"Oh, I didn't expect that."
Licinius sighed.
In fact, he didn't want the soldiers to support him at all.
On the contrary, the more you reject him, the better.
Only in this way can he achieve the achievement of being infamous for all eternity.
"However, there have been some rumors in the army recently, mainly coming from the Kingdom of Loen. Newspapers in several border cities are also reporting on these things."
The Queen said meaningfully, "They claim that you were able to defeat two top warlocks not because of your own strength, but because... you used despicable means."
Li Xini was stunned, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
Who the hell is this? He’s a good guy!
"And some people claim that you are a dark magician."
The empress reminded: "You have attracted the attention of the Holy See."
Snapped…
Licinius' spoon fell into the bowl.
Oh my God, the Vatican finally noticed me!
Fast pace...
The darker you draw me, the better.
What Licinius originally wanted to do was to take all the blame in this war.
Then give the credit to others.
It would be better to be labeled a Class A war criminal and be nailed to the pillar of shame for the rest of your life.
It’s wonderful when you think about it.
"So this time we need to be more secretive when we go to the ruins of the ancient city of Hera."
The empress said: "Therefore, I will take you to see someone."
Li Xini was stunned: "Who is it?"
"Haven't you always been curious about who owns your mask?"
The empress smiled mysteriously.
Chapter 97 Social Death Package
At noon, the sun was scorching and yellow sand filled the sky.
In the dusty military camp, there were many priests in white robes coming and going.
They wandered between the military camps, praying for the soldiers and healing their wounds.
"I never thought that people from the church would come here at this time. They said they were sending priests to heal the soldiers, but they were actually here to investigate the black magic, right?"
Licinius wore an ordinary military uniform, disguised as a low-level soldier, and quietly walked through the desolate and dilapidated city.
Noren was also wearing a small military uniform and followed him obediently without saying a word.
"Most of them are here to heal the soldiers. After all, although they have joined the Church, they are still citizens of the Brentanian Empire. They will not abandon their country."
The empress said calmly, "The priests of the Kingdom of Loen will also go to the front lines to heal the wounded soldiers of their country. This is understandable. I am just worried that someone else will infiltrate here."
She paused. “For example, the Inquisition, they are absolutely neutral.”
Licinius raised his eyebrows: "I see, is this to investigate the incident of black magic? It seems that the Holy See is not stupid. The last negotiation has made them suspicious."
After all, at the negotiation table, he slammed the table in front of the military advisor and accused the other party of being a black magician.
The Vatican is not a fool, so it is natural for it to have some doubts.
Even though Licinius himself had been baptized by the Holy Light and had been officially cleared of suspicion, there was no guarantee that other people under him would not learn black magic.
Therefore, there is no way to avoid the necessary investigation.
"The Inquisition is different from the Vatican's administrative staff and is more difficult to deal with."
The Empress said: "So be careful not to reveal your identity."
Licinius glanced at him and said, "Then you should disguise yourself. There are not many female soldiers in the barracks. If you are so pretty, you will be recognized at a glance, right?"
The empress thought about it and it made sense, so she smeared some ash on her face, ruffled her hair, lowered the brim of her military cap, and turned up her collar.
This is indeed hard to see.
"Speaking of which, why are you so brazenly provoking the church?"
The empress asked intentionally or unintentionally: "I also heard about the two heroes. They cried bitterly in the mineral town, held a mass for the dead, and then returned to the battlefield."
It's quite pitiful.
Li Xini spread his hands and said, "Those two heroes are actually pretty good, but they are too stupid and need to grow up. Purely nice people won't live long. The battlefield is always cruel. I have the ability to save those civilians this time, but what about next time? What about the next time? There will always be innocent people sacrificed."
"This is the price you have to pay for starting a war. I said, you are the king, the emperor of this empire, so you can't be the one to bear this blame."
He said meaningfully: "So, of course I should be the bad guy."
The empress was silent for a long time, and then she said softly, "The previous generation of Night's Watch seemed to have said the same thing to my father. No wonder he thought you were very suitable to lead the Night's Watch."
Li Xini was stunned: "Who?"
The Queen seemed to have expected that he would be surprised, and said with a half-smile: "Yes, the reason why I chose you is not only because of your talent, but also because of your black magic. More importantly, it is because the previous generation of Night's Watch also took a fancy to you... Not those who were beaten and disabled in recent years, but my teacher."
Licinius took a breath: "He, he's still alive?"
My goodness, the previous generation of Night Watchman was actually your Majesty’s teacher!
According to what Duke Mad Lion said when he first saw the mask, that man should have died long ago.
"Dead, but not completely dead."
The Empress explained: "He now only retains his past memories and personality, but strictly speaking he is no longer the same person. He can only live in a soul state, relying on the power of the World Tree."
Licinius wanted to ask what the world tree was, but he held back.
The two men sneaked along the way and used their passes to get past the guards' inspection;
Walking across the yellow sand.
Finally they arrived at an abandoned mine.
There were collapsed statues everywhere, huge rubble scattered all over the ground, and the ground was dry and cracked, but strangely many dark green vines grew there, swaying like snakes. The strangest thing was that although it was a mine, there were nameless tombstones standing on the dry and cracked land.
Black weeds spread around the tombstone, swaying in the wind.
It's a clear sky today, but there are still dark clouds hovering over the mine.
Endless thick fog filled the air, like a tide made up of countless ghosts.
There is a tombstone in front of the quiet mine:
All living things stop here.
Shh, it's resting.
Licinius suddenly felt someone pulling the corner of his clothes tighter.
"too horrible… "
Norn had a blank expression on his face, his hands tightly grasping the corner of his clothes: "Is this a cemetery or a mine?"
It's just like going out to buy food when I was a kid.
In the surging crowd, she held on to the corner of his clothes tightly, fearing that she would lose him.
"It's a cemetery dug out from mining. You're still young, so you may have never been to such ancient ruins."
The empress said calmly: "The tombs under the ancient city of Hera have become forbidden areas after being mined. Every forbidden area has its own self-awareness and its own set of rules. Ordinary people cannot set foot in it. That's why the nobles want to negotiate peace."
As long as the expansion of the forbidden land is accelerated artificially, the ancient city of Hera will be destroyed.
There was no way the army could move through this area.
"I see."
Licinius asked, "You said you wanted me to meet... the previous generation of Night's Watch?"
The empress hummed and snapped her fingers in the air.
I saw brilliant golden ripples rising on the ground, accompanied by countless bright and dazzling specks of light, vaguely forming the outline of an ancient tree and the figure squatting under the tree.
Licinius had never seen such a magical scene and his eyes widened.
"A branch of the World Tree."
The empress explained: "I am the owner of the World Tree. As long as I am within the territory of the Brentanian Empire, the projection of the World Tree can be manifested anytime and anywhere."
The figure sitting under the tree was very blurry, but one could vaguely tell that it was a young boy.
But for a moment, he seemed so hunched and old.
"Yes, Your Majesty." The young man said with a smile.
Li Xini, however, felt that the young man's gaze was fixed on him.
"Nice to meet you, the new generation of Night Watch."
The boy said, "I don't have a name. I have had many names over the past few decades. In the Kingdom of Loen, some people call me White Fang or Ghost Dragon. In the farther west, some people call me the Lord of Disaster. The demons prefer to call me the Blazing Sun of the Abyss. Of course, you can call me the Gravekeeper now."
"In the past, my duties were the same as yours, as dictator in charge of the Night's Watch."
He paused and said, "Unfortunately, I am dead in the past. Now my soul lives in the World Tree. I have been reborn in a sense, and I am observing the mysteries of this land for Your Majesty."
"Hello… "
Licinius did not know what to say.
I feel like in the past, this must have been a very awesome person.
He caused a bloody storm in the royal capital, and there are legends about him all over the world.
Even someone as strong as the Mad Lion Duke almost lost his composure at the sight of the mask.
"teacher… "
The Empress asked, "What is the status of the ruins today?"
The gravekeeper thought for a moment and said, "Ever since the last time the people from the Church tried to use the power of holy light to expel the ever-spreading power of rules here, it has been very angry and has only recently fallen asleep."
The Empress said with satisfaction: "So the current rules are still normal?"
The gravekeeper took a look at the man and two women and hesitated to speak: "Well, I guess so."
The empress hummed and ordered: "Come here. If you want to enter the ruins here, you must touch the stone tablet here. The three of us will be teleported to the same place and accept the test of the rules."
Licinius took Nolen by the hand and came to the tombstone where she was.
"Don't move for a while, just follow my instructions."
The Empress warned: "Otherwise, you may be excluded by the rules of the forbidden land. In serious cases, you may die on the spot. Be prepared."
Li Xini's eyes lit up slightly, and he died on the spot!
Very good!
This is another new way of dying that I have never tried before.
When the time comes, he will be the first to take the lead and take the risk for the two girls.
If you die, you'll make a lot of money. If you don't die, you can just use it to improve your favorability!
It’s me as expected!
boom!
When the three men's hands touched the tombstone, the mine shook violently.
Endless thick fog rushed out from the cracks in the tombstones, drowning their figures.
Under the Golden World Tree, the gravekeeper looked at them silently with a half-smile in his eyes.
o