Chapter 024: King's Will

The next day, the King's Palace.

Sunlight streamed in through the window, casting into the bedroom.

On the bed in the bedroom, King Donnas lay in a fitful slumber under a thin blanket.

After a while, Donnas opened his eyes, staring vacantly at the ceiling, his eyes occasionally wandering.

As his mind gradually cleared, he turned his head to the side. Mr. Delon was standing there, raspingly asking, "William... and Richard, are they here?"

"They're all here, and they've been waiting outside for a while, Your Majesty," Delon answered quietly.

"Mmm." Donnas listened, closed his eyes, as if he had fallen asleep again. After a long while, he reopened them, slowly sitting up from the bed, and said to Delon, "Let them in."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Delon immediately walked briskly to the bedroom door, and momentarily returned with the two Princes following behind.

Leading in front was Prince William, dressed in ordinary clothes, with no sense of grandeur. His eyes carried a tinge of sadness as he quickly walked to Donnas's bedside, half-knelt, and greeted, "Father, are you feeling better?"

Richard walked calmly behind, his face devoid of any emotion. He approached King Donnas and said, without any discernible emotion, "Honored father—King Donnas, greetings."

"Cough, cough!" Donnas coughed several times, his complexion far worse than it had been over a month ago. He first grasped William's hand, patting it, then looked at Richard and said, "You... do you hate me this much, to remember what happened three years ago for so long?"

"Not at all."

"Sigh." Donnas sighed, somewhat helpless, saying, "Pour me a glass of wine, and then stand with your brother, William. I want to talk to both of you."

Richard's eyes flickered briefly, but he said nothing. He stepped to the side of the bedroom, took out a cup and poured half a cup of wine. Sunlight from the window illuminated the cup, revealing fine black particles swirling before settling to the bottom.

Richard brought the wine to Donnas, noticing the extended hand, whose skin was deeply pigmented, appearing as if tinged with pigmentation, with corn-sized bumps on the palm.

As the hand was raised, its deep color turned pale, then purplish, then flushed, before returning to its original deep color—classic Raynaud's syndrome.

Watching the black particles settle to the bottom of the cup, Richard handed it to Donnas, saying, "You'd better drink less of this wine, my dear father!"

William turned his head, somewhat puzzled, and said, "Brother, what are you saying? Father is ill, racked with pain; only wine can relieve it. How can he drink less?"

"Indeed, William is right," Donnas said, raising the cup to his mouth and taking a gulp, he caught his breath before speaking, "Without this wine, I couldn't bear it a day. By the way, I owe much to William; the wine he brought tastes far better than any I've had before."

Richard said nothing, only shaking his head slightly.

Donnas lifted the cup again, drank the wine within it heartily, his complexion appearing slightly better as the alcohol numbed his senses, improving his spirit considerably. He looked at William and Richard and said, "Initially, I thought I might survive this winter, but my illness has worsened recently. It's likely I'll meet your mothers sooner than expected. I summoned you today to entrust you with some matters."

"The Blue Lion Kingdom, though small with only a population of tens of thousands, is still a nation. Therefore, I wish to entrust it to the capable hands of William. It's not that I deem you inferior, Richard... cough, cough... but clearly, your interests lie elsewhere.

So, come this autumn when the Baihua Forest outside the city turns yellow, I will leave the city, move there, and meet my end there, to be buried there. At that time, William will inherit my throne. As for you, Richard, you will be made a Duke, with a large territory. As long as you don't cause trouble for your brother, you'll live in peace."

Raising a hand to stop William from speaking, Donnas closed his eyes, concentrated his spirit again, and slowly said, "Do not refuse; this is my already made decision. However it turns, I hope that after my death, both of you will live well, maintaining this country well. Additionally..."

...

A long moment after, the two Princes, William and Richard, having heard what seemed to be King Donnas's final words, left the palace.

Outside the palace, their Personal Guards had been waiting for a long time. They immediately followed, and the two men quickly broke into two separate groups.

The sound of footsteps echoed on the palace's square, the two groups walking silently to the end, heading in opposite directions. Suddenly, William stopped, turning his head to look at Richard, and called out, "Richard! Brother!"

"Hmm?" Richard stopped, showing an inquisitive look.

At this moment, William's eyes still held an indelible sadness, and he spoke with a somewhat depressed tone, "My dear brother, with Father like this, I believe neither of us is in good spirits. If one day Father really passes away, the Blue Lion Kingdom will have only us two Royal Family members left.

We two brothers haven't sat down and had a good talk in a long time. Today, I invite you to have dinner with me in my palace. Although I have recently been economizing to find a physician for Father, leading to simpler meals, I hope you won't mind."

"I don't mind." Richard shook his head calmly, then calmly said, "But I don't have time."

"Well, this..."

"We'll talk some other time, my dear brother—Prince William, goodbye." Richard waved his hand, turned, and left, with his Personal Guard following closely. Edward, as the captain of the Personal Guard, glanced warily at William.

William stood in place, watching Richard's group fade into the distance, and couldn't help but shake his head with a bitter smile.

"Your Highness!" A voice came from behind William; it was his Personal Guard Captain, unlike Edward, not a Noble, but a loyal Soldier. At this moment, he spoke with slight anger, "Your Highness, Lord Richard was too much. You clearly had good intentions, yet he..."

The Personal Guard Captain's words abruptly stopped because William was staring at him coldly, eyes like knives!

"Prince... Your Highness, you..."

"Remember one thing," William said deliberately, "no matter what Richard does or says, he is still my brother. Besides Father, only I may judge him; no one else can! Do you—understand?"

"I... understand..."

"Good, then go back," William said.

"But your Highness, with Lord Richard not attending dinner, should the kitchen continue to prepare?" the Personal Guard Captain asked softly.

Recently, William had said to economize and had been following through, eating only breakfast, lunch, and a simple dinner, consisting of a white bread and some jam.

Today, however, to invite Richard, though not overly lavish, William had the kitchen prepare something a little special. But clearly, Richard not attending the dinner would largely be...

Unexpectedly, William spoke, "Let the kitchen continue preparing. My dear brother isn't attending, but perhaps other guests might come."

"Ah?"

"Don't ask more."

"Yes," the Personal Guard Captain quickly said, lowering his head.