Chapter 220: Eternal Frozen Green in the Snow and Mist
southern border of empire
Although the counter-rebellion coalition forces have already set off, after defeating Bazel who led the 'Golden Mane Bear', the soldiers of the 'Fairy Wood' have obviously gained a lot more confidence and are no longer as fearful as before.
They began to recruit more soldiers. At the same time, the rear was inspired by the victory and saw hope. They worked overtime to build weapons, armor, supplies, and everything for war.
During this gap in preparing for the war, Lorraine Hill also got a rare moment of rest.
On this day, it was raining heavily, there was a lot of noise outside the window, and it was very dark.
dong dong dong
There was a slight but regular knock on the door.
"Please come in."
Charlanlot, who was recovering from her injuries, sat on the bedside, curious about who came to visit her, but when she saw the figure coming in, she couldn't help but open her mouth in surprise.
"Jia...sister Mecia."
The person who came was none other than Lorraine Hill. She brought the prepared medicinal soup and placed it on the table. Then she sat beside Charanlot's bed and gave her an examination...
Putting down his arms, Lorraine Hill said: "It's almost healed. I'll be able to get out of bed and move around in a few days."
"Well... thank you Sister Mecia for taking care of me." Charanlot lowered her head, feeling that she had caused a lot of trouble.
"Lotti has grown up very fast and is now able to lead the army on her own."
What Lorraine Hill was talking about was that some time ago, Charan Lott led a force to resist the enemy's attack from the side and rear. Although Charan Lott herself was injured in this battle, her own casualties were reduced and she won in the end.
"I feel like I'm still a little unsteady." Charlanlot shook her head slightly. It seemed that she was still a little unsure.
"It doesn't matter, you can grow up slowly after all." In fact, compared to her peers, Xia Lanluote is already doing very well, but her starting point is very high and she has set extremely high standards for herself.
"When I was your age, let me think about it, Ge Lann and Elon were still in school in Emenas, and they didn't achieve much." Lorraine Hill thought of the other members of the four Dukes' families.
An heir.
Although Charlotte didn't answer at this time, the anxiety in her heart did dissipate a little. She raised her head and showed a reassuring smile.
"Sister Mecia brought me some medicine for me to drink, please."
"It's okay, but you must finish the drink this time and don't spit it out secretly." Lorraine Hill blinked. She recently heard from Finis that the red dragon princess was afraid of hardship and was always unwilling to take medicine.
"Ugh..." Charlanlot, who knew she couldn't escape, could only nod her head, then pinched her nose and drank the medicinal soup in one gulp.
"Bitter o(╥﹏╥)o..." After putting down the bowl, the girl lay on the bedside and didn't want to speak.
Seeing her like this, Lorraine Hill couldn't help but smile, and then touched her hair and back to comfort her a little.
After a while, Charlanlot sat up slightly, and then curiously asked Lorraine Hill various questions.
"Has Sister Mesia ever gone to school in Emenas? Can you tell me what it's like there?"
She originally wanted to go there, but unfortunately the decline of the Paskar family caused the red dragon princess to lose this opportunity.
"Emenas..." The girl touched her chin with her finger and began to recall those distant faces.
…
…
Time passed slowly, raindrops slapped on the glass windows, and the lampstand in the room exuded a hazy halo. Charlanlot supported her head and listened quietly to Lorraine Hill talking about the past events on campus, with envy flowing in her eyes.
look.
"Is the Winter Festival Gala the biggest celebration of the year?" Charlanlot asked curiously after hearing the girl talking about the year-end competition to compete for the only crown.
"Yes, the winner of the Winter Festival Gala is generally regarded as the strongest in the academy." Lorraine Hill explained softly.
"Then Mecia, uh, has Sister Jialan ever obtained it? Sister Jialan is so powerful."
"I won one of the championships, it was the year I graduated." Recalling the competition with Bu Mansha, Lorraine Hill stroked the hair beside his ear.
"That's amazing~" Charanlot applauded a little. Winning the championship in Emenas where countless talents gathered, the strength required was simply beyond her imagination.
"Actually, it's just average. There are also powerful people who can win the championship several times in a row, and even defeat many seniors in the lower grades." The girl said modestly.
The curious Xia Lanluote couldn't help but continue to ask: "So, who did Sister Jialan meet when she was at school?"
"Many, some of which I have only heard of names. For example, Elon Trey, who graduated not long before I entered school, won the championship two times in a row, leaving Weilin only runner-up for two consecutive years."
"After that, there will be a famous figure in the empire, Darcy. He is a few years older than me. After that, it should be Bumansha."
"Who is Bumansha? I seem to have never heard of her."
"She is a very gentle neighbor. The bread and snacks she makes are delicious. I will take you to visit her again if I have the opportunity in the future."
"Okay...then what other activities are there at the Winter Festival?"
"There are also various performances, which are often coordinated and organized by the 'Crown of Melody' among the ten crowns. At that time, the academy would be hung with frozen green woven ornaments, which were very beautiful."
"Frozen blue garland? We will also dress up like this this winter, but it is said to be a custom passed down from the East." Charanlot recalled the scene when sister Evitina told her stories on winter nights when she was a child.
At that time, she was also sitting by the warm fireplace, and this graceful and noble sister told her the legends of the Eastern Territory in the past.
On a snowy and foggy night, wearing a wreath of frozen blue flowers on her head, the legend of an immortal girl.
The story begins a long time ago, at the beginning of the Third Age. After the chaos and disaster, many small countries were established on the earth, and in a certain small country, something like this happened.
Because of a rebellion in the country, the queen and her children escaped from the royal capital. However, on that cold winter night, the carriage overturned in the heavy snow and they had to get off and walk.
The goose-feather heavy snow kept flying across the gloomy sky, and the cold wind on the ears cut through the cheeks like a knife, making people feel pain.
The snow under your feet made a squeaking sound when stepped into it, and then solidified. There was no other sound except the howling of the wind and snow.
The team walked hard in the snow, advancing little by little, while the wind and snow slowly and ruthlessly stripped away the warmth.
gradually
Some people began to fall behind and fell into the piled snow, never to wake up again.
The helpless people could only move on.
Holding the ungrown child in her arms, the mother prayed silently, hoping to survive this disaster safely.
You must live, my child.
She thought so silently
over and over again
In this way, she walked an unknown distance until she lost her footing and fell into the snow.
At this time, there were no followers around the mother, and the wind and snow all around covered everything, making it impossible to see the way forward or back.
Everything becomes cold and silent
In her frozen thoughts, she reluctantly opened her eyes and tried to stand up again, but her feet had already lost feeling.
The mother shed tears knowing she could not take her child out of the snow.
Then she silently hugged the child in her arms tightly.
pray over and over again
Pray that this child will survive.
In her final trance, the mother seemed to hear something and slowly raised her head.
A girl in a pure white dress stood barefoot in the snow, with a frozen blue garland on her head, looking at the mother who had reached the end of her life.
Please let this child live.
With all the remaining energy in her life, this mother made a humble request, even if she exchanged her own life for it, please let this child live.
The girl looked at her and nodded silently. Then the mother showed a reassuring smile, gradually closed her eyes, and turned into the endless snowstorm in the mountains.
Even in the coldest winter with wind and snow, the frozen green branches and leaves are still as deep green as before, showing their tenacious vitality, which makes local people think about it.
In order to pray that their children can survive the difficult winter, they will also break off the frozen green branches and leaves, weave them into garlands, and hang them in front of the door to pray.
Although the girl who responded to prayers in the wind and snow gradually became a distant and forgotten legend, the tradition of hanging frozen green branches and leaves in winter has always been passed down, and eventually it gradually became a famous custom on the mainland.
People will organize festivals in the winter when everything dies and they cannot go out to work, to summarize the year and pray for the new year. Hanging frozen green branches and leaves has gradually become a necessary part of the festival.
Sitting beside the bed with the warmth of candlelight, Lorraine Hill quietly listened to Charan Lott telling stories he heard when he was a child.
"Then later, are there any legends about that girl?"
"Later, there seemed to be very few. However, some people said that the girl wearing the frozen blue wreath was actually the child in the arms of the mother in the story, and this was also her own memory."
"However, some people refute that in such a cold wind and snow, how could the child survive if he did not meet outsiders. So the mother did see a witch standing in the snow, and under the guidance of this witch
Next, the mother's prayers turned into special protection, so that the child would not be harmed by the harsh winter."
"This longing will turn into a spell of love that will surround the child forever."
"A very poignant and touching story."
The raindrops outside the window were still falling, and under the orange candlelight, the two people in the room whispered their sighs about the characters in the story.
On the other side, the imperial capital Titiania.
In the wind and rain, the swiftly marching legionnaires broke through the obstacles on the road and approached the palace without hesitation. Fierce battles were everywhere, and the sounds of shooting and battle cries made the city under the heavy rain noisy and chaotic.
"Rush over and kill these traitors!"
The officer leading the team stepped on the wooden box, stabbed and chopped down the crossbowmen and wizards who were sniping on the roof, and then shouted to the soldiers behind him to move forward across the road checkpoint full of corpses and debris.
It is only a few hundred meters away from the palace gate.
Although the equipment and individual strength of the private troops in the city were slightly better, the legionnaires who rushed into the city clearly knew better about tactical coordination, and their discipline and will were better than those of the noble private soldiers and rebels.
Under the fierce attack, the defensive lines were broken one by one, and the destination was in sight.
Rows of soldiers in black smocks have already been waiting in front of the palace. They hold shields and form a solid wall. Their black spears and muskets are aimed at the outside. They are densely packed like hedgehogs.
Looking at the coats of arms on these soldiers' blouses, the leading officer immediately recognized their origins.
"The Kahuaiya Family's 'Sound Guard'."
The Kahuaiya family is a well-known royalist among the upper echelons of the empire. They have been trusted by the royal family for generations. Their family's motto is "Silence and fate". They are famous for keeping secrets and acting in silence, but this time they actually sided with the rebels.
"Fire!"
Unable to care about so much at this time, the officers ordered to open fire. In the rain, short bursts of musketry began to fire.
In the rain curtain, water splashed on the erected shield, but it was still not broken, and then the sound of counterattack gunfire also sounded.
The firelight flickered from the dark muzzles of the guns, and then knocked down the oncoming legionnaires into the rain.
Facing these "Silent Guards" who had already prepared strong shields and fortifications, the Dongying Legion who broke through into the city obviously lacked firepower.
After encountering the blow, the team's forward momentum was instantly suppressed, and they had to shrink behind the building at the intersection to avoid the constant shooting from the opposite side.
"Damn it." Looking around, the officers entering the city quickly discovered the disadvantage of this position.
There is an empty square in front of the palace. If they rush forward, they will have to withstand the fierce and cross firepower of the opponent. If they hide here to counterattack, not to mention delaying time, and because of the narrow intersection, they will not be able to spread out their team at all, so they will not be able to
Take advantage of numbers.
When the officer on the front line was in a dilemma, there was a rush of horse hooves in the street behind him.
A soldier on the road quickly moved out of the way to let the oncoming cavalry pass.
"Lord Severi is here!" The ecstatic shouts rang out among the soldiers, making the commander feel relieved for the time being.
"Charge with me."
After quickly observing the situation with a sweeping gaze, Severi led the people forward without stopping.
The horses' hooves stepped heavily in the rain, causing large splashes of water. The cavalry team formed a triangle and rushed out of the intersection at a shocking speed, moving forward at high speed in the rain.
Continuous gunshots rang out in the square, and then one by one the elite cavalry were knocked down from their horses. The horses slid along the rain-drenched ground and rushed in front of the densely packed array of spear points.
"Come on!"
With the heroic cover of the cavalry, the soldiers at the intersection also rushed out and began to shoot and approach continuously. Countless water splashes and blood instantly splashed on the square, and the battle entered the most anxious state from the beginning.
After sacrificing dozens of cavalry, the charging team finally approached the densely arranged black array.
Sifule took the lead, smashing through the thick military formation like a cannonball. Under its sweeping spear, the soldiers were lifted into the air, and then fell to the ground, letting out a scream of broken bones and painful wails.
In a rage, the general ignored his usual wisdom and elegance, and rampaged through the formation like a murderous god, disrupting the musketeers one by one.
After breaking through the array, the cavalry that followed brandished their sabers in the heavy rain and killed the soldiers in black smocks at high speed, opening up a road full of blood and corpses.
"Enter the palace!"
There was a loud bang, and the closed palace door was pierced by the blazing and bright red spear points, and then a ferocious gap was torn open. Then soldiers filed in one by one and fought with the private soldiers of the nobles who stayed behind.
During the heavy rain, thick smoke and flames floated in the imperial capital, and the entire city began to fall into chaos and disorder.