I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 147 Three years later

When Milady woke up, she habitually touched the bedpost beside her. Hidden under the veil were her dagger and her spare staff, while the other staff, which was only used for disguise, was leaning against a nearby one. On the wall, Milady made a lot of comments about the magician's staff, among which is that it is too conspicuous, especially those used to cast powerful magic, and the length is too high to even disguise as a staff-in In the inner world, it is not that no one has objected to the length and size of the staff, but the problem is that the production and research of the staff requires a lot of money - whether it is materials, personnel or places - the research of magic is often accompanied by strong Explosion or invisible poison, without a wizard casting protective spells all the time, the work would not last a day.

The big family in the inner world has this ability, but first of all, they rarely leave the inner world. Unlike ordinary wizards who work for mortals to make a living in the outer world, they have no need to hide their identities, and because of "tradition" , what they advocate is the kind of tall and high staff in the literal sense, and Milady sometimes wonders with malice whether they will use these sticks for another obscene purpose, and insist not to use them. Make it thin and make it shorter.

Of course, only the king has such a handwriting and supports this idea. Although the state of the treasury is not impressive, Mr. Varo Vesalius has indeed given him new inspiration. Yes, in the inner world, almost every wizard has learned it. How to make potions, of course, there are very few like Vesalius, but compared to people who show the world, even scholars, these wizards have far more hands-on ability and subtle ideas than the latter, after all, in another world , The fetus of chemistry is born from the son of alchemy. Although there are wizards, werewolves and vampires in this world, some basic laws still exist.

The    was originally put on hold by the king, and the mastery and research of the inner world was brought to the table again. Although there are still not many people who know about this matter, Milady is absolutely clear.

It was for this reason that Milady smiled to herself, and that night three years ago, she would boldly come to Madame Lavalier and stab her with words full of venom, like a knight. To stab his horse with a spur, force this poor man who doesn't look like a werewolf to completely abandon his cowardice and rationality. As for whether she will be bruised and **** in the future, this is not something Milady has to consider.

Leaning on the soft goose feather pillow, Milady played with the dagger drawn from the shadows of the drapery. The dagger was pitch black, without reflection, and without gold and diamonds, but narrow and pointed, like a dagger. The awl, a dagger said to be forged from meteorite iron, was given to her by the king on the night she spoke with Madame Lavalier.

At that time, when she was intercepted by Bontang and was summoned to meet His Majesty in the king's study, Milady was not afraid - as Vesalius said, her behavior was not approved by the king, she only resorted to Instinct and an unspeakably odd foreboding, she used this ability, which might be called a witch, to evade parental abuse and fill her stomach when she was a little girl, and when she grew up a little, she took this from her. The men put money in their pockets. She escaped the torture of the jailer and the jealousy of the mortals in the prison when she was in prison. It was also thanks to this ability. When she saw the cardinal for the second time, She's still relying on this - wait until she becomes a witch to know that it may be some kind of lineage, going back to the roots, wizards, or those who can become wizards, have more or less inhuman blood in their bodies , even if these bloodlines flow into the outer world, I don't know if they will burst out in a certain descendant at a certain time - some lucky children become wizards and are led into the inner world, and some unlucky ones will be exposed after exposure. Killed by her own parents or others, and others like her, it was no coincidence that the king chose her, and she might not guess that she was a wizard until many years later.

In front of the king, she always felt that the things she relied on might not be so reliable, perhaps because the king did not fear magic like other mortals, no, it should be said that he did not even fear magic like a wizard. , just another form of gunpowder or fertilizer, and as soon as he saw it, he wondered how he should use it, not flee or worship.

Therefore, Milady felt that she liked the king, not because he was a king, or because he had the potential to become a powerful wizard, or because His Majesty was indeed a handsome man, but because he was in some places with Milady. Like Rydy—she means, nothing deserves their knees.

   "What a terrible crime." Milady muttered to himself.

   That night, when she saw the king, before she could decide whether to apologize or plead guilty first, the king took the lead and thanked her.

This made Milady a little surprised, because she had served many nobles before. Even Mazarin, Mr. Bishop, would despise her because of the dirty things she did, although these things were not arranged by them. What they imply, Milady's behavior that night can only be said to have guessed some of the king's thoughts, and then went straight to it - she had no idea that the king would admit that he had such thoughts, the werewolf Cleland let His own daughter had inherited his power, and perhaps there was a reason to keep the king from taking full advantage of the Serbian werewolves - anyway, persecuting a vulnerable lady shouldn't be something a gentleman should do.

But this obviously goes against the original intention of the king. The position of a royal lady is also an extremely important bargaining chip. Madame Lavalier and her master may have also done something for the king, but their return is still less than this bargaining chip. Far from enough.

So Milady did it, but the king thanked her and almost admitted that he was taking advantage of Madame Lavalier—although many people are doing it, but once such a thing is exposed to the world, the king's Reputation must be lost.

Even if Milady, or Bontang, who was by the king's side, would never say it, but why did the king admit it? The tragic fruit has been swallowed, and only Madame Lavalier, the Duchess of Colonna and Milady will swallow it, and it will never affect the king one bit.

   "But if I dare not even admit it," said the king, "then I will despise myself." Mary, and Louise, had indeed disappointed him. What he needs is generals who can break down and clarify the world for him, but they are still entangled in the personal and family interests and interests, worrying about little things all day long, and can't see the outside world at all.

   "If only they could be like Milady," said Louie.

This sentence still makes Milady feel ridiculous now, "Your Majesty," she said at that time: "This is not a good thing." She stared at the king, and it was hard to imagine such a person living in a deep palace, His Majesty, who is surrounded by some famous and distinguished nobles, is so concerned and familiar with the outside world. By the way, maybe it is because this Majesty has also been in exile outside for many years - or Because he is the king after all..." Whether it's the Duchess of Colonna or the Duchess of La Vallière, even in the hardest times, they don't see the darkest and scariest things, almost all the ladies That's all," she explained.

"As now, you can't accuse them of not seeing the outside world, because that's how they were... educated," Milady said: "What I need to fight for with my life, Your Majesty, if you will Rei-ichi, they can get it right away, or rather, they already got it - if that's the case, why would they let themselves suffer so much, it's a matter of course, Your Majesty, nothing to say."

   "Then what if I ask you to come back to Paris?" asked the king jokingly.

   "Oh, that's still not enough." Milady said quickly: "I am a poisonous snake, Your Majesty, whoever sees it will take a bite."

   "What about Mary and Louise?"

   "Whatever they are, Your Majesty," said Milady, "they are going to fight."

"This matter is handed over to you, since you have already done it," Louis said, "I only have two requirements. First, what I need is an inner world that can be grasped in my hands. It can be incomplete and changeable. Weak, but I don't want a second voice in there; second, if you can't control the chaos before, during and after, I say, temporarily, then you at least keep little Lucy safe." Then He paused. "And you, and the safety of those I need."

   "You will get what you want, Your Majesty," said Milady.

Then she got the dagger given by the king. This dagger has a very special feature, that is, it can penetrate the barrier or protection of magic. After returning to the inner world, Milady has used it many times. - Subordinates who want to betray, untimely suitors, become obstacles and burdensome collaborators - In the last category, many of them are surnamed Mancini.

  ——-

  Mancini, a surname that, in recent years, has become almost synonymous with power and glory on Gayola, the large island hidden by wizards.

If a few years ago, Mancini was only one of the owners of this island, then it is now the uncrowned king. Of course, with the increasingly scarce resources on the island, there is an endless stream of people from the surface world. Wheat, animal meat, sugar, salt and grease, etc., and even drinking water, bear the Mancini family name, and thousands of wizards are working for the Mancini family's new industry - a few years ago, The people in the council are still racking their brains with gladiators, bread and light wine to ease the sharp contradictions between the members of the big family and ordinary wizards, but now they don't need it at all. The arena is empty, and the wizards are running for Manche. The Ni family has done things, not only in the inner world, but also in the outer world. It is said that in the outer world they are paid more and get better treatment-they were also hesitant from the beginning (for most wizards who grew up in the inner world) For example, the surface world is very hard and terrifying), and it has become what it is now - every wizard who goes to the surface world needs to go through layers of selection and identification, from mastering the skills of magic and potions to obeying Sex and personal character are required.

  Just like this, there is still an endless stream of applicants, and some families are complaining that their servants have all run away, and they can only let the soulless corpse do things that don’t need to be thought about with their heads.

And the one who holds this right is not a Mancini, but a foreign wizard, but because of her special status, even the Duchess of Colonna has kept silent - or the former's rights are not only that, she He is also responsible for the enlightenment education of the Duke of Colonna.

When he saw Milady, the little Duke of Colonna couldn't help but smile. He is four years old this year. In the outer world, his identity is awkward, but in the inner world, he is of orthodox and noble origin, and there is no doubt that he is by his side. Of course, the teachers, maids and stewards installed by the Mancini family are indispensable, but who is Milady? She likes chaos, and she is good at creating chaos. Those people either died because of fighting with each other, or they were killed by her. The support of the king for her and the army she cultivated in the inner world have also ensured that her position will not be destroyed by her. Easily shaken.

It stands to reason that Marie Mancini can be in charge or control of little Lucy's enlightenment education, but in the past three years, Milady has ensured the balance between the Duchess of Colonna and Madame Lavalier, When they were competing with each other, it was difficult for them to devote their energy to anyone other than the king, so that little Lucy stayed in Milady's hands, and it was not good for Milady to make this little guy feel good about himself. What a difficult task, it is rare to have him embrace his admiration and nostalgia for his father, who he only sees once in a few months.

   Now it seems that the effect is not bad.

   "Ma'am," Lucy asked, "Can't my father come to see me this month?"

"There is an urgent matter that the king needs to deal with." Milady naturally took little Lucy's hand and walked him through the courtyard. If there is anything in the inner world that is better than the outer world, it is probably magic. Along with the monsters, walking slowly beside them was a docile little unicorn. Even though he had seen it many times, Milady couldn't help but be attracted by the moonlight-like fur and graceful posture.

   "May I know what it is?" Lucy asked: "Or do I need any help?"

Milady couldn't help laughing when he heard the words. The little Duke of Colonna just started exercising some of his powers a few days ago, such as hearing cases and promulgating laws, so he is now very keen to ask people if they need his help. For his father , The rights that King Louis of France has, and his existing rights, this four-year-old child is still a little vague, but this will be enough.

"Your Majesty will be very happy to hear you say that." Milady said, "But this matter—it's hard to say whether it needs to be dealt with..." Although she wanted to, the king was afraid that he would not allow it, and it was more difficult than pulling In the case of Mrs. Valier, this is about to touch the bottom line of the king.

   "Philip IV of Spain is dead," said Milady, bowing his head, "and his son succeeds him—that is, Carlos II."

   (end of this chapter)