Sixteen smiles

"What does this mean?" asked Ashrufat. "Forgive my ignorance, for I have been here for too short to have had the opportunity to come into contact with the venerable archbishop. ”

"Respectable?...... Ha...... ......The bard was stunned for a moment, and then he laughed, slamming his fist hard against the table as he laughed. The guard wasn't so exaggerated, but the sarcastic smile on his face was obvious.

"Did I say anything wrong?" said Ashrufat, seeing the poet laughing breathlessly.

"That one really has God's favor, strength, talent, wisdom, and so on," the poet finally stopped laughing, and poured the last bit of wine from the cup down his throat, "but 'respected'...... It's not even going to be my turn!"

"Ah...... How to ......"

"The other, though he is said to be a man of God's favor, has a bad moral reputation...... Legend has it that more than five women are needed to serve him every night, and legend has it that he likes a lot of abnormal things...... In short, the female thief who fell into his hands...... Fate is really worth regretting. ”

The guard gave a smack of approval, which showed that what the poet said was not nonsense.

"But then again, it doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman, thieves are going to be exiled to the south, and it's a matter of death if you go there, and there's no difference. The poet smiled. Ashrufat noticed that although he had drunk a lot, he was barely drunk. And the guard was going to stagger.

"Ah, I'm sorry, you two, I've got something going on, I'm afraid I'm going to have to go first. My name is Neil, but people generally call me 'Goldfinger Neil'. Today, I am invited by you, and if he meets again in the future, I am willing to invite you two to have a good drink. ”

"My name is Ashrufat. Ashruphat replied, and they shook hands.

"My name is Ada. The guard replied. But he drank a lot, and he had a drunken seizure, and now he was so dazed that he couldn't stand up for a while, let alone shake hands and say goodbye.

"Ah, Ashrufat, if you can, I would like you to send him back to the Great Temple, this friend of ours has drunk too much. Before leaving, the poet seems to have made this suggestion inadvertently.

After Neil left, Ashruphat quickly helped Ada out of the tavern. The tavern wasn't too far from the Grand Temple, so it didn't take long for Ashrufat to help the friend he had just met into the main entrance.

As had been the case the last time he had visited, the security on the periphery here was as lax as ever. The few on duty at the door recognized Ada, so they directly let Ashrufat in, without even asking a few more questions about his identity.

Without any extra effort, Ashrufat came to the door of the archbishop's private residence, a separate mansion. In the small talk in the tavern, he already knew that the archbishop of Lu Dao was out today, so this was the most vulnerable time to invade. In fact, there was no other defense than a dozing guard at the door.

It may seem evil and incredible, but it is exactly what it is.

But when he infiltrated it, he knew that he only needed a guard here. On the surface, it's a pretty two-storey building, but there's nothing inside. The rooms here are all locked, but inside the doors are either empty or a mess of dusty debris, or, like those dormitories for entertaining guests, with only the simplest furniture and furnishings.

In other words, it is only the "nominally" residence of the archbishop. As for where the archbishop's real nest is, it is not something that the lower guards can know.

Instead of priing open the doors of the room one by one, Ashrufat walked to the top of the stairs and wanted to go up to the second floor. But the door to the last room caught his eye. This door seems to be different because the door is made of iron, and usually only very important rooms are made of iron.

"The host, there was a life reaction in the room. As he walked to the door, Carrie said.

The iron door was locked strongly, but it was still pried open by the withered sword that sharpened the iron like clay. Ashrufat pushed the door open, and then he saw the man he was looking for.

"Fragrant leaves!" Ashruphat let out a low cry.

Sagawa wears a blouse and is suspended motionless from a "Y" shaped shelf. However, after hearing Ashrufat's voice, she raised her head slightly in the direction of the door.

"Your Excellency?" she asked in a very soft voice. "Ah...... You're finally here......"

Ashrufat hurriedly took two steps forward, trying to pry open the chain of bay leaves with his sword. However, this is actually completely redundant, this chain is locked with a simple clasp, which can be opened with a simple twist. When Ashruphat opened the clasp, Xiangye's body lost its support and went completely limp. At this time, he noticed the abnormality in Xiangye's body.

On her wrists, an ominous red pattern appeared on the surface of her fair skin. It wasn't painted with some red paint, but it emerged from the inside of the body to the surface of the skin, like blood. Ashruphat found that bay leaves appeared on the skin from the neck down, and all over the body. The whole thing looks like the blood vessels that are caused by poor blood flow, but the blood vessels are cyan.

"What's going on?" asked Ashrufat. Xiangye was wearing only this smock, and she was naked underneath, not even underwear. And on that body, in addition to this blood-streaked pattern, there are many bruises and abrasions, some of which are obviously whip marks.

"Like...... Your Excellency, are you a step too late......" Xiangye replied in a low voice. "But...... I'm still very happy. Because you didn't lie to me...... You're still here...... That day, I said I was looking for a resident who would take me in, but it seemed that I was too confident, and none of the people there were willing to help...... And then I got caught......"

"Master, it's a ...... Late signs of a high-intensity biochemical neurotoxin attack. The nerves all over her body have been eroded and destroyed!" Carrie replied in her mind. "She's running out of life left, probably no more than twenty hours. ”

"What should I do?" Ashrufat asked anxiously in his mind.

"Nerve cells have been irreparably damaged, and there is nothing that can be done. Her sense of touch is now more sensitive than she could have imagined, and it will make her feel a lot of pain if you hold her like that...... Master, my advice is to kill her. It's a mercy!"

Ashrufat gently lowered the bay leaves to the ground, and as Carrie had said, even if he was just holding them very softly, it made her miserable.

"Who did that?" asked Ashrufat. "Archbishop Karl, why is he doing this?"

He ...... Gave me some weird pills...... And then ravaged me for three whole days......" Xiangye tried to smile, but couldn't smile. "Then as he was leaving, he told me that I was going to die soon...... That medicine will make my body very sensitive...... That's how he can enjoy himself...... But that medicine is also highly toxic to me...... But...... I don't think I'm the first woman to be treated like this......"

Ashrufat's face was pale, and he couldn't say a word.

"Still, I'm happy...... Because...... My lord...... You delivered on your promises. You're here for me after all......" Kazuha said, a wave of intense pain that made her eyes dilute and her vision blurred. "A long time ago...... It was as if my parents had made a similar promise to me. They told me to run away alone, saying they would come looking for me...... It's really strange that I was a kid at the time, but I knew they were lying...... Speaking of which, at that time, I couldn't have escaped, because there were many soldiers searching for me later...... If it hadn't been for Captain Chrissy hiding me under the seat of the carriage, I would have died with my parents. To be able to live for so many years, to be able to meet so many people in the troupe, especially to be able to meet you...... I don't think I have any regrets. It's all a dream, and it makes me happy......"

"I ...... Not a good guy. Ashrufat replied, "Even I am not human at all.

"Looks like I'm really going to die...... Is this what death feels like?"

"Don't say such stupid things, I'll find a way to save you. Since the archbishop has poison, there is a good chance that there will be a corresponding antidote, if he can ......"

His voice stopped as Kazuha pressed a finger to his lips.

"Your Excellency...... While I know it's a white lie, I don't want you to lie to me. I hate it when people lie to me...... No matter what kind of lie that is...... If there was an antidote, I wouldn't be left here......"

Ashrufat's lips twitched. "Is there anything you want to do but can't do? If I can, I'm willing to help you fulfill your wish. ”

"Can someone like me have any wishes...... If you may, can you show me your smile?"

"Smiling?"

"It's not a very short time together, but I've never seen an adult smile sincerely......

Didn't I laugh? Ashruphat never noticed the question on a daily basis, so he didn't know how to answer it for a moment. After a few moments, he tried to mobilize the muscles on his face and tried to smile.

"What I want to see...... It's not like that. My lord, it seems that you have never really smiled, is there something that robs your smile?"

"Because something happened...... Something I don't want to mention. Because of my incompetence, because of my cowardice, because I evaded my responsibility, I ended up letting some innocent good people die. It took a long time for Ashrufat to reply. "Maybe that's why I can't laugh right now. ”

"Then let's make a pact. If one day, when you are free to smile from your heart, please sing a song for me with a smile......"

In the moment when Ashrufat was a little stunned, Kazuha suddenly grabbed his wrist and grabbed it very tightly.

"Now...... My lord...... Can you give me a ride?"

"I ......"

"For me now, living is a simple torture. Xiangye smiled sadly, the kind of smile that brought tears to her eyes. "I don't want people to do it...... Help me relieve this pain. ”

"Master, this is ......," Carrie reminded in her mind, but was yelled back directly by Ashrufat. "I know, you don't have to say it!"

He brought the withered sword to the heart of Sagawa's chest. For the first time since he had held the sword, he felt his hands tremble.

"Xiangye, may I ask you a question? What kind of mood did you have in to save me at that time? Is it just because of Captain Chrissy?"

"I don't know what to do...... Maybe...... It's because I kind of like you. ”

......

This is the tenth day that Captain Chrissy has been restless.

They are now temporarily camped in a small town two or three days away from Oren. The situation was completely unexpected, and Ashrufat and Kazuha suddenly lost their voice. If they were caught, then the city of Oren was unexpectedly calm and there was no. If they managed to escape, they didn't find a way to find her.

Could it really be ...... The two of them eloped and never looked back. If this is the case, Captain Chrissy feels that he has lost a lot, and a pillar and a cheap bodyguard are gone.

The only consolation is that the troupe is quite popular in this town, which makes Chrissy decide to pay more attention to the satellite towns of these big cities in the future. After all, the stage in the big city is the target of everyone's attention, and the competition is too fierce, and with the current strength of "Summer Night's Dream", it is still not enough to compete with those large-scale theater companies.

At the end of the night, Captain Chrissy was a little surprised to find that the three-day performance had earned her a month's salary for the entire troupe. Although it is not a quick rich, it is also considerable.

It seems that there are still some problems with my past business ideas...... It seems that the company's next goal, the plan to buy a super big tent, should be realized within a year. But it's a shame not to be able to attend the festival in Oren...... And that damn Ashrufat, who actually kidnapped Xiangye......

A troupe handyman walks in through the door, and Chrissy quickly stuffs the ledger and money into a drawer (she's in the troupe's RV at the moment).

"Is there anything wrong?" Chrissy asked with the characteristic majesty of a regimental leader.

"Someone wants to see you. ”

"Who?

"This ...... He also sent the word to him. He said to be waiting for you at the mill by the river outside town. ”

Chrissy was about to ignore the matter and continue to settle the score, when the handyman handed over a small bag.

"What is this?"

"He said, after seeing this thing, you must be willing to meet. ”

Captain Chrissy opened the pouch curiously, and her eyes immediately widened. There's a gold coin in the middle of the bag! The money she's earned in the past three days is just a gold coin!

Ten minutes later, Captain Chrissy was at the edge of the mill. She had already estimated several possibilities in her mind. The danger should not be, because robbers and bandits and the like cannot use such means. The most likely is that someone (at least a rich man) is planning to propose to her!

If it's a side room, a concubine, or something like that, it's fine, just refuse it. But what if it's a proper house, if it's a wealthy nobleman with a lot of status, and it's not too bad looking...... Ah, that's a tough situation......

On the edge of the mill, there is a figure leading a horse, and it looks a little familiar. Is it really my admirer?

By the light of the moon, Chrissy approached the other party. Because of some nervousness, she didn't know how to take the initiative to speak for a while. However, this problem was solved immediately. The mysterious figure turned around, and Chrissy immediately recognized the other.

"Ashrufat ?!!!"

"It's me, Captain. Ashrufat replied.

"You give me that...... What does that mean?" Multiple thoughts flashed through Chrissy's mind, and the most likely one remained. "Do you want to exchange my bay leaves for such a gold coin?!" she roared.

To her surprise, there was no embarrassed expression on Ashrufat's face, on the contrary, a disturbing calm.

"I'm sorry, Commander......" After a long time, Ashrufat finally spoke, and the tone of his voice made Chrissy feel a chill in her heart for an instant. "Fragrant leaves are dead. ”

"How could it be! I remember that time, we didn't leave safely ......."

"Xiangye was caught by Archbishop Carl......"

"No way, I've sent someone to the city!

"She was caught, but not treated as an ordinary criminal. Archbishop Karl feasted on her body and then killed her. ”

"What ......" A look of shock and sadness filled Chrissy's face, and it was a long time before she muttered. "It's fate...... It's fate......" Ashruphat clearly saw Chrissy turn her head, unwilling to let Ashruphat see her face clearly. But she wiped her eyes vigorously, but she couldn't hide it.

"I'm sorry, Captain," said Ashrufat after a long time, until Chrissy's mood calmed down. "I'm afraid I won't be able to go back to the troupe because I have something to do. If I can, please accept this as my thank you to you. ”

Ashrufat handed over a document, and although the moonlight was still bright at the moment, it was not enough for Chrissy to see what it was. She just took it blankly. "You don't have to be like this, I'm just doing my duty as a regiment commander......"

"But I'm still very grateful to you. Ashrufat said. "Anyway, at that time, you and Xiangye saved me. ”

He turned back and got on his horse, and left Chrissy as if he had run away, and did not restrain his mount until he had gone a considerable distance. The emotion that almost exploded in my chest just now finally eased a little.

"Carrie. He said softly.

"Master, I'm here. Carrie's figure appeared in front of her, although she still didn't fit in with her surroundings, and although she was still wearing that strange rabbit-eared hat, she didn't know what it was, but it calmed Ashrufat's mood even more.

"Carrie, I should have been in tears just now, right?"

"This ...... ...... hosts"

"Am I...... Not only can't you laugh, can't you even cry?" he said with a sigh. "Now, I can really feel the changes in me, not only in my body, but also in my heart. ”

"Master, you shouldn't be so sad! You should cheer up! Now, there are important things waiting for you to accomplish!"

Ashruphat allowed himself to blow in the night wind for a short while.

"I know. He rode up a hill, from which he could see the rivers and the plains and the city of Oron in the distance.

"I'll be back!" he drew his sword and raised it to the sky, shouting into the empty night sky. "I will return with wrath and destruction! I will return with iron and blood, fire and sword!"

Lost smile ends