"No, I can't. ”

After Vogel came up with his idea, Marhros flatly refused:

"It's too risky to snipe now. ”

Vogel frowned:

"That's what you mentioned first, and now you've changed your tune?"

Marlos shook his head:

Now he has the most legitimate reason to ask His Highness to witness the duel in the name of revenge. ”

Vogel snorted coldly with disdain:

"It's a fart. ”

In front of them, Tails was still staring at Anker, who was taking hostages, his thoughts confused.

What to do?

Reject him, allow him, kill him, convince him......

It's messy.

"Bailal!"

In the hall, Earl Godwin, who came forward to communicate, was furious and denounced:

"You are too arrogant! Sensationalism and coercion of His Highness, is this the act of a gentleman and a courtier?"

But Anker was clearly prepared, and he did not flinch, looking back proudly:

"Isn't everyone who is a citizen of the stars the right to appeal to our High King?"

The strength of his hand made the old baron who had been held hostage groan in pain again.

"Is it not the duty of every king to listen to the sincere voice of every people?"

Anker's words resounded through the hall, causing not only Tails to frown, but also the already restless guests.

Earl Godwin was speechless for a moment, unable to find a rebuttal - the trap of the words "appeal" and "king" was too obvious and too dangerous.

Marlos ignored the situation in the room, remained calm, and continued to communicate with the deputy guard captain in a low voice:

"If we do it first, the wrong person is His Highness Tails, a cowardly, incompetent, despicable act of silence - in his Mindish Room, at his banquet. ”

Vogel thought for a moment and said decisively:

"The Guards can take responsibility, you and me. ”

"If necessary, take the blame and resign, and no one else. ”

But Marlos shook his head:

"You think people care?"

His words have a deep meaning:

"The royal guard, the focus is always on the royal family, not in the guard. ”

Listening to the conversation between the two captains of the guard behind him, Tails' heart became heavier and heavier.

What to do?

"His Highness Tails!"

Anker turned his head and looked expectantly at the person standing tallest at the moment:

"The heavens are about to be revealed, just waiting for your order. ”

"How dare you!"

His aggressiveness drew Godwin's rebuke again, but Anke ignored it and just stared at Tails.

It's like staring at his prey.

"Reject him, Your Highness. ”

Vogel looked angry and whispered behind Tails:

"Lord of the stars, royal majesty, will not tolerate coercion. ”

Tails subconsciously wanted to open his mouth, but Marlors's voice came softly from the other side:

"And then force him to kill the baron?"

"Let His Highness become a cold-blooded bystander, a connivator of murder?"

"Don't forget, it's still the Seven Stars who serve the royal family. ”

Tails' teeth were so heavy that he couldn't speak.

Vogel immediately retorted:

"That can't help such a barbaric custom as 'life and death duel'! Your Highness is contaminated with the influence of the Northland, and leaving people to talk is secondary, if the kingdom is effective in the future, it will ......"

Earl Godwin and Anker's loud voices repulsed each other, Marhros and Vogel's low bickering, the back-and-forth arguments of the guest crowd, countless voices entered Tails's perception from the senses of hell, shaking his consciousness and striking his spirit.

made him, who had already experienced the torture of a night of banquets, exhausted.

Marlos's voice continued, calm and indifferent, retorting to Vogel:

"No matter how bad and backward this custom is, it is also a means for His Highness to resist King Nunn, and it has become a sign of good talk, and now it is ...... to deny it."

It was a misunderstanding.

Tails was exhausted and expressionless.

He was just, just to scare the Yankees, and Nunn never- why did he make it look like he had fought a duel with the Born King?"

Tails sighed heavily in his heart.

Why did he propose a duel to King Nunn in the first place?

God knows how much he regrets it.

Also, who spread the word about this?

In the Hall of Heroes back then, the Grand Dukes of Exeter who were present were so unstrict-mouthed?

There was a small commotion in the guards: D.D.'s expression was twisted, and he dragged Glovor's chains as he struggled to squeeze in front of the two commanders.

"Let me duel him, Your Highness, sir. ”

Doyle held down Glove, holding back his emotions, staring at the enemy who held his father hostage:

"I could have killed him in the open air—it was just a feud between two families. ”

D.D's face was anxious, expectant and nervous.

Vogel snorted softly in his nose, disdainful.

Tails' face was gloomy and uncertain.

"That's right in the hands of that guy. ”

Marlos shook his head:

"Al Bahlar died in a glorious duel to avenge his father, and what happened to him will be remembered and forgiven to the greatest extent, and no one will remember his wrongdoing and ulterior motives. ”

"His Royal Highness, including the royal family, will be forced to the forefront and will be infamous for bullying others and reckless with his life. ”

In the hall, Anker calmly and clearly retorted Earl Godwin's rebuke, Baron Doyle trembled under his sword, and the listeners became more and more restless.

D.D gritted his teeth.

Marhros's words became more and more solemn:

"And he's just someone's tool, a pawn on the table. ”

Chessman.

[Child, be strong. 】

[Don't become a pawn that is at the mercy of arbitrary and sacrificed at will.] 】

Remembering Falkenhause's words, Tails tensed the muscles in his arm.

"As for those in the audience, the hands behind them ......"

Marhros pressed the following words to heart:

Perhaps he will take advantage of Al Baral's death to play up this case, which was originally just a contract dispute, and raise it to an unprecedented level - such as the rule of the kingdom.

Doyle and Baylar.

How many cases like theirs can be counted in the entire kingdom?

How many different situations are left?

How many examples are there that are similar and different from each other?

Marhos's gaze froze.

No, it will be given a different meaning and become the fuse for a series of political storms that follow......

"But, Marlors," Tails struggled not to heed the gazes cast on him by the myriad of people, turning his head sideways, and whispering, with tired words:

"He's just a desperate guy who is forced by the situation to take a desperate gamble. ”

Marlos looked at Anker with burning eyes and narrowed his eyes.

"So he's stubborn and dangerous. ”

"Even more so than the person behind him. ”

The watchman said gloomily:

"It's a good move. ”

"A good sword. ”

Good chess.

Tails didn't answer, just closed his eyes, exhausted.

"Your Highness!"

Anker became more and more impatient, and his urging overshadowed Earl Godwin's rebuke:

"What made you hesitate?"

I saw the offender of the Bailal family take a step forward, making the guards around him more and more nervous, and at the same time, he raised the short sword in his hand and pointed it directly at the Duke of Star Lake on the steps!

"Hesitation for justice or confusion about imperial traditions?"

Anke glared angrily at Doyle beside Tails:

"Or is it different from intimacy, would you rather protect the vassals under your command and the guards on your side?"

D.D's face changed, and his face became angry.

"Is there no way?"

Doyle's fist was shaking, and Glovor had to hold him down:

"Just let this bastard make a lot of nonsense here, hurt my father, and damage His Highness's reputation......"

"The best way is to strengthen the investigation in advance and suppress the turmoil," Marhos said in a deep voice.

"Let this guy not be able to open his mouth. ”

"Let the guards keep this out of the hall so that it doesn't exist – whether it's this case or assassination or hijacking. ”

Vogel's face became more and more unsightly, and D.D became more and more anxious:

"His Royal Highness the Duke......"

The discussion of the guests ushered in another wave of climax, including many fierce quarrels.

Many people angrily denounced Anker's disrespectful behavior, but the son of the Al al-Barral family was not afraid, or did not move, or raised his voice to refute it.

Tails breathed in a trance, only to feel the nails in his palms getting more and more prickly, and the pain was unbearable.

Right now.

"I thought about it. ”

Marlos spoke in a low voice, attracting the attention of the guards:

"There's another way. ”

"It can save the baron's life, but also solve the dilemma. ”

Vogel and Tails looked at each other.

But Marhros turned to Doyle:

"Prepare for a duel, D.D. ”

Doyle instinctively responded, and was stunned after reacting:

"Okay—sir?"

I saw that Marios's face was indifferent, and only his tone gradually became solemn:

"But, Danny Doyle Pioneer Officer. ”

He rarely called Doyle by his full name, which made the latter nervous.

"Listen carefully. ”

In the next moment, the watchman's words made everyone change color:

"You're going to die. ”

Tails froze.

Also stunned were Vogel, as well as the surrounding guards.

What the?

"This duel," said Marhos lightly, but his eyes were fixed on D.D.'s body:

"You have to ......"

"Death at his hand. ”

Tails reacted, startled.

He was not alone.

"What?" Vogel looked at the watchman in disbelief.

"If the opponent wants to take advantage of the anger of the people, we will return it. ”

Marlos turned his head indifferently, not looking at Doyle, who was completely stunned in place and in a trance.

"Doyle accepted the duel, but was killed by his opponent - in this way, no matter what the reason is, the Bailar family made a big feast, borrowed foreign evil methods, and killed their own peers, they naturally suffered the loss, and everyone remembered that only your family endured the burden of humiliation, and the compulsion of His Highness Tails. ”

"After the incident, the royal family can take the center to uphold justice, occupy the moral high ground, and calm the aftermath. ”

In the astonished eyes of everyone, Marus calmly told his terrible proposal:

"Your Highness is uninformed and impartial. ”

"Doyle does not shy away from responsibility and takes responsibility. ”

"End of story. ”

There was silence among the guards.

"Dead ......" Doyle froze in place, unable to come back to his senses.

Only Vogel survived the initial consternation and frowned and questioned:

"But so, the Doyle family ......"

"The son fought for his father with honor, died in a duel, and saved the face of the royal family," Marles said, staring at the old baron who had collapsed to the ground:

"My father evaded his responsibilities and died of murder, causing chaos in the kingdom. ”

"It's the big picture, and they know what to do. ”

When Tails saw it, Doyle shuddered slightly, and his face was full of distraction.

It's as if the D.D of the past is gone.

"No," Tails said subconsciously:

"There must be a better way......"

But at this moment, no one seemed to care about his words, whether it was Vogel or Marhos.

"But then," Vogel said, clasping his arms, as if he was really seriously considering the possibilities and pros and cons of this way out:

"The Seven Servants of the Bright Stars, their attitude towards the royal family ......"

D.D looked up in a daze.

"There will be advantages and disadvantages, but that is not the scope of what you and I can put beaks, but the consideration of Your Majesty and the lords at the Imperial Council. ”

Marlos said lightly, just like the day Tails returned to Eternal Star City, he "suggested" him to stay in the carriage:

"In the chess game, Bailal is just a chess piece, the Seven Servants of the Bright Star are also chess pieces, and you and I are also chess pieces. ”

"Only choose the move with the least loss. ”

Tails froze for a moment.

Chessman.

It's a chess piece again.

A pawn at the mercy of others.

"Is it worth it?" Tails said softly.

But Marlos was still discussing with Vogel and didn't notice him.

"So, Pioneer Officer Doyle, how much do you want to save your father's life, save your family, and save Your Highness from the current predicament?"

Vogel asked softly, now speechless—it was the first time he had confronted D.D. and addressed him by his last name.

D.D shuddered again!

But Vogel pressed on:

"To the point where you want to die for it?"

Doyle raised his head, his tone panicked, his breathing shortness and restlessness:

"I, I ......"

No one knew what he was going to say.

"That fellow's position is slackening," said Glofo on one side, suddenly:

"Sir, let me go around to the rear, I am confident that I can kill with a sword......"

Doyle looked at his partner, his eyes lit up again.

But Marios interrupted them smoothly:

"It's the only way. ”

"Someone has set up a chess game that cannot be solved, and we can only make the most rational and concise choice. ”

The watchman looked at the soulless D.D.:

"Pawn. ”

He looked at the incredulous Tails again:

"Protect the king. ”

The Guard was silent again.

Tails closed his eyes and let go of his fist.

Pawn.

Royalty.

Who is the pawn.

Who is the king?

But in the hall, Anker was obviously tired of the entanglement of Count Godwin and others, and didn't want to delay it any longer: "Your Highness—"

"Is it worth it?"

Tails snapped his eyes open and interrupted him with a loud voice!

Duke Xinghu spoke angrily, drawing the attention of the hall to himself again:

"Is it worth it?"

Duke Xinghu took a step forward, looking at the spoiler at his banquet with complicated eyes, and his tone was full of double indignation and injustice:

"Anker Al Baylar!"

"Whoever instructed you, are they and their conspiracies worth your life in exchange for your life?"

Anker was stunned for a moment.

Not only him, but everyone in the guard was also stunned for a moment.

After a few seconds, the captor laughed out loud.

"Commanding?"

Anker first glanced at the embarrassed old baron hatefully, and then said coldly:

"You don't believe it, do you?"

"When you encounter something like this, you think it's a political conspiracy, you think it's ulterior motives, and you think it's a calculation of interests," Anker sneered, pointing his dagger at the crowd around him, causing a commotion among the guests:

"Just like most of the fools who are high up and have nothing to do with themselves, who are cold-blooded and ignorant, who pretend to be smart, who are self-proclaimed and selfish and hypocritical, when they are watching from the sidelines. ”

Tails frowned.

"'Why bother, there's always another way,' they say, 'Ill-intentioned, eye-catching,' and they say, 'It's not that simple, it must be a conspiracy,' and they say so. ”

"Just like you are now. ”

Anker said bleakly:

"You don't believe what I've done, it's already me, a person with flesh and blood, the last most desperate choice. ”

For a moment, Tails felt like he had read the meaning in the other man's eyes.

But the feeling drifted away, and Anker's gaze became strange again.

Tails was silent for a moment.

"And where did you get your weapon?"

The prince spoke in a deep voice:

"The security for the banquet is very strict and you can't bring it in alone. ”

Anker was stunned.

He looked at the dagger in his hand, first smiled, and then his eyes turned cold.

"To those who have suffered injustice and have been cut off from the way out, Your Highness," Anker Al Al said in a sad and resolute tone, looking back at Tails:

"Weapons of resistance abound. ”

"It's within reach. ”

Ignoring Earl Godwin's maddening roar, he put the blade of his sword back against the baron's neck.

"Your Highness, choose for me - murder, or duel?"

Tails swallowed.

D.D's expression tightened, and his trance-like eyes regained focus, reflecting the struggle.

Marhros's gaze fell on Tails.

But it is more lethal than the eyes of anyone in the hall at this moment.

Pawn.

Royalty?

Anker, D.D., and Marhos, all three eyes were in focus.

Tails only felt that his mouth was dry.

But in the next second, another high-pitched and sharp female voice pierced the air:

"Bullshit's choice!"

"Bullshit Bilal!"

Everyone was startled, and when they turned their eyes, they found Baroness Doyle who had broken free from the crowd and looked embarrassed but ruthless.

Her breath trembled, her heavy makeup had long since been spent, and her gorgeous clothes were messy, but she still raised her fingers through gritted teeth and pointed directly at the captor:

"You stinky little cub, what do you know besides dancing and swordsmanship in a ruined tower thousands of miles away!"

"What kind of scum your father is - don't you know it yourself!"

Anker was stunned for a moment, then frowned.

Like a Jedi rebound from a terrified person, the Baroness's expression contorted.

"Before I remarried into Doyle's family, my ex-husband was a merchant in Crows, and I know better than anyone what a pickled man your father is!"

"Hello, that son of a bitch! When he was young, he was a first-class rogue knight, frivolous and vain, and even cheated in knight competitions!"

The Baroness's face was full of contempt and hatred:

"It's so joyful and self-serving, short-sighted but insatiable!"

"If it weren't for the shit luck of the four cousins and two brothers who all died after the bloody year, when would Baron Crow's Cry get him!"

Anker was a little unexpected, and didn't know how to react:

"You ......"

"As a lord, your father only knows how to expropriate and extort money, and he does his best to catch fish! Under his rule, the crow's cry of the town service is extended to the period, and the tax is increased, but the punishment is harsh and never lenient! As a result, all industries are withered, the people's grievances are boiling, the officials are corrupt, and bribery is rampant!"

Anker was annoyed:

"No, he ......"

But the baroness was clearly furious, and did not give him a chance to speak at all:

If nothing else, it depends on his financial difficulties but he does not repent, and he has to go on an expedition with debts and debts, but he has taken countless lives...... Just to go to the desert to risk a windfall, grab war achievements, and earn face?"

"Isn't that clear enough?"

Mrs. Doyle spoke disheveledly and panting.

But the smoother her sharp voice, the smoother she is, she can even make Tails hear a few traces of the native sounds of the Western Wilderness countryside that she has obviously cultivated since she was a child and is difficult to change:

"In the town of crows, from officials to peasants, from merchants to craftsmen, everyone hates your father, and hates your teeth so much!"

"Every month of the year, the poor and overwhelmed people gather in the mountains and forests to engage in bandit trade, which affects the surrounding area and causes endless harm, from the local townspeople to the mirror river across the river, and my ex-husband died in it!"

"Not to mention the countless homeless people who leave their wastelands behind every year and smuggle across the Mirror River to other lands, including Doyle's territory, just to have a full meal and wear new clothes!"

In the hall, everyone was attracted by the Baroness's words, and surprise and discussion swept the crowd.

"After I remarried, your father shamelessly demanded the 'ransom money' of these homeless people from the lords of the Jinghe region! Baron, my current husband, can only sometimes pay money to stuff his appetite, and sometimes appease the homeless people to let them go back to farming and labor, so as to prevent the increase of thieves from endangering the surrounding area, and this is what you said, bullshit tenants in other places!"

Anker was so enraged that he couldn't speak for a moment.

"Mortgage the land in the contract? Fuck, do you think that in the whole country, which nobleman with integrity would use the ancestral fiefdom as collateral without blinking his eyes in order to make money? Do you think that after so many years, only the Doyle family has lent your father's money!"

"Whether it is a merchant or a nobleman, a knight or official, once the deadline for repayment is reached, he will play a scoundrel with the laws of the nobility, threatening to sue the creditor for 'murdering the nobles and granting land privately' - this kind of bullying and treachery, shameless and shameless bad things, he is much older than you!"

Anker held his sword, trembling, and his face pale in the midst of the chatter.

The Baroness shouted angrily:

"In the face of such a rogue lord, the vassals of the Biral clan are detached from morality but dare not speak out in anger - how much do you think Baron Jinghe must be like a saint and how generous he is, so that they can cry and rush to the ground and desperately come to defect?"

"In order to escape from your father, in order to survive, and even more for the sake of the next generation of children, the people of Crow's Cry Town are thinking about finding a way out and privately connecting to overcome the difficulties together, what's wrong with this?"

Under the surprised eyes of the crowd, the baroness gritted her teeth and continued:

"And we, the Doyle family, are generous, and for the sake of our neighbors and relatives for generations, rent their wasteland, collect normal taxes, appease their spirits, hire exiled laborers, so that people can live a normal life without falling into the grass, and even open roads to drive away thieves, and maintain the peace of the two places......"

"But what's wrong with making some profit and convenience in the middle?"

Under Anker's coercion, the old baron had tears on his face, his face was bruised and swollen, and he nodded very cooperatively, with an innocent expression.

The more the baroness spoke, the harder she became, and she pointed straight at the waist:

"For your scoundrel father, who has insatiable desires and great ambitions, in order to stop him from going crazy, we are even more merciful, and we are in a hurry to raise funds, so we will feed the dog as if he were a waste of water...... What's wrong with that?"

"And now you're coming to us, aren't you? and have the face to fight us?"

Anker looked ugly at the accusations, his breath racing.

"Lord Taron," Tails whispered to Vogel, turning his head back to Vogel:

"Just now, the Guards took the flag wing's information about the Al Lar family, can you let me see a thing or two?"

The captain of the deputy guard was taken aback, apparently not expecting the Duke to speak to him.

But he only hesitated for a moment, and then called his subordinate under Marios's pensive gaze and handed a wad of papers to Tails.

"The truth in these territories, you, a little cub who is not at home for ten months a year, this little young master who eats and wears all the food and clothing from his father......

The baroness raised her eyebrows and showed a pungent look:

"Do you think that after practicing swords abroad for two days, reading two books, and sleeping with a few girls from other places, you are qualified to shout at us!"

"I, this ......" Anker's lips twitched, and he was powerless to refute for a moment.

Well, Tails said secretly as he flipped through the information, he looked away.

In this hall, in the face of iron thorns, the woman who is still calm......

Maybe it's not just Mrs. Eleanor.

But Tails flipped through the paper, frowning.

No, at most, it only writes where the Al al-Biral family came from, how long is the history, how far is the pedigree, how big the territory is, how much has changed, and how many people are in the family......

There are no such details of territorial rule and disputes between the two families at all.

No evidence could be found to refute it.

"You said you want to inherit your father's fiefdom and title?"

The Baroness snorted coldly:

"Then why don't you take all the sins that your father has committed all these years against his vassals, to his people, to his neighbors, to his kingdom, to all his people, to all his debts, to his wickedness, to his legacies, to his life, and to his blood!"

"Boyal's little cub!"

After the baroness screamed, the whole person fell down in sweat and was supported by several female dependents.

Tails frowned.

The whole hall was silent.

Everyone seemed to be amazed by the Baroness's play.

Even Doyle himself froze.

"D.D., right?"

Vogel called Doyle's nickname, and he looked at the Baroness in the center of the hall with a complicated expression:

"Your father...... Married a good wife. ”

Doyle looked at his stepmother in a daze.

As expressionless as ever, Glove's shoulders were pressed against him from the side.

"You know," Doyle said in a trance, as if to himself:

"When my father wants to marry again......"

"Over the years, my attitude towards her has not been very good. ”

Marlos didn't say anything, just sighed softly.

But Tails was as heavy as ever.

He knew that it wasn't over.

A few seconds later, the hall was once again filled with a surging chatter, and everyone was discussing the new news that had just broken out of the Baroness.

Anker turned his head with difficulty, noticing a change in the eyes of his guests.

They began to look at him more.

Look at the son of House Bharal.

No.

No!

In addition to his panic, he was also a little annoyed.

"Listen, little cub!"

Baroness Doyle breathed her breath, and saw the guests talking, and became more and more confident and haughty.

She didn't care about her embarrassment, and snorted coldly:

"I don't care whose high branch you climbed on, or whose orders you listened to, you came to harm our family!

The baroness pointed at her husband's captors and exclaimed:

"But if you dare, just try it!"

Anker shuddered!

But the old Baron Doyle, who was held hostage by him, changed his face and said in horror:

"That dear ......"

The high-spirited baroness lowered her gaze and showed a ruthless face:

"Shut up!"

The old baron shook suddenly, and obediently closed his mouth.

I saw the baroness looking at Anker with a difficult face viciously, gritting her teeth and saying:

"But I swear, little of Bailal!"

"I swear to the sunset, to the moon, to the night, to the desert gods, to my aunt and grandmother, to everything!"

"If tonight, my husband is hurt even the slightest!"

She had a vicious face:

"I will spare everything for the rest of my life, so that your remaining brothers, sisters, friends, relatives and friends will be tortured in the most painful, cruel and terrible way imaginable!"

"I'll make them cry and shout at the end, begging me to kill them as soon as I can!"

As soon as these words came out, everyone changed color in unison!

Including Anker.

But the baroness apparently did not notice, and she, in spite of the old baron, who was in a hurry to give her a look, waved her arms and roared:

"I will cut off your family from now on!"

"It's like your destiny!"

The guests were in an uproar.

Tails frowned in unison with Marlos, Vogel, and the others.

Worst.

"Sure enough, lies, quibbles, it's really you who are good. ”

Anker faded away the hesitation and annoyance on his face, and became cold again:

"Well, that's the case. ”

"Then let the gods decide our fate!"

In a fit of rage, he exerted his strength on his hands, and the old baron screamed, "No, no, no—"

"Come, Doyle's cowardly son!"

Anker looked directly at D.D on the steps and roared:

"Come down, duel with me, end it all with me!"

"Everything!"

The Baroness looked at the sudden deterioration of the situation, seemed to realize something, and froze in place.

D.D clutched the weapon at his waist, furious.

"It's early. ”

Vogel looked at the public opinion around him, and then looked at Anker, who was annoyed and angry, and obviously had done whatever it took to win, and sighed:

"She smashed. ”