The fog was gradually dissipating, but still hung over the entire eastern plain.
The brilliance of the giant sun became pale and bleak in the fog, and one town after another was cut off from the fog and the strange whispers. In the city streets and in the countryside, twisted and deformed humanoid things staggered in the mist Between, as if entering the world of a nightmare, is spreading around the polluted land.
Solynburg was finally shrouded in this boundless mist.
Irregular winds are sweeping wantonly over the city, and all the flags are fluttering in the air, and more and more bad news is coming from all directions—not just the city in front of you, but also outside the city In the vast land of , all orders are rapidly collapsing.
In the castle hall, a high-ranking knight in dark steel armor is reporting the latest situation: "...we have lost all contact with the Soest area, the road is blocked by fog, and there is no news when the messenger enters the fog It came. The fortress in the direction of the Inclined Forest Valley and the Yarter Mountain briefly ignited the beacon fire in the morning, but the beacon fire was extinguished immediately, and the messenger spell was cut off.
Another high-ranking knight immediately stood up: "The situation in the city is also very abnormal. Some soldiers found wandering civilians in the outer city, and they seemed to be delirious. Some people also witnessed an unusually tall black-robed giant moving in the fog... "
While speaking, the high-ranking knight seemed to feel a little uncomfortable, and moved his shoulders and arms slightly.
At the head of the long table, Edmund's face sank like water: "How many people are we sure we can contact and mobilize now?"
The high-ranking knights and noble lords in the hall fell into an unspeakably awkward silence. After looking at each other for a short while, someone got up and replied: "It is confirmed that the condition is normal... only the two thousand guards in the castle area, and those near the castle area Two thousand soldiers stationed in two barracks."
"That is to say, because of this weird fog, there are only 4,000 of the hundreds of thousands of people in the entire East Territory Legion?"
"... yes, Your Highness."
"This is not an ordinary fog," said Duke Silas Loren. "It has traces of magical manipulation, and it is very likely that it is the product of a large-scale forbidden spell or even a divine descent ceremony."
Edmund frowned, and looked at a noble lord: "... What information is available for the Royal Army?"
The lord got up immediately: "The news from that direction has been completely cut off, Your Highness, but according to the last communication, heavy fog also appeared in the plain area controlled by the Royal Army."
After a short silence, Edmund stood up slowly, with his hands resting on the table, his eyes extremely serious: "Obviously, we are under an attack, and the attacker has mastered the power of the celestial phenomenon. Now, our mage The regiment is preparing a large-scale dispersal and purification spell. Before they complete the ceremony, you must ensure the safety of all mage towers in the inner city. Duke Lauren, the guards in the castle area will be handed over to you. In addition, please notify Belk to return to the castle immediately. "
"Yes, Your Highness."
The personnel who received the order quickly left the hall, and soon only Edmund Moen and a few guards were left in the huge main hall.
In the sudden silence, the atmosphere became more oppressive and gloomy. Wisps of mist seeped into the hall from the gaps in the windows, as if bringing some kind of twisted and crazy malice entrenched everywhere in the city. In this unbearably quiet depression, the fireplace on one side of the hall suddenly crackled.
Edmund raised his head instantly, and looked at the suddenly brightened fire...
…
On the streets of the outer city, the situation deteriorated faster than expected.
In the fog that was becoming slightly thinner, the sharp sound of metal whistling briefly broke the dead silence in the air, accompanied by a few flashes of light and a few short hoarse groans, several unusually tall creatures made of flesh and blood The humanoid monster made of crystals fell heavily to the ground.
Belk Lauren shook his slightly numb arm, shook off some dirt on the long sword, and looked at the "creatures" that fell on the ground with a frown.
They (probably should have been called 'they') are hideous, twisted and mutated, and there are accretion crystal clusters all over their bodies. After these monsters are dead, the dangerous arcane energy is still jumping between the crystal clusters, making a crackling sound. There was a crackling sound, and on these mutated and inflated monsters, some remnants of armor and clothing fragments that had been fused with the flesh and blood crystals could also be seen.
Just a few minutes ago, these "monsters" were knights and followers who followed Belk to the outer city to check the situation, but suddenly a tall black-robed monster walked out of the fog. After intersecting, they all became like this, and attacked their master frantically.
In the end what happened
While cautiously guarding the surroundings, Belk slowly moved towards the nearest military camp, while having huge questions in his mind.
He also had eye contact with that black-robed monster, but for some reason, he didn't mutate like his subordinates.
His subordinates were unknowingly cursed? Is eye contact with that black-robed monster the "key" to detonating the curse? Why are you all right
The young Marquis quietly cast a series of protective blessings and invisible armor on himself, and his sharp eyes kept scanning the streets and alleys shrouded in fog.
After "inducing" the terrifying mutation, the black-robed monster quickly left in the chaos, and is probably still lurking in a dark corner nearby. Belk is a powerful extraordinary knight, but in the face of this completely unknown He must also show the highest vigilance when confronted with strange enemies.
A burst of undisguised and chaotic footsteps suddenly came from nearby, and multiple fluctuations of magic power also appeared within the range of perception at the same time.
Belk turned around quickly, a layer of illusory hot flames had already burned on the long sword, and a group of tall mutant monsters covered in crystal clusters had already stepped out of the mist and gathered towards him—these were obviously not the kind of black robes Giants, they are obviously shorter, but still have a height of more than two meters, releasing arcane energy visible to the naked eye.
Consistent with the traits of his own mutant subordinates - these are also victims of "induced" mutations.
This thought quickly flashed through Belk's mind, and those monsters also launched an attack suddenly.
A "druid giant" stepped forward and rushed towards Belk at an astonishing speed, while the other giants either charged or raised their hands to create a powerful arcane arc—the young Marquis quickly turned around, and with a few hairs Po dodged the sharp claws that were grabbing at his shoulder and neck, and at the same time swung the long sword obliquely. The illusory flames shattered the arc that came from the air, and then the long sword continued unabated, accompanied by a tooth-piercing sound of metal collision. Lost the arm of the second druse giant.
Briefly defusing the attack, Belk immediately leaped back, put the long sword in his left hand, swung his right hand violently in the air, and a crystal clear energy blade fell from the sky, nailing the first crystal cluster giant to the ground , and a gust of chilling wind passed over the back of Belk's neck almost at the same time—he jumped forward instantly, turned around, and avoided the deadly sneak attack, and a few strands of severed hair were scattered in the air.
The attackers attacked again, and Belk raised his sword to meet him after briefly adjusting his balance.
They staggered at close range, and during the staggering of less than a hundredth of a second, a pair of eyes that had been partially transformed into crystals and surrounded by fine crystal clusters flashed before Belk's eyes.
He was a little stunned, and vaguely felt that those eyes looked familiar...
…
A woman wearing a green priest's gown, with a beautiful and dignified upper body, but hideous plant roots on the lower body, walked slowly out of the flames, walking towards Edmund Moen step by step.
Edmund, who was wearing black armor and a wolf fur cloak, stood behind the table, staring at the woman who came out of the flames, and at the female headmaster of the Society of the End of Everything.
"All of this is your conspiracy?" He said in a deep voice, before he finished speaking, a black sharp sword appeared in his hand.
At the same time, he noticed that the attendants and guards standing not far away did not respond, as if they had fallen into some kind of hypnotic state, and hadn't noticed the appearance of the intruder at all.
Bertila came to the opposite side of the long table unhurriedly, looked at Prince Ansu in front of him, and showed a faint smile on his face: "For others, this is a conspiracy, and for you, it is an open conspiracy, isn't it Is it? Our 'ally' His Royal Highness..."
Edmund knew that this weird woman was extremely dangerous and powerful. While quietly applying the blessing of the knight domain to himself, he suppressed his anger and said, "You really can't be trusted."
"Didn't you know this from the beginning, Your Highness who is full of confidence? You just habitually underestimate others and overestimate yourself."
While talking, Bertila pulled a chair from the side and sat down calmly in front of Edmund—her legs formed by vines and roots spread and grew, accompanied by the rustling sound, and the seat and The ground merged into one.
"What do you want to do? What do you want to do?!"
"Us?" Bertera laughed, her smile was very sincere—in fact, it was almost the only time she smiled from the heart in seven hundred years. On, the way of survival continued in the malice of the world.
"And I... I'm just here to welcome you, to welcome the new you."
"Madman." Edmund felt that he could not understand the thoughts of this cultist at all. He had already accumulated his strength and didn't want to have any more changes. So he raised his long sword, and countless fine black cracks quickly spread from the tip of the sword. Come out, like a spider web blocking the entire space.
The long table turned into dust in the cracks, and the seats were torn apart one by one. However, before the fatal black cracks spread to Bertila, bursts of whispers and whispers that made headaches crack and sanity collapsed suddenly poured into Ai. In Demon's mind, he suddenly lost control of the long sword in his hand, and he even wobbled and couldn't stand up.
Bertila quietly watched Edmund propping up his body with the sword, gradually approaching collapse, and said lightly, "Have you often felt thirsty lately?"
"Water..." As clear crystal clusters gradually grew on both sides of Edmund's cheeks, a flash of enlightenment flashed across his eyes, "Are you poisoning?"
"It's not poison, it's just a blessing—a blessing bestowed by the 'God'."
"You... will ruin... Ansu..."
"It was you who destroyed it, or should I say, you," Bertila looked at the prince in front of him with almost pity, "Do you still remember that this vortex was opened by you."
Edmund felt that his sanity was rapidly dissipating, and the whispering voice was rapidly depriving him of his ability to think. He opened his mouth with difficulty, and said almost instinctively, "I just... want to bring it back... prosperity..."
Bertila stood up from the chair. She quietly watched Prince Ansu who was about to lose her will, her eyes were deep and her tone was low: "Do you guys really understand what real prosperity is?"
Edmund's field of vision was covered with a hazy light curtain, and his eyeballs were rapidly being reshaped by crystallization. In that alienated field of vision, he could only see Bertila's eyes clearly, those eyes were deep, resolute, It seems to have some terrible paranoia, but it also has an unbelievable purity and reason.
He didn't understand why a crazy cultist would suddenly show such a look.
This look made him think of a person, a person who returned to this world from the grave.
Before losing his will, he heard the last words of the other party:
"You never really look down, take a look at those lowly people."
…
The "clustered" attackers were all down, including the... guy with familiar eyes.
She had turned into a two-meter-tall monster, swollen and twisted flesh mixed with charged crystals, but Belk still recognized her.
She fell on the misty street, her body curled up and trembling slightly, which reminded Belk of not long ago, when he saw her in an alley, she was curled up on the ground, curled up in the mud.
Belk walked forward slowly, and there were sharp stabbing pains from some small wounds on his body. He supported his body with a long sword, squatted down in front of the "laundry girl", and was even with the opponent's head.
"Who turned you into this? Is it also those monsters in black robes?"
The crystal-clustered woman made a hoarse voice, and in a difficult gasp, Belk heard an answer he couldn't understand at all: "We are... voluntary, my lord."
The young Marquis exclaimed, "Why?!"
The "monster" who could no longer see the appearance of a human raised his head and said softly:
"It has become like this... you can live by eating stones, my lord..."