A Tale of Strategies For the Throne

"Calm down?"

Heymos handed over a glass of sweet fruit juice, and the blond child sitting on the bed reached out to take it, holding the white jade cup with two small hands, and looked up at him.

The golden forehead hair was messily scattered in the corners of the child's eyes. Those eyes looked red, like a bunny with red eyes, looking pitiful and cute at the same time.

Seeing Garlan drinking the juice with his mouth pursed, and twitching his little red nose from time to time while drinking, Heymos wanted to laugh a little.

He stood there, watching Garlan holding the glass of juice, and drank it in small sips.

"The doctor checked it out and said it's fine."

He took the empty white jade cup and put it on the table next to him, Heymos said.

"Today the sun is a bit brighter, and you have exhausted too much energy, so you fainted, just take a good rest."

"It's okay to see you. They have something to do, so they left first."

He said that was an understatement.

As for King Kamos and Shemur, they had to leave because they had urgent government affairs to deal with, while Kaihos left with the doctor and arranged to make medicine. These details were played down intentionally or unintentionally by Heymos .

Hearing what he said, Garlan didn't ask any further questions, but just tilted his head to look at him.The light of the setting sun came in through the window and shone on the child's face, making that half of the cheek red.

Heymos stepped forward, leaned over by the bed, and rubbed his fluffy little head with his hands.

He said softly, "Next time you feel uncomfortable, speak up earlier, don't hold on."

In his opinion, Garlan must have been too exhausted from Ximuer's training, but he was stubborn and refused to make a sound, so he passed out from the heat and tiredness.

His head was being stroked and comforted by Heymos, Garlan lowered his eyes, and his slender eyelashes concealed the expression in his eyes.

Heymos stood beside him, and from his perspective, looking from top to bottom, he could see a little tear stain remaining in the corner of the child's eye, like a light mole dotted in the red corner of the eye, inexplicably like it was touched people's hearts.

It was as if a soft feather had clicked on the softest part of my heart.

He heard the child speak in a low voice.

"Ximuer...how is he?"

Garlan asked him.

"At that time, you stabbed him."

Heymos hummed.

"During sparring, his arrow wound split open, and I had no time to stop it." He said, "The doctor also checked him just now, it's just a skin trauma, and it will be fine after a few days of treatment."

After he finished speaking, he saw Garlan exhale lightly as if relieved.

"Is that so..."

"Are you worried about him?" Heymos said with a smile. "I thought you didn't like him very much because he always reprimanded you."

Garlan lowered his eyes and said nothing, pursing his lips as if thinking about something.

After a while, he suddenly lifted the thin blanket and was about to get out of bed.

"I want to go for a walk," he said.

Heymos didn't stop him, and let him get out of bed, put on his shoes, and then went out with him to the courtyard outside.

Garlan lived in a side palace close to King Kamos' bedroom. It was very spacious and there was a large courtyard with beautiful scenery outside.It was sunset at this moment, and the red light of the setting sun shone on the lush trees in the courtyard and the sparkling lotus pond, covering them all with a layer of light red tulle.

Tall stone statues stand above the fountain pool, and the sprinkled water droplets reveal a rainbow-like luster in the light.

Not long after Garlan walked, he came to the side of the fountain, and the icy drops of water falling on his face made him raise his head.

On the fountain pool, the standing goddess of the stars, Isdar, held the stars in her hands, lowered her head slightly, and looked down on the earth with loving and compassionate eyes.

...that extremely familiar gaze...

Garlan's heart beat violently.

Yes.

right here.

In that life, he also lived in this partial palace, in this courtyard, and fell under the stone statue of Goddess Isdar.

He still remembered that at the moment of dying, what he saw, the stone statue of the goddess seemed to look down on him with pity...

Garlan stood there with his head up, looking at this familiar place, motionless.

As long as he remembered that scene, he felt like he couldn't breathe.

His mind was so confused that he could not think at all.

Suddenly, a pair of hands stretched out from the side, reached into his armpits on both sides and lifted him up at once.

The messy memory was suddenly interrupted, Garlan turned his head in astonishment, and saw the boy who had lifted him up smiling at him.

Heymos lifted him and placed him on the edge of the fountain.

He smiled and said to him, "You want to sit on it, don't you?"

Before Garlan could react, he was lifted up by Heymos and sat on the edge of the fountain.

The edge of the pot-shaped fountain that unfolded from the bottom to the top was carved out of stone. It was a bit high, more than one meter high, almost as tall as Garlan, who was still a child.

Seeing Garlan standing on the edge of the fountain with his head up and staring at the side in a daze, Heymos thought he wanted to climb up, so he lifted him up.

After placing Garlan in place, he turned around and pressed the edge of the fountain with his hands, his body rose into the air, and as soon as he turned around, he sat on it himself, beside Garlan.

The boy who jumped up and sat down bent one leg, stepped on the stone edge, put one hand on the bent knee, and looked sideways at the child over here.

The setting sun reflected on the boy's face, reflecting that handsome face like the morning glow, which was indescribably beautiful.

At this moment, Heymos still has the clarity and handsomeness of a young man, just like the rising sun in the morning, full of vigor and vitality, exuding the bright breath of life of a young man.

No one would believe that this young man who was as handsome as the morning glow at this moment, with bright and clear eyes, would turn into such a terrifying and cold appearance in the future.

...It became like that because of obsession with the throne?

Garlan was sitting on the side rail of the high fountain pool, with his calves dangling in the air, gently dangling in the air.

He tilted his head and looked at Heymos, and suddenly said, "Heymos, have you ever thought that the sword I stabbed you just now was actually trying to kill you?"

Heymos was taken aback for a moment, then laughed.

"kill me?"

He obviously took Garlan's words as a joke, and continued following the joke.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

He asked this question, then pushed his hands up, jumped down, turned around, and faced Garlan who was still sitting on it.

Then, Heymos reached out and pulled out the dagger from his waist, and handed it to Garlan.

"Give you."

The boy said with a smile, with a touch of connivance in his tone.

"Why, do you still want to kill me now?"

Garlan didn't take the dagger, but just looked down at Heymos.

Heymos, who was just a boy at the moment, stood in front of him, looked up at him, handed him a dagger with one hand, and put the other hand on the stone railing of the fountain beside him, like a half-circle. He is average.

Those golden-red eyes looked at him, slightly bent, and there was a bit of a smile in their eyes.

The current Heymos probably likes him very much.

Garland thought.

Perhaps it was because of the shadow left by the previous few times that led to his resistance to this person. Since his rebirth in this life, he has never looked at this person seriously.

Now, for the first time, he looked seriously at the man in front of him, the young Heymos.

For the first time, he looked directly into Heymos' eyes, and he finally saw the way the boy in front of him looked at him.

A person's eyes can't deceive others, he can clearly see the boy's trusting and intimacy towards him from these golden red eyes.

Garlan was a little confused.

……

Is it because of that time?

That night, when Heymos fell down with a fever, he was the one who ran over and bumped into him by mistake and helped him.

Because of that time, why is Heymos so close to him now?

It was like a wolf cub that had just grown its fangs and sharp claws, accidentally fell into a trap, and after being rescued, it moved close to the person who rescued him.

Garlan stared at the boy in front of him.

That life flashed through his mind, also under this fountain, those golden red eyes looked at him, cold eyes as if quenched by poison.

For some reason, he stretched out his hand, touched Heymos' face, and touched the slightly upturned corners of his eyes.

Garlan's sudden movement made Heymos startled for a moment. The child's fingers had just dipped into the water of the fountain, and the fingertips were cool, but the coolness made Heymos's chest twitch slightly.

This was the first time that the child took the initiative to get close to him.

He was in a good mood.

He took the initiative to lean over, put his face in the palm of that small hand, and raised his hand to cover Garlan's hand.

The young man covered that hand, tilted his head slightly, squinted his eyes, and gently rubbed his cheek against the palm of that little hand.

The squinting and cozy look is like a wolf cub lovingly rubbing the hand of a close person and acting like a spoiled child.

... This future evil wolf is still very young, very young, and he is very close to him and likes him...

...but the young wolf will eventually grow into a wolf...

Garland thought.

Suddenly, a terrible idea popped up in his heart uncontrollably.

If this wolf is still a cub, coax him, lie to him, let him regard himself as his best friend, closest friend.

Then, use feelings as shackles to trap him, and then seize the opportunity in the future to ruthlessly cut off the wolf's sharp claws and pull out his teeth——

Only by getting rid of this wolf can he survive.

"What kind of nightmare did you just have?"

The voice that rang next to his ear suddenly awakened Garlan.

He hesitated, and replied, "I dreamed of Shemur, who was killed."

Garlan said so, but Heymos reflexively believed that Garlan was talking about the refugee incident.

In the dream, Shemuer was killed by those refugees.

"...I'm dead too."

Garlan said in such a low voice.

With lowered eyes, the thin eyelashes cast light shadows on the snow-white skin, and the child's voice was soft, with some unspeakable sadness, which made people feel distressed.

No wonder.

Heymos thought.

Not only dreamed that his guardian was killed, but also himself was killed.

After dreaming of such a terrible thing, it is no wonder that at that time I was so scared that I cried.

"Garlan."

Heymos said that he was standing in front of Garlan, looking up at that immature face.

He stretched out his hand, grasped the child's wrist, and held Garlan's hands with both of them.

He raised his head, and occasionally a few drops of water falling from the hand of the standing stone statue of Goddess Isdar landed on the tips of his pitch-black hair.

"Don't be afraid."

His voice coaxing the child in front of him was the softest he had ever heard in his life.

Heymos thought, he is Garlan's brother, and this is the eternal bond between him and Garlan.

As long as this bond is still there, then it is his responsibility and his right to protect Garlan.

"With me in the future, I am very strong, and I will become stronger in the future, stronger than anyone else."

"So I won't die, and I won't get hurt. In the future, I will protect you like this."

As Heymos said this, the setting sun was about to fall into the horizon, and there was only the last red light left on the ground, which fell on his golden-red eyes, as if a little light had been ignited in his eyes.

The gleam in his eyes reflected Garlan's figure, maybe even he didn't notice it.

At this moment, what he said and promised was equivalent to a lifetime oath.

"Garlan, in this life, I will accompany you, protect you, and won't let anyone hurt you."

…………

【Using feelings as shackles, wrapping around the neck of this still young wolf, and then seize the opportunity to cut off his sharp claws and pull out his teeth—】

... can't do it.

He couldn't get close to this person.

What's more, how despicable it is to use feelings as bargaining chips to deceive.

So, he can't do it.

………………

Turning his eyes away from Heymos' face, Garlan raised his head, and he saw the stone statue of Goddess Isdar above his head.

Those stone-carved eyes looked down at him with deep compassion.

Just like that day, the scene he saw for the last time before he died.

Taking a deep breath, Garlan lowered his head again, and his eyes fell on Heymos.

"……unnecessary."

He says,

"I don't need you to protect me, I don't need you to accompany me."

"I do not need you."

Suddenly, Heymos' breathing paused slightly.

He stood there, looking at Garlan blankly, as if he didn't quite understand what Garlan said.

Garlan sat there, looking down at him, fine fountains pouring down from behind him.

"Heymos, no matter who fell there that night, I will help him. Even if that person is someone I hate, I will help him."

…………

Heymos, you and I will one day be enemies.

For the throne, we are sworn enemies of fate.

I will not forgive you.

You won't let me go either.

Therefore, throughout our lives, we cannot be close friends.

…………

"You once asked me why I never called you Brother Wang... I thought you understood, but you still don't understand."

"I've been avoiding you, why can't you see it?"

"...Now, I'm tired of it, so I'll tell you directly."

The blond child looked at him, his bright eyes reflected his shadow, his immature lips, his soft voice spoke hurtful words.

Children's words are always straightforward and straightforward, but it is this kind of straightforwardness that makes them even more cruel.

"Heymos, I've hated you so much since the first time we met."

Garlan raised his hand and easily pulled it out of the opponent's hand.

He jumped off the fountain without looking at Heymos, and walked away without looking back.

The young man who was left in place turned his head and glanced at Garlan's leaving back.

His expression was indifferent, showing no emotion.But at this moment, the setting sun completely fell into the ground, so the gleam that was reflected in the young man's eyes just a second ago also disappeared.

It seemed that at this moment, the starlight in those eyes suddenly disappeared without a trace and fell into darkness.

【Heymos, I don't need you. 】

【I do not want you. 】