dedicated to violets

"I thought you didn't come," Willie said, catching the snowy owl out of the garden and putting it on the bird stand. "How do you know where I live?"

"I saw this bird flying in the sky, so I followed it." Sean stretched out his fingertips and touched the blooming flowers outside the glass window. "Only it can have this round figure."

The fat bird was angrily, jumping on the shelf, flapping its wings wildly, wishing to jump up and fight Xiao En.

Viri pressed its head calmly: "Would you like something to drink? Let me tell you first, I don't have coffee here, and it's time for dinner in a while, so I don't have any snacks."

"Just pour some water, I won't pick it." Sean lay leisurely on the sofa, so comfortable that he sank into it, "Veri, I didn't expect your sofa to be so soft. What is it stuffed with? Snowy Owl A fallen feather?"

He winked at Fat Bird jokingly, and said something malicious.

Willie brought a glass of water: "Don't tease it, it will take it seriously."

"Thank you." Sean took the water glass with both hands, and said with a smile, "I'm still curious, isn't this snowy owl from the elves? Why did he follow you back to the capital?"

Viri turned his attention to the snowy owl, perhaps because he had played too much this day, he was a little tired, narrowed his eyes and began to take a nap.

"I guess it shouldn't belong to Ymir." Viri said, "Maybe it's the bishop's magic pet."

Its IQ is very high, its eyes are agile, and its feathers can be transformed into an individual -- even if it is just a puppet without thoughts.He also once asked Mason if Snowy Owl just followed him away, is it really all right?

Mason gave a meaningful smile.

Since then, Willie has not asked any more, because that smile has told him the answer.

Only the fallen bishop, Ignace, possessed such powerful magic power that it was enough to bring this snowy owl from hundreds of years ago to the present.

Sean spread his hands: "That makes sense."

The two sat on the sofa facing each other, separated by a coffee table, holding a glass of water in their hands, relatively silent.The living room was surprisingly quiet, only the crackling sound of the firewood burning in the fireplace could be heard.

"Do you have time tomorrow?" Viri asked, breaking the silence in the room.

Sean came back to his senses: "Of course."

"Mason didn't come with you?"

"Him?" Sean snorted, "Not long after you left, he returned to Ymir and said that he wanted to prepare for something. It just so happened that your Imperial College sent an invitation letter for the exchange meeting, so I came with the representative Yes. To be honest, I am already a little tired of being the president of this mercenary guild."

"Intrigue, are you too tired?"

Sean spread out on the sofa, with his arms outstretched, and sighed: "When I was young, I thought that being a mercenary would allow me to be free. If I had no money, I would take on a mission. If I had money, I would drink and chat with friends, and wander around without any scruples." , wherever I go, that is my home.”

"What about now?" The water glass was already empty, and Viri picked up the kettle and poured another glass, "What do you plan to do in the future?"

"It's just that I suddenly remembered the past. You still remember when we first joined the army, sitting by the campfire and chatting with those veterans. They talked about their previous life and future plans. I still feel that they are far away from me." Sean put his arms Put it on the eyes to block the glare of the living room hanging.

"I seem to be getting farther and farther away from my wish." He muttered to himself.

Viri said lightly: "You can resign as the president, and from now on, be a free mercenary."

Sean straightened up, sat up straight, and said with a wry smile: "Not now, at least I can leave without any worries after the matter of the Holy See is resolved." He took another sip of water and lowered his eyes, not knowing what he was thinking.

"You still like to take everything on yourself." Willie knew that he had this kind of personality, so he didn't persuade him much, "Why don't we go and see them now."

"Now?" Sean froze for a moment, "Will it be too late?"

There was still more than an hour before dusk, and the sky was still blue.Standing outside the flower garden, one could vaguely hear the laughter of the students. The Tulip Academy has always been deserted, the place is too big, and there are too few students. Except in the morning and evening, most of the time when walking on the campus, you may not be able to see anyone.

After five years, Tulip Academy was so lively for the first time.

Sean and Viri walked side by side through the boulevard, looked sideways at the bustling campus, and suddenly said, "If the Violet War hadn't broken out, I might still be studying here."

"I remember your parents were arms dealers."

"Yeah, a very rich arms dealer," Sean smiled. "The business has expanded to other duchies. I made a lot of money during the Violet War. I'm their youngest son."

"It's also the most disobedient one," Willie added.

"Otherwise, why do you think I would want to join the army? It's because I'm disobedient, you know, I originally wanted to be a mercenary, but now I really become a mercenary, and I don't want to be a mercenary anymore," Xiao En rubbed his chin, "You said, or I'd better go back to inherit the family business and become my businessman. Why don't you go sell flowers, and I'll be your middleman and help you sell flowers to those noble dukes."

"I think I may know more rich people than you." Willie said sincerely, "How about this, I will plant flowers with Ignas in the future, and you will sell flowers."

"Then it's better to persuade Mason to join us and join our flower sales plan. He is so beautiful, and he is more beautiful than flowers. He will definitely sell the flowers at a good price." Sean smirked.

"That's a good idea," Willie said.

He and Sean looked at each other and laughed in unison.

Sean: "Then it's settled."

The Memorial Cemetery of the Violet War is outside the capital city, close to a small forest, and a separate land is enclosed as a cemetery.Before the sun set, the gates of the city were wide open, and the two of them walked out of the capital smoothly.

Standing at the gate of the city and looking forward, there is an endless field and forest on the right. At the end of the horizon, you can see a train roaring past. On the left is the vast waters. The sails are full with the wind, ready to sail.

Both Wangdu and Pansai occupy the most convenient places for water and land transportation, and the business atmosphere is strong.Sean was born in Pence. This kind of scene has been seen since he was a child. After many years, seeing him again, he still couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia.

"This is going to go to sea." Sean stood still and looked carefully for a while, "I don't know how much cargo is loaded, this ship has a lot of draft."

Willie glanced at it: "Don't look, it's time to go."

Facing the Greenland Empire across the sea are several states, large and small, with frequent trade exchanges.

"Speaking of which, the Holy See is not in the empire and other duchies. Where do you think they are hiding?" Sean pondered, "Could it be just across the sea?"

Willie sighed, "We're going to see the cemetery now, remember?"

Walk a few miles out of the city, and you will see an iron fence hidden in the forest.The dark fence is tall, with spear-like spikes at the top, solemn and solemn, covered with green plants, and overgrown with weeds at the foot of the fence.

Through the gap between the green plants and the fence, Sean looked in and saw tombstones one after another standing among the weeds.

"Basically no one guards here, and it hasn't been taken care of for a long time." They walked forward close to the root of the fence, gradually going deep into the forest, and came to a tall carved iron gate.

The iron gate is also pitch black, and the patterns and patterns on it are also the usual ones, nothing new.The door was not locked, it was just concealed. With a little force, Viri pushed the heavy iron door open.

Willie glanced at it: "Go in."

The cemetery is quiet, but not gloomy.As soon as Xiao En stepped into the cemetery, his whole body fell silent.There was the chirping of a bird in his ears, and a slight flapping of wings passed over his head, and Sean took a deep breath.

"Where are they?" he asked.

"There." Willie pointed to a location, "They said they wanted to sleep by the creek."

This is them, former comrades-in-arms of Willy and Sean, looking after their veterans through the worst times.

A stream ran across the cemetery, flowing through the weeds, and the cobblestones on both sides were smoothed by the stream.The two of them carefully walked through the waist-high weeds, struggled to the edge of the stream, and found several tombstones covered by the grass.

Sean squatted down and tore off the obstructing grass, leaving a clean space.

"This is the first time I have come to see you." Sean said, "I am living a good life. I am not married and have no children. I am afraid I will live up to your expectations."

Willie stood aside, silently watching Sean chatter.

This is the memorial cemetery of the Violet War. As far as the eye can see, it is filled with tombstones of the same size, engraved with names and dates of birth and death.There are no ashes under the tombstone, because the owners of the tombstones all died on the battlefield, and their remains were incinerated by magic and dispersed in the wilderness.

Veri rarely came to the cemetery, and it would be sad to stand here for a long time.

After Sean said a few words dryly, he shut his mouth and stared at the tombstone in a daze.He stood up and looked carefully one by one, trying to remember the names on the tombstones.The birth and death years on some tombstones are incomplete. There is only one year of death, and the year of birth is left blank, as if waiting for someone to fill in.

"They were all killed by the Holy See." Sean said suddenly, "A crazy organization like the Holy See should never have existed from the very beginning."

Wei Li said: "People always have to have a belief. Without the Auger Church, there will be other Churches. If there is no Sun God, there will be a God of Light. Even if there is no God in the world, God will be created on purpose."

His expression was too indifferent and his tone was so ordinary, but it made Sean even more uncomfortable.

"But at least destroying the current Holy See will make us relax for a while," Sean stared at the name on the tombstone. "The birth of a new Holy See always takes time to hatch, and after that it's none of our business."

Sean said: "But this time, I want to do what I should do. Viri, I can't represent the mercenary guild, but I want to represent myself. I want to go to the lost city, Asgard."

"I can't stop you," Viri laughed. "If you want to do it, just let it go. Moreover, until now, the empire has no clue. They only know a name, but don't know the specific location."

"I'm not going back to Fast."

"Didn't you just say that you will not resign as president?"

"I changed my mind." Sean said, "Valentins have been coveting the position of president for a long time, and I will tell Andrea later that I will give up the position of president and let them re-elect someone else. .I will stay in the capital and act with you."

Willie: "Actually, you don't have to."

"Do you want to say that the mercenary guild will also send people to Asgard?" Sean quickly understood what Viri meant, and he shook his head. "I just want to represent myself, not the mercenary guild."

During the Violet War, the Magician Guild and the Mercenary Guild were outsiders, watching the war coldly and staying out of it.

At the end of the war, the Holy See suddenly attacked the Mage Guild, resulting in the death and injury of the guild's saints, and the Mage Guild was involved in the flames of war.As for the Mercenary Guild, it was unscathed, and Fast became the only city that was not affected during the war.

"I understand," Willie said, but the worry in his eyes was palpable.

"Anyway, I used to be a soldier." Sean said helplessly, "Being a mercenary for too long doesn't mean I've forgotten who I used to be, Sir Willie Haydn."

The officer was stunned, and the expression on his face became vivid: "You are wrong, I don't have a military rank on me, and now I am just an ordinary swordsmanship teacher."

When I came back from the cemetery, the sky was full of colorful clouds.

The street lights have been turned on, and there is a thin layer of fog floating in the street.Willie and Sean line up outside a bakery for the latest buns.

"The taste of this store is very good. I often buy bread from their home for breakfast." Willy said, "As for the milk, the college will send someone to deliver it, so I don't buy it at the market."

Sean looked from the street to the end of the street: "I want to buy some coffee beans and go back to grind the coffee."

"You don't live in my house?" Willie said casually.

Sean's eyes were strange: "Your house? Come on, your house only has one bedroom, not even a guest room. I dare not live in your house." He said to Willy's name is Ignace, who looks like a fallen bishop Ignace's identical lover stays at arm's length.Even in a hasty meeting before, this Ignas was very silent, even introverted.

Verikake said with a little embarrassment: "That's true, but it's okay, there is no shortage of guest rooms in the college. I can apply to the principal for you to stay temporarily."

--------------------

The author has something to say:

= 3 =