"Dalton," the queen stared at the candle, "I think you should know that the reason why a game is a game is that it doesn't require much effort, including emotions."
Unless it's no longer considered a game.
"I have no idea."
Dalton said, his knuckles suffused with sullen whiteness, and he held the queen's hand tenaciously, even if she only looked away.
"Do you think I'm irrational? No, my intellect tells me and reminds me all the time. But something grows like a seed. At first, it's like a weed unnoticed, casually glanced at .In fact, it is going downwards, taking root deep in the flesh. When you regain your senses, it has already wrapped around the skeleton, growing bitter thorns and blooming flowers. By this time, who can tell whether this is a game or not ?”
Can't tell.
Power, lust and pure love are blended in flesh and blood, even he can't tell the difference.
It's not that I haven't thought about pulling them out, but the roots melt into the flesh and the vines wrap around the skeleton. How can I pull them out at this time? Unless you want to discard all your flesh and bones.
The rest is no longer "Dalton".
The queen was silent for a long time.
"Adele Roland is destined to be equated with Queen Roland forever. Except for this crown, I can't bring anyone anything. You are now the Marshal of the Empire, as long as you remain loyal to the Empire for a day , you will not be my enemy."
The candlelight reflected the queen's face thinner and thinner.
"You have more people to really love, younger, more lovely ladies. You are young, handsome and talented, and there will be many women who will love you regardless of blood. What about me? Passionate and romantic Well, all these bright and beautiful things have left me early. Except for this empty youthful appearance, I am like a lake of dead water, neither reflecting myself nor others."
"I'm not a good choice."
She smiled.
Dalton looked at her.
She probably didn't know how tired her smile was.
If it were someone else, she would have been overwhelmed by the tidal exhaustion, but she just stood silently, enduring and carrying it.
"There is no worse love interest than you."
Dalton's pupils are imprinted with her shadow... She is still so young and so beautiful, but her heart is like glass full of cracks, which will shatter when touched. Just like that, she quietly watched the fragments fall, reflecting all the unspeakable sadness.
"I know."
"Are you sure?" The queen shifted her gaze to his face and asked softly, "Look, like now, how do you know that I didn't say this intentionally?"
"It's okay, like I used to say..."
Dalton put one hand on the desk, bent down, and gently pressed his forehead against hers, like a wolf handing over its long and narrow snout to a human hand.
"Use me."
……………
For the monarch, many things are destined to be abandoned.
Such as family affection, such as love.
Orsis was standing in the studio of Prince Arthur's original mansion when he received the superstition that Prince Arthur was present in the army of Sioule.
When Prince Arthur left Root, he took away the lunatics who helped him create crimes, and set fire to the White Tower. As for the property in the mansion, he didn’t take any of the property—his real wealth came from the dark, which was so impressive Ersis, the elder brother of the emperor, was envious.
Only one painting was taken away.
Orsis strolls through Arthur's studio.
He has always known that his brother is a lunatic and a genius, but mortals still feel horrified when they really witness the talent of a genius. Large and small portraits are placed in a spiral shape, and the silver-haired women in different costumes and crowns are smiling or angry in the light cast from the flower window.
Walking along the painting, it seems as if you have spent your whole life with a peerless beauty.
Every painting seems to hide a story, the painter knows what the story is, but the viewer can only vaguely perceive it later.
Maybe it's not that they can only be vaguely aware of it, but that the viewer has never thought about exploring what the story is.
The more you know, the more dangerous you are.
It's like overlooking the lake while boating, the more you want to see clearly what's under the lake, the closer you will be to the lake surface, and finally you will drown in the cold pool, and you will never be able to break free.
Orsis stood in the center of the spiral, and there was an empty painting here, which was the only painting Arthur took away.
"How to deal with these?"
The accompanying clerk asked for instructions in a low voice.
"Put it away."
Orsis said.
He was a little envious of Arthur.
I envy Arthur for being unscrupulous and capable of extreme love and hate. He didn't like those bastards in the White Tower, so he burned it clean, fell in love with Roland's queen, and abandoned his home and country to pursue it all the way. On the other hand, even though he knew that he didn't have any affection for Adele, he didn't even have the idea of fighting for something.
Likes are one thing, duties are another.
And she has no shortage of suitors.
Orsis thought of the black-haired officer he met at that time, and the officer Roland who always stood in the dark and cast cold eyes, even though the latter had already been executed.
The young monarch stared at the vacant part of the portrait. His silver-gray irises felt like a cold weapon in the sun. Although it was the same as usual, he was indeed unhappy.
The clerk who was familiar with him lowered his head, as if he hadn't noticed anything.
After a moment of silence, Crowley, a banker and foreign spy, was reported to ask for an audience.
Crowley brought back a secret message from the Elmian Empire.
"...everything is ready. As you might expect, Gurian's policies in Ermia angered the traditional temple priests. Although they dare not oppose the new king publicly, the priests believe that Gurian used outsiders to seize the throne It is illegal, and it is a kind of betrayal for him to let the pirates of Saran and others set foot on the Temple of the Sun. How ridiculous, a group of people ignored the horror of guns and cannons, and only stared at the ancient old laws.
Gurion relied heavily on Roland's pirates to suppress local rebellion. According to my temptations, many military nobles in Elmia-they call it the Warrior Clan-are very disgusted with this. These warrior clans are no doubt unhappy that outsiders have usurped their power and status.
In addition, there are some remnants of the old kings. They hope to overthrow Gurion and make Kuman.
…
The priests decided to act when Gurion was on patrol at the beginning of next month, hoping to get our cooperation.
And there are two warrior clans who want to bypass Gurion and make a deal with Root. I hope you can give me further instructions.
…
According to your order, I am extremely careful to restrain the soldiers and sailors, and no one dares to violate the taboo of the sun god here. However, in my opinion, these barbaric beliefs are no different from hell.
… Yours truly, Barbaro. "
After reading the entire letter, Orsis did not reply directly, but asked a question that seemed irrelevant at first glance: "Where is Siul's army now?"
"It's almost time to reach the holy city."
"Then agree to everything," Orsis turned to Lute's spy Crowley, "tell Barbaro that the Ermians will give them whatever they want. And, observing the movement of Roland's navy, As soon as Rose Strait makes a move, immediately send someone to stop it."
"yes."
"Your Majesty, do we need to send someone to Roland to urge the marriage negotiation?" someone asked.
"no need."
Orsis replied calmly.
"Engagement quickly ceases to exist."