before he was crowned king

At the same time, a black carriage of the same shape slowly drove out of the gray wall under the moonlight.Although it looks like a simple and shabby civilian car on the outside, the inside of the carriage is completely opposite to the luxurious furnishings.

Grand Duke Henry was lying on a soft sofa cushion, holding a juicy grape in his right hand, and embracing a young blond boy like a cat in his left hand, squinting his wrinkled eyes and humming cheerful court tunes.

"Honey, we're leaving the capital soon, and head to the peaceful and stable southern territory. Apart from being a little poorer and the drinks a little worse, it's hundreds or even thousands of times better than the current capital." Grand Duke Henry chewed on the grapes and squeezed out the juice. , "There is no partisan strife, no sub-orc harassment, plenty of sunshine, fertile soil, and countless ways to make money... Do you know? It is the pure land I dream of, with large expanses of snow-white daphnia flowers. Those are full of fruit The tree of wealth of gold coins, we have dawdle pollen, we can hire cheap commoners to prepare expensive 'Radelle' spices, and the weight of a cup can easily sell for five gold coins! In less than two years, a hundred Ten thousand gold coins can be regrouped, and I can open a casino that is completely mine in the Southern Territory..."

The blond boy leaned obediently on Grand Duke Henry's chest, with a gentle and false smile on his face. He couldn't understand the vague voice coming from that fat body at all, let alone the huge concept of a million gold coins.

He only knew that five gold coins could buy two cows, and that his own life was sold by his own father for fifty gold coins.

"Are you listening to me?" The soft flesh around his waist was held tightly, and a gloomy voice sounded from above his head.

"Yes, Grand Duke, I'm listening to you carefully." The blond boy replied with a painful smile as if the flesh had been severely caught by the claws of a crab.

"Really? Then tell me what I said just now?" Grand Duke Henry's voice showed no emotion.

"I said a million gold coins... and, and..." the blond boy whispered, trying to recall but couldn't remember what the man behind him said.

"You're perfunctory! You b*tch who only knows money!" The blond boy was pushed down by the huge impact, and his thin and slender body sank into the warm cushion.

The seat cushion of the noble carriage was really soft. In a trance, the young man even mistakenly thought that he was lying on the clouds of heaven, but when he opened his eyes and looked at the terrifying and ferocious fat face, he quickly realized that he was still In a dark hell.

"Are you looking down on me like those people, thinking that I have lost power and money, and become a laughing stock in the aristocratic circle?!" Grand Duke Henry laughed coldly, "You are all equally ignorant! Know what kind of terrible guy is hiding in the capital!"

"They all thought that I betrayed His Highness Fern because I was afraid of the Queen's power... It is true that I was afraid of my moody and cruel sister. I was scolded and scolded by her since I was a child, but I am not stupid at all. No." Grand Duke Henry lowered his voice, and moved close to the boy's ear, "Shh, I'm only telling you one person, I was blackmailed...by a person who died long ago, by a seductive devil."

The blond boy shivered helplessly, enduring the crazy heaving and falling of a body that was three times his weight.

"Everyone in the capital thought I was stupid and timid, just like everyone thought Mary Victoria was crazy at the beginning, but now I know that she is not crazy, and those crazy things she said are true! I received that He not only knows all the truth, but also has the original transaction with my name signed. Do you know? I have always been very cautious, and I have always asked Sister to sign the transaction, just to prevent the secret from being exposed one day, and I also I can get away with it." Grand Duke Henry's voice paused for a moment, "Except for one time, that was the first time I lost playing Whiters, and I signed my name on that piece of paper."

"Haha, he is really amazing, wise, powerful and beautiful, just like the polo flowers blooming in the courtyard under the sun, and the emeralds shining on the scepter when he is crowned." Grand Duke Henry looked excited, his voice mixed with panting, "I Why tell them the truth, anyway, I will leave the capital with a huge amount of wealth, whatever they say, sooner or later they will see what they are playing in the palm of their hands."

The blond boy's ears were buzzing, and he couldn't hear what Grand Duke Henry was saying. He felt that all the air in his lungs had been squeezed out, as if sinking into the bottom of the sea, almost suffocating.

He had to do something... and if he didn't do something... he was literally going to die in this filthy wagon.

"I didn't ask you to do this, I just remind you that this is your only chance to save yourself." He suddenly remembered what the nobleman had said to him before getting into the car.

The slender arms covered with bruises hung down, groping left and right in the dark space under the cushion, until the fingertips touched the dagger that had been prepared long ago.

The carriage continued to bump, and Grand Duke Henry was still addicted to desire and couldn't extricate himself. He didn't notice that the two arms as soft as sea snakes slowly climbed up his back.

At the moment when the pleasure climbed to the peak, the blond boy hugged Grand Duke Henry tightly, and sent the edge of the dagger into the back vest full of fat.

he made it!

The crazy tyranny came to an abrupt end. The blond boy didn't dare to let go of his grip, and pressed against the dagger tightly. Seeing that there was no sound for a long time, he finally boldly opened his eyes.

Grand Duke Henry's protruding eyeballs were staring at him for a moment.

The blond boy opened his mouth and screamed silently.He didn't dare to move, watching the man lying on top of him stretch out his huge hands and clamp his neck tightly with all his strength.

"Die...die...die..." Grand Duke Henry's dark lips made a trembling syllable.

Like a vicious curse, announcing the end of his short life.

***

"If he had done it earlier, the dagger would have enough venom, and he wouldn't have the strength to move." Someone said lightly, "I thought I couldn't wait for your signal, so I had to do it myself."

The carriage stopped at some point, and time seemed to stand still at this moment. The man who came in held the long sword in his hand and lifted Grand Duke Henry's fat body to the other side, and threw the robe he was holding onto the blond boy's head with his left hand, " The negotiated reward is in your pocket."

Under the shadow of the robe, the blond boy curled up into a ball, breathing heavily, and his left hand was still holding on to the door bell.

That was the assassination signal that he and Baron Cester had agreed upon before getting into the car.

The blond boy poked his head out of his robe cautiously. Baron Cester seemed to be rummaging for something on Grand Duke Henry.

"The identification documents are not with him. I remember it should be in a dark red leather bag." The blond boy said in a low voice.

Sist looked up into the boy's eyes: "Do you know what I'm looking for?"

"I guessed randomly." The blond boy blinked his dry eyes.

"If I were you, I would take the gold coins and leave this place of right and wrong right now, instead of staying here." Sist looked back, walked to the back of the carriage, and continued to search.

The blond boy looked at the dying Grand Duke Henry. His legs were trembling and he had no strength. Wrapped in a robe, he staggered to his feet and leaned against the car door: "I... didn't follow your orders for gold coins."

"I don't care about your reasons." Thester took out the dark red leather bag, which was full of documents, and he could barely see the red seal on the parchment that symbolized the royal family's status through the faint moonlight.

"It's because of the robe. You also gave me a robe in the casino..." The blond boy lowered his head and said to himself, his bare feet dangling in the air, with black blood stained on his feet.

Sist paused, and glanced at the purple marks on the young man's neck: "You are for yourself. If you don't do it, you have no chance to talk to me here now."

"Master Xister, I am not afraid of death at all. Really, or rather, I have thought of dying a long time ago." The young man looked up at the lonely moon in the sky, "People like me are alive and well." What value is it, for my father to pay off debts, for others to vent their desires... What is left is a pure young body, which doesn't even need to think, so living like this can't even compare to livestock in the pasture."

"Maybe for you, that action was just out of pity, or something else." The boy squeezed out a little green smile, "But I am really grateful to you, you made me feel like a human being , not a commodity that is sold at will. You have left me a piece of dignity."

Sometimes a very small act may just save a dying soul.Sister tried hard to recall the scene in the casino, too many important things happened recently, he couldn't even remember whether he had given the boy such a robe.Logically speaking, he would not do such unnecessary things, but it is also possible that for a moment he saw the shadow of his sister in the boy.

After all, they looked about the same age, and they were all at the age when they needed to be taken care of by their families.

"I don't need your gratitude, and I don't remember the things you said." Cister didn't lift his head, and tied the leather bag with the binding rope again.

"It's okay, it's normal that you are a high-ranking nobleman and don't remember a little person like me." The boy tilted his head and said, "I'll just remember."

"..." Sister frowned, faintly feeling the inexplicable stubbornness in the boy's character, and stopped talking.He had a hunch that if he accidentally got entangled with this little guy, he would have another trouble that he couldn't get rid of.

"Why do you want to kill Grand Duke Henry?" the boy continued to ask.

"This has nothing to do with you." Sester said coldly, "And you better forget everything."

"Is it because of... Lucy?" the young man said softly, "Did you do this to protect her?"

"Why do you know the name 'Lucy'?" Sester's eyes were filled with cold murderous intent, holding a sword in his hand, his eyes locked on the young man in front of him.

"I, I... heard it from the mouth of the Grand Duke."

"What did he say?"

"He said that Duke Oscar likes Lucy, and the Grand Duke has heard the Duke praise her for being beautiful." The boy pursed his lips and said.

"What else?" There was no emotion in Sister's voice.

"...And, I don't think you want to know, they are all ugly words." The young man lowered his head and said in a low voice.

"He is a complete scum|scum, so he paid the price of death." Sist stared quietly at the boy for a few seconds, snapped his sword back into its sheath, and got on his horse, "Now I'm leaving, You also take the money and leave this place."

"But, I... don't know where to go." The young man held his cloak tightly and said in a panic, "There is nowhere to go."

"That's something you should worry about yourself." Sist said expressionlessly.

"Master Sister! Can you take me with you?" The boy looked up at the man on the horse with a pitiful look.

"No." Sister said impatiently with a headache, "You are worthless to me, just a troublesome drag."

"I, I can do anything for you, I can do laundry, cook and sweep the floor, I can be your servant, and I can also polish weapons for you... If it doesn't work, you can also give me to the nobles of the southern territory as a meeting gift, Maybe some of them like me..." The boy's voice became strange because of choking, he didn't know why he was crying, maybe the forest was too dark.He actually didn't want to cry, because if he cried, he would become ugly, and if he became ugly, then his only valuable place would be gone.

"Shut up, do you think the movement is not loud enough? This place is not far enough from the gray wall." Histor lowered his voice and said fiercely, "If the patrol finds us, none of us will be able to leave."

"Yes, I'm sorry." The young man covered his mouth, his shoulders kept shrugging under the cloak, like an obedient little beast, after listening to his master's order, he swallowed all his voice.

Cister sighed deeply, as if he was tired of such time-wasting entanglements.He forcefully pulled the boy onto the horse, threw the crimson leather bag into the boy's arms, and rode on the horse without saying a word and disappeared into the dark night.

***

St. Viadu City, First Courtyard, St. Corinthian Church.

Dean Dunbar Butz of Joshua College sat under the tall and luxuriant papaya tree, let go of the golden cross in his hand, pulled out a high-quality cigarette from his robe, and handed it to Bishop Clara.

A gleam of flame flickered on the tinder bag, and the tip of the cigarette was lit.

"It's inconvenient to light a cigarette, which is probably the only flaw in the magic of the Holy Light." Bishop Clara, who was sitting across from him, said with a cigarette in his mouth. "Light is born from flames. It stands to reason that we devout believers should learn by analogy."

"Light is the origin of all things, and flames should be born from light, my lord bishop." Dean Dunbar frowned and corrected while looking at the clouds of smoke in his eyes.

"Dunbar, don't be so rigid. This kind of question can be traced back endlessly, just like which came first, the chicken or the egg. Believe me, neither the Pope nor the great God of Light will blame us for a single sentence .” Bishop Clara patted the lion statue beside him.

Dean Dunbar pouted, not wanting to continue the topic, "Is there anything you want me to do here?"

"The candidate for the Holy Son." Bishop Clara replied succinctly.

"This... is indeed an extremely important matter, but does it have anything to do with me?" Dean Dunbar was a little puzzled. It does look quite influential.But in fact, his position is far away from the inner center of the Holy See, and he has no right to make decisions on various matters, let alone being a candidate for the Holy Son, and there is no procedure that requires him to handle the transfer of ordinary nuns.

"No, no, no." Bishop Clara held a cigarette and shook his finger at Dean Dunbar, "The Holy Son is the future pope, and he is related to the future of the Holy See and our future. This matter It is closely related to each of our believers."

"But, is there any doubt about this matter?" Dean Dunbar looked around and said in a low voice, "Who else is qualified for this sacred position except His Royal Highness Raphael. Don't you have—"

"I respect the choice of the Pope and the God of Light. Of course, His Royal Highness Raphael is very suitable. Although he comes from the royal family, this is a bit sensitive, but his beliefs are obvious to all." Bishop Clara interrupted Dean Dunbar.

"His Royal Highness Raphael Salfield, he is a true saint." Dean Dunbar paused and said, "I have met him several times, but I still don't know anything about his thoughts."

"Indeed, he doesn't seek fame and fortune, is strict with himself, and strictly abides by teachings. Even when he preaches, he rarely shows his face, and his whole person is full of mystery. If it were someone else, he would already be preparing to create public opinion among the common people at this time For example, some commemorative coins with portraits are distributed like in the past." Bishop Clara nodded affirmatively, "And he should still be praying in front of the statue now, it is really a perfect image."

"That's why it would be strange if the Holy Son was chosen by someone else..." Speaking of which, Dean Dunbar felt a little bit of trouble, and turned to Bishop Clara, "Did you hear any objection?"

"Bishop Zangwill." After a long silence, Bishop Clara revealed a name.

"Bishop Zangwill? He is the teacher of His Royal Highness Raphael." Dean Dunbar was completely confused. "Could he have doubts about the candidate?"

"It's not such a simple matter." Bishop Clara extinguished the spark of the cigarette. "Yesterday evening, I saw a sealed document on Bishop Zangwill's desk, which contained the oracle that the Pope listened to."

"Oh, the supreme and great God of Light." Hearing this, Dean Dunbar lowered his head and kissed the golden cross on his neck, "You won't peek at the contents, my lord bishop."

"Please, don't casually say that I committed a crime after praising the gods, don't you think you act like a vengeful woman?" Bishop Clara twitched his mouth, "Okay, at night , I will personally go to the confessional to make atonement to the God of Light."

"You should have realized this earlier." Dean Dunbar said lightly, "When you stepped on my shoulders and became a cardinal."

"Dunbar, my friend, don't keep talking about the old days, you are fine now... But what I want to say is that we may meet in the confessional of the church, because next, I will tell you the oracle You and I will soon become accomplices." Bishop Clara spoke extremely fast like a projectile flying out.

"Can I choose not to listen?" Dean Dunbar suddenly had a bad premonition, and his experience told him that being with an unreliable bishop would never be a good thing.

"That document has the names of the candidates for the Holy Son," Bishop Clara said.

"Not Raphael Salfield?" Dean Dunbar's pupils shrank.

"Of course, there is the noble name 'Raphael Salfid'," Bishop Clara said, "but there is another name recorded in the oracle."

"Two names? How is this possible?" Dean Dunbar gasped. "The lions can only have one leader. It is impossible for the Holy See to have two holy sons, and it is impossible for there to be two popes in the future."

"I don't know, it's an oracle, the will of God that we can't figure out." Bishop Clara stretched out his hand, "Please give me another one."

Dean Dunbar silently took out the cigarette case and lit one for himself. Now he knew why the bishop beside him had become addicted to cigarettes again.

"What's going on recently? It's like the unusual signs shown before the earthquake." Bishop Clara sighed, "I feel that something big is going to happen in the capital."

"Even if there is a major event, there is nothing we can do. We still have to stay in the capital. No matter what, there will only be more chaos outside the gray wall." Dean Dunbar was a little annoyed, "To be honest, my lord, you should keep this bad secret by yourself." Keep it in your heart instead of sharing it with other people."

"I don't want to be like this either, my dear friend." Bishop Clara patted Dean Dunbar on the shoulder, "The reason I'm telling you is that this matter may have something to do with you."

"Are you serious? With me?" Dean Dunbar frowned, "I don't even have the most basic right to vote for academic affairs!"

"To be precise, it has something to do with where you work, the Joshua Academy of the Imperial Academy of Magic." Bishop Clara said.

Dean Dunbar was very puzzled.

"Alex Kabede, the heir of the Kabede family, a figure who has been making a fuss in the capital recently, you can hear his name every few days." Bishop Clara took out a piece of paper from his red robe. A note, "Perhaps he should be called Viscount Alex in a while, he is still studying at Joshua Academy under your command, right?"

"Yes, what's wrong?"

"Arix, this is another name that appeared on the oracle."

The author has something to say: Please, the first part of the coronation is finished, and the second part is in the author's column. Please bookmark it.

1. I wrote this article to feel good about myself [actually it is an illusion], but to be honest, the income taught me to be a man. After writing for a few months and adding up the money invested, it means that I didn’t make a penny, and I’m still losing money now. It looks like a few hundred. 【As expected of me, a business genius】

But now I don't care about money, otherwise I wouldn't open the second one.Since I have also found a job recently, I don't have to expect to write articles for dinner.

2. Thank you angel readers for your support. Really, without you, I would not be able to finish the first part. In the next week, I will refine the full text.

3. Regarding the opening time of the second part, if there are [-] collections this month, I will start to open after finishing the outline.If not, I may start another short article to make money, and then come back and continue to update. 【This year will definitely open the second part!】

ps: In my mind, I probably plan to have three parts. The only thing I can guarantee is that it will not be unfinished, and it will be finished. I am worthy of everyone's love for it.