at the same time.
Ikol, thousands of miles away from Havenright.
This country borders the Kingdom of Hori, and its capital is Regina.
In the center of Regina, the palace at night still looks a little deserted, although it is brightly lit.
"Tell me, this is the first assassin we have sent this year."
A woman with long blond hair was sitting on the throne in the main hall of the palace, holding her chin with one hand and gently tapping the jewel-encrusted armrest of the throne with the other hand. She was wearing a gorgeous dress and looked about thirty years old. Her hands, wrapped in pure black velvet gloves, were covered with exquisite diamond rings.
She exuded a noble and indifferent temperament, and her eyes were as empty as an old man who was about to expire.
Because of this, the black eyepatch covering one eye on her face was so plain and out of place that it made her look like a one-eyed pirate.
"Your Majesty, this is the fifth this year."
In the main hall, in addition to the one-eyed woman on the throne, there was also a man about her age who was leaning on a cane. The man stood not far from the throne, lowered his head and said this respectfully.
There were only two of them in the main hall of the huge palace. The exquisitely crafted crystal chandelier is filled with candles. Under the candlelight, the entire hall looks shadowy, as if you can hear an echo of just a word.
"Already the fifth..." the one-eyed woman known as Her Majesty the Queen touched her chin and said lazily, "the five most outstanding mercenary assassins, but they can't even see the Pope. Ethan, You make me very disappointed."
Being questioned like this, the man named Ethan's tone did not change at all:
"After all, he is the Pope. After all, he is the person who stands at the top of this continent. Even though he is old, he is not someone who can just spy on him."
The Queen snorted coldly and said: "I am not interested in his private life. He has not shown his face for eight years. I just want to know whether he is dead or alive."
As she spoke, there was a bit of worry on her face, as if she was thinking about something very important.
"Your Majesty, please be patient. This fifth assassin may not have failed." However, Ethan changed the subject and said, "There is news from the Horli Kingdom. After that day, the church has been The paladins were secretly mobilized, apparently to encircle and suppress the mage, but after the mage encircled and suppressed them, paladins from all over the place were still gathering in the royal capital."
Hearing this, the queen finally sat upright on the throne.
Her expression became serious, and she looked at Ethan. Her only visible left eye was like a deep emerald.
"So, this assassin saw something he shouldn't have seen?"
Ethan nodded and said: "The answer will be revealed soon, Her Majesty the Queen, you don't have to worry."
"How could I not be in a hurry?" The queen sneered. She stood up from the throne and looked out the window at the dark night. "Ever since the empire split eight years ago and I became the so-called queen, I have never slept again. Have a good sleep. You may have forgotten how your leg is lame, but I have not forgotten how I am blind in my right eye."
As she said that, she suddenly pulled off her blindfold.
On the well-maintained fair face, the right eye was empty, with only a scabbed and black eye socket remaining, like an ugly surface that had collapsed due to a natural disaster.
The queen's originally noble and elegant face suddenly became extremely terrifying.
"Of course I haven't forgotten it." Ethan seemed to be accustomed to this, and his gentle voice sounded as calm as water, "If it weren't for resisting the church, why would I give up your two brothers and come here when the empire was divided? Where are you assisting Her Majesty the Queen?"
When she heard "two brothers", the queen's face suddenly showed a disdainful expression, as if she felt extremely disdainful towards her brothers.
Combined with her dark eyes, this expression looked particularly sinister.
However, after listening to Ethan's entire speech, the disdain on the queen's face disappeared. She raised her eyebrows slightly, showed a charming smile, and walked up to Ethan.
She reached out her hand and lifted Ethan's chin, forcing him to raise his head.
"No, you will always choose me." Her voice became softer, and it looked very strange when paired with her empty eyes, "You love me, you have always loved me deeply since you were a child, haven't you? "
"Her Majesty the Queen..." Ethan's voice finally showed a trace of panic, and his hand on the crutches almost lost its grip.
The queen maintained the smile on her face, but her voice suddenly turned cold: "Say it, or I will kill you."
Ethan took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and said in a trembling voice:
"Yes, I love you."
Hearing this, the smile on the queen's face suddenly disappeared. She showed a bored expression, withdrew her hand, put on her blindfold, turned around and took a few steps, then lazily sat back on the throne, like a satiated cat.
She waved her hand and said, "Okay, if you have any new information about the assassin, come and tell me. As for now, you can go home."
Ethan bent down and bowed, and couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from his forehead.
"yes."
After saying that, he turned around and left with staggering steps.
The Queen watched Ethan with her left eye until his back completely disappeared. She suddenly let out a long sigh, looked around at the empty palace, and tapped her fingers on the armrest in boredom.
"Eight years..."
Her voice echoed faintly in this hall.
I don’t know how much time passed.
Suddenly, her expression changed and she took out a handkerchief from her sleeve.
The handkerchief looked very old, probably some time old. But the queen held it tightly, like holding the hand of the person she loved most, or squeezing the throat of the person she hated the most.
An expression of excitement appeared on her face, and her hands began to tremble with exertion.
for a long time.
Suddenly, like a deflated rubber ball, she let go of her hands and collapsed softly on the back of the throne, gasping for air and staring blankly at the ceiling, like a soulless doll.
The handkerchief slipped from her hand and fell to the ground.
I saw a few lines of small words written on the handkerchief:
"My dearest daughter, if I die unexpectedly, please help your second brother and let him become the new leader of the empire. Be careful about your eldest brother and don't let my empire fall into pieces because of his ambition. situation."
This passage is particularly clear under the candlelight.
The Queen looked at the chandelier on the ceiling, and suddenly laughed dryly twice, a bit like she was mocking herself, but also a bit like being sarcastic.