I will be crowned king

The howling wind at midnight whipped up the biting and icy snow, hiding the bright silver crescent moon in the night; as the firelight gradually faded away, the streets of the outer city fell into darkness again.

The indifferent inquisitors wandered among the smoking ruins, holding dim kerosene lamps to inspect the results they had just achieved, using their weapons to touch up the charred corpses to confirm that no targets were accidentally missed. .

It is said to be a confirmation, but in fact it is just a routine matter... There are no more than forty people in the entire tavern who can breathe, including the bartender and the drunkards who have not left. On average, every two people can be assigned to one judge's "personal body" Service" fundamentally eliminates the possibility of omissions.

It was not until Cole was about to give the order to leave that the "reinforcements" from the Ministry of War finally arrived, surrounded and sealed off the ruins of the tavern. Hundreds of torches illuminated the surrounding streets, making the surroundings still planning to leave. The beggars and gangsters who came to watch the excitement ran away at the speed of light, not daring to stay where they were for a minute.

The soldiers who controlled the surrounding streets and planned to station themselves at the scene were forced back by the guns of the inquisitors before they even got close. A few were unconvinced and planned to force their way in, seemingly not trusting the two dozen or so people on the other side. , dare to open fire in the face of nearly a regiment of armed forces...

"boom--!"

Looking at the soldier whose head was shot in the distance, Crown, whose face turned black, took a deep breath, twitched the corner of his mouth and turned his eyes back to the chief inquisitor in front of him:

"For the last time... I request all members of the True Cult to withdraw immediately and hand over the scene to our Ministry of War - this is the outer city. Suppressing the riots is the mission entrusted to us by His Majesty Carlos II."

"This is also the last time for me to ask all my colleagues in the Army Department to clarify their identities and not to interfere with the normal operations of the Truth-seeking Order."

Cole, who was smiling all over his face, said in an unkind tone: "When it comes to religious matters, there is no room for your Army Department to interfere."

"Religious affairs? But as far as I know, the people entrenched in this tavern are "whisperers"... The gang leader named by the Privy Council who must be killed, how come he has anything to do with religious affairs?"

"It's very simple. The moment he was suspected to have the support of the Old God Sect organization, he got involved with us."

"Oh, are you really that sure? What evidence is there to prove it?"

"No, no, no... you made a mistake. Our judge decided to take action. Since when has the evidence been used as the criterion?"

"In this case, can I understand that your so-called 'suspected involvement of the Old God Sect' is just your own speculation and suspicion?"

"Absolutely correct, so I advise you not to have anything to do with these things, otherwise we will reasonably and legally knock on your door in the early hours of the morning, drag you out of bed and take you to the dungeon of Clovis Cathedral for interrogation. .”

The two of them were going back and forth in strange ways, threatening and testing each other, and neither of them had the slightest intention of giving in.

Crown was in a very bad mood at this time. From a personal point of view, he really had no interest in provoking the Inquisitor or even Clovis Cathedral, but the War Department obviously didn't care about the death order they gave him. It is necessary to control the situation and at the same time try every means to bring "Whisper" and Anson Bach back.

Obviously, it is impossible to achieve any of these three points without conflicting with the judges in front of him; if it really makes the other side anxious, he really has no doubt that the chief named Cole Dorian The Inquisitor slaughtered a regiment of their soldiers on the spot - he was the first.

Therefore, to be precise, the Ministry of War does not care about the conflict with Clovis Cathedral. They do not care about the fact that they, a tool man, take the initiative to die. Anyway, if something happens, they are the ones who make their own decisions. They definitely have nothing to do with the enlightened and benevolent chief officials of the Ministry of War. relation.

Cole Dorian was even more depressed than them. It was completely expected that the people from the War Department suddenly jumped out at this time. It was not difficult to guess what he wanted... But the problem was "Whisper" and Anson Bach. It’s really not in your own hands!

If you tell the other side this, can the people in the Army Department believe it?

Sorry, although we wiped out all the gangsters and accidentally let them blow up the entire tavern without leaving anyone alive, we really don’t know where Whisper and Anson Bach went?

Thinking about it carefully, he felt that even if he heard such words, he would be a little suspicious, let alone the bastards of the War Department.

Even if he takes the initiative to leave the ruins now, it will only lead the Ministry of War to conclude that "Whisper and Anson Bach have been taken away by the inquisitor." Even if he wants to explain it, he can't explain it at all - and he can't explain it at all. I really don’t know where they went!

Realizing this, Cole Dorian simply gave up the explanation and looked coldly at Crown, who didn't know whether it was a bluff or a determination, and waited for the other party to take the initiative to retreat.

But Crown has no way out. He returned empty-handed after such a high-profile effort. The most important thing is that he may let "Whisper" run away... He has already failed in the task of framing Anson Bach, and there is no room for problems again. .

The army soldiers had already formed a line formation, and the judges, who were densely pointed at their guns, also sneered and held down the revolvers at their waists and the weapons at hand... The strong smell of gunpowder smoke could be felt without even smelling it.

Just when the patience of both parties was quickly exhausted, and they were prepared for the worst, Sera Vergil's expression suddenly changed, and he quietly approached Cole Dorian and whispered in his ear. A few words.

Soon, the Chief Inquisitor's expression became strange, and he stared at the female Inquisitor with a strange look on his face: "Are you sure?!"

"I can only say... he should be right." Sera Virgil nodded slightly: "As for whether it is true or not, it is up to you to judge - the person who can make a decision on this matter can only He is the Chief Inquisitor."

Looking at the other party's suddenly serious expression, which was completely different from his usual joking expression, Cole Dorian took a deep breath: "...I understand."

Before he finished speaking, he turned his gaze to Lieutenant Colonel Crown, who was looking at the two of them warily: "I'm very sorry, Your Excellency, you can go back now."

"According to the intelligence we just obtained, Anson Bach has successfully killed Whisperer and is taking his body to the headquarters building of your Army Department."

"So you don't need to waste time with us here. Why don't you gather your team and leave quickly... If you're lucky, you might be able to stop that guy outside the building."

After saying that, Cole crossed his hands with an attitude of "whatever you like", waiting for the other party's reply.

Lieutenant Colonel Crown was silent for a moment with a serious look on his face, then frowned tightly and asked seriously:

"You...you say it again?"

………………………………

The dark basement fell into dead silence again. Maurice Périgord, who was stroking his chest and saluting, looked at the three people present quietly, with a slightly proud expression as if everything was under his control.

Trying his best to contain his subconscious surprise, Anson silently took out the pipe from his arms and bit it in his mouth, but did not light it.

Since the other party knows him so well, he should be no stranger to the "Mist Pipe", so this action is just to cover up the weak magical aura on his body at that moment, so as to avoid the other party discovering that he has opened his territory.

From this moment on, any movements, changes in expressions, and even the frequency of breathing and heartbeat of the other party cannot escape Anson's "eyes".

"It seems... you really haven't introduced me to the respected Brigadier General Anson Bach?" Morris looked at the trainee priest with a surprised look on his face. The latter's expression almost directly engraved "complexity" on his forehead:

"It's really heartbreaking. I thought that based on our relationship, you would definitely regard my existence as a very important bargaining chip to show off to the people you work with."

"In short, I was once a member of the Society of Truth...for no other reason than that my father was a member of the Society of Truth. In his eyes, this underground illegal organization that fought against the Church of Order had a meaning that transcended his family and even his own life. Significance."

"Just like when he asked me to embark on the path of a scholar studying St. Isaac, he made the decision without my consent, and I also gave him an answer that satisfied him enough - for this organization, My excellence has become a valuable resource to it.”

Morris talked eloquently and walked towards Anson step by step: "So they gave me a task that has never been done before and has a very low success rate... sneak into the Holy See, join the monastery, and steal Saint Isaac's notes and research materials. "

"For the Truth Society, everything about St. Isaac is of extraordinary significance. It seems that as long as they can get more of St. Isaac's legacy, they can break the authority of the Holy See at the academic and research level and lift the Their monopoly on knowledge has caused cracks in the rock-solid world of order.”

"Unfortunately, they were wrong."

"I understood from the beginning that this task could not realize their ideas at all, nor could it truly break the church's monopoly and authoritative position on knowledge; apart from further exposing the existence of the Society of Truth and attracting the attention of the church, it was completely meaningless. .”

"But I didn't tell anyone this. I happily accepted the mission they gave me and completed the task I needed to complete perfectly." Morris smiled proudly:

"Do you know why?"

"Because it's good for you." Anson looked at the smile that couldn't be concealed on his face:

"The Society of Truth can provide you with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. With their help, you will be able to climb to a higher status more easily than any priest, and be exposed to knowledge and cutting-edge research that you never dared to imagine in the past. Results.”

"For a child who has been forced to learn this from an early age, knowing full well that the current average of our world is well below the expectations of St. Isaac, this is a huge temptation."

Morris had no intention of denying it: "The allure of knowledge is even greater than wealth... No amount of gold can buy wisdom, but gold in front of wisdom... haha, it's just gold."

"That's what I say, but in fact I didn't betray the Society of Truth. I can even say that I did my best for their goals - you know why all the "Big Magic Books" nowadays are stored in memory cards, and Isn’t it the style of the original document? Haha... I have made a great contribution in this regard."

"The final result was exactly as I expected. The Truth Society who obtained the knowledge just handed it over to those wealthy nobles, hoping that those people would discover the value of this knowledge and thus open up and delve into a new path. , forming a competitive relationship with the church, and the final result..."

"It's a pity that nothing came of it."

"In the eyes of those wealthy families, these extremely precious knowledge is not the foundation that can strengthen their strength at all. At most, it can only be regarded as a bargaining chip at the political level; a string of ancient runes that are extremely precious in the eyes of scholars may not mean as much to them as a few acres. It’s not as good as a field for growing potatoes.”

"From that moment on, I fully realized that no matter how 'progressive' the truth may be, no matter how 'rotten' the church is, for the entire world of order, the order and knowledge system it can provide are still the most advanced. , at least in a short period of time, there is no possibility of being surpassed."

"So you chose to surrender to the Holy See and betrayed the Society of Truth?" Anson raised his eyebrows: "It's amazing, you are truly a 'progressive' scholar."

"On the contrary, I actually very much agree with the church's point of view. Knowledge also needs order. Disorderly progress and information explosion will only bring chaos and unrest, make authorities lose their leadership position, and make the public wonder what they should believe and what they should not. Believe something; everyone puts forward his own opinion, everyone thinks he is right..."

Morris shook his head: "You know, even St. Isaac thought that kind of world was so terrible that he thought an organization should be established to decide which research could be made public and which could not."

"And that happens to be the goal of the Church of Order today...order, a stable, orderly development world that is beneficial to everyone."

"And this also includes you, His Excellency Anson Bach. Your existence is also part of this 'order'."

Morris, who was smiling, stopped just a nose away from Anson. Their pupils reflected each other's expressions: "You see, what the Church of Order wants is not immutable eternity. We also long for change. .”

"Let me use a small gift to prove the truth of this sentence."

The moment before the words finished, "Whisper" on the side suddenly trembled violently, blood overflowed from his nose, ears and eyes, and he fell to the ground without any warning...

died.