From the map, the Bis continent is divided into two pieces of almost equal area by a thin line. And this line, which seems to be nothing surprising, has extraordinary significance. Everyone knows its importance. It is a god.
It is a line designated by both gods and demons that ordinary people can never cross - the dividing line between gods and demons.
For tens of thousands of years, separated by this dividing line between gods and demons that is more than 9,000 miles long and more than 500 miles wide on average, the Demonic Alliance and the Divine Alliance have been facing each other like two tigers and leopards that hate each other. Every twenty years
When a war between gods and demons comes, the dozens of empires under them, as well as the billions of people, will gather together for their own beliefs, arm themselves with metal, and pounce on each other to bite each other...
…
Then, blood flowed into rivers and corpses piled up like mountains.
Then, everyone cleans up the battlefield, goes back to recuperate and look forward to the next war. This is very gentlemanly, isn't it? And people on both sides believe that they can definitely hit the other side's lair next time. They didn't succeed this time just because they were still
Just not working hard enough.
If you put aside the war...whatever, there is no war now anyway. Then everyone's attention can be completely focused on other things, such as life. Just like the people of the Divine Alliance, the people of the Demon Alliance will also know how to do it.
of life.
In all the empires of the Demon Alliance, all people believe in the Dark Demons. The Dark Demons mentioned here are a special title, specifically referring to a very high-status race that they believe in and living on Hell Island, the Dark Demon King.
Nor does it refer to someone from the dark province of a certain empire in the Divine Alliance...
Like the Divine Alliance, religious facilities have also been set up in every city in the Demon Alliance. Countless demon temples, large and small, are woven into a tight network to manage and guide people's thoughts. Although temples and demon temples
They all accuse each other of copying their own management methods, but in fact no one knows who is copying whom.
It’s no wonder that religious management is inherently complementary. As long as it can effectively manage the people, who cares about plagiarizing its rivals? Anyway, the priests rely on their talk to make ends meet, so it’s easy to find a reason to distance yourself from them.
Because of the striking similarities in management organization and personnel structure, the priests of the Demon Alliance felt that they should be different from each other, so they began to make a fuss about the color. The top managers of the Demon Palace were three golden-robed priests.
Wearing a golden robe; underneath is the high priest of the Secretariat, who wears a black robe with a golden waistcoat and belt; the high priests of the Demon Palace in various countries only have a golden belt in addition to the black robe... and the errand priests below can only wear a golden waistband on their lapels.
Sew on some gold thread.
Black has become a noble color, and can only be used by people with high status. They are the royal family, nobles, military officers, as well as magicians and warriors under the jurisdiction of the Demon Palace... Of course, assassins who have not registered with the Demon Palace wear black
The phenomenon of wearing night clothes is very common, but this behavior is obviously illegal.
Except for people with special hobbies, almost no one wears white clothes. Even if they do, they will avoid pure white and silver-white clothes, which are favored by some nobles.
The people under the alliance belong to dozens of races, ranging from the most numerous human race to the extremely rare Warcraft race. However, unlike the habits of the God Alliance, the Demon Alliance gives preferential treatment to aliens who can fight. Many alien races have their own fixed
The residential areas also have their own lords and demon temples, which do not often appear in human cities.
There are many ethnic groups, and there are many customs, so wars caused by different customs are often staged. Later, the Demon Palace did not prohibit any foreign living habits. As long as people did not make trouble, they could do whatever they wanted, so the Demon Palace
There are many strange phenomena in various regions in the alliance, and they have gradually developed into a culture with very local characteristics.
There are eleven empires under the Demon Alliance, and there are four empires close to the dividing line between gods and demons, namely the Camp Empire, the Wells Empire, the Trafa Empire, and the Tulan Empire. These four empires form a strict
The defense line has resisted the crazy attacks of the Divine Alliance in previous wars.
War has to pay a price, and coupled with the lack of good management, the populations of these four empires have always been relatively small and the flow of movement is also large.
In the latest war between gods and demons, these four empires were all attacked by the allied forces of gods to varying degrees. Among them, the Camp Empire suffered the most serious disaster. The entire country almost collapsed in half, and even the number of the royal family was halved, and the nobles were even more
There were only a few left, and if the Demon Palace had not exempted them from paying tribute later, the emperor of the Camp Empire would have cried to death on his throne.
The situation of the Wells Empire was not much better. First of all, the population dropped sharply. Of course, it was not as severe as the Camp Empire, but the two legions it sent were completely wiped out. These two hundred thousand soldiers and hundreds of thousands of civilians died, and the empire
There was a severe shortage of mature men, so a large number of slaves had to be purchased from elsewhere.
Because the Demon Palace had formulated a series of lenient policies for these two empires, poor people and down-and-out nobles from other empires in the alliance began to pour in in large numbers. Everyone was busy enclosing land, grabbing mines, and seizing titles, causing chaos every day.
In comparison, the situation of the Trafa Empire and the Tulan Empire was much better. Although they also suffered from the trauma of the war, their muscles and bones were not broken and they could still hold on.
The Trafa Empire is located in the middle of the dividing line between gods and demons. In the middle of the country, there are mountains that cross the entire territory to provide military protection. The climate is relatively hot, there are many plains, many rivers, and agriculture is developed. The population is moderate but the number of races is large, so the Demon Palace has
The number is correspondingly larger. The royal family of this generation is considered competent, the aristocracy is relatively stable, and the state affairs will naturally be stable.
Several other empires suffered smaller losses in the war because of their lower positions. They had large populations and rich products, and the sacrifice of soldiers was not a big deal, and the situation basically remained stable.
After the war, all the chaos caused by the war gradually subsided, and it seemed that there was nothing worth mentioning. But some people did not want this stable situation to continue, so in the first year after the war, a large-scale
The assassinations began to spread again...
If you check historical records, you will find that in the first one or two years after each war between gods and demons, such assassination activities abounded in both alliances. The more countries retained their strength in the war, the more people on their land
Assassinations become more and more rampant.
There are three main types of targets to be assassinated: elite military officers, prominent nobles, and promising members of the royal family. Ordinary civilian assassins simply don't care.
Assassins seem to have a penchant for ignoring death, and their methods are very clever. They rarely have a chance to catch someone alive, and naturally it is impossible to find out who ordered them. However, scholars from all over the world attribute this to the interests of the empire or the family after the war.
Triggered by the redistribution of interests. This statement may be correct, because this kind of assassin is not something ordinary people can afford, and even rich people may not be able to call it.
When analyzed specifically, the situation is much more complicated. Even though they are in an alliance, even in the same empire, or even in the same family, there are many people who hate each other. Of course, the enemy did not die during the war, so take advantage of the situation.
This chaotic post-war period is the perfect time to start.
Competitions between empires, disputes between noble families, and even the inheritance of property titles between brothers can all be resolved in this way - it is a convenient and quick way to save his life.
In fact, on this point, the gangsters put it clearly: Since we can't reach an agreement with the other party, we can find a way to negotiate with someone else.
Assassination can not only allow the opponent to replace people, but also disrupt the opponent's strategic arrangements, stop the opponent's development momentum, buy time and gain an advantage for one's own side, so many people enjoy it.
The royal family purges their subordinates and officials who are the leaders of hostile countries; the nobles purge their internal affairs, and some even dare to purge their bosses...
If it were just an imperial dispute and a family dispute, the scale of the assassination operation could not be so large. There should be larger forces involved. But on this continent of Bis, how many forces are larger than the empire?
There were people who knew the inside story, but no one revealed it. The smarter nobles offered a lot of gold coins to the Demon Palace and hid with their families in the Demon Palace to avoid the limelight.
All of this seems like someone is deliberately manipulating it. The undercurrent is slowly approaching, and misfortune is slowly coming. The fate of the common people or nobles has already been arranged.
Demon Alliance, Brooke Empire, capital Foxburg.
At the end of the War between Gods and Demons, Major General Swice Hepburn was relieved of his military duties by the Demon Alliance and became idle at home. After the war, several princes gradually started activities to compete for a certain seat. As a future important minister of the empire, he
He was dismissed from his official position by the emperor, thus entering the period of hiding in advance.
Although this famous young noble had always liked peace and quiet, suddenly having nothing to do overnight made him feel uncomfortable, or rather worried.
As a member of the royal family, he certainly knows that the abilities of the several princes are all about the same, and no one can eat the others in one bite. Each of them has a lot of gang members, but driven by huge interests, they will all hang their heads.
The brain is trying to push its master into the fire pit, and no one will persuade the master to stay calm or withdraw from the competition.
If no one among the princes can establish victory in a short period of time, it will inevitably involve more officials and the situation will become increasingly chaotic.
Although the army is under the strict control of the emperor and does not participate in this kind of competition, the personal guards of several princes can be regarded as very tormenting. Although the princes can announce their withdrawal in advance, in order to gain the favor of the old man and obtain the identity of the heir,
They will definitely give their best.
As long as there are more than two heirs in each generation, this kind of competition will be repeated. Each prince will be driven out of the capital when he is young and go to his own fief to make his own way. His staff, mentors, and subordinate officials will all have their own
Go find him and come back to the capital to seize the throne after you reach adulthood.
The victorious party will naturally be prosperous and wealthy, while the losing parties will all be purged from top to bottom, leaving no one behind. Similarly, any senior official in the imperial court must choose a party to join, and live and die together.
Although cruel and barbaric, this kind of competition is tacitly allowed, and it is also one of the reasons why the Bruck Empire remains strong and lasting.
But indispensable talents like Svees Hepburn will not participate. They are the empire's most valuable assets and future pillars. The emperor has ordered them all to travel abroad during the struggle for heirs to avoid this devouring process.
The whirlpool of everything.
Duke Sweeney Hepburn's travel plan has been arranged and his luggage is almost packed. He will leave in a few days. This morning, he went to the chapel to pick up his mother as usual.
As a member of the royal family, under the current situation, he was naturally worried. Especially when he thought that any damage caused in the fight for the throne would have to be made up for in the future, Duke Hepburn felt even heavier.
He is not a person who likes to immerse himself in government affairs, and his interest is not in power. With the noble status of a duke, he will have enough food and clothing in his life even if he does nothing. All he wants to do is to belong to
It's just my own responsibility... It has nothing to do with hobbies, and it has nothing to do with ideals.
Foxborough is beautiful in the summer, especially walking on the stone road leading to the chapel.
The flowers on the roadside are spewing their elegant fragrance into the air. The towering trees on both sides are lush and green. There is a little mist on the road. The summer morning sun shines through the dense leaves and casts dots on the blue stone slabs.
Duke Hepburn likes to walk this road, likes to let those finger-sized spots of light stay on his black dress, and even likes the feeling of the cool morning dew moistening the instep. However, he himself does not feel that walking on these golden slopes
Among the thin light pillars, his slightly thin back looked so lonely...
Standing on the steps at the end of the path, Duke Hepburn could clearly hear his mother's devout prayers.
"Mercy, the great Dark Lord, guide and dominate our Dark Lord." Duke Hepburn walked lightly, walked to his mother's side, slowly knelt down, and joined the prayer procession: "Our enthusiasm, our honor, our faith,
It's all just for you, all of this was originally yours..."
"Pray with gratitude." His mother lowered her eyebrows and warned him softly: "Don't bring those worldly thoughts into the chapel."
"The Dark Lord will forgive me, because I am his most sincere subject." Duke Hepburn smiled and helped his mother up: "These worldly thoughts are closely related to more people."
"I hope so, I thought you were still thinking about what happened during the war." The noble prince's wife straightened her skirt, took her son's hand and walked out: "We are about to start traveling, what are your plans for the next few days?
"
"Ah! At least there are a few friends in Foxborough who need to visit, otherwise it would be too rude." Duke Hepburn thought for a while: "Then I went to Sunset Plains to visit the Viscount Gironde. He sent several letters of invitation."
"Other mothers must be full of expectations for their sons at this age to visit famous ladies from aristocratic families, but when can I look forward to it? When can you choose one of these ladies and go beyond the relationship of friends?"
"Let it be! In fact, we get along very well." Duke Hepburn blushed slightly: "I prefer to treat them as sisters."
"I still can't convince you? Noble marriage is part of the contribution to the family. Letting you make your own choice is already letting you go."
"Mother, my travels lasted for two years. I think I will definitely have the opportunity to meet more ladies. There may be suitable candidates among them. I promise I will pay attention." Duke Hepburn replied seriously: "
But currently there is no suitable candidate in the Foxborough family, and I know these wayward little sisters too well."
"Oh? How are they?"
"To put it simply, they pay more attention to a luxurious dress than their husbands, and spend more time dressing themselves up instead of caring about their families. Moreover, at ladies' gatherings, a frequently circulated topic is marriage.
How to pretend to have a headache in order to refuse your husband’s request for pleasure..."
"Oh God! Please give me a compassionate heart and forgive these guilty people." The prince's wife stopped and patted her chest: "What kind of girls are they? Do you also participate in this kind of discussion?
"
"I won't participate. In fact, I would rather help them solve some technical problems. For example, migraines are not worse than chest tightness. If you roll with your head in your hands, your husband will most likely be sent to the Demon Palace for treatment..."
"When you said that, I remembered that at the last inner court dance, one of your many friends rode naked through the garden..." The prince's wife turned to look at her son: "What do you think about this?
Did you know beforehand?”
"I know, it was a bet she made with a sister." Duke Hepburn answered honestly: "I was worried that she would be stabbed by dirty eyes, so I helped her choose a unique saddle and used her long hair to
It covered important parts of her body...I heard that His Majesty the Emperor laughed very happily when he found out!"
"Besides smiling, what else can His Majesty express? Can he catch this wild girl and chop off her head?" The princess sighed and finally relaxed: "Okay! I also think now that you don't have a choice in Foxborough.
The wife is right."
"I'm glad you understand this. Now I feel a lot more relaxed." After achieving his goal, Duke Hepburn was in a good mood: "Send you to the carriage? I still have some things to deal with."
"Okay." Mrs. Prince asked again: "But I'm curious, why don't you try to socialize with the nobles? Wouldn't it be great to ride horses and play ball?"
"Having official business dealings with them has already made me very depressed. Do you think any of them has many faults? And they are all unforgivable faults."
"If you get in touch more, you can always find people with merit, right?" In order for her only son to have a normal social circle, the prince's wife is still trying to persuade: "Everyone is guilty, and everyone is committing crimes against each other."
Same mistake, but the great Dark Lord will redeem us, and you must learn to forgive."
"Of course I know that people actually grow up in sin, and I also know the value of forgiveness. But oil and water will not fuse. Even if you drop oil into water, they will not fuse."
"You stubborn child..."
After finally putting his mother on the carriage, Duke Hepburn let out a long breath. Although his mother's nagging was not annoying to him, it still put a certain amount of pressure on his heart.
After getting on his carriage, Duke Hepburn looked through his itinerary for the next two years. The planned places were densely written on several pages. He took out a pen and deleted the places to stay according to his own preferences.
Duke Hepburn's carriage turned a few corners and was about to drive onto the street outside, but suddenly it shook with a loud noise, one wheel fell off, and the carriage leaned against the corner, scraping against the wall with a strange sound.
As a major general, Duke Hepburn's first reaction was - this is not an accident, this is an assassin's attack!
Sure enough, a burst of crossbow arrows came like a dense rain, and some arrows actually penetrated the iron-plated carriage wall. The guards outside roared, and the sound of weapons clashing was heard.
A hand was knocking on the car window, and the guard with his face covered in blood shouted: "Your Majesty the Duke - run away!"
Duke Hepburn shook his head, carefully folded the things in his hands and put them away, and then picked up the sword that was placed aside.
For Swiss Hepburn, who was accustomed to being assassinated, such a situation did not disorient him. He opened the small door on the roof of the car without any haste and stood up. In Hepburn's impression, his
The guards are all warriors who have experienced many battles, and ordinary assassins should not even think about getting close.
But the current situation was not too good. His guards were trying their best to resist the assassins near the carriage. Many people had fallen down and it looked like they were struggling. Duke Hepburn was a little surprised and quickly looked outside and saw his mother's carriage.
I felt relieved when I wasn't nearby.
A vague light curtain near the top of his head caught his attention. It was a magic barrier that blocked the transmission of sound. Although it was not a very advanced magic, it could make colors almost transparent. This was a rare achievement among magicians.
high.
Duke Hepburn used the scabbard to knock away an incoming crossbow arrow, and the long sword he drew out was buried in the chest of an assassin.
In terms of martial arts, the assassins were good, and their numbers were enough to assassinate a duke, but they made two miscalculations.
First, although Swath Hepburn was a handsome aristocratic man, he was not a soft-footed shrimp. He was very good at martial arts and magic.
Second, although this small chapel is inconspicuous, it is the place where the Duke’s mother comes every morning. The Duke has secretly placed a large number of guards here - if you dare to assassinate on the royal family’s territory, any of the above mistakes will be fatal.
of.
Not long after, the guards who came after hearing the news joined the fight. All the assassins fell in a pool of blood, and no one of the fifteen escaped. In the end, the magician among the assassins was captured alive. In order to prevent him from committing suicide, the guards first used magic to kill him.
He was paralyzed, then all his teeth were knocked out, all his nails were picked out, his clothes were stripped off, and he was dragged before the Duke.
"Can you tell me who asked you to come?" Swiss Hepburn wiped the blood on the sword with a silk handkerchief, and asked slowly: "Let yourself be an honest person!"
"Ha... so beautiful..." The toothless magician smiled, and the blood on his face made Duke Hepburn feel disgusted.
"In the name of the Dark Lord, I declare you guilty." He had no hope of the assassin's confession and signaled to the guard: "Go and execute."
"Yes, Your Excellency!" The guard dragged the assassin away.
Looking at the messy scene around him, the Duke couldn't help but frown and fell into deep thought.
After his father died to protect the emperor, many people in the empire had their thoughts on Hepburn and her son. Even though they were royal relatives, because of the mother's appearance, the marriage proposers with ill intentions still squeezed through the door. Even
It was useless to hide in the country. Before he was fourteen years old, Swiss Hepburn was already used to having a dagger hidden on his body. He would stand behind his mother when she met guests, and her mother also had a dagger hidden on her body...
Since inheriting the title, he has encountered countless assassinations against him. It seems that he has become someone's enemy from the moment he was born into the world... However, the more he is afraid of trouble, the less he wants to be.
Focus, the more reality does not follow his will. What is more troublesome than the assassination is that as a man, he is more beautiful than all the princesses in the demon kingdom!
Is this a trick of fate? Swiss Hepburn didn't know. He was only in his early twenties. He was already tired of his life. If it weren't for his mother, the emperor, and the instructions of the allied marshal, he would even want to do it just now
Give the assassin a chance.
"Your Majesty the Duke." The leader of the guard trotted over and stood five steps away: "We have taken care of it. The carriage will be here soon. Where do you want to go first?"
"In your opinion, who sent these people?" Duke Hepburn asked with his hands behind his back.
"There is nothing on them that can provide clues. Their clothes, weapons, etc. are all produced in this country." The skinny guard leader lowered his head slightly and replied: "However, our magician said that the magic used by the other party is rather weird...
"
Swiss Hepburn raised his head slightly: "Weird?"
"Yes, it's not like our demonic magic." The leader of the guard nodded: "Everyone used normal means to defend at first, but many people were injured."
"How much hurt?"
"Nineteen dead, twenty-seven injured."
"Rare casualties." Hepburn sighed: "In your opinion, what level does the opponent's combat power reach?"
"It's about the level of a mid-level poisonous scorpion warrior. Of course, if you change the standard, it's a low-level light knight..."
A new carriage was parked on the street, almost identical to the previous one.
"I know, forget about this!" Swiss Hepburn walked towards the street: "Appease the families of the dead and injured, and don't tell my mother what happened today."