.
Lucian stopped talking.
After that, the butler followed Wade's orders and visited Lucian every day to make sure he did not commit suicide. During these days, Lucian finally contacted the system, and the system was crying and screaming again.
"Let's run away quickly!" said the system.
"I'm going to wait for Wade to come see me," Lucian said.
Despite this, Lucian still felt a little uncomfortable these days. He covered his abdomen, feeling terrible and starting to feel drowsy.
In the past few days, the butler Spencer also noticed his abnormality and invited the court physician to treat him. However, human physicians have limited abilities after all and could not figure out the reason.
So Lucian said to the system: "Since he hasn't come back yet, please scan my body for me to see if there is any problem."
The system said: "Oh, OK!"
It was at this time that Vader returned.
When he arrived, he saw Lucian talking to the void, and at that moment, an even stronger anger surged up in him.
He spent so many days immersed in self-mockery and self-loathing, and the hatred that rose from time to time towards Lucian. He had just recovered from his injuries with great difficulty... but Lucian was chatting with the system!
Butler Spencer stood at the door, about to say something. Wade did not listen to the butler's report. He immediately pushed the door open. He strode forward as if he had never been hurt, then he grabbed Lucian's wrist and threw him onto the bed again.
"Vade... I..."
Lucian wanted to say something to Wade, but Wade didn't want to listen to him at all. He said coldly: "Tell your system to get out of here. It's my turn now."
“No… I…” Lucian pushed his shoulder hard, “I seem to…”
Vader:
"I think... I'm in the honey-making period..." Lucian frowned and said in pain.