Tails walked down the hallways of Valhalla, in a dull mood.

Nicolas was a terrible liar.

He hid about King Nunn's decision back then, and even about Moral.

It's already clear: the former White Guards, the Lisbane, and the Darkroom, all three hold secrets that Tails or even Thelma must not know about - that is, to a large extent, this secret will be detrimental to the latter two.

Tails didn't even have to test the truth of the horrible secret that Rumba had told him.

This is Tails' conclusion.

However......

On the way to the dining room, Tails couldn't help but clench his fists.

However, Longxiao City is facing the most complex and chaotic situation in six years:

The international situation is about to change, and the choice of the female archduke will be tested;

The domestic Grand Duke is unpredictable and waits to see the position of Longxiao City;

The vassals in the territory are ready to move, coveting the marriage and power of the female archduke;

The shadow of King Nunn looms over the successor of the Dragonlance family.

And the most formidable of all, the current co-king of the dragon kingdom, Chaman Rumba, is secretly wielding a sharp blade and sharpening his sword, ready to seize every possible advantage in this imminent storm.

Thelma, a lonely and vulnerable girl—Tails aches faintly at the thought of it—lives between them, facing a myriad of threats.

And the arms who have always been around her, who thought they could be trusted, whether it is the extraordinary Nicolele or the scheming Lisbane, have just been proven by Tails: they are not credible.

Tails stood in the doorway of the dining room in a daze, his fists clutched in his palms, and they grew tighter and tighter.

For six years, all peace has been an illusion, all leisure is illusory, and behind the name Selma, it is likely that the ruthless deception of the ancestor is hidden.

His eyes were filled with the convulsions of Alex before he had been poisoned, and her lifeless face.

And Selma, no, is the little slippery head...... This was not the life she wanted, but she was forced to face it all, surrounded by enemies on all sides, helpless and helpless, and at a loss for what to do in the fate that was forcibly arranged.

The bottom line is that she lives in a cage of lies, unaware of the threat around her.

If I hadn't discovered this secret, this matter, would Thelma live unconsciously and even in a blur as the Grand Duchess until the day when the final truth is brutally stripped out under the sun?

If that day comes, the day when the contradictions in Longxiao City erupt, the king's sword falls, and the secret of the bloodline is revealed......

How will she, the lonely and helpless girl, bear all this?

Tails exhaled in pain, feeling only depressed and exhausted.

She would have had a chance to escape.

It was you, Tails, who asked her to become Thelma Walton six years ago.

And now, what can you do, a hostage who can't help himself and is quite ostracized?

What can you do for her?

And what kind of angle and stance should you use to intervene in this struggle that is only within Exeter?

What to do.

What to do?

It's been six years, they're still living in the shadow of the dragon's blood, six years have passed, they've still not escaped King Nuen's hands, six years, they're ......

"Prince Tails, do you need help?"

A cold, polite call woke Tails out of his world.

"Ms. Jinx," Tails put away his thoughts, tried his best to drive away the heaviness, and looked at Jinx standing at the door of the dining room with a strong spirit, "I'm sorry, but ......"

Tails looked at the light in the dining room and saw the figure of the girl faintly.

"Can you leave us alone for a while?"

Jinx frowned, and swept the prince's body with a scrutinizing look that revealed suspicion in his eyes.

"Last time, it was because the lady was in a bad mood, we can understand," the court lady in charge of the life of the grand duchess said indifferently: "But this time it ......"

"I really need to talk to her alone. ”

Tails looked at the female officer with the most sincere gaze imaginable, "Please, Ms. Jinx." ”

"It's very important. ”

"If you still care about the Grand Duchess, if you know her current situation....... ”

Tails looked at Jinx steadily, his expression solemn.

This time, the Jinx lady looked at him for a long time.

It's like looking at antiques.

"I don't know what's going on, Your Highness," at last, the cold and rational female officer spoke softly, in her usual businesslike tone, "But Madame, she ......"

The female officer suddenly stopped.

The next second, Jinx made a move that the prince thought she would never do.

She sighed.

For the first time, Tails saw the well-groomed female officer with a tired look in her eyes and wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.

"She's just a little girl. ”

Tails lowered his head and bowed slightly: "I know, so ......"

"But she's not just a girl," Jinx interrupted him irrefutably, "she's the ruler of Longxiao City. ”

Tails raised his head and looked at her strangely, always feeling that there was something different about today's female officer.

"Many times, it is precisely because of your care, consideration and companionship that your Highness has always been there that Madam will feel that she is safe, and she will let go of her worries and vigilance. ”

"As a friend, you take care of her and worry about her," the female officer's tone was not as serious as before, but full of helplessness and emotion: "This is her luck." ”

Jinx's next sentence has an ulterior motive:

"But the problem is, she's not safe. ”

"She shouldn't have felt that way, either. ”

Tails looked at Jinx, momentarily speechless.

"Let's leave, Prince Tails," the female officer's face returned to the old-fashioned, as if her previous sensibility was just an illusion, and she bowed slightly, "I wish you and the lady a pleasant meal." ”

The prince frowned, and he suddenly realized that the dutiful but serious and obnoxious female official he had known before, turned out to have another side.

"Also, Madame is not in a good mood, she ...... to-day," said Ms. Jinx, in a low voice, in an extremely subtle voice.

"You know, the time you got kicked in the knee...... It's been another month. ”

Another month?

Tails was slightly stunned.

By the time he realized what the other party meant, Jinx had already turned away.

[It is precisely because of your Royal Highness's constant care, consideration and companionship that Madam will feel that she is safe......]

The second prince watched her leave with the two maids with mixed feelings, bowed his head and hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, tried to adjust his mood, and stepped into the dining room of the Grand Duchess.

Selma sat quietly at the dining table, looking alone in the light on either side.

"Wow, lettuce," Tails said as he sat across from the Grand Duchess, looking at the food on the table, and smiled, "I haven't eaten in a while." ”

Sure enough, the table was full of light foods such as fruits and vegetables, and even the broth was steaming hot, which was a strange occurrence - it was nothing new for the kitchen to turn cold after a dish had been checked several times under the threat of Nicolais.

It's a recipe for the Grand Duke's "once a month".

Thelma looked up in the light, and the prince couldn't help but notice that she was a little tired.

In this way, is it physiology, or is it ......

"Hey," the Archduchess looked at him with a look not often seen by a prince, who couldn't read the meaning, "Tails." ”

Her voice didn't seem to carry much emotion:

"You said today that you have something important to tell me?"

Tails exhaled, and the troubles he had faced seemed to return to his mind in an instant.

"yes, me, uh......"

Tails, who took a deep breath, spoke as he spoke, but he was speechless.

He looked at Thelma, whose face was slightly gloomy, maintaining the most basic polite smile, but suddenly he didn't know what to say.

Selma, you're in a terrible situation, and you're not safe?

Even if you survive this storm, survive the forced marriage of vassals and the struggle between Ronnie and the king, you will still be in a difficult situation.

Because, the people you think you can trust are actually cheating on you?

You're alone, you're in danger, you've got your biggest secret in your hands?

"Huh?" Thelma's gaze fell to his lips, slightly confused.

But Tails frowned, his fists under the table slowly clenched, and the smile was still struggling in his heart, not knowing where to start.

Should I tell her the truth? Nicolé and Risbane were not loyal to her, at least not faithfully?

They may be hatching a plan for King Nunn, and you're just a puppet to be manipulated?

Is this playing into the hands of Rumba, who wants to use me to destroy the internal harmony and relationship between the lord and the minister in Longxiao City?

However...... Does Longxiao City still have the so-called "harmony"?

If she didn't know and had been deceived, would she have been hurt more and more seriously when the secret was revealed?

"What's wrong with you?"

Selma looked at his silent appearance and asked softly:

"Are you bothered by anything?"

Eventually, Tails let go of his clenched fists and exhaled.

"As always, you know, in the outdoor class, I was beaten up by Nicolai," the prince transformed his smile into a self-deprecation:

"Maybe next time I'll try lime powder. ”

As is customary, Thelma should look at his wound with a frown, and then let out a smile in response to the prince's ensuing tease.

Today, however......

"No," Thelma looked at him steadily, shaking her head firmly, "not because of this. ”

Tails was slightly startled, and he cast an inquiring look.

"I can feel it. ”

"Is it because of something else," Thelma asked keenly, "what do you want to tell me?"

The second prince looked at the earnest-looking archduchess and was silent for a few seconds.

"Listen to me, little slipper," finally Tails calmed down, withdrew his hypocritical smile, and asked with some heaviness and weariness, "you're ...... I've been a grand duchess for six years. ”

"That's not a short time. ”

Selma stared at him, and the girl turned her head sideways, unrecognizable by the shadows of the lamp.

She nodded.

"But in the past six years......" Tails looked at the girl sitting on the hard, wide chair, and remembered how she sat alone in the Hall of Heroes, and felt a little unbearable:

"Do you feel tired, annoyed, depressed?"

The girl seemed a little surprised, she raised her head: "What?"

Tails sighed and said stiffly, "I mean, from the moment you took the position of Grand Duchess, you were forced to endure the eyes of vassals, people's suspicions, countless affairs, and deceitful calculations. The Grand Dukes were eyeing each other, the king had bad intentions, and even Nicolé and Lisbane ......"

As he spoke, Tails couldn't help but hang his head, feeling a little frustrated.

"I know you don't really want all this," he felt a little guilty, "and even more...... You had the opportunity to leave, to leave that piercing chair. ”

Right now.

"I'm scared. ”

Tails looked up, "Huh?"

"At that time, when you want to go back to Valhalla, you want me to become Thelma and save the country," Thelma smiled under the light, "I'm scared." ”

"I was thinking, when you were going back, you had to face the Grand Dukes, and it was very likely that you wouldn't be able to come back. ”

"And I'm not ready to be a duke at all. ”

The girl sat at the other end of the table, her slightly reddened face reflecting the light, and it seemed that it did not fit well with the solemn decoration around her.

"But you didn't hesitate at that time, you said, with two countries on your back and the fate of so many people, you can't easily walk away and leave a sea of fire. ”

Tails looked at her silently.

His fist was clenched to his knee.

"Because you're not afraid. ”

"So I thought: I can't be afraid. ”

The corners of Thelma's mouth curled slightly, and there seemed to be some unexpected joy: "And you said, you said that you would always be with me and protect me...... Just like back then, in the Hall of Heroes, you did not hesitate to take me away from His Majesty's presence, and in the past six years, you and Charles have been protecting me......"

"I know, no matter what ...... come your way"

Hearing this, Tails couldn't hold back any longer, and he raised his head suddenly:

"But I can't!"

The Grand Duchess stared at the emotional prince with a look of surprise.

"I can't protect you. ”

"You are the Grand Duke of Longxiao City, in a chess game that ordinary people can't imagine, and I'm just a powerless prince," Tails remembered Lisbane's deliberate rhetoric, remembered Nicola's eager eyes, and remembered the ubiquitous and ever-present nervous vigilance and close surveillance in Valhalla, gritted his teeth:

"There are so many threats, too many dangers, too many problems. ”

"Rumba, Ronnie, the counts of Longxiao City, and ......"

Tails took a deep breath and struggled, "You know, I don't have the power to protect you at all. ”

Thelma stared at him blankly, her lips trembling slightly.

Tyers remembered Jinx's hint and added, "I can't protect you forever - and even in Lisbane, they ......"

The Archduchess interrupted him.

"The proposal of the Black Sand Collar. ”

Tails paused:

"What?"

The girl's lips pursed, her face turned pale, and her smile slowly faded.

She smiled reluctantly and muttered, "Charles told me this afternoon: you went to meet the people of the Black Sand Collar - so here it is, that's what you're coming to me today." ”

Terston had a headache.

"I'm just," the prince sighed, "listen, Rumba may indeed want to woo you through me, but I'm still ......"

"Tails," the girl's voice was low and staccato "you want to go home, don't you?"

The Archduchess's expression reminded Tails of two years ago, when she read the tragic bard poem "Jasmine's Battle Flag", in which the indomitable Jasmine finally died in the rain.

"This is the condition that the king gave you, let you go home?" Before Tails could answer, Thelma smiled coldly: "And you feel bored, feel hard, you don't want to play games with an ignorant and boring girl anymore, so you came to tell me that you can no longer protect me." ”

I saw her laugh at herself: "That's what you said, 'important things'?"

Tails' breath faltered.

"Yes, a stupid, stupid, and weird-tempered little girl," Thelma looked down, "It's annoying." ”

Tails pressed his forehead in pain: "No, Thelma, no, it's not like that, listen to me, what I want to tell you is ......"

"Homesickness, right?" However, the girl didn't seem to be listening to him at all, but said to herself, "If you have the chance, will you leave here without hesitation, leave Longxiao City, leave everything, and go home?"

Tails froze.

Putile asked him the same question.

At the time, his answer was......

"I ......," Tails snapped out a word, but gritted his teeth.

He was tempted to answer no, but replied that he was not homesick and used lies to comfort her for the time being.

But......

"You know, as long as you're here," Tails took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled, he could only cautiously reply, "Selma, I won't leave easily." ”

The girl looked up slightly.

Silent.

"I'm sorry, I'm not in a good mood today," Selma seemed to reply a little later, and the girl shook her head and smiled reluctantly, "I'm not questioning you—the Charles, they must already be upset with you—I'm just ...... I'm sorry. ”

She apologized and tilted her head.

"You've been imprisoned here for six years, far from your family and friends, and you're in danger, and the king, the Grand Duke, the vassals, the people of the Northland—the people of Longxiao City aren't good to you," Thelma shook her head as if self-deprecatingly, "Of course you want to go home." ”

"I'm not in a position to criticize your ideas. ”

She hung her head in disappointment.

Tails looked at the archduke in front of him, and suddenly realized: in the six years she has been a duchess, she is like stepping on thorns all the time, frightened, struggling to survive, and never feeling stable and comfortable for a moment.

The prince's heart was gloomy.

No.

Imprisoned people.

It's not just me.

But I want to tell her that the road ahead of her can only be more difficult, more dangerous, and more ......

Suddenly, an impulse and emotion sprung up from the bottom of his heart.

At that moment, the muscles in Tails' arm contracted slightly.

He slowly puffed up his chest and lifted his head.

"Thelma, I ask you. ”

The prince looked at the girl with a gloomy expression, and said in the most solemn tone:

"If you have a chance — I mean, 'if' has a chance......"

"Would you like to leave?"

One second.

Two seconds.

"What?me?"

The girl with reddish eyes raised her head like a frightened rabbit: "Leave?"

"Well, yes," Tails nodded vigorously, looking Selma in the eye, "Together, get out of this city, out of this country, out of all this distraction, out of these dangers, out of these boring traps and tricks, and out of the fate that King Nunn has imposed on you!"

At that moment, Thelma was completely stunned.

"Leave...... Go, where to go?"

I saw the second prince of the stars stand up from his seat, he leaned his arms on the table, and looked at her with sharp eyes and a serious expression.

"Plug—no, little slippery head, I'll ask you again. ”

"Are you willing to leave everything you have now and come back to the stars with me?"

(End of chapter)