Chapter 320 [Morning Star Never Falls] (5400)

Dawn, Farol, First Church of the Astral Body.

Ansu looked at it from the hill, his perception could see very far.

The decoration of the Astral Church is different from that of other churches. Most of the latter use baptismal stones as the floor, the walls are engraved with murals and mosaic glass windows that are three people high, and the dome is a sacred fish beam wood covered with a layer of gold foil, with a statue in the center.

Compared with its magnificent splendor, the decoration of the Starry Church is much simpler. The four walls are covered with monochrome navy blue glass, and the entire dome is transparent. You can see the starry sky when you look up. The flowing starlight makes the border between the inside and outside of the church disappear. There is no statue in the center of the church, but instead a huge star map.

The Astral Church, whose full name is the Astral and Naraku Church, has churches in both the Farol and Awadh theocracy.

The sorcerers of the Astral Church are called 'Stargazers'. They are the purest scholars and the only neutral group among all religious organizations.

Astrologers do not participate in any religious struggles or political wars. In their philosophy, all human struggles are worldly struggles, and their eyes are on the starry sky; their job is simple, which is to observe the starry sky day and night, and record the discovered "celestial bodies" in the star map.

The observed coordinates will be provided to both the Vatican and the Esoteric Church, allowing them to explore or conquer.

In short, detecting the movement of stars is the most important job of an astronomer.

And in the early morning of today, when the stars were about to disperse——

However, the astronomers detected a movement trajectory that was beyond common sense. In the originally nearly realistic star map, a stream of light that should not have appeared suddenly appeared, flowing along the sky at an unimaginable speed. However, it was not just circling, after each circle, it would be closer to the real world, as if climbing the track of destiny. The astronomers then realized that this star was approaching the real world in the form of a spiral staircase!

The closer they get, the more they can see who the star belongs to.

It is the second fragment of the "Age of Chaos" series that the Astral Church has been looking for.

But this time, they didn't find it.

Instead, the stars came to them on their own initiative.

If the world of Naraku were to come into contact with the real world, no one would be able to bear the consequences.

Even the so-called demigods cannot resist it.

And now, that world is close enough to be observed with the naked eye.

The warlocks of the Astral Priests immediately warned the city hall, but to their surprise, Milton did not take any preventive actions, neither evacuated the citizens nor organized shelter.

On the contrary, the frequency of inspections by the Inquisitors and the Knights Templar and the degree of martial law were increased. All articles reporting on the star phenomenon in the newspapers were removed from the shelves and confiscated. All gatherings and entertainment activities were cancelled, the curfew was extended, and all residents had to stay at home. The city hall's external statement was that the imperial capital was peaceful and that this was a strategic military exercise.

Ansu could understand the city hall's intentions.

The Chaos Star is so close that even Ansu can deduce that the speed of the Chaos Star's fall is related to the degree of chaos. Milton has so many demigods and scholars enshrined in the temple, and these adults can naturally deduce the truth.

The more chaotic the imperial capital is, the faster it will fall.

Then for the nobles and officials, the most effective way is to conceal the truth from the people, pretending that everything is peaceful, avoiding mass panic, and triggering chaos. So it is understandable that they did not organize evacuations, but instead let the guards lock the people in their homes.

This move can only treat the symptoms, but definitely not the root cause.

At best it can only delay the time of falling.

An Su knew that the more he concealed things, the more he suppressed the chaos, and the greater the chaos that would eventually erupt would be.

But for Milton, it was enough to just treat the symptoms and delay the time.

Less than a quarter of an hour had passed since the sky began to turn pale. Ansu had already seen three alchemical carriages passing the banks of the Maria River, leaving the upper city, and then passing through the city gates, heading towards the wasteland farther away. The ruts of the carriage gears crushed the early winter rime, and the alchemical horses with the emblems of "Earl" and "Marquis" spewed thick smoke from their magic cores, which intertwined with the industrial mist shrouding the lower city, making it impossible to distinguish one from the other.

There was even a carriage embroidered with golden irises, apparently a branch of the Milton royal family.

These noble adults need time to leave Farol, the center of the fall, so they let the media embellish the peace and let the guards lock the ignorant people in their homes. This is understandable. For the empire, the safety of the nobles is more important. Only they can command Farol to overcome this crisis - even though they are not in Farol.

So this all makes sense.

It's understandable.

"Master Ansu, we should go back to the border."

The mercenary army of the border embassy found Ansu and the maid on the mountain. These Morning Star Knights were wearing white armor, and their epaulettes were printed with the navy blue family emblem of the dawn and the stars. The leading knight rolled down from the alchemical giant horse. This high-ranking female knight was named Agnes. She was once the knight commander of the Border Church. After a certain incident, she left the church and was recruited by the Morning Star Family.

She hurriedly bowed to the young master and said, "Your father has received news that the stars are about to fall in the center of Farol. All the nobles and city officials currently living in the imperial capital will be evacuated. Even the emperor will leave Farol, and the Awad Empire bordering the border has also begun to take action."

"It's no use staying in Farol."

Agni raised his eyes and looked at Ansu, "Please leave with us immediately."

"Indeed, there is no point in staying here."

Ansu nodded to show his understanding. He stood up and walked towards the Knight Commander Morningstar, but did not take the alchemical horse handed over by the servants. The young man shook his head at the Knight Commander, his navy blue eyes full of seriousness, "But I don't plan to leave."

"Why?"

The Knight Commander was obviously getting anxious. She knew that people shouldn't read too many books. The young master had only been studying for two years and he had become stupid. When it rained, normal people would know to find a place to hide from the rain, but the young master didn't even know to hide when the stars were falling. He was a complete nerd.

Suddenly, Agni suddenly thought of something, "Could it be true, as Miss Enya said, that you want to commit suicide because of too much pressure from studying?"

You fucking bastard.

An Su's expression instantly fell. He glared at Enya beside him fiercely. When did this get out? I told you not to tell your parents, how come even my guards knew about it!

It's just a betting ticket, why do you hold a grudge like that? Miss Enya tilted her head, her face still had the same cold expression that never changed, but she stuck out her tongue at Ansu imperceptibly, her long dark hair created shallow ripples in the air, and from behind her, broken starry sky fragments slowly flowed along the sky track.

"Hey." She sighed softly, then shook her head with a cold expression, "Enya knows nothing."

"Ms. Enya," the Knight Commander looked at Enya with hope. She knew that this personal maid in front of her was the most unfathomable and cared the most about the young master's life. She would definitely not let Ansu go crazy. "Knock the young master out quickly. I'll drag him into the car. When we go back, we must take Young Master Ansu to an institution to help him get rid of his addiction to studying."

But to her surprise, facing Ansu's life-and-death crisis, Enya shook her head for the first time, "This time I respect the young master's choice. Because I am a shadow, and shadows only follow the light."

If it were the Enya of the past, she would never do this. Even if it was against Ansu's wishes, she would force Ansu out of Farol.

Are you addicted to school too?

Agnes was shocked, learning is really harmful!

"What if the young master dies alone in the imperial capital?"

"It's okay, I'm here." Enya replied lightly.

"Can you guarantee that Anzu will be okay? If Naraku really comes into contact with the living world, even a demigod would have trouble surviving!"

"You misunderstood what I meant." Miss Enya shook her head, her amber eyes reflecting the starry sky. "All I can do is not to leave the young master alone. If he dies, I will naturally follow him, so that he will not die alone in the imperial capital."

When talking about life and death, she spoke casually, as if she was talking about how many bowls of rice she had last night.

Ansu looked at Miss Enya. He knew that what she said was absolutely true. She would really do this because in the world line where Ansu had not yet awakened his memories of his past life, the maid had already done this once. Despite this, Ansu's heart was slightly touched. He stared at Enya for a long time, and felt a little warm in his heart.

"Of course." Miss Enya still had that cold expression on her face, and said as a matter of course, "I want to take advantage of the heat before I die."

Ansu's somewhat warm heart cooled down.

You're a bitch! What do you want to do while it's hot? He finally felt that Miss Enya was a little more normal, but she was still so bitch, even if she died, she would still be so bitch!

Wait, in another original timeline where he died, the maid in that world. He looked at the maid with a rather horrified look.

"So, Master Ansu." Enya looked at Ansu. She took a step closer and bent down slightly. Her cherry-like thin lips exhaled moist mist and she tickled the boy's earlobe warmly. "Please don't die. If you die, bad things will happen."

Those amber eyes had no extra colors. They reflected the boy's shadow seriously and clearly. She whispered, "Please."

"Otherwise, I will eat you."

It was the first time that An Su saw Miss Enya showing such a wavering expression. She pursed her thin lips slightly, clenched the hem of her skirt with her white fingers, turned her face to the side and lowered her eyes, even her pupils were trembling slightly. An Su could imagine what kind of complicated struggle Enya went through to make the decision to let him stay in the imperial capital; those mean words she deliberately said were just a common disguise.

"I'll be fine." Ansu paused, then gently reached out his hand and rubbed Miss Enya's head slightly, "And I don't taste good."

"I still can't understand you." Knight Agni shook his head. "From what I know, almost all the nobles and their children in the imperial capital are ready to leave. Even the city hall has begun to evacuate, and even the royal family. They will remotely command Farol in the second capital."

"And you're not even from the Imperial City."

"It's because everyone has left that I want to stay here." Ansu shook his head. He walked to the edge of the hill and looked at Farol covered in mist. "Otherwise, what will they do?"

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"them?"

Agni followed Ansu's gaze and saw the even more complicated and densely packed streets in the lower city. The guards from the Abnormal Control Bureau posted one ban after another at the entrance of the gatehouse alley.

Through the densely packed seals, in the depths of darkness, there seemed to be countless pairs of anxious eyes. In the gloomy slums, in the silent ruins and pigeon houses, those eyes included old people, young people, and children. Among them, the eyes of children were the clearest, emitting sparkling light in the mist.

Some of the lower-ranking missions in the upper city also heard the news and used their connections to buy passes to block the city gates. However, the dawn in the lower city was completely quiet. The only people on the streets were the propaganda officers of the daily newspapers who stuffed everyone's mailboxes with newspapers bearing the words "peace and harmony" and "order".

"Do you care about their lives?" Agnes blinked. Could it be that Master Ansu understood human nature? "From what I know, you are not such a person."

"You are right. I really don't care. I only care about my own interests."

There was still half of the reversed time. Bai Ansu disdained to whitewash his words. He looked at the country of Farol. The golden morning glow shone through the gaps in the clouds. He stood at the highest point of Farol. The young man stretched out his hand, as if holding the power of the world. "Because they left, I will stay; if they don't leave, I will run away. I am not a good person. I have always been evil."

"Chaos is the ladder to ascent."

"If the soldiers leave, I will stay and be a soldier; if the aldermen leave, I will stay and be an alderman; if the king leaves, I will stay and be the king, and these are my people."

Facing the morning stars and the morning glow, the boy's navy blue eyes seemed to look into every pair of eyes in the darkness, into every old man, young man, and child, and into every anxious soul. The boy revealed the purest smile, and the remnants of the stars fell in front of him.

"If all the stars in the sky fall, then I should be the one to stay in the sky."

Agnes stared at the boy in front of her silently, her soul deeply shaken. She truly felt that the boy in front of her was an alien. Ansu was not afraid, and even had no sympathy. He did not feel pity for the ordinary citizens in the slums. On the contrary, the boy just felt happy, happy from the bottom of his heart. He would not even hide this joy, this evil, nor would he whitewash the peace. He accepted the chaos and he praised the chaos.

Despite this, he had to stay in the imperial capital and stand with the abandoned pawns.

Is he a cursed child, a blessed child, or both.

"Master, you win." Agni was silent for a long time, then said slowly, "Let your father convince you."

Is my dad here too?

Ansu blinked, but saw Agni take a step back and pull open the curtain of the alchemical carriage behind him. As the gears turned, Count Carlo's gloomy face suddenly appeared.

"Dad." An Su felt bad. His dad would definitely force him to take him home.

He glanced at the Morning Star family's army. Count Carlo was very powerful. This elite force was mostly composed of saints. Even if he and the maid were combined, it would be difficult to defeat them.

Miss Enya quietly took Ansu's hand, waiting for the young master's order so that they could escape into the shadows.

"Rebellious son."

Unexpectedly, Count Carlo just stared at Ansu in silence for a long time, and then he sighed softly.

"If you want to stay, then stay."

Ansu was surprised.

"Over the years, what you are best at is running away from home. Every time I catch you, you run away. I know that I can't keep you. And you are already seventeen years old. It's time to get married."

Count Carlo shook his head, his dark blue eyes staring at Ansu from a distance, "When I was young, I also liked to run away from home, and followed your two uncles to Farol, so the people of the Morning Star Family cannot be locked up."

"Everyone says that we are a nouveau riche family with a lack of history, but in fact, it is because your father became rich suddenly after he was a soldier and found a gold mine. That is why they know us and think we are nouveau riche. In fact, our family has been on the border for thousands of years, and generations have been soldiers guarding the border."

"I am not very educated, and this is the only knowledge I can teach you."

"Do you know where our family emblem, the Morning Star, came from?"

"The Morning Star is the star in the morning. But there should be no stars in the morning. Stars belong to the night. At dawn, other stars in the sky have left, but the Morning Star is still guarding at dawn, at the boundary between night and day, before the sun comes out, in this narrow time without any light. This is the mission of Morning Star."

"We are the morning stars. Even if all the stars fall, we will still stay in the sky."

Count Carlo looked at Ansu,

"The nobles are gone. You stay in the sky of Farol, and I'm going back to the border sky. I just received a tip-off - thanks to you for keeping those idiot envoys at home - that the Awad Empire has begun to march towards the border."

"The war has already begun. Remember this, your father was also a soldier. He was awarded the title based on his military merits, not some stupid upstart!"

He ordered the soldiers to drive the alchemical carriage. The heavy magic core mist rose up, and the alchemical monsters roared loudly, shattering the heaven and earth. Count Carlo took a last look at Ansu, and said loudly, "Ansu, never forget that you are Morningstar. Remember, it is dawn now!"

"Also remember the language of the tribe that I haven't had time to teach you yet—"

The Morning Star Knights boarded the alchemical chariots, their dark blue hooves crushing the cold rime. Their orderly voices echoed in my ears and in the sky above Farol, circling for a long time.

"【Morning Star Never Falls】!!"

The boy held Miss Enya's warm hand and softly repeated the tribe's language.

He looked at his father's back which was gradually receding. He gradually disappeared in the gap between dawn and night. The early winter wind rolled up the orange and white clouds, and the wilderness also rolled up layers of wrinkles like mountains and seas. His father walked to the end of the mountains and the sea, rushing to his battlefield. He would never look back. From now on, An Su knew that no one would take him home because he was already seventeen years old.

"[The Morning Star Never Falls]."

The young man said softly, repeating it again. He didn't know how to describe his feelings at the moment. He only knew that this time they were parting, and he didn't know when they would meet again. Hey? An Su's eyes widened slightly.

He saw Count Carlo grab the reins from the coachman, leave the team and reverse back.

"No, I'm worried. Our family has been a single-line family for dozens of generations, and we can't let it be cut off."

Count Carlo glanced at Ansu, then at Miss Enya, and gave his father's order.

"I order you two to do x right here and now!"

(End of this chapter)