Chapter 27 Misty Rose (Twenty-Seven)

Differences

anger.

Cold.

Suspect.

Murderous intent.

When Julius noticed the last emotion in Raphael's lavender gemstone eyes, his anger that was as hot as lava calmed down.

He examined the beautiful face in front of him as if he was seeing Raphael for the first time.

It was undeniable that Raphael was the most beautiful person he had ever seen, no doubt about it.

When they first met, Raphael was only twelve years old. He was a skinny wild cat with a disabled leg. He bared his teeth and was wary of his every move. He dared to use his incomplete claws to gesture at him. After washing his dirty fur, even though the wild cat was still skinny, he could be seen to be as beautiful as an angel carefully painted on a mural.

As he grew up, his beauty that could illuminate Florence gradually emerged. What a beautiful child! Everyone who saw him could not help but sigh in admiration.

Colorfulr than a rose, purer than an angel, with a beauty that is unimaginable even with all the thought, Messiah who brought disaster to the country, Solla who brought about the world-destroying flood, these terrifying beauties that only existed in stories suddenly had real forms. Julius sometimes felt fear, and this fear turned into anxiety after spending more time with Raphael.

Raphael was smart, cunning, and even cruel, but no matter how he and St. Vitalian III educated him, the child always had a bit of innocent tenderness in his heart. He would use conspiracy under their teachings and would choose to murder Vitalian III's enemies without hesitation, but he still had the tenderness and persistence to not harm innocent people.

When Julius first discovered this, he could hardly believe it. ⑥

He didn't mean that Raphael had to grow up to be a devil who killed people indiscriminately without distinguishing between good and evil, but he thought Raphael should have known long ago that necessary sacrifices and blood were inevitable on the road to success.

Don’t those who start the war know that the soldiers who died are innocent?

Are the only people who die in political struggles the culprits?

Julius thought Raphael should understand this simplest truth better than anyone else, but the child still secretly retained this kindness.

This will kill him.

Julius looked at Raphael countless times and thought.

He would surely die for this.

Florence would not accept such a man in power.

But what could he do? Julius accepted the promise to protect Raphael from his cousin's hands, which were stained with warm blood. He could only hold this precious bird with gorgeous feathers in his hands and enclose the rose in his own garden to protect it from wind and rain.

Then, suddenly one day, everything changed.

The bird with gorgeous feathers broke free from his grasp, the rose grew thorns, and for the first time, Raphael's eyes, which had always shown trust, showed murderous intent towards him.

This is the look of a monarch.

He seemed to see again the unpolished natural hunter whom he first met many years ago. No, this hunter was deeper, colder, and more determined than that.

Julius was convinced at this moment that Raphael really wanted to kill him.

The monarch of Florence, the king of all kings, what he had once hoped to see so much, finally grew out of this thin body.

The Secretary General of the Papal Palace lowered his eyes and bowed his head slightly, which was a gesture of tacit submission.

He took a step back.

The heat enveloped them, but Julius felt sad for a moment. He realized that something had changed - and it was an irreversible change. He would never understand what had happened, but from that look, he sensed a pain that surpassed everything.

“Rafa.” Julius looked at him. After a long silence, he said softly, “Your Majesty.”

Raphael stopped looking at him. He suppressed the murderous intent that he had not had time to hide after being angered by Julius, and regained his calm expression: "Sir, you came to me in such a hurry, is there something? I think if it weren't for another battle to fall Florence, maybe you shouldn't be here."

There was a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

After he finished speaking, he did not ask Julius to answer and walked towards the pool. The warm water was reluctant to keep him. The hard-hearted Pope walked up the steps with the sound of splashing water, pulled off the robe hanging on the rack on the side, wrapped it up casually, and sat lazily on the lounge chair.

His nonchalant tone made Yuriu

Julius came back to his senses. His previous loss of composure was a once-in-a-century event for the Secretary General of the Papal Palace. He certainly would not continue to lose composure. The golden long-haired cat lay down on the recliner. Julius was not in a hurry to get on, and still stood in the pool at a certain distance: "I heard something - it's related to you, you should know what I'm talking about."

Raphael turned his head and glanced at him, with a half-smile on his face: "What should I know?"

Julius looked at him and his defensive expression, and suddenly felt extremely tired. He took a deep breath and untied his collar, which was tight after being soaked with water. Water drops slid down his collarbone and splashed on the surface of the pool like crowns. "Stop these meaningless words, Rafa."

The man who always acted like he was in a good position sighed as if showing weakness: "I'm just worried about you. You can ask for my help. You know that as long as you bring it up, I will help you solve these problems. You don't need to take this approach."

Raphael looked at him, his smile unchanged.

"You don't trust me anymore. Why?" It was the first time that Julius pointed out the problem so bluntly. He easily exposed the problem between them. The strong patriarch of Portia was confused and seemed a little desperate.

"Did I disappoint you? Or did I do something wrong? I don't understand, Rafa, it seems that just one day, you withdrew all your trust in me."

Julius was never honest. His education taught him that those in power are always lonely and should not expect to gain pity and sympathy from others - these are poisons and sharp weapons that will lead to people's death without a burial place.

But he had to try, because it was Raphael and they had been so close.

The smile on Raphael's lips flattened. After a long time, under Julius's anxious eyes, he asked softly: "Do I no longer trust you?"

The moment this question came out of his mouth, he came up with a positive answer in his mind.

How can I trust you?

After I died in the dead of night?

Life, death and blood lie between us, and this is a conversation that can never be candid.

"Maybe it's because I'm tired of your help and it makes me feel stupid."

Countless questions and wails swept through his mind, the lingering smell of blood enveloped him, including the long sleepless nights, the cold cabinets and nightmares, but in the end he just gave such a light answer.

Julius could hear his evasion.

The two men stared at each other for a few seconds. During these few seconds, neither of them realized that this might be their only chance to confess everything, stripping away family, power, conspiracy and all calculations. Julius opened himself up for the first time, and Raphael could hold the beating heart with just a hand. However, this opportunity was easily missed.

In just a few seconds, Julius quickly calmed down his emotions. His exposed thoughts were tightly locked under the hard mask. The impeccable decency wrapped this man like an armor, and everything that happened just now became an illusion like a dream.

He came out of the water and became the powerful patriarch of Portia who was at ease in front of outsiders.

"You are the Pope, the supreme ruler of Florence. I taught you not to put yourself in danger," said Julius.

Raphael knew that his actions could not be hidden from the man who had practically watched him grow up, and he did not think of resisting stubbornly: "You also forgot to say one thing. You also told me that when the rewards are sufficient, all sacrifices are worth it."

Julius sneered: "Sacrifice? For what? It can't be those poor people in Francois's mansion? You sacrificed for them?! Can your value be equal to theirs?!"

Julius thought that he felt sorry for them and wanted to save them on impulse. Raphael would not correct his misunderstanding, but just said lightly: "They are also the people of Florence."

“Ha.” Julius raised his head and sneered.

He unbuttoned his shirt, took off his wet shirt, and wiped the water off his body with the cotton cloth on the rack. He made no attempt to avoid Raphael from beginning to end, and the Pope acquiesced to his almost casual behavior. In fact, this teacher and student - or uncle and nephew - were already accustomed to this level of intimacy. Even Julius, who always hated close contact with people, didn't seem to realize that there was anything wrong.

“Citizens of Florence?” Julius threw away the wet cotton cloth. His body was well-proportioned and slender, with undulating texture like spring mountains. His long iron-gray hair was dripping wet and draped over his back. Water droplets were still rolling down his cheeks to his chest.

"You are still as kind as ever." There is a deep irony in this sentence.

"You once asked me why your father initiated the Vatican reform. I told you that it was for the better survival of more people. You questioned it and said you couldn't understand who would be better off by returning the coronation power to the Vatican. The king attempted to start a war against the reform, and soldiers died on the battlefield. Everything was terrible." Julius said slowly and in a low voice.

Raphael listened quietly. This happened more than two years after he returned to St. Vitalian III. The Pope tried to carry out religious reforms, return the right of coronation to the Holy See, suppress the power of the great nobles, and take back the power to make taxes. At that time, the entire Papal State was in turmoil and people were in panic. From time to time, news came that a noble, bishop, or monk had died. The sky in Florence seemed to always be cloudy. Raphael was in the vortex and witnessed everything that happened. He even participated in the formulation of laws, but he could not understand the meaning of it all.

Julius rolled his eyes, and looked at Raphael with his deep purple pupils, as if he wanted to see through this beautiful face to the handsome and pure young angel a few years ago: "I told you something."

——Don’t love specific people, but love all people.

“Don’t love specific people, love everyone.”

The same voice as in his memory sounded, Raphael raised his eyelids and looked at Julius quietly.

"Your love is precious and rare. You should give it to a broader concept. You can't love just one person. You should see all the people in Florence, nobles, commoners, soldiers, farmers..." Julius said slowly, as if he had returned to the classroom and taught his only student everything he knew. "It is a sin for you to fall in love with one person now. You have to protect your people, of course, but it should be all of them - not just these few."

"It is they who make up Florence. Without these individuals, there would be nothing you said." Raphael replied.

The young Pope showed a look of boredom. He raised his hand and gestured to stop the discussion. "We have never reached a consensus on this issue. Let's stop this philosophical debate, dear Euler."

Julius was stunned by this affectionate name.

Raphael brushed away the hair that had gradually turned cold after being soaked in water and said calmly, "I can bear the consequences of my choice. What about you? What is your choice? Can you bear the consequences?"

His question was meaningful, as if it had some other meaning. Julius's face suddenly tightened, and Raphael's words hit the most anxious part of his heart.

Similar to the weakness and turbulence of Florence, the Portia family reached its peak and began to enter a turbulent period. Julius was a tough patriarch, and in his hands, Portia at least maintained a thriving appearance, but the undercurrent underneath could not be ignored. He felt like he was controlling a large ship in a storm, the ship was extremely heavy, and the rudder was not so obedient. He could only suppress it in increasingly fierce ways - appeasement could no longer get the ship out of the storm.

Like Florence, Portia needed a change.

And Julius is still waiting and looking for this opportunity.

Fall apart, or even further.

The pressing question is – who should Portia follow?

Julius stubbornly pushed Raphael to the throne of Saint Lea, paying a lot of money and land for it, which made the elders of Portia extremely dissatisfied. There were different voices within the family, and Julius forcefully suppressed the opponents, although deep down in his heart, he did not completely think that their ideas were unreasonable.

Portia needs a strong patriarch, and Florence needs a powerful enough pope. A better situation is that a strong monarch controls the lords headed by Portia, thereby pushing Florence to the top.

Julius didn't mind submitting, he was just strong enough and smart enough, so no one could control him. However, male creatures instinctively admire the strong, and if a strong monarch appeared, he wouldn't mind offering his complete loyalty.

He looked at Raphael and saw his own small shadow reflected in those lavender eyes. He suddenly realized that perhaps this opportunity was right in front of him.

Would the monarch he wanted be Raphael?

The child who had irreconcilable conflicts with him and couldn't even trust him, the child who was brought up by him and had a compassion for him that was almost gentle, the child who had just given him a murderous look?

Raphael was asking him for a pledge of allegiance, and unlike the previous collaboration, this was a complete commitment.

There was a long silence in the bath.

The Secretary General of the Papal Palace sighed softly, put on a loose white robe, and bowed deeply to Raphael: "It's already late, please allow me to leave, Your Majesty."

He made no promises.

As Julius, he really wanted to try again, but as the patriarch of the huge Portia family, he could not make a promise easily.

Let me see more, Rafa, Julius said with his eyes, let me see a qualified monarch, a monarch who can walk on the path of his own choice, who can cut through all thorns and boulders and firmly hold the crown and throne even without my protection.

Come on, beat me, crush me, dominate me.

I wait for the day when you command me to surrender.

The author has something to say:

Julius and Raphael have fundamental differences. Raphael will use all kinds of conspiracies and tricks, and does not mind killing people, but he is more sympathetic to the weak. Julius is completely hard-hearted, hahahaha. They have quarreled many times because of this contradiction, and no one can convince the other.

Julius is a person who admires the strong by nature. His philosophy is that strong people have an obligation to protect the weak (in a broad sense). He thinks Raphael is a weak person, so he has always protected Raphael very tightly. However, Raphael's behavior today made him finally realize that this guy seemed to disdain his protection at all and even wanted to rebel, and he showed the corresponding ability. This is the first time that Julius has faced Raphael squarely. This is a cause for celebration.

But there will always be uncertainty between them because of Raphael's death. Raphael can't completely trust him, and he doesn't know why he can't gain Raphael's trust. Damn, the abuse is coming. The only solution is - Raphael completely controls everything about him and makes sure that he can't betray him. Only in this way can there be a possibility of a happy ending hahahaha [If this is a couple], the suspicion and temptation in this process, isn't it sweet! ! 【Sound of shock】