In came the tall and thin wandering painter Clark, who should, of course, be called Mr. Court Painter by now.

Together with Charles, who came to Metzl Castle, was this Mr. Painter.

Back then, he received the appreciation of the King because of a painting, and the news that he was appointed as the court painter of Legrand spread quickly. The painters of the great aristocrats were so jealous that they criticized his paintings as desecrating art.

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But to his delight, many people traveled to Koszoya’s town hall to admire his painting.

Charles didn’t stop them either. As if it was God’s compensation for him, as much ridicule and criticism as he once received, he would receive as much praise now——there were even many people who had begun to learn the new painting techniques from him.

Nothing could make him happier than this.

Compared with the first time he met the King, Mr. Clark was in better condition——at least his clothes were much cleaner and tidy.

However, the King was slightly surprised when he saw him.

“What’s this? Could it be that our huge Legrand really can’t afford to support a court painter?” The King asked Charles in surprise.

Clark still looked as exhausted as if he was about to keel over suddenly, his face as pale as a vampire’s.

Charles was also stunned: “Clark…..?”

Clark bowed again and again to express his apologies, and he hastily explained that he had been struck by a new inspiration these days, so he had to draw that painting no matter what. During this time, in the inn, he had been completely taken over by this.

“Then let us admire your masterpiece.”

The King, always tolerant of his geniuses——or madmen——forgave the painter his faux pas.

The first oil painting was erected carefully by the attendants, and Clark revealed a faint hint of pride on his face.

This one painting was nearly two-thirds the length of the entire room.

It was the “Night of the Plague in Koszoya” that the King ordered him to paint.

The King once again confirmed that Clark was destined to leave his mark in the history of art. He was a genius, no doubt about it.

The theme of the painting “Night of the Plague” was originally despair, and the tone was depressing and sad. But in contrast, Clark had attributed such bold and bright colors to the painting that it could be called brilliant and intense.

The theme of the painting was the light and agile Walway pirate ships. Pirates with cloth strips tied on their heads stood on the decks, holding a sword in one hand and hanging onto a cable in the other. Bright flames gushed out from the dragon-shaped metal nozzle of the pirate ship’s prow, and the flames swept across the deep sea, reflecting the entire sea area a brilliant gold.

The golden brilliance that was only used on saints in the past was plated on those free and unrestrained pirates this time. They stood free and fearless on the bow of the ship, like bronze statues carved by time. In front of them, the plague ships looked so dim, behind them was the majestic and thick city wall of Koszoya, and under the city wall were the Rose knights standing like shields.

“The King and His City” was a hymn that belonged to the King only, but it was not that the praise given towards kings had not appeared before. But this “Night of the Plague in Koszoya” was completely deviant, and the protagonist of the painting was that of ant-like ordinary people.

They were just some pirates, no more significant than the most ordinary of folks.

They used their own flesh and blood to fight against the terrible plague ships to protect an ancient city. So the painter froze the moment when their brilliance was at their highest, and engraved the moment of their heroism. In the face of these fearless heroes, even the plague became a supporting role. From then on, people would always remember that in that disaster, it was the power of insignificant human beings that forged an indestructible wall.

What was even more touching were the details.

The painting took three months to paint, and while it was being painted, Clark was aboard a pirate ship.

The King’s order was to “let the people remember each and every one of them”.

His original intention was to have the people remember that night, and it turned out that Clark was more stubborn and persistent than the King and Charles could have imagined. He learned from Charles and Hawkins of all the people who fought that night, and wrote it down in his little book. Then, he ate and lived with the pirates for almost a month, and learned a little bit about the personalities and appearance characteristics of those comrades who died in battle from the pirates.

During that time, the Walway pirates spoke with Clark almost every day:

“Yes, yes, there was a scar on Tom, right here.”

“That guy is a little shorter than me.”

“I’m so pissed off! That guy still owes me three gold coins, how about you add a mole on him…..Ah, never mind, that guy is already uglier than me, and adding it will only make him even uglier. “

……

There was one thing that inspired both tears and laughter:

A month later, Clark, who was only here to collect information, actually made a request to become a member of the Walway pirates. Moreover, when the Walway Pirates voted democratically, his request was almost unanimously passed——the single vote against it came from Captain Hawkins. Because Clark refused to remove the iconic oblique scar on his face.

Hearing the cheers of the pirates, Charles thought amusedly and helplessly, could it be that the Walway Pirates always recruit strange and oddball members?

After so much effort, Clark’s painting possessed a very rare quality.

That was the strong emotion hidden in the flames of war.

Every pirate was portrayed vividly, throwing a rope, or throwing a spear…..They have such a tacit understanding with each other, and they trust each other with their backs. When looking closely, one could hear the voices of them calling to each other. In the raging war, they were true brothers.

On the day it was finished, the pirates of Walway, a group of rough men, looked at it and secretly blinked away tears.

Under the fearlessness and the flames of war, what settled was sadness and nostalgia, and all the beautiful emotions.

This was what the King wanted.

It completely got rid of the worship of divinity and idols, and eulogized the sorrows and joys of mortals themselves.

“I’m very happy that the gallery of the Rose Palace will be welcoming its most magnificent exhibit.” The King folded his fingers and stared at the painting. He smiled and asked Clark, “What reward do you want? My Mr. Chief Court Painter. “

From an ordinary court painter to the chief court painter, Clark bowed to express his gratitude somewhat flattered. After hearing the King’s inquiry, he bowed again: “You have rewarded me too much, Your Majesty. In fact, I would like to ask you to accept a gift from me…..it is the only thing I can use to express all my gratitude.”

The attendants brought in the second painting.

When he saw the painting, Charles couldn’t help revealing a smile: “Mr. Clark, did you have too much contact with our Mr. Architect?”

The second painting depicted the scene where the Archbishop of St. Wyth was beheaded on public display.

In the painting, the executioner held up the head of the Archbishop of St. Wyth and showed it to everyone. The fully armed Iron Rose Cavalry was orderly and majestic, and the crowd also showed varying expressions. The dazzling sunlight fell from the sky onto the blood-stained steel blade of the executioner. The cold light and the blood were in stark contrast.

The King couldn’t help laughing, “You’ve just painted a burning rack for yourself, my good sir.”

“In fact, this is the second bruning rack.”

Mr. Clark answered very calmly.

Before he lived in anonymity, he was sentenced to death for saying that “painting, as an art to express emotion and thought, should not be limited to religious subjects”. Now, he painted this painting that could be called a provocation towards the Holy Court, and won another bruning rack for himself with absolute strength.

According to the standards of the Lunatic Academy of Sciences, he actually came from behind, and ran ahead of the rest of the lunatics and became the first person to get two burning racks…..

Don’t know how the guys from the Lunatic Academy would react after knowing this.

“I believe it may be of some use to you.”

Mr. Clark looked at the King and said sincerely.

It was not wrong to say that he was obsessed with art and painting, but the “capital of art” where he was originally from was very close to the Holy Spirit Bay, so he was very familiar with the situation of the Holy Court.

The King’s actions during this period were so big, almost everyone knew that a fierce conflict was breaking out between Legrand and the Holy Court. Clark was not a priest, nor a soldier, he had no other ability, he could only help the King in this war in this way.

It might seem ridiculous, but Clark did feel obligated to do so.

Like the ancient knights who were willing to die for their king, he was willing to paint for the King something which was basically equivalent to another burning rack.

This was the only way he could repay His Majesty.

The King solemnly accepted Clark’s gratitude and ordered the Master of the Households to send the painting to the exhibition gallery of the Royal Academy.

“Also, Your Majesty.” Clark suddenly revealed a somewhat timid and nervous expression, “Can I ask you something?”

“Be my guest.”

“I have a few friends…..I think they can be of help to you. They had escaped from the Holy Court, could you…..” He stammered, “They are very willing to be of use to you!”

The blockade along the southeast coast was now extremely tight. Although he had become a member of the Walway Pirates, he never made this request in front of Charles and Captain Hawkins. Because he had seen with his own eyes what kind of price the Walway pirates paid to maintain the blockade.

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They carried out the King’s orders scrupulously, and asking them to bend the law in his favor was an insult to them.

The only one who could make the decision was the King.

“Who are they?”

The King asked, and Clark’s hesitant look made him feel that these “friends” might not be so “ordinary”.

“Some…..” Clark gritted his teeth, “Astrologers.”

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“Three of your knights are slightly injured, and Abbot Anil is safe and sound. Your Majesty.”

The Master of the Households replied.

If possible, the hostiles would certainly like to send both the King and Abbot Anil to hell together.

However, since Grand Duke Grice’s failure, the King’s enemies have obviously become more cautious in assassinating the King himself, and they were not willing to try it lightly if they were not fully sure of pulling it off. In contrast, Abbot Anil was a less difficult target.

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And if Abbot Anil was murdered, it would be difficult for the King to find a second strong theological supporter like him in such a short amount of time.

“Three are slightly injured…..They are still testing us.” The King pondered for a moment, and ordered, “Have our oath knight commander protect him for a period of time.”

“You attach great importance to Abbot Anil.”

After the Master of the Households left, Charles spoke.

After the funeral, Charles did not return to the southeast coast immediately, but stayed in the Rose Palace. Firstly, he was worried about his godson, and secondly, Charles did have something to report to the King himself.

“Who do you think are most of the people who really believe in the key to purgatory and the kingdom of God?”

Instead of answering directly, the King asked a question.

“The common people,” Charles said, “because it’s hard for them to receive an education, and…..they don’t have an easy life.”

The common people at the bottom of the society, it was difficult for them to see the hope of their own ascension up the social ladder. Their reality was so miserable, which made them unable to help but hope that there was an unknown eternal kingdom, and in that eternal kingdom, they could obtain happiness. In many cases, this was the origin of faith.

But now it was precisely this hope, which in turn brought more suffering to their present life.

“You are correct. So many educated gentlemen and ladies, do you think they really believe in purgatory? Have they never had any doubts?” The King looked at the direction where Abbot Anil lived. “There are many people who doubts the Holy See in this world. But in fact, after so long, at the critical moment, there are only a few who dared to stand forward.”

Charles was silent.

“However——” the King changed the subject, “It is necessary to pay value to and protect Abbot Anil.”

He was thinking about something, and tapped the table with the finger that wore the rose ring.

“We need a banner.”

The King’s voice was very calm, with the ruthlessness from the perspective of one’s interests that was unique to those in power. Personally, he did appreciate Abbot Anil’s character and spirit, but more importantly, as a monarch, he saw enough value in Abbot Anil.

“I need a group of scholars, Charles.”

Only one Abbot Anil was not enough to shake people’s faith in the Holy Court.

He needed more people.

He needed more people who understood and opposed the Holy Court to gather together to attack the church’s theological system.

They would be the King’s ideological weapons.

These people may hide in various monasteries and churches, perhaps in various universities, and they carefully protected themselves. But if the King succeeded in sheltering Abbot Anil, who had risen against the Pope, and thus demonstrated his ability to keep them safe, they may rally under the King’s banner.

Charles pondered for a moment, and suggested: “If you don’t mind where your scholars come from, then I think you can declare asylum to those scholars who are oppressed by the Holy Court because of defending the truth, even if they come from the Holy Spirit Bay. It’s truly a ridiculous thing——”

Even with Charles’ self-cultivation, he couldn’t help showing a mocking expression at this moment.

“Just like your Abbot Anil came from the Holy Court, in fact, Your Majesty, the people who pose the greatest threat to theology in this world often come from the Holy Court itself. Do you remember? In 1421, the Holy Court once issued an order, putting many theologians and jurists on their wanted list.”

“We should thank the Holy Court for this matter.”

The King also remembered.

In 1421, the Holy See once carried out a large-scale purge of the “heretical”, which was the time when the position of the old Pope was being handed over to the new one. In order to display his authority and suppress some dissatisfied voices at the time, the newly appointed Pope promoted that large-scale purge.

The purge of heresy was mainly concentrated in the Holy City on the east coast of the Abyss Strait.

At that time, reporting on one’s fellow man became popular, and many people were included in the purge list just because they did not discuss the church regulations in their letters tactfully enough. Many people were forced to hide their names and escaped from Holy Spirit Bay.

In the King’s view, it was not so much as a “heretical cleansing campaign”, but rather a power struggle within the Holy Court. The people who were purged were probably because they were on the wrong side of the power field.

In the end, the new Pope established his own rule with a strong hand.

During the purge in 1421, the Holy Court’s arrest warrant was issued to every country, and the Legrand royal family also received one. At that time, the Duke of Buckingham was still in power on behalf of the young king. After receiving the wanted list, the Duke of Buckingham put it away as a file, and only perfunctorily asked a few personal soldiers to patrol the city once, as an assistance in the hunt.

“I must thank them for making private conversations taboo.”

The King smiled, and turned to ask Charles something else.

“What about the blockade on the southeast coast?”

This was why Charles stayed——he wanted to report to the King on the blockade in the southeast and the progress of the Black Death during this period of time.

During the period when the King went north to quell the rebellion, Charles and Hawkins led the Walway pirates and the royal warships to patrol day and night.

During that time, they encountered several plague ships one after another, but fortunately, having already experienced a large number of plague attacks in Koszoya Port before during the “Plague Night” and the beginning of the new year, the vigilance of coastal cities later were at an unprecedented high.

——Those plague ships were sunk by the city’s self-organized “self-defense force” before they even approached the city.

Occasional small-scale Black Death infections were also brought under control by the plague doctors from hell.

On the whole, although the blockade along the southeast coast was under great pressure, it was still considered holding up solid.

“But the situation on the other side of the Abyss Strait is not so optimistic.” Charles frowned, revealing a somewhat worried look, “We have cut off all business ties with the countries on the other side of the Abyss Strait, but if the Black Death on the other side of the Abyss Strait continues, Legrand’s economy will also be severely hit.”

In this blockade, many chambers of commerce have already become victims.

The small chambers of commerce went bankrupt, and the large chambers of commerce struggled to hold on.

This was why in this era, people were so afraid of the Black Death.

Once it erupted, it lasted not just a few months, but years or even hundreds of years, like a shadow. The last large-scale outbreak of plague lasted for nearly a hundred years. During that one hundred years, the economies of all countries were hit hard.

This was a disaster for the entire human race.

“The plague won’t last long, at least not on a large scale.”

The King gave judgment.

“Why?”

“Because the Holy Court wants to establish a country.” The King replied, “So, they need a miracle that is unprecedented enough to declare their status.”

The King’s eyes were cold, as if he had thought of something displeasing. His icy blue pupils reflected the light and shadow, like the ridges of the mountains, cold and sharp, accumulating the indelible majesty of time.

The King could use the power of hell to stage a political performance in which death bowed its head to resolve the plague crisis in the southeast coast. Then the Holy Court, naturally, could also rely on the power from the kingdom of God. Moreover, in these confrontations involving the kingdom of God and hell, the King had confirmed that: in these years, in the confrontation between the Holy Court and hell, the power of hell was indeed inferior to that of the Holy Court.

He guessed——

Hell was currently in a state that seemed to be “dead”.

If a dead hell still had enough power to protect Legrand from the plague, then what about the kingdom of God which was in a better state?

Prior to this, the Holy Court did not take much action, but only treated some patients. This was not because they were unable to solve the plague once and for all, but because they were waiting for the best opportunity——waiting for the plague to spread enough to make the people desperate enough, waiting for the Holy Court to initially enter the territory of Bressi, and establish the prototype of the “Kingdom of God on Earth”.

Now, Ferri III had been deposed and led his personal army to retreat north. Prince Charles became the King of Bressi controlled by the Holy Court, and secular power began to transfer to the Holy Court institutions. Faced with this direct transfer of political power, the Bressians began to express uneasiness and distrust.

This situation was the best time for the Holy Court to “save the world”.

They could calm the people’s hearts and make the people believe that the Black Death was a punishment from the gods, and make the people believe that only the Holy Court could save them. Thus, a true religious country was thoroughly established.

This time when the King beheaded the Archbishop of St. Wyth in the streets, it was actually a probe against the other.

If the Holy Court reacted violently, and ordered a westward expedition to Legrand, or directly sent a team of adjudicators to Legrand to suppress Legrand’s resistance with force. Then it proved that there was still a long time before their act of “salvation”, and they still needed to use forceful means to maintain their authority in the secular world.

But now the Holy Court had not reacted much to the King’s “Limitation of Purgatory Creeds and Priesthood Ordinances” and the execution of Archbishop St. Wyth.

They only declared Legrand’s new regulations null and void, and announced the excommunication of Abbot Anil.

This kind of reaction, which could be called “mild” and “conceding”, made some nobles who chose to side with the King feel very happy. They thought it was a great victory.

However, in the eyes of the King, this was not a victory, but a kind of indifference.

This meant that the Holy See already had enough confidence that they could quickly solve the Black Death and formally establish the Kingdom of God on Earth. Compared to the importance of the Kingdom of God, other things were not worth mentioning.

This was good news and bad news.

The good news was that they finally got a period of development time with relatively little pressure——or call it preparation time; the bad news was that when this period passed, they would be facing the Holy Court head on.

The King leaned back in his chair, thinking.

Charles looked at him, recalling that time when the King went to the southeast in person.

While the people cheered the solving of the plague, the King was already pondering his next move.

This was the responsibility of monarchs, they were always dancing on the edge of the knife.

The person who danced on the edge of the knife must be crazy enough, because only madness could make him fearless, but he must also be cautious enough, because if he made a mistake, he would fall to his death. But often, people only see his arrogance, but not all the deliberation under the arrogance.

A madman, but also the most sober of men.

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At this moment, Charles felt the guilt and self-blame borne by his good friend, the Duke of Buckingham, for so many years——the King was burdened with so much, when he was clearly still so young.

“Your Majesty, I brought you a present.”

Charles glanced at the sky, and diverted the conversation from these heavy topics, reminding the King that it was time to rest.

“Perhaps you’d like to have a look at it?”

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The banquet had ended.

“My dear teacher, I really don’t want to congratulate you on winning such a beautiful debate.”

Father Remy said, and handed the thick cloak to Abbot Anil.

“What’s the matter, my child.”

Abbot Anil stopped in his tracks, and looked back at the magnificent Rose Palace lit up by candlelight in the night.

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“From now on, you will be stepping on thorns and blades, my good teacher.” Father Remy sighed, “The sword of the adjucators will fall on your head from now on.”

“Because I’m standing here, I have no choice.”

Abbot Anil replied.

Father Remy fell silent.

He stood where he was, watching the aging abbot walk forward step by step. At the Sanctuary in Holy Spirit Bay in 1411, the abbot did the same. He stood up with the typical humility of a priest, bowed his head slightly, and firmly opposed the astonishingly powerful Pope with a humble attitude.

In truth, what was the difference between back then and now?

Back then, Father Anil was alone, facing the powerful Pope himself, and could be burned on the stake at any time. But he still stood up. Today, Abbot Anil also knew that the King actually didn’t believe in purgatory, nor did he hold any religious beliefs, and simply just wanted to use him as a pawn.

But for all the devout people in Legrand, he still stood up.

Where was the truth? And how long would it take them to get it?

The torches were burning in the dark night, and a small group of Iron Rose Cavalry were waiting in front.

They were sent by the King to protect Abbot Anil.

Different from when they escorted them to Metzl Castle before, these cold knights hesitated for a moment after Abbot Anil walked close, and then raised their hands to greet Abbot Anil with a knight’s salute.

Abbot Anil tapped a few times on his chest: “May the Holy Lord bless you and me.”

Seeing this scene, Father Remy felt a little emotional and a little proud.

He followed over as well.

………………

The funeral of the Duke of Buckingham was over, and the representatives of various vassal states and the great lords began to leave quickly, wanting to return to their territory as soon as possible, and take measures to deal with the following movements. With their departure, Metzl Castle did not settle down. On the contrary, various voices began to emerge.

The news that the King canceled the Eucharist for the Duke of Buckingham’s funeral spread quickly under the impetus of interested people. The archbishop of Jollingshire, who was defeated in the debate, did not let go or retreat after this. Instead, he united a group of priests and incited the people to denounce the King for being blinded by heresy, and accusing him of being heartless and disregarding the soul of his relative.

Finally, there was even a wave of petitions:

People hoped that the King would make up a Eucharist ceremony for the lord Duke.

At the daily imperial council meeting, this matter was mentioned, and the ministers tactfully advised the King whether he should make up a Eucharist for the lord Duke. One daring individual even mentioned the cursing and berating among the people directed at the King.

Just when everyone was waiting in fear for the King to fly into a rage, the King suddenly laughed.

“Did you all forget something?” The King leaned on the back of his chair, touched his fingertips together, and asked with a smile, “What do you think they call me?”

The ministers looked at each other, carefully suppressing the word “tyrant” that almost blurted out of their mouths.

“Enough, they’ll be quieter soon.”

The King clapped his hands, indicating that the matter was over.

The ministers were on tenterhooks, wondering how the King planned to “quiet” those discontent voices. At this time, even the ministers who hadn’t dealt with the Duke of Buckingham very much in the past began to miss the days when the Duke of Buckingham was around…..In the past, when the King acted recklessly, at least there was the Duke to dissuade him a little.

Now, who else dared to persuade their Majesty who was capricious and moody?

Soon they knew what good deed the King had done.

On a sunny morning.

Royal rose knights in armor poured into St. Wyth’s Cathedral. The priests in the church were shocked and wanted to step forward to stop it. But these knights had just returned from the battlefield in the Northland, and the scent of blood was still there. With just a glance from cold eyes, the priests in the church were too frightened to take another step forward.

At this moment, the Archbishop of St. Wyth had just taken off his heavy black robe, and was only wearing a white jacket. His beautiful young mistress smiled and came forward to undress him.

Just when he was about to have a union of soul and body with his beautiful mistress, the door of the quiet room was suddenly smashed open, a long sword was nailed to the bed board against his cheek, and then a group of ferocious knights in iron armor poured in and dragged him out with his mistress.

“What is this! You are committing a crime!”

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the Archbishop of St. Wyth shouted and screeched in a show of bluff and forced authority.

In the church, the eyes of some priests looking at him suddenly changed, becoming full of contempt while others went pale.

The royal cavalry had surrounded the entire St. Wyth Cathedral, the ruthless knights breaking in and searching the entire church. They found boxes of gold, and several prostitutes who also had no time to escape. When the knights loaded the gold into the open carriage, the Archbishop of St. Wyth finally realized the seriousness of the matter.

He ignored his embarrassment and shouted:

“That’s the annuity of the tribute to the Holy Court! What are you doing!”

“Annuity? So much annuity?” The knight commander opened the lid of the box heavily, sneering, “This is evidence of treason!”

“What treason?”

The Archbishop of St. Wyth was just about to explain that those were the monies from people buying indulgences, and they also belong to the annuity paid to the Holy Court, when he heard this accusation. He was about to say something, but a knight stepped forward and punched him in the face unceremoniously. With a “crack”, the Archbishop of St. Wyth only felt a sharp pain in his jaw, his vision going dark before he passed out.

The knight commander checked and was sure that the man’s jaw was just dislocated and he had not directly died, so he simply waved his hand and had others drag him out like a dead dog.

A few priests with pale faces and bad premonitions in their hearts were also taken away together.

When the Archbishop of St. Wyth woke up, he found himself tied to a carriage, surrounded by his mistresses curled up in a ball. They were currently being paraded through the streets.

A judge wearing a wig was impassionedly criticizing him for all the crimes he had committed to the gathered people: selling Legrand’s military information to the Northland rebels, which let the Northland rebellion carry out smoothly in the early stage——the evidence being the boxes of gold used to bribe him. Fornicating in St. Wyth’s Cathedral, defiling the hallowed place, blaspheming the Holy Spirit…..

Both witnesses and evidence were complete and undeniable.

People booed the Archbishop of St. Wyth whose fat body was visible after being stripped of his priestly garments. The glorious tradition of parades of shame——rotten leaves and rotten eggs flew down at his head and face.

“Banish him!”

From the crowd someone was the first to yell.

“This kind of guy is not worthy to be an archbishop!”

It had to be said that the people of Legrand have always been very talented in mocking and satire.

When the King was missing, many clever fellows made up a series of satiric songs to celebrate. And right now, this treatment also fell on the Archbishop of St. Wyth. On the box at the entrance of the market, the clown playing the accordion played a sharp tune and composed a fiddle on the spot to mock him.

After the carriage drove through the most important streets of Metzl City, it arrived at a guillotine erected high at the crossroads.

The Archbishop of St. Wyth, who had lowered his head and pretended to be unconscious during the whole humiliating affair, immediately struggled.

The executioner pressed his head heavily on the block of wood, lowered his voice, and said sarcastically: “Look who this is? The mighty and majestic Mr. Archbishop, why don’t you let your master the Pope cross the sea to rescue you now? Milord.”

The executioner looked too young, and the Archbishop of St. Wyth thought his voice was a little familiar. When he looked closely, he was almost out of his wits with fright.

A few years ago, when St. Wyth Cathedral expanded——it was said to be expansion, but in fact it was no different from encroachment——when the land was under his name, a young man once begged them, for the sake of the Lord, to let them live.

“It seems that the Holy Lord doesn’t intend to protect a big lord like you.”

The executioner who volunteered for this job waved the steel knife in his hand high and a cold light flashed.

The head rolled down onto the ground.

The venue was silent at first.

Prior to this, all clergy who violated the law had to be handed over to the Holy Court, and the royal court had no right to intervene. And when the ruling from the other side of the Abyss Strait came, who knows even how long time would pass, not to mention that the Holy Court was always prone to protecting their members. Because of this, some monastery priests, abbots, and bishops were very confident and secure in the knowledge of their backing.

Even nobles still needed to give in before the clergy, let alone ordinary people?

Although the Holy Court in Legrand did not occupy more than one-third of the land like in Bressi, the cases of monastery and churches encroaching on the fields and oppressing the citizens still existed.

But, today, for the first time, the people realized——

Even a servant of God needed to obey the laws of the world.

After the silence, the crowd broke out into cheers.

Some of the sharp-minded ones who witnessed this, realized…..that the real storm was already being heralded in a bloody fashion.

………………

Inside the Rose Palace, the King’s study.

After the heads of the Archbishop of St. Wyth and several of his cronies fell to the ground, the Archbishop of Jollingshire fled back to Jollingshire County overnight, fearing that he would follow in the footsteps of the Archbishop of St. Wyth.

The petition movement, which was originally massive, came to an abrupt end.

——The instigators behind the petition this time were the Archbishops of St. Wyth and Jollingshire who were excluded from overseeing the funeral.

The name of the Archbishop of St. Wyth was ruined and he died of “popular indignation”. He had previously preached that “it was an unforgivable blasphemy that the King does not hold a Eucharist for the Duke”.

One must know, the people were not all fools.

——If a person who claimed to use “piety” and the name of the “Holy Lord” to violate the rules and regulations of the priesthood and commit treasonous and licentious crimes, then what credibility was there in his words? At the same time, Abbot Anil, under the King’s instruction, began preaching to the people the theological point of view that “purgatory does not exist” every day.

With these two shining examples, the people “calmed” as the King said.

Of course, in this “calm”, the King’s soldiers also contributed to the arrest of more than a dozen fanatical believers.

The people were already somewhat accustomed to this——how tolerant and benevolent could you expect a tyrant to be, right?

In the study.

“How is Abbot Anil?”

The King was flipping through the report brought to him by the Master of Households.

In this era, it was not an easy task to refute the authority of the Holy Court, to a large extent it was equal to risking one’s life. These days, when Abbot Anil was preaching, he was often stoned and spat on by extreme believers who were unwilling to accept his preachings, and some people even tried to burn him together with the places he was preaching in.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Being ostracized and verbally abused was not the first time for Abbot Anil.

——In fact, the treatment he received in the Holy Court was worse than it was now.

The secret actions from the vassal states and the church were what was truly fatal to Abbot Anil. In just a few days, Abbot Anil had been under assassination several times.

AN: Tyrant Persuasion Mode: Guillotine, Executioner, Prison

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The King held his wine goblet, his gaze falling on the Archbishop of Jollingshire.

The Archbishop of Yoringshire shuddered unconsciously. The moment the King glanced over, he felt as if a knife had been scraped across his neck. However, he quickly calmed down. As the second most powerful figure in the church in Legrand, he knew much more about the situation on the other side of the Abyss Strait than others.

No one could violate the glory of the Holy Lord, he was sure of this.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

“Ladies and gentlemen, in the name of the merciful Lord.” The Archbishop of Yoringshire held up the cross on his chest, and he looked around at the other people at the banquet, “Can we witness such a tragedy happen?”

People exchanged glances with each other, and many stood up one after another, carefully using words that expressed their views in terms that echoed the archbishop of Yoringshire County, but did not directly oppose the King.

The secular nobles were not like the parish nobles who really had too much devotion to the Holy Court.

They cared more about their own interests than their piety.

With the Holy Court being so mighty and powerful, they wanted to know what attitude the King would take towards the Holy Court. There was no doubt that even though the nobles have gained a lot from the recent “Free Chamber of Commerce Regulations” and the blockade of the Black Death, but these benefits were not enough for them to completely stand on the opposite side of the Holy Court together with the King.

But, equally, they did not want to confront the King who had just won a victory and whose power and prestige have never been higher than now in the country.

They carefully reserved a leeway for themselves.

But the lords and vassal state representatives on the border were not so polite…..They hoped that the royal family and the Holy Court would completely turn against each other so that they could benefit from it.

“Mr. Bishop.” The King turned the goblet in his hand, his tone sounding amiable, and he even had a smile on his face——if it wasn’t for the fact that it was the same smile he had when he ordered a purge after the Rose Crisis then it would be even better, “I heard you are quite accomplished in theology, and you once got the opportunity to go to the Holy See and speak with the Pope. Is that so?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Although the bishop of Jollingshire County was a little puzzled and didn’t understand why the King mentioned this matter, he still bowed slightly and answered in a tone of humility on the surface, but in fact he was quite proud inside.

“I was once fortunate to have been taught by His Holiness.”

“In this case, I think you must possess the essence of the Pope’s thinking.” The King raised his wine goblet in another direction, “I have been confused for a long time about whether there is a punishment of purgatory after death. Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you all must be as confused as I am. Since there is a bishop who has been taught by the Pope and an abbot who was born in the Holy Spirit Bay and participated in the debate of the Whitsunday Council, why not ask them to discuss this issue and to clarify for us?”

Holy Spirit Bay, Whitsunday Council Debate.

The sound of the crowd instantly grew, and even the expression on the face of the bishop of Jollingshire County changed slightly.

Holy Spirit Bay was where the holy city of the Holy Court was located today, and the Whitsunday Council debate was the highest meeting of the entire Holy Court. All the people who were born in Holy Spirit Bay and qualified to participate in the holy congregation were almost all members of the core power of the Holy Court, the future reserve of the twelve sanctuaries.

There was a joke used to mock:

Even if it was a little priest, as long as they claimed to be from the Holy Court, even the archbishop of a princely country was willing to bend down and kiss their shoe.

Although it was exaggerated, the truth could be glimpsed.

With the relationship between the King and the Holy Court, how could he get the support of such a person?

The white-haired and thin Father Anil stood up from his seat, and his student, Father Remy, looked at him worriedly.

The Master of the Households loudly introduced to everyone present the unfamiliar Father Anil——he was born in the Holy Court, studied at Trinity Theological College, and became a professor of the college after graduation. When the Holy Court reunified the doctrine in 1411, he was at the meeting table, and now he was the abbot of the Legrand Northland Monastery.

1411 Whitsunday Council, Father Anil.

The expressions of some church members in the audience became complicated, and they exchanged looks with each other. Apparently, a small number of these church members had heard of this great theologian who once defeated the Pope in debates. In fact, the Holy Court originally planned to confirm the theory of purgatory at the meeting in 1411, but because of Father Anil’s refutation, some of the Holy Court’s elders changed their original thinking when it was time to make the decision.

It wasn’t until Father Anil was excommunicated from the Holy Court that the Pope was able to formally write the theory of purgatory into the orthodox doctrine at the third holy meeting.

The big belly of the Archbishop of Jollingshire obviously contained more red wine and power scheming. He didn’t recognize who his opponent was, but after hearing that Father Anil was now just an insignificant abbot of the Northland, he showed a look of contempt.

“Sir.” Abbot Anil said gently, “What is purgatory? Where did it come from?”

“Purgatory is the place of judgment. My dear Mr. Abbot, that is something that even infants know.” The Archbishop of Yoringshire sneered, “Need I tell you more? The souls who have been forgiven of their sins and have not yet made penance, neither can enter the kingdom of God nor go to hell, will be placed in purgatory to suffer temporarily, waiting for all sins to be washed away, and so they need our redemption.”

“Sir, this is stipulated by the doctrine of 1417, not the origin of purgatory.” Abbot Anil said in a steady voice, “The term purgatory was proposed by priests such as Amberkin, Ross, and Peter in the 12th century. That is a wrong interpretation, and their basis comes from verses 39 to 26 of the twelfth volume of the Holy Book, and verse 32 of the twelfth volume…..”

As he spoke, Father Anil recited all the verses he mentioned verbatim.

“Isn’t this enough to explain the existence of purgatory?” The Archbishop of Jollingshire sarcastically said, “Since you remember, you shouldn’t make such a big mistake.”

“On the contrary.” Abbot Anil replied, “It exactly proves that purgatory does not exist. The space of purgatory is not clearly pointed out in the holy book from the beginning to the end, but the latecomers misinterpreted these original designations that we should gain salvation by faith, and in the holy book, we were warned with a clear attitude: there is a complete separation between the living and the dead.”

“Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.”

This was the admonition in the holy book, and Father Anil recited it aloud.

“The Holy Lord has already stated these clearly with His tolerance and mercy——

After death, the soul does not need to go through the purifying stage of purgatory, but is in a state of dormancy, which lasts until the last judgment and final resurrection; the worlds of the living and the dead are completely separated, and there can be no connection that may occur between them, all acts of intercession by the living for the dead, including prayers, offerings of Eucharist, buying indulgences, etc., have no meaning.”

There was an uproar among the crowd.

This was the first time someone had publicly declared so loudly on such a political occasion among the upper class in Legrand that there was no purgatory.

The Archbishop of Jollingshire County pointed tremblingly at the fearless Abbot Anil: “You, you, you…..do you even want to deny and betray your own mission of salvation as an apostle?!”

“Yes!” Abbot Anil replied sharply, “I never thought that I have the right to redeem anyone on behalf of the supreme Holy Lord. Only devout faith can establish communication between the apostles and the Holy Lord. Not even the Holy See can teach a sinner to ascend to the kingdom of God! The key to the kingdom of God is no longer in our hands, but in the hands of all! The secular world has nothing to do with the soul!”

Some nobles who originally wanted to get up sat back to their original positions after hearing these words.

There were varying expressions on their faces.

Especially for the nobles in the south, doing business had always been derogatory in the teachings of the Holy Court, and it had always been considered that only people who have committed crimes would do it. Banking, usury and other related businesses have been denounced as “crimes” and “heresy”. But in fact, the cost of maintaining nobles’ territories was very great, and the closer the nobles were to the commercial booming area in the south, the more dissatisfied they were with these precepts.

Putting aside this point, the various miscellaneous taxes they pay to the Holy Court every year were also not a small expense.

But these people were only a minority, and more people immediately changed their faces when they heard the shocking words of Abbot Anil. Many madams and ladies even held handkerchiefs to their mouths, looking on the verge of fainting.

Several priests stood up one after another and loudly refuted Abbot Anil.

At first, they were still citing various regulations and various interpretations of the holy book, but Abbot Anil was more familiar with these regulations and the interpretation of the holy book than they were. He was able to recite the full text of all the arguments against himself on the spot, and then refute them one by one by citing the holy book.

In the end, the priests were practically left speechless, and could only angrily accuse Abbot Anil of being a “blasphemer” and a “heretic” who should be burned at the stake.

“May I ask you all, is the status of the Holy See higher than the voice of the Holy Lord? Can we think that the words of mortals are above the teachings of the true God?” Abbot Anil asked sharply, “The pating of indulgence itself is the blasphemy towards the sacred! The Holy Court has never had the right to redeem people’s souls, and the only way to obtain salvation is faith itself!”

“I am willing to bear all the responsibilities for my words today. If pious belief is sinful, then I am willing to be burned for it!”

Abbot Anil replied sonorously. He raised his hand to hold the cross on his chest and held it high.

Father Remy stood up and also raised his cross high.

Abbot Anil looked around at everyone present. His hair was white and his hands were wrinkled, but his eyes clearly revealed rock-like strength and fortitude.

The light that fell from the sky enveloped him, and he was more like a benevolent saint than that depicted in all the frescoes and all the statues.

The great hall fell silent.

In the silence, the King put down his wine goblet and clapped his hands: “Thank you for clarifying my doubts, Mr. Abbot.”

Saying this, the King looked around the hall.

He smiled slightly.

“Ladies and gentlemen, shouldn’t we applaud such a good debate? Shouldn’t we rejoice that our mistakes have finally been righted?”

The King’s tone was extremely kind, but his eyes were also extremely cold.

——This was an informal declaration of taking sides.

At the seats, some people began to follow the King to applaud, and soon the number became more and more, mainly the southeast nobles and some original royalist nobles. Representatives of Ingres and Kriya also applauded, along with some small vassal states in the central and southern regions.

High lords and larger vassal states sat stiffly among the applauding crowd.

Their faces were livid, and they neither reprimanded nor agreed.

“Cheers to faith!”

The King smiled, raised his golden wine goblet high, and saluted everyone present. Then he drank the wine in one gulp.

Those who applauded raised their goblets and shouted in unison: “Cheers to faith.”

Amidst the cheers, the King smiled and looked down at his empty wine goblet——A toast to faith! Cheers!

As soon as the wine goblet was put down on the table, the King clapped his hands. The old judge who presided over the meeting of glory baci then stood up, holding a regulation document in his hand.

“Now that we realize our mistakes, we can’t go any further down the wrong path.” The King said lightly, turning a blind eye to the livid faces of the lords and priests, “In order to make up for our mistakes, the royal council has drawn up such a draft.”

A group of judges dressed in black, led by the castle attendants, walked into the hall and distributed the proposed regulation documents to each person.

“Limitation of Purgatory Creeds and Priesthood Ordinances”

Seeing the name of the draft, the corners of General Edmund’s eyes twitched for a moment. For a moment, he felt that what he was holding in his hand was not a piece of document, but a sword.

A war without gunpowder, but equally dangerous was taking place.

He took a deep breath slowly, and finally understood what the King wanted to do with the Duke of Buckingham’s funeral——

How was this a funeral! This was clearly a declaration of war!

This regulation was the first clarion call.

Facing the authority of the Holy Court, the King finally tore away the illusion of harmony on the surface, and put all the enmity on the card table first. He chose to use Abbot Anil, the leader of the “Pure and Holy Faction” who had been expelled from the Holy City, as a pawn, and began to challenge the authority of the Pope.

Should he be called crazy or should he be called fearless?

Even  the nobles who had applauded before, when they saw this document, their faces instantly changed, and whipped their heads up to look at the King sitting on the throne. The rest of the priests, lords, and vassal state representatives reacted even more strongly, and many people stood up directly, wanting to say something.

However, just as they stood up, heavy horseshoes echoed from the door of the hall.

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of the iron hooves falling on the rocky floor was deep and powerful, bringing an unsettling solemn chill.

A war horse and a knight appeared at the entrance of the banquet hall.

Behind the knight was the deep dark night, and the brilliant candlelight reflected off the iron armor he wore. The knight wore cold iron gauntlets and a long sword hung from his waist. He held the reins in one hand and his helmet in the other. His shoulder length silver hair was tied behind his head, and his icy blue eyes were as still as the cold edge of a blade.

General Johan.

He had come.

Today marked the Duke of Buckingham’s funeral and the ceremony in which he would officially become Defender of the King.

At the moment when the opponents stood up and the undercurrent in the hall was surging, he stepped into the banquet hall.

The representatives of the vassal states stopped talking from the moment General Johan stepped into the hall. Those who stood up exchanged glances with each other. The lords on the borders slowly sat up straight, and the noble madams and ladies had a premonition of what would happen next, some flickering their eyes back and forth between General Johan and the other knights at the banquet, nervously and somewhat expectantly.

The King raised his goblet at his cousin.

The Master of the Households announced with a loud voice to all present that the King’s defender, General Johan, had arrived.

Under the many gazes, General Johan raised his hand and clenched his fist, beating his heart.

The collision of iron made a crisp sound.

“I swear by the honor of the knight, I will defend Your Majesty’s dignity and authority with my life.”

General Johan’s voice was deep and powerful, and he stared at the King who was toasting to him on the throne.

“For the rest of my life, I will take the duty and honor of the defender as my duty. All those who do not support Your Majesty, I will punish with a sharp sword and trample under iron hooves.”

“Now——”

General Johan took off his gauntlets and threw them to the ground.

“I make my challenge to all the opponents of His Majesty here!”

The iron gauntlets fell to the ground with a clang.

The flickering candlelight fell on young General Johan——he had inherited his father’s dukedom, and now he would inherit the title of “Defender” from the Duke of Buckingham as well.

The first knight who opposed the new regulations stood up from the banquet table and walked out. He picked up the iron gauntlets thrown to the ground by General Johan: “I accept your challenge.”

This was the Middle Ages.

This was the era of knights.

Beneath all the elegant etiquette of toasting and drinking, the most savage, primitive and violent impulses were concealed. Blood and armor, long swords and duels were the most revered and noble way of adjudicating in this era——at the cost of one party’s glory and one party’s death. The lords could not defeat Abbot Anil theologically, but they could defeat the King’s defender in the dueling ring.

That meant that the King’s plan today would fail——

No one would trust a King who did not have absolute martial force!

At this moment, General Johan symbolized the King himself.

The King put his honor into his hands.

The Rose family had never been afraid of shedding blood, and the dueling stage was set in the square in front of the hall. The torches that had been prepared were lit one by one, and the flames circled the dueling arena.

The master of ceremonies began to announce the knights on both sides of the duel: “The Rose family, defender of the King! General Johan!”

General Johan galloped forward, the scarlet cloak on his back billowed, and the King’s personal guards spontaneously raised the Rose royal banner high for him. The Duke of Buckingham’s old staff cheered loudly. He drew out the long sword at his waist. This time, the dueling arena was much smaller than that of the usual horse-fighting contests. The two sides would not use lances, but a more dangerous melee style duel.

“Dacke State, Sir Tetson!”

General Johan’s opponent also stepped onto the arena, wearing a blue cloak and holding a shield with the laurel family crest in one hand. Facing the son of the Duke of Buckingham, the bloodline of the imperial lion, he maintained enough vigilance and attention.

At the moment when the master of ceremonies announced the start of the duel, General Johan’s horse galloped forward like the wind. The two sides approached in an instant. General Johan held his sword, the blade tilted sideways. His opponent was also a long-established knight with a record to boast about.

With the cold wind blowing across his face, General Johan was extremely calm.

The war horses finally collided. At that moment, General Johan let out a loud roar, and the long sword cut  sharply through the air. Sir Tetson raised his shield to meet him, and in a flash, the side of the long sword slashed against the shield. This was not a miss, but a more deadly attack——because in the next moment, General Johan and his horse leaped upwards.

The King had used this trick in the Battle of Benz, and now it was also utilized by General Johan.

In his life, the Duke of Buckingham taught two of the best knights in the world.

One was his nephew! One was his son!

The horses neighed, the knights roared, and General Johan in mid-air had turned into a fierce lion. His father’s glory revived within him, and his long sword slashed hard, knocking away the enemy’s shield.

Blood, the flash of a sword.

The horse landed on the ground, and General Johan galloped out like a breeze. Behind him, a head flew up high, and blood sprayed like a fountain.

“Next!”

General Johan roared, and he threw his gauntlets to the ground again.

Behind him, the dead body of Sir Tetson fell from his horse.

The wind blew across the earth, and the fire from the torches rose upwards, burning high.

“Next!”

The corpses gradually piled up, and Charles looked at General Johan, who was swinging his sword atop his horse, as if the young Duke of Buckingham appeared before his eyes again.

The last time the iron gauntlets fell to the ground, no one dared to step into the dueling arena. Blood dripped down General Johan’s armor. He reined in his horse with one hand and held his sword in the other, standing proudly and coldly among the corpses that surrounded him. All those who met his gaze involuntarily backed off.

The master of ceremonies shouted three times, but there was no answer.

He announced loudly: “The defender is born!!”

General Johan got off his horse, drew his sword and moved forward. The crowd carved out a wide path for him leading directly to the main hall.

The King stepped down from his throne.

“Congratulations, my defender!”

The King gazed at his cousin, and raised his golden goblet aloft.

“For you, I fight!”

General Johan took the wine goblet served by the servant and toasted the King.

“Defender!” “Defender!”

Cheers erupted like a tidal wave, and thunderous applause burst forth. In the crowd, the former subordinates of the Duke of Buckingham burst into tears.

There was an uproar of voices and cheers, and amidst the din, no one noticed that a bard was trembling all over.

Kriya’s old bard put his hands on the strings, he looked at the King holding the golden goblet, at the smiling General Johan, at the corpses, at the fire and blood…..Countless words skimmed across his mind. He finally understood his destiny in this life.

It was destined that he was to only write an unprecedented epic in his life.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

That was the epic of the birth of the Rose family from blood and fire!

This was a family born in blood, and the young son of the lion, like his father, raised the sword for the King. He was the King’s shield and the King’s sword.

The contract of the previous generation was passed on to the younger generation.

The heroic soul of the Rose family was to never die.

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The death knell echoed over the Metzl Castle,  so clear that it felt as if the only sound left in the air was the ringing of the ominous copper bell.

An old priest who had never been seen in Metzl Castle led a group of priests to lead the funeral procession. The priest’s hair was frost-white, and a silver cross hung on his chest. Amidst the low voice of hymns, the procession slowly approached.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

The Duke of Buckingham’s coffin was not covered with the customary cruciform pall——the King had instead put a Rose royal banner over it. No one questioned this. If even the Duke of Buckingham could not bear such an honor, then no one in Legrand would be eligible to receive it.

Unlike the funeral of ordinary nobles whose coffin was carried on a carriage when they were buried, eight coffin bearers with black hoods came out of the manor carrying the coffin of the Duke. General Johan, son of the Duke of Buckingham, was at the head of all the pallbearers, next to him was the scholarly and mournful First Mate Charles, and most of the rest were the Duke’s old staff.

The Duke participated in hundreds of battles for Legrand throughout his life. Most of the royal soldiers he led died with him in the rebellion in the North, but there were countless knights who followed him on the battlefield in his era.

“It was 1412, when I was a minor longbowman, our general led us to fight those bastards in Thorne…..I thought I would die at that time! But it turned out that our general was the first to charge, so everyone followed in his lead…..” Almost everyone who followed the Duke of Buckingham in battle affectionately called the Duke “our general”.

In all the stories told during idle times, there were always knights who were proud that they had fought with the Duke.

The funeral procession was quite long.

Many knights came from all over Legrand, and they all dismounted from their horses, and put on the smocks they had worn when they fought with the Duke under their mourning robes. They honored their general with all their might. The King walked in front of them, followed by the procession of nobles, followed by representatives of the guilds.

When the coffin passed the long street where the crowd was waiting, the weeping could no longer be suppressed and filled the air.

The birds perched on the eaves were disturbed by their cries, fluttered their wings and flew into the gray sky. Snow-like white flowers were continuously thrown from all over to the slowly passing coffin.

Mourning flowers fell like snow, as if the sky and the earth suddenly became white and sorrowful.

The King was wearing a black cloak. He raised his head and looked at the mourning flowers falling like snow and the red eyes of the people. It seemed as if winter had not yet passed, and there was still continuous snowfall, but it also seemed that winter had already disappeared, and there was boiling magma running underground.

At the end of the funeral procession followed the poor who also came to attend the funeral, as they were originally invited to come. But as the coffin passed through the long street, more and more people joined in the funeral procession. Some of them prepared black mourning clothes themselves, and some accepted black mourning clothes from the royal guards.

The long black river flowed slowly towards St. Wyth’s Cathedral.

The Duke’s burial spot was very close to William III.

According to Legrand tradition, the tomb was dug on the spot on the day of the burial. The King dug the first pitch for the Duke, and then handed the shovel to General Johan. After that General Johan passed it to Charles. By the time it was handed over to the last knight, the tomb was big enough and deep enough.

The children in the choir sang hymns in unison. During the hymns, Father Anil held a heavy holy book and read the final eulogy.

The King stood in front of the sobbing crowd, and he watched the soil cover the coffin with the scarlet royal flag little by little with no expression. Suddenly he raised his hand, took off the rose badge on his chest and threw it into the tomb that was being filled.

Some things always come to an end at the cost of taking something else away.

The hymn was swept up into the sky in the cold wind, gathered together with the death knell, and gathered together with more elegiac songs, as if all the sorrowful past events from the legendary era to the present, surged up again, reminding some people, what kind of things they carry on their shoulders.

Legrand, St. Wyth Cathedral, 1433.

A heavy square stone tablet was erected in front of the tomb of the Duke of Buckingham. On the stone tablet were engraved with blooming roses and the phrase “For Glory”. On the day when the tombstone of the Duke of Buckingham was erected, on the other side of the Abyss Strait, the first group of priests in Bressi entered the secular palace.

After the symbols of the old era have fallen, a new era is now brewing.

………………

Rose Palace, funeral banquet.

This funeral banquet, which was supposed to be quiet and mournful, was destined to be filled with a turbulent undercurrent.

All the state representatives and lords who received the invitation gathered in the main hall of the palace. For these state representatives and nobles, they didn’t have much heart to mourn the death of the Duke of Buckingham, after all it was not a bad thing for their state. For the vassal states and the great lords, this meant that there was one less person to inspire fear in them.

Many people wanted nothing more than to applaud in their hearts while they shed crocodile tears on the surface.

The struggle for power would never end with death.

The Duke of Buckingham had always been a sharp sword that deterred the vassal states. After his death, Legrand completely lost an important pillar, and the entire country now fell to the young king. Obviously, for the people of the vassal states, they had doubts about whether the young king could possess the same authority——

Victory in war could be attributed to individual bravery, but politics required more cunning.

After the King won, he directly abolished the independent state status of Balboa State and Newcastle State. This approach, in the eyes of some people, was the willful act of the too young and arrogant.

As for the lords and nobles, instead of the sorrow felt by the common people, they paid more attention to some other underlying messages revealed by this funeral:

The archbishop of St. Wyth did not attend the funeral. Did this mean that the royal family of Legrand and the Holy Court were indeed about to shed all pretenses of niceties again? The funeral did not hold any Eucharist, and the royal family would not make such a small mistake in etiquette, unless it was intentional…..Did this mean that the King was about to retaliate against the church?

At the banquet, the lords wore mourning white flowers on their chests, raised their glasses to each other in the name of “mourning for the Duke” from time to time, and took this opportunity to probe each other’s true attitude.

The King sat in the seat of supreme power.

On the high throne, the King rested his left arm on the armrest, and held a golden wine goblet in his right hand. He let the representatives of the vassal states and the nobles below chat with each other, as if he didn’t see the pretense of sorrow on some people was being replaced by the joy of exchanging benefits. The stained glass on the dome of the main hall refracted the light of the candle, and the light fell from the sky, shrouding the King in a hazy halo.

He poured and drank by himself expressionlessly, an empty seat beside him.

That seat originally belonged to the Duke of Buckingham.

On the other side, Earl Henry, who contributed great efforts in the suppression of the rebellion and made great achievements, sat in a position that did not match his achievements. He sat with several border lords and talked in a low voice, discussing something. From time to time, his eyes swept over the King who raised his goblet and drank by himself.

General Edmund sat in the corner.

He held up his wine goblet as a cover to observe Earl Henry and the King. During the suppression of the rebellion in the Northland, after he led Ingres’ army to assist the King in attacking Balboa, he quickly withdrew, unlike that bigheaded Earl Henry——that idiot actually occupied a piece of land on the border of Balboa, intending to expand his territory.

He was simply dumber than a donkey.

Did he think that the King who abolished the Balboa royal family would be willing to let the land he finally regained be touched by the border lords? Or did he think that after winning some battles, he would have enough capital to act presumptuously in front of the King?

For General Edmund, the death of the Duke of Buckingham was definitely not a good thing for the vassal states and the great lords.

General Edmund already had a feeling when the purge order was carried out, but after he saw the King at the funeral, that premonition became even stronger. The death of the Duke of Buckingham injected something icy into the King’s veins, as if he had now firmly put on an iron mask. Under the mask was a bloodthirsty monster that was slowly licking his fangs, just waiting for the moment to declare war.

——He went straight from a proud young monarch to a monster birthed from blood and fire.

General Edmund would rather face a dangerous but familiar lion than an unknown bloody monster.

Seeing that the King on the throne did not move at all, the nobles at the banquet exchanged glances with each other. Finally, an archbishop who came from another region to attend the funeral stood up. He was from Yoringshire County in Legrand, and he was the second most powerful clergy member in Legrand after Archbishop of St. Wyth.

The Archbishop of Yoringshire stood up holding the wine goblet, first raised his goblet to the King, and apologized for his impolite behavior, then he directly made his own accusations: “Your Majesty, please forgive my presumptuousness, it is just that I really can’t witness such a colossal mistake happen in front of all our eyes yet no one calls it out.”

“Speak.”

The King answered casually while holding his wine goblet.

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“Oh Holy Lord, I have seen such a blasphemy towards the dead today.” The archbishop of Yoringshire County cried out, holding a wine goblet in one hand and the cross on his chest in the other. “In today’s funeral, there was actually no one to perform the Eucharist for our beloved lord Duke…..Oh God, how unfair is this to a most noble man like him? Could it be that Your Majesty wants to watch the lord Duke suffer in the red fires of purgatory? Could it be that Your Majesty wants the lord Duke to not receive redemption?”

Whispers filled the banquet hall, and it was obvious that the Archbishop of Yoringshire was not the only one who noticed this.

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The King looked at the old priest before him.

Abbot Anil was dressed in a plain black robe, with nothing that stood out other than the cross hanging around his neck and his deep eyes. Compared with what was written in the records, he was already much older. When he left the Holy See more than 20 years ago, Father Anil was still a theological genius of the Holy Court, the star of hope, and it could be said that he was in right in his prime. But the relentless wind and desolate conditions of the Northland had dyed his hair white.

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He and Archbishop St. Wyth were two completely opposite images.

One must know, red wine and delicious food filled the stomach of the Archbishop of St. Wyth, causing it to be extremely round. In terms of body size alone, the stout body of the Archbishop of St. Wyth was comparable to that of two Priest Anil.

Abbot Anil was also looking at the King, trying to find out any clues to whether he was about to bring a bloodbath to all the churches in the country in a fit of violent rage, as the rumors said. The King was seated in a high-backed chair, and because of the death of the Duke of Buckingham, he was dressed in deep black mourning attire, which, as far as his position was concerned, could not have been more descriptive of his respect and affection for his uncle. Other than this, his expression was extremely calm and difficult to guess.

Abbot Anil sighed in his heart.

Even if he was not the king, it was also a sin to deprive such a young child of an elder whom such a young child loved so dearly by despicable means.

“Please have a seat.” The King said, “Mr. Anil.”

A seat had already been prepared for Abbot Anil in the room. Abbot Anil bowed and expressed that he was not deserving. The King smiled and said slowly: “Please don’t be restrained. After all, it is not as if the priest who will preside over my uncle’s funeral could not even deserve a seat.”

Abbot Anil looked at the King in surprise, this was indeed beyond his expectation: “Your Majesty…..”

The King interrupted Abbot Anil’s words, tapping the armrest of his chair unhurriedly: “You once participated in the Whitsunday Council in 1411, do you still remember the eleven arguments you put forward at that time? I’m curious about your essay “On the Existence or Absence of Purgatory”, would you mind expounding on it for me?”

Abbot Anil now vaguely understood some of the motives why the King invited him here.

“After death, the soul should be in a state of sleep. This state lasts until the coming of the Last Judgment, during which the soul need not undergo any cleansing by the fire of purgatory. The worlds of the living and the dead are completely separated, and no connection can happen between the two.” Abbot Anil answered slowly, “Thus, the prayers, Eucharist, and purchase of indulgences made by the living for the dead cannot save the soul of the dead. Forgiveness and judgment all belong to the Holy Lord. The key to the door is never in the hands of any priest.”

The Eucharist referred to an important ceremony presided over by priests in funerals, and was considered to be the most effective way to redeem souls among all intercession ceremonies.

The Holy Court claimed that reciting prayers could correspondingly shorten the time the dead suffer in purgatory. Because of this, donations to the Holy Court in the upper class often have their motives. When the last King of Bressi, Ferri II, made a donation to the capital cathedral, he clearly stated that “the donation is first used to pay the priest’s salary so that he may pray for Ferri II every day.”

“In your point of view, the Pope has nothing to do with the salvation of mortals. Believers should return to faith and holy scriptures. Even the Pope can’t do anything about salvation. Is that so, right?” The King asked gently.

But the opposite included an underlying meaning in his words.

He requested Abbot Anil to confirm that the Pope did not have authority over souls, and asked Abbot Anil to veto all the power of the Holy See in regards to salvation.

Back then, Abbot Anil was almost burned on the stake because of his protest at the conference, and he was still excommunicated even now. Currently on the other side of the Abyss Strait, the persecution of heresy led by the Holy Court had taken root everywhere. So long as he made affirmative remarks, it would be the same as stepping out and standing at the heart of the struggle.

The Holy Court, which intended to build the Kingdom of God, would not tolerate any voices of opposition.

The King’s icy blue eyes stared sharply at Abbot Anil.

“Yes.” Abbot Anil raised his hand and held the cross around his neck. He nodded, “The piety of faith is higher than the orders of the Holy See.”

The King smiled and handed an investigation document to the abbot: “Mr. Anil, please take a look.”

Abbot Anil took the document and started to read it. As he read page by page, Abbot Anil’s face gradually became more and more serious.

It was a statistic of the distribution of indulgences by the diocese of Legrand.

Before going to the north to fight, the King ordered his financial chancellor to start investigating this. The officials who compiled the doomsday judgment documents of dozens of county lords once again resumed their old profession. This time they counted the issuance of indulgences in various counties in Legrand.

As early as 1312, the Holy Court began to issue indulgences in the name of “amnesty” in order to obtain more financial revenue. Originally, the amnesty year should be once every 100 years, but it didn’t take long for this time limit to be repeatedly shortened again and again. And eventually during the reign of the previous Pope, he completely abolished this boundary.

To establish the Kingdom of God on earth, apart from prestige and troops, there was also a need for a steady stream of money. In order to establish the Kingdom of God, the Holy Court began to sell huge amounts of indulgences in the name of the “Kingdom of God” before the Bressi Incident began. The scope of its release was not limited to the other side of the Abyss Strait, all parishes had the right to sell indulgences——so long as they paid a sum of money to the Holy Court.

When the King and the Duke of Buckingham led their troops to the north, many parishes in Legrand were sending the money they got from selling indulgences to the other side of the Abyss Strait.

The rebellion in the North was not over yet at that time, so the King held back and did not take any action. He just sent his people to start collecting data.

“The money obtained in the name of redemption was funding the rebellion in the North.” The King said flatly, “Mr. Anil, why does atonement fuel the flames of war and crime instead?”

“This is not atonement.” Abbot Anil looked down at the unimaginable numbers, and scenes of corpses everywhere, burnt houses, people’s wailing appeared in front of his eyes. He closed his eyes in pain, “This…..this is sin.”

“I hope to print and distribute your essay “On the Existence or Absence of Purgatory”.” The King paused, “Also, I hope that you will preside over my uncle’s funeral. There is no need for a Eucharist during the funeral.”

No Eucharist needed, and no pardon for the Duke of Buckingham needed.

There was no need for redemption from anyone.

“The Holy Lord above.”

Abbot Anil stood up, and he saluted the King.

“Thank you for your kindness.”

Before Abbot Anil was led out of the study by the Master of the Households, he stopped and looked back at the King: “Are you not worried that if purgatory really exists, the sir Duke who has not been redeemed would go to hell?”

Abbot Anil could understand people’s support for the Holy Court’s theory of purgatory…..Who would want their loved ones to suffer in purgatory? When he refuted the theory of purgatory, he also received a lot of ridicule and cold eyes from the common people. Now the King had canceled the Eucharist at the Duke of Buckingham’s funeral. Nothing could bring more infamy to the King than this.

He could almost think of all kinds of accusations the people would make against the King.

All reformers have always suffered infamy.

The King looked down at the documents in his hand without saying a word, and the Master of the Households closed the door.

The sunlight fell on the document held in the King’s hand, which was a just-drafted call for a state conference. A new meeting would be held after the Duke’s funeral.

The King took a pen and signed his name on the writ.

“I actually wish he could go to hell.”

In the room where the King was alone, he suddenly whispered to himself. The King turned his head to look out the window, blinking away the momentary wetness.

……………………

All the shops in Metzl were closed today.

There was no singing, nor laughing.

Some people stood on the streets of the city, distributing black ribbons to passers-by. The clown who stood on the street throwing oranges in the past changed the painted smile on his face, replacing it with heavy black tears under his eyes. Madams and ladies had tears in their eyes, the people gathering in a long street, waiting for a procession to arrive.

A gray-haired old man leaned on a cane and stood among the crowd on the side of the street, supported by his grandson.

The old man had come from another region, having traveled for nearly a week to arrive.

“The Duke of Buckingham…..the Duke was a very good man.”

The old man held his grandson’s hand and repeated these words over and over again.

All Legrandians know the story of the Duke of Buckingham.

Unlike William III, the Duke of Buckingham was knighted on the battlefield when he was only sixteen years old. On the day he was conferred the title of knight, he swore that he would defend the empire with the sword and shield in his life. He would defeat the enemy with the sword and protect the people with the shield.

An oath.

An oath he spent his life fulfilling.

After their father died of illness, he followed his brother William III to conquer the thirty-six states, and led his troops to defeat Bressi’s expedition three times. After the sudden death of William III, he became the pillar of the whole kingdom. Over a long period of time, people got used to the figure always standing sentinel on the territory of Legrand, and got used to that straight spine that remained unchanging and firm from youth to old age.

“Besides him, who else can be called the lion of the empire? Who else can be so loyal, so brave, and so selfless in guarding this country?”

When news of the Duke of Buckingham’s death came back, a court poet called it “an unbearable grief of the empire.”

A shield had shattered suddenly, and a long sword had snapped as well.

Legrand lost her most beloved knight.

The death knell finally sounded.

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The moment the bell rang, the funeral procession appeared before the people’s eyes.

In the crowd, the old man who had been repeatedly rambling to his grandson suddenly let go of his hands and slipped down to the ground.

——It seemed that only then did he finally understand that the Duke of Buckingham had truly left when he saw the coffin approaching from afar.

AN: Those who guard the country will be loved by the country.

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