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"It’s him. He’s the one who collaborated with Lampard." One of the guards’ expression turned dark while he stared at Thales from afar. Then he whispered to his colleagues, "He caused Tim to lose his position, and also caused him to lose his chance to join the ranks of the Archduchess’ Guards... just because he didn’t realize that the King was at the palace gates."

The guards all shot Thales with hostile gazes.

Thales took a deep breath and pretended that he did not see any of them.

The prince and his group walked past the guards, and the guards all bowed to the Vice Commander of the Archduchess’ Guards, Lord Justin, who was leading the group.

"Hey!"

When they walked past the guards, one of the soldiers’ face was flushed red in agitation. Eventually, he could not resist cursing at Thales.

"May our King love your little a** well, Citizen of the Empire!"

The other guards did not bother covering up their laughter, even the Northlanders protecting Thales from behind.

Their eyes were filled with hatred and inextinguishable anger.

But Thales looked as if he did not hear those words. His expression remained unchanged, and he continued to move forward.

Lord Justin pursed his lips and did not say a word.

"Hey, Northlander, aren’t you going to control them?" Behind the group, Aida, who had been missing for a long time, tugged her cloak, and complained to Lord Justin, who was ahead of her.

"My duty is to protect the prince before the King’s White Blade Guards come to escort him out of Dragon Clouds City," Justin’s tone was cold. When he was talking about the "White Blade Guards", he raised his tone in a sarcastic manner, then tilted his head to the guards who had just spoken rudely.

"Unless they take out their swords and charge at us, reasonable protests are not something for me to deal with. They are not part of my duties."

"You call this ’reasonable’—" Wya was about to retort, but next to him, Ralf held him just in time and shook his head.

"Hmph, Northlanders." Aida turned her head around, and with displeasure, she distanced herself from them.

Thales remained quiet, but he looked contemplative as well.

It had only been a few hours since the hearing, which decided the victor of the entire country. However, some news had spread. Thales could obviously feel that the atmosphere in Heroic Spirit Palace had dropped drastically as he walked out of the Hall of Heroes.

From the personal guards to the nobles, when all the people who knew what happened entered his line of sight, they looked like they wanted to eat the Prince of Constellation alive.

Justin, who had protected him for a long time and was rather easy to communicate with, was one of them.

The prince sighed in his heart.

When they finally arrived at the stable, Jennie’s loud neighs rose into the air. She sounded happy.

But Thales was slightly stunned.

There were people already waiting for them.

Justin nodded firmly at the person in the stable. "Boss."

The Star Killer Nicholas, who carried the black-hilted saber given to him by Tolja, leaned against Jennie’s stable with his arms crossed. He stared at them coldly.

Just like the countless times he had done so in the past.

Thales turned his head around in resignation and sighed.

’Him again.’

"Are you that anxious to meet Lampard?"

While the group of Constellatiates frowned, Nicholas stared at Thales with a hostile expression. "You can’t even wait for the people of the Black Sand Region to come and receive you?"

Thales shook his head.

"Just as you said, I’m going to Axe District, to the inn where those from Black Sand Region are currently staying in," the prince said calmly. "I’m planning to talk about future arrangements with the King."

This time, it was Nicholas’ turn to frown.

He snorted in displeasure, and it was followed by a disdainful laugh.

"After you’ve turned your back on us, you are truly beginning to act very outrageously."

The Star Killer’s mocking words were filled with an indescribable anger, "What now? Do you think Heroic Spirit Palace is no longer safe? That’s why you want to quickly hide behind Lampard? That the sooner you leave, the better?"

Thales looked at Nicholas quietly, then lifted his hand to stop Wya from speaking.

Nicholas put down both of his arms, then slowly walked up to Thales to look straight into both his eyes.

"Listen, you treacherous prince.

"Forget about meeting Lampard..."

Nicholas enunciated each word slowly, and his voice contained a coldness that only the commander of the White Blade Guards had, "As long as I’m here, before the people from Black Sand Region come and receive you, you will stay put here in Heroic Spirit Palace."

Behind Thales, the people from Constellation watched the Star Killer with wary expressions.

Nicholas bent down, and his forehead almost touched Thales’ hair. His gaze grew sharper.

"Don’t even think about going anywhere."

"Hey! Pretty boy!" Aida violently made a gesture of rolling up her sleeves before she walked forward. "Don’t think that I won’t punch you."

Nicholas laughed in a bizarre, cold manner. Then he turned around to show the sword handle on his back.

An astonishing light was reflected off the golden saber on his back.

The temperature around them seemed to rise a little.

When she saw the saber, Aida’s voice instantly became softer and weaker, "That..."

Thales shook his head and pulled Aida to the back.

"Aida, I’ll handle it."

The usually untamable and wild elf obediently moved to the back with light footsteps as Thales tugged her arm. Nevertheless, she still did not forget to aggressively make a murderous gesture at Nicholas while she put on a face that said, "Just so you know, I’m not scared of you."

Thales moved forward and stared at the Star Killer silently.

Nicholas let out a cold snort, and once again leaned against the pillar. He then shook his head at Justin. "Bring him back and ensure that he does not have contact with anyone."

But at the same time, Thales suddenly exhaled and shook his head a little.

"Do you hate him?"

Nicholas was momentarily taken aback by his words. "What?"

"I’m saying, you must hate him." Thales took a deep breath. He thought of the few White Blade Guards who died in the rain of arrows while they tried to protect them six years ago, and he lifted his head. His eyes were clear. "I’m talking about Chapman Lampard.

"Your king."

Nicholas’ gaze was focused on Thales’ face.

His expression turned even more terrifying, and his gaze slowly drifted off, as though he was looking at a place far away.

"I only have one king.

"And he is not Chapman Lampard."

After a few seconds, Nicholas’ eyes began to focus, and his words became firm, "Regardless of the past or the present.

"As for Lampard, the reason he’s appeared in Dragon Clouds City but is still even capable of living to this very moment..." the Star Killer’s words were crisp and clear, but Thales could feel that each and every single word Nicholas uttered was filled with hatred as well as anger.

"It’s because I still care about this city, which has been left behind by our late king. That’s why I didn’t put on my mask, take up my sword, and send him directly to Hell’s River.

"So you better make a wise choice. Talking to him or joining his side are both decisions."

Thales fixed his eyes on Nicholas, and in all apparent seriousness, he nodded, as though he had realized something.

"So you told Lisban, didn’t you?"

Once again, Nicholas was stunned.

Thales lifted his hand to ask Wya and the others to back off while he took a step forward to face Nicholas alone.

"You told Lisban, the fact that Lampard has already obtained Dragon Clouds City’s weakness in his hands—the Archduchess’ true identity." Thales sighed. With the lowest volume he could muster, but still loud enough for Nicholas to hear him, he whispered, "That’s why Lisban behaved in such a restrained manner in the hall this morning. He didn’t wish to see Dragon Clouds City destroyed in a fight between the archdukes. You thought the same way as well."

As he stared at Thales, Nicholas’ gaze grew more unkind.

"I don’t want to engage in any more small talk with you."

He gestured at the Blood Court with his bottom lip. "Now, immediately go back to your—"

However, Thales suddenly lifted his head!

"But this isn’t the end."

The sudden increase in his volume shocked Nicholas a bit.

But his expression only turned even more unpleasant as Thales said his next words.

"Lampard and I chatted for a while after the hearing."

Thales then coldly said, "I can tell that he’s not pleased with the benefits he’s getting now. He wants more, and he also needs more of it.

"As long as he is in Dragon Clouds City, he will never maintain a neutral position here.

"Just like six years ago—he was not happy with just King Nuven’s death."

The prince stared at the Star Killer with an abnormally serious face.

"So, do you understand now just what sort of predicament the Archduchess and Dragon Clouds City is currently facing?

"Do you know what his next step is?" Thales continued to speak in a grave manner. "Right now, I’m going to talk to that scary king again, to persuade him to stop for the moment."

The Star Killer went silent for a while, his frown getting deeper.

"What does he still want?" he asked softly.

Thales shrugged. When he recalled the methods used by that certain king, he only felt a headache building up in his head.

"Obviously, he was not very happy that I resolved the threat from Black Sand Region without letting the Archduchess know about it." The prince lowered his head and seemed to be in a very gloomy mood. "I think he would much rather meet the Archduchess, place his cards and threats before her, then turn Saroma into his puppet."

Nicholas did not speak, but his face, which had been terrifying to look at since the beginning, became even paler.

Thales lifted his head. His eyes shone brilliantly.

"I will go and persuade him that there is no need to force the Walton Family to pick a team. There is no need to secretly call upon the restless vassals in Dragon Clouds City, and there is no need to tear a piece away from Dragon Clouds City in his greed.

"I will go and persuade him that the Archduchess’ rule doesn’t clash with his benefits.

"I will go and persuade him that he should occasionally show some support to the Dragon Spear Family.

"I will go and persuade him that Dragon Clouds City will not be his threat for the next few years."

With each sentence Thales said, Nicholas’ face became even more dreadful.

"I will also have to persuade him that all negotiations he intends to do with Dragon Clouds City should stop with me, and that he should not go to the innocent Saroma again. That there is no need for him to bring up that cruel and merciless fact before her, forcing her to make a decision with threats!"

Thales lifted his head and took a step forward, meeting Nicholas’ eyes with a sharp gaze. He was practically pressing his body on him. "Now, Soray Nicholas, Star Killer who guards Dragon Clouds City, you can either release me to find Lampard, or you can think about ways to hold me back from my journey and cause me a multitude of problems... Then wait for him to personally go to Saroma again...

"...and also seek trouble for Dragon Clouds City."

The prince finished speaking.

Silence returned to the air.

Nicholas’ stare grew colder as he scrutinized Thales.

Under the stable’s canopy, the Star Killer and Thales stared at each other quietly.

The others, whether they were attendants from Constellation or guards from Northland, all of them simply waited quietly for the results of their negotiation.

The atmosphere was tense.

Then, Nicholas sneered and shook his head.

As he laughed, the air, which had nearly frozen over, seemed to warm up considerably.

"You know, you should thank Count Lisban," Nicholas said faintly. "Despite the fact you brought Lampard to this place and nearly destroyed the hearing, he still appears to trust that you mean no harm to Dragon Clouds City."

Thales was slightly stunned.

’Lisban?’

The Star Killer continued saying, "Even though you accused him, saying that he’s collaborating with the Red Witch and Lampard to betray Dragon Clouds City."

Thales slowly exhaled. "Is that so?"

"And, you also need to thank her." Nicholas sighed. "I think, she’s also one of the reasons why Lisban believes in you."

At the moment, Thales raised his eyebrows. Nicholas turned and looked in another direction.

Thales faced the direction of Nicholas’ gaze, and he was stunned.

In the distance, under the company of her guards and servants, the Archduchess of Dragon Clouds City stood silently under the setting sun while she stared at them with a complicated gaze.

The golden rays from the sun shone on the young lady’s entire body, making her appear more dazzling.

Thales could not help but sigh deeply.

"She’s waiting for you." Nicholas turned and walked away. Before he left, he swept a profound glance over Thales’ entire body. "Don’t drag out your farewells, remember your place."

As he stared at Nicholas’ back, Thales shut his eyes, and a myriad of complicated feelings rose in his heart.

The next moment, he suddenly opened his eyes and took firm steps towards the archduchess.

Saroma appeared solemn. She, too, walked forward slowly. Ginghes, the female official followed her.

The prince and the archduchess finally met again.

Thales forced a smile and nodded at the female officer. "Thank you, Madam Ginghes."

But even with the underlying meaning of Thales asking her to leave thrown in her face, Madam Ginghes remained still. She continued to stare at him coldly and she did not say a single word.

That was until Saroma forced a smile at her and nodded.

The female officer whose face was nearly frozen finally moved, giving a standard bow to the archduchess. She left in a respectful manner.

"I’m afraid even right now, she still doesn’t look at me favorably." Thales scratched his head in a forced and unnatural manner. "How saddening."

Obviously, his absolutely horrid attempt to open the conversation did not bring about the desired effect.

Saroma still had her eyes fixed on him. The strange emotion behind her spectacles made Thales very uneasy.

"So you’re heading to Black Sand Region?" she asked very directly.

Thales exhaled and avoided her gaze before he nodded. "Yeah, I want to get used to it earlier."

However, Saroma seemed to be fully at ease at that moment. "You didn’t expect this either, did you?"

Thales looked up with a slightly puzzled gaze.

"I thought about it later. You said that you wanted me to choose the path that’s most suited for an archduchess, and that you’ll solve all my remaining problems."

The archduchess’ expression was calm. "Chapman Lampard should be the solution for your ’remaining problems’, but he’s also the last and the worst possible card for you, right?"

Thales did not speak. He exhaled through his nose and nodded.

The archduchess’ expression was slightly gloomy.

"If everything had gone smoothly, if I had chosen not to be so stubborn, if I had chosen to ignore your survival and calmly obtained the vassals’ support... If Dragon Clouds City could deploy her soldiers smoothly, if we could form an alliance that could go against the king..." her voice quivered slightly. "Then, you wouldn’t have gone to Lampard, you wouldn’t have to betray Ian, and sell yourself to Black Sand Region, right?"

Saroma looked like she wanted to smile, but in the end, she failed.

"Did you know that when you spoke to support Lampard, I thought I didn’t know you anymore?"

Thales seemed to hesitant to speak.

The archduchess turned her head around and no longer lingered around the topic. "Just like six years ago, to save me, you took the risk and took the final step."

Thales could only close his eyes. "You shouldn’t have been so stubborn, Saroma. There’s no need for you to place yourself in a situation where everyone will turn their backs against you for one single hostage."

The archduchess lifted her head swiftly. Her gaze was resolute, as though she wanted to argue about something. "But you aren’t a hostage, Thales. No matter what other people think... at least, in my eyes, you aren’t one."

She seemed to have thought of something before she lowered her head. Hidden in her voice was an indescribable sadness. "I’m sorry, Thales."

During that moment, the incredibly depressed mood, which Thales sank into after the hearing, suddenly lifted a little.

He felt like a mountain climber climbing a mountain during winter to welcome the first rays of sunlight after reaching the summit.

"You’re apologizing to me after you protected me." Thales inhaled with all his strength and found the air on that day incredibly refreshing. "I can’t accept your apology."

"But you’re heading to Black Sand Region. Do you still remember Lampard’s soldiers? They fired their arrows at us without hesitation," the girl’s voice was slightly unhappy. "Can you imagine what you will go through when you are in that man’s territory?"

"If we want Lampard to help us, this is the price we have to pay," Thales said with a sigh. "Wish me luck. Is there anything worse than being tied up and brought to the battlefield, or being dismembered?"

Saroma’s expression was still a little steely.

Thales opened his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Hey, listen.

"This isn’t your fault, all right, Saroma..? It’s the King of Constellation’s interference... I mean, my father caught me off guard, so I can only act accordingly." The second prince shrugged.

The two of them fell silent.

"That’s so nice." Saroma forced herself to smile and joked, "I’ve never known how it feels like to have a father."

The prince stared at the grief-stricken archduchess and put on a brilliant smile.

"So... do you want to exchange identities with me?"

Thales seemed to be in a good mood.

"I would welcome Princess Saroma of Constellation at any time."

Both of them laughed, but Saroma’s laughter only lasted for a few seconds.

"Princess," she subconsciously repeated. "Princess Saroma?"

Thales instinctively realized that this was inappropriate. He took a deep breath, averted his gaze, and coughed. "Then..."

The prince’s expression grew stern. "Listen, at least, in the next few years... Lampard will not be your main threat. The fight between the King and the archdukes will only escalate further. The methods they use and the level of their fights will gradually surpass our expectations."

Saroma stared at him quietly before she nodded in silence. It was as if the both of them had returned to the library and classroom.

"Meanwhile, the seemingly weak Dragon Clouds City, whose internal structure appears to be divided under the archduchess’ rule, will be ignored by the archdukes, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Perhaps you’ll even turn into a target, and they’ll try to draw you to their side. In fact, you’ll stand at the position of a third party and obtain benefits from both sides as they fight against each other.

"It’ll be the same as this time. Be careful with your actions when they extend their hands to you, but don’t place your bets easily," Thales said in an incredibly serious tone. "At this point of time, secure your power. This is the most important thing you need to do right now.

"Become a competent, qualified, and excellent archduchess, Saroma."

The archduchess smiled, though her expression was slightly forced.

"King Nuven gave you good subordinates." Thales remembered what happened during the hearing. "Nazaire has a brilliant mind and he deals with matters skillfully. Karkogel is quiet, but he has quite the reputation, even the seemingly annoying Cotterson and Lyner as well as the people ranked lower than these six counts...

"They’ll be your support if you show them the prestige an archduchess should have and the tactics an archduchess should employ. Prove to them that you’re indispensable in this region.

"As for Lisban..." when Thales mentioned his name, he could not help but stop for a moment before he eventually sighed. "He’s an excellent regent... but you should consider the other vassals’ emotions and the balance in Dragon Clouds City."

Saroma frowned. "You don’t like him? Why?"

Thales shook his head.

"Your enemies are still in your region," when the prince said these words, he felt his heart sink slightly. "Perhaps they will appear in all kinds of forms. The vassals’ dissatisfaction, the people’s contempt, the obstructions from traditions, malicious rumors... But in the end, your greatest enemy is yourself."

Saroma snorted lightly. She still kept her gaze fixed on Thales, as though it was the final time they would meet.

She smiled and said, "My greatest enemy is myself? Hmph, sounds like a rubbish encouragement from those stories about knights—all an act, but empty."

Thales found her gaze slightly unbearable. He could not help but lower his head. "Because you’re a girl, Saroma."

These words made Saroma slightly dumbstruck.

Thales let loose a long sigh. His words were filled with a thick wave of worry, "You’re a girl, and that means that in most games in this world, not just Northland, you’ll have to give up more than men. You have to work harder than men and achieve better results than men. Only then will you be able to obtain the rewards, results, and acknowledgement from the world around you, which is equivalent to the amount of rewards, results, and acknowledgement obtained by the men when they do less.

"In other words, if the Archduchess doesn’t bring forth even better results than King Nuven and only achieves the same results as King Nuven, she will forever be regarded as ’that little girl’." The prince gritted his teeth and stared at the big, grand, solid Heroic Spirit Palace, which gave others a heavy, oppressive feeling.

Saroma remained silent for a long while. She was in low spirits.

Eventually, the archduchess snorted coldly without any expression on her face. "How unfair."

"I know it’s very unfair." Thales stared at her with his brows furrowed. He could not hide the worry in his eyes. "That’s why you can’t give up. Do you know what will happen to you if you don’t fight back against the beggars who beat you when you’re one of them?"

Saroma looked up.

"They’ll continue to bully you, hit you, mock you, and ostracize you." Thales seemed to have remembered something and subconsciously became tense. "They’ll continue to repeat this, giving you the impression that you deserve to be bullied."

A thought appeared in the archduchess’ mind. She remembered the story Thales told her before, of the prince who was born in the slums. "I know."

The prince stared at her, and his expression was dark. "But that’s not the worst. The worst is when other people, all of them, regardless of whether they’re new or old, whether they beat you or not, will become used to this scene. As you live and eat among the beggars, this impression will be etched deeper into their minds and spread to everyone’s consciousness.

"When they treat this scene as a part of law, whether intentionally or unintentionally, they will make up rubbish reasons and declare things like ’this is how things work in the world’, ’the strong prey on the weak’, ’there will always be bullies and victims’ so that everyone, be they newcomers, old timers, powerful people, weaklings, and even those who bully you will instinctively believe that this is how the world works. These are the laws, this is normal, you cannot change them. It’d be best if you accept them, get used to them, acknowledge them, adapt to them. Only then will you suffer less when you are beaten up again.

"In fact, one day, people will start thinking that it’s not normal if there’s no one who’s bullied. They’ll audaciously search for reasons to torment the weak, as though it’s the logical thing to do.

"These people have already instinctively become used to the environment. They’re used to a certain way of thinking, and that’s the worst."

Those muddled memories started to come to the surface of the prince’s mind.

At that instant, Thales’ gaze was slightly unfocused like he was staring into the distance. "They’ll make you forget that individuals and the society can’t be separated. Your actions are one of the causes that shape your environment and the laws around you."

He exhaled and pulled his mind back to the present.

Thales stared at the puzzled girl before him. "Perhaps it’s slightly complicated... but if you’re too afraid to make your own changes and choose to handle your situation with silence, then it’ll be the same as you giving up on yourself." He pursed his lips, then softly said, "Then, that unfair environment will never change, girl."

Thales stared at the girl, slowly falling into silence before sighing softly.

"You’re right, Saroma. I shouldn’t treat you like a weakling waiting to be saved."

He put on a smile again.

"As for you, you must first learn to grow up on your own. You have to learn to trust yourself, learn to listen to the lessons of the elderly," Thales said quietly. "Even if I’m no longer around, Archduchess.

"Take care."

Once he finished speaking, Thales realized that he did not have the heart to look at the girl’s expression. He turned around and left.

At that moment...

"Thales!" the girl suddenly cried out. Hidden in her voice was great worry, "Be careful!"

Thales paused slightly.

He did not turn his head around, only giving her a light chuckle as a response. "Of course, I will—"

But Saroma cut him off desperately.

"No.

"On the eve of the hearing, Ciel... I mean, Count Lisban came to me privately." Saroma seemed to be very anxious. She instinctively looked around her. "He came to advise me to keep my distance from you. I was to stay away from the unfortunate Jadestar Family. To convince me, he told me some secrets in advanced."

Thales was shocked. He cocked his head to the side.

"What secrets?"

The next second, the words that tumbled out of Saroma’s mouth caused his heart to shudder.

"The calamities."

Thales’ expression froze slightly.

’What?’

No one knew how he felt at that moment.

He turned his head slowly and made sure he maintained his usual expression.

Saroma’s words were hurried. Her expression was exactly like that time she snuck out of class when she was younger. "Within the countries formed by the people who participated in the Battle of Eradication such as Eckstedt, there are the families who took part in the war. Each of the families may have different legacies and their versions of the war are different, but at the very least, the descendants of the Ten Knights, the heirs of the ten families of the archdukes would be told certain secrets regarding the Battle of Eradication once they come of age..."

Thales had completely turned around at this point as he stared at Saroma, feeling stunned.

Saroma pursed her lips. She hesitated for a few seconds before she made up her mind and said, "After the Battle of Eradication about six hundred years ago, we became more vigilant, and the remaining calamities became smarter...

"With an even more complicated, secretive, and dangerous relationship with us, they hid themselves in both corners of the world. They concealed themselves in all sorts of situations to maintain a watchful balance between us and them..."

The archduchess lifted her head. Her voice was soft but resolute. "But... the Battle of Eradication has yet to come to an end. We are still the enemies of those things."

Thales’ breathing quickened with each passing moment. He could not help but clench his fists.

The girl stared at him, and his gaze was filled with worry as well as wariness. "Thales, eighteen years ago, during Constellation’s Bloody Year... everything your country went through, from how you were surrounded by enemies, why you ran out of weapons and food, why Eckstedt could invade south without worry, why the Barren Bone Tribe and orcs invaded en masse... to even the matter about the rebel army as well as the tragedy of the Jadestar Family... are all related to the calamities."

The next second, Thales’ pupils shrank. He could not help but raise his voice, "How are they related?"

But the archduchess shook her head.

"I can’t continue telling you anything. Ciel only told me these things because he believed in me..." Saroma’s expression was sad and hesitant. "This is... This is a secret only the Archduke of Dragon Clouds City is privy to."

She turned her head away. "Don’t forget. No matter what... I am now an archduchess."

Thales froze.

After a long while, with great effort, Thales regulated his breathing and regained his composure. "Is that so?"

’A secret... only the Archduke of Dragon Clouds City knows? Then... it also means that the previous Archduke of Dragon Clouds City... King Nuven, who decided to invade the South eighteen years ago... the Eckstedtian King who told him that there was another story behind the Jadestar’s disaster, he too...’

He stared at Saroma with a dumbfounded expression.

"But I believe you will find out in the end, Thales." Saroma seemed to be slightly remorseful. "After all, you are part of the Jadestar Family..."

Thales closed his eyes and took a deep breath to push the haze into a corner, because he could not chase it away. "Thank you, Saroma."

"I know that six years ago, the two male and female calamities came for you..."

Thales gulped.

Saroma’s voice quivered slightly, "I won’t ask you about anything else, but no matter the reason is... it’s definitely related to the Bloody Year... and it’s definitely not something good."

’Not something good.’

The girl then quietly said, "You know, I may not be happy in Dragon Clouds City... but I can at least protect you. Nicholas has a legendary anti-mystic weapon, and the Soul Slayer Pike in the Hall of Heroes is constantly in a state of vigilance... but in Black Sand Region..."

Both of them fell silent.

A light breeze blew past them. Jennie let out a displeased neigh behind them, and it broke the silence.

After what felt like forever, Thales sighed long and hard.

"I’ll remember it."

In the distance, Nicholas coughed loudly and shouted without hesitation, "My Lady!"

This shout snapped Saroma out of her daze, as though she had just remembered something.

Saroma spoke urgently as if she wanted to voice out all her worries within those few minutes, "Also, the man with the black longsword may have saved us before, but since he took part in the event eighteen years ago... he’s definitely related to it.

"As your family’s enemy, I can’t think of any reason why he’d let you go or even protect you... unless he has another goal and he’s aiming for something big in the future."

Thales stared at the ground and did not say a single word.

The sword-wielding figure and countless questions materialized in his head.

The girl continued to speak, "Nicholas and the Archduchess’ Guards... could only find out that the man goes by Black Sword and is related to a foreign gang known as the Brotherhood..."

Thales sucked in a sharp breath.

He turned his head around.

"I understand, Saroma," the prince said in slight anguish. "Thank you."

’Thank you... Thank you for not asking why.’

The instant Saroma saw the anguished and horrible expression on the prince’s face, she could not help but be slightly taken aback.

Nicholas called for her again.

"Goodbye, Saroma."

At the next second, Thales closed his eyes and turned around to leave.

"Goodbye, Little Rascal."

Slight hiccups could be heard behind him... as well as barely discernible sobs.

The sky was very blue and clear.

The several clouds in the sky were gradually dyed gold by the sun.

The orders of the Female Officer, Ginghes was audible behind him.

The sound of the archduchess moving away rang as she gradually left into the distance.

Thales forced down the urge to turn his head back. He walked towards Jennie, then forced a smile at Wya and the others. However, he was slightly stunned.

Nicholas slowly led another horse forward, then swiftly began to get his equipment ready.

He spoke to Justin, giving him some instructions. "We may not be going to the chess room, but the rules are the same. Have the patrol team clear the way, and the Archduchess’ Guards—"

"Hey, are you going as well?" the prince asked, feeling puzzled.

Nicholas turned his head around.

"These are the Archduchess’ orders, young prince."

With a hostile expression and a cold harrumph, the Star Killer said, "I am to deliver you into Lampard’s hands... and send you... on your final journey." He put on a ferocious smile, which bore ill intentions.

Thales rolled his eyes.

’Final journey.

’Couldn’t this dead face have used another word?’