Heart of the Castle

Chapter 405 Commanding Scepter, Shocking News

When the Great Wall of Ice was built, it was considered that it might be attacked by the demon army, especially the flame attack of the fire monsters, so the thickness is quite amazing, and it can accommodate several knights riding side by side.But the top of the city is indeed cold and slippery. In order to prevent falling, the soldiers temporarily spread a layer of sand and gravel on it, and there is a unique and weird feeling under their feet.Lord Cedric followed Li Wei and walked forward tens of meters, and saw many spears inserted between the crenels at the front of the city, and the tails were deeply sunk into the ice wall. Motionless as if made of iron.

On the iron tip of each spear, there is a demon head with a hideous and terrifying expression. Among them is the head of the horned demon warlord with ferocious long horns, and the hell flames with dense red and black magic lines The head of the demon, and the head of the leader of the winged demon who looked black.In the middle of these heads stood an extraordinarily thick iron spear, and the head protruding from it was even more terrifying.Next to the head were two tin barrels, in which chunks of oak and pine were burning, and the flames illuminated the lifeless eyes and the sharp teeth in the half-open mouth .

There is no doubt that this is the terrifying face of an abyssal demon. Lord Cedric stared deeply at the head and fell silent for several minutes.Then he sighed again, turned around, and looked at Li Wei with a strong desolation in his eyes, as if lost.

"Cut off the head of the demon general, Baron Leviston, this is something I never thought about. However, you did it." Lord Cedric smiled wryly, holding his hands on the crenel, and leaned half of his body into the night . "It seems that I am really not qualified as the commander of the northern border."

"Your Excellency, Lord Cedric, don't say that. If you were here, you could do the same..." Before Li Wei finished speaking, he was interrupted by Lord White Wolf very rudely.

"Your Excellency Li Wei, the white wolf does not need to listen to those hypocritical polite words to comfort himself. I have been in the northern border for more than 20 years. The evil disaster ten years ago made me deeply understand the power of the demon army. Terrible." Lord Cedric's eyes flashed with memories, and his thoughts seemed to return to the terrible years ten years ago, when the disaster came. "...I can't build this majestic Great Wall of Ice, let alone chop off the head of the demon general and poke it here. Although, this is the task I've been trying to accomplish for decades."

Levi's breathing stagnated slightly, and Lord Cedric's words made him suddenly have a crazy guess.This lord with a sword has always been rebellious. He turned a deaf ear to the orders of the high-level leaders of the Kingdom of Arthur and the sheriff of the northern county, and recruited troops wantonly. He joined forces with the lords of the northern border to form an offensive and defensive alliance. A semi-independent kingdom was established to the north.However, the word mission that came out of his mouth obviously represented another possibility.

The abnormal reaction of the young lord was immediately noticed by Lord Cedric. He first stiffened for his gaffe, and then eased down. "Ah, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have said these things to dirty your ears." He patted his forehead and said with a wry smile, "But...Your Excellency Li Wei, since you have successfully defeated the demon army, I'm afraid the Northern Territory The position of Grand Commander will soon be handed over to you, so it doesn’t matter if you knew about it earlier.”

"Your Excellency, Cedric, your position is different from the rumors. In fact... you are not the political opponent of Lord Ansair, the Sword Dancer Earl Ansair, the Sheriff of the Northern County, right?" Li Wei asked in a low voice.

"If you're talking about a political enemy, of course not." Lord Cedric readily admitted, "Your Excellency the sword dancer is not easy to mess with. If the white wolf is really his mortal enemy, then I am afraid that decades ago, this The wolf skin was stripped off to make a cape."

Hearing what Lord Cedric was implying, Li Wei couldn't help but frown slightly, "Then who are you working for? A wealthy noble in a certain royal capital? Or... His Majesty the King?"

"Neither, I serve the Kingdom of Arthur." Lord Cedric replied without hesitation, "His Majesty the King's interest in state affairs is probably not as much as one-tenth of his interest in horses, women, and wine. As for the royal capital The Earl of Ansair is the patriarch of one of the nine-pillar families, and no wealthy nobleman dares to stretch his claws into the northern county."

Li Wei breathed out a breath of cold air. Although the cold wind howled in his ears, the chill in his heart was stronger than the mighty power of nature, which made him feel cold to the bone even though he had already used fighting energy to protect his body.

"Is it unbelievable? But this is the truth of politics." Lord Cedric showed a rough and bold smile, but this time Levi felt that there was a cunning old fox hidden under his wolf fur. "Your Excellency Levi, although the vast territory north of the Dusk Forest belongs to the Kingdom of Arthur, it is actually more bitter, cold and barren than any other place, so the big figures in the kingdom have never really regarded this place as the territory of the Kingdom of Arthur, even On many maps, the Dusk Forest is the border of the kingdom."

"Then what are we? Lords of nobles? Knights? Outcasts of the kingdom?"

"If you have an understanding of the history of the kingdom's nobles, you won't be surprised. The lords and knights entrusted here are all untenable elsewhere, or are losers in political struggles." Lord Derek replied with a shrug. "It is impossible for those in power in the kingdom to kill them all because of such reasons that cannot be put on the table, so the barren and bitterly cold northern border has become a huge prison for them to be exiled, and I... even this Prison guards."

"The kingdom has the obligation to protect the safety of its subjects. Since it cannot protect the safety of this place, why does it still occupy this land?" Li Wei asked in a questioning tone.

"The kingdom must own this land to stop the wildling tribes, half-orc gangs, and goblin robbers from the extreme northern ice sheet. More importantly, one of the four demon invasion sites that threatens the kingdom of Arthur is also here." Lord Cedric pointed to his feet, his face became serious and solemn. "Your Excellency Levi, you have been to North Aura, the city of resistance to demons. Before King Arthur VIII conquered the Green Castle, it was the front line against the invasion of demons. Every time the kingdom sacrificed thousands of soldiers. The refugees and The rebels invaded more frequently, causing the entire northern territories to fall into flames of war."

"So people in the northern border must suffer, struggling to survive under the invasion of demons and robbers! Can the northern border be sacrificed for the peace and happiness of other places?" Li Wei felt as if there was a fire burning in his chest , his whole body was trembling uncontrollably, he tried to stand up straight, and asked Lord Cedric sharply.

"In the eyes of those big men, the barren northern territory is completely different from the rich southern territories. This is an easy account to settle." Lord Cedric replied with a very calm expression. "Your Excellency Li Wei, when a disaster strikes, there must always be sacrifices. Of course, sacrifices cannot be made in vain. This is also my responsibility when I come here—to organize a force that can stop the demon army for a period of time, and resist layer by layer. , buy time for the territories of the Kingdom south of the Dusk Forest, and prepare for the fight against the evil disaster."

Li Wei gritted his teeth in distraught, the burning anger in his chest made him want to yell at Cedric, but his reason told him that it was not the fault of the person in front of him.It is impossible for those big figures in the kingdom far away in Fermeyer to see the suffering of the people in the north. Whether it is wise as the star master Sats Enhell, or benevolent as the bishop Enoch Sebasta, their vision is extremely wide. Limited, unable to take care of the remote and barren land north of the Dusk Forest, and unable to feel the pain and sorrow of the people in the northern border who are struggling to survive the evil disasters.

The only ones who can save the North are the people of the North.

This idea flashed across Li Wei's mind like lightning, and the traces left behind did not fade for a long time.

Lord Cedric took a step forward, and pulled out a beautifully shaped scepter from his waist. The cherry wood scepter was smooth and crystal-clear, and the head of the scepter was a vividly carved crown, with two crossed swords of different shapes underneath. . "Your Majesty Li Wei, what you have done is better than I imagined." The Lord said loudly word by word, and at the same time handed the scepter to Li Wei. "The safety of the northern border is the safety of the Kingdom of Arthur. Therefore, I, Cedric, the Lord of the White Wolf, am willing to hand over the scepter of command granted to me by the Kingdom to you, and obey your orders, let the flag of the White Wolf Beneath the griffin."

The meaning of this sentence is no different from surrendering to Li Wei. The young lord was taken aback and quickly withdrew his hand. "Your Excellency Cedric, please wait a moment. The scepter was granted to you by the kingdom, and I have no right to accept it. As the lord with the sword, your status is also higher than mine, so..."

"So you refuse to accept it, and exclude us, who are also the lords of the North, from the team to save the North?" Lord Cedric asked loudly, his voice as hard as ice. "When it comes to identity, what is a mere Lord with a sword? Your Excellency, Li Wei, don't you think that with my own strength, I can defeat that demon general?"

Li Wei couldn't help showing a wry smile, Lord White Wolf's statement is of course impossible.Levi once fought side by side with Lord Cedric in Greencastle, and he knew the strength of Lord White Wolf. The long-handled battle ax he used was very heavy and powerful, but he was able to treat it like a straw Juggling, as fast as a windmill; and the level of White Wolf's fighting spirit has reached the middle level of fighting spirit Tianhua, and its overall strength can almost match the combination of Wilps and Tang Na.

Cedric's strength is not inferior to any Lord with a sword.However, the strength of the demon general Kleinus far surpassed him, and the abyss demon lord even fought against the sword dancer Earl Ansair.

The commanding scepter was handed to the hand again, this time Li Wei did not flinch, the young lord hesitated, then stretched out his hands and took the scepter. "In this case, I accept it. Sir Cedric, I am willing to work with you to fight for the well-being of the people in the north, sweep away the darkness, show mercy to the weak, and be fearless!"

Lord Cedric was slightly startled, and then responded with a solemn voice, "Sweep away the darkness, have mercy on the weak, and be fearless!" The familiar motto of the knight echoed over the Great Wall of Ice, and Lord Cedric felt a difference In the past, that proverb seemed to be a ball of fire, slowly but firmly burning in his chest, rejuvenating the already indifferent blood in every blood vessel, and there was a burning feeling wherever it passed !

"It's been a long time, the blood of the white wolf." Lord Cedric smiled. The cold wind was still howling on the Great Wall of Ice, but he could no longer feel any chill.When the burden of being the leader of the northern border was lifted from his shoulders, the eyes of the Lord White Wolf shone with joy, and he forgot all the weighing and calculation of interests.

"Lord Li Wei, the white wolf led the army to rescue this time, and originally had some misunderstandings about you. Because the scale of the demon army going south this time is unprecedentedly large, almost double that of the demonic disaster that came ten years ago. Above all, including the Sheriff Earl Ansair, no one thinks that you can withstand such a terrifying army."

It is not uncommon for Lord Cedric to have such an idea. In fact, except for those who respect Li Wei as a god, not many people are optimistic about him, thinking that he can rely on a Great Wall of Ice to resist the army of tens of thousands of demons in Heihe line.Many people are still prepared to retreat to Green Castle when the situation is not good, and use the high walls there to defend to the death.

Li Wei himself understood this very well, but in order to prevent the territory from being threatened by evil disasters, he still chose the two sides of the Heihe River as the battlefield for this battle.Li Wei's confidence lies in the heart of the castle. All the energy accumulated during this period has been converted into alchemy warriors, and there are hundreds of them.Giant earth elements are also a trump card to deal with demons. These huge clay puppets with a height of more than four meters are powerful enough to suppress the Horned Demon Warlord, and they are not afraid of ordinary weapons and magic. Only by destroying the core of their bodies can they make them They stop fighting.

However, Li Wei still underestimated the strength of the demon army, especially the terrifying power of General Kleinus himself.If Master Youyue hadn't commanded the little monsters to develop the air-dropped smoke ammunition, and if Castle Heart hadn't resurrected the Black Sun Knight Ston, then the outcome of this battle might have been just the opposite.

Fortunately, everything has passed. General Kleinus' head was stuck on the point of the gun. Although the soul escaped back to the abyss, it would take at least 100 years to recover.Human life is not calculated on a scale of a hundred years. At that time, if he wanted revenge, he would have to find Li Wei's descendants.

"On the way to the rescue, I made three kinds of preparations. If Master Li Wei is lucky enough to hold Heihe, then he will join the battlefield. As long as the stalemate continues for about three days, reinforcements from the northern leaders can arrive. , if we continue to persist for about a week, the reinforcements from North Aola, Sicily, and Dirk City will arrive. At that time, relying on the natural danger of Heihe to defend with all our strength, there should be a certain chance of winning." Lord Cedric said while shrugging Shrugging his shoulders, in fact, he didn't really feel relieved until he boarded the Great Wall of Ice and saw the piles of demon corpses at the foot of the Great Wall and on both sides of the Black River.

Li Wei opened his mouth in surprise, because when the disaster came half a year ago, the poor Viscount Lane was trapped in the castle for more than three months, and until the end, he did not receive any support from other territories.He didn't think that his popularity was so good that he could get the unanimous support of all the lords, including the governor of the northern border county.

"Half a year ago, the devil appeared very hastily. The eyeliner I placed at the Heihe outpost failed to send back any information, and they were killed together with the garrison at the outpost." Lord Cedric explained, "Wait until the thick fog filled the territory , when the road was cut off, it was too late. We once organized a tentative reinforcement, and three knights and fifty well-trained elite soldiers only walked for less than half a day in the mist. The horses disappeared without a trace, and one of them later appeared before you, and you rescued his soul."

After thinking about it for a while, Levi thought of the person Lord Cedric was referring to. "Sir Lorshaw?" He asked in surprise, "Did you recruit many adventurers that time?"

"Sir Lorshaw's territory is directly bordered by Viscount Lane, so he was the commander of that operation. I don't know the specifics." Lord Cedric replied. "However, Sir Lorshaw's personality has always been rejoicing. He must be able to recruit adventurers."

"So that's how it is..." Li Wei sighed softly. Many things seemed to have nothing to do with each other, but in fact they were like a chain, one link after another.If Sir Lorshaw hadn't recruited adventurers, Warren and Martha wouldn't have become thieves; if they hadn't encountered the two at the Black River Outpost, it was unlikely that Levi would have heard the rumors of the refugee camp so soon; time In a flash, as long as Li Wei is one step late, the incinerator will turn the refugee camp into scorched earth!
In that case, at least half of the friends and subordinates around Li Wei will disappear.Thinking of this, Li Wei couldn't help breathing quickly, thanking the gods from the bottom of his heart, and at the same time showing awe of God's ingenious arrangements.

"The second preparation is that the Heihe defense line has collapsed, but you are safe and sound, Mr. Li Wei, and you have brought back enough troops to retreat to the Green Castle. If this is the case, I will lead the army to retreat to the Xilan River line and fight with the Green Castle." The reinforcements from the northern territories gathered together and established a line of defense, hoping to last until a week later. As for the matter of the Green Castle, I can only leave it to Mr. Li Wei to solve it yourself." Lord Cedric continued, "Finally One situation is that the Heihe defense line collapses, and you, Lord Li Wei, are only spared... If this unfortunately happens, then my mission is the same as the second situation, retreating to the south bank of the Xilan River for defense, but before that , and one more thing to do.”

"One thing?" Levi raised his eyebrows, and heard a hint of ominousness from Lord Cedric's tone, "What are you going to do?"

"It is to remove your head, Lord Levi, and send it to Fermeyer." Lord Cedric raised his finger and gestured on his neck, "You probably don't know it yet? You were once awarded the title of baron The entire army of the Kingdom Mission and the Territory was wiped out in the Dusk Forest. Only Earl Enix, the head of the mission, returned to Fermeyer. He was seriously injured when he arrived, and he is still bedridden and unconscious. If it is not for the demon army With the news of the sudden southward movement, I am afraid that the big shots in Firmeyer will be furious long ago, and they will send those knights of the young masters to come to ask for punishment!"

(End of this chapter)