Ember Dragon

"Miss Ingrid, you are finally here. I have been waiting for you for a long time. I am Hans Hammond, the Imperial Count, and the person in charge of this operation."

The man stretched out his hand and made a "please" gesture. A slightly ferocious smile appeared on his half-dragon, half-human face: "Welcome to, no, to be more precise, welcome back to Dragon Head City."

"Thank you, Count Hans."

Ingrid nodded. She stood at the city gate, observing this familiar yet unfamiliar city, and couldn't help feeling a little confused.

The city became unfamiliar. The holy sun emblem on the city gate was changed into the red dragon emblem of the empire, and a ferocious dragon head poked out of the city wall.

The majestic Temple of Amaunator in the city has been transformed into the Temple of the Dragon Oath, the lighthouse with the sun disk has been replaced by a flying dragon tower, and the sculptures of the church saints have all been destroyed - replaced by the statue of the Burning Emperor Cassius.

Sheriffs riding on wyverns often patrolled the streets, Tiefling guards holding rifles could be seen every few dozen meters, and there were also Starfallers dressed in various clothes wandering around.

However, there are still many traces of the past here: people prefer to wear bright colors such as yellow, red and orange, the holy emblem of Amaunator can be seen everywhere, and the distinctive "Faldran-style" buildings.
All this made Ingrid feel quite familiar, and she couldn't help but recall the good old days, and she couldn't help but whisper the banned name.

"Collins City, I'm finally back." For some reason, there were sparkling tears in her eyes.

This is Dragonshou City, the former Collins City under the rule of the Saint Fadran Empire, the central city of the entire North Ethel region, and Ingrid’s hometown, the city where she was born and raised.

A few years ago, Ingrid was the honorary bishop of the Collins Diocese. She often led priests and believers in holding sacrificial ceremonies on the summer solstice to bathe in the holy light of the sun.

And now, she finally returned to her hometown which she had been away from for a long time.

But times have changed, and the once prosperous Holy Fadlan Empire has perished. Ingrid has become a captive of the Burning Empire, serving the emperor and staying in the remote north for several years.

Ingrid recalled what Cassius had said to her many years ago: "In the near future, you will be able to return to your homeland openly, not as a captive, but as a bishop of the church affiliated to the kingdom."

Now that the Burning Kingdom has become a vast empire, the emperor has indeed fulfilled his promise and allowed Ingrid to return to her hometown - but by means of violent conquest.

Looking down at her luxurious robe with the imperial emblem sewn on it, Ingrid's mood became increasingly complicated.

She did return to her long-cherished hometown, but she betrayed the Church of Amaunator, betrayed those who once trusted her, and betrayed her own past.

Now she even dared not face the people of Ethel, for fear that her former acquaintances would recognize her and angrily denounce her as a "shameful traitor," "a minion of the evil dragon," and "a despicable apostate."

Count Hans asked with concern: "Miss Ingrid? Are you okay?"

Ingrid suddenly woke up from her memories and smiled: "Ah, I'm fine, it's just that I've been away for too long and the scene brought back some memories."

Hans said, "That's good. The Empire has just occupied North Essel. There are undercurrents in the city and the situation is complicated. All forces in Feanso are eyeing this city. Twelve riots occurred in the last month alone. You came at the right time."

As they spoke, several Tiefling guards appeared beside them, standing guard at all times. Hans then continued, "Ms. Ingrid, please follow me."

"Okay." Ingrid pushed her blonde hair behind her ears and put on a hood to hide her face. She then said in confusion, "Count Hans, why did you ask me to come? You should know that I am afraid I cannot provide you with much support right now."

As Amaunator fell into a deep sleep, Ingrid surrendered to the Burning Empire, her conscience was constantly tortured and her faith gradually weakened.

Now she is no longer the powerful legendary priest of light she once was, and her power has been extremely weakened. You know, priests need to obtain some of the power of God through years of praying to the gods or ideas they believe in, and Ingrid no longer has this condition.

Now Ingrid has the status of a legendary priest and powerful perception, but she can no longer cast those terrifyingly powerful top-level divine spells. She can only rely on her own perception ability to forcibly release some medium and low-level divine spells.

Hans shook his head, stared at Ingrid, and said with a smile: "Ms. Ingrid, I think you must have misunderstood. What the empire needs is not your power, but you as a person."

"I?"

There was a hint of surprise in Ingrid's beautiful eyes, but soon her expression became extremely ugly. At this moment, she finally understood Hans' purpose.

Yes, she was once the honorary bishop of Collins and was revered by countless people - and what the empire wanted to do was to make good use of her identity and trample people's faith underfoot.

But as an imperial citizen serving the emperor, she could not refuse, and had no reason to resist.

Hans did not notice Ingrid's expression, or maybe he noticed it but did not care. He just continued to lead the way and chatted casually.

When the people of Essel nearby saw the Tiefling guards beside Hans, they quickly dodged with nervous expressions, fearing that if they bumped into them, they would be identified as "rebels" or even shot to death by those guards.

Hans turned around and asked abruptly, "By the way, Miss Ingrid, do you know which is the most restless force in the city?"

Suddenly, Ingrid had a bad feeling in her heart, but she still shook her head silently.

"The Dawn Crusaders."

As Hans spoke, he pulled out a brand new parchment scroll from the pocket of his uniform.

He said in a cold voice: "The Dawn Crusaders are the largest rebel organization in Longshou City. Since the Empire ruled Longshou City, the Dawn Crusaders have launched eleven riots, causing great damage to the order of the Empire and the stability of society.

According to the investigation of the Imperial Intelligence, the main purpose of this organization is to overthrow the rule of the Empire and restore the theocratic rule of the Church. It is extremely deceptive and inflammatory, and most of its leaders are former members of the Church of Amaunator.
Oh, by the way, we collected a list and found out these damn thugs." At this point, Hans unfolded the parchment scroll, and saw that it was densely covered with names.

"This is."

Ingrid's heart sank instantly. With just a quick glance, she saw many familiar names on it.

Hans grinned again, but this smile seemed particularly terrifying to Ingrid, just like a devil: "Ms. Ingrid, I really hate this kind of rioting. In fact, I originally planned to kill all these people..."

He didn't continue speaking, but just made a gesture of wiping his neck.

This made Ingrid's hair stand on end. She quickly stretched out her hand to stop him, saying, "No, Count Hans, don't do that."

Hans patted Ingrid's shoulder and said softly, "Don't worry, since I have come to you, I will definitely not let such a tragedy happen.

After all, these priests have a great influence on the people of Ethel. Killing them all would definitely damage the reputation of the empire and the reputation of His Majesty Cassius. "

He stuffed the list into Ingrid's hands and said, "Ms. Ingrid, I'm going to give you a chance to save their lives. As for how many people you can save, that depends on your performance."

Ingrid was silent for a long time, with hesitation, entanglement, and shame flashing across her pretty face. Finally, she nodded woodenly and replied with tears in her eyes, "Okay."

As they were talking, they had already arrived at the Ceremonial Square. This was once the place where Ingrid led the priests and believers in worship and sacrifices, but now it has become a place for officials of the Burning Empire to give speeches and publicize policies.

The huge holy emblem of the sun on the ground disappeared, and was replaced by the vertical pupil emblem of the Burning Empire. Driven and coerced by the guards, the people of Aesir gathered here, crowded together, making the square extremely noisy.

Hans smiled and clapped his hands, encouraging her: "Go, Miss Ingrid, show your identity to the people and influence those rebels hiding in the dark."

Ingrid lowered her head and wrapped herself in her robe, her plump body trembling constantly.

But under Hans' slightly intimidating gaze, she still slowly walked up to the podium in the attention of tens of thousands of people in the audience.

"Who is that?"

"I can't see her face, why would she stand there?"

After hesitating for a long time, Ingrid finally lifted her hood, revealing her beautiful face. Her golden hair shone brightly in the sun, as if covered with a layer of sacred light.

"By Amaunator, it's Bishop Ingrid! Isn't she dead?"

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"Oh my God, she's still alive!"

"She was the one who cured my illness back then!"

Suddenly, the whole audience was in an uproar. After all, she was a former bishop who was rumored to have been dead for a long time. Ingrid's appearance caused a great sensation.

"Sometimes, cowardice is also a sin."

Hans looked at Ingrid from afar, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised, and his face gradually changed into the face of the "Merciful Lord" of Emperor Burning Cinders.

In the basement of a house somewhere in the city of Collins, the surrounding environment was dark and damp, the candlelight flickered, and the holy emblem of Amaunator appeared on the wall that was occasionally illuminated.

Several people in long robes sat around a round table, they lowered their voices and whispered, seemingly discussing something.

"Everyone, I suspect there is a traitor among us."

The person who spoke was a man who looked to be in his fifties. His name was Arne Strauss. He was a former priest of the Church of Amaunator and the leader of the Dawn Crusaders.

"Otherwise, those minions of the evil dragon wouldn't have received the news so quickly. That was a top-secret operation. I even suspect that the traitor is among us." Ion tapped the table rhythmically, looking around with sharp eyes.

"Should we continue our operation?" another man asked anxiously.

Yaen sighed and replied, "Let's hold off for now. We lost a lot of people in the last failed operation. We can't let them die in vain."

"But, but those damn dragon followers actually held a propaganda event in the sacred ceremonial square! That is the place Bishop Ingrid goes most often. This is simply unforgivable!" The person who spoke was the same man as before.

The man looked to be in his thirties, with an unshaven beard and messy hair, appearing quite sloppy, but his face was full of anger.

His name is Phil Burroughs, formerly of the Church of Amaunator, and now the backbone of the Dawn Crusaders.

Fell hated the Burning Empire so much that he planned many assassinations and sabotage operations, wishing to eat the flesh and blood of the red dragon alive.

Because the person he admired, the former honorary bishop, Ingrid Garces, was said to have died at the claws of the red dragon.

Fair was originally just a blind boy, but Ingrid broke into his dark world like the sun, easily healed his eyes, and brought light to his world.

In his memory, the young bishop was so gentle and beautiful. He vaguely remembered the scene where Ingrid led them in singing hymns in the sunshine.

At that time, Ingrid was so radiant and dazzling, like a beautiful statue of a goddess that he could only look up to her.

Even looking up from afar was a great happiness for Fair. He wished he could stay in this beautiful moment forever.

Rather than believing in Amaunator, it would be more accurate to say that he believed in the young bishop.

Fairburn thought that this kind of life would go on forever, and he could continue to admire Ingrid, worship, pray, and sing hymns with her.

But the good times did not last long. Soon Ingrid went out traveling and was said to have died at the hands of the Burning Emperor in the north. The beautiful scenes in Fair's memory were crushed by the dragon claws that fell from the sky and became bloody.

Until now, the huge red dragon like a nightmare has descended on the city of Collins, and the temple that holds his beautiful memories has been smashed to pieces by the dragon's followers. At this moment, the hatred in Fair's heart is already deep-rooted.

Yaen sighed again and advised, "Fell, don't be anxious. I know you are eager to take revenge, but your recent actions have been too reckless and it is easy to make mistakes."

Another woman also comforted him: "The enemy is in the open, we are in the dark, we still have many opportunities."

No one would think that Fair was a traitor. After all, his hatred for the Burning Empire was too deep and had reached the point of madness. Every time he rushed to the forefront of the action without caring about his own life.

Facing the dissuasion of the crowd, Feier remained silent for a long time, and finally stood up and said in a firm tone: "You don't have to say anything, I have made up my mind.

I must kill the dragon's minion who gave the speech in front of the people, so that the dragon will lose face and people can witness the bravery of our Dawn Crusaders."

"Ugh"

Ion said nothing more.

He knew that Fair was about to sacrifice his life as a final revenge for the glorious figure that existed in his heart.

This was an assassination attempt with the intention of dying. (End of this chapter)