615

Amanda Mountains, July.

Explosions whistled in the wails of the people, and the sound of artillery and gunfire echoed over the mountain towns.

The sky was filled with the light of the morning sun, which seemed to never go away, and the peaceful city where the ascetics had gathered in the past was swept away by fire and disaster.

I don't know how long this kind of war has been going on.

After five days of fighting, Fersak's Second Legion finally made a hole in its defenses, and ammunition and artillery were scattered on the ground without reservation, causing the peaceful town to collapse in an instant.

A second hiding place is discovered, and along with the gate and the mysterious academic ritual on it, it is severed by the heavy sword, and panic is the last straw that crushes the small city. The people in the shelter began to cry frantically, screaming, and praying to the gods for mercy and blessings. People were pushing and shoving, hoping to open some hidden passage in the shelter. But most of them are ordinary people, and the occasional extraordinary will be the first to be hit, and they will fight on their own, and in the chaos they will only push others into the enemy's blade.

In the shadow of blood and fire, they are more religious than at any time in their lives.

But such piety could not be exchanged for anything in the chaos of war, and the soldiers of Fersak cleaned it up mercilessly, and the small shelter was turned into a slaughterhouse for turtles in urns, and the living were chopped up by the light of the morning sun, and the ground was slippery with blood.

A few minutes later, the efficient slaughter came to an end, and Fersak's warriors began to sweep the battlefield, removing valuable trinkets and brooches from the severed limbs, placing them in prepared pockets, and waiting for the extraordinary properties to be revealed.

A warrior reached out and pushed away the movable visor, revealing a young face.

He took a deep breath of the bloody air, and then quickly began to fan the wind in front of him with his hand.

It was then that he remembered what he had just chopped off, what the gun in his hand had hit, and the people who had screamed and cried a few moments before had become warm pieces and fell at his feet. In a trance, he felt as if he had arrived at the temple frozen forever in the twilight, where the Heroic Spirits fought and died day after day, and were reborn the next day, fighting forever and so on, honing their martial arts with the heroes of history, waiting for the day when they would go on battle with the great god of war.

It seems that the holy temple is not in heaven, but on earth.

Colleagues are rummaging through the corpses for valuables. The necklace had his neck cut off, his ring finger had been sliced open, and the low laughter of his colleagues and the sound of machetes chopping bones and flesh at the meat market were heard.

"Hey, Arnold!"

He was the butcher's child, and there was nothing unacceptable about what was in front of him. But he thought about it in a daze, and let his boss call twice in a row before he came back to his senses.

The boss handed him a packet of powder and a bucket of oil:

"Go get this in order."

"Yes, sir."

The smell of blood and necromancy will attract hyenas from the Church of the Night, and even increase their combat power. Warriors are not good at dealing with spirits, so simply burning the remnants of spirits along with the corpses is the best way.

Arnold nodded, and he poured the powder into the oil to mix, walking back and forth in the shelter, drawing a continuous line.

The oil sprinkled on the faces of those whose eyes were open or closed, like insects sealed in amber.

After he had sprinkled the oil all over every corner of the shelter, the others had already packed up and were ready to move on. Arnold returned to the group, only to see the brown-haired chief of staff reach out and pop out a spark, a fingernail-sized spiritual flame falling to the end of the oil trail.

The underground shelter burst into flames, engulfing the corpses and everything that had happened here.

Arnold glanced back at the limbs that burned rapidly in the flames, and then continued with his troops.

As he walked, he suddenly remembered something - one night when he was standing guard, he seemed to hear the big men discussing that since the Amanda Mountains could not be attacked for a long time, they should open a new route, as if they were going to use the airships that had been prepared in the military factory for a long time.

The warriors' footsteps faded away, leaving a dense red footprint.

The thing of "hiding in the corpse, waiting for the enemy to leave and then crawling out and running away" did not happen, the corpse remained corpse, lying there quietly, quietly burning, the hunters and warriors did not spare a single breath and heartbeat.

……

"The Fursacks are coming in from the flanks!"

"Starry Town was destroyed in the impact!"

"Bishop! Your Excellency, Bishop! They don't seem to have a demigod to lead the team, and we must act as soon as possible before the scope of the invasion has been expanded! ”

The sound of explosions continued in his ears, and the archbishop, dressed in a priest's robe embroidered with stars and a red moon, was already an old man over sixty years old. But he has the long life and strong vitality of a demigod, and he will not really make mistakes in decision-making because of old age.

As a respected saint, in this church that has been transformed into a temporary hospital, he stands here, and everyone has a backbone again. After a brief period of noise and panic, the church gradually fell silent again. Slowly and carefully he helped a wounded civilian to bandage his knife wound, gently patted the baby in his arms, who had lost his parents, and then stood up with a very different majesty than usual:

"How's the evacuation in the City of Tranquility?"

In front of him, a middle-aged man who looked to be in his thirties stood up, his red-gloved hands rubbing against each other, an act that seemed to inject some courage and stability into the red glove.

"The population of the Quiet City has been evacuated, but the military has no spare trains to take everyone back to the interior, and more than half of the residents are still stranded here, wandering around other nearby cities, including Starry Town."

The red-glove squad leader spoke calmly, and there was a dead silence in the church, except for the heavy breathing of the wounded.

The City of Tranquility is named after the "Church of Tranquility", which is adjacent to the headquarters of the Church of the Night, which is cold all year round, not rich in supplies, and very poor, but the people who have lived in the city are satisfied with it. It was a city-state where ascetics and devotional people spontaneously gathered, and the Church of Tranquility has a history dating back to the early Fifth Age.

The population of the City of Tranquility is not very large, probably only a tenth or less of that of Beckland. But if there are mass casualties among the people here, it will be more important than the disaster to be a crisis of faith.

Once the City of Tranquility is lost, the Night Church will face one of the worst faith crises in its history.

"Where is His Majesty?"

The child in his arms slept soundly, and the gray-haired archbishop asked in a low voice, laying a peaceful dream in the church.

"His Majesty the Pope and the Patriarch of the Church of the God of War are still facing off." If the two earthly angels intervened, it would be time for them mortals to withdraw from the battlefield of mythology. The Red Glove Squad Leader licked his chapped lips and said in a hoarse voice, "Your Excellency, we are the closest to Star Town, and before the Second Legion can completely invade from this gap, we can rush to wipe them all out here!" ”

"How many people did they come in?"

The leader of the red glove squad looked happy: "The vanguard force, the total number of people is about thirty, the leader seems to be a mid-sequence warrior, and there are only about ten extraordinary people in the team. ”

The archbishop's dark blue eyes closed, and he sighed: "Vincent, the vanguard of more than twenty people, and half of the extraordinary, must have hidden a high sequence of the 'hunter' path inside. To deal with such a force, we must call for help from the Templars. ”

Vincent's face changed suddenly:

"But, Your Excellency, the Templar ......"

The Templar was now busy dealing with the upper echelons of the Church of War on the main battlefield, and the plains in front of the Amanda Mountains had become a meat grinder, with the crooked trenches overflowing with blood from the enemy and their own like veins. With the stalemate in the war, the rumors of a royal scandal spreading among Fersak's army, and the presence of all the living forces on the frontal battlefield, will there be a chance to take care of the safety of the small cities on the flanks?

Not to mention......

Even the archbishop was ordered to go to the more critical battlefields......

Vincent's Adam's apple rolled a little, he was also an extraordinary man who had grown up in this small town, and the archbishop had already come to this church for as long as he could remember. The archbishop is as eternal as the stars and the moon in the Holy Scriptures, and he is an irreplaceable pillar to the town of Moon. If the archbishop does leave here, I am afraid that this small town will soon panic and collapse itself.

Oh God.

Vincent couldn't help but pray in his heart, God, save us...... Save your believers!

The archbishop shook his arms gently, and his large, broad hands patted the sleeping baby's swaddling clothes one by one. He watched the child's parents grow up, come together under the gaze of the goddess, and die separately in the war.

The child slept peacefully in the arms of an old man like his grandfather, with a lovely smile on his face.

"Vincent, where are all the members of your squad now?"

The restless squad leader was called by name and hurriedly raised his head. When his gaze made contact with the archbishop's eyes, which were as deep as the night sky, he gradually calmed down and said calmly: "Anne is treating the wounded in the hospital, mobilizing women to sew clothes and prepare food for the soldiers on the front line, Mason is assisting in prayer and requiem rituals in churches in surrounding cities, and helping to fend off the deserters around him......"

The archbishop listened to the report with a smile on his face and nodded to Vincent:

"The Templar's assistance is estimated to be waiting for a while, and I am ready to stop the vanguard from moving forward first."

"Now, there's still an hour until it gets dark, and you can think about ......"

"I do! Your Excellency, I do! ”

Vincent immediately spoke, he pointed out the red moon on his chest, and with a smile on his face, as if the gloom had been swept away: "Your Excellency, I am willing to fight with you, praise the goddess!" ”

But at this moment, he was ready to die and was ready to sacrifice his life for the people of Moon Town—this was his faith, his vow under the gaze of the goddess, and now he finally had the opportunity to fulfill it. Vincent was thrilled by the impending sacrifice, but also faintly feared and regretted.

"Vincent, I think you're not married yet, are you?"

Vincent, who was immersed in his own world, suddenly came back to his senses, and he rubbed his hands in some embarrassment: "Yes, yes, after my fiancée was involved in an extraordinary incident and died unexpectedly...... I swore I would always be with her......"

"Then you can adopt this child."

"She's your friend's child, and they'll be assured that you'll be raising her."

The archbishop took two steps forward and handed Vincent the dark swaddling cloth in his hand, in which the child was sleeping with his fingers in his mouth.

Vincent was stunned for a few seconds, then he suddenly understood, and took over the heavy swaddling clothes in a different mood, his eyes a little sour.

"I will, Your Excellency."

When he raised his head again, his gaze was even more resolute.

616

The war was fought on the edge of the border, but it had not yet directly affected the lives of Beckland's high society.

7:30 p.m., 39 Berklund Street, Rep. Macht's house.

Dressed in a tuxedo, Crane stepped out of the carriage, buttoned his clothes, and entered the foyer against the backdrop of the fountain of lights, where he saw Maury Mahert, wearing an olive-green military uniform, an orange ribbon, and a battle medal.

Combined with the ongoing war, Klein couldn't help but think out for a moment - if the war situation continued to deteriorate, would the Maht Councillor and the veterans in the club who had been honored in East Bailang return to the army?

After a brief exchange of pleasantries with Mrs. Leana, Klein looked at Councillor Macht.

Councilor Mahert believes that Dawn Dantès, who can successfully reach the Southern Continent and return with his whole body, has more energy than he imagined in the Southern Continent, and it is worth risking the disgust of some nobles to insist on befriending, which is also the consensus of many people at present, and many people want to use Dawn Dantès's relationship to get more ways. So, after looking at each other and smiling, he took the initiative to step forward, gave a hug, and said in a suppressed voice:

"Thank you for your hard work."

Crane's mind flashed back to the report he had submitted to the Dark Sage, and he smiled and nodded, and asked instead:

"Do you still like the gift?"

He was referring to the bottle of River Valley wine that could be used to make a sour cocktail, and although it claimed to be a local specialty bought on the way to the southern continent, it was actually bought just yesterday.

After all, he had been very busy in the Southern Continent, and he didn't have time to buy any souvenirs.

"It's amazing, that's the taste I miss." Congressman Makht said sincerely.

Klein was about to enter the hall when he noticed something was wrong, glanced at it casually, and asked with a little confusion:

"Miss Hazel isn't here?"

……

On the outskirts of the North End, in a sparse woods.

Leonard stretched out his right hand and pressed a transparent and blurry wolf figure.

The wolf whimpered, and the fire burning in his eyes faded and returned to normal.

Its figure then faded and collapsed, disappearing into the wind, but it no longer had a violent and bloodthirsty feeling, peaceful and calm.

After the events of Ince Zangwill were completely over, Leonard, as a member who had made some contributions, was given a promotion position - but Leonard did not feel that he was ready to go further, and did not seem to have enough credit, but he did not intend to refuse, and guessed that this time the church was to be rewarded with a particularly rich reward for preparing the church before the war came.

It's always good to have more power, and it's easy to escape.

Whether or not he was prepared to leave the church, Leonard did not intend to do anything about his fellow disciples.

As soon as he finished "pacifying" the ghost of the wolf, Leonard's eyes suddenly appeared in front of his eyes an endless gray mist, and the prayer of "World" Gelman Sparrow immediately echoed in his ears.

The new whereabouts of the "blasphemer" Amon, he is still in Beckland...... Leonard's eyelids jumped, and the whole person's state tensed.

Because Mr. "Fool" had orders, he did not hesitate, lowered his voice and said:

"Old man, did you see anything just now? Did you hear that? ”

The slightly aged voice of Parles Zoroasd then sounded:

"Nope."

"Although I noticed a trace of abnormality, I didn't see or hear anything, unless, you let me parasitize at a deeper level and directly grasp your star spirit body."

Of course not! Isn't that putting my life in your hands? Hey, wait a minute, Mr. Fool's response was made possible through the astral spirits...... Leonard pondered for a moment, and then pondered the language:

"Old man, Klein told me something through Mr. 'Fool', saying that he had discovered a new trace of Amon and asked me to go to Mr. 'Fool''s realm to discuss this matter."

"What do you suggest?"

Leonard couldn't help but scratch his head: "...... Old man, have you ever had a relative? Will you help him convey all the big and small things as soon as possible? ”

Parles Zoroaster was silent for a few seconds, then sighed:

"I have had, and I do, care for them, but not to the point where I can do anything for them in the first place."

He didn't say much more on the subject, but returned to Amun: "If he wants to deal with Amon's doppelganger in Bakeland, tell him that you know the consequences unless there is a secret protection." ”

The old man took the initiative to say this and gave the preconditions, which means that there is really a secret blessing, and he is willing to cooperate? Leonard's heart moved, and he immediately found a dark corner and prayed to tell "the world" that Klein himself could now.

As for whether it would be dangerous to lose control of his body in the suburbs, Leonard was not worried, because he still had an angel in his body who was the "thief" path.

It wasn't long before a crimson tide gushed out in front of his eyes, drowning him in one fell swoop.

It's only been a few minutes? The response speed is really unbelievable...... The moment he was overwhelmed by the light, Leonard couldn't help but think.

TBC

——————

* Skip the first meeting of Crane and Amon and the death of Jacob's descendant.

The Spanish word for "morning light" Amancer is transliterated like "Amanda".

It's strange why the kingdom of the goddess of the night is near the mountain range named "Dawn", could this place originally belong to giants.

(End of chapter)