In the palace garden in the early winter afternoon, the sun shines warmly on the earth, the temperature is suitable, and the cool breeze is gentle.

Todd, who was sitting on the terrace on the second floor, looked at the palace beauty across the table and asked softly, "Snake fruit wine?"

Queen Mary, who was bright and moving, smiled and nodded, "It would be nice if there was coffee." ”

Todd paused for a moment, and said helplessly: "I've tried to have people go south to find coffee seeds, but it seems that there is no such thing here?"

Mary shrugged her shoulders regretfully and said: "Over the years, I have never forgotten the charm of the fragrance between my teeth, and I have always warned myself that I should not indulge in something, but when I think about it at night, I always toss and turn, and I can't sleep. ”

Mary's words made Todd hear a little overshoot, but the latter chose to respond with silence and a smile.

Mary stared at Todd's face, saw that the other party did not say anything, looked disappointed, looked around and said, "This palace is really deserted, when I came, even the attendants and maids could not see a few. ”

"I gave most people a long vacation. Todd poured some tea into Mary's cup and said calmly, "I'm the only one living here, and it doesn't make sense to have too many servants. ”

Mary stared into Todd's eyes, and a hint of sadness flashed in her eyes: "You are the strangest king I have ever met. ”

Todd looked up at the sky, then took another sip of tea, and said slowly: "The palace is cold and windy at night, and the number of servants is small, you may want to consider the hotel ...... down the mountain."

Mary interrupted Todd in displeasure, "It's only been four hours since I've been in the palace, and this is the third time you've wanted me to leave!

Todd put down the teacup in his hand and said slowly, "Mary, believe me, I'm here for your good......"

Mary raised her eyebrows and said angrily: "Take 10,000 steps back and say, even if you don't want to see me, facing the queen of the Holy Acropolis, is this the hospitality of the Holy King?!"

Todd smiled bitterly and said, "Mary, actually, ......"

"I don't care!

Mary in anger, her noble and inviolable temperament, made Todd lose his mind for a short time.

The latter waited for the woman to calm down, and then said to her: "Listen to me, Mary, this palace at your feet will soon be in flames of war. ”

Mary, who was angry, turned her head to look at the scenery below the mountain, and when she heard Todd's words, she couldn't help but turn her head in surprise: "War?"

"There is a group of enemies who have been lurking in the city of Twilight, waiting for an opportunity to seize power in the kingdom, and today may be tomorrow, when they will do it. ”

After being stunned, Mary stood up and said aloud, "What about the loyal knights, and what about the kingdom's army?"

Todd shook his head and said, "Mobilizing the army now is tantamount to telling the enemy that I have seen their movements, and besides, the kingdom's army is in shambles, and I can't guarantee how many of them are still loyal to me." ”

Mary, whose eyes were wide open, was stunned for a moment, then ran to Todd's side, holding the corner of her skirt with one hand and the latter with the other, and said without hesitation: "I have brought seventy loyal knights, and they are all my most reliable companions in the Holy Acropolis. Come with me, let's go to the Holy Acropolis, and then gather the army and come back!"

Todd gently held Mary's soft, shook his head lightly and said, "I can't go." ”

The clever Mary thought for a moment, and soon guessed Todd's intentions: "You...... Are you trying to be a bait to lure out those traitors?!"

Todd nodded.

"Are you crazy? How can a king risk his own life?!"

Mary tugged at Todd's sleeve tightly, and her delicate and gorgeous face, which was as delicate as a flower, was full of anxiety: "Why do you have to sacrifice yourself every time?! Is this kingdom really worth it for you to do that?!"

Todd gently grabbed Mary's palm and said firmly, "Because I sit on the throne, I must stay." ”

Mary sat down on her knees, leaned her head into Todd's arms, and muttered, "Why? Why do you do this every time?"

Todd lifted Mary's chin slightly, looked at her and said seriously, "While there is still time, you can leave this city as soon as possible and return to the Holy Acropolis to wait for my news." In a few days, everything will be calm again......"

Mary shook her head vigorously and whispered, "I won't leave, first it was my father, then my ex-husband, and now it's you, I'm tired of running away, and I don't want to run away like this anymore." ”

Todd sighed, "You don't need that. ”

Mary looked up at Todd, "Rachel didn't leave, did he?"

Todd hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"She's willing to stay in the city and live and die with you, why don't you trust me to do the same?"

Mary rested her head on Todd's knee and whispered, "Is it true that in your mind, Rachel is the only person you can trust?

Todd stretched out his hand to Mary's swan-white, immaculate back, and before touching it, the hand stopped halfway through, and he said to Mary in an unusually vicissitudes of tone: "To be with me is a hard and boring thing. Even Richel, she suffered a lot with me, and suffered a lot of sins. ”

Mary retorted angrily: "When Rachel and I talked about you, it didn't look like a regretful expression at all, and she told me that the greatest luck in my life was to meet you." ”

Todd lowered his head, looked at Mary in front of him, and asked curiously, "What did she say to you?"

Mary's voice was inaudible: "Secret." ”

The sky of the twilight city and the afterglow of the sun stretch the shadow of the city longer and longer, and the scenery in front of you is dyed into a golden oil painting.

The king and the queen, like that, sat side by side on the terrace, talking about each other, as if forgetting the existence of time, until the sun went down and the moon rose.

The night wind was getting stronger and stronger, and Mary, who was wearing only a palace dress, felt the slowly decreasing temperature, and couldn't help but shiver.

Todd took off his coat, draped it over Mary's body, and whispered softly, "It's night, go back first, and I'll arrange for someone to bring dinner to your room." ”

Mary nodded, grabbed her coat, and followed Todd towards the Inner Palace.

They hadn't taken two steps when a piercing explosion suddenly sounded behind them.

Todd turned back onto the terrace and looked in the direction of Twilight.

In the direction of the Knights of the Twilight Knights' barracks, fire and smoke rose, and fights and shouts could be faintly heard in midair.

Gripping the railing of the terrace with both hands, Todd said coldly, "Finally, the curtain on the stage has opened. ”

。 m.