Crown of Silence

Although the Dark Ages have ended for a hundred years, the wild ether storms of that year still remain in every corner of the world. Except for most people, danger lurks everywhere except in gathering areas. Therefore, almost everyone has been seriously warned by parents, teachers, and guards:

"——Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely, don't go outside the ghetto!"

But now Ye Qingxuan doesn't care, it's just a matter of climbing over the wall, it can't be a problem for him.

But this direction made him feel vaguely familiar... Is it the direction of the lighthouse?

Usually when they go to the lighthouse, they would never go through this forest. There is a long way from the seaside to the main entrance of the lighthouse. But he couldn't understand why Vito would choose to run out through such a dangerous shortcut?

If he wants to leave here, he can leave on any boat at the pier. Hiding quietly in the warehouse, when the sailors found him, he was already hundreds of kilometers away.

In the deep dense forest, Lao Fei suddenly stopped.

It lowered its head and looked at its feet.

Ye Qingxuan hasn't seen Lao Fei showing such a fierce expression for a long time. It bared its teeth and dug its front paws at the dirt on the ground, glaring at the dark red specks of mud in front of it...it smelled like blood.

-

Regardless of any further hesitation, Ye Qingxuan speeded up, passed through the dense forest and thorns, and ran to the bottom of the lighthouse.

The heavy iron door is hundreds of years old. The dark surface looks full of rust, but the inside is still as clean as new. It is not opened with a key, but requires turning a combination disk at the door.

The priest gave the password to Ye Qingxuan, and even Vito knew it.

But Vito has never been too lazy to come to a place like this. Why would Jin want to come here today?

Ye Qingxuan pushed the door open with all his strength, and the dusk sunlight finally broke into the space behind the door, swirling dust and dancing around, illuminating the dark stairs and the young man sitting on the stairs.

The strong smell of blood hit his face.

On the stairs, Vito held a small box and looked at the entrance silently, his eyes fierce, like a mad beast.

His arm was cut open by something, leaving a deep scar visible to the bone. Even though it was bandaged, blood was still dripping out. But he still held the dagger in his hand, as if he wanted to stab any creature that dared to come over.

It wasn't until he saw Ye Qingxuan's white hair that the ferocity in his eyes gradually faded and dimmed again.

"Vito?"

Ye Qingxuan was stunned: "You...how did you become like this?"

"I'm sorry, Ye Zi, for seeing you looking so embarrassed."

He forced out a painful smile and looked down at the box in his arms: "I just wanted to steal some money while running away, but ended up getting into trouble..."

-

-

"Last night, I planned to leave the dock and go somewhere to avoid the storm. A ship going to Birmingham temporarily docked. At that time, Jason, who was moving cargo, came to me and said there was a deal."

"Buy or sell?"

Ye Qingxuan frowned when he heard this word. Of course he knew what the 'business' the workers on the dock meant. It's nothing more than stealing passengers' luggage or goods. These people are good at unpacking and usually don't steal much.

So few people find out that they have stolen anything. By the time the passengers realize something is missing from their luggage, the ship may have already arrived at its destination.

“He told me that a man got off the boat at our place tonight.

He looked like a man from out of town. He wore a ring with gemstones and his clothes were of high quality. He should be very rich. So the two of them worked together to scrape some water from this person. "

He paused and said in a hoarse voice: "I thought I could earn some travel expenses, so I agreed."

"According to the plan, the two of them were going to attract his attention in the name of selling souvenirs. I took the opportunity to take away the small box he was carrying..."

"You were caught?"

“It’s worse than that and I made it.

Vito forced an ugly smile, his face seemed to be twitching: "I stole the box and made an appointment to meet at a place outside the dock. I didn't go in time because I had a stomachache.

But by the time I passed, they were all dead. "

His pupils dilated, and his cold hands held Ye Qingxuan tightly, as if he had been thrown into an ice cellar, trembling slightly.

"They were all dead. Ye... was cut into several pieces and thrown into the sea."

His voice sounded like a demon was about to burst out of his throat, it was vague and cold, making Ye Qingxuan stunned and caught off guard.

"All dead?"

"I saw them cut into pieces by that man."

Vito looked at the scars on his arms, and the fear in his eyes could not dissipate: "If I hadn't run so fast, I'd probably be broken into pieces now, right? Is this the retribution the East talks about, Ye Zi? It's really a good thing to come. "Hurry up."

"Stop talking nonsense. There is no such thing as retribution in this world. Calm down." Ye Qingxuan pressed his shoulder: "Who is that guy? I will report to the garrison..."

"it's useless!"

Vito interrupted him and clasped his shoulders firmly: "Ye Zi, let's go, don't stay here, just pretend you haven't seen me. You have no idea who I have offended."

Ye Qingxuan broke away from his hand and snatched the small box from his arms. The lock of the long black box has been smashed. You can feel the soft texture of the leather when you first touch it. Just touching it will tell you that it is worth a lot of money.

Although he had long been prepared to hide a box of jewelry or lapis lazuli bars, Ye Qingxuan couldn't help but take a breath of air when he opened the box.

There is a layer of soft sponge in the box, and there is also a layer of black brocade on top of the sponge. The brocade is well made, and when you touch it, it is as smooth as stroking running water. There are several grids on the edge of the sponge pad, where some exquisite spare parts are placed. They are exquisitely crafted and gorgeous, with metal forged patterns.

But nothing can take away the status of the thing in the middle of the box.

It was a dark red iron product. After excellent forging process, the craftsman painted it himself. The glorious surface is spotless, reflecting the pale faces of the two people.

-That's a clarinet.

"You stole a musician's weapon?"

Ye Qingxuan looked at the things in the box dullly and felt a chill spreading from his feet to his head:

"Vito, do you know what exactly was done?"

-

-

In the great and holy land of Anglia, the House of Lords issued regulations decades ago. Once a citizen obtains the formal qualification of a musician, he or she will automatically obtain the status of a noble and the same status as a baron.

There is no need to perform military service, pay taxes, or even obey the law. Crimes can only be tried by specialized courts. All offenses against the musicians are an insult to the kingdom, and are aggravated by the crime.

And this kind of status is nothing more than the most basic respect for musicians. Because what is more famous is the terrifying reputation of giving nightmares to musicians once they go on a killing spree.

Once in the Hamelin area, a village hired a wandering musician to drive away bandits but then regretted it, refused to pay the reward, and planned to drive him away by force. The frustrated musician played the recorder and controlled the group of ruthless employers to form a queue. They sang and danced and dug their own graves. Then they cut each other's wrists and lay down in the coffin. .

There are no chickens or dogs left in the whole village.

To this day, that musician is still ranked 62nd on the most wanted list, known as the 'Recorder Player of Hamelin'.

Like it, there are dozens of bedtime stories used to scare children, such as creating seven golems to attack the castle, killing the Queen's Snow Musician, controlling a tide of beasts to attack the village, and stealing the old grandmother's red hat. , the puppet master who possessed a long-nosed puppet and strangled the lying child to death, the gray banshee who kidnapped the crown prince in a pumpkin cart for a pair of glass slippers, the ocean wizard who transformed half of his body into a fish and summoned a storm to drown the 'Prince's Fleet' …

Some of these stories are nonsense, while others are adaptations of actual events. In the above story, there are still several people involved on the wanted list who have not moved up the list for more than ten years.

Countless horrifying rumors, true or false, contain countless blood and tears, and may have demonized musicians... but at least it shows that no one wants to provoke a musician for nothing.

And now, Vito has stolen the instrument that the musician valued as his life...

"I know a musician, let's go find him!"

Ye Qingxuan stuffed the clarinet into the box again and dragged Vito out of the windmill without any explanation.

"No matter what the cost, I will let him help you get rid of this matter."

Ye Qingxuan said softly: "Vito, no matter who the musician is, I will not watch you die in front of me."

"But it's too late, ash.com Ye Zi."

Vito seemed to feel something, and his expression became bitter.

He turned around and looked around: "He's already here."

In the dense forest, a foul-smelling wind suddenly blew from the deepest part, carrying a rotten smell.

The leaves swayed and rustled.

The setting sun dimly was about to fall below the sea level, and the last remaining light illuminated the withered leaves on the branches, as well as the mist spreading from the distance.

The mist slowly extended from all directions, like a living thing. It seemed extremely slow, but it overwhelmed them instantly. Countless strange shadows flashed through the mist, and the gray-white color was filled with nauseating coldness.

While gasping in fear, Ye Qingxuan heard a deep voice singing vaguely.

"The Avalon Bridge is falling, falling, falling..."

Then the foul-smelling mist rose from all directions, getting thicker and thicker, making it difficult to distinguish things. It was as if a wraith was pulling on their hands, feet and hair, causing their running to suddenly slow down, making them almost unable to breathe.

"Build it up with iron bars, iron bars, iron bars..."

Then, the sound of iron scraping came from the pale.

In the low singing voice, Ye Qingxuan felt the box in his arms vibrating. It was the instruments inside that resonated with the familiar singing voice and made their own sounds towards the owner.

Suddenly, the sharp sound of countless iron pieces crisscrossing broke the silence.