NOVPUB"..."
Lanci felt that this woman named Gloria did not seem to be an enemy.
She didn’t carry strong malice towards him, but rather a more complex mixture of emotions, perhaps jealousy, doubt, defiance, but not hostility.
Lanci quickly understood that she was likely a direct subordinate lurking within the Protoss Royal Academy.
She was also one of their Hegemony Branch members.
His authority was higher, and with the [Certificate of the Saint-Hegemony], he could subtly sense anyone bearing the [Certificate of Rebirth-Hegemony].
But she seemed to be a bit unhappy.
Lanci could only offer a wistful smile in response, expressing his friendly intent.
His emerald-colored eyes, free from any flaws, his expression carrying a slight mournfulness and concern.
"...!"
This caused Gloria to tightly clench her fists, the veins on the back of her hand visibly bulging.
To her, Lanci’s expression at this moment seemed to say: Sikder, she is fond of me, there’s nothing I can do about it.
Gloria forcefully suppressed the throbbing veins on her forehead, turning her head away, no longer maintaining eye contact with Lanci.
She longed to punch this arrogant man!!
He hadn’t said a word, but it felt much worse than having been outright called stupid.
How could the Bishop of Hegemony pick someone like this!!
This bastard didn’t resemble a member of their Hegemony Branch at all, but instead seemed more like the Nirvana Branch people. If he accidentally happened to be a Sealer, then he would make a strong competitor for the Saint of Nirvana.
Gloria didn’t plan on having any further conversation with this Saint of Hegemony.
He did indeed hold a favored position, and she could do nothing about it.
Today, she had followed this Saint of Hegemony here just to see what made him special!
As the two no longer engaged in conversation, the students who had gradually entered the classroom took their seats individually, hardly any chatter was heard, the faint noises emanating from the desks and thick books echoed throughout the classroom.
Every corner of the history classroom was bathed in the faint white light of a winter morning, the historical maps and timelines on the room’s walls swaying gently in the breeze. The ivy and leaves outside the window fluttered in the wind, occasionally casting a shifting play of shadow and light on the glass.
Footsteps increased, the shadows outside the window becoming busier.
The classroom was still shrouded in a cold quietness.
It wasn’t until the clock pointed to the hour, indicating the start of the lessons, that all the students consciously quieted down, as they awaited the commencement of lectures.
By the door, a string of steady, quick footsteps resounded.
The door slowly opened, and a figure emerged in the classroom, his silhouette framed by the light.
A young man who stood around one meter eighty-five tall, he had medium-length hair that was as black as ink, occasionally covering his deep, star-like eyes, a slight melancholic sadness present within them, as if the mysteries of the universe were hidden inside. He was clad in a black long coat, projecting a sense of unconstraint.
His face was handsome but slightly pale, it was obvious that he was not getting enough sleep.
This was the lecturer of the class, Associate Professor Xido Allendale from the history department of the Protoss Royal Academy.
"Alright students, even though I prefer to keep interactive communication with students in most history classes, I hope I can finish this ’Modern History of the Empire’ course uninterrupted, please don’t disrupt too frequently. Of course, questions are still welcome but I may not answer them, is that okay?"
Xido’s voice was not deep, but rather light and casual.
Regarding Xido’s upfront declaration of abdication, the students did not express any opinion, but instead responded with silence.
They all knew why Associate Professor Xido would say this.
The Protoss Empire presently was at the crux of a storm, currently, there was a prevailing ideology of Wilfordism----
Once given the opportunity, they first identify you as "incorrect in position" and then demand you to prove yourself. If the self-proof is not convincing, they would rather wrongfully accuse than to give up.
This ideology faced a lot of opposition as well as admiration.
And the recent history of the empire, which involved the recent history of the Northern Continent, had a closely related cause-and-effect relationship with the current situation of the empire. Every time Xido talked about the holy war, the current situation, the cause and connection, students could flare up, arguing until the class could not proceed, and even questioning Xido’s position.
Xido asked the academy for an assistant, but there was no suitable candidate to help him maintain discipline in the classroom.
After all, there were many children of great nobles in the Protoss Royal Academy, anyone sane would neither want nor dare to offend them.
Xido placed his yellowish, hardcover book on the lectern, and switched on the magic projection behind him.
At first, he didn’t say anything, but just played a video.
As dusk falls, the bright clouds are covered by thick black clouds, casting an ominous shadow across the entire sky.
From a distance, something was slowly looming - upon closer inspection, it seemed to be numerous figures clad in black heavy armor. They were not humans, but a horde of hideous demons. Deep scars were etched onto every demon, their eyes ablaze with frenzied flames, savage as though they had climbed out from hell itself.
Once this troop arrived, everything changed.
The sky became choked with heavy crimson mist, appearing to stare at the earth like an imminent demonic eye.
It was once a peaceful little town, but now it turned into a slaughterhouse of death. The remnants of the gunfire and warfare flickered amongst the ruins and scattered remains. Blood traces were now dried with dark red imprints. The air that was filled with the stench of blood was more nauseating than any putrefaction.
This land was cursed, transformed into a place indistinguishable from hell. Each inch of the air was filled with suffocating fear, until any semblance of life was entirely extinguished.
All that remained were mountains of corpses with faces twisted in agony, terror, and despair.
The faint red figures, like specters, streaked about through every corner of the town, carrying with them torn flesh and acute thirst.
"This footage didn’t happen a hundred years ago, it was just a year ago. It is suspected that the ghosts of the Demon King’s Special Slaughter Troops have returned," Xido gestured towards the flickering images behind him, as he spoke with a drawl.
Citizens from the north were frightened.
Even those yearning for the protection of the Bishop of Nirvana didn’t want to face such ruthless demons.
Other Northern Kingdoms didn’t accept that these demons originated from their own lands.
However, even if these demons were to come from deep within the Calamity Servitude, the dreaded territories of extreme north, they would still need to pass through these northern countries and acquire a stronghold.
Eventually, more and more evidence and accusations started pointing to the irregularities of the Aestheland Kingdom.
Investigation reports indicated that border towns near the Aestheland Kingdom had a remarkably high number of missing citizens annually.
From the universal self-warning of the northern populace, the mood of panic gradually infiltrated the imperial city, choosing to deport the deep-rooted Church of the Goddess of Destiny from Aestheland Kingdom, welcoming the Rebirth Church instead. Such events were not in line with the sinister plot of Rebirth Church because Northern Continent’s few bishops and different branches were profoundly antagonistic and were unable to ally, even needing to compete for obtaining a decision from the ruling members of the empire.
"Looking at it now, a conflict between the Protoss Empire and the Aestheland Kingdom seems unavoidable. The other Northern Kingdoms will not stand by while the Aestheland Kingdom gets swallowed by the Protoss Empire. Either way, this is a..."
Xido’s words stopped there, not continuing further.
This would be a terrible war with no winners.
However, this war was simply a matter of course, in line with the foundation and trend of the Protoss Empire’s century-long history. War with different races was inevitable.
Even without this opportunity, there would have been other triggering points for the outbreak of war.
Perhaps there were many students in the classroom with their own thoughts, such as questioning the cause of the war, whether the evidence including this footage was genuine, and whether there were further conspiracies behind this battle.
However, every clear-headed person would not voice these questions in public, fearing it may be seen as having a severe anti-war stance.
"....."
Seated at the end of the class, Lanci stared thoughtfully at the images of the Demon King’s forces displayed on the screen.
In the main flow of the game, which was about a year later, the Northern Continent was going to be plunged into a prolonged war.
The cause was just as Xido described.
Actually, there was no problem.
From Lanci’s perspective, the only inconsistency was the number of provinces.
After Lanci arrived at the Northern Continent, he repeatedly confirmed that the Protoss Empire currently had 17 provinces.
But a year later, the territories of the Protoss Empire had altered, and it just had 15 provinces left domestically.
Checking the map again, Lanci found out that two provinces from the north had vanished without a trace.
That is to say, nobody knew what would happen in the war to come, and what kind of unknown catastrophe was about to happen in north provinces.
To cause such damage was beyond the power of the disaster triggered by the failure of the Eighth-order Shadow World, and too minor for the disaster triggered by the failure of the Nineth-order Shadow World. It didn’t seem like the disaster was caused naturally.
"What’s with the face?"
Gloria, a soldier directly under the Bishop of Hegemony, asked Lanci curiously.
She noticed that the usually amiable Lanci was furrowing his brows.
Could it be that the revered Saint of Hegemony was scared by these demons?
"I feel like these guys are not demons." Lanci propped his chin in his hands, murmuring in confusion.
Compared to the Ichrite Triad he had trained in the Purgatory Corridor Academy with the standard teaching methods, this troop was somewhat lacking.
