My players are so fierce.

Chapter 1257. The End of Traitor Island

The conversation between Murphy and King Louis on the bridge did not involve politics, nor did they involve negotiations on the border conflict between the two countries. Therefore, there was no conflict of interest, allowing the Plantagenet King and the Governor of Transia to sit together and have a pleasant conversation in an incredibly peaceful manner.

The main content of this conversation was about the establishment and system expansion of Gramos Hades.

Although it was the Transian governor who created the underworld for the Plantagenet Kingdom, King Louis responded to it with a very positive attitude. The enthusiasm and expectation in his words surprised Murphy. He had already prepared to "appeal to emotions and persuade with reason", but he did not expect that the king who had just found his daughter would be so "reasonable".

This... I haven't even used the ultimate skills of God's Scepter and World Reshaping, how come you can cooperate so smoothly?

hateful!

It's really hard to find an excuse to get angry!
Although Murphy slandered King Louis in his heart for sliding to his knees so quickly, he actually misunderstood the kings of the Xilan and Isa people this time. Although he did not want to anger Lord Pluto, the reason that actually prompted King Louis to make such a rational choice was more based on the development of his own country.

He had indeed witnessed with his own eyes the powerful effect that the underworld system had on a country's strength in the Songhai Empire. Apart from anything else, the waves of baby booms brought about by the normal cycle of life and death were enough to give a country sufficient stamina on the road to development.

The Songhai Empire's population of more than 2800 million people destined it to be the absolute civilization overlord under the current Old World system. King Louis worked hard to integrate the Sealands and the Isa people and worked hard for years before the population of his territory barely exceeded million. This is the total number after taking into account the mountain people in the north of Greeny Island, the islanders of Helms Island and the silver dwarves.

The two are incomparable just in terms of size.

Compared with the current huge area of ​​the Plantagenet Kingdom, such a small population is really quite poor.

The kings of this era all hope to have enough manpower available. After all, whether it is farming or developing business, without sufficient scale, it is impossible to form a scale. The improvement of the underworld system can not only bring a more stable cycle of life and death and allow the population to grow naturally, but the symbolic significance it brings cannot be ignored.

When people know that they will go to the underworld to be judged after death and their afterlife treatment will be determined by their behavior in life, then anyone with a little bit of rationality will know the simple truth that they should do less bad things and more good things.

This is also a good thing from the perspective of the rulers' enforcement of laws and maintaining stability among the people.

To put it bluntly, if the underworld system is properly promoted and used, then the "eternal stability of the country" that all rulers desire will no longer be an unattainable thing.

After all, King Louis was an ambitious and capable monarch. It was impossible for him to pursue a hedonistic and indulgent rule of "there will be a flood after my death". He very much hoped that the Plantagenet Kingdom he founded could be upgraded to an empire in the future and continue to exist for thousands of years like the Songhai Empire and the Callum Empire.

Just from this ambitious goal, he had no reason to reject the underworld that Murphy would build here.

King Louis even took a very proactive stance, promising to keep Gramay Island as a "neutral" area and welcome believers of the Church of Avalon to make pilgrimages to the holy land. Of course, missionary work was not allowed.

It has only been a few years since the collapse of the old religion, and the people are still very sensitive about it. King Louis does not want the power of Avalon to return to this land.

He obviously had his own plans regarding the issue of national faith, and Murphy didn't ask too many questions.

After all, this is a matter related to the gods. As the chosen one of the Creator God, he does not intend to intervene too much. There is a saying that goes, "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." Murphy, who has multiple identities, must maintain an impartial attitude when dealing with these matters.

Until the end of the conversation, King Louis and Murphy did not take the initiative to bring up the issue of Hermes Island. It seemed that for these two people, the "Traitor Island" located a day's sail away from Gramo Island did not exist at all.

However, in fact, while Murphy and King Louis were having lunch together in the sun, the situation on Helms Island was not peaceful at all. Instead, a fierce conflict was taking place. However, it was not a war between King Louis' army and the Helms people.

The Greene Royal Fleet had been rushing, but had only just completed a rough blockade of the surrounding waters this morning, and was not yet ready to launch an attack on the island. Therefore, the conflict that was breaking out outside the city of Astor could be more accurately described as a "civil war" among the Helms.

To be more precise, it is a war between the living and the dead.

The Hades warriors who revived from the tombs in the night are, under the leadership of several golden men who have been recruited into the "Pluto's Guard", carrying out resolute and ruthless attacks on a group of guys in sailor uniforms. The latter are also very fierce. Facing the siege of the dead, they did not cowardly lay down their weapons, but have been trying to break through in the direction of the harbor.

Several flares were fired into the sky in succession, in order to notify the Helms fleet docked in the port to send support.

But unfortunately, at the same time as the dead were taking action, the hunters of Helms' Rangers had already started hunting in the harbor.

Ms. Effie, wearing hunting clothes and holding two crossbows, walked in the shadows, her face full of sternness and undisguised anger. Facing the rebels who refused to let the Helms security officer board the ship and massacred the dock, this golden hunter showed no mercy.

She had no intention of negotiating.

After confirming that the other party had committed treason, he personally led two teams of hunters to break in from the shadows, killing almost everyone they saw in the complex space of the ship.

After the Helms Fleet went on its own and attempted to kidnap Princess Bridget, it directly triggered a conflict between the two sides. And now there has been a direct act of rebellion by refusing to obey the orders of the Elders. These former Isa Kingdom navy members who have been known as the "Spears of Helms Island" for the past thirty years have become a hidden danger that must be eliminated.

Although Effie is the commander of the Helms Rangers and also holds a high-level leader position in the Helms' unique "Elder Council" system, her self-positioning is very clear.

As a pure executor of military operations, she also adhered to the bottom line of military personnel and never interfered in high-level politics. However, at this critical moment concerning the survival of Hermes Island, she looked back and suddenly realized that her past adherence to neutrality now seemed more like a kind of "laissez-faire".

It was precisely because of her indifference that the influence of this group of Isha restorationists among the middle and lower classes grew day by day.

To this day, when the Council of Elders has clearly stated that it wants to cut ties with the Isha Restorers, there has been a farce in which some Helms commanders have taken the initiative to lead people to join the Isha Restorers camp.

It's like a giant named "Helmes" has had his brain eaten by another worm called "Isha Restorationism" and is parasitic in his head, trying to manipulate this brainless giant to launch an endless war against another more powerful giant.

They were tied to a dangerous chariot and seemed to be sliding towards the abyss.

Alas, power abhors a vacuum.

When the right people are not in power, the wrong ones will do whatever they want. The fact that Hermes Island has come to this point today is absolutely inseparable from the inaction of these senior officials, but it is too late to reflect on this now.

The only solution now is to kill all these bastard traitors first, and then let the Helmsmen regain control of the fleet and coastal defenses and prepare for war when the Plantagenets land at any time.

"Ms. Effie! I am loyal, and those traitorous lunatics tied me up, damn it!"

When Effie rushed into the captain's room alone with murderous intent, he saw the captain of the ship tied to the bed in a funny posture, with scars all over his face from being beaten. When he saw Effie rushing in, the middle-aged man shouted as if he had been pardoned:

"They're going to sail out of the harbor to attack the Plantagenet Royal Fleet!
They want to lure the opposing navy into launching a landing attack on our island. Those lunatics want to use this method to force the still calm Helms people into their camp. They have an even crazier plan, which is the submarine on the outermost edge!

'Glory of Astor'!
The halfling submarine we ordered from Port Shardor is already loaded with powerful gold explosives!
They are going to use that thing to break through the blockade and head to the dock of Greene Island to create a huge explosion. They are going to use the blood of civilians on both sides to intensify the war! Quick, only you can stop the submarine from sailing."

"Such a thing! Why didn't you report it earlier!?"

When Ms. Effie heard that the desperate Isha Restorationists were going to use submarines to carry out a KB attack, her head was about to explode. She threw a flying knife to cut the captain's rope and shouted:

"As one of the few captains from Helms in the fleet, didn't we arrange you to sit in this position so that you can report the news at any time? This kind of thing is ridiculous!"

"I reported it, Ms. Effie! I sent three reports to the elders, but they all fell on deaf ears. I wanted to find you elite troops directly, but you were still in the Elf Kingdom hunting down the Witch Cult at that time.

What can I do as an undercover agent trapped among traitors? "The captain who was beaten said bitterly:

“There are bad guys at the top!
Let’s not talk about this any more. Go and stop the Astor from setting sail! Once that thing explodes in a port on Greene Island, this war will be completely unstoppable.”

Effie turned around with a grim face and prepared to jump into the shadows, but the moment she turned around, the captain with a bruised face and nose behind her flashed a fierce light in his eyes, pulled out a needle and stabbed Effie.

"puff"

Blood splattered everywhere, and the smelly liquid splashed on the face of Ms. Effie who turned around and drew her knife. In front of him, a wooden throwing knife pierced the temple of the traitor with a fierce face, causing the latter's body to shake and fall to the ground.

"So, this is what this generation of Helms Ranger leader is all about?"

Aunt Marian's sarcastic voice came from the cabin window. As Effie watched silently, the old lady in a windbreaker jumped into the cabin nimbly, threw a bloody starter key to Effie, and said:

"The Glory of Astor is now docked at an isolated island in the open sea. The vampire agents of the Shadow Intelligence Agency and the witch hunters of the Church of Avalon have already taken control of it. The situation was urgent so we acted a little 'roughly', causing that thing to become the first 'ghost submarine' in the Storm Sea and even in this world.

But I don't think you will blame us for this, right?"

"So, as a servant of the God of Nature, you are now officially working for Transia's intelligence organization?"

Read the error-free version at 69shuba! 6=9+shu_ba is the first to publish this novel.

Ms. Effie glanced at the mechanical key in her hand.

Although he remained indifferent on the surface, he actually breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

She couldn't imagine the extremely terrible consequences that would occur if that damn submarine really exploded in a port on Green Island, and Sister Marianne did not answer her question.

This "local" stood by the window of the captain's cabin of the warship, looking out at the city of Astor looming in the hills beyond the dock with a nostalgic look.

That was her hometown and where she grew up. Unfortunately, she could never go back.

"There are a million Helmsmen in that city, and over three million people on the whole island, Effie."

Sister Marian did not turn around, but pulled back her hood to reveal her long gray hair, and she whispered:
"Do you know how much damage Astor City will suffer if the war breaks out and lasts only for a month? How many people will die on the battlefield defending their homeland? And how many people will waste their lives in vain because of the stupidity of the upper class?

I'm not preaching to you.

But the fact is, the Helms Rangers, an organization that is supposed to be responsible for protecting the hometown in the shadows, is really getting worse with each generation.

You are indeed a good fighter, and you are indeed powerful, inheriting the extreme character of the Helms people who fight to the death. But have you ever thought about the original intention of your ancestors to gradually establish this organization through wars again and again?
You keep saying that everything you do is to protect our people, but you don't realize that true protection is not to win every war, but to prevent wars from happening in the first place!
of course.

As an expellee, I have no right to say this to you, the future 'Governor Helms', so you can pretend that today's conversation never happened.

I am here on behalf of Director Adele to convey a message to you. The leader of the moderate Isha Restorationists has reached a cooperation agreement with Governor Murphy, and the other party asked us to hand over this list to you. "

Sister Marian pulled a folded scroll from her bosom and tossed it to Effie, saying:
"This roster records the names of all the Isa Restorationists on Helms Island. Those marked in green are moderates, do not touch them. Those marked in red are radicals, get rid of them all!
After this operation is over, the moderate restorationists will be responsible for communicating with the official Plantagenet Kingdom and try their best to push the situation between the two sides back to a peaceful state. However, this incident is a lesson, teaching you and other elders to look at the changes on this continent in a more rational way, rather than living your own life behind closed doors.

Lord Murphy will awaken the power of the underworld here, and Gramo Island will become the gateway to the local underworld. In the future, the Helms will become the guards of the entrance to the Gramo underworld, and you will enjoy a transcendent status among the people."

"What's the price?"

Effie clenched the scroll in her hand and cursed in a somewhat defensive tone:

"Are you suggesting that we give up resistance and assimilate into King Louis' rule? Do you still have the nerve to call yourself a Helmsman?"

"You idiot!"

At last Aunt Marian lost her patience.

She turned around and yelled with the fierceness that a Helms woman should have:

“When I fled here with that unfaithful man, the black witch of Astor City predicted that this proud island of freedom would eventually become part of a powerful place. That was more than seventy years ago!
But until now you are still stubbornly unwilling to accept that future. Do you really have to wait until King Louis' army massacres the entire island before you realize that the era of isolation is long gone?

The restoration of the Isa people was a dream. Now their leader has awakened from the dream and is thinking about the future of the Isa people in a more pragmatic manner.

Why can't you learn something good?

Alas, the men on this island are all beasts and the women are all crazy, you are like this, and so am I!
However, overly aggressive creatures cannot survive in nature, and the faith brought by the Old Religion has become dull with the collapse of the Old Religion, but even Avalon has not told you to fight against all forces approaching here.

Effie, wake up.

The people of Helms cannot exist independently from the continent, let alone from civilization. You have seen with your own eyes how chaos ravages the material world. If we cannot become a part of this whole, then when the decisive battle in the future comes, the Helms Island, which is still isolated from the continent as a whole, will definitely become the first sacrifice.

Lord Murphy admires you.

He feels that you and Ranger Helms can shoulder more meaningful missions in a broader and more important battlefield, rather than being trapped here and buried and forgotten for a stubborn idea that even you don't understand. "

Aunt Marian pulled up her hood.

She looked at Ms. Effie, who was keeping her head down and silent, and she sighed, walked forward, patted Effie on the shoulder, and said softly:

"Many people in the Council of Elders have been cooperating with the moderate faction of the Isa Restorers in private. They have also realized that the increasingly heavy invitation from the Plantagenet Kingdom can no longer be refused. King Louis can resort to war, but it took him 30 years to express his sincerity.

I know you grew up listening to heroic stories about the pursuit of freedom, but child, you can't tie the entire Hermes Island to your chariot just because of your own wishes. What's the difference between you and those crazy Zionists?
You are one of the most outstanding hunters on this continent. Don't fight against enemies you can't defeat in a field you are not good at. There are wider hunting grounds waiting for you.

You take the Helms Rangers to the mainland to carry out the mission and come back in at least a month."

Sister Marian held the hilt of the hunting sword at her waist and whispered to her niece:

"You must be prepared to dedicate your strength, skills, and persistence to a greater cause, and I, the exile, will help you with the things that bother you. Those corrupt and foolish elders have received the call from the underworld, and they cannot refuse this invitation!
I believe that one day, the reputation of the Helms Rangers will resound throughout the universe, and even on the battlefields of the warp there will be frightened monsters shouting your name.

Your war is over, but a new mission is calling."

(End of this chapter)