Chapter 612: Rome is hopeless, wait for death
Who could it be?
Luo En frowned, stood up and walked out of the yard.
The street in the distance was in a mess, with scattered fruits and vegetables scattered along the way. Several vendors on the roadside covered their broken arms and bleeding wounds, groaning in pain.
At the end of the road, there was a luxurious carriage pulled by four horses, with sundries and pieces of cloth hanging on the outside. It was obviously the culprit that caused the riot.
But at this moment, its main frame had been shattered, and the four war horses were knocked down in unison, lying on the ground with limp bones and muscles, foaming at the mouth.
"How dare you, a lowly person, destroy my carriage! And how dare you hurt me!"
With a curse of gnashing teeth, a middle-aged lady pushed away the wooden board that was pressing on her body and climbed up from the ground in a panic.
She was wearing a purple stola gown and a veil over her curly hair. Her facial features were generally charming and pretty, but her cheekbones were slightly high and her eyebrows were slightly long, which made her look a bit mean.
Coupled with the red and swollen forehead, and the eyes and brows filled with ferocity and anger, people can't feel the beauty at all, only disgust and fear.
However, the figure confronting the carriage showed no fear at all.
She loosened her arms and put the little girl who had nearly died under her into her mother's arms. Then she straightened her chest and righteously reprimanded the noblewoman who had come to question her:
"In order to hurry, you rode your horse on the street and committed murder without regard for the lives of others. This is the first crime. I tried to stop you, but you didn't feel grateful or repentant, and instead spoke ill of me. This is the second crime. So many people at the scene suffered because of your willfulness, but you had no mercy and instead cared about your own property and animals first. This is the third crime! According to the current Roman law, multiple crimes should be punished together. People like this should be sent to prison immediately and spend several months in jail!"
The girl in the crowd possesses both the harshness of divinity and the tenderness of humanity.
She wore a close-fitting dress of blue and white, and light armor like ice crystals covered her shoulders, neck and waist. Her long golden hair fell to her knees like heavy wheat ears, and the ends of her hair were dotted with blue light like stars. Her eyes were the ice blue of the extremely cold sea, and golden scales appeared in her irises, which seemed to penetrate the good and evil of the soul when she stared. Her right arm was wrapped with a chain symbolizing absolute justice, and the golden scales hanging at the end swayed with her steps, reflecting the light like the trajectory of stars.
The girl exudes a sacred and inviolable aura in her every move, which makes people think of the female knight who stood up for justice in times of crisis.
——See you again, Miss [Justice] passing by.
Lorne, who was in the crowd, listened to the impassioned speech and looked at the familiar face, and couldn't help but laugh.
Because the person in front of him was Astraea, a student of the goddess of justice Themis and an old friend who possessed the divine powers of stars, roads, and justice.
Unlike Themis, who likes quietness and elegance, this second-generation goddess of justice is active by nature and loves to stand up for the weak.
Therefore, she ran down from the God of War Mountain very early and traveled around the human world.
When Loen first returned, he also thought about meeting this old friend and reminiscing about the past.
However, after searching for a long time, no trace of Astraea could be found in Greece.
It turned out that she wandered around and ended up in the Roman Age of the Gods.
After so many years, the character of this righteous man has not changed. He is still impetuous and hates evil, and cannot stand any crime or atrocities.
At this moment, the noblewoman who had been pointed at and scolded came to her senses and her face turned blue with anger:
"Who do you think you are? How dare you talk to me like that!"
As she said this, the unsatisfied noblewoman waved her hand fiercely towards the girl's face.
The speed was so fast that the air made sharp whimpers.
Obviously, this noble lady has an extraordinary origin, divine blood flows in her body, and her physique is far superior to that of ordinary people.
But Astraea on the opposite side reacted faster, dodged sideways, and slapped back with the same posture and method.
“Bang!”
A crisp explosion sounded on the field.
The lady spun several times on the spot like a spinning top and then fell to the ground.
Her long hair, which was tied up with gold ornaments, was spread out, her luxurious clothes were covered with mud, the left side of her cheek was swollen, a trickle of golden blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, and her eyes were a little dazed.
In the brief moment of confusion, the lady seemed to realize something, and a strong sense of humiliation burst out in her heart, causing her to jump up from the ground and pounce on Astraea with her fangs and claws bared:
"How dare you hit me? I'll fight you..."
“Bang!!”
An even louder slap landed on the noble lady's right cheek, knocking her down again with skill.
Looking at the face with swollen bulges on both sides, Astraea clapped her hands in satisfaction.
Well, now I feel comfortable.
Seeing this scene, Loen in the crowd secretly rolled his eyes.
This is a bad habit I learned from studying law with Themis. Everything must be in order and consistent.
When projected into reality, it turns into a mild case of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
At this moment, after being slapped twice in succession, the noblewoman finally realized the reality and realized that she was no match for this mysterious girl. She turned around and angrily cursed at the stunned followers behind her:
"Are you all dead? You actually watched me being bullied!"
Several people woke up as if from a dream, their faces changed immediately, and they hurriedly surrounded the mysterious blonde girl, ready to capture her.
The hostess was known for her harsh and mean temper. If they were humiliated in public and failed to vent their anger, they would be in big trouble when the matter was investigated later.
Seeing this, the lady was very excited and shouted:
"No mercy, kill this untouchable!"
Although killing someone in Rome was a bit troublesome to deal with afterwards, it was also inevitable that her incompetent husband would reprimand her.
But those so-called consequences were nothing compared to the humiliation she was suffering before her eyes.
Upon hearing the order, several people's hearts trembled, and blood began to surge on their bodies. There was a tacit understanding of military coordination as they advanced, and their every move revealed an atmosphere of a battlefield soaked in blood.
——Roman battle formation?
——These people seem to be descendants of gods?
Lorne frowned, thinking.
Could it be that they were all transferred from the Divine Blood Guards?
Then, Loen looked at the pieces of carriage debris on the ground, his eyes sweeping over the delicate rose patterns, his expression a little subtle.
——The family crest of the Claudius family.
Could it be that legendary figure?
Lorne looked at the lady and shook his head secretly.
He is just as the rumors say, vicious, arrogant, mean... and stupid!
Meanwhile, the battle on the field had already been settled.
The people who launched the attack flew back with screams and fell heavily to the ground.
Their arms were all broken violently, with the sharp white bones piercing through the flesh and leaving blood all over the ground.
Astraea was still standing there calmly, with not even a corner of her clothes dirty.
It takes strength to uphold justice. As the goddess of justice, if she can't even deal with a few villains with divine blood flowing in her veins, then there's no point in her life.
At this moment, the noble lady looked at her subordinates who were usually strong and powerful, but they couldn't even survive a single fight and fell to the ground with serious injuries. She was so scared that her face turned pale.
She retreated repeatedly, and the urge to turn around and run away began to arise in her heart.
But before she could turn around, a hand pinned her firmly in place.
The lady turned her head stiffly and looked at the ghostly girl. Her hands and feet became weak and her voice began to cry:
"You, what do you want to do?"
"You've damaged so much property and injured so many civilians, and you still want to get away with it? It's not that easy!"
Astraea said this, she raised her fist as big as a sandbag, wanting to teach this evil woman a lesson.
At this moment, a hurried shout came from a distance:
"The law enforcement team is here!"
“Just in time!”
Astraea showed excitement, then put down her fist and faced a team of a hundred people rushing onto the street.
The onlookers looked worried and wanted to speak up to dissuade them, but two teams of soldiers quickly came in and separated the crowd.
At this time, Astraea stepped forward, picked up the lady who was almost as soft as mud in her hand, and said:
"This evil woman rode a horse and committed a crime in the street. Even after I stopped her, she refused to repent and tried to attack me, but I subdued her again."
"Don't worry, the Empire will enforce the law impartially. Please hand the prisoner over to us first."
The curly-haired law enforcement officer who was in the lead made a solemn promise.
Astraea nodded happily and handed the lady to the two soldiers who came up.
Seeing the lady who couldn't even stand steadily being dragged back to the army, the law enforcement officer breathed a sigh of relief, turned to Astraea, and asked:
"Dear Madam, what is your name?"
"Dike!"
Astraea casually mentioned the alias she used when traveling in the human world.
This is also another aspect of the goddess of justice, which has an even more ancient origin and is less well known.
Before the establishment of laws, when people had disputes, the king would judge based on the inspiration he got during the trial. Later, as the number of similar cases continued to increase, trials also developed certain habits. For similar cases, similar methods are always used. This habit is called "justice", which is the origin of the goddess of justice, Dike. It is very similar to the social changes in Rome from rule by man to customary law and then to written law.
The law enforcement officer felt more relaxed after hearing this:
"From your name, I can tell you're not from this place, right?"
"Yes, I came from Greece. I passed by here and came into the city for a stroll."
Astraea answered without any doubt.
Outsider...
I haven't heard of the name...
The law enforcement officer was completely relieved and said in a deep voice:
"Ma'am, in order to get this matter settled as quickly as possible, I'm afraid you'll need to come with us and cooperate with the investigation. Is that convenient for you?"
"Okay, I..."
The goddess, who was born with a strong sense of justice, was about to agree when a rebuttal voice came from the crowd.
"Sorry, she has an appointment and it's not convenient today."
Astraea looked in the direction of the voice and immediately spotted Lorne, who was smiling brightly in the crowd. She couldn't help but said happily,
"Why are you here too? When did you get here?"
"One step ahead of you."
Luo En replied with a smile, then walked up to the law enforcement officer and threw the bronze elephant badge in his hand to him:
"She's my guest. Is it okay for me to take her away?"
Looking at the iconic relief of a mother wolf breastfeeding, the law enforcement officer's eyelids twitched.
Quirinus!
A woman who can easily beat down a few God-Blood Guards is indeed no simple person!
Fortunately, he had brains and didn't do anything rash, otherwise, it would have been a very bad ending.
The law enforcement officer secretly congratulated himself, and then respectfully handed the elephant emblem back to Loen:
"Then you go ahead and do your work, we won't bother you anymore."
"Wait, didn't you ask me to testify?" Astraea was a little confused.
"No need. The matter is clear and the facts are simple. There are many witnesses here. You don't need to come in person. We can handle it."
The law enforcement officer quickly declined with a smile, and then he did not dare to stay any longer. He ordered his Roman soldiers to escort the embarrassed lady and several unfortunate guys with broken bones on the ground and quickly left the scene.
Looking at the team that was leaving in a cloud of dust, Astraea couldn't help but mutter:
"Why do the rules in Rome keep changing?"
"That's because I took action. Otherwise, you would have to spend the night in jail."
Loen rolled his eyes at Astraea and told her the truth unhappily.
Before the two could continue the discussion, an elderly man could not help but step forward and remind them:
"You two should stop talking now, and get out of the city and escape before it gets dark!"
"Why?" Astraea was a little confused.
"You just offended someone from Claudius's family! It was in public, so they couldn't do it. You will be in trouble when it's night."
"Didn't the law enforcement officer arrest them just now?"
"Law enforcement officers? They are just hunting dogs raised by the God-blood nobles. How could they stand up for us common people? How could they really offend the big shots of the Claudius family?"
The old man spat indignantly, seeming to be quite touched by this.
The people nearby also chattered, some accusing the city's God-Blood nobles of numerous evil deeds, and some advising the two to leave as soon as possible to avoid any accidents.
Astraea became angrier and angrier as she listened, and couldn't help but look at Lorne beside her:
"Such an outrageous thing, don't you care about it?"
"I would like to manage it, but I don't have the energy."
Loen shook his head helplessly, then looked at Astraea expectantly.
"But it's different with you here."
"You want me to help you with work?" Astraea instantly became alert, and her natural intuition told her that this was not a good job.
"It's to practice justice! We just happen to be lacking a qualified chief justice, and I plan to let you take the position."
"don't want!"
Astraea shook her head repeatedly to refuse, and turned towards the city gate, wanting to escape.
She doesn't like being constrained.
Besides, this is Rome's business, what does it have to do with her?
"Alas, this city is full of sin, justice is abused, and justice is absent. Someone, as a disciple of Themis, the goddess of justice, evades responsibility and allows these evil things to happen. What is the difference between this and a criminal?"
Lorne sighed in a pretentious manner, and finally said with great regret,
"It seems that Rome is doomed..."
"stop!"
Astraea, who couldn't bear to listen any longer, turned around, looked at Lorne depressedly, and complained:
"How can it be as exaggerated as you say? This is Rome, the capital of the Age of Gods! How could the laws and institutions be so corrupt that they are beyond redemption?"
"You don't believe it? How about we make a bet?"
"What's the bet?"
"If the woman who was taken away by the law enforcement officer comes out unharmed tonight, and dares to seek revenge..."
"Then I'll beat them to a pulp!"
"You must also agree to serve as Rome's praetor and practice justice and fairness for this country."
"make a deal!"
Astraea simply shook hands with Loen and made an oath of alliance.
She really couldn't believe that the customs and lawlessness of a city could be so severe!
As he watched the righteous lady swagger into the yard and wait for the night to fall, Loen smiled playfully.
Lady Justice may know a lot about the law, but she may not know a lot about Rome.
The Roman Empire is regarded as the fourth beast mentioned in the Book of Daniel, symbolizing the last universal kingdom of the world. In Christian history, the city of Rome is regarded as the successor of the Antichrist prophesied in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation, also known as the "City of Sin".
Immorality, indulgence, resistance to the law, abuse of power... To be honest, this is an excellent heritage for this big city with a complex composition.
What's more, the woman who was taken away just now was not an easy person to deal with either.
But a mere law enforcement officer didn't have the courage to offend that woman.
After all, she was the queen of the current Roman Emperor Claudius I and Nero's nominal mother.
In the face of power, the rule of law seems so pale.
Having suffered such a great humiliation for nothing, one can imagine what she will do when she is released.
So, don't let me down - Agrippina the Younger...
Loen stretched and walked into the courtyard muttering.
Besides, it’s about time that the Roman emperor was replaced.
(End of this chapter)
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