The crowning of the fallen emperor in silence

New memories, no, old memories.

Memories that were gathered by God's hand and locked in a box.

Breaking the limit set by the goddess, the chain suddenly broke.

Hit Alex.

His five senses were vibrating.

Countless intense pains compressed into an instant tore apart his nerves.

The memory that was forcibly taken away returned to its original place.

The previous violation was eliminated in an instant.

Looking forward, there are memories of unimaginable happiness.

What happened next was different from the countless deaths he had experienced in his previous life. It was just the death of one person.

Six deaths.

Alex swallowed blood.

He gritted his teeth and swallowed the iron taste.

In the gap of one second, Alex saw nearly ten years of his life at a glance.

When he is here.

A firm and clear enlightenment is born.

That's a lie.

Those last concessions, those compromises he had made in those last moments before his bed were lies he, Inger, had told him.

And countless lies afterwards.

He once said that he could not manipulate people's memories.

But the goddess can, she can manipulate the memory of her clone, which cannot be achieved by relying on magic.

They understand the nature of memory and the makeup of the human soul.

Inger goes to ask them to erase his memory of him.

Alex saw Inger die again and again.

See his countless sacrifices.

See his painful final expression.

Seeing his shocking blood and tears.

I saw his determination to jump into the abyss of despair without looking back.

He was like a hero in an ancient fairy tale. He took out his heart and turned it into a torch to lead mankind forward. After passing through the darkness, he disappeared into the morning light.

He was like a gentle, rootless flame that, after burning out, left no ashes behind.

Why? On what basis?

Why did he sacrifice himself like this?

Because he chose it?

Goddess is excessive.

The goddess is partial.

Humans are supposed to be the goddess' children, not her tools.

But the goddess assisted his sacrifice.

The goddess loves her children.

But they would choose to let one person pay a sacrifice more terrible than death, in order to sacrifice the possibility of survival of the entire human race.

Giving the prophet excessive magic power and weapons ruined his otherwise peaceful life.

Inger, who made the overly sacrificial choice of his own accord, is also a tyrannical and authoritarian person.

He is not allowed to refuse.

Deprived him of his memory.

A piece of his soul was torn out, but he was completely unaware.

Countless collapses and the despair of the molten metal solidified in the arteries made Alex's chest feel like it was covered with frost that would never melt.

They think this is love for others, but how can love be like a sword, cutting people so hard that they wish they were dead?

Why is such a sacrifice justified?

Why would he accept it?

Why choose between humans and friends?

Why?

One eye closed, the other open, a tear fell from Alex's eye.

His face was as still as the ancient ice on the top of a snowy mountain.

Inger saw him and understood everything.

Alex broke through the restrictions set by the goddess with his human body.

Is it because the power of the goddess is so weak that she can no longer maintain the laws of the world?

Or did she give his favorite child the privilege of breaking the ban?

Or perhaps the cause and effect of time travel means that he is no longer bound by the laws.

None of this is known.

Inger just trembled.

Alex got his memories back.

Inger had hesitated.

After thinking of the method of sealing memory.

He once asked Lady Danshu of Mondstadt, "What was their reaction after they learned your secret?"

She used her blood to feed the three little lions and they grew up healthily.

She said: "I can only tell you that you either never let them know, or be prepared to torture each other for the rest of your life. This thorn will be stuck in your heart and will never go away."

There was an indescribable sadness and loneliness in Mrs. Danshu's smile.

Love can be so heavy sometimes.

Even so, Inger chose this path.

No matter how perfect the path you don't choose seems, it is fake.

Going down that path can only bring you another kind of regret.

He will never regret a choice he has made, even if it is wrong.

He once vowed: "Then don't let him recover his memory."

Seal of the Goddess.

Make him so sure.

He was also prepared to never be remembered for the rest of his life.

Even if Alex's future doesn't include him, it's good.

He really thought so.

But what is the fear now?

Deep down in his heart, he both wanted him to remember and didn't want him to remember.

At least, not now.

Nothing has been settled yet.

It can't be now.

Inger opened his dry mouth: "Alex..."

Alex squeezed his hand.

Inger felt the pain and felt that his bones and flesh were about to be crushed.

But he couldn't break away, and Alex wouldn't really let him get hurt.

The fingertips of my hands, which were once warm, are now cold.

What Inger saw was that the strength, peace and fearlessness in the golden eyes that symbolized the dawn had disappeared, and were replaced by chaos, cruelty, rebellion and a stubborn will that did not obey.

The fear of God was never clearly evident in his eyes.

Now it can be said to be almost rebellious and disrespectful.

He was not going to accept it meekly, he was going to turn it all upside down.

He heard his calm voice.

"Come here, Duke Inger Neckar has committed a serious crime of treason against the king and is sentenced to long-term imprisonment. Go and get the shackles of the insulating stone."

Everyone present was stunned.

The first decrees of their new emperor after his coronation were tyrannical, unjustified, and arbitrary.

Alex had no one else in his eyes. He gave orders in a calm tone: "The awarding ceremony is temporarily suspended and will be held on another day. Please leave in an orderly manner."

Alex clearly saw Inger's desperate look in his eyes, as if he saw himself.

He closed his eyes in silence.

The first thing the emperor did at the official coronation ceremony after returning home was to imprison the great hero, the new duke.

This incident caused an uproar.

But apart from this, he did not impose any further punishment on him or his family, nor did he deprive him of his title and honors.

Without proof of guilt, and relying solely on one's own orders, disobeying the king can be a serious or minor matter, all depending on the king's testimony.

Throughout history, only tyrants have abused this right.

Some nobles in the Senate who had long been unhappy with the Neka family secretly celebrated. War heroes and ninth-level wizards needed to be relied on in times of war, but once they returned to the country, they would be a huge threat, not to mention that there was a political rookie in his family. At the same time, they also took this opportunity to suppress them in public opinion.

For example, they had people write all sorts of sinister comments and gossip about the undead wizards.

But somehow, the focus of this speech was overshadowed by another wave.

At the beginning, many people speculated that the emperor had crossed the river and destroyed the bridge, and the birds were all gone and the bows were hidden. After the war, they began to eliminate the hidden threats.

But the emperor was obviously not such a stupid person. It was impossible for an upright and kind person to become a tyrant overnight. In fact, his abnormal behavior was only directed at one person. He had a normal attitude towards other people, punishing those who committed crimes and rewarding those who made contributions.

Government affairs are handled in an orderly and stable manner.

Then, another speculation appeared in the editorial gossip column of Full Moon magazine:

Could it be that the great wizard was injured in the war and needed to recuperate? In order to prevent him from being disturbed, he was imprisoned and allowed to recuperate in the palace.

Or maybe, the immortal wizard is not able to be resurrected countless times, so in order to avoid him being sacrificed again and to protect him, he is not allowed to go out.

Attached below is the news that a reporter's investigation found that the undead wizard is most likely not in prison, but imprisoned in the palace.

Of course, there is no solid evidence for these speculations. The palace has done a good job of keeping the news secret.

The Neka family did not reveal anything and just said they were obeying the emperor's orders.

In a restaurant on the corner of the street, someone was talking about this incident while eating. He sat at the window and said to his companion: "The Neka family has always loved their second child. If the emperor really made an unfair judgment on him, they would never swallow their anger even if they rebelled. So it seems that nothing is wrong, right?"

"Hahaha, I also heard that the emperor might have been possessed by some demon and turned into another person, controlling the minds of everyone in the palace. Is this some kind of novel?"

"A ninth-level knight and a ninth-level wizard, if they fight, half of the world will be wiped out. We have nothing to worry about."

"Maybe they locked him up because he's too strong?"

"We've been fighting for so long and you still believe this?"

"Yes, but can he really be resurrected? Is he still a human? Does a person like him need protection?"

"I heard it was true. Many soldiers who returned from the battlefield said they saw it."

"Doesn't that mean that with him around, humans will never lose?"

"The fight lasted for so long, and just because he can't die doesn't mean we can't die. So many people died."

They all fell silent and looked out the window at the long line of parade floats.

It was a joint funeral for the returning souls of the heroes.

The first major event Alex planned after ascending the throne was this funeral. He had an abandoned construction site converted into a cemetery for heroes and martyrs.

The funeral, which he personally presided over, was completed in the presence of the crowd and the relatives of the victim.

During the parade, all pedestrians and vehicles will give way to it, and many people can be seen standing on both sides of the road to watch.

The boxes with corpses contain ashes, and the boxes without corpses contain name plates. Most of those who died in the war between humans and demons were the latter.

Among the dead are soldiers, medical staff, and civilians. They are also someone's children, parents, brothers and sisters.

"We gather here today because we know the weight of these lives."

"We can live in peace today in this surviving land because of some people who sacrificed their lives."

"The meaning of the dead's sacrifice is given by the living."

"They will live on in our hearts forever."

Give honor to the living and commemorate the dead.

Alex didn't make a long speech, nor did he look sad.

He just looked calmly at every face present, closed his eyes and lowered his head.

Under his leadership, everyone fell silent.

Silent mourning.

Tears rolled down many people's faces.

Alex knew that the dead could not return and funerals were something the living needed.