Chapter 61: Flower Street: Sea God Celebration (Part 1) [VIP]
For the common people of Lower Cucucchia, who had long lived in a city shrouded in bloodshed, cruelty, corruption and debauchery, and whose bodies and minds had long been corrupted by nihilistic hedonism, the fact that the host of the Poseidon Festival had changed from the city lord Count Tales to Alfonso, the "mercenary king" who overthrew Tales' rule, was a matter of indifference.
Even the small-scale war that swept across the city yesterday to overthrow the rule of the Tales family only gave them a moment of surprise.
Now that the riots are over, the common people, confident that the war between the ruling classes will not affect their lives, are wearing festive costumes as planned, taking to the streets happily and participating in various traditional celebrations.
Long-term tyranny has led these people to generally adopt a nihilistic mentality of "people will die soon, so we should enjoy ourselves to the fullest before we die."
after all--
"Those grand things have nothing to do with me. Even if I wanted to participate, I wouldn't be qualified."
Compared to not knowing what will happen tomorrow, the happiness in the present is the most important.
With similar decadence, people walked through the streets filled with music and came to the celebration site decorated with flowers and brocade, waiting excitedly for the official start of the sea god worship activities, with happy smiles on their faces.
"I heard the Holy Duke is hailed as the most beautiful woman in the Western Continent. Is he really as un-humanly beautiful as the rumors say?"
"I don't know. The day His Highness arrived at Kucukia Harbor, I squeezed for a long time but couldn't get to the front of the crowd to see his face clearly. But according to people who managed to squeeze to the front row, when His Highness stepped off the imperial ship, everyone was stunned! It was simply... ah..."
"We cannot be sure whether His Highness is as beautiful as the rumors say, beyond human form. But did you know? The 'Saint of Red Street,' 'Angel of the Arena,' the bard Claude Shaw, who brought us happiness and good fortune, is actually His Highness's half-brother, Prince Lucien, Grand Marquis of Gaula!"
"Oh my God! He must be a very handsome man!"
"I think I should abandon my faith in the Sea God from now on and believe in the Twin Gods instead~"
"Because they have divine blood flowing in their bodies, they can bring all kinds of incredible miracles to the world?"
"No, because His Highness and the Young Master are both very good-looking!"
“Hmm…hahahaha!”
Everyone laughed knowingly.
In this way, the atmosphere gradually became lively.
Everyone gathered at the scene knew that the troubadour Claude Shaw was the half-brother of the Holy Grand Duke, Prince Lucien, Grand Marquis of Gaula.
They enthusiastically discussed the miracles created by Prince Lucien, who went by the pseudonym of the bard Claude, after arriving in Kucukia, and waited for the official start of the Poseidon sacrifice amid the noise of music.
…
…
In the lounge not far from the altar, the atmosphere was somewhat tense.
The Twin God priests of Kukuchia knelt before Yaris, expressions of grief and sorrow. "Your Highness, please forgive our cowardice in allowing Tales to place such a profane statue in the temple for so long..."
"It's not your fault, don't feel guilty about it."
Yaris comforted the priests in a gentle and beautiful voice, almost like singing: "The Twin Gods are spiritual beings. As long as your hearts remain pure and pious, it doesn't matter what the statues you worship are made of."
"But a statue like that—"
The leading high priest clenched his fists and his face was pale.
"Everything is destiny. When you can still see divinity even in the face of a statue like that, your faith has reached a new level."
Yaris stretched out his hand and passed it over the high priest's head like a blessing.
"If everyone believes this, the evil that lingers in this world will be dispelled... May we one day completely eliminate the suffering in this world..."
The high priest raised his head, took Yaris's hand in his, and touched his lips to the fingertips. "My only supreme master, I am willing to follow you anywhere. I will do my best for you and our compatriots, shedding blood and tears until true peace and salvation are achieved in this world."
"Until true peace and salvation are achieved in this world."
The priests shouted passionately as if they were mesmerized, their eyes filled with tears and their hearts were haunted by lofty ideals.
Looking at such a pious scene, Xiao Yun felt inexplicably panicked again.
(Jaris, are you speaking from the heart to them? What is your heart seeking?)
…
The sun gradually rose higher in the sky, and Yaris stood up.
Xiao Yun couldn't help but grab his hand.
"What's the matter? Are your hands shaking?"
"I'm worried... I'm worried something might happen during the Sea God Sacrifice..."
"Calm down, brother."
Yaris pulled his fingers out of his palm and said with a smile, "No matter how powerful a demonic curse is, it's essentially an illusion created by mind control. It can't create actual danger or misfortune out of thin air. Instead, it subconsciously influences the cursed, making the cursed believe they've fallen into misfortune brought on by the curse. They attribute all the misfortunes in their lives to the curse, suffering mental torture and ultimately a tragic death."
"But Lisa and the others said that in previous years, the 'Messenger of the Sea God' appeared with the waves and accepted the tribute presented by the city lord..."
"The so-called 'Sea God's Messengers' that appear every year are nothing more than 'Sea God's Priests' who use magic to train them."
"ah?"
Xiao Yun was shocked.
"Time is tight now, so I can't explain it to you in detail. You just need to remember—"
Yaris said firmly, "No matter how disguised the human heart is, abnormal things cannot be changed. A magician who habitually relies on magical means to solve problems can never be a qualified ruler. Even a powerful 'Priest of the Sea God' who is behind the Les family will be exposed for indirectly controlling the situation, and his rule will be over."
"But--"
He is the person who knows the most about and is the most proficient in magic in the world. Why...?
"After the Sea God Sacrifice is over, I will slowly tell you why I have such thoughts."
Yaris tilted his head and kissed his brother's rosy cheek with his petal-soft lips.
Xiao Yun's cheeks flushed red immediately, and he muttered, "Good boy, see you at the sacrifice site later—"
Then, surrounded by his servants, Yaris walked out of the lounge.
Xiao Yun walked him to the door, then turned around and found Lance looking at him with a complicated expression. He pretended to be indifferent and asked, "What's the situation in the city now?"
"After a brief moment of shock, the public readily accepted the change of ownership of Kukuchia. Several casinos, upon learning that Talles was still alive, began offering large bets on his ultimate fate..."
"Well……"
Xiao Yun smiled bitterly.
"It's truly a city steeped in nihilism and hedonism."
…
…
The Poseidon Festival is an annual grand festival. With the vast Lente Sea as its backdrop, the port of Kucukia is decorated with flowers and silks in a dazzling and colorful way.
People in their best clothes swarmed in and crowded in front of a fence made of several thick ropes and stone pillars - as part of the festival, the ropes were wrapped with colorful decorations, and a whole team of knights stood along the fence to prevent order from getting out of control - looking at the altar of Poseidon floating on the sea about fifty meters from the coast.
The altar is decorated more magnificently than in previous years.
In addition to massive piles of silk and flowers, the legendary eight beautiful statues of sea nymphs are placed in pairs around the altar. Each sea nymph wears clothes made of colorful flowers, and her beautiful face is covered with a lace veil decorated with feathers and jewels. When the sea breeze blows, it seems like white clouds fluttering in the wind.
Countless long poles were hung around the altar, covered with prayer flags made of colorful ribbons.
On both sides of the altar, hundreds of large and small boats are floating on wooden pontoons as extensions of the altar of Poseidon. These boats usually carry artists who perform singing and dancing at the Poseidon sacrificial ceremony, as well as noble guests who come to Kucuccia to watch the Poseidon celebration. The largest and most luxurious of the boats carries the Holy Duke who came from afar and the "Mercenary King" Alfonso who presided over the celebration.
…
The sacrifice officially began, and the band's performance, which was already filled with a joyful atmosphere, suddenly became even more lively.
Amidst warm cheers and applause, small boats filled with girls dressed as sea nymphs arrived near the altar one after another. The girls stood up holding baskets full of flowers. The sea breeze blew their long skirts and veils as soft as white clouds, making them look like pieces of clouds.
“Hmm—”
A huge conch was blown.
The girls dressed as sea fairies threw the flowers in the basket together, and colorful petals flew all over the sky, and the civilians crowded on the shore cheered.
Just as people were immersed in the joy of competing for blessings, the large ship carrying tribute to the sea god also arrived slowly.
Dozens of strong sailors carefully lifted the huge statue of Poseidon made of special materials and painted gold, carried it to the altar at noon, and placed it in the center of the eight sea fairies.
It is a very beautiful sight.
The ocean sparkled at noon, and the golden statue of Poseidon on the altar emitted an overwhelming radiance after catching the sunlight.
The people on the shore were so engrossed in watching this sacred scene that they even forgot to cheer and the music stopped.
In the silence, the bard in a white dress walked lightly across the wooden floating bridge, came to the statue of Poseidon, sat down cross-legged, gently plucked the instrument in his hand, and sang "Lullaby".
His singing was light and melodious, like a bird singing on a branch, or like the ocean swaying gently in the breeze under the moonlight. It was amplified by the magic crystal and spread throughout the port, allowing even the most restless heart to feel the relief of breaking free from the shackles of the world.
People were intoxicated by the songs that contained sacred power, and their bodies and minds, which had been corrupted by empty pleasures, were purified after a long time.
However, the melody at this moment is the calm before the storm.
The singing had just begun when dark clouds filled the clear sky.
The dark clouds moved with the wind and quickly covered most of the sea.
In the distance, there was a creepy sound of a tsunami from hell!
"Wrathful Spirit Tsunami!"
"It's the tsunami of evil spirits!"
People on the shore cried out in fear.
The noise spread throughout the harbor, and people looked up at the sky and saw that every dark cloud in the sky was the face of someone who died in a shipwreck!
For a moment, the whole world held its breath.
Everyone on the shore opened their eyes and mouths wide, looking at the sky in horror, and at the tsunami that was thundering in the distance, getting faster and closer!
(Our city will be engulfed by a tsunami of evil spirits!)
(Our future...)
(What should we do? What should we do? What should we do?)
(……)
No one dared to voice their inner terror. Their fear grew in silence, gradually reaching its peak...
On the altar, Xiao Yun, who insisted on singing "Lullaby" despite the dark clouds covering the sky, also felt a strong discomfort. His brain felt dizzy as if it was stimulated by ice needles, and his heart felt a sharp pain as if it was shot by a sharp arrow.
The cold wave blew in from all directions, turning into a threat and flowing into my ears—
[Stop singing... Stop... Stop now...]
[As long as you stop singing, interrupt the Sea God Festival, and leave Kukuchia with your brother, I will definitely let you go and even apologize to you brothers...]
[I have no intention of becoming an enemy of you brothers...]
Xiao Yun did not stop.
After a brief moment of surprise, his gaze became more determined.
The "Priest of Poseidon" is attacking him, but he will never stop singing!
Under the protection of the system's power, all attacks from the "Sea God Priest" will not cause any real harm to him!
He raised his head and sang in an even higher and louder voice.
[Damn it! How dare you——]
The "Priest of Poseidon" roared wildly.
In the distance, the tsunami of evil spirits officially appeared.
Waves as high as a hundred meters rushed towards the altar of the sea god like a moving city wall. The white foam on the top of the waves made a heart-wrenching scream, merging with the dark clouds with human faces that covered the entire sky.
"--No!"
On the royal ship, the magicians looked at Yaris on the throne in horror - at this extremely dangerous moment, their master actually ignored the terrifying screams of the tsunami of resentful spirits that were enough to drive all things crazy, and released his senses to support his brother who was trapped on the altar of the sea god.
“This, this—”
Yaris, sitting on the throne, had his eyes closed as if he was asleep, and his hair swayed gently with his breathing.
at the same time--
The hundred-meter-high tsunami that was about to reach the altar of Poseidon suddenly froze.
Blocked by an invisible barrier, it became a translucent, wriggling blue-green wall.
Inside the jelly-like wriggling liquid wall, countless wronged souls who were swept up by the tsunami of resentful spirits twisted their bodies in agony, stretching out their half-rotten limbs covered with barnacles and seaweed, trying to break through the boundary between life and death!
"Oh my god! This is terrible!"
Lance yelled, "What now?"
"have no idea……"
Alfonso said with a wry smile, gripping his weapon tighter.
The tsunami, forced into a semi-static state by the barrier, continued to wriggle.
The vengeful spirits trapped in the translucent blue-green semi-jelly liquid continued to expand and merge, splitting into countless tentacles and tangling into octopus-like mollusks, ready to break out of death and return to the world in some way beyond human imagination.
"There's no other way, we can only confront it head-on!"
Alfonso yelled, preparing to—
At this time, the change happened again.
The dark clouds that were hovering in the sky kept shrinking as if they were being driven away. Countless faces in the clouds became deformed and let out silent screams.
The midday daylight seemed to be torn in half, revealing the brilliant night sky. The stars were shining in the sky, and the sacred melody of blessing sounded in people's ears, deafening and striking the soul.
Xiao Yun raised his eyes and saw Yaris, whose figure was almost transparent, floating beside him. Her white and soft fingers gently rested on his shoulders, and her beautiful pale face brushed against his earlobe.
【Lucien, let’s sing together! 】
In an instant, Xiao Yun felt as if he was caught by some overwhelming force, his body turned into a complete puppet, and his throat, under the control of Yaris's power, uttered a song from ancient times that was full of ethereality and divinity.
Unlike Lucien's pure singing voice, which was as melodious as a bird and could purify the soul, every note of the sacred singing that Jarris sang through his brother's body came from the deepest part of the stars. No one could understand it, even -
(LA, what am I singing?)
[We are very sorry, LA cannot translate for the host.]
(Why?)
[The host is using a language called "God's Language". This language comes from a higher dimension beyond the stars and cannot be translated into a language the host can understand, nor can it be recorded.]
(So, why did Yaris...?)
[I regret--]
【Brother, don't be distracted, accept me completely.】
Yaris's inner voice sounded again, interrupting the communication between Xiao Yun and the system.
Xiao Yun immediately gave up any unnecessary thoughts and completely handed his body over to the control of the only one he could fully trust.
…
The ancient and sacred singing continues.
The endless starry sky unfolded behind them as they sang, the stars played music for them, and overwhelming majesty covered the entire altar!
The dark clouds in the sky were shrinking, and the tsunami waves that had been surging like jelly gradually stopped shaking. The writhing and screaming of the undead beneath the waves became increasingly fainter...
One after another, ethereal figures floated in from the direction of Paradise City, like the skirts of fairies passing over the crowd gathered at the port, flying towards the altar of Poseidon, transforming into their pre-birth appearances, and surrounding the bard.
An innocent blond girl, a young gladiator longing for love, a pale woman who had just given birth, a page boy whose eyes had been gouged out, and a scarred couple who refused to be separated from their lover until death...
Countless images penetrated Xiao Yun's eyelids and turned into hot tears of blood.
A torrent of farewells, mixed with sadness and relief, resounded simultaneously in everyone's mind.
"...The brutal rule of the Talese family brought us unspeakable resentment and pain, turning us into vengeful spirits who can't forgive anything, until you appeared before us... You saved us... You ended the tyranny of the Talese family... Now, it's time for us to leave..."
"People who are bathing in the sun, please don't forget us!"
"We once lived! We once existed in this world!"
"Our bodies are dead, but as long as you remember us, forever... forever... forever, we are still alive..."
"We want to continue living... We want to be born again..."
“When no one remembers us, we will die a second death, an eternal death…”
“…”
Following these words filled with sadness, nostalgia, and unfulfilled dreams, the vengeful spirits from Paradise City transformed into dots of fluorescent light and rushed towards the tsunami of vengeful spirits that was still wriggling like jelly and constantly brewing strange and terrifying things!
boom--
After a deafening roar that seemed as if all the musical instruments in the city were playing simultaneously, the few remaining dark clouds and the tsunami of dying ghosts turned into phantoms and disappeared without a trace.
Silence gradually fell.
In the notes that blend mystery and tenderness, everyone feels peaceful and tranquil.
…
“It’s just magical.”
On a hill about 500 meters away from the port, the "Dark Night Priest" kept on expressing his feelings.
"Even a top-tier mage like me can only influence the minds of a hundred people at a time. To control more people, I'd have to establish a transfer point for every hundred people, radiating outwards... But Your Highness... he was able to unknowingly influence the minds of over ten thousand people at the scene, and every living person he influenced maintained a clear sense of self... It's incredible..."
"But rather than finding out the princess's true strength, I'm more curious about what's going on with Kotori... How could his voice possibly carry the princess's 'divine language'..."
"...If the bird and the princess sleep together...I can find a chance to join them, but so far, they haven't even kissed each other, which is so strange...Is there such a thing as love that can be satisfied without sex?"
Beside the "Mentor of the Dark Night", the succubus sat cross-legged, holding her chin and muttering with a confused expression.
"Shut up!"
The "Dark Night Mentor" interrupted the succubus sarcastically and was about to scold her when he suddenly narrowed his eyes and looked at the sky which was getting darker again.
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