Chapter 850: Extra (4): The Final Farewell (2)
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Krudo and Carey were both familiar with each other. When they were in that academy, they were not too far away and could meet each other at any time. However, at the beginning, Krudo and Kary did not take each other seriously.
One thought that the other was a barbarian from the north, while the other thought that the other was insincere. Their relations.h.i.+p was quite bad. At that time, the only thing they had in common was the King of Knights.
They were mutual friends with the King of Knights. As time pa.s.sed, their relations.h.i.+p started to recover.
On one hand, the King of Knights was making up for their relations.h.i.+p. On the other hand, as they grew older and matured, they would be able to see more and understand each other better.
At this stage, although the two of them still did not like each other on the surface, they actually see each other as normal friends. It was just that if there was nothing special, they would not deliberately contact each other.
!!
It was not until the King of Knights raised his army and established the Nardo Kingdom that the two of them, as the Knight King’s best friends, gradually honed their tacit understanding through increasing cooperation, thus becoming closer friends.
And now, they are all old. The grudges of their youth were now more of a beautiful memory and a source of ridicule for each other. What replaced the grudges of the past was an indestructible friends.h.i.+p.
They cherished their friends.h.i.+p with each other because they knew their friends.h.i.+p was quite rare as the founders of the country were n.o.ble.
Many people built deep friends.h.i.+ps when they were young, but in the end, they still turned against each other and became enemies. This was quite common among the n.o.ble.
They could maintain the friends.h.i.+p today, and most of the credit was due to the King of Knights.
After the establishment of the Nardo Kingdom, the King of Knights still treated them the same as before, seeing them as close friends, and never compromising them.
This was unlikely between normal kings. After all, one of them was the lord who ruled the Northern Territory and controlled a relatively powerful part of the military force of the entire Nardo Kingdom. The other was the prime minister of the Nardo Kingdom for a long time. He knew many things about the Nardo Kingdom, like the back of his hand.
This was terrifying. The forces they heed the command, along with any hidden forces they have behind them, were unmatched in the Nardo Kingdom other than the King of Knights himself.
To put it bluntly, under normal circ.u.mstances, if the two of them were to join forces, they could stir up a violet rebellion, bring chaos to the Nardo Kingdom, and change the entire governance of the kingdom.
The intensity would probably be comparable to the previous great rebellion within the Kutu Kingdom.
Any other king would probably be worried and unable to sleep well, even if he knew their intentions. He would try his best to weaken them and use all sorts of methods to make them turn against each other. Only then would he be at ease.
After all, many things in this world happen against one’s intentions.
A king does not care if one has the intention to rebel. A king only cares if one has the strength to rebel. To put it bluntly, it was because of the existence of the King of Knights that the friends.h.i.+p between them was not affected.
Otherwise, even if the King of Knights remained silent, Carey and Krudo would have to pretend they were not on good terms due to the situation. Only then would it make people feel at ease.
But no matter what, none of the above happened. After becoming the king, the King of Knights treated them as usual and often invited them to attend banquets.
The outside world often slandered the two, thinking their existence was a huge threat to the Nardo Kingdom.
But no matter what, the King of Knights did not hurt their feelings because of the comments from the outside world. This in itself was a touching thing.
Both Krudo and Carey were very excited to see their good friends again. Carey struggled to stand up and went forward to give Krudo and the King of Knights a warm hug.
Krudo and the King of Knights also responded enthusiastically.
“Looking at you, I’m afraid you won’t even be able to stand up in another two years.”
Krudo laughed out loud, looking at how Carey struggled even to stand up, “You look just like when you were young, like a sissy.”
“I think you were like an impolite northern barbarian when you were young.”
Carey replied bluntly.
This could be considered as their way of greeting. However, even though they mocked him, the three still found a clean place to sit, considering Carey’s body condition. After laying a gorgeous carpet on it, they sat down cross-legged.
The people around them observed the situation of the three of them. The three of them were considered the core of the Nardo Kingdom in the past. They were also known as the iron triangle of power.
They held the highest power in the entire Nardo Kingdom and were also the most powerful. But now, these three people, who were once at the peak of their power, looked different.
Needless to say, Carey, who was once a handsome young n.o.ble, had long become an old man.
As a warrior, Krudo still maintained his robust physique. He looked very powerful, and even though he was already old, his physique was like that of a brown bear.
But even so, he still aged. As he got older, the functions of his entire body began to decline rapidly. Even his hair was now gray. Although he did not look as exaggerated as Carey, he still looked like an old man.
Time still left traces on his body. Especially as a knight, although Krudo’s physique was far more robust than that of an ordinary person, because of the frequent use of life energy, his lifespan might not be much longer than that of an ordinary person.
He might appear healthy now, but after a few years, his body might collapse and become a completely different person.
Perhaps it was because he did not want to become crippled after fighting the entire first half of his life that Krudo made up his mind to follow the King of Knights on this journey.
Among the three, only the King of Knights was still the same as before. He was still handsome and tall. Even though he was just sitting cross-legged at this moment, he still carried a very standard etiquette. He looked handsome and tall, which made people’s eyes light up at a glance.
Compared to Carey and Krudo, the King of Knights, who was in his fifties, still looked young and strong. He did not look much different from when he was young.
People pa.s.sed by the three of them. Many young girls were staring at the King of Knights with hidden gazes. The Knight King’s appearance moved them.
Countless young girls in the entire Nardo Kingdom had dreamed of becoming the queen of the King of Knights. It was not only because of the power that the King of Knights symbolized but also because of his charm.
Even though he was old, the King of Knight King’s charm was still outstanding. Countless people were secretly amazed and stunned.
But now, the three sat down cross-legged and began to imagine the beautiful days of the past.
“I miss the past…”
Carey raised his wine gla.s.s and said with a smile, “I still remember that I was young, and my body was very good. I could easily spend a night with four or five beautiful girls…
“Unlike now, my body has collapsed, and many beautiful things have left me…”
“With your body when you were young, I can still beat you with one hand now.”
Krudo mocked him without holding back. He indeed had the right to mock him. Because even though he was already old, Krudo’s strength was still not to be underestimated.
His strength was still impressive because of his good education and some of the things left behind by his teacher, although he had not become a great knight. He was at the highest level among knights.
Even though he was already old, with his strong foundation, ordinary knights were still not his match. He would easily beat them down.
“So what?”
Carey stayed proud. “I was once the prime minister. The entire palace was filled with my former subordinates. Do you believe that there will be countless people pet.i.tioning in the palace the next day If you dare to touch me?”
“So what?”
Krudo glanced at him. “Do you think I’m afraid of this?”
He was not afraid of such a threat. Even if the King of Knights abdicated and the new king ascended to the throne, his relations.h.i.+p with him was also very good.
This could be seen in the new king’s name. From a relations.h.i.+p perspective, the new king was the King of Knight’s child, but he was also Krudo’s adopted son.
Krudo could be considered the adoptive father of the new king. Even if the entire palace went to pet.i.tion and report Krudo’s crimes, would the new king attack his adoptive father?
It wouldn’t happen.
“Alright.”
In the end, the King of Knights still spoke, stopping the discussion between the two. Like in the past, until now, the King of Knights’ voice was still gentle, and its gentleness could be felt.
It seemed that he had always been like this. His att.i.tude towards others was very gentle, regardless of whether they were enemies or friends.
“Carey, we are leaving.”
The King of Knights smiled and said, “If nothing unexpected happens, this might be our last meeting.
“To celebrate this last encounter, cheers.”
He raised his wine cup and raised it high toward Carey and Krudo.
Both Carey and Krudo did not hesitate at all. They raised their wine cups and rattled them with the wine cup of the King of Knights. A crisp sound rang out on the spot, followed by loud discussions and laughter.
On this day, they discussed many things, from the interesting things that happened when they were young to the various things that happened during the establishment of the Nardo Kingdom, as well as many of the policies within the Nardo Kingdom. They talked about all of them one by one.
They discussed many different things, some of them may be very complicated, but their discussions were also very happy.
Many things always needed to be hidden at the bottom of their hearts for people of their status. They might want to talk, but ordinary people were no longer qualified to listen to them talk.
Because there were many things that only those who had experienced it in the past could talk about.
That night, the three of them got drunk. Well, to be precise, there were only two of them. The King of Knights was not drunk. He sat quietly in his seat. His face was still calm, and he looked very sober.
Before this, Krudo and Carey were bragging about their alcohol tolerance, but they both got drunk in the end.
Although Krudo was a knight, he did not seem to have a good alcohol tolerance. He was just around Carey’s level, and both got drunk terribly.
On the contrary, the King of Knights, who stayed quiet and sat at the back, was the last man standing. Unexpectedly, although the knight King looked ordinary, he was the one who could hold his liquor the best.
Even though he drank until the end, his figure didn’t change much, and his face didn’t turn red.
“Take them down to rest, and arrange a room for me while you’re at it. Thank you.”
Getting up from the ground, the King of Knights gently looked at the butlers who were confused in the distance and said to them.
The night pa.s.sed.
The next day, the King of Knights and Krudo bid farewell to Carey and left. Before they left, Carey struggled to get up and came to a room that had not been opened for a long time. The room was filled with many things, including exquisite armor.
That set of armor was Carey’s favorite when he was young. At that time, he often wore this armor set to follow the King of Knights and fight with him. It was not until later, when Carey was injured, and his body became weaker, that the armor was sealed by him and placed in this room.
Many years had pa.s.sed, and there was a lot of dust on the armor, but its l.u.s.ter was still bright and clear.
Carey looked at the armor and took a deep breath. He ignored the butler’s objection and asked someone to put on the armor for him.
The monarch he was most loyal to, the King of Knights, was about to leave. As a former follower of the King of Knights, even though he was old, he still wanted to wear the armor and follow the King of Knights again, just like when he was young. This way, he would not regret it even if he died on the road.
Carey put on his armor again and began to imagine the scene when he rode a horse to kill enemies when he was young. However, the reality was not so beautiful after all.
He was not the young him after all. After putting on the armor, heavy pressure came on Carey. He could not move freely like when he was young. He only managed two or three steps before he could not walk anymore.
At this moment, he truly realized that he had aged. He could no longer ride a horse and move with his armor on.
How could he talk about following the King of Knights and partic.i.p.ating in the expedition when he was in this condition?
In the end, he sighed and chose to remain silent.
That day, the King of Knights smiled as he bid farewell to Carey. Before he left, he asked Carey to live well.
“Although we leave, this country still needs someone to look after it.”
The King of Knights smiled as he said, “Carey, you can be our eyes and look at the future of this country for us.”
These were the King of Knights’ last words.
Carey smiled and nodded. However, at night, when there was no one around, Carey woke up from his dream and cried out.