"The Age of Exemplars" Tochuzzi

My name is Henry and I was born on the coast of Cyprus, a country called Drancy.

This country is too small, so small that the big countries have no interest in it.

Because of the small size, the pope here knows everyone.

I was born in the richest family in Drancy, and I was sent to the Pope to raise me as soon as I was born.

This is a very strange country.

I didn't think so when I was a kid, but when I left Drancy and saw the world, I could say without hesitation that it was a very strange country.

First, the Pope at Drancy has it all.

The pope said that a smile is a national ritual; no one is allowed to be absent from the ceremony; everyone needs to work before the first ray of sunshine appears, and the richer the more people need to abide by it; rank is an innate quality, which child's first A lock of hair with the purest gold is the most noble.

Because of this, I was chosen by the Pope as a candidate for the next pope.

The Pope spends a lot of time teaching me every day, making me understand one set after another of tedious religious rituals, as well as my own responsibilities.

I was not allowed to see my parents, they were sacrificed the moment I stepped out of the church and became Pope;

I am not allowed to shed tears in my life, because in Delancey, smiling is the highest criterion;

I must make the congregation feel happy, and at the same time, I have the responsibility to convince the people of the whole Delancey.

From birth until I was raised, I was taught only two things in my life: to believe and to obey.

Until the day I slipped out and watched a sacrifice secretly.

The first time I met my future congregation.Everyone's faces were full of piety, I couldn't tell which of them was my parents, I could only look at the sacrificed person.

I saw at once that he was the meanest man in Delancey—his hair was red.

I don't know what the ceremony means to him. On his face, I can only see happiness and relief, with a fearless expression of faith.

Such was the charm of Delancey, that even the humblest of men could devote themselves to his god.

I squatted behind the statue of the Pope and watched the people bring the sacrifices to the altar.

At this time, the pope who had raised me for more than ten years came out and presided over a series of ceremonies that I have long been familiar with. The pope came to the last step that he had not taught me.

He let the lying victim lie flat, then took out the knife and slashed open his stomach.

In this process, the pope was slow to start.

He sliced ​​open the flesh on the victim's stomach until the internal organs inside were exposed.The sacrifice did not let out the slightest howl, but his face was pale and his teeth were clenched.

The weirdest thing is that from the painful sacrifices, the pope with the knife to the microscopic people, everyone has a smile on their faces.

I shudder.

I have been a child who is afraid of pain since I was a child, but every time I cry for pain, the Pope will teach me kindly, telling me that smiling after enduring pain is the greatest piety, and that I cannot abandon religious norms.

There was a strong smell of blood in the air, and the sacrificial victim almost passed out from the pain.After dissecting the belly, the pope took the liquids that had been sitting on the altar for a long time-molten lead juice, boiling rosin, wax and sulfur-and poured it into his stomach.

The sacrifice died with a smile on his face.

Only then did I know the meaning of the festival.

Immediately after the service, the Pope came to see me.

As usual, he approached me with a smile, but I flinched.

He asked me: "What's wrong?"

I don't say a word.

Afterwards, the Pope taught me as usual, but still did not tell me what the last step of the ceremony was.

I used to not ask, but today, I said, "Why didn't you tell me?"

He said: "Because when I was taught, my faith was shaken. But when I presided over the first ceremony, I knew that it was a supreme beauty." He touched my head and said: " So I can't tell you, the moment you face it, you know that faith is the only one."

I tried my best to hide my shivering, and smiled at the Pope, "Okay."

That night, I slipped out the window again.

I didn't wear shoes and walked barefoot on the road. The sharp stones scratched the soles of my feet. It hurt, but I didn't have time to cry.

It took me a long, long walk to find the biggest house in Drancy—the Pope told me that the richest people are entitled to grow roses at the door.

I sneaked in through the window, and in the largest room, I met my parents.

They all had brilliant golden hair and beautiful faces, and I knew at a glance that they were the ones who gave birth to me.

I shook them awake and told them to get away from Drancy.

The Pope is now very weak, and has few days left to live, I know that very well.

I don't want my parents to be killed.

Unexpectedly, they rejected me, and said that it was their greatest honor to be the first sacrifice of the Pope.

Then they rang the great bell in the courtyard to announce to everyone that the pope's successor had fled.

They said: "You shouldn't see outsiders, now please go back and accept punishment."

The first time Delancey woke up in the middle of the night, I panicked, grabbed a pair of "father's" shoes, and fled before anyone else got here.

I fled for a day and a night, and finally escaped the frontiers of Drancy.

There all those who pursued me stopped.The stone in front of me, which they regarded as a sacred object, seemed to have magical powers, making it impossible for anyone to take a single step.

In all eyes, I stepped forward on lead-heavy legs, leaving Delancey behind.

Three days later, I passed out in a valley.

A pair of old people picked me up.

They are different from all the people I have met in Delancey. They only worry about making a living every day, but they are willing to take in a person who knows nothing like me.They also raised a son who lost his life in the war.The country they are in is called Chilanke, but it is estimated that it will be called Tochuqi soon.

For the first time, I knew the existence of "human world".

The two old people who rescued me loved each other very much. They hugged and kissed each other every day, even though they didn't know whether their next meal would be wild vegetables or bark.

During this time, a vague word called "beautiful" took shape in my heart.

The dispute between Chilanke and Tochuqi was very fierce, and the flames of war quickly spread. On the night when Tochuqi bloodbathed the town of Chilanke, the old couple died protecting me.

During the war, I started wandering.

I finally saw what the real world looks like.

I sadly found that my so-called imagination of the world was nothing but a dream bubble given to me by the old couple, and this place is not much better than Delancey.

Sadness is everywhere, and everyone is in danger. People here don't kill people, but they can eat people.

I've seen too many parents trade off their sons for food, or swallow their young ones with a leg removed.It's scarier than my parents who were willing to pour pine oil down their stomachs.

This is the way the world is, and it has nothing to do with being in Delancey or not.

I hopelessly thought so until Charlie Kankiki founded Tochurch.

I remember the old lady's words of praise for Charlie Kankiki, the wisest of the insurgents, who picked her up from the roadside and gave her three days' bread.

I used all my resources to get to the Castle of Gonzing, which belonged to Torchurch, and easily coaxed a drunkard into surrendering all his possessions.

Then I put on the most splendid clothes I could, and let Emperor Kanjiji take me under his command and become his vassal.

During my first few years at Tochurch, I really thought Charlie could bring goodness into the world.

But I was wrong.

Even though I live in the richest royal city of Tochuki, the tragedy of the separation of my wife and children still happens to me every day.

What is even more tragic is that people will approach them wearing a mask of sympathy, just to mercilessly satirize them with their own false happiness.

What is the meaning of such a world?

The face of the sacrificial offering filled with rosin appeared in front of me again——

His smile is fake, his devotion is fake, but only that relieved look is real.

He really wants to be free.

For the first time, I identified my lifelong belief: destruction.

Since the world is not beautiful, let's get rid of it together.

It was on this day that I met Leo.

He is the crown prince of Tochuki, the future ruler of the country.If I hadn't established my beliefs in the morning, I might still have pinned on him my wish that the world would be better.

The first time he saw me, Leo panicked.He didn't know what he tripped over, and suddenly fell down, and I hurried forward to pick him up.

He stayed in my arms for a long time.

I didn't pull his little face out of my arms until I felt that he should wipe away his tears.

The moment he left my arms, Leo suddenly stood up straight, pointed at my nose and said, "Why did you trip me?"

After speaking, he didn't wait for an answer, turned around and ran to Philip who was waiting for him.

I can't laugh or cry.

After that, Leo saw me from time to time.

I found that although Leo was arrogant and intelligent, he was the most innocent person in Gongxing.

He was too dazzling from birth, unlike others who were forced to learn to intrigue.

This empire is destined to belong to him, even though he has to face many dangers and knows that there are many dirty corners in this world, but he dismisses them.

He is a child of light.

This kind of Leo is perfect for me to make a sharp blade to destroy the world.

Philip was a weak person, and he was easily subdued by me.I used the coaxing methods I had learned over the past ten years to build him a firm belief that he could only obey me in the years to come.

Under the guidance of Philip and I day by day, the violence I expected appeared in Leo's eyes, and there was something I never thought of planting-a strong love.

Such a change, of course, could not be hidden from the eyes of his father, Charlie Kankiki, but he said nothing about it.

He would let me go, I had expected it.

From the moment Charlie left me in Kankiki, I knew he wanted me.

But he was too cowardly, he limited himself within the framework of a romantic emperor, and he couldn't take that step no matter what.On the contrary, Leo, who was regarded as a toy by him and me, never shied away from his desire for a man.

His feelings were so hot that he would burn me if I was not careful.

Under the impetus of Philip, Leo gradually changed, but at this moment, Aritius discovered my existence.

He is too annoying a person, he strictly abides by the dogma of Mingjun formulated in his heart, and does not allow Leo to deviate from his route even a little bit.

He found me, grabbed me by the collar, and warned me to leave Leo, or he would expose my actions to His Majesty.

I smiled and said, "You go."

Aritius turned and left.

When he returned to Leo, he had a jewel hat on his head.

In order not to leave Leo, Alitius had to obey Charlie's words.

He puts on the most splendid clothes, and changes every once in a while to a splendid abode.Aritius had to grovel to Charlie whenever Leo was present.

Charlie just used such small tricks to make Leo start to hate Alitius.

In the following years, Leo captured the five cities of Audra, thinking that he secretly killed the once powerful Pope.He was growing faster and faster, to the point where Charlie was amazed.

At Leo's proclaiming ceremony, the moment he desperately wanted me to be his vassal, I knew that my sword had been sharpened.

The author has something to say: About that ritual, if it scares you, the author apologizes to you here.

That is a torture that really happened in French history (don’t read it if you are timid)——

In 1757, Damian, who was punished for assassinating the king, was sentenced to death.

Wearing a prison uniform, he rode in a prison cart and carried a two-pound candle to Gref Square, where the execution platform was erected.

He was torn from his chest and limbs with red-hot iron tongs, his right hand holding the regicide weapon was scorched with sulfur, and molten lead, boiling rosin, wax and sulfur were poured into the torn flesh. The wound, then the quartered body, and finally the bones and ashes.