Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 542: The problems of the emperor (2)

Adriana has always been a strong candidate for the throne in Arial mind. But, there is always a worry in Arial mind that the throe is not something that his sister wanted.

But as for her capability. It might not be tested fully, but Arial had faith in his sister. 

So, he is not worried that the factions would be able to manipulate his sister. However, as for his daughter? She is too young to know the game the high lords play.

She is not a chatur player. She is the chatur pieces. And the same could be said about the Bonaparte family. They are also just a chatur pieces of the chatur players that hides inside the darkness

But just because they are manipulated, does not mean that they bear no fault in this matter. If what the report said is true, then they are the impetus for the current crisis gripping the Empire.

And there is another concern of him that had nothing to do with the succession of the throne and that is the feeling of her daughter toward the young lord of the Bonaparte family

Santiago and Giovanni did say that the young lord of the Bonaparte ingrained himself toward his daughter.

They implied that his princess had fallen for the young lord of the Bonaparte family. Arial could not help but feeling aversive toward the boy who wanted to take the hands of his daughter

Not to mention, it is apparent to Arial that this young lord of the Bonaparte might have some ulterior motive in moving the hearts of his daughter.

Arial only hoped that Ariadne did not do something that she should regret with that boy. Because, if Arial find out someone had taken his daughter before marriage, he would not hesitate to decimated the entire noble house of Bonaparte.

Arial believe that the patriarch of the House would not be so stupid not to remind his son that the Emperor daughter must not be touched by vile hands.

It is not a matter of simply taking the body of his daughter. It is the matter of the young boy taking the heart of his daughter. 

As her father, Arial could not help but objected to this relationship.

Not only the young lord of the Bonaparte seems to do have ulterior motives, he had also brought danger to his Empire by being the matchstick that lit up the entire conflict between the Conservative faction of the court and the Reformist faction.

Arial would not mind even if his daughter wanted to marry a peasant. 

As long as that person truly love his daughter, he could not care less about the people position. Arial is unlike any other people in the noble circle. 

Because he occupied the highest position in the Human Continent, he could ignore any objections from the nobles about such a thing. 

After all, he does not need a marriage alliance to increase his fame and prestige. 

He already sat at the top and his fame and prestige covers the four corners of the Human Continent. So, to him, as long as his daughter is happy, what does he cares about the status of the man that his daughter would love?

He could accept that. But what he couldn't accept if some people wanted to play with the heart of his daughter.

That is not something he would allow. Of course, the story about the young lord of Bonaparte ingrained himself to his daughter might not be true. Or it might be true

Or, maybe the story is exaggerated. If it's true, then northing could save the Bonaparte from his wrath.

But. if it is false, and the Bonaparte is merely the pawn that some players on the dark is moving so that the current situation is created, then there is still a chance for forgiveness.

He sighed again when he thinks about Ariadne. 

The relationship between them is very complicated. He could not have expected that his daughter would suddenly come out from her tower the moment he was away and was immediately embroiled between a fight of the two factions.

It would be weird if there is not someone playing from the dark, orchestrating everything.

Maybe, she would always feel uncomfortable with her father. 

There is also regret there. Arial. had never been a good father to her at least not that he remembers

He tries to be a good father.

But it seems there is nothing that he did could make her happy. 

He did not know how to do that. Make her happy. She could have anything in the world if she just asks him.

But, there doesn't seem to be anything in the world that could make her happy. Every time they meet, there is only silence. And regret

Sometimes it perplexed him. His father, Aries make it all look easy.

He wanted Ariadne to have what he has when he was a child

To Arial, his childhood was one of his happy memories that he never wanted to forget. His time with his parent still is one of the few memories that he still looks back fondly.

His father, is the one person he respected the most. And he is the one person that he loved most

He would never admit it if his mother asks him but he always loved his father more. His father was unlike any other father that he had met.

Some father easily hit their children. 

His father was not. 

When he had made a mistake, he would sit him down and tell him stories. He would apt his back and tell him it would be alright. 

His father was not a stern man. 

But he was not soft either especially when it comes to family. Arial was born in such a loving family. 

And that is why when he lost them, there is this void in his heart that no matter how many books he reads in that library, he could never fill it up.

It is why when he went back into time and have the opportunity to do it all again, he made sure that his family survive. 

He had done everything in his power to make sure his parents survive it all. 

He had move heaven and earth and even after making it, succeeding in preventing the Invasion of the Dark Lands, Arial still felt like it is still not enough to repay his father.

There is a lot of happy memories with his father when he was a child.

Arial still remember when winter came, and the snows started falling outside their house.

When such days come, they would huddle up around the fire place. 

His father would then sit on the wooden chair that he had carved. Sitting beside him would be Arial mother, holding his father hand. 

With a smile, his father would tell stories. Most of them is to entertain him. 

He would tell stories about the Great hero Levitia and his journey, tell him about the brave and valiant Dragonslayers and many more stories of noble heroes and virtuous kings.

Arial did not hate winter that much when such day come. 

Because when the snow falls and the winds of winter blows, he knew he would listen to the stories that his father would tell him

And when night came, when the road outside is dark and only the sound of winter winds could be heard, the silence of which is terrifying to the minds and hearts of a young child, his mother would then sing him to sleep, drowning the song of winter

When morning came and the sun shows it face, when the winds of winter blows ever so slightly, his mother would make some sweet tasting gruel and in the few special occasion they would have meat.

And they wait until winter ends, and Seedmonth to arrive. It was a peaceful life. It was a happy life. 

Of course, now his mother did not need to sing him song to bring him to sleep and his father rarely tell him stories anymore. But, when he is not in the battlefield or when he is not somewhere around the world, fighting, when winter came Arial still think of that sweet tasting gruel.

And when he sleeps in the barracks during the cold winter, sometimes as the winds of winter sing its song, in the coldness of night, he would remember the songs that his mother once sung to him and he could sleep easily when he remembers that song.

He did not remember the lyrics. 

But he still remembers the rhythm and the melody of the song. And that is enough as he dozes off to sleep and dreams of that fireplace.

And when he woke up in the morning, once again ready to fight whatever the world would throws to him that day, he would feel this weird feeling knowing that his parents are safe.

Because he knows that when he does come home, he could see them again. That is what kept him going when he was trying to stop the Demon King invasion

He wanted that for Ariadne. A peaceful and a happy life. It should be that hard to achieve when one thinks about it