Chapter 141 140 Dawn of the Scarlet Fortress

Chapter 141 140. Dawn of the Scarlet Fortress
Chef Xiao Wan had a “self-explosion” and accidentally revealed some of his past “connections”.

But seeing that Count Kaldeman was so tolerant and did not resist these channels that were not good to talk about on the surface, the others understood in their hearts.

It’s not just himself who will be able to jump through the door today.

If the operation is good, perhaps even family and friends can also mix a bowl of public rice to eat.

So their speeches became more and more active and radical!
Mr. Portman even proposed the formation of a slave hunting team, taking advantage of the Yankees have just taken the great plains of Kafuoka can not be governed opportunity to cross the border to capture some of the population back to enrich the territory, a round trip at most ten days, the operation of a good time can bring back hundreds of people.

There are good farmers over there, so you can use them as soon as you bring them back!
These days the people can’t talk about loyalty to the country, as long as Murphy can guarantee the rights and interests of these slave laborers and their future life, they don’t mind changing the lord.

To be honest, this suggestion is really executive also makes Murphy’s heart thumping, but after careful consideration it is still not adopted.

In Transylvania’s current bad situation, it was not a good idea to hastily mess with those barbaric and warlike Yankees, and Professor Malcolm was strongly opposed to such inhumane behavior.

Of course, the astute professor also gave a very formal reason:
“The war stragglers will soon be here, gentlemen.

Having lived through the Ten Years’ War almost in its entirety, I can tell you that the number of people displaced by the war in the six provinces surrounding the entire war zone is absolutely astronomical, so we simply don’t have to challenge the Yankees just for the sake of a few hundred people.

What we have to do now is to build a series of basic administrative structures that will assure us that we can accommodate the populace that will soon be here.”

Professor Winston Malcolm pushed up the frames of his own glasses as he spoke thoughtfully:
“The southern border of the Cato, East Prussia, and Sachse regions was the border of the Bosian Confederacy for centuries past, and it is now occupied by the Kingdom of the Golden Sparrow.

It’s true that General Loren’s legions have strict military discipline, but the other border guards have long been tormented by the war to the point of going insane, and it’s commonplace for them to pillage and haze and even massacre the locals. As long as Lord Earl opened his hands to them, many oppressed civilians would be willing to migrate over.

In my opinion, the issue of population is actually not very important, what must be resolved now is food and the restoration of order to the whole of Transylvania.

Even a nominal restoration is enough to stabilize the people!”

Speaking here, the professor hesitated, looked at Murphy, and said:

“As well, Lord Lord, I think you should now think about what happens after the war is over. If both the Goldfinch Kingdom and the Nordtorf Kingdom don’t intend to annex Transylvania, but instead see us as a military buffer zone between the two countries, then I reckon that there will soon be emissaries from both sides coming to visit.

Please make sure you are prepared to negotiate with them.

This is really very important!
Although it will seem like we have no dignity to say this, whether or not the regime in Transylvania can be smoothly handed over now all depends on the attitudes of the two countries.”

“They will agree with my rule! I have no doubt about that.”

Murphy shook his head and looked to the crowd as he said:

“Gentlemen, there is an important piece of news that I must tell you, I have received definite information from my fellow Blood Race members that the once-in-a-century Black Calamity, originating from the Dark Mountain Range, is already brewing.

In six months at the latest, they will once again poison the continent, and sadly, Transylvania will be put to the test again.”

“Oh my god!”

There was a gasp from the crowd.

Even Professor Malcolm stood up in shock.

It was impossible for those who lived in Transylvania not to know about the “Black Plague”, after all, every time that disaster occurred the first to suffer was inevitably them, it was a disaster that had been passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth, and worst of all, it didn’t only exist in legends.

The jackal bandits that now populate Transylvania are a reminder of the last Black Plague.

When they heard that the Black Calamity was about to happen, the people who had just been complacent because they had received official positions and knighthoods instantly changed their faces.

The change of expression that immediately ran away could not be hidden at all.

“Gentlemen, you are all people with status now, please be decent.”

Murphy knocked on the table, silencing the conference room.

He said:

“There is no need for too much trepidation, Clan Bloodwyvern has decided to fulfill the duty we have been doing for centuries, we will be active on the front lines of the fight against the Black Plague, and you will all be safe until we crumble in the blessed blackness of the night.

Most importantly, even if you run away now, in case the Transylvania region can’t withstand the swarming jackals, you will suffer the same disaster.

Unless you guys can just escape to the legendary New World.

So in my opinion, the matter at hand must continue to be done.

And it’s got to be accelerated!
But look on the bright side.

Against the backdrop of the impending Black Calamity, no matter if it’s the Kingdom of the Golden Sparrow or the Northmen of Nordtorf, they would never take over the hot potato of Transylvania at this point in time, which means that as long as we can make it through this Black Calamity, we’ll be able to stand above the continent as an independent nation.

And they need the Transylvanians to stand in the way of the ferocious tide of jackals.

They need us to die in their place, which means we can lionize them.

As long as it’s not too much.
I think we can get everything we need from them right now, whether it’s weapons, resources, or even population!”

The vampire lord said in a long drawn out voice:

“What’s more, Countess Andromeda’s territory can still be divided into at least three baronies, and she is now in short supply of those who can stand alone in times of crisis, and like me, she lacks good vassals to serve her.

Think about it, if we can build ten cities in Transylvania, then there will be ten lordships waiting to be assigned, what if we build twenty?

What if our territory continues to extend?

As far as I know, the large area that crosses the Filthy Swamp near the Dark Mountain Range is considered fertile land, yet no one dares to take it simply because of its proximity to a dangerous place.

That’s a territory comparable in size to the entire Transylvania region!

This means that two to three counts and at least eight barons can be born there as well, and even King Louis and the Wolf Woman wouldn’t dare to deny the merits of reclaiming the land and establishing their rule in the Crisis Land!

The entire human race and the entire continent will see us as heroes of the pioneering!

Well, gentlemen, I admit that I am tempting you with power that is not yet in your hands, drawing you a nice, round pie out of thin air.”

Murphy narrowed his eyes.

His ears were listening to the changes in the minds of the crowd in front of him, like a not-so-skilled pianist trying to grasp the pulse of the rhythm.

He said:

“But the chance to make a class leap comes once in a lifetime, and if you miss it, you miss it, and your children may complain about you in the future. And when you are old and dying alone in a strange place that does not accept you and treats you as fugitives, will you not even be filled with remorse for a moment!
Why you were not brave enough when Lord Count Cadman showed you a bright future.

It only takes a little courage to be a hero or a pioneer!

I will declare to you that I will fulfill my duties as a lord and stand in front of you when the Black Plague comes, that your ideals and ambitions won’t end until I fall, and that as long as we don’t stop walking, the road to the future will continue to stretch.

I am convinced of this.

Even if I am a vampire, well, why don’t I take this opportunity to lay out my plans for the rebuilding of the city of Cadman again to all of you, to my current vassals.”

Murphy stood up.

In the oppressive atmosphere, he sauntered over to Miriam and reached out to place his hand on the baroness’s shoulder.

He said:

“I will build a large and prosperous city on the ruins of the old city, and I will make this new city the brightest jewel in all of Transylvania!

I will have the statues of the Consul and the First Pathfinder standing in the most prominent place in the square, so that everyone who sees them praises from the bottom of their hearts the supreme wisdom of the First Scarlet Consul . With her courage that was enough to make any male feel ashamed!
By now, they would know!

Even a woman from a commoner’s background without a family name could leave a glorious mark of her own in history.

We should not allow ourselves to be complacent because of the honorable bloodline that we could not choose, we should allow the bloodline to be noble because of the people!”

Miriam’s heart skipped a beat.

Murphy’s words had perfectly struck the most longed for, the deepest hidden ideal in her heart.

Or maybe it was called ambition.
But the vampire didn’t stop there.

He continued forward, reaching out and placing a hand on Professor Malcolm’s shoulder.

He said:

“I will establish a new order for the new city, and there is only one rule at the very foundation of my city! I will make everyone equal in this city and even in my territory! All who enter here, all who wish to live here!

Regardless of their race, their origin, their beliefs and their past, as long as they are willing to dedicate themselves to this land, then they are my subjects, they are citizens of Transylvania!
The stupidity of racism will be completely discarded in this land!
The professor of history who accomplished this feat may have felt like a fool in his previous life, but I believe he was able to fulfill his life’s work at the end of his life!
He was able to say goodbye to a great life without guilt, and to go into history with honor.

Until he is immortalized in the praise of millions!”

Professor Malcolm’s body shuddered violently.

As a scholar who had experienced the war, the dedication to ideals in his heart had not faded due to the tragic reality.

It was because he had personally seen strangers wielding swords recklessly because of differences in race and origin that he wanted to see those factors that hindered the advancement of mankind eliminated even more. He knew it would be difficult.

It was hard for him to even see someone in this day and age who could understand him.

Except
Except for the unique vampire in front of him who had been on the dole with him for the past month or so.

Still, Murphy didn’t stop.

He continued forward.

Reaching out and placing his hand on Franks Chauvin’s “Otherworldly Striped Fish” tattooed shoulder, his lord spoke for the third time as the gangly chef listened in amazement:

“My new city will also be a place of law!

No more damned vampires dragging their poor nieces away, no more stupid but greedy officials deducting his hard-earned daily bread from his life, and all who live here will extend their lives under the same set of laws.

And there will be no more crazy scenarios of a shameful famine forcing an otherwise good citizen to risk his life on the desperate path of arms smuggling in order to protect his family and feed his children.

It would be a bright future!
It would be a new era where everyone could live recklessly by simply obeying the law.

I seem to have seen it with my own eyes. Yes, a life of stability will no longer be a fantasy, even if it is a distant legend elsewhere, but in the city we will build together, it is a reality!
And it must be!”

He clapped Shovan on the shoulder, causing the bandit chef to lower his head and wipe his eyes.

He didn’t know where Lord Murphy had found out about his past, but at this moment he was willing to believe in the overly “romantic” and “tender” promises of the Midnight Man.

“And of course, my city will be a land of freedom of faith.”

Murphy walked behind the most silent Sister Jules, and gently placed his hands on the shoulders of this old woman who had experienced a lifetime of hardship, he said in a gentle tone:

“There will no longer be any tragedies that lead to family separation and friends turning against each other because of different beliefs, in my city, in my territory, all the righteous believers who are willing to follow the law can freely choose to believe in their own god.

Even a religion that was declared apostate ten years ago!

You may not believe it, Sister, but the truth is that Avalon, the God of Nature, has whispered to me.

He said that I was a vampire like no other, He informed that there was a sincere follower of His under my command, and He commanded that I must take care of her.

Of course I would do so.

Devoted Sister Jules, I will do so!
I will solemnly erect new and gorgeous churches for Nature’s Avalon in my domain.

Of course, I would do the same for the Winter Wolves congregation, and I would allow the followers of Mother Earth to build altars underground, and even the Eastern followers of the fabled Star Realm Dragons with the followers of the Creator of the Miles and Miles of Yellow Sands.

For, hand in hand, the new city we build will open its arms to all the homeless.

Not only to feed their bodies, but to soothe and properly tend their hearts”

“O Avalon above.”

The silent old nun felt her heart throb.

She didn’t know if this was her god delivering some sort of clear oracle to her through Lord Murphy’s mouth, but she did feel the warmth of her heart.

It was as if the old religion of nature had not yet collapsed, and the souls of nature’s followers still had a home to return to.

She wanted to believe that this was a promise from the gods through Murphy’s mouth, that a sanctuary for the believers would slowly rise up in this dark place of suffering, even if it was only a fantasy at the moment.

But even if one dreams, one must first fall asleep.

“In the new city I’m about to build, every coin will be put to good use, and every ordinary person with dreams of making a fortune will be able to realize his or her aspirations, instead of obviously having enough talent but only being able to slog through decades of inactivity under the pressure of a bunch of fools.”

Murphy stepped forward again and reached out to place a hand on the blustery Ms. Parian’s shoulder.

He whispered:

“The pursuit of wealth is not a shameful degradation, and only those who know how to utilize the wealth in their hands can achieve something real.

And although life is already halfway through, but still in the road of the dream has not made an inch of success is not something unacceptable, after all, as long as the fire of ideals is not extinguished, you still have the next fifty years to realize your ambition in childhood.

Yes, it is!

You will become the richest businesswoman in the entire continent.

I don’t doubt that for a second.

I also believe that the city I built together with you will be the starting point of your legend of wealth.

Right here! Right now!
Ah, listen to the beautiful sound of the gold coins as they roll down, and it will guide our helpless souls to the true city of wealth, the city of ambition built by the hands of Lady Parian herself.”

“Can I I really do that?”

Ms. Parian said jitterily:

“Can I really become rich?”

“Of course, my lady.”

Murphy said, facing a smile, to the restless soul in front of him whose desires had been awakened:
“I believe this beyond belief, I believe you will be the envy of all in your future wealth, it really only takes a little bit for you to muster up the courage to do so.”

With that said, he walked over to the last vassal.

Reaching out, he gently placed a hand on Mr. Portman’s shoulder, then laughed out softly as he leaned down and whispered in the embarrassed-looking and already balding ex-cop’s ear:
“My new city will also be a true city of desire, where all men will see it as a paradise, and big-assed chicks eager to get rich will offer their wonderful flesh to the powerful men of this city.

Be more daring, Mr. Portman. It’s just the life every man desires.

Not just men!
Dwarves, halflings and even those ascetic elves!

If you want it, the powers that be will make it happen for you.

There’s no need to hide it so well, Lord Portman. It is also the privilege of the higher powers to enjoy their desires.

Well, when you become truly superior, you’ll realize that the perfect world you imagined is nothing before the truly perfect world of desire. Why be bound by an uninteresting marriage?

Men with strong desires such as yours can fulfill their aspirations, and the pursuit of pleasure is not just the dreaming of the fallen.

All it takes is a little courage.

Of course, you should probably start working out now. Have you ever considered becoming a vampire in the name of a wonderful life ahead?

It could energize you every night.”

“Sure, sure, if I ever get the chance.”

Mr. Portman coughed a few times.

He squared his shoulders in an effort to look decent.

And it was all in Murphy’s eyes.

He turned in a circle and spoke six paragraphs to six retainers.

When he took his first step, all of them, including Miriam, were fearful and uneasy, and before he returned to his seat, the name “Ideal” appeared in the eyes of all of them.
Well, don’t lie at this point.

It was a light called “desire”!
It burned in the eyes and in the hearts, overpowering the fear of danger, overpowering the restraints of reason, and in the cunning tweak of a vampire, desire finally tore off all pretense in the name of ambition and ideals, and for the first time in his life, it was so naked in the eyes of the souls in front of him.

It was like a wildfire that had been ignited, and once it was there, it was hard to extinguish.

“I will build a new city on my territory!”

Murphy opened his hands and exclaimed:

“I will call it ‘Scarlet Fortress’!
It will be the city of glory, the city of equality, the city of justice, the city of faith, the city of wealth, and the city of desire!
I cannot do this alone.

But I believe that as long as I have your help, all of our ideals and ambitions will be realized!
That is the city that holds the dreams of all of us, and it will stand in Transylvania!
It will stand for 10,000 years!

And now.
Gentlemen!

Tell me your answers!
To leave? Or stay!

To run away? Or to hold on!

Be a coward? Or choose to be a hero?

Tell me your answers!
Your lord is waiting, don’t make me wait too long .”

(End of chapter)