[Notre Dame de Paris] Papal Way

The tools you rely on may fail, and the people you trust may change, but magic can never make mistakes.

Ace is a competent leader who never loses sight of every bit of power he may have at his disposal.But in this operation, he didn't think about what to do through the wanderers or the power of the kingdom of black words - this has nothing to do with trust, it's just that magic is indeed more convenient and effective than manpower when implementing certain things .

Ace's strategy is very simple and crude, but its implementation requires excellent acting skills and precise control.In view of the need for spiritual cultivation, he is no stranger to spiritual magic, but he has never tried to use it on a large scale.On the day of the trial, he tried a mental suggestion, but this simple magic almost drained his mental power—and this time, he learned his lesson, and did not directly use the spiritual suggestion that is more effective and consumes more mental power , but chose the spiritual induction like spring breeze and rain.

Spiritual suggestion is to directly plant the seeds of thoughts that the caster wants him to "think" in the victim's mind, while spiritual induction is to derive the thoughts that already exist in the victim's mind and amplify the effect as much as possible.Ace would choose this magic boldly, one of the reasons is also because of the spiritual suggestion he had used before.At that time, there were no less than a hundred citizens who accepted his hints, and after 36 hours of fermentation, the ideas bred by these hints must have almost swelled in their hearts... As long as they talk to them with a suitable group and environment, they will be happy. They will unreservedly instill their own ideas into others, thereby planting the same seeds of thought in others' hearts.

These people gathered around Notre Dame are undoubtedly those who have been hinted by Ace and affected by these hints.With this in mind, as long as they follow their doubts and guesses and make a certain gesture, they will naturally be able to guide them to think of a deeper level.Using the midday sun as a cover, the faintly visible "light wings" arranged by Ace deepened their speculations; and then under the boost of the Eye of Horus, his mental power became even stronger He swept across every onlooker as far as he could see, and used Phoebus to shift the focus of his eyes in a timely manner, successfully creating a sense of hatred in people's hearts... and when everyone found themselves surrounded by After some people do the same thing as themselves, they will have the illusion of a common enemy, as if no matter whether they have met before or have any grievances, at least at this moment their thoughts and actions are the same.

This sense of group unity will allow them to believe that their ideas are correct and greatly prolong the persistence of this idea.At the same time, this is very conducive to absorbing external forces. Even if they can't tell whether their actions are correct, and others can't judge the correctness of their ideas, there will still be many people who firmly believe in the idea that the public is the truth and join their ranks. Among them—and the rapid spread of this kind of thought fire is the effect that Ace really wants to see.

——According to the group of magic sticks in the Holy See of Light, there is a proper term for this method called selling Amway (huh?).

Ace sat calmly on the prison van, stretching his tentacles of thinking unscrupulously in the sun.The elements of the light system gathered together according to his will, and the phantom of wings appeared faintly behind him.It is said that Metatron has eighteen pairs of wings. Ace can't imagine how these eighteen pairs of wings are installed on his back, but people's brain power is always strong. He doesn't need to really show that he has eighteen pairs of wings. pairs of wings, and it is enough to make others think that he must have eighteen pairs of wings.

There is now an air of mystery among these onlookers.They all know what they know, and they also think that the people around them know the same thing, but no one speaks out their guesses.The team started from Notre Dame and followed the execution car all the way to the St. Michel Bridge. It was still expanding in the middle, and they kept wondering what happened.But I saw a large group of people joining in with the citizens who were marching behind the prison van.

And because he felt so good about himself, Mr. Lu at the end of Xia didn't notice anything wrong.He rode proudly on the horse, thinking that all the silent people came to admire his heroic appearance, and he was very proud of himself.When he saw the wooden scaffold standing in front of him, his elation reached its peak-soon, he would watch the hapless Egyptian wizard hanged in front of him.No matter how cunning he is, he still can't escape Mr. Xia Molu's palm in the end!

With a smile on his face, he looked left and right, trying to see a look of approval from his colleagues: "Gentlemen, do you think we need to read the criminal's crimes to these onlookers again?"

The judge stared at the looming light wings behind Ace, wiped off his cold sweat, and stammered, "You can do whatever you want."

Except for Mr. Xia Molu, almost everyone has been taken care of by Ace's spiritual guidance, and like those citizens, there are vague guesses in their hearts.Even without any more evidence, just seeing the light wings on Ace's back, this guess will change from doubtful to very certain, and then everyone is sweating profusely and plunged into inexplicable fear.

Now no one cares about what Mr. Xia Molu is going to do, everyone's attention is highly focused on Ace - they are waiting, or completely looking forward to something expected to happen.

——They are ready to witness some kind of history.

The executioner had already made all the preparations and waited solemnly before the gallows.He was wearing brand new clothes and white gloves, as solemn as if he was attending the funeral of some important person.His two apprentices followed Ace from left to right, escorting him to the scaffold.There were low exclamations and choked sounds from the crowd, and everyone's eyes were on Ace.

... maybe not everyone.

Out of the corner of his eye, he scanned the crowd, but Ace didn't find any traces of the homeless, not even a beggar—he almost thought he had misread, and once again borrowed the opportunity to go to the execution platform I had the opportunity to scan around in all directions, but I still didn’t see the figures I was familiar with… It wasn’t until Mr. Lu triumphantly took the parchment at the end of Xia and began to read out his crimes again, that Ace started from the front. The three brothers Bashir and Halimu were seen among the crowd facing him.

They looked a little different today, not to mention wearing Parisian clothes and hats on their heads, as if they didn't want to be noticed.Bashir kept watching Ace, and when he noticed him, he took off his hat and made a "relief" gesture to him.

……rest assured?What are you worried about?Ace couldn't help but wonder.The vagabonds and the folks in the kingdom of black words... must have done something, have they?

-

As it turns out, Ace's concerns were not unfounded.

Ace's adoptive mothers were devastated.They would rather storm the court and take Ace away than just watch him be sentenced to death.Claude indeed succeeded in persuading the Grand Duchess and brought a group of women back to the Palace of Miracles, but when they came back, their moods only changed from angry sadness to sad anger, and there was a faint tendency to vent their anger. Not going anywhere.

When Bashir went to persuade them to see Ace off, he was attacked by this kind of anger.The Grand Duchess said furiously: "See you off? No! How could he die?"

Good sobbed emotionally: "He's still so young!"

Susan, who is already a married woman, said sadly: "He is still so young, but he is going to die like this! No, I can't believe that he will die..."

The women cried in unison.Bashir suddenly felt a headache and had to interrupt them: "Who said he would die?"

The eyes of the women all turned to him.Bashir looked calm, and pointed to the sun: "Have you forgotten who he is? The incarnation of light, the spokesperson of the sun god Ra, he is our prince, the one who is destined to lead us back to glory... Don't you Do you think such Ace will die?"

Guide's mind still hasn't turned the corner: "If he goes to the gallows, how can he not die?"

Bashir couldn't laugh or cry: "If he will die, do you think he will go to the gallows obediently?"

It seems that this is indeed the truth... The women all thought about it.The image Ace established among the homeless is "Nothing can be wrong" and "Whatever you do is right", coupled with the addition of "the man favored by the sun god Ra", Bashir's argument seems to be untenable Stand still, but it is very easy to implement among them.So it didn't take much effort, Bashir persuaded them to watch Ace's execution, and used their hands to persuade the Grand Duke and others—even including members of the Black Talk Kingdom.They didn't know that Ace was the spokesperson of "Immortal" and Ra, but they were very interested in the hanging itself.According to Guillaume, it is: "It is not difficult to see a person hanged in Paris, but it is actually very interesting to hang a Parisian nobleman who everyone thinks is an Egyptian like this. You want Want some beer? Free today!"

Bashir: "..." This is really not consoling at all.

Guillaume's words seem to reveal something vaguely... He seems to know who Ace's father is, otherwise he wouldn't have said "Paris noble".So, isn't Ace an illegitimate child?But I have never heard of any descendants of Parisian nobles who have been lost...

Bashir secretly took note of this matter, and planned to tell him after receiving Ace.

On the day of the execution, this group of people set off from the Palace of Miracles in a mighty way, all the way to the head of the Saint-Michel bridge.They were the first batch to come, because most of the people who were interested in the prisoner went to Notre Dame, and the rest were either still on the way and had dinner in the small restaurant nearby.Having nothing to do for the time being, this group of people just sat down on the ground and started bragging and chatting all over the place.Bashir suddenly had an idea, he found Clopin, and asked bluntly: "Would you like to do me a favor?"

Clopin squinted at him, meaning to speak quickly.

"I hope you can help maintain order." Bashir said affirmatively, "There will be many people who will come to watch the execution today, more than anyone imagined—and we want Ace to have a quiet death , died without anyone disturbing. Can you help to intercept the surrounding intersections and prevent those troublemakers from coming over?"

Clopin listened very interestingly: "For example?"

"If you see someone like Mill John," Bashir thought for a while, and gave an example, "then don't stop him carelessly!"

Clopin readily agreed to the request. The guys in the kingdom of black words have never done this kind of police work!Without Bashir's persuasion, the homeless people spontaneously organized and went to those alleys and intersections, ready to intercept the observers at any time.They are going to let Ace enjoy a complete and wonderful death process, and then return to them-otherwise if this hanging is not enjoyable enough, what if Ace becomes obsessed with guillotine duels or burning at the stake?

If it is hanging, the equipment of the Kingdom of Black Talk is enough to satisfy Ace; but decapitation and burning?But no one can do anything to such a beautiful (huh?) beauty (huh??) like Ace!

With this strange feeling of not knowing where they went, they completed the organization of personnel in an orderly manner.That's why when Ace's prison car drove over, he didn't find any familiar figure in the crowd-because everyone threw it over to "maintain order".

Bashir was only taking risks at first, but when he saw the solemnity of all the people who followed the prison car all the way, he knew that he was indeed betting right.Next, just wait for the execution to end to pick up Ace.

—but apparently he didn’t expect—

There is a situation in this world called planning is not as fast as changing.

-

The long staircase of Notre Dame is always hidden in light and shadow all year round, dust, cobwebs, and fallen leaves that occasionally drift in with the wind... accumulate in the corners of the stairs all the year round.It stands to reason that such an iconic building should be kept clean, but if it is cleaned one second, it will still be covered with dust the next second, and as time goes by, everyone will let it go.

In order to adapt to this environment, Claude's boots are always one centimeter thicker than others, and the sound of walking is very different.But today, the chapel is still echoing with mournful singing, and the afterglow of the bell seems to be still stirring in the bell tower, but Claude's footsteps hurried over those long-standing stairs.With the strides, first the magic crown, and then the generous sacrificial cloak also fell into the dust.He strode across the stairs, took off the cross around his neck, threw down the scepter in his hand, walked into the sunlight, and finally stood at the top of the North Bell Tower.

He was looking down, looking at a man and a woman hiding in panic on the balcony of Gongde Yuegui Mansion opposite, and Ace sitting on the prison car, who seemed to be spreading countless wings of light behind him.His blue eyes were like condensed ice and snow, faithfully reflecting the color of the sky—but pain, urgency, hatred, jealousy, desire... and even some secret fanaticism, all burst out in his chest at this moment, in his heart. He slammed left and right, like a wild beast roaring and roaring, with a fierce red light in his eyes.

The prison van was moving away, and soon there would be no more traces to be seen.He watched the crowd go away for a long time, slowly raised his finger, and kissed softly on the power ring—but in an instant, he took off the ring again, and threw it down furiously.The ring representing the bishop's authority landed on the protruding corner of the building, the red shimmer bounced slightly, and fell to the bottom again, making a slight sound.

"Esmeralda..." He inserted his fingers into his hair and murmured in pain.Fate had indeed made a revelation to him, but he could never understand it.All his pain and resentment are due to fate, due to the person who is tied to fate, due to the unique person in the world... due to the child who foreshadowed the mockery of fate when conceived in the mother's womb, Esme Lada.

In the past 15 years, he has wondered more than once, if he hadn't deliberately concealed the existence of Ace, but had allowed Dillier to find better "materials", would the person who died would no longer be his parents, and later Living in such a disgusting and ugly way will become Ace? …It was he who bore the torture that originally belonged to Ace, and he was forced to accept this fate—this is what Ace owed to himself, and fate ordered him to repay it!

God is wrong, the only thing that can be grasped in this world is power.He wanted to prove it, and John had no intention of being a good choice.He had hoped that Esmeralda would indeed be a beautiful girl like the name he secretly named, but fate made a joke with him again. It was a boy—a handsome teenager who would grow up 15 years later, A boy who returns to Paris to find his biological parents.

He shouldn't be so good, he shouldn't try to find his biological parents, he shouldn't return to Paris, he shouldn't grow up healthy, and he shouldn't even have that sinful life... If Claude took Louis XI away that night , all this is not going to happen? ... The baby born in such a sinful posture, the biggest crime is not to disrupt his plan step by step and become his potential opponent, but to seduce him with that calm and proud demeanor!

——But he just couldn't refuse this kind of temptation!

It seems that his fiery breath still lingers in his ears, the fierce tearing of his teeth seems to linger on his lips, his furious and plundering eyes, his slightly panting voice... everything is gathered into an unspeakable emotion, accumulated in his chest. Almost exploded.Claude couldn't bear this feeling any longer, a streak of blood appeared on his lower lip, and he turned and walked into the hut without saying a word.He took out the bottle soaked in the blood-colored liquid from the bottom of the drawer, held it in his hand after a long silence.

...'AN'ARKH (destiny).

He hurried down the stairs in his cloak, not noticing the hideous bell ringer who was stooping to pick up his dropped shawl from the floor.

The bell ringer looked back at him blankly, then looked down at the ruby ​​power ring lying in his hand, suddenly dropped the sacrificial cloak in his hand, and followed him from a distance.

-

When the Pont Saint-Michel was crowded with people, the Porte Pope in Paris also welcomed a group of travel-worn travelers.Most of them wore cloaks and rode horses, followed by a few simple-looking carriages, looking very low-key.

However, sitting in this low-key carriage was someone who was by no means low-key in terms of status.Cardinal Charles de Bourbon was sitting in one of the carriages, with a sly look on his face, but he also showed what he thought was a very friendly look, and asked the person opposite: "You Ever been to Paris?"

The hermit shook his head.

He didn't need to have a keen intuition, but he could also see the malice the cardinal had towards his party.The Pope's judgment was indeed correct. Cardinal Bourbon was on the side of Cardinal Seabo.Cardinal Xibo is eyeing the position of the next Pope, but the Pope does not want to hand over the future of the Holy See to him...

He couldn't help thinking about the purpose of his trip to Paris this time—on the surface it was to meet Louis XI at the request of Prince Frederick of Naples and the Pope, but in fact he was shouldering another important task... ...a heavy responsibility that cannot be told to others.

Ace is confident in himself, but Pope Sixtus IV has doubts about his true identity. The age of the "Bible" is too far away. Although there are still a few genuine holy objects in the Holy See, no one can prove that God and angels really exist.Although Ace's ability is incredible, and he behaves like an angel, firstly, his identity has not been mentioned in the "Bible", and secondly, if it is really as he said, it is in It’s okay to use the same method as Jesus to come down to help people on the earth. What if he only has some special abilities, but he can’t actually be resurrected, so what if he is really hanged by a group of mortals?

Sixtus IV wasn't concerned about whether Ace was a liar after all.Even if he is really a liar, this kind of acting and skills are enough for him to use this to do many things in the last days of his life.What he was worried about was that Ace was too big. If he really died this time, wouldn't all the arrangements of the previous few years be ruined!

His Majesty the Pope is very aware of his own body, he has no second two years to waste.So after receiving the report from the hermit, he immediately sent someone to send a letter in a hurry, informing him of his latest judgment and requirements.The itinerary, which was supposed to take two months, was quickly shortened to one month. The hermit and his party hurried on, and finally arrived in Paris on October 31.

"That's really a pity." The cardinal said casually, "Paris is a very lively and prosperous city, you must stay for a while."

The monk replied curtly, "I will."

In fact, if there is no accident, he should stay with Louis XI and accompany him until his death.Where Louis XI is, he will be there-if Louis XI is unwilling to stay in Paris, he certainly cannot stay in Paris for too long.

The cardinal said a few words indifferently, and suddenly heard a noise, and looked out through the car window: "What happened?"

The knight outside replied: "It seems that there is something exciting to watch, my lord."

"Someone must be sentenced to death." The cardinal turned his head and said to the hermit, "This kind of scene is not common in peaceful Paris, and you must have seen it a few times-go inquire about it. Is it a religious case, or a common case?"

The knight soon found out what happened, and replied: "It's a religious case, my lord—it's said that a wizard who murdered the captain is going to be executed."

The hermit was taken aback immediately, thinking he had heard it wrong: "...what case?"

"An Egyptian," answered the knight, "who has murdered a captain and practiced witchcraft, and has been condemned to die. Now all Paris is hurrying to see how he was hanged!"

The cardinal looked at the hermit: "You are curious about such things?"

"This is God's will..." the hermit murmured, and couldn't help but made a sign of the cross on his chest.They traveled day and night, in a hurry, but they still couldn't catch up before Ace was sentenced to death. Even as soon as they entered Paris, they heard the news that he was going to be hanged...

If it is God's destiny that Ace must have such an ordeal, then no matter who wants to stop it, it cannot be stopped.The hermit made up his mind and said, "I'm really curious."

"Then go and see," suggested the cardinal, "see how the heretics are executed, and you can better understand the Holy Spirit."

This is completely nonsense with open eyes, but the hermit has no mind to make any further comments.Under the instruction of the cardinal, the group of people turned around and instead of going to the palace, they followed the flow of people towards the Pont Saint-Michel.

However, they misjudged the degree of enthusiasm of the Parisians for this matter. Although the knight's answer "everyone in Paris is rushing to go" is a bit exaggerated, the crowd in front of the team explained to them what is meant by It's leaking.The leader struggled a lot and gave out the name of the cardinal before he managed to squeeze into the inner circle; however, there was still a long distance from the gallows, and they were blocked again after a short walk. on the road.

"Damn it," Francis couldn't help muttering while riding on horseback while counting the heads of the people around him, "Why are there so many people?"

The crowd suddenly retreated.A few people shouted among them: "I can't get through, this side is blocked by some old Egyptian women! Let's go through the alley over there!"

The citizens began to divert to the side again, and the hermit and his party were finally able to move forward again.Francis felt very strange, how could a few Egyptian women block such a large group of people, and even make them have to take a detour?

Now when he mentions the Egyptians, he always thinks of the mysterious "Your Majesty".If those Egyptian women were related to "Your Majesty", he would not be surprised by this result... But logically speaking, shouldn't Your Majesty be on the gallows right now?Why did the Egyptian woman related to him appear at the surrounding intersections, blocking the way to prevent people from passing?

The previous question was answered when he saw the intersection.Five Egyptian women were standing side by side by the side of the road. Some were old, some were young, some were beautiful and some were ugly. They seemed to have their own characteristics, but they didn't seem to have any lethality.

Suspicious in his heart, Francis exchanged a glance with his two senior brothers, deliberately not going forward, but waiting for the cardinal's guards to come forward.The leading knight got off his horse, walked up to the women with arrogance, and shouted loudly: "This is not the place for you, Egyptian women! Get out of the way, the cardinal's carriage is behind you!"

"We don't know what a cardinal is, sir." said a sharp-looking woman. "If the Pope comes, maybe we can think about it."

"Otherwise try the guards," said the prettiest and youngest woman, blinking her long eyelashes. "I'm not sure they'll let you pass, though."

"It's for your own good not to let you in, young master." The oldest woman said in a low voice, "You must not imagine how many people are blocked inside... I can guarantee that even if you go in, Can't see anything either."

The knight got impatient and untied the money bag from his waist: "How much do you want?"

"We're not doing it for money, sir." The ugliest one winked at him coquettishly, "As long as you kiss me... I'll let you pass."

The knight glared at her, and was about to say something, when the cardinal shouted through the car window: "Why did you stop here? Hurry up! We're going to catch up with the execution!"

The knight had no choice but to admit that he was unlucky, his eyes wandered around a few women, and he decided to give that beautiful girl a kiss—otherwise, it's really hard to say who took advantage.However, just as he was about to walk towards the girl, the girl showed a look of disgust and said coldly: "If you want to pass by me, you must crawl under my skirt."

The ugliest one giggled again, twisting his waist: "Come on, handsome guy, give me a kiss!"

The knight's face suddenly filled with a constipated look.He had to turn around and come to the carriage, reported the matter to the cardinal through the window, and said that he could not give in to this rude request anyway.The cardinal also felt quite unbelievable, that there are still Egyptians who dare to show their faces to the cardinal's attendants?

In order to show his virtuousness, tolerance and love, although the cardinal wanted the guards to arrest these women, he now had to get out of the carriage and negotiate with them in person.However, those Egyptian women seemed to really not understand what a cardinal was, and treated him as if they were any random passer-by.The ugly girl said: "Even if you are the king, you have to kiss me before you can pass." The beautiful girl said: "Even if you are the pope, you have to slip under my skirt."

No normal person can bear such bizarre conditions. The cardinal's face turned pale in the end, but he didn't want to argue with them, so he returned to the carriage angrily, and announced: "We are going to the palace. Hanging is actually nothing. good-looking."

The hermit sighed silently, and crossed himself again.

It really is God's will...

The team turned their heads and drove towards the palace.

-

When Mr. Xia Molu was sternly accusing Ace of his crimes, Ace himself was standing on the gallows in a relaxed and happy mood.So far, everything is going according to plan. Although things about the homeless people are a bit unexpected, Ace can also see that they are doing their best to cooperate with him.With Bashir here, there shouldn't be any mistakes. At least in terms of execution, Ace can safely let himself be hanged.

Not only he himself was waiting to be hanged, but thousands of citizens present were also waiting for him to be hanged.As soon as Mr. Xia Molu finished his lengthy announcement, the executioner's two apprentices couldn't wait to bring Ace to the front of the noose, and the executioner Pierre himself hung it sacredly in an almost solemn posture. He took off the noose and replaced it with his own special cowhide noose that was so strong that the prisoner could feel the pain of suffocation perfectly.For the noose, he stayed up all night, reciting the lines Ace read in the Psalms.He believed that if his noose passed Ace's neck, his worth would double, and the prisoners would regard him as the only shortcut to heaven.

The three brothers Bashir and Harim: "!!!"

Wait, that's not what it says in the script! !

Mr. Pierre did not know what the four Egyptians below were thinking.He was on tiptoe, wrapping the noose around Ace's graceful neck.He didn't even dare to touch Ace's skin, and the movement of his hands didn't look like he was about to take someone's life, but rather like laying a wreath on Ace.After everything was in place, he stood aside, waiting for Mr. Xia Molu to give an order.

At the end of Xia, Mr. Lu felt that he had reached the pinnacle of his life.An unprecedented strong impulse surged in his heart, and he vaguely felt that he was conforming to everyone's expectations, so the elation became particularly strong.He waved his hand vigorously and shouted: "Execution!"

The executioner gave Ace a questioning look, and Ace nodded slightly at him, with a pitiful smile on his face, and walked to the edge of the stairs.The executioner's two apprentices started to spin the roulette, tightening the noose, and Ace kept walking, taking a step forward——

His eyes suddenly met a pair of strange eyes—perhaps not a pair, because one of them was covered by a tumor.He has a ferocious face and a deformed body. He doesn't look like a human being at all, but a devil who climbed up from hell.

Yet the good eye was very beautiful.The shape may not be perfect, and the distance may be a little far away, but under the sunlight, the eyes, which have become a little lighter in color, are surprisingly bright, innocent and curious, like a baby who doesn't know the world.Of all the people, only he was watching Ace with pure curiosity.

Ace couldn't help smiling at him, and took a step forward in a good mood.

Well, the following play is... "The Vanishing Show in Paris".