A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

The author has something to say: I feel like my body has been hollowed out..._(:3∠)_

The bright moon hangs high in the sky, spreading its soft moonlight down to the earth.

The night should have been peaceful, but this night the city of Vinal was a little more chaotic in its tranquility.

Because a war started in the city during the night.

Those followers of the All Things Cult lurking in the city, led by the powerful men in the city, secretly opened the city gate, greeted their companions who had been squatting outside the city, and prepared to fight fiercely in the city.

They rushed into the homes of residents in the city, robbed their finances, snatched away women and children, and killed the ignorant guys on the spot, listening to the wails of the weak.

These bloodthirsty gangsters disguised as thieves are gearing up and ready to rush towards their feast of the night——

However, their carnival was strangled in the cradle before it even started.

They had just entered the city, and before the door of a household could be kicked open, they found that their group had been surrounded by a group of heavily armed cavalry.

Needless to say what happened next, when these fanatical believers encountered the regular army, especially the elite guards who had followed King Camos and had experienced many battles, they were naturally defeated.

The fanatic followers of the Cult of Everything in black robes were all killed mercilessly by the knights, while the subordinates of the powerful were forced to identify their masters. The knights followed the clues and traced all those involved in the attack on Vinal City. All the corrupt officials were dug out of the mud!

Many officials were arrested by the knights who rushed through the gate while they were still asleep.

The citizens of Vinal City didn't even know that such a terrible war was happening outside their door, and they were immersed in their dreams without knowing anything.

I'm afraid they won't know about it until the next morning, and they will be terrified.

King Aaron Landis, who had brown hair like a lion's mane, stood on horseback in the night, with the divine black horse beneath him holding its head proudly, standing quietly on the earth.

Except for the sound of galloping horses' hooves all around, there was no other sound. These specially trained horses would not neigh easily in the middle of war.

King Camos was looking around, watching his knights carry out his orders in an orderly manner and handle complicated matters one by one. There were nearly a hundred knights riding quietly behind him, waiting for his next order.

He thought for a while and felt that there was nothing to add for the time being, so he dismounted and planned to torture the prisoners himself. However, he took a few steps, and before he reached the prisoners, the grass under his feet suddenly moved, and a small black shadow jumped out from it, squeaking at him.

As soon as he saw the familiar little black mouse, Camos frowned subconsciously.

Generally speaking, if there is no emergency, the knight will not release the little black mouse to report to him.

He reached out and grabbed the little black mouse, took off the copper pipe tied around its neck, opened the letter hidden inside and read it.

Before looking, Kamos only frowned slightly, but the next second, his expression suddenly changed.

Heimos was originally standing on the side of the prisoners. When he saw King Camos stopped halfway and saw the little black mouse, he suddenly had a bad feeling.

He remembered that the little black mouse was tamed by the knight who stayed behind. Is it because he sent the letter so late because something happened in Ayr Town?

Thinking like this, he subconsciously walked towards King Camos.

As soon as he got here, he saw that King Camos's face changed after reading the letter. He could no longer care about anything else and walked over quickly and asked directly.

"Something happened over there in Garlan?"

King Camos didn't say anything, but simply pushed the note into Heimos's hand.

Then, he turned around and trotted back to the black horse and got on his horse.

He glanced at the less than a hundred knights who were still beside him, then turned his head, and his eyes fell on a middle-aged knight commander who was giving orders not far away.

"Will!"

He shouted the name of the knight commander who was famous for his stability, and said, "You will handle the rest of the affairs in Vinal City!"

After naming the person in charge here, Camos pulled the reins, turned to the knight behind him and shouted.

"There's a rebellion in Ayr Town! Everyone here, follow me!"

Before he could finish his words, the dark horse under him had already rushed into the night like an arrow from the string, following his thoughts.

And the next second Kamos galloped out, another horse almost followed the front legs, carrying Heimos and rushed into the night.

…………

……………………

Contrary to the tranquil city of Vinal, the town of Ayr, which had been filled with all kinds of noisy sounds in the first half of the night, was strangely quiet at this moment. Only on the edge of the town, the ignited houses on the road out of the town were still burning, making crackling sounds, and the flames burned the night sky red.

The nearly a thousand rioting refugees had now gathered in the center of the town, around a mansion. They who had been shouting passionately for death a moment ago had inexplicably quieted down.

They held torches and silently gathered around the house, watching everything that was happening in the small courtyard.

Looking from a distance, his eyes passed over the still blazing firelight at the edge of the town. When Garlan retracted his gaze, he had already walked to Keli and the old man, the refugee leader named Gia. In front of you.

The man could easily grab the little child with just one stretch of his hand.

"...Aren't you afraid that I will take you hostage?"

Looking at Prince Gallan walking in front of him, the man was silent for a few seconds, and then asked.

Surrounded by thousands of people, could he still grow wings and fly out?

These civilians believe in the gods, but based on his own experience as the so-called favored person of the gods, Garlan knows very well that it is impossible for the hands of the so-called Aaron Landis gods to reach out to humans, nor can they Show miracles on earth.

Otherwise, I, the so-called son of destiny, wouldn’t have died four times, right?——

Of course, it would be impossible for Garlan to say the above-mentioned comments about the gods in public.

Garlan stood there with a calm expression on his face and said calmly.

"If you have this intention, it doesn't make any difference whether I stand there or here."

This seemingly understated sentence unexpectedly won the admiring looks of everyone waiting for him to say, "You are indeed a prince."

Even the leader of the refugees was no exception. He looked at Garlan deeply and his eyes became more complicated.

Then, he leaned over and knelt on one knee in front of Garlan.

"Your Highness," Gia said, "under the witness of the gods, I swear to you that what I say next is absolutely true."

"If I tell a lie to the gods or to you, even just one sentence, my body will be cut into pieces with thousands of knives, and my soul will be burned by fire after death, and I will never rest in peace."

The kneeling man swore an oath that shocked everyone who heard it, causing a small commotion among the surrounding refugees.

The little girl on the side nervously grabbed her grandfather's hand. The old man sighed softly and said nothing.

"good."

Garlan looked at the man kneeling in front of him and answered him.

"I will listen to what you say, and then tell Brother Camos what you said."

"...Yes, Your Highness."

Gia took a deep breath, then raised her head and looked at Garlan.

"I am a native of Vinal City, since I was born. I am a mercenary. I have been hired by the caravan together with my companions to escort the caravan through various cities. My wife and children are all Living in the city of Vernal and being with my wife and children briefly every month is my greatest joy.”

He raised his hand and pointed to the people behind him.

"These people are just like me, ordinary people from Vinal City. We have always lived our lives honestly and dutifully. Although our lives are a little more difficult, as long as we can live peacefully with our families, We are content.”

Gia said, her words that were originally filled with emotion and nostalgia suddenly changed at this moment, and her tone became sharp, filled with anger and hatred.

"But all of this was destroyed! More than a month ago! On the day when the flood broke out in Vinal City-"

After that day, countless ordinary but peaceful families were destroyed.

Countless people have lost their loved ones and friends, and watched helplessly as important people died.

That day, the city of Vinal was like hell.

"If it is really a natural disaster, if it is really just a punishment from the gods to us ungodly people, we will accept it." He gritted his teeth and said, "But it's not like that! It's not a natural disaster, nor is it a punishment from God! The Vinal River should not have burst its banks, our city should not have been flooded, and our relatives should not have died—"

His voice suddenly became high-pitched, and there was deep hatred in his eyes.

"The Vinard River has been unmaintained since the second half of last year! The river embankments have not been maintained for more than half a year! How can it not burst?"

"During this period, we went to the consul hall many times to ask the consul to repair the river embankment as soon as possible, but we were kicked out every time. The old people have always been very uneasy and have discussed whether to advance the river embankment during the flood season. I wanted to avoid it, but I didn’t expect that the flood season of the Vinal River came early this time, so the river embankment burst and flooded the city. My wife and children were washed away by the flood at that time, and even the bones can’t be found until now. ——”

Speaking of this, this strong man who could lead the refugees to attack Ayr Town couldn't help but his eyes turned red and his voice choked up.

His words resonated with the refugees around him who had suffered the same disaster as him, and some refugees who had also lost their loved ones could not help but sob softly.

Thinking of the corpses of her aunt and brother, Kelly also rubbed her red eyes hard. The old man turned his head sideways, unable to bear to see his son's painful appearance.

Gia took a deep breath and suppressed her excitement.

He calmed down for a moment, then suppressed his grief and continued.

"More than that, it was clearly the powerful people in the city who caused this disaster. However, not only did they not reflect on it, but they intensified their efforts. They even swallowed the relief food and life-saving medicine for us displaced refugees."

"They unceremoniously treated us who lost our home as trash and drove us out of Vinal City."

"We have lost everything and left our homes and villages, but that is not enough. They will also let their soldiers pretend to be thieves, take away our wives, and put our children on the altar as sacrifices."

At this point, his red eyes stared at Garlan, and every word he spoke seemed to be torn apart.

"Your Highness, in the eyes of those powerful people, have you ever cared about our lives?!"

Garlan remained silent for a long time as he listened to Giana's bloody and tearful accusations.

He looked around, looking at the sad and angry eyes of the refugees, as well as the people who could no longer control their crying, and his heart became very heavy for a moment.

Those officials and dignitaries in Vinar City...the so-called knocking out the bones and sucking out the marrow, I'm afraid that's it.

In their eyes, civilians are like grass and grass, at most they are livestock raised in captivity.

Their bottomless pit-like greed has turned them, who are supposed to protect their people, into blood-sucking worms that make the people look down upon them. For the sake of their own wealth, they are eager to squeeze out the last drop of blood and the last bit of marrow of these civilians, and suck them all alive.

"I have heard your accusation, and I have also found out most of what the officials and nobles of Vinar City have done."

Garlan took a deep breath and replied.

"Brother Wang is on his way to Vinar City and will arrive soon. When that time comes, he will make a fair judgment and those people will get the punishment they deserve."

The reputation of King Camos caused a commotion. When they heard that King Camos was about to visit Vinal City, countless people's eyes lit up.

However, after this moment, those bright eyes turned into panic and fear one by one.

They attacked the town of Ayre, and they were now identified as the mob, as rebels.

The just King Camos will definitely execute those corrupt officials, but they rebels will also be executed, and at the same time, their wives, children, and relatives will also be implicated.

Everyone panicked when they thought of this.

However, no matter how scared, no one ever thought of confronting King Camos.

To them, the king is the incarnation of God on earth.

Fighting King Camos is equivalent to fighting God—that is absolutely impossible to do.

Everyone turned their panicked eyes to their leader, the kneeling man.

Gallan also looked at Gia. He knew very well that Gia had not finished what she said, or that the next words were what Gia really wanted to say.

Under the gaze of everyone, Gia spoke.

"King Camos...will he come in person?"

"Yes, if there are no accidents, he will be here tomorrow."

Gallan saw Gia's hand clenched suddenly, and then slowly loosened it after a while.

"Your Highness, how will you treat us?"

"..."

Garlan looked at him and didn't answer.

"We did attack Ayr Town. According to the law, we have become rebels..."

Gia knelt on the ground, raised her head, and looked at Garlan with burning eyes.

"But you should know that we were forced! Under the coercion of those corrupt officials and nobles, we had no choice but to do such a thing in order to survive!"

He said hastily, "Even if we attack you, we don't know you are a prince, or it's because of the misunderstanding that your subordinates took those children away. This is not our fault!"

“In that flood, countless of our relatives died, and then our wives and children were taken away one after another. Many of them still don’t know whether they are alive or dead... We have experienced so much suffering, Do you...and King Camos want to execute us who have already suffered so much?"

Garlan was silent for a while, and then spoke.

"Giya, are you asking me to forgive you now?"

"Yes." Gia looked at him eagerly, "We have no intention of rebelling against Aaron Landis. We are just resisting those officials and nobles who oppress us. We are not rebels, are we?"

"If no one gives us justice, we can only find justice ourselves and punish the evildoers ourselves, right?"

This is Giya's purpose.

He wanted to get a promise from Garlan, and let the prince of Aaron Landis personally promise that he would not hold them accountable for the crimes of the refugees.

He believes that they are the victims, they are the righteous party, they are just resisting the evil powerful, and they are not guilty.

Behind him, the knight who lost one eye gritted his teeth.

Half of his face was covered in blood, and his eye sockets were still in severe pain. He knelt on the ground holding his dead Tongze and looked down. His friend closed his eyes and made no sound. He died in front of him trying to block the arrows shot by the refugees.

This powerful knight did not die on the battlefield, but died in a place like this——

And now, those who killed him are asking for their own absolution.

He was unwilling to give in.

He was very unwilling.

But he also knew that the prince should agree to the requests of the refugees, because if they refused, those people would feel that death was imminent and would simply break their hearts, and they and the prince would be in danger again.

Therefore, agreeing to exempt those civilians from the crime of rebellion is indeed the wisest thing to do at the moment.

…

But even though he knew this in his heart - he still felt extremely uncomfortable, as if something was digging into his heart.

He was terribly uncomfortable.

Because those who killed his comrades will be forgiven and will not be punished. His comrades will die in vain, at the hands of the people of Aaron Landis whom they once fought to protect together.

Just as the knight closed his remaining eye in pain and lowered his head, he suddenly felt someone standing in front of him.

He subconsciously raised his head, and what caught his eyes was Prince Garlan who was standing in front of him at some point.

When Gia made that request, Garlan did not answer immediately. After staring at Gia for a while, he turned around and walked in front of the knight.

In full view of the crowd, under the stunned gaze of the knight, he reached out his hand and touched the knight's blood-stained cheek.

"Does it hurt?"

the little prince asked softly.

The knight was surprised and frightened.

"King...Prince, I..."

"I'm talking nonsense, how could it not hurt."

Before he could finish stammering, Garlan answered to himself.

Then, he looked down at the dead knight held by the one-eyed knight.

He looked at it for a moment and leaned down.

Under the silent moonlight, the dead knight's forehead was covered with blood and dust, but the little prince lowered his head and kissed his forehead.

“…Thanks for your loyalty, the gods will carry your soul to the kingdom of God.”

Kiss the forehead of the deceased, mourn for him, and bless him.

That was a ritual unique to Aaron Landis.

That is a ritual that only knights who die with honor can obtain.

What's more, this was done by the prince of Aaron Landis himself. For these knights who are loyal to the royal family, it is the highest honor.

The one-eyed knight stared at this scene blankly, feeling some comfort inexplicably in his uncomfortable heart.

He spoke to his friend silently in his heart.

El, if your soul is still here guarding the prince, you must be very happy to see this scene...

After doing all this under the gaze of everyone, Garlan turned back.

He looked at the people behind him.

"Do you know who the knight you killed is?"

He asked, obviously he was a child, but his eyes suddenly became sharp.

Gia was stunned for a moment and answered.

"I know that this Lord Knight must be a noble, but..."

"No, I don't mean his identity, I don't mean his birth."

Garlan interrupted Gia.

"A few years ago, the enemy countries joined forces to attack Aaron Landis. Brother Wang led 50,000 troops to the border and defended it for more than ninety days. Only then did Aaron Landis be saved."

"Less than half of the 50,000-strong army is left. All of them died on the battlefield to protect Aaron Landis. If it weren't for those soldiers, you standing here would have been ruined and your family would have been kidnapped and become slaves of other countries."

Everyone looked at Garlan in confusion, wondering why the prince suddenly mentioned this matter.

Garlan looked deeply at Gia and the people who threw stones at these knights not long ago.

His eyes were so calm at this moment that it made your heart tremble.

He said: "The knight who fought desperately to defend Aaron Landis and also protected you is now, here, killed by your own hands."

Gia's pupils shrank violently at this moment.

At this moment, he was dumbfounded and almost forgot to breathe.

"Now, do you still want to ask me to absolve you of your sins?"

The child's voice remained calm.

But it was this kind of calmness that made Gia's heart hurt sharply.

Countless people lowered their heads, and some even knelt down in the direction of the dead knight.

Their faces, which had thrown stones at the knights who protected them, were filled with annoyance and regret.

It was eerily quiet in the dark night. No one spoke. Everyone's throats seemed to be pinched by invisible hands, and they could not make a sound.

In the almost deathly silence at this moment, the one-eyed knight lowered his head. He couldn't explain why, but he, who was called a member of the iron-blooded army and never shed tears, had sore eyes at this moment.

He opened his eyes wide, gritted his teeth, and tried his best to hold back the moisture in his eyes.

The child's voice continued to ring in the quiet darkness.

"Gia, look at that fire."

Garlan looked up and looked at the fire still burning at the edge of the town.

He said: "Are the homes that you set on fire the officials and dignitaries who persecuted you?"

"…………"

Gia opened her mouth, but couldn't answer.

The ones that will be on the edge of the town's roads are just the homes of ordinary residents.

"You attacked the town, destroyed the townspeople's houses, and the governor's office... tell me, have all the officials in Ayre Town ever oppressed you?"

"…………"

"Have you let go of those officials who have not bullied you, such as the consul who has been working hard to rescue you and even mobilize food and grass in Ayr Town?"

"…………"

The man's breathing became a little heavier.

"Even if we don't talk about officials, they are just servants and maids who work in the ruling house or the families of lower-level nobles. These civilians like you, did you let them go when you attacked the house?"

"…………"

Every time Gallan asked, Jia's face became darker.

He looked at Garlan with a pale face, opened his mouth but could not speak.

How could you let it go?

When they were ravaging the town, when the crowd was furious and everyone had lost their minds, how could they let go of any enemy in their eyes with their red eyes?

Even if those servants of the nobles and clerks in the ruling house are civilians like them, they are the lackeys of the officials and nobles, and they deserve to die just the same——

At that time, they thought so and killed the civilian slaves together.

Gia was kneeling with her back straight, like a rooted pine tree. Even when facing the prince, her back did not bend at all.

But at this moment, his body swayed, and he who originally looked resolute seemed to be unsteady on his knees, teetering.

"No...this is..."

He hesitantly wanted to refute something, but he opened his mouth and found that he couldn't refute anything.

He finally realized, why, why would he do such a cruel thing?

Why would he do the same thing as the nobles he hated?

"I sympathize with your situation, Gia, but I will not forgive your sins."

"You are not righteous. You are just committing crimes like venting hatred on innocent people under the banner of justice."

"Especially rebels like you who personally killed those innocent Aaron Landis people will never be forgiven."

Garlan said, word for word, absolutely, with no room for change.

"You are victims, but that doesn't mean you can be forgiven for doing something wrong. Rebels will be punished and those who kill innocent people will be executed. This is a national law that must be implemented."

"The law of the land will not tolerate mercy."

He said, "The only thing I can promise you is that your relatives who did not participate in this rebellion will not be implicated, and your innocent wives and children will be properly settled."

The pale Giya's eyes were confused for a while, and then he suddenly gritted his teeth. He stood up suddenly from his kneeling position and approached Garlan.

"Prince, please promise here to absolve us of our sins!"

"No, I won't promise."

"Prince, we are all going to die. Rather than being executed as rebels, it is better to take you as a hostage and escape from here."

The man seemed to have completely lost his temper and began to threaten Garlan.

His words made everyone around him look surprised, and the old man even rushed towards him in a hurry.

"Gia, you evil son, how could you-"

"No! Gia, how can this be allowed?"

"In that case, wouldn't we become thieves?"

Once they become thieves, their descendants will be despised and filthy thieves expelled by the country for generations to come.

"can not be like this--"

Gia pushed the old man away and shouted with a distorted face: "If we don't do that, we will only die! Do you want to die!"

He turned his head and stared directly at Garlan.

"Prince, people can do anything when they are forced. If you don't forgive our sins...then, even if we will eventually be annihilated by King Camos, but before that, I will use your noble life, Prince, to The support is worth it to us!"

He moved forward, approaching Garlan again.

"Please forgive our sins!"

The child's small body stood in front of the man who was almost twice as tall as him.

He tilted his head.

There was no fear in his eyes as he looked at the man.

"The laws of Aaron Landis shall not be trampled upon," he said.

His voice was resounding.

It was a moment when the air was almost breathless.

The atmosphere was as tense as a taut string that would break completely in the next second.

The confrontation between the intimidating tall man and the unflinching little child was so tense that it made people breathless.

However, the next second, the tight air suddenly melted.

The man's twisted face suddenly relaxed.

He looked at the little prince who was facing him with his head raised, and suddenly he smiled in relief.

Then, he took two steps back.

He smiled and said: "If you, Prince, agree to my request... I think I will probably not believe your promise, but will choose to take them and our family to escape from here."

Gia said this, then leaned down and knelt down.

This time, he knelt on the ground, pressed his hands on the ground, and bowed his head deeply to the little prince.

"Prince of Aaron Landis, future king, we sinners are willing to accept your judgment."

His forehead was pressed tightly against the soil, as pious as a prayer.

"But, O prince who is as wise as a god, please use your kindness to forgive us sinners and their innocent relatives."

During a moment of silence, others also moved.

The old man, like his son, knelt down in tears, and the girl beside him also knelt down with red eyes.

The refugees were silent, or sobbing softly, lowering their heads, leaning over, and kneeling on the ground.

Like Gia, they bowed their heads deeply and pressed their foreheads to the soil.

One by one, they knelt down, and everyone present knelt down and bowed their heads deeply to the young blond prince.

That is the most solemn etiquette.

That is also the most pious prayer.

They will submit to the judgment of Prince Garlan for their crimes.

…………

A ray of morning sun jumped out from the horizon and shone on the people galloping on horseback.

After running around in the middle of the night, King Camos and his party finally arrived at the top of a small hill next to the town of Ayr just as the sun was about to rise.

After descending this hill, we arrived at the town of Ayr.

Camos was about to continue running down the mountain when he suddenly seemed to see something, and a trace of astonishment flashed across his face. Then, he raised his hand and made the cavalry behind him stop.

He didn't say anything, and just stood on the top of the hill on horseback, quietly overlooking the town of Ayre not far below.

The anxious Heimos saw Camos suddenly stopped and didn't move, so he immediately stepped forward and wanted to speak.

King Camos glanced at him, then pointed downwards.

Heimos looked in the direction he pointed and was stunned for a moment.

I saw in the center of the small town at the foot of the mountain, a dense crowd of people kneeling on the ground, their heads bowed deeply, facing one direction.

The first ray of morning sun fell and illuminated the earth.

Countless people knelt on the ground illuminated by the rising sun.

And there, only the young prince stood on the ground in front of countless people kneeling in front of him.

The night is about to leave, and the day is about to fall on the earth.

The young prince's golden hair reflected the first ray of sunlight in the morning, as bright as the rising sun.

…

………………

According to historical records, in the long history of Aaronlandis, there was a young king who was known for his wise and just judgments, loved the people, and was loyally loved by all Aaronlandis.

Ancient history books record that when he was still a young prince, King Aaron Landis, who was honored as the "Wise King", used a fair trial to make the rioting rebels surrender for the first time. Great deeds.