stonecrandall Page 223
Page 223
Like Annie, it didn't feel real to them.
In their eyes, she was just a lively, ordinary girl.
Annie turned to Annie and asked, "Annie, when will Her Highness the Saintess come out?"
The crowd below was so noisy that Annie's voice was almost drowned out.
“It won’t be long,” Annie said.
Before the crowd arrived, the hero's family members had already arrived and reached the area closest to the podium.
Everyone is registered, and only designated family members of the heroes can enter the designated area, so there is no need to worry about people coming to reserve the space in advance.
Ultimately, this speech was for the families of the heroes, and had little to do with the general public.
So when people arrive and the time comes, the speech will begin; it's not like they're specifically waiting for people to gather.
"Thump thump thump, thump thump, thump thump thump thump—"
Suddenly, rhythmic drumming sounded from all directions of the square. It must have been due to the use of some special magical artifact, or perhaps some hero was assisting.
The loud drumbeats drowned out the voices, so they weren't deafening, but they quickly quieted the crowd down.
"The ceremony begins—!!"
A loud male voice echoed across the square, and to the rhythmic beat of drums, female believers dressed in long white and gold gowns walked onto the stage and began to dance.
Their clothes all had loose tops and sleeves, and apart from their faces, almost no skin was exposed. The dances they performed also had almost no large leg movements, so they didn't seem vulgar.
This is a sacred dance of thanksgiving, a symbolic expression of gratitude to God.
After the female believers finished their dance, the male believers took the stage.
They were still dancing, but they were wearing white combat suits that were very similar to those of the heroes, and their dance movements were no longer as elegant as before, but rather a powerful war dance.
It's a very entertaining set of boxing techniques, but its practicality in actual combat is another matter.
After the war dance ended, a man and a woman went on stage and began to exaggerate the saintess's achievements.
From pleading for divine help to attacking the demons, the story unfolds in a series of dramatic and thrilling events, captivating the hearts of everyone present.
Only An Yi and the other two knew that it wasn't actually that exaggerated; the claims were a bit of a gross overstatement.
and……
The appearances of the Thorn Hero seem rather infrequent.
The impression he gives is that he took a blow for the saintess during the battle against the goblin centurion, which led to the saintess's transformation and the formation of the Hero Alliance.
Apart from that, there is almost no other record of this person.
The plot involving Layton was also drastically altered.
Most of the time, it was his grand pronouncements that inspired everyone; at this point, almost everything he said came from Lycorina.
Aside from the part about "how a real man should behave".
Thus, the saint was portrayed as a positive and inspiring figure, always leading everyone forward, while Layton was more like a brute who constantly talked about "men, men."
Fortunately, at least most of the time he was a brave figure who stood at the forefront.
There are quite a few changes to An Yi in the story, but overall he is still portrayed as a mentor-like figure.
Just like his title of "Sword Hero," in the story he is like a sword, straight and without hesitation conquering the demon race.
In the story, he often guides the saintess, stepping forward to help her when she is lost and troubled. He provides her with considerable assistance, both in combat and as a mentor in life.
So the whole story is about the saint's growth process, her interactions with all sorts of people in thrilling battles, her losses, her learning, her growth, and finally, her transformation into the world's top hero.
Simply put, it was to set the stage for Lycorina's upcoming speech.
First, we need to establish her authority in front of the heroes' families so that she can better give them confidence.
If there's no buildup whatsoever, and all they do is put Lycorina on the stage and say, "I'm going to protect everyone," then...
Who is she messing with?
She only has the title of saintess; her words carry little weight.
But after the groundwork was laid, her importance increased!
End of story.
"please--
"Your Highness, please ascend the stage!"
"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh--!!!"
The moment the story ended was the moment when the crowd was in high spirits, and Lycorina took the opportunity to go on stage, which immediately raised the atmosphere to its highest point!
The cheers from the crowd surged forth like a tsunami!
Chapter 204 The Death of the Steel Hero
Amid the crowd's high spirits, Lycorina slowly walked up from below the podium.
The sun was shining brightly, and in the eyes of the crowd, Lycorina's hair was dyed golden by the sunlight, making her indescribably noble and sacred, turning everyone's originally fervent gazes into piety.
Walking along the sun-drenched road, Lycorina finally reached the lectern under the awning.
And her hair color, in full view of everyone, returned to its usual silver-white from the bright gold tinged by the sun.
“Wow——!!”
As the hair color changed before their eyes, the crowd gasped in amazement once again.
While it can't be called a miracle, it is still incredibly amazing!
In fact, this was a "show effect" deliberately created by the Church through Lycorina.
Lycorina rarely uses light-attribute skills in battle, but one of them involves changing color by altering the light source.
Seeing the public's reaction, Lycorina understood why the believers had made her do this. ＝＃＞￠
This is also a "surprise" for the public.
Lycorina stood on the stage, looking around at the sea of people that almost completely filled her vision, and bowed slightly: "Dear people loved by God, thank you for being here."
I am the Holy Hero, the Holy Maiden of the Aldrich Theocracy;
Lycorina Aldrich.
Now, three months have passed since the gods summoned tens of thousands of heroes, and the campaign against the demons is in full swing like never before…
……
Three months have passed, and the heroes are still unaware that the destruction of the Goblin Empire's fortress three months ago has been brewing ever since.
Goblins, which were originally considered beginner monsters, have become increasingly troublesome, and there have even been cases of novice heroes losing their lives in the process of exterminating goblins.
The local believers also suddenly realized—
Goblins are learning how to fight and kill human heroes!
They set traps, they acted as bait, they lay in ambush, and they used unexpected attacks on the rookie heroes.
Moreover, in order to reclaim their "fortress," they even began to deploy level 5 demons, the [Goblin Centurion], to protect the forest.
The Goblin Empire is a unified entity, unlike the Demon Lords who operate independently. Therefore, if their territory is taken away, they will do everything in their power to reclaim it.
It seems that if even the goblin centurion can't hold out, they'll definitely unleash even more advanced demons! —II.
Goblins of level 6 or higher!
At that time, only the Saintess Squad and the Silver Moon Fortress Squad will be able to reliably carry out the expedition.
"Why did you urgently call me back? It's not about the goblins again, is it?"
In the Hero Alliance, the Staff Hero Dus scratches his head with a helpless expression.
Along with him were three second-generation heroes, who held the same rank as his deceased teammates.
After three months of fighting, Duss has now reached level 30 or above and has brought his three second-generation teammates to level 20 or above.
Although his leveling up seemed slow, Dus spent a long time struggling with his thoughts and only returned to the battle after recuperating.
Because they had to lead their teammates to fight against lower-level demons, and also because they accepted requests from ordinary people, it took a lot of time.
The alliance suggested that the heroes accept the people's commission, saying that they should not only fight against the demons, but also help ordinary people as much as possible.
Only through interaction with people can one gain a deeper understanding of the kind of world one needs to protect.
It is not advisable to be blinded by hatred and obsession.
"Hero of the Staff." The Alliance Administrator's expression was solemn, seemingly reluctant to speak, but he still said heavily, "I think you should go and find the Hero of Steel."
If possible, please bring his body back!
"Huh? Kotan is dead?" Duss's eyes widened slightly. "I remember that guy maxed out his resilience, and his skills were mostly about increasing defense, right?"
How did you die?
"How do you know he's dead when they haven't even retrieved his body?"
The administrator frowned: "This... the Steel Hero's team has been in the forest for more than half a month and has not returned yet."
Two days ago, the team that went to investigate discovered the body of the Reincarnation Hero, who was in the same team as the Steel Hero. Preliminary assessments indicate that he had been dead for more than a week.
The bodies were so badly damaged that they were almost unrecognizable; their identities were only confirmed by the embroidered words on each warrior's battle suit.
Yesterday, following the location of the body, the three continued their search in the surrounding area and found the remains of Lord Naruto, whose time of death was also close.
The other two heroes haven't buried their bodies or returned to town for almost a week; I'm afraid...
The odds are against them.
"..."
Duss did not speak, but fell into deep thought.
After a moment, he finally spoke and asked:
"I remember that Kotan rarely went out to fight the demons. He was always thinking about his lectures and using the heroes of killing to boast about his achievements."
Why did he suddenly want to go out and fight the demons?
The administrator was also embarrassed: "To be honest, because of the disappearance of the Slaughter Hero and the overall improvement of the heroes' levels, the Steel Hero's achievements are no longer significant among the heroes."