"Achilles, did something happen outside the palace today?" Princess Rupert looked at the man in front of her calmly. The branches of the Poinciana tree in the courtyard hung down like shade, swaying gently in the wind, like fire-like flowers,
Weaving into a sea of rosy clouds.
The wind brought a rustling sound, like the trees whispering. Achilles glanced at it and shook his head gently: "After His Majesty left, everything in Questak was as calm as before. Lord Secher is also a long-term minister, so he knows
How should we handle the current situation? His Highness Aleph has done a pretty good job."
"Aleph has always been outstanding. If he hadn't been a little inferior to his origins, he should have stood out long ago."
Achilles nodded slightly, expressing his agreement with Her Royal Highness the Princess.
"Is there anything else you want to tell me?"
Princess Rupert asked routinely.
The wind blew the gauze, and the snow-like curtains blew across the pillars. Occasionally, a few maids walked past from a distance.
Achilles withdrew his gaze from a distance and replied: "After the buttercups bloom, autumn will be halfway over. After the Star Ceremony, trade between various places will calm down for a period of time. Slave merchants and dark believers will also enter a dormant period.
"
"Recently, there have been fewer discussions about the great dust storm, and the 'communication' between the Holy Chosen Ones seems to have recovered..."
"People are speculating on the purpose of Huan Hai and his party..."
"The Kaolin people's envoys are staying in the palace. They don't seem to be here for the fantasy sea..."
As usual, Achilles told one by one what happened outside and inside the palace in the recent days.
Princess Rupert listened silently.
After a while, she quietly asked: "Is it gone?"
"That's all, Your Highness," Achilles replied.
"Okay, you go down."
The princess stretched out her hand, and as usual, let the man kiss her fingertips.
Achilles gently put down her delicate hands with both hands, and his eyes fell on the other person.
"If there is any news from Bein, remember to inform me."
Achilles looked at her and nodded deeply, then turned and left.
Princess Rupert watched him walk away, his back looming behind a white curtain, and finally walked out of the corridor and disappeared at the end of it.
A bush shook in the distance, and 'Ms. Papamo' emerged from there, wearing a maid's robe, which looked a bit ridiculous because of her size and figure.
'Her' short and fat body struggled to climb over the railing, and while sweeping away the dead branches and leaves on her body, she came to the side of Her Highness the Princess. 'She' placed a recording crystal on the table and pressed her hands on the stone table.
Standing on tiptoes, he reached out and patted it before turning around. "Ed made no mistake at all. This guy really didn't intend to give the letter to you, Your Highness. Not only that, he didn't even mention it at all."
"
"Maybe he forgot."
"How is that possible? Your Royal Highness, please don't deceive yourself." She counted on her short fingers: "It's only been a few hours. Even the old cat of the Dwork family has not forgotten.
To this extent.”
"what is that?"
"Oh, a fat and greedy cat, but that's nothing. Have I told you about that evil dragon?"
"You have said it before," Princess Rupert smiled slightly: "Mr. King of Thieves."
"Then we must have missed some details."
"No need."
"Er..."
The princess turned around, a faint look of disappointment flashed in her eyes.
She said this, but she knew in her heart that the other person was very careful and would never forget such an important thing. She looked down at her fingertips and couldn't help but feel a little disappointed for a moment.
The recording crystal not far away is emitting soft light.
The light weaves a picture in which a man looks down from the shade of a tree. A man soon appears in the picture.
That was Achilles. He took out a letter in the picture and muttered to himself, but there were only images and no sound in the picture. After a while, the latter put the letter away and put it close to his body.
He looked around, then walked forward and disappeared at the end of the screen.
After a while, the light in the picture gradually faded and dissipated like stardust.
A maid came in from outside and looked at Her Royal Highness the Princess with some awe: "Your Highness, as you said, there are some people outside..."
"Did they tell you their identity?"
"It seems to be called Ed."
"Bring them in."
Her Royal Highness the Princess added very seriously:
"Don't tell anyone."
"The same thing happened when Mr. Achilles asked."
The maid nodded timidly.
…
Fang Yu also didn't expect that Her Royal Highness the Princess's first words when meeting them would be to get straight to the point.
"I had someone take that girl away," Princess Rupert said very calmly.
She did not mention the name 'Afeifa', probably because by default, this name only belongs to her sister and her mother.
Fang Yu was stunned for a moment.
He stopped and looked at each other with the others, mainly Sylvide. After receiving the gesture from the ship officer, he quickly calmed down, took a breath, and said to the princess: "Big
Your Royal Highness, originally this was considered a family matter of the Penelope royal family, and I should not have interfered. But now you should know that someone in this matter did not tell the truth about Miss Afifah's relationship with your father...
"
"Guess, I will definitely suspect that the girl is my father's illegitimate daughter, because ten years ago... it was for this reason that my father chose to attack my mother, so there was no such thing as a wandering alchemist.
It's all my father's arrangement."
Princess Rupert's somewhat calm gaze fell on everyone.
She asked: "Right?"
Fang Yu couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
This is exactly what they guessed.
The dark believers hiding around Her Royal Highness will most likely take advantage of the gap created between the Princess and the Sand King to further drive a wedge between the two.
Even such estrangement may be planned by blind followers.
Although Babartan, the King of Sand, has always maintained a sober attitude towards the blind followers around him, he has a different attitude towards his daughter, that is, he does not want Princess Rupert and Afifah to be involved in this incident.
Zhonglai relied on this kind of mentality, and with the cooperation of the spies around Her Royal Highness, Seniman could easily achieve his goals without anyone noticing.
Even in this plan, the Seven Seas Brigade may have become a pawn unconsciously. With the help of their abilities, Her Royal Highness the Princess's investigation soon went deep into the blind followers, and was involved in a series of incidents in the Bein Fortress.
.
The investigation of the eldest princess progressed so fast that the Sand King Babartan had to use the last resort to put the latter under house arrest in the Kashan Palace.
But as Fang Yu guessed, Princess Rupert will never give up the investigation into her mother's death easily.
Therefore, this decision will naturally arouse her resistance.
Although there may not be a rift on the surface, in reality there is a gap between the two because of this matter.
Once a gap arises, followers will have room to make trouble.
In particular, although the King of Sand knew the true purpose of the blind followers, the eldest princess herself never knew who the betrayer beside her was.
But this is a matter between the royal family after all, and it also involves secrets from many years ago, the princess's mother and queen, and even the reputation of the current King of Sand. He originally thought that even though the eldest princess already knew this in her heart,
But you may not necessarily talk about it directly, you may avoid talking about it and discuss the current affairs directly with them.
It is possible to even refuse to admit it
But after he was fully prepared, he didn't expect that Her Royal Highness the Princess would be direct and straight to the point.
Without any cover-up, she just shook her head slightly and continued:
"I did think so at first."
"Especially because I have never doubted Achilles. He has been my guardian knight since I was very young."
"He used to be my teacher. My father doted on me so much that even when he knew about the relationship between me and him, he didn't object."
"It may seem a little unreasonable to you Kaolin people."
"But I have always hoped that one day, I can become a real lover with him, and my surname will be named after his family."
"But I didn't expect..."
Her Royal Highness the Princess sighed quietly.
Her eyes fell on the recording crystal on the table, and she felt a little sad for a moment. She said in a quiet tone: "Although I still want to thank you for sending me this news. Especially Mr. Parker... He even risked his own life to sneak into Kashan.
palace."
"In fact, it's not that dangerous," the Papalar replied immediately: "For a true king of night thieves, this is nothing."
Princess Rupert smiled slightly, but it was a little forced.
"Actually, I already had doubts in my mind before that... because the moment I saw the girl, I knew that I had guessed wrong. There was no way that girl had anything to do with my father.
...Even," she sighed, and changed her words again: "But I at least have a little doubt about the news that Achilles sent back before."
"Of course, I didn't suspect Achilles at that time. I just wondered if someone over there had betrayed us."
"But I didn't expect..."
Tianlan was a little curious after hearing this, and couldn't help but ask: "Your Highness, how did you see it?"
Princess Rupert looked at Fang Plover: "Mr. Ed, why don't you take a guess?"
Fang Yu pondered for a moment, but he was not thinking, he was just confirming the idea in his heart. After a while, he raised his head, met the eyes of the princess, and replied very firmly: "I
Guess, Miss Afifah should look exactly like the princess."
Except for Xiang Xiang, Luo Yu and Sylvide, everyone looked at their leader in surprise.
And a glimmer of excitement flashed in the princess's eyes.
"Few people have seen my mother as a girl," she replied quietly: "Even in the palace, there are only some images of my mother after she got married. The earliest ones were between her and me.
The time before and after our father met."
"But three years after my mother died, my father received a very meaningful gift."
"That was a Holy Chosen One. She seemed to be the leader of an adventure group called Golden Tulip. When she left this world, she asked someone to give a recording crystal to my father. Inside it was my mother.
A memory left in her adventure group during her girlhood."
"And that is probably the only record in the world related to my mother's girlhood." She paused slightly: "In this palace, only I, my father and Afifah have ever seen this piece.
Image. The girl in the image... looks exactly like Miss Afifah."
"ah?"
Tianlan screamed in surprise.
Princess Rupert also asked: "Has Mr. Ed seen that crystal too?"
Fang Yu shook his head.
"That's wrong," Tian Lan muttered in a low voice, "Brother Ed, how do you know?"
But Her Royal Highness the Princess was very calm: "But Mr. Ed, you must be here to tell me about this, right?"
This time, Fang Yu nodded.
Then he started from everything that happened in Bein Fortress, talked about his conversation with Bishop Faris, talked about the Emerald Star, talked about the plan between Count Numan and Barbartan, the King of Sand. Talked about the Eternal One
, talked about the creation skills of the elves, talked about the dragon soul crystal and that absurd alchemy trend
Finally, the story returned to Istania and the other Miss Afifa.
"So," Her Royal Highness the Princess asked calmly after hearing this: "That girl is the 'creation' of my father and the mystics?"
"To be precise...that is a replica of your mother."
Fang Yu hesitated for a moment before saying this.
"But she is not my queen mother," Her Royal Highness the Princess shook her head: "Although she may look exactly the same on the outside, she is a completely different soul on the inside. That girl is quiet and reserved...and my queen mother was passionate and determined as a girl. As long as she is
She will definitely accomplish what she sets her sights on... She doesn't have that kind of personality, and she won't become a risk-taker."
"And my father must have fallen in love with my mother like this."
Fang Yu was speechless for a while.
Count Nurman told him not long ago that there is no eternal thing in this world. In fact, since then, he has vaguely guessed that the plan of Barbartan, the King of Sand, may have failed.
They created a body of the former princess, but just like the problems encountered by the alchemists of the past, they could not create a matching soul. The passionate and brave soul of the past had already followed the beautiful and determined one.
The person passed away and left this world forever.
It is doomed, and people cannot bring it back from the past by any means.
Perhaps this is the reason why every name around you is worth cherishing, because once you miss it, you will only have endless regrets.
Fang Yu couldn't help but look back, and happened to see the noble lady looking at her. He couldn't help but hold the other person's hand. An unrealistic wish suddenly came into his heart, hoping that he could retain it forever.
This moment, until the end of time.
Sylvester smiled slightly.
But the Sand King's plan failed, and some people's plans did not.
Fang Plover had already guessed this from the moment Afifah was taken away. The Sand King Babartan hoped to leave a 'clean' future for Istania to avoid the tragedy of his lover.
It happened again on this land. He hoped that his children would no longer live under the conspiracy of the dark believers. However, as a 'server' of the blind followers, Lord Seineman didn't look like that.
A fool?
Judging from the secret chess piece of Achilles, the blind followers may have already known the Sand King's plan.
Fang Plover was not optimistic about the Sand King's plan at all.
Even as Delan said, this plan may not only fail, but may even bring more serious consequences.
The emerald star fragment in the illusory sea may be the source of everything.
And the mystic girl.
"Your Highness Princess," Fang Yu breathed a sigh of relief. He originally thought it would take a lot of twists and turns, but he didn't expect it to go so smoothly.
"Since you already understand that this is a misunderstanding, you must know that your father is in danger right now. The plans of those who blindly follow may even threaten this country. The only chance now is for us to take Miss Afifah with us, and then
Together with you, before it's too late, go and persuade His Majesty the King of Sand to change his mind."
But Princess Rupert shook her head slightly.
"Although I understand all this, it still does not mean that I can choose to forgive."
"Why?" Fang Pultru was shocked: "Your Highness Princess, your father is not the murderer, but the real murderer is preparing to recreate everything in the past again at this moment."
"Mr. Ed, what I cannot forgive is the thought in my father's heart, because no matter whether the soul in Afifah's body is the same as that of my mother, that is not my mother."
Her Royal Highness the Princess sighed softly: "That's just another person. What my father is looking for is not my mother, but a substitute. The reason for his failure is not that he failed to find his lover, but that
Even this substitute is not perfect."
"But the one he should really love should be Afifah," she replied softly: "That is the only memory my mother left for him. It was his daughter who really worried about him day and night.
The people...are the people around him."
"What a king should cherish is not the past, but the present. And the reason why I investigated the death of my mother was precisely to find out the black hands hidden in this sea of sand, and to prevent everything from the past from happening again.
It's a reenactment, but it's not to reminisce about the past. The best memorial to my mother is the peaceful country she lived in. Istania's future will become even better."
"And the silver ship will set off from here and reach that new world. That is the tomorrow she is thinking about, and the adventure she longs for."
"I don't want my sister," Princess Rupert's voice deepened, "Afifah, to live in a future full of shadows."
Fang Yu listened to this sentence quietly.
The others also said nothing.
He understood that the eldest princess was only talking about Afifa, but in fact she was also talking about herself.
Because she is also the flesh and blood of that King of Sand and that Princess.
But she was his sister, and he saw something called firmness in this princess, just like her mother.
But does the King of Sand really not love these daughters? If not, he might not have fallen into this huge trap. The King is always haunted by the nightmares of the past and cannot get rid of the memory of what happened ten years ago.
The sadness of everything that happened makes me unable to make the same correct judgments as when I was young.
But he has never failed his children.
Fang Yu subconsciously thought of the celebration of the Star Ceremony.
At the celebration, what Babartan, the King of Sand, said to his eldest son.
He may not be a good king anymore, but he must be a good father.
It's just that after Fang Yu listened to the words of the princess in front of him, he didn't know how to speak for a moment. Delan asked him to re-establish the bridge between the princess and her father. This may not sound difficult, but when the time came, he
But I found that as an outsider, what could I use to reconstruct the relationship between the two parties?
He thought it was just a misunderstanding, but it looked like it was far from a misunderstanding.
The blind follower may see things more accurately than he does, so that's why he starts here.
After saying this, Her Royal Highness the Princess turned around, slowly picked up the crystal from the table, and then handed it back to them.
She paused for a moment before speaking: "I can't leave Kashan Palace, because as soon as I leave, Achilles and the people behind him will become vigilant. I'm worried that I will fail in my efforts and lead to the worst situation happening in advance.
.”
Princess Rupert let out a sigh of relief: "But you said that I am the only one who can persuade my father to change his mind. In fact, that is not necessarily true. There is another person who can also do the same thing... Take him with you."
Feifa, my sister, take her to find my father. Maybe she is the only one who can convince that man and make him change his mind..."
"As for that girl, in fact, I have already sent people to check. She is no longer in the Kashan Palace. She may have been taken away by the blind followers. She may be in my father's palace. If you want to find her,
If you are a human being, you can also bring her back together."
"By the way," she suddenly said again: "I apologize to her. She knew nothing about this, and I shouldn't have implicated her in it, so that something like this happened."
But Fang Yu held the crystal blankly, and was stunned for a moment.
He was actually prepared for Afifah's matter. If the blind followers took Afifah away, they would naturally not let her stay in the Kashan Palace.
If Achilles intervened, it would not be difficult to remove him from the palace without anyone noticing. And probably after discovering this, Her Royal Highness the Princess would believe their words without too much doubt.
only……
"Your Highness Princess?" He still couldn't understand.