"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, please think twice!" Before seeing him, the wailing of the city hall manager had already sounded outside the door.
When Barov Hermon ran to the desk breathlessly, Roland put down the teacup in his hand in a leisurely manner, "Think twice? The enthronement ceremony?"
"No, I mean... Announce to all the territories that you will marry a witch as the queen." While wiping the fine sweat from his forehead, the old manager secretly glanced behind the king, "This matter is really inappropriate. ,His Majesty!"
After preparing the announcement to the City Hall, Roland knew that the news would definitely make waves, so the other party's reaction did not surprise him - if he wanted to remove obstacles, the first thing to unify was the voice of the City Hall.
This decision was not made on his whim. After the end of the evil moon, the Neverwinter army will once again enter the Fertile Plains to uproot the devil's last stronghold in Taquila. In addition to spring ploughing in various places, new construction plans, and trade matters, it can be said that the entire Graycastle will be very busy in the coming year. According to the traditional regulations, it takes almost two or three months from the invitation of guests to the official coronation, which is even longer when the wedding is counted. This is equivalent to reducing the productivity of the kingdom in disguise. It is okay to have a game in peacetime, but it is obviously not a good choice today.
This winter, there has been a rare tranquility, which can not only stimulate the vitality of the people, but also does not require a big fight.
Most importantly, Roland hopes to fulfill this promise earlier.
Of course, as a feudal monarch with great power, he could accomplish this by himself. There are far too many instances in history where orders and seemingly impossible demands, no matter how absurd, can become a reality at the will of rulers, and it's far less exaggerated. However, since the frame of the city hall was built by him, he would not want to dismantle it himself if it was not necessary.
Using power within the rules is far more efficient than squandering it.
"The reason?" Roland knocked on the table and asked deliberately.
"Of course, it's the heir—" Barov said anxiously, "Witches can't have children, this is something everyone knows, especially when the war is coming, if you have troubles, other nobles will be ready to move. Now, the people can't rest easy!" He swallowed, "If you just want to be with Lady Anna, you don't need to do this at all."
"Oh? You mean... "
"You only need to marry the daughter of a small nobleman," said the general manager. "She can be used to block people's mouths and show her face when necessary. It doesn't matter how you treat her in the future. With this Layer occlusion, you can do what you want—"
"So Anna can't get this title?" Nightingale suddenly interrupted her, "Just because she's a witch?"
"I don't think Lady Anna would mind these superficial things," Barov coughed twice, "if it's for the sake of the stability of the kingdom. If Your Majesty can't speak, I can speak for you."
"You're not her, how do you know she won't mind? As far as this relationship is concerned, I bet she never wants to see a puppet in the middle!"
"But it's not about feelings, it's about successors..."
"Enough," Roland raised his hand and said, "After all, just give the people below a reasonable outlet, right?"
"Vent... mouth?" Barov was slightly taken aback.
"Isn't that so?" He pretended to be nonchalant. "By defeating the Pope, I took all her lifespan, and I don't need anyone to inherit the throne. That's why I decided to marry Anna - unfortunately including you. , Only a few people know about this. For those territorial people who don't understand magic at all, if they don't see it with their own eyes, they may find it hard to believe. Because of this, they need a psychological sustenance, or a vent. , to appease their unease, am I right?"
Since the battle with the church in Coldwind Ridge, the top of the city hall more or less knows that he has passed a test called the battle of the soul. The winner wins everything, the loser loses everything - although it sounds incredible, the appearance of the ancient witch and the existence of soul transfer adds a lot of credibility to this statement. At the United Front meeting, after he formally used this reason to convince Pasha and others, everyone acquiesced to this statement.
"That's right, that's what I meant," Barov didn't know that he was falling into a trap little by little. "As long as there is a nominal heir, the voice of opposition will naturally subside."
"So I have an easier way," Roland shrugged. "When I attacked Hermes a year ago, I stumbled upon Goron Wimbledon's lover, and the tavern maid was pregnant with his blood. ."
"What... what did you say?" The manager's eyes widened immediately, "Are you sure that kid is from Wimbledon..."
"Ah, hair and eyes are gray." He nodded.
"Why didn't you tell me then?"
"If you find out, it's still a question whether the mother and son can survive until now," Roland took a sip from the teacup, "How about it, a ready-made vent, isn't it more convenient than your idea?"
A candidate heir who can never ascend to the throne can provide sufficient topicality without any threat, and can be replaced at any time... Seeing Barov's flickering eyes, Roland knew that the other party must have thought of this. You don't even need to do much, just reveal to the people that there is such a person, and then recall him to Neverwinter.
The rest will be completed by the masses in the discussion and diffusion.
"If the biological mother is a tavern maid, this child can only be regarded as an illegitimate child, and he must be given a higher status, otherwise it will attract criticism; also, this maid should also be looked after, compared to nobles. , they do have better control..." Barov was already calculating in his mind.
Roland couldn't help raising the corner of his mouth, and the scene in front of him seemed to be back to when he had just become the fourth prince of Wimbledon three years ago. But at that time, he needed to use his tongue to bring the other party into his own thinking rhythm, but now he only needs a few simple points to mention - as long as it comes from his mouth, no one dares to easily question the authenticity, even if it is about immortality. Same thing.
"You make a plan, and the enthronement is all planned, and then show it to me." He waved his hand and motioned to step down.
After Barov left, Roland let out a sigh of relief, "I didn't expect you to be angry with Anna."
"Sorry, I couldn't help but..."
"No, you don't need to apologize, you did nothing wrong," he couldn't help but glance at Nightingale, and found that her expression was much calmer than he expected, "It's just that I thought you would…"
"What's going on? Sorrowful, sad?" Nightingale rolled his eyes at him, "I think you mentioned it too late. Of course, if it wasn't for Anna, I wouldn't let this step go."
Thinking of the look on her unburdened face when she reappeared two days after she disappeared, Roland could only think that the changes were all related to the agreement between her and Anna.
Although he was very concerned about this question in his heart, he did not ask it in the end.