The Fire-Chasing Herrscher Who Destroyed the World

"Luka Kaslana, what else can you say about Kallen Kaslana's crimes?"

It was completely dark, but no candles were lit in the church, allowing darkness to swallow up all the space visible to the naked eye bit by bit.

The only light in the entire church came from behind Bishop Nicholas, who was standing on more than twenty steps. The wall behind him was entirely made of exquisite amber. For some reason, there should be no trace of candlelight inside. , but exudes dazzling golden light. Although no one has ever seen the so-called Gate of Heaven, if it really exists... maybe it is here.

This was not the first time Luca had been summoned in such an environment, but he couldn't help but raise his eyes. The pointed hat on the bishop's head and the scepter in his hand were both wrapped in the light emitted by the amber wall. He only glanced at it. It's hard to open your eyes, let alone see Nicholas's facial features clearly.

Nicholas seems to particularly like to receive outsiders at this time. At least in Luca's impression, every time he receives a summons from the bishop, it is at this time.

To put it bluntly, the dark night fits well with the unique sinister nature of the Apokalis family. And the golden holy light added a bit of holiness to him, and more importantly, through the double cover of the night and the bright light, he properly concealed his old state - even though Bishop Nicholas's body was getting worse. It was already a consensus among the top management of Tianming that the worse things would get worse. Otherwise, even if the Eastern Expedition failed miserably, the Castle Council would not be so aggressive.

Just as he raised his head and lowered his head, Luca thought a lot. He thought of him, Nicholas Apokalis, Frances Kaslana and Sabrice Shani thirty years ago. Art, they grew up together, just like Karen, Otto and Eleanor now. As fate would have it, both Francis and Sabryse died young, and Nicholas had half a foot in the grave. Not to mention, they are now strangers...

There was no time to lament, and of course there was no need to think hard, to submit and beg for mercy. This was something that Kaslana could never learn in her life, but he, a stranger, had long been familiar with it:

"Kallen publicly slandered the destiny and blasphemed the gods in her words. Naturally, she must be punished to death. Besides, as a member of the Kaslana family, she actually robbed an ordinary person's property. It is really humiliating. Menfeng, I have exercised my parental rights. From now on, Kallen has no connection with the Kaslana family!"

"Oh? Luca Kaslana, do you think this can get the Kaslana family out of this matter? That's ridiculous!"

Nicholas's voice floated down gently from above, but it was a little hoarse, as if there was too much phlegm stuck in his throat, and even his words became unclear.

Luka wished in his heart that this old guy would be stuck in phlegm, but in reality he could only lower his head humbly and defend himself:

"No, this is just a normal punishment within the family. Even if fate does not hold Kallen accountable for her actions, the Kaslana family will definitely punish her."

"Very good, your Kaslana family has always been aware. This is a good thing, but... you people always use their awareness in the wrong place."

"Uh...Mr. Bishop, please give me some advice."

"hehe!"

Nicholas raised his scepter and tapped it heavily at his feet.

"Luka Kaslana. Kaslana... We are all adults. Luca, there is no need to talk nonsense between you and me - you just want to be in this turmoil." The mediator protects the Kaslana family, and this cannot be hidden from anyone.”

"..."

Luka sighed heavily. Indeed, they are all adults, who doesn't know who is thinking?

It's just that we usually have to show a little face when getting along, so we won't speak too directly, but at this moment, Nicholas obviously doesn't care about this anymore - in other words, he doesn't even have any face.

That's fine, break all the skin, say whatever you want, and no one is allowed to be aggressive. It may be a harm to the face, but it is really a blessing to the brain.

"Luka, do you know the difference between the Castle Council and me?"

Without waiting for Luca to answer, Nicholas continued talking to himself:

"What the Castle Council wants is power. What they want is the power of destiny controlled by the three major families. From the moment the destiny was established, all rights have been controlled by the three major families. The castle council is just for It was established to prevent decision-making errors and bridge the relationship between the three major families. Now they have seized the opportunity of the failure of the Eastern Expedition. What they want is to overturn the legal principle that the destiny is led by the three major families. In this case, the three major families themselves. It doesn't matter to them whether it still exists - what they want is the power in the hands of the three major families. How ridiculous!"

As if to match his words, Nicholas let out a series of sneers, but after about five or six seconds, he got stuck and could only slap his chest and cough violently. In order to maintain the bishop's demeanor, he even had to Do not swallow the phlegm back.

However, the bishop is a bishop after all, and his face is thicker than a heavy pointed hat. He quickly pretended that nothing happened and continued:

"But I am different. The Apokalis family is different. I also want my descendants to fully control the destiny. But I am the bishop of destiny, and my descendants will also be the bishops of destiny. We are born with control. The legal principle of destiny, and this legal principle is based on the unity of the three major families.

"Luka, the matter is now over. The Castle Council will never give up just because you deliberately distance yourself from Kallen. Kallen is just a perfect breakthrough point. Their goal is to protect the Kaslana family. Resources and Kaslana's right to command the army passed down from generation to generation. Only by obtaining these can they compete with Shaniat, who holds the other half of the military power, and Apokalis, who occupies the position of bishop.

"So, so... Luca, the only one who can save the Kaslana family is me, Apokalis. And for the stability of destiny, Apokalis also needs Kaslana. Luca, do you understand, only Follow Apocalis and Kaslana will be safe."

After talking for a long time, Luka didn't feel surprised at all.

The system of Tianming is extremely deformed. The three major families have established an equal status from the moment Tianming was established. This is because the three families trust each other and have equal power. There is no way to differentiate them.

But Tianming, as a huge organization, certainly cannot have all three parties discuss everything. That would be too inefficient.

So the three families soon had a division of labor - the powerful Shaniyat and Kaslana equally divided the military power. After all, force is the most fundamental right, and equal division between the two families is the safest way, and Apo The Kallis family obtained the inheritance rights of the Bishop of Destiny.

From the perspective of the time, Shaniyat and Kaslana held military power and enjoyed great glory for a while. Whether the position of Bishop of Apokalis was stable or not depended on the faces of the first two, so the "bishop" said He appeared to be the leader of Destiny, but that was just compensation from the other two major families for Apokalis' withdrawal from the military. However, this compensation changed in the following thousands of years as Destiny continued to expand——

The military power in the hands of Shaniyat and Kaslana is of course important, but the destiny is no longer the religious organization it once was. Throwing away the religious cloak, it is now an empire that has unified the European continent and has secular rights. Apo It is not surprising that the Kallis family, in turn, dominates the other two families.

But overriding is just overriding. Shaniyat and Kaslana will not completely obey the leadership of Apokalis, because legally speaking, the three major families are equal.

And this is something that Nicholas today cannot tolerate. Yes, Luka understood that what Nicholas wanted was nothing more than Kaslana's obedience.

As long as he nodded at this moment, Kallen's matter would no longer involve the Kaslana family, and he still believed in Nicholas' ability.

From then on, the destiny was no longer the destiny of the three major families, but the destiny of Apokalis.

But he had no other choice. As Nicholas said, what the Castle Council wanted was the rights of the three major families, not the three major families themselves. If you say that turning to Nicholas is seeking the skin of a tiger and drinking poison to quench your thirst, then if you turn to the Castle Council, you will only be torn apart in the first place.

Moreover, Kaslana had very little contact with the Castle Council and could not prove her sincerity at all.

No, there is actually another option——

"Nicholas, don't go too far. You Apokalis are also the targets of the Castle Council. Today, Kaslana, I just won't bow my head. When the Castle Council finishes dealing with us, the three children of the Shaniyat family will Of course, the girl can't resist it. When the time comes, the Castle Council will have complete control of the military, and you, Apokalis, will be nothing but a turtle in a jar!"

Luka bit his lip. He wanted to be so tough, but his lips squirmed for a long time. After all, he didn't have the courage to bet. Bet that Nicholas could be absolutely rational, bet that Kaslana would not bow her head. Considering the protection of Apokalis, Nicholas will also take action to protect Kaslana...

But he really didn't dare to bet. Behind the name Kaslana was not only countless lives, but also burdened with past honors and responsibilities.

Metabolism is a common thing in the world. Many nobles who were once prominent have now lost their surnames. They live among the servants all day long and do not even know the glorious deeds of their ancestors.

But the descendants of Kaslana must not be like this. Kaslana is not only a bloodline, but also an inheritance of protective beliefs. It is like a fire that is constantly passed on. Although it shines in the dark night, you must be careful. Extinguished by the night wind and cold rain.

For this reason, we can only...

He lowered his head humbly and bent down. Nicholas didn't say much, but just walked down the steps step by step, and finally stopped on the last stone step in front of him.

Luca's facial muscles twitched violently, but since he had lowered his head and even bent over, it wouldn't be unbearable to go further, right?

He knelt on the ground, crawled on his knees to Nicholas, held his boots in his hands, and kissed them gently.

"Very well, Luca, my dear friend, you have proven your loyalty. Don't worry about going back. The surname Kaslana will survive until the surname Apocalis ceases to exist."

"yes."

Luca gritted his teeth and continued to crawl until Nicholas reached the top of the stone steps again, then gritted his teeth and climbed up.

"Master Bishop, there is one more thing..."

"explain."

"Karen...what will happen to her?"

Nicholas was silent for a rare moment, and then said slowly:

"Everyone has to pay the price for their actions, even if it is just an impulse in youth. My ability to keep the Kaslana family is the limit. Kallen, I will try my best, but the mood of the castle council has to be... Take care, do you understand?”

"Understood……"

"Then please leave."

"……yes."

Watching the figure of his childhood playmate step into the darkness, Nicholas's eyes flickered, not knowing what he was thinking.

It stands to reason that the two met in private, and there would be no third party here. After Luka left, he had no reason to stay here anymore.

But he still stood there, squinting his eyes slightly, as if he was about to fall asleep standing up. After about ten minutes, he softly called:

"Otto, my son, come out."

As he finished speaking, a hazy figure emerged from the darkness on the left, and was clearly outlined by the golden light emitting from the amber wall.

Otto stood in front of his father obediently.

"Otto, my son...Otto, my son..."

Otto raised his head following the voice. His father's face was darkened by the golden light, and his specific facial features could not be seen clearly. Otto tried to complete it with his own memory, but he couldn't do it anyway.

The father and son had obviously communicated face to face a few days ago, but now even his facial features were so unfamiliar.

Maybe my father felt the same way about me - Otto thought.

Otto waited silently, waiting for his father to speak first, but after Nicholas chanted his name twice, he stopped speaking.

It was obvious that he was waiting for Otto to ask first.

Without thinking too much, there is only one question:

"Karen...is it really impossible to save her?"

"Heh, heh, heh, heh..."

Nicholas laughed four times and did not answer the question directly:

"Otto, do you think what Kallen did was right or wrong?"

"I... of course what she did was right! Things like indulgences will completely destroy the credibility of Tianming, and for ordinary people, not to mention that indulgences have been sold by salesmen for six gold. Applying for one groschen is equivalent to a month's salary of a laborer in Klosten! This behavior is simply a clear-cut robbery!"

"Have you said enough?"

Suddenly interrupted, Otto's lips wriggled twice, and finally chose silence.

"Childish! Do you think right and wrong are children's play? Don't you just want to say that Kallen's behavior is just and that Destiny should immediately stop issuing indulgences! Then I will tell you, Otto... Destiny In the past five years, the Eastern Expedition has owed more than 2 billion gold groschen in debt, and Tianming's annual deficit is still more than 100 million gold groschen. The income from indulgences can only make up for one year. It’s just a deficit. If you don’t do this, the debt will accumulate, and Tianming will have no choice but to file for bankruptcy..."

"You just want to talk about the necessity of indulgences, but what is necessary must be the right thing!"

For the first time in many years, Otto mustered up the courage to interrupt his father's tirade, but what he received was not praise, but ruthless ridicule:

"Correct? Otto, my child, I said, right, wrong, right and wrong are just the concepts of children playing house. A person has to grow up three times in his life, and the first time he understands things Right and wrong, the second time is to understand that there is more to things than right and wrong. You understand now, it’s not too late.”

"really……"

Otto took a sharp breath and asked:

"Tell me straight, what do you need to do before you are willing to let Kallen go? You don't need to tell me anything else. Isn't that why you asked me to come?"

"Hehe...hehehe...Otto, my child...since the absence of my dear Ferdinando, you are the most satisfactory of my many descendants."

Nicholas laughed with satisfaction, but then he changed his tone:

"But I will not pass on the position of bishop to you. My body will not last long. After my death, Marcel will succeed me as bishop. He is still young, and I will let Lisa assist him. I will also let He married Eleanor and won the support of the Chaniat family. As for you, Otto, my son, what you have to do is..."

Having said this, he paused deliberately, and then his words seemed to start over on a different track:

"Although Luca has expressed his surrender on behalf of Kaslana, he has always been slippery and unreliable. In order to hold the power of the Kaslana family in my hands, I need you, Otto, and your fiancée Karen , complete the engagement, that’s all.”

Otto's head snapped up. This was exactly what he had wanted all along.

But he was not happy. There was no emotion in his heart that could be called "happy". This was indeed what he had dreamed of for more than ten years, but what was the use?

He also knew very well - this was not what Kallen wanted.

This is absolutely unacceptable to Kallen.

But reality does not give people any room for choice. Otto can only nodded blankly and begged:

"So...can I go see her once?"