bookbashuk Page 264
Page 264
And Hades himself was indeed very heavy, Karas was quite certain of this, because he had once been pulled down by Hades simply by his weight.
No more.
And, Mortarian tricked Karas, I mean the lame jokes he told.
Chapter 315 The Beginning of Divine Punishment
On the twenty-first day of Cyrene's eighteenth year, the sky split open.
Fireballs rained down on the earth for seven days and nights, and a stagnant tide surged up on the earth for seven days and nights.
After that great catastrophe and the great conversion, she was called the Blessed Lady by the gray-armored angels.
From then on, Cyrene was no longer Cyrene.
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【The Perfect City】
"what is that?"
The shirtless boy selling holy oil candles on the street was the first to notice something was wrong. He squinted hard, shielding his eyes from the glaring sunlight, and looked up at the blue sky above the crowd.
There, the azure sky seemed to be trembling slightly at an abnormal degree.
The boy was puzzled, thinking he was just seeing things. How could the sky tremble? How could it shed tears like a lamb about to be slaughtered?
He had been silent for so long that the old woman bending down to choose candles at his stall stood up impatiently, holding three candles and looking displeased, as if she wanted to argue with the inattentive vendor.
But when she saw the boy's unusual gazing posture, the old woman impatiently straightened the layers of silver bracelets on her arm, guessing that some kind of wild birds were mating. She thought that boys of this age were like this, even in a holy city, their minds were full of desires.
Then she turned around—
"what!!!!"
A sharp scream suddenly rang out, crashing into the noisy street. People looked in confusion toward the source of the sound, only to see an old woman collapsing to the ground and a trembling boy gazing into the distance.
So they followed the boy's trembling gaze—
The noisy crowd instantly fell silent, as if a pause button had been pressed.
Gray tears streamed down from the sky, tears tinged with orange-red flames and tipped with dazzling blue stars.
Divine punishment has begun.
The first star crashed into the square, and blue-armored angels emerged from there.
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Extreme Warrior
Captain Ayton of the 19th Ultramarines Company, sword in hand, walked among his guards as they landed at Midnight Plaza, one of the most bustling plazas in Perfect City, according to plan.
The pungent smell of burning chemicals as the airdrop capsule landed mingled with the strong aroma of incense in the square, creating a pungent and irritating odor.
Ayton calmly suppressed the unease and anxiety in his heart, and simply followed the orders of Corps Commander Guilliman.
Only, is, as, thus.
He watched as the crowd, like newborn lambs, writhed and knelt around the airdrop pod, chanting incantations. Ayton heard them with disgust as they praised the God-Emperor and extolled His offspring.
Although this feeling of disgust could not alleviate his inner unease.
Ayton gave himself a second to calm down, then he turned on the helmet's speaker, and a crackling sound of electricity filled the air.
Following countless rehearsals, he said what he was asked to say.
[We, the soldiers of the 13th Regiment of the 47th Expeditionary Fleet, hereby exercise our authority in accordance with the tenth decree promulgated by the Emperor, which has been reviewed and approved by the Empire and is effective immediately.]
His cold, deep voice echoed in every corner. He heard whispers from the crowd; some were expectant, some were nervous, while most were simply chanting prayers meaninglessly.
He continued, making sure his voice wasn't trembling.
As punishment for your faith, the Emperor has ordered the destruction of the Perfect City. You are given three days to collect your belongings within the city. On the fourth day, the 47th Expeditionary Fleet will break down the city gates, giving you four days to evacuate.
On the seventh and final day, your planetary governor was authorized to send a psionic communication to the Seventeenth Legion as a distress call.
He finished speaking, and now, everything is silent.
The prayers ceased, as if triggered by a stress response; people froze in place, seemingly merging into the sculptures of the pilgrims.
Ayton sighed softly, the sound being converted by the speaker into a crisp electrical hum.
The next moment, insults, screams, prayers, and sobs surged towards him like a tidal wave.
People screamed and huddled together. Some tried to escape but were tripped by those on the ground—some even fainted and collapsed to the ground, mingling with those who were prostrate in prayer. Some tried to spit on them and throw stones, while others tried to stop them, and then they started fighting.
Ayton calmly reached for the slingshot at his waist, listening to the clattering of pebbles against his armor. He braced his sword against the ground with one hand, gripped the slingshot with the other, and slowly raised the muzzle—
The sunlight cast a dazzling white glaze over his gleaming blue armor.
"boom!!!"
The old and the young, the men and the women, all stopped now, staring at him in horror at the still slightly warm muzzle of the gun.
You only have seven days.
Ayton said,
No one is allowed to remain here before dawn on the seventh day; resistance will inevitably result in bloodshed.
To reiterate, resistance will inevitably involve bloodshed.
Ayton swallowed hard; he had now finished saying what he had been asked to say.
[From my personal opinion]
He said he tried to soften his voice.
[You need to recognize the facts as soon as possible and leave here on the fourth day. As soldiers of the 47th Expeditionary Fleet, we protect the legitimate demands of every lawful citizen of the Empire. As long as you obey the Emperor's orders in an orderly manner, we will not harm your personal safety.]
The crowd fell silent for a moment, then a voice shouted out.
"This is our home! Where else can we go?!"
With his keen observation skills, Ayton found the source of the voice in the crowd: a hunched old woman who seemed to be talking incessantly.
He pointed the explosive gun at her, and she trembled violently. A man who looked very much like her next to her seemed to try to shield her; he might be her son.
Resistance will inevitably result in bloodshed, madam. Now return home, pack your belongings, and depart on the fourth day.
The next moment, the bottle exploded at his feet.
Ayton sighed again, then fired a warning shot into the air, while the Ultramarines around him began to disperse the crowd.
On the horizon, the Ultramarines' drop pods continued to descend, like a rain of fire.
Ayton watched all this expressionlessly; the plan was proceeding smoothly, without even needing to activate the backup plan.
His private communication channel rang out, and the voice was calm, but for some reason, Ayton detected a hint of relief in it... a genuine calm, not a sense of oppression.
[Company Commander Aidon, 19th Company: This is Hades, Lord of the Order of Silence, inquiring about your progress.]
[Lord Hades, this is Ultramarines Aidon. The crowd has been alerted, and after a day of chaos, most people will return home.]
A static sound came from the channel.
【receive,】
They said over there,
We will operate on the night of the first day. Be sure to lock down the city and prevent suspicious individuals from leaving prematurely. If necessary, you may impose a curfew.
Ayton paused for a moment.
Lord Hades, this may be difficult...
[Haha, just a suggestion. It'll make things easier for us, but it'll probably be tougher for you. Don't worry about it, just do it your way, try to minimize bloodshed.]
The Lord of the Order of Silence's voice was unusually relaxed... This gave Ayton the illusion that he was simply carrying out an ordinary task, which perhaps slightly confused his unease.
[Good luck on your mission, Company Commander Aiton.]
As they said this on the other end of the channel, Ayton opened his mouth,
[Received. Best wishes for a successful mission, Lord Hades.]
The communication was immediately cut off.
The first paragraph where Ayton drives away the crowd, as well as the scene with the house and the bottle, are adapted and processed from the original book, *The First Menace*, taking up about 200 words. I apologize for this, as it involves plot points from the original work.
It also involves a portion of the Bible that has been adapted. If reading this part causes you any religious discomfort, it is recommended that you stop reading the religious section of The Word of the Spokesman.
Chapter 316 Followers of the Demon?
People were in a panic.
They did not understand why punishment had befallen them, why their piety had brought them calamity, or why angels unlike those described in books had descended upon this place.
Angels are supposed to be humble giants in gray armor, but instead, blue-armored figures have suddenly descended upon this place.
Whispers spread from some unknown corner, with some calling them false angels and others being more blunt, calling them fallen angels.
Cyrene hadn't heard this, or she might have used it herself. Right now, she was standing on her balcony, spitting at the soldier in his shimmering blue armor, the edges of which were inlaid with pearls, and cursing him for destroying a city loyal to the emperor.
"Tell me the truth! We are loyal to the Empire, loyal to the God-Emperor! Why then is He punishing us!"
The soldier maintaining order ignored her, as if her shouts were nothing to him. He simply warned people repeatedly not to resist and to pack their belongings.
In addition, he specifically warned people not to try to leave their homes at night.
Exhausted from her tirade, Cyrani sat panting on the balcony, staring intently at a purplish-red ray of setting sun—night was fast approaching.
Night is coming.
Cyrene suddenly had an idea. She wanted to know why, she wanted to know the truth, she wanted to know why the gods had abandoned them—or worse…betrayed them…
She would rather die from seeing the truth than cower in her home like a frightened lamb, praying that the butcher wouldn't choose her.
So Cyrene quietly left the balcony, wrapped herself tightly in her clothes, took a dagger and a copy of the Bible that she had made by hand, then opened the door and left in the chaos and the hazy light of dawn and dusk.
To avoid being seen by the soldiers, she deliberately chose secluded and hidden paths. Several times, the soldiers walked through the light at the street corners, while she hid in the city's sewers.
But after she left home, she didn't know where to go. Cyrene first went to the square along the path, where many soldiers were stationed. She could only glance at the smashed sculptures from afar. The head of a god-king was lying on the ground, quietly looking at her, as if it were shedding tears.
Night gradually fell.
Cyrani leaned against the alleyway, somewhat bewildered. Nothing was happening in the darkness—at least she hadn't observed anything. The blue-armored soldiers were acting no differently than during the day. They were still carrying heavy weapons, patrolling the streets again and again, and even had time to start checking the residents of Perfect City.
Perhaps she should go—
Cyrani's legs suddenly gave way, and she collapsed to the ground, a sense of emptiness and powerlessness suddenly enveloping her like a veil.
A feeling of nausea, like drowning, churned in her stomach. She covered her mouth tightly and curled up, hiding in the darkness of the sewer opening.
After a short while, perhaps less than a minute, the feeling quickly faded away, disappearing without a trace, leaving nothing but a slight feeling of weakness.
what is that? !
Cyrani peeked out in alarm and nervousness, gripping her dagger and silently praying for the God-King's protection.
But there was nothing in the darkness, not even the empty streets, and not a trace of anything amiss that might have been considered sacrilegious.
Cyrene suddenly realized that the blue-armored soldiers who had been patrolling the streets were gone; their monotonous and tedious shouts and footsteps had disappeared!
She felt her heart pounding. Cyrani believed she had just touched something, she had just discovered something—that feeling, that it was definitely not an illusion, and that she had never felt this way in the city of perfection she had lived in for eighteen years.
Cyrene took a deep breath. The sensation she had just experienced terrified her physically, but she still hoped to find out the truth—the fact that her homeland was about to be destroyed made her fearless.
She whispered the words of the Bible as she walked out of the alley where she had hidden. The street was deserted, except for a homeless man huddled against a wall with his head in his hands. Cyrenais stepped forward, holding a dagger, trying to ask what had just happened on the street.
The reply she received was that there was nothing on the street just now, nothing had passed by, but the homeless man also felt the same intense feeling of exhaustion that Cyrene had felt.
The homeless man gripped Cyrene's hand tightly and shook his head violently.
"Don't go there, that's a monster, a demon... The demon wants to destroy the true believers of the God-Emperor, it has deceived us."
Cyrani swallowed hard, resolutely pulling her hand away. She silently chanted the name of the God-Emperor. Now she stood there, unsure where to find the entity that had just instilled terror in them, and as if in response to her confusion—
The gentle black tide surged up again. The vagrant next to Cyrani let out a strange cry, while Cyrani leaned against the wall, desperately using her five senses to perceive. This time, the feeling of exhaustion was obviously not as intense as before. It was... it was over there!
Cyrene felt it! She stumbled and shuffled along the wall toward it, and sure enough, the sense of emptiness intensified. She felt her stomach churn. Cyrene took a deep breath and began to pray to the God-King.
...God still loves His believers. When Cyrene prayed, she was surprised to find that some of the power had returned, though it was still extremely weak.