Chapter 733: That Thing, Part 2

A moment later, in another room of Emerald Palace.

"I simply cannot believe it."

Zayen looked coldly at Thales before him.

"Thales Jadestar, how could you make such a low-level, stupid mistake?"

Look at him. How happy he is.

Thales sat opposite him and coughed when he heard this.

"So now I..."

"You actually let an unarmed little girl with no foundation in Jade City snatch away the prey already in your mouth, in full view of everyone?"

Zayen's disbelief was full of accusation.

Wrong. She is not without foundation.

On the contrary, she plants her foundation underground where you cannot see it.

Thales shrugged.

"She has a supreme-class knight at her command."

"And you have an entire Jade City!"

"A disobedient Jade City."

But Zayen refused to let him go and continued blaming him:

"Then why did you not watch her properly? Why did you let her get pulled into such a dangerous game?"

"You mean you wanted me to lock her up the way I locked you up?"

"We had an agreement, Thales!"

Zayen waved a hand impatiently.

"No matter how badly we beat each other bloody, it has nothing to do with her. Keep her far away from this pile of rotten things!"

His attitude was fierce. Thales lowered his head helplessly.

"I know, but this time she acted on her own..."

The words reached his mouth, and Thales suddenly caught the flavor.

His expression changed, and he suspiciously countered:

"Wait. Isn't this wrong? Why are you the one aggressively accusing me?"

The prince slapped the table unhappily.

"Hey! I am clearly the one who was robbed. I should be the indignant person here!"

Zayen snorted coldly.

"That is only the result of your own actions. It is your retribution for sitting in this position while having grand ambitions but little talent, aiming high but acting low, behaving faithlessly and weakly."

Zayen spoke coldly, without the slightest sympathy.

Thales took a deep breath.

Grand ambitions, little talent.

Aiming high, acting low.

Faithless.

Weak.

Retribution.

Ordinarily, no matter how ugly or humiliating the scolding, even if it was Star Beneath Skirts, His Highness the Prince could smile it off without changing expression. After all, he was also a hero who had saved the country and had endured the spittle baptism of several hundred northern men in Heroic Spirit Palace, every sentence inseparable from reproductive organs and parents.

But compared with those crude, venting curses with no technique, Zayen scolded him with such righteous confidence, such reason, such clear order, and such apparent seriousness, that it still made him somewhat...

"Bright though the stars are, to have a prince like you is truly..."

Zayen was both disappointed and disdainful. When he reached the end, he turned his head and lowered his voice, but the Hell's senses still caught it.

"Truly, when a straw bag holds office, the nation cannot prosper."

Straw bag...

Thales closed his eyes and once again inhaled deeply.

It's fine. It doesn't matter.

Come, Thales. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale again...

After all, the one in trouble was his sister. Concern leads to disorder. Understand it, understand it very much.

Let him say a few words and vent.

Inhale, exhale...

A nation's straw bag. No, a nation's prince should have the magnanimity to endure offense.

It's nothing.

Inhale, exhale...

Nothing at all!

Thales opened his eyes in anger and faced the disdainful Zayen.

Just wait. When I recover from this tiny temporary setback, become wise and mighty, plan everything from afar, reverse the situation, turn the tide, and laugh while masts and oars turn to ash, then I will slap his face hard.

Thales thought this viciously and slowly exhaled that long breath.

"So, that is how things stand."

Thales straightened his face and tried to make his words sound less sarcastic.

"Lady Cecilia Covendier is daring beyond others, brave enough to lead three armies, more intelligent than a prince, and by her own strength captured the villain and brought him to justice, upheld justice for Jade City in its peril, punished evil and promoted good, and by the way, threatened me into releasing you."

Zayen sneered, both mocking and disdainful.

"As her elder brother, do you have nothing to say?"

"I know you lost both ground and face outside, became angry from shame, and want to win them back," Zayen said without looking at him. "That is why you came to me."

Thales choked again.

"Wrong."

He coughed.

"In fact, I went to catch Lausanne the Second, to catch this killer who obeys Federico, for no other reason than to cooperate with you, clear your suspicion as soon as possible, and free you from..."

"Cooperate? Truly?"

Zayen's tone was disdainful.

"Why do I remember that when we last met, you were still putting on airs and saying you had to consider it?"

Thales bit his teeth and forced himself to continue:

"No. What we said last time was that you wanted me to show a little sincerity before advancing our cooperation..."

"And what I wanted was Federico," Zayen took over his words. "Is he dead?"

Thales paused.

"I was just about to speak of that. In fact, because of Hilley's impulsiveness and sudden interference, our cooperation encountered a small accident."

Zayen frowned back at him.

Thales smiled and shrugged.

"You see, without Lausanne the Second and the information he should have confessed, I cannot close so many murder cases, nor smoothly convict and execute Federico, let alone clear your suspicion in the arbitration and judge you innocent."

"Are you truly unable," Zayen interrupted him, "or do you not want to, cannot bear to?"

Thales was silent for a while.

"You mean, after being humiliated and threatened by your sister in front of so many people, losing all face?"

The prince raised his voice.

"Perhaps both."

Zayen's expression turned cold.

"Stop the nonsense and stop acting, Thales. Speak. What do you want?"

Thales looked at him deeply. Several seconds later, he sighed and spoke.

"Fine. Because of your sister, I have to pay more costs to correct the situation and maintain the worsening Jade City. Therefore, I believe it is necessary for you to bear a little joint responsibility for Hilley's impulsiveness and make some compensation..."

Zayen interrupted him.

"Very well. As long as Federico dies and power is smoothly returned to Emerald Palace, do not speak merely of compensation or maintenance. I guarantee I will return to you an Jade City bursting with life and flowing with wealth, even the entire South Coast Territory."

He looked at Thales as if entirely justified.

Thales wanted to speak but stopped, pausing.

"Look, Federico again. So we have returned to the starting point."

The prince shook his head.

"That will not work."

Zayen glanced coldly at him and gave a light snort.

"Let me see Hilley once. I will persuade her to return the criminal to you."

"Fine, as long as I find her first," Thales agreed readily. "By the way, do you want to see her alive or dead?"

"I am serious."

"So am I!"

Thales's cold refusal made Zayen look sideways.

"You need to understand, little flower. The problem now is not me."

He took a deep breath and tilted his head.

"It is her. It is your dear sister who is obstructing me, threatening me, causing me trouble, and preventing Jade City from returning to normal."

This time, Zayen stared at him for a long time.

Several seconds later, he revealed a disdainful smile.

"Yes, I can imagine it."

The guardian duke of the South Coast snorted coldly.

"Once this matter spreads, I imagine all of Jade City will laugh. They will say the dignified Duke of Star Lake was played in circles by a little girl. The incompetent prince cannot even catch a murderer. The Star Beneath Skirts goes soft as soon as he sees a woman, and so on..."

Thales's expression changed slightly.

Would people really say that?

But he did not show it on his face. He only stiffened his expression.

"You think this is funny?"

"A little..."

Zayen shook his head and quickly returned to the topic.

"In fact, I mean this sounds terrible. The second prince acted recklessly and returned defeated. Not only could he not protect the territory and calm the people in an extraordinary time, he was also threatened without courtesy by a little girl of the Covendier family, who publicly defied his order and left him covered in dust, with no authority remaining..."

Thales's brows furrowed tighter and tighter.

Zayen, however, spoke more and more smoothly, his smile strange.

"One can imagine. The new ruler is insufficiently capable, his authority hard to make people obey. From officials and nobles above to common people below, people will be very disappointed. Their confidence in Jade City will sink further, and they will begin to believe Jade City truly has grown worse and will inevitably decline amid chaos..."

Thales could not help firing back:

"Thus making it more convenient for you to hold me, force me to compromise with you and your sister, and release you sooner to save Jade City?"

Zayen glanced at him and snorted disdainfully.

"Believe me. I knew nothing of it beforehand. Hilley was eager to save someone, and she underestimated the impact of this act."

"Yet the one cleaning up the mess is still me," Thales said coldly.

Zayen smiled.

"Then you should understand even more, Thales, that your bargaining chips are growing fewer and fewer."

He leaned forward, displaying an almost invisible sense of pressure.

"If you lose your wallet, you should work hard to find it back, or return to the proper path and earn money to make up for your loss, rather than, in your anger and shame, blackmail and extort your good neighbor."

"Even if the one who stole my wallet is my good neighbor's sister?"

"Stop finding excuses for your incompetence, Thales. Do you truly believe your situation would be better without this incident with Hilley? Many things seem accidental, but are in fact inevitable."

Zayen clicked his tongue and shook his head.

"For rulers, blaming others, especially the weak, is always easier than self-reflection."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Yet abandoning difficulty for ease is often the origin of tyranny."

After hearing this, Thales was silent for a long time.

Zayen refused to yield or retreat.

And he was right. After Hilley's disturbance, Jade City was even more precarious.

He had no time.

Thinking of this, the prince raised his eyes.

"Let us be frank, Zayen. Once Federico dies, I lose the bargaining chip that restricts you."

Thales's voice was certain.

"That is something I cannot accept."

Zayen gave a hum with unclear meaning.

Thales tapped the table.

"Unless you show me now that even if you return to the city lord's seat, our previous agreement still counts."

Zayen smiled.

"For example, handing over money now to repay debts and returning you a complete Jade City, so you can offer it up to Renaissance Palace?"

Thales did not speak.

Zayen's smile disappeared, and his expression abruptly turned cold.

"Then I lose the bargaining chip that restricts you."

The Duke of Iris Flower yielded not an inch.

"It is entirely possible that afterward, you will pull me down and send Federico to the seat."

Thales frowned.

"So this is a dead knot with no room for discussion?"

Zayen scoffed.

"Remember, Thales. Every minute and second you spend here pretending and trying to blackmail me, Jade City and even the South Coast Territory are burning. And the parts burned away will require more cost and time to rebuild."

Zayen turned his face away.

"And once it burns into ruins and sinks completely, we both lose."

The Duke of the South Coast clicked his tongue.

"Your father will not be satisfied."

Looking at the other party's attitude, Thales's heart sank.

He could not help recalling Federico's words from earlier:

"Consider my proposal, Your Highness. Using this matter to hold Zayen may bring a pleasant surprise."

Thales gently closed his eyes and sighed inwardly.

"In any case, no matter what, he will not be satisfied," the prince said in a low voice.

Zayen turned back, puzzled.

"What did you say?"

Thales opened his eyes and raised his head, his expression exhausted.

"Do you know? I advised him the same way."

He shook his head, his tone bitter.

"My father."

Thales let out a long sigh.

"I advised him that his plan to subdue the Western Wasteland had so many accidents. On the surface, it seemed he was unlucky, but in truth, all of it was inevitable."

The second prince leaned back against his chair and smiled bitterly.

"It was the consequence he deserved after so many years of domineering and aggressive conduct."

Hearing such extraordinary words as "subdue the Western Wasteland," Zayen could not help frowning.

"And I also advised him not to blame others, but to look for reasons in himself."

Thales's gaze froze, as if he were speaking to himself.

"To solve the problem, rather than solve the people who brought the problem. More often than not, they are merely the people who discovered the problem."

Perhaps because this was the first time Zayen had heard Thales speak emotionally of the king, Zayen could not react in time and froze.

"Because as you said, abandoning difficulty for ease is often the origin of tyranny."

Thales sighed.

"From Strategy of the Wise King, right?"

"Oh?"

Zayen's gaze shifted, somewhat surprised.

"I thought you had only read books written by northerners, or that mysterious author Hegel whom no one could find even after searching through the library."

Thales shook his head and did not explain further.

"But even after I raised my sword in rebellion at the palace and was exiled from the capital, he still refused to listen to my advice. He still insisted on doing things his own way. He insisted on using the fastest speed and the fiercest force, regardless of price, to bring Jade City into his pocket."

Zayen's breathing halted.

"That is why I asked to come here. Because I knew that if he were allowed to do that..."

The prince's gaze was pained and also carried a hint of despair.

"Then not only Jade City, the collapse of the kingdom itself would only be a matter of time."

He thought of his confrontation with King Kessel in the Ballard Room and felt exhausted.

Zayen's eyes turned.

"Then you should even less..."

Thales continued speaking on his own, cutting him off.

"But this period of time, whether in my battles of wits with him, with you, or even with Hilley, has left me mentally and physically exhausted, disheartened."

"I have had enough."

Truly enough.

Thales raised his head and looked directly at the Duke of the South Coast.

"Especially after meeting you today, I understand even more clearly."

The prince clenched his teeth, his eyes blazing.

"He absolutely, absolutely will not listen to my advice."

At that instant, Zayen felt an ominous premonition.

"As your uncle said, Zayen, the strong, especially those in power, never need to and never will retreat of their own accord."

Thales pressed his hands on his knees and slowly stood.

"And if I want to persuade him, or rather, to stop him, there is one method, and only one."

The only one.

Thales closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Zayen's eyelid jumped. He also subconsciously stood.

"Thales, we do not need to..."

"That is to return to Renaissance Palace."

Thales opened his eyes, his gaze firm and his tone resolute.

"And as soon as possible, wear that damned Nine-Star Crown."

Nine-Star Crown.

Zayen frowned lightly.

Those words seemed to possess some kind of magic. Once they were spoken, the entire room fell silent as a tomb.

Even the clamor outside the window could not seep in.

The pressure was suffocating.

Thales stood straight and stared fixedly at Zayen.

"So you must understand, Zayen."

He pulled back his finger and tapped his own chest.

"I am Thales, but more than that, I am the second prince."

He gritted his teeth and, with enormous force, spoke word by word.

"Thales damned-going-to-be-king Jadestar."

For the first time, Zayen saw Thales like this and could not help feeling astonished.

"So I do not care which one of you sits in the damned Iris Flower ducal seat, nor do I care who is right or wrong in this dispute between you and Federico, who rises and who falls, much less am I interested in whether your father killed his father or his father killed your father..."

Zayen met Thales's gaze and was shocked.

"The only thing I care about..."

Thales raised a finger, his eyes full of anger and resentment.

"Is after all this ends, exactly how much wealth Jade City can still have left for me to take to Renaissance Palace and make my report, in exchange for my..."

At this point, Thales's gaze was cold.

He pointed at the top of his own head.

"Future crown."

At that moment, Zayen's expression changed slightly.

"But whether Hilley's unexpected action last night or your perfunctory answer at this moment, both disappoint me greatly and make me very angry."

Thales took a deep breath and gritted out each word.

"If I am concerned about the worsening Jade City, compromise with Hilley, return you an 'innocence,' and let you, you son of a bitch, walk out whole and complete to retake power and continue enjoying yourself, then that means nothing has changed. I hand Renaissance Palace a blank answer sheet.

"If I refuse to compromise and watch Jade City's economy collapse under my rule, South Coast Territory's governance fall into chaos, and the wealthy Queen's City never recover, then what I hand Renaissance Palace is a red-marked answer sheet wrong from beginning to end, with points deducted on top.

"Or worse, imagine if Hilley really digs up something extraordinary from Lausanne the Second, some truth, and counters me with reason and evidence, letting you win a complete and righteous victory... Even better. Then I do not have to hand in anything. I can tear up the test paper before returning to Renaissance Palace."

Contrary to his previous calm composure, at this moment, every firm sentence the prince spoke inevitably made Zayen's expression grow more serious.

Because of this, the Duke of Iris Flower coughed, trying to ease the atmosphere.

"That is true. Facing His Majesty, your situation is indeed disadvantageous, but you may not yet have reached the end of the road. Many knowledgeable people throughout the kingdom..."

"And do you know what these three situations have in common?"

Thales unconsciously raised his voice.

Though he had clashed with him countless times, facing such a serious Thales, Zayen suddenly found he did not know how to react.

"That is..."

Thales took a deep breath and squeezed out an ugly smile that chilled the heart.

"No matter which one I choose, that damned crown grows farther and farther from me."

"I can only sit trapped in a city of sorrow and watch helplessly as he does whatever he wants on the throne, pushing the entire kingdom toward..."

"Thales!"

Zayen sharply interrupted him.

Thales abruptly raised his head.

"So!"

The prince spoke softly, yet every word weighed a thousand pounds.

"So I truly, truly, truly have had enough."

"I know," Zayen tried to explain, "but precisely because of that, you cannot let Jade City fall into his hands..."

But Thales did not care about him.

He simply walked to the door, then turned back and sincerely looked at Zayen.

"Therefore, for what comes next, I must first apologize to you. Zayen, I am sorry. Truly. But I am truly, truly, truly very sorry."

He closed his eyes and nodded slightly in apology.

But Zayen smelled something wrong.

"What do you mean? What are you going to do?"

He left his seat and looked suspiciously at Thales.

Thales raised his head, smiled bitterly, and sighed helplessly.

"I admit I cannot break the financial and governing traps you left in Jade City, and I also cannot completely disregard Renaissance Palace's will."

The prince shook his head and admitted his powerlessness.

"In this situation, whatever I do is wrong. And Jade City is falling into greater chaos day by day. I have no time. I must..."

Zayen's brows drew tighter and tighter.

"What are you going to do?"

Thales looked at Zayen.

"I know this will be difficult for you to accept. It is for me as well. I am unwilling too... and even Hilley herself may not be that willing."

Zayen's eyelid jumped.

"Who did you say?"

Thales shook his head wearily.

"But he, my father, will be satisfied. I believe Jade City will be as well."

Zayen quickly stepped forward and came before Thales, suppressing unease and anger.

"Satisfied with what? What are you going to do to Hilley?"

"You refuse to yield. My father refuses to yield as well. But the Covendier and Jadestar families can."

Thales's gaze was bitter.

"I have decided. As long as Hilley and I marry, then the difficulty Jade City faces..."

Thud!

Before the words finished, the completely unguarded Thales felt his face go numb, and stars burst before his eyes.

He fell to the ground with a thump. His ears rang, and the numbness at his cheekbone gradually became unbearable pain.

"You son of a bitch!"

Zayen's furious roar was deafening.

"Impossible!"

Thales painfully propped up his upper body, touched his cheek, and hissed from the pain.

But he still insisted on speaking.

"I fear that is not up to you. If Hilley knows this can save you, she also will not opp..."

Bang!

Zayen threw another vicious punch. This time it struck Thales's arm, which he had raised to protect his face.

"How dare you!"

Thales had never seen the Duke of Iris Flower lose control like this.

"I understand your anger, Zayen."

Thales clenched his teeth, endured the pain, and blocked Zayen's next punch.

"But I swear, I swear I will treat her well. I will not let her suffer grievances. In the future, she will be the most honored queen of Stars, and the Jadestar royal family is not unworthy of her..."

The enraged Zayen grabbed his collar and hauled him up from the ground, his expression terrifying.

"I will fucking kill you!"

Bang!

With a muffled sound, the room door was knocked open. Wya and the others rushed in in panic and were startled by the scene before them.

What happened?

"Your Highness!"

"Protect him!"

"Stop him!"

"Hold him down!"

Though the royal guards were shocked, everyone had experience dealing with this sort of matter. Zayen was quickly pulled away and separated from Thales. Wya looked at the injury on Thales's face and was utterly shocked.

"This is also the best result for Jade City."

Thales let go of the hand helping him up and spoke with difficulty.

"For the kingdom, for the future I want, or even more shallowly, for that crown, I must do some things... that I was originally unwilling to do."

On the other side, though the guards did their utmost to restrain him, Zayen's struggling strength under his rage was beyond imagination.

"You dare! No, no, no, you bastard! We had an agreement! We had an agreement! Come back! Come back! I will kill you! Kill you!"

Because of the other party's identity and status, the guards had always been polite when watching the Duke of the South Coast. Now, though he had offended His Highness, no one dared use a heavy hand. They only struggled to hold his arms down, so the effect was poor, and he almost broke free again.

"You are not allowed to touch her! Not allowed! I will kill, kill you!"

Just then, a figure suddenly stepped forward, decisively split the crowd, faced the furious and struggling Zayen, and landed a heavy punch right on his face.

Thud!

Zayen fell to the ground with a thump, and his roar abruptly stopped.

Everyone was stunned as well.

The person who had just viciously struck Duke Covendier, the prince's attendant officer, Wya Caso, stood above Zayen, breathing rapidly and gritting his teeth.

He turned back and swept his gaze over the others, shouting angrily:

"Is it that difficult?"

Doyle, Neshy, Piloga, Morgan, Italiano...

No one dared make a sound. Everyone only shifted their eyes away, embarrassed and guilty, as they restrained Zayen.

After spending so much time together, Wya, though serious and proper, had always been kind and tolerant. Therefore, the members of the Star Lake Guard were not afraid of him. Instead, they were used to laughing and joking with him, and some bold ones like Doyle would often tease him about his personality and family background.

But for the first time in history, no one dared look directly into his eyes.

They only obediently accepted his rebuke.

Only the civilized and polite Morgan, having a precedent before him, finally happily copied the example. He faced Zayen, who was still trying to struggle, and punched him viciously in the abdomen.

Bang!

Wya steadied his breathing. He turned back and looked at Thales, whose cheek was red and swollen but who had likewise been startled. Wya was overwhelmed with guilt.

"Your Highness, this was all because we failed to protect..."

But Thales raised one hand, stopping his words. At the same time, he signaled the others to release the half-dead duke.

He stepped forward, his mood complicated, and looked at Zayen, whose face was covered in blood and whose eyes were unfocused.

"Sorry, Zayen."

Thales spoke sorrowfully.

"Truly. But I believe... you can understand."

Zayen lay on the ground, his bloodshot eyes weakly and blankly turning toward Thales.

While everyone waited, not daring to breathe loudly, Thales merely shook his head in disheartenment, turned, and left the room. Wya hurriedly followed, not forgetting to give Zayen a fierce glare on the ground.

Everyone looked at one another and finally let out a breath.

Finally gone.

No need to face...

Just then...

"Wait..."

Zayen's voice, as faint as a dying breath, sounded.

Thales's steps halted. He turned back.

Everyone grew tense again.

"Hey."

Doyle, who had been the first to help the prince up but still felt he had not seized the first merit, righteous and imposing, grabbed Zayen by the collar and raised his fist high.

"If you dare act against His Highness again..."

Zayen trembled and shoved him away, staring fixedly at Thales, who was protected by guards.

"Speak, Your Highness Thales..."

Blood streamed from his nose, and his eyes were bitter and gray.

"What... what do you want me to do for you?"

In that instant, after seeing the other party's expression clearly, Thales felt it in his heart:

It was done.

He had won.

Just as Federico had said.

Zayen had submitted.

The guards looked at one another, not knowing what these two powerful figures intended after beating each other.

With the problem solved, Thales should have been happy. But looking at Zayen now, his mood was complicated, and he could not squeeze out even a trace of a smile.

"He will not believe it."

He remembered his earlier conversation with Federico.

"But he has that thing, so he will believe it. That is enough."

That thing.

Thinking of this, looking at Zayen before him like a defeated warrior, Thales's gaze darkened, and sorrow rose in his heart.

That's right, Thales.

This is that thing.

At that moment, the voice in the depths of his heart, with the indifference of having known it all along, silently said to him:

Zayen understands you deeply.

Of course he does not believe you are a sinister villain with no bottom line, willing to use his sister and even sacrifice Jade City.

But he will believe that for that crown, you would be willing to do certain things and sacrifice certain things.

Just as he believes that if it were him...

He would be willing to do certain things.

This is...

That thing.