Arknights' Lock of Heaven

Without any powerful backers, Dishui Village was at the mercy of others.

A good person, a good person?

In Kazimir, the land of knights, the farmers are the least likely to believe in knights.

When natural disasters strike, knights must collect taxes; when war breaks out, knights must not only collect taxes but also conscript soldiers. Even if your family is destroyed, you must still pay taxes to the knights.

But when bandits and defeated soldiers came, when they plundered villages, when the knights' people needed their lord the most, you couldn't see them at all.

These are knights, knights from countless stories. Even knights are like this. Can a group of strangers of unknown origin really be so noble?

It would be considered good if they didn't plunder the treasure after taking it.

Sadly, this kind of thinking is often the norm for Kazimir.

Perhaps in some distant land, people still yearn for the world-renowned chivalric culture of Kazimierz, but as the saying goes, distance makes the heart grow fonder.

The ordinary people living in Kazimierz had long since given up on the knight.

There's a reason why everyone yearns for magnificent mobile cities.

In the countryside and in the wild, survival is extremely difficult for ordinary people. Mobile cities are certainly not perfect, but at least they have some order.

155 Childhood Dreams

Krol didn't understand.

Despite having completed a legendary adventure, successfully stealing treasure from bounty hunters with the help of Rhodes Island operators like Grani, and even becoming friends with Big Bob and his men, hiring them to protect the village...

What a wonderful thing! The noble Rhodes Island operators like Grani are selfless and have the money to repair the village so that everyone can live a better life. Big Bob and his brothers can also earn enough money to settle down in Columbia.

But why did it turn out like this?

Looking at the fearful and uneasy expressions on the faces of the familiar figures around her, Laura's mind went blank, and she didn't know what to say.

The members of the Reunion Movement couldn't possibly see this as a sign of their own devotion. Strictly speaking, the fact that Kel was willing to hire them despite past grievances was an immense favor, and they couldn't possibly let their benefactor kneel before them.

In an instant, the Reunion Movement members in front of Klor scattered, and even the heavily armed men carrying treasure chests dropped their full chests of gold coins and ran to both sides.

They still had some sense of shame. They were already guilty of betraying their promise and trying to steal someone's treasure, but in the end, the person, with overwhelming advantages, was willing to forgive and forget and share a portion with them. After all that, how could they accept this young girl kneeling down…

Seeing their actions, Old Peter, who was about to beg for mercy, was stunned.

What kind of formation is this?

He had never seen anything like this in all his years of life.

How could those unscrupulous armed men possibly avoid the kneeling worship of an honest and simple farmer like himself?

Over the years, he has knelt before knights, officials, bandits, and bounty hunters...

Among these people, some felt it was a matter of course, some were smug about it, and some even found pleasure in it.

I've never seen anyone avoid it.

While he was still in a daze, Grani couldn't take it anymore either.

She rushed forward to help the villager up, but he avoided her with a look of fear on his face.

No matter who she reached out to, that person would invariably lower their head in fear and trepidation, adopting an even more humble posture.

Even Grani was stunned.

Seeing her plight, the integration movement members who wanted to help the villagers stood frozen in place, at a loss.

What should I do?

Grani looked to Skadi for help, only to find that this senior, who had always seemed aloof, had already avoided her.

Titi silently watched the scene before her, which was both comical and sad.

She knew it was just a misunderstanding.

All it takes is a proper explanation to clear things up.

But for the villagers to truly believe it, it will probably only happen after the integration movement has completed its guard duty and obediently takes its share of the money and leaves.

So just leave it to time.

Time will prove everything.

It's impossible to expect these villagers to accept the facts all at once.

In their years of survival experience, they have learned that there is no such thing as a free lunch, and there will never be a noble figure like the knights of legend to save them.

Their lives were like weeds, they would grow back after being cut down, and no one ever cared about them.

They were used to this way of life; their ancestors had always lived this way.

Those who were restless either went to make a living in mobile cities, became outlaws to rob and plunder, or were buried in the wilderness early on, their fate unknown.

After thousands of years of feudal aristocratic rule, these peasants had long been tamed and made extremely docile; they didn't even dare to take up arms to defend their homes.

Even when faced with a whole chest of gold coins left by their ancestors, they could only kneel before everyone, trying to distance themselves from the situation while begging for forgiveness.

Even if they did nothing wrong.

This world is inherently unreasonable.

Young Krol wasn't used to it yet.

Grani was helpless. Whenever she tried to explain, seeing the villagers' fearful expressions, she knew that nothing she said would make a difference.

The Reunion Movement members didn't say much, knowing that they were the ones being feared.

In this situation, saying anything more is useless, even if you give the villagers a whole box of gold coins.

They simply didn't dare to take it.

The infected members of the Reunion Movement have gotten used to it.

They also knew that nothing they, as outsiders, could say would make a difference.

Now, only the village chief, Chlor, can clear up this misunderstanding. Only this villager, who considers himself one of their own, can do so.

Big Bob looked at Chlor.

He knew that the villagers would do whatever he said, but they would absolutely not believe him if he explained that he would not take the treasure.

The villagers' inherent spirit had long been worn away by centuries of rule by nobles and the previous rampage by bounty hunters.

If they really dared to stand up and resist, they probably wouldn't have waited until I got here; they would have already fought the bounty hunters to the death.

They dared not defy the bounty hunters, and naturally, they dared not defy themselves either.

Just like Xia Yu, who subdued everyone in an instant, even though she herself dared not resist.

Especially after leaving the cave and seeing the craters outside filled with severed limbs, he understood why the sentries he had placed outside had disobeyed orders and run into the cave.

Everyone turned their gaze to Korole, who was standing there in a daze.

Including Grani, only Chlor can now calm these panicked villagers.

But seeing their gazes, old Parker pulled Chlor behind him, his already hunched back becoming even more humble, begging for mercy incessantly, his forehead about to kowtow to the ground.

His past life had already bent his back.

His movements looked incredibly practiced.

But he still couldn't bring himself to kowtow.

Chlor, standing behind him, hugged him tightly with her slender frame.

“Grandpa Parker, please don’t do this,” Chlor said, her eyes glistening with tears. “You don’t have to do this.”

“Everyone, there’s nothing to worry about,” Korol stood up, her slender figure standing out among the kneeling villagers.

"Believe me, they are truly good people!"

But all she got in return for her plea was a few hands grabbing the hem of her skirt, trying to make her kneel down again so as not to anger the masked men opposite her.

Krol stood firm and refused to be pulled to her knees by them.

She looked around and saw that the villagers she cared about had eyes full of worry, fear, and unease.

Seeing this, Coral took a deep breath, then resolutely turned around, shook off the hands that wanted her to kneel down again, and walked towards Big Bob.

"Silly child, come back, don't go there, come back!"

The anxious whispers of the villagers echoed in her ears.

But her steps never stopped.

When she came to Big Bob, she raised her head and looked at the giant in front of her.

“I’m sorry,” a hint of sadness appeared on Chlor’s face, “I may have to break my promise.”

Big Bob's expression darkened upon hearing this, but he didn't say anything more.

The surrounding Reunification Movement members also remained quietly in place.

“I can’t let you stay in the village anymore, but don’t worry, the employment agreement still stands,” she said with a determined smile. “Didn’t that lord say he was going to clean up the bounty hunters?”

"If possible, please go and help him. You can stay at their camp tonight. As for me... I might need a little more time."

"I'm really, really sorry!"