Heart of the Castle

Chapter 730 Landing, welcome, horror
The flagship of the Kingdom of Arthur's mission - the alchemy flying ship Blade slowly landed on the square paved with white stones directly in front of the Shining Temple.

The climate near the Holy Mountain is far milder than that of the Northern County of the Kingdom of Arthur. The mild and cool autumn wind blows in front of you, giving people the illusion that the tail of summer is still here.Marquis Gerald stood on the deck outside the cabin, looking around, his heart filled with mixed feelings of excitement, pride, doubt and anxiety.

Every follower of the Lord of Radiance, Flandara, will be able to go to the foot of the Holy Mountain and participate in the prayer ceremony hosted by His Majesty the Pope personally in the Temple of Radiance as a dream pilgrimage in his life.However, this glorious temple at the foot of the holy mountain is not open to ordinary believers. Even if some devout and poor believers come from distant countries step by step, the only permission they can get is in the square outside the temple. Worship the majestic figure of the holy mountain.

Even believers with aristocratic status, if they do not add glory to the Lord of Radiance, it is difficult to participate in the grand prayer ceremony hosted by His Majesty the Pope himself once a year.Members of Marquis Jerome's family have always been devout believers of the Lord of Radiance, but when he followed Cardinal Enoch Sebasta to make a pilgrimage to the Temple of Radiance five years ago, he also suffered a cold reception from the Temple of Radiance, even Even the face of His Majesty Pope Nicholas St. Kaiyuan has not been seen.

For this matter, the Marquis of Geros was full of resentment, and when the disaster came, the Glory Temple's indifferent attitude of allowing the demons to wreak havoc and standing idly by, shook his faith in himself.However, because the Amber Pasia family has believed in the Lord of Glory for hundreds of years, throughout the history of the family's fortune, although Marquis Geralds was dissatisfied, he had not yet made a decision to convert to the God of the Earth or the God of the Sky. God's preparation.

The emergence of Guangyao Protestantism gave him the dawn of faith. The Marquis of Jaros was the first group of royal nobles to join the Guangyao Protestantism, and his status was the most prominent among them. In order to commend his achievements, the Protestant leader Archbishop Nemok generously awarded Jie The Marquis of Los Angeles is a glorious friend.The Marquis of Geralds is quite proud of this. Whether he attends a court meeting or visits each other, he always hangs the golden sunburst badge representing the status of a shining friend and his family badge side by side on his chest.

If he hadn't come to the Shrine of Glory to negotiate this time, Marquis Jerome would definitely let the golden sunburst badge shine on his chest.

The hall of the Radiant Temple has always been called "the shining gem at the foot of the holy mountain". At least judging from the luxury of the buildings in front of him, Marquis Jellos thinks it deserves its name.Although the Glorious Cathedral of Fermeyer, the capital of the kingdom, has a 40-meter-high white tower and a 15-meter-diameter golden dome, it still pales in comparison to this magnificent building.

The core hall of the Guangyao Temple is composed of several tall buildings like castles, and is protected by an outer wall more than ten meters high. This outer wall is made of white stone similar to the Holy White Stone Fortress. If you look closely, there are still dots shining on the surface. Venus, the tall towers are neatly arranged behind the outer wall, like a group of giant guards with golden robes on their shoulders.Twelve elegant and exquisite arch bridges connect these buildings together. The arch bridges are also constructed of white stone, but they are collaged with countless colorful crystal fragments, which look like twelve brilliant rainbows.

A large number of guardian knights and armed priests of the Glory Temple formed a battle formation and surrounded the four flying ships.However, no further hostile actions were made.The smooth landing of the alchemy flying ship has undoubtedly made them breathe a sigh of relief, and the flag of the crown and double swords waving in the wind on the observatory at the bow and the slightly lower golden griffin flag even more clearly show the identity of the Arthur Kingdom mission.

"It seems that the Guangyao Temple side didn't get accurate information about our Alchemy Flying Ship. At least the panic and uneasiness seen in these people is not faked." The scholar walked out of the hatch with a cane, and stood shoulder to shoulder with the head of the mission standing on the bow deck.

"That's true. This shows that at least the spies from the Temple of Glory failed to enter the middle of the royal court, and the Griffon Knights under the Regent's command are so strict that they can't even pour water in." Marquis Jerome shrugged his shoulders and replied, Then his gaze turned to the gate of Guangyao Temple that suddenly opened.

"The team that greeted us appeared...the specifications are really high enough, several sub-heads of the Shield of Fortitude and the Armor of Sacredness are there, and there are also several high-ranking clergymen at the bishop level of the region...the Lord of Radiance is here Come on, a cardinal is actually here!"

When it came to the end, the voice of the Marquis Jerome was clearly raised, and he stared at the gray-haired old man with a body as straight as a cedar tree at the front of the line with his eyes wide open. It was a look of astonishment that couldn't be concealed.

The Marquis of Geralds had reason to be surprised, because this gray-haired old man was Cardinal St. Bogdan, one of the four cardinals of the Shining Temple. A cardinal, although his tone of conversation seems to be humble, but his eyes are arrogant and unspeakable, and he has never stayed on anyone except Cardinal Enoch Sebasta for even a second, as if he took an extra look The worldly people will blaspheme his soul.The Marquis of Geralds was devoutly trying to have a conversation with this great man, but he quickly drew a conclusion from the other party's perfunctory answer that made him feel chills.

However, it is obvious that Cardinal St. Bogdan's enthusiasm this time came from the bottom of his heart. As soon as the Marquis Jerome stepped off the gangway, he led a group of high-level officials from the Shining Temple to greet him, with the expression of old friends reunited on his face. Warm smile.

"Lord Marquis Jellos Amberpasia, it's great to see you again." Cardinal St. Bogdan opened his arms and greeted him warmly, while hugging Marquis Jellos tightly. "My old friend, the last time I saw you was five years ago, right?"

"Oh, of course... it's been five years." The Marquis of Geros replied somewhat unprepared, "The last time I made a pilgrimage to the Temple of Radiance, I came with Cardinal Enoch Sebasta."

"Oh, old Enoch, of course I remember him, one of the best cardinals in the history of the Shining Temple." Cardinal St. Bogdan nodded repeatedly, "But he is a martyr now, the news came At times, we all feel inexplicably sad.”

If it weren't for the reservedness and politeness unique to the nobles of the royal capital, which had been deeply rooted in his blood, Marquis Jellos even wondered if he would spit on Cardinal St. Bogdan's smiling face.He once again confirmed in his heart the wise move of the young Regent, His Excellency Levi Ston, who sent him to serve as the head of the Kingdom Mission, and then he sighed, "Cardinal Enoch Sebasta is here to save King Dufeier Meyer was martyred by tens of thousands of followers of the Lord of Radiance, and he led the priests of the Radiant Cathedral to resist the army of demons, and he acted very bravely!"

Cardinal St. Bogdan's eyes flashed a trace of disdain, so fast that Master Sugard, who had been silently observing him, wondered if he was dazzled. "Yeah, very brave, Saint Enoch, the Temple of Radiance will always remember his name." He raised his eyes and looked at the members of the Arthurian Kingdom Mission behind Marquis Jerome, and his eyes especially stayed on Master Sugard even more Take a little longer, "Introduce me to these distinguished guests from the Kingdom of Arthur, Mr. Marquis Jerome. Especially the old man behind you, is the famous alchemist Mr. Frederick?"

The Marquis of Jellosh shook his head, with a smile on the corner of his mouth and said, "I'm sorry, no, this is Mr. Sugard, a master scholar. Like Master Frederick, he is an important person trusted by His Excellency Li Weiston, the regent of the Kingdom of Arthur. consultant."

Cardinal St. Bogdan's scheming was really deep, and he didn't even show a disappointed expression, "So it's Master Sugard, I've heard your name for a long time, the right-hand man of the Griffin Lord, the founder of the great revolution in the northern county of the Kingdom of Arthur .”

Master Sugard shook the outstretched hand of Cardinal St. Bogdan, "I'm an old man, I dare not be so acclaimed by the Cardinal." He said in the same sincere tone, "My Lord Cardinal Bogdan, please With all due respect, we have come to the Temple of Glory this time because we have important matters that we would like to discuss with His Majesty the Pope in person, so please report it as soon as possible."

Cardinal St. Bogdan's gaze flickered because of Master Sugard's blunt words, "My lord of light, could it be that the evil abyssal demons invaded Arthur's Kingdom again?" His expression was full of indignation, and his tone was firm Said, "This is not a place to talk, please come with me, I will arrange accommodation for you first, then go to the holy mountain immediately, and report everything to His Majesty the Pope."

A delegation of more than [-] people from the Kingdom of Arthur, accompanied by Cardinal St. Bogdan, more than a dozen glorious bishops, and the head of the Knights of the Apologists, walked through the gate of the outer wall of the temple and walked along the cobbled road. Enter this hallowed sanctuary that is seldom shown to the secular.Everywhere here is full of scenery that can only be seen in the kingdom of gods—or dreams. Precious marble, colored quartz stone and holy white stone with sacred power are the most common building materials here. Pure white, vermilion , azure blue, emerald green and light pink are combined to form a gorgeous wall that is pleasing to the eye; the tops of the tall towers do not have sharp spires like spears piercing the sky, but golden circles that glow softly and brilliantly like a golden sun. top; on both sides of the clean and tidy street are neatly arranged double-storey houses of the same style, and even the sewers on the street are clear and unobstructed, which is difficult even for Firmeyer, the glorious capital of the Kingdom of Arthur. Compared with the cleanliness, the sewers of the latter are often clogged with garbage and dirt, and the sewage will flow in the rainy weather.

Seeing the scenery that he had dreamed of, the eyes of Marquis Jellos were full of shock and admiration, and even his expression became a little dull.However, Master Sugard seemed much calmer. Master Scholar once traveled to the mainland when he was young, and witnessed many magnificent scenery and large-scale cities. Although the scenery of the Shining Temple surprised him, it was far from being lost.

What made Master Sujiad secretly vigilant was that under the beautiful illusion-like appearance, all the buildings of the Shining Temple were extremely solid, and there was no wooden structure in any of the buildings; many buildings next to the streets had many and small windows, as long as Smashing the colored crystals on top will become a large number of shooting ports that can block the entire street; the street is neat and straight but also appears to be unsheltered. He fought fiercely with the fearless guardian knights, and at the same time had to bear the bloody scene of strong bows and crossbows shot from the head and sides.

It must have been an attacker's nightmare, or not enough to describe it.

Under the guidance of Cardinal St. Bogdan, the delegation of the Kingdom of Arthur walked through straight streets, stone arch bridges and promenades, and finally arrived at the area where the core buildings of the Temple of Radiance are located. The inner walls protecting the core buildings are only bigger than the outside The wall is slightly shorter by one or two meters, and it is superior in terms of strength and guarding power.

Hundreds of fully armed apostolic knights stood on both sides of the inner wall gate, flying above their heads flags representing the Shield of Fortitude, the Armor of Sacredness, the Hammer of Judgment and the Sword of Condemnation, and the most dazzling flag—— The golden sun on the silver half dome—on top of all the banners of King's Landing, represents the supreme majesty of the Lord of Radiance, Firmeyer.

After passing through the gate of the inner wall, the Kingdom of Arthur’s delegation received a second warm welcome. This time the scale was more grand. Almost all the senior officials of the Temple of Radiance were present. Cardinal St. Bogdan warmly introduced these people one by one. To Marquis Jellosh and Master Thugard.These include Olympus, the head of the Knights of the Steadfast Shield, Xian Keweizhi, the head of the Knights of the Holy Armor, and Jean Layton, the head of the Knights of the Hammer of Judgment, and another cardinal. Rikov.

When Cardinal St. Bogdan stretched out his hand to an ordinary-looking, even haggard knight apologist, and introduced his name, the expression of Marquis Jerome suddenly became like that of a sheepskin. She was as pale as paper, her eyes were staring straight, and she even found it difficult to breathe unobstructed.Master Sugard's performance was better, but he also showed a look of shock, and then narrowed his eyes, carefully hiding his surprise and uneasiness.

"Please allow me to introduce this Your Excellency, the head of the Knights of the Sword of Condemnation, the legendary powerhouse, Ingram Siegfried!"

"Slaughterer!" Marquis Jerome couldn't help blurting out with a trembling voice.

This is a synonym for the commander-in-chief of the Knights of the Sword of Condemnation recognized in the world. No matter whether they belong to the believers of the Lord of Light or not, unless they are in high positions or are reckless by nature, few people dare to call Ingram directly. The name of the head of the regiment, I am afraid that saying this name will bring about the evil results of crop failure, female sterilization and rotten well water.Fortunately, in the Kingdom of Arthur, among the three kingdoms strictly controlled by the Temple of Glory, more than one person believed that as long as he chanted the full name of Chief Ingram, the most terrifying demon would be expelled, but at the same time he would dedicate his life Give Death the scythe that harvests life.

Hearing this rather impolite address, Head Ingram calmly nodded to the members of the Kingdom of Arthur's mission, "That nickname doesn't suit me, guests of the Kingdom of Arthur, just call me Ingram .”

When the head of the famous Sword of Condemnation speaks, his tone is not surprising, it can even be said to be calm and steady, but it exudes a chilling and icy aura.Both Marquis Jerome and Master Sugard couldn't tell whether this feeling was caused by the hidden fear in their hearts, or because the countless souls who died under his hands were howling and crying without knowing it. Due to excessive tension, They couldn't even make a decent response to Chief Ingram's explanation, they could only nod with stiff necks.

Chief Ingram didn't seem to be surprised by this. He quickly glanced at everyone in the Kingdom of Arthur's mission, paused for a moment on a few of the high-ranking Griffin Knights, and then quietly retreated into the welcoming room. among the teams.

Cardinal St. Belikov delivered a simple welcome speech on behalf of the Shrine of Glory. However, compared with the enthusiasm of Cardinal St. Bogdan, his speech did not seem to have much sincerity and was just a formality.However, Marquis Geros and Master Sugard would rather listen to this formal speech ten times than continue to accept the hypocritical enthusiasm of Cardinal St. Bogdan, so when they heard that the next reception work was transferred to St. When Cardinal Husband was in charge, both of them secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and the expressions on their faces also seemed much more relaxed.

After the welcome ceremony, Cardinal St. Bogdan said with apology that he had to leave first, and report to His Majesty Pope Nicholas about the intention of the Kingdom of Arthur's mission.The Marquis of Geralds needs to exert almost all of his self-control to make his tone look rather regretful, instead of jumping up in joy.

After the back of Cardinal St. Bogdan disappeared around the corner, Cardinal St. Belikov called several young trainee priests in a cold tone, and asked them to lead the delegation of the Kingdom of Arthur to the arranged residence. , and then turned around without even saying hello, the white cleric robe trimmed with gold trim rolled up in waves, and disappeared behind another building in the blink of an eye.

(End of this chapter)