Chapter 628: Altria's Straight Ball Attack

Dark clouds hang low over the bloody wasteland.

The grass that was once green and shady is now covered with burnt marks and has turned yellow and withered. Thick columns of smoke rise straight into the sky, blackening it.

The huge rocks launched by the catapults were scattered everywhere.

The twisted corpses of humans, giants and goblins were scattered around the craters of various sizes, as well as broken spears, discarded shields and scattered arrows.

More than a hundred upright knights dug out the bodies of their companions buried in the soft soil and threw them into the burning fire.

Under the scorching flames, the faces of the dead gradually became distorted, and their flesh and blood gradually became burnt. The wind was filled with the nauseating smell of burnt protein.

Faced with the scene in front of him, Tristan stared for just a moment and then closed his eyes unable to bear it.

Not only did they fail to rescue the refugees they had been dragged into, but their own team also suffered nearly 70% casualties due to this "kindness", and was almost completely defeated.

These are comrades who admire him, trust him and follow him.

As a result, they all died because of him.

If he had been decisive enough on the battlefield and given up the so-called "kindness", everything could have been avoided.

At least, there won't be such a huge loss.

"King, I am incompetent. Please punish me."

Tristan came to the man and the horse and knelt down with shame on his face.

He had already been defeated in this battle, and he and the remaining knights were surrounded.

He thought he was going to die on the battlefield, but unexpectedly, King Arthur, who "did not understand human nature", arrived at the critical moment and saved his life and the lives of the rest of his subordinates.

But before Artoria on horseback could speak, Lorne, who was walking nearby, poked his head out and said with a smile:

"Your Highness, don't be impatient. The atmosphere is already very lively. Show us your talent first. No, it should be Mercy. Play a few songs to bid farewell to the fallen soldiers?"

Tristan, who is proficient in music and poetry, is nicknamed "the sentimental knight" and "the son of sorrow".

And his life situation does indeed fit this title.

His father, Rivallan, died in battle before he could meet Tristan. His mother, Blanchefort, entrusted him to Royal, a loyal subordinate of Rivallan, and passed away after naming him Tristan.

After that, Tristan served his uncle King Marco as a knight.

Tristan serves his monarch as an excellent knight - his uncle King Marco also has deep trust in this handsome knight.

However, one day, Tristan fell in love with a woman named Isolde.

No, it should be said that I fell in love unluckily.

Tragically, Isolde was the love of King Marco, who had even vowed to marry her.

Eventually, King Marco was bewitched by the courtiers who were jealous of Tristan, and Tristan was forced to leave the court.

The down-and-out prince then wandered around, occasionally working as a bard, until he was discovered and recruited by Kay, then he officially changed his career, joined the Knights of the Round Table, and became a vassal of King Arthur Altria.

But bringing up these old things at this moment is like rubbing salt into someone's wounds.

Altria glared at her mean teacher and excused her subordinates:

"Merlin, please correct your remarks and stop making fun of his talent. Sir Tristan has always been a serious and upright person, and his kindness comes from the heart. It's just that his sentimentality is too poetic compared to others, and is not suitable for the battlefield. It often becomes a chain that binds him."

"But when it comes to comforting the opposite sex, he is always willing to risk his own life."

“…………”

Altria was speechless and had a new understanding of her teacher's venomous tongue.

Tristan couldn't help feeling ashamed when he heard his boss, whom he had criticized before, defending him in front of outsiders.

They say that King Arthur doesn't understand human nature.

His Majesty can clearly see through the soul of every person.

However, she understands better than anyone else what she wants, what she should do, and what price she needs to pay.

This wisdom as a king, this rationality as a human being was actually regarded by myself as unsophisticated and cold. How stupid I am.

Tristan felt even more ashamed when he thought about his thoughtless remarks.

In a fit of rage, he raised the artifact in his hand, Felnot, which looked like a longbow and a harp, and pleaded with Artoria:

"My king, I was too stupid and too arrogant. I made a big mistake because of this. I am no longer worthy of being your knight. Please allow me to bid you farewell and resign my title as a Knight of the Round Table."

In the original Arthurian legend, this tragic prince, whose martial power was slightly weaker than Lancelot, finally chose to leave because he could not understand King Arthur's words and deeds.

But at this moment, because of his guilt and shame, he wanted to wander alone.

Seeing this, Altria looked serious and said:

"Sir Tristan, if your [kindness] is so fragile and weak, and you shrink your head like an ostrich in the desert and give up halfway just because of a slight setback, then what you are doing is nothing but a self-satisfied hypocrisy. Only by ending this war as soon as possible, reducing unnecessary casualties, and realizing the unification of Britain as soon as possible, can we achieve [great love] in the world!"

Hearing this deafening voice, Tristan stood there in a daze, with a huge wave of thoughts in his mind.

After a long time, he came to his senses and knelt before his monarch in a shameful and pious manner:

"King, thank you for your teachings! I will be your sword and shield, and restore the glory of Britain for you!"

This time, his answer was sonorous and sincere.

Altria nodded, her voice lost its seriousness and became gentle again:

"When all the wars are over, I hope your strings and voice will no longer play sad music, but sing for the beauty of this world."

“I’m looking forward to this day, too.”

Tristan responded solemnly, and a light called "hope" and "faith" appeared in his originally sentimental eyes.

Then he bid farewell to Altria and returned to the barracks, comforted the wounded soldiers, integrated the team, and devoted himself to his own work.

The matter was solved perfectly, and Luo En couldn't help but exclaimed:

"Your Majesty, Britain is fortunate to have such a kind and wise king like you."

"Teacher, you are making fun of me again."

Altria felt a little embarrassed and instinctively thought that her teacher was teasing her again.

"I'm serious this time."

A professional liar had no choice but to clarify and speak out his true feelings.

"The twelve knights of the round table are either stubborn, arrogant, or overly compassionate... In short, they all have their own problems. If they were just mortals, it would be fine, but they happen to have divine power. Once they lose control, the destructive power they cause is not much less than the disaster caused by Vortigern. As the king of knights, you have to restrain them, guide them, and clean up the mess for them. You are like a head of a family with a bunch of naughty children. It's really not easy."

Altria sensed the concern in the words and was somewhat touched, but at the same time she also tried to defend her subordinates:

"It's not as exaggerated as you say. Although they have some character weaknesses, they are all very good people."

Lorne scoffed at this.

Altria doesn't know, doesn't he know yet?

The composition of the Twelve Knights of the Round Table is extremely complex, and almost every one of them is a first-rate problem child.

The Knights of the Round Table went from unity to division, and even King Arthur himself lost his life in the end, and these problem children played an indispensable role.

Seeing that her teacher didn't believe her, Artoria quickly gave an example:

"Although Sir Tristan has a soft character, he will surely correct his mistakes after just this one battle and become the backbone of the Knights."

"He still needs to be taught this, and even after being taught, his defense is broken. This is all he can do."

"What about Sir Lancelot? Her martial arts are the best among the Round Table, and she is also a good leader."

"When she is willing to listen to your orders, it will not be too late for you to praise her."

"What about Sir Bedivere? He never disobeys my orders."

"But he can't think for himself. He is just a foolishly loyal person, so he is useless."

Under Lorn's blunt criticism, the Knights of the Round Table, who had once been so glorious in public, were completely humiliated.

As the direct leader, Artoria was a little unconvinced and pulled out her trump card:

"Then Gao Wenqing will be fine, right? He has extraordinary martial arts and the ability to lead an army. Moreover, he respects me very much, and I can even say he worships me. You don't have any objection to him, right?"

"He's the one we should be most wary of!"

"Why?"

"Because [worship] is the furthest distance from [understanding]."

Lorne replied calmly, his eyes deep.

Indeed, Gawain has ideals, ambitions, abilities, and is the one who has gone the furthest on the path of chivalry. As a result, he develops a fanatical belief in Altria, the King of Knights, that is almost like worship.

But in his eyes, he could only see King Arthur as a [god], and there was no trace of Altria as a mortal.

He expected that his majesty would lead him into the battlefield again and again, win victory after victory, and establish a great divine cause, but he never imagined that Artoria would feel guilty for the killing and be constantly sad for the passing of life.

Plus, Gao Wen has a rather stubborn personality.

Once such people go to extremes, they often get into bigger trouble.

Artoria heard the deeper meaning behind this and fell silent.

But soon, a smile appeared on her face again, and she looked at her teacher:

"Aren't you still here?"

Although the knights who admired her strength did not understand her troubles as a "God", their teacher had always been concerned about her growth and happiness as a "human".

Hearing the heartfelt answer from his beloved disciple, Loen couldn't help but cough and his eyes became evasive.

Straight ball attack has always been a type he is not good at dealing with.

Seeing her teacher defeated, Altria felt a strange sense of joy in her heart.

While the master and disciple were chatting, Bedivere hurried back to the camp.

Altria was a little surprised, and quickly went up to ask:

"Why are you back? Where's Gawain?"

After successfully defeating the Oxfordshire rebels and rescuing Tristan and his remnants, she ordered Bedivere and Gawain to lead the team to pursue the victory.

Bedivere lowered his head and told the whole story honestly:

"We chased them all the way to Barton Hill, wiped out the remnants of the Oxfordshire army, and then made a new discovery."

"What?

"There is a new city on the top of the mountain. It seems to be the nest that King Vortigern and his subordinates just built. Many places are not complete. Sir Gawain thought it was vulnerable, so he led the vanguard troops to attack directly, saying that he wanted to capture the city alone and clear the last obstacle for you to unify Britain. I was not very reassured, so I came back alone to report to you."

“…”

After a moment of silence, Altria looked at the teacher beside her with resentment.

You have a mouth like a crow. Good things don't work, but bad things work.

"Prepare the horses, order all the troops and knights to stop resting and assemble in the direction of Badon Mountain immediately!"

While quickly issuing military orders, Artoria decisively mounted her horse and led several Knights of the Round Table who could keep up to rush to the scene.

(End of this chapter)