"Do you think I should go?" asked Gray the Black Cat, Catherine, and Vivien.

"I think you'd better go for it. The threat in the letter is too obvious. The black cat replied.

"I think you'd better go, too. Catherine said, "According to your agreement with the Holy Spirit, if humanity launches a crusade because it learns of your lich identity, then Heaven will also crusade against you." At that time, it is still unknown whether the power of the demon lord will be able to work. Even if it works, you can't rely on the borrowed power to overcome the Holy Spirit. ”

"Are you sure the Holy Spirit will crusade against me?" Gray asked.

"Definitely. That's a resolution, not a resolution that can be changed by a single Holy Spirit. It's even more like a contract. ”

Gray was silent.

"I hope you understand one thing. Catherine added, "If your identity is revealed, and humanity launches a crusade, and Heaven follows suit, then everything you have done now will be nullified." Not to mention continuing to move forward, everything before will be denied and everything will return to the original. Do you want that?"

"I don't want to, but ......" Gray didn't continue, he just stood silent, quietly. The fire of the soul burned quietly, in a trance.

After a while, Gray whispered, "I'll go about my own business first." ”

With that, Gray turned and left his room, closing the door with him.

Only Catherine, the black cat, and Vivien, who had not spoken, were left in the room, looking at each other.

"It's bad, isn't it?" Catherine whispered, "You've always encouraged Gray to fight injustice, and yes, I know he has plenty of power. It is also a very remarkable thing to punish evil and promote good. But...... Gray is a lich after all, and that's his biggest problem. Once revealed, it's all over. When you find out who you are, you are the biggest obstacle to justice...... How can that feel good?"

"I don't understand what you're talking about!" Vivien said angrily, "Gray can defeat the crusade of Heaven, if not defeat, at least a draw." ”

"Really, are you sure Gray can?

"The Demon Lord will definitely support him!"

"Why would the Demon Lord support him, because he is a lich, an outlier who can divide the Holy See. But what if Gray didn't split the Holy See but gave it a new lease of life? Will the Demon Lord still support him? What if the Holy Spirit's purpose is to rejuvenate the Holy See? Which side will Gray be on? Will Gray help the Demon Lord or the Holy Spirit? If he helps the Holy Spirit, will he become an outcast? Have you ever thought about him?"

After a series of questions, Vivien was momentarily speechless. The black cat listened quietly.

Catherine continued: "'Free things are the most expensive. Isn't that what you demons are saying? The Demon Lord lent Gray power without asking for anything. But is it really free? When he lent Gray power, he actually cast a spell on Gray. That is, he can't lose, he definitely can't lose, and he can't even go against the will of the demon lord. As long as he loses, or goes against the will of the Demon Lord, everyone who is on his side will be implicated. The more brilliant the success today, the more intense the comeback will be tomorrow. And the Demon Lord has the power to deprive Gray of the foundation of success at any time. How do you think Gray should deal with this, succumbing to the Demon Lord because of his status as a lich, giving up the justice he has been seeking, or disregarding the lives and deaths of everyone close to him? It's not just a matter for him. ”

Vivien shut up completely, her eyes wide open, and her face panicked.

"This is just the beginning. Gray is going to leave his urgent business behind and go to Cedric V, or continue to do what he wants, taking huge risks. Playing this kind of game, whether it is the Demon Lord or the Holy Spirit, they are much higher than us. Gray wants justice to everyone, but who will give justice to Gray?"

Black Cat and Catherine looked at each other silently, and Vivien's eyes widened.

After a long time, Catherine sighed softly: "If I could, I would like Gray to stop now." I know that's not what an angel should say, but I really think so. I know he won't agree, you ...... It's better not to persuade him to be radical either. ”

......

Time passed bit by bit, and there was a kind of tranquility, like the eve of a storm.

Every person and every creature on the continent of Celtics continues to live their lives, and whether they want it or not, "tomorrow" will eventually come.

Gray did not drop everything as Cedric V demanded and immediately went to Black Dragon City, the capital of the Gustav Empire.

"I'm not going to leave what I'm supposed to do and go to Black Dragon City for personal reasons. There is no doubt that what awaits me there will be a secret agreement. If I agree, then what is the difference between me and the Cardinal who I am judging? Faith is the foundation of everything. If I can't keep the bottom line of faith, then I can't keep anything. ”

Yes, if you move forward step by step, for the sake of compromise, then what's the point of everything you've done before? Why not be quiet, and be a good lich?

So, in the tranquility, there is an undercurrent surging.

As Gray's trial of the Cardinals progressed, pirated copies of The Lich Paladin appeared on the market one after another. The books were not sold because no one bought them at all. The hostile Gray people took the form of a gift. "Paladin Gray, who never lifts his mask, is actually a lich. Such rumors began to appear everywhere.

One of them even made it to Irene. Irene sent it to Gray, along with a blank piece of letterhead and payment.

Gray just glanced at it, then silently placed the letter in the drawer.

"What does Irene mean by that, blank stationery?" Vivien asked in a whisper.

"I think she was skeptical too. The black cat said helplessly.

But she didn't ask. ”

"Because she is not qualified to question. Without Gray, she wouldn't be where she is today. Maybe she sent a piece of paper to Gray just to get him an answer. ”

The entire continent of Celtics was filled with whispers, whispers directed at Paladin Gray.

"Why didn't Paladin Gray respond to this rumor, as soon as he lifted his mask, no one would doubt him anymore. ”

"How do you know that removing the mask isn't a rumor?"

"If this is the truth, why didn't he ban the spread of such rumors?

Or maybe it's because he's speechless. ”

Among the people who talked about it were even many people that Gray was familiar with.

Letters were sent to Mount Azrant.

"Paladin, I think you should clarify. Such rumors are ridiculous. "It's from Mike.

"Paladin, if you can, I think you should remove your mask. If you really don't want to, you should at least tell people why you don't want to remove your face covering. "It was sent by Halls.

"I heard this rumor a month ago, and I severely punished the butler and did not allow anyone to mention it. But now everybody is saying, I don't know what to do about it. Maybe you should make a new law that bans the book called The Lich Paladin. By the way, the author was arrested and executed. If you don't want to do it, I can do it. "This is from Camilla.

"Maybe you have your reasons, maybe it's to show your generosity. But realistically, these rumors are already starting to affect your reputation. I really don't understand why this ridiculous rumor allowed him to ferment to such an extent that you could have easily made it go away. "It was sent by Abby Robles.

"You are my grandson-in-law, I respect your ideas, and I am used to you refusing to let anyone see your face without any reason. But, from a political point of view, this rumor should be stopped. Anyone can see that there is someone behind this, do you want them to succeed?"

"Dear Paladin, we know you well as who you are, and we know that you can never be a lich. There can be no lich like you in this world. However, not everyone believes in you as much as we do. Bob told me you might be an elf. In fact, I used to think about it. If that's the case, then it really can't be uncovered. After all, the human paladin is actually an elf, which is not good news. But I think you should at least do something about it, even if it's fake. "It was sent by Benedict II.

Of course, there are also those who don't write to Gray and just do it. Camilla's father, Duke Bert II, for example. He directly arrested the people who spread the "rumors" and charged them with defamation of the paladin. For this reason, Gray also had to write a letter to intercede on their behalf.

"I'm worried about you, you better come back early. It's not that I don't support you, it's just that I feel like you should spend more time with me and Richie. There was no doubt that this was Shelley's letter.

And, of course, there was the letter that Richie secretly stood: "Father, the situation seems to be going in a bad direction. I think you should make a quick decision. I mean, by force. I know you have that ability. ”

The whole world is whispering.

I have to say that a rumor based on a story and a book has a strong expansion power. And when there is a force behind it that is actively promoting, this expansion force is even more extraordinary. The main problem, of course, is that Gray did not respond.

Yes, there was no response, no evidence was presented to prove that it was not, not even a word of denial. He simply continued to work Mount Azrant and was engrossed in his Reformation. It's as if you haven't heard all kinds of rumors.

Almost all the bishops in foreign countries wrote to Gray asking him to explain, after all, although many of them were against Gray, the rumor that the Holy See was controlled by a lich was even more deadly. At least until Gray stepped down.

However, Gray did not reply to any of these letters.

Time passed bit by bit, and in the blink of an eye, it was December of the year 10757 in the holy calendar. Five months have passed since Gray took control of Mount Azrant.

The trial of the cardinals on Mount Azrant has finally settled. All four paladins were removed. Of the thirty-one cardinals, twenty-one were dismissed. One of them was a supporter of Gray at the beginning. Of the 21 cardinals who were dismissed, 17 were outright excommunicated, and 15 had to face various other punishments.

Even the ten cardinals who remained, as well as the new Pope Darren IV, were not entirely fine. It's just that the offense is minor, and the Cardinals need a minimum number of people to keep it running until the new blood is replenished. They were to be punished with varying amounts of flogging, according to the mistakes they had committed, and the punishment would continue until they had been fully repaid according to the teachings.

Among them, Dominnier converted 600 lashes, and at the rate of 10 lashes a month that was not life-threatening, he would need to be beaten for five years.

"Gray, I think you'd better think it through. The black cat suggested: "It may be very disadvantageous for you to publish such a result." ”

"Because it's not good for me, don't they need to be punished for their mistakes?" Gray asked rhetorically.

Such a punishment can be said to be extremely harsh. Although Gray, who was looking at the case file, didn't find it harsh, he was merciful enough.

For a while, rumors such as "the paladins are lichs, and the trial of the Senate is part of the lich's plan to take control of the Holy See" became even louder.

In the beginning, people thought that the "paladins were lichs" and other bizarre "rumors" were just after-dinner conversations, as if discussing how many mistresses the king had. Now, with Gray's heavy punishment of the House of Cardinals, conspiracy theorists of all kinds are starting to come to the fore.

In February 10757, a fight took place in St. Lorenna. Two people died, many were wounded. The incident began when someone openly declared that Paladin Gray was a lich at the bazaar, while another person disagreed. What started as a two-man quarrel turned into a bloody fight involving thousands of people.

When receiving the family of the deceased, an old man held Gray's hand tightly and said with tears in his eyes: "Lord Paladin, my son was killed, but I have no regrets! You have exempted the church, you have punished the batons, you are the greatest paladin of all time, and we can all feel your integrity and kindness! How can they be allowed to slander you like this? I am old, and I have few years to live. I beg you, lift your mask and let them all see! Let them all see how ridiculous that rumor is!"

Gray could only stare at the old man in silence, he could see the expectation in the old man's hazy gaze, but he could not respond to it. I could only watch quietly, watching the expectation drain away bit by bit, and I didn't even dare to withdraw my hand. I don't know how to comfort an old man who has just lost his beloved son.

"Vivien. Gray asked softly, "Are you sure that this news was released by Cedric V?"

"Sure. Vivien replied, "Both cardinals are under house arrest, and he is the only one who has the power to do so. He wants to force you to take the initiative to go to Black Dragon City to meet him. ”

"Got it, let's leave for Black Dragon City tomorrow. ”

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