A rapid cough came from the room, like a torn bellows, and it sounded like a dilapidated and weak feeling.

Standing outside the room, several court attendants in linen robes bowed their heads nervously, looking very frightened.

In the corridor, only the court warriors in golden armor still held their heads high.

Hurried footsteps came from the hallway, and the court physician dressed in white trotted in under the escort of the attendants, and a moment later another priest and magician from the church also hurried in.

In this huge palace, all the candlelight on the arm-thick candlesticks all around seemed to be concentrated in the huge bed in the middle of the room! The magnificent bed, the base of the bed made of jewels and gold, and the thick soft couch as soft as a cloud, the most noble old man of the empire was gasping with difficulty.

His figure was blurred in the thick curtains, and some charms with strange symbols were hung on the high bedposts around him.

Emperor Kantos's face was as pale as a dead man, his cheeks had sunk deeply, and his gray face was still a strange blue.

He looked thinner, and the gorgeous robe he wore on his body, but the wrists that peeked out of the sleeves were like dry bones!

The emperor's face was very painful, and it seemed that every breath became a great burden for him, and the intense pain tormented his **.

"Put ...... Candles, candles, ......" The Emperor spat out slurred words with difficulty: "All, light! After shouting hard, he muttered to himself:

"It's so dark in here...... It's too dark...... It's like a damn grave...... It's too dark. ”

A personal servant quickly found a candle and lit it on the tables around it, the candlelight of dozens of huge candles, but the emperor still didn't seem satisfied, and continued to shake his head and mutter, "It's too dark one one one is too dark one like a grave 'one one"

Finally, after almost a hundred candles were lit, the beating of hundreds of candles brought light, but it seemed that it could not dispel the cold smell in this room.

The court physician first came to the emperor's side, he carefully helped the emperor to lie down, and then his fingers quickly untied His Majesty's robe, reached out and pressed a few times on the emperor's already thin chest, and then carefully choked the emperor's wrist and neck, checked the frequency of his heartbeat, and opened the emperor's eyelids, and finally took out a thin needle from his sleeve, and gently pierced into the skin of the emperor's chest, and a drop of blood came out.

The medical officer quickly threw the tip of the needle with the blood beads into a transparent bottle, which originally contained some transparent liquid, but when the blood beads were submerged, the originally pure and transparent liquid in it suddenly rippled, and quickly turned into a faint blue one by one

The medical officer's face suddenly became extremely difficult to look at. He looked at the emperor lying on the soft couch, hesitated for a moment, his lips squirmed, but he didn't seem to know how to speak.

At this time, finally, the magician and the priest arrived.

As soon as the court magician in the red robe entered, all the servants in the room breathed a sigh of relief. Obviously, this court magician is the one everyone trusts.

The court magician quickly arrived at the emperor's side, just glanced at the emperor quickly, and soon took out a small wooden box from his sleeve, opened the box, and gently took out a green and green leaf from it with two fingers, this leaf is so green and tender, crystal clear, slender and long, it looks as if it is full of high vitality!

The magician's face was calm, and he pinched the leaf and sent it to the emperor's mouth, gently pinching the emperor's chin, helping Emperor Kantos open his mouth before sending the leaf into the emperor's mouth......

The leaf was spread on the emperor's tongue, and soon, there was a "snort" sound, and a gentle mist emanated from the emperor's mouth, as if the leaf began to melt away at a rapid speed!

The emperor was sent to lie down, and the sound of "snorting" continued to come from his mouth.

Finally, a faintly flowing light soon emerged from the emperor's face, and then quickly flowed all over his body.

A miracle happened!

The cheeks that were originally thin and sunk deeply, but at this moment, the muscles suddenly became miraculously full, and the original blue-gray and pale face like a dead man suddenly became ruddy again!

The difficult wheezing sound like a broken bellows finally calmed down, and the heart-wrenching coughing sound finally subsided!

The Emperor finally opened his eyes, and there was a hint of relief in his eyes, and he looked at the court magician beside him, and sighed softly, "Thank you, Your Excellency Ayipur, you have always been able to save me from fire and water. ”

The court magician didn't say anything to Emperor Yo, but just turned to look at the priest behind him and nodded at him.

The priest walked over, saluted the emperor, and then said slowly, "Your Majesty, please lie down and let me start casting spells for you." ”

As he spoke, the priest took out a small bottle from his bosom, gently poured out some of the water, grabbed a few drops, and sprinkled them on the emperor's forehead, and was about to chant a mantra in a loud voice......

"Wait, wait!"

The palace meditator's face finally changed, and he strode up and grabbed the priest's sleeve;

The palace medical officer's expression was anxious: "No!

The Emperor opened his eyes, looked at the court medical officer, and frowned, "What's wrong?"

The medical officer's expression was a little hesitant, but in an instant, as if he had made a decision, he raised his head, looked directly into the emperor's eyes, and said loudly: "Your Majesty......! And it's really hurting you!!"

The emperor frowned, and his face sank suddenly.

"Stupid guy, get out of here!"

The court magician smiled coldly, waved his sleeves slightly, and suddenly the court doctor's body fell backwards, and when he fell to the ground, the two servants next to him hurriedly came up and helped him up.

"Stupid?!You're stupid!!" The court medical officer had a desperate face, and after breaking free from the support of the palace attendants, he struggled to stand up, pointed at the palace demon and said loudly, "You are basically murdering! This is a murder for Your Majesty!" Can't go on like this!!

When the gift of "murder" came out of the mouth of the medical officer, suddenly in the corner of the room, several figures of court warriors appeared silently, and the middle-aged man, who had always been silent, also appeared in the corner like a shadow.

The court medical officer gritted his teeth, took off the hat on his head, threw it on the ground, and then knelt down and shouted to Emperor Kantos on the bed: "Your Majesty! These damn gods are simply deceiving you!!"

As he spoke, he held his bottle aloft: "Do you see the color of the water in this bottle? Once your blood is contaminated, it turns blue! This means that you have been poisoned deeply!!"

"Nonsense. The court magician shook his head and stared at the medical officer and sneered: "You incompetent fellows cannot cure Your Majesty's sickness, but the brilliance of magic can dispel Your Majesty'......s sickness!

"I really don't know magic!!" The medical officer stubbornly raised his head and stared at the magician and said loudly: "Perhaps! In the eyes of a noble magician like you, a person like me is indeed a small existence! But I'm a doctor! I don't know magic, but I know the human body! I know how to heal!! I admit the greatness and wonder of magic! but ...... Magic, after all, is not everything!! It's impossible to solve all the problems!!"

Sweating profusely, he moved his knees forward, knelt in front of the bed, and said loudly to Emperor Kantos on the bed: "Your Majesty......! But this is not the incompetence of medical skills, but the ...... There is no one thing in this world that can solve all problems! Your illness cannot be solved by medical skills, but in the same way, magic cannot solve it!"

"Can't solve it?" the court magician sneered: "If you weren't blind, you should see that Your Majesty's complexion is much better now." ”

"Yes, indeed!" The medical officer shouted, "Yes, but it's a deception!" it's a ...... A kind of murder!!"

He took out a booklet from his bosom and said loudly: "Your Majesty! As your medical officer, my duty also includes recording your illness! From the time when this noble magician treated you for the first time, I have recorded all the records since then! A few months ago, when he used magic to dispel the pain for you for the first time, the effect of the treatment lasted for half a month before your illness recurred! But then, the second magic treatment, the effect only lasted ten days! The third treatment, the effect only lasted for 7 days, the fourth treatment lasted 4 days, and today, you have to have a treatment almost every day!! The effectiveness of each magical healing lasts for a shorter and shorter time! But this magician, the dose of the miraculous leaf that he gave you is getting bigger and bigger! I remember the first time he gave you only a quarter of a leaf! Today, even taking a whole leaf can only stop your ailments for less than a day!"

He threw the booklet on the ground, pointed to the priest next to him, and said loudly: "Even the most ordinary person knows a truth: healing techniques cannot be used multiple times! Because healing techniques are not really recovering from physical injuries to people! In fact, they are just using this kind of spell to stimulate the rapid growth of human body functions and self-recovery!" However, this kind of spell, if used too much, is actually harmful to people's bodies!

Such a simple truth, not to mention this noble magician, even a magic apprentice should know such common sense! But this magician will always allow the priest to perform healing spells on you...... Isn't this murder!!"

Emperor Kantos sat on the bed, his face was calm, and he didn't seem to see any fluctuations, but in those eyes, it seemed that he didn't know what kind of light was flashing......

The court magician's face was very ugly, staring at the medical officer, and said angrily: "Ignorant thing! How can you understand the magic potion I concocted!"

"I don't know, but I'm a medical officer!" The daring medical officer said proudly, "No matter how magical magic is, it is impossible to reverse the laws of the world!" or...... I don't know your magic potions, but I at least know how to heal! I know what is good and what is harmful! At least...... I can still tell if something is poisonous!"

As he spoke, a trace of absolute color flashed in his eyes, and he paused vigorously: "Your Majesty!

I know you are anxious to get rid of this painful disease, so you have gradually lost your trust in the doctor!

But please believe that magic is not omnipotent! It is impossible to solve all problems with magic! To cure diseases, you have to rely on medical skills! I know what the technique says, you can't completely believe him He gritted his teeth hard, took the bottle of blue liquid, and said loudly: "You have taken those magical leaves, and your body is already full of toxins!" If you don't believe me, look at it!"

After saying that, he took the bottle and put it to his mouth, and he was about to drink the blue liquid in the bottle!

The emperor's eyes changed, and he shouted in a low voice: "Stop!"

The middle-aged man in the corner of the wall suddenly flickered, and his teeth appeared beside the medical officer, and with a slight stretch of his hand, he snatched the bottle from the medical officer's mouth. The medical officer was stunned for a moment, and looked up at the mysterious master beside the emperor.

"If you want to prove it, you don't have to die. The emperor sat on the spring and shook his head slowly: "Bring two dogs!"

Soon, a servant brought two dogs into the room, and these dogs kept in the court were naturally strong.

The medical officer looked at the middle-aged man and said firmly: "Give the dog a drink, if the dog doesn't die!

The middle-aged man looked at Emperor Kantos, closed his eyes, and nodded.

Soon, the bottle of blue liquid with the emperor's blood beads was drunk less than a third of a dog, and after a few minutes, the dog suddenly whimpered a few times, his body convulsed, and he immediately fell to the ground, and after a few trembling blows, he was directly killed!!

In the room, the servants and guards around were all shocked, and many of the guards had already brought out their weapons one after another, surrounding the court magician in the middle!

The magician looked ugly, but he still shouted, "No! that bottle already contained the doctor's own potion, maybe the potion was poisonous!"

The medical officer immediately said loudly: "If you don't like it, you can try again! This time, I only ask Your Majesty to cut the skin, just a few drops of blood, nothing else, and then give it to a dog to drink... ・・・Naturally, it will be clear!"

The emperor opened his eyes, and there was a flash of sharpness in his eyes, but he immediately felt a silver knife from the bedside, and quickly cut his thumb!

The middle-aged man nodded, took the knife, and gently cut the skin of the remaining dog one by one

Five minutes!!

But five minutes later, the dog suddenly convulsed all over his body! In less than a moment, he howled a few times, white foam flowed from his mouth, and then fell to the ground!!

This time, even the emperor himself has changed color!!

The middle-aged man looked at the emperor, and there was a trace of strange and complicated meaning in his eyes.

"Everybody go out, Ayippur, and the doctor stay. ”

The Emperor raised his hand.

The emperor's order stunned all the guards, but when the emperor's majestic eyes swept over, everyone finally retreated.

The medical officer raised his head blankly and watched everyone walk out, but the magician was already kneeling on the ground, looking at the emperor with a faint helplessness on his face.

"Alright, get up. The emperor smiled bitterly: "Get up." ”

"Your Majesty, please forgive me for my incompetence... ・・・I ...... "It's the magician who speaks."

"I- I don't blame you. Emperor Kantos shook his head: "From the beginning, you told me that this treatment method is poisonous, and it cannot really cure my disease, and it can only barely allow me to recover in a short time, but it will greatly shorten my life...... What I know is my own choice, and I don't blame you. ”

The medical officer was stunned!

After all, he has been in the royal family for a long time, and in an instant, the thought in his heart turned around, and he realized that he was afraid that he had done something bad with good intentions!

"You get up too. The emperor looked at the medical officer: "I don't blame you, you are loyal to me, you will do this, I will only thank you for your loyalty, I will not blame you." After a pause, the Emperor smiled bitterly, "However, you owe this magician an apology. ”

The medical officer immediately bowed his head to the magician: "Your Excellency, I ......"

The magician smiled bitterly: "Okay... ・・・I was not careful, and you saw it.

I don't blame you either...... You are loyal to Your Majesty', °C, naturally good. ”

"I need a little time, I need to let my subjects see a healthy emperor! I need to show the soldiers on the city walls that their emperor is still alive! I can't let outsiders see my weak appearance! This will lower the morale of the army and the cohesion of the people. ”

The Emperor said slowly: "I know that this method will only make me die faster, but ...... I had no other choice. ”

After a pause, he looked at the magician and the medical officer in front of him, "What I want to know now is ......

How long will I live?"

Seeing that both of them were a little hesitant, the emperor immediately said in a deep voice: "I don't need any boring comfort! I don't need any white lies! Your answer will have a huge impact on the fate of the empire! I must know exactly how much time I have left! I need to make full use of this time so that I can deal with some of the most important issues!"

"About half a month. The Medic gave his answer: "You already have too many toxins in your blood, although I don't know how Your Excellency the Magician used to keep these toxins from killing you for the time being...... But as the toxins increase, they begin to damage your body's functions! and......

It seems that this toxin has already started to harm your body, and it will get faster and faster. So...... My judgment is that the shortest is 145 days, and the longest is only 20 days.

The Emperor raised an eyebrow.

"Your Majesty. The court magician shook his head: "My opinion is not so optimistic.

He glanced at the medical officer beside him: "This gentleman's judgment is based on the current toxin content in your body's blood...... Unless you start now, stop my treatment. Then the day he said was reasonable...... However, you should continue your treatment to ensure that you are conscious...... Each more such treatment will shorten your life again. According to my calculations...... If you want to stay awake for the rest of your life, you'll need to continue treatment...... So, according to my calculations, you will have no more time left, at most...... Ten days.

The shortest words...... It's about seven days. ”

"Seven days... ・・・”

The emperor's expression was full of gloom, but soon, he suddenly laughed: "Okay! It is much better to know exactly when you will die than to suddenly fall and leave a mess." ”

He then shook his head—"What does it feel like to die...... Hmph, I don't have time to worry about that!"

With that, the emperor got up from the bed and looked at the two: "Thank you for your honest answer. Believe me, your answer is of great benefit to the Empire. ”

After speaking, he looked at the middle-aged man: "Now, I need to meet our prime minister...... When it's time to make a will, Ichigo sent someone to pick out the hungry Prime Minister, please come......

Oh, Adric doesn't need to, let him continue to accompany those Randy Jin people. ”

In the afternoon of the same day, the emperor personally climbed the city wall, which greatly boosted the morale of the defenders who had just repelled a rebel attack at noon!

The emperor himself planted an imperial flag on the tower of the Arc de Triomphe, and then pointed to the imperial flag and said loudly: "I swear here!!" After this battle, if you can win, all of you will be the new nobles of the empire!

Looking at the cheers of the soldiers on the city wall, in the crowd, there was a person sitting at the base of the city wall, leaning lazily there, gently wiping a spear in his hand.

A majestic figure, with short hair like steel needles.

Yelin looked up at the people cheering with weapons on the city walls, and looked at the center of attention among everyone, the emperor like the stars holding the moon......

"Void.

A sneer.