first commandment

【Life is such a fragile thing. 】

This is not the first time she has recognized this fact.

As early as when she was five years old, on a calm and unpredictable afternoon, the personal maid dripped poison into her snack.

At that time, the woman smiled, picked up a piece of snack and said to her:

"Your Highness, have a biscuit."

"Small cookies?"

"Yeah, little biscuits in the shape of cats. Eat one."

"Okay! I like cats the most."

The sweet taste I tasted at that time can never be forgotten to this day.

She almost died, but luckily Jung, who was by her side, noticed the abnormality in time and forced her to vomit it out.

"Why did you kill me?" she asked.

"Because you are replaceable, Flora," Jung, who was only six years older than her, sneered, "All they want is Aldnoah's right to start. Since your mother can still give birth to a substitute, it's not what they want You can be dispensable."

So what am I?

She wanted to ask, but the tears flowed out first.

When the tears dried up, the thing called [weakness] in my heart also died.When she finally realizes her sad situation, it is replaced by a raging flame, and she is determined to rebel against the fate at the mercy of others.

One day, she will fly freely in the sky.

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

Stretching his wrinkled neck, Old Freiburg stared intently at the black bat flying freely on the screen.

His limp mouth was drawn into a line, and the corners of his mouth drooped to form two gullies in the soft skin.Seeing him silent for a long time, the soldier who couldn't figure out his intention asked tentatively:

"My lord, do you want...to continue the pursuit?"

"Humph!"

The old man's reaction was quick, and he didn't seem to be distracted.He rolled his eyes at the young soldier, and yelled angrily, "Do you still have any brains? Of course retreat! Retreat!"

Then he left the stunned group and walked out of the command room.The cronies who followed him were not surprised. After walking out of the command room, they leaned into the old man's ear and asked:

"Are you going to the audience room next?"

A smile finally appeared on Freiburg's flushed face.

"Ah, you're really smart," he raised his arm and patted the man's shoulder, and then his smile became darker and more sinister, "...if I'm not wrong. Hmph, these little bastards."

"You mean...?"

"I got a hot potato!"

He smiled cheerfully and walked into the door of the audience room.

At the same time, Flora, who managed to escape, finally returned to Jung's Yanglu City safely.

The moment the cabin door opened, fresh air poured in, and Flora's hanging heart gradually returned to its original place, and the beating uneasiness finally returned to calm.

At this moment, a warm hand covered her clenched fist, and she realized that her hands had been clenched and never relaxed.She raised her head and saw Slein holding her hand, and her heart, which had finally calmed down just now, began to beat wildly again.

He half-kneeled in front of her, against the light, with a relieved smile on his face.It flowed into her heart like a warm current, and those eyes, which were inlaid like turquoise, were filled with agile light, like a pool of clear pool water after the rain, reflecting her dull expression.

There were traces of the flames of war on his body, messy clothes and hair tousled by the blast, making him look a little embarrassed.But that didn't affect his appearance in her eyes, like an ignorant boy who opened a golden birdcage, his hand touched her feathers and touched her heartstrings.And he was always so gentle when he touched her, as if she was really a fragile bird, as if he was afraid that his fingertips would damage her colorful feathers.

"Your Highness," he just looked at her like that, with extremely focused eyes, "everything is over."

Then he pulled back the loose blond hair around her cheeks behind her ears, and gently brushed her earlobes with his fingertips.Flora's heart skipped a beat, she hurriedly avoided his sight, and straightened her hair again, as if trying to forget the touch of his fingers.

"His Royal Highness Princess Flora!"

Just then Jung's voice sounded, Flora and Slein looked back, and saw the young earl standing not far from the cabin door.For some reason, he usually had a sly smile, but now he was even more malicious.Flora became furious and showed him a demonstration with her eyes.

I have worked so hard to save you, yet you repay me with this attitude! ?

Jung pretended to be heartbroken and clutched his chest, like a tragic hero under the spotlight on the stage.But except for Slein who looked puzzled, Flora and a group of his subordinates were not surprised and looked indifferent.When he realized that his grief had no effect, he immediately returned to his original state. After asking about the situation, he conveyed to Flora the news that Her Majesty Queen Atheram had urgently summoned her.

Flora looked blankly: "...Isn't it an urgent summons? Why don't you go to the audience room first, but our situation first?"

Jung pretended to be sorry: "Hey, Your Highness. I think you must have been stunned by these rebellious ministers. The signal was blocked. I didn't know anything about the situation at that time. I didn't ask how to argue with the old man." ?”

"..."

Although Flora knew in her heart that what he said was right, she still couldn't resist the urge to kick him.But considering that there were others watching, she held back and entered the audience room with Edellizo's support.

Having just escaped from a thrilling battlefield, Flora never expected that an unexpected battle would start again.The enemy and us have not changed, it is still their side and the old Freiburg, but the place of this battle has become the queen's audience room.

Freiburg is old, and his skin is thickening year by year like the bark of a tree.He puts the old adage "the wicked first to sue" in action.

Jung and Flora, who were summoned, had just entered the audience room when they saw the angry old Freiburg staring at them.

The two were immediately taken aback.They expected that this time the evidence was convincing, and the ruined old Freiburg would not be able to cause any further disturbances.But how could he appear here now with a righteous look, as if they owed him?

With the evidence in hand, it didn't take long for them to stabilize their minds.But before they saluted the queen on the throne, she was interrupted by a sad face.She stood up directly from the throne, faced Flora, and took her to the seat next to her to sit down:

"Flora, are you not hurt?...Let me take a good look at you."

"It's nothing serious, it's just that the old wound on the leg has cracked again, you don't have to worry..."

Atheram inspected her carefully from head to toe, and was relieved to see that there were no other injuries, and then asked:

"What exactly is going on?"

"The venue for the launch ceremony was attacked, and at that time..."

Flora was about to answer, when Freiburg, who was as quiet as a chicken, suddenly shouted again:

"Those hateful earthlings! Scum! Inferior races!!!!" He was so angry that he knocked the little walking stick in his hand on the ground with a "smacking" sound, "Your Majesty! How dare these earthlings who will revenge their kindness dare to slander the princess?" Such vicious hands must not be spared lightly!"

.........

……

ah?Eh?What?He just said... what? ?

The old man's shamelessness is simply jaw-dropping.

Although he knew that his mouth could turn black into white, he dared to forcibly quibble when the evidence was overwhelming.Flora and Jung didn't know how to refute for a while.

And when Atheram nodded solemnly, expressing that he would investigate the matter strictly so as to give Flora an explanation, the two young men were so stunned that their jaws almost dropped.

"Your Majesty, you must not trust the rhetoric that Mr. Freiburg instilled in you," Jung first reacted, and changed his usual sloppy look. He said righteously, "Although this incident has nothing to do with the Earth People can't get away with it, but the mastermind is Freiburg. The last embassy incident and the chaos at the launching ceremony were all carried out under his instructions. He attempted to murder Her Highness Princess Flora twice in a row... "

Now it was Atheram's turn to be surprised, but before she had heard Jung's testimony...

"...Fuck you! Brat! Stop spitting blood!"

Freiberg's face was flushed, and before Jung finished speaking, he interrupted him angrily, and the hand pointing at his nose was trembling.

"How dare you be so rude in front of His Majesty," Jung sneered, "Sophistry? You are old and confused."

Freiburg's ashes-colored eyes were now sparkling as if they had been revived.He wished he could strangle the young count in red, and cursed in a low voice.

"From the very beginning, it was a trap jointly created by you and the reactionaries on Earth, in an attempt to misbehave against Her Royal Highness. Leaving aside the time at the embassy, ​​this time the launching ceremony was a grand occasion, and the mecha team was directly dispatched," Jung, who had finally completely defeated his opponent, couldn't restrain his triumphant tone, "Such a blatant retrograde. To be honest, I really don't understand, you still have the face to stand in front of Her Majesty the Queen and Her Majesty the Princess?"

"I bother!"

The crutch in the old man's hand hit the ground hard.This behavior can be called presumptuous, but Atheram has long been used to these two rivals coming and going, so he didn't say anything to stop it.

But Flora smelled something strange from her mother's behavior.Now that she is clearly able to open her mouth to check, why is she still hesitating, as if she wants to see the confrontation between Jung and Freiburg?

Something is not quite right.Flora realized.Then she found the crux of the problem:

—What did Freiburg say to her mother before they arrived?

Flora looked at the smug Jung and coughed lightly.Fortunately, even though he was filled with the joy of victory, he still kept an eye on her movements.After receiving the signal from her gaze, he immediately adjusted his attitude and stopped the childish scolding with Freiburg, and turned towards Atheram respectfully.

"Your Majesty, please make a decision."

Seeing that he had calmed down again, Freiburg took a few steps forward with his crutches, put on a completely different old-fashioned appearance, and said deeply: "Your Majesty! Don't listen to this bastard's nonsense!"

"Sophistry is useless. There were two attacks on the embassy and the meeting place, and there were sufficient witnesses and physical evidence each time. Stop struggling feebly and retain the last bit of dignity."

"Don't try to smear me!" Freiburg shouted, "Aren't these two incidents the ones you provoked to start a war just like Earl Zazbarum did?"

As soon as these words came out, the whole place fell silent.

"Mr. Jung, you said there is evidence, so show it!?" Freiburg continued.

Jung didn't understand why Freiburg was still clinging to it after the matter had come to this.Freiburg should know that the evidence in his hands is sufficient, otherwise he wouldn't have made a fuss in front of the queen at this time.But why did he not give up the little luck left in his heart until he saw the evidence, as if he was grasping at the last straw?

Then give you some fun.Jung thought, and then he played the recording of one of the physical evidences.

It was recorded by an undercover agent stationed in the Freiburg war room earlier when Freiburg commanded the capture of the princess.

Probably did not expect such a traitor to appear in his combat command room, Freiburg listened to his own words in the recording, his face turned from red to livid, and Atheram's expression also changed accordingly.

But before Jung enjoyed some belated victories, a basin of cold water poured him from head to toe.

"Exactly! Blood spurting!"

Freiburg roared, with some tears in his eyes, looking extremely wronged.Atheram on the throne remained silent.

"Your Majesty, you don't know my loyalty to you. Then you don't know what this kid is with his father!"

"Mr. Freiburg, please pay attention to your wording!" Before Jung could explode, Flora angrily interrupted the old man's accusation.But as if he didn't hear it, he continued:

"You even instigated Her Highness the Princess to openly provoke the high-ranking officials on the Earth side. Your Highness, this is clearly trying to provoke the peaceful relationship that was finally established between Earth and Weiser! Jung wants to start another war..."

"That's enough!" Flora couldn't bear to listen to his nonsense, and she got up and stopped, "No one taught me, I know what I'm doing! And you, the Earl of Freiburg, It is ridiculous to use your rhetoric to cover up the facts in the face of irrefutable evidence. Do you know what you are doing? Colluding with the officers and soldiers of the earth and sending troops to try to arrest me, do you dare not admit it?"

Freiburg's mouth curled into a smile: "Arrest you? How is it possible? I sent troops to protect your safety. However, Earl Jung has been in the way and prevented our army's rescue, so the delay in action made you only You can escape with a new type of transport plane. If you don’t believe me, you can try to listen to the recording again from my point of view..."

[Have you found it yet? !You are a bunch of trash! 】

【idiot!Shouldn't it be on stage? 】

[Then shut up and find it quickly! 】

【Hmph, inferior race...】

【What! ?The little brat?Hmph, well... really in the way! 】

【——This dead boy! ! ! !Want to start a war? !ah? ! 】

The same conversation, with another interpretation, turned out to be completely different.Jung clenched his fists, but before he could speak, Atheram, who had been watching silently, spoke:

"Earl Jung, before you came, the Earl of Freiburg just reported to me the results of his investigation. He has clear evidence in his hand to prove that the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Earth is the mastermind of these two plans. This person and The anti-Mars camp has always been closely linked."

Flora looked at her mother in shock.Jung bowed his head in silence, not even wanting to refute.

"So, you two, who should I trust?"

The queen on the throne asked calmly, her eyes turned back and forth to the two people under her feet.

Jung said nothing, but under his calm surface, the anger in his heart exploded in an instant.His hands couldn't stop shaking.The queen has prejudice against him, he understands it very well, but there is nothing he can do about it, because her opinion of him is not only because of his father, but also inseparable from his usual behavior style.

Freiburg nailed the matter to a dead end for the time being.When Atheram announced that he would not draw a conclusion for the time being and would investigate the matter carefully, no one was surprised.After she continued to instruct Flora to pay attention to her health, they walked out of the audience room.

As soon as the blond queen disappeared from sight, Jung's long-endured fist hit the wall heavily.

Flora looked at him worriedly, not knowing how to persuade him.He arched his back tremblingly, took a deep breath, and then walked straight out of the door.

"...Edgar!"

She couldn't help but stopped him, he stopped and didn't look back:

"Leave me... alone for now."

Then he disappeared from Flora's sight without looking back.

The author has something to say:

BGM of this chapter: Pretenders - Hiroyuki Sawano

/0_1774512909/

Awaited.

This chapter is particularly difficult to write. It has been changed back and forth, and nearly [-] words have been eliminated.The final tearing part is a bit longer, but you can watch it or not, as long as you know Jung lost.Flora was always on his side, but in the circumstances, her more defensiveness would only deepen her mother's prejudice.It is difficult for her to be a human being caught between the two.

I have been busy with scientific research projects for the past few days, and it is simply too much to hand over.As soon as the defense was over this afternoon, I rushed to update it.I was really worried about the outcome of the defense, eh...

I am very tired now, I have been nervous about defending for a day, and my head hurts.

So the comfort of leaving a message is very much needed.Yes, that's what I want!Want to leave a message!

After the last double update, there were a little more comments, but they were all concentrated in the second update... It's really sad.Don't do this.

Classes are almost full again tomorrow, love the author of Leng Wen, and give her the warmth of love.shoot.