"You guys come here......" Ashruphat looked around, and Carrie had told him that there were about a dozen people lurking around here, maybe more, each of them should be a dark magician. "Want to work for me?"

"Very happily. Hein replied, "As long as you're willing to pay a reasonable price." No matter what kind of monarch, he is always responsible for paying his subordinates for their services. ”

"I think you said it last time...... You don't want anything more than strength. Of course, it doesn't matter whether Hein said this or not.

In fact, Ashrufat had known for a long time that the dark mages were in his vicinity, but he had never given them a chance to get close to him before. It's all because of Carrie's opinion. Carrie believes that he must be strong enough to make it clear that he doesn't actually need the help of the Dark Mage, so that he can have enough money for future negotiations. Let the Dark Mages know that they are not essential so that they don't make excessive demands.

"This is true for me and my companions. The dark mage's eyes suddenly released a lustful glow full of desire. "But Lord Duke, as a blood knight, are you really capable of paying what we need?"

"If you have the ability, you can see if you have the ability. Ashrufat replied. He pulls out a box, which was made by Carrie (not him) during this time. When he opened the box, even the group of mages in front of him who practiced the secret art of darkness took a few steps back.

Ordinary humans don't feel it, with the exception of those who have the ability to harness magic. Inside the box were a heavy book and several parchment scrolls. In fact, when Ashrufat opened the box just now, the nearby magical wind was almost out of control. Every dark mage could feel the power of the will that was embedded in the books and scrolls, powerful enough to be rebuked by ordinary mages as "evil thoughts". There is no doubt that these scrolls and books contain countless powerful magics, and some of them even directly affect the source of magic itself. This is exactly the blessing that practitioners of the forbidden necromancy desire.

But it was only a brief moment, and Ashrufat had already closed the box again. All of a sudden, there was a calm all around, and the calm almost made one think that it was a complete illusion just now.

These will be the reward I give to those who serve me. Ashrufat put away the box and said calmly.

More people came out of the rooms on either side. Some wore clothes similar to those of Hein, and many more were just plain civilian clothes. They gathered in a scattered group, and there were more people than Carrie expected, about thirty people.

What happened next was completely expected by Carrie.

......

The sprawling mansion was dead silent at the moment. Since the lord was stabbed to death and the vampires descended on the city, the servants in the mansion either fled or hid. At this moment, Ashruphat was sitting alone in the hall. His men have all left, and the newly joined group of necromancers are on their first mission, which is to perform magical maintenance for his undead legion. It's definitely enough to choke them all night.

"Master, the necromancer's matter has been settled, what are you still thinking about? We should take this opportunity to immediately expand our strength and prepare for the next phase of action. ”

"What's next?"

"If you want to establish your rule, you should choose a city as your residence and the core of your rule. But I don't recommend it, you can build a new city and build a landmark that shows off your power and might. In this case, you have achieved the first step as a ruler, which is to subdue all your subjects. ”

"I'm thinking about today. Ashrufat replied with some distraught. "The incident when I entered the city this afternoon. ”

He arrived outside the city in the morning, and his army was like a silent swaddling river, covering the wilderness in front of the city in an instant. This terrible scene immediately caused great panic among the defenders. He sent one of his men to the city to recruit him, and he received an immediate response. In the afternoon, Ashrufat entered the city during a brief entrance ceremony.

When he entered the city, some of the city's residents welcomed him at the gate. It's really not appropriate to say that it was welcome, and there was obvious fear and uneasiness in everyone's eyes. As Ashruphat passed by, a little child suddenly asked his mother, "Mother, isn't a vampire an evil monster?

The mother immediately covered her child's mouth tightly in extreme fear, lest he say another word in his innocent mouth. But Ashruphat had already heard him. Of course, he just pretended not to hear and instigated his mount to speed through. But at this moment, in the dead of night, the child's words lingered in his mind.

"Master, do you want ...... To be a popular ruler, or rather a beloved ruler? If you think so, you're completely wrong. ”

"Am I wrong?"

"Well, let's put it this way, let's say you do a lot for your people, but they are all mortals who will die. Your favor will fade with the death of one generation, and the next will soon forget. So whatever good you do, if you can't let them pass it on from generation to generation, or they will be forgotten sooner or later. Do you think there is such a favor in the world? Even if it is the highest life-saving grace, it can only be remembered for a lifetime...... Some will even soon forget about it. All favors are vain. The only thing that can truly pass on humanity forever is fear. ”

He listened to Carrie's tirade a lot, but it was the first time he felt ridiculous.

"Fear, but it was the fear of the Kasek that made them ......"

"You misunderstand the relationship between fear and hate. Carrie interrupted his question. "Hatred and fear are two very close feelings, but they are fundamentally different from each other. Fear makes people obey, and hatred makes people rebel. ”

"But ......"

"And I have good reason to tell you that if you have to choose between being feared and loved, then being feared is the right choice for a monarch. Because human life is limited, in order to pursue their ideals in their limited vitality, they must be ungrateful, easily changeable, evade danger and pursue profits. ”

"For example, my lord, if a well-loved monarch suffers a defeat and suffers great losses in his army, his future is in doubt. At this time, do you think that his people will be very loyal to him and will not rebel? For every man will have a clear calculation of the gains and losses in his heart: although I have betrayed the monarch at the moment, the monarch is a merciful man, and if he can make a comeback, then he will be forgiven by repenting and swearing allegiance to the monarch again. If this monarch does not forgive me by then, then he is not a benevolent monarch, but a hypocrite, and I have no reason to stay the course for him at this moment. ”

"On the contrary, if a monarch is greatly feared by the people, his people will not dare to betray him at this time because of fear. Because they knew that their monarch would take severe revenge and punishment afterwards, and this severe revenge and punishment was completely in line with his previous style, and was not hypocritical. Do you think I'm right? Kindness can only lead people into a logical dead end, and ultimately bring harm to themselves. It is clear that for a monarch who has always prided himself on being 'benevolent', to maintain a reputation for benevolence is to encourage his subjects to betray him in his own crisis. To give up the reputation of kindness is to deny everything in one's past. ”

Carrie spoke in her mind in gentle but strong words, and Ashrufat only listened, not answered.

"That's just the way it is. Kindness is only hypocrisy. And offending someone you love is less scrupulous than offending someone you're afraid of, so you have to make them feel afraid. But while making them fear you, you should make sure that this fear does not turn into hatred. I have some specific implementation plans, would you like to hear them?"

"Tell me about it. ”

"There's an opportunity right in front of you...... Rumors are everywhere about you sucking blood. They all say that you are not interested in the blood of ordinary people, but only like to enjoy the blood of beautiful maidens between the ages of twelve and seventeen. ”

In fact, this is not a rumor against Aehurufat, but against Baron Pinod. However, since Eshurufaat has taken Pinod's place at this moment, it is natural to stir up this rumor on himself.

"Since there is this rumor, you should take advantage of it. If you are going to use a decentralized system of feudalism here (which I strongly recommend), then you can ask your subjects for maidens as a tribute. I recommend...... Once every two years, just pick three or five at a time. ”

"For what?" asked Ashrufat subconsciously. Carrie said just now that she should not attract hatred, isn't this kind of behavior easy to attract hatred?

"Because it will make them remember you as a vampire forever. You put those girls in your castle...... Of course, you can enjoy their lives and bodies. In short, on the one hand, try to minimize the number of people who are actually hurt and threatened (these are the people who hate you) very few, but let your fear spread far and wide and make them remember it forever. People don't hate you for having a girl you don't know taken away, but they will secretly tell you about your cruelty behind your back. ”

Ashrufat actually felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't find the words to refute Carrie's plan for a while.

"Master!'s moving!" Carrie suddenly sounded the alarm in her mind. At this moment, the door was wide open, and out of the corner of Ashrufat's eye, he saw a figure that seemed to flash in the doorway.

Ashrufat instantly summoned his sword, and then slashed at a shadow beside him. The shadow suddenly split into two pieces, and in one of them a long sword appeared, blocking Ashrufat's blow from the front.

Then, the shadow bounced back, revealing its original form in Ashrufat's dark vision. A woman was half-kneeling on the ground, her hair falling like flames on her head.

"Master, it's Scarlet!" Carrie's explanation was a bit of an afterthought. Because Ashruphat had already recognized each other. He had thought that Scarlet had already fled—to a place he couldn't find, but he didn't expect the other party to be here.

"The hosts. Scarlet slowly, bowing her head in a slightly unruly manner, "Sure enough, it's you." ”

The black on her body quickly faded, returning to its original blood-red color. Ashrufat hesitated slightly, but immediately remembered that his armor also had the ability to change color (though he usually didn't use it). It's not surprising that this light armor is capable of changing color.