At the Poitu Church Cemetery, the spring rain has been falling for a week, and everywhere is shrouded in drizzle.

Dressed in plain cloaks and holding a white tulip, the people attended the funeral of Rector Meunier, who had just been elevated to the position of Bishop of Genoa.

In addition to relatives, Governor Byrne, Mayor Stanley, celebrities from all walks of life in Poitou, and some of Mounier's students and colleagues also attended the scholar's funeral.

Sean also attended Principal Meunier's funeral.

Four men in black dresses carried the coffin and gently placed it in the burial chamber.

"Now, in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, we have laid the body of Monsieur de Monnier here for the resurrection of the flesh to come. Amen!"

Shakli pinched a piece of clay in his hand and symbolically sprinkled it on top of the coffin.

Shovels were used to shovel the earth, the coffin was completely covered, flowers were laid in turn, and then people stood aside in silent prayer.

And the relatives of the deceased are already grief-stricken.

Friends of the deceased come forward to preach about the honor, pride, and kindness of the deceased, and at this moment, they do not hesitate to use the best words to remember a scholar.

"Almighty God, since he has shown great mercy to the soul of our beloved brother, we have buried his body in the ground. Let the earth be unto the earth, and the dust unto dust, and all things to thy authority, confident that the dead will be resurrected, so that we may be with thee forever and have eternal life, and that we who are still alive in the world shall be strengthened in our faith......"

Shakli's voice was low and infectious, and his red garment, trimmed with gold wire, made the ceremony even more solemn.

Sean suddenly thought of the old ascetic priest of the True God Cult that he had met in Vichy Town.

After the funeral, people boarded their carriages and left, and perhaps soon, Mounier's name was rarely mentioned.

People are always forgetful, but Sean doesn't forget the anger of Meunier at the Estates-General.

In the drizzle, Byrne stood in front of his carriage and watched Sean's young figure say his final goodbyes to the deceased.

"Viscount, I have something I want to talk to you about. ”

Byrne stopped Sean, who was about to leave.

"Yes, Your Excellency. Sean nodded, pulling out a cigar and motioning to the Governor, who shook his head.

"It's a tragedy. Byrne looked back in the direction of the cemetery, and the relatives of the deceased held each other and slowly left, "I am deeply saddened by this tragedy, because the rampant rebellion shows that our decision to establish a secret police station was correct." It's just a pity that we could not anticipate the meanness and shamelessness of the enemy, who murdered a venerable scholar. ”

"Your Excellency, are you sure this is the work of the True God Party?" asked Sean, "isn't it Mr. Headmaster who has offended someone?" ”

"Of course I have proof, Viscount, and believe me, Daley's work is still productive. Byrne's affirmative tone made Sean feel even more sorry for the deceased.

If Meunier died for offending the privileged, then in Sean's eyes it was glorious and great, vigorous, but not.

He is innocent only because of the scapegoat deliberately chosen by the True God Party to challenge authority and provoke power structures.

"It's a pity!" Sean nodded, "I hope you can bring the murderer to justice as soon as possible and give justice to Mr. Headmaster." I believe that justice is in people's hearts. ”

Byrne said, "Yes." But there's one thing right now, and I'd like to hear from you. ”

"Please!"

"The misfortune of President Meunier has caused the University of Poitou to lose its backbone. As you know, we have only one university in Genoa, which has a long history and which is heavily financed by the government......"

"I've heard that the University of Poitou is in such a dilapidated state that even the salaries of the faculty members have been cut off for months. Sean's tone was rather unkind.

Questioned in person, Byrne smiled awkwardly: "That was before, because of this damn disaster, the provincial and municipal finances were in difficulty, but before Mr. Meunier was killed, I had already withdrawn the money, but he didn't see the day the school building was repaired." ”

"It's too late to say that. Sean calmed his tone.

"I consulted with Mayor Stanley and agreed that the Viscount was the right person to succeed Principal Poitou. Byrne's words surprised Sean.

"Why?" Sean thought that this Byrne had some kind of compensation for himself, and only listened to Byrne:

"You are not only a nobleman, but also a member of the Royal Society of Science, which is invaluable to a university, and you alone can lead a university. The faculty were very good, they were poor, but they had a certain extraordinary enthusiasm for learning, and this enthusiasm made the scholars not so friendly. ”

Byrne implied that scholars were not easily subservient to government authority because of their social purity and transcendence.

At the same time, these people are very influential in public opinion.

For the death of Meunier in particular, Byrne received numerous letters of protest and petitions from the University of Poitou. Even the official newspaper Poitou, which has a great deal of influence, hints at this dissatisfaction with the governor.

Byrne had to compromise with these people, not only by topping up the funds, but also by raising the budget of the University of Poitou this year.

Now, however, there is a tricky matter of choosing a president for the University of Poitou who will satisfy all parties.

The Poitu people are conservative and stubborn, stubbornly believing that for the Poitu to fund the university themselves, the president must be a Poitu man. This greatly narrows the range of choices for Byrne and Stanley.

"Frankly, the position of principal surprised and intimidated me. Sean said, "I'll think about it." ”

"I hope the viscount will give an answer as soon as possible. I guarantee that the University of Poitou will not be hindered in any way. Byrne said, he pointed behind Sean, "Viscount Lincoln seems to be waiting for you, I'll take my leave first." ”

Byrne boarded the carriage, and the royal drove away.

"Sean, I haven't seen you in a while. In fact, I wanted to visit for a long time, but I didn't expect it to be on this occasion. Viscount Lincoln greeted him.

He stayed on purpose, specifically to explain the reason for taking over as Sean's military advisor. This position made him a little embarrassed when facing Sean, as if he had picked a peach at the end.

Of course, Sean heard that Viscount Lincoln was originally reluctant to take over this position, but he became the only candidate because of his excellent popularity and ability to take care of the interests of all parties.

After Lincoln became a military adviser to the CDF, he did not change his mind and dictate the internal affairs of the CDF.

According to Wells and other instructors, Viscount Lincoln knew people well, was very sympathetic to the hard work of these "northerners", and gave them a raise.

Sean had a crush on Viscount Lincoln, the other being Percy Robinson, although the latter had always been resistant to Viscount Lincoln.

Oddly enough, Sean has a good relationship with both of them, and treats them as his friends.

As a friend, Sean certainly has some advice:

"The soldiers of the Civil Defense Force are simple people, honest and obedient, which is a very good quality for the soldiers.

Although some people believe in the true religion of God, this does not mean that they should be excommunicated. It is also precisely because they are too simple, and because they are mostly illiterate, they are more susceptible to demagoguery, and you have to be careful that someone promotes things that are not conducive to stability among the soldiers. ”

Although Lincoln did not interfere with the Civil Guard much, he did fire a number of soldiers, some of whom even came to appeal to Sean.

Not in his position, not in his politics.

Sean didn't speak for these expelled soldiers, but did his best to properly place these soldiers.

"Sean, I completely agree with your judgment. Lincoln said, "In fact, I don't understand military affairs, and I am completely forced by the situation to take over your position, please forgive me." ”

"I totally understand. ”

Sean suddenly felt that this funeral had become a place for him to passively socialize. Perhaps in the eyes of these celebrities, the world of the living is the only main theme.

"Sean, do you know that our Genoa Civil Defense is going north. Viscount Lincoln suddenly uttered such shocking news.

"What, they won't even aim!" Sean couldn't believe it, "Is your news confirmed?"

"This is the order I just received today, from the order issued by the crown prince. But it's not as direct as you think, we just have to move to the north of the province by May 1, close to Mount Ott, in order to deter some of the precarious situation. "I'm just worried that the situation is worse than I thought." If there is such a day, Viscount Brandon is very much looking forward to it. ”

He wanted to write another honor in his family's annals. Sean said, "All I can say is, good luck to you!"

Viscount Lincoln's apprehension, Sean easily understands, anyone who leads a group of farmers who have just put down their scythes to the battlefield will be cowardly before fighting, not to mention that there is a very unreliable commander.

It was overcast, and the rain and mist wet Sean's cloak, but he felt a sense of unprovoked restlessness in his heart.

Perhaps deep down, he was haunted by the loss of his position in the Civil Defence Force.

At this point, no matter what Sean has to admit, he can't be so selfless and free.

Nelson and the others quietly spread around him, while Rabo slowly followed in a horse-drawn carriage.

Simply taking off his cloak, Sean walked down the street outside the cemetery, and his body was soon covered with moisture.

The only consequence was that Sean caught a cold that day.

Twelve hours after the funeral, it was still drizzling in the cemetery in the dark of night.

The cemetery is shrouded in thick rain and fog, which adds an eerie color to it. On nights like these, there are usually no living people here, except by grave robbers.

In a grove behind it, a man wearing a clown mask was standing.

He wears a cloak, a wide-brimmed hat, and a cane in his hand.

Standing ten meters away from him was a tall man, and if you approached him, you would be surprised by his appearance.

This is a guy with a wolf-like face, a legendary werewolf.

The tall werewolf man seemed to want to go a little further, but the clown shook his cane:

"No, no, Mr. Wolf, you and I should keep our distance, it is a civilized and friendly distance. ”

"Are you scared?" werewolf chuckled as he looked at the Joker's right hand tuckled in his long cloak, "I guess you want to kill me with one shot, and I just want to get close to you." In fact, my ancestors and yours were all on the same dragon ship, who is more noble than whom, who is more civilized than whom? ”

Yes, werewolves consider themselves Protoss.

"When I was eight years old, I realized how different I was from other kids, when I killed my own brother just because he snatched my toy and gently pushed him down the stairs without any effort. When I was thirteen years old, my father tried to organize my life by adding a little chronic poison to the wine I was drinking, and two years later I buried him in the best cemetery, and then I arranged my life myself. So, I never liked to take the force. ”

There was no expression under the clown's mask, and Wolf stopped when he heard this.

"Later, I learned to be in control. When I reach adulthood, with my bare hands and fists, I am confident that I can fight you werewolves and have a better chance of winning than you. So, don't show me your stupidly strong body. ”

The Joker continued in an unhurried tone.

His words had a powerful power of self-confidence, which made Werewolf Wolf smile:

"It's not fair, you know my name and I don't know anything about you. ”

"Isn't the batch of steel I gave you werewolves my calling card? they will allow you to craft at least 500 axes. The clown said.

"But we're more interested in gunpowder. "Of course, that steel is important to us, so I'm willing to take the risk of coming to you in person." It's a good greeting gift, but you should know that even a powerful blood warrior, heavily armoured, can't resist the power of gunpowder. ”

The clown said, "Of course, that's why I invited you to meet here, it's just a deal." ”

The two talked secretly for a while, and there was no third person at the scene.

The werewolf Wolf let out a low roar and strode north, running so fast that he disappeared into the night in the blink of an eye.

"Reckless!"

The clown, who strolled gracefully in the rain, walked through the grove to the grave of Headmaster Meunier, and then took off his mask and placed it on the newly completed tombstone:

"Innocent Mr. Chancellor, you have a footnote in the sacred cause. Sorry!"

The clown pressed his hat low and disappeared into the night rain.