The young crown prince exited the palace in a gesture that was almost fleeing for his life, but even so, before he closed the door with his own hands, he still gritted his teeth, held back the tears that were about to well-up in his eyes, and looked at his father with a pleading gaze for the last time.

Tomman still did not give up on the last attempt at "peace". However, his father sat silently in the same place, without even looking at him with his eyes, and the whole person seemed to be an emotionless statue made of the coldest rock, without any luster and elasticity of life.

The young crown prince hung his head in disappointment, isolating himself from his father, who had fallen completely deep into thought, on either side of the door.

My wife was self-righteous and did something stupid that I would have to bear the consequences until now. The emperor thought, I have always played the image of being law-abiding, fair and strict, but now I must bear the image of "killing relatives...... Time, on the other hand, must be a lifetime.

My line of succession is obviously above Karin, and I am obviously the most reasonable and legitimate heir to this empire, but because of such stupid things, I have been doubted and scrutinized by so many people, and even the bishops of the Great Church have refused to take a stand and declare the legitimacy of my throne. Now, I, the real Emperor of Auckland, are secretly called "Icon the Murderer" by the common people of the imperial capital. My niece is obviously a rebel against the Empire, but she is regarded by many as the true Chosen One, and the return of Estelle of the Light is almost the reincarnation of the goddess of radiance, Serokxia.

Now, my son, whom I have high hopes for, is like this again. He's so cowardly, he's a coward. Naïve, obviously already an adult. is still naïve, as if a child, even the daughters who have been pampered by their mothers understand the reality and cruelty of politics and power better than him. He really thought that it was a power game for the supreme emperor. Will it be a black-and-white verdict of right and wrong? He really thought that his sister would let our whole family go at the moment when she was about to seize supreme power, and then obediently come to my command to be a loyal and capable courtier? Crown Prince? The Chief of the Privy Council? If Karin really wants to stand with me, what is the point of such a position?

My lords and ministers are also mostly fools. They are corrupt, ignorant, unable to see reality clearly, and unwilling to accept change, that is, they cannot even keep their own territory and army. Nor can they give any help to their lords in danger.

My army and generals are even more shameful betrayers. Obviously the new army built by His Majesty the Sun King and directly obeyed the orders of the central imperial court, known as "the emperor's true sword and shield" and "the real defender of the empire", was obviously called the "forbidden army" by the people and nobles in fear, but they disobeyed the orders of me, the legitimate emperor. The most important thing is that if you don't obey orders, it's just that you hide in the fortress barracks on the outskirts of the imperial capital, but you still go to the emperor every month to ask for food and military salaries. By the way, it is also a matter of course to ask for double pay and rewards during the New Year's holidays.

Emperor Iken was not without the idea of cutting off the supply of these disobedient forbidden troops. But if you think about it, the five legions have more than 100,000 forbidden troops, including the first and third legions, known as the "Royal Foresters", who also have the name and banner of the Sun King. and more than 10,000 Auckland's ace troops, the Griffin Flag Guard. These people just don't say anything now, and they practice day and night in the barracks, as if there had never been a civil war. They did not swear allegiance to themselves. Likewise, there is no thought of running to the north and the "rebel" round. However, if you really move a little bit of carelessness. I'm afraid it will really force people to make a strong choice.

I am obviously the emperor, but I must provide for my forbidden army like my uncle. Is there such a sad emperor in the world? He is even more tragic than the mediocre monarchs who were used as puppets by the gate lords and nobles in the previous generation. At least at that time, the princes and ministers did not have the intention of abolishing the emperor, and the emperors could also stay in the Yongchen Palace with peace of mind and hide from the sister paper to do embarrassing things, and occasionally be a rubber stamp when needed, without worrying about such a hard work as themselves.

I must be the first in Auckland's history to spend money and grain to buy my own forbidden army so that they don't attack their emperor, right? Icon thought.

The emperor, who had never encountered anything good since he came to power, sat in the glorious Yongchen Palace, but felt unbearable sadness and loneliness. The pressure of sadness collapsed from all directions like an avalanche, and he lowered his head, hid his face with his hands, and let out a low, vented roar from between his fingers, like a wounded beast.

"Don't you know who to trust now? My Majesty? The ethereal voice resounded slowly through the Hall of Wisdom once more.

"Are you still there? How blasphemous and rude it would be to peep into the hall of the goddess of wisdom for such a long time, to peep into private secret meetings, to peek into my heart...... Don't challenge my bottom, Baltoli. The Emperor said coldly. However, his voice did lack the deliberately brewed sense of oppression of the past, and he seemed unusually tired.

"Oh, my majesty, don't forget, this is the privilege you have given me! You're worried that you'll be harmed by an enemy hiding in the dark with magical spells, and that's why you need my advice and protection. But how can I protect you? Humble as a contemptible person, you can't stay in your bedroom all the time...... And the glorious Yongchen Palace is like the sun, so that people like me, who are destined to live in the shadows, always stay away. ”

"Yes, it should be respectful, this kind of Yongchen Palace is really like the sun, and only sun-like characters are worthy of being here. I probably really don't fit here. The Emperor looked at the empty hall as if to say to himself: "I sit here like a trembling person, disguising myself as another Great Emperor, another Virtuous King, another Sun King...... But things have come to this point, and I am destined to become one of the shortest and most stupid emperors of the Shengquan Dynasty, right? It's like a clown sitting on the big stage of Yongchen Palace, and performing hard......"

Is that how you see your efforts? For today, for your empire. Don't you know best what kind of effort you've put in? ”

"I know to myself that there is no point. Baltoli. The emperor laughed self-deprecatingly: "For someone like me, who is destined to leave a name in history, it is the opinion of the world that really determines my fame and status." It is a name for eternity as a holy king. Or as a mediocre and stupid person who does not measure his strength, and becomes a stepping stone for Karin to lay the foundation of the empress, there is only such a choice. ”

"So, didn't you hire me precisely to make the first choice a reality?" Bartoli's voice went from ethereal to steady. The smoke rising from the hall slowly condensed into a translucent human form in front of the emperor. He was of medium size, wearing a robe that covered his head and face, and he couldn't see his head and face clearly, only a pair of yin and yang demon pupils of different colors could be seen. Ice blue as a snow-capped mountain and scarlet as fiery as a sea of blood.

"It's not like you haven't lost and you're left with nothing. My Imperial Majesty......" Baltoli, or rather the void condensed by Balto's mana, sighed in a low voice.

"You mean these disheartened rabble in the imperial capital? Or do you not know when reinforcements will arrive? The emperor's face finally squeezed out a sarcastic expression, and I have to say that this is the most vivid expression he has ever appeared.

"Neither the Lord Chancellor of House Lancaster nor the Grand Duchess of House Draxley will be a reliable example. You've always figured it out, haven't you? Baltoli's phantom began to flicker, as if laughing: "Isn't the reaction of Eagle Helm City already proof this?" If they really want to be on your side, they have already made their choice when you still had this empire. But now. You've lost half an empire, so why should you expect loyalty from them that never existed? Just because, the Duke of Tyrion is your brother-in-law? Or is it because he made a marriage contract to your daughter on behalf of his son? ”

The emperor was silent, as if he had understood what the other party meant.

"The Lancasters have betrayed their in-laws and the Emperor more than once. Last. Does it have to be the last one? ”

Iken didn't want to believe it, but he had already thought of his brother-in-law and the prime minister's last advice to him when the Sun King was dying.

"You are not destined to be a good king. Your Highness. You are paranoid and stubborn, and you can no longer see this era clearly. The pace of this great change is destined to be unstoppable. It won't be something that your brain that doesn't dare to take a step beyond the thunder pool can keep up. Don't think I'm talking ugly, and don't think I'm being alarmist. The ugly dwarf speaks so bitterly. The unassuming Prime Minister shrugged his shoulders, still smiling as ugly as if he was hunting a beast: "The moment your niece leaves the imperial capital, you have lost your best opportunity. Give up the throne, and you may still have a virtuous royal lord or judge to enjoy a good name in history. Otherwise......"

Otherwise, is that the beginning of all tragedy?

"What else can I do?" The Emperor asked.

Baltoli seemed to have seen this, and only spoke slowly: "As the rightful supreme of Oakland, you have the power to mobilize all the forbidden forces. You have to make those generals understand this deeply. ”

His voice was like a poisonous insect crawling on the ground underground, pouring out of the cracks in the earth, but quickly disappeared like a thin puff of smoke.

In this entire glorious Yongchen Palace, no one heard that voice, except for their supreme.

“…… Oh my God, what kind of thing am I trading with! The Emperor let out a painful moan, like a poor man about to be dragged into the endless refining fire by the tentacles that crawled out of hell. This supreme of Oakland was crawling there like this, and he couldn't get up for a long time.

But after a long while, he finally straightened up slowly, regained his old upright posture, and left the hall of Pallas with great courage and imposing steps, his unsmiling face full of majesty that ordinary people did not dare to look at directly. The maids and servants guarding the door couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw that the emperor they had known in the past had returned.

"What about my son......" the Emperor asked.

“…… Ah, Your Highness Somans, I have just left, and now I have gone out of the city to visit Her Majesty the Empress, who is recuperating in the Bailu Palace. The emperor's butler hurriedly replied. He didn't dare to say the word "house arrest", so he could only use a sharpening "cultivation".

"She's just being imprisoned, and if she does something wrong, she must be punished, even if it's the queen." Emperor Iken grimaced and said coldly: "What is there to dare to say about such a natural thing?" ”

"Yes, yes, Xiorge's gaffe......"

"Well, take me to see my son." A trace of pain flashed across the emperor's face, but he suppressed a heavy sigh in his heart: "I'm talking about Kalman, my poor little son. (To be continued.) )