[The Silmarillion] Romimus

"I don't think it's fair," Glorfindel said.

Antonia sighed and didn't answer.

"You are better to everyone than to Gondolin." Glorfindel continued to complain, counting with his hands together, "Land of Dusk, that is the territory you established with your own hands, that's all; the Numenoreans in the theater , they have enmity with you, you would rather turn against Sauron to protect those people; son of Isildur, if he had not died in the battle of the last alliance, would you join the war? Oh, and Estel , I haven’t seen you caring more about anyone than him. To be honest, you just like humans and don’t like elves, right?”

"From the perspective of ethnic group development, I am indeed more interested in humans, otherwise I would not return to Middle Earth." Antonia said, "But if it is a single individual, of course there are elves who I especially like .”

"for example?"

"Like Caleb..."

"Ah."

"Celebrindo! Celebrindo! Princess Idril! Is this the head office? Don't go, come back and shovel the cat's shit!" Antonia chased out and shouted.

"I'm not lying," said Antonia. "I do like Princess Celebryndo, and I have a good impression of Miss Celebrion... Celebrimbor and I are on good terms, too."

"You don't like these people in the same way." Glorfindel took off his gloves and said sarcastically, "If you really like them equally, why did you save one of them but ruin the other? nation?"

"I rescued Celebrimbor to repay you and Elrond for sparing the humans in the Twilight Land. Besides, I have heard some of his deeds. I think he has the talent and ability to change the entire Middle Continent. Antonia said, "I sneaked into Gondolin because I thought the existence of Gondolin was meaningless to Central Continent. These two things have nothing to do with my own preferences. It doesn't matter whether the method is to save people or kill people." It doesn't matter, destruction or creation is all right, the most important thing is that Yiya will become better and better because of it."

"...tell me you don't think so now," Glorfindel whispered.

But Antonia did not do what he wished, but went on without emotion: "You cannot deny that it was because I, Maeglin, and Fenorians defeated Gondolin and Doriath, Only Elendil could meet and fall in love with White Feather Elwin, could bring the Silmarils back to Aman to ask for help, and Morgoth could be defeated. Of course, when I betrayed Gondolin, I didn’t accurately predict that these things would happen , but the reason is very clear: only death can stand still. When you make up your mind to hide and no longer communicate with the outside world, it is only a matter of time before you follow in the footsteps of Nargothrond."

"Enough!" Glorfindel shouted.He only looked at Antonia once more with anger and disappointment, and went away again without looking back.

Antonia didn't stop him this time, but watched him go away silently.

Day three.

The door was knocked again.

Somewhat unexpectedly, Antonia stopped her hand, which was boringly teasing the cat.

"His Royal Highness?" She asked uncertainly.

"It's not Estelle, it's me." The door answered.

Antonia hurried over to open the door, and looked at Glorfindel standing outside the door in surprise: "Why are you here?"

In fact, it is unlikely to be someone else. Antonia lives in a remote place, and there are very few people who have close acquaintances. As the crown prince, I don't have time to visit very often, and there are some hardworking and studious young people in the palace who come here to ask for advice, but there are not many such people, and Antonia's cold temper is well-known, and she usually has a good reputation. It's not likely that anyone will come for several months.Counting and counting, Glorfindel came the most, but Antonia thought he would never come today.

"I went back yesterday and thought about it for a long time, and there is something I still need to ask you clearly." Glorfindel walked into the room, "Those people from the Opera House of Numenor, that human woman named Vesper, why did you To take such a big risk to save her? In your eyes, can she also change Yiya?"

He stared intently at Antonia, waiting for her answer, Antonia also stared back at Glorfindel in a daze, but remained silent.

After a long time, when Glorfindel thought she was not going to answer this question, Antonia lowered her head and spoke.

"I don't know," she said.

Vespa also asked Romimos a similar question. She knew as well as Glorfindel that Romimos was by no means a benevolent god. In other words, Romimos’ mercy was for the whole world, not for a Only ants.

After Ilfarin's accident, Okanom and Naquili angrily called all the people in charge of the props to interrogate them, and the truth of the matter soon came to light.The man who was supposed to attach the rope to Ilfarin and then lower him off the stage with the aid of a pulley to simulate the effect of falling off a cliff was called out for a while before the show.

And it was Sauron's people who called him away.

Okanom and Naquili looked at each other, and the anger just now was quickly extinguished like a blocked volcano.They knew very well that with Sauron's current power and arrogance, even if they could sue Farathon, it would be a waste of effort.

They didn't even feel resentful. Fear and anxiety quickly occupied the two of them. With Ilfarin's identity and character, how likely is it that he offends Sauron?Sauron's attacks this time were most likely aimed at the entire Alando Theater, and they didn't even know where the Alando Theater had offended this vengeful national teacher.Besides, if Sauron really doesn't like the theater or thinks it's useless, he can just move his mouth and directly dismantle it, why bother to make this one?

"Vespa." After thinking hard, Ocanom called Vespa over and briefly explained his thoughts to her, "You usually have the best relationship with Luo Mi, please ask her to help you. Let's ask the national teacher. At least we have to know what we did wrong, so we can find a way to make up for it, right?"

After hearing that Ilfarin's accident was not an accident, Ke Vespa became visibly disturbed, with sweat dripping from the tip of his nose.

"What's wrong?" Naquili stared at her closely, "Do you know what's going on? Do you know why Sauron wanted to attack Ilfarin?"

"No, I... I'm not sure, I'll go to Luo Mi, I'll ask her." Vespa prevaricated a few words, turned around and ran away quickly.

Vespa ran around the theater like a headless chicken for a long time, until someone told her that when she left the theater stage, she saw that Romimos seemed to be still there.

Vespa thanked him casually and ran towards the front of the stage.The audience in the theater has all gone, the curtain has been drawn, all the lights have been extinguished, and the whole theater is dead silent.Vespa walked forward in the dark.

"Luo Mi? Are you here?" She tried to open her eyes wide, trying to catch even a glimmer of light to see her surroundings clearly, "Ouch!"

Vespa stepped on his skirt when going up the steps, staggered and almost knelt on the edge of the steps, and climbed onto the stage with hands and feet in a panic.

A sigh slid by her ear like the wind, and then the familiar hazy yellow shimmer lit up in the center of the stage.

Vespa trotted towards the light, Romemos didn't seem to care about her, didn't look at her, didn't talk to her, just looked straight ahead like a quiet sculpture, Vespa followed Romemo Si looked, but could only see a thick black curtain.

Vespa came and sat down beside Romemus, resting his head on her lap, and they were silent together for a long time.Then Vespa finally asked.

"That day Sauron called me over, what did he want to do?"

"Did I almost become the first person he used for surgery?"

"But why? What can Ilfarin and I hinder him? What is the ability of the Arlando Theater to make him so displeased?"

"Or is this coming for you, Luo Mi?" Okanomo and others didn't know, but Vesper knew very well that the real relationship between Romimos and Sauron was extremely bad.

"Yes." Romemus replied briefly.She lowered her head, ready to be questioned by Vespa. They were just insignificant ants, and they shouldn't have been specifically targeted by Sauron. At most, they were affected by the edge of the storm and lost their lives lightly, but who knows?Maybe they can survive because of being ignored, but now because of their relationship with Romemos, they are definitely dragged into the water.

But to Romemos' surprise, Vespa's expression was not as angry or terrified as she should be at this time, but as if she had fallen into a wonderful illusion, revealing a sense of calm happiness, From Romemos's point of view, it was a bit weird.

"Am I being used by Sauron to threaten you, Luo Mi?" she asked.

Romemos didn't want to talk about this matter, so he changed the topic: "You should think about what to do next. I suggest you resign immediately, leave Numenor Island as soon as possible, and find a place in Central Continent where there are many loyalists." Towns, such as Pelakir, have retreated into seclusion. Sauron's hand should not be able to reach there for a while... What are you giggling about? Did you listen to me?"

"Sorry, sorry, Luo Mi, but I'm so happy." Vespa took an inch and hugged Romemos' leg directly, "I almost thought that I was really insignificant to you, just like everyone else different."

"Otherwise? Is there anything more special about you than others?" Romemos tried to shake it a few times, but he didn't.

"If I am no different from other people to you, why did you save me that day?" Vespa asked, "It is impossible for Sauron to change his mind easily just because you said a word, he must have made things difficult for you. , and you compromised for me, so he let me go, didn't you?"

Vespa was right, but Romimos couldn't answer her question, and even she herself didn't understand why she bowed to Sauron for a Vespa.

Romimos claims that she does not want to get rid of elves and humans like Morgoth and Sauron. On the contrary, she agrees that elves and humans are the same creations and are a very important part of Asia. Flowers, birds, fish, insects, birds and animals are more valuable, they are the most colorful strokes in a painting, the most refined and ingenious line in a poem, the most critical part in the mechanism, the most shining jewel in the crown.

But in essence, like other things in Yiya, it is just a tool to make this world more vivid and beautiful.Elves and humans adorn the world, not that it was made for them.

So even though Romimos thinks she likes elves and humans, she still doesn't feel that she needs to love everyone, just like a gardener loves flowers, and it doesn't prevent him from cutting off their redundant branches and leaves.

Of course, if a certain person is so valuable that he alone can change the fate of the entire world—even if it’s only a little bit—that’s another matter.This value is usually in the eyes of Romimoth extremely outstanding creative talents, such as Melkor, Io, Maeglin, Celebrimbor, etc.; Glorfindel is an exception compared with these people, but even if His talent is not directly reflected in creation, but no one can deny that he is powerful and outstanding, not to mention that Romemus believes that he has a mysterious power that cannot be described in words; Individuals who are unremarkable but may have great potential in the future, such as children, can always make Romimos a little more tolerant.

But Vespa clearly doesn't fall into any of these categories.She is just an ordinary mortal, there is nothing irreplaceable.Be it attractive looks or talent and knowledge, Romimos has seen too many people who are hundreds of times stronger than her. Even if it is power and money, which are not considered personal characteristics, Vespa will have nothing, and she will Without any noble virtue, or transparent wisdom, Vespa is as vulgar as all the common people Romimos has met, greedy for money, lustful, keen on gossip, laziness, and taking advantage of small things.

Romemos is not a very principled person, her standards are very flexible, but if Vespa can have one, no matter what it is, as long as there is one that is particularly outstanding, she would rather agree to Sauron's unreasonable There is a reasonable explanation for asking to save Vespa too.

However, Vespa is just a person who can never be found once he is thrown in the crowd. He is so ordinary that Romimos can't find an excuse to improve his logic.

It's really capsized in the gutter.

"Perhaps we are closer than you think," Vespa said. "Maybe you already consider me a friend?"

Romemus denied it without thinking.

"Impossible." She said, "Friends should be equal, they can learn from each other, and they can help each other when they are in trouble. At least it should not be that only one person unilaterally solves the problem caused by the other. all that trouble."

Vespa was a little aggrieved, and murmured in a low voice, "It's not my fault this time."

"It doesn't matter whether it's true or not, the point is that you can't give me any help or inspiration at any time." Romimos was aggressive, "Then why should I give energy and freedom to maintain such a friendship?"

“Is it too utilitarian to choose friends this way?” Vespa said. “Don’t we want friends for understanding, support and most importantly, to have fun together?”

"Based on the differences between me and you in various aspects, I don't think you can really understand me, and I don't need your verbal support." Romimos was unmoved, "As for being happy, and The decades you have spent together are quite novel and interesting. I have never had such a long or close relationship with any human being before, but the happiness brought by this relationship is obviously not enough to offset the trouble it is now causing. What's more, I don't agree that the biggest role of friends is to gain happiness. I generally call those things that are responsible for making people happy as pets or toys."

Vespa frowned: "...I am a pet to you?"

"No, we're just not friends." Romemos said, "I don't want to refute your definition of what a friend is, but everyone has their own set of criteria for choosing friends, right?"

"But I don't meet your standards."

"Correct."

"Because I'm of no use to you."

"I don't know if you can understand this explanation." Romemos sighed, "I know that friends are not for 'use', and when I decide to be friends with someone, I don't care what he treats me Help or trouble, but I wouldn't want to be friends with him if he hadn't been of some use to me."

"Then why did you save me from Sauron?" Vespa asked the question again.

Romemus could not answer.

"I think it's probably because I overestimated myself." In the end, she concluded with a sharp sarcasm, "When I came to Asia, I was also ambitious, trying to do something that would make the whole universe different. Then I found that it was impossible for me to change Aman, unless I did everything according to the will of the Father and the Mighty Ones; so I betrayed the Valar and came to Middle-earth, even at the expense of Gondolin, only to find that this place is just another place. An Aman continent, Morgoth and Valar are no different in this regard, and no one is allowed to disobey their ideas; I retreat to the second best and give up changing the whole world, only wanting to be the master of the territory in my illusion , oh, we could live in peace, but you Men of Numenor, and Sauron, will not let me go!"

Romimos had never shown her resentment towards the Númenoreans in front of Vespa before, and Vespa almost forgot that he was half the enemy of the other party, and at this moment he could not help but flinch.

"But I don't have enough strength to insist on my ideas. It's my own problem." Romemos suddenly resumed her usual indifferent tone, as if the moment of anger just now had never existed, "I am powerless to confront Vera, Morgoth, Sauron, or kill the entire Númenor Empire, so there is nothing to say about the current fate. I just sadly dropped the goal of changing Asia, changing Middle Continent, and changing the land of dusk Let's face it, now I may have fallen to the point where I can only prove my worth by changing a mortal, which is you."

"But you succeeded." Vespa said, "Look at how different I am now from before I met you? I can read and write now, I can speak Elvish, and I can list a historical chronology of Middle-earth. I With faith, with hope, with someone I truly love."

"Yes, congratulations to you, congratulations to me." Romemos replied casually, "Although this is insignificant to the world, maybe this is all I can do."

"Why isn't that enough?" Vespa asked. "You said that as long as you can change the world even a little bit, it is valuable, right?"

"I said it, but I was talking about a 'little' change relative to the world at large, do you really think your changes have any real impact on the world?"

"I am part of this world."

Romemos stared at Vesper for a while, then laughed.

"You're right," she said, "I thought, when I say I want to change a tree, I mean I want it to grow taller, a little thicker, a little sweeter in fruit, a little bit sweeter in appearance. Prettier pruning, but you tell me that pulling out a leaf changes the tree. That's right, what's the problem?"

Vesper was dumbfounded for a long time before realizing that Romimos was mocking him.

"I know, your vision is much higher and farther than mine." For a long time, Vespa lowered his eyes a little lonely, "You are a god, what you see is the whole tree, not a certain leaf. I don't know Whether you can create works that only you can create in the future, I want to say that you can, but you are right, I can only support you verbally. Maybe you don’t care, but what I want to express is, Before you find your unique value to Yiya, you already have irreplaceable meaning to me."

"Look where this uniquely beautiful relationship has put the two of us now," Romimos replied.

"If someone confessed to me like that, I'd probably be so moved that I wouldn't know what to say." Glorfindel twitched the corner of his mouth and sighed, "You really don't like oil and salt."

"It's not the first day you know me." Antonia sighed, "At that time, it was impossible for me to admit that I had unique feelings for anyone, and I was under the control of Sauron, and I was in a restless mood. In other words, I just want to get back to the matter."

"But you admit Celebrimbor is your friend."

"Yeah, he can help me calculate the formula."

Glorfindel rolled his eyes, "What about now?"

"What now?"

"Now you're willing to admit your feelings for other people?"

"Hmm, since I don't want to be as determined to distance myself from everyone as I was in the past, I think it is necessary and beneficial to establish some intimate relationships in a society."

"for example?"

"For example, Oluoyin, Kurumo, Ionway, and the relationship between me and Arien is much better than before."

"Except for those of your race?"

"I think I have a good relationship with the royal family of Gondor, but since they don't know my real identity, I don't think it counts."

"You're right, so is there any more?"

"...Tel Perinqua."

"..."

"Don't stare at me. Although, as I said just now, I also like Princess Idril and Miss Celebrindoll, Exilion, Your Majesty Turgon, Erendil, Arisil, and Gon Most of Dorin's acquaintances, but you know that too." Antonia said, "This is just my one-sided relationship, not a relationship."

"Did you see them afterwards?"

"Of course, I went there as soon as I was released. They probably weren't completely willing, but they all met me in the end—except for you. I didn't know you were not in Aman Island at the time. I thought you simply didn't want to see me. Du Yilin also said that you are too busy looking after the children at home, so you don't have time to talk to me."

There was a look of speechlessness on Glorfindel's face, but then Antonia's expression made him realize something was wrong: "Are you serious?"

"At first, I also thought he lied to me on purpose, but none of them, His Majesty, the princess, and Exilion denied it. I don't think everyone is as childish as Duilin..." Antonia's voice Gradually weakened, "Can we change the subject and stop talking about it?"

Glorfindel was kind: "So, how did you solve the problem of Sauron and Farathon?"

Antonia, however, fell silent again.

"Vespa has been a great help to me," she said at last.

In a way she didn't want it to happen.