The morning air is slightly moist, and the sun shows half of its face in the clouds. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

On the wharf, the shouts of the guards, the shouts of the vendors, and the trumpets of the boatmen came and went. The Suluz Canal connected the empire from north to south, and Thundercastle had a huge dock where merchant ships from north to south docked.

Dressed in a short gray robe and with a short sword at his waist, Sebastian walked through the vending area next to the docks.

"Fresh clams!" a girl with pigtails and carrying a wooden barrel sounded with a crisp voice that attracted the attention of many buyers. Sebastian stepped forward.

"Master, this clam is fresh, just got off the boat. The girl pried the clam open with a knife, skillfully took out a small bottle of vinegar, sprinkled it on the soft flesh of the clam, and handed it to Sebastian, "You can taste it." ”

Sebastian took the clam and licked it with his tongue.

"Eat it in one bite and make sure you're satisfied. The girl stared at Sebastian, "Haven't you eaten raw clams?"

Eating raw clams is easy to get sick, and in Thundercastle, both the nobles and the rich eat boiled clam soup, and the poor are not so particular. Sebastian wrinkled his nose and inhaled the clam meat in one gulp, the tender flesh sliding down his esophagus, leaving behind a delicious, vinegary taste.

Sebastian nodded and said, "It's delicious." How much does it cost?"

"10 empires are bought for 1 catty, and the price is cheap and good. The girl blinked and looked at Sebastian expectantly.

"It's cheap. I'll have someone buy it later. Sebastian said. Prices are fairly stable, and after the celebrations of the Empire, the prices of various materials are returning to normal market levels.

As soon as he turned around, he heard the girl whispering behind him: "Poor ghost, don't try it if you can't afford it." ”

He turned to explain that he didn't have any money, but the girl pretended not to see him and walked briskly to the other end of the dock to solicit business.

Everything in the Prime Minister's Tower does not cost me my own money, I just changed my clothes and habitually did not take the money bag. I'm becoming more and more like a bureaucrat. Sebastian shook his head with a wry smile and continued his private visit.

The chubby servant Bobby, with a ruddy face, strode over, wiped his mouth, burped, and asked, "Sir, where do you want to go next?"

"Go to the ghetto, the old city. Sebastian said without thinking.

The bricks and tiles of the old city are very old, some of the tiles are weathered, and some of the bricks are sparse in mud. Sebastian began to habitually look for these architectural flaws again.

These have to be repaired, and the great craftsmen only do the expansion of the new city, which is far from enough. He was suddenly stunned, Walzer Philippe was afraid that he would not be able to become a master craftsman.

The empire is so big that there will always be skilled craftsmen. Don't let the moths crawl on top, the edifice of the empire will collapse. He comforted himself.

"Grown-up......" Poppy tugged at Sebastian's sleeve.

Sebastian came back to his senses and saw that he and Poppy were surrounded by three people. They took sticks, iron rods, and daggers, and looked at him viciously.

"Poppy, do you still have any money on you?" Sebastian asked softly.

"It's gone. Bobby rummaged through his pockets.

"Damn, you forgot to take the money bag too?"

"No, I ate 2 doughnuts, 1 apple, 1 hot dog and spent it all. Bobbi blinked and burped.

Sebastian sighed and said, "Run!"

He turned and rushed to the alley, and two more people appeared in front of him.

A short sword swung in, and Sebastian dodged sideways. He drew his dagger and parried the second swing of the dagger.

"My lord!" Poppy shouted, climbing onto a wooden box, picking up the plank, and blocking the iron bar.

Slashing, parrying, dodging, although Sebastian is not a swordsman, he has also practiced swordsmanship for several years, and these movements are skillful.

"Run!" he held his sword in both hands, blocking the sneaking fork for Bobby, kicking him away.

"Behind, sir!" Poppy screamed.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head, and his eyes were full of stars. A black cloth bag covered his head, and his eyes went black.

"Oh!ah!ah!" Poppy's screams, thumps, and the sound of falling debris around him reached his ears.

"Run! Bobby!" his voice was muffled in the sack. He was suddenly lifted up, and despite his shouting, kicking and banging, to no avail.

He was escorted first, and by feeling he had turned a few corners, and then got into the carriage. The wheels of the carriage rattled to the bone, and no one spoke along the way.

They weren't ordinary hooligans, robbers? Sebastian listened closely, and he remembered hearing the sound of water, the cries of selling, the sound of trumpets.

After some time, he was escorted out of the carriage and walked a little longer, and the door behind him was closed. When the bag was taken away, he greedily breathed in the fresh air, looked around, and was stunned.

The person sitting in front of him was wearing a dark green light cotton coat, the emerald green twin towers corrugated pendant on his chest matched the color of the clothes, and his long flaxen hair was draped over his shoulders, with a cold face.

"Is that you?" Sebastian wondered, unable to believe his eyes.

"It's me, I'm not dead. The man gritted his teeth and said, "But I'm afraid you've become regent and forget my father, the old Lehman Heinrich." ”

"Why are you here? you kidnapped me?" Sebastian looked around at the people around him, some of the people who had attacked him, some of them had chain mail showing out of their chests.

"If I don't do this, what can you ignore me?" Count Lehman's tone was cold, "I wrote to you recommending your cousin to come to the Prime Minister's Tower to seek a job, and you rejected me. I can only come in person. ”

Sebastian snorted and shook his head with a wry smile: "So you don't hesitate to kidnap me and threaten me so that I can promise you?"

"What's not to like? The Heinrich family is a prominent family in the province of Orlando. Your cousin has been smart since he was a child, knows how to do things, and has a sense of honor. Count Lehman's tone was indisputable, "In Thundercastle, you need your own people. ”

Sebastian laughed, "Kidnap me in exchange for an official position?

"Who are you talking to?" Count Lehman glared at him angrily, "you pay attention to your identity, you are my son. ”

"Oh, yes? When you stripped me of my inheritance, did you think that I was the eldest son?When you broke me up with Rita, I was your son?" Sebastian asked rhetorically, in an equally unceremonious tone.

"Rita is a florist's daughter, from a humble background, and is not worthy of you. Count Lehman made no secret of his impatience, "This question was settled more than twenty years ago. ”

"I only love her. Sebastian gritted his teeth, "This answer hasn't changed in more than twenty years. ”

"I'm not here today to discuss this old issue with you. Count Lehman stroked his beard and stared at Sebastian, "I'm here to save you." ”

"Help me?" Sebastian was confused, he looked around at the people, convinced that they had attacked him.

"Rest assured, they are all my people. From the time you rejected the request in my letter, I was worried about you, and now I am more and more convinced that you are not the material to be a regent. Count Lehman's gaze seemed to penetrate Sebastian's heart, "As a regent, you have to be ruthless enough to memorize the rules of the game and play with them." But you can't. ”

Sebastian heartily agreed with his father's conclusion, but he couldn't admit it. He whispered: "I am the regent canonized by His Majesty the Emperor, the guardian of the whole territory, and the prime minister. I'm legitimate. ”

"But not appropriately. Count Lehman said.

"I have to stay in Thunder Castle, stay in the Monarch Castle until the Grand Prince recovers...... or the second prince is an adult. Sebastian shook his head.

"Listen, I know that His Majesty the Emperor has a good understanding of you. I am also grateful that he can carry up and love you. However, you are not suitable, you are only suitable for drawing against drawings. Count Lehman narrowed his eyes and stared at the pendant on Sebastian's chest, "I watched you grow up, and I know it. The blood is connected, and I know how many pounds and taels you have. ”

Sebastian was silent. The pendant on the chest, the twin towers ripple, is the coat of arms of the Heinrich family, and the small pendant hangs on the chests of the two people who are talking. Blood-linked. He had to admit that the person in front of him had the same hair color and temper as him.

Count Lehman stroked the pendant on his chest and said, "You have a sense of honor, son, and your heart of honor is higher than that of a knight." You will not quit the position of regent unless you meet the two conditions you mentioned. But the eldest prince is a wasted person, the second prince is still young, and you will be killed at any time. ”

"I was kidnapped by you, thinking I had been killed by robbers. Sebastian scoffed, "It was an unexpected surprise to die at the hands of my father." ”

"Shut up. Your fat servant sees that you have been kidnapped and goes back to report it. Her Majesty the Queen and the Imperial Council were in a hurry, and after a week of pretending to send someone to search, it was announced that the regent was missing and might have been killed. Then, not long after, Count Soros entered the Prime Minister's Tower, serving as the regent and guardian of the whole territory, and also serving as the prime minister. A smile appeared on Count Lehman's face, "And you, my son, have henceforth been incognito, traveling around the empire, sketching everywhere, free and happy." What a happy ending? ”

Sebastian's heart chuckled, he felt a chill in his heart, and asked, "Did Her Majesty the Queen, or Count Soros negotiate with you? They threatened my father.

"I just want to tell you that today you are in my hands. This kind of chess game is very skillful by Soros Graff. He will never be relentless, and you will really die when the time comes. Count Lehman did not answer directly, "Take off your burden, son, there is no need to resist. There are so many people in the empire who can replace you, and the empire will still operate without you. ”

Everyone fell silent.

Silence is like a lake of water, calm on the surface, but undercurrents surging underneath.

Sebastian was like a deflated ball, his thoughts, his pressure, all broken by his father's words.

Count Lehman broke the silence and said, "If you are willing to come with me, I promise you...... Back to my hometown and apologize to you for Rita's business......"

Sebastian's body trembled, he waited for this sentence, for more than twenty years. Leave Thundercastle and become a painter, accept his father's apology, and reconcile father and son. What more could I ask for, leave, Sebastian, you don't belong here.

Seeing Sebastian silent, Count Lehman stood up: "I'll just take your consent." ”

Count Lehman beckoned: "Go and pack up the salute and take Sebastian back." ”

A man in his 40s walked up with a long scar under his left ear, saluted, and said, "Yes, sir." ”

Sebastian's eyes widened as the man came face to face with Sebastian.

More than twenty years ago, on a cold afternoon, Rita cried and ran to Sebastian, a bow and arrow through her chest. Sebastian roared, turned around, and saw a robber with a bow, he slashed it with a sword, and the robber's left ear was cut open, the robber screamed, Sebastian kicked him away, turned and rushed towards Rita.

"It's you! you killed Rita!" Sebastian jumped to his feet and grabbed the man by the clothes, "I know you, you're the robber!" He suddenly realized that there had been no robbers in the first place.

"Lehman Heinrich!" he drew his squire's sword like a volcano and put it around his father's neck.

"For the sake of a lowly woman, you want to be a family killer?" Count Lehman sneered contemptuously, "The regent is a family killer, and tomorrow the whole empire will know." ”

Sebastian ripped off the Twin Towers corrugated pendant on his chest and threw it at Count Lehman's face, then threw his short sword on the ground. Before turning to leave, he decided to say one last word to his father:

"Your son is dead. ”