"Queen!"

In the evening, in the depths of the palace, there was an anxious beating sound. Vladimir, dressed in plain clothes, stood outside the office door of Queen Dennis. The frosty attendant opened the door unhurriedly and glanced at the acquaintance in front of him.

"General Vladimir, what's the matter? The queen is resting. ”

"Urgent, important. ”

Vladimir replied with a straight face.

"Well, you wait here, I'll inform the Queen. ”

The waitress finished speaking and closed the door.

A moment later, the tired voice of Queen Dennis was heard in the room—

"Come in. ”

Walking into the house, a chill immediately came from all around, and the queen's office was always colder than the other rooms, which Vladimir had long been used to. Without superfluous pleasantries, without a polite nonsense, Vladimir gets straight to the point -

"Queen, the army of your father, Rod Lawn, is approaching the city, and in three days there will be a legion from the north beneath the city of Kislev. ”

"I know ......"

The queen replied simply, with hardly a trace of emotional fluctuations.

Vladimir couldn't help but wonder if the Frost Witch was really so cold and insensitive? This is not like the Dennis he knew, who used to be so full of fighting spirit. And now, exhaustion is like a shadow, written on Dennis's face, lingering.

"Dear Queen, we have always been in harmony and have very similar views on many matters. I'm here today not just to inform about it. Another purpose, just to hear your opinion on this matter?"

Vladimir asked straight to the point. He doesn't like to go around in circles, except in some aristocratic social occasions, he has to be polite, and on weekdays, Vladimir's personality is one to say one and say two. He knew that the queen was like that.

"Vladimir, the reason why you came to me proves that you already have the answer in your heart and your own judgment, right? Otherwise, you don't have to come to me and ask me. If you hadn't agreed with my father Rhodes in your heart, you wouldn't be here, but you would have continued to stand on the walls with your soldiers. ”

Dennis broke the psychology of the old general Vladimir with one word. This made Vladimir have to submit. Indeed, the queen was right. However, he once swore allegiance to Pavel...... Without the Tsar's order, how could he support Rhodes and let the northern army enter the city smoothly?

Vladimir is conflicted in his heart, and this contradiction is precisely because he values honor and vows...... In other words, it is someone else, who has interests and follows whom. But Vladimir could not do it. In his heart, he really wanted to open the door directly and let the northern army enter the city to end this chaos. But he once swore an oath to Tsar Pavel, how important the oath is, that is the bottom line of being a man. Vladimir knew he couldn't break his oath, which was the credo he had always adhered to.

"Okay...... I admit it...... I share your thoughts, I don't want to see Mrs. Keighrie kill herself and fight each other again. If the city gates were opened and the northern army could enter the city directly to negotiate with the tsar, a bloody storm could indeed be avoided. ”

Vladimir's face was ugly -

"However, I am the commander-in-chief of the Kislev City Defenses. In an important position, you cannot put the enemy of the king into the city......"

"Enemy of the king, is it important to be an enemy of the king or an enemy of the state?"

Dennis asked aggressively. Although he is a whole generation younger than Vladimir in age, he is not inferior to these middle-aged people in handling things.

"Queen, what do you mean?"

"Don't you understand what I mean? There's no one else here, so we don't have to hide anything. ”

Dennis's face was pale, but his eyes were still sharp.

"Pavel has everyone. Rape the wife of a nobleman, confiscate the property of the nobleman at will, and now, the nobles and lords of the whole country are dissatisfied with him. The denunciation has turned into action, and even I can't control it. ”

"My father came not only to negotiate with the Tsar, but also to stabilize the situation and stabilize Kislev. Avoid causing even more confusion. Enemy of the King - Rhodes. My father. And the enemy of the state - Pavel. Who is light and who is heavy, you should have the answer in your heart, right?"

Dennis finished speaking, and the room fell silent. For a long time, Vladimir did not say a word, did not speak. He just sat there, silent, thinking.

"I know your psyche, Vladimir. Actually, you, like me, don't want to see Kislev fall into turmoil again, and what my father did was also for that purpose. But this was not the case with Tsar Pavel. He unleashes a storm on the fragile kingdom that, if left unchecked, will destroy the entire kingdom. This time, you can prevent the northern army from entering the city, so, what is the result?"

Dennis stared at Vladimir with sharp words -

"As a result, the army from the north could not enter the city. ”

"My father didn't even plan to attack the city! he didn't even have a siege weapon. Just because an army from the north can't enter the city doesn't mean that there won't be other armies attacking it. The noble lords of the south were recruiting, and they had no local standing army, so they had to rely on mercenaries. Mercenaries you know, they only recognize money, who gives more money, who they follow. There is no discipline and no bottom line at all. Once the mercenaries run rampant in Kislev, you know the consequences, and even we can't control them. When the time comes, the throne may be a naked gold coin number. ”

Dennis continued. Her words were like a torrent, hitting Vladimir's psychological defenses again and again. The key is that every sentence hits the nail on the head. Caught Vladimir off guard.

"So, for the sake of such a king, are you going to let Kislev bleed?"

Dennis asked.

"Of course not......," Vladimir returned, "but I once made an oath of allegiance to Pavel......"

"Vladimir, you are loyal. But sometimes loyalty is a matter of circumstances. Is it loyalty or loyalty? Remember when the Ice Queen Caterina was in power?"

Dennis sat down and talked about the past. It was one of the darkest periods of her life, but it was also an important time for her to grow and learn. I don't want to recall, but sometimes I have to.

"Of course I remember ......"

Vladimir replied.

"At that time, Kislev had two full years in a stalemate between the north and the south. Do you know what finally defeated the Ice Queen?"

Dennis asked, feigned mysterious.

Vladimir could only remain silent.

"In the end, it wasn't the Northern Coalition that defeated the Ice Queen. It's the hearts of the people. After the mask of the Ice Queen was torn off, a large number of knights took refuge in my father, which was the root cause of the collapse of the Southern army. The elite knights initially swore allegiance to Caterina, but when they learned that their queen was a vampire and saw what she had done, most of them turned against them. Can you say they're breaking their oath?"

Dennis continued—

Of course, in a narrow sense, they did betray their oath. Betrayed the Ice Queen. But, broadly speaking, they did not betray. They had sworn allegiance to the country, and Katerina represented the supreme ruler of Kislev, so the knights chose to be loyal to her. But if one day, even the queen herself betrays her country, then why should the knights continue to be loyal to her?"

After a long talk, Vladimir fell. Or that his heart disease that has been tangled in it has finally been solved. Yes, allegiance to this kingdom, not to specific people. The king represents the country and the people, and if even the king himself betrays, then it is time for the former oath to change masters.

"Bao ......"

Before leaving, Vladimir turned his head and wanted to ask the queen if he knew how his son Boris was doing. But the words came to his lips and swallowed again. He saw the Queen's pale, tired face......