James and several cavalrymen were galloping through the snow.

A scroll written full of numbers and calculations was stuffed in his sleeve, and his breathing was as heavy as a blacksmith’s bellows. He was panting from exhaustion, partly wanting to laugh, and partly wanting to yell at a certain idiot.

Making a castle architect flee from the battlefield with a group of people, did that idiot think he was also some kind of knight who could wield a sword and wear armor? Believe it or not, he would just kneel down and beg for mercy when a few horses from the enemy caught up with him?

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James took the last cavalry in Newcastle, having escaped through the secret passage south of the castle.

James didn’t know anything about the battlefield, he was just an architect who worked with wood and stone all day long.

But even he, when in the early morning of yesterday, saw the rebel army’s salamander banner with a white background instead of the rose flag with a red background flying on the horizon, understood the change in the battle situation.

The Duke of Buckingham, who used offense instead of defense, did not return, but a flood of enemies came.

This time the siege was more violent than the previous one.

The time since the last siege was too short, they barely had time to repair the cracked city walls, and the collapsed towers had no time to rebuild. The enemy was not in a hurry to climb the city, but pushed the trebuchet onto the battlefield, aiming to bombard the repaired city walls.

Amidst the loud rumble, Newcastle was crumbling.

The commander stayed on the city wall from morning until evening, directing at the top of his voice. But everyone knew that Newcastle could not be held.

The enemy gradually began to mount the top of the city wall.

The commander found James at that time with a detachment of cavalry.

He pointed to James and said to the cavalrymen, “He has confidential information on him. Even if you die, you must send him to the King properly.”

“I have a fart——”

Before James even finished, the commander strode over and grabbed him by the collar.

“I’m not trying to save you.” The commander who had already suffered a broken arm was short of breath, and he said in a hoarse voice, “I’m begging you to save my brothers! If I’m here, they will never run away! So I beg you, take them away! I beg you to save their lives!”

After the commander finished speaking, he let go of him.

“Take him away!”

At the command of the commander, those knights with red eyes came up and grabbed James and retreated towards the secret passage.

“Tell His Majesty! The Gulundi heavy cavalry has arrived!”

The commander said this final word to him, and then rushed to the wall again with great strides. He drew out his sword and cut down the rebels who climbed up from the breach in the city wall.

James saw him hold the sword in one hand, raised it high, and slashed down with all his might, beheading a rebel.

Blood spurted from the man’s neck like a fountain, dousing half of the commander. His hair and face was covered with blood, dripping down drop by drop. James didn’t know if the same blood would be sprayed out if the commander himself was beheaded.

The knights escorted James and escaped from the south side of the castle. The enemy’s attack focused on the north, and there were not many rebels outside the secret passage in the south.

Before leaving the castle and rushing into the snow field, James looked back at the castle he designed himself for the last time.

Faintly, black smoke enveloped the sky above the castle, which was the flames of war ignited on the battlefield.

Newcastle was doomed to fall.

James understood.

After the castle was captured, the rebel army would also think about repairing it, and the carpenters and workers in the city would survive. But the commander and the soldiers defending the city, they would surely die.

Running fast under the starry night, an architect and several cavalrymen fled desperately.

They had with them the last order of a commander:

——Tell the King that the Gulundi heavy cavalry had arrived.

They had rode all night, and James felt that his life would end on the saddle if this continued.

It was a mistake for him to come to Legrand, otherwise he would still be a man who built churches in safety. Thinking so, James waved his whip, and once again urged the horse under him to gallop forward.

The war horse galloped up to a small hill, and suddenly reared as if frightened. James was shocked, and he tugged on the rein, trying to calm the horse. But not only was he unsuccessful, he also rolled off the horse and fell headlong into the icy snow.

A mouthful of snow was poured down his throat abruptly, and James rolled over, struggling to get up from the snow.

As soon as he got up, he understood why the war horse was frightened.

On the far horizon, smoke and dust were faintly rolled up. In the smoke and dust, hundreds of blood-red banners spread out, forming a continuous wave.

James opened his mouth and the snow that he accidentally swallowed chilled his heart and lungs. He coughed violently, as if he wanted to cough out his lungs.

The bloody wave rushed towards him from a distance, and arrived in front of his eyes in an instant. The cavalry behind James exclaimed. Seeing that James, who had rolled onto the snow slope, was about to be trampled into mincemeat by the war horse, the leading knight reined the horse in the nick of time, and stopped at a distance less than three steps away from James.

Behind the knight, all the war horses stopped at the same time, instantly turning from a galloping torrent into a still vast ocean. The banners rolled up and fluttered fiercely, but the war horses had all stood still, and at this moment they were blowing out streams of white smoke from their noses.

James narrowly escaped death and stood up on unsteady legs from the side of the horse.

He had just stood up, but the knights behind got off their horses and knelt down in the snow.

“Greetings Your Majesty!”

Startled, James looked up at the leading knight.

The knight was wearing armor with his back against the light, so he couldn’t see his face clearly. It was near dawn, and there was a layer of faint blue light between the sky and the earth. Now this cold blue light fell on the knight, plating him like a piece of iron that was fished out of the fire and quenched with ice.

James suddenly remembered that a few days ago, when the Duke of Buckingham led the cavalry into battle, it was also in such a faint and cold morning light.

“You came from Newcastle?”

The King was on horseback, the people behind him were too far away, and the people in front of him were kneeling. Everyone could only hear his calm voice, and no one saw his trembling hands holding the rein and whip.

“The city…..the city is captured.”

The voice of the cavalryman who answered trembled slightly. He was the commander’s retinue, and he was also the commander’s best friend.

Silence.

There was silence between heaven and earth, as if even the war horses did not dare to neigh.

The cold wind from the north made people’s fingers stiff, and the blood in their veins frozen. The King felt that the ice particles in the air were poured into his lungs along his breath, and the coldness that could not be warmed by fire leaked out from the cracks in his bones. The bad premonition came true, and the last bit of hope sunk slowly into the abyss.

“Explain.”

The King’s ice blue eyes fixed on the cavalryman.

“What happened?”

The cavalryman took off his helmet and slammed it heavily on the snow. James didn’t realize until then that he was actually still quite young. The taciturn knight that fled with him along the way had a childish round face.

“His Excellency the Duke broke through the first siege on the city, but the city wall was damaged, making it impossible to defend it. His Excellency was determined to intercept the second batch of rebel troops…..” The young knight’s voice was hoarse, as if each word was soaked in blood, “His Excellency died in battle, the commander swore to defend the city to the death, and had us tell His Majesty——the Gulundi heavy cavalry has arrived!”

The duke died in battle, and the Gulundi heavy cavalry arrived.

Like two boulders suddenly crashing into the calm lake, the army couldn’t help but burst into exclamations.

His Excellency the Duke…..

Died in battle.

The King’s Adam’s apple rolled, he clenched his teeth, and raised his head. It was as if the exhaustion of two days and one night of rapid march suddenly crashed over him, and the world in front of him seemed to suddenly turn black, and all the colors in the world turned gray.

Drip.

The sound of blood dripping seemed to be heard again in his ear, light and soft, causing his breathing to become extremely difficult in an instant. That drop of blood…..that was the blood of the Duke of Buckingham, his uncle’s blood.

What was surging in his heart? What was it that froze him a bit by bit?

He once had nothing, and when he came to Legrand, he shouldered the fate of a country and a family. But he finally had something. How much did he own? How much could he lose? Should he weep? Should he roar or scream? Who would teach him to roar, to scream?

In his years past, everyone wanted him to die. He struggled to survive amidst the hatred and coldness of the world. He was no longer able to cry or be weak. Now who could tell him what to do when he was so full of sorrow? How did one let their tears flow down?

Too long a silence.

A cavalryman stepped out of the ranks and came to the King’s side.

He was the lieutenant general of the Iron Rose Cavalry and an old cavalryman who was familiar with the Duke of Buckingham.

When the King decided to carry out military reforms and form a new royal military, the Duke of Buckingham was still worried that General Sheehan was too young and inexperienced, so he appointed him as the lieutenant general of the Iron Rose Cavalry.

The lieutenant general walked up to the King, who was looking in the direction of Newcastle.

When he saw the King, the lieutenant general almost thought that the King would whip his horse at any moment and rush to the place where the Duke of Buckingham might be buried.

The knuckles of the King’s hand holding the whip had turned cold and bloodless, but the whip was still not swung out in the end.

“Your Majesty…..” The lieutenant general spoke in a low voice. At that moment, he felt that what he saw was not Legrand’s monarch, but a young man who had lost his last respected elder, the nephew of the Duke of Buckingham.

Perhaps the Duke of Buckingham might be more than just an uncle to the King…..He was the one who guarded him with his life. William III died too early. The Duke of Buckingham was likely equivalent to a father to the King.

What choice would a child who lost his father make? What choice should he make?

“Withdraw!”

The King bowed his head, the shadow of his helmet covering his face, and the always proud and powerful monarch looked like a sad youth at this moment. But his voice was clearly still that of the King.

He was the nephew of the Duke of Buckingham…..

 But also a king!

Anyone could cry, anyone could suffer, anyone could be desperately angry, but only the king couldn’t.

The army broke out into noise.

The cavalry did not expect such an order from the King.

The Duke of Buckingham was killed in battle, wouldn’t the King avenge the Duke?

“I said——withdraw!”

The King growled like a young lion suddenly enraged.

“Withdraw to Benz City!”

The lieutenant general looked silently at the King whose head was lowered.

He remembered that he once asked the Duke of Buckingham why he had been guarding the young king for more than ten years. At that time, the Duke of Buckingham said “because he is the hope of the Rose family, he will be a true emperor”.

The lieutenant general didn’t understand at the time.

Now he understood.

Withdrawing troops now was what they really should do.

He knew the Duke of Buckingham very well, and he knew what the royal cavalry commanded by the Duke of Buckingham was like. But the Duke of Buckingham died in battle. And Newcastle has fallen, and it was pointless for them to move forward. The galloping vanguard cavalry did not carry any siege equipment with them. Not only could they not take the castle back from the enemy, they might even have to face the Gulundi heavy cavalry that had already arrived.

This was a battle that was likely to be lost for the exhausted Iron Rose Cavalry which had been marching for several days and nights.

Whatever the military situation ahead was, everything was unknown, and the soldiers should not be pointlessly put in danger. This was what any general who commanded an army must do.

The death of the Duke of Buckingham was a great disaster for the whole of Legrand. At this time, they couldn’t afford a second catastrophic defeat, which would plunge the entire Northland counter-insurgency war into a downturn.

So——

They could only withdraw.

Withdraw to the nearest autonomous city to them, Benz City. Guard there and wait for the follow-up troops to arrive.

This was what they should really do.

The lieutenant general took a deep breath, suppressing the sorrow and sadness. He took one last look at the King, turned his horse, and returned to the army.

The King stood numbly in the ice and snow, watching under his command, the front of the cavalry turning into the rear, and the rear turning into the front, and slowly leave in the direction they came from in the snow.

The King stood still and did not move.

Soon, the King was the only one left on the snow slope.

He suddenly burst out in broken laughter.

No tears, no weeping, only hoarse, suppressed laughter in a torn voice.

Anger and sorrow surged through his veins, stirring up the madness of the ancient Rose family. His dead father, his dead uncle, all his dead ancestors…..their will revived in him.

The King raised his head in the north wind, looked up at the vast sky, and squeezed out a voice through his teeth. There was so much blood in his voice, as if a terrible monster had been released from his heart, and now the bloodthirsty monster was letting out its roar.

The old lion of the empire fell into the bloody mud, to be replaced by a new bloody king.

“Watch——”

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“I will have the royal Rose flag fly across the mainland, the glory that never sets to last eternally, and all the people who the golden carriage passes to submit!”

He would make the long-cherished wish of the Duke of Buckingham come true! Have the glory of the Rose family revived on this land!

Whoever killed the Duke of Buckingham, he would have their heads cut off, their sinful bones crushed, and their souls kneel in front of his grave for eternity!

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The infantry of the rebel army gathered in a hurry and raised their half-man-high shields to form a shield wall to resist the cavalry charge. The number of cavalry who launched the attack was much smaller than them but the formation of this cavalry charge was a bit strange. They were not lined up in ordinary rows, but gathered at one point and then elongated, shaped like a sharp sword.

The tip of the long sword was the sharpest part of the whole sword.

The Duke of Buckingham was the tip of the sword.

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The iron cavalry led by the Duke of Buckingham himself was completely different from the ordinary iron cavalry!

The infantry shouted in terror, seeing the murderous warhorses approaching in an instant. The knight in the front broke through the defense of the shield almost instantly, and his lance swung out, sweeping out a huge half-moon arc, and within the arc, blood splattered from all the infantry attempting to gather together.

The first knight had opened a gap in the entire defense line, and the following knights followed him and entered through this gap.

Compared with them, the entire rebel army was like scattered sand (TN: lacking in cohesion or organization).

The terrifying impact of the cavalry was fully demonstrated when the Duke of Buckingham took advantage of the terrain to seize the best opportunity.

The shield wall of the rebel army was a flimsy piece of thin paper in front of the charging royal cavalry. The cavalry spears of the knights tore through the paper-thin defense line, and directly penetrated through to the rebel army’s center in one breath, cutting the rebel army in half.

The rebels realized that their enemies were as fierce as tigers and as cunning as foxes.

The cavalry on both sides remained separated by infantry and military supply teams at all times. The Duke of Buckingham did not give the rebel knights a chance to organize and surround him. Instead, he relied on his own speed to cut across the entire battlefield like the wind. All the cavalry closely followed the Duke of Buckingham, always maintaining the formation of a longsword.

In front of the iron cavalry, the infantry could only let them trample.

After breaking through the line of defense, the royal cavalry immediately used their heavy lances as spears and threw them with all their strength. Wherever the two-meter-long iron lance passed, blood spattered, causing death or injury.

And at the moment when the iron lances left their hands, the cavalrymen had already drawn out the swords at their waists and swung them down from on top of their horses.

Sprays of blood splattered up and onto their armors. These knights looked like gods of death bathed in blood.

The warhorse leaped.

Surrounded by several enemy cavalrymen who finally caught up, the Duke of Buckingham jumped up with his horse, swinging his sword in mid-air. The tactics used by the King when he fought against the Gulundi heavy cavalry were repeated by the Duke of Buckingham——the King’s combat skills were taught by the man himself after all!

Both man and horse danced together, the sword light leaping like the moon.

The rebel cavalry who had just arrived were clearly the ones surrounding the Duke of Buckingham, but at this time they had to raise their shields to defend.

A young knight’s shield met the Duke of Buckingham’s sword. He only felt a sharp pain in between his thumb and forefinger, and the next moment the shield flew out. Without hesitation, the Duke of Buckingham slit the knight’s throat with his sword.

The horse fell to the ground, and the Duke of Buckingham continued to charge forward, followed by other royal cavalrymen.

The Duke of Buckingham charged straight to the center of the army, where the rebel flag flew, and where Prince Will stood.

Prince Will’s general found him and asked him to give orders, but only saw Prince Will’s pale complexion and trembling under the heavy armor.

Prince Will witnessed the Duke of Buckingham cross most of the battlefield, coming towards him like an unstoppable force, and could only tremble uncontrollably.

When he was young, he was also on such a battlefield, and it was also a small versus many battle.

The still proud and immature Prince Will encountered his first miserable defeat in his life.

His army was torn apart by the cavalry of the Duke of Buckingham, his knights were trampled by the knights of the Duke of Buckingham, and he himself was almost killed by the sword of the Duke of Buckingham. That was the lunatic of the Rose family! How could a normal person hold up against a lunatic!

His pride, his dignity, and his ego were all shattered in that battle.

It wasn’t until William III died of illness that the Duke of Buckingham remained to guard the Rose Palace and was replaced by Buckingham’s son Johan on the battlefield that Prince Will’s fear gradually faded away.

But now, that nightmarish fear returned with a vengeance, and more intensified than before.

He pushed away his subordinates who were anxiously calling out to him, turned his horse’s head, and was about to flee in the direction he had come.

At that moment, a soft sigh traveled into Prince Will’s ears, and into everyone’s ears.

Prince Will seemed to be blocked by an invisible wall. He fell off his horse and stared blankly at the sky. Ripples of light spread out in the air one after the other. The light carried majesty and power beyond human imagination, and the warhorses neighed and trembled.

The soldiers of the rebel army subconsciously fell to their knees.

“A miracle! A miracle has descended!”

Some men trembled and shouted, with worship and fear in their voices.

The battlefield, which was still noisy just now, suddenly fell silent.

The Duke of Buckingham reined in his horse and stood on the blood-stained snow with his cavalry which had equally suffered losses.

The so-called “miracle” was reflected in his icy blue pupils.

“Is this God’s Holy Soldier that Clemo got back then?”

The Duke of Buckingham said softly.

That was a piece of history on the other side of the strait. In 217 AD, King Clemo accepted the help of the Holy Court, and obtained the help of the Holy Lord at the price of accepting the Holy Court as the state religion. In Bressi’s Chronicle it was written that “…..angels in armor fought with mortals, and they crowned King Clemo with their victorious laurels…..”

The power of God changed the situation from its original defeated state to victory.

Now, after more than a thousand years, that power has appeared again.

The three iron carriages had opened up, and l three holy caskets could be seen in the carriages, which contained three holy remains that were supposed to be buried in the church to be worshiped by the world. White light spread out from the holy skeleton and gathered in mid-air.

In mid-air, a pair of huge white wings slowly spread out from behind the young white-robed priest, and armor appeared on his body from illusion to solidity at the same time. The entire area was silent, and everyone in the rebel army was prostrate on the ground. The only ones who did not kneel and kowtow were the cavalry led by the Duke of Buckingham.

They also felt a heavy pressure, but none of the knights retreated.

Because the Duke of Buckingham did not back down.

He stared at the war angel suspended in mid-air, reached out to take the royal banner from the knights around him, and held it up high.

The royal banner fluttered fiercely.

This was the banner of mortals.

The angel opened His eyes, His expression was the same as all the murals on the Holy Court Church, neither happy nor sad, but His pupils retained the shadow of a priest in white robes, as clear as a mirror, which reflected the image of the knight holding the banner of mortals up high.

“Descendant of the Dragon Slayer.”

He said, very softly, but it reached everyone’s ears.

“It has been over a thousand years, do you still want to continue with your original choice?”

“Over a thousand years.”

The Duke of Buckingham looked up, looking at the somewhat ragged and worn scarlet royal flag fluttering in the air.

It had been over a thousand years!

The Rose family had struggled to stand on this land for over a thousand years! They were smashed again and again, under pressure from all directions again and again, and poured their blood on this land from generation to generation…..It turned out that they have persisted in this way for over a thousand years!

“What the Rose family’s choice was over a thousand years ago will be the choice now a thousand years later.”

The Duke of Buckingham uttered slowly.

“You will die.” The angel looked at the old duke, looking at the eyes that have been passed down from generation to generation, “Even so, do you still want to fight?”

“The evil dragon sees mortals as food, and you see mortals as ants. Now, have you started to feel pity for the ants?”

The wind blew the edge of the banner into Duke Buckingham’s face. He had been in the military all his life and never talked nonsense, but today he didn’t care about wasting time.

“Is it pity? Or is it a discovery——that the gathering of ants also has earth-shaking power?”

His gaze sharpened suddenly, like an ancient knife turned sideways, with a cold light leaping across the edge.

Icy cold.

“We can give you glory, strength, power,” said the angel, “We can give you power, we can make you transcend the boundaries of the ordinary, and achieve the extraordinary.”

The Duke of Buckingham laughed: “No, you don’t understand what we want at all!”

For the first time, doubts appeared in the angel’s mirror-like eyes.

“You don’t understand at all.”

The Duke of Buckingham looked around, the white snow had turned into mud, corpses laid against each other, blood and slush were mixed together, knives, swords, and spears could be seen everywhere.

In the war of mortals, whether they lose or win, it should all depend on themselves.

Before every knight stepped onto the battlefield, he was already prepared to return triumphantly after victory, and to die on the battlefield after defeat. This was the fate of the knights, they have no regrets! But by no means should it be like it was now——the victory or defeat of the entire war, the fate of millions of people in the entire country, disappearing in a flash, in a single thought.

No matter how much mortal blood spilled, in front of God, it was just a small drop of water, falling silently and without a trace.

“That’s why we are always unwilling to bow our heads to you!”

If mortals were like ants in front of God, all the selfless sacrifices and hard work would become just a joke.

How ridiculous that would be!

The persistence of the Rose family for over a thousand years was simply just the right to decide the fate of mortals themselves! The history of mortals to be written by mortals themselves! They wanted themselves not to be prey, not to be ants, not to be puppets!

They wanted to stand upright on the ground!

They just wanted fairness, they just wanted freedom.

However, whether in the sky or on the earth, no one would give them this.

“None of you will give this, so——” the Duke of Buckingham said softly, his voice heavy with these many years, “the Rose family will take this ourselves.”

Take it with blood, with the lives of generations after generation!

“As long as you stand here, you are not our enemy.” The angel held the fiery sword, and pointed lightly at the place where Prince Will was.

The Duke of Buckingham looked back at the knights behind him: “Go, don’t disappoint this rare kindness.”

The cavalry stood upright and solemn, none leaving.

“Don’t feel ashamed, the enemies you are facing now are beyond the scope of your oath.” The Duke of Buckingham said lightly, “Go.”

“Are you insulting us?”

The old knight who had followed him for the most years spoke, he was blinded in one eye during the battle, and blood flowed all over his face. He slowly raised his sword and pointed at Prince Will who was kneeling on the ground.

“Have us follow after a dog that pissed his pants?”

His description was vulgar and impudent, completely inconsistent with the spirit of chivalry. But as soon as he finished speaking, all the knights burst into laughter, wild and unrestrained, as if there was no invincible angel in front of them, and there was no invisible pressure around them that pressed down on them so much that they almost fell off their horses.

The Duke of Buckingham was taken aback for a moment, then laughed out loud.

He reined in his horse and looked at his knights: “I am very happy!”

He had always been cold and stern all his life, no matter how great the victory was, he had never laughed like this, and he had never expressed his feelings so bluntly.

“I am very happy!”

The Duke of Buckingham raised his royal banner aloft.

“You’re all here! I’m glad you’re all knights of the Empire!”

“For the glory of the Rose!”

The knights roared, and they raised their swords high.

The warhorses no longer neighed.

The horses and their owners have been fighting together for many years, and they have already established a connection with each other. At this moment, the warhorses actually overcame their natural fear, and just like their owners, proudly raised their head, not retreating an inch.

“Now! Follow me——”

The Duke of Buckingham turned to the angel, and he swung his sword.

“Charge!”

Just like before, he was the first to charge.

The knights followed, and the iron hooves of their horses kicked up blood and mud from the battlefield. They followed their general without hesitation, they were a longsword, they were the swords and knives of mortals! Old knights, young knights, there were only a few hundred of them left.

But at this moment, they were the mighty army of the empire!

The angel spread His wings and drew His fiery sword.

The mighty red fire spread in midair, with the angel as the center, and within a space of hundreds of meters, all the snow melted in an instant. The water from the melting snow turned into a long scalding river, tossing and flowing, straddling between the Rose cavalry and the rebel army.

Like a moat between mortals and God.

As long as you step over, you will be smashed to pieces.

The scorching air waves rushed towards them head front, but the warhorses kept galloping.

“Kill!”

The Duke of Buckingham hollered.

This was war!

This was the war between mortals and God and the world. This war had lasted from the age of legends to the present and had never stopped.

This war would not cease until there was death!

“Kill!”

All the knights shouted loudly.

On the battlefield, knights have only one mission——to kill! Kill their enemies, or be killed by them! The Rose cavalry would never retreat!

The angel held the sword in both hands and raised it high.

The red fire in the sky rolled down, carrying endless majesty and violence. This was not the power of human beings, but the power of God! The fire rolled past like a bloody sea, with thousands of swords in the fire. The world was tainted a bloody red, and everything crawled in submission.

God’s punishment came and devoured everything.

………………

The border between Legrand and Newcastle.

The King led the vanguard and rushed all the way, arriving here almost non-stop around the clock. They had just passed through the first town, and then passed through two autonomous cities before arriving at the royal castle of Newcastle.

The King was at the front of the line.

He reined in suddenly and looked up to the north.

The north wind howled between the sky and the earth, and the wind was so cold that it penetrated into the bone marrow. The King held on tightly to the reins, feeling his blood cooling inch by inch, or as if there was a flame boiling in his heart.

The soldiers stopped behind the King and looked at him in confusion, noise rising slightly.

However, in this world, all voices seemed to fade from the King’s vicinity.

Drip.

It seemed to be an illusion, and it seemed that the sound was carried by the wind and came from far away.

Drip.

It was the sound of a drop of blood falling.

Whose blood was that?

“Let’s go!”

The King suddenly roared.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e ir on tr ee bl oo ms. c o m )

He raised his whip high and swung it down vigorously. The warhorse screamed and galloped out. The cold wind blew on the King’s face like a knife. He held onto the reins tightly, his joints turning terribly pale.

Over mountains, across glaciers, and through swamps, the King galloped through the bitter cold of late winter.

How much could he call his own?

And how much could he lose!

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The King’s army started from Metzl and went up the Lacey River. They would cross the Taterbo Mountains, and then cross the Tonk Plain all the way to Newcastle in the Northland.

As night fell, the army was stationed near the swamp on the upper Lacey River.

The Lacey River, like the Doma River, was one of the five main long rivers in Legrand. It originated from the Field Mountains, ran northward through the entire northern region of Legrand, and finally flowed into the icy sea of the very north through the port of Banmore Fort, flowing through almost a quarter of the land of Legrand.

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In the King’s tent, battle maps were spread out one after another.

In this war, the entire army was divided into three divisions. The King himself commanded the central army led by the Iron Rose Cavalry, and would go straight north to take the shortest path——the same path that the Duke of Buckingham took when he rescued Newcastle. The army on the left was led by Earl Henry, and the army on the right was handed over to General Roger.

The King’s appointment of commanders was somewhat unexpected.

The main reason was that no one thought that the King would appoint Earl Henry as the commander of the left wing.

General Roger was a veteran. He followed William III to conquer Newcastle, and he was familiar with the terrain of the Northland. Moreover, he was the first person to choose the Iron Rose in the “Rose Crisis”. It made sense that the King appointed him commander of the right-wing army. But Earl Henry was different.

Earl Henry chose the White Rose amid the civil strife during the “Rose Crisis”.

At the time, he was a new royalist.

And, he was a new royalist who had done a good job. The military command of Grand Duke Grice himself was far less outstanding than that of Earl Henry. During that civil strife, Earl Henry conquered many castles. If it wasn’t for the return of the King, who was to say he might not be able to continue to expand his victories.

The King’s appointment of this great nobleman who had tried to overthrow him to such an important commanding position was really unexpected.

However, this did make many lords breathe a sigh of relief.

Many of them once stood on the side of Grand Duke Grice during the civil strife. After the “Rose Crisis” subsided, the King’s several disguised liquidations of their assets made them quite worried. But the King appointed Earl Henry as a commander of the expedition, which showed the King’s attitude:

He didn’t intend to perpetuate the hatred of the Civil War, and he didn’t want to completely suppress them because of their choices in the Civil War.

Earl Henry became the commander, which made the lords’ attitude towards this expedition more optimistic. The King’s attitude undoubtedly showed that as long as they could contribute to the suppression of the Northland rebellion, the old accounts of the past were likely to be written off.

General Sheehan asked the King privately about Earl Henry.

The King was looking at the map, and when he heard General Sheehan’s inquiry, he asked General Sheehan to look at a place on the map.

General Sheehan looked along where the King pointed, which was Posey County, which crossed the border with Newcastle.

“Towards the rebellion in the Northland, the one who most hopes for it to be pacified immediately is none other than our Earl Henry.”

The King smiled.

The choice that others saw to be magnanimous was actually very natural for the King.

Posey County was a territory under the name of Earl Henry. There were a large number of Legrand and Northland trade fairs here, which were almost equivalent to half of Earl Henry’s economic lifeline. After the outbreak of the war, merchants fled south, and the economy of Posey County was hit hard. Moreover, in the past ten years, there have been considerable personal conflicts between Earl Henry and Prince Will of Newcastle.

Both sides were sparing no effort to expand the territory they occupy on the border.

Before the rebellion broke out, there were many applications for rulings on land disputes between the two parties piled up on the King’s desk.

So what if Earl Henry used to be a new royalist?

He wanted to fight a war, to pacify the Northland. Whoever possessed outstanding military talents, whose interests were related in the outcome and thus was absolutely impossible for him to betray, then the King dared to appoint whoever was the commander!

“Instead of worrying about our Mr. Henry, let’s worry about our enemies.”

The King said flatly.

“The rebel army is waiting for reinforcements.” The King stared at the map and slowly made a judgment. “The main force of their army is now stationed in one place, and there has been no movement for a long time. Who will come to support them?”

There were a total of seven small states in the Northland, and now there were three that have joined the rebellion.

This did not mean that the other states were loyal——some of them were fence sitters, waiting for the outcome of the war to become clear. And some were waiting for the right time to join.

So, who would come to support the rebels?

Except for these three states that have already rebelled, the strength of the other four states was not strong, and they were not even comparable to some of the larger lords in Legrand. But the King did not take them lightly.

“Ports, ship routes…..overseas.”

The King’s fingertips slid all the way across the map of the Northland, and finally stopped on the coastline.

“Mercenary!”

General Sheehan blurted out, his expression suddenly becoming solemn.

Mercenary armies were extremely common nowadays.

As big as the war between Bressi and Legrand that lasted for hundreds of years, as small as a private war between families, mercenaries would be active on the battlefield. Compared with the slow recruiting speed and complex conditions of the knight army, professional mercenaries who were not bound by knight morals and have strong fighting skills were often more popular in wars.

During the period of William III, the then warrior queen Eleanor had brilliantly used mercenaries from near the Hopeless Inner Sea on the battlefield.

At that time, William III and the Duke of Buckingham led the army to face Bressi’s expeditionary force, and a rebellion broke out in the south of Legrand. Queen Eleanor hired an army and they entered from the southeastern port. While the rebels were looking in front of them, they suddenly encountered a blow from behind.

Queen Eleanor and the mercenaries carried out a dual attack from the front and back, and put down the rebellion in the shortest time.

However, the price was not cheap.

Queen Eleanor even had the jewels removed from her own crown to pay for the mercenaries.

“If they are waiting for overseas mercenaries to arrive, then they would stick to one place and not rush forward.” The King pointed at the port of Fort Banmore, which was the closest to Newcastle, “Ice-free port.”

The estuary of Lacey, the port of Banmore Fort, was a big port known as an “Ice-free port”!

“Land here and go along the river. Even an army that is not familiar with Legrand’s northern geography can arrive at the battlefield accurately and quickly. After the two sides converge, they could then go south and take Newcastle.” General Sheehan quickly made a prediction, and he looked up at the King, “Your Majesty, who do you think they will hire?”

The King stared gravely at the map.

“Gulundi.”

He slowly gave an answer.

“The Gulundi heavy cavalry!”

General Sheehan was slightly taken aback, and subconsciously remembered the small group of mercenaries hired by Grand Duke Grice outside the city of Truu.

The Gulundi heavy cavalry could be said to be the pinnacle of knights’ fighting power today. They were the shadows on the earth and the gods of death on the battlefield.

General Sheehan had witnessed the battle between the King and the Gulundi heavy cavalry. If the King hadn’t cleverly used the natural terrain traps in the geographical environment, then Grand Duke Grice’s plan to assassinate the King would not have failed! But even so, the King paid a heavy price, and only a few of the oath knights who followed him survived.

The royal oath knights already represented the most elite knights in Legrand to some extent.

If a large number of Gulundi heavy cavalry joined the battlefield, it would turn the whole battle situation on its head!

“I will lead the cavalry first.”

The King stood up, and he reached for the cloak draped over the back of the chair.

“You and the follow-up troops keep up.”

“What about you? What are you going to do?”

General Sheehan suddenly had a bad feeling.

“Reinforcement.”

The King replied succinctly, then lifted the curtain and went straight out.

………………

On the slopes of the Lacey River some distance from Newcastle.

At this time, the sky was slightly bright, and the Duke of Buckingham had already led the army to arrive here. There was a sparse forest and some bushes bordering the slope. Here the cavalry waited, and the woods provided some shelter for them. Both men and horses were silent.

When the horses breathed, large puffs of white air spewed out from their noses, while the knights were like cast iron.

Beside the Duke of Buckingham were his followers for many years.

The subordinate asked the Duke of Buckingham in a low voice, “Why did you think to intercept so early?”

The Duke of Buckingham glanced at him: “The rebel reinforcements are coming soon.”

“What?” The subordinate was slightly startled.

The Duke of Buckingham nodded slightly, indicating that he heard correctly.

A long distance away, after the Duke of Buckingham arrived at Newcastle, he made the same judgment as his nephew: the rebel army had reinforcements, and it was very likely that they had hired the Gulundi heavy cavalry.

While at the castle, however, the Duke of Buckingham did not speak out about this judgment.

——After a great battle, facing a dilapidated castle, the most important thing was to maintain hope and morale. Instead of letting the soldiers fall into despair and fear in advance.

The prestige of the Gulundi heavy cavalry was too terrifying.

In addition, the Duke of Buckingham believed that the rebel army’s siege of Newcastle during these days should be to pave the way for the Gulundi heavy cavalry. The Gulundi heavy cavalry were invincible on the frontal battlefield, but when facing a siege of a castle, one had to do more than just charge.

As long as the rebel army captured Newcastle, they could ride straight down and sweep across the land when the Gulundi heavy cavalry arrived.

Therefore, after receiving the news of the failure of the siege, Prince Will would definitely dispatch troops quickly and continue to attack Newcastle.

The Duke of Buckingham’s “replacing defense with offense” tactic was actually just a statement to appease the commanders.

What he really wanted to do was to intercept and kill Prince Will, and then lead the people of Newcastle to move forward to occupy Prince Will’s original residence, thereby defending against the heavy cavalry of Gulundi who might arrive at any time.

“They are coming.”

The Duke of Buckingham suddenly narrowed his eyes and said coldly.

The subordinates who had cooperated with him for many years, understood and raised the flag to signal preparation for battle.

The knights put down their lances, ready to charge at any time.

………………

“This bloody damn weather.”

Prince Will cursed under his breath.

The cavalry was in the middle of the team, the infantry was used as the left and right wings, and in the middle of the large group of people were siege ladders, trebuchets and other large siege equipment and heavy vehicles which were moving slowly.

From time to time, Prince Will looked back at the vehicles moving forward slowly, wishing to give them a few whips to make them move forward quicker.

He received the news that the Gulundi mercenaries had already boarded the port by boat, and those heavy cavalry were paid by the day. Every day they remained hired, the money of the rebel army flowed out. The flow of money even made him, the prince, tremble.

However, seeing that the Gulundi heavy cavalry was about to arrive, Newcastle, which was planned to be captured, was still in good condition.

“That damned Duke of Buckingham.”

Prince Will took a deep breath and cursed under his breath.

But when thinking of the Duke of Buckingham, he subconsciously tightened his hands.

When he was young, Prince Will once met the Duke of Buckingham on the battlefield, and after he lost that battle he was unwilling to touch his armor for an entire year. The members of the Rose family were all lunatics on the battlefield.

“Are you afraid?”

A young man’s voice sounded beside Prince Will.

The muscles on Prince Will’s face twitched, and a trace of indistinct anger flitted across his face, but when he turned his head, he smiled respectfully: “As expected of my lord, you are so keen.”

Beside Prince Will was a priest in a white robe. His face was extremely handsome, but this handsomeness was a bit odd——it gave people the feeling of an angel walking directly out from a mural. This priest was a supporter of the Holy Court who was personally greeted by all the leaders of the Northland Rebel Alliance.

Prince Will had speculated in private about the identity of this white-robed priest.

An adjudicator from the tribunal? Didn’t seem like it, the tribunal was marked by a black robe.

Knights Templar? This was even more unlikely, this person had no armor and no longsword.

Then he was someone of the Holy Court?

Prince Will once asked his royal brother in private, but his royal brother refused to answer, only saying that He was strong enough to withstand thousands of troops.

Prince Will noticed that his brother used “He” instead of “he”.

So Prince Will maintained respect in front of the white-robed priest since, and this time when he attacked Newcastle, the white-robed priest also participated. However, Prince Will still had doubts in his heart——the white-robed priest only brought three sealed iron carriages, and nothing else.

Was he…..or He, planning to turn the three carriages into thousands of troops?

“The enemy is coming.”

While Prince Will was lost in his thoughts, the white-robed priest beside him suddenly said lightly.

Prince Will reined in his horse abruptly, looking forward suspiciously.

In his field of vision on this early morning, the branch of the Lacey River flowed quietly from the left side, and there was nothing but a sparse forest shrouded in light mist.

Just when Prince Will raised his head, the white-robed priest beside him silently retreated to the three carriages in the middle of the army without anyone noticing, which was completely beyond the reach of human beings.

At this time, smoke and dust rose from behind the sparse forest on the opposite slope.

“F**k!”

Prince Will turned his head and saw that the white-robed priest was no longer by his side, and he swore. Unable to spare any extra thought, he yelled.

“Enemy attack! Defense!”

Just as his voice fell, a long horn sounded from the sparse woods opposite.

The rebel horses were frightened and began neighing. War horses were more sensitive creatures than humans, and they intuitively sensed that the enemy was approaching. And at this time, on the slope, amidst the flurry of kicked up snow, the enemy swooped down. The infantry on the left and right had marched overnight and at this time, they could only set up their shields in a panic and gather to prepare for defense.

From the snow and dust, hundreds of scarlet Rose Royal banners formed a surging wave of blood.

Prince Will’s heart suddenly jumped.

The nightmarish battle in his youth came back.

“Defense——defense——”

He roared hysterically, raising his shield tremblingly but retreating back, trying to hide in the middle of the army.

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Beside the carriage in the middle of the army, the white-robed priest raised his head and stared forward quietly, his pupils were strangely clear, as if it were a mirror, or as if it were the sky, and the world was reflected in his pupils.

“It’s the Rose family…..the dragon slayers?”

He said softly.

The voice was drowned in the noise.

The royal flag had arrived, and the cavalry of the Rose family charged with fury.

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Newcastle was saved.

The drawbridge was lowered, and the knights stepped into the unfinished castle to the cheers of the defenders. After the knights entered the city gate, they took off their helmets one after another. The commander found that among the cavalry, many of those at the front already had some gray hair.

It was these old subordinates who have followed the Duke of Buckingham on the battlefield for many years to form the soul of this cavalry.

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After the Duke of Buckingham entered the castle, he did not rest, and directly summoned the commander of Newcastle.

The Royal Guard and old military officers who followed him were few in number, and the battle was won by the Duke of Buckingham’s surprise tactic. The most important thing right now was not to completely defeat one or two rebel armies, but to defend this important military castle for the King.

The map was spread on the table, and the commander reported to the Duke of Buckingham the situation in Newcastle during this period.

This time the riot that cropped up in the North was a long-planned rebellion.

After the Ingres transportation line from the southwest was cut off by the rebels, the construction work of Newcastle had to come to a standstill. The area north of Newcastle was completely in the hands of the rebels, and the situation to the west and east would not be much better. At the beginning of the war, besides sending people to bring letters to the palace, the commander put all his strength into defense.

“Still, the situation is bad.”

The commander said helplessly.

“The castle is too badly damaged.”

The Duke of Buckingham nodded slightly.

Newcastle originially had yet to be completed. This time, the enemy’s strong attack at any cost almost destroyed all the defenses on the north side of the castle. When the tower collapsed, part of the city wall was also damaged. When the rebel army reorganized and attacked again, the castle would be difficult to defend.

There was only one way to keep the castle:

Use offense instead of defense.

Currently, the most likely to launch another attack on Newcastle was the rebel team led by Prince Will of the vassal state closest to here.

Prince Will was stationed in the town of Werner, and the defeated rebel army would soon bring the news of the failed siege. After the Duke of Buckingham discussed with the generals, he quickly made a decision.

No sooner had the siege ended than the scouts were sent out of the castle.

They had been ordered to scout out the tracks of Prince Will’s army.

Without waiting too long, the scouts brought back the news the Duke of Buckingham and the others wanted.

Just as the Duke of Buckingham and the others predicted, Prince Will, who was stationed in the town of Werner, was leading the army to prepare for the second siege. They were traveling along the road between the banks of the Lacey River and Newcastle, and their speed was not fast because they carried with them a large amount of siege equipment.

After several days of rest, the recharged cavalry set off again with the Duke of Buckingham.

They left the castle and went to a slope on the lower reaches of the Lacey River, which had been a battleground many times since ancient times. There was a sparse forest on the border of the slope.

The Duke of Buckingham’s army would wait behind the woods for the arrival of the enemy.

…………

Abyss Strait.

The sea was as deep as ink, and the wind and waves were rough. Amidst the furious waves, boats with white sails braved the dangerous waters. Printed in the middle of those bulging white sails was the most sacred cross. On the deck, while the sailors were working in an orderly manner, there were another group of people.

They wore fine armor, and their cloaks bore the symbol of the cross.

The way these people dressed revealed their identities.

The Knights Templar.

The white shell-like ship was on the east coast of the Abyss Strait, heading all the way up to Bressi.

The identity of these ships was clear——they were Templar ships that have long disappeared from people’s sight. Hundreds of warships broke through the waves, and the Holy Court’s fleet did not cease to exist as some people had speculated. On the contrary, they become more terrifying, more massive, more unstoppable.

Holy warships, Templar Knights.

The Holy Court drew His sword for the Lord of Hosts.

With this fire and sword they would establish for God His kingdom on earth.

The solemn knights did not notice the black butterflies flitting lightly in the sky above their heads.

The Devil arrived at Bressi one step ahead of the Holy Court’s army.

Legrand on the west coast of the Abyss Strait was experiencing the flames of war, and Bressi could be called Legrand’s brother-in-straits——it too was also facing the flames of war at this time.

The Devil unfurled his black umbrella and strolled leisurely through one of Bressi’s cities.

The sky was gray, knights galloped past on the streets from time to time, and flags with the cross symbol hung high everywhere in the city. This represented that the city had accepted the rule of the Holy Court.

“Yah. The speed is quite fast.”

The Devil raised his umbrella a little, watching the Bressi royal tulip banner being ripped off and thrown into a stinking ditch.

At the coronation ceremony of Ferri III, the Pope took out the letter that Clemo V had written to the Holy Court.

——The letter promising to hand over the secular domination of the entire lowlands and the western part of the kingdom to the Holy Court.

The Pope used the “Gift of Clemo V” to demand the power due to the Holy Court from the new King of Bressi, Ferri III, and claimed that “it was precisely because the monarch of Bressi forgot what he had promised to the Holy Lord, that the great plague of the Black Death descended on us, this was the divine punishment of the Holy Lord, and only timely repentance can bring redemption.”

After the examination of the Bressi noblemen present, the letter was indeed the original letter written by Clemo V.

The Holy Court came aggressively, and most of the great nobles had already defected to the Holy Court. It was said that the scene that day was also very exciting and dramatic.

However, Ferri III withstood the pressure.

He used a delay tactic, claiming that the specific scope of the western region donated to the Holy Court in the letter needed to be carefully discussed, and the two sides needed a more formal agreement. After the Pope’s delegation left the capital, Ferri III immediately went back on his word, not only did he not hand over the western part of the kingdom, but began to mobilize the army.

In retaliation for Ferri III’s treachery, the Pope immediately declared:

The excommunication of Ferri III, the abolishment of his position as monarch, the revoking of the oath of allegiance of Bressi subjects to Ferri III, and calling on the lords of Bressi to punish the sinner for the Holy Lord, as well as calling call on the people of Bressi to rise up and overthrow the monarch who brought disaster to them. [1]

Prince Charles, who had previously been defeated by Ferri III in the struggle for the throne, was the first to respond to the Pope’s call.

A large-scale civil war broke out.

But was this really just a civil war?

Holding the umbrella, the Devil watched a black carriage pass by in front of him.

On the carriage, there were exquisite reliefs of flames and poisonous snake coiling on the cross, and that cross was like a sword, nailed to the poisonous snake.

This was the tribunal’s carriage.

The black iron carriage could not block the Devil’s sight in any way, and he clearly knew that there were two masked priests in black sitting in the carriage at this time.

“A little present for you.”

The Devil said cheerfully.

He didn’t forget that these guys actually wanted to tear the King’s soul last time——what a joke! In order to take away His Majesty’s soul, just how much effort he had put forth even until now.

The Devil snapped his fingers, and black flames creeped silently over the carriage.

The black-clothed priests inside the carriage realized something was wrong, grabbed their iron swords and wanted to get up, but found that the carriage seemed to have been sealed directly, and no matter how they hit it, they couldn’t open it. They could only watch helplessly as the poisonous snake-like flames surrounded them, the terrifying heat seeming to burn their souls together with their flesh.

The ordinary people who come and go on the street remain completely unaware.

The Devil performed a little illusory trick.

They didn’t see the carriage at all, and they didn’t even know that not far from them, a certain Devil maliciously imitated the Holy Court’s method and held a “burning” for the priests of the tribunal.

“Yah, I hope you will remember——”

The Devil’s lips curled up slightly.

“Next time, don’t reach sticky fingers out to other people’s treasures.”

There was an indescribable coldness in his smile.

After both the carriage and people within turned into a pile of ashes, the Devil continued to walk forward as if nothing had happened.

As for the disappearance of the adjudicators of the Holy Court out of thin air in this city, and how much trouble it would bring to the rulers of this city…..what did that matter to him?

His goal was St. Val’s Cathedral in Bressi.

A relic of the Holy Court was said to be preserved there.

Why were there so many shameful thieves in this world who loved to claim other people’s things as their own?

The Devil pondered. Holding a black umbrella, he quietly melted into the darkness.

Behind him, a troop of cavalry galloped by, joining the punitive army against King Ferri III.

………………

In Legrand, the King had already arrived at the Rose Palace.

“The Holy Court has been preparing for quite a long time.”

The King unfolded the last letter from Bressi.

The reason why it was the last one was that it was difficult to contact the rest of Legrand’s overseas spies in Bressi.

The letter described the current chaos in Bressi.

Bressi was more affected by the Black Death than Legrand.

During the Black Death, Bressi was infected city after city, and the dead piled up. In the face of the Black Death, the Bressi royal family was powerless, while in contrast the Pope’s mission cured the sick who the doctors were helpless to save on the way to the coronation of Ferri III.

Under this contrast, the concept of “the punishment from the Holy Lord” had become deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.

And when the Holy Court took out the “Gift of Clemo V” and asked Ferri III to atone for the royal family’s deception of the Holy Lord, it would be easier to get the public’s approval.

Ferri III was forced into a dead end.

The King was not surprised by Bressi’s current situation.

A country that had bowed its head in front of the Holy Court for too long, willingly handing over its own neck to the enemy, sacrificing other countries in exchange for survival…..for such a cowardly country, when the Holy Court’s knife fell on its head, what could be done in such a short time?

Giving succor to the enemy was a sin in itself.

The King put down the letter.

General Sheehan came in and reported to him that all preparations had been completed.

The King nodded slightly.

Soon the Master of Households came in, and he helped the King who he watched grow up into his armor. It was not really his duty, but he asked the King for this request, and the King granted it to him.

“May the former King protect you.”

With trembling hands, the Master of Households straightened the armor for the King.

He stepped back, looking proudly at the King in silver armor.

The icy armor endowed the King with a completely different aura than usual, and the luxury of the royal court was erased at this time, leaving only pure majesty, which was the iron-blooded soul of generations of the Rose family.

The Rose family was born to be companions to swords, flames of war, and blood.

“Victory will be yours!”

The Master of Household’s eyes were slightly moist.

The King didn’t speak, he only nodded slightly, and then walked out of the Rose Palace with General Sheehan.

Today, Metzl Castle saw a rare snowfall.

The sky was dazzling.

General Johan waited outside the city gate. He watched the King come on horseback and bowed to salute.

The King pulled back the reins and looked down at him: “I hope, when I come back, you have your long sword and iron gauntlets ready.”

“I will.”

General Johan answered loudly.

The King did not look at him again, nor did he make any further stops.

Outside the city, waiting for the King was an army ready to go.

At the very front was the King’s Iron Rose Cavalry.

Like the King, they were shrouded in a murderous aura. They rode tall war horses, and both men and horses wore heavy plate armor and breastplate. The sun shone on their armor, reflecting a dazzling light. The Iron Rose Cavalry unfurled hundreds of scarlet royal banners.

After the Iron Rose Cavalry, came the cavalry led by the lords from all over the land, and they raised the flags representing their respective families.

In front of the motley flags of various colors and insignias, the hundreds of scarlet royal flags were like an unstoppable force.

Horseshoes kicked the ground.

The King reined in his horse and stopped in front of everyone, his eyes sweeping across the army that belonged to him.

The sun shone down on the King, framing the edge of his armor with scorching lines of light.

“Set off!”

The King snapped an order.

The horses galloped off, the armor clanged against each other, making a loud sound, and all the flags were blown back by the wind, spreading out into a sea of murderous intent. This torrent of men and horses, iron and flesh and blood was surging because of the King’s will.

This was 1433.

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On the east coast of the Abyss Strait, the Kingdom of God on earth was being established, the light of the Holy Spirit was spreading along with the Pope’s will, warships were criss-crossing the raging waves, and the knights of the Templar were about to set foot on the battlefield. On the west bank of the Abyss Strait, the Legrand rebellion was raging, and the weak such as Ingres, Newcastle, and the lowland countries…..were not spared and were also drawn into the vortex.

As if overnight, the whole world was ignited by the flames of war.

This year, the King set off to war in person.

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The Holy Court had begun to build their Kingdom of God.

The King could confirm this.

In the last port city that needed to be dealt with personally by the King, a secret agent who didn’t have time to tidy up was received by the King.

He was Legrand’s overseas agent sent to Bressi.

And the only one who successfully returned to Legrand.

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At the beginning of the new year, the King ordered the recall of a group of overseas spies who had contact with Bressi’s king, Ferri III. But until today, only this person returned to Legrand, and the others were all intercepted and killed on the way.

The surviving spy delivered a sealed letter to the King.

The letter came from General Karl, the commander of the Bressi Expeditionary Force who negotiated with the King back then. The content of the letter was very brief. After the King read it, he looked at Mr. Secret Agent in front of him: “Before you left Bressi, what was the situation of General Karl?”

Mr. Secret Agent recalled carefully: “It’s no different from before. He was still in charge of Ferri III’s coronation. But…..General Karl’s butler had changed to two new ones.”

Two new butlers…..

“Go and receive the award you deserve.” The King nodded slightly, “along with the rest.”

The spy saluted and slipped out, avoiding the attention of others.

The King put the letter on the table.

The coronation of Ferri III began before the spy returned. The time was shortly after Legrand was attacked by the plague ships and the Northland rebellion. And Ferri III wrote this secret letter through General Karl, conveying the message that he was not controlled by the secret baptism of the Holy Court’s coronation.

This was good news.

As long as Bressi’s true monarch was not controlled, a war would be inevitable if the Holy Court wanted to seize Bressi and establish a nation.

But that was also bad news.

With the caution shown by Ferri III when he contacted him earlier, he would not directly let General Karl, who was close to him, hand over the letter to Legrand’s secret agents. This was too easy to expose themselves——it meant that although the secret baptism had not succeeded, the Pope’s mission still had a very high control over the capital of Bressi.

General Karl’s butler had been replaced by two new ones successively…..All people close to Ferri III’s party were under surveillance.

“The Kingdom of God…..”

The King smiled coldly, and threw the letter into the fireplace.

If he guessed correctly, when Legrand’s spy overcame various difficulties and successfully returned, Bressi on the other side of the Abyss Strait should have also been caught in the flames of war.

The Master of Households had prepared all the matters for returning to the Rose Palace.

The plague in the southeast was already under control, and at this time according to the conscription order, the lords should have brought their knights from all over the country to the meeting point. At this time, the “Legrand Transportation Department” established by the King was coordinating the transportation of grain and supplies.

Merchants who were unable to trade at sea due to the blockade also received tasks assigned by the royal family at this time.

The ships that had been moored for a long time started paddling again. Under the coordination of the Ministry of Land Transportation, the merchants fulfilled their obligations and transported materials to the north at the fastest speed through inland river shipping.

When the King returned to the Rose Palace, the preparatory work was almost completed.

“Let’s go.”

The King said to the Master of Households who came in for orders.

He wasn’t even going to wait for daylight.

The night was dark.

On the tallest tower in the city, a figure stood silently.

Ordinary people couldn’t stand at such a high place safe and sound in such a strong and cold wind, and he was indeed not an ordinary person.

The cold wind was blowing the Devil’s black coat, and he was holding a black umbrella in one hand. Ever since he invited the King to visit Hell, he seemed to have always carried this umbrella with a hidden sword with him. These days, he carried out the King’s order to clean up the plague along the southeast coast, and he seemed to be extremely busy, such that he hadn’t showed up in front of the King for a long time.

However, the fact that he was standing here silently at this time showed that things didn’t seem to be like that.

It seemed that he no longer needed to go to every location to open the gate of Hell in such a troublesome way as he did in the beginning.

All the birds perched around the tower disappeared. The little birds that used to hide under the warm eaves were more keen than humans. The Devil stood here, so the surroundings became silent.

The Devil watched the King’s carriage roll away in the heavy snow to go to the war that belonged to the monarch.

He held a crimson rose as usual in his hand.

“You are as stubborn as ever.”

The Devil seemed a little worried, and he raised the rose in the direction where the King was leaving.

“I won’t be able to follow you for the time being, so…..”

“Good luck.”

After finishing speaking, he bowed slightly and turned into a group of black butterflies.

The black butterflies, which seemed fragile enough to tear in the wind, flew into the sky like a cloud of black mist, followed the strong airflow, and quickly headed towards Bressi. When the Holy Court was about to establish a country on the other side of the strait, the Devil belonging to Hell stepped into the future Kingdom of God.

He went to retrieve something that should have belonged to the King.

After all……

He once told his dear King a little lie: there was no fate line, there was no so-called fate that originally belonged to Pureland.

Because——

Those were the King’s fate, another fate.

…………

Northland, Newcastle.

Rebels surrounded the royal castle.

The rebel forces conducting this siege were well equipped. At this time, on the battlefield outside the city, tall and heavy-rod trebuchets were pushed onto the battlefield. The soldiers shouted and turned the winch, and slowly lowered the empty boom. When the boulders were in place, the man with the ax on the side cut the rope.

The wooden winch turned rapidly, the trebuchet made a creaking sound, and the end loaded with heavy objects fell heavily. At the same time, with a huge whistling sound, the boulder was thrown high and smashed into the towers of Newcastle which had perforations made for archers.

Who the hell knew which psychopath was responsible for the design of Newcastle!

The guy practically wanted to arm the castle to the teeth, so that he could build a hedgehog——fortunately, the castle was still some distance from completion, and the north tower was only a prototype.

Otherwise, they forget about being able to capture the castle in a short time.

While the general of the rebel army cursed at the castle, he never imagined that Mr. Architect, who wanted to arm the castle to the teeth, was actually standing on the city wall at this moment.

“What the hell are you doing on the city wall!”

The commander blocked the falling gravel with a shield, and dragged James, who was almost killed by the boulder, to a safer place.

When the soldiers told him that James had also climbed the city wall, the commander almost went crazy from anger at this guy.

Right now, huge boulders were whistling by, the defenders of the city and the people in the tower might be crushed to death at any time, so what was this little architect doing here?! Did he want to die?

James spat a few times to get the sand in his mouth out, and grabbed a pen to quickly write and draw on his papers: “There are errors in the design versus actual combat! Only by seeing it with your own eyes can you make more appropriate changes…..The location of the towers is not rational enough.”

The commander snatched the pen from his hand and threw it out.

Boom, another loud explosive sound came.

Everyone standing behind the protective wall felt the vibration under their feet. Several boulders had hit the city wall. The commander cursed, and glanced out of the city through the peephole. When the trebuchets continuously fired boulders, the enemy had already surged over like a tide, and tall siege ladders were pushed onto the battlefield, quickly approaching the city wall.

Taking advantage of the attack from the trebuchet, the enemy had already planned to forcibly capture this place from the weak point of the castle.

Seeing that the ladder tower had pushed past the trench that was filled in yesterday, and the top of the city wall was about to become a battlefield of hand-to-hand combat, the commander didn’t have any more time to argue with James. He pointed to two of his own soldiers.

“Take this guy down for me! Throw him into the secret passage!”

The commander said.

At this time, someone came up with hot oil, and poured the hot oil onto the wooden ladder on the wall. The commander took the lit torch from the person next to him and threw it towards the ladder.

The flames wound around the siege ladder like a snake from top down, and the enemies standing on the ladder howled and fell off mid-air.

“Take him away!”

The commander threw away his shield, grabbed his bow, and began shooting the enemy.

“I don’t have the money to hire a second castle architect for the King!”

The air was filled with the smell of burnt wood, the strong stench of blood, and the smell of burnt human flesh…..The sky was full of smoke and dust, and the flames of war filled the air. There was another loud bam, and a tower next to them collapsed, and even the soldiers in the tower were drowned in the rock ruins.

The castle was unfinished and won’t last long.

The commander held up his shield, but still a piece of gravel grazed his cheek, and blood rolled down. He licked his own blood.

He waited for the second tower to fall.

But the expected collapse did not happen.

“It’s reinforcements!”

“Reinforcements are coming!”

“Reinforcements are coming——”

Shouts of joy echoed from the city wall, and the soldiers cheered.

The commander was taken aback, and he looked up.

A team of horses were galloping this way, their iron hooves trampling the ground, and kicking up the snow into the air, looking like billowing smoke. Through this snow-white smoke, the scarlet royal banner surged like a raging tide, accompanied by the clanging of iron armor. The scarlet and silver torrent in the horizon appeared more and more clearer in everyone’s vision.

This cavalry was like a bloody whirlwind passing across the ground, approaching the battlefield in an instant.

The rebel army stopped their siege on the city of Newcastle, and quickly pulled back and gathered, wanting to meet the cavalry that had suddenly arrived.

The sound of sharp arrows piercing the air could be heard.

Those were Legrand’s most elite longbowmen, and they took the lead in attacking the enemy after they came into range.

“Defense——”

The battlefield was always changing rapidly, and those who were on the offensive side at the last moment have become the prey of others in a blink of an eye.

Yes, the prey!

The cavalry that came with the scarlet royal banner formed a crescent-like battle formation, encircling the rebels outside the city of Newcastle. After the armored cavalry arrived on the battlefield, they charged directly without taking any rest, giving the impression that this was a tyrannical beast, and the rebel army was its prey.

Iron armor met iron armor, and blood splattered, red like the royal banner that was whipping fiercely in the air.

“Who is it!”

The general of the rebel army tried to organize a counter-charge, but the enemy came so suddenly and so swiftly that his army, caught off guard, was scattered and was now being trampled upon by the enemy.

Who was in command of this cavalry?!

What kind of person could lead such a brutal army?

A war horse flitted across the battlefield, and all those who were in its way were beheaded. The knight on top was like a long knife cutting across the battlefield, blood splattering on his armor.

He charged to the front of the city on his warhorse, and slashed at the rebel general with his sword.

At that moment, the rebel general saw the ice-blue eyes under his helmet visor.

In the moment of losing consciousness forever, the general of this rebel army knew who was the one leading this cavalry.

The snow was still falling in January.

The fire was still burning, and the corpses of soldiers and horses on the snow lay intertwined and in piles. The rebel army retreated northward. The cavalry who came to provide reinforcement did not pursue. With armor covered with blood, they gathered together raising the royal flag high.

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The commander standing on the city wall ordered the drawbridge to be lowered.

At the front of the cavalry, the knight who beheaded the rebel general took off his helmet. The wind blew his silver hair, his whole person as cold as iron.

The commander recognized him at a glance.

That was the lion of the empire.

The Duke of Buckingham.

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Rose Palace.

The Duke of Buckingham polished his sword slowly.

On the shelf next to him, neatly hung the set of armor that belonged to him.

When William III was still the crown prince, he wore this set of armor to go out on expeditions with his brother; when William III was crowned king, he wore this set of armor to meet the challenges of thirty-six states; after the death of William III, he wore this armor to guard the territory of the new young king; and in the civil strife during the Rose Crisis, he wore this armor to defend the throne for the king.

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Now, he would once again don this armor and fight for the King.

This was his duty as the Defender of the King.

General Johan hurried in: “Everything is ready.”

The Duke of Buckingham sheathed his sword, rose, and reached for his armor from the rack.

General Johan couldn’t help but say: “Father, let me go instead.”

When the Duke of Buckingham received the battle report from the north, as the King expected, the first thing he did was to prepare for the upcoming war. He not only made a series of preparatory work before the actual conscription, but also mobilized the royal family’s personal soldiers and the old subordinates of William III.

The soldiers transferred to the southeast by the King were the “Iron Rose” cavalry, which was expanded after October. The original royal family soldiers were still stationed in the King’s territory, waiting to fight for the King at any time.

Before heading to the southeast coast, the King not only handed over the Rose Palace to the Duke of Buckingham, but also temporarily handed over the royal family soldiers to the Duke of Buckingham.

“The stakes are high at Newcastle.”

The Duke of Buckingham stated flatly.

Although the conscription order had been issued, it would still take some time to start mobilizing food and horses from all over the place. And Newcastle in the Northland was currently under siege by the enemy. Newcastle was the anchor of the royal family nailed by Legrand in the Northland, and it couldn’t be breached no matter what.

Newcastle was controlled by Legrand, whether it was advancing or defending, it provided a fortress to rely on.

Once the castle falls, the royal family would lose a vital barrier and throat.

The rebels in the North also knew this, and they were trying their best to capture Newcastle at this time. Legrand couldn’t afford to wait for the time for conscription, nor could it afford to gamble on whether Newcastle could hold its ground until the army came.

Therefore, the Duke of Buckingham decided to personally lead the royal family soldiers and those trusted old subordinates to break the siege of Newcastle.

Today was the day of departure.

“Where are you standing now?” The Duke of Buckingham took off his helmet, and he turned to look at his son.

“The Rose Palace.”

General Johan was a little puzzled as to why his father suddenly asked such a question, but he answered anyway.

“This is the Rose Palace, and this is the heart of the kingdom.” The Duke of Buckingham snapped, “My royal brother entrusted it to me, now His Majesty entrusted it to me, and now I entrust it to you on behalf of His Majesty. You must always remember, where you stand, you must always remember that even if you must sacrifice everything, you must still guarantee its safety.”

“Yes, father.”

General Johan suddenly became solemn, and he stood up straight.

“I swear to defend the palace to the death.”

“After the army is assembled, the army gathered on the conscription order issued by the monarch can only be led by His Majesty himself. When His Majesty and I are not in the Rose Palace, you must do what you said today.” After finishing speaking, the Duke of Buckingham opened his arms and gently hugged his son.

General Johan stood frozen.

In his memory, his father had never acted so gently. He grew up listening to his father’s glory, and witnessed his father’s battles again and again, and his victorious returns. Armor, sword, and war constitute all his memories of his father.

“His Majesty told me.”

The Duke of Buckingham let go of him and patted him on the shoulder.

“The Battle of Keven is not your fault.”

The old knight who had followed his father for many years put on the armor for the Duke of Buckingham.

The entire set of armor soaked in countless blood was completely worn on the Duke of Buckingham, and the steel and murderous aura revived on the Duke of Buckingham. He became that majestic Lion of the Empire again, striking fear in enemies alike. He was the “defender” of the King, and all those who provoked the King’s authority would be trampled into mud by his cavalry.

The fierce lion was never old!

The Duke of Buckingham strode out of the Rose Palace.

The torrent of iron armor gathered in front of the gate of the palace, and the soldiers of the Rose royal family stood quietly under the sky. Dozens of scarlet royal banners were unfurled in the wind, like a wave of surging blood. Foremost among them were some knights with gray hair on their temples, but they were more to be feared than the young knights.

“Set off!”

The Duke of Buckingham mounted his horse.

The armor reflected the scorching sunlight, the King’s flag fluttered, the iron torrent went from still to movement, and the knights galloped out following the Duke of Buckingham on their horses, horseshoes kicking up snow.

This was the cavalry of the Rose family!

…………

When the Duke of Buckingham led his own troops to the north, tall catapults were set up in the cities along the southeast coast of Legrand.

This was the order of the King.

The plague ships that crossed the Abyss Strait at the beginning of the new year met the royal fleet first. After receiving the secret letter from Ferri III, the King ordered the strengthening of the sea blockade, and the urgently expanded royal fleet patrolled the coast more closely than before.

Before the plague ships could approach land, the royal fleet hurled boulders and sank them.

However, compared with the entirety of the long coastline, the patrol of the royal fleet was limited after all. Still some of the plague ships approached land and managed to hurl some corpses into the city.

However, fortunately, there was already an example of the Koszoya plague incident, and various cities now have a model on how to deal with the plague.

Once a corpse was thrown into the city, the drawbridges at each city gate were immediately lowered, and the city was immediately sealed off. After the Koszoya plague, other cities also stepped up their cleaning of the city, and imitated Koszoya to lay sewage, which more or less played a certain role in curbing the epidemic.

But it was the King who really kept the people calm.

Not so long ago, the King succeeded in saving Koszoya from the plague. And currently, the King was in the southeast. This allowed the people to maintain a precious calmness and rationality in the face of the outbreak of the Black Death, and it did not turn into panic.

The plague ships did bring a lot of trouble to the southeast of Legrand in early January.

During that time, cities in the southeast were infected with the plague one after another.

During that time, the King’s carriage was on the road almost every day. In a day, the King spent nearly a third of his time rushing from one city to the next. Thanks to the King, the royal fleet, and the countermeasures of various cities, the Black Death was gradually brought under control along the southeast coast of Legrand.

The wheels of the carriage crushed the snow on the road.

The Master of Households just delivered the letter from the Rose Palace to the King.

The King massaged his forehead with one hand and took up the letter with the other.

The letter was written by his cousin, General Johan.

In the letter, General Johan informed the King that the Duke of Buckingham led his own soldiers to go out and temporarily handed over the Rose Palace to him. At the end of the letter, General Johan made a request to the King.

——He asked to be the King’s “defender”.

The King looked at General Johan’s nervous wording at the end of the letter, smiled slightly, put the letter paper on the low table in the carriage, and wrote an agreement to General Johan’s request with his pen.

“The lowland countries…..”

After writing his reply to General Johan, the King leaned against the wall of the carriage wearily. During this period of time, the frequent opening of the gates of hell was also a big burden for the King.

The specific battle reports of the Northland were also sent to the King.

After seeing that the Newcastle rebels had excellent equipment, the King already understood what was going on.

The lowland countries and the northern part of Legrand faced each other across the sea. Of course, the lowland countries, famous for their “sea sailing ships”, had the ability to secretly send weapons and equipment supporting the rebels to the northern part of Legrand under the cover of merchant ships. This was not something that could be accomplished overnight.

This rebellion in the Northland had been planned for a long time.

It seems that the Holy Court had been preparing for a long time in order to make Legrand fall into the flames of war, and had no time to take into account the establishment of the Holy Court’s kingdom.

The carriage stopped.

This was the end of this “plague” journey, the last port city to be infected on a large scale.

As he rushed to each infected city, the King had issued an order:

He demanded that all coastal cities carry out self-defense activities against the plague. Every day, every city must send people to keep watch on the approaching plague ships from the observation tower. And every city must set up trebuchets. Once non-royal warships approached, they could be directly sunk without any communication.

If such an order was issued before the plague harassed Legrand, it would definitely encounter a lot of criticism and resistance on the grounds of “humaneness”.

However, these coastal cities have now been exposed to the Black Death in unprecedented close quarters. Even if there were “merciful people” who wanted to speak out, they would be drowned out by other voices who were more concerned about their own safety.

The cities reduced the risk of being infected, and the King dealt with cities which were caught off guard and became infected…..Under such a dual response, the predicted “dead fish” failed to approach the coast of Legrand, and the plague was brought under control.

When the preparations for food and supplies were completed, and the conscripted knights were gathered from all over the country, the King would leave the stable southeast and go north to join the war in person.

In the cold wind, the King stepped out of the carriage.

He raised his head and looked at the Royal Rose flag flying in the convoy.

Why did the Rose family finally choose “scarlet” as their signature color?

——Because the flag of a country was always stained with blood.

………………

What was war?

Blood, fire, glory.

These were the things that those in power, the chess players, have.

But for ordinary people caught in the flames of war, and others——the groaning wounded, the lying corpses, the indiscernible hatred.

The flames of war that started at the end of 1432 spread across the Northland, like a huge monster, devouring life little by little. The market town Legrand set up in Newcastle was also swept into this rebellion.

The outer wall of the fortress of the town was pushed down, and the victorious rebels rode into the town where people of Legrands had settled here on their horses. Merchants in the market, civilians…..men, women, and children were slaughtered, and their wealth was looted. Then flames blazed through the wailing settlements.

Brier was such a settlement town established by Legrand in the Northland.

Three days ago, the Northland rebels captured it, and a scene of disaster unfolded in this ordinary town.

“Abbot.”

Two young priests in black robes hurried into the Brier Abbey carrying a stretcher.

This modest monastery was the only place that survived the war, and the rebels did not step into the monastery. When the city was captured, many nearby people hid in the monastery, and Abbot Anil sheltered them.

At this time, the monastery was full of the groans of the wounded, and new stretchers already had to be placed out in the yard. The priests had been picking their way among the ruins these days, collecting the corpses for the dead, and bringing back those who were still alive to the monastery.

Rescuing the sick and the wounded was as much a maxim written into St. Ben’s Rules as giving to the poor.

God loved the world, so He required His believers to love the world too.

Father Anil, the abbot of Brier Abbey, came out quickly. Together with the priests, he washed the wounds of the wounded and read a short passage from the Holy Book.

After the new wounded were settled, Abbot Anil returned to the cross.

These days, his face was always covered with sadness.

“Abbot.”

The young Father Remy followed him, speaking out anxiously.

“What you feared happened.”

Abbot Anil raised his hand and drew a sign of the cross on his chest, and said painfully, “This is a sin.”

The accents of Abbot Anil and Father Remy both have the trace of the east side of the Abyss Strait.

More than 20 years ago, Abbot Anil was the youngest theological genius in the Holy See, and he was considered to be the youngest cardinal in the history of the Holy See. However, Father Anil, who had a promising future, made a voice in the Holy Court that was contrary to the Pope and the Holy Court.

——He demanded that “the Holy Court should return to purity.”

Father Anil believed that over the years, some actions of the Holy Court have violated the purpose of the Holy Court.

He advocated that the clergy should abide by asceticism, meditate quietly, oppose the sale of clergy positions, and oppose the participation of clergy in power struggles. In 1411 at the Holy See Whitsunday Castle Conference, Father Anil protested against the interpretation of the Confessions by the Pope-led conference.

Soon, the Pope ordered his trial at Vinocen Castle.

In court, Father Anil successfully refuted the accusation of being a “heretic” by the bishops’ conference, and his use of quotations from the holy books and many Holy Court classics were simply outstanding. In fact, his brilliant rebuttal even won him some supporters.

The Holy Court couldn’t find any reason to burn him at the stake, and in the end he could only be exiled from the power center of the Holy Court to Legrand’s Northland to serve as a humble abbot. Some of his followers crossed the raging abyss with him, and they lived a life of ascetics in the desolate north of Legrand.

These people, headed by Father Anil, successively established dozens of monasteries in the Northland. They formed a faction that followed the principles “one should not rely on authority to oppress the poor without reason; trials should be impartial and selfless, orphans and widows should be supported, and the poor should be helped as much as they could economically.” These became their tenets.

For twenty years.

Now, what Abbot Anil worried about at the beginning had truly happened.

These days, he watched in pain as the battle unfolded across the Abyss Strait and swept across the land.

Those who hold power, they pushed the torrent of history, but——

They wanted to establish the kingdom of God, but where do they leave those who were merciful, compassionate, and pious?

Like these pious young people in the monastery, their dedication and sacrifice, these love, would be overwhelmed by war and hatred.

What were they going to do? What would happen to them? How many people would be involved, and would be easily crushed into dust?

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“Holy Lord! This is our sin.”

The abbot, who already had white hair, knelt down and pressed his forehead to the cold ground.

The young priest looked at him kneeling silently before the cross, and at that moment, he thought he saw an icon.

The power of God lied not in the stake and the sword, but in love.

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