Does the mechanical girl dream of the Messiah?

It was for this reason that he began to gradually show signs of fatigue.

Even through the clouds and the blizzard, he could still see what was happening on the top of the cathedral, which made him feel that his trust in Colette H. Caroline was so ridiculous - he thought she should be a martyr as determined as himself, but in fact she was just a cowardly and boring little girl, which made him even more furious.

"enough!"

He opened his palm, and the silver rapier that was inserted into the top of the temple, "Rest", flew back to his hand at a very fast speed. Along with his roar, the black and white image of his past reappeared. Lunicia and Ella were repelled by the echo of Sandria at the same time. However, he did not pursue the victory, but turned around, tensed his whole body, and poured all his strength into his right hand, throwing "Rest" like a cannonball!

"You're dreaming!!!"

Galeazzo de Barbacro's roar was even louder than his.

when----!

With the sound of metal colliding, like the sound of a sunset bell, "White Jaw" and "Rest" smashed together heavily, flying to the left and right. When Sandria looked again, the figures of the girl and the dragon had been submerged in the howling wind and snow, and were difficult to see.

This made him extremely shocked. He had never expected this to happen. The legendary weapon he threw with all his strength would actually be intercepted by a scimitar? He looked at Galezo in shock and anger, but he could not see a figure in a black robe gently lowering his right arm in a corner of the shadow of the temple.

That weapon originally belonged to him - even if an infinite amount of time had passed, the mark of the original owner could not be erased from that legendary object.

boom----!

A loud explosion-like sound came from Sandria's chest. He finally tasted the consequences of being distracted on the battlefield - Lunisia stabbed his chest with the white sword in her hand, and Ella's "Magic Explosion" followed closely. The block of magic power and the expanding light exploded with an extremely powerful force. The "Supreme Slash" and "Magic Explosion" lifted his body together, making him fly backwards while spinning in the air.

“To this extent——!”

call out----

Just as he was trying to adjust his body and exchange positions with the "echoes" around him, Regia's arrow came straight towards him with the sound of tearing the air, and pierced his left shoulder before he could fully react. The wound torn by Ella was hit hard again, and the wound became so deep that it almost tore his entire left shoulder off his body. He couldn't help but groan in pain, and even bit his own molars without knowing it.

"In the name of order, hit him again!"

“Go to hell!!!”

Following Leopold's shout, the "Voice of Authority" enabled Regia to quickly put the arrow on the bowstring, pull it open, pull it fully, pull it to the maximum extent she could do under the protection of magic, and then suddenly let go, letting the arrow as fast as thunder rush towards her prey, the mortal enemy who persecuted her idol.

"ah----!!!!!"

As the arrow shot into his eye socket, a scream came out of Sandria's mouth. The arrow was full of hatred and magic enhancement, and the ancient magic arrow was Galezo's treasure. It fully vented the financial resources of the "Muirand Young Officers Club" and Regia's anger, and also caused him to suffer the heaviest wound since Rose. His eyeball was pierced, his eye socket was completely torn, and his skull had some cracks. He had to stabilize his body and stretched out his hand to try to pull the arrow out of his eye socket. This also gave Regia, Leopold and Galezo a chance to chase - they relied on the three of them to hold back Sandria's steps, even though he was a legendary strong man who was severely injured by a dragon, even though he was a legendary strong man who was consumed by a group of people!

"Go ahead, hurry up! Go do what you should do!!!"

Amid Galezo's tragic cries, Lunicia had already stepped onto the outer wall of the cathedral, stabbed her giant sword into the wall, and climbed up - compared to the slow climb from the inside of the building, this method was more suitable for the current situation. She couldn't even wait to reach the altar at the top, and reached into her arms to take out the inverted "Death" card with a picture of the goddess of death, which was the beginning of everything.

"Luna, the PA function is on, let's start."

"Understood!"

Her figure leaped up and landed lightly on the altar on the roof. She looked up and seemed to be able to see the traces left by the dragon and the girl through the howling wind and snow. This made her smile, but the smile was soon replaced by incomparable solemnity and seriousness. She inserted the "Avenger" heavily into the center of the altar, the position specially prepared for the ritual sword. Even though she did not change into a solemn robe and was covered with scars and blood from the battle, no one would doubt or question her identity as the host of the ceremony.

She held the hilt of her sword with one hand and held the "Death" card with the other. Even in the howling wind and snow, the card still lay safely in the palm of Lunicia's hand, as if it would not be affected by anything in the outside world.

"The maintainer of time, the ferryman of the long river, the practitioner of justice, please cast your eyes, please look at us!"

Her solemn voice was amplified by Ashetherin, so that it could be accurately heard by everyone in the fierce battle, spread throughout this ancient and magnificent temple, and be heard by the two old men in black robes.

"Witness of the law, defender of the contract, guardian of the court, please whisper the words and bless us!"

Ashlee's voice seemed to be infected by Lunicia as well, and it took on a solemn meaning in its coldness. It overlapped and resonated with the grand voice coming from the altar on the roof, painting a dazzling color that could hardly be ignored in the wind and snow of this city on the mountain.

"Alexander, the God of Judgement and Time, our majestic God! Your subjects gather here again at the other end of the long river, and your servants offer everything at the end of time!"

Ella brandished "Sin and Punishment" while chanting ancient prayers. She was not a believer in the God of Time, but she believed in the figure chanting the prayers like the most fanatical believers. She was willing to put an end to everything with her, and this sword dance was proof of it.

"Alexander, the God of Judgment and Time, our majestic great god! Crossing the ancient wind, fulfilling the distant oath, today, here, calibrate the scales of justice again!"

Galeazzo was chanting, Leopold was chanting, Regia was chanting, torn wounds could not stop them, exhausted spirits could not stop them, fingers cut by bowstrings could not stop them, everyone on the battlefield who wanted to end this turmoil was chanting ancient prayers, Lieutenant General Marino was chanting, Francesco was chanting, even Ludovita was chanting, people's prayers echoed each other, people's dreams overlapped each other, people's thoughts seemed to be able to reach the sky, which was shrouded by poisonous clouds and already dark. The card in Lunicia's hand was no longer a card, it seemed to have turned into an extremely dazzling white star, shining with the prayers, floating with the chanting of people, and rushing straight into the sky.

"——Use blood as the weight, sacrifice as ink, and flesh and blood as the pen tip, place them on one side of the scale, follow the principle of exchange, and exchange for the ancient blessing!——"

It was a chorus that connected the past and present, and could even penetrate the future. Twelve stars gathered on the earth, forming the shape of a scale, and in the middle of the scale, on the fulcrum, the silver star flickered, like the eyes of the gods opening on the earth. It was the mark of an ancient oath that no one had ever witnessed.

In the sky where no one could see, the dragon spread her wings. The wings covered with blood-red dragon scales were now carrying the girl and the dragon's body, flying upwards, flying, soaring, rushing towards the sky that had never been seen by anyone. Shrouded by poisonous clouds, surrounded by wind and snow, curses and coldness invaded together, but they only had each other in their eyes, without the slightest fear of everything around them.

The dragon stretched out his right claw and the girl stretched out her left hand. Their palms overlapped and together they grasped the dazzling star.

The dragon flapped its wings gently, and under the shining white star, it blew away the poisonous cloud that seemed never to dissipate, and tore apart the eternal shadow that shrouded the sky. The dark clouds that brought down the blizzard were lifted up, and the overly wonderful scene even made people who were frightened by war and evil spirits and dared not step out of their homes return to the streets, look up at the sky that seemed so unfamiliar to them.

The quiet night sky, the bright stars, the clear moon, after the clouds were torn apart, what appeared above the sky was the ultimate beauty that no one had ever witnessed. It seemed like in the distant past, after the great battle, the mountain tops were all white with snow, and there were no clouds in the sky. Looking up, you could see the night sky and the stars. The heroes shouted under this sky, telling the ancient oath to the stars. It was a scene full of memories that could make the old man in the black robe smile again.

What the girl and the dragon see is not only the incomparably beautiful night sky.

There is someone more important than the night sky.

"——I am here to re-write the original myth."

The words like a chorus drew the curtain down on the ancient oath, and under the witness of the stars, the girl and the dragon gently pressed their lips together, held up each other's hands, and sent the white star that had fallen into the world back into the sky again.

——We are born to die. Do we really have to accept such a life?

——No matter how far you run, Libra is born to judge. Does he really want to agree to such a fate?

——If you don’t want to, just hold my hand.

——Let’s fly together to the sky where no one can reach, and catch the stars together!

In a world where it was thought that it would never be possible to see the stars again, the endless night sky was torn apart, and the stars once again shone their light. People in conflict and hatred raised their heads, and everyone believed that they had seen a miracle that day, a miracle created by the two simply because they loved each other.

This is the end of winter, the poem of the princess and the dragon.

Chapter 4: Ending The Story You Don't Know

——Human life will come to an end one day.

The winter snowstorm in Muirand is rarely as violent as it is this year. It is as if some kind of agreement has been broken and some kind of boundary has been crossed. The citizens of Muirand have not seen such a snowy scene for a long time: the border between the sky and the earth is filled with whistling silver-white. It seems that as long as you walk onto the street, you will be swept away by the dancing snowflakes and disappear in that hazy world. The cold white snow hits your face, and it hurts like a knife.

Since when have the streets been completely covered in white? No one cares about this. War, evil spirits, and sudden crises are trampling on the safe zone in their hearts. All they can do is curl up in the shelter, wait, pray, and offer hope.

However, this kind of snowstorm is nothing compared to the disaster in the north.

——Just as a story comes to an end, the laws of life are also fully established at the moment of the end.

The cold winter that never existed in this world blew against the iron wall that was like a lifeline for the southern part of the continent. Even though all the magic props and mechanisms that could be used were activated, the endless flames stolen from the plane of fire were as fragile as the flickering candlelight in front of the winter wind. The legendary structure of the Seldon Great Wall was still solid and strong, but no one knew when it would collapse and become a pile of broken scrap metal, especially after seeing the icicles hanging on the wall and the shaky lights.

"…Praise be to Alexander, witness of the law, defender of the contract, guardian of the court, our majestic god."

The priest who climbed to the top of the city wall looked at the figure in the snow with surprise. His surprise was not without reason. In fact, even though he was blessed by divine power, the biting cold still made him tremble. Being enveloped by the howling snow and wind was like falling into the eternal winter of the north. It was not a natural, normal cold, but a cold cursed by the King of Darkness, like the extreme cold of a distant planet.

But the figure remained unmoved, even though he had been standing in the snow and wind for a long time.

Even if spring never came again, he would not bend his back and succumb to the malice of the dark kings.

"Your Majesty the Patriarch..."

"what happened?"

"Sword of Time" Sylvester de Sastinie. People who have only heard of his legendary story may find it difficult to associate the man in front of them with the embodiment of law. After all, in the eyes of ordinary people, a person with such a name is at least a difficult and cold superior, not a middle-aged man with a kind face and approachable appearance like the man in front of them. But he is indeed the legendary Sylvester, the Patriarch of the Church of Alexandria, and the agent of the God of Judgment and Time.

"Everyone else has already evacuated."

"Yeah……"

Sylvester looked relieved.

What needed to be conveyed had been delivered, but the pastor still did not step back. Instead, he took another step forward.

"Your Highness, please come with us. You are everyone's hope and you cannot die in a place like this."

"Why," Sylvester smiled. Even the howling north wind could not drown out his gentle laughter, "You think I can't beat 'that thing'?"

Even if he didn't point his finger, the priest knew what the "thing" he was talking about was. After all, even through the curtain of wind and snow, he could still see the shadow that spanned the sky and the earth from afar. It was like the outline of a tall and skinny person, hazy and blurred like a dream. Even though it was hundreds or thousands of kilometers away, "Him" was as clear as if it was right in front of him. No one wanted to see its specific appearance. This behavior was equivalent to suicide, equivalent to throwing oneself into the abyss of madness. No one could figure out the scene that seemed to be playing with reality. After all, the scale of this short space was not worth mentioning in front of the so-called "God". "Him" was just approaching like a stroll, destroying everything along the way, flattening, blowing it down, or freezing it. This was an unconscious action that only belonged to corpses, but if "Him" was still alive, what he did would probably not change. After all, "Him" was a "God", a "superior" who would not cast a glance at anything mundane.

Even in the pitch-black night, the tall and thin shadow looked particularly dark.

What is the current situation of those shadowy countries in the north? Has the south been invaded by the territory spread by the corpses of the dark kings? These questions are unknown to Sylvester. All he knows is his mission, which is the so-called "what he should do."

"No, how could it be——"

Although he knew that the Patriarch was only joking, the priest still showed some panic due to his reverence.

"You're right. I can't defeat 'that thing' by myself."

Sylvester's expression remained calm. He knew exactly what he was saying, just as he knew what he was about to do.

"You should evacuate as well, go to the south, and do what you should do."

"Then what should you do, Your Majesty?"

"You must remember: if I abandon this place, the South will be truly hopeless. When a crisis comes, the defenders of order will always step forward, no matter if they are evil preachers or good believers. It is said that before the dawn of the Golden Age, the Devil Duke was also the vanguard against darkness.

I will hold Him back here. No matter how old I look, I can at least temporarily stop Him, and maybe even injure Him. During this time, you should unite all the forces you can, gather them under the banner of order, and fight for the living."

He was well aware of the inevitable outcome of his actions.

However, when he turned around and was about to give some more instructions, a sudden premonition made him turn his head and look to the south, towards the direction of Muirand. In the pastor's puzzled eyes, Sylvester's expression was confused at first, then turned into surprise, and finally turned into complete astonishment. He looked in astonishment at the thing that tore through the wind, snow and clouds and was approaching at high speed. It was something that was extremely familiar to him. He could feel its existence even without seeing it with his own eyes.

It was a silver sword.

It is richly decorated, with a scale-shaped guard and a pointer-like tip. It is more like a ceremonial rapier than a combat blade.

It is a sacred sword forged from the weapon of a brave warrior in the past.

It was both a "rest" and a kind of specious existence. Too much divine power shrouded it, so that it just passed through mid-air and tore through all the wind, snow and cold along the way. The coldness of the alien world, which symbolized the dark one's erosion of the world, melted and faded like real ice and snow in front of the shining divine light. The silver object seemed too sharp and too dazzling for the hazy figure in the distance, so that even though the two were more than a thousand kilometers apart, the shadow still involuntarily covered its "head" and bent its "body", as if making a silent, painful howl.

Although he had no idea of ​​the cause and effect, Sylvester immediately understood what he should do.

"Your Majesty, that is!"

"Ahh, don't remind me, I can see it."

He seemed to hear the whispers of God. Just by looking at the edge shining with divine light, he understood many things. The feeling was like revelation. God seemed to have once again gained the power to penetrate the veil between this world and the other side, giving him a mission, power, and supreme glory.

He just stretched out his hand lightly, and the hilt of the "Rest" sword automatically fell into his palm and was held by him.

All Sylvester did was to chant praises to the gods with a solemn expression on his face while swinging a sword at the shadow in the distance.

——I have also thought about my own ending, for example, sacrificing myself in the process of maintaining order.

——But now it seems that it is not time for me to leave yet.

……

"finished?"

"It's over... I guess."

Lunicia looked unsure, too.

On the contrary, as the one who asked the question, Ashlee seemed to be more confident than she was. Her attitude of having no desire to fight even made Ella put away the weapon in her hand, feeling a little overwhelmed - the battle was clearly still fierce just now, but it ended in the blink of an eye. This contrast really made her a little uncomfortable, as if the boiling blood in her body had not completely cooled down yet, and she felt like it was not completely burning.

"ended."

Galeazzo de Barbacro was much more at ease than they were.

Watching the dawn disappearing under the thick poisonous cloud, he even stretched out lazily with a relaxed look on his face, totally ignoring his bruised body and the embarrassed expression of the medic beside him. Of course, the result was that he was kicked hard in the butt by Regia.

It's over, of course everything is over, and it's over that's why they seem so relieved.

The rubble on the streets, the fractured and landslide mountains, the corpses being counted and collected, the shells and shells, the broken swords and shields, all of these were signs of what had happened here. Some people actually spent the night on this Shura-like battlefield, while others did not know what had happened until the dawn. The clergy trapped in the cathedral looked at each other, as if they could hardly accept what had happened last night.

In any case, when the poisonous cloud was dispersed by the impact of the dragon's wings, revealing the bright starry sky behind it, when the blade named "Rest" was wrapped in divine power and streaked across the northern sky like a meteor, when the scattered divine power pierced every evil spirit as accurately as a rain of arrows, when the soldiers guarding the northeast area were surprised to find that the land was returning to normal, everything was over. Anyone who was still conscious could recognize the fact that the ritual was "completed", and anyone who knew enough information could also recognize the defeat of the four major families. No matter which battlefield it was, it came to an end with this amazing change, stopping the battle that no longer had any meaning.

What can sustain bloodshed and sacrifice is faith, and when faith fails, the Imperial Guards Division will suffer a true defeat.

Destiny is such a strange thing.

If Ashlee hadn't finally realized this, who could have imagined the truth behind the so-called "ritual"?

The legendary spell "Scale of Eternity" is actually not a rootless existence that suddenly emerged from history. Rather, the prototype of "Scale of Eternity" is not only not secret, but on the contrary widely known, at least in the Muirand area. That is exactly what is played out in the last scene of "Sitzberg", "Darkest Zushes".

At the end of the adventure of "Pendulum Knight" Sitzberg, he offered the treasure "Godona's Gold" from the corpse dragon Godona, his own legs, left arm, right eye, and the legendary war hammer he used as offerings. In exchange, Rosaline, the "Ashe Witch" whose fate was cut off by the evil god Zuses, was resurrected - this is the origin of the "Scales of Eternity".

Crossing the long wind, fulfilling the distant oath, today, here, we once again calibrate the scales of justice.

"Both legs, left arm, right eye... doesn't this still involve human sacrifice?"

Ella still had some doubts. Although she was knowledgeable, she still couldn't understand things related to gods and religion. After all, she was a rare non-believer in the world.

"At first glance, one would indeed come to such a conclusion." Lunicia was not in a hurry to overturn Ella's statement, but first gave a certain degree of affirmation, and then continued: "But in fact, this is decisively different from 'human sacrifice'. First of all, it is the will of the sacrificer himself. Sidsberg did not intend to 'sacrifice his own life' because he knew that such a thing would not be accepted by the gods, and it was also meaningless... The 'left wrist', 'legs' and 'right eye' offered here are actually things that serve as 'proof of the journey'. What Sidsberg offered was not 'his own flesh and blood' in the real sense, but 'legend', 'martial arts' and 'adventure' on the religious level. What he used in exchange was the path he had walked along the way."

The reason why Shitzberg has always appeared in legends with iron legs and one arm is naturally because the gods do not need to make him lose his ability to move due to the ritual. Those are actually "compensations" made for him. In terms of ability alone, they are even stronger than his original flesh and blood body, but it feels a bit weird.

Return the gifts received from the gods back to heaven, and the gods will reward you for this selflessness - this is the meaning of the so-called "eternal scale".

"Offering a living sacrifice in exchange for the blessing of the gods" is undoubtedly the result of "someone" distorting and modifying the form and content of the ceremony. To the sages who did not fully understand the history of that year, this ritual seemed to be similar to the experience of Sitzberg. What they knew was not enough to connect it with what had happened in history, but they did need a weapon that was strong enough to deal with the crisis mentioned by "Sunlight" Jevlin.

Who carried out this misleading act and for what purpose is still unknown, but one thing is clear: the ceremony was not successful.