Groov.

A heartbeat, like a hammer.

Hurt.

The pain of the heart.

Tails barely stood on the fast rope, drenched in cold sweat.

No.

Groov.

Another heartbeat.

After struggling to snatch Barney's sword, the terrible after-effects struck again, leaving every breath and even every heartbeat with an almost heart-rending pain.

Each time it is more serious than the last.

It's like a ferryman's summons, trying to smash him from head to toe, inch by inch.

But that doesn't matter anymore.

He can't fall.

At least not now.

Tails swept across the nine scarred men in front of him with desperate eyes.

Once a royal guard.

Groov.

After the next heartbeat, the near-depleted Sins of the River of Hell surged again, filling his limbs and rushing towards his overwhelmed heart and body on the verge of collapse.

Strange and familiar waves struck, recreating the scene of the night of dragon's blood and the battle against the Meteorites:

The Sins of the River began to consume a great deal of energy, speeding up the regeneration and recovery of damaged tissues in his body.

Accompanied by infinitely magnified pain.

Tails began to tremble uncontrollably.

But unlike before, listening to Saker's confession and Barney's sobs, listening to the sound of blood in Naki's throat and Nai's increasingly chaotic breathing, Tails suddenly realized that he could not care about the pain that had brought him to death.

Sakel's words are vivid in my ears, as if I am a world away, but they are extremely clear.

"The royal guards are their own masters, and their comrades-in-arms meet each other with swords and soldiers......"

"Eleven times...... Cannibalism. ”

Groov.

Tails' dimming vision was dim, and the Knight of Punishment stared vacantly into the darkness.

"I can only watch everything happen, I can't do anything, I can't do anything about it......"

"I'm sorry ......"

Sakael is empty and authentic.

"I can't do anything. ”

Tails subconsciously squeezed the arm of the fast rope and closed his eyes.

The sins of the river of hell are like wild beasts that have found their prey, still rushing and roaring within him.

But at that moment, Tails seemed to be back to the night in the abandoned house, lying limply on the dilapidated ground.

He heard Quaid laugh maniacally.

Kellett, Ned, Nsola, the departed beggars floated in the air, looking at him with expressionless faces.

Watch as Quaid crosses Tails and walks towards the weak, shivering Kolia.

And he can only ......

I can only watch everything with my eyes open...... Happen.

Nothing can be done.

Tails clenched his fists.

Can't do anything?

No.

In his heart, there seemed to be a voice that whispered.

No.

Groov.

As if commanding his own body, Tails shuddered and let go of the rope and straightened up in pain.

That night, the hustle and bustle of Longxiao City flashed through his mind.

Anything...... Do, no, to.

He suddenly understood.

What he learned from Taurus's teachings was more than just the use of magical energy, or the "contact" or "thing" stage of a magician.

It's something more important.

Tails snapped his eyes open.

"Nope. ”

The boy's voice sounded faintly, steady and resolute, attracting everyone's attention.

Fast Rope looked at the Prince of Stars, who had relied on himself to stand firm a second ago, and was now walking forward in a cold sweat.

"It's not about what we can do or can't do. Tails staggered past Barney's sword, picked up the extinguishing torch from the ground, and flicked it in the air to make it fully burn again.

The light illuminated the dimly lit storage room.

Sakel stared blankly at him, little Barney still lying on the ground sobbing silently.

Naki, who was hovering on the brink of death, had gradually lost his eyes, and Nai's cough began to become small and silent.

"It's about whether we made the choice we made when that time came. ”

Tails took a breath of relief, forcing himself to shut out his consciousness of the aftermath of demonic energy or the healing pain of the sins of the Hellriver, and held the torch as he walked towards the dark pool of blood in front of him.

"Whatever you're going to do now, it's too late," Samir sneered, his tone filled with endless sadness and mockery:

"That's the truth. ”

Tails shook his head and just moved on.

Naki's neck blood soaked the soles of his shoes.

Like that night, he stepped into a pool of blood in an abandoned house.

All eyes were on the prince.

Tails gasped and stepped into a pool of blood.

In the next second, the pain in his body suddenly increased!

The boy slipped on his feet, unable to support his weak body any longer, and fell to one knee in front of Naki and Cannon.

"Tails!"

Fast Rope exclaimed, but was stopped by a hand that the prince raised decisively.

"Now, at least. ”

Tails gasped and took a few steps closer to Naki on his knees, meeting the other's almost dry eyes.

"There's one last thing we can do. ”

One last thing?

Fast Rope was stunned for a moment.

"Naki, the 'idler' of the Guardian Wing, right?"

Tails endured waves of sharp pain and looked at the man in front of him.

With Cannon's support, Naki glanced blankly at Tails, blood gushing from his neck between Cannon's trembling fingers.

Immediately, Naki looked away tremblingly, dodging and weak, as if he did not dare to face the young man surnamed Bright Star in front of him.

"I see. ”

"I know what you've done. ”

Naki shuddered slightly.

The firelight illuminated Naki's departing face:

Sallow, withered, with folds of despair and pain.

Looking at the other party's unstoppable neck bleeding, Tails gritted his teeth and squeezed out a peaceful smile, trying to make his words sound calmer.

"You were involved in conspiracy and civil unrest. ”

"In the chaotic era, you, you swayed between your family and royal power, and finally chose to deny the previous king, allegiance to another bright star, and chose ...... The future he represents. ”

"You've got a blood debt that you can't get rid of, including your guards and siblings. ”

Naki, who was lying in Cannon's arms, began to tremble.

His already dark eyes swept over Tails, full of remorse and pain.

Tails watched calmly, the sorrow in his heart overshadowing the pain in his body for a moment.

"You paid the price: tormented by your conscience, in guilt, unwillingness, and resentment, wearing the sin on your face, not seeing the light of day, and struggling for half your life. ”

The boy sighed:

"That's it. ”

Naki opened his mouth in pain, but all he could do was gurgle blood in his throat, and his eyes grew more desperate as he looked at Tails.

The guards looked at the prince with all kinds of eyes, despair, desolation, indifference, and emptiness.

But Tails ignored them.

He just smelled the blood in his nose and stared at Naki in the pool of blood, as if he wanted to stare at the last remaining soul of the other party.

"But I also know," Tails squeezed out a weak smile:

"I know that you refused to admit your guilt and went to prison because of your own selfishness, but because you want to implement your choice and cover up the scandal of the Bright Star Royal Family. ”

That may be a sad and respectable choice. ”

As the words fell, the expressions of the guards moved slightly, and Cannon, who was holding Naki, even looked up in surprise.

Naki's dirty face struggled.

He looked back at Tails in disbelief, his fingers clasped together into a fist.

In the next second, Tails let out a sigh:

"But that doesn't matter anymore. ”

The boy looked at Naki earnestly, his bruised face calm and indifferent in the firelight.

"Because eighteen years later, in the next step of escaping from prison, when freedom and liberation are within reach, you finally choose to give up hypocrisy and luck, face nightmares, face pain, face ugliness, and face yourself again. ”

Saker, who was listening silently, shook for a moment, and Barney Jr. calmed down.

Listening to Tails' words, Naki's breathing, which had intensified with the bleeding, began to become chaotic.

"Maybe what I'm saying now is insignificant and belated......"

A weakened Tails shuddered and reached out his left hand, gently caressing the ugly sin on Naki's face.

Flesh and blood engraved with the letter "S" of the ancient empire.

His touch seemed to have some kind of magic in it, and Naki gradually quieted down.

Tails gritted his teeth slightly.

"But at least, I want you to know. ”

"Even if the world does not know, even if the Kingdom refuses to recognize it, even if eternity cannot clarify, at least I know it in my heart. ”

Tails took a deep breath and smiled:

"I don't think you're a bad person, Naki. ”

At that moment, Naki's pupils shrank suddenly!

The look in the prince's eyes as he looked at changed like his expression.

"You are not a selfish, simply evil betrayer. ”

The boy's voice was soft, shaking only the dust, but it was clear as it spread through the dungeon.

into everyone's ears.

"On the contrary, you are a respectable person. ”

"You make your own choices, and then you take your consequences and implement your principles without regrets. ”

Naki's breathing began to quicken, drowning out the bleeding from his neck.

He looked at Tails, his lips opening and closing, and he muttered intermittently.

But his slightly excited words were buried in the surging bloodstream.

Tails smiled.

"I know, Naki, I understand. ”

The prince gently pressed Naki's forehead, closing the distance between them.

Naki's grunting continued, but became weaker and weaker.

"So, at this moment, in the last breath of your life," Tails realized that his voice was trembling even more than the trembling of Naki's dying:

"Ty Naki. ”

Tails breathed in a trance, and Naki's haggard face began to blur in front of him.

"In the name of the Celestial Stars, the sole heir to the Nine-Star Crown, and the second prince, Tails Bright Star. ”

The boy heard his own trembling voice:

"I forgive you. ”

At that moment, the dungeon was eerily quiet.

Everyone looked at the young man who was holding the injured man and speaking softly.

"Forgive you all the sins and sins you have had, or had, or not. ”

The prince's voice fell.

At this moment, it was as if nothing had happened, and the dungeon was as silent as ever.

But after a few tenths of a second, Naki's chest began to rise and fall violently, as if he was about to struggle to get up!

"Woo-"

Finally, Naki's long-held dam collapsed at the last minute.

His eyes had lost focus, but he was still trembling profusely as he stretched out his weak left hand, scratching in vain in the air.

His lips twisted and twitched, and he sobbed and whimpered violently at Tails, as if to utter endless words.

"Woo-"

Naki's violent reaction caught Cannon, who was holding his wound by surprise, and he could only try his best to control the other party and prevent his powerless situation from worsening again.

Tails lowered his torch, ignoring the gore, clutching Naki's empty palm tightly and leaning over the dying man.

"Whoever you betray and who you are loyal to. ”

"Whatever your heart desires, whatever you should do. ”

"No matter how you were and where you are. ”

He pressed his cheek against Naki's forehead, letting the other's struggles calm down in his own voice:

"May you no longer be trapped in sin, conflict, torment, and guilt. ”

"Relief from this. ”

Tails gasped, holding back the sourness of his nose:

"May your past be vanished, and may your nightmare be over. ”

"Rest in peace from now on. ”

No one spoke up.

At that moment, only the sound of Naki's breathing in the dungeon was slowly calming down and slowly weakening.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

I don't know how long it took for Naki's struggle to finally calm down.

Tails let out a sigh of relief, patted a frozen Cannon, and let Naki go.

He bowed his head in dismay.

At some point, the person in his arms had closed his eyes.

No longer moves.

He's gone.

Tails said bitterly to himself.

After eighteen years of torment......

Let's go.

But Tails moved.

I saw an endless stream of crystals, sliding from Naki's lifeless face.

Tears poured out, better than blood flow in the neck.

Tails' heart ached.

"Thank you," Cannon, who was still holding the remains of his comrades, sobbed:

"Thank you, Your Highness...... Nakita ...... Naki ......"

Tails looked up and looked at him blankly.

Naki's tearful cheeks contorted in an arc, as if tormented by excruciating pain.

But Tails knew.

That's not pain.

It's Naki's eighteen years, and he hasn't shown it......

Grin.

Tails paused for a moment in confusion before staggering to his feet and re-raising his torch.

Only then did he realize that at some point, everyone in the audience was staring at him intently, either surprised, excited, sad, or sad.

It seems that the teenager is the protagonist of the stage at this moment.

Even Sakel stared blankly at Tails, motionless.

Fast Rope was silent, and the look in his eyes that looked at Tails added a layer of meaning.

Tails took a deep breath and looked away from Naki. Step to the other side.

I don't know if it was the after-effects of the demonic energy that let him go, or if the sins of the Hellriver were finally repaired, and the pain in his body began to become numb, which was not worth mentioning for his current state.

With a feeble step, Tails approached Belletti, who was holding Nai.

Nai coughed in pain, looking at Tails, but the fire reflected in her eyes, and the hall lit up.

"Your Highness, we ......" Looking at Naki, who was no longer breathing, Belletti held back the emotion in her chest, and just as she could speak, she was stopped by Tails raising her right hand.

"Wait a minute. The boy shook his head.

Belletti immediately closed her lips, without any objection.

As if it were his vocation.

Perhaps because of what had just happened, no one wanted to interrupt Tails' move.

As before, Tails knelt down on one knee in front of Nai, looking at the man who was still smiling at this moment, coughing incessantly.

"Heavy internal bleeding after a blunt blow, no better - as a logistics officer, I know very well. Nai smiled hard, her face pale and in a cold sweat, and Belletti beside him couldn't bear to close her eyes.

Tails looked at him sadly.

"Sass Nye, Second Logistics Officer. The boy said seriously.

Nai subconsciously pushed Beletti, who was hugging him, and puffed up her chest.

It seems that they want to be more decent.

Only to hear the prince speak softly:

"I don't know what you've been through in the last eighteen years, but I know, I know you've not been fair. ”

Nai looked at the prince calmly, but his badly injured body gradually began to go numb.

Tails held back the resentment in his chest:

"Eighteen years, you have been in grievances and pain, bearing consequences that are not commensurate with what you have done. ”

"I know that your grievances have nowhere to be sought, your pain is unspeakable, and the justice you deserve is innocent...... Maybe never come. ”

Listening to the prince's words, Nai's eyes gradually dizzled, and a sadness filled the air.

But Tails grabbed his palm.

Nai's palms were cold, as if blood had never flowed through it.

"But you, logistics officer. ”

"Don't worry. ”

Tails' tone fluctuated slightly:

"For at least, at least I will remember your innocence and righteousness. ”

Nai's cold palms began to tremble.

"I will remember that there is such a person, no matter how much pain he has endured, how many grievances he has suffered, no matter when he is alive or now, before and after his death, he has always believed in and cherished his teammates and siblings, and has never wavered. ”

Nai's vision was blurred, but he did his best to let out a smile at the prince.

This was a relief to Tails, and eased his heavy heart after Naki's death.

Tails took a deep breath and pressed the sadness to the bottom of his heart.

"Sass Nye. ”

Tails said, putting his forehead against Nai's:

"May the Hell River have a smooth journey. ”

Tails said softly:

"Rest in peace. ”

Nai's body trembled slightly, even though he didn't have much life left.

The dungeon is still quiet.

But at this very moment.

"No, Your Highness......"

Tails let go of Nai and looked at Nai in amazement, who was in tears at the moment, but still spoke up to refute it.

"We swore an oath," I saw Nai trembling, staring at the empty ceiling with godless eyes, but laughing with tears in her eyes, and struggling to speak:

"As the Emperor's Praetorian Guard, our souls ...... Neither into heaven nor into hell, but in ...... Towering Empire. ”

Soul?

Tails was slightly stunned.

In the midst of the tears that couldn't stop falling, Nai's smile became even brighter.

Tyers felt sad for a while.

"Like brothers ...... past"

Nai couldn't see the scene in front of him clearly, but he still turned in everyone's direction with the little strength he had left.

"Royal Guard, Second Logistics Officer, Saas Nye. ”

Boom!

He clenched his right fist with great difficulty and slammed it into his heart!

Regardless of the weight and pain caused by this action.

Tails looked at him in amazement, and suddenly noticed that the guards around him, whether it was Sakel and Barney Jr., Belletti or Semir, all unconsciously puffed up their chests and grimaced.

Like the most solemn of occasions.

"Everyone!"

Nai opened her pupils that could only reflect the darkness, and said hoarsely.

"My sword is broken, and my mission is over. ”

He seemed to force his weak chest and lungs to breathe, and tried to squeeze this sentence out of his mouth.

Every word made the members of the guard shudder.

Nai took a deep breath:

"I have done my duty, I have done my duty......"

Halfway through speaking, Nai couldn't breathe anymore and gasped several times in a row.

Dana recovered and soon continued:

"I Will ......"

"I will rest in peace on the emperor's side......"

The dying Nai froze and let go of the fist in his chest.

"Nope. ”

Nai shook her head.

He shuddered and touched Tails' embarrassed face.

Tails bowed his head slightly, resting his cheek against the other's palm.

Nai touched the prince's face and glanced deeply in the direction of Tails.

In the next second, Nai bloomed with the palest, gentlest smile.

Just listen to him firmly say:

"I have rested on the Emperor's side. ”

My sword is broken.

The mission has ended.

I have done my duty.

I have rested on the Emperor's side.

The prisoners of the guard listened blankly to the dying words, either touched or sighed.

Nai stared at the void, holding her breath as if she was waiting for something.

Finally, with a squirming sound, the gray-faced little Barney woke up as if from a nightmare, holding his right arm in severe pain against his chest and leaning against the wall.

"Second Logistics Officer, Sass Nye. ”

"Thou hast done thy duty," said Barney Jr., in a voice that had been forced to change his tone, and said hoarsely:

"Thou shalt rest on the side of the emperor. ”

Finally, Tails saw that Nai's pale smile relaxed, as if he had let go of something.

Tails raised his head, and saw that all the members of the guard were pressed against their chests at the same time, and they spoke in unison, solemnly, sadly, or excitedly, telling the funeral words of the royal guard:

"Only the inheritance continues. ”

"Witness eternity. ”

The voice fell.

The next moment, Nai's palm holding the boy's face loosened.

It hung down abruptly and feebly, and was caught by Tails.

Tails lowered his head, only to see that Nai's pupils had completely lost their lustre.

He's gone.

Again, Tails whispered to himself.

Belletti whimpered in her throat in pain, and Cannon sobbed lowly.

Little Barney closed his eyes deeply and trembled:

"...... Thirty-Eighth......"

He paused, hesitantly glancing at Naki's body across from him.

Eventually, Barney lowered his head and shook his head hopelessly.

"Thirty-ninth. ”

Sacrael pressed his face back into his hands, his shoulders twitching.

The two siblings were sent away, and the guards were exceptionally quiet at this moment.

Silence lasted for a few seconds, and Tails gently let go of Nai's remains.

It's not over yet.

He dragged his weak body and said to himself.

Not yet.

Tails turned his head and swept over the figures:

"Chief Penal Officer Luton Belletti. ”

"Second Flag Bearer, Colin Semir. ”

Belletti bit her lip.

Semir had a complicated complexion.

I saw the prince swaying and standing up with a torch.

His figure was incomparably clear in the firelight.

"I understand you and I understand you. ”

Tails said in a hoarse voice:

"But I don't have the power of my father, nor the status of him, I can't excuse you, I can't justify you, I can't intercede for you. ”

As he spoke, he swept over little Barney, who was so distraught that he didn't say a word.

"I also know my father's character—even if I return to Eternal Star City, I will still be powerless, and my words are worthless or even meaningless. ”

Belletti's face was heavy, and Semir shook his head and sneered.

"I cannot erase your stigma, wash away your stigma, change your circumstances, and mend your wounds. ”

Tails took a deep breath:

"But at least, I can, and only speak to you as Tails Bright Star. ”

He lowered his head and said silently:

"I'm sorry. ”

Belletti and Semir moved in unison.

"Like Nai, I know your grievances, I know your past, and I know your innocence. ”

Tails tried to make his tone sound calm and sincere:

"I know your persistence. ”

"And I will remember it for the rest of my life. ”

"It doesn't matter what anyone else is. ”

At that moment, Belletti shook her head with all her might, and Semir's eyes twinkled, looking at the prince with indescribable eyes.

"Like Nai, you have already washed away the stigma in my heart. ”

Tails tried to get rid of the sadness in his heart, and pulled the corners of his mouth:

"You are excellent royal guards. ”

"Thank you. ”

Belletti's voice froze, and she couldn't speak: "Your Highness......"

Semir tilted his head and sank himself into the darkness, his expression slurred.

Tails smiled reluctantly, and turned to the other three again with his weak body.

"The Scout of the Vanguard Wing, Jonah Cannon. ”

"Guardian of the Wing, Saul Brie. ”

"And you, Guti Tardin, from a famous family. ”

Cannon, who was called by name and holding Naki's body, trembled and did not dare to look up, while Brie, who was huge, whimpered in pain.

Tarding even looked away in shame.

"You were involved in the intrigue and the chaos of the year, and even participated in it. ”

"Your participation in the bloody past led to the catastrophe of the royal family, the great calamity of the kingdom, and the karma of sin. ”

The mood of the three was even more depressed.

Cannon buried his face in Naki's body's arms, sobbing incessantly.

Brie fell to her knees, her face glazed.

Tardin, for his part, bit his lip and seemed ready.

Tails looked at the three people, and the emotions in his heart were extremely complicated and difficult to explain.

But in the end, he took a deep breath and shook his head.

"But ......"

I saw Tails show a faint smile:

"I forgive you. ”

Deathly silence.

Belletti's eyes widened, and even Semir frowned.

The three people involved, whether Tardin, Brie, or Cannon, were completely stunned for that moment.

"Your Highness......" Tarding said subconsciously.

Tails didn't let him continue, but looked at the bodies of Naki and Nai, and said quietly:

"Like Naki, you have made your own choices in many paths. ”

In today's world where things are right and wrong, it is no longer important to trace the rights and wrongs of the past. ”

Tails' voice fell, and Tardin shuddered slightly.

Just listen to the prince in a tone without a hint of resentment and contempt, calmly and authentically:

"More importantly, you have paid the price—whether it is the loss of a sibling, or the punishment of conscience, or the guilt and nightmares that will accompany eternal life. ”

The three of them still looked at Tails in disbelief.

"And I saw what kind of people you are. ”

"Whatever you made back then, today, instead of leaving Saqel alone to bear the sin, you face your past and stand up and admit it. ”

Many people looked at Sakel, but the mortally wounded Knight remained silent.

Tails sighed.

"And, today, you have saved my life, even if you who know the truth are not like Barney, you know that this will not grant you forgiveness. ”

With his words, not knowing if the time was up or if the power of the end had worked, Tails felt that the pain in his body had completely disappeared.

All that remains is weakness, trance, and emptiness......

and an unprecedented, burden-like relief.

Tails raised his head, smiling hard, his voice hoarse:

"Therefore, I forgive you. ”

"Forgive you all. ”

"I forgive you, forgive you from the torments of the past, forgive you from eternal guilt. ”

"May you be born again at this moment. ”

That's what it is......

My choice.

The voice in Tails' mind whispered.

Compared to power and status, this is ......

Something I should really cherish, care about, and hold onto.

It's my real anchor.

Quiescence.

There was silence for several seconds, only sparks and breathing.

Finally, Cannon, the first of the three, could not hold on.

He held his hands on the pool of blood on the ground and fell to the ground and wept bitterly.

Cannon's reaction seemed to open up something, and then Tardine fell to his knees, covering his face in pain and remorse:

"Your Highness...... I...... I ......"

He couldn't stop crying.

Brie quivered at the lips, but didn't make a sound.

He just closed his eyes deeply, facing the direction of Tails, lowering his body and head to the lowest.

Semir sighed.

Belletti put down Nai's body and stared at Tails intently.

Tails smiled at them.

"I'm sorry, I can only say these words in my own name - I'm not a king after all. ”

"That's all I can do. ”

He added, not without disappointment.

Belletti shook her head, and greeted the prince with her most grateful and restrained smile.

No.

What do you do...... It's much more than that.

More than.

Tails took a breath and looked at Barney Jr. on the other side.

The fast rope standing on the side watched all this sluggishly:

In the dark dungeon, two bodies lay peacefully on the ground.

Sakel fell to his knees in confusion and looked at Tails.

Little Barney leaned indifferently against the wall, motionless.

The other five miserable prisoners were either excited, or sad, or covered their heads and sobbed, or knelt on the ground and sighed.

Only the boy with the torch stood in the middle of the crowd with a relieved smile on his face.

His thin figure looked tall and strong against the backdrop of the firelight.

"What he's doing. Semir, who was standing aside, muttered to himself in a daze.

Belletti heard him.

"Nothing was done. ”

The penistor looked at Tails walking towards Barney Jr.'s back, and spoke softly, with bitterness and hope at the same time:

"He's just...... Torches were raised. ”

And then.

Belletti looked at Tails from afar, and said silently in her heart:

illuminates our darkness.

The next moment, Belletti couldn't control herself anymore.

The fierce warrior on the battlefield turned his head sharply.

Cover the tears welling up in your eyes.

(End of chapter)