The smile of the Avery Consul froze on his face.
A coquettish red color suddenly exploded on his forehead, like a flower that bloomed to the extreme in an instant, and light blue smoke rose with it.
The revolver flintlock pistol was held in the queen's right hand, and the gun body was glowing with a cold silvery luster unique to metal under the firelight. The bones on the back of the Queen's pale hands are raised, the veins under the almost transparent skin are a dark blue, and the wrist bones are as lonely and thin as a ridge.
However, it is such a slender hand that is so steady that it is frightening when shooting.
Behind the blood mist, the queen's plain face was expressionless, like a mask made of silver.
The body of the Consul of Yavelli fell back heavily to the ground, and the Hidden Blade made a crisp sound when it hit the rock. The air seemed to be frozen by an invisible substance. For a while, no one dared to speak. People watched in silence and awe as the queen lowered her gun and stood up from the pool of blood alone.
Everyone present only felt that they saw a blood-soaked rose blooming in the darkness.
The blood splashed on the queen's face slowly slid down under the crown, ancient and solemn, with an overwhelming majesty. She moved her wrist, aimed at the last assassin who staggered and tried to escape from the nave, and shot indifferently.
After the gunshots, the Rose Strait riots tonight came to an end.
…………………………
The sea water beat against the reef, and the sound of the tide overlapped one after another, and the goshawk circled and flew, casting a small black shadow on the water. The cousin's pale face was submerged in the icy cold water, and he was wearing a blood-stained shirt, slowly rising against nature from the dark and irrelevant deep sea bottom.
You killed me, you are a traitor to the family... shameful traitor...
The cousin opened his eyes in the water, and when his bloodless mouth opened, maggots fell out of it.
Heinrich's forehead felt a faint pain. He couldn't remember when he returned to Reef City. When he looked down, his hands were wet and blood remained. Heinrich remembered that he had just engaged in a duel. After killing his cousin himself, he was thrown into the bottom of the sea. In the evening, the storm was approaching.
But my cousin didn’t look like he was just thrown into the bottom of the sea. His hair, body, and fingers were covered with dark green seaweed, and a tattered rope was wrapped around him. Heavy stones tied on.
He killed his own blood relatives.
Heinrich was well aware of this, of violating one of the family's most important tenets.
The Two-Headed Snake family is not a warm family, there are also conspiracy and hatred within the family, but the Two-Headed Snake family will never allow outsiders to deal with their brothers. This is the most critical rule for the snake group to survive in the dangerous forest. When the snake group moves together, even a male lion will become the food of this evil creature.
Anyone who kills blood relatives will be punished.
All members of the Heinrich family recited this phrase countless times from birth, and knew it before they knew "Gods above". This is exactly what a family must perform to survive the tempering of time and maintain its own strength and status. The interests of the family are above all else, and the dignity of the family is above all else. The Heinrich family is one of Roland's oldest families, and its history can be traced back to when the castle was first built on this land.
Whoever slays blood... shall be punished...
The cousin's voice was vague and cold, as if it came from another world. He broke the ropes on his body, dug his fingers into the rock, and climbed up like a lizard.
Heinrich drew his gun, so calm that he surprised himself. He put the muzzle of the gun on his cousin's upturned pale face, pulled the trigger, and the tongue of fire spewed out, and the smell of sulfur and saltpeter was particularly pungent.
The cousin's body fell off the cliff again and was submerged by the rising tide.
Heinrich stood for a while, then turned around and walked towards the castle. Fog gradually rose on both sides of the road, and pale faces appeared one after another in the mist. They stood in the thick fog, their mouths opened and closed, and their voices overlapped. Among them, Heinrich saw the faces that were often seen on the promenade of the family castle. It was the passing generation after generation of the Heinrich family. In the end, the face of his father also emerged from the thick fog.
Don't stop, don't listen.
A voice said to him in a low voice, that voice seemed to have existed in his heart for a long time, but he finally heard it until today.
Heinrich held the sword and walked through the thick fog. The end of the road was in front of him, and at the end was the lighthouse outside the city of Reef.
Standing outside the white lighthouse, Heinrich was in a daze.
He remembered that Adele liked to come here and stay at the lighthouse. She likes to watch the tide on the other side of the reef, and watch the swifts resting on the railing of the lighthouse, and staying here is safer than climbing on the reef, so Mrs. Kelly just turned a blind eye and acquiesced.
Standing under the spiral escalator of the lighthouse, Heinrich suddenly became nervous for some reason. He heard his own heartbeat, like a drumbeat. He stood for a long time before he had the courage to step up the escalator and walked up step by step. His palms were gradually wet with sweat, and the sea breeze was blowing in his face.
Stepping up the last step, he saw a slender figure sitting on the terrace of the lighthouse.
Heinrich stood there, all the sound of the wind and tide disappeared. At that moment, his heart seemed to be submerged in sea water, and it seemed to become a vortex that could not be filled. The girl was wearing a fine linen dress, with moonlight silver hair hanging over her shoulders. She looked towards the direction of the reef and hummed softly.
Swifts perched on the ground beside her, pecking at the crumbs of bread.
As soon as Heinrich came up, they were a little frightened, flapped their wings and flew higher, and landed on the top of the lighthouse.
"Princess."
He whispered, as if afraid to wake up anything.
The girl turned her head, her hair was blown by the wind, her skin was as white as snow, and was plated with a faint rose petal-like crimson color in the sunset. She smiled at him, and Heinrich saw himself in her eyes—the shirt on his chest was stained with blood, and his hair was dripping blood and sea water, probably from the duel with his cousin Yes, the wound still hurts sharply.
She is so beautiful, as beautiful as a fire rising in the dark, making cold-blooded animals yearn for but dare not really touch her.
The snake coiled around the fire, carefully guarding its little flame, unwilling to leave or approach it. It can only be coiled like that, but... why don't you try to touch the flame? Heinrich heard the voice in his heart asking, why not get closer
"You saw it." He said softly, let go of the rapier in his hand, looked at Adele who was sitting, and didn't know why he felt as if he was waiting for a long trial.
Adele reached out to him: "Will you watch the sunset with me? Sir."
Sir... The familiar title suddenly made him feel very sad, so sad that it seemed that someone had shot him in the chest, and even the injury on his ribs was also aching. He staggered, walked over, stumbled and knelt down beside his little princess.
"I've seen it all."
Adele said softly, she sat with her knees bent, her skirt hanging down, revealing a section of white and graceful calf. She picked up the bread beside her, tore it open, and handed him half.
"thank you."
Heinrich took the bread, followed Adele's example, tore it into small pieces, and fed them to the swifts. Or because he was blood-stained and looked like a good person, the swallows were more willing to crowd around Adele, and she looked like a flawless Angel with her head bowed.
"It's nothing," Heinrich said, and paused, "Don't trust me in the future, Your Highness."
Adele looked up at him, with doubts on the face that only the gods could carve, and it seemed an unforgivable sin to bring sadness to those rosy eyes. Heinrich felt that the abyss in his heart was swallowing him, and a voice stopped him in a low voice, telling him to approach her, this was the last best chance. But the abyss of sorrow told him to speak otherwise.
"Don't trust me, the Heinrich family only pursues profit. I save you, I draw my sword for you, it's all for the benefit of the family..." He said word by word, peeling off all his glory masks, showing a mess Unbearable inside, "I am just a hypocrite who bet on you. I am not worthy of your trust, I am... Heinrich, I may be the patriarch of the Heinrich family in the future, and I accept the training of the family ... do you understand?"
"Understand what?"
Adele looked away and stared at the rough sea.
"From the moment I opened my eyes, I saw the family crest. Everything I wear, eat, learn, and do all comes from the support of my family. My knowledge, my swordsmanship, my wealth, my status... my Everything is given to me by my family. The surname 'Heinrich' is my bones and blood. I accept the family's bestowal and must bear the responsibility of the family's destiny. I will teach you, support you, and protect you for the family. You, one day, will betray you because of your family and be hostile to you." Heinrich said slowly, sentence by sentence.
His heart was empty, and the tide gradually rose, beating against the bottom of the lighthouse. They sat on the lighthouse, as if they were sitting in another territory separated by sea water, where there were only him and Adele. The sky and the earth are vast, and the sun only has a small shadow on the sea level, and the sea is plated with a layer of orange red.
"So..." Heinrich watched the sun sink below the sea level, and the last light disappeared completely, just like the snake in his heart was extinguishing the little fire it finally had, "You will never …”
"Light the lighthouse with me."
Adele interrupted him, and she spilled the last crumbs on the railing, the swallows had already returned to their nests.
She stood up, and her figure became thinner and more lonely in the wind. Heinrich took off his coat, covered her in silence, and protected her to climb to the topmost interior of the lighthouse. The lighthouse in Reef City has not been repaired for a long time, and the gears of the lens system are seriously rusted. Heinrich rolled up his sleeves and turned the mirror used to enhance reflection. Then they went together to light the kerosene lamps inside the lighthouse.
The moment the flames rose, Heinrich remembered Adele sneaking into the room in the middle of the night after he was stabbed, and she was standing by the kerosene lamp at that time.
So Heinrich looked up to see Adele on the opposite side. When he looked up, the flame suddenly grew bigger and gushed out like sea water.
He subconsciously called out to Adele, and stretched out his hand to lead her away from the lighthouse.
The lighthouse collapsed in the fire, and Adele didn't stretch out her hand. She followed the flames and fell like an extinguished sun. Below was the rough sea. With his hands hanging empty, Heinrich saw a mournful silence in her eyes.
The world was engulfed in raging fire, and his chest ached sharply, making it difficult to breathe.
… … … … … … …
Heinrich opened his eyes, and the shadow of the flame was printed on the pupil.
His vision was still somewhat blurred, and the image of the flames was still lingering in front of his eyes. For a while, Heinrich couldn't tell whether he was awake or not. After a while, the world in front of him gradually became clear, and Heinrich realized that he seemed to have had a long, long dream.
He just wanted to sit up, but the sharp pain in his chest almost made him fall directly into hell.
A hand reached out from the side, pressed his shoulder, and pressed him back to the pillow.
Heinrich turned his head to the side, only to see Adele sitting in the high-back chair next to the bed, with a book open on her lap. Seeing that she was safe and sound, Heinrich was finally relieved. The consequence of that move just now made him wisely give up the idea of sitting up.
Adele withdrew her hand, looked at the flames in the fireplace, and didn't look at him.
Heinrich was lucky, the arrow was aimed at her at first, and after he blocked it for her, the angle shifted a little, and it didn't directly pierce the heart. Otherwise, unless there is a miracle from the gods, it will be difficult for him to survive.
There were only Adele and Heinrich in the room, but neither of them spoke for a while.
Heinrich's eyes fell on the candle on the table next to Adele, the flame flickered slightly. The scene right now is somewhat familiar, just like the young Adele who secretly visited him in the middle of the night. Time is like a clock on the wall, ticking around and then returning to the original place.
But it's just like, even if the scene and people haven't changed, some things are completely different after all.
"Where is the assassin from?" Heinrich asked. Although the wound had healed a bit, he still felt a bit of a sting when he spoke. "There are no assassins of that level in the free commercial city."
"The Capel family."
Adele closed the book and answered.
Capel family.
Hearing this answer, Heinrich probably understood what was going on.
The Pope of the Capel family had just passed away, and there was no possibility that the Holy See would have two consecutive popes from the same family. The Capel family was directly excluded in this pope election. In order to ensure the safety of the family, of course they would not want Cardinal Luvis, who had a feud with the Capel family, to become the new Pope. If Roland, the secret supporter of Cardinal Luvis, loses the queen and falls into chaos, it will become more difficult for Cardinal Luvis to succeed in the election.
On the other hand, the free commercial city and the Capel family have always maintained a good friendship. Thanks to the free commercial city, the Capel family had enough money to bribe votes at the beginning, and the free commercial city was able to monopolize the sea of heaven Most of the trade with Chihai also benefited from the protection of the former pope and the Capel family.
Under such circumstances, it is not too strange for the Capel family to send assassins.
And that says something else...
"Cardinal Luvis will become the new Pope." Adele said in a statement tone.
It is not difficult to guess that Cardinal Luvis retained more strength in the Holy See than they had imagined in advance, so that the Capel family was forced to a desperate situation and had to join hands with the free commercial city.
"Your plan has succeeded," said Heinrich. "Congratulations, Your Majesty."
Adele stopped talking, and finally shifted her gaze from the fire to Heinrich's face. The dim firelight cast on her face, and for a moment, Heinrich overlapped the Adele in front of him with the Adele sitting on the lighthouse in the drowsy dream. He wanted to ask her if she was sitting on the lighthouse at the beginning, looking at him like in a dream.
"What do you want to ask? Tell me."
Adele keenly caught his hesitation.
"... At the beginning," Heinrich's Adam's apple twitched. He felt that he shouldn't have asked. He didn't go to the lighthouse to take a look. What's the point of asking now, "Is it on the lighthouse?"
It was a strange coincidence, but the second half of the words still came out. As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Heinrich only felt that time suddenly froze. He felt a little regretful, but also a little relieved.
"yes."
After what seemed like a century, Adele finally answered, fingers folded on her lap.
She watched Heinrich calmly, but it seemed as if the sound of the tide was overlapping again in her ears.
The teenage princess sat on the lighthouse, watching the young man who was like a brother and a mentor silently fought for her and threw his body into the sea for her. It was obviously a bloody and cruel scene, but it gave people a strange warmth. The princess sat on her knees, thinking how she would say "thank you" if he came by later.
Normally, Heinrich would habitually come to the lighthouse to look for her, and take her back to the castle before Mrs. Kelly would get angry. But that day after he sank the body into the sea, he was in a hurry to deal with the traces of his cousin's arrival at Reef City, so he didn't come over to the lighthouse.
After getting the answer, Heinrich closed his eyes.
"Why did you save me?" Adele asked in a low voice, "For the family?"
Why save her
Heinrich froze for a moment.
Is it really for the family or something? But in fact, at that time, there is no time to think about so many things. It's just that instinct surpassed thinking, and before realizing what he was doing, he had already protected her, and only later told himself that it was for the sake of the family and the long-term.
What is it to say? Abandoning her because of reason, saving her because of instinct
Thinking about it feels like a ridiculous and sad joke.
What a mess.
"I have no idea."
Heinrich was silent for a long time, and finally answered.
Adele nodded slightly, her expression calm. Heinrich couldn't tell from her face what she thought of the answer.
"Have a good rest." She put the book on the table and stood up.
Heinrich silently watched her leaving back, and before she was about to open the door, he suddenly called to stop her.
"Your Majesty," he said, "don't trust me."
Adele stopped, she stopped in front of the door, her back turned to Heinrich. The room was silent, the firewood in the fireplace crackled and crackled, and the flame danced up and down, tracing their outlines.
"I know."