A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

The author has something to say: Tomorrow I am on a business trip for a day, so I will publish this chapter together with tomorrow’s chapter.

Okay~~love me.

When the beautiful girl came, the blond knight next to him raised his eyes and looked at the girl from head to toe.

His eyes moved around the smiling middle-aged wealthy businessman's face again, and then he lowered his eyes. The hair scattered in front of his eyes covered up the meaningful look in his eyes.

"I wonder if my little daughter has the honor to be His Highness's concubine?"

As soon as he took a sip of wine, his highness heard a violent cough in his ears.

It seemed that he was shocked and choked by the middle-aged wealthy businessman's words.

Kayhos put down his wine glass, turned around, reached out and gently patted the back of Garlan, who was still coughing.

Garlan looked at him and coughed until a little water oozed from the corners of his eyes.

The knight smiled at his master, gently caressed the young man's back, and raised his hand to wipe away the tears from the corners of the young man's eyes with a handkerchief.

Probably infected by the knight's calm demeanor, Garlan also calmed down a little.

Caijos nodded slightly to him, then turned his head and continued eating as if nothing had happened.

Garlan waved his hand to the middle-aged man.

He said: "Sorry, I appreciate your kindness."

"What? Your Highness, do you not like my little daughter? Or do you think she is older than you? If so, I also have a daughter who just turned fourteen this year..."

"No, that's not the case."

Wait a minute, it's a crime to be fourteen or something.

"Your daughter is beautiful, but I personally don't have that idea yet."

"Why? Your Highness, you are about to become an adult. It is not in line with your noble status that you still have no one to serve you. My daughter does not have any requirements. As long as she can serve you, even if she is an unknown maid, she will be able to serve you." It’s done willingly.”

The middle-aged wealthy businessman who wanted to bring his daughter over was so enthusiastic that Garlan couldn't resist it for a while.

"No... Well, I think that before I get married, I won't consider concubines. This will not be good for my future wife..."

The middle-aged man laughed hahaha.

"Your Highness, you are really saying that women are nothing. They can only survive by relying on men, and they live by looking at men's looks."

He said it matter-of-factly.

"How many women a man wants is not something they can control. If he is disobedient, he must be taught a lesson. You see, a businessman like me has dozens of concubines. As for you, why don't I have hundreds of concubines around me? Can you show your identity? Women are just things to please men."

Garlan frowned slightly.

He felt that this man had gone too far.

At this time, a low hum with disdain and contempt suddenly came from his ears.

He subconsciously turned his head to follow the sound and looked around. He was surrounded by maids who were serving everyone with their heads lowered and meekly. He couldn't find the person who made the hum.

Caijos next to him looked like he didn't care about the conversation between them at all, and was concentrating on eating the food.

Tal, the fat boy outside, was angrily staring at the middle-aged man and his daughter.

As soon as the beautiful girl came out, Tal's eyes lit up and he stared at the girl non-stop. However, when he heard that the middle-aged wealthy businessman was going to dedicate this girl to His Highness, Tal's eyes changed instantly.

His admiration and admiration at the beginning turned into criticism. Suddenly, he was disgusted by how the beautiful girl looked at her.

Bah, this woman of yours is not as good-looking as my Highness, yet you shamelessly want to get on His Highness.

How shameless!

Little Fatty Tarr thought angrily in his heart.

As soon as Garlan refused, he was happy.

Well, my Highness has very high standards, so he looks down on you——

Tal was full of thoughts here, while the middle-aged wealthy businessman over there continued to persuade with a smile on his face.

"So, Your Highness, please don't be polite and accept my little girl, even if she is just a slave."

As he spoke, he winked at Archon Tozes beside him.

The consul understood and smiled and said to Garlan.

"Your Highness, this is a sentiment on behalf of the citizens of Tozes. I hope someone can take good care of you, so please accept it."

"…………"

The words of advice between the two of them made Garlan ponder for a while.

He raised his eyes and looked at the black-haired girl who was still kneeling on the ground.

The girl raised her eyes slightly, and glanced shyly with her slender red phoenix eyes. Her appearance was pure, but there was a touch of amorous feelings in the corners of her eyes.

Like blooming flower buds, the innocence of a girl is added with a touch of charm. Just a seductive look at such a beauty can make people feel itchy.

Garlan lowered his eyes slightly after being glanced at shyly by the girl, and the shadow of his long eyelashes fell on his half-closed eyes.

He sat cross-legged on the cushion and thought for a while.

"I will visit you in a few days."

He seemed to be tempted by the persuasion, but he had not yet made up his mind. He did not say yes or no, he just said this vaguely.

However, this hesitation made the smiles of those who kept persuading him grow brighter.

However, when Garlan let go, Caihos's face showed a faint expression, but for Tal, it was like a bolt from the blue, and he was completely confused.

Your Highness, Your Highness? !

No, this is absolutely not allowed—

You can't be deceived by that woman's appearance! She is obviously not as good-looking as you!

No matter how much Tarr was wailing in his heart, everyone else, including Garlan, seemed to be in a good mood.

Thus, the dinner party ended in a pleasant atmosphere.

Garlan had a good night's sleep.

Only the reluctant Tal tossed and turned and woke up with a pair of dark circles under his eyes.

Garlan raised an eyebrow when he saw it and asked, "What's going on? Can't you sleep well?"

Tal said nothing, looking at Garlan sadly like an abandoned chubby puppy.

Garlan couldn't help but smile, and raised his hand to touch Tal's head.

Tal's curly hair felt good to the touch.

Speaking of which, everyone around him was extremely tall, and only Tal, who was slightly shorter than him, could let him touch his head.

The consul rushed over early in the morning, and after greeting Garlan warmly, he accompanied Garlan to begin his inspection in the city.

He smiled brightly and said that he had made all arrangements and was just waiting for you, the prince, to leave.

Gallan did not refuse. Under the arrangements of the consul, he got into a gorgeously decorated carriage. Surrounded by heavy troops, he walked through half of the city of Tozes and arrived at the Shamash Temple.

The newly built temple is located on a high ground by the sea.

The entire temple looks like it is made of gold, covered with golden light and decorated with precious stones. It is extremely gorgeous and luxurious.

The trapezoidal platform allows it to stand high in the city. In the open square, a huge statue of Shamash stands here, looking down at everyone.

He looked solemn, holding a sword in one hand, with the tip of the sword thrust into his feet, and pressing his hand on the lion at his feet. His golden pupils looked down at the earth.

The temple that is about to be completed is bustling with people, and workers are busy carrying out the final finishing work.

Most of these people were naked from the waist up and had dark skin.

It was completely different from the healthy and beautiful honey-colored skin of the upper-class nobles. It was an ugly black skin that was roughened by strong light, and there were many scars on the body.

There were constant supervisors waving their whips and hitting those who moved slower hard.

Seeing Garlan's eyes falling on those people, the Archon explained with a smile.

"Your Highness, those are slaves."

Garlan didn't answer, his eyes swept over the splendid temple.

He said: "It cost a lot of money to build this temple, right?"

The consul quickly replied: "The money allocated from the treasury is not much, and the cost of building the temple was jointly donated by the citizens of Tozes." He added.

"Most of the money was donated by the businessmen last night."

"Are those the biggest businessmen in the area?"

"Yes, they are all honorary citizens of Tozes. They often donate money to build bridges and pave roads. They also opened several almshouses to provide relief to the elderly and disabled."

The consul smiled and said, "Look, there is one over there."

Garlan looked in the direction pointed by the consul and nodded slightly.

After seeing the Temple of Shamash, the Archon took him to the harbor.

The harbor in Tozes is divided into military and civilian. You can see along the way that the civilian harbors, large or small, are bustling with ships, and there are crowds of people on the docks, which is very lively.

Tozes was frequently attacked by pirates due to its prosperous trade.

Therefore, the Aaron Landis army here is mainly based on the navy, supplemented by infantry.

King Camos granted a charter that one-third of Tozes' taxes could be left every year for the maintenance and expansion of Tozes' navy.

Unlike Aaron Landis's cavalry, Aaron Landis's sea soldiers did not have armor. Instead, they wore dark blue cloth with leather armor only at key points.

Because Tozes is the most important seaport of Aaron Landis, there are a total of three fleets stationed here.

The consuls were only responsible for managing the towns and had only the right to advise but not interfere with the army. All military power of Aaron Landis belonged directly to King Camos.

At this moment, the commander in charge of these fleets and three captains were waiting in the military port.

As soon as they saw Garlan, they leaned down and knelt down to salute.

Garlan's eyes paused on the middle-aged commander's face for a moment, then moved away, smiling and saying a few words of official praise to them. Then, under the leadership of the consul and accompanied by these generals, he watched in the military port.

In the military port, Garlan and his party saw a large number of warships moored in the port.

Warships ranged from large to small, from light three-masted ships to heavy, large-scale radial ships. Among them, the most majestic one is sixty or seventy meters long. There are hundreds of oars on both sides alone. They are divided into three layers from top to bottom and lined up on both sides. They are so densely packed that it dazzles the human eye. .

The huge warship made Tal, who saw a huge warship for the first time, let out an exclamation of exclamation and clicked his tongue.

Just when Garlan and his party were watching the giant warship, one of the people following them looked a bit off.

He was a young general with short dark brown hair, one of the three captains, with a very dark complexion. He was the kind of person who had been drifting at sea all year round, exposed to the scorching sun and blown by the sea breeze, making him dark and vicissitudes of life.

He has thick eyebrows and thick lips, a face with rough skin and sharp edges, a broad forehead, and a look of determination in his eyes.

Along the way, he was very thoughtful and silent, as if he was thinking about something. And the people next to him seemed to push him aside intentionally or unintentionally, telling him not to get too close to the prince.

The general kept silent for a long time. It was not until Garlan was about to leave the military port that he focused his eyes, as if he had made up his mind.

Ignoring the warning looks from his colleagues around him, he strode forward suddenly, stopped in front of Garlan, and knelt down.

"Your Highness, Captain Seth of the Seventh Fleet of Aaron Landis has something important to report to you."

The sudden behavior of the young general made everyone who was chatting and laughing harmoniously stopped. The consul frowned and looked at the leading middle-aged commander.

The commander took a step forward, with a stern face, and said in a deep voice: "Captain Seth, you are too presumptuous in front of His Highness the Prince."

He stared at Seth hard.

"Get back here immediately and prepare to be punished!"

"I will accept any punishment, but before that, Your Highness, please listen to my report."

Seth's expression remained unchanged, with a look of determination on his resolute face, and he eagerly turned his expectant eyes to Garlan.

Garlan thought for a moment, then asked.

"Tell me first, is what you want to say related to the fleet?"

"yes, I……"

"Then don't say it."

The blond prince interrupted Seth and said sternly.

"All military matters are decided by Brother Wang. No one is allowed to interfere in the army without Brother Wang's permission, and I am no exception."

After saying that, he didn't look at anyone, waved his hands and left quickly, as if he was afraid of getting caught in something.

The people who stayed behind looked at each other and knew the meaning of Garlan's words.

All the military power of Aaron Landis belongs directly to King Camos. Although Prince Gallan is now the first heir, if he has the slightest involvement in the military power, I am afraid it will attract the attention of the king, and even dissatisfaction.

After all, military power has been the most feared thing by kings since ancient times.

That's why Prince Gallan flatly refused and immediately walked away, obviously not wanting to be suspected by King Camos.

Seth knelt on one knee and stared blankly at the back of the departing prince, his whole body frozen in place like a stone sculpture.

A blond knight with an eyepatch on one eye walked up to him, looked down at him, stretched out his hand and put it on his shoulder.

He groaned, and he was kneeling on one knee, but when Kaihos pressed him so hard, his other knee also slammed to the ground. He pressed his hands hard on the ground, just barely keeping his whole body from being pressed to the ground.

Apparently, the prince's guardian knight was dissatisfied with the prince's rudeness and punished him.

After the punishment was over, Kehos let go of his hand, turned around and quickly chased after the prince.

The middle-aged commander gave Seth, who looked a little embarrassed, a cold side glance, ignored him, and turned to leave.

Everyone else glanced at Seth as if they were a fool or a dead person, and then hurriedly caught up with the prince.

They all knew that after this incident, this guy would probably be doomed.

Seth, who was left behind by everyone, was still kneeling on the ground, his eyes blank, and he looked completely lost.

After a long time, he smiled bitterly, as if he was laughing at himself.

His friends persuaded him for a long time not to believe the rumors about the so-called 'wise prince', but he still insisted on going his own way... As expected, he was still too naive.

In the roaring sea wind, Seth stood up slowly and walked heavily towards the depths of the military port.

That lonely figure looked extremely desolate.

After a while, there was sudden movement in this quiet place.

Something followed the direction Seth left.

…

"Your Highness, don't be angry. It's not worth getting angry with such a reckless and rude guy. Otherwise, let Mr. Caijos teach him a lesson..."

Trotting after Garlan who was walking quickly, Tal was very dissatisfied with the rough guy who made his Highness angry.

Garlan glanced at him and suddenly said: "Tal, don't you think that naval commander looks familiar?"

"Have it?"

The little fat man scratched his head. He was so focused on looking at the giant warship that he didn't pay attention to those people at all.

"Yeah." The one-eyed knight next to him nodded slightly, "It looks familiar."

He wanted to say something else, but at this time the people behind him had already caught up with him. He smiled and did not continue.

The consuls and others hurriedly caught up with him, surrounded Gallan and tried to persuade him, apologizing repeatedly and promising to deal with the captain named Seth. Only then did Gallan's expression soften and he smiled again.

Everyone immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

After leaving the military port, most of the afternoon had passed. The consul asked Garlan where else he wanted to inspect, and Garlan thought for a while.

He said: "Since I agreed to visit the businessman yesterday, I might as well go now."

The consul nodded, summoned the waiting carriage, and diligently helped the prince into the carriage.

Yesterday I pretended to refuse, but today I can't wait to go see the little beauty.

He had a smile on his face, but he was thinking to himself and snorted.

Although the prince is young, he is still a man after all, and he cannot avoid being tempted by beauty.

After getting back into the luxurious carriage, Garlan closed his eyes and took a nap inside. The carriage, surrounded by soldiers, passed through the street and drove to the mansion of the wealthy businessman yesterday.

It was already evening, and the middle-aged businessman who had received the news had already led everyone to wait respectfully at the door, welcoming the prince's arrival with a big smile.

After getting off the carriage, Garlan raised his head and glanced.

He could vaguely hear the sound of waves lapping on the shore, and what appeared in front of him was a huge mansion.

It is not even inferior to the size of Tozes's ruling hall, but it is more gorgeous and luxurious.

It was built on the beautiful seaside, standing majestically on the elevated stone ground, with carved buildings and pavilions, and even a tall tower standing in it.

The roof seemed to be soaked with gold powder. When the setting sun shone, the golden light shone and was extremely gorgeous.

With the corners of his lips raised slightly, Garlan withdrew his gaze and walked into the businessman's mansion surrounded by everyone.

The evening was a feast, even more luxurious than yesterday.

All kinds of delicacies were presented like flowing water, only to be taken away after just a few bites and replaced with new, completely different delicacies like flowing water. The middle-aged businessman had been paying attention to Garlan's expression. Seeing that Garlan was eating to his heart's content and looking very happy, he smiled even more happily.

By the time the meal was finished, it was already dark. The middle-aged businessman took the opportunity to persuade Gallan to stay at his home for the night.

Garlan hesitated for a moment, and the little beauty who was following the businessman glanced at him shyly. The young man's eyes paused and he nodded hesitantly.

Tartar, who had a round belly next to him, suddenly became anxious. He glared at the pretty little beauty and wished he could drag her away from His Highness' eyes.

Seeing the prince's reaction, he was extremely worried.

When they were assigned to the bedroom where they rested, what worried Tal the most finally happened.

The shameless middle-aged businessman bowed to His Highness and said with a smile: "Since Your Highness is staying here today and has no choice but to catch the sun, will I let my little girl serve you tonight?"

Tal was shocked.

When he turned around and saw the prince with his head hanging down, seemingly hesitant but a little moved, he immediately approached him and tried to persuade the prince to refuse.

However, he was really overstretched and he was fat. Before he could squeeze through, he heard the shameless and beautiful girl shyly calling "Your Highness."

The sound is like a string, with a hint of vibrato, plucking the heartstrings.

Then, Tal looked at his highness with dumbfounded eyes and nodded.

He stood there blankly, watching his highness and the girl enter the room together, and the door closed in front of his eyes.

The middle-aged businessman left with a smile and contentment.

Before leaving, I asked the servants to step back and not get too close tonight, so as not to interfere with His Highness's good deeds.

Tal got angry and grabbed Caijos's arm who was about to turn around and leave.

"Lord Kehos! You can't just watch - the prince - he - he -"

He was so anxious that he stammered when speaking.

"This won't work!"

The blond knight looked unconcerned and glanced at him with his green eyes.

"Tal, His Highness is not young anymore, and it is normal for him to find a woman to serve him. You'd better not meddle in other people's business, otherwise, if you make His Highness angry, he might just drive you away."

After saying that, he waved away Tal's hand, yawned carelessly, turned around and entered the next room, slamming the door shut, as if he was planning to take a rest.

Tal stayed there for a long time, and finally had no choice but to walk into the house on the other side angrily.

He lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

He stared blankly at the ceiling, feeling extremely uncomfortable.

Lord Knight Kayhos was right, they were all men, and he also knew that if he bothered His Highness on that kind of thing, He would definitely make His Highness angry.

But……

When he thought of the look on that girl's eyebrows, he felt like his heart was burning again.

Although he is young, he has already met all kinds of people in the palace.

He could see that the girl looked pure and innocent, but she was basically a carnivorous person. The way she looked at His Highness was like a jackal that wanted to swallow His Highness.

After tossing and turning on the bed for a long time, Tal suddenly sat up, gritted his teeth, and his heart skipped a beat.

No matter what, just die!

I can’t care so much anymore!

Even if he is driven away by His Highness, he will not allow that kind of girl who is not sincere and has ulterior motives to taint his pure and noble Highness!

When he was hesitant, he was timid, but once he made up his mind, the little fat man immediately took action.

The prince's door must have been locked from the inside, and he would definitely not be able to get in directly. Because the prince's room was next door, Tal thought about climbing from his own window sill to the window sill of the prince's room, so he ran to the window sill of his room and poked his head out.

...Fuck, so, so high.

The little fat man, who was a little afraid of heights, shivered and shrank back.

He rolled his eyes, thought for a moment, searched around the room, found a sharp object, and then opened the door.

He poked his head at the door for a while, looking around at no one, then stumbled to the prince's closed room.

Fortunately, since he was a child, in order to find gossip to make the prince happy, he liked to secretly inquire about information everywhere in the palace. In order to get around everywhere, he developed the unique skill of secretly opening doors.

Just do it, the little fat man started to pry open the door.

After a while, there was a slight click and the door opened.

Tal gently opened the door and peeked his head in, intending to take a look at the situation.

However, upon seeing this, he immediately became furious and furious.

On the big bed in the room, the girl's graceful body was lying on her side. She was holding the clothes that had fallen to the prince's elbow with one hand, and seemed to be leaning her head on the prince's left shoulder.

The prince was sitting sideways, with the clothes on his right shoulder torn open and falling from his arms. His graceful shoulders and a small half of his white chest were exposed to the light.

Tal, who was so angry that he jumped three feet high in an instant, rushed in without thinking, like a fat hen guarding its calf, all the hair on his body exploded.

He pushed away the girl who was leaning softly against Garlan.

There was only a bang, and the girl was pushed by Tal and fell off the bed.

She lay face down on the floor, as still as a piece of wood.

Garlan was startled, and when he turned his head, he saw Tal's round face that was flushed with anger.

He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could speak, Tal grabbed his shoulder.

The little fat man looked at His Highness's torn clothes, showing that his upper body was half-clothed, and his chest twitched with distress.

"Your Highness, it's all my fault, I'm late!"

He looked sad and angry.

"What did this woman do to you? Did she give you to—"

Garlan was a little dizzy from his shaking.

"Uh... Tal, calm down first..."

The little fat man, who was trapped in his own delusion and filled with grief and anger, did not hear Gallan's words and continued to blame himself.

"It's all my fault! Blame me! Your Highness, wow, wow, wow, I'm sorry for you, I should have come earlier."

Tal held Garlan's shoulder tightly and did not let go, gritting his teeth, his fat face looking a bit ferocious.

When he thought of the innocent prince being poisoned by that woman, he almost burst into tears.

"I'm sorry for you——"

At this moment, there was a sudden creak, and a small black shadow came in from the open window sill.

The little black mouse ran into the room, stood upright, flexed its two front paws, tilted its head and looked at the two people in the room, with a puzzled look in its dark eyes.

And the next second, the man who followed the little black mouse in the night climbed over the window sill and stepped into the room.

When he looked up, he saw the situation in front of him and was stunned for a moment.

The girl fell to the ground motionless.

The prince was obviously attacked, his clothes were disheveled, and even his shirt was torn.

The fat body of the fat man I had seen in the morning was forced in front of the prince, holding the prince's shoulders with both hands, with a ferocious look on his face.

Veins popped up on the forehead of this young general who was extremely loyal to the royal family of Aaron Landis.

With a clang, the sharp sword at his waist was unsheathed.

He stepped forward, and with a swipe, the blade of the sword touched Tal's neck.

"You bastard! What do you want to do to the prince!"

The man lowered his voice and scolded angrily, staring into Tal's eyes that were about to burst into flames.

"How dare you do such a shameless behavior to His Highness!"

If he hadn't been worried that this filthy guy would rise up and hurt the prince before he died, he would have chopped him off with one sword.

He looked at Tal angrily and growled.

"If you don't want to die, let go of your dirty hands immediately!"

Tal, who was being scolded, had just heard half of the man's words when his attention was completely attracted by the sword that the man pulled out. His mind was filled with the shining silver sword, and he didn't even hear the man's lower words after that. The roar of the voice.

There is an assassin!

This thought flashed through Tal's mind instantly.

The bright sword light made his legs go weak.

But when he thought that His Highness was behind him, he gritted his teeth and opened his hands to block Garlan.

"As long as I'm here, don't even think about hurting His Highness!"

Garlan, who was blocked behind him: "..."

A certain general who just wanted to kill Tarr with a sword said: "???"

Tal, whose legs were so weak, mustered up all the courage to glare at the assassin who wanted to kill His Highness, wanting to kill him with his eyes, but suddenly he felt that this assassin looked so familiar...

…………Um?

Isn't this the same naval general who knelt down in front of His Highness recklessly in the military port in the afternoon and said he had something to report?

Why here?

Tal, who had the sword at his throat, was confused.

The little black mouse who was forgotten aside tilted his head and looked at the few people in the room, squeaked, and curled up his little beard.

Then, as if it smelled something, it turned its little head and looked towards the window sill where it had just climbed in.

On the high wall outside, there was a slender figure secretly climbing over from the nearby window sill in the dark.

With a vigorous turn, he climbed up to the window sill of the room, then turned over and landed lightly in the room.

Looking up, the blond knight was startled by the mess in the room.

With a glance, Kehos showed a clear expression, and he whistled softly.

"Your place is really lively, Your Highness."

Gallan: "...It's quite lively."