novelraw #264 - Section 264
#264 - Section 264
This paladin, who fought for the church his entire life, even at the cost of his own, this passionate youth who believed in the absolute justice of the gods and vowed to punish evil, for the first time doubted the things he had always believed in...
Are we truly representing justice?
Are we really protecting this world?
Harde, his faith collapsing, looked at the Eternal Night Empress with pleading eyes, looked at the Imperials:
"Could it be that you invaders are actually here to save us?"
"You think too much. I'm just shifting the war, making our world safer."
The Eternal Night Empress, facing this youth, spoke cruel words, but not with mockery, but with utmost seriousness. "This world never receives salvation from outsiders. Whether it's gods or demons, what judges right and wrong isn't divine magic, but your own eyes."
"My eyes?"
"Believe what you see, believe in your own wisdom, instead of lazily entrusting everything to mysterious and great beings."
The Eternal Night Empress turned to listen to her adjutant's report, knowing that the fleet was ready for another jump. Her rest time was over.
Just as Louis said, she didn't come to save this world, she came to destroy Tiberia's source of faith.
Every world has its own tragedies. The Empire is just trying to protect itself now and cannot truly liberate the entire universe.
During her rest time, she exposed a bit of her humanity. She had some mischievous thoughts and also wanted to see if the people of this world would undergo some interesting changes after experiencing these upheavals.
"Except for this knight, hang the rest outside that grand cathedral."
The Eternal Night Empress ordered and returned to the bridge.
Harde stared blankly as the Imperials left, looking at the Imperial soldiers who were tasked with dealing with them, confused: "What about me?"
"You are free, Sir Knight."
The soldier looked at him with a strange smile.
"Free?"
Harde looked at his hands. His power had returned to him, but the golden holy light in his eyes gradually became colorless.
He was no longer a paladin, but he hadn't fallen either. He was just being true to his heart.
Sharna, who was about to return to the Eternal Night, suddenly stopped, hesitating and struggling. "I'm not going to the next world yet. I want to stay here and see."
Chapter 241: Tiberia Unknowingly Walks Away
Roger was in charge of babysitting today and had been paying attention to Sharna's emotions, analyzing her psychological fluctuations.
After Sharna stopped, he also slowed down. He was a little surprised to hear her request at this moment, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt that he could understand.
The victory the Empire had achieved made the little angel very happy. She had no good feelings for Tiberia, but she couldn't say she hated her either.
In Nali Nair's memory, Tiberia was one of the greedy and foolish gods, completely bound by the power of faith. Being a little bit cunning or a little bit of a b*tch was all fine. In the final analysis, it was just using any means to gain believers.
Whether it was the current Seven Gods or those gods who were frantically hunted down in the astral realm in the past, most of them were like this.
Faith is like poison. In this cold, lonely, and dangerous world, becoming even a little bit stronger greatly increases the sense of security. And the pure and rapid numerical increase brought by faith happens to be one of the fastest ways in this universe, simple, crude, and very effective.
Among the gods Nali Nair had seen, very few could break free from the shackles of the power of faith. There was only the God of Knowledge and the legendary God King who had been exploring the unknown.
The Empire was laying out plans to kill Tiberia. No matter how much they looked down on the gods and felt that they were parasites of the universe, they couldn't deny the power of those guys. The layout carried out by the Qing Teng Empire happened to be one of the few paths that could achieve final success.
When the Seven Gods killed those ancient and powerful gods in their early years, they had to start with the believers first, disintegrate their faith base, find the location of the God Kingdom, and block their escape. The entire plan was carried out in units of thousands or tens of thousands of years.
The previous pure universe, which only had seven gods, was not born like that, but was the result of extremely hard fighting by the gods who exhausted all means.
Fortunately, because of the dispute over faith, the gods were not incompatible with each other. Therefore, the powerful existence on the God's Hall at that time was also the limit. Eliminating the gods of the opposing faction was actually simpler than unifying all the planes of the entire universe and redeploying them according to the needs of the God King.
So even if she knew that there were innocent people like Harde in the church, and that it was possible to affect the believers who lived in seclusion, Sharna would not have any burden. Instead, she was happy for the Empire. Everyone had been working hard and was one step closer to truly defeating the Seven Gods and strangling the eternal demons who had more possibilities for mortals.
War is always ugly and terrifying, but it is also the ultimate means to survive and cannot be avoided.
Being warlike will lead to destruction, and forgetting war will lead to danger.
The Empire's First Fleet can madly crush these indigenous people of other worlds, and Sharna also has a share in it.
Those warships flying in the sky have been upgraded from magic crystal energy to more stable divine power energy.
After all, this is a super battery that only needs to input the body or avatar of a god to operate stably for hundreds of years and can also be charged. The output is more stable, saving the trouble of repeatedly unloading magic crystal mines.
The virtual magic god system was also designed by her, as well as cooperation projects with the Chapter of Loss and other institutions. The components she contributed her wisdom to are countless.
She deserves a share of the military medal. She even wants to lead a fleet to traverse the endless sea of planes after the second and third fleets with the Godly Abomination as the core are completed.
Nali Nair has powerful force, but as a time shepherd and manager of many planes, she has never appeared on a large battlefield. She has always been engaged in the role of logistics manager.
Sharna is younger and more active than Nali Nair, and she has been influenced by the Eternal Night Empress, so she also has a heart that advocates martial arts.
Roger let her travel the world with the Imperial Expeditionary Force, and she agreed at once. She also wanted to learn the commanding art of the Imperial Military God Empress, and then find a chance to become a general.
Roger saw this idea and told the Eternal Night Empress. Although he hoped that the little angel would use her administrative talents to continue to do logistics, if she really wanted to experience the addiction of war, there was no reason to object.
Anyway, the churches in other worlds are just rotten fish and prawns. Given the Empire's current equipment advantages, and with experienced adjutants equipped to her, she can lead a fleet.
As a result, after only walking out of the Eternal Night World, Sharna proposed to stop and spend more time in this world where the war mission has been completed.
Roger looked at Sharna's tangled and confused appearance and asked seriously: "The war here is over. The Empire has many goals waiting to be conquered and cannot give you the power to support what you want to do. In the end, you may just really be here to see."
"I know... but I still want to see, and I don't necessarily have to do anything." Sharna pouted, hating the feeling of being splashed with cold water, and looked at Roger pleadingly, "Can I?"
"Of course you can. You don't need to ask me this question at all. The Empire has never ordered you to do anything from beginning to end, right?"
"Heh, there is no order... but there is inducement and suggestion!"
"Oh, that's what Jostar does, what does it have to do with me, Roger..."
Sharna sneered in silence. She had long known this guy's shamelessness and that he could say anything irresponsible.
Fortunately, she never expected him to be responsible!
"That's it, I'm temporarily leaving the team. The virtual magic god project will be maintained remotely. If there are any new developments, contact me at any time..." Sharna made up her mind.
Roger looked at her for a long time. This serious explanation shows that she has really thought it through and is not an impulsive act based on impulse.
So he said in a gratified tone:
"Not bad. I hope you see through this world and still love it."
Sharna couldn't help but glare at him.
What's with this tone like an old father whose daughter has grown up and become sensible?
"Thanks."
But she still said so, after all, this is a rare moment of seriousness from a certain guy.
Roger returned to the Eternal Night. He is not an idle person like Sharna. After the second fleet belonging to the Godly Abomination is built, he will definitely have the position of marshal.
Moreover, recent events also need to be reported to that person.
Sharna hesitated for a moment and looked at Harde Pandit.
This former paladin, now a magic knight, is watching the Imperial soldiers hang all the big figures of the God of War Church on the magnificent cathedral, on the walls covered with stained glass.
This world has no street lights. The Imperial soldiers have no mercy for these gods' lackeys who are in cahoots with demons and snakes and calculate against the indigenous people of their world. Like those nobles judged by Roger, they are happy to see them suffer insults and finally die slowly in the sun and snow.
"Hello, my name is Sharna, a traveler hitching a ride... Seeing some of the things you have experienced, I am very curious about what you will do next?"
Harde sized up Sharna. Although she was not wearing a military uniform, her clothes, temperament, equipment, and powerful strength were all the same as those invading Imperials. Obviously, they were from the same world and the same country.
She might even be a young lady with an extraordinary identity.
If it were his past character, he would definitely throw a detect evil at someone suspected of being an enemy force and decide whether to draw his sword based on the color.
But after experiencing today's events, his perspective on the world has changed.
Not all people in the justice camp are good people, and those invaders are not all demons.
He needs to use his eyes to judge what malice this person who took the initiative to talk to him has.
"I will prioritize gathering a force, and then watch the changes in this area and do some things within my ability."
Harde told the truth, and there is nothing shady about it.
Sharna couldn't help but laugh, realizing that he was like her.
They have some directions, but they both want to take a look before making a decision.
"It just so happens that I have nothing to do here and want to join your team."
"...Okay." Harde thought he must be crazy to team up with an invader.
But since he has decided to change, he should no longer be bound by those attributes such as identity, camp, and faith, but only judge by behavior.
Sharna was quite happy, feeling that it might be right for her to stay here. This uncle has something she lacks and may have been looking for.
That is called the direction of life.
She is sometimes very jealous of salted fish like Roger, who are lazy all day long, but they are extremely clear in their hearts about what they want to do and what they want to gain. It seems that there has long been a destination, and they are moving forward unhurriedly.
After possessing the "past" given by Nali Nair, Sharna felt that she was not so adrift, but she still did not know where the future lies.
From those people in the Empire, she learned a simple truth:
Even if tomorrow is the end of the world, we must live today well and live up to the time we have now.
And to make this world meaningful, she should find a direction, a career that she truly wants to reach and complete.
She has read many books, but she does not understand how to live, so she has now decided to look at the real world from other angles.
It is certainly good to follow the Empire's army to see the glorious victory, but seeing Harde, she suddenly wanted to change her perspective, feeling that this would bring greater gains.
This is a pitiful person who has been deceived, but his heart always has an extremely firm belief, a desire to protect others, judge evil, and uphold justice.
Although his right and wrong were distorted by his brother Louis in the past, after countless years of walking in the world and experiencing battles, betrayals, and life and death, he has also left his own standards of right and wrong in his heart.
The Eternal Night Empress told him to judge so-called right and wrong with his own heart. This knight really listened and is preparing to continue to implement this belief.
So after his faith collapsed, he did not degenerate into a dark knight, but became a non-believer, borrowing new power from the original rules of the cosmic void, and generating a unique profession similar to a magic knight.
Sharna wants to see how far he can go and what kind of person he will eventually transform into.
Moreover, following him, she can see the more real appearance of this universe and deeply touch Nali Nair's relationship between gods and mortals.
The Imperial soldiers moved very quickly and soon hung up all the prisoners from the Papal State. Their cries and curses came from the wind. Some were begging for mercy and some were asking for a quick death.
But no one responded. The soldiers returned to their respective warships, and the Empire's First Fleet disappeared into the air.
Harde silently watched all this and walked towards the ordinary church members who had been captured but were not worth hanging up.
There were soldiers, knights, mendicant monks, and pastors, but they are now in a very confused state.
Harde wants to give them a direction, a direction that he doesn't know is right or wrong, but wants to practice.
He simply told Sharna his thoughts. His intuition told him that this strange girl from another world who wanted to help him could understand.
Sharna listened very carefully as expected.
Harde believes that after the destruction of the God of War Church, the countries in these areas will soon usher in new missionaries and then divide up these areas.
Those heretics... oh no, the clergy of other churches may be better than the God of War Church, or they may be far inferior to the God of War Church. Harde doesn't want to make a judgment before seeing them.
He wants to see with his own eyes and feel with his own heart, and then help his country and people, who are determined to protect, to embrace a better life.
"Just like your soldiers, you can see that the calluses on many of their hands aren't from holding swords or practicing martial arts, but from heavy farm work. Yet, the confidence in their eyes is like that of children of great nobles."
Xana asked, puzzled, "They're just ordinary soldiers of the Empire, free citizens, educated, playing Fearless Space. How are they nobles?"
"Their hearts."
In Hyde's eyes was genuine envy.
Even as ordinary people of the Empire, they are well-fed, well-educated, and live in a relatively fair world full of endless possibilities.
The improvement in life brought about by the increase in national power is only one aspect. The most important thing is that those common people believe they can create endless possibilities.
Because of the educational foundation laid by Roger, although he did not directly write the slogan 'Are kings, lords, generals, and ministers born with a noble lineage?' which might have gotten his head chopped off by the Eternal Night Empress, he did tell the people of the Empire that if one day they were dissatisfied with those above, they could use their power to overthrow them and re-establish order.
Such thoughts cannot be seen in the people who are re-ruled by theocracy and aristocracy.
Even the richest material wealth cannot simply accumulate such a citizenry. It must be a comprehensive reform, leading them forward from top to bottom, creating countless miracles, to shape such a citizenry.
Xana didn't understand Hyde's envy, but she wasn't in a hurry.
She still had a lot of time to stay in this world, and she would have the opportunity to see with her own eyes what the people Hyde wanted to protect were like.
......