Does the mechanical girl dream of the Messiah?

"Not a good idea at all."

"..."

"Stealing things from here will make too much noise, and they may not be useful. Ella and Luna both have their own weapons, and they don't need to rely on this method to increase their combat power."

"Yes." Lunicia nodded. "What do you mean?"

"Look there."

"It says there—"

Just as Lunicia followed Ashlee's fingertips and looked towards the place she pointed, Lunicia's breathing froze.

"What's wrong, Lady Luna? That's..."

Ella also looked over, but didn't react.

After all, for her, it was something she had never seen before. Even for Ashlee, it was just a glimpse of something in Lunesia's memory, so it was natural for her to feel unfamiliar. But it was different for Lunesia.

It is based on silver and looks extremely sharp, but it is embellished with various jewels in cold colors like a ceremonial sword. This contradiction makes it difficult to judge whether it is a sharp blade used in actual combat or an ornament that can only be used for etiquette. If its most distinctive part is to be said, it is naturally the pointer-like sword body, the guard carved in the shape of a scale, and the endless spiral-like pattern on the hilt.

"——Ah. Yes, that's it."

That was the silver lightning that pierced his body, tore apart Ashetherin's structure, and flashed past his sight in the "last time".

"There was a question before, why the ceremony was able to be held even though no sacrifice was offered at all."

The three of them were not in a secluded place in the museum, but quite the opposite. Although there were rules prohibiting loud noises in the museum, there were the most eye-catching and rare exhibits here. With a large number of tourists, it would still be noisy. This made it much easier for Ashlee to conceal their conversation. They looked like they were discussing the exhibits normally, and there was no way they would attract attention.

"Although the ceremony itself is still simple, the element of sacrifice is indispensable in any case. Combined with Luna's previous experience, this is the only answer we can get in the end."

"…They used that sword to pierce Lady Luna and Ashe, so they were able to use Lady Luna and Ashe as sacrifices?"

"So, 'the original sacrifice cannot be used, so these two will be used as substitutes'?"

Lunisia thought back to what the old man had said, and it seemed to be true.

"The place pierced by the sword will become a wedge when the ritual begins, blocking the movement and lighting up the mark. This will be the holy mark of the offering. If this is a divine art, Luna will understand it better than individual Asheselin and Ella. Moreover, Luna herself is also one of the 'participants'."

"Um……"

At least, there was no mistake about that aura. What was imprinted on his body was undoubtedly divine magic.

The silver star blooming on the earth seems to contain not only the elements of Alexander the God, but also the elements of Shahar, the King of Prophets. What exactly this means cannot be seen with Lunisia's current knowledge.

The sword stands in the middle of the deepest part of the exhibition hall, and the magical base provides it with buoyancy, allowing the sword to float in the air. "Rest", a holy relic collected by the Alexandria Cathedral, the holy sword of the realm of time, has an inseparable connection with "Pendulum Knight Schitzberg", but it is not his own sword - in fact, Schitzberg's main weapon has always been a long-handled hammer called "Pendulum", which has smashed the head of a lich, defeated the scales of a corpse dragon, and torn the breath of the evil god. It has been with Schitzberg from the beginning to the end of his legend.

A long time later, a blacksmith found the fragments of the "pendulum" and recast them into the current rapier. This "Rest" was once the sword of "Sword of Time" Sylvester de Sastennis, who was famous for his dual-wielding rapier skills. However, after becoming the Patriarch of the Church of Alexandria, he deposited the sword in the museum to commemorate Sitzberg, the builder of Muirand and the saint of Alexandria.

It is the name of a legend, the beginning of Myurand, and at the same time, it is also the holy sword that draws the curtain on everything in Myurand.

Chapter 53 Day 1: Final Vote

"The investigation of the participants in the ceremony is almost complete."

"Huh? No way, so fast?"

Although the plan for this afternoon was mainly investigation, and there was nothing urgent, they planned to start preparing countermeasures tomorrow - such as looking for helpers who could help them - even by this standard, Lunicia and her group seemed too leisurely.

Who could have imagined that these three female tourists, who were now sitting on a bench on the pedestrian street, commenting on the glass cover decorations on the fountain on the pedestrian street while eating berry pancakes and drinking hot vanilla tea, were fighting a bloody battle in the basement of the Cathedral of Alexandria "yesterday"?

This was actually Ashlee's idea. Although Ella had always paid close attention to Lunisia and was sharp and sensitive enough, she would inevitably overestimate other people's mental tolerance. In this respect, Ashlee could understand Lunisia's current state more easily. She thought Lunisia was straining herself too much. Time was indeed not abundant, but she couldn't keep her mind in an overloaded state for this reason. Otherwise, no one knew whether it would lead to some mistakes that shouldn't have happened.

So, Ella was left behind to go shopping in Lunicia. She originally wanted to collect information to do more for Lunicia, but was finally persuaded by Ashetherin. Ashetherin herself went to look for clues based on the portraits given by Lunicia.

The final reunion time was much earlier than Lunicia expected.

“Because, it’s actually pretty easy to find.”

"So? Who are they?"

Ella also came over from the side. While resting in the hotel, Ashleelin made portraits with the data provided by Lunisia, so Ella also knew what kind of five people Lunisia wanted to investigate, and she was also very curious about their identities.

"First is this."

Ashethelin pointed to the portrait of the old man in Ella's hand and said, "This is Liniero de Stocker, the head of the Stocker family."

"what?"

"Ok?"

Whether it was Lunicia or Ella Hepper, their first reaction was confusion.

Ashlee didn't care about their confused expressions at all. She just moved her black iron fingertips and continued, "This is Pietro Stuart, this is Ludovit Byron, and this is Dominic de Howard."

"Uh, what about this?"

Lunicia felt like her brain was a little stuck, but she still pointed at the last middle-aged man who had not been mentioned yet.

"This, this is Sandria Dorenzo Priode, commander of the Imperial Guards Division, Marshal of the Murand Garrison."

"..."

The north wind could not bring even a single snowflake or fallen leaf from the northern border of Mu Continent. It was just an invisible cold wind, but it could bring an unspeakable silence to Lunisia and Ella. In this regard, Ashethelin could only tilt her head.

"What's wrong? All of a sudden you're all silent. The vanilla tea will get cold."

"No, vanilla tea or something..." Lunisia shook her head violently, "No, no, Stoke, Howard, Stuart, Byron, etc... Aren't these the four major families? So who are these people?"

She was very clear about the concept of the Garrison Marshal. In the Glorious Divine Court, the garrison functions and the Guard Division were all under the Sacrifice Bureau, which was also the department with which she had the closest relationship. Naturally, she knew a lot about this aspect. However, Lunisia had no idea about the origins of those people with the names of the four major families.

“It seems that I don’t quite understand what I’m saying.”

"No one would understand if you just say the name."

"That's true. Then Ashe, can you please give us a more detailed introduction..."

……

Today is the first day of the National Day holiday.

For the citizens of Muirand, today is a day off worth celebrating. This is no different for public officials. In fact, it is more worth celebrating: as a civil servant in Muirand, your salary and regular working hours are guaranteed, and most departments do not work overtime. The price is that holidays are usually shorter than those for other citizens. It is precisely because of this that the rare holidays are even more worth cherishing.

However, even during the National Day holiday, there was indeed a "Closed" sign hanging at the gate of the Muirand City Hall. One could only see the guards still on duty, but not the civil servants coming in and out on weekdays. However, the lights were still on in the square municipal building, and there seemed to be people wandering around, and it was not as empty as it seemed at first glance.

"Don't you think this is ostentatious?"

"I do think this is ostentatious, but my opinion cannot change anything, including the decision of the president himself." Francesco Stuart smiled bitterly and shook his head. As a member of the Stuart family who holds public office and often speaks at the Great Council, it can be said that his presence here is destined. "You, me, and every family member who is 'invited' here today, we all know why this meeting is held, right?"

"Oh, you are right."

Françoise de Stoke looked pained.

"Julio really dropped a bombshell on us—"

"You must be careful with your words, sir."

"Yes, that's right. Giulio didn't bring any trouble. He just brought a piece of news, and this news requires all of us to gather here for a meeting today, risking being discovered." Franzano's eyebrows were almost tangled together. "But I don't quite understand what the head of the meeting can say to me, the head of the General Office of the Ministry of Civil Affairs? It seems that I can't play any role in this matter."

"I can hear what you are saying, and I can also follow what you are saying to guess what you are actually thinking. Or who doesn't think so?" Francesco looked indifferent. "You are just thinking that as long as you come here today and attend this meeting, you will have a chance to be nailed on the pillar of shame in history, right?"

Franzano didn't answer, his brows surprisingly relaxed.

"It seems I was right."

"There is really nothing wrong with what you said. I have nothing to say."

It is not known whether he gave up on himself or had really come to terms with it, but Franzano De Stoke, a young member of the Stoke family, followed Francesco's example and looked at the wall beside him. This one-way transparent wall could reflect the scenery outside the room without allowing outsiders to see inside, making this not-so-spacious secret meeting room seem less depressing.

The meeting hadn't started yet. The other participants were now in various places in the office building, chatting or pacing. No one wanted to eavesdrop on their conversation, and who would care about the thoughts of these two juniors? They were just here to accept the results of the meeting, nothing more.

"Then you can rest assured."

"What else can we be assured of? May Mr. Lineiro live forever?" Franzano chuckled sarcastically. "You don't seem to mind being nailed to the pillar of shame. This kind of thing is destined to be passed down as history and remembered for hundreds or thousands of years. Oh, sorry, humans may not survive for hundreds or thousands of years, then we will be sung as a shame until the world is destroyed."

"Chaplain Liniero promised before that he would shoulder the responsibility along with the other three messengers."

"You believe his words more than I, his direct descendant."

Francesco remained calm and said, "At least in this matter, there is no reason not to believe it." He did not pause, waiting for Franzano's answer, and continued, "Unlike you, I have never worried about being carved on the pillar of shame from the beginning. Of course, this does not mean that I have no opinion. Compared with yours, my opinion is not as direct. As far as I am concerned, I don't want this pillar of shame to be erected in the end. This thing should not have happened from the beginning."

This surprised Franzano: "You fundamentally disagree with their approach?"

"Yes."

Francesco answered very calmly, which made him look even more gloomy than before, as if this was his true emotion hidden under his calm surface.

"It's just that there is no opportunity for the time being."

After that, the two of them stopped talking tacitly. After a while, other participants entered the venue one after another.

"I believe you all know the reason for this meeting. Julio's report was delivered to you this morning, so I won't go into details here. The purpose of this meeting is to introduce the current situation of Mulande and to have a final discussion on the ceremony to be held the day after tomorrow."

Linearo de Stock, an old man who apparently did not hold any public office in Muirand, was the host and the main speaker of the meeting, surpassing his cousin, Giovanni de Stock, the Secretary of State of Muirand. According to Ashcelin's investigation, Linearo once served as the Speaker of the Grand Council, but that was in the past. Now he rarely appears in public. Some people think that he has retreated behind the scenes and no longer participates in political affairs, but some people think that he is actually the head of the Stock family now.

Unlike Giovanni, who was used to wasting time by expressing useless emotions in various formal occasions, Linearo preferred to get straight to the point.

"Giulio Report" - if you want to give this report a name that will be passed down to future generations, it will naturally be this. It seems that due to the urgency of time, Giulio himself did not return to Mulande. He stayed in the North to assist the "Sword of the World" in organizing defense. His report was delivered to the desks of the four major families by his entourage. The contents recorded in it are the same as what he told Francesco "six days ago" as you all know, which is also the direct cause of this meeting.

This meeting was not held in one of the mansions of the four major families. After all, as the de facto superiors of Muirand, they are always exposed to the eyes of various formal or informal media. A long time ago, a head of the Howard family once said that "the four major families should take the lead in work." After that, the four major families often appeared in work places even on holidays, at least to pretend. Under this premise, calling the members of the four major families to a private mansion for a meeting alone would be more suspicious and more likely to be exposed than normal work. This is why the meeting was held in the municipal building.

"…Ludovit hasn't arrived yet?"

The other members of the Byron family who were present at the meeting were inevitably embarrassed when they heard this question. After a while, the eldest son, Theaster Byron, answered, "Yes."

He only answered yes or no, and didn't give any more explanation. Lineiro didn't react to this, just nodded and said, "Really? It doesn't matter. He has agreed to the ceremony. Similarly, I, Dominiku, and Vitali all agreed to it, so even if he doesn't vote on it, it won't affect the final result."

Francesco raised his eyebrows unnoticed. He was surprised that Vitaly Stuart had voted in favor without him knowing, and he didn't even have to wait until the last regular meeting to vote on it.

"That's fine." Linearo repeated his previous conclusion. "Next, we will explain and discuss everything about the ceremony... and you will make the final vote."

He raised his right hand, and with that bloodless, bony palm, he seemed to be holding something that didn't exist.

"No matter what the result of the vote is, what lies ahead of me will be a future where I bear the sins and save everything."

……

"Dominico de Howard, head of the Howard family, chairman of the Advanced Education Committee... Pietro Stuart, Vitaly Stuart's nephew, chairman of the Foreign Trade Committee... Ludovit Byron, head of the Byron family, Minister of Agriculture... And that Lineiro de Stock, former Speaker of the Grand Council..."

The more she thought about the list, the more confused she felt.

At first glance, Dominic is just a committee leader under the Ministry of Education, but according to Ashlee's explanation and Ella's understanding, this is just some concessions made by the four major families for superficial fairness, so that it does not look like every department of Muirand is controlled by the four major families. His most important identity is not the insignificant public office he ostensibly holds, but "the head of the Howard family", which means that his decisions are equivalent to those of the Howard family to a certain extent.

Among them, only the Stuart family did not allow the head of the family to attend the ceremony. Whether this was because they were not serious about the ceremony or were dissatisfied with it, it did not matter. The fact that the heads of three of the four major families were present to preside over the ceremony was enough to explain the problem.

"Also..."

"Marshal Sandria, commander of the Imperial Guards Division, and a legendary warrior."

At this point, Ella also frowned.

Regardless of the identities of the members of the four major families, the fact that they would participate in the ceremony was expected. Originally, Lunicia guessed that the mastermind behind the ceremony was the great nobles or even the four major families themselves, but Lunicia could never have imagined that the garrison marshal, who was the Shield and Sword of Myuland, would also personally participate in it.

His upbringing was clear, he emerged from the war with the evil god's followers, his status and strength were all gained on the battlefield, neither his profession nor his fighting style was concealed at all, nor could it be concealed, but neither he nor anyone in the Myuland army would be worried about this.

The reason is simple, it's because his status is legendary, and he is a god on earth who can conquer an entire country by himself.

Chapter 54 Day 1: Northeastern Front

It was a peaceful afternoon.

Some people choose to go out and enjoy the first day of the holiday. Perhaps they have used the morning and morning time to get enough rest, but what really distinguishes them from those who still choose to close their eyes and rest even in the evening is that they did not buy tickets for the performance of the Muirland Theater the next day. With less burden and less expectations, they think on the bright side, at least they don’t need to get up early tomorrow and spend the next day like being in prison.

Shopping, eating some high-end dishes that they would not normally consider, and male students also following the trend of young girls to enjoy fruit tea and sweet pancakes are all forms of entertainment that are very familiar to the middle class.

For others, this afternoon was something else.

For example, many members of the four major families gathered in the Muirand Municipal Building today to hold the final discussion on the ceremony in the secret meeting room. There was almost nothing to discuss, as everything had already been decided. Not only did the leaders of the four major families take the lead in expressing their support for the ceremony, but they also had enough information to silence opponents, or at least prevent them from publicly refuting their views. They no longer needed to discuss whether the ceremony should be performed, but only some details about the ceremony and matters related to the aftermath.

For example, Lunicia, Ella, and Asheselin, three young travellers, although Asheselin, as the intelligence provider, looked calm - she usually looked calm - the other two looked a little confused. As expected, the participants in the ceremony must be well-known politicians, so it is not difficult to investigate, but the results of the investigation seem a little too outrageous. The current topic has successfully evolved from "what will happen in the ceremony" to "how should the three of us deal with the legendary strongman", which seems to be something that is completely worth discussing. Really, at first glance, this kind of question really does not need to be discussed at all. What can be achieved by discussing it? Can it be done?

For example, everyone in the city police force.

"What's the situation with the First Infantry Squadron? Let them hold on for another hour, and the First Reserve Squadron will take over later!"

"Second Infantry Squadron, First Squad, begin supply operations!"

"Southern Garrison Squadron, there are casualties in the second squad, what are they doing! Medical squad, go and assist!"

"Mobile Squadron 3, heading to the northern front!"

"The heavy firepower squadron remains on standby. Maintain the status quo. It is not time for them to go out yet."

……