Chapter 128 Siege Outside Northwind noise and bustle filled the air. "For the Burning Nest!" "Capture Northwind Keep!" The dark flying dragons covered the sky like surging dark clouds, and the crowded ogres and goblins covered the earth like turbid tides. The sky and land outside Beifeng Fort were occupied by their followers, and to everyone in the city, this scene seemed like the end of the world. "Oh my god." The guards standing on the city wall looked up at the sky and muttered to themselves. The dragon riders of Burning Embers flew over the city, dropping leaflets persuading it to surrender like snowflakes. The leaflets were filled with the generous treatment promised after surrender, as well as a replica of the contract with Duke Brad Rackman, to whom they were loyal, and even images of the blood slaves of North Wind Castle. Finally, there is a sentence that hurts the heart -
[Do you really want to serve a vampire until death? ] Several previously unseen bards from the School of Tale appear in the city, using their talents to mesmerize the audience. When the applause is over, the audience may find themselves questioning everything they believe in, from their faith in the clergy of the local temple to their loyalty to their monarch. What these poets describe are the dark past of the Rackman family. Before the poets could finish telling these anecdotes, they were captured by the guards or even hacked to death on the spot to serve as an example to others and to deter others. But the poets were not afraid at all, and shouted before they died: "One life in exchange for thousands of contributions, this life is worth it!" "For the Burning Nest!" For example, at this moment, a bard player with the id "Lonely as Snow" was dragged by the guards and shouted loudly: "I laugh at the sky with my sword, and my loyalty will remain in Kunlun!" Although people cannot understand the meaning of the words, they can hear the passion in the tone. He was then taken to the street and beheaded on the spot. With a swish sound, a head rolled down and blood splattered everywhere, scaring many timid people into trembling. Soon, perhaps someone deliberately induced it, or perhaps it happened naturally, some strange sounds appeared in the city. People soon came up with a terrible guess - those captured "traitors" might have really become so-called blood slaves and sacrifices to Duke Brad Rackman. When thinking about the previous devil's contract case, all this became logical. But no one dared to express such an idea, as it would only bring disaster upon themselves. They can only silently hide such speculation and fear in their hearts, but when the time is right, they will eventually explode. At the entrance of the ceremonial hall of Beifeng Fort and in Eagle Square, the panicked citizens were gathered together. Perhaps having learned the lesson from the death of Earl Dawson in a bombardment, they did not set the meeting place near the city wall. Earl Brandon, the chief military commander of Northwind Keep and the apparent highest commander, looked around. In the square under the platform, there were nobles in gorgeous clothes, soldiers in armor, beggars in ragged clothes, and farmers with patches all over their bodies. They all gathered here at the moment, their eyes full of fear and anxiety.
"His Excellency the Duke said that we must delay time at all costs." "As long as my Lord completes the great ritual, everything will be solved." "We must maximize the final value of these people." Thinking of this, Brandon spoke slowly. "Citizens, I understand your fears." "After all, the enemy you are about to face is the legendary 'Purgatory Scourge', the evil dragon that once destroyed the 30,000-strong coalition army. It may be the most terrifying, powerful, and evil monster to appear in Anzeta in the past hundred years. Even if all our armies are added together, it is very likely that we are not even a match for that monster." The crowd was in an uproar. Even though the army of the Burning Embers had besieged Northwind Keep, and even though news was flying all over the city, there were still quite a number of people who were unaware of the authenticity of the rumors. Some even used the so-called Purgatory Scourge as an excuse for the coalition generals to shirk their responsibilities. But now, everything has been revealed. "That's right. I have no intention of hiding it, and I cannot hide it. The red dragon and its evil followers have descended on Northwind Castle and besieged our entire city. But are we going to surrender and become slaves of the monster, and accept the dragon's brutal rule?" The crowd suddenly fell silent. Earl Brandon looked around and looked at a middle-aged soldier in the audience. "Soldier, yes, I am talking about you." "Please answer truthfully, do you have any children?" Seeing the Earl personally asking questions, the soldier was a little nervous, but he still answered haltingly: "Yes, it's a daughter." Brandon nodded slightly: "Very good, daughter." "But as far as I know, that red dragon is the dragon of Slaanesh, the dragon of rage. He once transformed into a ferocious humanoid form over four meters tall, wantonly bullied a beautiful girl, and then cruelly swallowed her. This is a real case witnessed by the righteous people lurking in the dark." He paused deliberately, then stared at the soldier and continued: "Think about it. When this evil dragon rules Northwind Castle, what will he do to your daughter? Can you watch your daughter suffer inhuman torture and eventually lose her life tragically? Can you bear to return home and open the door, only to find your home in a mess, with only your daughter's broken body parts and bloody remains?" "No! I can't!" As if thinking of such a horrible scene, the soldier's eyes suddenly turned red and veins bulged. Earl Brandon nodded with satisfaction, then he withdrew his gaze from the soldier and looked at a merchant. "Excuse me, do you have a wife?" "Have." It was the same routine, the same ending, but with the Count's clever rhetoric, this conversation made the speech even more inspiring. "It's almost time." Brandon thought to himself. Seeing that people were in the right mood, Brandon finally looked around, looked at everyone present, and raised his sword high. "Everyone present here, no matter what your status is, whether you are a noble, a soldier, a farmer or a merchant. At this moment, there is no noble duke, only an ordinary person. You are just a father of a child, a husband of a wife, a child of a parent, and a person who just wants to protect his or her loved ones. Then, I would like to ask everyone present here, can you allow your loved ones to be treated inhumanely and fall into the clutches of the evil dragon?" "cannot!"
"Can't! Can't!" The crowd was silent for a moment, and then there were waves of ups and downs. Among the more than 30,000 citizens of North Wind Castle, many were indeed moved by the Earl's passion, but there were also some who sneered at it and were simply swept away by the crowd. (End of this chapter)