I will be crowned king

It has no sails and no deck. From a distance, it looks like a huge shuttle floating above the clouds. It is both spectacular and small, ordinary and great.

The smooth and graceful lines leave a huge and deep shadow on the sea. The neat core, which is larger than a carriage, spits out billowing smoke and drives the giant-like fan blades to rotate rapidly, echoing the rumbling roar between the domes. It seems to be showing its majesty to countless mortals.

Ark, Cloud Whale, Dome Sanctuary, Mobile Holy See... It has had many names and countless hymns, but the most well-known is still the simple but powerful name:

A heart of compassion.

Louis, murmuring in a low voice, stared at the familiar huge figure in the sky that evoked countless memories of him, and gradually tightened his heartstrings; as the heir to the Grand Duchy of Adlan and the imperial military attaché, no one knew better than himself what the airship in front of him meant. What are you wearing?

"The ring of order is above, this is a miracle, a miracle!"

"Oh my god, it, it is..."

"Blessed by the Ring of Order! Blessed by the Ring of Order..."

The crowd behind them was still hearing exclamations and cheers. They tried their best to hold their necks high, and worshiped the huge shadow that began to slowly descend like a god descending from the sky. They were completely impressed by its unparalleled sense of oppression. .

There is no doubt that this is the purpose for which it is here.

No matter how brave the soldier is when he first sees the airship, it will be difficult for him to think of fighting it. Any false believer or pagan who has no faith in the Ring of Order will also have the urge to worship in front of it. ; The moment she descended on the battlefield, the majesty of overlooking all things and the sense of oppression brought by her size would even make the army that was still fighting in blood a second ago lose their fighting spirit in an instant.

Therefore, it is called "compassionate heart".

But its existence never meant peace... Before the advent of new models of airships such as the "Steam Hammer", the emergence of a compassionate heart could only mean one thing, and that was the final statement from the Holy See, that is, to those who rebelled against the order. The ring, or the enemies who resisted the Holy See, were completely and indiscriminately eliminated.

The problem is that if it is the Old World, the airship can stop at any time to replenish fuel and water to maintain operation... How can it cross the vast and turbulent sea and still have enough power to reach Red Hand Bay to show off its force to the Free Confederacy?

Could it be that the Holy See has improved the steam core technology, or found some new supply method that allows the airship to have a longer operating radius than in the past?

No matter which one, this is definitely not good news for the Free Confederacy... At least with the current strength of the Confederacy, there is no way to cause any effective damage or attack to the airships that conquer the sky; the enemy can stay in the sky and do whatever they want. Pour firepower into cities and positions on the ground, turning battlefields and settlements into seas of fire.

The uneasy young knight turned his gaze to his side, but was surprised to find that Anson's face not only showed no trace of nervousness, on the contrary, he even looked a little... curious?

If I remember correctly, this guy had already seen the Heart of Compassion with his own eyes as early as when he was in the Royal Court of Yser, and even experienced its power "personally"... So what is he curious about?

"Hmm...there's some sad news, we may have been seen through."

In the airship cabin, "Sir Philus" was lying on the window glass while stroking the iron ring around his neck, while using his telescope to look at the roaring and tidal waves of people below, with a playful expression as if he were a tourist. Monkeys in the zoo:

"Anson Bach, he has been staring here since we arrived."

"Are you talking about the officer named Clovis who was designated by the Vatican as the second arrest target?"

Grand Captain Grad Manfred, who was dressed in a gorgeous robe, sat on a velvet armchair and joked at the other party. His playful expression was no different from that of an elder who takes his juniors out for fun.

"No."

The young man who was no different from Sir Philus suddenly put down the telescope in his hand, stood up respectfully, saluted, and knelt down on one knee. His smooth movements were enough to make one suspect that he had practiced it at least a thousand times:

"It was the heinous old god sect spellcaster and false believer who murdered six outstanding Judgment Knights in Straw Town... Anson Bach!"

Every word was expressed with the force of gritted teeth.

The young man who understood the style of the grand leader in front of him did not dare to show any joking demeanor. His surface approachability was more due to the cultivation he had cultivated during his time in the monastery. He used reason and humor to cover up and create extreme anger - just like a certain person in the monastery. The Nak'sir pirates who had offended the grand leader a day ago successfully sent themselves to the pressure relief valve of the steam core and were steamed alive.

Such cruel punishments, not to mention mere pirates, even real old god sect spellcasters rarely end up like this; therefore, the pirate's unlucky end is not because he deserves it, but because he accidentally caught up with a large group of people. A moment of long rage.

Six heavily armed Judgment Knights were completely wiped out without receiving any effective intelligence... In the history of the Judgment Knights, such a tragic loss is rare.

"I thought that a smart guy like you wouldn't take the initiative to mention it." Grad slowly raised his head and looked at the young man who looked up at him: "I'm a little surprised, Sir Philus. .”

"It's just because he's not too stupid yet that he doesn't shy away from the easy." The young man still had a serious expression - an expression that Anson was extremely familiar with. Every muscle and every pore in his body was telling the story of infinite loyalty and true love. Intention.

"The information sent back by Master Wuying is enough to prove that Anson Bach is a powerful enemy that can pose a threat to the Judgment Knights... Such an opponent, even if there is only a one in ten thousand chance, he will see through the heart of compassion. The Twisted Realm must also report this possibility to the grand leader of the Judgment Knights and the worthy commander-in-chief of the Ring of Order Crusaders, Lord Grad Manfred!”

"Interesting speculation, but even if he is only aware of the existence of the distortion field, he must be at least a blasphemy mage-level spell caster." Grad smiled nonchalantly: "But we all know that he is just an ordinary person at best. He is an ordinary fifth-level conjuration mage, and he is still a guy with little experience - not to mention the distortion field, he probably doesn't have a detailed understanding of the concept of 'field'."

"But an ordinary spellcaster cannot quietly annihilate a team of six Judgment Knights." The young man said without changing his expression: "Since he can do this, as the adjutant of the grand leader of the Judgment Knights, , I can’t rule out even one ten thousandth possibility!”

"millionth."

Grad obviously did not agree with his speculation, but his face was obviously a little more suspicious: "In that case, what suggestions do you have for the current situation, my loyal lieutenant?"

"Now? You should go meet the third party who considers themselves the host now, sir."

"Even if there might be a blasphemous mage hidden in the crowd, or even more than one?"

"A one in a million chance, my lord."

The young man stood up, quietly dusted his knees, and used this as a prelude to salute the figure on the velvet chair again:

"This little danger is not enough to put shackles on the Grand Leader of the Judgment Knights!"

…………………………………………………………………………

The airship Heart of Mercy, which shocked millions of colonists, landed steadily in front of the dock. The first to step out of the cabin was a group of soldiers with extraordinary appearance, wearing red and blue uniforms, gilt breastplates and plated breastplates engraved with the Ring of Order. The silver helmets, carrying the particularly familiar steam guns, showed off their power in two columns to the people who greeted them.

Relatively speaking, the attitudes of the people present were also extremely clear-cut. There were admirers who couldn't help but admire and look up to him, but there were also those who were dismissive of this "show off wealth" way of displaying force.

For the former, the Knights of Judgment are the existence they long for. Countless knights and even descendants of wealthy families have dreamed of becoming a member of this group in their lives, standing at a fixed point among the knights as the defenders of the Ring of Order; and in the latter In the eyes of foreigners, this kind of army wearing gold and silver and holding high-end weapons is the standard guard of honor, and the guard of honor is almost equated with the appearance in their minds.

Only a handful of people could sense the power in them that was different from that of mortal blood, and they subconsciously tightened their nerves - these so-called honor guards in front of them were all composed of talented people.

What a luxurious lineup this is... Apart from the Holy See, probably only the emperor of the empire can put it together in front of them.

Compared with the strength of the enemy, Anson was more interested in the clothing of the group of Judgment Knights in front of him. The gorgeous costumes were completely different from the Judgment Knights who attacked him that night, but there were some similarities.

Is it that each knight has several sets of uniforms that he wears according to the mission, or is this small army that is said to be able to lay off thousands of people actually have all the internal organs and detailed division of labor?

While he was still speculating in a funny way, Louis Bernard, who was beside him, had already taken the lead to step forward and extended his right hand to the figure surrounded by guards: "Respected Grand Master of the Judgment Knights, Grad Manfer Mr. Reid, welcome to Red Hand Bay!"

"It is an unparalleled honor for me to be welcomed by you, young Sir Louis Bernard!" While holding his right hand, the grand leader did not forget to smile and bow: "I didn't expect that you actually know me? "

"I don't know him." The young knight smiled calmly:

"But I have heard your name countless times. The most important thing is that the power of your blood has informed you of your identity the moment you set foot on this land."

"inform?"

Grad's curiosity was aroused, and he asked in a slightly joking tone: "Are you referring to the outstanding knights around me?"

"Of course not - anyone with a respected status or noble character, or who needs to be protected, may be able to obtain true knights' retinue." The young knight shook his head, his eyes sharp:

"But when all the knights present subconsciously restrained their auras, and only one person is still unscrupulous, there can only be two explanations."

"Either he can't contain his power, or he doesn't need to do it at all. He has the qualifications or status to show his power to outsiders anytime and anywhere... I think it's the latter."

This answer made Grad's eyes widen with a very surprised expression. He paused for nearly half a minute before returning to normal: "Sir Louis Bernard, I must admit that your talent and strength are simply amazing...except for the late Gram Rogge, I have never seen another knight as good and young as you!"

In comparison, Louis, who was praised by him, seemed very cold and just nodded to express his gratitude.

The power of his bloodline has been strengthened in all aspects, especially the sensitivity to breath and the ability to observe; unless it is acting that can deceive the deceiver himself, even superficial false praise and abuse cannot hide it. The heart of a young knight.

"Your Excellency's praise makes me extremely frightened and honored; but as the marshal of the New World Army, I still want to ask one more question, what is the purpose of this negotiation between the Jihadi Army?"

"As expected of Adlan's heir, he is always the embodiment of seriousness." The grand leader still complimented without hesitation: "It's a pity that he is still a little anxious... Yes, the Jihadi Army is here to negotiate, but negotiations can be difficult. It is not a unilateral act, but a process of mutual concession and compromise between the two parties."

"Then what do you want?"

"The Jihadi Army has made compromises and concessions for this negotiation. Since you are willing to agree, you should first tell us the reasons why you are willing to accept it. Is this reasonable?"

"The reason is simple. The Free Confederacy is neither a robber nor a warmonger. As long as it can strive for peace, it will not let go of any opportunity."

"Oh? What does your peace mean..."

"The Crusaders withdraw from the New World, recognize the independence of the Free Confederacy, and restore the Confederacy's honor."

"This..." Grad suddenly laughed: "Your conditions are not low. If you want to get so many things in one go, you must at least pay a corresponding price."

Louis' expression suddenly turned cold: "The price...So in your eyes, this minimum requirement requires a price?"

"That's right, and with all due respect, you don't seem to realize that this negotiation has already begun." The corners of Grad's mouth raised slightly:

"Compared with Your Excellency, the power gathered behind me and above my head is enough to defeat and destroy the entire Red Hand Bay in one day; as long as I think about it, at least four-fifths of the lives present will not have a chance to survive."

"In that case, why should I agree to your request without asking for any price?"

As if he really felt a trace of curiosity, Grad blinked and looked at the young knight and the people behind him with a questioning look.

It was just that cold tone and unabashed murderous intent that made everyone's hearts sink to the bottom.