Chapter 735: Besieged City
The voices of prayer outside the church suddenly became sparse, like a stream slowly spreading. Everyone stopped praying and turned around to look behind them.
Flavius Luca was seen wearing silver armor, a lion skin cape on his shoulders, and a completely peeled lion scalp on his head. The huge lion scalp covered Luca's head and helmet like a hood, leaving only a pair of eyes in the middle of the cheek guard and the tightly pursed lips under the high nose bridge.
Luga stood at the front of a group of soldiers, carrying an eagle flag on his shoulder. The Rabbinic flag hanging on the eagle flag was draped over Luga's shoulders.
Luca's eyes were fixed on the church in front of him, and all the believers of God present looked at Luca, the Augustus of Eastern Rome, with begging looks.
"Caesar?"
Only such a call was heard from the silent crowd, and then the surrounding Roman citizens seemed to have their eyes brightened. This call instantly dispelled the confusion revealed in their expressions at this moment.
"Caesar, Caesar, Caesar!"
The citizens called out Luca's name again and again, and the desire for the Pope's investment in the church reappeared in their eyes and was revealed infinitely.
Everyone was calling out Luca's name and reaching out their hands towards him, just like travelers who were almost dying of thirst seeing a source of water, and beggars suffering from hunger seeing bread. Yes, their desire for Luca surpassed everything else. After all, they knew that besides God, there was also Augustus in the world who could drive out the invasion of barbarians and protect them.
Luga did not make any substantial response to people's expectations. His ears were filled with the crying of children, the sobbing of women and the wailing of men. Everyone stretched out their dirty hands towards Luga, trying to get his mercy.
But he still looked straight ahead, kept his lips tightly shut and remained silent. He ignored the people kneeling on the ground in front of him and walked straight forward.
"Ha-ka! Ha-ka! Ha-ka!"
With every step he took, the armor on his body trembled slightly, making crisp sounds when it collided.
Such a tiny sound could be heard clearly in such a huge open space, and so many people present were like statues.
With every step Luca took forward, the Roman citizens in front of him would quickly dodge to the side, avoiding Luca's footsteps. Everyone stretched out their hands and looked at Luca, but no one dared to get within one meter of Luca.
After all, Luca was like a god in front of them at this time and could not be blasphemed in front of them. After all, Augustus Valentinian, who was in charge of them, would only use a large number of soldiers to fill the walls of Ravenna and abandon all cities except Ravenna when the crisis came. However, Flavius Luca chose to stay in Rome when the enemy was at the gates.
It was still Augustus, so there was no difference whether he submitted to Valentinian or to Luca.
Everyone's eyes followed Luca's slowly moving figure, and along the way people kept stepping aside to make way for Luca.
When they saw Augustus approaching slowly in full armor, the church guards stationed behind the fence quickly opened the chained gate. The guards stood on both sides, lowered their heads, and looked respectfully at Luca carrying the eagle flag as he walked past them.
Thousands of eyes were staring at Luca's back, as he was already standing in front of the church door.
In the church, colorful glazed tiles filter the sunlight, decorating the huge hall with colorful colors.
Here, a large number of clergymen in white robes gathered together, singing hymns loudly, as if they wanted to use such sacred songs and praises to God to drown out the endless cries of pleas coming from outside.
Leo sat alone on the prayer chair below. He was wearing a gorgeous robe woven with a mixture of gold and silk, a tall hat on his head, and a golden scepter in his hand. He closed his eyes and listened to the clergy singing loudly.
“Crack!”
There was a crisp sound of a door opening, and then a beam of strong light shone straight in through the open door. The clergy present immediately shut their mouths, and everyone looked up at the man standing in front of the door.
Even Leo himself slowly opened his eyes in the silence. He turned his head and saw the figure standing at the door.
"You're here." Leo whispered to himself, a fleeting smile crossed his face, and then he slowly stood up, his eyes never leaving Luca.
“Trample, trample, trample…”
Luga took a step forward and walked into the church. Everyone held their breath. In the huge prayer room, the only sounds that could be heard were the sound of Luga's footsteps and the clash of his armor.
Luca walked slowly to Leo, looked up and down at Leo's clothes, and still didn't speak.
"Why, have you dealt with your business?" Leo asked.
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"Yes, I had her taken away."
"Then why do you still want to stay here?" Leo frowned slightly and looked at Luca, "It's very dangerous here. As you can see, the Vandals may rush in at any time. Here, as Augustus, you can't be disgraced because of the fall of the city!"
"But what about you, papa? Are you also prepared for the worst? Dressed like this, pretending to be indifferent and avoiding the Romans begging outside."
When the Romans were mentioned, Leo couldn't help but sighed. "These are not the Romans I know, Caesar. The Romans in the past never thought of relying on gods when facing difficulties. They relied on themselves. But look at the Romans now, kneeling on this sacred land and begging for God's mercy."
"But no one has given them the guidance they should have during this period." Luca said softly, waving the eagle flag with the Labran flag in his hand, and said to Leo with a smile: "Look, I am here, determined to face the enemy together with Rome, even if I am only the ruler of the East."
Luca's words stunned Leo. He looked at Luca in surprise and whispered with trembling lips: "Are you going to stay and command them? These useless idiots who have already been scared out of their wits?"
"This is my fate." Luca lowered his head. "We are lions and they are hyenas. We are much stronger than them, but we have lost confidence because we are afraid of their numbers. I once dreamed of restoring the glory of Rome with my own abilities, but life is only a few short decades. I have tried my best to do what I can in the limited time. Although it is far from what I expected, at this time, no one else is more suitable to stay here than me."
"You are such an incomprehensible guy." Leo looked at Luca with respect in his eyes. "So, what can I do for you?"
"Bless me." Luca said, kneeling on one knee in front of Leo and lowering his head.
(End of this chapter)