Adele's silver hair ran across his fingers, and the light red rose was inserted slightly obliquely at the lower part. She raised her face to look at him, and the sunset glow fell into her pupils, turning into shimmering lines of light that seemed familiar.
At a certain moment in the past, at a certain moment many years ago, they also looked at each other like this.
When they first arrived in Reef City, the place was deserted and lonely, except for the dark rocks, it was gray-toned gravel, bleak and depressing like a cage. As an exiled princess, when Adele left the imperial capital, she took nothing with her. The only thing she solemnly put in the box to protect along the way was a bouquet of rose seeds.
She carefully planted roses in the garden, looked up at him, and said, "Sir, there will be roses blooming here in the future."
Her voice was pretending to be brisk, and Heinrich swallowed what he originally wanted to say.
The little princess calmly accepted the cold and dilapidated castle and the few servants, and in turn tried hard to make other people's lives brighter. Sadly sensible.
The young man knelt down and planted the rose with her.
After the last seed was planted, Adele suddenly asked him softly, would they survive? There was finally a trace of bewilderment in the voice. The young man took out a handkerchief and wiped the dirt off her hands. He did not tell her that roses are difficult to grow from seeds, nor did he tell her that roses cannot grow in the poor soil of Reef City.
There is always a way.
he thinks.
There's always a way to make roses grow here, there's always a way to make roses bloom here.
"Yes, if you are patient," he said.
As time passed, leaf buds slowly grew in the garden, and then vines. In addition to going to the beach, Adele's most frequent visit is the rose garden in the garden. She guards the slow-growing flowers, just like keeping a promise. One summer evening, without seeing her in the study, Heinrich walked into the rose garden along the newly paved cobblestone path.
Different from usual, the air is filled with a rich aroma, strong and sweet, flowing in the garden like an elegant nocturne.
The back view sitting in front of the rose bush overlaps with the painting on the stained glass of the church. People say that when God was crucified alive, the blood seeped into the soil, and red roses bloomed, which symbolized beauty and cleanliness, and were looked down upon by the Virgin. Therefore, there is a rose garden in God's kingdom of heaven, where angels live Sing in the rose.
He didn't hear the angel singing, but he did see the angel.
The angel is sitting in front of the rosebush, sitting in the shadow of flowers and leaves, reaching out to touch a rose carefully, wanting to pick it off but not willing to pick it off.
Heinrich went over, plucked the half-opened rose, and stuck it in her hair.
"Sir, the rose is blooming."
She sat quietly, motionless until he put the rose in place, then raised her face to look at him. The bright color of roses dyed her cheeks, her pupils were printed with the evening sun, and her lips were soft and ruddy.
At that moment, they looked at each other as if they were bewitched by something—perhaps it was the strong fragrance of the rose garden, and the emotions that had been bred for a long time without knowing when finally surfaced silently.
The Heinrichs were born to go to hell.
But on that day, the heart of the young man who had sworn never to fight again was beating like a drum, and he had the illusion that he could be redeemed.
As long as he reaches out.
"Heinrich."
The Queen called him slowly.
They were still looking at each other, Heinrich's hand still in her hair. In the slightly cold wind, the roses have a rich and thick fragrance. The gardeners entrusted by Heinrich with a lot of money have carefully managed this rose garden for several years. They are more lush than when they were there. The fragrance becomes more obvious when the light fades. .
Heinrich's slender hands covered Adele's eyes.
He leaned down slightly.
The last ray of sunlight disappeared into the sky.
At the moment when the sun fell completely, at the moment when the sky and the earth fell into darkness, amidst the surging breath of roses and wind, the young man who couldn't stretch out his hand a long time ago finally stretched out his hand. He blindfolded the girl he loved and kissed her with a missed time kiss.
"A rose always blooms."
Heinrich felt as if he had two selves.
One is the youthful self standing here through time, and the youthful he wants to hug his girl tightly, even if they will be burned to death together. The other is the self who is drowning in the icy sea and cannot be redeemed. The person who can save him has already passed him by, and will never look back.
A kiss that blends with breath, once time is lost, how lingering and warm it is, how calm and painful it is.
In the darkness, Heinrich only heard her sigh.
With a touch of sarcasm.
"You're sorry, Mr. Heinrich." Mrs. Kelly walked into the rose garden with a lamp in her hand, warning with a blank expression. In the firelight, she was wearing a plain black long dress, standing straight, with cold eyes.
"Sorry, Your Majesty."
Heinrich lowered his hands and took a step back,
The queen got up, as if nothing had happened just now, as if she was unaware of the complex emotions contained in the kiss just now, she passed Heinrich, and the silver-gray skirt slid across the ground like running water .
"It's nothing serious, so don't be nervous, Kelly." The Queen said, "However, Mr. Heinrich, please report to the study if you have anything to do."
The phantom of youth vanished, and the night fell and enveloped the world in darkness.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Heinrich bowed and saluted, and answered calmly while consciously feeling the bitterness.
Mrs. Kelly led them back to the study with a lamp. The fireplace and candles in the study were brightly lit. The queen spread out a map on the table, and Heinrich unfolded several secret letters from different places.
"After Holy Spirit Day, the rebellion of the Free Cities Alliance has further expanded." When Heinrich stated the information, his tone was unhurried, with his unique sense, "John VI of the Kingdom of Jager bypassed the establishment of the alliance. The Yardley Peninsula, with its large number of watchtowers, attacked the Alliance and forcibly put down the riots in the Free City three days ago."
"It seems that John VI is more willing to make the free city his vassal than an ally," said the queen.
"Among the thirteen ruling regiments, the Alger family took refuge in John VI. As a price, he signed an expensive peace treaty on behalf of the Free Chamber of Commerce Alliance. The Free Chamber of Commerce is stronger than naval warfare. John VI entered the core city of the alliance with infantry After that, they really have no choice.”
"How did the Neotheists of the Free Chamber of Commerce react?"
Mrs. Kelly, sitting in the other corner of the room, listened to this conversation and sighed softly from the bottom of her heart.
Although the queen handles political affairs in the same way, how could Mrs. Kelly not know that she is in Reef City, a castle that represents too many things, how can she be the same as usual? In this world, no matter how well a child pretends to be, the person who takes care of her will still be keenly aware of the subtle differences.
Mrs. Kelly looked up at the two people who looked normal under the candlelight, and they looked exactly the same as they were soberly feeling grief while calmly handling affairs.
Emotion and reason are completely separated in them.
After all, they are teachers and students.