Just like anywhere else, bad things can spread very quickly.
The news of the magician's reappearance and the massacre spread to every corner of Monroe in the remaining days of March. The death of the members of the Royal Guards who were immediately blocked by Herman could not be covered by paper after all. The fire, combined with the vigorous investigation by the guards riders in front, made even the dullest Monroe residents begin to realize what was happening here.
A larger evacuation operation was launched than a year ago.
This is not a whim. After all, the residents of Monroe have been unsatisfactory in life during this period. If they didn't still think of this as their hometown, many people would have left long ago.
People who can live in the main city of Monroe have a certain economic foundation. After the news of the annihilation of the Royal Capital Guard Patrol spread, Herman gave up the blockade. As time went by, this statement became more and more intense. But from another perspective, this is not a good thing.
Now the number of royal guards in Monroe City has reached more than 300. When many residents evacuated, they could also find that the soldiers guarding the gates had been replaced by the Clant royal family's troops. Therefore, if the number of these ordinary soldiers is added, If so, the number might be even bigger.
--blockade.
He still didn't have enough confidence or evidence to directly confront the Duke's house, so Herman chose to strengthen the security and investigation of several city gates. Even the through gate exclusive to Duke Monroe, which he did not have permission to approach, they also sent riders. Constantly patrolling outside.
A disguised siege strategy.
Externally, the surrounding area was sealed off so that the minions of the Duke's Palace scattered around could not return to rescue, while internally, it was allowed to go unchecked and even contributed to the situation, causing the residents to evacuate in large numbers.
Herman was preparing for the upcoming complete fallout.
…
The camera turned to the other side. As residents left in large numbers, the houses near the security post became empty in patches. On the lonely avenue, the gray-haired Sheriff was alone, holding a long steel sword, walking slowly and unflexibly towards the direction of the Duke's Palace.
He didn't inform anyone; Franco just thought Vega was out for a walk.
The figure of the Sheriff, who was walking alone, looked like a dying lone wolf. Although his pace was no longer very steady, his stern look was still there.
"..." The elite soldiers guarding the gate of the Duke's Mansion saw him from a distance. One of them turned around and went back to inform Medello, and when the sheriff came to the door, the knight steward in light clothing just walked out.
"What are you doing here?" Faced with Medello's direct question, Vega shrugged.
"Remembering old friendships, come and see your old employer and former companions. Can't you?" the Sheriff said, but the Knight Master stared at the armed sword in his hand and said nothing.
"...You still cherish your words as much as before." Seeing that the other party didn't reply, Vega continued to talk to himself: "You too, Franco too...you have always been boring since before. One day I won’t necessarily speak more than twenty sentences at night.”
"But Vanessa is different." The moment Vega uttered these syllables, Medello's eyes changed. They softened for a while but then immediately became sharper. He clenched the armed sword in his hand, and then tightened his grip. He pursed his lips tightly.
"She is so confident. Everyone in the team likes her. Even though she is a girl, she never gives up. She even became the best swordsman among everyone in the end."
"The sparkling Vanessa, she was the light and heat to all of us..." "Don't mention it again!" Medello roared loudly, the always steady knight steward was so out of his mind. This was the first time they met the young elite soldiers. They looked at each other with surprise in their eyes.
"What are you doing here? Can't you learn to look forward to this matter? How many people have to be killed before you are satisfied!" He loudly accused Vega, and what he was referring to was obviously being thrown away. Lawrence who went out to act as a scapegoat.
The gray-haired Sheriff sighed, and then continued: "I will look forward." He paused: "After this matter is over."
"...Those who are stubborn and can't let go of the past will only drown to death." Medello took a step forward and waved his hand to make the elite soldiers behind him step back.
"Ha..." Weijia chuckled and shook his head, then murmured to himself in a voice that only he could hear: "Which side is it that can't let go..."
"What are you talking about." Medello didn't hear what Vega was saying, so he frowned and said something. The Sheriff shrugged again: "Nothing... How long has it been since then... Ten years? I I can barely remember it."
"Ten years and eleven months." Medello stood in front of him and looked directly at the man who was smaller than him due to an old leg injury, while Vega chuckled again: "Yeah... …Your memory is still as good as before. Then let’s try it——”
He pulled out the long sword in his hand with a "swish" sound, and then pointed at Medello. "Crack-" All the elite soldiers behind him raised their spears, but the knight chief raised his hand to signal them to take it back.
"Let's see if your swordsmanship has deteriorated over the years." Vega said and took a stance. Medlow immediately noticed that there was something strange about his starting position.
The common one-handed long swords on the West Coast, whether they are Avenella and northern-style short-guarded broad-bladed old-fashioned one-handed swords or this long-guarded armed sword, are ultimately a weapon used with a shield. Although due to various reasons, many people choose to use it alone without a shield during daily actions, but even without using a shield. The sword technique used when using a one-handed long sword is usually to hold the long sword high with one hand and tilt the tip downward, with the sword hand behind, the off hand in front and one foot stepping forward with the center of gravity.
However, there is still a clear distinction between the swordsmanship of armed swords and one-handed swords in the eyes of professional swordsmen. Since the former's guard is longer and the sword is lighter, the sword-wielding hand of the armed sword will be positioned further forward in the same starting position. Pair it with a shield for active defense. The one-handed sword, on the other hand, leaves all the defensive tasks to the shield, and only launches a fatal blow when the opponent shows a flaw.
——The reason why Vega chose to use the old one-handed sword starting position is extremely clear to Medlow.
The emergence of armed swords and supporting sword skills has allowed shields to become smaller and lighter, but at the same time, its requirements for speed and flexibility have also increased accordingly. In contrast, the sword skills of the old-fashioned one-handed sword are stable and "passive". Although there is some active use of shield skills, most of them wait for the opponent to attack and seize the opportunity to immediately counterattack.
Vega's legs and feet are not flexible, so it is naturally impossible for him to perform the sword skills of the armed sword smoothly. And even without a shield, he does have a chance to adopt a defensive counterattack strategy based on his years of experience.
--but.
After all, Vega hadn't touched a sword for a long, long time. Medlow could recognize at a glance that the long sword in his hand was a new, unused one. The black leather on the handle and scabbard were all shiny and new, and they were probably less than a week old.
"Stupid." Medello smoothly pulled out the one-handed sword from his waist, and then made a beautiful starting position - much more stable than the trembling Vega.
Over the years, he has never practiced hard for a day. With his already good qualities and long-term practice, Medello has already left Vega far behind in various conditions.
The two stood facing each other like this. The elite soldiers behind him seemed to have made a decision.
"What's the matter, you don't plan to attack after seeing through my intention?" Vega said with a soft smile. Medlow's face turned cold, and then he stabbed him directly with a sword.
"Wha--" The Sheriff took a step back to avoid this direct thrust. The skilled Knight Chief did not intend to expose the range of his attack. Even when dealing with opponents who were inconvenient to move, he was still cautious. After quickly retracting his sword, he once again shook out a sword flower at a small angle.
"Wh--" Vega dodged it again. He didn't try to block it with his sword, because once he did that, he wouldn't have any means of attack anymore - the Sheriff's plan was to catch the opponent before he could reach it. Attacking again when there is an opportunity, a typical blocking and counterattack thinking, and Medlo, who saw this, was determined not to give him this chance.
The Knight Master carefully avoided any overly large moves to avoid being unable to stop his attack in time. He took advantage of the opponent's physical weakness to catch Vega off guard with small, fast attacks like a violent storm.
"Okay!" The Sheriff stepped back repeatedly, and an elite soldier behind him couldn't help but cheered after seeing this endless and exciting scene.
"..." Medlow stared at Vega with sharp eyes while carefully controlling his pace and breathing. He wanted nothing more than to force the opponent away, but at the next minute he caught the Sheriff's eyes.
"...咻——" Something from the past emerged. Medlow subconsciously increased his strength in an instant. He reacted immediately, but this sword was already too much.
"Ka-chan--" Weijia's decision was unexpected. He jammed the long sword in his hand on Medello's blade and then took a step forward and bumped towards him.
"Boom -" The Sheriff hit the Knight Master on the chin with a headbutt. Although it did not cause much damage, Medlo, who was in pain, withdrew his sword angrily and said "Ding!" With a roar, Vega was thrown away with brutal force.
"Dingwuwuwu——" The long sword in Vega's hand swayed and made a metallic trembling sound, and now Medello no longer hesitated. He first slashed the top of the long sword in Vega's hand, causing him to lose his balance. Then he turned his wrist and struck an additional sword directly on the side of the sword.
"Dang-clang-" The continuous blows caused the long sword in the Sheriff's hand to fly out. "Crack-clang-" it fell a few meters behind him, and Vega subconsciously looked back. At a glance, when he turned back again, the tip of Medello's sword was pointed at his throat.
The Knight Master's eyes were cold and sharp. He reached out and touched his chin, then stared directly into the Sheriff's eyes.
"..." With the sword pointed at his vitals, Weijia showed a smile and raised his hands: "I lost." Then he admitted his defeat cleanly.
"..." Medello said nothing. His sword-holding hand was slightly white from exertion, and had a slight tremor that only the two people at this distance could clearly see.
"Huh..." He put away the sword and returned it to its sheath smoothly. "Okay!" The elite soldiers behind him couldn't help cheering again, but there was no joy at all on the face of the knight chief himself.
"Swordsmanship has indeed improved a lot. Whether it is skills or coordination, you are different from the past." Vega turned around and slowly walked towards the steel sword that fell to the ground, and then used only two people to said a clearly audible voice.
"But you... your belief is not strong enough——"
"Kacha -" For a moment, there seemed to be a flash of lightning, and the figure of the hunched-backed sheriff who looked quite decadent and old changed dramatically - he was still the same person, but at that time he was tall, mighty, and determined. And powerful.
A scene that was very similar to the previous scene gave Medlow a strong sense of sight. He seemed to have returned to the past again, back to the days when Monroe was not what it is now.
"Your talent in swordsmanship is no worse than that of your sister, but your... belief is not firm enough."
"It's useless even to cover yourself up with a calm appearance. There is a ball of anger inside you. In the eyes of others, you can accept everything calmly, but in fact you just choose to bury them."
"Keep working hard, Medello. Not only your sword skills, but also your heart must become stronger -"
——The clenched hand dropped to his side, and then slowly let go.
The two figures who used to look up at each other's backs are now the only one left.
Because of the pain, he was no longer as heroic as before, but why - why even though he had indeed defeated him now, he still couldn't feel any joy at all.
The answer, Medlow actually had it from the beginning.
"Oh, you are really humiliating yourself. I walked all the way here just to be defeated. I don't want to become such a person in the future! I don't care if you say so." The elite soldiers who had just cheered one after another faced Mei De Luo said this with a smile on his face, but he only received a cold look from the other party.
"..." The elite soldier behind him seemed a little embarrassed because he didn't catch the flattery, while Medlo, who was walking towards the interior of the mansion, touched his aching chin, thoughtfully. (To be continued.)
PS: R: After writing 10,000 words, deleting 3,000 words and then writing 10,000 words, I am still not satisfied with the manuscript. The twist is too far-fetched, the handling is not strong enough, the expression is too bland, the plot is too illogical, and I am not satisfied with it everywhere. It’s like A sword that has not been heated to a sufficient temperature before quenching will make people want to drop it and start over again. The weather is hot, I feel unwell, I can't sleep, and I'm not in good spirits, which only adds fuel to the fire. It's three o'clock in the morning when I write this. Including this chapter, there are only four chapters left to upload regularly. I took a look and saw yesterday's subscription. There are less than thirty in total, and it feels a bit decadent. If you are interested, please help me promote it. Get up early tomorrow, take your sword up the mountain to practice, and try to get back into shape again. Please help me on the other hand, thank you very much. (After typing this paragraph, I suddenly felt that my speech was very samurai style. Anyway, if you can help me do something to increase my popularity, I would be very grateful. (The next day, ROY met a bear on the mountain, and then this book became a eunuch. . (I’m just kidding, if I die, I’ll probably die from overwork, haha...
