A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

In the spacious room, the floor-to-ceiling windows are open, and bright sunlight shines in from the outside.

Garlan sat on the olive wood chair above, his hands resting on the smooth tawny armrests. Because the weather was relatively hot today, his clothes were loose and simple. A short and light cloak that just reached his waist hung down behind him.

Shermer and Kayhos stood on the left and right under his seat, and a strong middle-aged man wearing a sacrificial robe knelt on one knee below him.

The runes of Shamash on the shoulders of the priest's robe symbolize the identity of the priest.

"You're saying that because of his physical damage when he was a child, it's possible that Xinyas' brain was also damaged?"

"Yes, His Majesty the Crown Prince, His Excellency Xinyas suffered severe physical losses when he was young, resulting in severe malnutrition, which lasted until he was more than ten years old."

Priest Raya was also very emotional and helpless about this.

"You sent us to protect Lord Xinyas, and we should do our best. However, the physical losses can be made up slowly, but..."

He stopped mid-sentence, obviously not feeling good about continuing.

"After examination, the doctor said that it was not only due to malnutrition, but also because Mr. Xinyas had taken decoctions for a long time since he was a baby, which damaged his brain. Fortunately, Your Highness, you reached out to help in time and protected Mr. Xinyas. , otherwise his condition will be even worse."

"Did he suffer brain damage when he was young? But I think Xin Yas is normal?"

Although it seems a bit silly...

"Yes, Your Highness, Your Excellency Xinyas's condition is very mild. He may be a little slow in thinking, find it difficult to think about complex things, grow slowly in thinking, and is very stubborn about what he believes in. Everything else is normal. .”

"According to your statement, Xin Yas is actually just lacking in brains, a little childish, and has a very stubborn temper. Everything else is normal, right?"

"..." Priest Raya choked for a while before continuing to answer, "You can say that."

"I see."

Garlan nodded.

"Thank you for your hard work these past few years."

He said, "Xinyas probably matured later than the average person in terms of thinking. He still has the temper of a child, but he has such an important responsibility as a city on his shoulders. I am very worried that he will be coaxed or used by someone with malicious intentions. "

"Therefore, I can rest assured only if you, the righteous priests of Shamash, guard him."

He smiled at Priest Raya and said, "Raya, my brother will be entrusted to you in the future. He may not be smart, but I believe that under your guidance, he will grow into a man like Shamashna. Such an upright and strong person.”

Priest Raya leaned down deeply.

"We will definitely not betray your trust, Your Highness."

He replied with a slightly excited tone.

For the priests of Shamash, praising them for their integrity is the greatest praise they can receive.

Especially when this praise came from His Highness the Crown Prince himself, it made him even more happy and excited.

"By the way, has Xinyas's mother come back to look for him?"

"No, Your Highness, the former city lord's wife has never returned to Ilmia City since she remarried more than three years ago, nor has she come to see Mr. Xinyas."

Priest Raya frowned when he mentioned this.

"…………"

Garlan lowered his eyes, his eyes slightly cold.

The old female official had conveyed news to him that just over a year after the death of her doting husband, that woman couldn't wait to marry a powerful man in another city, leaving behind the eleven-year-old Xinyas.

Gallan didn't think she couldn't remarry, but it would have been too cruel to abandon her young son, who was still sick at the time, and to ignore him for several years.

In the past, that woman valued Xinyas very much and acted like a loving mother who loved him. In fact, it was just because Xinyas could guarantee her status. When the people she sent over suppressed her, she found that she could not. After continuing to be her superior wife of the city lord, she immediately abandoned Xinyas.

She only loves herself.

That woman is like a dodder flower, she can only cling to and absorb nutrients from others so that she can bloom into beautiful flowers.

That's fine, just let that woman stay far away.

Otherwise, given that woman's character, Xinyas might be parasitized by her dodder flower for the rest of his life.

"Raya, what if..."

If that woman comes back, don't let her see Xinyas.

Garlan, who wanted to say this, paused.

Although Garlan did not take that woman seriously, to Xinyas, she was his biological mother after all, and he should also remember that his mother doted on him.

He has no right to make decisions for Xinyas and restrict who Xinyas can meet.

"Nothing, just go down."

"Yes, Your Highness."

…………

After Gallan finished meeting officials and others in the morning, he just returned to the palace at noon and not long after eating, his big brother came running over again happily.

When Gallan told him that he had something to do and didn't have time to play with him, he sat aside obediently, looked at Gallan with his eyes open, and said, "I will be obedient and won't disturb you." expression.

The look like a big dog looking at him eagerly made Garlan have no choice but to let him go.

Although he is now the crown prince, it does not mean that Garlan can handle government affairs independently. Xie Muer will select some less important matters and give them to him, and let him review them and write down his own opinions on how to deal with them.

Of course, what he writes will eventually be judged by Shermer or Sixian, who will find out what is unreasonable and then teach him.

When Garlan finally read through the pile of parchment that Shermuel gave him in the morning and wrote down his opinions on how to deal with it, he looked up and saw that most of the afternoon had passed.

He thought, Oh no, Xin Yas is still here. He was so preoccupied with these troublesome documents that he completely forgot about Xin Yas's existence.

Just as he was thinking this, Garlan looked up and saw Xinyas sitting on a chair, his body sloping, his head tilted to one side, and he didn't know when he fell asleep.

The mouth was still open wide, which made him laugh.

Garlan walked over and patted Xinyas gently.

Xin Yas opened his eyes and looked up at him, his eyes were bleary, and his whole person looked like he was sleepy.

He rubbed his eyes in a daze, and when he woke up and saw clearly that it was him, the young man grinned at him, his smile looked silly.

"Brother~"

Xinyas shouted happily to Garlan.

The young man's eyes were bright and clean, like those of a newborn baby, filled with the shadow of Garlan.

"Are you done?"

With that expectant look in his eyes, one could tell that the next thing he didn't say was - can you play with me?

Garlan smiled.

He thought for a while and asked: "Xinyas, do you remember mother?"

"Remember."

Xinyas answered readily, which surprised Gallan.

He thought that Xin Yas would show a sad expression when he mentioned that woman, but he didn't expect that the child didn't seem to care much.

"Then do you want to see her?"

Xinyas thought about it seriously, and then shook his head.

"No need." He said, "I just want to see you, brother."

"You don't miss her?"

Garlan asked curiously.

Sinas shook his head.

"I want to see my brother because the way he looks at me is very gentle. I like to be looked at like that, and I like the way my brother looks at me, so I will work very hard to fulfill my agreement with you, brother, and come to see you."

The young man said seriously,

"But mom is different. The way she looks at me is completely different from your brother. The way she looks at me is the same as looking at the dog she raises. I don't like it, I don't like it very much, so I don't care whether I see her or not."

"I used to listen to my mother because she said that as a child, I had to listen to my mother, but now that I have grown up, I no longer need to listen to her."

Xin Yas said, suddenly smiling at Garlan.

"But I will definitely listen to what my brother says."

He acted coquettishly at Garlan, and there seemed to be a big black fluffy tail behind him, wagging vigorously at Garlan.

He looked at Garlan with bright eyes, and he knew what he was expecting.

Garlan laughed.

He reached out and touched the head of Xinyas who was sitting.

The big boy squinted his eyes, happily enjoying the feeling of being touched on the head by his favorite brother, with his mouth wide open.

Xinyas is not stupid, nor is he weak-minded.

Garlan thought while touching Xinyas' head.

He just thinks like a child, straightforward, simple, black and white.

But just because he is a child, he can clearly feel who is kind to him and who is malicious to him.

Children are never bound by adults' so-called moral concepts and codes of conduct.

He will be kind to whoever is kind to him.

Children's thinking is so simple and clear.

And that's exactly what happened with Zinyas.

Garlan thought.

After coming to this world, he has never had any good feelings towards the original relatives of 'Garlan', and he doesn't want to have any contact with them.

But now he feels that it would be good to have a well-behaved and obedient younger brother.

…………

He handed the pile of parchment scrolls with written opinions on it to Shermuer who came to the door. After watching Shermuer finish checking, he nodded and took away the scrolls, Garlan breathed a sigh of relief.

He suddenly felt like he was back when he was a child and handed in homework to Shermer.

Ah, today's task is finally completed.

He thought as he took a long stretch in the bright sunshine.

Come and have afternoon tea.

Xinyas had no objection to Gallan's suggestion. For him, as long as he can stay with his brother, he is happy doing anything.

Soon, the maids brought delicious cookies, desserts and fresh fruits.

Xinyas sat cross-legged, holding a bright yellow-orange orange in his hand. He excitedly wanted to peel it for his brother to eat. However, when he was halfway through peeling it, he saw a maid bringing a cup to Gallan. come over.

In the transparent glass cup, the light green liquid reflects the sunlight and reflects a little light, which is very beautiful.

He watched his brother holding a glass cup, sitting with his knees bent, his body lazily nestled back on the soft backrest pillow.

His brother's fingers were completely different from his, slender and white.

He saw his brother sitting there, with long gold-like hair hanging down from his shoulders, and his eyelashes slightly lowered as he drank. He looked really good-looking.

When he was a child, he always heard others say that his mother was very beautiful, but now Xinyas felt that his brother was more beautiful, more beautiful than anyone else.

He didn't know why his parents didn't like his brother, even though his brother was as white as snow and so good-looking.

"elder brother."

He looked at his brother and couldn't help but want to act coquettishly.

"I want to drink that from you too."

His sense of smell was very sensitive and he could smell the smell of wine. He had always been curious about what wine tasted like, but Priest Raya said that he was still young and forbade him to touch wine.

Garlan was lazily drinking fruit wine and enjoying the peaceful afternoon tea. When Xinyas said this, he looked at the light green fruit wine in his hand and hesitated.

Although Xinyas looks tall and strong, he is still only a fifteen-year-old boy. It is not good for a child to drink, right?

He was thinking this, and just about to refuse, when he raised his head, he saw that Xinyas was already approaching him impatiently, looking at him with shining eyes, and there seemed to be a pair of ears on his head that were moving vigorously. The way a dog looks like it’s begging for food is really overwhelming.

Hmm...it's just fruit wine, with a very low alcohol content. He can drink it when he is about fifteen or sixteen years old. Xin Yas should be able to drink it too, right?

As soon as his thoughts changed, Garlan turned to look at the maid standing beside him holding a glass wine jug, and motioned for her to pour a glass for Xinyas.

"You're still young, you can only have one drink."

he said to Xinyas.

"Okay~~"

Taking the fruit wine happily, Sinas first licked it with his tongue.

Well, it's sweet, with a very strange taste mixed in with it.

However, it tastes good, and he also likes what my brother likes.

With this thought in mind, the young man drank up the fruit wine in several sips.

After finishing the drink, he licked his lips, still a little greedy, and wanted to continue drinking, but his brother said he could only have one drink, so he had to be obedient.

Only if he is obedient will his brother like him.

…

Um……

Strange...how come there are two brothers?

Ah, there are three again... Why does he feel dizzy? He obviously just slept, but now he seems to want to sleep again...

Hmm...so dizzy...

Watching Xinyas drink a glass of fruit wine in one gulp, before Gallan could react, he saw Xinyas grinning at him, his face as red as a red apple.

Then, the young man with a swaying body smiled, suddenly closed his eyes, tilted his head, fell on the table, and fell asleep with his body tilted.

Garlan: "..."

Is this what is commonly known as, one cup pouring?

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince stared at his younger brother, speechless.

Such a big man, such a big man, was actually drunk by a glass of low-concentration fruit wine.

Forget it, just wake up and you'll be fine.

Gallan shook his head, and just asked the maid to cover Xinyas with a thin blanket, and Xinyas continued to sleep.

And he continued to lie lazily on the soft back pillow, squinting his eyes and drinking light green fruit wine happily.

The sun was just right, falling from the skylight and shining warmly on his body.

The room was quiet, except for the rhythmic sound of Xin Yas' rough breathing.

Tiredness came over him, Garlan yawned, handed the little fruit wine left in his hand to the maid aside, told her to step back and not disturb him, and then nestled comfortably in the soft pillow. Dozed off.

…………

The crown prince was taking a nap in the room, and the maids had followed his instructions and retreated outside the door. They closed the door and stood guard at the door, waiting for the crown prince to wake up and call her in.

A while passed, but before I could wait for the call, someone came here.

When the leading maid saw the visitor, she quickly lowered her head and bowed in salute.

"Your Highness Heimos."

"Is Garlan inside?"

"Yes, Your Highness, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is taking a nap inside, please don't disturb us."

Hearing that Gallan was taking a nap, Heimos' hand that was about to push the door paused for a moment, hesitating whether to wait until after dinner.

And just when he hesitated, the maid said something else.

"Your Excellency Xinyas is also asleep inside. He seems to be drunk because he drank some wine."

"…………"

The hand that paused in front of the door pushed forward. Heimos pushed the door open and stepped in.

He said, "You continue to stay outside."

After entering, he immediately saw the big boy lying on the table with his body tilted, sleeping soundly with his eyes closed.

Heymos' eyes suddenly turned slightly cold.

But Xinyas was sleeping soundly and could not see the cold eyes of Heimos that made it difficult for most people to look at him.

When he moved his eyes away from Sinas and fell on the person opposite, Heimos's eyes softened instantly.

Garlan was nestled in the fluffy and soft velvet pillow.

The long golden hair fell down the snow-white pillow, and the boy's fair cheeks and most of his body sank into the soft pillow, forming a small ball.

The pale pink lips were slightly open, breathing out a shallow breath.

Perhaps because of the fruit wine, there was a slight pink color on his cheeks.

Just one look made Heimos feel that the softest place deep in his heart moved.

He walked over, leaned over, stretched out his hands, and hugged Garlan who was nestled in the pillow.

Passing by Xinyas who was still sleeping soundly, he quickly walked into the bedroom inside with the person in his arms, and then gently placed Gallan on the bed.

After being put down, Garlan seemed to feel a more comfortable place, and the corners of his eyes were slightly curved, as if he was satisfied.

Turning his head slightly, the young man snorted lightly, adjusted to the most comfortable position, and continued to sleep deeply.

Heimos couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips.

He reached out and touched Garlan's head.

Just looking at this sleeping face, his chest felt like it had been kneaded into a soft ball.

He just touched Garlan's head, and Garlan in the dream seemed to feel it, and took the initiative to move his head towards him, rubbing his forehead against his hand.

It looked like a coquettish little white cat.

After rubbing it, the lips pursed.

His eyes fell uncontrollably on the slightly pursed pale pink lips. Heimos took a deep breath, and then another.

He wanted to endure it.

But the young man's lips moved slightly again, pink and tender, and a bit of snow-white was exposed from the slightly opened lips.

So, I couldn't hold it back.

Putting a hand on Garlan's forehead, Heimos, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, leaned deeply over, and the kiss with unspeakable love and affection fell softly on Garlan's lips.

……………………

Xinyas was sleeping soundly, and suddenly something seemed to pass over his forehead, waking him up.

He stood up in a daze, rubbed his eyes, and saw that the annoying guy who dragged him away from his brother yesterday appeared again, and also took his brother away from him.

What seemed to have woken him up just now was the man's cloak that floated up behind him and swept over his forehead when he walked past him.

Xin Yas was just stunned for a moment when the person he didn't like had already carried his brother into the room inside.

He stood up quickly, not even having time to put on his shoes, so he chased after her with bare feet.

As soon as he reached the door, he looked inside and his eyes suddenly widened.

That guy... what is he doing to his brother? ! !