Blood Dragon

"Is it so exaggerated..." Ashuruffat really wanted to end the topic with a laugh, but the problem was that he couldn't laugh.

"I... am a vampire, right?" He asked in a low voice, not sure whether to ask himself or Carrie.

"I can assure you of this. No matter in terms of physiology or psychology, you are completely a vampire."

"Aren't vampires supposed to be hated and loathed by humans?" Aishuruffat recalled the records of the church.Although at this moment he already knew that these records were not necessarily completely correct, or even nonsense at all, but for ordinary people, these were views that could no longer be debated and revised.According to Carrie, ordinary humans have been "brainwashed" by the church, and it is extremely difficult to change back.Even Carrie never tried to change these views, only to exploit them.

Of course, Leia, who has the ability to predict the future, may be an exception.

"Because the master is very gentle to the girls, it's only natural for them to have this kind of affection." Carrie replied in her mind. "However, it's also fortunate that there is Fei. Leia's eye is injured and bleeding too much, there is no way to do this kind of thing."

"You have to understand that you're not just fighting for your own survival this time," Carrie added.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Although it is said that fighting for survival is the instinct of all life, for intelligent creatures, sometimes it is possible to feel bored and give up. Master, your mental state was not good before, that is not the mentality of fighting for victory Well. If you go to the battlefield with that level of mentality, you are simply giving up your life."

"Is that so..." Ashuruffat suddenly summoned the Withering Sword.Holding the sword in his hand, he concentrated his gaze on the edge of the sword.

"I see. Carrie!" He jumped out of bed, his movements were very light, and he didn't disturb Fei who was still asleep.

"You don't have to worry about waking her up. Although she needs much less normal sleep than ordinary people, but now she has lost a lot of blood and her body has become weak, so she won't wake up for a while." Carrie explained.As she spoke, Ashuruffat quickly dressed.The suit lay beside his bed, within reach.

"Let's go," he said in his head.

"Master, I suggest that we go to the platform at the top of the castle." Carrie suddenly made a weird suggestion.

Ashuruffat didn't understand what Carrie wanted to do, but he didn't refuse the request.

If you stand at the foot of the castle and look up, you will feel that the top of the castle is high into the sky.But in fact, there are not many ways to go up through the stairs inside the castle.In fact, an average person can reach the small platform at the top of the castle before he even feels the need to catch his breath.

The shape of the small platform is irregular, and the whole can barely be regarded as a triangle, with railings on the sides, allowing visitors to lean on the railings to appreciate the style of the castle.The land, formerly known as the "digging site," was originally a valley surrounded by steep peaks.The people of the church used huge manpower and material resources and decades to build this place into a huge forced labor camp, and dug a huge deep pit in the middle of the valley.But after the previous turmoil, that is, after the earthquake controlled by Carrie, this place became a plain, leaving only a few hillsides of limited height.

Perhaps it was Carrie's design. The three sides of the triangular platform faced different sedums, and the green grass had already occupied the field with its unique vitality.From the heights, one can see an endless expanse of emerald green.

Turning your head, you can see the sea from another direction.There was no wind at the moment, and the sea looked azure blue. This was not the ordinary blue color of indigo, but a dark blue color full of mystery that seemed to attract people's thoughts into it.In the vicinity, there are undulating waves and the sandy beach that is washed by the waves and looks extremely white.

In the third direction, you can see the newly formed small town.Although it is only a small town at the moment, one can feel the vitality exuding from the newly built huts neatly lined up, the newly reclaimed fields, and the pedestrians on the street.

"Isn't it pretty?" asked Carrie in her head.

"Yeah." Although Aishuruffat originally just came to look at it at random, but at some point, he was attracted by the scenery of the land under his feet, and stood there admiring it for a long time.

"Actually, the reason is very simple. As long as you can look down from a high place and have a wide field of vision, even ordinary scenery, or even things that can't be called scenery, will become very beautiful and magnificent."

"Indeed."

"But this scenery belongs to you...Master, can you feel the feeling of a powerful person now? In your hands, you have the power to shape everything or destroy everything. That is without any external constraints , the ability to be completely at your disposal. This is the power of the ruler, which is called 'power'. With this power, you can put yourself out of everything and put everyone and everything else in the palm of your hand. You can play with it. This feeling is like this moment, standing on a high place and observing everything from a bird’s-eye view. You can freely appreciate everything, change everything, distort everything, and you are not affected by yourself.”

"what……"

"This way of looking down, after all, has inherent deficiencies. That's because you have an overly wide field of vision, and you will feel the 'distance' directly from outside your body, that is, you will experience the barriers of the world. After all, it is too far away. , can’t produce a real sense of this kind of scene. But power makes up for this shortcoming. Even if you have everything in your hands, you won’t feel a barrier, obviously you can detach yourself from the outside, but you are integrated into it.”

Ashuruffat just quietly listened to Carrie's narration.

"The master can also feel the past. He clearly knows that he is a vampire, he clearly knows that vampires are loathed and feared by all human beings, and he clearly knows that he should try to hide himself as much as possible, but he can't help feeling like 'I have to do something' Impulse. Maybe you don't even know what that impulse is."

"This impulse is the ambition of those with power. Those with power will not be content with being ordinary. Even the master, there will be no exceptions."

Ashurfat still didn't answer, he just silently looked at the scenery under his feet.

"Master, do you still want to die now?" Carrie asked suddenly.

"Not at all." Ashuruffat replied. "I'm determined to live!" His hand touched casually, and he touched something hard.

That was the diary Thomas left for him.

He instinctively took out the diary.Since leaving Greenskin, he has been carrying this diary in his carry-on bag, and has been taken out to read it from time to time, so the pages of the diary have been obviously worn out.

In fact, Thomas' diary is not a diary in the usual sense, but a record of his own mood and feelings.But he has benefited a lot from this book.

"Master, look at that." Carrie reminded.Ashuruffat also noticed the small gap in the diary.

That's because it was bumped and rubbed in the bag for a long time, so a gap was worn out on the fief edge of the diary.A piece of paper with a texture completely different from that of the diary showed a corner in the gap.

There is actually a thin interlayer on the back cover of the diary, Ashuruffat opened the interlayer and took out a piece of paper from it.The handwriting on it is very familiar, in fact, it exactly matches the handwriting of the diary itself.It was written by Thomas, and (no doubt) Thomas also packed it in the mezzanine.

"Ashrufat, when I read this letter, I must have died. Since I accepted you as a disciple, I have been surprised by your growth. From an ordinary person who does not understand military strategy to A general, from a beginner to the student I am most proud of. I saw your performance on the battlefield, and watched you gradually comprehend the true meaning of war. A small pointing can immediately understand the spirit behind it. I know that one day, you will finally master everything I left you, and even far surpass me and become a proud hero of the generation."

"But I guess (and I've always been pretty good guesses) that when you read this letter, you are standing on the verge of a possible transformation, which may become what I hope or what I fear. I know that you must be like me back then, wanting to pursue the perfect command art and the ultimate way of generals, and go to various battlefields. Maybe you are a mercenary leader now, maybe you are still fighting for Saint-Jean. Of course, you may also serve other countries."

Seeing this, Ashuruffat smiled wryly, even Thomas couldn't guess his fate.

"I know that in your heart, there is a strong self-control hidden. It is the root of all the strength of a general, but there are also cruel beasts and instinctive impulses hidden in it. You don't have to be afraid, everyone is the same—I The same is true. You will stand at a crossroads and face your own life choices. Should you pursue the true way of command and master the absolute restraint of reason and soul, or be confused by your own desires and finally embark on a path? It looks right, but it’s actually going the wrong way.”

"If a general has a state, then the highest state is to give up the desire to win. This is a state that even I have not been able to achieve. A general needs a completely different concept of honor and strong self-control from ordinary knights. But those who yearn for victory That desire may be the biggest and strongest enemy in the end. It should be noted that longing for victory does not mean that you can win. The persistent pursuit of victory is a good thing, but you must not be addicted to the persistence itself."

"This inner battle is hard because impulsiveness, anger, and cruelty often seem to beat calm, rationality, and self-control. But you always have to remember one thing, defeating the enemy is not the end of everything. Understand the nature of war, and understand What kind of role do you want to play in it. If you can keep this in mind, you may be able to find the strength in your heart to support you, so that you will no longer be confused by the biggest bait-victory. "

"Of course, you may think that the above is just some old man's nonsense. Maybe you are facing a life-and-death battle now, but the enemy is strong and the enemy is weak. You have a plan to overcome the enemy (I firmly believe in this), but There is no certainty of victory. You don't know if the enemy will give you a chance, you don't know if they will swallow the bait you set."

"Let me give you a hint, just like what I said above. For a general, the greatest and final danger is the pursuit of victory itself. When there is no chance of winning, people will do whatever they can to win, but when victory is sure , they will pursue the perfect victory—fewer casualties, more victories, and so on, endlessly. And in this desire, there is a gap that can be exploited. When desire—even if it is for victory Yuwang——when blinded, people will be stupid."

"Of course, there is one last thing, and that is luck. This is also a very crucial thing, but it cannot be grasped. It is illusory, but it is absolutely indispensable. You have to believe in your luck. As a general, you have strong luck The meeting between you and me is the best proof of this luck. It is the same for you and me..."

At the end of the page, Thomas scribbled a sentence: "Life and freedom are not birthrights, but can only be obtained by sword and blood."