[Notre Dame de Paris] Papal Way

Of course Ace wouldn't be stupid enough to actually hang himself on the gallows to dry.In order to better show the effect of light magic, he didn't use the mummy's bandage today, so if he used other magic, the effect would probably be exposed to the public.

So in order to complete this well-planned drama, Ace finally chose the Eye of Horus.Although Tutankhamun has always claimed that using it requires consumption of his own soul essence, but through the magic circle carefully carved in his eyes by Ace, this damage can be minimized, and most of the functions can be realized through magic power. For things like going back in time, as long as there are enough emeralds to consume, they can still play a substitute role.

——After all, according to Tutankhamun and the priest, the "essence" of one's soul is the emerald.

Just as Tutankhamun has always been dissatisfied with, during the two years since he got the Eye of Horus, Ace basically didn't use it much except for getting familiar with the new functions.Even the fixed "retrospective memory" effect of the left eye is a side effect of the forced use of the energy required for the transformation of the magic circle. He himself has no interest in spying on other people's privacy or returning to a certain period of time to change something.But today the situation is a bit different. He has to cooperate with magic to use multiple functions at the same time, in order to make the illusion come alive, so that everyone who passes by the gallows or even touches｜his "corpse" thinks that this is the real him... ...This has already touched | a part of the "rules". Ace thinks that he has not yet reached such a state, so he can only use the Eye of Horus to complete it.

The moment he stepped off the high platform, Ace mobilized all his mental power, and was in a state of high concentration like never before.The several emeralds hidden under the cover of the shirt turned into powder in an instant, providing consumption for the needs of the Eye of Horus... Almost in the blink of an eye, a completely "real" body appeared in Ace's construction among.The sun swayed down brilliantly and fiercely, a pair of realistic and perfect wings appeared suddenly, and then disappeared suddenly.When everyone's eyes were focused on the pair of light wings, Esmer took a step back after reciting invisibility. The refraction of light and air perfectly concealed his figure, revealing the "corpse".

He stood in the air with the levitation technique, walked around his "corpse", and couldn't help touching his chin in satisfaction.No matter from which angle you look at it, it is perfect, as if you were really hanged to death - but a counterfeit is still a counterfeit, even if it is made by yourself, it is still completely inferior in terms of handsomeness and beauty. ~

After admiring it narcissistically for a long time, Ace even touched it with his hand to make sure that there would be no error in the feel.Tutankhamun roared furiously in his consciousness: "I said it long ago, as long as you don't deny it yourself, the existence of 'it' is completely real!"

——Similar to the spell-casting domain of the Dharma Sage, anyone who steps into this domain is bound by the rules set by the Dharma Sage himself.Ace understood this truth. The reason why he did not break through to the peak of the magister in his previous life was because he failed to build his own spell-casting domain.But now seeing the illusion he constructed, he vaguely grasped something...

It is said that the key to a Dharma Saint's advancement to the Dharma God lies in the comprehension of the rules, and whether one can truly acquire the godhead and become a god, the key also lies in the control of the power of the rules.Thinking about it this way, the Eye of Horus doesn't seem to be as tasteless as imagined... Ace stroked his chin thoughtfully.

Tutankhamun was furious: "The Eye of Horus, which all pharaohs dream of, represents the favor of the kingly God Horus, and you actually use it as a tool to pass the level..."

"..." Ace couldn't help being silent for a moment, "...Did you make a mistake?"

"What could I be wrong about!?"

"From the beginning, I never thought about royal power." Ace said calmly, and walked down from the gallows, just passing by Mr. Xia Molu who came up to check.At the end of Xia, Mr. Lu felt a chill all over his body, and shivered immediately. "From the beginning, I have only pursued magic, and only magic is my wish."

Magic itself is a way to show the power of laws, and what Ace pursued from the beginning was only magic—or in other words, what he pursued and was obsessed with was just the feeling of being able to control powerful power at will.The Pope, who became a member of the Magic Association and became tens of thousands of believers, did not do the false feelings of calling the wind and rain, but took them as a way to get closer to the way of the rules, in order to one day be able to truly Hold the power of rules in your hands, and become a god on the throne!

The secular royal power always wants to compete with the divine power in the sky, but the secular people belong to the secular after all, and the royal power will eventually win.However, royal power cannot restrain the people's thoughts, where the spirit of freedom wants to belong, and where is their true destination!No matter how many thousands of years the war between faith and law has been fought, the outcome cannot be truly determined.Which one should be pursued, the nothingness or the real thing, and who can say clearly?

—No, he can make it clear.

Because for him, enjoying the secular world and pursuing power are things that have no conflict in themselves.It is the essence of human cowardice to deceive oneself with false things but refuse to accept the truth... Yet he has seen the truth behind the falsehood, the illusion behind the real.It's not because he is stronger and possesses a more mysterious power, but because...human beings are existences between "believe" and "deny".

Even an ordinary human being, as long as he has a strong enough will to deny himself, will also touch the rules and completely disappear from this world.

Seeming to have grasped the key, Ace fell into deep thought.But he didn't realize that the "corpse" that originally only appeared in the right eye gradually appeared in the vision of the Eye of Horus, vivid and natural—the existence of this body was recognized by the rules.

Now no one can find evidence from this corpse that it is not him, except for Ace himself's "rejection", this body created by him is completely real in this world, and will no longer be because of any change for reasons.

Ace was immersed in his own thoughts and did not notice these changes, but Tutankhamun clearly noticed the changes in Ace's aura.He has always existed as the "spirit" of the Eye of Horus, and he is very sensitive to the existence of laws. After he noticed the changes in Ace, he couldn't help being shocked——Ace didn't lie to him. What he pursued was actually It is really the true meaning of breaking the barrier between man and god!

A sense of absurdity rose in his heart again, and he only felt that Ace's existence and actions were really unbelievable... He was once angry because Ace didn't pay attention to the Eye of Horus, but he never thought that, Ace didn't overuse the Eye of Horus, but he didn't need the many functions of the Eye of Horus at all!No matter how powerful the Eye of Horus is, it is just a useful tool for him, but what he relies on is never a tool, but himself!

... How could there be such a person! ?

Tutankhamun, who was in shock, felt that he really had to face the wall for a while to collect his thoughts.

Ace's condition didn't last long.After breaking away from that feeling of "enlightenment", he only felt refreshed and energetic like never before.After finding Bashir and the others, he passed through the crowd generously, grabbed Bashir's belt, and walked straight out.

Bashir was still anxiously waiting for Ace to send a signal, but the person who was hung on the noose seemed to be really dead, and became silent after the light wings disappeared... Although you can understand it when you see the light wings As the messenger of the sun god, Ace was just acting for those Christians, but he couldn't help but feel anxious, afraid that Ace would play off this time, and what should he do if he was really called by God!

When he was anxious, his belt was suddenly pulled by someone, and then he started to walk out involuntarily.Bashir glanced back angrily, and was immediately dumbfounded—the person standing behind and dragging him out was not Ace but who else!

He couldn't help but glanced at the gallows again, turned his head and glanced at Ace again, and after seven or eight times, he rubbed his eyes in disbelief and asked tremblingly, "Ace?"

Ace grunted impatiently.Bashir almost screamed: "...on the gallows...?"

"It's me too." Ace turned his head sideways, with a wicked smile on his lips, "Guess, Bashir... which one is the real me?"

Bashir covered his eyes: "..." How can I guess! !Your eyes are blinded, okay? ! ?

Halimu and the others also noticed something was wrong here, and turned around suspiciously.Ace undid the influence of his semi-formed field on them, kept smiling and beckoned to them: "Come."

Halimu and the others suddenly became dizzy, and came to Ace in a daze.Bashir was startled, glanced to the side, then lowered his voice and said, "You just appeared here...is it alright?"

"They can't see me." Ace said quite complacently.He has just comprehended the "field". Although it is not perfect, it is not a problem at all to affect other people's vision within the field.However, after saying that sentence, he immediately saw the tears welling up in Bashir's eyes.The young man's face was full of despair, and the veins on the back of his hands were clenched: "... Ace, you actually... Is this the will of God Ra, or the will of Olixis?"

Brother Halimu also seemed to understand something, showing a look of horror.

Ace: "..." After a long time, they actually thought they were dead? ?

Without saying a word, he turned around and continued walking out of the crowd.Bashir and the others hurriedly followed behind, seeing him walking through the crowd unimpeded, all the way to the other side of the river, crossing the road to the women who were besieging there, and reaching out to pat Guy Germany's shoulders.Gu Yide turned around, screamed, rushed forward and hugged him, and wailed with snot and tears.

Only then did Bashir and the others realize what was wrong—why can a soul still have an entity!

The women had already surrounded Ace, asking him how he escaped with concern.Ace explained his plan to them in a good-tempered manner, and apologized for the concealment before, and was let go by a group of women after a long time.They dispersed again to report to their partners, and asked Ace to take Bashir and the others back to the Palace of Miracles first.Bashir didn't dare to raise his head all the way, full of shame, wishing to go back to a few 10 minutes ago and hold back his tears.

Why not cry!Unlucky is dead!Pooh!

"I didn't die, you guys seem very disappointed." Ace stopped in his tracks and said with a half-smile.Bashir and the others immediately shook their heads, saying that they had no such idea at all.

"The corpse on the gallows, as long as you remember, it's real." Ace stared at Bashir, and said slowly, "Send someone to watch there, if anyone wants to get close, just Write it down and tell me, understand?"

Bashir nodded immediately, eager to make amends immediately: "I'll go right away!"

"It's still too early, it's not too late to go at night." Ace waved his hand and continued to walk towards the Palace of Miracles.After sitting in prison for so long, he must come back and reward himself.At night, I'm afraid there are still many things to do!

-

The grand scene brought about by this hanging is destined to be talked about by future generations. Painters will use the material to paint, and poets will write it into their poetry collections. As the protagonist of the hanging, Ace will also be famous forever...

It's just that this way of becoming famous is different from what he had imagined before.Wenerike wiped the endless cold sweat from his forehead, thinking about what to do next.After getting on the line with Ace, he has already relaxed his career under the instruction of Prince Frederick, and devoted most of his attention to serving the Holy See.He was originally just an ordinary cloth merchant, but in recent years he has been collecting gems and buying and selling gems, and he is almost the same as a gem merchant... Those gems are a huge fortune, and I don’t know that Ace used them Where, if he really dies like this, who will bear the loss of the Holy See and the prince?

...There is no doubt that it must be him, Wen Erlik!

Great panic overwhelmed him the moment he saw Estan go to his death.Wenerik squatted in the room, stroking his docile and lovely lamb, thinking about whether he should cheat death or how to escape the huge debt he might bear.He has long seen that the Egyptian is unreliable, but the hermit trusts Ace very much, so what can he do as a subordinate?had to...

Had to...

Wenerike jumped up from the ground, and shouted in horror: "Mian, Your Majesty?"

Ace raised his chin at him: "You seem surprised?"

"No, no, no, I'm not surprised at all." All the previous thoughts were thrown into the back of my mind, Wenerike denied repeatedly, while wiping the sweat that emerged from his forehead, "I have been waiting for Your Majesty's Dajia, it's just... where did you come in from?"

Ace pointed to the door: "Of course I walked in."

"..." Wenerike rushed to the door immediately, grabbed the door frame and glanced around like a thief.When he found that there seemed to be no one around, he immediately closed the door with a bang, and sighed, "Your Majesty, how could you walk in from the outside like this!"

"Of course I have my own way to make them invisible to me." Ace clearly understood his thoughts and said calmly.He sat on the chair, crossed his legs leisurely, and looked sharply, "Don't think about angels in the same way you think about mortals, Wenrrick. I have more power than you can imagine."

Wenerike wiped his sweat again, and sat opposite him stiffly.Of course he knew how lofty the status and ability of "Metatron" was in the legend, but he couldn't imagine why an angel would be more arrogant than those nobles with eyes above the top... No, no, it should be said , as an angel, is it really okay for Ace to be so arrogant?

He couldn't think of an answer to this question, and in order not to torture himself, Wenerike quickly gave up his thoughts and asked respectfully: "Then, why did you come this time..."

"You know, there is no room for failure in the plan." Ace shrugged, "When the Messiah was suffering, if a gypsy hadn't stolen a nail that should be nailed to the heart, there would be no hope of resurrection. And I, in order to ensure a smooth resurrection in the secular world and enter the Holy See, I will definitely need some small help..."

"A little help?"

"I need you to find out the monk's address for me, and tell him that I will visit tomorrow night." Ace said briefly, "Tomorrow night, I will come to you to get his address."

He stood up, and his figure disappeared again.And Wenerike didn't remember until he came to the palace in a daze. He didn't seem to ask, is Ace a human or a ghost now?

……Oh, God! ! !

-

Under the tears-filled eyes of the priest, Ace replenished the energy needed by the magic circle in one breath, and the light lit up one after another. The garbage in the house was immediately cleaned up, and the air became fresh again.After dealing with the things that need to be resolved, Ace stepped into the steaming bath, took a comfortable bath, changed into the brand new clothes provided by Wenerrick, and walked out of the room.On the table was a big meal that Bashir specially bought from a famous restaurant in Paris, and there was a bottle of red wine beside it.He folded the napkin, sat at the table, picked up the knife and fork, and prepared to have a good time—but first, there was no music, and second, there were no beauties to accompany him, so the environment was a bit subpar.

After thinking about it, he decided to call out Tutankhamun—after all, she is an eye-catching beauty, even if she has a bad temper, she still feels good eating.

Tutankhamun was facing the wall and thinking about his past, deeply reviewing that he shouldn't look at Ace from the perspective of human beings-he should have known that his new "master" was an unusual guy, and in this place where even the gods In an age when the voices have all died out, who would have known that there would be such an existence stronger than the high priest of the temple?Not to mention taking away Ace's body, if he really drives away Ace's soul rashly, it's not certain who will be unlucky in the end!The body is nothing, but there is only one soul. If he is really crushed into scum, he will have no chance to regret it.

But the ability that Ace showed today gave him a vague hope on the other hand.Although Ace's body cannot be taken away, he is fully capable of creating a body for himself... Regardless of whether it is immortal or not, he really wants to feel down-to-earth again.But the two had such a stalemate before, would Ace agree to make a body for himself...

When he was feeling anxious, he suddenly felt a pulling force, and he involuntarily escaped from the Eye of Horus and appeared outside.Sitting in front of him was the person he was guessing just now, and there were sumptuous dishes on the table... What is this going to do?

Ace knocked on the table: "Sit down."

A vague idea came to Tutankhamun's mind, he didn't move, but showed a embarrassed look: "I can't sit down... I don't have a real body, I will pass through the chair."

Ace couldn't help but glance at him - what is this implying?

He secretly smiled.Originally, he called Tutankhamun out to give him a body, so as not to always have a soul in his eyes, which felt too weird.However, Tutankhamun's expression was too obvious, so he didn't want to make him happy, and said indifferently: "The time you lied to me, you acted very real."

A light red appeared on the dark skin, and Tutankhamun said angrily: "Who lied to you? What I said is true... Otherwise, you would think that those people have no purpose in treating you Is it?"

"Could it be that in your eyes, anyone's actions have a purpose?"

"Of course!" Tutankhamun nodded as a matter of course, "No matter who is doing what, there is a purpose." He used to not believe this sentence, until the deception was exposed by the bloody forest in reality, and he understood After this reason...

Ace was stunned: "Then you were purposely implying to me just now that you need an actual body?"

Tutankhamun: "... who hinted at you! I didn't!"

"So you don't want a body." Ace immediately said regretfully, "I was going to give you one..."

Tutankhamun choked suddenly, neither admitting it nor denying it.His eyes flickered slightly, his cheeks were flushed, and his golden-green pupils were full of struggles that stood up like cat pupils, and he was unable to speak for a long time.

Ace knocked on the table again: "I remember you said that free activities outside are to consume your soul essence?"

Tutankhamun's expression fell again: "...Of course."

"The soul origin of chrysoberyl is very similar to mine, no wonder you want this body." Ace sighed, "But it's a pity, it's impossible to give my body to you, and you refuse to use it Another body..."

Who said he wouldn't!Tutankhamun almost screamed, and in a blink of an eye, Ace continued: "...don't worry, when you leave, I will pray to the sun god for you."

Tutankhamun: "..."

Is it still too late for him to use the ability to go back in time to go back a few minutes! ?

Ace was about to tease him again, but suddenly his face froze. He felt that his corpse on the gallows seemed to have been moved. He immediately ignored Tutankhamun's return, and returned to St. Michel Bridge.

— Just kidding, it’s fine if it’s someone else, if Claude is there... That perfect corpse can fool others, but not Claude!

"..." Tutankhamun stayed alone in the warm room like spring, wanting to cry without tears.

Staying outside for one more second really consumes one more point of soul origin, hey! !Master, come back quickly, this will kill your soul! !

-

Claude looked up at the corpse hanging from the noose, his fists clenched in his sleeves.

He stood here during the day, watching Ace step onto the gallows and die in front of his eyes... The pair of light wings that appeared inexplicably seemed to be hallucinating, but they were always replayed in front of Claude.Ace can't die, he has the same special ability as himself...but he died, hanging on the noose, without any movement.

Maybe it was only his body that died, and his soul had already flown into heaven...but what does it matter?He doesn't need an existence that will hinder him, he just needs... his emerald can belong to him completely.

No one would be interested in a corpse in such a deep night. Claude climbed up to the gallows, untied the cold and stiff corpse, leaned on his shoulders, and fell on the execution platform together.The wooden scaffold was damp in the autumn night, and shirts were quickly attached to it.Claude knelt in front of the corpse, rubbing his fingers from his forehead all the way, and landed on the glaring welt on Ace's chest.

It was a wound that was healed quickly thanks to his strength... However, he couldn't help feeling regretful. If he had given Ace a little more strength, would he have lasted longer today and waited for his future? Come……

... This is of course just a delusion, and it is impossible to happen.Claude twitched the corners of his lips mockingly, but involuntarily put his palm on the heart of the corpse—no movement.

The strangle marks of the noose mocked his actions brightly, and Claude said softly: "Ah, yes...how could it be possible to be alive?"

Ace paused and stood on the steps, watching Claude's actions.

"You are dead," he continued muttering softly to himself, "but I am still carrying the cursed life on my back and living on. You should have a high status and a happy life, but because of my actions And lost everything... However, who owes this to whom?... I should have a bright future and a carefree life, but because of you, everything disappeared."

He smiled strangely, and lay down beside the corpse, holding two equally cold hands together: "You shouldn't have been born, Esmeralda...you shouldn't have eyes so similar to your father's, and With the dazzling beauty of your mother. Maybe you never pay attention to yourself in the mirror. When you close your eyes, you are so similar to him... If the two of you stand together, no one will mistake you Relationship."

He turned his head and murmured softly: "And you actually think that I am your father... This misunderstanding is really ridiculous. But from today on, you will also be my son, and there is no accident that can separate us ..."

He gently stroked the closed eyes of the corpse, and took out a palm-sized vial from his arms.Under the moonlight, Ace clearly saw that the bottle was full of blood-like liquid, and there seemed to be something soaked in it...

... Soaking, a pair of eyeballs! ?

He was terrified, and immediately stepped onto the gallows, but heard Claude speak again, his voice was imperceptibly low: "...you said that I don't have love for you, it's just lust... But you don't understand, For someone like me, what is the difference between love and lust? What is love? I never knew. And after the age of 20, I lost all feeling forever... I don't know what cold is, What is hot, I don't know what is salty, what is sweet... The intoxicating wine has no taste in my mouth, but the potion of the alchemy experiment can still let me taste some taste, just like a wine made for alchemy. puppet.

"You are different, Ace...Maybe I was protected by my power until I grew up. I can feel the warmth on your body and the sweetness in your lips...even this heart that has been dead for many years will You continue to beat. What is in my veins is not fresh blood, but solidified red liquid, but when I meet you, this red liquid will flow, creating the illusion that I am still alive..."

He raised the bottle, admired the contents inside, and showed a slight smile: "The eyes soaked in the elixir of life will definitely be very bright and beautiful. Use it, Esmeralda... and then let you Myself, belongs to me."

He uncorked the bottle, taking black eyes out of the blood-colored liquid.Only then did Ace realize what he was going to do, and broke out in a cold sweat—he actually wanted to put on those weird eyeballs for himself! ?So that I can stay by his side forever! ?Creation God's ass!Is this really what he understands! ?Claude is actually an alchemist! ! ?

His thoughts turned sharply, wanting to quickly find a way to stop Claude, but in such a short period of time, how could he quickly come up with any solution?Seeing that Claude had put the pair of bloody eyeballs in the palm of his hand, and reached out to break off the eyelids of the corpse, he had no choice but to start preparing to meditate on magic. In short, he had to stop Claude first.

——If the corpse is gone, how will the play continue!

At this moment, Ace suddenly heard a sound like the sounds of nature.A person's footsteps sounded on the steps, and then, a deformed black shadow rushed up.The person who came didn't notice the other people standing on the stage. His eyes lit up when he saw the corpse lying on the ground. He accelerated his speed and was about to snatch the corpse away.

Unexpectedly, Claude was almost brought to the ground.He recognized the identity of the visitor, and immediately called out in disbelief: "... Quasimodo?"

Soi Ying couldn't hear his voice, and didn't even notice who the person next to him was.He put the corpse on his shoulder, turned and ran.Of course, it was impossible for Claude to watch him go away like this, so he stood up quickly and chased after him quickly.And between the lightning and the flint, there was another voice that sounded in the night: "Who!?"

Ace and Claude turned their heads at the same time, looking at the gallows.

——The person standing in front of the execution platform under the moonlight turned out to be Phoebus!