Chapter 637: The Most Utilitarian Part

Thales was silent for a long time, countless thoughts in his heart. One part was his memories of adventures with Miranda in Dragon Clouds City, and another part was mostly related to the bone ring, Covenant.

In the end, he sighed, turned away from Miranda's burning gaze, stepped over the chair whose lifespan had already ended, and sat down on the desk.

If Madam Valencia were here, she would probably scold His Grace with a stern face for having an inelegant and improper posture.

But she was not here.

Thank goodness she was not.

"So, Lady Arunde, what you seek by coming to me is title, land, and power."

Thales sat on the desk, absently stroking the scar in the palm of his left hand.

Miranda did not move. She only watched the Duke of Star Lake from afar as he sank into thought.

"I have to say, this is truly, wow, impressive."

Thales made up his mind and took a deep breath.

"But regrettably, forgive me for refu..."

"Strange." Miranda interrupted him.

Thales frowned and raised his head.

He heard the daughter of the Arunde Family speak softly:

"An heir of a ducal family, unwilling to fall behind and striving for titles, land, and power. Is that not only natural?"

Thales could not help frowning, raising his gaze.

Miranda shook her head.

"Then why, when it comes to me, do you say 'impressive'? As though this were something rare, unusual, and worth writing about at length?"

Thales froze and did not react.

"What? No, I... I did not think that way."

Miranda gave a cold laugh.

"If I were a male heir, would you still say this? 'As the son of a duke, what you seek is actually title, land, and power? Wow, that is truly impressive!'"

Thales became even more stunned.

But Miranda stepped forward, aggressive and pressing.

"What is it? Is it that I, or people like me, am not worthy, not suited, not able, or not commonly ambitious enough to struggle for power and profit? Should I not have such an 'impressive' appearance, Duke Thales?"

What?

Somewhat dazed from her sudden rebuke, Thales took a deep breath.

"Please do not misunderstand, Lady Arunde. I mean no malice," the young man said, trying to ease the conversation. "Even less do I mean to look down on you. That was only a... polite phrase."

This time, Miranda stared at him for a long time, as though she wanted to dig out the thoughts behind his eyes, until Thales grew embarrassed and could not help coughing as a reminder. Only then did she turn her gaze aside.

"I know."

Miranda's voice lowered, no longer aggressive.

"I know you mean no malice, Your Highness."

From the feedback of the Hell's Senses, Thales vaguely felt that, at this moment, she had gained some grayness and dejection.

"At most, you are only numb to it, only used to it, only unaware of anything strange. You only think it is a perfectly normal polite phrase. You might even think I am being too sensitive."

Miranda gazed faintly at Star Lake, which had been made lazy and numb by the summer warm wind, its waves difficult to calm.

"But that is exactly the problem."

The cold light in her eyes slowly solidified.

"That is why I had to come here."

When the words fell, Thales looked blank.

But for some reason, as he watched Miranda's profile, he felt the study was frighteningly quiet at this moment.

"Lady Arunde, I really did not..."

Thales still wanted to explain something, but he paused and changed his words.

"I am sorry, my lady. If I said the wrong thing, or expressed the wrong attitude, in some place I did not realize, then I apologize to you. Truly."

Miranda was silent like a statue for a long time before slowly turning back.

She curled the corner of her mouth toward Thales and smiled faintly.

That smile was very natural and very bright. Even the sunlight behind her could not cover it.

This left Thales somewhat dazed.

She is beautiful, isn't she? A voice in his heart quietly reminded him. That smile is like the first new bud emerging toward the morning sun atop a snowy peak when early spring melts the snow.

But this feeling flashed and vanished.

Just like that smile, fragile and easily broken.

"To be fair, you should not be the one apologizing."

The female swordsman became expressionless again, as if she had never smiled. This pulled Thales back to reality.

"But equally fairly, I accept your apology."

Thales was stunned again.

The duke came back to himself and hurriedly coughed to change the subject.

"Therefore, my lady, you want to join me, go south with me on inspection, let everyone see that you have chosen a side, standing under the banner of the Duke of Star Lake, that is, the future king, thereby accumulating qualifications and reputation for yourself and investing in the future?"

Miranda thought for a while and crossed her arms.

"No. Not join you." She gently raised a finger and pointed at Thales. "Help you."

Thales frowned.

"As your supporter," Miranda's eyes shone, "not your dependent."

Not join, but help.

Not dependence, but support.

Pondering the other party's wording, Thales likewise crossed his arms, his face solemn.

Several seconds later, he took a deep breath.

"Respected Lady Arunde."

Thales' voice was somewhat hoarse. "You know that after Dragon Clouds City, although I did not contact you much..."

"It was not 'not much.' You never contacted me at all." Miranda suddenly spoke.

Thales immediately choked.

Miranda laughed coldly.

"In comparison, over these seven years I at least saw Wya several times. Yes, that Wya. Although I do not know how many Wyas there are here, or whether everyone is Wya."

If only Madam Valencia were here. Mind your audience etiquette, child. When His Grace the duke is speaking, you obediently close your mouth. She would definitely say that.

And wave the teaching whip in her hand.

"All right."

Thales pressed down the displeasure of being interrupted and continued:

"This may sound somewhat hypocritical, but my lady, I cherish the experience of the night of Dragon Blood very much. I have always regarded you as an old acquaintance, a comrade who once lived and died together with me."

Miranda nodded lightly.

"It is indeed somewhat hypocritical."

Thales sighed, thinking this girl should really go and have a good exchange with Mallos.

"So I do not want to lie: what you said just now, my lady, is not, temporarily not, a good idea."

Miranda's gaze changed.

"What is not a good idea?"

She laughed lightly. "Marrying you? Joining you? Or fighting for what should be mine..."

"None of them!"

Thales suddenly raised his volume, making Miranda frown.

"You say you want to go south with me. But," the duke breathed out, pinched the bone ring in his pocket, and sighed, "you do not understand. You think I have your answer here, think you can win back the Northland here, think I can recover what your family lost for you. But you..."

Thales' words choked off here.

But you are wrong.

In his heart, a voice slowly said the words he wanted to say but had not said.

You will only fall into a sinister trap carefully laid out by the king and personally built by me, becoming a self-important chess piece unable to control herself, sinking step by step until you become the next sacrifice.

Just like your father.

Just like... me.

Thales closed his eyes.

[Under Kortaksa's witness... you will help me push the kingdom forward... remove obstacles and break shackles, sparing no price.]

He could not refuse the king.

But he did not want to hurt her.

A former friend.

Even if this was only self-deception.

"Your Highness?"

Miranda asked doubtfully. "What are you trying to say?"

Thales came back to himself.

"Sorry."

He opened his eyes and once again became clear and organized.

"In fact, my lady, I met your father not long ago."

Sure enough, Miranda's expression changed slightly in that instant.

Thales tried his best to make his voice sound more sincere.

"Lord Val asked something of me. He does not wish for you, does not wish for you to become too involved in... matters concerning me and the royal family."

Miranda was silent for a long time.

But when she spoke again, her words were full of disdain.

"My father, is that right?"

"So you obediently listened to him, doing whatever he said, becoming the outside-prison puppet of an imprisoned traitor, an obedient little pawn?"

She seemed to have seen through everything and looked at Thales provocatively.

"He forbids you from fucking me, so you do not dare fuck me? You can only lock yourself in an iron chastity belt and not even dare go to the toilet?"

Fuck.

Thales' heart caught.

How was he supposed to answer that?

After so long under the Flower of the Fortress, could she not teach you something good?

In comparison, as people who also came from the Tower of Eradication, Raphael and Cohen were far more adorable.

His Grace had no choice but to take a deep breath and reorganize the logic of persuasion.

"What I mean is that you, Miranda Arunde, are the eldest daughter of the Guardian Duke of the Northland and heir of Cold Castle. Your identity is extraordinary, the implications are great, and many sides are involved. On the night of Dragon Blood seven years ago, we carelessly neglected this point and paid a bloody lesson for it."

Miranda furrowed her brows.

"Many people care about you, including Lord Val, including Raphael, including Cohen and me, and including the commander."

"She cares far more than any of us."

At the mention of Sonia, Miranda's gaze moved.

Thales knew he had touched a useful point and hurriedly struck while the iron was hot.

"In terms of timing, with the serious internal and external situation of Cold Castle, you should currently be staying at the fortress, under Sonia's wing, slowly accumulating achievements, sharpening your skill, waiting for the opportunity. That would be the safest choice."

The female swordsman was silent.

"Even if you really want to fight for your rights and titles, this is not something that can be decided on impulse. You need a plan, allies, timing, and legitimacy. You need to wait, wait for the king, wait for the Northland, wait for Cold Castle, wait for the right crack to appear..."

"Wait."

Miranda suddenly opened her mouth, interrupting his well-meaning persuasion.

"What?"

"Wait." Miranda turned her head and looked at the letter bearing the nine-pointed star seal, giving a sarcastic smile. "That is what everyone tells me."

"Wait until the storm passes. Wait until my father's case has been forgotten. Wait until the family reputation recovers. Wait until I have more achievements. Wait until Cold Castle reaches agreement. Wait until His Majesty changes his mind. Wait until someone else makes a decision. Wait until the future naturally comes."

Her voice grew colder.

"I have waited for seven years."

Thales fell silent.

"At first, I thought that going to Broken Dragon Fortress, fighting under Commander Sonia, and accumulating military merit on the northern border would be the best path. I thought that as long as I survived long enough, fought well enough, and became strong enough, I would someday be able to return to Cold Castle and take back everything."

"But I was wrong."

Miranda lowered her head and looked at the letter bearing the nine-pointed star seal, laughing sarcastically.

"Commander Sonia can teach me everything on the battlefield, but there are always some things she cannot teach."

She raised her head again and stared at the silent Thales.

"And there are even more things I cannot obtain on that battlefield."

Thales looked at her with complicated eyes, sensing her firmness and resolution at this moment.

But the firmer and more resolved she was, the more he felt...

[Those deceived by you into supporting you will gather into a rolling tide. With reputation, position, camp, interest, relationship, situation, with everything, they will carry you forward, allowing no defense from you, no control by you, and even less regret.]

The two fell into a long silence.

Until Thales took a deep breath and broke the quiet.

"I only recently saw Raphael in the Secret Intelligence Department."

Miranda trembled slightly.

"He, mm, although he refuses to admit it, cares about you very much."

He could not even take a joke.

Thinking of that, Thales could not help smiling.

But that smile was very pale.

Just like Miranda's complexion.

"Do not do this, Your Highness," the female swordsman slowly said, yet her words carried a trace of danger. "First my father, then that man."

"With our identities, we should not play this kind of amateur emotional trick."

But Thales ignored her.

"If Raphael saw you now, saw you here bargaining with me, saying nothing but... these matters."

"As a person of the Secret Intelligence Department, as a tool loyal to Renaissance Palace, what would he think? Most importantly, after he knew, what would he do?"

Thales looked straight at her.

Miranda also quietly looked at him, her gaze frozen, sinking into deep thought.

But when she opened her mouth again, she had returned to that calm, cold, distant female swordsman.

"Thales Jadestar."

"I have discovered that you are not as cute as you were when you were little."

Miranda coldly stared at him.

"So impulsive, so adventurous, so foolish, so simple and direct."

Thales frowned, sensing that he had failed to persuade her again.

All right.

At least I was cute once.

"But there is one point where, like everyone else, you have not changed."

In the next instant, Miranda's gaze turned cold.

"When will you finally treat me as an independent and complete person?"

Thales, who had been sighing, froze when he heard this.

"Rather than someone's daughter, someone's friend, someone's lover, someone's wife, or someone's future mother?"

Thales stared blankly at her.

A complete person...

"If you cannot even do this, Your Highness, then you might as well leave only the most utilitarian and coldest part," Miranda snorted coldly. "Just regard me as a tool, a sharp sword, a chess piece."

Hearing this, Thales trembled slightly.

Those words were so familiar.

[Let me step forward, Your Majesty. Let me become your enemy... your spy, your chess piece, your bargaining chip... your sword.]

Utilitarian.

Cold.

"At least that will make both of us feel better," Miranda coldly finished. "Rather than acting out hypocritical plays of 'I regard you as a friend' and 'this is for your own good.'"

For your own good.

Thales clenched his teeth.

She was very firm.

The voice in his heart sounded.

She will not change her mind.

In other words, she brought this on herself, and no one else is to blame, right?

Thales subconsciously clenched his fist, the tips of his fingers touching the scar in his palm.

And you must do this.

As she said, leave only the most utilitarian and cold part.

The voice in his heart reminded him:

Compared with that pitiful little "friendship" between you and her, think of King Kessel. Think of the covenant you resolved to make with him.

Think of the road you imagined walking. Think of what chaotic future Stars would face if you did not intervene and allowed the Iron Hand King to act freely:

Conflict, contradiction, war. When that time comes, how much price, how much blood, how many broken families?

And she is right. She will become a good sword, a good chess piece...

In the next second, Thales abruptly opened his eyes.

"Very good!"

The light in his eyes was cold and black, and the Sin of Hell's River accelerated through his veins.

"Miranda Arunde, if you have thought everything through and resolved to pledge loyalty to me and serve me, of course you may. I even welcome it greatly."

Hearing this, Miranda slowly raised her head.

Her gaze was sharp as a blade.

Thales changed direction, like a sudden arrival of deep winter.

"But you should know that you are not the first person to come find me. The visitor list of the Duke of Star Lake these past few months is thick enough to use as toilet paper."

[With me, you can lock onto your enemies. The banner of rebellion will fly high. All those who gather under it will enter the trap and be swept up in one net.]

Thales' face was cold, his words colder.

"If I shelter you, accept you, permit you to join the Duke of Star Lake's party, and allow you to share in the halo and glory of a prince's close retainer..."

The duke narrowed his eyes and examined the female swordsman before him.

"Then what benefits can I obtain?"

[I will give you enormous help beyond your expectations, help you see through them, break them apart, and finally... destroy them.]

Thales forced himself to laugh coldly, speaking in an unfamiliar tone.

"As you said, aside from your value as a wife and mother, or as you request, more utilitarianly, for release and reproduction, or more coldly, as a cunt and womb..."

The prince's words were frivolous and unrestrained. Miranda subconsciously clenched her fists.

On the desk, Thales leaned forward, braced both elbows on his knees, and felt the coldness that made him extremely uncomfortable curve into an arc at the corner of his mouth.

"What else can you give me?"

A dark cloud drifted across the sky, just blocking the sun.

The rippling light on Star Lake dimmed, leaving only deep darkness.

Miranda's expression grew solemn.

"So, this is a transaction?"

Thales crooked a finger.

"I adopted your suggestion and left only the most utilitarian part."

Filled with discomfort, he wantonly looked Miranda up and down.

"Does this make you feel better, my dear Mira?"

Mira.

Miranda's nerves tightened.

It was clearly an intimate nickname, yet hearing it...

"Even Cohen does not dare call me that," she said coldly.

Thales burst out laughing, then his gaze chilled.

"That is because I am not Cohen, but your master. If you want to stay, you had best get used to it early, Miss Mira."

Miranda looked at this version of Thales, her brows tightly furrowed.

She was silent for a long time.

And Thales was happy to have quiet, not urging her.

Several seconds later, Miranda loosened her fists and unexpectedly smiled.

"Very good. I like transactions." The female swordsman licked her dry lips, as if licking a prey's blood. "They make everything direct, simple, naked, and bloody."

Thales first froze, but immediately afterward, he smiled as well.

"You know, I was thinking. If Raphael knew about our conversation at this moment," Thales shook his head and said sarcastically, "he would definitely kill me."

"Then he, or anyone else, would first have to step over my long sword."

Miranda spoke coldly.

"Or my corpse."

The two people in the study looked at each other, as if blades and swords clashed.

"This is the first benefit my loyalty brings you, Your Grace."

Thales looked at her expression and was silent for a moment.

"Yes, your martial skill is decent." Seeing her raise her brows, the duke could not help changing his words. "In fact, quite decent."

But he immediately gave a disdainful cold laugh.

"But please do not forget: the Star Lake Guards are all elites carefully selected from the Royal Guards. Most have the title of royally sealed knight. Every one is a hero among men."

Thales' words were steady, his face not red and his breath unhurried.

"I do not lack experts under me. Star Lake Castle has plenty of people who can fight you fifty-fifty, even surpass you."

(Somewhere in the castle, a certain personal guard captain sneezed fiercely. "This damned cat fur...")

Miranda did not answer, but her expression was grave.

Thales straightened his waist and coldly added more.

"And they can go through fire and water for me without hesitation. Even if I asked them to raise a banner in rebellion, they would not blink."

Miranda swallowed.

Thales stared fixedly at his opponent, the corner of his mouth slightly raised.

"My dear Mira, if you want to join the game..."

"You must pay more."

"More."