The Divine Hunter Chapter 36: The beginning

Temple Island Square is a sacred place where believers and pilgrims exchange experiences.

At this moment, there was a huge crowd, and the huge square was filled to the brim with shouting citizens.

The focus of the crowd's attention was in the center of the square. On the stake set up by the temple guards, a strange-looking creature that resembled a dwarf was tied to a stick with five-flowered flowers, and his hands and feet were locked with silver handcuffs and shackles. The wrinkled face was bloodless, and his head was lowered so that no facial expression could be seen.

Dry firewood piled up into a hill at your feet.

Men in black clothes, black hats and lamia whips are pouring oil on the pyre.

" The crowd numbered more than two thousand, including farmers, businessmen, minor nobles, and members of the city council, including all classes in Nuo City.

In addition to humans, there are also non-human races such as elves, dwarves, and mixed-race elves...

People do not forget to draw a clear line. Elves stay with elves or mixed-race people, and there are many new faces among them who have never appeared in Nuo City.

Dwarves armed to the teeth, muscular and hairy, and Cleaver the Butcher's men gathered around their compatriots, accompanied by several halfling farmers of similar stature but with baby faces.

All non-human races maintain a distance from humans and vice versa.

Human beings also have their own small circles. The nobles look at the merchants and vendors with disdain. Soldiers and mercenaries with weapons gather in a bunch. The farmers are the largest in number, but they gather quietly in an inconspicuous square. Periphery.

"Everyone! I am here today, in front of everyone, to announce something!" Bishop Cyrus's old but rich voice penetrated the crowd and made the noise disappear at once, "The great Eternal Lord The Sheriff of Fire, the real Lord Chapelle, was killed by this evil shapeshifter two years ago. He has been carrying Chapelle's skin to steal the authority of the Sheriff! He did it in Nuo City Do all the bad things!"

The crowd was noisy again.

The businessmen pointed at the shapeshifters and whispered, while the farmers looked fiercely. They had heard all kinds of bad rumors about the shapeshifters, and they hated the monsters that took away other people's lives. They looked around as if they were looking for something. Take advantage of it and hit that ugly thing hard.

There are also reasonably sane intellectuals who keep examining the monster. In their opinion, in the past two years, Nuo City has been developing in a good direction as a whole. This does not seem like the actions of an evil creature. .

Skilu, the half-elf who was mixed in the crowd, patted the thin middle-aged woman's trembling shoulder and gave her a calm look.

The two outstanding knights, Grimm and Cassirer, were surprised. It was the first time for them to see a living shapeshifter. They were disguised as church security monsters and had not been discovered for two years.

Is this what is called darkness under the lamp?

They tried to talk to a nobleman next to them who looked normal and well-dressed.

"Who is the shapeshifter captured by Eternal Flame? What crimes did he commit?"

"Oh, sir," the male nobleman stroked his beard and shook his head, "I can't think of anything if you ask me this. What crime did he commit? Chasing murder traffickers? Fighting criminals on the streets? Perhaps the biggest crime he committed The mistake is being a shapeshifter."

"Since ancient times, the Eternal Fire has been hunting this 'monster'."

Grim frowned.

"Thanks to the warning of the Eternal Fire, we were able to reveal its true identity! Prevent him from committing more heinous crimes!" Bishop Cyrus continued,

The shapeshifter Jiji on the stake looked numbly at the bishop's back.

"I invite everyone to witness that it was my negligence and mistake to allow this beast to live for two more years."

The archbishop's expression was remorseful and full of self-blame.

"Fortunately, with the blessing of the eternal fire, he hasn't made a big mistake yet."

"Today, the eternal flame will continue to guide all living beings, dispel the fog, and purify evil!"

Suddenly, hundreds of believers in the audience clasped their hands on their chests and bowed their heads in prayer.

The bishop held up the gleaming torch-shaped holy silverware on his chest and began the trial with dignity,

"Look, this ugly shapeshifter, a blasphemous creature, every fold on its face represents an innocent person whose identity has been replaced by it."

"Burn him!" the crowd shouted.

Jiji, who was tied to the stake, glanced at everyone with his yellow eyes, sighed, and the luster in his eyes dimmed.

This is the city he has devoted two years of hard work to, and the people he has taken care of selflessly for two years.

"Mr. Bishop Cyrus!" A blacksmith with a red face, a burly body, and wearing an apron spoke outside the wall of the temple guards. He had been observing just now, but unlike the excited farmer, he He looked at the shapeshifter with a trace of pity in his eyes, "So far, we can only hear your broad and broad words, but you don't go into details. What crimes has this shapeshifter committed? In addition to replacing the former Sheriff Chapelle! Who saw him kill the Sheriff?"

"Blacksmith Darph, I remember that the archbishop personally baptized you on the day you were born. Are you denying what Lord Cyrus said?"

An eternal flame guard as tall as a hill walked to the blacksmith with a sword on his waist.

"I'm not denying anything, I just want to know the truth!" The strong man spat on the ground, wiped the sweat from his palms on his cotton skirt, and raised his voice, "I'm just speaking as a Nuocheng native. The identity revealed my doubts. In the past two years, our city has obviously become better. In the past, the barrels and tools that I carelessly placed outside the blacksmith shop would disappear after spending the night. But in the past two years, this has never happened again. Such petty theft."

"And the business of my shop is much better. I have hired two apprentices and I am still busy! This means that the number of tourists visiting Nuo City has greatly increased."

"People's choices are the best evidence. Will everyone rush to a city with a bad public security environment?"

Many people hung their heads.

Start to seriously think about the changes in the past two years.

"Dalph is right!" Another skinny farmer interjected, "My poor Tina just played on the edge of the field for a while, and then she was captured by human traffickers and almost sold to the Skellige Islands. , to be the wife of the smelly islanders! Thanks to Sheriff Chapelle’s tireless pursuit.”

"My daughter was rescued safely and now she is feeding chickens at home."

"If the shapeshifter is evil, why does he do good things?!"

Hearing this, the shape-shifting monster Jiji breathed a sigh of relief, with a trace of relief on his face.

"This is how smart he is!" Cyrus's voice was full of convincing power. "If he does something bad like pus leaking from the soles of his feet, he will soon find out his identity and be beaten by me. Get out of position."

"But he is very good at disguising, whether it is appearance or action style, he maintains a superficial sense of justice and uses it to paralyze you, a group of simple and kind-hearted people!"

"But compared to his evil deeds behind the scenes, these so-called good deeds cannot make up for one tenth of it!" Cyrus paused and looked at the crowd,

A full third of the non-human race.

If a conflict between humans and non-human races is provoked at this time, it will only trigger a terrible disaster.

We can only deal with inhuman races slowly.

Now he solves the main contradiction first!

"His biggest crime was to collude with a group of mutants and establish a secret laboratory in the alder forest in the suburbs!"

Wilgefortz's detailed explanation flashed through Cyrus's mind, slowly circling the stake,

"On the surface, that place is an orphanage. In fact, it is a place for demon hunters to conduct vicious mutation experiments and mass-produce mutants!"

"Today, many children have been persecuted and tortured by them. They have the pupils of beasts and have become inhuman species."

"It is conceivable that if the shapeshifter continues to sit in the position of the Sheriff, his associates, the Demon Hunters, will expand at an unprecedented speed in the name of the orphanage, and soon the entire Nuo City will become Become a sea of ​​mutants!"

Shouts of horror rang out from the crowd.

"It's terrible..." Cassirer shook his head, "The demon hunters in Nilfgaard were all driven away by His Majesty Emhyr. Are the demon hunters in the north so evil?"

"No, man," Grim shook his head, thinking of the demon hunter White Wolf who had an aboveboard fight with him in Sintra, "I can guarantee that this archbishop is just alarmist. He has deep feelings for demon hunters. Deep prejudice!"

"My Lord Bishop!" a bard retorted, with a serious expression as if he was stating the truth, "The witcher is not as evil as you say!"

"They rescued countless rural farmers from the monster's fangs and claws, and killed countless man-eating beasts!"

“But their charges are exorbitantly expensive!” someone refuted,

"That's the life money they deserve!"

There are people outside the human wall who are supporting the demon hunter and dressing up. They are obviously regulars in the dance hall.

"The witcher helped Princess Yada of Vizima get rid of the curse of the bloodthirsty bird!"

"The filthy filth in the sewers of Nuo City has been cleared away!"

"Help the little princess of Cintra escape from the clutches of the terrifying dryads of Broklon!"

The citizens fell silent.

The propaganda offensive of the cabaret poets played a great role. In the past two years, they listened to the good words of the demon hunters until their ears almost grew calloused, and they believed it unknowingly.

The Archbishop beat his chest, and his right hand holding the cane shook uncontrollably, "Have you all been brainwashed by the group of smooth-talking poets in the Nuo City Dance Hall?"

"But do you know that the largest shareholder behind the cabaret is the demon hunter!"

"They brag and put money in their faces just to deceive you!"

"Use your brains and think about it. What the cabaret says is true? Then if they claim that the infertile demon hunter is your father, do you believe it?"

The crowd became commotion, shaking their heads desperately.

"You can go to any city outside Nuo City and have a look!"

"What is the reputation of witchers? The locals will tell you personally!"

"Almost every old man in the village can tell you a lot about the atrocities committed by mutants! The deformed monsters who help the tigers are even more unforgivable!"

Cassir said to himself,

"What Archbishop Cyrus said is so **** exciting!"

"My Lord Bishop..." shouted a knight in the crowd. He was tall and tall, with brilliant blond hair and a smile as warm as the rising sun. People couldn't help but feel good about him. "According to your logic, as long as you prove The demon hunters are not villains, so the shapeshifter who helps them is a kind and good person!"

"This heroic knight, have you been deceived by this evil gang? What you say is absolutely impossible!" The Archbishop's majestic eyes turned to Grim, "After purifying this evil thing, we will go there immediately In the suburbs, arrest those unscrupulous demon hunters!"

"This shape-shifting monster has weird and unpredictable abilities. As long as we unlock the holy silverware on him, he can transform at will and immediately transform into anyone present. Not only does his appearance look exactly the same, he can even read your thoughts. .Know all your past memories."

"Then we will invade your homes and properties, humiliate your wives and husbands, and abuse your children. This knight, including you, will not be spared!"

"Burn him to death!" Someone got scared and started shouting loudly.

Grim, however, had a solemn expression on his face, his eyes changing uncertainly as he looked at the shapeshifter, and he tightened his grip on the sword at his waist.

"The shapeshifter is not a creation of God and cannot be tolerated in the world! He must die!" the Archbishop shouted, glancing at an Eternal Fire guard beside him.

It was the young guard who had been accompanying Chapelle.

But he hesitated and hesitated.

"Dear fellow citizens!"

The shapeshifter who was tied to the stake suddenly spoke, his thin yellow pupils scanning the dark crowd, his voice hoarse like a critically ill patient,

"It's true that I, Jiji, pretended to be Sheriff Chapelle for the past two years, but I didn't kill him. When I found him, he was already dead. I just wanted to use his identity to practice the team. Faith in the Eternal Fire!"

"And I have had a clear conscience during the two years I served as the Sheriff. I have never done anything that was sorry to the people of Nuo City. I have never enriched myself or abused my power! I have worked hard to arrest human traffickers. Fighting against illegal crimes is all to make our homeland better. All my actions are clearly known to everyone!"

"I swear to the great eternal fire!" He looked pious.

It was only then that everyone discovered that this shape-shifting monster could actually speak human language, and its eloquence was pretty good.

Some people who were swept by his yellow pupils lowered their heads, while others glared at them.

"Heresy! How dare you quibble!" The archbishop waved his staff and reprimanded sternly, with disgust in his eyes, "What qualifications do you have to believe in the eternal fire! Your oath is a blasphemy!"

Everyone suddenly realized that the eternal fire has been hunting down the shapeshifters since ancient times.

The two are completely mortal enemies.

"Lord Cyrus, the eternal fire is a symbol of salvation, guiding all living beings in the darkness... and all living beings are equal. This is the original text in the scripture!" The shapeshifter asked a series of questions with a eloquent tongue, "I am not a Life?"

Sellers' face darkened.

"Because of my innate abilities, do I have to bear unwarranted charges? Even if I have never abused my abilities."

The shapeshifter questioned the thousands of people present.

"Because you are prejudiced against shapeshifters and worried that I will appropriate your identity, do I deserve to be burned to death? Even if I have never made a mistake!"

There was a brief silence in the crowd, and the dwarves and elves who had once been jealous and suspicious of humans suddenly felt the same.

"According to the archbishop's approach, a person has the possibility of committing a crime from the moment he is born!"

"So are we going to burn a baby to death?!"

A dwarf carrying a war hammer said angrily while stroking his beard.

The sound carried far away.

"Burn the shapeshifter to death! Don't let him talk nonsense!" someone shouted in anger.

"Don't do anything yet!" The archbishop glared at the young guard,

And Jiji suddenly smiled at everyone, with tears in his smile, a calm expression, and he looked at death as if he were home.

"Kodali, do it." He said to the guard, his eyes calmly scanning the crowd, and his voice echoed throughout the Temple Island Square, "Burn me to death!"

"If my death can make everyone feel at ease! I am willing to practice the teachings of eternal fire at the cost of my life and end everyone's suspicion and worry!"

He said righteously,

"I am willing to use my life to guide all living beings!"

"I have only one prayer! After I die, the people of Nuo City should no longer be unreasonably suspicious of any humans, non-human races, dwarves, elves, dwarfs, halflings, or even demon hunters!"

"I hope that everyone can coexist peacefully in this prosperous home!"

"If this little wish of mine can come true." A touching smile bloomed on the ugly face of the deformed monster, and he seemed to be shining, "I will die without regrets!"

"Alas."

There was a flash of struggle in the guard's eyes, and he sighed. Another guard threw the torch at the look of the Archbishop.

"Pfft!"

The orange flame instantly ignited the oil on the firewood pile, and it suddenly burned into a circle at the feet of the shape-shifter. The overwhelming fire illuminated his fearless face.

He is still smiling at everyone.

However, this smile quickly deformed in the high temperature.

……

For a moment, everyone in the square suddenly became silent.

Watching this scene with complex eyes.

Only the crackling sound of sparks can be heard.

And Grim grinned at the black-haired knight beside him, clenched his sword with a firm expression,

"Man, get ready, it's time to practice our chivalry!"

His words were suppressed by a strange sound that broke through the air!

"Bang!"

In the blazing firewood pile, it seemed like a bomb had been detonated. The firewood exploded and flew in all directions like raindrops.

In the middle of the Temple Square, thousands of orange light points flashed, as if a grand fireworks show had begun. ~IndoMTL.com~ Plop, plop! ”

One log after another fell on the temple guards surrounding the human wall.

Some of them were still burning, and the hot guards howled and screamed strangely.

Some brought white smoke and fell into the crowd, stirring up exclamations.

There was also an unlucky businessman who was hit in the head by a piece of wood and fainted.

Archbishop Cyrus, who was sitting next to the fire, was hit by the violent airflow and fell to the ground with a whimper. His face turned red and he couldn't get up for a long time.

Two loyal guards jumped on him to block the flying firewood.

The sudden accident caused the dense crowd in the square to explode, like a huge wave, and the waves rolled up countless people staggering!

However, when the flying firewood fell to the ground and went out, the chaos quickly disappeared.

At this time, the fire light dissipated.

The stake stood alone in the center of the square.

The shape-shifting monster Jiji was burnt to death by the flames and high temperatures,

The already sparse hair on the top of his head was burned away.

But that's all.

The flames did him no irreparable damage.

He is still healthy and conscious, and his pair of light yellow pupils are staring in front of him,

Everyone was silent and looked over

At some point, a figure in a black cloak stood in front of the shapeshifter.

Two sword hilts emerged from behind the shoulders.

The viper pendant in front of the neck ripples in the wind.

On the young face, the dark gold and silver-gray pupils flashed with cold light, and he turned to the Archbishop, who was slowly getting up with the support of the Eternal Fire Guard.

"Cyrus Engelkander Heimfa... Archbishop of the Eternal Fire, you want to judge my friend, you want to judge all witchers?"

"Come here and tell me what I did wrong?"

"I'm all ears!"