In Luan City, the square in front of the church area is crowded with people.
Two days have passed since that unprecedented battle, but the whole city is still shrouded in a strange fiery atmosphere. For the citizens of Luan City, this is the first time that they have used their own hands to fight for their own second life The power to go on, for those people and brave people from all over the southern border, this is the first time that they, regardless of origin, regardless of status, gathered together without the lord's whip and sword, and for a great goal. Action And today is the day when all their actions bear fruit.
People gathered in the square, everyone had a high-spirited and eager look on their faces, and their eyes fell on the front of the square, because a high platform had been set up there, and on the high platform were tied the old and powerful Priests.
The judge turned into the judged, regardless of all axioms and morals, this matter itself is enough to stimulate the excitement of many people.
This is a trial, but it is different from the countless heresy trials that have been conducted in Luan City. Its process and form may seem very novel and incomprehensible to the locals. It is a three-person trial court composed of a white knight, a judge Cecil, and an arbitration consultant, and besides the three-person trial court, there are many jurors sitting next to the high platform:
Some of those people wore the priest's robes, and some people recognized them as the priests in the small church in Luan City. These priests were once punished with the civilians in the heresy trial square, and they also served as allies when they stormed the cathedral. Therefore, although they are priests, they still received a lot of friendly eyes; the other part is ordinary civilians who put on clean and decent clothes. faces; the last part was from Cecil's clerks.
These people are called the "jury". They are the witnesses and supervisors of this trial, and they are also representatives of witnesses from all walks of life of this incident.
This wonderful and complicated form of trial is something that the Luan people have never seen before, but it undoubtedly exudes an atmosphere of fairness and reliability As a witness, to supervise the entire process of the trial, for the Luan people who have only known the "heretical trial" all their lives, this new "rule" from Cecil even made them feel a little shocked.
And for those priests who are tied to the high platform and are waiting for the trial, the feeling may not be so good.
These priests who have survived to this day are almost looking at the square below in fear, looking at those untouchables who could only crawl in the mud in the past, they feel that the eyes of those people even have real heat, want to He burned himself alive on this high platform.
They were not stoned to death by the raging crowd two days ago, and they were not killed on the spot by the white knights and volunteer mercenaries, and now they finally realized that they survived not because of luck, but because they had "other uses" .
The Cecilians let them live to this day, just to make them die today.
"The quiet public trial begins now."
The "judge" next to the high platform spoke. This is a middle-aged administrative officer from the Cecil region. He was once a well-known scholar in the Kant region, but now he wants to judge in the name of Grand Duke Gao Wen and the people of the southern border The fact that he was the spokesman for the Church of the Holy Light in the southern border made his face tense, trying to hide all the tension and emotional fluctuations under his solemn face.
After introducing the two sides of the trial, the members of the trial court, and the jurors according to the law of Cecil, the judge looked at the leader of the White Knight sitting next to him. Because this is a trial involving the church, Wright, as a Protestant The representative of the representative came to the trial court in person and noticed the judge's signal. The tall "Patriarch" wearing white knight armor slowly stood up.
There was a slight commotion in the square immediately. Many people had seen this white knight in the "Battle of Dawn" two days ago. He was nearly two meters tall, and his mighty and majestic white knight armor was full of blood. The holy light, these distinctive features impressed Wright deeply in the minds of the citizens of Luan.
Wright beckoned to the square, and then looked at the priests in the center of the platform. He noticed the fear and tension in the eyes of the latter, but his expression remained unchanged.
He put his hand on his chest and solemnly swore: "I am Wright, the Patriarch of the Protestant Church of the Holy Light, and I hereby swear in the name of the Holy Light that I will guarantee the fairness and truthfulness of this trial, and that it conforms to the sacredness of Cecil." The people will supervise all my words and deeds here.”
This "public trial" that will surely be recorded in the annals of history has begun.
At the beginning, many people thought that this trial would be a "penalty performance" of eye-for-eye and eye-for-eye. They believed that those Luan priests would be tied to the stake and burned to death, just like their It had been done to many innocents, but in truth, the trial strictly followed Cecil's laws.
Judge Cecil and other members of the trial court clearly pointed out the crimes committed by the Luan priests, embezzling public property, killing innocent lives, deceiving the people, and blaspheming the holy light... The civilians were brought to the stage by Cecil's soldiers. They went to testify against the priests and confirm the crimes. The trial court showed the accounts, files and letters of the priests found in the cathedral on the spot, especially those from the north. The church's "heretical settlement order" to confirm the authenticity of all crimes...
People watched this trial with a strange emotion. They couldn't wait to see those Luan priests burned immediately. ", they felt a more vivid and powerful emotion than pure revenge.
They want to see those Luan priests convicted and nailed to the pillar of shame forever after being confirmed for all crimes.
They want to hear the judges pronounce the innocence of those who have been burned at random, and the innocence of their relatives and friends who have been flogged, beheaded, and branded.
They don't just want to vent, they don't just want revenge, they want justice.
This is the hardest thing for ordinary people to get in this world.
A woman with a sloping foot was helped to a high platform by soldiers. This woman's leg was broken by the Holy See knight. She let people look at her deformed leg and accused those cruel Holy See knights just because she accidentally stepped on the priest. This kind of poisonous hand was laid on the robe.
An old woman took her son to the stage, and her son could not speak because the priest ordered the young man's tongue to be cut off for "talking about the sacred words of the Holy Light"...
The trial was destined to last all day.
On the edge of the square, on the high city wall of the church area, Gawain and Amber watched the trial proceed.
"What punishment will those priests be sentenced in the end?" Amber looked down curiously, "I feel that the crimes and evidence are extremely complicated..."
Gao Wen casually replied: "All hanged, there will be no pardon."
"...It's all hanging?" Amber looked at Gao Wen in surprise, "So it was decided from the beginning?"
"According to Cecil's law, the lightest of their crimes will be hanged twice, and for the promotion of Protestantism, in order to completely eliminate the influence of the old church, these diehards cannot stay."
Amber showed a thoughtful look: "... you let them live until today, just for this trial?"
"That's right, it's for this trial," Gawain nodded slightly, "Not only must there be a trial, but the process must also be strict and fair. Even if every crime committed by those priests is enough for them to die once, they must You can die after it's over."
Amber quickly figured out Gao Wen's intention: "Is it to establish 'order'?"
"That's true," Gawain breathed out slightly, "It may be the easiest and most venting method to deal with those priests directly by letting those priests be beaten to death by the people and the white knights, or directly giving them a fire during the trial, but if If that is done, it will be no different from the 'trial of heresy', and this great battle will become a muddle-headed atrocity. In any case, we must put some of Cecil's Pass the idea to everyone, let them know that we are different from the Church of the Holy Light, and the set of heresy trials must be completely abandoned."
A voice came from behind Gao Wen and Amber: "So even if those priests and priests die, they must go through a fair trial before they die. This is the rule you made, isn't it?"
Amber turned her head to glance at the person who came, and raised her hand to say hello: "Yo, priest."
Gawain looked at the tall and thin middle-aged clergyman in a white robe, and nodded slightly: "Priest Severntree, thank you very much for your help in this operation."
The one who appeared in front of Gao Wen and Amber was none other than the leader of the chapel district, Seventree.
He didn't appear next to the high stage of the public trial, but came here, it seems that he just wanted to meet Gao Wen.
"Holy light guides us," the tall and thin priest drew the symbol of the holy seal on his chest, and he looked at Gawain with curious eyes, "You are different from what I imagined..."
Gawain smiled and looked at the priest who was praised by Wright: "What's different?"
Seventree replied very frankly: "After hearing Miss Amber's description, I thought you should be a more gloomy, colder, and more arbitrary ruler, and for the greatest benefit, you would not speak of 'justice' at all. ' Two words, but now it seems... Although you have a tough wrist, you still have your own moral principles."
Gao Wen thought for a while, then turned to look at Amber: "...what did you tell him?"
Amber was looking for an opportunity to escape in the middle of Severntree's words, but considering that it was very likely that Gawain would be thrown off the city wall by the collar the moment she escaped, she still bite the bullet She didn't run away, and she immediately yelled: "I'm not talking nonsense, it's what you usually taught me! I think this priest has problems with his understanding and imagination..."
"Just follow Rebecca's example. Your intelligence hasn't improved much, but your head is getting tougher every day." Gawain commented unceremoniously, and then looked at Seventree, "no matter what you understand from Amber's words, Whatever, I hope you can understand one thing: I am working hard to make this land and its people have a better tomorrow, and on this basis, I have no ill will toward the Holy Light."
"Wright told me the same thing, I believe in his judgment, and I also believe in my own vision at the moment," Severntree lowered his head in front of Gao Wen, "Thank you for arranging this trial, you let me see your 'Righteousness', it does not contradict the Holy Light."
Gawain accepted the priest's evaluation calmly, then turned around and looked at the spiers and towers in the church area: "We will leave soon, this city... will still be the city of the Holy Light. Wright and I It has been discussed that this city should be used as a training and research facility for Holy Light Protestantism, because it has the most Holy Light classics and the best magical environment, and it is a ready-made holy city. Since Wright will spend most of his time in Sai Therefore, he hopes that you can manage the church here for him. Of course, the management of this city will change a lot, and the church will no longer be the highest authority in the city. I will send people to establish a government office here. Hall, responsible for the operation and construction of the city, your responsibility will be limited to church affairs and corresponding facilities."
Seventree nodded: "As long as the Holy Light can continue to be spread, I have no objections."
"Very good," Gao Wen breathed a sigh of relief, "I will gradually transfer the training facilities of the White Knights here. I hope you and your colleagues can actively cooperate. As for the cathedral..."
Gawain paused when he said this. He looked at the spire of the cathedral in the distance shining in the sun, and after a while he said slowly: "Come up with a new name... called Holy Light College, which is used to popularize new ideas to the whole people. Doctrines, popularize the knowledge of the Holy Light. In the future, all institutions that research and impart the knowledge of the Holy Light should be called the Holy Light Academy, which should be distinguished from the churches that spread the teachings and provide community and neighborhood services."
Seventree's eyes changed slightly, subconsciously repeating the words Gao Wen used: "... College..."
Gao Wen smiled and looked at the priest in front of him quietly: "That's right, since it is a place to spread knowledge, of course it should be called an academy."
Seventree met Gawain's eyes, and in those eyes, he seemed to see the deep meaning behind all this
desanctification.
The Holy Light is a kind of knowledge, the belief in the Holy Light is a kind of culture, the church will become a simple service facility, and as for the belief in the God of the Holy Light...
Will it become a history class in the academy
A few seconds later, Seventree's expression became calm. He seemed to have finally let go of some burden, and seemed to have made a major decision in his life. He lowered his head again: "According to your arrangement."
The tall and thin priest left, leaving only Gawain and Amber on the city wall for a while, while the public trial of Priest Luan was still going on under the city wall.
Gao Wen didn't pursue the issue of Amber's "slandering" him behind his back, but the half-elf lady herself obviously had a lot of troubles. After several times of wanting to speak, Amber finally couldn't help but speak: "By the way... the priest said You have your own moral principles!"
Hearing the half-elf lady's obviously out of words, Gawain couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth, and he glanced at the other party: "This is nonsense, who doesn't have such things as moral principles?"
Amber scratched her head, but it was a pity that she was not Rebecca, and no matter how much she scratched her head, she couldn't get a spark of wisdom, so she could only frankly express her thoughts: "You once told me that the so-called 'noble spirit' is all Hypocrisy and outdated things, the code of chivalry has not kept up with the times, and the "doctrine of virtue" promoted by every church is also full of the smell of money and power... These things have been abandoned by you, then the justice in your mind... in the end What is it like?"
Gawain looked at Amber, seeing that pair of amber eyes glowing with an inexplicable brilliance under the sun, he found that this guy who was still annoying, noisy and cowardly had actually changed a little after this trip to LuAnn Yes, although I couldn't tell exactly what the change was, it seemed that this untamed half-elf had finally started to take her work seriously, and also began to seriously think about his career.
This is a good thing.
"Look over there, those people in the square, do you see that?"
Amber nodded: "I see."
"Everyone is fed and clothed, that is the greatest justice."
…
This is an endless and vast city, it stands in a remote and inaccessible place, it exists today, it has existed in the past, and it will always exist in the future.
The majestic holy light is the bricks and cornerstones of this city, the sky above it and the ground on which it is rooted. Every brick, every wall, every tower and door of it is condensed with brilliance and filled with endless sacredness. .
As Saint Dumont said:
I saw a huge city, endlessly wide, and light diffused from between the bricks and stones of the city, and the whole city seemed to be forged by light.
And in the center of this light-forged city, on a grand square whose size is difficult to judge with the naked eye, countless streams of light rush from the distant sky, converging on a huge crystal that is constantly changing in shape.
This brilliant and sacred crystal is running quietly, governing this light-forged city for thousands of years, and constantly spreading out all the truths contained in itself, such as tranquility, light, peace, and protection , and those streams of light gathered from everywhere are not only the source of his gathering power, but also the channel through which he releases his influence.
However, today, the eternal order in this light-forged city has slightly changed. Among the streams of light gathered from all directions, some of them have quietly changed their color and direction. It passed over the crystal in the center of the square like a control, and flowed freely in the sky to the distance...
The crystal is still running for thousands of years, and a melodious ringing like a wind chime surrounds it. The ringing sound is ethereal and holy, but it is like the most chaotic noise without any tune or law. In this chaotic and holy ringtone In the middle, the crystal just changed its shape again, as if it didn't care about the light flow in the sky that changed its direction, and didn't care about these tiny "losses"...