"You don't look surprised. ”

Rachel frowned and looked at Todd, who looked as usual.

The latter stared into the former's eyes, with a rare tenderness on his face: "I haven't seen you for a long time, and you've been busy with this recently?"

Rachel put away the map and nodded, "In order to learn about the 'Tyrant', I found many friends from the past...... Well, maybe they're not my friends either. In short, we must find the 'Tyrant' as soon as possible, and the speed of mutation of the successor will only get faster and faster......"

"Why?"

Richer heard Todd's question and lost her mind for a moment: "What do you mean why?"

Todd lifted his sleeves again and looked at the horrific results of the mutation: "I can imagine how much effort you put into getting this information. ”

Rachel was silent.

"Actually, you have a lot of options. The King of Twilight is about to mutate, I believe only you know. I have no heirs, and I have no legal heirs. If you can take advantage of this opportunity, the xenomorph faction may be able to control the entire country, and you will become the supreme queen......"

"Shut up!" Richel's face was filled with anger and sadness that he had never felt before: "That's how you see me?!"

Todd sat down in his chair, looked at the angry woman, and whispered, "The alien race is above all else......

Hearing this, Rechel, who was struck by lightning, turned pale and bloodless, knelt beside Todd on his knees, pressed the mutated wound with both hands, and his voice trembled: "No...... I can't do ......."

Feeling the temperature of the other party's palm along the skin, Todd stretched out his other hand, stroked the top of the woman's head, and said with a smile: "Richel, thank you." ”

"Your Majesty, if you wish, we will set off now, just a few fast horses!"

Todd whispered, "I need you to tell me honestly, what are the chances of success if you go to the 'Shadow Country' and find the 'Tyrant'?"

Rachel looked up, "I have found a reliable guide who can lead us into the Land of Shadows. But the biggest problem is time, Theodore spent three years looking for the 'tyrant'......"

"What about me? How much time do I have?"

"At this rate of mutation, it will be ...... at most three months"

Todd let out a long sigh and said to Richer with a wry smile, "From here, head west, through the Moonstream Plains, then north through the Overwatch Fortress, the Falling Star Mountains, the Koszor Gorge, the Floating Bone Swamp, and then over the many kingdoms of the barbarians, and finally reach the destination. Even the fastest horses would take more than a month to travel day and night, not to mention that we would have to avoid the armies of the barbarians and the Church. ”

Rachel grabbed Todd's arm tightly and suppressed his emotions and whispered, "So what?!, so you're going to give up hope of survival?!"

"This last time I intend to use to accomplish something more meaningful. Todd looked up at the ceiling and let out a long sigh, "Do you remember? The land under our feet was nothing more than a desolate sandy beach three years ago. It took unimaginable effort for many, many people to make this place what it is today. ”

Richel, who had already guessed Todd's thoughts, choked up in his words: "Why can't you be more selfish?!"

Todd closed his eyes: "It's because of reluctance that I can't be selfish." ”

Todd ran his fingers through Richel's hair: "I never thought that the kingdom was my possession. After the Successor mutation began, I became even more convinced. Therefore, I have already made the final choice in my heart when I spent the last days of my precious life on the road of self-salvation with little hope or the future of the kingdom. ”

Richer looked at Todd's eyes, and the tears at the starting point were already condensed: "Whether it is the decentralization of power to the people, or the official examination, is it the last 'suicide note' you left to the Twilight Kingdom?"

Todd smiled and nodded, "That's right. ”

Richer fell on her knees on the king's lap and wept silently.

Todd leaned back in his chair and muttered, "Today is destined to be a special day, two people who have never shed tears, crying for the first time in front of me......"

——————————————

Three days later, between the kings.

Todd picked up the test paper that had just come out and read it carefully from beginning to end: "I have to say, your efficiency is really high. In such a hurry, we were able to find a team that produced the papers and complete the test papers of such excellent quality. ”

Terrence and Emerson glanced at each other, and the former spoke, "Your Majesty, since the exam paper has been completed, when will the exam start for the 'Chief Legal Counsel of the Kingdom'?"

"Next Monday. Todd wrote down the itinerary on his calendar: "By the way, there are also the people's livelihood, taxation, diplomacy, industry, and security of the kingdom, and we must also start preparing for the selection examination of officials." ”

Emerson glanced at the king in surprise and asked tentatively, "Your Majesty, is it too hasty?"

"The kingdom already has enough reserve talents, coupled with the effective selection of exams, it is not hasty to build a functional structure for the Twilight West Kingdom now. ”

Listening to Todd's words, Terrence asked with some hesitation: "Your Majesty, according to you, when do you plan to complete the selection of officials in these departments?"

"Within three months. ”

As soon as these words came out, the two old men were shocked, and they objected in unison: "No!"

Emerson preemptively said: "It has only been a few days since the chief consultant of the kingdom market arrived, and it is not clear whether the selected officials are qualified. ”

Terrence then added: "Yes, I agree! If, in the end, it turns out that the way of selecting officials by examination does not work, will it be necessary to dismiss all those who have been admitted?

After arguing with the two old men for a long time, Todd still failed to convince them.

Just as Todd was in the mood for help, the squire sent a letter.

When I opened it, the font was beautiful, and the payment was Richer.

The letter contained only a short paragraph.

"Your Majesty, when you see this letter, please call on my soul. 』

Remembering that day, after completing the "soul link" with Richel, the other party said goodbye and left the room, and he didn't show up for a few days.

Todd didn't know what Reichel wanted to do, but he entered the soul space anyway and began to call the latter in.

Soon, Richer appeared in the institute.

She looked at her hands and feet, then said to herself, "It seems to be fine." ”

Todd was a little confused.

Rachel turned on the switch on the computer and enlarged the map of the "Shadow Country" in his memory onto the screen.

"If you want to enter the 'Shadow Country', it is indeed a difficult and dangerous journey to the east and north. Richer pointed to the red cross on the screen: "Not to mention the long journey, there are also barbarians and churches along the way." ”

Todd knew she had something to say next, and chose to remain silent.

Rachel pointed to the west of Twilight, "But, I've thought of a new route these days. ”

"New routes?"

Rachel spat out one word clearly: "The sea." ”

Todd was stunned.

"From Twilight West, head west, through the Riptide Strait, then north through the Sea of Mist, then east through the Ice Fields, and finally south into the waters of the Shadow Country. Richel's eyes were firm, and he said in a deep voice: "This route, if we have a fast boat, can reach the destination in just one month, and it can perfectly avoid the enemy army." ”

Todd looked at the route diagram on the screen and frowned: "Let's not talk about the danger of the journey for the time being, what should I do with the Dusk Kingdom during my absence? The political structure of the kingdom is still incomplete, and the long-term absence of the king will introduce chaos and disorder to the city that has been built so hard!"

On Richel's face, Todd's 'fox smile' that he hadn't seen for a long time appeared: "Your Majesty, guess where I am now?"

Looking at the doubts on the other party's face, Rachel uncovered the mystery: "Silver Ring City, I've been riding a horse for the past few days. It has been proven that no matter how far away you are, you can summon the people you want to enter your "kingdom of heaven". ”

Todd's eyes widened and he said in disbelief, "What do you mean......"

"That's right, you can meet, talk, and make decisions with Kingdom officials at any time during your trip, and in short, you can manage your kingdom remotely!"