Blood tax

Chapter 401 Roland's World

"I am Roland Sissel, born in 1403, to an obscure family of garrison knights in the northern part of the Sebasto region. Roland, or Knight Roland, as they were called before the generosity of the King and the Senate mine.

"There are no commendable products there, and it is not too difficult for people to live. When they are lucky, the elves in the north will hire local people to serve them, clean up the swamp, and dredge the river; Sell ​​your own children to the elves in exchange for bread for the winter.

"The local people retain their belief in the god of the wilderness, sacrifice goats to the ancient gods, drink the blood of the sheep, and dance around the bonfire, which seems to be the case for thousands of years. The endless sea of ​​​​grass reaches the end of the horizon; the blue sky, Bigger than you think, boundless. Most of the counties in Sebasto are like that.

"This is my hometown, the place that carries the memories of my life.

"If I don't have another memory and hometown."

On December 1444, 12, before starting a full day of bond-raising roadshow work, Roland wrote this paragraph in his draft autobiography.

His first appearance stems from a crisis in the elf kingdom.The 15-year-old young knight is wearing his father's armor, equipped with the long sword and iron shield left by his father, and embarks on an adventure journey with his childhood sweetheart nun friend, lost dwarf companion and half-baked vampire.

In the ruins of the Turan Swamp, Roland met the heroine of his legend—the ranger Tidwig.This proud elf lady originally wanted to tease the young knight who was fascinated by her beauty, but for some reason, he changed her personality and even her world view.

Roland saved the world, at least in that crisis, at least temporarily expelling the demon king who blew the horn of destruction.He seems to have a special talent for anticipating lingering threats before they erupt.Poets, biographers and playwrights attribute this to a rare gift, an unquestionable providence of the gods.

Roland seemed to be very clear about his position from the very beginning, that is, to be a stateless freedom knight, always standing among the people who suffered the most from the war and help them expel evil and achieve peace as soon as possible.Finally, he became the most famous knight in the world irrefutably, and his adventure is a legend with more ups and downs than novels.

Leaving a biography for himself is something Roland has wanted to do for many years, but due to various reasons, he can't and dare not try.

Today, some of these worries are less relevant.On the draft of the autobiography written in peculiar pictographic square characters, Roland pondered over and over again, and finally added the above foreword.

"How sloppy and naive~"

Roland looked at the words he had just written, and couldn't help laughing.Since he came to this world, he has been carefully hiding his secrets.Another memory of myself and the purpose of coming here is the cell where he was held.

Even in his sleep, he must always be careful not to let Tidwighe hear his secret words, and not let the ruler of this world catch the details of his plan.

Roland knew very well that he was too different.Since a long time ago, he has been targeted. Under the watchful eyes of the gods, even writing in his own characters will be deciphered.

However, it is different now.No matter how dull the enemy is, the noose is getting tighter and tighter, making it suffocating.At this time, the game should also return to the table.

The treasurers of the elves are coming soon, and they are the most important investors in the bonds.Without the financial support of Canaan, the construction of Qiming County, the test and mass production of steam engines, muskets, and artillery will lag behind the current progress by ten or twenty years, and may remain on the plan forever; Verona's war preparations are even more An empty talk.

However, Roland did not have the enthusiasm to welcome his main investor.The reason for this was not because he had ignited a passion for literature and biography, but simply because, what happened next, was all planned.

"Count Roland, as your friend and ally, we would like to know," the elves came to the conference room on time, and expressed their concerns openly, "The funds used for the principal and interest of the Weifu coupons that are about to expire Where? Are you ready? In addition, we once again officially announce to you that the Canaan Senate and all families will not subscribe for the newly issued Weifu coupons."

um, i know...

The window of time for sneaking up on technology and building has passed.

With an impeccable smile on his face, Roland said the words he had prepared to the elves.He is very clear that he has not said any substantive arrangements for bond redemption, and there is no way to dispel investors' concerns.

Because Weifu coupons have never considered large-scale redemption at maturity.

After leaving his adventure and returning to his hometown, Roland put the idea and story of the legendary brave into the desk drawer, and began to devote all his energy to the construction and research and development of the territory.

According to poets and playwrights, Knight Roland's unique ability to predict the future is not a rumor.He can really predict the future to a certain extent. Although it is not accurate, it is more practical than the astrologers favored by the goddess of prophecy Iluvash.

"I am Roland Sissel, and my real identity is a resident of another civilized world a long time ago. After my world was destroyed, I came here through some means, and tried to reverse your fate on the eve of this world's destruction."

Roland comforted the elf treasurer who was about to go crazy like an endorsement, and said to himself silently in his heart.If anyone present could read minds, he would definitely be taken aback by his thoughts——

"Gentlemen and ladies, your world is coming to an end. The last breath of the Void signed a contract with your ancestors and granted you endless magic power for thousands of years. Spellcasters, the time is running out. Thousands of years You have been benefiting from the infinite power given by the Last Breath. You know that there will be a price to pay, but you think that this price is something you can bear, or you can find some way to escape.

"Spellcasters, you can't afford it, and you can't hide it.

"The price you are about to pay is everything. The once-prosperous civilization faced only nothingness, and everything will be swallowed by the end and taken away by the void.

"Survivors, only those who foresaw the coming of the end and voluntarily exiled themselves from the grace of magic power. After the last breath fully wakes up, locks your coordinates, and tears the barriers of the planes before it begins to appear in the starry sky, we You must be expelled, you must be exiled, this is the only way to keep this world."

The elf treasurer didn't know what Roland was thinking, but he felt his carelessness and became even angrier.However, Roland felt that it didn't matter. He waited for the end of the meeting according to the procedure and etiquette.

"Psionic lifeforms, the 'Old Ones' from the stars, long ago your civilization was devoured by the breath of doom, the fugitives destroyed our fleet and civilization, and rebuilt their colonies on the ruins and bodies of humans. In the long During the coexistence and evolution of human beings, your consciousness and existence gradually merged with human beings, rebuilding the world ruled by spiritual life forms, and then using gods and beliefs to rule ordinary people who cannot integrate spiritual power.

"You are robbers, liars, and prey.

"When you can't stand the temptation of the magic power and seek the grace of the last breath again, you know that He will follow your greed. Before it's too late, I will drive you out!"

The eyes of Roland, who had been putting on airs all this time, shot out. The majesty and momentum of the dragon slayer and the guardian of the world captured the elves for a while.The latter felt very strange, but Roland's powerful aura seemed to be a guarantee—no matter how bad the situation was, as long as Roland took action, the situation would be better.

So, the elves left with uneasiness and helplessness.

Is my timing too late?Roland watched the elves leave, thinking quickly before the next batch of guests arrived.

It has been a long time since the caster has obtained the favor from the Breath of Last Breath, and even if he stops immediately, he may not be able to completely avoid his devouring.However, the problem is that the spellcasters are too powerful. They are the most daring and fierce group among the ancients. If it is not for the fusion and assimilation with human beings that gradually wear down their vigilance and memory, it is almost impossible to resist. .

In Roland's last memory, human civilization with star destroyers and rail guns was defeated by the mysterious psionic attack of the ancients, and the resistance was a joke from beginning to end.

However, this does not mean that humans do not have opportunities now.

Yes, the opportunity is now.

Psionic life forms enslave large numbers of non-psychic beings to serve them.Moreover, there are too few ancients who escaped the hunting of the last breath, less than five hundred, which is not enough to maintain the reproduction of the population.

Roland looked out the window, and the great nobles and wizards from Byelland were having fun in the brightly lit town.How similar the world looks to humans post-Renaissance.The ancestors of the ancients had already exhausted their lives, and their descendants adapted to the human body. After thousands of years of reproduction, the Extraordinary who had spread out did not even know that there were human and ancient elements in their blood.

It is the cheapest and safest colonial policy to merge with human beings, extract those ordinary people in the form of human beings, and establish a human psychic society.From the experience of thousands of years in the past, it is very effective.

Only in this way can we fight against the ancients who have thinned their blood.Those Extraordinary who know the breath of the end and the dangers of magic are our allies, and the nobles and businessmen who have benefited from my steam engines and factories are also our allies. This time the war is not a war between humans and the ancients, nor is it being A war of oppressors against oppressors, but of intelligent races all over the world against spellcasters.

"Our strategy has always been clear, that is, to make many friends and few enemies."

Roland stood up and reached out to the next two guests.He said silently in his heart:
"What if we fail?

"That doesn't matter. Any plan has the possibility of failure. I am not the only one who resisted in the old era. Take me for example. When the plan was first formulated, a comrade first came to this world to set the target era and became a Residents of Canaan; and I moved the coordinates forward according to his clues, and came to this world earlier from the result.

"That's right, I've kept my memory, and it's impossible not to be targeted when I'm doing a lot of industrial and organizational building in the fantasy world.

"Therefore, we have a third comrade. He will integrate more thoroughly into this world."

Roland's tense cheeks relaxed, and he greeted his friends with a happy face:
"Good evening, my friends, I have been waiting for you for a long time.

"Sit down, Haranduil, Griffith."

(End of this chapter)