Chapter 696: Blade of Judgment

It rained heavily.

Gray lurked in the bushes, carefully holding his breath. He held a longbow and used the cover of the forest to hide his traces.

However, a hand suddenly appeared from behind and pressed on his shoulder, almost making the ranger scream. He turned around and saw an old, unshaven face looking at him with a mean smile.

"Hey, Ben! Can you please stop scaring people all the time! I almost screamed!"

"That only means you haven't done enough yet, kid."

Ben curled his lips and quietly walked up to Gray with the unique dexterity and agility of the rogue. The old man seemed to be showing off his abilities, but Gray was speechless. Both the ranger and the rogue used concealment. He is good at it, but in fact... his own kung fu is indeed not good enough.

"How is it going?"

"No one came out."

Gray lowered his voice and spoke.

"What about the rest?"

"Stand by in the back. I just checked around and no one found us. It seems that we can really catch a big fish this time."

Ben covered his mouth to prevent the white air from escaping, and answered almost in a mutter. His voice was mixed with the sound of the cold rain in early autumn, making it difficult to hear clearly.

This Judgment Blade team set out a week ago. The Judgment Blade team is similar to an adventure team. They are basically a team of five people. Their main task is to investigate the commissions and requests received by the Tribunal from all over the world. , and complete it.

For example, if a village suffers from goblins, or if a hag in the swamp steals a child, similar situations are within the scope of the Inquisition's attention.

Although there is no problem within the territory of the Tribunal, it is another matter outside the territory. After all, most of the villages in this world are remote base areas. For example, some villages are simply built and are not within the scope of any territory, and because these places are generally located in remote locations, the lord's guards will not travel long distances to help. Therefore, once such a remote village encounters any problems, it can only rely on itself.

But now with the Inquisition, the situation is different.

The Tribunal is an organization that exists to protect mankind, so anything that threatens humanity falls under the jurisdiction of the Tribunal. This is how the Judgment Blade Team was born. They form and act flexibly like adventurers and are mainly responsible for investigation work. Just like this team, the Inquisition received a request for help from a village in the nearby Lost Mountains, saying that goblins had attacked the village recently and hoped that the Inquisition could send people to support it.

So the team set out from the city and headed to the village to investigate the situation.

Unfortunately, they were late. When they arrived, the village had been destroyed, some of the villagers were killed, and others were missing.

Fortunately, goblins are not a smart race that can erase their own footprints. As a ranger, Gray still captured their footprints, then found the goblin camp and launched a successful raid.

The goblin camp was defeated, but the battle did not end there. According to the goblins, the villagers had been sent as prisoners to a being called the "Supreme God", and their souls would be integrated with the Supreme God. , becoming a more powerful existence.

At the beginning, Gray didn't take this so-called supreme god very seriously. Goblins are a weak, evil, and very rogue race. As long as they see a powerful existence, they will think of the other person as a god. Maybe today their so-called god is a giant dragon, and tomorrow it will become a mage... But no matter what, they want to save those villagers, so they I just walked all the way and came here.

Although they were mentally prepared, the scene before them still shocked them.

I saw a dilapidated fortress standing in the mountain col. It looked like it should be a dwarf fortress, but it was abandoned at the moment. But even so, the fortress is generally well preserved. However, the problem is not here, the problem is the existence in this fortress - hundreds of goblins, mountain giants, and even orcs gathered here. They formed an army and it is not known who led these guys.

But it is certain that the existence that can bring these savage monsters together and make them obedient is definitely not a small role.

So this team encountered a problem, and they began to think about what to do next. Should they sneak in, find out the opponent's situation and then report back, or should they report back immediately and wait for support from the rear?

"I have to apologize to you first."

Ben stopped smiling and stared at Gray.

"What's wrong?"

"I have sent a report to the Inquisition."

“䱱………………!”

Hearing Ben's answer, Gray was shocked. He subconsciously stretched out his hand to grab the other person. Fortunately, his remaining sense allowed him to know the consequences of causing trouble here, but even so, the anger in his heart was still there. Burning.

"Why don't you discuss it with me?"

Gray is the captain of this team, and Ben is the vice-captain. Although Ben is about ten years older than Gray, Gray is young and strong, and has rich experience as a ranger. In addition---let the rogue Being the captain always felt a bit wrong, so in the end, Gray became the captain of the team, and Ben became the vice-captain.

"Don't be too quick to get angry, young man."

Ben seemed very calm, even when his clothes were grabbed. He stared at Gray and shook his head.

"You also know why I do this."

"…………………………"

Gray let go of his hand, then turned his head away angrily, looking at the fortress below, silent.

And Ben straightened his clothes.

"Believe me, kid, I have seen many young people like you, and heard many heroic epics, thinking that they can single-handedly turn the tide and save the world like the Mithril Four Friends or the Neverwinter Heroes. But understand, we don't have this ability, we can't deal with so many goblins and mountain giants. I know you are eager to show merit and being motivated is a good thing, but not knowing whether to live or die is another matter."

"……………………"

"Are you married?"

Hearing this question, Gray nodded depressedly.

"My daughter is already one year old."

"Then you should also understand that for the sake of your wife and children, you have to work hard to survive. The Tribunal gave you such good conditions, but it is not for you to die."

Hearing Ben's words, Gray was speechless for a while.

Gray was a ranger. He and his wife originally lived a peaceful life in a small village, but later the village was attacked by bandits. Although Gray protected his wife, the entire village was destroyed. For Gray, those were the most painful days. They were homeless and had to sleep in the open air, and his wife was pregnant. In this case, Gray was even more helpless.

Finally, they chose to go to the Tribunal.

In Arkham City, Gray decided to give up his identity as a free ranger and join the Judgment Blade to become a soldier.

The treatment of the Tribunal was better than Gray could imagine. After he became a Judgment Blade, he got his own house, which was completely unimaginable for Gray. Generally speaking, soldiers basically live in a large bunk bed, a large room, and then squeeze in more than a dozen bunk beds, where a group of sweaty men rest. Only those with some spare money can rent a house, and it is even more difficult to buy a house.

In fact, when Gray first came to Arkham City, he was thinking of using his savings to rent a house here, and then find a way to live. But to his surprise, after he completed the formalities, the clerk who handled the formalities for him gave him a brand new option.

"If you want, you can rent in an apartment building."

According to the clerk, the so-called apartment building is a high-rise building. As long as Gray is willing to sign an agreement, they can move in. Of course, the monthly rent will be automatically deducted from the salary. But compared to the rent outside, it is already quite cheap.

Gray didn't have much choice, so he could only nod in agreement.

I have to admit that at the beginning, Gray was not used to this weird architectural style. In the world of Faerun, every household builds a house, basically enclosing a piece of land by themselves, and building whatever they want. Especially in those remote villages, if you have the ability to enclose the entire mountain, no one will care.

But it was different in Arkham City. Gray rented a standard two-bedroom, one-living room room. Although there was no furniture, the kitchen and bathroom were fully equipped. It was quite convenient. When he got up every day, he could even enjoy the scenery outside through the colorful French windows in front of him.

However, as a ranger, Gray still preferred a house with his own courtyard. Although the current apartment was well-equipped and comfortable to live in, it always felt like living in a luxurious birdcage, which made him feel a little uncomfortable.

Of course, Gray knew that he was too greedy. Being able to give such good treatment to a new soldier was enough to prove that the Tribunal treated them very well, so he wanted to make achievements as soon as possible to repay the Tribunal...

"Don't think too much, kid."

Ben slapped Gray on the back of his head, interrupting his thinking.

"Remember, we are soldiers now. You are no longer the free-spirited ranger. Do you remember what the mission was before we set out?"

"……………Investigate the specific situation of the village attacked by the goblins, and respond as appropriate and report the situation."

"Yes, we have investigated to this point, and we have done everything we should do, so we have to report to the Inquisition and wait for the next step. This is the duty of a soldier."

Ben stretched out his hand and pointed to the ruins of the fortress below.

"You know, Gray, I have explored similar ruins of fortresses several times. I often see some corpses in them, and then I will wonder who they are, where they come from, and why they come here... But I can't find the answer, because they are dead, and there is no record to explain."

Ben spread his hands.

"Look, we don't want to end up in the same situation. We go in, maybe we will find something, maybe not. Maybe we will be killed, and then the corpses will be left behind, and then the later ones will stand in front of our corpses, wondering why we came here, but we are already dead, and the dead can't speak."

"…………………………"

Gray didn't speak.

"Remember, Gray, it is a good thing to make achievements, but first you must understand your responsibilities. We are the Blades of Judgment. We were told on the day we joined that we are the mortal troops of the Tribunal. We fight for the Tribunal. Fight, fight to protect mankind, or do you think your current body is not cool enough and plan to become that kind of iron shell? "

Having said this, Ben patted Gray on the shoulder. Almost everyone in Arkham City knew about the Night Guard. They were the most loyal warriors of the Tribunal during their lives. After death, their souls possessed the steel armor and transformed into The immortal warriors continue to serve the Inquisition.

Of course, in other places, even saying this would not be recognized by most people, not to mention that the appearance of the Night Guard's armor looks evil. If it is said that this is a necromancer using magic to extract the souls of living people, It would be easier for people to accept it if they were sealed in steel armor and used as slaves.

The reason why everyone accepted the Night Guard was that even during the day, these steel guards would patrol the streets tirelessly, not caring about the sun at all. And they were often seen talking to church priests or paladins. Because of this, everyone accepted the Tribunal's statement.

After all, there are so many churches of gods here, including Lathander, Lord of the Dawn, who hates the undead the most. If it is just a certain church, it can be said that it may have been deceived or bribed by the Inquisition, but it is impossible for all of them The gods are all blind.

"That's good too."

Hearing Ben's joke, Gray reached out and touched the Inquisition logo on his collar.

"If I die, my soul can return to the Tribunal, and then come back to watch my daughter grow up, get married, and have children, I think it would be great."

"So you are unwilling to leave your daughter even if you die. Your daughter is really miserable..."

“————————!!!”

However, before Ben had finished speaking, suddenly, a black shadow suddenly passed by in the sky, and a howling wind blew. In just a moment, an unspeakable feeling of fear and trembling deep in the hearts of the two suddenly broke out, making them feel He seemed to have lost all his strength, and could only sit on the ground like a puddle of mud. His eyes widened in horror, looking at the shadow that flew across the sky and landed in the fortress.

That's a giant dragon.

"Oh my God, Gods above me, what did we see?"

Ben's eyes widened, he spoke tremblingly and almost shouted. Fortunately, the goblins and giants in the fortress were not much better at this moment. They trembled and knelt on the ground, completely unaware of the two men who were watching not far away. people.

"Quick, get out of here!"

Ben bit his tongue hard, and the severe pain came, diluting the fear. He grabbed Gray and wanted to take him away.

However, Gray shook his head.

"No, I can't leave."

"Are you crazy? That's a giant dragon!"

"I knew it was a dragon."

Gray also turned around now and stared at Ben.

"But this is an opportunity. Where is this place and why does a giant dragon appear? What do they want to do? I don't believe that these people go to all the trouble to capture the villagers just to fill the dragon's belly."

After saying this, Gray stood up again.

"I'm going to investigate the situation. Maybe I can get some valuable information."

"you……………"

Ben reached out and pointed at Gray.

"You don't want your life? That's a giant dragon!"

But Gray didn't speak anymore, just stared at Ben, who shook his head.

"I will not die, and there are others who want me to take care of them. If you want to die, go ahead... Anyway, the pension from the Tribunal is enough to support orphans and widows."

After saying this, Ben snorted coldly, turned around and disappeared into the bushes. Gray retracted his gaze, looked at the fortress in front of him again, and then took a deep breath.

Then, he bent down and touched in the direction of the fortress.