Uriel opened the door, dust blew into his face, and he welcomed his master back. There was nothing more comforting in the world than this dust, he was sure. If possible, he hoped he could stay here for the rest of his life, no matter who knocked on the door.
It's raining outside, but the room is not dark. The hawthorn tree outside the window grew so vigorously that its branches pressed against the glass, and its wet leaves covered the window frame. He pushed open the stuck window with one hand, broke off a branch to support it, rolled up the curtains, and fastened them with buttons. Fine raindrops moistened the windowsill, and the wind brought a chill.
Uriel sat down in the armchair and uncorked the wine bottle by the fireplace. A handful of cold ashes scraped from the stove and fell at his feet.
Maybe I should keep the drink money. He thought as he drank. This wine is very strong and probably expensive. In Venevoise, people need such strong drinks to ward off the cold, but the tower is not that cold, and the mysterious creatures are not afraid of the cold. If you want to narcotize yourself, there are more places to go here: opposite is a restaurant that serves sweet dreams, and there is a whole street market about astrology and rune jewelry by the Yeyu River. Going west to the most conspicuous building, there is a performance inside A song and dance drama that can immerse the audience. Wine is just a spicy drink, maybe skipping the bill makes me more excited.
In less than ten minutes, the ale was empty and there was nothing left. Then he stood up, closed the window, and lit the candle. The door to the bedroom was open and the carpet was dusty. Like the entrance, the apprentice had no interest in cleaning it. In fact, he thought about cleaning as much as he thought about going home, thoughts his brain forced on him to escape reality.
But he was desperate.
The feeling of peace of mind disappeared. Uriel realized that even if he was hiding at home, he could not escape the cold reality: I must fulfill my mission.
A twinge of pain spreads across the body. The apprentice fell back into his chair and grasped the handle. He then felt sick, as if every cell in his body was resisting the action that was about to begin. It shouldn't be. he thought. Mystical craftsmanship is enough to heal any non-fatal wound, and a good night's sleep is enough to soothe any troubled soul. Am I afraid? He stared at his right hand, the feeling of separation of flesh and bone emerging like a shadow. Am I worried that my life is lighter than my creed? Am I unable to face death with equanimity, even if it saves thousands of lives? People say you are a knight of Gaia...
People say that, but he doesn't.
"Four days," Uriel said to himself.
What a long time.
He got up and went to the bedroom to change clothes. You can't go out dressed like a deserter, even though that's how I broke into the house.
…
He came to the training ground as planned, but no one was there. The empty site was renovated, paved with tough alchemical materials, and a magic text matrix was drawn in the form of a pattern. A ring is required to enter the private room, so all doors are closed to him. Uriel can no longer find his silver ring.
"Sauron?" he whispered, not expecting Mr. Ring to hear him. Presumably it is still in the hands of the instructor. "Roma? Uh, not even here."
What a strange thing. Uriel walked from the upper level to the lower level of the tower, but there was no sign of the little lion anywhere. She was neither in the bedroom, nor in the library or dining room. The door to the training ground on the ground floor was open, and it only took a glance to see that no one was inside. He did this when he came, thinking that the girl was somewhere else, but when he looked for it, he found that there was still no one inside. Could it be that she is really in a solitary confinement room? The apprentice was the only one who never went there to look for it.
He suddenly felt empty. No one is here, no one knows I'm back. It seems that the Sky Tower Croyin will be the same without me. Uriel sat down on the bench outside the door. The cold metal almost made his muscles twitch. When you feel sorry for yourself, this feeling only adds to the disappointment, but now it brings comfort. No one was paying attention, which meant his choice didn't matter at all, which meant no one put pressure on him, and when it was all over, no one was going to hell for Uriel. I'm done with this place. What else?
"Changed your mind?"
The apprentice jumped up suddenly. "ah?"
There is no one behind him, so there is no need to mention it. Uriel raised his head and faced the young man frowning at him. The messenger was still dressed in the same way. The gray-white half-armor seemed to have grown together with the torso. There was no blood or dust, just like a sharp sword, but it was kept in the scabbard of the strap. The apprentice couldn't believe his eyes: "You are here
Tower? "The prophet did not send a mentor to the battlefield.
Bai Zhizhi narrowed his eyes. The apprentice's heart skipped a beat and he carefully recalled whether he had said the wrong thing.
But the instructor didn't seem to have any intention of beating him up. "We haven't really fought yet," the messenger said, "I'm useless."
"I thought you were in Hokolin, or Moniantoros."
"Helen has been to Huoklin, and Ronald is in the School of Silence. I am in charge of the headquarters."
"I heard. Your Excellency Helen is in danger." The killer in human skin assassinated the Witch of Destiny and almost succeeded. Now that I think about it, that person is none other than Stix, the bodyguard of the Nameless King, wearing the "King of Nightingales". This man died at the hands of the Black Knight. "I have seen her, and everything is safe. It is really blessed by the gods. Lord Zachary has just returned from the summons."
The messenger nodded and answered the question: "Have you changed your mind and left Yin Shiman?"
I got there last, handing the life-saving straw to someone else, hoping that the other person would escape intact. Uriel returns to the tower, counting down the days to end his life. "I had to come."
"What are you afraid of?"
Afraid? The apprentice lowered his head and saw that his fingers were trembling. He quickly held it down with his other hand. The magic had not completely healed the scar, and the skin on the wrist was swollen and hot. Fortunately, otherwise, he would not even be able to find a reason to explain his fear. "I had some injuries before. I met a crazy woman, and..."
"A demon hunter."
"Oh." Uriel couldn't deny it. To be honest, his mind went blank and his answers were all instinctive. It's a good sign. It's good to forget the truth at this time. Damn it, it’s just a lie and a vague statement, what does it matter? After all, the mentor is not the Knight of Proverbs...I am. "I want to help him," he blurted.
Then all the ideas came pouring out. "I have never seen such a person. His whole life was ruined by the devil, and he lived solely on the belief of revenge. He died on the way to hunt the unknown person." His tongue was stiff, but he couldn't stop talking. "But that's wrong. We met once in Moniantoros, in the mercenary group... Richard changed his career to become an adventurer, but people say that a hunter is a lifelong job... When the demon hunting movement revived , he left the mercenary brothers and went to find his old colleagues. He told me..."
Bai Zhizhi listened to him quietly.
"...We were separated after arriving." Uriel murmured dreamily, "I met Lord Paladin Commander Rammons Theodore, who infiltrated Gavash for a confidential mission."
"Confidential mission?"
"It's the Saint's request. I was in the Black City before... uh." The apprentice woke up from a dream. This is broken.
"Black City." The messenger repeated.
Uriel blinked, unable to think of any way to make amends. If I had known this, I should have used "spiritual vision" to find the way. Some things can be predicted without using magic, he just doesn't want to see the way he is unlucky.
"where?"
Yin Shiman. Uriel almost blurted out, but his remaining sense prevented him from speaking out. I'm really stupid. How could the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Tower not know about the Black City? "... Brestatik." He answered cautiously.
[Currently used, it is the most complete and best-used app for listening to books. It integrates 4 major speech synthesis engines, over 100 kinds of sounds, and supports offline reading.
Hunters spend their lives fighting secret societies, which is a complete mistake. Uriel opened his mouth: "No. Not yet. Not yet."
"Did he die happily?" The messenger gently grabbed his shoulders.
Even though the hand was as cold as ever, the apprentice felt comforted. "soon."
"You mourn him."
"I woke up from my dream and remembered his story."
"That's enough. You've helped him enough and it's over. There are people in this world who die too quickly and don't have time to be saved. You did a good job."
This time, his tears were not for Richard or fate, but for himself. "I plan to leave Cloyin Tower," Uriel whispered.
"You have left," the messenger replied.
He couldn't help but raise his head and found himself in darkness. The new ground and seating at the training ground disappeared silently and unnoticed. The closed door was still located three yards away, but Uriel's intuition told him that it was just an illusion. Where am I? Isn’t this the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?
Rather than exploring the mysterious method, the apprentice wants to know the reason. It’s impossible for me to say I want to leave and then immediately change places, right? "What? When did it happen?"
"When you said you wanted to help the Nameless One."
You are already prepared. Uriel looked into his mentor's blue eyes and almost avoided them reflexively. This is not a dream. Not my prediction. Even in reality, when it was so dangerous, there were still people willing to keep my secrets. I never asked him, but Qiao Yin has been doing this since the first day I came to the tower.
Sometimes, he felt that he could not see through his mentor at all. Maybe most of the time. But if there is anyone in the world that he can completely trust, I am afraid that there is only one person in the world, Qiao Yin.
"As long as I speak, will I be heard?" the apprentice asked.
"This is the tower."
Astrologers know everything. "It doesn't matter. I want to leave here for my oath. Can you agree?"
"After the demon hunt is over."
"No," Uriel insisted. How could I abandon my fellow humans when they needed me most? "It must be now."
"The prophet will know about this."
"He will," the apprentice admitted, "but not now. I will tell him myself. The Lord Prophet is an honorable man, and I hope he knows the truth."
"Truth is a weapon."
"I left to seek the truth, and I came back to reveal the truth. It's time to end this, Qiao Yin, I don't want to live in a lie."
The tower commander, the demon hunter, and the inspector of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stared at their apprentice. "Then you leave now. Let's go."
Uriel really wanted to do it. What’s the point of telling the truth? There is a high probability that the Mysterious Fulcrum and the Secret Society will not stop fighting. And to continue fighting meant death, his death. Worst case scenario, death is not the end, he will implicate many people. The first one is Bai Zhizhi, followed by classmates, partners, and even neighbors. How could I ask them to bear the cost of their oath for me? Am I the Night Knight?
However, starless night...
That’s it, Uriel understood. I haven't made up my mind at all. Gods above. "Is there any other way?" he asked, "other than telling me directly, writing a letter, or in a dream?"
"The prophet will know."
"Dark Night Awakening" Demosis, Knox's only great prophet. "Yes." Uriel agreed heavily, "I have no choice."
The messenger said, "You always had a choice."
He was almost persuading. Uriel had never seen such a gentle tone from his mentor, it was completely unlike him. The apprentice had only experienced it in dreams before. It's Parsur. She is long dead.
"Don't be like this." The apprentice only felt embarrassed. "You are a demon hunter and the leader of the tower. What do you think? Where is the secret society?" In his eyes, I have no secrets. "You know...but let it go, why? Don't you have a duty? Please, tell me what will happen if you tell the truth. I've always wanted to know! But you just want me to leave."
Quiet. Only his words echoed, returning from afar, bringing shame. Uriel turned away
, in order to avoid the messenger's eyes. He could no doubt see through me and perhaps guess what my journey would be like. Why does *** have to look like this? "Qiao Yin..."
"You are my ideal, Uriel." Bai Zhizhi told him, "You are a gift from fate. I would never have been able to get it in this life."
These words were like a sharp sword tearing through the chest. The apprentice froze in place motionless, his heart trembling. He thought of that long dream. The reality is that you close your eyes in a dream...Mortus, the Ice Sea Tribe...the mansion full of ghosts...the knight's badge lost in the wind and snow...
For a time, Uriel had so many thoughts in his heart that it was difficult to express them.
I can't run away. Eventually, the idea took over. Is telling Rama and the Guru enough? Is it okay to inform my friends that I’m leaving? Waiting for the king's message to trickle down, hoping it would come to the tower in four days and halt the allied slaughter? The beam of light falling from the sky, bringing death and destruction to the "Abyss of Ether", was like a meteor falling to the earth. Do I have to wait for it to be pending before the referee?
The answer is obvious. As a messenger, Uriel, the Knight of Proverbs, is not only his own messenger, but also the messenger of the goddess. He wavered thousands of times and warned himself thousands of times.
I will never betray my oath.
Uriel stood up. "I have other questions to ask you, but it's useless to know the answers. The future is unknown, and the past is a trap. I came to the other world like a wandering soul with no peace. Gods bless you, thank you for being here , otherwise I should be a different person." He paused for a moment. "Wish me luck, Qiao Yin. I'm leaving soon."
The young man gave no blessing. In fact, he turned and walked away without saying a word.
…
The river flows like a whisper, and the night is like a bright black curtain, gliding towards the harbor with agitation. When Uriel passed the bridge, two ducks plunged into the water one after another and played with each other. A half-grown child stood on the side of the boat and reached for it with an oar, but he was too far away and the animals ignored him.
While the boy lowered his head to pick up stones, a group of young men in gorgeous clothes and tall hats rode across the bridge. The sound of gold ornaments hanging from the saddles collided with each other and beat the sound of hoofbeats. The horse's pace was as proud as its owner's, and people crossing the bridge hurriedly gave way. This group of knights had gold star emblems on their collars. The apprentice couldn't help but take a second look at them, but he couldn't remember who they were.
He walked down the stone steps and came face to face with two ladies. When the little one among them approached, the ducks suddenly flew away in panic, causing the boy to curse in anger.
"Roma?" The apprentice stopped her.
"Uriel!" The little man jumped up and left his companion behind, tearing off his hat. Suddenly, her head became the only object of light reflected by the street lights in the entire street. "You're back!"
"It's not too late. Hey, Miss Poirot is here too." When did these two people have such a good relationship?
"If you still remember, my office is just east of the market." The detective lady said bluntly. "But, although we are walking on the path that most people take for a walk, meeting the messenger is unexpected. I heard that you are traveling."
"Roughly the same."
"I saw you in the newspaper. The astrologer wrote a detailed report on the three-way melee at the border of Bresse, which occupied the headlines for a week. After Minerva was released from prison, she thought she could win the traffic crown in one fell swoop. Now, She fell short of success and almost regarded you as her number one enemy. For this alone, I want to thank you."
What the hell. Uriel almost bit his tongue. "There are inevitably risks when going abroad."
Agatha snorted. "Who can say for sure?"
Did I offend her? Uriel thought to himself. Someone dropped a letter for me in the wrong mailbox? During the last holiday, ignorant girls who admired Sita York flooded his mailbox with letters and gifts. Even the serious speculators who wanted to come to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish relations had to give in. If one-tenth of these people remembered the wrong address, then as a neighbor, Agatha's attitude would be reasonable.
"Where have you been?" the little lion asked cheerfully, "Insman? Bryce? The Oath Keepers Alliance? I heard-"
"You heard it right." The apprentice quickly interrupted. But she reminded him that there were too many things happening recently and he was already overwhelmed.
The Black City of Bliss was still a mystery hanging in his mind...as long as it wasn't confirmed.
"Did you come back for the fire ceremony?" Roma asked, "Has the Commander-in-Chief allowed you to graduate?"
Uriel was surprised: "Fire ceremony?"
"The Affairs Department plans to respond to the call and add more manpower to the war." The little lion flicked its tail, "But the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not sent anyone to the war so far."
"Your Majesty the Lion does not count?"
"It's just him." Roma corrected herself.
"It's too late for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to beat its own people, so where can we go to fight?" Agatha pointed out contemptuously.
The instructor never mentioned this to me. Uriel realized uncomfortably. Whether it is the fire ceremony or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs... "People have their own positions." He pointed out, "Astrologers can get a glimpse of the war situation from sitting in the tower, but while they have this ability, they also need protection. However, it is There are too few people in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to guard the tower? Why do we need to hold the fire ceremony in advance?"
The detective glanced at Roma. "It is said to be the suggestion from Lord Eye of Iron."
The little lion shrugged. "It's okay to tell you. This is to protect the allies. Sabina said that the wizards of the Silent School sent spies in order to shake the leadership of Destiny in the coalition. Of course, we have no evidence, the only clue This was Larsen's reaction. He requested that the levels of the tower be reset, and he also arranged a new job for the Logistics Department to repair the magic pattern diagram. Not to mention the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, even the mysterious apprentices who had not graduated were filling the positions. All kinds of things, this Doesn’t that mean something big has happened?”
"It's better not to talk about this kind of topic." Uriel reminded. Right now they are still on the street. "It was my fault."
"There aren't many pedestrians, so don't worry. There was a fatal accident here not long ago, so good people took a detour."
"I have found the perpetrator." Agatha added.
The nightingale of the Silent School once sneaked into the tower, but the astrologer realized it later. Sounds like a joke. But after I confessed to the prophet, the joke probably had a successor.
"You two are really a match made in heaven." Uriel teased, "You don't need my help?"
"No need." Roma glanced at the detective and insisted. "Don't worry. She can handle it, can't she?"
"I thought about being more modest, but in front of the Knight of Proverbs, it's ridiculous to do so." Agatha raised her chin. "You probably don't have time to help me, apprentice."
The little lion frowned: "You can see it."
"It's not that difficult."
Uriel didn't understand: "Huh?"
"You haven't experienced the graduation ceremony yet, have you?" Agatha didn't wait for his answer, "Even if you have lit the fire, you still have to attend the ceremony on the day. This is a procedure that everyone will go through."
That doesn't sound good. "Uh, Lord Prophet——"
"He's a busy man!" Roma snorted, "I looked for him, but all I could find was his wine cabinet. I think it's actually a juice cabinet. He wouldn't step out of the laboratory for such things! As for you, Uriel, has the Commander-in-Chief allowed you to graduate?"
Uriel was glad that Qiao Yin didn't allow it. Damn it, the Fulcrum of Order is full of traps for the Nameless Ones. No wonder the secret societies dare not go deep. If it weren't for his mentor's guidance, even if he ignited the fire at Yin Shiman, he would not have passed the graduation ceremony. The demon hunting campaign is currently underway, and the investigation is even more stringent...
This is great. Uriel thought to himself. No wonder Qiao Yin changed his previous attitude and urged me to leave the tower. When everyone was preparing for war, the apprentice was going to the Black City to find out what was going on, but the envoy clearly expressed his opposition. Presumably he also did it for safety reasons.
If it were any nameless person here, he should listen to his words. How do you say that? It'll be good for you. Uriel sighed: "When is the fire ceremony?"
"the day after tomorrow."
Four minus two equals two. Uriel tasted something bitter in his mouth. Gods bless... no, gods forgive me.
