In the final months of 1343, Padrosi, who just three short years earlier had been hailed as "the greatest empire since the fall of the Lamani Empire",
Caught in a precarious situation of life and death.
No matter what, the people of the Empire can't figure out how everything ended up like this - it's as if yesterday they were still enjoying the prosperity of the world's greatest country. Then the Empire began to fight against Suomir, people cheered, and then in the blink of an eye Suomir and the Empire were evenly matched. In the blink of an eye, the whole world is in chaos.
The luxurious life is no longer good, materials are in short supply and people's hearts are not as old as before. The Padrosi people who originally claimed to be kind and enthusiastic have become selfish and stingy one by one.
What is the reason? They couldn't figure it out.
If time passes, and one or two hundred years later, if later generations of historians judge it from a relatively objective perspective, it will most likely be summed up as "the inevitable end of a country that maintains prosperity through war and conquest."
But the citizens of Padrosi who were there at this time did not notice this. Even if a few people are aware of it, they will choose to misinterpret it and turn a blind eye because it concerns them.
The power of the group is so great. When more people believe in a mistake, the wrong thing can become the right thing.
The rulers of the Laman Empire were deeply aware of this as far back as thousands of years ago.
In the early years, there was a military rule in the Laman Army called "Ten draws and one draw". As shown literally, soldiers who violated the military rules were divided into groups of ten, and one of them was determined by drawing lots to be killed by the other nine. People were beaten to death.
This kind of group execution of comrades on the one hand disperses the sense of guilt and on the other hand makes military discipline more cohesive - everyone may be a victim but also a perpetrator, and there is no clear "executioner" or "internal affairs executioner" as an object of hatred. Because they were doing it themselves, the soldiers had no right to hate the commander who issued the order.
Everyone is an "accomplice", and no one can be clean. Therefore, in order to feel better, he exaggerates the victim's crime of violating military discipline, thereby justifying his own behavior.
Over and over again, as this cycle continues, they become more and more convinced that they are absolutely right.
Today's Padrosi is also in this situation. If they admit the empire's policy for nearly a century, then the "glorious and great conquest process" is the root cause of today's troubled times. Isn't that like admitting his own sins and admitting that his good life is based on oppressing other Lamanite peoples?
This is of course impossible. Padrosi is the most civilized and greatest country in the world today, and such a mistake is impossible.
Naturally, they refused to accept it. The Lamanite nation, which has been inherited for thousands of years, is different from the straightforward barbarians on the west coast. The Lamanites are very good at rhetoric and concealing facts. It is impossible to accept such facts openly.
Because this is all they have left.
Holding tightly to the idea that "I am the greatest country in the world, Padrosi" does not allow any negative voice to appear. If this happens, the empire will fall into chaos. Naturally, it must be some kind of "external factor".
Some concrete reason.
someone.
"It's all because of that abominable Aurora's nightmare."
"That's a vicious name that shouldn't be mentioned."
"The traitor, the bastard."
"If it weren't for his existence, how could our country be in this situation."
Naturally and naturally, he became the scapegoat.
In the word-of-mouth spread among literati and Padrosi's young angry youths, Haymelin became a murderous child of the curse. To be fair, these people don't know how closely he is related to this series of events, but people's imagination always has unlimited room for development.
Countless stories began to appear blaming him for the cause. The more the southerners, Suomir and Highlanders called Heinzworm a hero, the more the Imperials tried their best to save him. Discredit this image.
But therein lies the irony.
It was precisely because of these things that fueled the flames that on that day in September 1343, Haymelin appeared in Parmidion and killed the Pope with his own hands.
All the sounds stopped, and the people of the empire dispersed like birds and beasts away from the plague god.
This naturally includes those angry youths and literati who have been denouncing him.
After all, scholars and people in protest marches have always hidden in safe places behind the scenes, waving small flags and shouting.
The thing they fear most is real swords and guns.
When the "nightmare" these people had been chanting finally came, the usual passionate indignation blamed all the dissatisfaction of life on him, many of the citizens of Padrosi boasted that they would kill the culprit.
He ran away with his tail between his legs.
On the contrary, this brought great convenience to Haimirning's actions.
Although the Padrosi nobles, who were suffering from internal and external troubles, were aware that something was happening close at hand, they could not spare any manpower and could not do anything.
The empire is a big place, very big. At the moment, it is divided into several regions, each with its own wars and conflicts.
It was also under this situation that Hemelning and those who had the same ideals could quickly gather together and move forward unimpeded.
A massacre unfolded.
"What we are doing must be difficult to call justice." He said.
Every hand holding the blood-stained sword Claymore was trembling slightly.
It's not just because of fatigue, it's also a reflection of inner vacillation.
It's hard to imagine that these sword knights, who fought steadfastly in the harshest environments, would waver.
But it's really very different from anything they've ever done.
As the name suggests, this was a one-sided massacre. The followers of the Ideal Sect will not resist. They are not vicious cultists or driven monsters. They are still smiling at them even when they are killed.
Although you can clearly realize that they are no longer human after the body is split open by the sword, after all, normal humans will not heal the cuts in an instant and try to glue the cut parts back together. But apart from that, human blood flows in their veins, and everything they say and do is very much like humans.
Like a flawless white doll, there is no pain, no sadness, always calm and always smiling.
"Captain... Is what we are doing correct?" A former member of the Silver Guard Knights and now a former Knight of the Church's executive force, Padrosi Knight, asked Heimerning. , they still haven’t changed their previous habitual way of addressing them. Just when he called out this name, his tone was trembling.
The Silver Guard are not invincible, they are not perfect. In the past, knights had been confused when fighting cultists, hesitating whether the gods they believed in were real; and when the empire, their hometown, broke with the church and launched a war, many people were also entangled in the Padrosi people. It is difficult to choose between the two identities of being a knight of the church.
But these are not as good as now.
Fight against cultists to defend innocent civilians. The war against the church started by the empire was the result of greedy emperors who wanted to gain profits, and they were still defending the common people at that time.
The short-term confusion and hesitation can eventually be determined and overcome everything with the same goal.
But now what they are doing is killing civilians.
Although it has been clearly explained that these people were transformed by demons, even though it has been explained that if these disasters are not spread carefully, more people will only become like this strange appearance.
But when the person you swing your sword at is a child about the same age as your daughter and your son, who is smiling at you.
If you don't waver, you won't be human.
"I can't go on any longer." Many sword knights who would not back down no matter how difficult the situation was on the battlefield collapsed in this one-sided massacre. Each of them had more than a hundred lives on their hands. . They are always warriors with faith rather than murderers who do all kinds of evil. This kind of thing makes them feel that they have lost their souls and can no longer continue to wield the sword.
There are only a very small number of people who have no hesitation, and among them, the most determined and unyielding person is naturally Haimirning.
"I really don't know who is the monster." Some of the knights under his command began to say this and left their queue.
The team began to fall apart, and eventually only a few mentally strong individuals remained. They put aside all the rumors behind them, and used overwhelming force to cut down all the tentacles of the Ideal Sect, forcing them back to the southern region.
The big sword passed by, and there were dead bodies behind him.
"..." Standing on the final edge of entering the south, Haymelin lowered his hand to Klemmer, who was still bleeding.
"Don't hesitate, don't think, don't get caught in a loop." The powerful Druid troops set off from the other direction, and Erica, who led them before they separated, said to Haimirning.
Her words he couldn't quite understand at first, but now he could.
Sadly, that's OK.
He would rather not know this.
Like the knights under his command, Haymelning was actually shaken in his heart.
He also wanted to turn around and run away, to forget all this, to hide somewhere and pretend to be blind to all this and live in confusion.
The pressure to face the painful truth is simply too much.
Too heavy.
Children often think that demons are abominable and terrifying existences that whisper and tell lies to provoke humans. They have ferocious and twisted faces, and will tear you apart and devour you with their fangs and claws.
But this is just a cheap and popular horror that can be described by the poor imagination of the human public.
No, the devil's method of playing with people's hearts goes far beyond this.
Knights with terrifying faces and hypocritical lies can overcome them with firm faith; powerful and cruel teeth, claws, and superb combat prowess can also be countered with strong armor, a sharp sword in their hands, and an unyielding will.
The battle itself is not scary to professional fighters.
The terrible thing is that you can't be sure what you are fighting for.
In the face of beauty and peace, even the civilians who didn't even resist were massacred by him unilaterally. If you wield the weapon in your hand for a long time, unless you are mentally ill and indulge in killing weak people, you will definitely fall into deep self-doubt.
The knights are all people of faith, but it is precisely because of this that they begin to doubt their correctness, and begin to wonder whether they have become the kind of people they have always despised and been fighting against.
Becoming the cultists they used to want to annihilate.
"Devils can't lie. They will only lure you step by step to discover the truth. Because lies can be exposed, but the truth is unshakable, the latter can often leave a deeper mark."
"Don't hesitate, don't think, don't get caught in a loop - because that's exactly what she wants you to do."
"Let you fall into doubt about what you have done, and then start to question everything, and then there will be a gap in your heart, collapse, and even become one of them."
What Erica said was verified at the end of 1343. After officially entering the southern realm, many members of the Knights began to disappear, and finally appeared on their opposite side.
"So what should you do? Kill innocent believers, kill your own comrades, all for what reason?"
"Just because we chose the path to peace and quiet? We didn't hurt anyone, we just wanted to live quietly."
"What's the difference between you and those fanatical believers who kill heretics?"
Such words finally ushered in true tranquility with blood splattering everywhere.
More and more people are going crazy, and the entire southern part of the empire is plunged into a bloody storm. All the normal Padrosi people kept a distance and avoided this place.
Broken Kramers covered the entire land.
More than 100,000 people have died under the sword.
And there are not many members of the Knights left.
Everyone's eyes are numb, and they have closed their hearts. Like absolutely rational warriors, they only think about how to kill the enemy and survive.
And when the last day of 1343 came, their secret war, which had already slaughtered all the Idealists and was destined to remain unknown to the world, finally ushered in the next stage.
The other party finally launched a counterattack.
And it was an extremely terrifying battle right from the start.
The terrifying monsters that rushed out of the darkness. Back then, the cultists tried their best and could only summon a few of them. Now these are not only stronger, but also appear in numbers like a tide. They are called ghouls, and they have human faces but behave like beasts. But the knights' shaken hearts finally calmed down when they encountered these monsters - because these were truly terrifying monsters, evil monsters, and they could wave their weapons without hesitation.
If it were any other army, I'm afraid it would be completely torn apart due to lack of understanding, but the Silver Guards are old rivals with these guys. They are familiar with the character of these monsters and have the appropriate weapons and armor to face them.
Claymore is a very suitable cutting weapon. With the strong blade made with Suomir's peak forging technology, every sword can always kill effectively.
This is a close and bloody battle.
The experienced great swordsmen, led by Haimirning, pushed forward with difficulty.
Not understood, not supported, and reviled as a "butcher" behind his back.
But still keep going.
"Confront her, ask, understand all this, change all this, stop all this."
The armor deformed.
The armor on the leather twisted, rivets flew off, and when it was too worn to offer protection, they removed it.
The lining of the cotton armor was stained with sweat and blood. After being bitten several times, it was sewn with 25 layers of compressed linen and began to tatter. Finally it was thrown away.
The scarred shield, helmet, and almost all the armor were repaired and repaired, and the wounds on the body were wrapped again and again with bandages.
The people who fled left behind a lot of supplies that they could not take away, which provided them with considerable convenience. However, even so, when I finally arrived near the burned-out town in the south, I finally crossed the mountain and saw the destroyed town called Parnilla in the distance.
They were still exhausted.
There were only more than two hundred people left. From the brightly armored knights at the beginning, they turned into almost dead horses, even more miserable and scarred than the militiamen, as if they were defeated soldiers who had just escaped somewhere.
"Do you regret it?" Hemelning turned back to the knights and asked.
"As long as you think it is right, we will continue to follow you." The voice that answered was very familiar. When Hemelning looked back, the one-armed Gedo spoke to him with his left hand holding a big sword.
He missed all this because of burying Liccardo, but when Hemelning began to look for people with lofty ideals to fight this disgraceful war together in the empire, he returned without hesitation.
The same is true for the former captain. Although he was unable to play due to physical factors, he still managed to find a lot of supplies for them by relying on the contacts he still had in the empire.
"Let's go." The knights said, "Captain."
"Well, let's go." Haimelning said, putting the sword in his hand back into the half-sheath behind his back.
A gust of wind blew from afar, the clouds rolled in the sky, and the blue skyline was white and translucent in the sunshine. They took one last look at this wonderful sight, breathing in the air as if they were afraid they would never feel it again, trying to feel the fact that they were still alive——
"Ka-boom-!!" Then a thunderous sound suddenly sounded in the distance the next second.
The brilliance of magic flashed among the ruins of the city, and then something shot into the sky faster than light.
"Bang!!! Boom————!!" The huge impact directly opened a hole in the clouds, and the crazy air flow blew over so that the great swordsmen at this distance had to cover their faces.
The corners of his clothes and dirty hair were fluttering, but amidst the crazy wind, they heard a huge roar that resounded for ten miles in radius.
Immediately afterwards.
Everyone saw it.
The huge white dragon penetrated the scattered clouds, carrying smoke.
Falling scene.
"Bang!!!"
That day, the earth in the south was shaking.
The radiance of magic and the sound of explosions alternated among the ruins of the city-state, and the great swordsmen who came all the way looked at each other.
This is a battle that far exceeds the level of human cognition. They are indeed good at sword fighting, but how much role can mere human power play in this situation?
Even the dragon was shot down.
"...."
"This is really not good." Gedo said expressionlessly: "I didn't expect that the people who followed me on the one-way road to hell would be this group of stinky men who smelled of sweat and hadn't showered in two months."
"... Gedo, didn't you just do that?"
"Yes, I made a joke." He turned back expressionlessly and shrugged to everyone.
"Puff-puff hahahahaha-" the dirty knights laughed without any gesture.
"This is so cold. You can't compare to Ricardo when it comes to jokes." Haimelning glanced at him and sighed.
"But I just need to beat him." Gedo shrugged.
"What would that guy say if he were still here."
"I probably can't say anything nice, I just brag about some things that are not serious."
"He even died in an unseemly way. He was so weak due to tuberculosis but he still had to show off his strength."
"But it's like you said."
"Although they are a group of filthy men, covered in sweat and blood, who haven't showered in two months." Haimirning turned around and said, "But I am very glad that you are by my side."
"Come with me on this road of no return."
"My friends."
"Klemmer——" he said.
"Unsheath."
"Qiang——!!" The response was the sound of swords chiming in unison.
