Heart of the Castle

Chapter 713 The covenant was signed and the mission returned

The place where the King of Arthur and the Temple of Radiance signed the covenant was set in the wide hall of the main building of the Greencastle. Compared with the last time the banquet was held, the once empty walls of this hall have been covered with gorgeous tapestries and fine carvings. The newly decorated Ash Knights with gray cloaks on their shoulders and holding halberds lined up from under the high platform of the Iron Throne to both sides of the gate.Hundreds of noble lords and well-known knights attended the ceremony. Behind each person's high-backed seat was a banner with a family crest, cyan, yellow, gray, red, brown and black, red and green stripes, blue and white, Countless colors turned the whole hall into a colorful ocean.

When Her Majesty Queen Fraser I, the orthodox king of the Kingdom of Arthur, stood up from the Iron Throne, walked to the round table, and personally reprinted the royal seal ring on the sheepskin scroll filled with the contents of the covenant, the whole hall suddenly Filled with cheers.Not only the nobles who still adhered to the belief in the Lord of Radiance burst into tears and could not restrain themselves, even those who believed in other gods were also very excited.

Since the first god, Lukia, the goddess of spring, stopped responding to the prayers of believers, in just a few hundred years, the gods have been silent one after another, the temples have been destroyed, and the faith has passed away. Only some fanatical believers are still struggling. .However, Flandala, the Lord of Radiance, is not among them. The light and heat emitted by the golden sun shines on the earth as before, responding to the prayers and prayers of believers.

As a result, the Guangyao Temple has developed at an astonishingly rapid rate, especially in the past few decades. The Guangyao Temple, which was once one of the three major temples, has grown into an out-and-out behemoth, with beliefs spreading all over the world. There are as many as four kingdoms in front of the Lord of Radiance.If the heirs of these kingdoms want to be crowned as kings, they must personally climb up the holy mountain where the Temple of Radiance is located, go there to meet the Pope of Radiance, and obtain the permission and blessing of His Majesty the Pope, otherwise, even if they barely sit Ascending to the throne will also be overthrown by fanatical believers under the instigation of the forces of the Glorious Temple all over the kingdom.

The Kingdom of Arthur is located in the northern part of the mainland, and it is not too badly eroded by the Temple of Glory. However, over the hundreds of years since the founding of the country, the power of the Temple has been deeply rooted in the rich and noble families of the king's capital, Fermeyer. The head of the Sebasta family, one of the most powerful nine-pillar families, has even become the cardinal of the Temple of Glory, which can be said to directly affect the decision of national policy and the spread of faith.

It is not difficult to imagine that if there is no evil disaster, in a few years, the original beliefs of the Kingdom of Arthur - the Temple of the Storm and the Temple of the Earth - will gradually die out under the pressure of the Temple of Radiance, and thus become another place bathed in the golden morning light. human kingdom.

Such a powerful Shining Temple had to lower its haughty head, and promised to apologize publicly to Her Majesty Queen Fleisher of the Kingdom of Arthur and the subjects who died when the disaster came. Since the Celestia Empire fell, this is still the case. the first time.The aristocrats and lords and knights who attended the ceremony couldn't help feeling overwhelmed, and at the same time, a strong sense of pride that couldn't be restrained rose spontaneously.

Bamilyan, the court chief who presided over the signing ceremony of the covenant, held the covenant with both hands and raised it high above his head. Shouts of "Long live the Kingdom of Arthur!" and "Long live Her Majesty Queen Fleisher!" immediately swept the entire hall again, In the middle, shouts such as "Salute to the merciful golden sun Flandara!" can be heard, which made the smile on Cardinal St. Nemok's face more natural.

In contrast, in the entire hall, only Trunicien's face looked unattractive. His eyes flicked over the cheering crowd with cold eyes, his lips were slightly twisted into a line, and he spit out only the saint around him. A whisper that Cardinal Nemok could hear.

"I really hope that His Majesty the Pope can witness this scene with his own eyes. The price of the temple's concession may be greater than we imagined. The revival of Arthur's kingdom and the decline of the parish here are irresistible!"

"The wisdom of His Majesty the Pope is beyond our comprehension, Brother Triuni, no matter what, we have completed the mission entrusted by His Majesty the Pope this time." St. Also low. "After the ceremony is over, we will leave immediately on the Rimang, and return to the Holy Mountain to report to His Majesty the Pope... I really have had enough of staying here."

Triunicion nodded in agreement, perhaps because of the thought of returning to the Shining Temple, the eyes of this ruthless and ruthless head of the Sword of Condemnation Oita slightly warmed up, and there was an imperceptible smile on the corner of his mouth.

According to the custom of the Kingdom of Arthur, a grand banquet must be held after the signing of the covenant, but the guests of honor at the banquet - Cardinal St. Nemok of the Radiant Mission and the head of the Trinity Oita branch strongly refused, He also declared that the mission of the mission had been completed and that they must return to the Holy Mountain immediately to report to His Majesty the Pope.

Of course it is inappropriate to let the guests leave like this. The steward of the court, Bamilian, grabbed the sleeve of Cardinal St. Nemok, and said many passionate words with that tongue that seemed to be anointed with oil and honey; He also came over to gesticulate, at the same time vaguely expressing that his belief in the Lord of Glory has not wavered; even the Regent King Levi Ston and Queen Fleischer expressed their kindness to stay.However, Cardinal St. Nemok was determined to go, expressing his gratitude while reiterating the reasons why he had to leave.

All matters involving religion and piety, reason and human feelings can only be avoided. Considering that it was still early, Queen Fleischer "had no choice but" to agree to the request of the Glory Mission to leave immediately.

However, before taking his leave and leaving, Cardinal St. Nemok took a few steps forward and suggested in a low voice to Li Weiston, "Your Excellency the Regent, if you don't mind, can we have a private talk?"

There was a look of astonishment on Levi Stone's face, but he didn't think of any reason to refuse, so he nodded and said, "Okay, my lord cardinal, shall we talk here?"

Cardinal St. Nemok smiled slightly, and waved his hand to signal the members of the mission to step back, "It's good here, and I can rest assured you and my subordinates. Your Excellency the Regent, do you have the authority to send troops to fight? ?” Before Li Wei could answer, the cardinal smiled self-consciously, and answered by himself, “My question is stupid, of course you have, otherwise you wouldn’t have such lofty prestige. Then let me tell you the truth, the Temple of Radiance has [-] guardian knights, all of them are real knights who have comprehended the fighting spirit of light, not quasi knights or elite cavalry. Among them, the Knights of the Sword of Sin is the most powerful , among the [-] members of the knight order, at least one has the strength of a high-ranking knight. As long as His Majesty the Pope issues an order, within half a day, a thousand knights and thousands of auxiliary troops can be assembled at the foot of the holy mountain; at most a week , this army will be able to reach the outskirts of Fermeyer, the capital of the Kingdom of Arthur!"

These words caused Li Wei to show a puzzled expression, "Lord Cardinal, the strength of the Shining Temple is admirable, but now you are telling me these words...what is your intention?" He frowned and said , there is still half a sentence left, but the meaning has been fully revealed from the tone, "... If it is a show of force, shouldn't it be useful to do it before the end of the negotiation?"

"It seems that you don't understand what I mean, Your Excellency the Regent." Cardinal St. Nemok shook his head slightly, "The Temple of Radiance has concluded an alliance with the Kingdom of Arthur, and this army belongs to your command Come on! With this army, coupled with the powerful power in your hands, it is no problem to expel the demons and restore the king. If there is a conflict between you and other forces in the Kingdom of Arthur at that time, the Temple of Glory I will continue to support you, and His Majesty the Pope may even personally recognize you as the eternal guardian of the Kingdom of Arthur."

Li Wei looked at St. Nemok Cardinal coldly, and was silent for a full minute before telling him word by word, "Master Cardinal, I am sorry that I have to reject your kindness. You can appoint me as King Arthur The guardian of the entire territory of the country, only His Majesty Queen Fleisher I, as for His Majesty Pope Nicholas of the Temple of Radiance, I respect him as the mortal spokesperson of the Lord of Radiance, Flandara, but I also hope that he will not take the divine power Confused with monarchy!"

The expression of St. Nemok Cardinal looked a bit astonished, and he took half a step back, "Your Excellency the Regent, do you know what you are refusing? This is your guarantee of eternal supremacy! Think about it, if you have The entire Guangyao Temple is your backing..."

"I now have hundreds of thousands of subjects in the entire Kingdom of Arthur as backers, and I don't want to change!" Li Wei replied bluntly.

"Hundreds of thousands of subjects?" Cardinal St. Nemok shook his head with a smile, "With all due respect, Your Excellency the Regent, this people... I am afraid they can be called the most forgetful group of people. With them as their backing, there is no It's solid."

"Sometimes their memory isn't that bad."

"Then you should pray for the blessings of the gods in the sky, especially the god of the earth, Caggino, and see if this distant mountain lord can support your faith with his heavy chest." Cardinal St. Nemok said softly After finishing speaking, he turned around without waiting for Li Wei's answer, and left quickly, with a hint of anger that he failed to achieve his goal in his footsteps.

A group of more than ten people from the Radiant Mission immediately surrounded them. Seeing Cardinal St. Nemok's frown, Triunisian's face immediately became a little ugly, "My lord Cardinal, that Leviston ...Don't you know how to compliment?"

Cardinal St. Nemok nodded slightly, and then said in a low voice, "The temptation was not successful, we will leave immediately, and we will talk about it on the Rimane if we have anything to say."

Watching the envoys of the Shining Temple hurriedly leave the hall where the covenant was made, Li Wei couldn't help but a trace of bitterness flashed on his face. Although the situation in the kingdom was relatively calm during this period, compared with the attack by the demons, it was not as good as the attack of the Shining Mission. Negotiations made Li Wei feel physically and mentally exhausted.He has no interest in political struggles, but he has to rack his brains to make confrontations and judgments, guesses and judgments.Standing behind the court chief Bamilian who was performing at the front stage, Li Wei, Fleisher, Mr. Disch and Master Sugard were all thinking hard, trying to understand the true purpose of the Shining Temple.

However, on the body of this colossal monster, it always seems to be covered with a layer of mist, making it difficult for people to see its true face.The negotiating techniques of the Glory Mission are even more clumsy to the point of frightening, making one wonder whether they have conducted diplomatic negotiations.At the beginning, Master Sujiad speculated that this attitude might be a trap, and proposed to respond to all changes with the same attitude, and see what the next card of the Temple of Radiance will be.However, after three days of negative negotiations, a ridiculous result was ushered in.

The Guangyao Mission actually agreed to all the conditions put forward by Director Bamilian for the purpose of making things difficult and perfunctory. This kind of result was never even thought of before the negotiations started.

As Mr. Dish said at the end yesterday, "The attitude of the Shining Temple shows that there must have been a huge change inside them." The Holy Sword is about...

The cheers echoed in the halls of the Green Castle, like a rising tide. The northern lords and the nobles of the royal capital are all rejoicing for the upcoming victory. Maybe they will turn against each other because of the struggle for power in the future. But at least for now, they put their shoulders on each other, raised their glasses to celebrate, and shouted the name of Levi Stern even louder than the King of Arthur and the Queen of Fleishir.

However, the expression of His Excellency the Regent was completely incompatible with the joyful mood. Thinking of what Cardinal St. Nemok said just now, the haze lingering in Levi Stone's brow became even heavier.

Long before the ceremony of concluding the covenant, the captain of the alchemy flying ship Rimang, Jon, received an order from Cardinal St. And the speed of auxiliary magic energy furnace No. 3, the two large magic energy furnaces No. 4 and No. 1 located at the bow and stern have also entered the preheating state.

When the crew in charge of observation on the observation deck saw the figure of the Guangyao Mission appearing on the pier of the airship docked by the Rimang, a report sounded from the brass horn immediately, and the figure of Captain Jorn appeared on the deck immediately. superior.This senior airship captain has already put on a complete set of combat equipment. He is wearing a ship-shaped helmet with a nose guard, and a light scale armor vest. The gloves and high leather boots are all sewn with protective thin steel plates. Wears a commanding sword with a huge gauntlet.

St. Nemok Cardinal, with the support of the head of the Triunisian branch, hurriedly boarded the airship along the narrow gangway. When his feet finally stood on the deck of the Rimang, the cardinal As if he breathed a sigh of relief, he first cast a glance at the tall towers around the main building of the Greencastle, and then turned his gaze to Captain Yorn.

"Oh, brother Jon, it seems that you are ready." Seeing that Captain Jon had put on a full set of combat equipment, Cardinal St. Nemok's eyes flashed with approval, "Then how about the preparations for the Sun Mountain?" How is it?"

"My lord, Cardinal, my lord Trunicion." Captain John respectfully stroked his chest and saluted, "The Rimang has entered the third level of combat readiness. All crew members on board are ready to take off and fight at any time."

"Level [-] combat preparation..." Cardinal St. Nemok thought about it, and ordered, "Not enough. After take-off, it must be strengthened to level [-]. It is necessary to ensure the safety of the return journey."

An embarrassing smile appeared on Captain Jon's face. He raised his hand in a state of bewilderment, stroking the brim of his ship-shaped helmet, "Mr. ...I'm afraid it will be difficult to achieve."

St. Nemok Cardinal showed a mixed expression of irritability, anxiety and anger, "Difficult to achieve? Brother Jorn, what do you mean? Is it because my authority is not enough? Don't forget, I am not It’s just a cardinal, and he’s also the head of the Radiant Mission, the plenipotentiary representative of His Majesty the Pope!”

Captain Jon's expression became more awkward, he muttered and wanted to explain, but he didn't know what to say.Fortunately, Triunicion thought of something, leaned over and said softly. "Lord Cardinal, I'm afraid you have forgotten one thing. The flying ship Light Judgment belonging to our Knights of the Sword of Conviction is not in a good condition, and it is still used for combat purposes. The Rimang is mainly used for As a vehicle for ceremonies, ceremonies, and missions, I'm afraid it won't be in much better condition."

Captain Jon nodded immediately, "Lord Triunicion is right, my lord cardinal, the first level of combat preparations for the airship includes all the magic furnaces running at full speed, the magic shields turned on for maximum power protection, and all alchemy crossbows The arrows on the guns and the knights in the air escort patrol in groups. At present, the Rimang can only do the latter two at most, because when the magic furnace was overhauled last time, it was found that the inner core of the No. 1 magic furnace had melted It is a sign, if it is forced to run at full speed, it may explode."

Cardinal St. Nemok's face was a little stiff, "I know the Rimang's condition is not very good, but...but it's so bad?" His expression and tone seemed unbelievable, " The temple allocates a large amount of funds to maintain the three alchemy flying ships every year, even if the state has declined, can't even the most basic safety be guaranteed?"

The answer to the cardinal was a moment of silence. Seeing Captain Jon's sweaty forehead and stiff expression, Cardinal St. Nemok had no choice but to shake his head, "It's not your fault, Brother Jon, go back to the Holy Mountain Afterwards, I will personally report the current status of the airship to His Majesty the Pope. Raise the alert to the highest level allowed, and then we will set off on our way home."

"Hear your wishes, my lord cardinal." Captain Jorn said with a bow, and then quickly ran to the captain's cabin. Less than a minute later, the brass horns all over the ship sounded his orders at the same time, "Day Attention all the crew of the Mount, I am the captain Jorn, the No. 1 magic furnace speeds up by 2%, No. 50.00 and No. 3 magic furnaces are running at full speed, all alchemy ballista shooters should be more vigilant, and the Sky Knights are ready to escort at any time—— Rimang, take off!"

(End of this chapter)