Section 260 decides

"I never thought he would be so powerful...... My Mikael, I didn't really know he had such a side in the past. He was always gentle and polite to us, and he never used violence even when there was an occasional argument. But at this moment, he was facing a furious beast, but my Mikael was undaunted and did not back down at all. ”

"They fought right in front of me, twenty paces ahead of me. His men rushed over and sparred with the Chaos warriors. Soldiers' spears clash with death-defying Chaos warriors. And my Mikael is right there, going one-on-one with that monster. The soldiers on both sides tried to help their generals, but in the end neither of them could do so. ”

"I'll never forget that moment, my Mikael, jumping, swinging his sword, blocking the grid. Although he wears armor, he moves like a cat. The monster wielded the giant weapon in his hand, a weapon that could chop five people to pieces with a single blow, but he dodged every blow. In the interval between the battle, he also made provocative remarks, and it was because of what he said that I knew that the enemy's camp outside the city had been captured by our reinforcements, and the defeat of the Chaos Legion in this war was decided. ”

And then in that gap, he looked at me and made a gesture to me. Then at that moment, I realized that he didn't rush over like this, he didn't have a hot brain, he came to save me. Because if he doesn't come, that monster will surely kill all of us. ”

"Ah, at that moment, how brave he was, far beyond my imagination. The monsters of chaos were furious by his provocation and completely forgot about us people. The monster hit him for the first time. Not a head-on hit, but a grazing of his shield...... Just like that, his shield ...... The shield made of thick oak and covered with steel was shattered. He rolled sideways, rushing forward before the beast's blade could be pulled back, sword in both hands, and slashing at the monster's neck with all his might. Split the monster's neck in half at once. But the monster also fought back, and the retracted blade struck him, and in the face of unimaginable force, he flew two people high, all the way to the walls of the inner city, and then slid down from above. His helmet fell from his head and fell to the ground, completely deformed. His face was covered with blood......"

As my aunt spoke, her voice became more and more sad. It was perhaps the most memorable moment of her life.

"I rushed up, and he was lying there, limp and scarecrow. I don't know what happened anymore, I just remember him smiling at me and trying to speak, but his mouth opened and a stream of blood spurted out......"

"Someone pulled me away, someone shouted for the doctor to come over...... But I was left with only the most vague impressions. By the time I came to my senses, I found myself standing in front of my house. There were several soldiers I didn't know, dressed in armor and covered in blood, standing before me, and they comforted me and told me to mourn. ”

"His body was in the middle of the room, where he used to drink tea, read books, and talk to me. By that time, it was getting late and the fighting had been extinguished. On that moonlit night, I saw him who could no longer look at me and could no longer speak...... Several of the city's most famous doctors are ...... But they didn't do anything, and a priest stood there, babbling and talking. That's how he was carried away by them...... I asked my sisters, and they all said they didn't know. No one knew where they had gone, and the outer city was littered with corpses, many of them in fragments, and it was impossible to tell who they were. Later I learned that the Chaos Legion had cost a great deal of money and suffered heavy losses in the breach of the outer city. And our side couldn't retreat, and many people who didn't have time to hide in the inner city became the targets of the Chaos Warriors to vent their anger. A lot of people have turned into a pile of meat, yes, a pile of meat, you don't even recognize who they used to be. ”

He was put into a mourning hall on the edge of the city's cemetery. Because under normal circumstances, the deceased, especially the nobles, have to go through the ritual of the wake before they are buried. A lot of people blocked me, hoping that I wouldn't go, saying that it was too exciting for me, but no one could stop me. Some people say I'm half crazy. People told me that it was him, but I said I didn't believe it, I didn't believe what they said, and I had to see it to believe it. I don't believe that he was so heroic, so dashing, and he just left. They finally relented, and a soldier I didn't know came and stopped all the people who were dissuading me, and let me in alone. I heard him talking, and he said that this was our last night as a couple, and that I was going to keep a wake for him and let me be with him. I walked in alone, walked in, and I looked at the person lying in the mourning hall, who was my beloved husband. I didn't cry and scream, I just went up and sat next to him, just like we normally do. I was alone with a corpse, but I wasn't scared at all. How could I be afraid? On the contrary, I was reassuring him that he should not worry, that I could not remember what I was talking about now, but that I had been talking for a long time, as if there was something to say. He just lay there motionless, silently listening. Later, the wound on his head oozed blood, black blood. I took my handkerchief and wiped it as I went, wiping not only his blood, but also my tears. A handkerchief was mixed with his blood and tears. I just realized that I was very selfish, in fact, I always wanted him to possess him alone. But only in that moment did he really belong to me alone. Although I have been married many times in my life, every time I look back, I can only think of the happy moments when I followed him. He's like my only man, I'm his only woman......"

Aunt Mary was crying and could no longer speak. Ashrufat held her by the hand and waited silently, and after a long time, her feelings calmed down.

"Hah...... Later they found the bodies of my sisters...... To be specific, only four were found, and all of them were incomplete. There are three more, which cannot be found at all, only mountains of corpses. Chaos Legion's, ours. All the people in the church burned it clean. Finally, according to tradition, they took out their clothes, made a mound of clothes, and buried them with him. Then, when I came to my senses, I realized that I was the only one left. I inherited all his property - and connections. Because of my status as a surviving person, the nobles and ministers who had dealings with him in the past had to sell me some face. But I can't stay at the White Castle - it's a military stronghold, and I can't go without a garrison for a day...... And then...... And then it's today!"

When my aunt said these words, her expression was a little blank. Perhaps the grief caused by the memories was too heavy for her to overwhelm.

"I'm sorry for letting you listen to my old woman's whining for a long time......" Auntie came back to her senses and said suddenly.

"No, no, Auntie. Ashrufat's gaze rested on his aunt's unfinished painting, which he now knew was in the background of the White Fort (probably the gate of some city). The past that my aunt just said sounds moving. "I'm really sorry that Count Mikael ......"

The old woman, as if she had exhausted all her body, sat down again (she had already risen by the time she had spoken), and let out a long sigh.

"It's a waste of your time. She bowed her head.

"It's time for me to go up. Ashrufat said.

"The best...... Let me tell them. Aunt Mary tugged at Ashrufat's clothes. "If you just go and say it...... It's a little too cruel for those two girls. ”

"Auntie, I remember that at the beginning, you didn't allow me to marry the two of them, did you?"

"Yes......" Aunt Mary was stunned for a moment.

"At first, the engagement was just for me to marry one of them. Later, it was because of my willfulness that I became what I am now. Ashrufat said. "The so-called marriage contract was originally based on consensual thinking. If it is true that the man and the woman do not get along with each other, then the marriage contract has no meaning, although it can be dissolved. On the other hand, even if there is no marriage contract, if you get along well with each other, you can still get married. In fact, in a sense, the marriage contract or something is just an opportunity, and the real key lies in the parties themselves. ”

He lowered his head and gently hugged the old woman. "Auntie, thank you very much for giving me such an opportunity to get to know them and get along with them. If I had fallen off a cliff and injured myself that day and hadn't met you, I don't know what the outcome would have been now. ”

He let go of his hand. "I said I would marry them, as long as they didn't regret it. And, auntie, you know, I really only have one wedding away from them. ”

He made his way up the stairs. A mystery was completely solved in his mind, and there was no more suspense. But that's not the solution. There are still many questions in his mind.

And, if Aunt Mary hadn't lied—and it was really unlikely, Aunt Mary had just lied—there seemed to be a strange thing.

From what his aunt said, and from the history books he had read about the war, it seemed that the Chaos Legion had done something very strange. The Chaos Legion was clearly under siege - and then suddenly saw enemy reinforcements coming from behind. In such a situation, when faced with the enemy's front and rear attacks, all he has to do is withdraw the besieging troops and try to retreat from the battlefield. Although this is actually a difficult thing to do, and it is often necessary for a death squad to cover the retreat of the main force, in terms of the art of war, it is the only option in such situations.

But according to my aunt, the Chaos Legion at the time adopted an unexpected choice. Instead of shrinking their forces in anticipation of a surprise attack by enemy reinforcements, they intensified their offensive against the city. Presumably, it was for this reason that Count Mikael miscalculated the enemy's actions and led the outer wall to be broken through by the enemy. Otherwise, a defender, an experienced general, would have no reason to make the mistake of not having time to withdraw the wounded to the inner city.

Of course, tactically speaking, it was only a small defeat. Because the White Fort is a strong fortress with a triple wall, the first wall will not lead to the fall of the castle. On the other hand, it was precisely because the Chaos Legion ignored the strong attack on the White Fort that the reinforcements of Zhì Gruni easily broke through the camp of the Chaos Legion, and surrounded and finally annihilated all the remaining Chaos Legions.

The thought flashed through Ashrufat's mind. Because at this time Aunt Mary spoke up to stop him.

"Ashrufat, wait a minute!"

"Aunt?" Ashrufat paused and watched as the old woman hurried away, then hurried back.

"Look at this. She was holding a red piece of metal in her hand.

"What is this?" said Ashrufat, taking the piece of metal. It looked a bit like copper, but it wasn't much lighter, not much heavier than a plank. And this red is not painted. It was a metal he had never seen before.