A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

227, Chapter 227

Garlan was the crown prince appointed by King Camos himself. Not to mention impeccable in name, Sage also recognized him in terms of ability.

He has decided that Garlan is the next king, and the royal knights should be loyal to Garlan.

Naturally, in his capacity as the leader of the Royal Knights, Sarge wanted to remove as many unstable factors as possible from Garlan in order to maintain the stability of the throne.

Because that's his job.

But he didn't know that keeping Heimos away from the royal city would not only fail to maintain the stability of the throne, but would instead plunge Aaron Landis into turmoil again.

This was also because neither he nor Shermer had discussed it with Kehos. If Kehos knew their thoughts, he would definitely try his best to stop them.

Kehos saw it clearly.

Heimos could go so far as to give up the throne for the prince - if he was forced to leave the prince, it would be the same as killing him.

At that point, Heimos didn't know what crazy things he would do.

…

"Please give the order for His Majesty Heimos to go to the city of Meneste to succeed the city lord."

"No."

The boy's eyes were firmly fixed on the leader of the knights and his priest.

He said, "I need him."

"Prince, you——"

Sage frowned and took a step forward, but Shermu'er, who was standing aside, suddenly raised his hand and blocked him.

Turning his head to look at the priest who stopped him, Sage swallowed the rest of his words.

Shemuer, who had been silent since just now, looked at Garlan.

The light shone from a distance, through the dense canopy of trees, and fell on Garlan's face, which was the face of an immature boy.

Although there is toughness in his eyebrows, there is still a bit of childishness in his appearance.

Looking at Garlan, Shemuer's eyes showed a somewhat complicated look.

He said: "Your Highness, this is your decision, isn't it?"

"Yes."

Garlan looked at Shemuer without any evasion.

"This is my decision, I want to keep Heimos."

Shermer was silent for a while, then he bowed slightly and lowered his head.

"I see."

He said,

"We will abide by your decision."

Garlan knew very well how stubborn and unkind his priest was, and with Sage, a guy with an upright temperament and uncompromising attitude, he was ready to fight them head-on.

He even took a deep breath, just waiting for the next storm.

However, Shermer's sudden retreat made him a little confused for a moment, and he looked at Shermer in astonishment with his eyes open.

Not only him, Sage immediately became anxious when he heard Xie Muer's words.

"Wait, Shermer, what are you—"

"Ah, Your Highness the Crown Prince, you are hiding here."

Suddenly, a cheerful female voice from the side interrupted Sage's words. Everyone turned their heads and saw the tall female General Aielson walking over quickly.

She was still wearing dark, tight-fitting leather armor, with her long hair tied behind her back, swaying slightly with her vigorous steps, her slightly raised eyebrows full of heroic spirit, and her whole person looked heroic.

Vinyl complained jokingly as she strode over.

"You are hiding in such a remote place. If I hadn't asked your maid, I don't know how long it would have taken to find you."

The female general who came for Garlan came closer and realized there were others.

She smiled and said: "Your Excellency Xie Mu'er, Lord Sage, what, are you two whispering to the crown prince here?"

Seeing an outsider coming, Sage was anxious and found it inconvenient to continue talking. He nodded stiffly to Vinier, and then left together with Xie Muer.

Although Sage's behavior was not very polite, Venier, who was intent on finding Garlan at the moment, didn't care and just approached Garlan with a smile.

"General Venier, do you have anything to do with me?"

Although Viniel's appearance somewhat solved the problem for him, looking at Viniel looking at him with a smile, Gallan suddenly felt a bad feeling in his heart.

"Well, there's something, something very important."

Female General Aielson nodded, and she glanced around casually.

This place is very secluded and quiet, with no trace of other people, but the light from the distance can't make it difficult to see clearly.

This is a good place to talk things privately.

"It just so happens that there's no one else here, so I'll just say it here."

She said cheerfully, took something out of her arms and stretched it out in front of Garlan.

The light reflected on the thing in her hand was a small, exquisitely carved ivory box.

Uh, it seems...a bit familiar.

The smile on the young man's face froze slightly, but fortunately the light was dim and he couldn't see it.

The female general opened the ivory box with a snap, and then, the rough ring with a blue gem embedded in it and a bumpy ring appeared in front of Garlan again.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, I was going to give you this last time, but it was interrupted... Well, you see, although I will stay, my subordinates will return to the country tomorrow. You can accept it, and I will do the same. Let them bring a message back to the little princess, right?"

Garlan: "Uh..."

"You should be able to feel the little prince's affection for you from this. Wearing it, it feels like the little prince has always been by your side, and the goddess of the sea will definitely protect you."

The female general smiled and looked at Garlan with satisfaction as if she were looking at her son-in-law.

"As a token, when the little princess grows up, she will come to you and give birth to a child for you."

Garlan: "That...actually..."

Seeing Garlan's hesitant expression, Viniel thought about it and suddenly understood.

The crown prince is embarrassed.

Hmm~~The Crown Prince is still young, only a teenager, about ten years younger than her. To her, he is still a child, so it is normal for him to be shy.

"You don't have to feel shy, Crown Prince."

Garlan: "..."

I'm not, I don't.

"Here, let me put it on for you."

As soon as the hot-tempered female general finished speaking, she held Garlan's hand unceremoniously and reached out to put the rough ring on him.

When the boy was thinking about how to reject the little princess's 'love' in an embarrassing yet polite way, he was inadvertently grabbed by the resolute female general's hand.

Before he could react, suddenly, with a whoosh, a dark shadow fell from the sky.

The black hawk that rushed out of the night swooped down suddenly and snatched the sapphire ring away.

Then, it spread its black wings and flew in another direction.

This scene seems familiar...

Not only Garlan, but also the female general Venier was a little confused.

When she realized what she was doing, she became furious and touched her back almost reflexively——

empty.

When attending the banquet tonight, it's fine to wear leather armor, but it's impossible to carry a weapon like a war bow with you.

"That damn-"

Viniel wanted to scold the flat-haired beast, but then she thought that its owner, the crown prince, was right next to her, so she quickly shut up and swallowed the curse words.

"I'm sorry, Anu is born with a liking for shiny things, and sometimes even my headdress will be taken away."

well done.

Garlan screamed in his heart for Anu who came to the rescue in time, but he still had to quickly comfort Viniel.

"Don't worry, Viniel, please go back to the banquet first, and I promise to help you get the ring back."

After saying this to Viniel, Garlan quickly chased in the direction where the black hawk flew away without waiting for the other party to reply.

The female general who was left behind looked at the boy's figure disappearing into the dark woods, turned around in depression, and returned to the banquet.

…………

The black hawk spread its wings and flew in the sky. It didn't fly very fast, just enough for Garlan to keep up.

Garlan chased it for only twenty or thirty meters, and then watched the black hawk fall in front of it, and its figure disappeared into the dense canopy of trees.

As he walked this way, he could vaguely hear the penetrating and beautiful singing voice of the bard. Taking a casual glance, he found that Shulos had moved his position at some point and came to play the piano and sing nearby again.

Shaking his head helplessly, Garlan retracted his gaze and walked along the path to the small courtyard in front surrounded by short trees.

As soon as he entered, he froze on the spot.

Ahead, Heimos stood in the darkness.

It is obviously the same black as the night, but it is different from the night, and it is unusually conspicuous in the dark night.

He raised one hand and the eagle stood on his arm.

A ring held in his right hand shimmered with azure light.

The hair scattered in the sharp corners of his eyes was dyed into a jet black that was deeper than the night. The handsome young man stood quietly in the night and looked at Garlan, with a slightly invisible arc raised on his thin lips.

The noisy sounds in the banquet seemed to be far away, and the night here became extremely quiet for a while.

At this moment, it was as if there was nothing else in the world except their mutual existence.

It took a while before Garlan came back to his senses.

"...Did you let Anu do this on purpose?"

he asks.

Heimos did not answer, but just raised his hand, and the black eagle standing on his hand flapped its wings and flew away. The black figure quickly melted into the night and disappeared.

The rough and ugly sapphire ring was still in his hand.

Garlan walked directly to Heimos and stretched out his hand.

"Come here again."

He said.

To actually instigate Anu to do such a thing, this narrow-minded guy is really...

The young man looked at the person in front of him angrily, cursing in his heart.

When Heimos was obedient, he reached out and returned the ring to Garlan.

He looked at Gallan and said, "That Aierson woman said that she had given you a ring before?"

"It was true once, but it didn't happen when I was interrupted...how did you know?"

"What I just heard."

Heard that?

Oh, by the way, Viniel said it herself just now.

Speaking of which...

You can hear it from dozens of meters away. Heymos's hearing is really abnormal...

…………

Um?

Wait a moment.

Suddenly thinking of some terrible possibility, the young man froze.

"Heimos."

"Um?"

"Can you hear the conversation over there?"

"Um."

"...Have you heard everything I said before?"

Could it be that what he just said to Xie Muer and the others... were all...

Heimos raised his eyebrows, with no expression on his face.

"What did you say before?"

he asked rhetorically.

fortunately.

It seems that he didn't hear it.

Garlan almost held his chest and gasped.

"It's nothing, just some personal matters between Viniel and me."

Taking a deep breath, he raised his eyes and stared at Heimos.

"By the way, don't you think it's bad to use your hearing to eavesdrop on other people's conversations?"

He said, clutching the ring tightly, and turned to leave.

"Don't do that again next time."

Just as Garlan turned around and took two steps, the deep voice came from behind him.

"You mean...'I need him'?"

"!!!"

The young man's brain exploded with a bang and went blank for an instant.

Due to excessive surprise, his hand involuntarily loosened his grip, and the ring he had just taken fell from his open hand.

The big brown hand suddenly stretched out from behind and caught the ring that was about to fall on the grass.

The black hair that seemed to melt into the night swept across the cheeks, accompanied by the warm breath passing by the ears.

Garlan, whose brain was still in a sluggish state, instinctively turned his head and looked to the side.

Heymos stood behind Garlan at some point, leaned over, put one hand on his left shoulder, and stretched out his right hand from his side to catch the ring.

And that end was naturally close to Garlan's ear.

As soon as Garlan turned his head, he saw that handsome profile face. Reflected in the moonlight in the dark night, it gave people a more wild and dangerous beauty.

Heimos, who had grabbed the ring, also turned his face sideways, and his eyes met with his.

At this moment, the distance between the two people was extremely close.

The golden-red eyes reflected his face, and suddenly they curved slightly, and the thin lips that seemed to be smiling had an alluring cold sheen.

Plop.

do not know why.

Perhaps it was because of the handsome face in front of him that gave people an indescribable sense of danger.

Or maybe it was because he remembered that the person in front of him heard what he said not long ago.

Garlan felt his heart beating hard and uncontrollably.

He subconsciously held his breath, turned around, faced Heimos, put his hand on the other's strong chest and pushed him away.

That was just Garlan's subconscious move.

Logically speaking, even if he exerted all his strength, he probably wouldn't be able to push the 'Black Knight' who was standing firmly.

However, his push really pushed it forward.

However, rather than saying that he pushed, it was more that Heimos followed his force and took a step back.

Garlan's suffocating feeling of being unable to breathe finally eased a little.

However, even if his breathing became easier, his mind was still in a state of confusion.

His hands were still pressed on Heimos' body to keep a certain distance between them. His head was buried tightly, and he felt that his cheeks were so hot that he couldn't lift them up.

'I need him. ’

He didn't know why he suddenly said this at that time.

And it was such an unlucky coincidence that Heimos happened to hear it so clearly that he couldn't even deny it.

Gallan was still embarrassed and at a loss when suddenly a hand reached under his lowered head.

Under the shallow moonlight, the sapphire ring lay quietly in the brown palm.

Huymos's voice rang in his ears.

"Give it back."

Gallan tried to calm down and reached out to grab the rough ring. Then, he saw the malachite ring Heimos was wearing on his finger.

Why does it look familiar...

Looking at it again, Garlan recognized it.

Those were the malachite earrings that he had asked Tal to bring to Heimos as a token of the message. Unexpectedly, Heimos actually made them into a ring and wore them on his hand.

He was startled for a moment and couldn't help but raise his head and look at the person standing in front of him.

Heimos looked at him, his eyes were very bright, brighter than ever before, as if all the stars in the night sky fell into his golden-red eyes at this moment.

There was an indescribable look in those eyes, looking at him deeply.

………………

...Is it because of what he just said?

"Heimos."

"Um."

"I said 'I need you', I... that... I said I don't know if I can accept you... but I want you to stay with me all the time, I..."

Garlan said hesitantly.

Although he is still unable to respond to Heimos's feelings, he still hopes that this person can always be by his side.

He never thought that he was such a selfish guy.

After thinking for a long time, he really didn't know what to say, so he gave up organizing the language in frustration.

"It's just because you've always been too obedient to me, so it's your fault that I have such thoughts!"

The Crown Prince, who was praised by the world for being just and wise, was now facing this man who always indulged him and obeyed him, so he simply became unreasonable.

"Well, it's my fault."

Huymos admitted without hesitation.

"I will be responsible."

"ah?"

Heimos' straightforward behavior of taking the blame made Garlan a little confused.

Heimos continued: "I will take responsibility and stay with you for the rest of my life."

"...No, you..."

Gallan, who always felt as if he was being circumvented, had not yet reacted, but Heimos had already held his hand and raised it.

He watched the man in front of him lower his head and kissed his fingers.

The big brown hand holding his finger seemed to move very lightly, but its fingers were very strong, clasping his fingers so tightly that he could not break free.

After kissing the white fingers in his palm, Heimos looked up at Garlan.

"'You need me'... This is what you said, I will do it, and you, Garlan, I will not give you a chance to go back on your words."

Thin black hair was scattered in front of his eyes. When he looked at Garlan, his eyes seemed to be burning with a scorching red flame, getting brighter and alarmingly brighter.

"You have no chance of regret."

Garlan stared blankly at Heimos, who looked at him with burning eyes, for a long time.

Finally, he sighed and gave up the confrontation with the man in front of him.

"I really don't understand...what do you like about me?"

He muttered under his breath.

"have no idea."

"…………"

Heimos' answer left Garlan speechless for a moment.

"But, at least one thing, I'm sure of now."

"What's up?"

Looking at the golden pupils that looked at him doubtfully, Heimos raised the corners of his lips.

He leaned forward and tilted his head slightly.