15 The judgment of the king

"Thanks, you can step down." The Emperor said to Ulf, who had not gone far and turned back gently, the sound of the waves muffling his footsteps.

"Ah, the undead of Tum, yes," said the Emperor in the manner of an old man, "and it is better not to be restrained, and not to be disturbed." Come, sit next to it. ”

Milo squinted at Ulf beside him, and replied politely: "Thank you, Your Majesty, but I prefer to stand." ”

"That's up to you." The Emperor suddenly turned to face the extension of the breakwater, "What do you think of this breakwater?" ”

"It's spectacular, Your Majesty."

"Did you know there was a battle here?" The Emperor turned to face Milo, who was blind but had a very accurate judgment of the direction of the sound.

"An anti-landing operation against the Dragonon Empire forty years ago was the battle of Your Majesty's fame, and my grandfather also participated in that battle." Melo knows a lot about this history.

"He was my deputy at that time, and I was still the crown prince. In the early hours of that morning, the enemy used the fog as a cover to land on the beach, and I had to force my torch to guide the archers, but my horse was wounded and could not fight, so I borrowed your grandfather's horse, and finally rushed to the breakwater to point the bow and arrow the direction of the attack...... It was the first time I had won such a brilliant victory, so I rode triumphantly back to the capital on your grandfather's horse for a military parade, only to accidentally fall to the ground—" the emperor pointed to his eyes, "and was blinded." ”

Milo felt her heart tremble, it wasn't quite what he had heard.

The Emperor continued: "Later, the bad reputation of your grandfather and your family spread more and more, and rumors flew all over the place, even if I repeatedly came forward to explain it, it was useless, people, people, like to believe what they took for granted, even if the truth was so simple and the person concerned had explained many times, it was useless! But your grandfather and your father were very open-minded, they were not crushed by these gossip, and they worked harder than anyone else in the affairs of the Empire, so your grandfather was always my right-hand man during his lifetime, and your father is also very much used now. ”

Mello suddenly felt bitter in his throat, he remembered how much he hated his surname, but he didn't think that his parents and grandparents had endured more infamy and pressure, but they were still proving themselves, and remorse suddenly came to his heart.

"I'll show you," the Emperor said, pulling the crown from his bosom and handing it to Milo, "looking at the line of small print on the edge of the front. ”

Melo took the crown and angled it to the sun, finally making out the small words engraved in the inner circle: "Ente Koman is a traitor." ”

Milo felt his heart sink in: "This is talking about ......"

"Don't be in a hurry to judge, there is a line of small words in the place where you can't see it, you can touch it."

As the emperor said, Milo stuffed his fingers into the inner part of the small characters in the inner circle, and sure enough, there was still the touch of the inscription on the edge of the interlayer that could not be seen, but Milo could neither see nor judge its content through these concave and convex marks.

"I'll tell you the whole story, it's also a benefit of being blind." The Emperor took back the crown and rubbed his fingers over the two lines of small letters, "The full words are: 'Never consider Entekoman a traitor.'" This crown was created during the reign of Ryan Royer, and these two small lines are also a kind of protection for the Entekoman family, but because of this strange carving angle, it still caused countless misunderstandings. The Emperor said in a very regretful tone, and tucked the crown back into his arms, "So you see, the curse about your family is actually a patchwork of countless rumors, and the truth is so simple, it is really ridiculous and sad!" ”

Milo listened to the emperor's words, tears appeared in the corners of his eyes.

The Emperor said earnestly, "So, young man, you still have a chance to repent and atone, don't follow the example of Ulf, he is—"

"Ahem......" Ulf next to him coughed dryly.

"Ahh......h I almost told you about it. The Emperor said with a smile, his laughter so strong that it almost pierced the waves that rushed in his face.

"I'm afraid that Milo Entecoman will be bad for Your Majesty, so I'm here to protect you." Ulf said in a low voice, "Also, I didn't do anything to be sorry for the family and the others, and please don't talk nonsense." ”

"Hehehehe......" The Emperor waved his hand, and the topic was skipped, "Milo, let's talk about the 'Curse of the Stars'." "The waves crashed against the embankment, and the atmosphere became serious." I've learned everything from Ulf, including your access to Sevia's memories. I can guess the most tangled and confused thing in your heart right now - 'Why me?' ’”

"Yes, I don't deny it." Mello bravely answered the question, even if it would be perceived as cowardice and cowardice.

"Very good, it seems that we are the same kind of people." The Emperor said in a tone of understanding, "I had this idea when I was chosen as the crown prince. ”

"Elected as the crown prince? Isn't it hereditary? Milo was a little surprised.

Ulf on the side stood up to explain the problem: "When King Lane was in power, the hereditary system was secretly abolished, so that the empire would not decline due to the backward inheritance system, and only then could it accumulate enough strength before fighting against the 'harvest' in the future." And the rule of the country is not concentrated in the emperor alone, but by a think tank, so that the collective wisdom has enough room to play, the Spreet Empire has long been ahead of other countries by this excellent political system, but it is kept secret. At the right time, the think tank would select the best people from among the nobility to be the would-be heirs to the empire, even the orphans who had been adopted were among the candidates – Your Majesty was one such example, and only those who had gone through repeated training could eventually become the official 'crown prince'. So remember the 'crown prince' who died in Windwalk? Instead of grieving the loss of him, we are glad that this incident exposed his true character. ”

The emperor also added: "It is estimated that Sevia also learned about this, his performance was excellent, and he did have a chance to be 'chosen' as the crown prince, but fortunately we have long seen him find out." However, Milo, don't think that being elected as the crown prince is really a good thing, it means that in the rest of your life, you will completely sacrifice your personal interests and life, and give everything you have to build the empire. ”

"First of all, there is the sacrifice of freedom, and then there is time, a healthy body, and the company of family...... Do you know how many emperors died of exhaustion in office? "In short, being chosen as a crown prince is like knowing that you are going to be sacrificed, and you need to be conscious enough to be able to really carry the burden," Ulf continued in place of the emperor. ”

"Well, needless to say...... Milo, we are also very lucky, the empire has developed so far, no crown prince or emperor has given up halfway," the emperor sighed and said, "It is because of their efforts and sacrifices that the empire is rich and strong today, although it cannot be said that it is enough to defeat the 'harvest', but these efforts must be worth it." So......" The emperor fumbled to get up, and Ulf hurriedly went up to help.

The Emperor staggered over to Milo and grabbed his hand—very forcefully, but trembling again: "This planet, I don't know how many times it has been harvested, but it has not succeeded in stopping it. Now that we have a chance to break the 'curse of the stars' permanently, if we really miss it, I wonder if we will be able to find it in the future...... There will always be bloodshed, there will always be sacrifices, and if no one does this, our world, our planet, will never be able to escape the fate of being harvested, and of course there are ten other planets and the lives on them......" The Emperor let go of Milo's hand, "So, do you understand what I'm talking about?" Melo Entekoman. ”

"I see." Milo replied, without the slightest hesitation.

"Well, good boy!" A relieved smile appeared on the Emperor's face, "I promise you that on the day the 'Curse of the Stars' is broken, I will comfort your soul with my own life...... That way, your mind will be more balanced, right? ”

"Don't! Your Majesty ...... "No, no, you don't have to......" Ulf and Milo objected together, but the Emperor interrupted them with a wave of his hand—

"I've decided, everyone has their own responsibilities, so then you guys do your job, and I'm old, I don't care so much, after so many years of hard work, it's time for me to find a chance to rest and rest."

Although the Emperor's words were not convincing, Milo and Ulf also knew that they might not be able to stop the stubborn old man and said no more.

"Glory belongs to Spleit, and glory belongs to you." The emperor used these words as a farewell, and not far away, the ranks of the Praetorian Guards arrived on the breakwater on time, ready to take him away.

"Oh yes, Milo," the Emperor suddenly remembered, "go and meet your father, who has accompanied me on this trip, and now lives in the city, and the rest of the matter go and ask Ulf, he knows everything." ”

"Thank you, Your Majesty. The glory belongs to Splet, and it belongs to you. Milo saluted and said goodbye to the Emperor.

The Praetorian Guard led the Emperor away, and Milo could hear the Emperor boasting to his surroundings about his heroism in fighting here—the hero of the time had become an old man, and he was still doing his part for the country and the people of the planet.

As usual, Ulf stuffed Milo with a note containing the address of Milo's father in the city.

"And ...... judgment against me?" Melo asked.

"It's over - the death penalty!" After Ulf finished speaking, he walked away without looking back. Looking at his departing figure, Melo saw loneliness and sadness in it...... He also has his own story, which may be even more unbearable than his own experience.

Following the note's prompts, Milo found where his father was, and along the way he thought of a lot of things to say, but when he stood at the door, he forgot them.

"I feel so sorry for him...... Am I a qualified son? Melo asked herself.

Finally, he mustered up the courage to knock on the door—

After many years, the father and son, whose relationship was broken down by the "cursed family", finally meet again.