Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 353, Article 1

Under a clear sky, Thales and Kez stood outside a cabin in the wilderness, watching two well-saddled packhorses grazing leisurely.

"Are you sure you don't need me to take you again?" Krz asked, scratching his head as he leaned on a tree branch.

"Although the search of Dragon Sky City was limited to the city proper, all the major checkpoints must have been notified..."

Thales took a light breath and looked at the cabin in front of him with a light heart.

This was a hideout outside the city for Griveaux and his brothers.

These peasants in the shield zone had already arranged their escape route through their own people who transported necessities and manure (thinking of this, Thales' face darkened again): two packhorses would graze and watch them docilely.

Perhaps the adventures in the Blackpath were too exciting, because for a moment after escaping, Thales almost forgot their primary purpose for this trip.

But when he thought back on it, he was filled with mixed feelings.

Thales breathed in the fresh, grassy air, looked at the tenacious wild grass at his feet, and in the distance, at the coniferous forests unique to the North and the few evergreen trees, and couldn't help but sigh:
Six years.

He left Longxiao City.

The prince would occasionally glance back at the distant peak, imagining the bustling, chaotic streets and the imposing, majestic palace on the other side of the mountain.

He shook his head and concluded the past with a smile.

"And do they even know where they're going?" Krz frowned.

“Yes, I know the direction, and I know which places are checkpoints and I can’t go,” Thales recalled the map and the route Raphael had pointed out to him, and found it fairly clear. “Don’t worry, someone will meet me up ahead.”

and……

Thales stood on the ground, feeling the strange pulse beneath his feet.

He whispered, "I know the way."

Kerz stood with one hand on his hip, staring intently at him, as if he knew some secret about him.

This made Thales uneasy.

“Alright,” after a moment, the seamstress shrugged, “when you’ve arrived, let go of the reins…”

"This is the old horse of the Faron family; it knows how to go home by itself."

Speaking of which...

Thales looked at the horse with a worried expression.

He remained fully alert, tentatively pulling on the reins, ready to dodge the opponent's flying hooves at any moment.

But he was immediately stunned.

"What's wrong?" Krzy asked.

“It’s nothing,” Thales said in surprise, pulling on the reins as the old horse obediently came closer. He tentatively reached out to stroke its head. “I just… I’ve never really gotten along with animals… horses are one of them, but today…”

The old horse of the Fallon family looked at him obediently, and even stuck out its tongue to lick Thales's palm, showing affection.

Thales suddenly felt a great sense of accomplishment.

What's going on today?
A boon for single people? Even the animals are behaving like this?
He blinked, feeling that the world was truly wondrous. Then, recalling Nikolai's riding instruction from his memory, he deftly mounted his horse.

Krz glanced at the obedient old horse, then looked at him with disdain: "Tch, judging by how familiar you are with this place, you must have ridden quite a few good horses before, right?"

Thales raised an eyebrow in exasperation and prepared to leave.

"and many more."

Krz suddenly spoke, revealing a sinister smile:
"Here's a final gift for you, come here."

"Let me tell you a little secret about Griveaux."

Thales responded in astonishment.

But relying on the bond they formed from their shared experience of escaping life and death in the cave, he obediently rode forward and leaned down to put his ear close.

Griveaux's little secret?
Could it be...

Little did he know, just as he bent down on horseback, Krzy grabbed him by the neck, revealing a wicked grin on his face.

Thales was startled.

The next second, Krzy tiptoed forward and affectionately leaned close to Thales's cheek...

"Boom."

He kissed Thales on the lips.

Thales was taken aback for a moment.

The next second, he was so shocked that his jaw dropped!

"you you you!"

"What are you doing!"

With a look of terror on his face, Thales reacted dramatically, pulling on the reins and backing away while wiping his lips!
He felt the touch on his lips, then pointed incredulously at the grinning Krzyze: "You...you...you—"

"Hahahaha!" Krz, leaning on a tree branch, burst into laughter, bending over with mirth. "Little brat, that reaction is hilarious..."

Thales stared blankly at Kerz, realizing that the other only thought the action was... a prank?

She took this as a prank?

"Is there any mistake?"

Thales forced himself to put on a disgusted face, wiping his lips as he said angrily, "Hey, hey, hey—this joke isn't funny at all!"

"Who do you think you are...?"

"Oh, not interesting?"

Kuz's eyes darted around, and she lightly licked her lips with her tongue, giving him a sly wink at him on horseback: "What, do you want to take it a step further?"

Startled, Thales pulled on the reins again and leaped back a step.

Thales was in a state of confusion, feeling as if the whole world was filled with malice—he really didn't know what expression to wear when facing this rude and violent woman.

"Tch," Krz said disdainfully, observing his reaction.
"It couldn't have been his first kiss, could it? How lame!"

Thales's expression darkened; his pride told him he couldn't show weakness.

"Hmph, you self-important woman!" Thales said with a disdainful expression. "My first kiss was much prettier than yours!"

However, he was a ruthless and deranged killer.

His response was a burst of laughter from Krzyzee.

Feeling awkward, Thales shook his head sheepishly and prepared to turn the reins and leave.

"Thank you, kid."

Krzy's voice drifted over.

Somewhat subdued.

Thales turned around in confusion.

"remember."

“When you grow up, you have to be a good man,” Krzys said, his face darkening slightly. “You have to be able to take responsibility, the kind of man people can rely on.”

Even in the deepest darkness.

She was lost in thought, her expression forlorn.

Don't know what to think.

I paused for a moment, feeling a pang of sadness.

“Thank you, Krzysz,” he said quietly.

But Krzy chuckled and shook his head.

"Kez is a nickname, not my real name."

Thales looked puzzled.

“The cripple has a lisp, and he thinks my name is too long, so… over the years, I’ve gotten used to ‘Kez’.” Kez ran his right hand through his bangs, tossed his head back, and smoothly combed his messy hair to the back of his head.

With her head toss and waist extensions, Krzysz's movements were fluid, natural, and graceful, and combined with her beautiful figure, they possessed an unusual aesthetic appeal.

In that instant, Thales suddenly had a thought that made him slightly ashamed:
The woman in front of me with her rough voice... seems quite charming?
Thales coughed softly and quickly shook his head, banishing the boring thoughts and the strange feeling of his lips returning to their dampness from his mind.

“Christina,” Krzysz smiled sweetly:
“Christina Ramon, that’s my real name.”

Thales shrugged: "Well, Miss Ramon..."

But he was immediately taken aback.

“Ramon…” Thales chewed on the surname, his expression changing slightly.

The way he looked at Krzysz was different now.

“I heard from Grevo that your father was a military doctor?”

Krz frowned: "Yeah, a madman. He wasn't normal even before he disappeared."

"And the biggest thing I learned from him was how to sew—whether it's a dead person or a living person."

She shook her head disdainfully, clearly not taking her father seriously.

"Is that so?" Thales's mood was strange and hard to describe at this moment: "How did you come to Dragonsky City and to the Shield District?"

Krz paused slightly.

“More than twenty years ago, my father shoved me into the hands of an old colleague and disappeared,” Krzysz shrugged. “I ran into some jerks and a bunch of crap in the army… and then I met a cripple who took me out.”

A few seconds later.

Thales said with difficulty, "What's your missing father's name? Maybe I can help you find him."

Krz fell silent.

“Cobb, or Cobb? I can’t remember,” she waved her hand dismissively. “It doesn’t matter, I’ve always considered him dead anyway…”

Krzys scoffed, "I never expected anything from him."

But she immediately noticed that Thales trembled slightly.

The prince hesitated, his expression unusually grave.

He lowered his eyes.

It was as if he dared not face her.

"What's wrong?" Kuz asked, puzzled. She then deliberately gave a shy smile, curling the corners of her mouth, and teased her again, "Oh, are you reluctant to part with me? Do you want to marry me and take me back to the castle?"

But Thales had no intention of making fun of him.

He didn't pay any attention to what Krzys said, and just nodded nervously.

“Kez, I’ll keep an eye out,” the prince said in a low voice as he turned his horse around. “If I can find him.”

“Find your father.”

He said sadly, "And thank you."

"Miss Ramon."

Krz looked at him strangely, but ultimately said nothing, only scoffed lightly and waved at him with a slightly serious expression.

"Take care of yourself."

"Little brat prince".

Thales dared not look back.

The next second, he raised the reins and galloped off in the direction he remembered.

Take Dragon Sky City, along with the memories of that place...

Left behind. ————

The sun is setting in the west.

Thales rode cautiously through the wilderness outside Dragonstreet, neither too fast nor too slow.

He remembered the rendezvous point Raphael had marked on the map—Dragon Sky City was still under lockdown, with guards and searches still in place inside the city. He was very close to the rendezvous point, and if he could get out of the city smoothly, he could arrive in less than a day.

Nevertheless, he proceeded with caution, seeking out hilly and wooded areas, preferring to take detours to ensure safety, staying away from checkpoints, villages, and any inhabited places, and using his "hellish senses" to observe his surroundings in each new location.

Even though he was very tired, he tried not to linger or rest too much, and ate and drank the dry food and water that Kez had prepared for him on horseback.

Thanks to Professor Nicolai for teaching him riding skills, he drove around for most of the day, trying his best to avoid some farmers and woodcutters working in the fields, praying that they would not notice the suspicious traveler, and finally arrived at the designated meeting point near dusk.

Thales saw the coniferous forest that Raphael had told him about, and after comparing it with the surrounding iconic hills, he breathed a sigh of relief upon confirming that it was right in front of him.

According to the plan, the first wave of Secret Service personnel will wait for him here and escort him across the boundaries of Luanshiling, Muxuehe and Maocheng to the Wasteland—the border between Qiyuan City and Longxiao City.

Thales used his hellish senses to try and detect any movement in the bushes. Only after confirming that there were only ordinary bird calls and small animals running around did he breathe a sigh of relief.

He rode into the bushes, dismounted in front of a tall cedar tree, and patted the old horse's neck gratefully.

The old horse snorted in response, then happily began munching on the weeds under the tree—though it wasn't fast, its temperament was far better than that of Lady Jenny in the Valhalla stables.

Thales turned around, took another deep breath of the wild air, and looked with satisfaction at the small coniferous forest that was usually deserted and therefore chosen by the Secret Service as a meeting place.

He sat down against the tree, took out his water bag, and poured a mouthful of water into his parched lips to relieve the soreness in his limbs and the friction damage on his inner thighs from climbing the black trail.

The first step has been completed.

Thales said quietly, drawing a small circle in the soil with his finger: the hardest hurdle is over, and Dragon City is already behind him.

He drew a large circle to the west.

He was in the western forest of the Chaotic Stone Mausoleum—one of the largest fiefdoms under Dragon Sky City, under the rule of the elderly Earl Nazel—and further southwest, he would cross a tributary of the Twilight Snow River.

Thales continued to draw a line downwards.

After crossing the river, he could reach Spear City, which was under the jurisdiction of Dragon Sky City, and then head to the Wasteland—that was the territory of Qiyuan City. Further south from the Wasteland, the Great Desert lay before him.

Once inside the desert, you'll encounter the army of the Star Kingdom.

Thales was lost in thought.

Just then, he suddenly heard a strange bird call.

Ok?
Have the agreed-upon personnel arrived?

Thiels stood up curiously, wanting to search in the twilight forest—

"boom!"

Just a breath later, almost the instant he heard the loud bang, Thales felt a sharp pain in his back!
He lost his balance due to the immense force from behind.

He fell to the ground with a thud!

The pain in his jaw had just begun, and before Thales' nerves could even register anything, he felt a tightness in his back!
boom!
Heavy pressure is coming.

Thales was shocked to discover that his hands were being firmly gripped!

how--

Thales instinctively tried to struggle, but then he realized that he was pinned to the ground, his hands were tied behind his back, and he couldn't move. Even the Sin of the River of Hell hadn't reacted yet!

Snapped!
His water bag finally landed, weakly dripping water into the soil.

"Wow!" A somewhat familiar male voice rang out, sounding like a booming gong, and laughed loudly, "Look what I caught!"

"A big, lively fish!"

Upon hearing the voice, Thales realized something and his face turned deathly pale!
The prince gritted his teeth, strained to lift his head, and looked behind him with his face covered in mud: "It's you!"

Thales cried out in grief and indignation:

"Death Raven!"

At the prince's angry shout, a flock of birds flew away from the bushes.

Under the setting sun, in the golden thicket, one could see the vanguard of the Qiyuan City delegation, Ned Monty, one of the Five War Generals, kneeling on Thales' back, pressing down on his struggling hands.

With a malicious smile, the Deathrattle slowly approached Thales' ear:

"Hush...little prince."

"For our convenience, let's be a little quieter... okay?"

Thales could only see the other person's brown hair out of the corner of his eye.

But he could sense that Monty's technique for suppressing him was very professional. No matter whether he rolled over or kicked, he was in the worst possible position and couldn't exert any force at all!
Not to mention that Thales had already exhausted most of his strength because of the Black Path.

The prince's mood darkened.

he……

How could it be him?
Why is he here?

Where are the secret police?
and many more!

Doesn't that mean...

Monty's smile was somewhat sinister, tinged with the excitement of catching prey, as he softly asked, "Are you looking for someone from the Kingdom's Secret Service?"

In that instant, Thales' pupils suddenly contracted!
His heart skipped a beat.

"Sorry, they're all very busy right now..."

Monty's words chilled Thales to the bone.

Everyone is "busy"...

Thales looked around in disbelief: the quiet jungle, the silent air, all seemed lifeless.

Yes, the people from the Secret Service should have been waiting for me here long ago.

but……

There was no sound at all...

what happened?

“The kind of ‘busy’ you’re unwilling to do, you know?” The Death Crow chuckled, sending a chill down one’s spine for no reason: “So I volunteered and generously, ‘voluntarily’ took the job from them.”

He licked his lips, looked at Thales, who was twisting his head in pain, and chuckled coldly with the pleasure of toying with his prey: "I've come to greet you."

"What's wrong? Are you unhappy?"

The sins of the River of Hell surged into his mind, and Thales forced himself to calm down.

How did he know about this place?
Isn't this... a meeting place known only to the secret service?

Is there a traitor within the secret service?

Was it an intelligence leak?
Or—was it all intentional on the part of the Secret Service, part of their plan?
Just like six years ago?
Thinking of this, Thales immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

"How did you get out? I remember the Meteorites clearly sealed off the entire Dragon Sky City, and most of the powerful and wealthy were inside, especially the Qiyuan City delegation whose interests are closely related to mine!"

The other party simply scoffed: "Aha, my relationship with that troublemaker is far more complicated than you imagine!"

Thales took a deep breath, his nose filled with the smell of soil.

hateful!

"You...you want to kidnap me and take me to Qiyuan City?" The prince turned his head and said with difficulty.

Monty's chilling laughter echoed again, emanating in a sinister tone:

"Hehehehehe—I don't think so, this is a good choice too."

"You and Ian, don't you get along very well?" A strangely fervent and satisfied smile spread across his face, like a madman.

"He kept asking me to 'treat' you well if I ever had the chance to meet you..."

Monty suddenly increased the pressure on his hand, and Thales cried out in pain.

But he didn't have time to deal with that.

In the Hall of Heroes, at the end of the day of hearings, Viscount Ian Ronnie of Wind City appeared before Thales with his ferocious face and harsh words.

As the cold wind blew at dusk, Thales felt a chill run through his body.

The soil beneath them was chillingly cold.

Oops.

He quickly recalled everything he knew about Monty.

Ned Monty.

The death cry of the crow.

Scouts and vanguards who participated in the wars against the Free Alliance and White Mountain.

Five generals, former bayonet guards, and Nikolai's old colleagues and subordinates.

Now, he is a nobleman of Qiyuan City and the advance officer of the mission.

He is eccentric, speaks without restraint, and has a creepy smile.

"Wait a minute!"

Thales stopped thinking and gritted his teeth as he spoke.

Monty's terrifying laughter paused slightly.

“You might want to consider this,” Thales said coldly, despite his disheveled appearance and the threat to his life, “Prince Star has disappeared in Dragon City.”

"But a month later, I mysteriously appeared in Qiyuan City..."

"Do you know what this means?"

Monty stopped smiling, but his light-colored eyes remained fixed on Thales.

His eyes held a chilling intensity.

“You should also know that I am the key to the war between Qiyuan City and the Free Alliance,” Thales sneered. “And if I propose to Grand Duke Ronnie that Starry Sky can help them, on the condition that…”

Just then, the Death Crow suddenly burst into laughter!

"Hahahahahahahahaha!"

Thales was slightly taken aback by the interruption.

"Ahhh!" Monty looked delighted, his face beaming with excitement, his smile widening even further. He stared at Thales, looking rather chilling. "I remember now, a professional told me that..."

"Thales Star may be small, but he's a lot of trouble..."

"Therefore, we have the necessary rules for dealing with the Little Prince."

Thales was slightly taken aback: "What?"

Dealing with me...

Necessary criteria?

Monty's expression darkened, and he chuckled softly twice.

For some reason, Thales felt a sense of dread; he instinctively felt that something was wrong!
"The first rule..."

The smile of the Death Raven melted away, as if ice had turned to icy water, yet it still chilled the heart to the bone:
"Shut him up."

The next second, Monty's expression turned serious, and his right elbow struck the boy's head heavily like lightning!
"Boom!"

A heavy, muffled thud.

This was the last sound Thales heard before he lost consciousness.

(End of this chapter)