Mount and Blade

"But..." Edward looked at Hickel, his eyes full of complex emotions, a look that was intertwined with helplessness, confusion and unwillingness.

He opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, and the words seemed to have reached his lips, but in the end he just sighed heavily, and the sigh seemed to carry a huge weight.

"Hikel, maybe we are all in this torrent of fate." Edward said slowly, his voice was low and hoarse, as if it had been polished and lost its luster by the years.

"Edward, no matter what the future holds, I just hope that our desire to protect this place will not change." Hickel's voice was soft but full of power.

"No, Hickel, this country and this world are actually all rotten." Edward played with the pebbles in his hands carelessly, and the rough pebbles turned over between his slender fingers.

His sharp eyes revealed deep boredom. He was tired of the intrigues among the nobles, and seemed to have seen through all the ugliness in the world.

As the head of the Halvorsen family, he has been involved in the aristocratic circle for too long. The so-called aristocrats are just a group of unprofitable guys who cling and win over, and a group of corruption and corruption have already made this difficult. The country that emerged has been chewed up until nothing is left but an empty shell.

Due to the influence of the Grand Duke and Furda, he was often ostracized in this circle by the old diehards of Grant's native religion.

Religious beliefs and so on... are simply insignificant things. They are just a means for those in power to win back the hearts and minds of the people.

He has never seen any so-called miracles in his entire life. Only that guy Gulumberudo has inhuman abilities.

After hearing this, Hickel looked at Edward in disbelief, "How can you say that? Are all our efforts so far meaningless?"

Edward smiled bitterly, "What we have done is just a drop in the bucket. The people at the top are greedy, the people at the bottom are miserable, war, disease, poverty, and hunger are everywhere. In this country where countless people die every day, just relying on How many people can we save?”

"To be honest, I never believed that I had the ability to change the world."

Hickel was silent, she knew that what Edward said was not completely unreasonable. But after a moment, her eyes became firm again, "Because of this, we have to work harder. Even if we can only illuminate a small patch of darkness, it is worth it."

Edward shook his head, "You are still so naive. However, it is your innocence that attracts me."

With that said, he took a step forward and approached Sickle, "Maybe you are right. Since you can't change the whole world, let's start with you."

"...Start by changing your and my destiny."

Sickle raised his head slightly and looked at Edward who was close at hand, his heartbeat speeding up involuntarily.

Edward stared at Hickel, his eyes were deep and hot, and he reached out his hand and gently touched Hickel's face. Even after being tempered by years and wars, a girl's skin will always be so soft. This is the first time he has touched her so boldly since he grew up.

Hickel felt flustered, a little at a loss as to what to do, but his wildly beating heart seemed to indicate that some emotion was about to break through the barrier of fate and was about to emerge, which was the forgotten and buried youth of childhood and adolescence.

"...Don't be like this." Those aqua blue eyes did not dare to look directly into Edward's only sharp golden eyes that contained hot emotions.

Of course she hadn't forgotten what Edward said to her that night...

But...she is already engaged now, and the boy who has been vaguely forgotten in her memory always seems to be looking for trouble for Edward when she is not around.

Edward did not take back his hand because of Hickel's words. His voice was trembling: "Hikel, do you know? In fact, this feeling has been hidden in my heart for a long time."

Hickel's face was getting hotter and hotter. Sometimes having fair skin was not a good thing, and even the blush on his ears couldn't escape Edward's eyes. She muttered: "Edward, now is not the time to talk about this."

"No, right now." Edward said firmly, "In this chaotic world, only my feelings for you make me feel real."

Seeing Edward like this, Hickel was in a state of confusion. His whole body was like a cooked shrimp, and his head was a little dizzy. Ever since she experienced something like that, she had never dared to ask for love. Even Hickel himself had heard whispers from the soldiers in the Fire Dragon's Lair.

At first, she would pretend not to hear anything, and then she would hide alone and cry silently.

Although she no longer shed tears after a long time, she still felt ashamed and angry. She didn't want to argue with those men about that kind of thing!

Is this man in front of me... worthy of trust? Perhaps, no one knows this man better than her.

Edward looked at Hickel's aqua blue eyes looking at him confusedly and uneasily, as if he was sizing them up, or testing them, as if he was confirming his mind in his heart.

It turns out that Hickel can also show this expression in front of him...

The distance between the two became closer and closer, as if they were testing each other a little bit, and Edward did not see any resistance on Hickel's face.

Thump...thump...

The powerful heartbeat in his chest kept beating faster and faster, it was Edward's. Similarly, his hands could feel the gradually tense heartbeat and pulse of Hickel.

He gently held Hickel's face with both hands and kissed him.

Hickel's eyes widened at first, then slowly closed, and his body trembled slightly involuntarily. He was at a loss and naturally touched Edward's chest with his hands.

...The kiss was very gentle, but it seemed to be full of endless affection.

After a long time, Edward let go of Hickel, and the two looked at each other, with complex emotions in their eyes.

Hickel's face became even redder, and Edward took a deep breath, his heart beating wildly, as if he had just done something extremely important.

"Hickel, no matter what the future holds, I will be with you. As for the marriage contract granted by the Grand Duke, I will find a way to make him withdraw his decision." Edward said solemnly.

Hickel nodded gently, and just as he was about to respond, a sudden sound of horse hooves came. The two separated alertly and turned around to see a group of knights under the Grand Duke running towards them. The leading knight shouted: "Your Highness Edward, His Majesty the King urgently summons you back to the palace!"

I don't know what the Grand Duke is going to do this time...

Edward frowned and looked at Hickel. Hickel forced a smile: "Go quickly, if the plan doesn't change, we will meet at the hotel in the city."

"...Okay, you must wait for me!"

Edward gritted his teeth, turned on his horse, and finally took a deep look at Hickel, and then left with the knights. Only Hickel was left standing there, looking into the distance, his heart full of worry and expectation.

...For some reason, this farewell is obviously more ordinary than usual, but why do I suddenly feel empty in my heart?

Hickel touched the gem necklace Edward gave her a few days ago, hoping that her unfounded worry was an illusion.

.........

On the other side, the deep forest outside Norudkahuati.

Green and Abaying traveled together. Without the help of horses, even Abaying, who was familiar with the mountain roads, would have to take two days to reach the "Fire Dragon's Nest".

It was obviously impossible to get there without dry food, and Green could not conjure up food on the spot. He had to follow Abaying to his hunter's hut to get some dry food before setting off.

The two walked along the winding path, and the surroundings were so quiet that only the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard. Abaying used his hunting knife to cut off the bushes and weeds that were already blocking the road from time to time, while Green watched the surroundings vigilantly.

Finally, they arrived in front of the hunter's hut, which was just a simple but well-repaired wooden house, and a small courtyard built with round stones of similar specifications. The gap in the middle was reinforced with a binder mixed with yellow mud and grass fibers, forming a wall that was half the height of an adult's waist.

Abaying pushed open the wooden door of the hut, and a smell of old pine wood hit him in the face. Just as Abaying was looking for dry food in the house, a low roar suddenly came from outside the house.