?????? The night sky was clear and cloudless. Tess and the stars shone faintly, guiding the gravel-strewn path beneath their feet.

The fighting dispersed the nearby residents, and even the crows and hyenas did not want to linger longer. The heavily armored knights rode the celestial horses along the deserted field, their hooves sounding dull and rhythmic, like the drums of battle.

The Breeze Forest blocked the cold winds from moving south, keeping temperatures above freezing on the northern frontier of the Empire. Elena wore a slightly thicker Church Army robe, her long braided hair under her hood, and a silver emblem hung from her chest with a finely broken metal chain.

She grasped the white-gold round emblem and felt the warmth spread from her palm, slowly soaking her limbs and body.

It had been two days since I left Golden Rock City. The Knights of Glory traveled at night and took turns resting during the day - the magic of St. Leonos kept them from the cold, and the night was better suited to stealthy marches and avoid surprise attacks than during the day, when it was better to have a good sight.

A week ago, Kylo Russell left with several Elna to ask for help from 'beyond humans'. Elena rode the horse 'Red Lotus', which originally belonged to Shirley, and temporarily joined the Knights, hoping that her magic could reduce some casualties.

According to the Elna's prophecy spells, the Shining Knights were scattered into five teams and headed for different locations. Now they were heading north, aiming to move south from the Iron Ridge Mountains, where the Beron army was now stationed in the wilderness.

These people of the mountains are good at digging pits and digging holes, and they are also good at blasting rocks. The previous attempts, though stopped in time, caused considerable trouble for the defenders of Golden Rock City. Now that the city was full of wounded, they had to hold back the enemy until reinforcements arrived.

"Lord Leonos." The traveling nun lowered her head and prayed softly, "Please watch over the people around me and let them return safely." Please protect all of you in Golden Rock City, and let them live to witness the victory-"

No one responded to her. However, Elena was confident that the Lord of Light would hear her and the prayers of everyone around her.

……

She wasn't unskeptical.

Since the beginning of the "Gray War", the "Lord of Light" has not given any additional strength to believers, except for the same divine arts. Neither she nor the Templars she knew had ever heard an oracle from them.

The current war, as if they had been in their original era, were fought against the "god Edda" and Rogman III, stemmed only from the determination of the Church of San Leon and even Pope Ryctor.

If a creature clings to the gods, it loses its destiny —

This is how it is explained in the Gospel of Light. She had asked Kahlan and Hylanthia, and their answers were similar to those in the book. But the girl still has her own worries.

Yufe had told her that the stars had the same splendor and heat as the sun, but they were so far away that they could reach the El with only a glimmer of light. So, is the human world too small for the gods to have no value in casting their eyes?

It wasn't until a week ago that Kylo took Ann to find her.

"We have to get rid of Lily, or we won't win." Kylo said bluntly, "But also to avoid her dying here." This requires your assistance. ”

"You ...... What do you want to do? ”

"The specific means need to be kept secret. However, everything was Ann's idea. The Empire's wise general looked to the side, and the girl bowed her head in agreement, "You should know her, right?" ”

Elena nodded. The girl, who calls herself an "explorer", is actually an outright idealist - which is quite in tune with Elio. The nun was sure that Ann also expected a happy ending, and would use her superhuman analytical skills to find any small possibility—

She closed her eyes, and just one breath was enough to see her heart.

"Tell me what needs to be done." The nun said seriously.

"Come with me first." Kylo beckoned to her and turned back, "Take you to someone." ”

So she followed Kylo and Ann into the castle, into the depths, through the secret door into an empty room she had never seen before. They descended a spiral staircase made of bluestone, all the way through the dimly lit and cold corridor. The hustle and bustle of the war quickly faded away, and the dust of the long time covered the road, leaving neat footprints behind the three of them. The magic crystals inlaid on both sides of the corridor flickered and dimmed, and there were countless knife and axe marks left on the rock wall, which were very old, probably the marks left by the excavation of the road.

For some reason, the environment in front of her did not seem gloomy, but with a reassuring tranquility. Elena reached over the rock wall, imagining how the craftsmen of the time had carved it out, then strengthened and repaired it. And before them, how many people followed this corridor to the other side hidden in the darkness.

"It was completed twenty years ahead of the castle, six hundred and seventy years ago." Kylo duly spoke from the front, "At that time, the Kamal were not sophisticated enough, they just used spells to soften the rock formations, dig up the dirt, and then manually trim the rest. ”

He turned his head and slowed slightly, "About six hundred years ago, the Elna people began teaching us the secret arts. In today's Federation, most mid-level wizards can directly change the shape of rocks, as long as they have not been protected by spells. ”

It's a pity they're gone, Elena thought. Even if the coalition forces win the "gray war", the scars left behind will not easily disappear. She secretly prayed for the wizards she didn't know, and continued with Kylo.

The tunnel ends in a wide cave. It is about twenty meters wide, with slightly flat walls and endless depths. The magic crystals were still embedded in the sides, casting a dim and soft light. Many pitch-black stone pillars rise from the ground, supporting the heavy rock formations more than ten meters above the head. Between the stone pillars, Elena saw a black coffin, and she walked over to it, brushing the dust off the top and reading the words engraved on the stone tablet.

"Here rests the Explorer, Andro II St. Violet, may his soul rest in peace......," the traveling nun looked up, already having some guesses in her mind, "This is the burial chamber of the successive lords of the House of St. Violet...... And the temple? ”

"That's right, the temple of Mar." The wisdom of the empire will come to a halt, "the Lord of the Earth was once believed by many. She is able to alleviate the sickness of the dying and ensure that their souls are not disturbed after they are gone. He sighed, "A hundred years ago, Edda's divine powers suddenly all failed, and Mar no longer answered the prayers of the seriously ill. No one knew exactly what was going on, and the Raven Knights were silent. Nowadays, the followers of the "Lord of the Earth" are almost rare, and only these ancient castles still have altars dedicated to her. ”

Kylo turned forward, his back fading away. Elena hurried to follow, leaving the coffins behind.

The hall ends with a straight staircase that rises upwards. The idol of Mar, dressed in a long dress and holding a scepter, stands quietly at the top of the staircase. The face of the statue is solemn and gentle, loving but cold, like a benevolent virgin and like a harsh king. Elena walked up the steps and watched as Kylo bowed in front of the stone statue and whispered the prayer she had vaguely heard.

"Our admiring Mother, may your kingdom be at peace and normal. May you grant us a restful sleep every day and a sweet and eternal death. May the pain of the world not remain, and the soul to its place. May all sentient beings eventually go to where you came from. For there is life and perish, and death is constant—"

The black skirt rippled, as if the rock had turned into mercury in an instant. The statue in her vision suddenly became blurred, and an invisible sense of oppression greeted her, and Elena hurriedly took a few steps back until she reached the bottom of the stairs, only to feel that her breathing was lighter.

She looked up again, just in time to see the woman in the long black dress slowly stepping down from the altar, her gaze grazing over Ann and herself, and finally landing on Kylo.

"After all this time, there are still people who remember me." The female voice was soft, but the power that spread from her, which was completely different from that of the "Lord of Light", made Elena involuntarily tremble slightly, "You called me, but you want to seek death? ”

"Yes—but not our death." Kylo took a step back and slowly bent down, "Lady Weiss, the Lord of Heaven has created many lives that should not exist, and has taken away many lives that should not be lost. We beg for your help. ”

"I know who you're talking about." The woman in the long black dress shook her head slowly, the blue crystal on her chest slowly brightened and darkened, "She is Alex's daughter, the true heir of Edda." I didn't heal from my injuries and couldn't have won her. ”

"That's not what we wanted." Kylo paused and was silent for a moment, as if making up his mind, "Ma'am, can you tell us how Alex fell?" ”

The temperature in the cave dropped to freezing in an instant. The surrounding magic crystals were all extinguished at the same time, and the aura of decay and destruction rushed to his face, as if he was about to swallow everything in the next moment. In the almost pure darkness, the words belonging to the woman in black echoed-

"You guys, how much do you know?"

"Just guessing." Kylo's voice remained calm, and Elena even suspected that he had some inhuman blood, "Alex broke the 'promise', right?" ”

"You guessed it right, so he's dead." The woman replied coldly, "So, you're going to repeat Alex's incident in September." ”

"Not quite, but roughly."

"The lich usurped Edda's throne along with September. As oracles, they naturally understand the constraints to which they are subjected. ”

"September is not Femir, she has weaknesses, just like the former Lord of Heaven." The Empire's wise generals seem to have already figured out the answer, "And we...... Enough to know her. ”

"That's a nice thing to say. But it's a pity—" the woman's words were like ice, "you must understand that I can't afford to withstand any serious blow from the Divine Messenger. ”

The words froze the air, and they froze the pleas that came to Elena's lips. But the silence lasted only a few seconds.

"Ms. Weiss, I'm sorry." Kylo spoke again, his voice low and slow, "You said—"

The nun suddenly understood Kylo and Ann's intentions. Instinctively, she clasped her hands to her chest and listened to the answer she could scarcely dare to think about.

"Everything in the world is immortal...... Only death is constant. ”

The darkness dissipated in an instant. Tiana Vis Marr wielded a jet-black longsword, the tip less than half an inch from Kylo's chest. The man's body shook, then he knelt down on one knee and braced himself on the ground with his hands.

"For nearly a thousand years, no one has dared to speak to me like that. You've figured out the consequences——? ”

"But...... Died a few years early...... Nothing more. The wise general of the empire said hoarsely, as if he had exhausted his strength with one sentence, "What if...... Don't beat September, we ...... I won't live long......"

Unprovoked courage allowed Elena to hurry up the stairs, supporting Kylo's crumbling body. Mar's icy anger poured down from above her head, as if it was about to crush Kylo, Ann, and her together. She clenched the emblem in her arms, closed her eyes, and prayed silently.

"—don't embarrass them, Tiana."

The chill that froze her whole body subsided, and Elena slowly lowered her head, seeing a soft light light ignite in her chest. Fang Cai's voice was wide and gentle, and although she had never heard it, she understood the identity of the other party in an instant.

Thank you for your help, Master Protodis, and she wishes in her heart.

"Alright, Leonos. I didn't do anything, rather, they were making it difficult for me. The woman in black looked in front of the nun, then turned to Kylo, and for the first time her words became a little angry, "Where did you learn this?" ”

"Not to my credit, ma'am." Kylo shook his head and said, "Through historical records, Ann has deduced the original appearance of events a hundred years ago and the way in which you were called. He raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his face and slowly stood up, "It's my decision to come here to see you." If there is any offense, I hope that I will be the only one who will take the responsibility. ”

"Don't be too presumptuous, mortal. If you really annoy me, the whole castle will pay for your stupidity. Tiana stopped looking at Kylo and walked straight to Ann, "Are you sure enough?" ”

Ann nodded and flipped through the notebook in her hand, "Lily will definitely fail. And, perhaps, Femir, is also looking forward to that moment."

A gleam flashed in the eyes of the woman in black, even if it was fleeting.

"Looks like you're not just me. There are other things I don't know about September and the Lich. Tiana held out a finger and gently touched the girl's chest, "Good." Since it's a plan you came up with, it's up to you to convince me. As for you-"

She looked back, "Leave now, or die." ”

……

"Hey, little girl." There was the sound of horses' hooves, followed by Jerome's voice, "What are you doing?" Grab a bite to eat, rest for a while, and get ready for a fight. ”

Elena answered, letting go of the hand holding the emblem. The starlight above his head gradually dissipated, and the sky behind him turned white at some point. That means the long night is coming to an end, and the time for battle is near. The stamina of the Celestial Horse is extremely good, and the weight is several times that of ordinary livestock. But they are not machines, and they must rest after a long march to be invincible in an encounter.

She looked around, and the neat queue had long since dispersed. The knights dismounted, some chatting in groups of twos, others munching on their rations, packing their horses, wiping down their weapons, or lying down on the ground for a short rest.

She found a sparsely populated area, slid off her horse, removed the thin copper basin hanging from her backpack, and whispered a prayer to let the milky porridge pour into the basin out of thin air.

This is one of the Shining Knights' required arts, and the same is true for the Traveling Nun. Elena brought herself a small bowl of white porridge, sprinkled a handful of black beans into the basin, and lowered it to the ground beside her. The horse bent its neck to lick the food, and she sat down against the trunk of the tree and ate with the horses.

The day after that, Ann told her that Tiana had agreed to their plan, but still needed her help. As for the specific things to do, when the time is right, the "Lord of the Earth" will take the initiative to communicate with her.

What exactly Ann talked about with the other party, her role in it, or even the details of the whole plan, Elena never asked. She vividly remembered what Kylo had said in the temple, from Master Leonos' persuasion, and Tiana's final response.

Since even "Them" are willing to bear it, there is no reason to hesitate.

She swallowed the remaining porridge in two bites, filled the copper basin with water with magic magic, and checked the equipment on her body again. When the horses had finished drinking, she packed her bags, remounted the horses, and returned to the neat line.

"Let's go." Squadron Leader Kent rode past her and joined the front of the line, "The scouts have returned, and the enemy is at hand!" Boys, and girls, cheer me up! ”

The knights whispered in response, and the horses stepped along. The morning light rises, the fog lifts, and the vast plains are unobstructed. In the distance, the camp belonging to the Beron people was slightly raised, and a few wisps of cooking smoke were faintly visible.

"Accelerate." Orders came from the front. "Accelerate." "Accelerate." "Accelerate."

The knights in turn relay the commands backwards while driving the mounts, allowing the horses to get a little excited. Elena did the same, praying in a low voice. A vague aura unfolded around her, sweeping across a radius of tens of meters. Jerome, who was walking beside her, turned his head and gave her a thumbs up.

"It's amazing." He said, "Who taught you this hand?" ”

"Your predecessor two hundred years later, the second of the Templars." Elena replied, "It was about a hundred years before she came to church. I don't think you'll be able to meet her. ”

"Then I'm going to have to try to live a little longer." Jerome laughed, putting down his armor, "You too, little girl!" In my opinion, you will join us sooner or later! ”

The Templar recognition made her happy, though the girl was not so sure. The knight's array continued to accelerate slowly, the horses' hooves splashing dust and beating like a curtain of rain. Elena kicked her horse lightly in the belly, keeping her mount flush with the array.

"You're watching, Lily." The nun whispered to herself, "We will defeat you." ”

The position in front of the line of sight quickly closed. The Beronites dug a deep trench around the camp and erected their horses behind them, followed by three columns of warriors. The warrior at the front, clad in steel armor and holding a spear in one hand, plunges his heavy shield deep into the ground; The two back rows raised the alchemy cylinders and aimed them at the galloping knights.

"In the name of glory, charge ——!"

When the order came, the war horse seemed to understand human language, and suddenly accelerated without an order. About a third of the alchemy cylinder spewed out green flames, and the ammunition fell to the ground, lighting up a wall of blue fire hundreds of meters wide and nearly two meters high. The knights chanted in unison, and the light ignited from their armor and turned into a milky white ocean.

Then they unfurled their lines and rushed straight through the wall of flames, unscathed.

The knights in the front row raised their short spears in unison and threw them with great force. The spear screeched through the air, shattering the second batch of 'ammunition' fired from the alchemy canister. The thick yellow smoke slowly sank, but the war horse flew in unison, leaving it behind in an instant.

"Spear ready ——!"

Elena took off her rifle from the side of her saddle and weighed it, clinging it firmly under her arm. The wind whistled past her ears, and she narrowed her eyes, trying to keep her breathing steady. The nun was not as trained as the Shining Knight, but Hylanthia had taught her the art of fighting on horseback, and the magic gave her plenty of courage and strength.

The distance was narrowed to tens of meters in the blink of an eye. Some of the Perons fled, while others hid behind tower shields, hoping that the trenches and heavy planks covered with barbs would keep them safe.

The Shining Knights raised their spears together, and the horses bowed their heads and rushed towards the enemy line without fear. The golden mangs extended backwards from the tips of each mounted spear, merging with the men and horses, as if casting a divine soldier of light.

A piercing cracking sound resounded through the sky. The Celestial War Horse leaped across the ravine, and the spear picked away the rejection horse, and the heavy shield wall seemed to hit the stronger wall, and scattered into fine wood chips. Some of the knights' spears were also shattered, and they dropped their spears, swords or hammers from their belts, and slashed at the scattered enemy.

Elena followed the second column of knights through the wreckage. Two Beronites pointed their crossbows at her, and she dodged a sharp arrow, stabbing the throat of the man on her left with the tip of her spear, and the warhorse trampling the other under her feet. An axe-wielding warrior tried to cut off her horse's leg, but before she could fight back, a cold light came down from above, splitting the man's head in half with his iron helmet.

"Well done." Jerome shook off the blood from the halberd, "That's what she taught you?" ”

"She seems to know everything, even the secret arts." Elena nodded, suddenly feeling a slight sour nose, "She's probably still waiting for me to go back." "And Teacher Karan, her friends from the Abbey, and the two young girls who were members of Lily's regiment and who had fought alongside her.

"Then you'll have to work harder." The young Templar threw his blade and stabbed one of the soldiers who attempted to launch a sneak attack. Then he raised his hand, and the halberd flew straight back into his hand as if it had been pulled by a thin rope.

"But don't worry." The knight rode forward, his words as relaxed as usual, "These untrained dwarves are not going to cause us trouble!" ”

The battle was soon over. As always, the knights cleaned the battlefield, treated the wounded, and collected the remains of the dead. Kent was interrogating the other general, a man of great Peron, with messy hair, a fierce face, and arms almost as thick as her thighs. A few minutes earlier, he had roared and turned into a three-meter-tall giant, cutting a knight and his horse in two—

Then Jerome's halberd burst through the air, severing his right leg in an instant. When the surviving defenders saw that their generals had fallen to the ground, they dropped their weapons and raised their hands in surrender.

Elena wasn't involved in those. She patted Red Lotus on the back and told it to go for a walk on its own, then looked at Jerome and said goodbye to him silently.

Then she lowered her head, and in her mind she responded to the inquiry that suddenly sounded in her head as she had fought before.

"I'm ready, Lady Mar."

There is no imaginary pain – the interruption of consciousness seems to be just a moment. When she had the ability to think again, the nun only felt that her body had become extremely light, and her eyes were full of colors that she had never seen before. It seems to be a simple and warm palace all around, the breeze is like a song, the air is full of sweetness, and each pillar has an intimate atmosphere. An unprecedented sense of relaxation enveloped her, and she even wanted to fall to the ground like this, empty her mind, and take a good nap.

…… Falling to the ground?

She put the idea of taking a nap aside and tried to examine her body, only to find that there were no arms or human faces, just a pure ball of light the size of a palm floating in the air.

Elena recognized what it was. The Gospel of Light records that after the death of a faithful and good believer, the soul travels to the kingdom of the Lord of Light, becoming an oracle of light, and continuing to follow the gods once believed. In this way—

"I...... Is this dead......?"

"That's right."

Once again, Elena heard the broad voice, and saw someone who was familiar and unusual, but had never seen it with her own eyes. A man dressed in a white robe walked along the white stone corridor, several balls of light similar to her surrounding each other. Two of them flew towards her side by side, staying a foot away from her.

"Don't worry, this is not your time. What Tiana destroyed is not your real body. Leonos Lambert Protodis looked at her gently, "If all goes well, someone will send you back to your homeland." At that time, everything that happens here will be nothing more than a dream in the mirror. ”

"Master Protodis...... nun was worried about something else. She controlled her body to float upwards and came to the white-robed man, "Lady Mar, she ......."

"That's Tiana's own choice." Leonos shook his head slightly, "And I, too, have my own responsibilities - no matter what era. ”

"That's what belongs to our time...... Is that the same?"

"Gray wars in your history are different from today. For Tiana, it didn't make a difference. The man lowered his head and looked at the marble slab at his feet, "I usually do not respond to the requests of believers, and I avoid interfering in mortal disputes. This may seem a bit cold, but the consequences of not doing so should be understood by now. ”

「…… Yes." Kylo said that life is immortal, but in the nun's heart, she never thought about the possibility of the "Lord of Light" leaving, "So, whatever happens, you ...... None of them will be like Ms. Marr...... Or like Lily, right?"

"There may come a time when I, like Tiana, will have to make a dilemma." Leonos recounted gently, as if it were a trivial matter, "Every living thing will perish one day, and the oracle is no exception. When we are burdened by the affairs of the mortal world, we are no different from mortals. ”

"But ......," Elena tried to envision the scene. If the magic belonging to the Lord of Light is completely gone, as experienced by the Knights of the Crow not long ago, the Church may fall into permanent chaos, "We...... Can't you do something about it?"

"If there is such a moment, I will look for a suitable successor, or try to leave something behind—perhaps tangible, or intangible. As for how to use it, I believe you can find the answer. Her god replied, "Don't worry, I'll do my best to prevent it from happening." ”