A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

At noon, the bright sunlight came in from the skylight and fell on the face of the boy who had been sleeping for a long time.

Suddenly, with a movement of those eyelashes, Garlan slowly opened his eyes.

The familiar bedroom scenery came into his eyes, and the strong smell of decoction lingered faintly at the tip of his nose.

He wasn't lying down, it seemed that someone lifted him up from his sleep and sat on the head of the bed.

He turned his head and looked out the window.

The sun was shining brightly outside the window, and by the pool water in the courtyard, large patches of lavender hyacinths were gently swaying in the warm wind.

The stone statue of Isdar, the goddess of the stars, stands in the center of the courtyard, and the fountain that falls from her falls into the air.

When Garlan looked at the beautiful scenery shrouded in sunlight outside the window, the golden pottery bowl containing the pitch-black potion was handed to him.

He turned around subconsciously, and saw the female officer who brought the medicine bowl to him standing by the bed, looking at him with slightly curved eyes.

"Taputi..."

Taputi had just helped Garlan up, and then turned back to hold the bowl of steaming potion.

As soon as she turned around, she saw Garlan staring out the window with his eyes open.

Startled for a moment, a faint smile appeared on Taputi's face. Instead of calling out to him, she walked gently to the bedside and handed the medicine bowl in her hand to the prince.

The magistrate looked at Garlan tenderly and said, "Prince, drink your medicine."

Garlan hummed, took the medicine bowl, and drank the big bowl of bitter medicine.

The potion was so bitter that his tongue was a little numb. He put down the bowl, and his pretty face wrinkled up.

Taputi, who took the bowl, smiled, and as soon as he stretched out his hand, he stuffed a small piece of sweet cheese cake into the wrinkled boy's mouth.

The rich milk flavor spreads in the mouth, sweet and sweet, covering the bitterness in the mouth.

Garlan sat on the bed, obediently chewing the pastry in his mouth.

The sweet taste seemed to relax his whole body, bringing a warm feeling together with the sun.

Suddenly, a certain person's face flashed in memory.

"... Taputi."

"Yes?"

"Heymos...he's been here all this time, hasn't he?"

"Yes, Prince, he has always been by your side." Taputi replied, "Just before you woke up, his subordinates came to see him, so he just went to the next room."

She asked, "Shall I call him over for you now?"

Garlan shook his head.

"Taputi, just wait here."

After he finished speaking, he got out of bed and walked out of the bedroom quickly.

In order to cover up the news of his illness, the maids and attendants were strictly ordered to stay outside the palace, and they were not allowed to enter easily without permission, so the hall was empty at the moment, and there was no one else.

Garlan looked around, then walked straight to the only room with a closed door on the left side of the hall.

Just as he walked to the door and reached out to push the door, a rather fierce voice came out.

"Are you really going to give up like this—"

Garlan's hand was already on the door, but it stopped, and he didn't push hard.

He stood at the door, a little at a loss, with a feeling of being unable to advance or retreat.

Unlike the huge doors outside the palace, the doors inside the palace are all beautiful and light. Most of them are hollowed out and carved with patterns, which hardly block the sound.

Therefore, at the moment of his hesitation, all the following conversations in it had been passed into his ears.

"...I feel sorry for you."

Finally, the familiar deep voice came from inside.

Garlan paused for a moment with his hand on the door.

After a while, he withdrew his hand, turned and left, as if he had never been here before.

…………

After letting Suo Jia leave, Heymos returned to the bedroom, opened the translucent gauze curtain, and raised his head to meet the golden pupils looking at him from both directions.

The bright eyes are like golden gems placed in the sun.

It was noon, when the sun was at its brightest, and the whole room was brightly lit.

The young man was sitting on the bed with a fair complexion, and the long golden hair scattered from his shoulders, reflecting the sunlight, as if the sitting young man was glowing with a golden gleam.

That scene was indescribably beautiful.

The corners of Heymos' lips raised inaudibly, and he stepped forward, stood by the bed, and bent down.

He stroked Garlan's forehead with his hand, testing the temperature there.

"The fever has subsided."

He said, scanning the room.

"Where's Taputi?"

"... She guarded me for two days. It was too hard. I asked her to rest."

Because he wanted to talk to Heymos alone, Garlan sent Tapti away on purpose.

Heymos hummed casually without asking.In fact, he didn't care about the whereabouts of the female officer. The reason why he asked was simply because he couldn't see that there was no one to take care of Garlan.

He withdrew his hand, and suddenly out of the corner of his eye, he caught a touch of crimson on his fingers.

He raised his hand to look at it, then raised his eyes to look at Garlan, and suddenly smiled.

Garlan was still wondering why he was smiling suddenly, but Heymos had already raised his crimson finger to him.

"Look, you've melted the Shamash rune on your forehead."

Because of the low fever, the temperature on Garlan's forehead was not low, and the sweat was constantly oozing out, which actually smudged the crimson pigment that was not easy to fade.

Heymos rubbed the space between his brows.

"I don't know if there is any infection here," he said.

When Heymos said this, Garlan subconsciously looked at Heymos' forehead.

Heymos's own fingers brushed aside the jet-black hair on his forehead, revealing the blue God of War rune depicted on his forehead.

After seeing it, Garlan was embarrassed to find that the cyan rune was indeed stained with a touch of crimson.

The blurred scarlet traces and cyan lines intertwined together, immediately reminding Garlan of last night.

At that time, when he couldn't control his tears, Heymos kept pressing against each other's foreheads, as if to transmit strength.

His hand has been holding his cheek, as if silently supporting him.

The more you are cared for, the more fragile you are.

Perhaps it was because the hand stroking his head was too gentle that he couldn't stop his tears.

【From now on, you can only bow down to others—you, who are supposed to look down on all living beings, can only kneel at the feet of that person and look up to him humbly. 】

These words suddenly rang in his ears again, causing Garlan's chest to tighten suddenly.

"Heymos."

"Ok?"

"You said you wanted the throne."

"Yes, I did."

"..."

Garlan remained silent and did not continue speaking.

Heymos is very clear about his attachment to the throne.

This powerful man has never been someone who is willing to be inferior to others. The bottomless ambition and desire in his body make this man yearn for the throne.

Even though he has become the crown prince, Heymos never gave up the idea of ​​getting it.

This time would have been an excellent opportunity.

Because he presided over the defense of the royal city, the entire military force of the royal city was completely controlled by Heymos.

Although he led the army back, it will be difficult to take over the royal city for a while, and the royal city is still in the hands of Heymos.Especially since he fell ill immediately upon his return and fell into a coma.

At that time, as long as Heymos directly disclosed his illness, and then imprisoned the sick himself in the name of recuperating—for an extremely legitimate reason, it would be difficult for Xie Muer and the others to resist.

For Heymos at that time, the throne was within easy reach.

However, Heymos gave up this opportunity.

best chance.

Maybe it's the only chance.

And that reason...

Garlan raised his head and looked Heymos in the eye.

Those golden-red eyes were like gems burning in flames, beautiful but also extremely dangerous.

It seems that in the next second, it will be swallowed by the cluster of dangerous flames and burned to death.

But when those dangerous eyes looked at him, they always wrapped him gently.

【You gave up the throne for that person, but you may not be able to get that person in the future—won’t you be reconciled? 】

"Heymos, I know what you mean to me..."

Garlan's fingers clenched the thin blanket on his body slightly, and he lowered his eyes. For some reason, he didn't dare to meet Heymos' gaze again.

"But, I still..."

he whispered,

"I still……"

This man gave up his easy-to-get throne for him.

It would be impossible to say that he was not touched by this at all.

For so long, he and Heymos have always been tightly entangled, whether it is the fear and hatred of the previous life, or the relief of this life and the gradually rising concern for it.

His feelings for Heymos were mixed with too many things, too complicated, so that he couldn't understand it himself.

So his choice is to stop.

He chose to stop at a safe distance.

However, compared to his stoppage, Heymos has always dedicated all his warm feelings to him without reservation.

Infected by that kind of warm emotion, occasionally, he seemed to have a little bit of a heartbeat.

But he knew it was just a little bit.

The complicated feelings towards Heymos overwhelmed that little heartbeat.

Now, I feel a little more guilty.

"Sorry, I can't answer you."

Garlan said in a low voice.

"I don't know what will happen in the future, I don't know if I will have the same intentions as you in the future... I can't guarantee all of this."

"So, I still can't..."

Heymos had paid a lot for him, so much that he felt unbearable.

Sometimes he couldn't help thinking that maybe there was nothing wrong with accepting Heymos.

However, that thought was just fleeting.

He understands.

His reason for wanting to accept Heymos was indeed a little bit emotional, but it was more because of guilt and wanted to make up for what Heymos had done.

He didn't want to do such a stupid thing.

If he really accepted Heymos with this reason, it would be the most cruel act.

Garlan shook his head and said softly. He lowered his head and couldn't see Heymos's expression at the moment.

But now he has a feeling that it is difficult to breathe.

"You heard the conversation between me and Suo Jia?"

Heymos' voice came from above.

Garlan paused for a moment, but still didn't raise his head, only hummed in a low voice.

"Yeah, you heard that, so you feel sorry, because I gave up the throne for you, and you feel guilty for me, don't you?"

"........."

The young man pursed his lips tightly and clenched the blanket around his body with his fingers, but did not say a word.

"Garlan."

Heymos leaned forward deeply, his hands resting on the edge of the bed.

He leaned forward and stared at Garlan who lowered his head.

"Have you ever thought about..."

The corner of his lips raised suddenly.

"You can hear voices from inside the door, and the people inside the door also..."

He said, with a little smile in his eyes.

"Don't forget, my hearing is far better than ordinary people, including you."

A word made Garlan raise his head suddenly, he opened his eyes wide and looked at Heymos in astonishment.

"You, you... know me, I..."

He was so stunned that he began to stutter.

"Well, I know you're at the door, I heard your footsteps."

Heymos readily admitted.

He looked at the young man's stupefied look, moved his face closer, and moved his lips to the ear with the rough lapis lazuli earring.

"...'I feel distressed'."

he said softly.

The low, slightly hoarse voice became even more deceptive.

The man's inexplicably dangerous voice, accompanied by the breath from his thin lips, seemed to penetrate into the deepest part of the eardrum, paralyzing the brain for a moment.

Garlan froze instantly.

In the next second, he covered his ears almost reflexively, and shrank to the side.

"Don't talk in my ear!"

He covered his right ear and glared at the guy who purposely approached his ear and spoke in that very seductive tone.

He gritted his teeth resentfully, and tightly covered the tip of his ear, which was hot and red from the heat from the other's lips, with the fingers of his right hand.

"Did you tell me that on purpose?"

"Actually, it's not intentional."

Heymos shrugged his shoulders and replied without any concealment, "It's just that he didn't hide it."

Whether Garlan is coming or not, he always answered Suo Jia with that sentence.

He looked at Garlan and said, "I just think that since it's the truth anyway, there's no need to deliberately avoid you when you say it, so that you won't hear it."

Heymos' words stunned Garlan for a moment, he hesitated for a while, but for a moment he didn't know how to answer.

"After paying, I deliberately hide it from the other party, so that the other party does not know what I have paid... Do you think I will do this kind of idiot who only touches me?"

"..."

Absolutely not.

"So, I'll just say what's on my mind and let you know, what's wrong with that?"

"........."

Uh, it seems... there's nothing wrong with it.

Garlan always felt that his thinking was being misled by the eloquent Heymos.

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

He said: "But, Heymos, you..."

Just as Garlan started to speak, he was interrupted by the other party's extended hand.

Heymos leaned over the bed, his eyes level with Garlan's.He stretched out his hand and caressed Garlan's cheek, and his fingertips penetrated into the golden hair behind his ear.

"Garlan, giving up the throne is a choice I made myself."

he said, looking calm.

"Everyone is responsible for their own choices. Since I have made a choice, no matter what the future holds, whether I can get what I want is my own business."

The golden-red eyes deeply reflected Garlan's shadow, he said.

"I don't need you to be responsible for my decision."

……

He has been thinking heavily, since the end of the battle on the Lomar Plain, he has been struggling and wandering.

With the war over, the next step must be to determine the ownership of the throne.

Either him or Garlan.

If he was really ruthless, he might not be able to snatch the throne from Garlan.

He knew Garlan well. Although Garlan was now determined to sit on the throne, if he had to fight for it, Garlan, who was unwilling to suffer from Aaron Landis and become turbulent due to internal strife, would give up the throne.

However, the throne is Garlan's promise to the dead King Kamos.

If Garlan didn't pay much attention to the throne in the past, then after King Kamos left, the throne has become equivalent to the existence of King Kamos in Garlan's heart.

If he took away the throne, although Garlan would give up, his affection for him might be lost all at once, and he would never be as close as before.

Gallan might temporarily stay by his side for Aaron Landis and assist him in governing the country.But when the kingdom is fully stabilized, he will definitely leave him.

Apart from coercion, he had no other way to keep Garlan by his side.

But if coercive means were really used... From that moment on, he would completely lose Garlan.

forever.

irreparable.

At this moment, he suddenly remembered that dream again.

Under the pitch-dark night, that sharp arrow that gleamed coldly pierced through the back of the young man on the horse.

The boy fell from the horseback, his blond hair was soaked in the mud, blood oozed out, and his body became cold little by little...

Garlan died in that dark night.

……

He longed for the supreme throne.

He wants it.

Although he fell in love with Garlan, he never thought of giving up the throne for Garlan.

Until in that incomparably real dream, the moment when he saw the boy's cold corpse with his own eyes——

Just like what he said to Suo Jia who blocked him when he desperately chose to return to the king city from the north.

[If he is gone... everything in this world is meaningless to me. 】

[...including Aaron Landis. 】

…………

"Heymos?"

Seeing Heymos staring at him for a while without speaking, Garlan called out to him in confusion.

Waking up from the memory, Heymos raised his eyes, and Garlan, who was sitting on the bed, stared at him with open eyes.

The boy's body he was touching at this moment was so soft and warm.

The golden pupils are bright and lively, clearly reflecting his shadow.

That is a more beautiful existence than all the gems in the world.

Heymos' eyes curved slightly.

throne.

Garland.

From the very beginning, the two were not equal.

The throne was his desire, something in his hands that he wanted to grab.

——But that’s just one thing after all.

But the young man who was watching him with his eyes open in front of him was his whole world.

"Ah."

Heymos hummed, responding to Garlan's voice calling him.

"Don't worry, don't worry, we still have a long time."

He said, with gentle eyes.

"The future is still very long. In the future, I will always be by your side. I will not force you to do anything. I will wait until the day you accept me."

Garlan hesitated for a while, and said in a low voice, "If I can't accept... no, if I can't accept your words for a long time..."

"I'll hold."

The boy looked at him with a little confusion in his eyes.

"Even...you'll wait forever?"

Heymos smiled.

He leaned over and kissed the brow with the crimson rune.

He held Garlan's head in his hands, lowered his head, and buried his lips in the soft golden hair.

He spoke, his low voice almost whispering.

"'My heart beats because of you'..."

"...'My soul exists because of you'..."

These two sentences come from the legendary ballad that was born with Avdomir, the goddess of love and beauty, and spread in the land of Aaronlandis.

It was the ballad of Avdomir's courtship to the beautiful boy who had taken all her love.

The goddess was madly in love with the beautiful boy, and was even willing to dedicate her eternal life as a god to him.

"I'll wait."

Heymos whispered to the man in his arms,

"One year, ten years, 100 years...even 1000 years doesn't matter..."

The man's cold brows and eyes are more gentle than anything at this moment.

"I'll keep waiting."