Chapter 34, The Kingdom of Death
In late April 1348, in southern Italy, the capital of the Kingdom of Naples, outside the city gate of the Port of Naples.
If the Port of Marseille and the city of Avignon, which we have seen before, have already been devastated by the plague; then when the travelers cross the [Random Gate] and step into the Port of Naples, where the Black Death broke out earlier, Wang Only then did Qiu and the others realize that they had truly seen hell on earth!
What greeted them here was not crying and asking for help, or even the numb and dull eyes of despair, but a quiet silence!
There was an eerie silence.
There is no noisy human voice, no curling smoke, only a few low barking dogs and crows chirping occasionally...
Looking in through the open city gate, a thick layer of dust fell on the windows and doors of every house, and white bones were scattered on the deserted streets. Those tenacious plants and trees have quietly poked their heads out from under the stone slabs, and are growing crazily, letting their roots penetrate into the cracks between the stone slabs, causing the entangled vines to climb up the window lattice of the mansion... A wave of energy seems to come from The breath of death coming out of the depths of the Nine Netherworlds was silently permeating every corner of the city at this moment, making the dead buildings on both sides of the street look particularly desolate and strange.
This once lively and prosperous city now seems to have been swallowed up by the undead and no longer belongs to the living.
Faced with such a gruesome sight, Wang Qiu and others could not help but feel chills running down their spines, even though the sun was shining brightly above their heads.
As for Queen Joanna, who had specially put on a gorgeous long dress in order to show her "return of the king" style, she was leaning against the cold stone pillar with a pale face at the moment, vomiting as if she had vomited out the gall. , didn't even notice the crown rolling off his head.
In the past year, during those days of fleeing to a foreign country, Queen Joanna had fantasized about returning to her homeland countless times.
Perhaps, it will be a grand celebration, if she can use the power of the church and supporters from all parties to peacefully resolve this crisis:
All Italian states sent envoys to congratulate her on her restoration. Colorful flags and lanterns were hung on both sides of the streets in the city of Naples. Calls to welcome the queen back and bring order to the chaos resounded in the sky. The aroma of fine wine and barbecue wafted through the crowded square, and the blazing bonfires stayed on all night long. Troubadours played cheerful melodies on harps and flutes. Young girls and boys held their arms and danced the countryside dance happily. Folk dance.
And she was holding a wine glass, wearing a gold crown, and the most luxurious dress, sitting on the throne of the palace, with a crowd of nobles and ministers kneeling in front of her, waiting for the queen to lightly open her lips and reward the meritorious ministers. Forgive the repentant and punish the guilty...
Perhaps, it will be a burning battlefield. This is probably a scene more suitable for the term "Return of the King":
Troops holding different flags rushed back and forth, and unkempt old, weak, women and children cried and screamed. The mercenaries with ferocious smiles raised their swords to kill and plunder property wantonly. From time to time, sharp crossbow arrows flew out of the alleys, causing sticky blood to flow on the ground, but the knights still sang war songs and advanced bravely. The rebellious nobles who resisted tried their best to gather their troops, raised their spears, and launched the final charge at her royal banner.
Wearing strong armor, holding a golden scepter, she stood on horseback in the middle of the widest road in the city, with her back to the blazing flames, and with a smile of victory, she issued the military order for a general attack. The knights loyal to the royal family rushed towards the enemy formation like a tide, crushing the last rebels...
Perhaps, that will be a gloomy end. After all, she still failed to fight those traitors and enemies, and fell from a noble king to a prisoner:
The leaden sky looked gloomy, just like her mood as a loser. The streets of Naples were crowded with silent people, looking at the fallen queen with complicated eyes. The ancient and tall city gates of Naples were covered with the heads of her cronies.
And she wore dirty hair, rough linen clothes, and jingling shackles on her hands and feet. She sat in a rickety prison car, paraded through the market like a trophy, and was then taken to a monastery or sent to the execution ground. Let a big and round executioner behead him in public...
Whether it was victory or defeat, war or peace, Queen Joanna was somewhat mentally prepared.
However, she never imagined that she would stand in front of the gate of such a city of death wearing a luxurious ceremony!
After not seeing each other for a year, the scenery of my motherland in my memory turned into such a picture of purgatory. Even the sea breeze that should have been refreshing was filled with a strong corpse smell!
Her enemies, her loyal ministers, her people, her capital, and her country have all been swallowed up by plague and death.
All power games have come to an end, and all grudges and grudges have come to nothing.
In front of the fair and cold God of Death, all the intrigues and struggles she had been immersed in for half her life seemed so ridiculous and not worth mentioning.
After breathing for a moment, Queen Joanna finally raised her head from memories and delusions, and once again looked at the city of Naples that was swallowed by death. A female officer with an equally pale face came forward and asked the Queen in a low voice if she needed to go back to rest, but the Queen shook her head and refused.
"...No, let's go to the city and have a look. I want to see with my own eyes what my country has become?"
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Although this city swallowed by death seemed very scary at first glance, no matter what, after hesitating for a moment, everyone finally mustered up the courage, put on masks, hats and gloves, and cautiously walked in I entered the city and wanted to find out.
Then, the scene that unfolded in front of outsiders like them was even more unbearable to watch.
——Beside the walls, at street corners, under the eaves... Whether it was a low shack or a gorgeous mansion, there were countless dead bodies lying strewn everywhere, including men, women and children, but no living person could be found. . Some corpses were lying on their backs, others were curled up and rolled on their sides, and some were lying on the ground, but the expressions fixed on their faces were all twisted and hideous in extreme pain, which could almost make onlookers Feeling suffocated. Because the weather was getting warmer at this time, some of the corpses were highly decomposed, and even white maggots appeared. The air is filled with a disgusting rotten stench, which spreads away with the breeze, almost giving people the illusion of confusion.
All in all, on the corpse-strewn streets of Naples, there was not a single living person at all, and there was not even a trace of human activity. However, wild dogs with red eyes could be seen scurrying in and out everywhere. Roaring lowly, while fighting and tearing at the dead bodies.
And in the sky above this city of death, there are large flocks of crows circling all day long, as if they are messengers of darkness announcing death to mortals. From time to time, they fold their wings and float down, resting on a mutilated corpse. , and then lowered his head to eat the carrion and internal organs of the deceased.
Everyone stepped forward with their trembling legs and walked silently through the silent streets one after another. However, there was still endless silence all around. There were only corpses in different shapes of death and crows pecking at the eyes of the dead, tearing them apart. Wild dogs eating broken corpses, maggots wriggling in white flowers Insects... The tragic scenes with visual impact here and there soon almost destroyed their nerves, and the smell of corpses that permeated every corner made everyone's stomachs churn. They were forced to cover their noses and mouths tightly to prevent vomiting.
The aura of terror that comes with death penetrates into everyone's hearts invisibly but truly, making them increasingly unable to move their legs... Finally, after a hasty inspection of a few streets, the time traveler They could no longer bear this all-pervading unspeakable fear, and no longer tried to find survivors who could not exist at all. Instead, they turned around and ran as fast as possible, escaping from this city of death that was completely lifeless. .
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"...This...This is really terrifying...How could it become like this? Everyone in the entire city is dead? There is absolutely nothing left?"
After running out of the city, Miss Ma Tong, who was relatively weak in spirit, leaned feebly next to a big rock, sipping the mineral water she brought with her, and pressing her chest that was beating wildly. I couldn't help but murmured in a low voice with lingering fear.
"...Who knows? But several months have passed since the Black Death came to this place. Due to the chaotic political situation, it is estimated that no one can take care of organizing quarantine and epidemic prevention. In addition, there is no If there is no cure, it is not unusual for the whole city to die!”
After resting quietly for a moment, Wang Qiu washed his hands and cheeks with mineral water, threw the used masks and gloves into the fire and burned them. At the same time, he casually replied to Ma Tong, "...of course , even in such a bad situation, there will be some people with particularly strong physiques. , People with very good resistance can struggle to survive. However, even if they survive this plague, they may not dare to stay in this city of death full of rotting corpses. They may have taken advantage of it. When I had the strength, I fled to the countryside or the wild..."
"...Well, it seems like it will be very troublesome if we want to raise funds in the Kingdom of Naples - we won't even be able to find any living people!"
Ma Tong sighed and said this, and at the same time glanced back - behind her, Queen Joanna seemed unable to accept this cruel reality that was too impactful. She had rolled her eyes and fainted, and was being treated by several knights and maids. He was hurriedly put on a makeshift stretcher, ready to be carried back to Avignon through the [Random Door] to recuperate. The Pope, who had been accustomed to seeing death before, was a little calmer. He was ordering his men to put out various magical weapons, as if he wanted to hold a ceremony for the dead in Naples...
"...I have no choice but to imitate those adventurers in RPG games and make money from dead people in the ruins of abandoned cities." Wang Qiu shrugged and replied in a very cold-blooded manner, without the slightest bit of morality in stealing the belongings of the dead. Feeling of guilt, "...Fortunately, this time there is [Shuimenmen] 】, we can mobilize the citizens of the entire city of Avignon to take charge of the burning and cleanup work. Even troublesome things such as organizing manpower and assigning commands can be handled by the Holy See. We just need to sit and wait for them to send all kinds of property Just hand it over..."