After regrouping and taking the remaining soldiers to the front line in Austria, Animusfia and Nero looked at the scene in front of them and were speechless for a long time.
"Your Majesty, isn't this the mess that is left after you had a whim and wanted to build a city wall that stretches thousands of miles on the border, so you started construction, only to find that the treasury was already in an unbearable deficit and had to stop work?"
"What are you talking about! Even if Yu didn't know how to save, he would never do such a thing. Really, even if the Governor said such things, Yu would not forgive me."
However, Animusfia had no time to take care of the angry Nero at the moment.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I've always been an outspoken person - it's impossible for me to treat someone as untouchable."
"Yeah?"
Nero half-closed his eyes and leaned towards Animusfia and asked.
Although she thought she showed charm, she actually had charm, but her childlike height only had beautiful blond hair from the perspective of Animusfia, who was thirty centimeters taller than Nero.
Nero was talking to his chest.
But saying it directly would probably make his emperor angry.
"Even the gods?"
"God does not exist, Your Majesty."
Animusfia said decisively.
"I didn't expect you to be an atheist...Mom, this is really a crime."
However, Animusfia does not actually deny the existence of "gods". Gods with powerful power probably exist in the world where he lives. Magic and magic are also things that Animusfia really has no contact with. learned something.
But compared to the first cause of the creation of the world that he had been exposed to in church school in his early years, Animusfia believed that it was meaningless.
Because the universe is so magnificent, it is ridiculous to think that the universe could not have been born by chance, so it is ridiculous to posit a "first cause" that created everything.
But if the universe is already complex enough, shouldn't the existence that created it be even more complex, and even less likely to be born by chance?
If the "first cause" has existed there from the beginning according to religious explanation, why can't the matter that makes up the universe exist from the beginning?
As for Zeus and Mars, although they have the power to change the world, in fact, the things they do and the emotions they have in myths are no different from ordinary people.
Those who can lift ten kilograms are human beings, so can those who can lift one thousand kilograms be considered "gods"?
At least in Animusfia's eyes, he was just a stronger person at best.
If power alone can be called a god, then cheetahs that run much faster than humans, elephants that are much more powerful than humans, and whales in the sea that are much larger than humans should also be called gods. .
"Are you going to put me to death like Socrates?"
Animusfia said half-jokingly.
Although Nero was recorded in history as a true devil who killed without blinking an eye, the evil deeds he committed definitely deserved the far-fetched name of 666 that the Jews later attached to Nero.
But at least the Nero Claudius who is now living with Animusfia is not that kind of person.
Perhaps he did have a willful side, and he did have a side that was difficult to empathize with others—perhaps Nero was indeed an out-and-out tyrant, but at least Nero was not as ruthless as recorded.
Just like Elizabeth Bathory, who also has sadistic tendencies but not so much.
For Animusfia, this may lead to the collapse of the historical knowledge he has learned, but he is more willing to see such a collapse.
At least it's developing for the better, right?
That's fine.
"Don't make it sound like I killed Socrates. That was obviously done by a group of ignorant people. Really, I won't sentence you to death for such a thing."
"Then thank you Your Majesty."
Animusfia put her right hand on Nero's head and rubbed it.
"...Did you pretend to be respectful to me before?"
"Didn't you say that I want to be closer to you? Well, speaking purely from the perspective of the problem, it can be attributed to acting. Didn't you always know that?"
"I've known it all along. Really, can you really be a good minister like this?"
Nero said with a sigh.
"I have no problem being a good or playing a courtier, but as a person I am not a courtier in the ideal sense."
Animusfia always regards herself and others on the same footing. There is no emperor, no slave, and no supreme god.
Of course, such a person cannot be regarded as a good minister, a good follower—a good tool.
From the perspective of Nero's emperor, people like Animusfia are the most unpleasant existences. According to the First Emperor, who single-handedly established centralization in the East, the only real "person" should be the emperor. The rest of existence is expendable, tools that should be used.
Tools do not require knowledge, thinking, or self-awareness.
Just follow and unite closely with the First Emperor and obey the First Emperor's orders.
Although Nero did not know the existence of the First Emperor, and Animusfia did not mention the relevant information to her, since he was in the position of Augustus in Rome, Nero naturally understood the so-called centralization of power. What exactly is domination?
As Augustus, she longed for such an ending.
But Nero, who had received the teachings of Seneca from the Stoic school since childhood and loved Greek culture, naturally hated such people.
There must be something important missing in such a society.
At least she didn't want Animusfia to just become her tool.
"Hmm, you are really outspoken. But, that's good."
Looking at the row of huge pits in front of her that looked like several mountain-like wooden stakes had been inserted and then forcibly pulled out, it was Animusfia's turn to sigh this time.
Instead, he hoped that these huge craters like footprints were the traces left by Nero's whim.
otherwise--------
This row of huge craters extending to the northwest should be the traces of the remaining combat power of the [United Empire].
What kind of existence could cause such a scene?
giant? Dragon? Or is it the ancient tree of war?
Animusfia might be able to do it, but it would be unrealistic to ask him to release magic step by step and march all the way north to the Black Forest of Germania.
He would get tired eventually.
"As expected, he is a very difficult enemy, right?"
Nero stopped talking to Animusfia in a relaxed tone.
"It is indeed a very strong enemy..."
Animusfia looked back at the other end of the pit.
It is the direction of Vienna in the east.
"I'm afraid that the defeats of Alexander and Zhuge Kongming have caused the enemy to change their strategy——Like us, the [United Empire] will also hope to rely on victory in Germania. If even this level of combat power is dispatched, Vienna, the original capital of the [United Empire], is now probably empty.”
"If you say that, wouldn't the front led by Lord Boudica and the others be under more pressure?"
"That's true, Your Majesty. I'm afraid we have to speed up a little more now - although all Chaldea's combat forces, except for me, including Eliza, have arrived there, I'm afraid they still won't be able to hold on. Too long."
Just by the words of Mikhail VIII, Animsfia could still believe in his preliminary preparations to fight Artoria.
But if someone else is added...
Animusfia came to the edge of the huge pit and observed the huge pit with a radius of ten meters and a depth of tens of meters.
Since the battle in France, Animusfia has had many interactions with dragon species.
Even if the dragon could cause such damage, it would probably be like Animusfia herself, who would not have the energy to take a single step and breathe out.
The huge pits that crisscross each other on the left and right are easily reminiscent of humans walking on two legs.
But there are obvious traces of roots destroying the soil in the pit, and the edges of the pit are full of slab-like soil turned up from bottom to top.
Is it really an ancient tree of war?
Although the soil in the deepest part of the pit is generally dry, it still feels slightly damp.
"Did you find anything? Governor."
Nero asked as he walked over to Animusfia who was half-kneeling on the ground.
"Well, although the enemy has been setting off for a while...but they haven't gone too far yet. If we catch up now, if nothing unexpected happens, we should be able to join the battle on time."
"but......"
Nero looked at the soldiers who had survived the previous battle in the rear and said with some worry:
"The soldiers won't have the luxury to continue marching in a hurry like Yu and you, right?"
"You don't have to worry about that."
Animusfia turned back and glanced at the soldiers who were so alive in his eyes that they wanted to kill a cow with one punch.
"Didn't you realize that since you released the [Noble Phantasm] as a mortal, even the soldiers under your command have been protected by [Rome]? They are now your King's Army (Ionians Hetairoi)."
"Hey, is that so?"
Nero was a little surprised and turned to look at her troops again.
"Be more careful with your soldiers, Imbrado. The real trouble is not whether the soldiers can march quickly, but whether we can move forward like enemies on the road - Germania's Forests and swamps are not our place."
Although Germania, which had brought Octavian to ruin, had briefly submitted to the management of Rome, it was no longer part of Rome under Nero's leadership today.
If they encounter Germanic obstacles on the way, Animusfia will have another headache.
Now Animusfia only hopes that the Germans have been scared away by the huge momentum of the [United Empire] movement.
Animusfia did not wish to cause more victims if possible.
Those who were killed by Animusfia in Florence were far from being regarded as victims. Many of them were unwilling to "sacrifice", so victims should be the appropriate name for them.
However----------
"Report, there is no one in the barbarian tribe ahead."
The soldiers who came back from exploring the road reported this.
"I understand, you can return to the team."
"yes!"
Animusfia nodded and sent the soldiers back to the queue.
"This must be the seventh tribe since we started chasing."
After entering the village, Nero frowned and said to Animusfia.
While scanning the surrounding equipment, Animusfia responded:
"Theoretically, it's the eighth one, Your Majesty. There's another village that you may not have noticed, but it was directly buried by the huge crater."
Animusfia also accidentally saw the metal tools in it and realized that there might be a settlement in the original location of the pit.
"But there's no one there, right?"
But the body was never found in Animusfia.
"If one or two settlements can be said to be a coincidence, eight uninhabited settlements can definitely not be regarded as a coincidence. Looking at it now, it is indeed like that."
Animusfia squatted down slightly and inserted her index finger into the bonfire that was extinguished by the soup in the overturned pot.
Even the heat in the fireless embers has long since dissipated.
After pulling his fingers out of the ashes, Animusfia flicked the charcoal ashes on his fingertips. If he saw correctly, there were still some unburned pieces of cloth in the bonfire.
"And before the enemies of the [United Empire] arrived from Vienna, the residents here had already disappeared."
Animusfia looked at the overturned pottery pot and the extinguished bonfire in front of her, and then thought about the mess she had seen among other tribes before. Obviously, these disappearing Germanic people did not leave voluntarily in peace.
The mess in the village looked more like they had been attacked and fled in a hurry.
However, there were no signs of fighting around.
"Hmm, did you join the army of the [United Empire]?"
"It doesn't look like...even if you join the army, you won't leave such a mess, right? What's more, even the elderly and children have disappeared. Judging from the current scene, they are more like victims of some magic. "
However, Animusfia didn't know what reason the [United Empire], which had just ended in the age of gods and still possessed the Holy Grail, had to use ordinary people as "sacrifice" for magic.
Although I feel sorry for those who may have been killed, their disappearance did do Animusfia a big favor. At least there will be no one blocking his and Nero's path, and they can arrive faster. battlefield.
Thanks to the [United Empire], one only needs to follow the traces left by some kind of tree people, and almost all the obstacles along the way have been eradicated by the [United Empire]. Even the hills that stretched in front of him seemed to have been partially evaporated, making way for the passage.
After making sure that there would be no scattered Germanic or Celtic obstacles, Animusfia and Nero, who were galloping all the way, finally arrived at the famous Black Forest near the Rhine River Basin.
However, in the forest that should have stretched in front of Animusfia and Nero, a large and unexpected pit suddenly appeared.
It is deeper and larger than all the giant pits left by the [United Empire] before. If it weren't for the traces left by the overturned soil and roots on the edge of the pit, Animusfia even suspected that some kind of rocket or spaceship took off directly here.
After all, the glassy soil crystals at the bottom of the giant pit and the surrounding trees bent by the air current are not a joke.
Seeing such a familiar scene, Animusfia couldn't help but think of the traces he left when he performed the Uranus magic. Except that the hole was a little smaller and he dug it himself, the scene he saw now was almost the same as when he performed it. Generally the same.
The only difference is probably that my Uranus magic tilts energy from top to bottom, while the huge pit in front of me can clearly be seen from bottom to top.
The huge pit extending forward from here like a footprint also stopped.
It seems that this is the end point.
However, Animusfia glanced around but did not see any trace of the "ancient war tree" in his impression.
Could it be that his inference was wrong?
An object of such a large size left so many traces along the way, there is no reason why there is no trace of it now that it is here.
"Governor..."
While Animusphia was thinking, Nero's words caught his attention.
"Have you discovered anything? Your Majesty."
"what is that?"
Animusfia looked towards the sky in the direction of Nero's finger.
"Nothing...wait."
What gradually appeared in Animusfia's sight was an almost invisible bright spot.
If you look carefully, you can also see the dark component above the shiny part.
"It's a meteorite... No, it's too small and too fast for a meteorite that can break through the atmosphere."
Animusfia denied her initial judgment.
The falling object that was suspected to be a meteorite also grew several times larger in the eyes of Animusfia and Nero in just a few seconds.
"Is that a ———— tree?"
After seeing the true form of the fallen object, Nero was surprised by what he found.
Animusfia frowned.
It seemed that that was the real culprit they had been chasing from Austria to here.
"Tsk, no, Your Majesty. Our position here will also be affected. Please stand behind me, Your Majesty."
After briefly calculating the energy generated when the giant tree fell to the ground, Animusfia said to Nero.
Although the place where they are now will not be directly affected by the explosion caused by the fall, the shock wave and splashing earth and rocks that are generated afterwards still cannot be avoided.
"All phalanxes raise their shields and arrange themselves in a cone shape! Be prepared for impact!"
After ordering the soldiers who came with them, Animusfia stabbed the Spear of Ouranos into the land in front of her.
"Neptune!"
A large amount of magic power was instantly injected into the ground like compressed gas. The thick earth crust moved under the influence of magic power. In the end, it was not known whether the earth crust under Animusfia and Nero's feet was sinking downwards or whether the earth crust in front of them was being pushed upwards. Squeeze away.
Or maybe both happened together.
The finally dislocated crust slowly rose in front of Animusfia, like a mountain with a slope, becoming a bunker for him, Nero and his legions.
Animusfia, who had done all this, watched the giant tree in the sky fall quickly without any damage due to the friction and burning of the air.
"boom--------!"
After an unprecedented loud noise, a strong shock wave hit Animusfia and Nero.
