Uncle here isn't your average office worker!

With the help of this still-functioning arms management system, he is gradually turning the entire Lateran into a fortress. Weapons that have been dormant for a long time, as long as they are not damaged, have begun to be activated under his command, emerging from the ground and wandering throughout Lateran.

Originally, without the unified command and control of the combat AI, these weapons could not actually exert their full intelligence and combat power. However, Trevor Friston, to some extent, replaced the role of the military AI. His massive computing power was enough to cover every drone. Those military security drones, which the guards called "angels," were among them. They were Trevor Friston's eyes and his tentacles for contacting the outside world.

Now, this tentacle had been unexpectedly touched, immediately catching Trevor Friston's attention. He temporarily set aside his plan to continue reading the tens of thousands of letters from outer space, shifting some of his "thoughts" to the small drone, letting its data stream flow into his "brain."

"Numbers 0-123, proceed with the testing task—"

"Detected as a local indigenous species, with a high level of danger, does not meet safety regulations, and no usable safety identification code was detected!"

"Warning, clearance operation imminent. Threat level 4. Activate level 4 weapon. Fire!"

Trevor Friston paused, and if he still had a face, his brow would be furrowed right now.

Local indigenous species?

He glanced at the image information, which showed just an ordinary birdman, or, according to Roy, a Liberian, at most dressed a bit better, with the style of ancient human nobles from the old days.

Although he still couldn't figure out why these small animals had evolved into human-like forms, he had some vague guesses. But what were these native creatures?

He was just a researcher and had not actually participated in the exploration of each planet. He was unaware of the colonization process of Terra by the previous civilization. If the machine's report was correct, then this planet originally had indigenous inhabitants.

Trevor Friston was certain that the Liberi were not native to the region. Similarly, those creatures that could be clearly identified as animals known to humans were not native either. Therefore, the Liberi in this picture must be some kind of disguise.

"It exploded after it died, turning into a puddle of jelly-like liquid. Interesting."

Rekindled with long-dormant curiosity, Trevor Friston immediately summoned the reconnaissance machine closest to the East Quarantine Gate, instructing it to collect the puddle of jelly on the ground. Simultaneously, he sent an email to Roy, who might know something about the Indigenous people.

.........

The sea breeze in Iberia is cold, especially after the second Great Quiet, which has made the coastline even more desolate.

Many of the coastal cities that had retained some semblance of their original structure ultimately succumbed to the catastrophe. The desolate landscape of ruins became the dominant theme of civilization left behind. The Iberians who had once eked out a living in these buildings were now nowhere to be found. Roy didn't know their whereabouts. Did they escape when the Great Silence arrived? Or were they overwhelmed by the swarms of terrifying fish? Or did they simply become one of them?

Was there an Iberian who had once struggled to survive among the sea monsters that Roy destroyed with that earth-shattering cannon shot?

Roy found it difficult to delve into these questions. Such moral self-examination was pointless and only added unnecessary guilt.

He rode on Rocinant, a loyal steed that snorted and occasionally neighed like a real warhorse. Were it not for the strange patterns and blue veins covering its mimicry skin, it would have truly looked like a magnificent celestial horse.

Although I'm grateful that this Pegasus isn't as easy to ride as the Lightbringer.

He had been wandering along this coastline for three days without finding a trace of Saint Carmen. Theoretically speaking, a century-old man shouldn't have been able to go very far in the face of the massive tidal wave of daphnia.

Roy had to consider the worst-case scenario.

Haisi possesses a powerful assimilation ability. Those who consume Haisi's flesh and blood, those who have Haisi's cells implanted, or even those who are merely possessed and parasitized by Haisi, are extremely easy to assimilate by Haisi.

Once assimilation begins, even faster than their minds, their bodies will undergo mutation. Scales and webbed hands are the most basic changes; many will directly mutate into fins, gill glands, and so on. Don't think that those who undergo assimilation will remain almost unchanged like Roy and Skadi; ​​those are the absolute exceptions. How many of the Sea God's Chosen and the Last Knights are there?

The possibility of Saint Carmen charging into the Great Tide of the Sea and carving a bloody path through it was actually extremely slim. It wasn't impossible, and perhaps even more likely, that he would be swallowed up, submerged, or even assimilated into the Great Tranquility. It was only because Dario and Roy believed, or rather hoped, that Carmen could survive that they embarked on this search.

Now it seems that this might just be a fantasy...

"Knight! Knight!"

Suddenly, a weak shout came from afar. Roy, who was hovering on the sea, tightened the reins that grew out of Rosinant's nostrils. The sea steed let out a long neigh, stopped abruptly, and turned its head.

Roy saw a thin boy dressed in a long blue robe, with a priest's attire underneath, waving at him.

He raised an eyebrow, feeling that the outfit looked somewhat familiar, but couldn't quite place where the déjà vu came from. After a cursory glance and not sensing Hai Si's aura on him, he sheathed his sword, spurred his horse forward, and said:

"Need any help?"

The boy had a simple mushroom haircut that covered his eyes, making it hard to believe he could see the road ahead. He carefully pulled a book from his pocket and handed it to Roy, saying:

"Sir Knight, please accept this."

Roy looked at the book cover, his expression slightly stunned, and asked, "What's this?"

"This book was given to me by an old judge who asked me to give it to his apprentice."

“Carmen… but I’m not his apprentice,” Roy replied, without refusing the book the boy offered, which contained a stalk of Night-Sun Grass. “Which direction did he go? How long has he been gone?”

“You went west, you’ve been traveling for almost three days now,” the boy said. “He said his apprentice would save Iberia, and I saw you kill all the sea monsters on the shore with my own eyes. You are that hero!”

"Please help that judge, he seems... not quite right."

Before he could finish speaking, he cautiously raised his head, only to find that Roy had already vanished from his sight.

Volume 1: Chapter 295 He Won Again Against Hai Si

kill.

Fearing the fish swarming ashore, they must be killed. The sea creatures that bring disaster must be killed. The deep-sea cultists who have betrayed humanity must all be exterminated!

From the moment Carmen stepped out of the courthouse and rode alone into the waves of the Sea of ​​Horrors, she never thought she would come back alive.

He was over a hundred years old. Liberi was not a long-lived species to begin with, and for an old man, over a hundred years old was an age when his life was nearing its end and he could pass away at any time. But the Iberian Tribunal could not do without him, and Iberia could not do without him, so he voluntarily accepted the modification of the secret technique, forcibly extending his lifespan.

Truth is always simple and somewhat cliché. Since it's a secret technique, there must be a price to pay. He paused the continuous aging of his body, but in its place, his spirit became increasingly fragile. At this stage, even sleep was a luxury for him. He had to be constantly on edge, without any slackening, to avoid suddenly losing consciousness and becoming an empty shell without a soul.

But this time, he truly let go of his inhibitions. He brandished his sword, recklessly bathing in the blood of the deformed monster, as if releasing all the pent-up emotions of his life.

Kill kill kill kill kill kill kill!

Monsters must be killed, traitors must be killed, sea gods must be killed, and anyone who dares to harbor malice towards Iberia must be killed!

It was a wonderful feeling; after releasing his repressed emotions and spirit, he felt a real sense of liberation. His limbs became lighter, his movements more swift, and his swordsmanship more refined. He seemed to have returned to his peak youth, the Carmen who could fight the great Alfonso in martial arts and debate with the Sarkaz bishop from Laterano.

He was alone, yet incredibly powerful. He charged into the sea monsters' ranks like an inexhaustible tiger rushing into a flock of weak lambs, and what followed was slaughter.

He fought his way out, then turned and fought his way back in, then fought his way out again, then fought his way back in again. With only one bullet left, he instinctively put away his musket. He continued fighting with his dulled rapier. When the rapier finally broke, he pulled the spine of a monstrous fish from its body and used its grotesque spikes as a second sword to continue the fight.

He didn't remember how long he had been killing or how many he had killed. He only remembered that at a certain moment, the number of terrifying fish in front of him suddenly began to decrease until they disappeared completely. Then, a pillar of light suddenly descended from the sky, like a tree of light, dazzling and magnificent.

This made him seem a bit more normal.

"Is the fish tide receding? Shall we return to the courtroom?"

He thought to himself, "I can go back. I am a saint, the only surviving one of the twelve saints named after Iberia. I am the spiritual pillar of the entire Inquisition and the totem symbol of Iberia's continued existence. Even if my spirit has deteriorated to an unbearable degree, even if I feel that I am on my deathbed, as long as I walk to the foot of the Inquisition's castle, no one will dare not open the gates to welcome my return and cheer for me."

The fact that he was still alive could inspire his apprentice Dario and encourage him to continue the fight...

But he lowered his head, looked at his right hand, and let out a long sigh.

On the first day of the battle against Hai Si, the judges will be told this fact by their master - stay away from Hai Si's corpses as much as possible, do not eat them, and it is best not to even touch them!

These terrifying monsters are not only soldiers, but also sources of infection. They are dead, but their flesh and blood are still highly active. Long-term contact or direct ingestion will cause them to multiply in the body. Once a human is infected by Haisi cells, he or she will soon become part of them.

Carmen's current dark blue right hand is a bloody lesson.

His physical condition continued to improve, and he seemed to have returned to his peak. This was not only because he had given up the mental constraints imposed by the secret technique and released his power as if squeezing out his life force, but also because he was being passively modified while slaughtering those sea monsters.

His physical body was approaching Hai Si. Accompanying this powerful force was a consciousness that yearned for the masses.

He didn't want to die; he had a thousand ways to convince himself that he could still play a greater role and make a greater contribution to Iberia while he was alive.

But he only has one reason to reject these ideas.

How can I be sure that my current "unwillingness to die like this" is a result of being infected by the ocean?

Carmen knew that Hai Si would have the same thoughts. They had acquired a disgusting nobility in some ways. Even in death, they would want their fellow humans to devour their flesh and blood to become stronger. They did not care about their own death and did not regard sacrifice as sacrifice, but firmly adhered to the principle that "those who die should have a purpose and meaning."

Carmen dared not think about whether her infection had progressed to this point, or whether her "heartfelt thoughts" were proof that a large group had invaded her mind.

But he believes that at some point before he was infected, he must have made a clear judgment!

So he reached for the musket at his waist and removed the magazine from his "last words".

There was one bullet left in the clean magazine.

Saint Iberia's stubble-covered lips curved into a triumphant smile.

He won against the crowd again.

........

“Child, take this book and give it to my apprentice. It will surely save the people of Iberia.”

"Your Honor, are you leaving?" The boy looked at the old man before him. He was just an unlicensed doctor, making a living on the ruined coastline with his meager medical knowledge. The Great Calm came suddenly; the sea monster nearly attacked several coastal cities, but surprisingly, it did not immediately affect the boy in the wilderness.

His eyes were filled with genuine fear; he had just been rescued from the jaws of a monstrous fish by the old man, and the way he brandished his rapier and his attire resembled the Grand Inquisitor people talked about.

This was the first time he had met such a person, but the sense of security he felt was so short-lived that before he could even express his gratitude, the old man was about to leave.

"I have to do what I have to do, kill, die."

He lowered the brim of his hat so the boy couldn't see his face, the old judge said.

"Go on, head east, the courthouse is in that direction."

He showed the boy the way, then left without looking back.

His life was already on a countdown; the fire ignited for him by the secret technique was constantly dying out, just like the flickering flame in the lantern at his waist, destined to vanish in an instant.

But he was able to control his life precisely, with one hand always resting on his gun.

However, he had to kill a few more before firing the last bullet.

Kill a few more monsters and traitors who caused his homeland to be destroyed a second time.

Otherwise, his eternal rage cannot be quelled!

Volume 1: Chapter 296 The Death of Carmen

As dusk settled, the setting sun hung low over the sea in Terra, seemingly about to disappear into the distance. The twin moons, however, eagerly revealed themselves, replacing the crimson of the sunset with their bright, clear light.

Most people look up at the sky at this moment, a habit they've recently developed. This allows them to add a touch of mystery to their mundane lives by looking at the emptiness in the sky.