In the Imperial Senate, a tense military meeting was going on. The main topic they discussed was how to deal with the full-scale invasion of demons.
Cassius sat on the throne with a serious look on his face.
Trump, Doro, Metrolash, Alger, Anthony and other elders sat solemnly in their respective seats.
As representatives of the Starfallen Group within the empire, the presidents of several wealthy guilds were also assigned their respective positions.
Allies of the empire, such as Genesis and Christina, were also invited here to discuss the war against demons.
Christina glanced at the silver dragon sitting on the seat and whispered: "Are these silver-skinned reptiles worthy of appearing in front of His Majesty Cassius?
Their elders’ wings haven’t grown yet.”
Genesis and Adrovell immediately glared at the blue dragon, their eyes full of anger.
"Enough."
"Bang."
Cassius tapped his fingers lightly on the table, and the surrounding area suddenly became quiet, and all eyes were focused on him.
Then, he looked around and said calmly: "Everyone, the empire does not invite you to quarrel.
Now, we have only one common enemy - the Abyss Demon. ”
Under Cassius's powerful aura, everyone in the hall kept silent and did not dare to speak easily.
After a long time, Trump broke the silence: "Your Excellency Adrovil, as a soldier who has been active on the front line against demons all year round, you should know a lot of information, right?"
Adrovil nodded after hearing this, his expression softened slightly, he stood up and said:
"Your Majesty Cassius, and everyone in the empire, I have resisted demonic invasions many times over the past hundreds of years, so I have some experience."
Adroviel stretched out his hand, and a magical image appeared in mid-air, which recorded the demon's ferocious face, and a sharp and noisy howling sound was heard.
He pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose and continued: "As we all know, all creatures in the material world have common characteristics.
Humans, dragons, hippogriffs, mind flayers, and gnomes all eat. They all reproduce in some basic physiological ways, but we do not share these common traits with demons.
Demons do not need to eat; they usually take special pleasure in swallowing living sacrifices
Their lungs are very strong and they are extremely resistant to external gases, including the death air of the Abyss that can poison most creatures in the Material Plane.
As with the rest of the life cycle, demons do not age, and they do not die from anything resembling natural death.
They return to the unformed portions of the Abyss, their essence becoming part of the evil and chaos of that plane.
Tinia tilted her head and said with some confusion: "These guys are so stupid. Don't they like eating cold meat and collecting shiny gold coins?"
"."
As soon as these words came out, the venue fell into silence again, but this time it seemed that it was due to speechlessness.
Adrovil thought for a while and then said: "Everyone, please don't treat demons as any normal 'creatures', and don't guess what they think.
Their existence is more like a conscious disaster. ”
Scholars within the clan believe that the Abyss desires to use creation to return more parts of the universe to its final primordial starting point, and that demons are such creations.
Above all, demons exist to spread chaos and evil—the essence of the Abyss. ”
Trump thought for a moment and asked: "How many demons are there in each invasion?"
Adroville replied in a deep voice: "Endless.
The abyss is far deeper than the 666th layer we know, and the number of demons in it may be more than all the creatures in the main material plane, so these guys can never be completely wiped out, they can only be blocked.
There are endless demons, but we can resist their invasion by closing the demon portals and destroying the demons that come to the main material plane. ”
Regarding the absolutely correct thing of fighting the devil, this mature silver dragon can be said to have taught him everything, telling him all about the devil's habits, weaknesses, abilities and other aspects.
Suddenly, everyone in the hall was talking about the information given by Adrovell.
"It is indeed a troublesome existence."
"We have never encountered such an enemy!"
"Wait, not afraid of death, chaos, madness. Why do these descriptions feel familiar?"
"When you say that, I feel a bit similar. Could it be——"
A dozen or so curious or scrutinizing glances came to the players, and the players sitting there were on pins and needles.
Iron Frenzy scratched his head, smiled awkwardly, and quickly expressed his loyalty: "I swear, we Starfallers are absolutely loyal to His Majesty Cassius!
It has nothing to do with the abyss! ”
The discussion in the hall became more intense, and people began to actively discuss various tactics and strategies, from strengthening border patrols to using new weapons; from mobilizing the public to participate in defense to sending players as cannon fodder.
Doluo, the representative of the military, even rose up in anger and announced boldly that he would lead the army to attack Huanglong, attack the devil's lair, and never let them enter the empire's land.
Suddenly, Trump asked with a half-smile: "Your Excellency Adrovell, what do you think is the most difficult thing to deal with the devil?"
Adrovil replied: "The number, there are too many of them, and they are simply pervasive. Once they penetrate into the empire, it will definitely cause a huge disaster."
Trump asked again: "What are the advantages of the empire?"
Adrovil shook his head: "I am new here and don't understand the empire's military."
Trump stood up, looked around, and said loudly: "Firepower, demons can bring fear to the people, and His Majesty told me"
He paused, turned to look at Cassius, a flattering smile appeared on his ugly face, and then continued to speak.
"Fear comes from insufficient firepower."
Trump waved his hand, and various magical images appeared in mid-air. Inside was a scene of gunfire, and the vast wasteland was covered by the firelight of various explosions.
When the smoke dissipated, the ground was already riddled with holes and a mess, and the hills had been flattened several feet.
Trump continued: "In terms of individual strength, the empire may not have much advantage, but in terms of large-scale combat-we will never lose.
When demons gather on a large scale, we can carry out saturation strikes, use artillery to wash the ground, and give these demons a surprise. ”
"Bang."
Trump struck the ground with his scepter, and a huge map of the Burning Empire appeared in the sky.
On the vast territory of the empire, a red line suddenly appeared, stretching for hundreds of miles, almost wrapping the entire southern part of the empire.
"I believe that you have participated in its construction to some extent, but you didn't understand its purpose at the time.
These fortifications are made of reinforced concrete and are very strong. There are various cannons, trenches, forts, kitchens, hospitals, factories, etc. inside the defense lines.
These passages extend in all directions, and there are passages for steam trains in the larger fortifications.
This is all your Majesty's foresight. Since the empire occupied the entire Northland, we have begun to build this line of defense. I call it——"
"Maginot Line?"
Steel Frenzy couldn't help but speak.
But after feeling Trump's warning look and seeing the "favorability decrease" prompt, he immediately covered his mouth, wanting to slap himself hard.
Why can't I keep my mouth shut? Why did you just say it?
Trump then retracted his murderous eyes and continued: "Wall of the Empire." The discussion in the hall became heated again. Some people expressed support for this and were full of confidence in the Empire's fight against the devil, but some people were deeply skeptical about it. .
"Is this the Prime Minister's plan?"
"Can this be defended?"
"I see, I was wondering why someone was dragged into a mine to perform a secret mission. It turned out that he was going to build a wall!"
Dorothy said with some sarcasm: "Your Excellency Trump, in the face of the enemy's attack, you actually chose to build a wall? How much resources will this cost the empire!"
Are we going to be like those human countries, hiding behind walls and shivering? ”
Trump said flatly: "In front of the Empire Wall is the flat and open Saavedra Plain, which will become the burial place of all demons."
The ogre's tone was particularly harsh, and the injured ears seemed to be trembling slightly. The murderous look in his eyes made Doro stunned.
Only then did Doluo remember that the chief minister in front of him was an ogre, or a dragon-veined ogre!
That was an extremely cruel existence, but his work in the empire often made him hide his true nature and stay rational.
Trump's eyes lightened, and he said with a smile: "But Marshal Doro.
Now, the demons have not launched a full-scale invasion, and it is not time to use this imperial wall. Let these demons see the capabilities of the two million Starfallers first.
Your Majesty, please take a look first. ”
Trump turned around again and looked at Cassius on the throne. He touched the ground with his scepter again, and a detailed tactical plan appeared in mid-air.
Two million Starfallen are a force that is difficult to control for the current empire.
Then it's as simple as throwing them to the south, right?
"Very good."
Cassius said so.
He tilted his head slightly, his deep pale golden pupils flickering with light.
The emperor's eyes seemed to travel thousands of kilometers away, seeing the darkness and chaos deep in the Anstika Group, and there was a hint of expectation.
Saavedra Plains, on the outskirts of Blackstone Castle, in Leo Village.
The originally lively village now became empty.
"Old White, are you really not going to leave? The empire's task force came here specifically to evacuate civilians.
There weren’t many people in the village originally”
"Don't try to persuade me. If you want to leave, just leave. But this is my house and I won't go anywhere."
The man known as "Old White" exhaled a puff of smoke and said this. He looked like he was in his fifties, and his face was quite weathered.
His skin was dark, with deep grooves on his face, and his rough hands holding the cigarette were covered with calluses.
White is a native of Leo Village and has stayed here since birth. He is the hunter of the village.
The farthest place White had ever been was the village of Wright, twenty miles away, and it was a not-so-wonderful experience.
He was a hunter here when the Kingdom of the North ruled, and she was still a hunter here when the Burning Ember Empire ruled - only the bow and arrow on her back were replaced by the civilian version of the "Enemy-Destroying Fire".
In recent years, most young people in the village have gone to the city to make a living - even White's son is no exception.
Now, these people who stayed in the village were urgently transferred by the army sent by the empire, saying that the abyss demon would invade.
But White wasn't afraid.
He was about to die at the age of fifty-three, which was already a long life for Northlanders in the past.
White just wanted to spend his last moments in his home of nearly fifty years, not to mention he also had a good shotgun.
"Hoo——"
“I don’t know what those demons look like.
They're all gone, and I'm the only one left. ”
White blew out another smoke ring, looked at the empty village, and slowly closed the door.
He has no so-called "loyalty" to the Ember Empire, after all, it has been several years, but he also has no hatred - at least better than his impression of the North.
After the empire ruled here, taxes were reduced a lot.
People don't have to kneel in front of the knights sent by the principality, and they don't have to worry about being pulled over by some noble lord and become the lowest serf.
At least on this point, White is quite grateful.
But White didn't like the feeling that the village had become deserted. He always felt that the imperial people had given them some ecstasy, causing the young people to rush to the city.
What White likes most are the two "new things" brought by the empire - cigarettes and muskets.
Cigarettes can relieve his depression and bring him a rare sense of joy in a dull and boring life.
However, this thing was quite expensive for White. It took a good deerskin to exchange for two packs from a merchant in the city.
Therefore, he cherishes it very much every time he smokes, and even puts the cigarette butts in a small box.
The latter is White's weapon for hunting. He was already too old and frail to draw a bow, but the appearance of muskets gave him renewed strength.
Thinking of this, Old White took out the musket wrapped in layers of cloth and carefully wiped the barrel.
"Those Imperial people said that the undead called 'Starfallers' will be stationed in this village. I have never seen an undead person."
"Squeak——"
The window slowly opened, and White looked out the window. He, who has always been sensitive to hearing, seemed to hear something.
Then, he wiped his eyes in surprise.
I saw bursts of smoke and dust rising at the end of the village road, and hundreds of people running over.
Most of them wore rough cloth, and some had no clothes on, just running around naked.
"I'm coming!"
"Oh oh oh oh!"
"Take off!"
"It's a village! I can finally rummage through the boxes! This is the essence of RPG games!"
"Holy shit, don't get naked! The holy light is going to blind me!"
"Why didn't you see the NPC?"
"Don't forget the mission of killing demons, this is our position!"
Is this the so-called immortal warrior, the vanguard of the empire—the Starfaller?
Old White rubbed his eyes again. He suspected that he was either crazy or already too old to see clearly.
Otherwise, why would these fallen stars look exactly like the lunatic at the east end of the village? (End of chapter)