The Duke in the Spire of Thorns

There are not many servants in Celeste Castle. Most of the servants are only responsible for taking care of the castle. The only one who serves Celeste is the butler Old George.

Old George is the housekeeper of Celeste's father. He knows Celeste's secret very well, and he is very considerate and caring for this little master who is different from human beings.Therefore, he didn't say much when he found out that Celeste would always take an extra meal during this time.

Celeste concealed the existence of Escrit, he didn't want to cause trouble for himself, every time he left the meal outside the door and knocked lightly to leave, he would come back to check after a while .He was looking forward to seeing that the meal was still outside the door, which would prove that Escrit had left, but unfortunately, so far, Escrit had not left.

He took the meals sent by Celeste into the room, and the empty plate would appear at the door when Celeste quietly went back to check, as if there was some kind of tacit agreement.And the plates are always shiny and new when they reappear.Celeste didn't know how he did it, he was pretty sure there was no water in the guest room.

This is also a small statement from him, no water means thirst and dirt.At first he did forget to bring drinking water.But Escrit didn't protest, and when he remembered it seemed unnecessary.

The clean plate is a sign of the strange way Escrit was able to get water.

Maybe it was just a thoughtful gesture from the guest, but Celeste insisted it was Escrit showing him off.The unknown is the most frightening thing, and Celeste completely gave up the idea of ​​forcing Escrit out.

He doesn't take a step out of the room, he is quiet and doesn't cause trouble.It's fine with Celeste.If it weren't for the need to deliver meals to him every day, Celeste would have almost forgotten the existence of a person like Escrit.

Escrito's security made Celeste feel relieved to leave him behind. He was frowning at the letter from Wangcheng, eager to find a solution.

But it's an unsolvable crisis, and his fishtail has forced him to ask for help on some occasions, as wheelchairs can't go up stairs.And the only person he could trust was old George.

If someone helps him out of good intentions and he can't refuse, then he will be in disaster.No matter how tightly covered the clothes are, the feel of fishtails and human legs is different.

Of course, there is another way to completely end his restless life: completely abandoning his identity as a human and going to the ocean.But this way is not going to work. As I said before, he is a mermaid with little ability to survive, and he cannot survive in the ocean.

It seemed that he was going to die no matter what, it was just a matter of time.

Celeste frowned, he didn't want to die, but there was nothing he could do.

Another letter came from Wangcheng, this time written by the king himself.In his letter, he thoughtfully proposed that he would send an envoy to meet Celeste, and send him back after the succession ceremony was over.This was all out of good intentions, but Celeste felt struck by lightning:

— an envoy!

If Celeste is really a sick person, then this envoy will be a great help to him.But he is not, he is a different kind on land, a mermaid who uses robes to hide that he is different from humans, and the envoy has a very high possibility of discovering this.Then what greeted Celeste was not an inheritance ceremony but a series of nightmares.

This is bad.

Earlier, Celeste's father prepared a substitute for him. The substitute grew up with Celeste, studied the same courses as him, and attended in place of Celeste when encountering difficult situations.It's a pity that the substitute disappeared a year ago, and his father began to stay sick shortly thereafter, and he didn't have the energy to find another one.And he was too busy taking care of his father to think about it.

Celeste sighed, he was in a dilemma, not knowing what to do.A gloomy future awaits him not far away, but right now his life is bright.

He couldn't think of an effective method, so he could only suffer and wait for a miracle to come.Every strike of the clock made his heart skip a beat. He was frightened, but at a loss for what to do.

Old George always frowned tightly during this time. He was a loyal servant, distressed by his master's plight, but he couldn't think of an effective way, and he murmured to himself: "It's all my fault. , I wish I had watched him more closely."

Celeste sighed, "It's not your fault, who would have thought of that?"

He sighed and pushed the wheelchair back to the bedroom.There was only one narrow window in his bedroom, and the outside world was sunny, but his bedroom was still dark.He lit the candle on the table, and the dark yellow flame danced slowly in the air.There was a dry itching from the waist down, he unbuttoned his robe, and as expected, some tiny scales fell off.

Itchy and painful, very uncomfortable.

Celeste dipped a large silk cloth into the jug and wrapped it around her tail.He can no longer indulge himself in the pool, he has to prepare for the upcoming trip.

Maybe God favored him and made the journey safe and sound?He hoped so.

The cool feeling rushed up his skull from the tailbone, Celeste shivered, and reached into the pitcher.

He let out a long breath.

As time passed, and the day of the messenger's arrival was getting closer, Celeste became restless.He no longer had any extra thoughts on Escrit.He still delivers food to the other party, but no longer observes whether the other party leaves.

Escrito seemed to have noticed his change, he put the clean plates at the door ahead of time, and he could take them away when Celeste came to deliver the food.

Celeste was anxious and distraught.The time for the messenger's arrival was approaching, and he didn't want to meet with the other party, so he began to think about whether it would be useful to pretend to be sick.

Old George agreed with Celeste's thoughts, "You pretend to be sick first, and delay the time to go to Wangcheng until next year. During this time, I will definitely find a suitable substitute for you."

This unresolved solution seemed to be Celeste's last hope, so he hid in his dark bedroom and lay on the bed with a pale face.

He didn't care about Escrit at all, he left a message to the other party, asking him to come to the kitchen to pick up the meal in the middle of the night, and Celeste would let Old John leave a meal there.

Escrit agreed calmly, he also seemed to know that the owner of this castle was in some trouble, and he was not angry at the decline in his treatment.

On the day when the envoy arrived, Celeste showed his most superb acting skills. He hid weakly in the soft pillow, and confessed to the envoy with a breathy voice.

"I'm so sorry, I was so rude." This sentence was accompanied by a series of coughing sounds.Celeste pretended to be very similar. After all, he had witnessed his father's lingering illness.

"Don't be sorry." A deep and gorgeous voice sounded: "I came at the wrong time and disturbed your recovery."

There was a smile in the voice, and it was inexplicably familiar. Celeste raised his head from the pile of pillows and glanced at him. The dim light made him unable to see the other person's face clearly.

Old George looked a little strange, he seemed to be suppressing his anger: "Please leave your bedroom, you need to rest."

He is a housekeeper who abides by the etiquette and dignity, and this gaffe seems very strange.Celeste was vaguely uneasy, and in the next second, his uneasiness came true.

The envoy chuckled lightly, "George, are you still angry with me?"

This familiar frivolous tone made Celeste immediately realize who the person in front of him was, and he was Celeste's former substitute.

He doesn't look like Hilles, but his father once turned to an alchemist to make him a potion. After drinking that potion, his appearance will become that of Hilles. Very similar.He rarely had the opportunity to show his own face, so Celeste couldn't remember his appearance clearly, but he was very familiar with this tone.

"I'm sick." The envoy sat on the edge of the bed, gently patted Celeste's shoulder through the soft quilt, "My lord, you are still so delicate."

There was no emotion in his tone, "but it's okay, you will get better under my care."

Celeste paused for a while, her voice a little hoarse: "You... what do you want to do?"

"I don't want to do anything." He laughed softly, and suddenly changed the subject: "Do you know my name?"

Celeste didn't know.

"You have been silent for a long time, it seems that you don't know. Also, a shadow, how can people remember its name?"

"Remember clearly, my name is Du Lian."

Du Li'an said maliciously: "I won't do anything, I won't expose you, and I won't help you, but I'm sure, you will step into the abyss little by little."

"Isn't it surprising? A shadow who doesn't even deserve a name, an unknown person who can only live in your shadow, can now be equal to you? If I want, I can destroy you."

Du Lian said softly: "Hey, you have to pay the price for what you and your father did before. Not everyone can be played by you in the applause."

"I don't think I'm playing with you." Celeste said calmly: "You are a commoner, an orphan without father and mother. If my father hadn't chosen you, maybe you are dead now. You get You need to pay a price for something that ordinary people can’t get, my father asked you before, and you agreed.”

Du Lian's face twisted, "Can I still refuse? If I refuse, I will definitely die! Do you think you are doing favors to me? Deprived of my identity, let me follow you like a shadow, like Like a dog lingering at your feet, do you think you feel kind to me?"