Miranda was silent for a long time, but her eyes did not leave the Duke of Star Lake in front of her. It seemed that she was still getting used to Thales looking like this.
"You said you have many experts under your command, and are even better than me?"
A few seconds later, Miranda said disdainfully:
"But as far as I know, that two-on-one duel..."
"Those are just the two weakest people in the Star Lake Guards."
Thales interrupted her resolutely to prevent the other party from revealing his past. At the same time, he felt sorry for Nexi and Bastia:
"If nothing else, my personal guard captain, Lord Tormund Mallos, known as the 'Terror Blade', can suppress them both with just one hand."
("The cat has more and more fur. Only an idiot could come up with the idea of raising cats and limiting rats..." Mallos, who was checking the supplies, said unhappily.)
In the study, Thales sneezed slightly and rubbed his nose.
"Terror, terror, sharp blade?" Miranda muttered the word, with confusion on her face.
Thales looked serious:
"That's the nickname of Lord Marius. The people of the North, no, the people of the stars, well, I mean, the enemies who have suffered losses at his hands, whether they are the Exeters or the stars.
, I call him that behind my back."
Miranda frowned.
Thales sneered:
"A little tip: Don't mention it to his face. Mallos doesn't like this nickname and will never admit it to his death."
Miranda was thinking about something, her expression gradually became serious:
"The Marius family once belonged to the Seven Knights of the Bright Star, also known as the 'Razor'. I know this. But, the terrifying blade? So, Lord Marius is good at swords? Or is it a short-handed dagger?"
Thales had to cough more frequently:
"Well, you might as well come to him for a discussion some other time. But I warn you in advance, as my most trusted guard captain, Lord Mallos's martial arts are hidden and unfathomable, even if he is the most powerful and terrifying person in this world.
When a master fights against him, the outcome is only 50-50."
"Why do I think you are exaggerating?"
"No, I'm just emphasizing that the martial arts you are proud of are not uncommon here."
Hearing this, Miranda was silent for a while, but she quickly continued:
"It's more than just martial arts."
"Considering the grievances between you and Duke Zhan En, Your Highness, no matter what your purpose is when you go to the Emerald City, you will definitely be hampered by everything. It will not be as smooth as it was in the Royal Capital and Longxiao City."
Thales remained silent.
In fact, things didn't go very well in the Royal Capital and Longxiao City either.
But she was right. His goal in going to the Emerald City was bound to be difficult, not to mention dangerous.
He needs more capable people.
"And we worked together in Longxiao City. You know my abilities outside of wielding a sword."
Miranda's eyes became shrewd:
"Leaving some problems to me will be safer and more effective than leaving it to Wyatt and Mute, the Doyle boys or that big guy with the zombie face."
Wyatt and Rolf.
D.D and Glover.
Thales couldn't help but frown when he thought of what happened that day on Hongfang Street and at the Laiya Club.
"Accept me, and what you can get is my identity and surname."
Seeing Taylor's expression change slightly, Miranda continued to add:
"Your Highness Thales, although you are the heir to the Supreme Throne, you have touched the interests of many people since the royal banquet and the accident of the prince breaking into the palace. You have been in a whirlpool, often got into trouble, and you have gradually drifted away from the Fuxing Palace.
"
"So up to now, no princes with enough weight have dared to stand up and take a stand, to pledge their support to you, to support you, and to endorse your rights."
Thales turned his eyes:
"Perhaps you don't know that my current sword is the ancient sword inherited from the Duke of West Wasteland; Cohen's cousin, Earl Del Croma of Wing Castle, escorted me all the way back to the royal capital; and the legal heir of Earl of Heroic Soul Castle,
Paul Bozdorf of the Black Lion family is outside right now, on duty as my bodyguard."
Duke Xinghu spread his hands carelessly:
"And their family also gave me an extra-large nine-pointed star flag. It is exquisitely made and made of rich materials. It floats with shining silver light and is very majestic. I like it very much."
Miranda thought for a moment and quickly found the corresponding memory:
"Paul Bozdorf? Are you talking about the guy who was beaten into a pig's head with a broom on the first day he arrived in the royal capital?"
"It's not as serious as a pig's head, it's just a broken skin, etc. How do you know?"
Miranda sneered:
"But it is a pity that Paul's father, Earl Lewis, was young and powerful. He was neither in prison nor in authority. He could not leave a huge power vacuum behind him so that his successor could become the closest and most popular person to rule.
The future earl."
"It's simple, just kill his father later." Thales' expression remained unchanged, his heart not beating so violently.
Miranda ignored his bad sense of humor and remained as serious as ever: "As for a sword and an escort, only a fool would think that this is an unbreakable and sincere alliance."
Thales curled his lips.
Miranda looked sharply:
"But unlike other families, Arlend is in a special situation. The Duke of the North is in prison and has no hope of returning. With the throne vacant, my role as his only daughter and first heir is particularly crucial."
She took a step forward:
"Having me in your camp means that you have the future of the entire Northern Territory, and you have the Yalunde family, the head of the six wealthy families. This is an unprecedented and obvious signal, and it is also a sign that you can regroup after being exiled by the king's suspicion.
People look for power as an important bargaining chip for a comeback."
A comeback?
It was as if I had "got up" at some point.
Thales fell into deep thought.
"For this alone, my value to you is more than everyone else in this castle. And I haven't even mentioned the reputation and qualifications I have accumulated in Broken Dragon Fortress over the years."
Thales was silent for a while.
"I admit, what you said makes sense."
Duke Xinghu raised his lips and shook his head:
"But there are quite a few flaws. For example, you may not be able to inherit your father's inheritance."
Miranda's face tightened.
Thales smiled.
"A long time ago, there was an old witch named Xiaoluo who was like this: We agreed that she would help me ascend the throne, and I would help her regain her power."
Thales spoke with a nostalgic look.
"But the collaboration broke down and she betrayed me."
Miranda's eyes moved.
"I have resented her for breaking promises and contracts for many years, but it was not until I discussed it with Lao Wu and my teacher that I realized that that cooperation was doomed to fail."
Miranda felt the coldness in Thales' words and couldn't help but shudder.
Thales sneered and held the desk with both hands:
"You see, I have to get on the throne first before I have the strength to help her regain the power, but she has to get back the power first before she can have the strength to help me get on the throne."
The prince's eyes turned cold:
"Aren't these two empty promises guaranteeing each other?"
"It depends on which side loses control first, and its credit will be ruined first."
Miranda's whole body tensed up.
At that moment, the prince's gaze seemed to be sharp, causing the Pegasus movement in her body to start moving.
"I have no shortage of martial arts, brains, or your illusory so-called status."
Thales exhaled and narrowed his eyes:
"If you want to convince me to accept you, then you have to have a heavier bargaining chip."
Miranda said nothing.
The back-and-forth negotiations made her frown.
"And if not..."
Then give up.
give up.
Thales stared at her, his hand on the table tightly clenched into a fist.
Miranda.
Please!
"Star Lake Castle doesn't support idlers, or are you willing to offer yourself a pillow to warm my bed?" Thales' tone was frivolous and exaggerated, full of sarcasm and disdain.
Miranda said nothing, but clenched her fists.
Please, stay away from me.
Thales looked at her silently, with a sneer still on his face.
Stay away from Star Lake Castle.
Stay away from this quagmire, this whirlpool, this trap.
At least, avoid the eye of the storm in the future and protect yourself.
Avoid falling victim to the “covenant”.
Please.
Dark clouds cover the ceiling, and the light in the study is very dark.
Under Thales' urging and questioning eyes, the female swordsman's eyes moved slightly, as if she was thinking about something.
After a moment, she raised her head, and there seemed to be a decision between her brows.
"Northern Territory."
Miranda said firmly:
"If you help me return to Cold Castle and assume the position of Duke, little brat, I promise that I will bring you the North."
Northern border?
There was no time to care about the other party's title. Thales was stunned for a moment, and then laughed out loud:
"What are you talking about? The northern territory is the territory of the kingdom."
But Miranda shook her head firmly.
"You do not understand."
The female eagle of the Arend family has a keen eye.
"I promise that I will bring you a different Northern Territory, not geographically, not traditionally, not now, not even before."
"It's the future, the northern border of the kingdom that your father has been dreaming of for many years."
Thales' eyes moved, and he subconsciously retracted his arms and straightened up.
What?
Miranda took a step forward and said decisively:
"I promise that it will no longer be a special case in the north outside the kingdom system. From inheritance to jurisprudence, from land to population, from culture to system, from finance to management, from agriculture and animal husbandry to defense, from conscription to tariffs,
From personnel to logistics, from the Great Needle to the Desolate Land, from the Desolate Temple to the Neverwinter Palace, from the birch forest to the Broken Dragon Fortress, the Renaissance Palace will rule the North like an arm and a finger, just as it says it will rule with one purpose.
Center Collar.”
Like an arm using a finger...
To put it bluntly...
Thales' eyes changed completely.
The prince looked at Miranda in disbelief:
"Madam, what are you talking about?"
Miranda snorted coldly and said without hesitation:
"Yes, there are no backward traditions, no annoying customs, no old-fashioned families, no annoying lords, and no embarrassing compromises. The best military source and bridgehead in the Northern Kingdom will be exactly as your father expected.
Completely and thoroughly integrated into the system and rule of Star Kingdom."
Miranda gritted her teeth:
"Under the royal authority, there is no remaining sound."
Completely...
Fully integrated...
Thales couldn't sit still anymore. He jumped off the desk, not even caring to maintain his previous utilitarian and cold appearance.
"Let me clarify, you said that after you become the Duke, you will not only give up the northern territory, but also the power in your hands..."
Thales swallowed hard and asked:
"Even if that means that the northern territory will no longer be the territory it once was, the lord will no longer have the rule it once had, and the duke will no longer have the status he once had?"
How, how could...
Miranda looked at him silently.
After a few seconds, she curved the corners of her mouth, showing a confident but cold smile, and tilted her head upward, as if in provocation:
Yes, little brat.
How?
Thales' expression was still astonished: "I, I don't understand, why, why would you..."
"You also said that a blank check is worse than nothing."
Miranda exhaled and smiled softly.
"As long as I am not the Duke of the North, or to be precise, a duchess, then the power represented by this title, whether great or small, far or near, is meaningless to me."
Miranda smiled coldly:
"In this case, I can only take out heavier chips."
"For example, the future taxes promised by the 'Xianjun' when borrowing debt, or the recently popular saying from Comas: options."
The female swordsman of the Alende family raised her head with an imposing manner:
"What should I say, Your Highness, Falkenhauser, Chroma and Bozdorf, are they willing to give you such a bargaining chip for the future?"
Thales blinked desperately.
"If what you say is true, if you really want to be in the future..."
Thales couldn't believe it:
"That will be you, no, it will be an unprecedented change for the Arend family to their vassals, to the historical legal system, to the dignity of the north, and even to itself."
"betray?"
Miranda picked her ears and didn't care:
"Why, is it as serious as my father's treason?"
Taylor was speechless for a moment.
But at that moment, he thought of what he had said in front of the king.
[If people know that I am the king's internal agent, then I will be regarded as a traitor to the noble camp by thousands of vassals, criticized by thousands of people, and despised by thousands of people.]
Thales looked at Miranda blankly at this moment.
It's like seeing another self.
but……
Why, why can she be so free and uninhibited, so careless?
This is obviously...
But then he thought of something and his face darkened.
"No, this is still a blank check. It's something you can only do when you become a duke," he forced himself to shake his head and refuse, "it's based on your empty promises."
"But no one else dared to give it, even just verbally."
Miranda interrupted him without any doubt:
"And this is not something that can only be achieved after I become a duke. In fact, your father has already started to do it."
Thales stared at her closely, finding that he could not understand the thoughts of the person in front of him.
"So, do you dare to accept it?"
Miranda's eyes were like two long swords, pinning him to the point of being unable to move:
"In other words, Thales Bright Star, are you qualified?"
Thales's breathing accelerated, and he had to mobilize the Sin of Hell River to help him calm down.
And as the power of ending surged, the hell sense allowed him to detect the power in the other party's body more clearly: the Pegasus movement flowed endlessly, wandering endlessly, without any flaws.
"but why?"
"I don't understand," Thales said subconsciously, "After I returned to China, many people from Falkenhaus to Bozdorf came to my flag to show their kindness to me."
"But I know that they came because they didn't want to give up their old way of life, they didn't want to let go of the power they were accustomed to, and they didn't want to bow their heads under my father's iron fist. But you, you, you...
"
"I'm not them."
Miranda answered his question softly.
"The 'Eagle Soaring' passed down by Aaron De was once a priceless ancient imperial sword. However, it was broken many times and recast several times. It has long lost its old appearance and lost its old name."
She looked at her sword:
"Just as history is advancing and times are developing, some people will always grow old."
Thales stared at the long sword that experienced the dragon's blood with him seven years ago.
The female swordsman stood in front of him, as cold as before, but also extremely hot:
"But there are always people who are young."
"Just like an eagle flying after being recast, its shape becomes newer and its blade becomes sharper."
There was silence between the two for a while.
Thales exhaled and tried to adjust his thoughts.
"But I still can't believe it, Ms. Allende, are you really so noble?"
"To pay such a high price, you really don't want anything, just for that superficial title? For the Duke of the North who is called a lord but has no real power, and is no different from a rich man?"
"It's the Duchess," Miranda corrected.
Thales sighed and nodded in agreement:
"Duchess."
He asked:
"But if you succeed, but become a duchess in name only, and you have to look at my face to cultivate land on your own land and collect taxes, then what's the point?"
She is from the Allende family, isn't she?
They are the descendants of Nolan Nur, the 'Desolate Eagle', and are the oldest and most conservative family in the Star Kingdom.
The voice in Thales' heart was also asking: So, how is it possible?
How could she give up the powers that had been passed down from generation to generation since the empire?
How could she possibly surpass the greatest limitations and weaknesses of all lords and vassals of this era?
unless.
unless……
Miranda was silent for a long time, then suddenly laughed.
She walked slowly to the window and looked at the vast Star Lake under the shadow of dark clouds.
"Tell me, Your Highness, have you ever felt like this: from that moment on, everything in your life seemed to have come to a standstill."
Thales trembled slightly.
Just listen to the female swordsman faintly say:
"Everything you see and feel is already determined, and everything you do is destiny. No matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you can't break through the limitations in front of you, you can't bring new things, and you can't see a new way out."
Miranda looked out the window in ecstasy, looking at the dark cloud-covered sky and the bottomless black star lake.
"As for the seemingly good life, in fact, you can see the end at a glance, and all that is left is the same repetitive self-repetition day after day, waiting for the final end."
Can't bring anything new, can't see a new way out...
Thales said nothing.
At that moment, he seemed to have returned to Longxiao City. In front of him were the poisoned Alex and the heads of King Nun.
But it seemed like he was back at the royal banquet, watching D.D's face gloomy, preparing to sacrifice voluntarily, or perhaps he was in the Kingdom's secret department, watching a person coming and going in the interrogation room, and watching the light in Anke Bailar's eyes gradually disappear.
.
[As for sitting on that uncomfortable throne, calculating day and night, figuring out people's hearts, and forcing yourself to become the coldest and most pathetic tool? That's not power, Thales, it's the chain called power. ]
Kuai Rope's words once made Thales dig his nails unconsciously.
"Seven years ago, when my father was imprisoned as a traitor, I was so desperate that I could only use countless military affairs and work, including the upcoming war, to anesthetize myself and escape from the outside world."
"In the end, before the war broke out, I took the risk and rushed to Longxiao City, and everything that happened after that happened."
Miranda snorted softly.
"But from that time on, my kind-hearted cousins of the same clan began to make a fuss: gossiping, spreading rumors, making strange remarks, and even using their surnames by blood, they began to directly interfere in the affairs of Cold Castle, and every word directly pointed to the position of Duke, pointing directly to
My inheritance rights are ridiculous. It is obvious that Arund is known for its unity. It is obvious that they did not dare to act like this when my father was around. It is obvious that if I were a son, they might not dare to act like this."
Thales frowned and couldn't help but said:
"As far as I know, since Eliga the Northern Conqueror, the Kingdom of Stars has already had a queen, and the inheritance law no longer restricts gender. They can't..."
"Yes, compared to the barbaric Ekster, who has spent so much effort to raise the Grand Duchess, the Kingdom of Stars is already civilized and advanced enough to take care of people like me, right?"
Miranda interrupted him with sarcasm.
Thales said nothing, while the female swordsman snorted and shook her head.
"But gender always comes before the teeth. Even the eldest sister and the youngest brother are passed down first to the son and then to the daughter. Therefore, only the only daughter has the right to inherit the father's throne, and she also faces competition from cousins and even future husbands. Of course, these things
You don’t have to worry about it, because you have a handle, so it’s none of your business.”
Miranda said angrily:
"You just need to know that Xingchen is very civilized and advanced when it comes to inheritance. If anyone questions this, you can just say, 'Then why don't you go to Exeter?'"
Thales wanted to say something, but finally kept his mouth shut.
Miranda snorted and shook her head: "So, you naturally don't care anymore. In the North, which is completely different from the mainstream inheritance laws of the stars, there has not been a Duchess of Arend in the past seven hundred years.
"
Thales' expression changed:
"real?"
Miranda looked out the window in ecstasy and nodded:
"The closest one is the 'Arithmetician' Rosanna Alland more than a hundred years ago. As the eldest and only daughter of a duke, she almost became the first duchess of the North."
The female swordsman said quietly:
"Until her stepmother gave birth to a young son, knocking Roseanne out of the line of succession."
Thales frowned.
Roxanne Alland.
He searched for this name in his memory. Gilbert seemed to have mentioned it in his class, but...
"I am my father's second child. I originally had an older brother, but he died before he could walk."
"And my mother, when she died in the Year of Blood," Miranda's eyes were blurred, "she was already pregnant."
Thales was shocked when he heard this.
Year of Blood.
"After that disaster, even the way my father looked at me was different. He always seemed to be asking why. Why did my mother play hide and seek with you at that time? Why was you the one who escaped from the carriage? Why wasn't you?
Mother and your unborn brother? Why didn’t you disappear with them into the vast snow and countless refugees?”
Thales clenched his fists, but couldn't say a word.
Miranda shook her head in a daze:
"I sometimes think, if the mother had not had any accidents, if the fetus in her belly had been born safely, if it had been a boy, my brother, then today I would..."
Miranda's words paused, and she raised her head with firm eyes.
"No, then I wouldn't be here today."
"Probably not."
She glanced at the letter in Thales' hand and curled her lips:
"Even if I did, I would probably be happily sitting in the cold castle, holding your letter of greetings and portrait to my chest, intoxicated, thinking about what kind of dress to wear for the painter's portrait, and then tremblingly giving it to the painter.
Please reply."
Thales listened to her words quietly, looked at the ridiculous "Best Not" letter, but found that he couldn't laugh no matter what.
"When I realized this, when I realized that I can stand here only because enough people died in the Year of Blood, and it was purely due to my own luck... It felt like a cage fell from the sky, covering
It blocks my surroundings, blocks my upper limit, and isolates me from the outside world. No matter where I go, all I see is the cage wall, and the world outside the wall that I can never touch."
Miranda gritted her teeth unconsciously.
[I can stand here only because enough people died in the Year of Blood, and it is purely due to my own good luck...]
Thales listened to these words quietly, but his thoughts seemed to travel through time, and he saw the bright star tomb in the Fuxing Palace, and the stone jars and urns one by one.
The room became quiet.
"Or is it like a snare," Thales took over her words after a long silence, with the same deep disappointment in his words, "and no matter how hard you go through the thorns, you are stuck in it and can't extricate yourself?"
Miranda turned to glance at him, seeming a little surprised.
But she nodded slowly:
"Teacher Shatil from the Tower of the End said that this is probably the feeling when the 'Heart of Sword' encounters a bottleneck and stagnates."
"It's not that the world has stagnated, or that life has become worse. In fact, the world is like this, and so is life. It's that your experience is different, your realm has improved, your horizons have opened, and you have seen more, wider, and higher
, something more complex.”
Miranda's eyes were fascinated:
"It's just that some people meet it early, some people meet it late, and some people, luckily and unfortunately, never meet it, or after meeting it, they choose to pretend to be deaf and mute and turn a blind eye."
Thales sighed:
"Heart of Swords, I heard Cohen say something similar, the theory of the End Tower?"
Speaking of their common friends, Miranda chuckled and shook her head.
"So I want to see, I want to try, I want to take a step forward to see if the world is really what she said."
Thales was confused for a moment:
"who?"
Miranda smiled but didn't answer.
But she turned her back to the gloom outside the window.
"I'm not Cohen. He can only hold the torch tightly in the wind and snow, shivering and running his nose, while he muddle-headedly repeats everything that he doesn't know whether it makes sense or not."
"I'm not Raphael either. He deliberately ignored his inner doubts, convinced himself and brainwashed himself. He believed in the deception that 'he will paralyze you before he has a big task', and regarded suffering and asceticism as the way out."
Thales frowned upon hearing this.
"In the face of the severe cold, I am not stupid enough to fight against the wind and snow, but I am not willing to become a slave of the frost."
Miranda narrowed her eyes, the sadness faded away, and she became determined again.
"I will find my own way."
"This is me, this is me, this is Miranda Fucking Allender."
The female swordsman looked at the Duke of Star Lake firmly, and the latter couldn't help but look at him seriously.
"That's what this thing is about."
"I am my own master, the 'Neverwinter Sword' of Broken Dragon Fortress."
The next second, Miranda reached out to pick up the sword leaning against the window edge and put it back on her belt.