September, the month of September, has had a special meaning in human society since ancient times. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Before the rise of the White Church, when the Lamanites were still practicing traditional polytheism, they celebrated the festival of the "god of war" in March and October, the months when the war began and ended, respectively.

From the past to the present, war has always been an exclusive summer event due to the lack of means to preserve food.

In this period of seasonal span, the status of September is not insignificant.

Few commanders in history have been willing to delay the war beyond September, which is the last time to harvest crops before winter begins. If the war drags on beyond this month, the conscripted labor force will not be able to return to their hometowns, and the grain in the fields will gradually rot in the sun and rain because there is no one to harvest it.

From this point of view, this civil war in Yavenella ended just in time.

Despite being located in a temperate zone with a relatively mild climate, it is still important to stock up for winter. The labor force liberated from the war quickly returned to their hometowns under the rational deployment and control. Edward did not allow his men to plunder and execute their defeated opponents like other West Coast victors did, and unlike the Southern Alliance, which had only a small number of nobles and all of them were die-hard loyalists of the Prince, these orders were carried out efficiently.

He was more far-sighted than other West Coast aristocrats of his time, and he was able to see things more long-term than just small ones.

Still, the problem before Edward was not so easy.

During the war, there were many lost militiamen and surviving mercenaries who escaped into the inner forests of Neira, and the regrouping and repatriation of these people lasted for a month. And the peasants of the south, whose homes had been burned down by Ahibon II, had nowhere to return after the war, and how many of them would leave silently one morning and become bloodthirsty thieves is anyone's guess.

Even though they had been on Edward's side during the war and had become the most fearless warriors because of their wreckage, it was still a great problem to see what to do with these people, who had not recovered physically and mentally, as they had been.

Many, many, many things need manpower and brainpower.

In order to preserve the country's strength in order to cope with the ongoing crisis, Edward was lenient and pardoned most of the southern nobles. But this kind of behavior is weak and deceitful in their eyes, coupled with the entry of the Luoan royal family, those surviving nobles must be aware of the crisis, and it is difficult to understand how much of the small calculations they are making in their hearts, but at the moment, the entire political structure of Avenella is still in a delicate balance.

Can Edward convince them to realize the more terrible crises and work together for the future of the country, and if not, how will he deal with them?

"To be a good king means you have to do bad things. The wind was blowing quietly on the royal avenue of Arvenella in September, the beige linen curtains by the windows swayed gently, and the sunlight reflected on the golden window frames of the Ottolo style with many curved vines—the style of Ashibourne II who did everything he could to imitate the Western Empire after he had identified it as its suzerain, but Edward did not approve of this overly extravagant decoration.

He was still the simple, young prince who had only been dressed in a plain suit of plate armor when Ashinir met Henry, the man who had made our Sage decide to spare no effort to help in the first place.

This is the second time that the gentleman has said this. Edward didn't look back, his voice was so far away that it sounded a little ethereal.

Henry, in a rare case, did not carry his broadsword on his back, but wore a simple garment, a cardigan-sleeved linen blouse and light trousers, and booties made of soft leather over his feet—he habitually shrugged his shoulders, did not squeak, but stood silently.

Edward was silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh.

"I suddenly understood what the gentleman had said in Vawasika. His Royal Highness turned his hands behind his back, and as he turned around, the part of the armed sword gauntlet at his waist collided with the metal protected by the sheath, and Edward continued, "The king's consciousness, the nobleman's carry." I've read a lot of history books, and I always thought that if I were in a similar situation, I would have made a wiser choice based on the experience of my predecessors. ”

"But in the end, it's still not going to be easy. As he spoke, there was a sound of footsteps in the hallway behind them, and Henry changed his bearings, closed his eyes to the wall and listened for a moment, then turned again.

"No option is good for everybody, and when you choose one side, it necessarily means you have to betray the other. The sound of crisp little leather shoes "clicked", and a maid passed by with tea and walked to the other side, and Edward smiled slightly: "Sir, this is also the second time I have said this." ”

"When I'm old, I have amnesia. Henry shrugged his shoulders again, and then said before Edward could speak, "His Royal Highness the Prince has always been an idealist. ”

"To put it mildly, from the moment you were born, it was determined that this life must be extremely bumpy. The sage said this, and it was clearly offensive to a soon-to-be king, but it did not cause Edward any displeasure.

Because if there is anyone in this world who is necessarily qualified to teach him, then the tall black-haired man in front of him is definitely among them. Edward's "sir" inevitably has a bit of the meaning of "teacher" in Mila's mouth.

"If you were born into a commoner family, or more broadly, a lower-class jazz family, then great ideals and ambitions would bring you nothing but ridicule and contempt. Your family will only respond to your thoughts as 'stupid', they think that you should only do what you were born in, do what you have to do honestly, and not such a big heart. Henry walked to the window and glanced out, and despite his natural demeanor, Edward could see that the gray-blue eyes were as sharp as an eagle.

"Even if you start your struggle with no one to support you, the difficulties you have to face will not be reduced by half a point. The sage continued: "Just like your family, people in other positions in the country's deep-rooted class system have the same way of thinking about 'keeping one's duty' -- a peasant should be like a peasant, and a knight should be like a knight, and don't worry about things that don't belong to you." ”

"Not in his position, not in his position. Edward summed it up in a Raman proverb.

"Yes, but it doesn't stop there. The thing—" The footsteps sounded, and Henry knew without turning his head that it was our white-haired maiden—the learning of advanced swordsmanship was not limited to the training of the starting hand and the grip and the swing, but the footwork that accompanied the movement was also extremely important, and a trained swordsman would always be careful to control his rhythm when he walked—but that was not the whole reason, the sage turned his head, and Mira, dressed in the traditional dress of Luoan, walked over on sandals with thick wooden soles.

Now she is more than 1.7 meters tall, she is wearing thick-soled shoes, which is much better than most male warriors, with short white hair that falls and falls generously, with a knee-length skirt with brown vertical stripes on a white background, a white short-sleeved shirt wrapped in a black vest, and a dark blue paradise phoenix butterfly symbolized by Luoan is embroidered on the left chest.

Mira noticed that the two were still talking and did not speak, Henry raised an eyebrow, and she walked in and stood next to the sage, who continued with the above words: "This matter is inseparable from the deep-rooted traditional culture, and the vested interests do not want anything to change in front of them. Therefore, if His Royal Highness the Prince was born into the lower aristocratic or commoner class, considering that the shackles that need to be broken through are so huge, you are likely to be depressed for the rest of your life and die old. ”

Henry said, Edward nodded in agreement, and Mira, who was beside her, although she had not heard the previous words, could already guess a rough idea from the connection to a series of recent events, but the sage changed his words and continued, "But it is a blessing. ”

"Born into a royal family like His Royal Highness today, or not a low-class nobleman but a high-ranking aristocratic family with great influence at the rank of Grand Duke, as an idealist, you need to deal with the opinions of the whole country. ”

"That includes your family, your best friends, and everything that makes up this kingdom. To change them is not a matter of one or two sentences overnight, it is a creeping advance on the tip of a knife, and any slight mistake will destroy the entire country. Henry said, and Edward shrugged his shoulders as he did, "You're putting more pressure on me, sir." ”

"But I understand what you're trying to say, sir. The same footsteps were heard, and another much smaller Roan girl came in in a similar but more ornate costume, and Mira turned her head and smiled at Lena, while the last princess of the Roan walked in small steps to the three of them.

"I—" Edward paused, glanced at Lena, and corrected, "The choices we have made are difficult, and we will have to face more at the front end of this path. ”

"No one can say what the future holds, and there is no way to know how future generations will judge me. ”

But this must be a sin that we must bear, because as kings. ”

"Mai-Vatakalomi" Lena took over in a still slightly immature voice:

"We will continue to improve ourselves. ”

"If even we retreat here, instead of taking up the obligations and responsibilities that we must bear, then how can we convince the people of the kingdom and follow us? ”

"The king who has lost his people and his country sits on a throne that is only a meaningless ornament, even if it is inlaid with gold, silver and precious stones. ”

"......" Lena nodded silently, and Edward clenched his fist and released it again.

Outside, far more dense footsteps sounded than before, and a line of Arvenella nobles and some nobles from the old Loan Kingdom appeared in the direction of the door.

Lena and Edward walked towards them, and Mila was also led by the petite Princess Loan, who stopped and looked back at her teacher, but Henry only shook his head at her.

"......" Mira didn't ask anything more, the communication between the two of them never needed too much rhetoric.

With one action and one expression, everything has been conveyed transparently.

"Ah, Your Highness the Prince—this is," Henry paused, and Edward stopped and turned to look at him, along with everyone else present.

"This is the last time I'll call you that way. The wind suddenly became stronger, and the beige linen by the window swayed wildly, and Henry, who could not see clearly in the light with his back, said word by word.

"The world is driven by idealists who are paranoid and stubborn. ”

"Whatever happens in the future, don't succumb to everything that lies ahead of you. ”

“......”

"I will. Edward replied with simple words, and then a vast procession of Avenella's elite class marched towards the square outside the palace.

Henry was left alone, standing in the empty room, looking out the window.

"Your children are also very good, Ahborne. ”

"Staying in your country does seem to be the right choice. He looked far away from the window of the sunny room, and the morning sun hung high in the eastern sky, but the eyes of the sage did not look up to the dazzling light, but to the familiar and strange country below the distant horizon.

It was September 1, 192 in the Avenella calendar.

The United Kingdom of Avenella and Loan proclaimed the establishment of the country, and the capital was set in the old royal capital south of Avenella, and was renamed "Brofarin".

The kingdom adopted a two-king policy, the first in the history of the West Coast.

The abolition of slavery, the freedom of the people and the freedom of commerce and trade, have also become a feat that many countries have been emulating in the future.

This was where it all began.

And the two kings who stood on the cusp of the limelight were called in later history.

Edward I.

With Catherine II.

On the same day of the same year, in a remote town more than 100 kilometers away from the royal capital, the first king Ahirburn II fell ill and finally died silently.

When he died, he was alone.

――――

Volume II, end.