The past was built upon collecting unique characteristics.

After saying that, he said no more; the meaning of his words was already clear.

Morian took a breath. From their respective accounts, one could see how two souls influenced and complemented each other over a long period of time.

"Your Highness, rather than dying for the light in your heart, have you ever thought that you should live for it?" he sincerely suggested.

"To live for this..." Eric repeated softly, his gaze returning to the album cover.

After a moment, he spoke softly:

"Sometimes I think, how wonderful it would be if time could stand still in the past... but I have no future."

After a self-deprecating, bitter laugh, Eric looked up at the clock on the wall, a hint of weariness in his voice.

"Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Thias."

"However, I still have some royal matters to attend to. I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave now."

"...I understand, Your Highness."

Even though he was a little worried, Morian had no choice but to take over the conversation, get up from the sofa, and bow respectfully.

"It is my honor to hear your story with Ms. Laurent."

Eric gave a gentle smile, a smile that contained gratitude, but also a more complex emotion. He didn't say anything more, but simply made a "please" gesture.

After bowing again, Morian turned and walked towards the door, leaving the sandalwood-scented study.

The spacious study was suddenly empty except for one person, making it seem a bit too quiet.

After a moment, the prince couldn't help but reach out and touch his chest, his face as pale as paper.

……

After passing through several long corridors, Morian arrived smoothly at the west exit of the White Rose Palace, showed his token, and stepped out of the white palace.

The morning sun was still bright, bringing a rare warmth to those who were busy in the morning.

If we want to enjoy such warm sunshine again in winter, we'll have to wait until after the new year at the earliest.

He paused briefly outside the door, then raised his hand to flag down a passing horse-drawn carriage.

The driver was a robust young man. Morian glanced at the carriage; it was empty, perhaps because the driver had just come out to meet customers.

"Go to the Maria neighborhood, near the Schramberg Café."

After paying two shillings, the carriage wheels slowly turned, gradually leaving the White Rose Palace behind.

Morian leaned against the interior wall of the carriage, closed his eyes to rest, and at the same time sorted out the known information and the tasks to be done.

Before long, the carriage stopped on a relatively quiet street, where familiar plane trees and cobblestone streets came into view, and the dark sign of Schramberg Café appeared in sight.

After paying the fare and getting out of the car, Morian quickly scanned his surroundings and spotted Charlotte not far from the café.

She was wearing a light-colored jacket today, her light brown hair pulled back, and she stood patiently waiting.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Charlotte immediately turned her head, and was slightly taken aback when their eyes met, clearly not used to the changed appearance of the human skin mask.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." Morian scratched his face a little embarrassedly.

"You've come at just the right time," Charlotte said with a well-placed smile. "I just arrived myself."

Although he knew the other party was just being polite, Morian didn't have time for pleasantries and asked directly:

"How's it going? Any news from Gavin the Knight?"

"Yes, I contacted them yesterday."

Charlotte nodded and said cheerfully:

"Gavin Solder, now thirty-six years old, served in the Royal Guard Knights. He was discharged two years ago due to amputation. He is not from the Kingdom of Hiran, but is a descendant of immigrants from the Southern Continent."

...Southern Continent?

Upon hearing the information provided, Morian immediately became suspicious.

Anyone in the Hiran who has even a little knowledge of history knows that the western countries and the inhabitants of the southern continent have been at odds since ancient times.

The reason for this can be traced back two hundred years. After the reform of navigation technology, many wealthy merchants organized private teams to plunder resources, which later even developed into aggression.

Of course, the kingdom itself must have had support in this, otherwise those private mercenaries alone could not have posed a serious threat to the native inhabitants of the South Continent.

It's just too strange to think that someone from the Southern Continent would be chosen to become a Royal Knight...

Don't members of the royal family check bloodlines?!

"What's Gavin's contact address?" Morian asked.

Charlotte took a folded piece of paper from her small bag:

"This is his current address and general situation. After retiring, he lived in poverty for a time, but later found a job on a farm in the suburbs, where he was responsible for guarding and doing simple labor."

After taking the note, Morian quickly glanced at the information on it. The address was in a place called "Valan Farm" on the outskirts of Bet City, which mainly raised sheep and grew feed crops.

His eyes flickered, and he pondered for a moment:

"What is this retired knight's current attitude towards the royal family?"

If Gavin was ostracized, or if there were other hidden reasons behind his joining the Knights, then the possibility of him providing useful information would greatly increase.

"According to the family's servants, he has no attachment to the Knights, and is even somewhat indifferent to them," Charlotte gave a fairly truthful answer.

"Alright, time is of the essence, let's go now." Morian nodded seriously.

After saying that, the two left the café one after the other and found a horse-drawn carriage at the end of the street.

After he paid the price of four shillings, the carriage drove out of the street and headed towards the outskirts of the city.

Soon, as building density decreased, the roads became increasingly bumpy, and large tracts of farmland and scattered farmhouses began to appear along the roadside.

These lands and farmhouses are not privately owned; most are rented out for cultivation. Some shrewd farmers even propose renting them out first and returning them to them once the workers have earned money—such progressive ideas.

From today's perspective, it's unbelievable that such a thing happened to those stingy farmers, but this practice did indeed earn them a lot of gold pounds.

About forty minutes later, the carriage stopped in an open grassland area.

Not far ahead, several simple wooden houses and wooden fences form a small farm.

The fresh air of the grassland was filled with the distinctive stench of livestock. The bleating of sheep reached my ears, and looking around, I could see several flocks of sheep kept in different enclosures.

Behind the farm, the outline of a suburban town can be vaguely seen, with a building resembling a post office standing there.

"This is it," Charlotte said softly, jumping down from the carriage first.

Morian followed closely behind, got out of the car, and looked around.

The farm is not large, but it employs quite a few workers. Some are lazy and simply lean against the fence, while others carry feed around.