Levin? Ornessen? Seifer, the elder brother of Princess Gryphine in history.
Compared to his reputation before the civil war in Erouine, after the war, the name of the eldest son of the king disappeared. Some said that he died in the chaos, some said that he was a puppet of Duke Seifer and the queen, and some said that the princess had once spared his life and let him live in seclusion in the mountains. But just like the historical truth behind these romantic folklore, the real story often made people feel that it was natural and unexpected.
After Wood's introduction, Brando and Her Royal Highness waited in the front yard for about a quarter of an hour. During this time, no one spoke, and only the sound of the archbishop pruning the branches and leaves could be heard. Because no one could figure out the intentions of the archbishop of Ampere Seale, it did not seem wise to let a person with a sensitive identity like the eldest son of the king appear in front of everyone.
Her Royal Highness may not want to see her brother, and the latter was their enemy not long ago. Would he really be willing to help them? Although it was possible, there must be some kind of condition.
Brando could not guarantee that Her Royal Highness would be willing to compromise with her enemy. But after a while, he heard light footsteps coming from behind the wall of holly trees. Everyone turned around and saw a maid leading a noble youth around the wall of leaves decorated with shrubs, appearing in front of him and Her Royal Highness.
Although he had never seen him before, Brando immediately realized that this might be the prince in history. The other party's attire could be said to be not gorgeous: a simple military uniform, lavender, with a long cape that hung down to the green meadow and blended into the afternoon sun. He looked like a Knight with a certain amount of assets in Braggs, Magitan, or Fort Kurkel, rather than an arrogant crown prince.
The young man had a sword hanging from his waist, but it was not an exquisite shelf. It was a real cavalry sword, and the leather on the hilt was so worn that it did not seem to be a royal item. But it was not easy to judge that the owner of the sword was a master swordsman, because there was a pair of tightly closed eyes on that calm face. Long eyelashes drooped softly, as if the person was asleep, or perhaps blind.
His Royal Highness was very handsome, even dignified, but he was blind. A blind person obviously could not practice swordsmanship, and it was hard to imagine that he would be involved in a series of complex conspiracies, let alone become the king of Erouine.
Brando could not help but glance at Her Royal Highness beside him, and the princess looked very surprised. A trace of hesitation flashed in her eyes, but she still asked, "… Brother Levin, your eyes?"
Her tone was a little hesitant and surprised.
"It's just a small matter, don't mind it, Gryphine." Prince Levin didn't seem to mind and smiled indifferently, "But after losing my eyes, I can see more widely, and people are often deceived by everything they see."
He added, "Gryphine, after Winter Castle, we haven't seen each other for nearly ten years. You should be seventeen years old this year, and you must be much taller and more beautiful than then. Recently, I have often heard people talk about you. "
His tone was very casual, as if he was really talking to his sister — not an enemy. Although, in a sense, his awkward identity today was caused by this little sister of his.
Princess Gryphine was silent for a moment, then said, "That's all in the past, brother. You have done a lot of wrong this time. The kingdom, Father, the people, everyone will not forgive you, and everything will eventually be on the right track. "
"I will not shirk my responsibility, but as a son, I must support my mother. Even now, she has failed, Duke Seifer has been defeated and died, and I have become a prisoner. Gryphine, you must think that I am resentful, but that is not the case. I am not here today to ask for forgiveness, I hope you understand that. No matter how the situation changes, I am still a member of the royal family of Erouine. "Levin lowered his eyelids and smiled.
"Then you mean …" Princess Gryphine was slightly startled, and she looked at Brando with a little doubt.
Brando also frowned, guessing the prince's intentions. He pondered about the historical Levin. Ornessen? What kind of person was Seifer? There were all kinds of rumors about him, but there were very few positive descriptions of the prince. At least before this, he had never known that the prince was blind, and it did not seem like he had recently lost his sight.
What kind of character did such a prince have? Was he headstrong and self-opinionated, or was he a man of great talent and strategy? All the legends in history did not count. At least from the other party's current performance, the prince was obviously not a simple guy. And it was hard to say whether the other party was involved in the conspiracy between Duke Seifer and the queen.
But in any case, the other party's identity was very sensitive at this time. He was the only son of the queen and Oberg the Seventh, the only qualified successor of House Seifer. Presumably, the other party should also understand this.
What else could the other party's purpose be other than a deal? But the key was the content of the deal. What did the prince's eldest son want?
If he wanted to inherit House Seifer again, such an idea was a bit too naive. But since the prince's eldest son said that he did not expect to be forgiven, then presumably he would not make such a naive request.
Brando raised his head. At this time, the maid beside Levin whispered something to the prince. He saw the prince turn his head and smile at him, "Is this Mr. Brando? I have heard of your deeds. Your performance in the Battle of Ampere Seale is already worthy of being a hero. Even the late King Erik was no better. "
Brando glanced at Princess Gryphine and saw that there was not the slightest displeasure on the half-elf girl's face. Instead, there was a look of approval. He turned his head and replied calmly, "Your Royal Highness is too kind. The hero of Ampere Seale is not one person, and it's not that exaggerated. Everyone was just saving themselves."
"I deeply agree. It is precisely because they know how to save themselves and struggle that civilization has continued to this day. The history of mankind and other intelligent races is itself a heavy epic. The appearance of thousands of heroes is not accidental, but a necessity. " Levin smiled and nodded, which made Brando inadvertently notice that the prince had long, shining dark black hair that draped over his shoulders like a waterfall. This hair color was very rare among Erouine, with a touch of dark purple flowing between the strands.
"Brother." Princess Gryphine interrupted this mutual flattery. This was not what she wanted to hear, "Archbishop Wood said that you have a way to solve the chaos in the north. Are you going to use this to make a deal with me?"
The prince's eldest son stopped and then nodded seriously.
"Exactly."
"You should understand that this is impossible —" Princess Gryphine frowned, but her words were immediately interrupted. Prince Levin smiled slightly and said, "I understand, Gryphine, but you guessed wrong. I don't want to use this as a condition in exchange for anything. I want the two of you to listen carefully to my thoughts, how about it? "
"Brother, your thoughts?" The princess was slightly startled.
Levin nodded, but then said to Wood, "Lord Archbishop, can I be alone with the princess and Mr. Brando for a moment?"
Wood held the scissors in one hand and stopped. He glanced at the prince's eldest son, then nodded and put down the scissors. He said to Gryphine and Brando, "Your Royal Highness, I more or less know some of your brother's ideas. Although they are a bit extreme, it is still a solution. At least at this juncture, you may be able to calm down and think about it."
With that, the former archbishop of Ampere Seale gently tidied up his robe and walked out of the courtyard.
The princess frowned slightly as she listened. She watched Wood leave and turned back.
"So, brother, what exactly do you think?" she asked.
"Gryphine, as an enemy not long ago, you must be very suspicious of my intentions, right?" Levin did not answer directly, but asked. His tone sounded casual, as if he was joking with a friend.
But this question sounded a little stupid. It was natural to be suspicious, not to mention enemies, even strangers would be suspicious of each other. Brando knew that the prince was probably not a fool. He obviously had his intentions for saying this, so he just waited quietly for the following answer.
The princess obviously understood this, but she still nodded. "Personally, I know what you are like, and I am willing to believe you, Brother Levin. But from our standpoint, you should also understand that politics does not tolerate personal feelings and weakness. "
"Yes, but in fact, you may be mistaken about something. There is no conflict of interest between us, and even from a certain standpoint, we should stand together — Gryphine and Mr. Brando, "the prince's eldest son suddenly said.
The courtyard quieted down.
The princess was silent. She frowned deeply and looked at the man who should be her brother in name. "Brother Levin, do you think you can gain our trust by saying this?"
This sentence was actually Brando's idea, but he was slightly surprised that Princess Gryphine used "we" instead of "me."
"No, this is not a lie." The prince's eldest son smiled slightly. "Gryphine, you want to solve the chaos in the north, nothing more than to end the civil strife in this kingdom and eventually unify the country."
"Weren't you the ones who caused the division of the kingdom?" Gryphine replied coldly.
"Is that so?" Levin asked rhetorically. "Was Erouine a unified and stable kingdom before House Seifer rose up?"
The prince's eldest son suddenly raised his head. Although he could not see, it still gave the illusion of being watched. That kind of gaze seemed to be tangible, and his "gaze" swept over everyone present. "Gryphine, you know this very well in your heart. Do you still remember what I told you before? "
Her Royal Highness pursed her lips.
Brando saw that her slender eyebrows were almost twisted together. He knew that Gryphine and her brother in name had met once in their childhood, when Grand Duke Arreck forced Oberg the Sixth to change the defense decree during the Year of the Astrologer. At that time, Her Royal Highness went with her father to Wintercastle, where she met her brother.
However, the historical records of this experience were only a few hurried words, and it was obviously impossible to record the conversation between the two children. However, Brando knew very well that there was nothing wrong with what the prince's eldest son was saying now.
Had Erouine ever been unified?
Perhaps.
Since King Arreck integrated the entire Southern Territory, Erouine had become a unified kingdom. But since the late king left this world, the Seifer Dynasty ended, the Lionheart Sword was lost, and the majesty of the royal family declined day by day. Even during the Renaissance Era with the existence of Sword Saint Darius and Tulman, the central government's rule over the local areas was still very weak.
And after Grand Duke Arreck forced Oberg the Sixth to change the defense decree, the kingdom's unification only existed in name.
Since when had Erouine ever been unified?
As the kingdom gradually fell apart, the majesty of the central royal authority was no longer able to restrain the disintegrating parts of the kingdom. And this was all that Her Royal Highness wanted to change.
"Gryphine, Mr. Brando, do you only want to return the kingdom to the way it was before Father was still alive?" The prince's eldest son continued, "If that's the case, what's the point of changing the names, Seifer, Corvado? This isn't your idea, is it? "
Brando and Her Royal Highness fell silent at the same time, because this was their goal.
"The source of the discord between the northern nobles and you, and the source of Grand Duke Arreck's betrayal, Gryphine, stems from the understanding of your true ambitions. You want to carry out reforms like Cruz and Saint-ausol, and try to turn Erouine into a true centralized kingdom. If you succeed one day, it will undoubtedly be a nightmare for the powerful people today. "
Levin replied, "No one will give up their interests, so they can't support you."
"No … There will always be some people who support me, such as the Highland Knight, and those who still believe in the ideals of the late emperor," Princess Gryphine replied.
"And then? Maybe you can also count those bankrupt Knight and homeless people. Maybe you can succeed, Gryphine. But don't forget, you don't have much time left. "The prince's eldest son calmly analyzed," Erouine's enemies don't just come from the inside. "
This sentence pierced Brando's heart like a sharp thorn, and he couldn't help but narrow his eyes. Yes, for Erouine, reform might be inevitable, but at the same time, Erouine's enemies were not only the weak nobles.
Seizing every minute and second was what he had been doing all along.
Her Royal Highness raised her head. "Then, what can you do, brother?"
The prince's eldest son fell silent.
After a short while.
He replied softly, "It's very simple, let me become the king of Erouine, Gryphine."
…
(PS: After a long time of being stuck, I went out to play for a few days and found inspiration again. Sigh, it's really difficult. Also, meow, this time I'm not joking with you, just you wait, humph.) (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for me. Your support is my biggest motivation.)
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