You and me under the world tree

And that has something to do with the woman who is now in charge of the Netherlands Navy and Held Fortress.

Pirate Queen Howard...

Because of his background as a pirate, the current Demon Sword Master Hewale already has such a title.

Although as far as she is concerned now, she is commanding the navy of the Netherlands, which is considered to be cut off from the forces of the ruined city, but those people in the ruined city of the Rhine still maintain a high degree of loyalty to her.

In Hagen's view, this is a very dangerous thing. Not only are the people inside the abandoned city having a terrible unity, but more importantly, there is a giant who doesn't seem to have a high IQ, but is particularly capable of fighting.

It was also for this reason that when she re-examined the map of the Netherlands, she realized that the geographical location of the abandoned city was outrageous.

It is very close to Skywrath King City, surrounded by newly built fortresses, and there are even troops stationed on the Rhine River.

Most importantly, the command of Amstel Harbor and Held Fortress are not completely unified.

Hagen could tell that the location of this abandoned city was indeed intended to directly resist Legney's attack, but most strategists with a little brain can basically take this into consideration.

For the mixed-race palace minister, the scariest thing about the man in front of him was that he was able to make full use of his decisions at that time until now.

Nothing is missing, and nothing is wrong.

"Your vision is unmatched."

Finally, facing Hodder's gaze, Hagen spoke slowly.

"Until now, the harbor of Amstel has served as a vital gateway, allowing us to circumvent Danish interference, and even though we are now united with the Goths and hostile to Denmark, we can still bypass Open this kingdom entrenched at the gate of the northern peninsula, do business with Gitland and Iceland, and we even have trade with Norway."

"Humph……"

"In addition, there is also about the northern sea area..."

"Okay, there's nothing to say about this kind of thing,"

Finally, Howard interrupted him.

"Don't say so many things, I just want to say that sometimes it is a good thing to distinguish the relationship between the monarch and his ministers, which can help the king increase his prestige, but at the same time, don't forget what you are like with him people."

"Your Excellency the Sage."

"He is the king, but he is also Siegfried, and you are the palace minister, but you are also Hagen, you are monarchs and friends, just like me and Siegmund."

"Your Mightiness……"

After hearing what Hodder said, Hagen couldn't help being moved.

Even though he was from the Kingdom of Burgundy, he could only understand what a high praise and expectation this was after he became the Prime Minister of the Netherlands.

The once human god of war Siegmund and the sage who stood behind him and hid in the shadows to pave the way for him, until now poets have praised their friendship.

"After he became king, other people approached him more or less with interests, but you are different. There are very few people who Siegfried can really trust, so I hope you can keep that sincere love." heart."

"I……"

"The court is undoubtedly cold, but at least, please maintain a little temperature in this vortex of interests...Be cautious, be cautious, and don't be arrogant."

Chapter 22: Hints

The former was a request from the sage, while the latter was his admonition.

He is the sage of the Volsung family, but at the same time is Siegfried's uncle.

And under this double identity, every word he said carried a heavy weight.

And under this heavy pressure, Hagen suddenly felt that he couldn't even breathe.

Temperature, palace, prudence, destruction, desolation.

At this moment, Hagen's thoughts completely rioted.

In the end, even he himself didn't know what he was thinking.

"I will."

At this moment, Hagen himself didn't even sort out his messy thoughts.

He only knew that the burden on his shoulders was heavy.

He has already seen the coldness of the palace and the dark vortex, because there is no emotion in the palace.

As long as he has a little bit of affection for the Burgundian kingdom that educated him, he can't be as rational and ruthless as he is now.

Wait a moment……

At this moment, Hagen suddenly felt as if he had noticed something.

He felt as if he had understood the admonition expressed by the sage before him.

He made himself pay attention to the relationship with Siegfried, is he doubting himself?

"Your Majesty is my nobleman."

Finally, meeting the sage's gaze, he spoke.

"I understand this deeply. He is the first person who has never discriminated against my short body and is willing to value my talents. Therefore, I will dedicate everything to him, even my life."

He raised his head, his eyes filled with stubbornness.

"For me, the Kingdom of the Netherlands is my hometown."

Hagen of Tronpage, this loyalty will never be doubted by anyone, even Hodder.

Because whether it's the short warrior in front of him or the legendary 'Hagen', that's how it behaves.

It can even be said that his loyalty has reached the point of being almost brainless.

So at this moment, Hodder just nodded slowly.

"I have never doubted your loyalty, Hagen, I have seen every achievement of yours, but I don't want all you have in your heart to be 'loyalty'."

"Your Mightiness……"

After hearing what the sage said, Hagen subconsciously frowned.

"you……"

"This is just my expectation and emotion, because I have witnessed some 'rebellion' under the banner of loyalty in Gothic."

"Ok?"

After hearing what the sage said, Hagen couldn't help being taken aback.

At this moment, his head did not turn around for a while.

"Loyalty and rebellion, these two..."

"In the hearts of some people, it is possible to draw an equal sign."

"Why are there people like this?"

Perhaps it was because Hodder's words were too shocking, for a moment, Hagen felt that he couldn't turn his head around.

So what the hell is going on here?

"This person has been quite famous recently, and I think you should have heard of his name."

"who?"

"Prince... No, it should be said that it is a princess now, the former holy sword warrior Witig under the command of Prince Victory."

"He."

At this moment, Hagen really did not expect that His Excellency the Sage would suddenly mention that man.

Holy Sword Warrior, Half-Blood Elf.

In fact, of course he has heard of this man. After all, the Gothic Kingdom has been trying its best to promote the prince who is destined to inherit the throne and his warriors for a while.

At that time, anyone with a discerning eye could see that King Dittmar was planning to pave the way for his own child, so he tried his best to build momentum.

And more importantly, that man also followed Dietrich to the Netherlands.

"That man, I remember he betrayed the prince he was loyal to."

Having said that, Hagen couldn't help showing a hint of disgust on his face.

In fact, he hated this kind of behavior.

"Well, but it's interesting that for a while at first, he didn't think he'd done anything wrong."

"Then he has a really thick skin."

Hodder didn't refute Hagen's undisguised mockery, because he thought so too.

In any case, his deeds cannot be recognized.

However, this is not a reason to deny his previous actions.

"The so-called 'loyalty' is actually a very complicated word, because it is just a final result, just like the residents in the abandoned city, they also remain loyal to Siegfried and the Netherlands, but There is a 'precondition'."

"But Your Excellency..."

Before Hagen could say anything more, Hodder patted him on the shoulder lightly.

"The so-called loyalty is nothing more than a result, and it can only be a result. Some people are loyal to a specific person because of their interests, and some people are amazing. They are loyal to their inner desires."

Having said that, Howard couldn't help laughing.

"For example, Wittig is such a person. Maybe he didn't realize that he is actually a selfish person. Although he pursues some kind of pure justice that does not exist, this kind of justice is also in his heart. selfish desires."

"That man..."

"He longs to be famous and to become a famous hero. For him, loyalty is inevitable."

"There is no such thing as inevitable..."

"But it is inevitable for him. The so-called loyalty is just to prove his own excellent character."

After saying this, Hodder paused for a moment, and he stared at Hagen.

"In short, there are many kinds of so-called loyalty, and there are also various motives. What about you? Hagen, I think what that kid Siegfried wants to hear is definitely not a word like favor."

Because the so-called favor can be consumed after all.

If you have always held this attitude, then in the end, this so-called favor will be completely consumed one day.

Therefore, if you want to last long, you must establish new connections.

"Hagen, what do you think of Siegfried?" Hodder asked, "What are you looking for in the Netherlands?"

Hagen of Tronpage...

Anyone with a discerning eye can see what kind of mission he has on his shoulders after leaving Burgundy.

As a matter of fact, he was indeed an 'investor' arranged by the Kingdom of Burgundy at first, at least in the eyes of the Burgundian royal family.

Perhaps in the eyes of those people, Hagen is just an investment, and if handled properly, they can even gain a lot of benefits through this relationship.

This is where humans are ridiculous.

On the one hand, I feel that the relationship maintained by interests is not stable, and it is not uncommon for such things to turn against each other for the sake of interests, but on the other hand, I feel that the "spiritual investment" like marriage will definitely be rewarded.

In short, Burgundy's investment was a waste, because Hagen never wanted to talk to his so-called 'family'.

He stayed in the Netherlands and dedicated himself to serving Siegfried.

However, this is still not stable, at least in Hodder's eyes, Hagen must at least recognize the source of the so-called loyalty.

At least let him have this cognition, so that he can be regarded as stable.

"I……"

"Don't rush to answer, because there is actually no answer to this kind of question."

Finally, Howard tapped him on the shoulder.

"Okay, go to work, the future of the Netherlands depends on you young people."

Chapter 23: Work Well

In the end, the sage just left.

Under Hagen's gaze, he left the front hall directly and continued up the stairs.

And the stairs leading to the top lead to the courtyard of the Volsung family, the courtyard that countless people dream of and want to enter.