Mount and Blade System: Start from Pioneer Lords.

Chapter 440 The Silent Night
On a cloudy night, the cold wind made the flags on the walls of Gonda flutter loudly.

The sky was filled with leaden-gray clouds that seemed ready to crash down at any moment. The residents closed all the doors and windows and lit the firewood in the fireplace.

The flickering light of the duck egg yolk mirrored the flickering light in Tennys's heart.

The hall was filled with officials of all ranks from Gonda. No one could understand why His Majesty Harland had summoned them so late, but royal orders could not be disobeyed, so they had no choice but to hurry over.

"Miss Tanyas, do you know anything about this?"

A fawning voice came from the side, drawing Tennys's gaze away from the candlelight in the hall.

"I'm sorry, Lady Sinn, but in fact, I have just as many doubts as you do," Tannis said apologetically, dismissing the viscount who had come to ingratiate himself with her.

As the governor's only daughter, and with His Majesty Harland being her uncle, countless families wanted to marry her. Although the viscount had come to inquire about something, Tannis could sense his ulterior motives.

"Your Highness Fatil? And His Holiness the Pope?"

Suddenly, Tanis spotted a group of people standing out from the crowd—priests of the Holy Light Church, all dressed in gold and white robes. Among them, the most striking were a young girl and a woman in papal robes.

Both women were exceptionally beautiful, with stunningly gorgeous faces. They were absolute beauties. Standing there, they were like two pools of emerald green water in a dry desert, dazzling and captivating. One glance was enough to leave an unforgettable impression and ignite the most primal desires in one's heart.

To Tanis's surprise, in addition to summoning officials, His Majesty Harland also summoned personnel from the Holy Light Church.

“Miss Tanis, I think Mill and his senior sister must have gone to your place.”

A commotion arose within the Holy Light Church's ranks. Fatil walked over and approached Tannis, speaking to her.

Although the two knew each other, they did not actually know each other.

“That’s right, I happened to run into them, so I let them stay at the Governor’s Mansion.” Tannis nodded, then looked at the saintess with curiosity.

The other person was wearing a gold-trimmed bishop's robe and a bishop's hat. Although only the area below her eyes was exposed, her face was delicate and sweet, and she was a top-notch beauty. Moreover, her proud figure could not be completely concealed by the loose bishop's robe.

Tanis felt inexplicably inferior. She was known as the Pearl of Gonda and was naturally a great beauty, but compared to this saint who even the prince couldn't resist, she inevitably paled in comparison.

"I'm really sorry to trouble you. I've been so busy these past few days that I completely forgot that Mir was arriving in Gonda today."

Although Fatil's face remained cold and expressionless, Tannis could still sense her apology.

In fact, Fatil was not lying.

With the High Cliff Fortress Lord's ascension to Legendary status and the resolution of the Trial World's troubles, the entire Holy Light Church is now busy with two things.

First, we need to regain control of the Trial World; second, we need to figure out how to get the lord's name to be registered in the Holy Light Church.

After all, the other party is the only paladin in the world who has cultivated the "Holy Words Codex" to the Holy Temple and advanced to the legendary rank.

For the Holy Light Church, it's like a lost son who has been separated from his family; they'll do everything in their power to bring him back.

Therefore, the Holy Light Church is already holding a meeting to discuss whether to build a church in High Cliff Fortress as well, with the lord serving as pope.

“It’s nothing, Mill is my friend too,” Tannis said with her hands on her hips and a slight smile.

“Miss Tanis, why don’t you stay with us for a while?” Fatil suddenly spoke up.

Tannis nodded without much thought; she also wanted to get to know this Holy Light Church saintess.

So the two of them went to the spot where the priests were gathered.

Tanis noticed that the Holy Light mages' positions were quite deliberate. The people in the back row stood in the middle of the front row, which was the mages' favorite position in battle, allowing them to cast spells at any time without obstruction.

The Pope nodded slightly to her, his beautiful eyes continuing to gaze at the throne in the hall.

"His Majesty has arrived." Someone in the crowd suddenly said this.

Even without their reminders, Tannis had already noticed the heavy, slow footsteps coming from the shadows behind the throne, each step seeming to pound on everyone's hearts.

The murmurs of the crowd ceased abruptly, and all eyes were fixed on the throne.

King Harland appeared before the throne.

The king, clad in the Sonnen plate armor forged from Peruvian divine steel by a legendary dwarven blacksmith, sat on his throne, his hands resting on the hilt of the Biva sword used by previous kings. His face mask concealed his expression, adding to his regal majesty.

This demeanor perfectly embodied the power of authority without anger. The invisible pressure from being in a high position for so long, holding the power of life and death, was like the heavy, lead-gray clouds outside the hall, pressing down heavily on everyone's hearts.

Everyone hurriedly bowed in fear.

Tanis instinctively held her breath.

Uncle Harland's somber expression was more unsettling than the storm brewing in the night sky outside the window.

Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Fatil and His Holiness the Pope—the one revered as "the Radiant Face," Her Holiness Kalis. Their expressions instantly became solemn and focused, and the unique detachment of the Holy Light Church seemed to have been somewhat restrained, as if revealing a seriousness in the face of secular royal power.

Haaland's gaze, almost tangible, slowly swept across the entire arena.

It paused briefly as it passed by Tannis before moving away.

When his gaze fell upon the Holy Light Church delegation, especially His Holiness the Pope.

Tennys keenly noticed that the other person's eyes under the helmet had become even more unfathomable.

Tennys' heart started racing uncontrollably, and a feeling of unease began to creep in.

"Gentlemen, thank you for showing up here so late." The voice was hoarse, as if he had drunk countless bottles of alcohol and hadn't slept for several nights.

No one was surprised; their emperor was known for his love of alcohol, so it was perfectly normal for his voice to be a little hoarse.

"Your Majesty, is there something important that you have summoned us so late?" Prime Minister Debe, an elderly man with gray hair, stepped forward and asked.

It was really difficult for an elderly man over fifty to come to the palace for a meeting so late, but what could he do when he was a prime minister who was always busy from dawn till dusk?

“That’s right. I hope the replacement of officers in the Gonda garrison can be carried out now.” “Your Majesty, temporary transfers of officers are not in accordance with the law. It needs to be discussed first, and then a final decision can be made on who to replace. This is a huge undertaking and cannot be completed overnight.” The old prime minister did not understand what His Majesty was planning to do, but still fulfilled his duty and offered his advice.

Replacement of the garrison?
Tennys was slightly taken aback.

As the governor, the city's defense was also at the core of his authority, and the appointment and removal of any officer could not be bypassed by him.

But now His Majesty Haaland has bypassed his own father and ordered a replacement. What message is he sending?

Haaland's hoarse voice rang out again, but with an indescribable coldness: "Is all my prime minister capable of is saying no? If so, what use are you to me?"

Even the old prime minister was stunned by these words and couldn't help but look up at His Majesty Harland on the throne. The other man held the Biva sword, as if he would cut off Harland's head the next second if Harland said "no" again.

"Your Majesty, which people do you wish to replace?" The old prime minister conceded.

Compared to his own old life, replacing some people whom His Majesty Harland dislikes is nothing.

"All."

"All the garrison officers of Gonda?"

"Yes."

The old prime minister's pale eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and his cloudy eyes were filled with helplessness: "Your Majesty, replacing everyone at once will cause dissatisfaction among the officers and even unrest among the soldiers."

Tanis noticed some battle marks on His Majesty Harland's armor. She knew, of course, what kind of terrible war this armor, which had accompanied her uncle Harland to the throne, had gone through. To expect it to be completely free of any sword marks was utterly naive.

But... but why is there blood on the armor? It's clear that the armor's owner cleaned it carefully, but there are still some residues at some joints, shimmering with a liquid sheen under the light.

Tanis's unease grew stronger, and she couldn't understand why changing the garrison officers required summoning so many people to the palace. Why were the council members still wearing armor and carrying weapons?

Tennys closed her eyes, trying to clear the tangled web of thoughts in her mind, but because her eyes were closed and her attention was highly focused, her other senses became even more acute.

As a high-ranking knight who has cultivated battle qi, her five senses are naturally beyond those of ordinary people.

She could hear the heartbeats of the Holy Light sorcerers around her, and the breathing of the old prime minister ten steps away, but she could not hear the breathing of His Majesty Harland on the throne in front of her.

Moreover… Tanis opened her eyes and looked at the two silver-armored knights with swords standing guard at the entrance of the hall. If she had closed her eyes, she would have thought that they were just two wooden stakes standing there. There was no sound of breathing or heartbeat, not even a trace of white mist exhaled.

It's winter now, and every breath condenses into large plumes of white mist in the air, especially noticeable in people with stronger physiques.

These aura knights were all as strong as wolves and tigers, their bodies like scorching furnaces, it was impossible for them to be completely devoid of heat.

Something's wrong! Something is very wrong!

Tanis suddenly realized that beneath the calm hall, a silent chill was slowly brewing, capable of causing everything to wither.

All the clues exploded in her mind, piecing together a terrifying truth.

Tanis took a sudden step forward, her sharp gaze piercing the deathly silence of the hall and interrupting Harland's unfinished words: "You are not His Majesty Harland! Who...who are you?!"

Dead silence.

Absolute silence descended.

Time seemed to freeze. All the nobles were petrified, staring dumbfounded at the governor's daughter who had suddenly erupted, and then looking at the throne in terror.

The flames in the fireplace seemed to hold their breath, the light suddenly dimmed, and the hall was enveloped in a suffocating darkness and chill.

The figure on the throne, clad in Sonnen plate armor and wielding the sword Biva, slowly raised his head.

The hoarse voice was tinged with deep doubt:
"Why...am I not Haaland?"

"Why does the council wear armor? And why do they wear helmets to cover their faces? As a ruler, I have always despised such behavior of hiding one's face," Tanis said coldly. "If you were His Majesty Harland, why don't you dare to remove your helmet and show your true face?"

"Tannis, you are being extremely disrespectful to His Majesty!"

Several knights loyal to the king instinctively wanted to step forward, but they stopped in their tracks, bewildered by his words.

This detail made the nobles decide to take a look first, because they also felt that something was amiss.

"They're still breathing, still have heartbeats! I can hear the heartbeats and breathing of everyone here, except for you and the guards at the door!" Tennys' voice rose with emotion. "Only the dead don't have heartbeats!"

She regretted handing over the sword earlier, which left her without a suitable weapon.

"Sigh... my dear Tannis, you're still as impulsive as ever."

He held the helmet with both arms and lifted it up little by little to reveal his face underneath.

"What?!" The nobles erupted in chaos, panic spreading like a plague.

His once bright and piercing eyes were now just two cold, azure flames burning in their empty sockets. Half of his face was devoid of flesh and blood, revealing his pale cheekbones. Judging from the rest of his appearance, it was undoubtedly Haaland.

But it just doesn't seem to have any connection with living people.

Some people subconsciously looked at the two silver-armored knights at the door, who stood motionless as if they were statues, their eyes under their helmets appearing unusually deep in the candlelight.

Anyone with a little knowledge can easily see that the other party looks almost exactly like the legendary undead.

"Did you kill Uncle Harland?" Tennys suppressed her grief, wanting to know the truth.

“A person dies three times in their life. The first is the death of the body, the second is the demise of the soul, and the third is being completely forgotten by the world.” Haaland said slowly in a hoarse voice, “And I am still Haaland, only a different kind of soul reborn!”

“Your Majesty Harland, or rather, Death Knight Harland,” Kalis sighed softly, “how exactly do you conceal the presence of the undead?”

If it weren't for the saint's reminder that this trip was not simple, she probably wouldn't have noticed anything amiss until the other party was sitting on the throne.

To be transformed into a Death Knight right under the nose of the Holy Light Church is like a mouse stealing cheese right under the cat's nose—it's simply unimaginable how that was done.

(End of this chapter)