Kingdom’s Bloodline

\u003c"readability-styled"style=":inline;"\u003e

When Thales bit the bullet and walked past the heavy guards, with a pair of more fierce eyes than usual—especially the warning eyes from Nikolai, he passed through the old and heavy arc-top door, and stepped into a place he was very familiar with. When he was in the Nakaru library, the prince of the stars was worrying about what should have been a casual and easy meeting.

Does Selma know the political whirlpool she is in?

Before she knew it, the girl was already in an inescapable chess game, and what she was facing were veteran chess players like Luba, Ronnie, and the vassals of Dragon Clouds City.

Thales didn't know how much Lisbane had told her, and he didn't know what state the Grand Duchess was in now, and he didn't even know what attitude and stand he should use to face Selma.

Face the girl who was once, the lady who is now.

The library is still the same, the curved corridor filled with rows of tall bookshelves, passing his field of vision in the interweaving of light and shadow: the passage beside the bookshelves is brightly and clearly reflected by the brazier and the reflective gemstones on the ceiling, blocking the Between the bookshelves of the light, there is only darkness and haze.

Thales walked nervously and anxiously between the light and the shadows, walked past rows of bookshelves, and came to the place where he and the two girls met for the first time six years ago - where the first book between the two countries was stored. glass case for treaties.

"you are late."

The Grand Duchess of Dragon Clouds City sat quietly on a chair, with a thick book lying open on her knees.

Thales looked around hesitantly, and was not surprised to see the figures of Lady Jinx and two maids at the ends of both sides of the corridor. The former was like a statue, with her hands folded, looking straight ahead elegantly and noblely.

The prince took a deep breath, walked up to Thelma, and lowered his voice.

"Thelma, listen, I..."

The grand duchess who didn't raise her head interrupted him, her expression was unclear, but her voice was very calm: "This batch of books was newly collected by merchants from Dragon's Kiss Land, and I heard that many of them are ancient books and manuscripts. "

Thales raised his eyebrows, a little surprised that Selma interrupted him.

He only hesitated for a moment, then pulled a wooden chair, turned the back of the chair towards Thelma, and sat down with a heavy face, arms folded on the back of the chair.

At that moment, the prince felt a little parched.

"Hey," facing his old friend of more than six years, he rarely said bluntly: "I... I heard what happened on the Political Day."

The girl did not answer, but her hand did not turn the page again.

"I want to say, uh," after actually seeing Selma, Thales felt that he had become clumsy, and he didn't know where to start, so he could only say stiffly: "Thank you—protection me."

The Grand Duchess still didn't look up, but she gave a small snort through her nose. If it wasn't for Thales' excellent hearing, she almost thought she was distracted.

"But," Thales sighed, "I've also heard..."

"I just looked through the contents of this new batch of books." However, the Grand Duchess interrupted him again: "A lot of the content in it is what you care about, such as the battle of the end."

"There are also giant dragons..."

Thelma's face still hangs down deeply, almost parallel to the book.

Thales' face tightened.

She's not in the right mood.

"Selma."

"About the hearing day," Thales gritted his teeth remembering the two conversations Puttilai had with him: "You...I..."

"Well, marriage."

Thales was stunned: "Huh?"

Thelma slowly raised her head, showing a slightly astringent smile.

"That's what you wanted to talk to me about when you were training today," the Grand Duchess sneered slightly, "Isn't it?"

Thales couldn't help noticing that there were some red threads in the girl's eyes.

He nodded subconsciously:

"Um."

Thelma closed the book on her lap,

Sigh softly.

"So, what do you want to say?"

She put the book on the table beside her and said bluntly, "Recommend a husband to me?"

Thelma raised her eyebrows as she said this, looking aggressive.

Thales' words were a bit stagnant, his mouth opened and closed, but in the end he could only utter a few words: "I..."

"I want to ask..."

Thelma tilted her head slightly, and the blue eyes behind the pince-nez stared at him motionlessly.

For the first time, Thales discovered that this little girl's eyes were so hard to resist.

A few seconds later, the prince, who was still unable to form words, could only exhale, pretending to be relaxed, "So, about your marriage... how did they say it?"

"Is there anyone to choose?"

This time, Thelma stared at him for a solid ten seconds.

Thales felt uneasy.

Finally, Thelma let out a breath through her nose, shook her head and looked away.

"It's those people, the earls directly under the vassals, such as - Earl Hearst." She said calmly.

"Hurst?" Thales frowned: "Earl of Iron County? That golden beard?"

"yes."

Selma added expressionlessly: "Among the vassals directly under Dragon Clouds City, his age is the most comparable to mine."

The prince grabbed the back of the chair and straightened up.

"Same age?"

Thales widened his eyes, let out a breath subconsciously, and said disdainfully after the initial surprise: "Yeah, it's only twenty years older than you."

Thelma gave him an intriguing look:

"Or the heirs of the nobles. Earl Nagel has a son in his early twenties who is the heir to the family."

"Little Nagel?" Thales frowned again:

"Ha, I heard his reputation is known from city maids to suburban sows..."

The Grand Duchess narrowed her eyes suspiciously: "How do you know?"

Thales snorted softly and shook his head: "Gossip from the back kitchen: During the banquet, the maids will... Forget it, it's not important."

Thelma pursed her lips, seemingly dissatisfied: "If it really doesn't work, there is Charles..."

This time, Thales interrupted her.

"Earl of Lisbane? Regent?"

The prince seemed to have seen the most incredible thing: "My God, that old man even has a grandson!"

"Thales."

Selma seemed to have finally had enough of Thales' tone, she said coldly:

"The candidate I'm talking about is Charles' grandson."

Thales: "..."

Thelma stared at the ground in dissatisfaction, while Thales rested his chin on his arm in embarrassment, speechless for a while.

Finally, the silence between the two was broken by the Grand Duchess: "Thales."

She asked in a low voice with a tired voice, "Don't you want to see me get married?"

Thales didn't speak right away.

"Selma," Thales said after a few seconds, with a low voice: "Tell me the truth."

"Do you really want to get married?"

Thelma jerked her head up, her face tensed.

"Is it important?"

The girl's words sounded like anger to the prince: "You know, I must get married."

Thales frowned slightly, he straightened up, and moved the chair closer.

"We've known each other for six years, you know..."

The prince looked serious: "I don't want to see you unhappy, and I don't want to see you being forced to do things you don't want to."

"because……"

Thelma stared at him blankly.

Because I made you what you are now.

Thales closed his mouth, and said to himself sadly.

Before his eyes appeared six years ago, the moment when the little slippery man promised to help him, and the moment when the little slippery head was announced as the Grand Duchess of Dragon Clouds City.

Thales sighed and leaned his chin back on the back of the chair.

A few seconds later, the Grand Duchess turned her head and looked to the other side.

"Even if I don't want to, so what?" Thelma's voice came suddenly:

"And what can you do?"

"Can you forbid them to marry me?"

The Grand Duchess still tilted her head and couldn't see her expression clearly, but her shoulders were trembling slightly: "Can you still...not allow me to marry them?"

Thales raised his eyes, feeling melancholy.

She didn't like it--he told himself.

Thales sighed: "If you don't want to, then don't marry them."

Thelma suddenly turned her head and stared at him coldly.

"Hmph." She snorted.

"If I don't marry them." At that moment, the girl's eyes were very strange: "Then who should I marry?"

Thales only felt his eyelids twitch.

Before the Grand Duchess could say anything strange, he stood up abruptly from his chair.

"Well, I mean..."

"You are the Grand Duchess," Thales coughed, and scratched his head like a big police officer in his memory: "As long as you insist on your will, no one can force you to do what you don't want The thing—if you don't want a husband, don't force yourself to marry."

After saying this, Thales just felt uncomfortable. He shrugged and smiled awkwardly.

Thelma looked at him deeply, without saying a word.

After a while, the Grand Duchess spoke softly: "You also saw the envoy of Heisha today... Charles told me that the matter of the Freedom Alliance is not that simple..."

"Xiare also said that Dragon Clouds City has no choice, if I want to win the support of my vassals and maintain the authority of the Grand Duchess..."

"Then you can't marry anyone casually!"

Thales interrupted her, and quickly added: "You can't hope to use marriage to win support."

"Think about it, you are only one person," the prince took a deep breath, facing Thelma's staring eyes, "and there are six earls in Dragon Clouds City alone, no matter who you marry..."

"Maybe you can temporarily calm down the storm and get through this crisis."

"But the price is: you will soon be involved in a deeper level of infighting in Dragon Clouds City," Thales sighed:

"Because your new husband is one of them, you will no longer be able to stay out of the relationship between the vassals, as the supreme and impartial arbiter, and as their lord... to rule the land."

"Furthermore, using her marriage to compromise with the nobles, the Grand Duchess who does so will not be able to gain loyalty."

This time, Thelma stared at him for a long time.

Staring at Thales felt a little embarrassed.

"You know," the girl's voice drifted slightly:

"That's what Charles said."

"Lisbane?" Thales was shocked: "He also opposes your marriage?"

Selma didn't answer him directly, she laughed and said, "But the vassals will be very upset."

She listlessly said: "What should I do? What should Dragon Clouds City do?"

"They were already very dissatisfied with me, saying that my posture was unstable, my appearance was not good, and my dress and conversation were immature..."

"If I still refuse to marry them and have no children..."

The Grand Duchess sighed slightly, a little depressed and tired: "I know: in the future, no matter whether they send troops or decree, they will not cooperate obediently."

Thales let out a breath.

For some reason, after knowing that Lisbane also opposed the lord's marriage, he inexplicably felt a lot more relieved.

But when he turned his head, he saw the depressed and bitter expression of the Grand Duchess.

Thales clenched his fist lightly.

He sat back in the chair.

"No, Selma," the prince said seriously, "it has nothing to do with your manner and demeanor, nor with your dress or conversation."

"It doesn't even matter whether I marry you or have children."

"Your vassals, they will have this attitude..."

Thelma looked up at him blankly.

Thales clenched his fist tighter and tighter, and he took a deep breath.

"Because, because..."

But before he finished speaking, he was interrupted again by the female eldest girl.

"Because I'm a grand duchess," Thelma laughed. She tilted her head back, leaned back on the chair, and looked sideways at a row of bookshelves in the distance: "It's a woman."

"The woman they look down upon."

Thales was stunned.

"Yes, I know," Thelma said in a low voice, without emotion at first hearing: "I always knew."

"They're not used to it, and they don't even like a woman's rule. Whether it's them or the enemy, they feel that this kind of Dragon Clouds City is unsafe. They think I'm weak and ignorant..."

"So they urged me to get married: the Grand Duchess married a local Dragon Clouds nobleman, she left a seed in my stomach, named Walton, and one day handed over the power to him. Then, Dragon Clouds City It's settled down."

Thales didn't speak, but he held the back of the chair even harder.

"During the hearing day, no matter what I say, everyone's eyes will only look at Shire," Thelma said as if unconsciously dreaming: "If you are right, they will cast approving glances at Shire , wrong, give him a reproachful look."

"Not only this time, but also before."

"In the future too."

Thelma shook her shoulders lightly, and laughed out of numbness.

"My so-called vassals, no one cares about me," the voice of the Grand Duchess was very weak, she leaned all her body weight on the back of the chair, as if she had lost all strength to support herself: "All they care about is the title of Grand Duchess and Walton's blood."

"And myself, it doesn't matter at all - except my belly, because that's where Walton's seed grows."

Thales gritted his teeth slightly.

Thelma took a deep breath and looked at Thales with red eyes.

She burst out laughing.

"Maybe they are right, Thales."

Selma bit her lower lip, expressionless: "The Grand Duchess or something, maybe I can't do it at all."

"Maybe I'm born weak and I should lean on others."

The voice of the Grand Duchess became more and more ethereal.

In the thick and quaint library, she leaned on the seat like this, and said quietly: "When I was young, I leaned against Alex and became an unknown little maid."

"Growing up, I rely on you and His Majesty Nuen, and rely on your strength to become the Grand Duchess."

"Now, I rely on Shire, let him rule Dragon Clouds City for me, and deal with those things that I can't imagine."

"In the future, I will also have to rely on my husband and the blood in my stomach to stabilize Dragon Clouds City and live the rest of my life."

"What's more, I don't even have Walton's blood..."

"boom!"

The prince slapped the back of the chair.

"Selma!" Thales said sternly, yelling at the stunned girl.

"Selma, little cunning," the prince took a deep breath, and put on the most serious expression he could think of: "Do you know why I dragged you to skip class?"

"Especially Ms. Jinx's etiquette lessons."

Before the other party could answer, Thales spoke.

"Because you are a Grand Duchess," the boy clenched his fists, "but they teach weaving, sewing, embroidery, playing, singing, dancing, and housekeeping."

"They took you for the Grand Duchess."

"Grand Duchess and Grand Duchess, they are the same word," Thales gritted his teeth: "But there is a world of difference, absolutely nothing!"