Indeed, in the thousands of years since its construction, Hagia Sophia has had the largest interior space in the whole of Shijie. Its dome is as high as 55 meters above the ground, which is equivalent to the height of a 17~18-story building. There is no division of the floor slabs in the middle, but the frescoes of the circular dome can be seen as soon as you look up from the ground floor. There is also a series of delicate and ornate glass windows that make the church's circular dome look like it is suspended in the air, giving it a very modern feel.

The natural light that comes in through the surrounding windows creates a hazy, psychedelic and sacred atmosphere in the gloomy church.

However, what is playing in Hagia Sophia at this moment is not the solemn and elegant hymn that reverberates like gurgling water, but a string of cheerful notes that can make people's eyelids flutter and messy in the wind:

“…… Alla Rub Beep Beep Lap Lap Bang ......Bang

Accompanied by this beautiful and cheerful singing, a group of Orthodox nuns and priests are dancing with long green onions.

-- Since the artificial 3D anime image over Adrianople was confirmed as a miracle, the onion dance has also become a religious dance of the Orthodox Church. And the religious band to which the church belongs, actually relied on the impressions of the time and the guidance of Kotori Yu and others to restore the score.

There is no way, even the "Angel of Spring" has descended to the mortal world to appear and say, and if you don't learn to dance the onion dance. It's blasphemous.

Because the serious and rigid nuns are really not good at dancing, they are currently leading the dance in the Hagia Sophia. It is the former prime minister of the middle two sick singer Kotori Yu Mahaku, who is born to sell cuteness, followed by a bunch of nuns, female believers and even priests with stiff movements, each of whom shook a green onion and swayed like a duck, making Wang Qiu and others goosebumps...... And the person who learns to dance the green onion dance the most at the moment is actually a red-card prostitute named Diolena - what is the commonality between belly dancing and onion dancing?

“…… Allah Rub Beep Beep Lap Beep Lap Bang Lam En Bang Bo ......"

Listen to such a lively and childish cheerful ballad. Looking at the strange dancing postures of everyone, Wang Qiu and his peers couldn't help but show a "broken" expression - if it was just to get some eye-catching soft girls to dance the onion dance, but now there are so many weird Shu millet and fat aunts who lack self-knowledge. I also took a green onion to join in the fun and dance, which is really not cute at all!

But no matter what, Kotori Yu Mashiro, a middle-aged and second-class loli singer, was able to bring the concert to Hagia Sophia. There was also a group of clergy who accompanied her to her madness. In Japan's ACG entertainment industry, it is more or less a great "great achievement".

“…… Alas, nuns dancing the onion dance, paladins with scythes and hammers...... This shijie is really crazy. ”

Wang Qiu sighed and put away the "holy sword" that belonged to him, and at the same time took off his glasses and wiped them with a handkerchief, muttering.

――――――――――――――――――――――――――――

At the same time, Patriarch Gregory, dressed in a gold-threaded robe, was still greeting the citizens who were watching. It preaches the great meaning of "holy war".

“…… As you know, the evil Turks came from the deserts of the East. It has already brought four hundred years of suffering to the great Roman Empire! They destroy the churches of the Lord, kidnap God's godly people, insult chaste women, and greedily sip the blood of children! They are slaves to the devil! And are you not ashamed to be so indifferent and watch the blood of your fellow citizens who also believe in God shed?

If you don't have the courage to fight for Christ today, how will you stand before the Lord when you go to heaven one day? ”

Patriarch Gregory preached in a fierce tone, shaking the gilded brass bell in his hand.

“…… So I want to exhort you, and I beseech you - no, not me, but the Lord Himself is encouraging you! We command you to embark on the path of the Crusade and fight hard until the Turks are driven out of our territory! This is the Lord's will! Absolutely true!

Kids, you know what? Now this great plague that has spread to the whole Shijie is because those cowardly and selfish people, who are greedy for temporary comfort, refuse to follow the will of the Lord, and start a new holy war, that it has aroused the wrath of God and brought down this terrible sanction!

But don't be afraid, God is forgiving and merciful, and as long as you bravely embark on the journey to restore the kingdom of the Lord, you will be able to live up to the Lord's grace and protection, and you will surely be forgiven and rewarded by the gods!

This is a battle that will eventually be won!

Yes, you may die on a glorious journey. But is death more terrible than hell? Is life more precious than immortality? Isn't it the duty of a Christian to die for our faith? With the authority given to me by God and Our Lady, I hereby declare that all those who take part in the holy war, if they lose their lives in the war, will be forgiven at that moment the sins of their life. They will receive the eternal glory of Heaven!

Stretching out his hand and pointing to Asia in the east, the old man, who was already in his twilight years, let out a hoarse cry:

“…… Let's head east! Do not hesitate, do not hesitate, for the glory of our Lord, go! - This is God's will! ”

In short, after receiving the canonization of the paladin, the "Varangian Guard" with the red flag of sickle and hammer, with a small number of auxiliaries recruited from Constantinople, totaling less than a hundred, crossed the Bosphorus and set foot on the land of Asia Minor as an advance party.

And the first target in front of them was the city of Nicaea, which was only a few dozen kilometers from Constantinople.

The city has a glorious history. At that time, it was the shining jewel of the Roman Empire in Asia, the site of several religious councils, and a fairly strong military fortress.

The city of Nicaea is located in a basin with a vast lake to the west. The western side of the city is protected by the lake. The remaining three sides are surrounded by a ten-meter-high wall, with a total length of five kilometers. More than a hundred towers stand on the ramparts, watching the enemy from a height of seventeen meters. Outside the city walls, there was also a double moat, the mountain and the lake, the wall and the tower, which joined forces to protect Nicaea.

For more than 300 years, the Turks who were defending the city at that time held out for more than 40 days under the fierce siege of 60,000 crusaders.

So, the traversers originally planned to do some fire reconnaissance of the city to see if they could scavenge for something good.

However, only three days later, Emperor Constantine XI, who was still slowly marching, received the good news of the "recovery of Nicaea".

Because, long before the arrival of this "Varangian Janissaries", the terrible plague had already preemptively destroyed Nicaea's defenses. (To be continued.) )