A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

273. Chapter 273

Sleepless night.

Early the next morning, Caihos entered the palace again.

The early morning sun illuminated Kejos's dark blond hair, and the bruises under his eyes were so light that they were almost invisible, which did not detract from the knight's handsome face with a mature charm.

On the way to Garlan's palace, this handsome knight attracted the eager eyes of many maids who were walking on the road with things in their hands.

The maids who had not seen Caihos for a long time tried to talk to him, but the knight who used to laugh and tease them with a few words that made them blush and heartbeat seemed to be in no mood today. He just nodded politely and strode over.

Hearing the suddenly excited voices of the young maids outside the palace, the female official standing in the courtyard turned her head and looked in the direction of the palace gate.

As expected, she saw Caihos walking in from there.

In the past, she had always been expressionless and cold-eyed towards the knight's behavior that always aroused the hearts of the young girls in the palace. Occasionally, if she went too far, she would scold Caihos unceremoniously and express her dissatisfaction. He caused such a commotion in front of the palace gate that the prince was disturbed.

Of course, in response to Tapti's reprimand, Caihos always admitted his mistake and apologized politely, and then, next time, he would go his own way.

But this time, when she saw that familiar scene again, although there was still no expression on Tapti's face, the look of disgust in her eyes was gone.

She suddenly thought that although there had always been many young girls who seemed to be admiring Caihos, in fact, as far as she could see, the young maid who had been secretly looking at Lord Heimos with admiration had also been Quite a few.

After all, from a female perspective, except for his character... which is really not that good, he is very good in appearance and other aspects.

It's just because that Excellency gives people a very unapproachable feeling except when he is around His Majesty, and those weak girls don't dare to come close at all, so it gives people the illusion that he is not welcome.

Moreover, that Your Majesty's eyes have always only fallen on His Majesty, so it is impossible to notice the eyes of others looking at him, and naturally he is not aware of the admiring glances of others.

However, even if he finds out... I'm afraid he will be completely ignored by that person.

The female officer thought so absentmindedly and sighed silently in her heart.

She was obviously very angry a few months ago.

At that time, she still thought that when that person came back, she would never be polite.

She will definitely guard His Majesty and not give that person any opportunity to take advantage of him.

However, nothing lasts forever.

The news that suddenly came back a month ago was like a sap, knocking her into confusion.

That Excellency...is dead?

Even now, Tapti still has a very unreal feeling.

She always felt that even the God of Death would make a detour for that terrible man.

She always felt that if it was that person, not even the gods could make him leave His Majesty's side.

…

No matter how she felt, a month had passed and Lord Hermos was dead. This was an unchangeable fact.

Tapti turned her head slightly and saw the spring statue of Isdar, the goddess of fate, in the middle of the courtyard. The clear spring was falling from the sky as always, just like when that person was still here.

In the past, as long as that person was still in the palace, almost every day, that person would stand under this fountain and wait.

When he was waiting, no matter how long he waited, he was not impatient at all. On the contrary, he seemed to be enjoying the waiting process.

It felt like he was chewing his favorite dessert bit by bit.

Every time she followed His Majesty out of the room, she would see the man's eyes looking up.

That person's eyes will only shine brightly when they fall on His Majesty.

Every time like this, that person's eyes are always focused and gentle.

... She had such an obvious look in her eyes, but she hadn't noticed it for so many years... Sure enough, it was because she was in the middle of the game that she couldn't see clearly...

Thinking of this, Tapti couldn't help but smile bitterly.

But, what's the use of thinking about it now.

She raised her eyes and glanced at the empty fountain again. .

No one will be waiting there again.

She sighed deeply in her mind.

The deceased is gone.

If His Majesty is unwilling to show his vulnerable side in front of them, she will pretend not to know.

I only hope that as time goes by, the pain in His Majesty's heart can be alleviated a little bit.

The sound of footsteps was heard, and Taputi turned around, gathered her thoughts, and looked at the young king walking out of the room.

She subconsciously raised a gentle smile and wanted to go up to talk to Garlan.

But she immediately caught Garlan's gaze.

The young man walked out of the door, perhaps inadvertently, or perhaps out of habit, and glanced slightly to the right from the corner of his eye.

The direction of that fountain.

That glance made Tapti's heart sink and become cold to no end.

…

Real pain never goes away with the passage of time.

It will always be there, dripping with blood.

It will never go away.

………………

Kayhos came to pick up Garlan today because Garlan wanted to inspect the military camp today.

To put it simply, as a king, you should show up in person to praise and encourage the victorious soldiers.

When King Garlan appeared in the military camp, the morale of the soldiers was very high.

Yesterday, King Garlan actually came out of the city to welcome them back, which moved them very much. When Garlan came to the military camp again today to praise them, and personally said that he would give them generous rewards according to their military merits, everyone in the military camp The atmosphere reached its peak.

The earth was filled with joy, and all the soldiers were cheering the name of King Garlan.

Laughter resounded under the sky.

Keyhos stood beside Garlan and looked up at Garlan who raised his hand to signal to the countless soldiers under the high platform.

The Young King's smile was like the rising sun falling on him.

His smile always brought bright light to those around him.

Just being by his side is like being under the sun.

He always brings warmth and strength to those around him.

Caihos's hands hanging at his sides clenched tightly.

He thought of the child squatting on the ground holding him in the room filled with sunlight yesterday.

And now, who can be the force to support this child?

In a daze, Kayhos remembered the conversation he had with Tapti yesterday.

…………

"Tapti, what can I do?"

Even if he can only share a little bit, he is willing to do anything.

"Don't say anything, don't do anything, pretend you don't know anything, that's what you can do for him."

"...I am the prince's guardian knight, can't I replace him?!"

A few seconds of silence.

Then the matron answered.

Yes, you can't.

At that time, Tapti said to him.

Such a categorical denial made him unable to get angry at all.

Perhaps it was because he saw the almost substantial sadness in Tapti's eyes at this moment.

Kejos, neither you nor I can.

Tapti shook her head.

Even you and I don't want to admit it at first.

However, the only person in the world who can truly stand beside him and support each other is that person.

The throne is supreme.

No one can stand beside him.

Therefore, the king is always lonely.

The former king was like this.

The same is true for King Camos.

I was lucky that although I sat on the throne, the prince was not alone.

Although it was an accident, because of the existence of that person, if the prince does not have to support the country alone, I am very glad that the prince has that person by his side.

But I never thought that that person would leave like this.

…

Kehoes, you know what?

The female official's deep voice sounded like a sigh.

lose.

It would be crueler than not existing in the first place.

…………

……………………

When the army returned from the expedition, the royal court began to operate crazily. Countless political affairs and myriad threads are waiting to be dealt with.

For a time, all the ministers and officials were busy.

Statistics of the merits of the soldiers, post-war injuries, and the treatment expenses and pensions of the fallen soldiers. In particular, when Garlan was reforming military affairs, he strongly added a provision for the settlement of old and seriously injured soldiers who had to retire. From this Implementation will begin after a battle.

At the same time, Kanal became part of Aaron Landis, and the western border naturally ceased to exist. Therefore, the Sixth Army on the border must be mobilized as soon as possible to march into Kanal and join forces with the army left behind in the royal city by Kehos. , Stabilizing the overall situation of Kanal.

Also, the royal court must discuss the officials sent to Karnal as soon as possible and take control of those cities as soon as possible.

All of the above made Garlan very busy as a king. The government room was full of people coming and going from morning to night. He had almost no chance to breathe except eating and sleeping.

If it were before, Tapti and the others would have felt distressed and discouraged him if they saw Garlan so busy, but now, they are relieved.

It’s good to be busy.

They thought so.

In this way, the entire royal court was running rapidly for a long time. Countless ministers and officials were wailing in private. Even Zuo Sixiang, who was so devoted to his work that he almost called the Government Affairs Office his home, felt it was too much.

After working overtime like this, I finally managed to handle the mountain of government affairs.

When they came back to their senses, everyone realized that a month had passed before they knew it.

More than half of spring has passed, and even at night there is a warm breeze, which does not make people feel cold.

It was late at night, and it was rare to have such a peaceful time in this month. Garlan was sitting in the pavilion in the courtyard.

Nerga's low wailing sound could be heard in the dark night.

The golden-brown mane flashed in the night in the moonlight. The big lion was leaning against Garlan and humming continuously, as if it was begging for something.

It humped Garlan with its head, then raised its front paws and rested them on the stone table nearby. It snarled at the crystal bottle containing bright red liquid on the table, turned its head, and snarled at Garlan again.

Brown pupils looked at Garlan brightly, and those bright little eyes were really irresistible.

It must smell like wine...

Garlan was helpless.

At first, Tal was just having fun and fed Nerga a glass of wine while he was not paying attention. Nerga was drunk and fell asleep for most of the day, making him fearful that something would go wrong.

Unexpectedly, this drink actually made the big lion like this taste.

From then on, every time he smelled the smell of alcohol, he would act cute and coquettishly asking for a drink.

The big fluffy head came over again and rubbed against his face.

Garlan could only stand up, take the plate where the raw meat was originally placed, pour a little red wine into it, then squat down and wave to Nega.

Nega immediately came over excitedly, took his hand, and started licking the plate.

It licked happily, swishing its long tail behind it.

Garlan put down the plate, looked at Nerga happily licking the wine, and touched its head.

He looked at it with tender eyes.

Then, Garlan stood up and walked to the entrance of the pavilion.

Below is a clear pool of water, and the moonlight falls on the water, making the waves sparkle.

When the wind passed by, the large swaths of lavender hyacinths on the edge of the pool swayed slightly with the wind, like undulating lavender waves.

Looking at the swaying hyacinths, Garlan suddenly remembered that night long ago.

Late that night, when Heimos climbed over the wall and grabbed him to talk, a maid who was keeping watch suddenly passed by. He was so frightened that he quickly pressed Heimos into the flowers and hid him, for fear of being seen by the maid.

Although at that time he didn't know why he felt guilty.

…………

Hyacinth, a love affair destined to be fruitless, a hopeless love.

Later, he learned about the flower language of hyacinth from the maid who passed by that night.

He was startled.

At that time, he thought, this might be a prophecy.

Because it was impossible for him to accept Heimos, Heimos' feelings for him were destined to be fruitless.

...Perhaps that is indeed a prophecy...

Garlan poured a glass of wine, and in the crystal clear glass under the moonlight, the bright red liquid rippled slightly.

He didn't drink, he just walked down the stone steps of the pavilion with the wine glass in his hand and walked to the hyacinth flowers.

The young man raised his head, and the moonlight was like water, pouring on his long golden hair scattered on his shoulders.

Two months.

Sixty days.

During this time, he had always secretly held a faint hope in his heart.

Maybe that person is not dead yet, but just injured.

Maybe he will appear in front of him again soon.

If that person was still alive, Garlan believed that even if he crawled, he would crawl back to him.

However, it has been more than sixty days.

He waited a long time.

Nothing can be expected.

He has to face reality eventually.

Heimos was dead, two months ago, in the royal city of Karnar.

"Sorry, this is a memorial that is two months late."

Standing among the hyacinth flowers by the pool, the young man tossed it casually.

The luminous cup drew a shining arc in the dark night and fell into the pool with a splashing sound.

It sank.

The bright red wine spread on the water and quickly disappeared without a trace.

Garlan watched the bright red color melt in the water.

for a long time.

Nerga's purring came from the pavilion next to her.

The drunken lion had fallen into a deep sleep.

The young man leaned over and slowly sat down by the pool, among the large hyacinth flowers.

His arms rested on his raised knees.

The faint fragrance of flowers surrounded him.

The pool of water in front of him reflected the hyacinths at the water's edge, and there were double-image flowers everywhere, making it almost impossible to distinguish reality from reflection.

He just sat quietly, his golden pupils reflecting the sparkling water.

"During this time, I have been wondering if it was because of me."

"You will die because of me."

In previous lives, I died, so you survived.

In this life, I am alive, so the person who dies becomes you.

"You probably don't know that once when I was a kid, I wanted to kill you when you had a fever."

"At that time, I would never have imagined that when you really died, I would be like this..."

Such...

The boy closed his mouth and swallowed the last two words back into his throat.

He lowered his head and buried his face in his arms.

The fingers he clasped on his arm tightened so hard that the knuckles were almost white.

You will do whatever you promised me.