The Saumur Crystal, also known as Saumur Ore in the game, was first discovered as a magical crystal, and was later discovered to have another property of the crystal, the crystallization ability. The Saumur crystal has the ability to gradually crystallize the organisms that come close to it, but the crystallized organism does not lose its life, but transforms into a life made of a lens - that is, a semi-crystalline organism. Since this ability does not only work on animals, but also on plants, large crystal forests are often found around Saumur Crystal, which is in fact one of the causes of the crystal forest.

However, the assimilation effect of the Saumur Crystal on living beings is a slow and gradual process, and it usually takes several years or even longer to complete the process, according to Tulaman's description, the soldiers of the three empires have only been on the final battlefield for only two or three days, and they are affected by crystallization, although this crystal sounds very similar to the Saumur crystal that Brando has heard of, but the effect is obviously much stronger, maybe some more powerful variant, or something else at all.

But either way, the crystallization process should be an irreversible process, so he only had such a headache when facing the crystallization disease of the deer-bodied banshee sister Elaine, in fact, there are only a few examples of curing crystallization disease in the game, and most of them are thanks to the Fountain of Life or Miracle Magic, which is almost miraculous. On the battlefield of the final battle, it is obviously impossible for so many miracles to exist at the same time, there are countless soldiers on the battlefield, and in addition to the grassroots soldiers, there are also a large number of nobles in each country, and there are even many upper nobles, if these people die on the battlefield. It was a major event that could not be covered up for any country at that time, and from the tone of Tulaman's tone, it was clear that the vast majority of those affected when crystallization spread were among them.

Speaking of which, it is necessary to mention the attitude of the Vajn nobles towards war in that era, and before the Second Holy War, the nobles generally regarded participation in war as an honor. It's not because they still have the heroic courage of their ancestors to overcome obstacles in the wilderness, on the contrary, in the heart of civilization, after the first generation of pioneer knights gradually faded out of the world's vision, the descendants they left behind are increasingly addicted to playfulness and fun, and have long lost the demeanor of their ancestors. This kind of behavior is seen as something that only a fool would do.

The nobles were not afraid of war because it was not a matter of life and death for them, especially for an empire like Cruz, and the upper nobles had very few records of dying in war—unless they were too unlucky to be struck by a stray arrow, or died of disease, and even if they were captured, they could be treated decently—because for their enemies hostages meant a large ransom. To this day, the vast majority of aristocrats still remember that era. It is believed that the war of that era is a classical and romantic war with both chivalry and benevolence.

Of course. This privilege is only for the nobles, for the soldiers from the lower classes, the original intention of the war has never changed for thousands of years, it is the same death breath mixed with cold metal and blood-

It follows from this that if hundreds or thousands of nobles were killed in a war, for any country of that era. What kind of bad news, even the royal family, may be torn apart by the angry family of the deceased, to know what kind of energy often means behind those dead, for example, Brando remembers it very clearly. At that time, on the side of the Sanctuary of Fire, there were three dukes in the Cruz Empire who participated in the war, and the lords below were even more large and small, and each of them had an intricate network of relationships behind them, and it was not an exaggeration to say that it included the noble bloodlines of the entire empire.

If these people die on the battlefield, it is very likely that they will have to catch an imperial princess, and the situation on the side of St. Osor and Faenzan is similar, if such a thing happens, it is absolutely impossible to cover it up on that side, and it is impossible to cover it up at all. Thinking of this, Brando's mind suddenly had a flash of inspiration, and he realized who the black cauldron on his grandfather's body was for, but this thought was only fleeting, and he immediately shook his head again.

His grandfather couldn't afford this black cauldron at all, even if he was the commander of the coalition forces on the Flame Temple, not to mention that he also knew that although many nobles were killed in the battle of Alkash, it was not to the point of unacceptability, at least Her Royal Highness the Princess, the three dukes and several important people returned to the country intact.

Could it be that crystallization disease still knows how to distinguish between high and low, and aristocratic status still has some kind of immune effect on crystallization? This kind of nonsense is obviously not worth the show, and there is only one possibility, that is, someone turned the tide and saved the coalition forces of the three empires at the last moment, which also explains why after that, the three temples died down, and the second holy war came to an end.

Brando had a strong premonition about the candidate, and more than once he had the tall back in his mind: under the bloody remnant sun of Braggs, the stag forest was dyed with a bronze pastel color, the shallows were soaked by the river flowing like broken gold, and the silent old man stood silently, looking thoughtfully at his grandson, who was practicing his sword—Brando now remembered that his grandfather had always kept a secret under his broad shoulders and pursed lips, The muffled whispers behind the secret haunted the old man for the rest of his life, and when that final moment came, he turned to dust and hid himself in the tomb.

And at this moment, the time has finally come for this secret to be revealed.

Facing his questioning gaze, Tulaman really stopped selling Guanzi and told a story about what happened at that time:

The crystallization disease seemed to spread overnight among the three major coalition forces, and countless people were infected, although the crystallization was not so strict at first, but under the influence of the magic of the Saumur crystal, all the infected people became manic, gathered together to attack each other, or attacked normal people who tried to separate them, due to the increasing number of people joining them. As a result, the situation in the Arka region gradually became unmanageable, and some people fled out of fear, including many nobles who commanded the army, while the number of normal people who remained gradually dwindled to the point where it was almost impossible to maintain their own safety.

Under the circumstances, discussing and solving problems was already a joke, and the only thing left to do was to wait for death. All that was left was a desperate gamble, and the wizard of the Buga who came suggested that perhaps the Somur Crystal in the temple could be shattered, or the magic could be thrown into some spatial turbulence, so that although it might not be able to change what had happened at the moment, it could at least prevent the situation from deteriorating.

This suggestion was approved by the vast majority of the remaining people after several discussions, but the question is, who will do it?

The ruins of the final battle were filled with countless crystallized soldiers, and it was difficult to reach the temple just by passing through them. Not to mention the dangers that would be in that mysterious temple, it was impossible to predict at all. It can be said that to carry out this task is to send it to death, and not everyone can send it, because to accomplish this impossible task, it is obviously not enough to rely on the strength of a few people, they need an army, and the army needs a commander. Ironically, in order to compete for the inheritance of the so-called 'Miner', none of the three empires is willing to be left behind. As soon as the news spread, most of the nobles, including the commanders of the imperial coalition forces, entered the fog at the first time, for fear of being left behind. And at this moment, none of these noble commanders came out of the fog again.

Of the remaining members of the coalition who were qualified to command the army, either had fled or died unwilling to enter the fog, the Bugas found that only one man had met their expectations perfectly - and that was Darus, who had been placed under house arrest by the Silver Queen. In terms of qualifications, he was originally the commander of the coalition forces of the Flame Temple, and his prestige was definitely enough. On the other hand, because of a disagreement with Constance, he escaped from the beginning. Not infected with crystallization.

Now all that is left is his own will.

But as Brando had expected, after learning the whole story, his grandfather took over the command without saying a word. This seemed a little strange to others, but at that moment Brando understood his grandfather a little, not only because of the sense of honor as a soldier, but also because in that fog, there was also the woman he loved deeply.

As he grew older, he had to succumb to time and fate, and his tall figure gradually faded down, and his taciturn heart also hid an alternative pride and blood, but it was a pity that he had never met his grandfather at that time, and in Brando's memory, a vivid memory belonging to the old man seemed to gradually yellow and fade, thus overlapping with another picture.

In that picture, Brando saw a banner like a cloud, a knight roaring from a tsunami, and a man standing in front of the tidal army, the marshal of the Temple of Fire, and the undying ambition in his heart.

It was an era that belonged to both Eruin and Anson and his two important ministers, one in front of him and the other in his memory.

The Eruin of that era was far more glorious than it is now.

Brando fell silent, like his grandfather, who heard Tulaman speak of his grandfather's success, like the heroes of classical mythology, who often turned the tide and saved the tide in the most unlikely of circumstances, and the Cruz, Faenzan, and Wind Elves finally put aside their prejudices at the most critical moment and joined together, as they had done a thousand years ago, under the command of a human being; They made their way through the mist-filled final battlefield, fought their way through the encirclement of semi-crystalline creatures, and overcame many illusions, just as the ancestors of the dark ages who carved their way out of blood and thorns on foot reached the temple with their unyielding will.

"Your grandfather shattered the crystal, and the huge crystal pillar split in two, and after it collapsed, it lost its magic, not only did the crystallization disease no longer spread, but even the humans and elven soldiers who were originally crystallized gradually returned to normal," Tulaman said slowly, "The crystal is still in the museum in Fran, and Amam has erected a wordless stone tablet for it to commemorate the original heroes, but few people know its origin. ”

"Why is it a stone tablet without words?" Brando asked quietly.

Sword Saint Darus, whose grandfather saved the three empires, can be said to owe him a favor from Cruz, Faenzan, and even countless nobles and nobles among the wind elves, but what he got was an unfair trial. Brando's heart was already a cold murderous intention, and if he knew who was behind this qiē, he would definitely make them regret what they had done.

Because the Cadilloso family still has descendants, because the name of Daurus's grandson is Brando.

Unexpectedly, Tulaman shook his head and said a little heavily, "I know what you're thinking, little one. But it's not what you think, it's your grandfather who took the initiative to be judged. ”

Brando froze.

"Why?" He couldn't help but blurt out.

"Because if he doesn't stand trial, Princess Silver will die."

……

The Garden of White Roses

With a click, two crimson boots with gold roses on the tips of the shoes stepped on the pedals by the door, followed by the wavy dark skirt, the Imperial Empress Constance stepped down gracefully under the careful support of the maid, and the two women hurriedly stepped forward to pull up the long skirt for her, and Her Majesty glanced around coldly, and her frowning brow showed that the Supreme Man who ruled the vast territory was not at peace in his heart.

"陛xià."

Two rows of maids bowed down.

Constance turned a blind eye to them. She walked briskly through them, through the corridor, a storm of anger on her cold face. Bang! The golden walnut door of the dormitory was pushed open, and the waiter's outstretched hand froze in the air, looking at the 'temperamental' queen in surprise, but the latter had already said coldly:

"You go down."

The attendants did not dare to disobey her orders, and several noble ladies looked at each other in disbelief, and then bowed and retreated. The room quickly fell silent.

"She refused again?" After a while. Only then came the soft voice of the dragon queen from the sofa, as if the lady was there, and asked in her usual calm tone. But Constance didn't have to look back, knowing that the valuable golden camel hair sofa from Ceris was empty at the moment.

"She'll agree, little mountain girl, I don't have much time left for her." Constance replied coldly, "When the time comes, I will make her understand that I am not just a gentle talker." ”

"That is nature, the wrath of kings, the bloodshed. So you're ready to use a knife on the mountain people? ”

"No, it's the opposite," the Silver Queen sneered, "I'm going to marry her to that self-righteous fellow, that 'mountain prince', and I've begged me more than once to marry him an imperial princess, and since they're of the same kind, I think she'll be satisfied." ”

When it comes to the title of the mountain prince, Constance's tone can't hide the contempt, in fact, this is originally an insulting contempt, after all, the hillbilly from the mountains is always so self-righteous, in fact, there are no orthodox imperial nobles will be with them, the funny thing is that the other party still takes this identity seriously, so the title of mountain prince came into being.

Normally, as the exemplar of the empire and the supreme on the throne, Constance would rarely use such frivolous terms, and at the moment she was clearly in a state of extreme rage.

The dragon queen glanced at her with some surprise from the void: "This is the little guy's woman, he is the grandson of that man, isn't it, you really don't have any affection." ”

"This is the woman's grandson." Constance corrected her coldly.

"So this is jealousy between human women?" The dragon queen's voice became a little curious.

The Silver Queen had never answered this question, and she stood silently in place, her eyes calm and waveless, resting on the ebony desk.

"What are you thinking, my majesty."

"I was thinking that if I hadn't been so naïve then, maybe it would have been a different place now, Gwendoline."

"But you've had a choice, Your Majesty."

"I ......," Constance's voice hesitated, "because I don't want to make a fool of myself." ”

……

The fleet is about to set sail -

Brando slowly stepped onto the deck, and looked back: on the bridge, the Silver People were entering the portal, and Tulaman walked at the end, as if he felt something, he also turned around, raised his head slightly, and the two silver-gray eyes in the shadows under the brim of the silver-threaded hood with silver patterns shone brightly, and between the thin lips, there was a mysterious smile.

He took a deep breath and involuntarily gently pressed his hand against the side of the ship carved with a Leviathan relief.

As for the previous conversation, it seemed that it had resurfaced in front of his eyes in an instant.

"I don't understand." Brando stared at the old man in front of him, his cold gaze as if he wanted to see through the other party completely.

"It's very simple, as I said before, on the battlefield of the Last Battle, in that temple, that strange crystal was sealed at first. But the people who sealed it were not the four sages, but the dark dragon Odin, and the first to touch that seal was the queen you know. ”

"When the seal was opened, the mystery was revealed, and the secrets of the final war of the Sage War were laid out to all at a glance. Since I was with your grandfather at the time, I don't know exactly what they saw, but I only know one thing. ”

"That's about this mystery, and it's about the agreement between the four sages and the dark dragon Odin......"

"So, it can be inferred from this that a rumored legend about a thousand years ago may be true." The old man's voice was a little harsh: "You know, the order of the mortal world, the legitimacy of the four empires is based on the justice of the battle of the sages, but in fact, there has been a certain rumor for the past thousand years, that is, what the four sages did in the battle of the sages may not be so holy and righteous. ”

“…… That is, in this story, the dark dragon is a tyrant, but the four sages are nothing more than usurpers. ”

Tulaman looked up and squinted at Brando, "Do you know what that means?" ”

Brando didn't answer, he had actually heard of such a legend, but it was circulated in Amber Sword

There are countless legends of all kinds, and there is a saying that for every bard, there is an additional version of the story, so no one ever delves into it. But he also understands what it means if it's true.

In the history of human dynastic succession, it is not uncommon to compete for the throne and conspire to usurp the throne.

But the War of the Holy Sages was built on the covenant between the Silver People and the tribes of the continent, and the cornerstone of the covenant was to end the dark reign of the Minr people and fulfill the prophecy of the so-called Mortal Era. This covenant is the sacred covenant described in the Cangzhi poem, also known as the sacred oath, and since it is sacred, it must first be built on the basis of justice.

And this is also the basis of the legitimacy of the mortal era.

If this qiē is just a lie.

Then not only will the status of the Four Sages be questioned, but more importantly, it will violently impact the current world order, and the legitimacy of the Four Temples will also be lost. Once the prophecy comes true, then the world will inevitably fall into endless strife and war, because there is no one who can interpret morality and justice anymore, and then the only thing left is the stage of careerists.

Brando shuddered. (To be continued......)