The times are turbulent, and even in the dead of night, there are still many people who worry about their fate and can't sleep. When a halo of light that did not belong to the night appeared in the originally dark night sky, these tossing and turning people got up one after another to check, full of curiosity and inexplicable fear of the strange points of light in the sky, fearing that it was a harbinger of the undead's attack.

At first, these bright lights were just dotted like fireflies, but gradually, the scattered points of light were connected in series, one by one, and finally formed a scene. The picture changes from blurry to clear, and the crowd of onlookers begins to realize that something is wrong, and the images in the night sky are those who have left before!

The conversation grew louder and louder, and even the sleeping people were woken up, and the whole fortress was as noisy as day.

The people watched in amazement as the avengers slaughtered the unarmed and homeless on the exhaustion of the march, a horrific sight that plunged the crowd gathered in the square into a deathly silence.

Unable to sleep, Gonzalez arrived in the hallway as soon as he had a vision in the sky, and the other principals and officers who had been awakened by the noise rushed to the scene, frightened and helpless at the scene presented to the world. They looked at each other, not knowing what to do.

At this point, covering up is no longer helpful. Even if they tell the truth, I am afraid that the seeds of confusion and anxiety have been planted in their hearts, and the Watch Fortress, which has been advancing and retreating together, will lose the trust of the people.

The short silence was followed by a sea of accusations and doubts. People gathered outside the areas where the aristocracy lived, demanding convincing explanations and truths.

Gonzalez returned to the house and changed into a full-body armor that Dante had made for him, and in addition to the family crest of Befast, he also engraved the seal of the Watch Fortress formed after the fall of Longyan Fort, which was enough to meet the king.

Dante, who had hurried in, closed his mouth again when he saw Gonzalez's dress.

Needless to say, the child already knows and is ready to take on the responsibilities he has to bear.

Walk slowly down the stairs. Gonzalez walked towards the emotional crowd.

Seeing the nominal manager appear, the commoners poured out their fears and insecurities on their mouths.

"Grand Duke, why did you kill those outcasts?"

"What crime did they commit?"

"Collaboration with the enemy, treason?"

"Will you do the same to us as you would a homeless person?"

"Could it be that the Overwatch Fort has defected and joined the Immortal Empire?"

Wave after wave of sound nearly drowned Gonzalez, and he looked around with excitement. If it weren't for his identity, I was afraid that I would have rushed up to him and grabbed him by the placket of his clothes to question him or throw stones.

Strong negative emotions spread in the fortress, and if one is not handled well, not only will it lose the hearts of the people, but it may even force the people who have been supporting the Watch to the point of rebellion. Whether or not the insects are related to the undead, the Undead Empire will be the ultimate beneficiary.

Gonzalez drew his sword, which was more symbolic than combat, and the crowd surrounding him was so frightened by the sudden move that they quickly retreated.

"What does he want to do?"

"You're going to kill us?"

Fear was followed by anger, and people picked up whatever they could find, as long as the lord made any move. Immediately rushed up and attacked it in groups. The expected attack did not materialize, and Gonzalez fell to his knees, his sword in the dirt.

"I have been lord of Befast since birth, and I will defend every person in this land, even if I shed the last drop of blood. I confess that I gave the order to execute the outcasts. ”

As soon as these words came out, people were shocked and puzzled.

Since it keeps saying that you want to protect everyone. Why do you have the cruelty to order the killing?

If such a thing is done, why should you admit it frankly?

"The city of Bisar, not far from the fortress, has not been purchased for half a month. Suspecting that something had happened to them, I sent scouts to check on them. The more than a dozen people have been gone for several days, and there is no news. The Emissary infiltrated, and the city of Bisar was deserted, with the inhabitants and scouts nowhere to be found, and the portal showing no signs of use. These people seem to have disappeared out of thin air. The only thing I found was the strange mist that filled the city, which made the demon extremely frightened of it, so I had to let it return. I didn't think about it. That night, the outcast disappeared in the outer city. There was no portal to leave or go through the gates, the closed underground passages were intact, and no one could tell where the men had gone, and how they had escaped the patrols and garrisons of the soldiers. Archmage Gilard searched through the tomes, and the Vengeful Legion Field Black contacted the Dawn headquarters but could not find out why. ”

Gonzalez's words brought the angry crowd back to their senses a little, they knew that there were a large number of people missing in the outer city, and the soldiers did not hide this matter from the beginning, and in order to be sure, they went to the inner city several times to investigate.

"Commander Dante said that this may be a mysterious insect that led to the fall of the Ancient Elven Empire, as thin as dust, it will quickly multiply when it invades the body, eroding the host, and after the adult worm breaks out, it can turn a city into a no-man's land in a few days. Although I can't bear it, I can't risk the lives of many more for the sake of a few, so I have no choice but to send them out of the fortress......"

Speaking of this, Gonzalez bowed his head deeply: "Originally, this should have been done by me, and the infamy and sin should be borne by me alone, but Blake took this dishonorable errand with the thought that he was the manager of the fortress, and took on the responsibility of my duty. Please don't scold the cruelty of the Avengers, they may have been corrupted by the outer city, and they chose to leave and exiled themselves for the sake of those who remained here. If anyone is really responsible for this, it can only be me, as a lord, and if you have any grievances, please vent them to me. ”

Gonzalez tapped his forehead to the hilt of his sword, awaiting the verdict of the crowd.

The square was silent, as if everyone was holding their breath at this moment, so quiet that only Gonzalez's heartbeat was there.

Impulsive...... Impulsive...... Impulsive......

Dante clasped his hands and pinched a cold sweat at Gonzalez's bold words and actions.

At a time when everyone is in danger, the public is afraid that they will not be able to understand his painstaking efforts, let alone accept that they may become a member of the 'abandoned'. Today it is an outcast, but tomorrow it will be?

If this worm can't find a solution for the day, the sacrifice will continue to be staged.

"If we are all eroded, will the new capital also sacrifice us to protect them?"

In the crowd, I don't know who asked this sentence.

"I'm not them, and I can't answer for them. But...... Like the undead, the worm aims at genocide and devours every living thing it can come its hands on. Gonzalez remained on his knees, and whether he could regain the trust of the people was a matter of heartfelt rather than empty words.

Abigail looked at Gonzalez in the crowd, and his heart was extremely conflicted, hoping that the angry commoners would kill the rightful lord of Befast, but also feeling that it was too tricky for even his own successor as acting lord to calm the resentment of the people.

Just as the situation was at a stalemate, a faltering figure was approaching the gathered crowd. Everyone's attention was drawn to Gonzalez in the center of the field, and few noticed his anomaly.

"What are you doing?"

"What is this?"

"Ahh

Exclamations came from the periphery, and Gonzalez turned his head sideways, and saw that the originally dense crowd suddenly opened a gap, and a person walked in through the gap.

"Hobbes?"

Gonzalez looked at the man who staggered in front of him, his skin covered with dense holes, as if he had been pierced by a nail board, emitting a strong stench, like a highly decomposed corpse, which could no longer be called a 'human'.

"You ......" Gonzalez wasn't sure if he was still alive, it was too sudden, no one expected Hobbes to suddenly open his mouth, and with a "buzz", a swarm of insects swarmed out of his cracked mouth, and the nearby crowd was immediately attacked, and the insects, which were smaller than mosquitoes, quickly found a new host.

Trampling, pushing, screaming, roaring, and all of a sudden, the whole square was in chaos.

As one of the closest people, Gonzalez instinctively chose to avoid the countless flying insects in front of him, and he summoned the musket that had been given as a symbol of the divine messenger, and the flames formed by the divine power instantly swept away the insects around him, but the unarmed civilians were not so lucky. Most of them had been eroded, rolling on the ground in pain, scratching their skin, but to no avail, as tiny worms had burrowed into them and began to frantically eat the flesh of their hosts, and in the blink of an eye, a few of them disappeared as if they had melted.

Witnessing this horrific scene, Gonzalez swung his spear and rolled up larger and more flames. Burns can always be healed, and even the gods will not come back if they are devoured.

Dante led the recovered Overwatch officers to direct the soldiers to evacuate the crowd, and Archmage Gilard quickly rose into the air, using wind and fire to isolate the insects from the crowd.

But it was still too late, and the flying insects as thin as dust were everywhere, and even those who ran fastest on the periphery could escape the insects that penetrated through the cracks in the door, even if they fled back to their rooms, and closed the door.

Walls of fire and wind do not stop the erosion, but only slow it down slightly. These insects themselves are not afraid of fire, and can even penetrate the wind elemental and burrow into the bodies of magically protected people.

Watching people being devoured one by one before his eyes, Gonzalez's despair came to a critical point.

Failed to save it, not a single one......

"Stop...... Don't take away ...... They are my people, and if I can't even protect this last one, what's the point of my life?"

[Pathetic soul bound by duty, if you are so attached to the title of lord, I can give it to you, the subject can want as much as he wants, he will no longer die, there is no fragile body, as long as the soul is there, he can be resurrected infinitely. 】

Gonzalez had a voice in his head that he had never heard before, and time seemed to be frozen, and the flames, the walls of wind, and the swarm all stood still with the sound. (To be continued......)