The carriage reached the side gate of the Vien Royal Palace, and Kallen stepped out. He was not wearing clerical robes, having changed at the hotel into a gray windbreaker and a black cashmere watch cap with a rolled brim.
These were the colors York City was "supposed to have" in most works of art and literature.
Two rows of guards stood before the side gate, their red dress uniforms paired with tall bearskin hats. They deliberately held their heads high and thrust out their chests, as though straining to burst the buttons off their uniforms.
A man in a leather jacket came out, approached Kallen, and bowed. "Minister, please follow me."
Led by the man, Kallen entered the Royal Palace, encountering no obstructions along the way, and went straight to the rear garden.
The garden was not particularly large; all four sides were visible at a glance. Many novels used the Vien Royal Palace as the setting for countless stories, but once you actually came here yourself, you realized that such a small place simply could not hold so much love, hatred, and tangled passion.
A scene in which the Queen Consort secretly met some count in the garden was absolutely impossible, too, because the King only needed to open his bedroom window and, without raising his voice much, call his wife home for dinner.
Still, the palace's small size was relative. Many nearby properties actually belonged to the royal family; they simply deliberately presented a false image of restraint and modesty to the public.
There was also the scrutiny of the Order God Church, which forced them to remain cautious and well-behaved.
Jisen sat in the garden pavilion, enjoying dinner. The meal was not elaborate: steak, red wine, and vegetable salad.
Beside Jisen, an elderly man held a