Annan was in a trance, as if he had returned to the nightmare of "The Great Hunt", the moment when he first met Kaifni when he was eight years old.
Sitting like an abandoned dog in a sea of silver-purple flowers.
Not cared about by anyone, nor remembered by anyone. Although she is a princess, on her birthday, the only thing that accompanies her is the drawing board.
Annan still remembers the touch of Kaifni's hands.
The expressionless girl was like a doll, her little hands were soft and cold, like a corpse lacking warmth... She was just held by Annan, but she didn't hold her back.
But when she met Annan for the second time, she grabbed Annan's sleeve without hesitation.
And when she was about to return to the royal capital, Kafni became even more determined. She grabbed Annan's hand as hard as an arm-wrestle, and absolutely didn't want to let it go.
Becoming more determined each time.
Working harder every time.
"Sir, please feel free to use me."
Kafni repeated softly: "I will never fall before you."
"...That's it."
Annan was silent for a long time before holding back these words.
His somewhat awkward response: "So, me too."
...It seems that not long has passed since the first encounter.
But Kaifuni became stronger and stronger in front of him.
From being timid to being brave, to being autistic and then being calm.
At that time, Kaifni... couldn't even speak clearly.
Because she didn't want to communicate with anyone, she would never say a word to Wan Heng for days or even weeks.
But her desire to become a queen is real and persistent. Now, she has indeed perfectly and reasonably held the Kingdom of Noah in her hands, keeping it functioning normally and even getting better and better.
Annan still remembers the original form of that childlike wish:
"Today is August 8th... It is His Majesty's birthday, and it is also my birthday. His Majesty the King and I have the same birthday.
“But no one remembers my birthday. They only remember His Majesty’s birthday…
"I think maybe only if you become a king... your birthday will have the meaning of being remembered."
She just wants to be remembered, valued, and recognized.
she wants to be loved
It was for this purpose that she vowed to become the King of Noah.
...Although their personalities are completely opposite, from this point of view, Kafni may have something in common with a certain seventh-generation Hokage who wishes to remain anonymous.
The power of the way of sublimation and the way of degradation are the same on a certain level.
That is desire.
Desire is like fire.
The sublimated ones will be tempered in the flames and transformed into something more eternal; while the souls of the fallen ones will be like firewood, butter, tar... which will make the fire of desire even more intense.
And the flame itself is their power.
No matter what kind of love it is.
The love between husband and wife, the love between lovers, the love between father and daughter, the love between mother and child, the love between master and servant, the love between god and priest... She is just seeking love from Annan. Any kind of love can be pursued with this stubbornness,
Just like the madman chasing the sky carriage.
It is for this purpose that she gradually becomes better and better.
She worked hard to correct all her shortcomings, used her willpower to endure the erosion of depraved desires, and defeated all enemies she faced. In this way, she became stronger.
Just to be able to be calm and proud to say this to Annan: "I will never be a burden to you and I can protect you."
Annan is the "eternal daughter" who keeps lifting her up!
She is the person who "rises because of love".
The "ascension" here does not refer to the "way of sublimation" in the narrow sense, but refers to the process in which she gradually corrects her shortcomings and makes herself perfect.
"……I see."
Annan murmured.
Take Kaifni as an example.
He seems to have a deeper understanding of the "Heavenly Car" method.
But this is considered a fool...
The remaining few are not easy to fool either.
Maria stared at Annan expressionlessly, saying nothing.
I really want to escape, but I can't.
Annan thought.
This is like the saying that when you are in danger, you are safest by your father's side; when you are safe, you are the most dangerous by your father's side.
Although it is said that the elder brother is like the father and the elder sister is like the mother.
But in fact, to Annan, his brother Dmitri is like his mother...and Maria is more like his father.
And he is still the kind of person who usually doesn't stay at home much and always greets people when they meet. The current situation is probably equivalent to Annan being blocked by someone outside, so Maria picked up the kitchen knife and went out...
After settling the matter, you have to scold him with a straight face.
Maria finally spoke: "Do you know why we are angry?"
"I know I was wrong, sister."
Annan followed the good example and replied obediently: "Next time if I do something dangerous, I will definitely tell you in advance."
With that said, Annan walked over like a cat and nuzzled Maria.
Of course, Annan actually felt that he had done nothing wrong. This otherworldly nightmare was caused by an unexpected enemy plotting against him... which caused him to go into trouble.
Who would have known that Ingrid, who seems powerful and deep, is actually just a puppet and puppet of the worm?
Annan's actions are logically defensible. After all, everyone has their own work to do and their own lives.
And if it was a normal nightmare, Annan might have stretched his legs even more if he took them with him... The reason why something went wrong this time was entirely due to bad luck and being schemed against.
It seems to be blocked. Is it Annan's problem?
But Annan is not stupid enough to talk back to Maria. In short, he will be submissive first and then act cute.
Seeing Annan pretending to be pitiful, Maria gritted her teeth.
Although she knew that Annan was pretending, she still couldn't bring herself to reprimand him. In other words, before Annan came back, she had already thought of countless ways to scold Annan.
But after seeing Annan return safely, his joy and happiness diluted this cruelty.
"...Forget it, that's it."
Maria sighed: "You are smarter than me and more confident than me. I know you will not change...because you believe in your determination without hesitation.
"This is indeed an excellent talent, and this is what we men in winter should be like. If you become hesitant and hesitant, your sword will be blunted.
"As the Lord of the Tower of Storms, I hope that our Grand Duke is a hero and a wise king... But as a sister, I still hope that you can think of your family when you encounter this kind of problem.
"Think about the people who love you, think about the people who need to rely on you... You are not alone, you are not a lone hero. There are people behind you who support you, and there are people who must never lose you."
Maria said seriously: "You must never die, and Annan must not give up his life for anyone or anything, and imprison his own freedom. You must swear to me."