"Daddy … Daddy … Help me …"
The little girl cried as she crawled, her tears and mucus mixed together on her little face. Her white dress was already black and stained with black and red.
The village outside Fort Bunuo looked as if it had been smeared with blood. The streets, wells, and everywhere within sight were stained with blood. The demons from the Sulfur River strung the residents who could not escape in time on hooks, dragged them out of the houses, cruelly killed them, and then hung them on the trees in the village. The little girl screamed for her father, but her father might have already become one of these unlucky ones.
However, the demons seemed to be playing with this little prey, deriving great pleasure from the little girl's uneasiness and panic. They let her struggle in a pool of blood and mud, but every time she crawled a distance, a hellhound would come up and bite her white calf, dragging her back.
The little girl screamed and struggled, and the little demons not far away laughed in unison. This was like a feast for them. They pulled out a dying young girl from the pile of corpses, grabbed her long flaxen hair with their claws, and then cut open her chest with a sharp knife. They dug out her heart amidst the splattering blood, and then snatched it and swallowed it whole.
When the little girl saw this scene, she was completely scared out of her wits. When the hellhound came to her side, it seemed to have lost interest and bit her. Then, it shook its huge head. The little girl's lifeless body swayed along with its huge mouth like a broken doll.
But it was at this time that the hellhound creature, which was as tall as a man and looked like a giant wolf with dark fur and a huge collar, suddenly raised its head, shook its ears, and showed a vigilant look in its flaming eyes. A sharp arrow whizzed through the night sky from afar, parting the fierce wind and heavy rain. The arrow hit its smoky nostril, and the creature with the stench of sulfur instantly let out a miserable cry, its entire body flipping backward.
A female Knight rushed out of the rain, the sword in her hand like a sharp thorn with a cold light. Her eyes were full of hatred, and she lifted the hellhound's chin high with one hand. Flames burned from under the hellhound's fur, burning her fingers, but she gritted her teeth and pushed the sword upward, the sword went straight into the hilt.
"Die, demon! Go back to hell!"
The Hell Hound let out a mournful wail. Hot and stinking blood spurted out from the wound on its throat, splashing onto Freya's face.
Then, more Knight rushed out of the rain. Bess held a longbow and shot one Imp with each arrow, killing them in the distance. These red-skinned malevolent spirits were only at the upper level of Iron-rank. They were not even as strong as the Hellhound that Freya had killed.
The Knight passed by Freya and shouted the name of the Knight. However, Freya seemed to have lost all the strength in her body as she heavily piled up the Hellhound's corpse on the ground. Then, she bent down and carefully picked up the little girl. The little girl was badly mutilated from her neck to her chest. Her eyes were half-closed, and her mouth was opening and closing, spitting out blood and pieces of internal organs. She tried to make a sound with great difficulty.
"Sister … it hurts …"
Freya bit her lower lip, and tears flowed out uncontrollably. The scene in front of her was familiar. It had played out in Bucce, in Erouine, and many other places. She had experienced the same pain. The flames of war burned the earth, but the ones suffering in the flames were not the nobles of the kingdom, but the people.
In the past year, the kingdom seemed to have returned to peace, but the same pain repeated again and again. This time, it was the people of Cruz and the nobles of the north who brought this disaster. Who would be next?
Erouine was powerless to change, just like she was powerless to save the little girl in her arms. Freya felt that she could only watch her sister die weakly. The little girl finally lost her warmth in her arms.
"Brando, what should I do …" Freya gently put her down and could not help but mutter to herself.
She turned around and saw that Bess had come behind the Knight and gently patted her back. "Freya, this is war. You have to learn to get used to it." She sighed and replied.
"But when will Erouine end the war?"
"When it is stronger, so strong that no one can control our fate."
"One day," Bess replied firmly, "Her Royal Highness will do it and no longer rely on the rotten nobles of the north."
'Really?' Freya could not help but think of what Brando had told her. But wasn't the King's Party also a part of the nobles? Could those nobles really understand this pain? The more she knew, the darker and deeper history seemed in her eyes. It was like a giant mouth that wanted to swallow her whole. But then she thought of the pair of determined eyes in the sea of fire in Bucce. Why was Brando always so confident?
The fog that made everyone feel uneasy didn't seem to exist in front of him. Had he already seen the other end of history, the inevitable ending?
The girl was in a daze.
… …
Bunuo's position was like the bottom of a scorched pot. Some sticks were erected far and near on the scorched earth, and some still retained a few broken flags. Scorching hot fragments of armor were scattered all over the ground. Broken human bodies, hands, feet, and other body parts were everywhere.
The devil's offensive finally came to an end, but it brought an unparalleled shock to people's hearts. The defeated soldiers retreated one after another, and finally rebuilt a line of defense after retreating nearly four or five miles. The genius of the Hong Kong people, Viscount Von Dougning, looked at the big pits in the distance and gnashed his teeth in hatred. When the big men of the Northern Coalition Army cried and asked to retreat, he should have killed them all. They were a bunch of cowards.
He was lucky to survive the battle in Mar Highland. Although he was captured, he was quickly exchanged back, which made him very embarrassed. So he urgently needed a victory to prove himself. The glory of a soldier was to move forward, especially in such a war. Killing a few more devils was the qualification for future promotion.
But the devil's attack was so daunting that Viscount Von Dougning didn't know if he still had a chance. On the other side of the horizon, a bright fire was burning, as if the heavy rain was grease, making the flames even more dazzling. Fort Bunuo was finished. He didn't care how many people died there or who died. It had nothing to do with him, but he at least understood that this line of defense had become precarious.
He saw several Knight in the White Lion Legion uniform walking past him. Those White Lions seemed to be organizing a counterattack. He couldn't help but spit. Such a battle was unbearable. They didn't even know the enemy's fighting style. The commanders were really a bunch of idiots.
Viscount Von Dougning couldn't help but look at the sky. His eyes couldn't penetrate the rain, but he could still see the shadow of Erouine's Royal First Fleet hanging in mid-air. His eyes were deep, and no one knew what he was thinking for a while.
Countess Janilasu corrected the time on her pocket watch for the last time.
The fleet had completely unfolded in the direction of the northern devil army. All the cannon doors on the ship's side had been opened, as if countless black holes had opened. The sun had completely sunk below the horizon, and the heavy rain had turned into a pitch-black darkness where one couldn't even see one's own fingers.
But there was still a string of residual light in the sky, as well as a mottled light mixed with flames.
The light fell on the count's resolute face, outlining a few straight lines. The middle-aged man looked back and glanced at the Cruz people. "There are still fifteen minutes."
Almost all the high-ranking members of the coalition forces, Cruz people, Erouine people, were now gathered on the deck. Under Archbishop Wood's gaze, Ciel placed a crystal ball in the middle of the room, and on the crystal ball was Brendel's image.
At the same time, Brando was also looking at the image of Wood on the crystal ball that Babasha had put on the parchment map.
"Brando, in fifteen minutes, the Cruz people and Erouine people will launch a general attack against the devil army from the Sulfur River, which is several times their number. We will attract attention for you," Wood, who was wearing the robe of the archbishop, looked serious. "But can you really find a way to tear down those Doors of Flame?"
"I can't guarantee it." Brando replied seriously. "But you and I both know what will happen if I don't succeed, so we have to do it."
"Me, and you — it's the same, Lord Archbishop." He smiled slightly.
Wood looked deeply at Brando.
If he could, this was one of the faces he didn't want to see the most. The plan in Ampere Seale was almost a nightmare for him. The situation at the port had completely deteriorated. If the northern coalition forces couldn't defeat the devils, then the Cruz Empire and the Holy Cathedral of Fire were likely to pay a heavy price together.
Those were three Doors of Flame, and no one knew better than him the importance of it. No, there was one person who might be at least as clear as him. Wood stared at him. He didn't understand why this young man knew so much inside information.
As soon as Brando opened his mouth, the northern nobles were in an uproar.
"Is this guy trying to shirk responsibility?"
"Lord Archbishop, if he can't guarantee it, what's the point of us launching a desperate charge against the devils here? We're just like fools."
"Is Her Royal Highness trying to find a way to consume the strength of her allies?"
"Let's just defend and wait for reinforcements. The Holy Cathedral of Fire won't leave us alone."
On the other side of the crystal ball, Princess Gryphine also grabbed Brando's sleeve. She looked at him angrily and asked, "Mr. Brando, you said that we should act according to the circumstances."
"They are devils, Your Royal Highness."
"I know, but you don't have to take unnecessary risks," Her Royal Highness tried to suppress her anger, "Mr. Brando, we can defeat them in the end! I don't support your personal heroism. Although it's romantic, it's not the right way to do it! "
Brando sighed and stretched out his hand to gently tidy up the messy hair on Her Royal Highness' forehead. His action shocked everyone around him. Even the eldest princess herself froze, but Brando didn't care. To be honest, he didn't know if he could go back alive.
As early as the moment he made the decision, he knew what kind of battle he would face next.
"Have you seen a real devil army, Your Royal Highness?" he asked softly.
… …
"Have you seen a real devil army? A bunch of idiots." Wood slowly turned his head, and everyone could hear the anger in the archbishop's voice. The northern nobles were arrogant, but they had to bow their heads in front of the Holy Cathedral of Fire. Everyone was silent for a moment.
"Devils are the mortal enemies of order and civilization, Your Royal Highness. They are rebellious. Although they are not subordinates of the Twilight Dragon, they were born from chaos. They were born to tear everything apart. Everything beautiful and cherished is their enemy. And their pleasure is based on the pain and despair of mortals. "
"The Holy Cathedral fights against the cultists not to suppress the voices of opposition. Those believers of chaos who obey the Twilight Dragon, their faith is to tear the world apart and make our world cease to exist. However, some people here today, some nobles who should be responsible for guiding the people — have foolishly ignored this point, which is regrettable. "
"There are still people who remember the devil disaster in the Wilderness of the Four Territories. The devils that came out of the opened portal destroyed everything. Almost all the creatures in the whole kingdom completely disappeared. Who will save them? No one. Even the Holy Cathedral can't do it. Your Royal Highness, have you seen the devils walking on the earth, and the flames of sulfur burning everything behind them? "
"I have seen it. At that time, I was not a high-ranking priest of the Holy Cathedral. Millions of devils came to the world, and the Holy Cathedral used ten years of mental and physical effort to drive them back to the Sulfur River. "
"Today, Erouine is going to face the same fate."
"Back then, on the border of Antoburo, it was only a crack that opened. Today, there are three complete portals, "Wood said quietly. He was not afraid to reveal the secrets of the Holy Cathedral, because if today's matter could not be resolved, his political life would be completely over, and he would become a sinner.
More importantly, the reputation of the Holy Cathedral of Fire would suffer an unimaginable blow.
On the other side. Brando was silent for a moment and decided to tell the truth. "Your Royal Highness, Erouine will turn into a piece of scorched earth. Although we may be able to rebuild it one day, there is still a glimmer of hope, isn't there? "
There were millions of lives here, and that might have nothing to do with him. He would not see them suffer in the flames, he would not see them die in pain, and he would not even hear their cries before they died.
Everything seemed to have nothing to do with him, and he could still methodically implement his plan to rebuild this ancient kingdom on the wasteland.
At least Valhalla was still there, wasn't it?
Maybe it was. But Brando couldn't convince himself that he could ignore it. He could tell himself that he didn't see all this, but he couldn't deceive the truest feelings in his heart.
Everyone tried to escape all the time, but everyone had the truest self in their heart, which told them what was right and what was wrong.
No one was born a hero, but now at least he could give it a try. As he had experienced everything, he understood that there was only one thing in the world that could not be made up for.
That was regret.
Her Royal Highness looked at him in a daze.
"Mr. Brando, you …"
"Your Royal Highness, you said you believed in me."
"You …" Princess Gryphine gritted her teeth, struggled for a moment, but finally let go of her hand. "Well, I understand …"
Brando nodded to her, then he turned his head and looked at the image of Archbishop Wood on the crystal ball. "It seems that we have reached an agreement. Congratulations, Archbishop."
Wood nodded, but he sighed slightly in his heart. The archbishop couldn't help but lower his eyelids slightly. He was indeed too rash. Maybe he shouldn't have condoned all this from the beginning.
"May Lady Martha in heaven bless us. I hope that Erouine's fate is not over." He had never wanted Erouine to continue to exist so much. At least as a Cruz man and the archbishop of the Holy Cathedral, today was probably the day he deeply hoped that this country would continue to exist.
Brando also smiled. "Yes, I hope the Holy Cathedral of Fire did not violate the will of the late King Gretel too much. Otherwise, it would be too unlucky for me to be implicated, wouldn't it?"
Wood snorted.
…
(PS: When I was writing, I was killing pigs, but I found that I was disconnected after writing! I can't go up now! H pig, give me your life!) (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to qidian.com to vote for me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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