Blood tax

Chapter 502 That's your heaven, but it's a hell for mortals

In Bayeran in the middle of May, the sun had already set in the clouds floating on the strait at dusk, and golden rays of light emerged from the cracks of the clouds, reflecting a splendid brilliance on the quiet stone wall by the sea.

The carriages in the city also became golden, crossing the stone bridge and the vines hanging from the terrace, and stopping in front of a white palace.This elegant palace was once the garden of a certain queen, with wisteria planted between the white walls and white sand, like sapphires in a jade plate, attracting bursts of admiration from the guests.

Griffith jumped out of the carriage, habitually pressed the saber on his waist, and stretched out his arm.

"Intoxicating love, Yiyi's longing," said the countess, looking at the wisteria on the wall, "Queen Margaret wanted to bury her and her lover in this garden before she was killed."

"However, the Praetorian Guard refused her, and without even waiting for the king's statement, the senate was so frightened that they hurriedly issued a subsidy." Griffith held her small white hand and let Sonia hold her.

Several viscounts and councillors passed by with their wives, and glanced here very unpleasantly.

In the past two days, Byelan's social circles have been saying that the daughter of the Lamor family is engaged to her knight.The lucky soldier somehow became the Hand of God and Captain of the Banner, and was rewarded with the Pearl of Byelan as a reward for his loyalty.The generous Senate is about to appoint him commander of an army of the South to invade troll territory.

That's the South, full of monarchs' minions and Confederate rebels, with endless benefits...

Tonight is the first time that Captain Qi and his fiancee have officially attended the social world. The dresses, carriages, and jewelry are all the best, and the eyes of several ladies are set on fire.

"Good evening, Your Excellency, Countess."

Griffith greeted the newly arrived Earl and Countess of Larmor.The count with a sullen face like a thunderstorm snorted, and then was pulled away by the smiling countess.

A week ago, Sonia went home alone and had a big fight with Earl Lamor.Tonight, she walks beside the sworn enemies of the Byelan gentlemen, the vicious Lancers, the so-called Knights of Ravenel.

"This brunette bastard!"

General MacDonald muttered bitterly.

"But he's very manly, and he's so young, no wonder the goddess of victory favors him~" The general's wife waved her fan and gave her girlfriends a look.

"Who doesn't like a strong man?" Another lady stared at Griffith's stalwart body, and swept away the bad mood when she saw Sonia. "I have to talk to him, the traitor in the South The thief owns many plantations that produce sugar white as snow."

General Macdonald was about to lose his breath.He suffered a crushing defeat in Verona, and the 19-year-old in front of him took the victory back with a few thousand rabble.The mentally retarded Senate even let this little bastard be the vanguard, entrusting him with the heavy responsibility of attacking Commodus.

"I'll bet there's something wrong with the little bastard," said the General. "He got so close to those pointy ears that he's suddenly a Lamour man."

"Don't talk too much," Earl Urenas reminded warmly, "without his and Tiberion's darlings, those mobs would listen to Danton's pamphlet, rush in and drop us all on the streetlights. I On the way here, I saw them watching us from the bridge and the alley."

"He's a lucky nouveau riche, and even with an ancient surname, he won't become as equal as a true noble." The general insisted on his opinion.

"He is the hand of God, and I am afraid he is more equal than us."

Griffith ignored the murmurs of jealousy and stepped into the vine-covered path in the garden.The palace leads to the ruins of the arena by the sea, where negotiations between the Senate and the Confederacy are published.

Sonia was almost on his arm, the dress was about to fall under her shoulders.She quietly and curiously introduced the passing Confederate representatives to the knights:

"That's Dan Dong."

"I know, he wrote "The Origin of the Blood Tax," replied Griffith, "and if the gentlemen of the Confederacy were terrified, Danton would make them brave again."

"Don't say that, there are still many brave and wise people in the Confederacy," Sonia introduced another with some reverence. "That was a wise man who wrote The Social Contract."

Griffith glanced in the direction of the girl's gesture, and found that this great wise man was overjoyed because the Duke of the South was talking to him.

"Isn't this an upstart?" Griffith shook his head, "While advocating the republic and equality, he also showed off his knowledge because the Duke changed the direction of his walk. He was dissatisfied and criticized only because he was not one of them. one."

If the gentlemen of the Confederacy are all such things, how can they be expected to rebel against the nobles of Bayeran?
"Don't say that," Sonia said softly. "It would be great if there were no wars, no cruel things that were about to happen."

She couldn't keep whispering to her knights, and her big sky blue eyes fell on the people around her, saying hello to the colorful celebrities.

Countess Elena spent a week making the whole Bayeran society quarrel over the marriage.Archon Xia Long asked the elders of the military mouth to propose a proposal to prepare more troops and Beyonders for Griffith, so that he could fight the first battle with Commodus without the supervision of the Legion Commander!
No matter how the other consul, Tyberion, favored his own son of prophecy, the Senate passed a resolution that Griffith was given the best new army, armed with flintlocks, cannons, and a Squadron of Stormwinds. Wait for some well-trained old troops.They will board the ship in the near future and go to the southern provinces to assemble and wait for dispatch.

Who would dislike having too many cards in their hand?This is the sacrifice of the chosen one, and the winner will summon a miracle.

The Sequence 4 psychic "Foresight" Gryffindell, and the Sequence 4 demon hunter "Guardian of Order" Ms. Edina Lightblade have made it clear that they will support the banner captain and send reliable demon hunters, including other A hand of God Erza Valkyrie.

In this way, although Sonia initially prepared to threaten her family with support by marrying Griffith, but, not knowing what happened during the discussion, Griffith suddenly had a large group of allies.

The dinner has begun.

With the cloud of war looming over Bayeran, the Confederate ambassadors were invited to meet with the Senate for final consultations.

This is the last chance to avoid a full-blown civil war.Both parties seemed to be doing their best, and Bayeran invited all his friends and offered the best hospitality.The gray-haired consul Tiberion raised his wand and toasted the great men present:
"Through this meeting, we hope that the gentlemen of the Confederacy will understand—

"What magic gives us will go beyond this skin, picking up a few shells on the seaside of the mystery of knowledge, so bright and happy.

"Our future is the golden age of magic civilization!
"Let's call for peace and embrace the future with peace. This is the responsibility of our generation."

The principal really pinned all his hopes on magic, hoping that Aaron would come with a miracle and make everything all right... Griffith regretfully looked at the Magic Supreme on the observation deck.

"Lord Tyberion," shouted the great men present, "please tell us when the miracle will come."

"Let's keep some little secrets." The demigod is like a naughty child, kind and kind, and he can't see that he is worried about the next situation, "We have experienced a hard day, at least, let the night be able to eat delicious food. and spend it with joy."

The flamboyantly dressed Confederate delegates sat upright with serious or nervous expressions on their faces.

In front of them are pearly caviar, emerald oysters and Iberian ham, all delicacies sent from all over the world.

"Hmm-huh," the fellow member of the Arcane Council, Lord Osidis, took a sip, "The raw fish from Xihai is really delicious.

"Sadly, the habitat of these cute little fish is being horribly eroded, the steam engines called 'industrial', the soot making our throats sick, the sewage from indigo and paper mills is dyeing our world, If we can calm down and slow down, we can see clearly the golden age guided by Lord Tiberion.

"Isn't it nice to be there, with pure air, streams, fields and poetry, away from noise and ugliness?"

Griffith put down the knife and fork he had just picked up.No one speaks.

The meeting during the day was a closed-door meeting of high-level and Confederate representatives. The results have not yet been released. Sequence 5 "Mysterious Lord" Osidis has already told everyone the results with actions.

"No offense, dear lords."

Dandong stood up, and the Confederate representative beside him reached out to pull, but did not hold it.

"Wizards and lords," Danton said, "you yearn for tranquility, but the people need industry.

"I understand that you hate steam engines, steamboats, coal, and dyes, because the gentlemen don't need the products of the factories, and the factories pollute the gentlemen's air.

"However, ordinary people need it.

"Those who can't become Beyonders, those who farm in the countryside, those who do laundry and cleaning for you, those who carry luggage at the port need cheap sausages, sausages made of starch and viscera, and clothes of linen and cotton.

"They need brown bread, three centimes of brown bread, fried chicken with so much oil that it overflows.

"Caviar, oysters and prime beef, it's not something they can focus on.

"Poetry and serenity in your mouth - only those who do not work in muddy water, who are not emptied by blood-sucking worms, who are not bitten by gadflies, will feel good.

"You celebrate serenity and embrace mystery because you can drink Pasha wine with or without industry.

"But what about ordinary people's gooseberries?
"Those ordinary people who are called 'Muggles' and can't touch the mystery for a lifetime, 90.00% of the world's population, what should we do?
"Do they deserve to live in muddy water for the rest of their lives?

"They deserve to be chasing the old man on vacation for some candy and a piece of old clothes.

"They can leave out the wine and mink and ham, but do they have to wait until Frost for a new pair of socks?

"Should ordinary people die in peace and poetry?
"Ordinary people deserve no industrial products, just for the beautiful world in the eyes of Lord Osiris?

"It's your heaven, but it's mortal hell."

Dandong sat back in his seat.For a moment, he felt uncomfortable and got up and left the table.

Griffith put his hand on the saber, and he didn't put his hand back on the table until the knights and Extraordinary guarding the hall retreated.He looked at Lord Tiberion, only to see that there was no longer a kind smile in the elder's eyes.

Civil war.

Yes, there will be only civil war if the miracle does not come...

After the dinner was over, all the bigwigs present put on serious expressions and went to a gladiatorial arena by the sea.

This is a forbidden place.In ancient times, the rulers of Bayeran fought slaves and prisoners of war here.Withered blood smeared on the walls and the ground, it has become a filthy darkness.

Lord Tyberion invited his darling:
"Fangcai, Mr. Dandong taught us a lot of truths.

"Each of us has the freedom of thought, and our understanding of truth will be somewhat different.

"Come here, Aaron, dear student, the gentlemen of the Confederacy are waiting for you,
"Gentlemen, once a hand of a god is defeated, or the godhead that bears authority is shattered, the power in it will be distributed among the remaining elect. The proportion of the distribution depends on the characteristics of the elect. Aaron, My lovely student, show us... we can't wait."

Griffith's heart suddenly tightened.An acupuncture-like crisis swept through the body.He clearly remembered that, at the end of the battle at Verona, Aaron shattered the almost indestructible Primarch with just a spell.

Everyone was looking forward to seeing the Son of Prophecy appear in the center of the demonstration field.However, they only saw hundreds of strong orcs and trolls in full armor appearing in the arena below.

These prisoners of war were on high alert, waiting for the humans to wrestle themselves.One of the particularly strong orcs beat his chest:

"I am the blood warrior of the warchief,

"Humans, send your warriors to fight me!"

No one answered him.

The almost insane roar of the wind roared horribly through the valley, getting louder and louder, with meaningful and eerie pauses.

Suddenly, there was a strange cry, completely unlike the strange sound that the throat of a living creature can make.Towns on the other side of the strait were woken up by the screeching noise, and people were in a commotion, thinking they were suffering from a nightmare.

The scream was not from the creatures of this world.Griffith clenched his saber tightly, protecting Sonia behind him, and caught a glimpse of the big people around him who were shielding him with pale faces, and some of them were already running outside.

The sound eventually turned into an echo mixed with groans and growls, tearing at the human mind, even a superhuman could not bear it.

Aaron showed up.He appeared at the other end of the arena, wearing a robe, holding a wand and pointing at the blood warrior.

"Oh!"

The blood warriors who shouted furiously were beaten into a cloud of blood.

Aaron's offensive abilities include beams formed by intense flashes.The creature hit is instantly shattered.

"A childish demonstration," commented Consul Xialong. "We all know that Aaron's attack is very strong. Wizards are all glass cannons, which can't scare the Confederacy."

The remaining orcs and trolls immediately launched a frantic attack.

The orb deployed next to Aaron will automatically release refraction, constantly jumping between enemies who come to melee.Unlike regular Chain Lightning, Refraction's damage actually doubles as it bounces.From the perspective of killing power, the third bounce will cause a certain kill to creatures below the extraordinary.

Surrounding Aaron was a number of black mists, and it was impossible to see the reality in it.However, all the orcs in the arena immediately became mad when they approached these black mists, screaming and running without thinking.Once they touched the black fog, they flew out as if they had hit a battle cruiser.

Aaron doesn't even need to cast spells.One of his glances was an attack, and even if he stood still, a strong orc couldn't cut through his shield.He just stood there, tearing apart the prisoners of war unhurriedly.

This disgusting slaughter scared most of the people away. Archon Xia Long shook his head and said to everyone: "The powerful defense created by high-density psionic energy has no technical content."

As soon as he finished speaking, a male servant who was serving at the scene suddenly levitated and floated into the arena.

Immediately afterwards, another large group of mutant monsters poured out from the exit and rushed towards Aaron with the remaining prisoners of war.

"For our believers, praise."

As an ordinary man, the manservant swelled up in the blink of an eye, taller and more majestic than the legion centurion, and a solid psychic shield was added to his body.

"attack."

Aaron ordered.

I saw the servant pick up two wooden sticks, and instantly enchanted them with a magma-like fiery fire.He roared wildly, rushed into the midst of the monsters like a hurricane, and reaped like a windmill.

The demonstration continues, with Aaron possessing the ability to empower mortals with psionic powers that can instantly turn mortals into terrifying killing machines.He can even set up a psionic stance on the battlefield, buckling allies to their stance.

If he empowers low-level wizards and Beyonders, he can make them create small black hole-like explosive vortexes to smash enemies into pieces, or have a shield penetration like a city wall.Low-level wizards can release lightning storms of extraordinary wizards with his blessing.

His attacks are terrifying, his defenses are nearly indestructible, but, most importantly, he can create terrifying warriors in no time if he is willing to give psionic praise.

He alone is an army.

Griffith stared silently at the terrifying Son of Prophecy, then turned to look at the Confederate representatives in attendance, whose faces were solemn.Aaron's offense and defense was almost a restraint plan for the new Confederate army.

Archon Xia Long turned his head in embarrassment and said to his friends:
"Tybrion and I have said that the Son of Prophecy will bring a balance of light and darkness.

"I don't think he made it clear. I wonder if he meant,
"Kill both the light and the dark sides, and the world will be balanced."

(End of this chapter)