In the slightly darkened room, there were candles on the small cake, and the warm halo swayed, reflecting on Lily's face, and the warm tears slowly fell.
"Why are you crying again, stupid Lily."
"No, just a little nostalgic for the past." Lily wiped her tears and whispered.
"Okay, it's all right now."
"Then close your eyes and make a wish. Before you wanted to be a queen, this wish has been fulfilled. Do you have a new wish now?"
"Yes." Lily closed her eyes.
I don't want to be a queen anymore, I just want to have a simple and peaceful life. She recited silently in her heart.
But this wish is too self-willed, obviously already enjoying the glory and power of the queen, but now I want to escape irresponsibly. So please allow me to bury this wish in my heart.
"What wish did you make, Lily?" Ye Ling asked curiously.
"No, nothing, a very simple and willful wish." Lily shook her head.
"Oh, is it still a secret?" Ye Ling said disappointedly.
"Well, I'm no longer a child. I can't say my wishes without any scruples like before." Lily shook her head slightly.
"Why, why can't you say it?" Ye Ling folded his hands in front of his chin.
"Because of the realization that some wishes are destined to disappoint and hurt others." Lily was silent.
"It's so complicated, I don't understand it."
"Hehe, Ye Ling is better to be Ye Ling, you don't need to understand everything." Lily burst into tears.
"Is that so, don't worry, let's eat cake." Ye Ling suddenly stood up again.
"The knives and forks are ready." Roland Hill waved his fingers lightly, and several knives and forks made of magic crystals fell slowly.
"I'll cut the cake." Lily said.
"Here." Roland Hill handed her a crystal knife.
Holding the slightly cold knife, Lily stared at the cake in the halo of candles, stunned for a few seconds, then came back to her senses, pointed the knife at the part of her name, and cut it open, revealing the soft Pastry and Cream.
Then it was cut open, divided into small pieces, and handed to Lorraine and Eidolon.
"Can you eat it?" Ye Ling was eager to try the cake, then turned to look at Loren Hill beside him.
"Let's go together."
"Um."
The three of them sat at the small table, eating cake, and talking about the past.
After Lorraine Hill and Bumantha graduated, Lily stayed at the school for a few more years, during which she sent away Eidolon, Letis, Alena, Nia, and finally left the school herself.
"It's a pity that I didn't get into the fifth grade and got a diploma." Lily said embarrassedly.
"My talent is average, and I don't work as hard as Nya, so I only entered the fourth grade in the end."
"After returning to my hometown, I helped clean up a few weak monsters in the family's territory, and I lived a leisurely life. Because I was the youngest among my siblings, my parents didn't ask too much, and there were several older brothers and sisters. take care of them."
"So those days were very happy. During that time, I went to the south to find Alena to play, but unfortunately I came back after the war." Lily's eyes showed a touch of nostalgia.
"After that, I met the Emperor in the middle of the banquet at the Baska family."
"At first, I thought he was also a young man from a small aristocratic family, because he looked really young and didn't have much style. I wanted to kick him at that time."
"Who would have thought that he confessed to me later, which surprised me. Because in the empire, many people are both respectful and afraid of the emperor." Lily shook her head slightly, then lowered her head to eat the cake.
"But that's all over."
"Two years is like a dream, and now there is only cold reality." Her voice became low again.
"Huh, Lily." Ye Ling also came over at this time, hugging Lily's head and comforting her.
The two whispered a lot of whispers before slowly separating.
"Do you have any plans or thoughts in the future?" Roland Hill also came over.
"In the future, who can say what will happen in the future." Lily showed a wry smile.
"It feels precarious right now. The center of power is like the eye of the storm, full of intrigue and killing."
"In fairy tales, it is always said that the prince and the princess are together and live a happy life."
"But few people think about what happened later. Will this prince be able to inherit the throne, and, even if he inherits the throne, will he be able to do well?"
"A king who cannot bring prosperity and victory will only be abandoned and spurned by others, while a cruel and cruel king will be forgiven for all his sins as long as the country can continue to win."
"Everyone attributed their weakness and inadequacy to the failure of the king, because the king brought misfortune to the country, but in fact, when a person sits in that position, he will no longer be himself, but more complex existence."
Lily slowly talked about her own feelings over the years. Although she seldom participated in the decision-making of the empire, she also understood and saw the truth behind many things under the influence of Aimanke.
If the Seven Kingdoms of Xuehua were not attacked, the grievances and conflicts that had accumulated within the empire for many years had reached a precarious level. It was also because of the assistance of this grievance and dissatisfaction that Aimanke could obtain the support of the military and launch a coup d’etat to ascend to the throne.
If the Ansel brothers are allowed to ascend the throne and remain as they are, the resentment that has nowhere to vent will erupt, and rebellions and uprisings will arise within the empire.
Other nobles in the empire did not understand the ideas that Crancia promoted when it was established, but Emmank knew very well how attractive such ideas were to the people at the bottom. He even talked to Lily that if it was a few years later, when this trend of thought spreads, even if there were no foreign enemies, the empire itself would be divided.
"All I can do is to drive this chariot and put out the burning flames, either flatten it and the empire continues and unify the continent, or fail and the empire's chariot is torn apart."
"Is there no other way?" Lily had asked him once.
"No, Lily. If you read the works of the sage, you will know that all the problems were settled very early. This is an irreconcilable contradiction."
"The existence of the other party seems to be to prove his own mistakes. If Crancia gradually becomes prosperous and strong, then the voice of doubt will gradually rise within the empire, whether it is because of our system and various unreasonableness that it has created weakness and backwardness. "
"And if the Empire wins Crancia, then the people of Crancia have to admit that noble blood does trump everything, and the glorious aristocracy is effective."
"So the two sides will start a war sooner or later, and I just start this war in advance when the empire is strong."
"This is not necessarily a bad thing. If the empire wins, after acquiring vast land and wealth, the internal problems of the empire will be greatly alleviated, and there will be at least 200 years of prosperity and peace." He said to Lily.
"And after that?"
"In the future? Then it's up to people in the future to figure out a way. There is no absolutely perfect system in the world. You always adapt slowly, or if you can't do anything, you can continue to change it." Aimanke patted Lily's forehead and replied like this. .
In the dimly lit room, Lily recounted some of the things she had heard over the past two years.
"I can't change his mind, and he can't change the trend of the times." Lily sighed.
"Now that he's gone, I can only guard my own child. I hope he can grow up safely. It's best to stay away from the throne."
"But this kind of thinking is still a bit naive, and I've become more and more aware of this recently."
"There is no way out of the struggle for power."
"It's a little sad, Lily." Ye Ling was also worried for Lily.
"If it comes to future plans, I hope to take my child to step down from this position. I'm not good at sitting in this position, and I'm not cruel or decisive enough."
"But this kind of thing is difficult, because it's too sensitive. If it's not too much, it will cause a huge shock in the country." Roland Hill slowly got up and looked at the bright lights outside the window. The pavilion buildings are arranged along the street, gorgeous and neat, and the tops of many houses are also flashing with the fluorescence of alchemy creations.
"Yes, I recognize that too." Lily took a deep breath.
"I'm no longer a child, and I can't be as willful as I used to be. Although I was sitting in this position due to an accident."
"But no matter what, since you're here, you can't let go of your responsibilities at will."
"Even if you encounter an assassination at any time, and you have to be ruthless to remove those obstacles, can you keep going?" Roland Hill looked back, her pure eyes like warm ruby.
"I think, I can learn to do it." Lily closed her eyes.
"How are you going to clean up the situation left by Aymank, now in the empire, I heard that many people are turning to Edron."
"Whether to give him full authority, or to struggle to retain some of his power."
"Then let's struggle. Although it's a bit stupid, there is still some hope and a sense of security." Lily said with a embarrassed smile.
"Hoho, is that right, Lily."
"And then, what are you going to do?" Roland Hill asked again.
"I am ready to reassure families who have lost loved ones involved in the war."
"Not to mention that this requires a lot of money, and some of the money may not necessarily come to them." Roland Hill turned his head.
"This..." Lily bit her lip.
"I..." She lowered her head suddenly.
"Actually, I don't know anything, and I don't know how to save all that Aimanke left behind." A few tears fell on the ground.
"Don't be sad, you will find your way slowly. Also, aren't we here to see you?" Loren Hill touched Lily.
"If you want to solve various problems within the empire, this is not something you can do alone, or even the current system." Loren Hill hugged Lily and said slowly.
"So, you don't have to put such a big burden on yourself."
"Although it is shameful to escape, it is not impossible. There are always some things that people cannot face. It is better to escape and live than to die sadly."
"Before that, you just do your best to do your job."
"Find people you can trust, bring some of the money, find people with good local credit and reputation, build some orphanages, try to raise children who have lost their families, and place those injured and disabled due to war around the orphanages. It can play a certain role in helping and protecting, and it can also easily organize everyone to do some manual work to support themselves.”
"In this way, even if the empire ceases to exist in the future, they can continue without suddenly collapsing."
"You can't give them every day's bread, but at least you can give them the ability to earn every day's bread money."
"There are more things that you can't solve alone. It takes the struggle of countless people throughout the era to change everything." Roland Hill hugged Lily and helped her analyze it in detail.
"Don't push yourself to a dead end, Lily. Although what I said seems to be very simple and rarely, in fact, it is very difficult to achieve these two points. At that time, you can leave this position with peace of mind and return to A peaceful place to spend the rest of your life."
"But... I still feel sorry for many people." Lily recalled that in the Imperial Plaza that year, the couples who married each other under the witness of her and Aimanke.
"Yes, because you are the queen of the empire, you are destined to bear the corresponding sins."
"However, if you fall down like this, there will be no chance for redemption. And you will also give power to those who are more lustful."
“It’s better to do 100 things right after doing 10 things wrong than never to move forward.”
"Do you want to be morally perfect? Pursuing a sinless life is not the path to happiness, it will only make you miserable."
"So, be firm. Since you have gone wrong ahead, turn around in time and walk the road below."
Roland Hill recalled the words that Mother Sandy comforted her in the past, but she did not expect that she would tell another person today. And this isn't a statement to himself.
Although she now has two crowns and has the ability to decide the future, she has always restrained her many thoughts.
Because of the fear of going the wrong way, it will bring pain and misfortune to everyone.
He clearly saw all kinds of problems within the empire, all kinds of corruption and misfortune, but he was still reluctant to overthrow it, and he was lucky to find a peaceful way to improve.
If one day, she is like Lily, because she did something wrong and brought pain to many people, can she face herself like this calmly, can she safely accept her mistakes
Having a sensitive body and mind makes it easy for people to be sympathetic and kind, but this kind of kindness sometimes forms an invisible bondage to restrain many of my thoughts, even if reason tells her that this is indeed true.
Maybe, you should be stronger and firmer, even if you are accused and abused, and you are not understood and doubted, you must insist on walking on the right path.
People understand because of similarity, but when an individual exists for longer and longer, her views and perspectives on the whole world will gradually change, and finally they are out of tune with the world.
Maybe that's why witches have peculiar personalities.
I hope that even if I spend a long time, I can maintain a little understanding and sympathy for ordinary people, and not become that kind of cold-blooded and cold witch.
Loren Hill comforted Lily, his pupils stared at the candlelight, his thoughts drifting to the endless distance.
I am only Roland Hill, not a witch.