Part Two: The Human World Chapter Thirty-two: The Spring of Dejagu
The general went out to relax.
The day after being rejected by Asa, he temporarily entrusted the affairs of the army to Asa, saying that he wanted to go out to relax. Originally Asa was worried that he would lose control and do something random, but
I finally breathed a sigh of relief, but I seemed to feel that something was wrong.
Because after that night, the expression on the general's face was very calm. There was no trace of the passionate emotions of yesterday. Even the usual majesty and evil spirit were gone. Instead, he revealed the calmness and stability that an old man should have.
Such a strong emotional contrast appeared in such an old man. When Asa faced the general's furious murderous intent, he was not afraid, but now looking at that peaceful and calm face, he always felt a little creepy.
It’s not a big deal when a person is angry and out of control. Emotional out-of-control will only overwhelm reason, which is not difficult to deal with. Only when all the emotional power is gathered into the heart, all impulses return to calmness and merge into reason.
The scariest thing is when it comes to personality.
But logically speaking, the situation is indeed stable. Asa has told every general in the army the content of the imperial edict. Even if the general insists on mobilizing the troops, it is impossible. Maybe that calmness is finally accepted.
Indifference after reality.
I hope so. Asa waited uneasily in Bracada.
Three days later, the general finally came back, and he brought more than twenty people. These people seemed to be ordinary villagers, including old men in their late teens and young and strong ones. The general placed them in the city hall.
After that, he called all the small and medium-sized generals in the army and quietly told them some things. Many of the generals were the general's old subordinates for decades, and they could still be mobilized for these small things.
Then the general held a huge and sumptuous banquet to comfort all the priests in the army, including the priests. This banquet fully complied with the strict dietary requirements of the church for the priests and at the same time was not lacking in sumptuousness. The general said that it was
I would like to thank the chaplains for their long-term spiritual guidance to the soldiers. Please enjoy it.
According to the etiquette, it is very troublesome for pastors to eat. They must pray first, then chew slowly and carefully, and after eating, they have to pray again before leaving the table. Although this set of cumbersome rules may not necessarily mean that everyone is very honest.
Observe, but in this big occasion with hundreds of people traveling together, there is a priest next to you, so naturally you can't be careless, so hundreds of priests prayed together, as if it were a great sacrifice, and then started to eat.
"What the hell are you doing?" The leader of these hundreds of priests, the priest, did not pray. He sat on the top seat and asked the general sitting next to him impatiently.
The general was very calm and smiled like a well-educated master: "I just want to treat you to a good meal. Don't worry, I don't dare and will not tamper with the priests' food."
Asa sighed and said a little helplessly: "Let me ask you, old man, for a favor. Don't do anything else. Can you just wait here quietly for Duke Mrak to arrive?"
The general didn't say anything, he just smiled quietly. Asa looked at his back and felt a chill. This face usually contained many strong expressions, but now it suddenly became gentle and looked strange.
"Priest, why don't you eat it?" The general smiled lightly and pointed at the delicious food on the table.
Asa shook his head, sighed, dragged a plate of food back and forth and stuffed it into his mouth, while saying vaguely: "Of course I want to eat. Why not eat if others ask me to eat? I never have any grudge against what I eat."
The food was delicious, and the priests below chewed it carefully and gracefully. Occasionally, some people looked up to see their superiors eating like bandits, but they would never dare to imitate them.
After a while, the plate in front of Asa was empty. He seemed to burp with satisfaction, stood up and walked outside with his hands clasped.
The general asked: "Where are you going, Lord Priest?"
"You've eaten too much, go take a dump." The noble clergyman walked out without looking back.
The streets of Bracada were deserted. It was still noon, but there were no soldiers walking around on the streets. It seemed a bit strangely deserted. Asa walked around to see what the general was up to.
When passing by a hotel, Asa heard voices coming from inside. He walked to the door and looked inside quietly.
Only the unique hall of the Bracada Hotel can accommodate such two to three hundred soldiers sitting together. These are very young soldiers in their teens and twenties, and there are no older veterans inside.
They were probably specially selected from the army. They were surrounding an old man and listened to the old man's words attentively.
This old man is one of those people brought back by the general. He has a very simple face with criss-crossed ditches, half-carrying his back, and his hands hanging down almost to his knees. He is a typical example of an old farmer who has spent his life with his face facing the loess and his back to the sky. Now he
He said to the soldiers: "...I saw a human skin hanging on the tree. It had no face, but I knew whose it belonged to. I knew the scar on the leg. I gave it to him with my own hands.
This scar had been treated with medicine. At this time, the ogres had already pinned my sister to the stone platform. An ogre dressed as a priest danced and then cut my sister's belly open with a knife made of stone.
My sister kept screaming and wanted to move, but several ogres held her down. I watched my sister's blood flowing all over the stone platform. She kept screaming and struggling... The priest was alive
They dug out her heart, held it in their hands, danced their dance, and then placed it on their altar. That is my sister..." The old man's tears flowed out,
My body is also trembling, and the passage of time has not diminished the power of this memory.
The young soldiers began to stir, and the blood in their bodies began to boil. The grief and indignation of the same enemy stirred up sparks in their hearts, and the young passion made them burn stronger and stronger. If an orc appeared in their field of vision now
It will definitely be torn to pieces by this group of angry people.
"Fortunately, the people in the village invited a group of mercenaries at this time, and I took advantage of the chaos and ran out. But the scene I saw with my own eyes will never be forgotten... There are people in our village every year
We were caught and eaten by those beasts. It was not until the general led his troops here and killed all those damn beasts that we were able to survive. We are really grateful to the general... General Sanders is our
The great benefactor of the common people is the greatest general in the empire." The old man continued to tremble.
The spirit of these two to three hundred young listeners has completely resonated with this old man. Young hearts are always particularly easy to be touched, not to mention that even a slightly bloody person cannot help but be moved by these things.
of.
"But now I heard that the general has been dismissed from his post. Although I, an old man, don't understand any national affairs, I only know that the general is the benefactor of our people. Like you soldiers, they all fight for our people. They are all good people.
.But those officials and those nobles only use our hard-earned money to eat, drink and have fun. Why can they let a good man like General Sanders be dismissed from his job?" The old farmer expressed his simple feelings with simple logic.
"I also heard that the remnants of the orcs have established a city in the wasteland, and have colluded with the nobles to ask the empire to sign a peace treaty and recognize their independence. Is this justified? Is it true for those of us who died?
Is this the end of my family? I didn’t sleep well after hearing the news. I only regretted that I was too old and could no longer wield the sword. Otherwise, I would have killed the orc even if I was alone.
If I go to the city, even if I die and are eaten by those wild beasts, I will chop them with my knife and poison them with my flesh..." The old man's voice and body were trembling with excitement.
It was even more intense. This was not a prepared speech. No practice could allow such a simple person to say such powerful words. It was a revelation of true emotions that shocked the hearts of every listener. These soldiers were very young and also
Very simple, able to fully feel the power of these emotions, the expressions on his face are masked by fanatical anger and passion.
Asa was at the door but felt goosebumps when he heard it. He could probably guess what the general was going to do.
"Okay, it's time, everyone, let's go. The general has something to say to us." A man who looked like a captain among the soldiers led the soldiers to stand up and walk outside. Asa quickly got out of the way.
Groups of soldiers began to come out of various hotels one after another. They were all young soldiers. They went in batches to listen to the speeches of the people the general had retrieved. No other generals or officers came out to interfere with them. General
Prestige among subordinates cannot be exorcised by just a piece of official paper.
The soldiers did not pay attention to Asa, and they walked out of the city led by some soldiers who probably had received the general's prior instructions.
Asa followed them all the way to a small hill outside the city. The general was already standing on it at some point. The priests must still be eating there slowly. The food was delicious, and the general naturally had a way to make them happy.
Just continue eating there with peace of mind.
After all the soldiers had gathered, the general began to shout with a powerful voice to these young people who were filled with righteous indignation: "Men of Ironfast, great warriors of the empire. Everyone already knows that I am no longer with you."
He is no longer the commander of the troops. Because of the conspiracy of the nobles and the dirty political interest transactions, this great war that was originally intended to avenge our people has been aborted. I tell you, I can go back like this, go back
I will enjoy my old age with the salary given to me by the court, because I am no longer a general. But I will not do that. Absolutely not." The general roared. "Because I am still a soldier," he seemed to be using his life
Roaring. "I am a warrior."
The soldiers subconsciously responded to this majestic roar.
Every cry that truly comes from the heart will arouse shocks in the hearts of others. What’s more, this shock is like the climax of a drama, with sufficient stories and performances already laying the groundwork.
Standing next to the formation of soldiers, listening to the angry roars, Asa felt cold.
"I will not go back and enjoy my old age. I would rather spend all the time I spent growing old on the hospital bed in exchange for an opportunity like this. As a warrior, I can use my sword to tell those beasts our dignity and anger as humans."
The general's rich voice was clearly conveyed to the ears of every soldier. "I can no longer order you, and I can no longer command you. I am only speaking as a soldier to you soldiers like me.
"The general slowed down his voice and emphasized his tone, ensuring that this rolling voice could completely ignite the fire in the hearts of every young soldier. "I am a soldier here to ask you. Soldiers like me, are you willing to follow?
Me? Are you willing to kill those beasts with me?"
"Yes." A deafening voice broke out in the mouths of the soldiers, five or six thousand roaring from the bottom of their hearts.
"Okay, everyone, go back and pack your bags as I said." The successful speaker ordered the excited audience below. "We will set off immediately."
The soldiers quickly dispersed in an organized manner. Soon only Asa and the general were left here.
The general did not move on the hill. The passionate performance just now left no trace. He returned to his terrifying calm expression, looking down at Asa under the hill like a god.
"What do you mean by doing this?" Asa asked coldly.
The general's tone was as calm as his expression, and he said: "It's just to let them know the details of some things, and then let them make their own choices. Everyone has the right to know the truth, right? And tell others
The truth is never a bad thing."
Asa snorted coldly and said, "So you gathered all the priests just to convey this truth?" In addition to healing and auxiliary magic, the role of priests in the team is to grasp the emotions of the soldiers.
Warriors wallowing on the line of life and death are generally very pious, and the teachings of priests and some spiritual auxiliary magic are usually very helpful to the restlessness of soldiers.
"Faith is originally used to conceal the truth. It is a prop used by the weak to deceive themselves and others. Warriors will never need this kind of thing. It only takes a short while, as long as it can completely ignite their fighting spirit, no reason or god can extinguish it.
"The general looked at Asa and finally showed a curious expression. "Since you already understand what I am doing, why are you still standing here? I thought you must have gone back in a panic to make arrangements to stop me."
.
"Since you have done this, you must have made other arrangements." Asa did not run back, but walked up the hill. "But I still have to ask, if I go back immediately to ask the priests to calm down the soldiers' emotions,
what will you do."
"As soon as you have this intention, I will kill you immediately." The general was still so calm. There was no anger, no murderous intention, and there was even a smile on his lips. But Asa knew that since he could say it, he could definitely do it.
"You think you have to be sure?" Asa stood in front of the general and looked at him coldly.
"I am really not sure." The general admitted honestly. As a warrior, he has a certain vision. "But five thousand people must be sure. The five thousand young soldiers who just listened to me, all I want to say is that you
In fact, you are the nobles in the court and spies of the orcs. If you incite them again, they will kill you."
Asa looked at the calm old man in front of him. The eyes that were once full of bravery, fortitude, evil spirit and fire were now dead. Asa finally understood why he could become like this and be able to do these things.
It was a look that was already dead.
All his feelings and values have been dead to one goal, and even his own life is just a prop to achieve that goal. He can do anything, using all his wisdom, energy, and means
To achieve that goal, even if it costs the whole world.
"Five thousand, all young soldiers." Asa shook his head slowly. "Did you specially select them from the army?"
"Of course you have to be young. Young people have passion, blood, and impulse. Once people live for a long time, they like to think about other things and are not so willing to die or kill people." General Yongna is already dead.
He looked at Asa carefully. "So I advise you not to do unnecessary things. I don't want to cause any more troubles, and you don't want to die." He turned and walked towards the city. "Besides, in this case, the priests are gone.
used."
Soon after, the general set off with all five thousand soldiers.
There were no other generals to stop them. The general's remaining power made it difficult for these former subordinates to come forward. The general's persuasion also made them understand that this was just the general's willful action. Even if something happened, they would never be affected. They would not be affected.
Even though they were implicated and it was difficult to come forward, they really did not stand up to stop the soldiers who were originally their subordinates.
Asa didn't stop him. He didn't let the priests persuade the soldiers who were blinded by anger and fighting spirit. He didn't want to see these priests under Bishop Ronis being split in half by the general's axe. A man like a general has already
Anything can be done.
Now he can only sit in the city hall and wait for Duke Mrak's arrival. Fortunately, the general has left, and there will be no more changes. Although the task assigned to him by Bishop Ronis was not completely successful, it was finally successful.
It's done. The general just took away five thousand people.
Five thousand people. It is only one-eighth of this army, nothing. The development of the matter is beyond his ability, but he has tried his best.
Five thousand people. Asa suddenly remembered the three horrific corpses he saw when he first came here. Five thousand corpses, two thousand times, could probably accumulate as many as mountains. The screams and wailings of these five thousand people at the same time
.....The sky will be filled with flesh, viscera, and bones flying out... The sound that he will never forget from that night more than half a year ago rang in his ears again, and the ocean of wailing spread,
The strange sounds of bones shattering, bodies deforming, and the tones of weapons tearing through air and flesh intertwined and undulated into a concerto, and now it was intensified dozens of times. He felt his skin tightening and his stomach contracting.
Asa suddenly stood up, kicked the table open, and trampled the chair to pieces with his foot. He scolded the general with the curses and curses he had learned in the tavern that were no less impressive than the general's previous scolding of Priest Nagos.
Then I went to a very experienced and qualified priest to explain it, and then I rode off to chase the general's troops.
"What are you doing here?" the general asked when he saw Asa chasing after him.
Asa glared at the wanton soldier angrily and said, "I'll wait to die. I'll wait to see you die."
"Then you won't be disappointed." The general said calmly.
"I hope you die as soon as possible. It's best if you are the first to die as soon as the battle begins. That way I will have a chance to bring the remaining soldiers back."
"Then you may be disappointed again. I won't die so easily before I can kill those beasts until I become soft." The general replied calmly. Since he made up his mind, all his emotions have been condensed into his body and turned into motivation.
, reluctant to show it.
Asa looked at the burly old man who was a head taller than himself and the two axes on his waist, spat hard and said: "If possible, I really hope to complete this matter with my own hands, then use
Don’t wait much longer.”
"If it were in the past, I would have considered your suggestion." The general looked him up and down, then turned his head back and stared in the direction ahead. "It's impossible now. What a pity."
"It's really a pity..." The Necromancer sat down on the comfortable velvet cushion in dismay. "I failed." He had just teleported back from the magic circle.
"That's great, that's great. I never thought you could direct such a touching play. It's more exciting and touching than what I saw at the Royal Theater." Another necromancer smiled and applauded.
"Don't you know that someone once praised the script I wrote for having the flavor of Dario Fo?" The necromancer smiled proudly and sighed. "It's a pity that I didn't have enough time, or I should have killed the passer first.
Messenger of the imperial edict. Now our brave general has to go to great lengths to gather only five thousand soldiers. Thanks to me secretly helping him get rid of many generals who want to stop him. If the entire army of 40,000 is approaching,
We can also fight with the old man of Cedros, and maybe we can really kill him and the city together. Unfortunately, we only have five thousand now, and I don’t know if it will be enough to fill the gap between our teeth."
"It doesn't matter, it's just a game anyway. Let's all watch and play. Let's see how these five thousand lively young people stuff it. Maybe they can even stuff the gaps between their teeth and make old Cedros lose a few teeth.
, it hurts to bleed a little." Another necromancer playing with a crystal skull said. "I bet he will kill fifty orcs."
"Seventy. Bet on a piece of magic jade."
"It's still a piece of magic jade. I bet you only die twenty times. I heard that the old man has a half-elf friend who is very powerful, and if the orcs are well-equipped, their combat effectiveness is also very good."
"That's an army of five thousand. Can't you kill even a hundred of them? I'll bet ten phoenix feathers and thunderbird feathers."
The most hoarse and unpleasant voice said: "I bet not a single one of him will die." Widnina showed her half-faced smile. "But my bet is that you have to agree to recruit a new member."
"Why is this beautiful lady so confident? But let's agree first that you can't interfere. If you personally go out and throw a dark dragon into the barracks, wouldn't you be helping old man Cedros?"
In the mouth of her companions, the beautiful lich's smile can definitely become a nightmare for ordinary people. The withered lower half of her face did not move, but she said in a confident voice: "Of course, I am not so wicked.
.”
"Haha, I know that this lady is not only very smart and beautiful," the necromancer who just went to direct the operation said with a charming smile, "she is also very conscientious and moral." He looked at it.
He looked at Widnina, his eyes flickered a few times, and said: "Well, out of my admiration for her, I bet that not a single orc will die, or that I will accept a new member."
Widnina glanced at this companion who trusted his judgment, but there was no sign of gratitude and approval in her eyes.
"Can you really find people with enough moral character and quality to join our noble group?" A necromancer made a very energetic expression. "I feel that spring is coming in Diya Valley."