Scepter of Thorns

"I haven't seen you for a long, long time, my son." He stared at the magician. "How did you get here? Where's Caesar?"

The magician was a little flustered, he hastily withdrew from the embrace, "...Sorry, I don't know you."

The brilliance in the man's eyes dimmed instantly, and he could only touch the other person's hair lightly, with an almost pleading look in his eyes, "Maybe you don't remember anything, but trust that I will never hurt you."

Then he turned around and said to the woman in the black dress beside him, "Hello, Your Royal Highness."

※※※

The Pope stood in front of a sculpture similar to his attire. He felt that the person in front of him must have seen it before, so he simply turned around under the sculpture and found a row of small characters on the base.

【Urgot Marmara】【Bishop】

"Lai..." He subconsciously called out, but suddenly found that the man had disappeared.The Pope was disturbed for some reason, and he frantically opened the diary, trying to find something, but soon he couldn't move, because the statue came down by itself and weighed on his shoulders.

"I know you." The statue spoke, and his voice was hoarse, like the rustling noise of rusted iron plates cutting wood, "You are the son of the high priest Daulthus, Edward Daurthus .”

"Then who are you?" The Pope was a little surprised, but he didn't feel any malice. Instead, he felt a sense of ease in uncovering the truth. "I don't remember who I am anymore."

"I am Pope Ergott of the Temple, a human clan. And you are the youngest intern mage to enter the Holy See. You are only 11 years old, but your talent for perceiving light elements is comparable to a professional mage who has been in the war for three years." Gert glanced at him sharply, "It seems that you have become the Pope, and you killed that fake Urgot."

The Pope frowned, "Fake?"

It was surprisingly familiar.

It seems that a hidden corner in the memory was suddenly awakened, and the thick dust was wiped clean, revealing a piece of cleanliness.Then it was decorated with exquisite wallpaper and hanging pictures, and finally restored to its original appearance.

"High Priest Daulsas..." he thought over and over again, but his memory was a cunning liar, and he had already confided countless lies. "That is a winged Celestial Clan, right? He also married a Demon Clan woman."

Ugger nodded: "Yes, because of his special status, he is not bound by the laws of the human world, so the dogma is just a bunch of words to him. In order to ensure the brightness of the Holy See, only I know this matter, and as a It is also his credit that you, who are of mixed race, can enter the Holy See."

wrong.

That's not the case, he thought silently in his heart, that man was obviously indifferent and arrogant, and always looked aloof, how could he--

wrong.

The Pope suddenly remembered the illusion, and the blond Celestial Clan said, "Then, the hypnosis begins. I just want to remind you that the scepter is beautiful, and it attracts countless people, but it is entwined with thorns. Anyone who wants to hold it People will be stabbed to the point of bleeding."

And he replied with a smile, "It's like love. You've paid for it, haven't you."

Hypnosis is over.The moment the beginning is said it is over.

"What's the matter with you, boy?" Urgot frowned, touching his forehead. "You don't look well."

The sound of high-heeled shoes hitting the ground moved from far to near. A woman in a long black dress approached the Pope. She was even taller than Urgot, so that the Pope had to look up at her: "Are you...?"

The other party's dark purple lipstick made him feel like he had seen it somewhere before. The familiar face seemed to be somewhat similar to the demon woman in the illusion. She quickly introduced herself: "I am Black, the third eldest daughter of the Monroe family. .Hello, the No.14 eldest son of the Monroe family."

Urgot was obviously very unhappy about this, "As a son of Black, isn't it too arrogant to enter White? Are you not afraid of being dismissed?"

"If the price of seeing my children and grandchildren is so, then I am willing." The woman in the black skirt said calmly, "You are born of a second daughter, poor child, you must be often abused by your mother."

"No, no, I don't remember anything." The Pope felt extremely confused, "How did you recognize me, and what does it have to do with my mother's family?"

Black stared at him, with a tinge of sadness in his icy and stern expression, "Our family is the noble Solomon, who lived in the same era as the first demon clan, and was cursed later because it was more prosperous and powerful than the clan, the clan name Forced to change to Monroe. Every woman in the Monroe family will give birth to two daughters or a son. The eldest daughter has reason and ability, but the second daughter is the embodiment of sensibility and madness. But only the second daughter can give birth to a son , he must be unable to make a choice between reason and emotion—I just heard that your name is Edward, right? Then, I apologize for what your mother did, and this is what the Monroe family owes you."

The Pope stood where he was, and something gradually tightened his heart like a snake, as if he was suffocating.

In the illusion, he is saying, "Mom, you killed me seven times, the first time was a poisonous dessert, the second time was suffocation for two hours, the third time was a year of captivity, and the fourth time was in a lake. Drowning, the fifth time was a fall from a height of 20 meters, the sixth time was a wrist slit in a bathtub, and the seventh time was a black forest where I was alone."

In the end, he actually blurted out, "It's nothing, I have already recovered what she owed."

"You killed her." The woman said calmly, "This is the ultimate curse. Every man in the Monroe family will kill his mother."

The pope hung his head, he didn't know what to say, and he didn't want to say anything.

Urgot looked at him incredulously, but quickly relieved.

"Since you don't remember anything, I'm not qualified to preach." The old pope sighed, "Then, I think you should know this woman, she is the queen Black of the first demon king, who led the first demon expedition army Going south, she regained all the land in the south of the current Demon Race. At the same time, she was also the leader of the first political party in the Demon Realm, the Black Queen, and created the famous Black Golden Age."

Black smiled sarcasticly for the first time, "Empress?"

"Why?" The old Pope frowned at her, "Am I not right?"

"Then, I also think you should know the truth, Edward." Black leaned down, his scarlet eyes flashed a little chill, "The person the first generation of Demon Lord loves is not me, but the second daughter of the Monroe family, also It is the eternal leader of the Black Queen Party from now on, Mrs. Red."

"He even wanted to have an heir with her, but the curse is like a shadow, I don't allow it, because of a deeper love." The woman said coldly, "So I put a lock in her body. In this way, she will live forever, Live forever under the shelter I can give. In contrast, she will never be able to unlock that lock, and she can only choose to live."

Urgot snorted. "Finally showing your true colors, wicked heretic?"

"There is nothing exposed, I am me." Black took off a necklace and put it gently in the Pope's hand, "And now, I will never see her again, I think this is punishment, so let's just let go. "

A small silver key was hanging on the necklace. As if she had made up her mind, she turned and walked towards another white chess piece, which was the king's position.

When she was about to take the last step, she suddenly turned her head, and the sharp female voice was like a dagger, piercing her heart that was already riddled with holes, "There is another curse that I forgot to tell you, that is, every Every eldest daughter of the Monroe family falls in love with someone of the same sex, and—”

The white king drew his long sword sharply and pierced her through the heart.

A sentence as light as a snowflake fell down, "It's like this."

She fell to the ground, her dress soaked in dark purple blood.The woman who never seemed to cry shed her last tear, which gradually melted into black fragments from the corner of her skirt until it disappeared.All that was left was a gleaming Tarot card, [Queen of Wands], which automatically flew into the hands of the Pope.

Urgot watched everything silently, and then said to the Pope with a wry smile, "The battle is about to begin, boy, go get ready."

The pope was pushed hard by him from the red cotton, and suddenly fell into the boundary of black square.There, the magician was looking at him in astonishment, and the silver-eyed man quickly blocked him behind, like a wolf guarding his cubs, and there was a flash of cold light in his outstretched hands.

"You?" The pope was quite surprised, "You look alike, are you father and son?"

"Uh, father, father." The magician tugged at the corner of the man's clothes, his tone was jerky, "He is my friend, and he has no malicious intentions."

"Sorry." He put away the silver thread in his hand and said solemnly, "I am Clement Phaethon, the father of Amiens."

The Pope raised his eyebrows, "Your name is Amiens?"

"Ah, yes." Amiens seemed to want to laugh, but he couldn't, "Did you remember your name?"

"Edward Daulsas." He said, "I also know something. By the way, is Queen Black on your side?"

"Yes."

Edward threw the key on the necklace to Amiens, "She just gave me this thing, and now it belongs to you."

"Why?" Amiens looked at the key in his hand, "You should have something to do with her, otherwise why would she give you something that seems important for no reason?"

"She is the elder of my mother's family." Edward was a little irritable, "I have a hunch that this key is useless in my hands, because I have no feelings for anything in the Demon World, family glory and history, etc. They are all unfamiliar, and I always feel that I am going to a higher place, which is the right place for me. But it is different for you, because you are originally from the devil world. Queen Black said that this key can open the red Madam's body is still a shelter or something, anyway, just take it."

"How do you know I'm from the Demon Realm? And why do you want to go to a higher place? That's the Heaven Realm." Amiens frowned, "Or did you remember something?"

The Pope froze for a moment, "I don't know, maybe it's subconscious."

"Wait, did you just say Lady Red?" Clement, who had been listening, interrupted, "Before I died, she was the leader of the Black Queen Party, and she will always hold the black iron crown that symbolizes party power. If this thing is really like yours That said, then its existence becomes very important in the Demon Realm, are you really sure you don’t want it?”

"I'm sure." The Pope waved his hand. "My instinct tells me that this thing is troublesome. In fact, it is easy to get involved in partisan struggles or something if you hold it."

Amiens hesitated for a moment, then put it away.

An arrow suddenly roared from Baifang, Clement quickly opened the silver thread in his hand, the feather on the tail of the arrow was caught and fell from the air.The white imperial guard not far away is about to draw the second bow and arrow, the man's silver eyes are full of anger, and the silver thread in his hand rushes straight as if alive, strangling the opponent's neck.The Imperial Guard fell down with his body tilted, but the arrow was still fired, and his body also turned into white powder and disappeared at the same time, leaving a tarot card flying towards Amiens.

[Six of Holy Grails], depend on.

"The battle has begun." Clement shouted back to Amiens, "I can only move according to the rules of the chariots on the chessboard, but you are free, don't approach me, now it is black and white fighting , but remember, once you get a Tarot card by killing a chess piece of a certain side, it will be listed as an enemy of that side."

He turned sideways, and the arrow brushed past his long hair.Amiens watched the man enter the battlefield with a complicated expression, and a silver thread flashed through his clenched fist.

When the pope looked back, the position of the black king was already empty. Similarly, both the white side and the black side had pieces that were caught in a fierce battle. They did not remove them all at once according to the rules on the chessboard. until the opponent is killed.This is undoubtedly a kind of torture for low-level chess pieces. They still have to go all out knowing that they will die, but they will eventually dissipate in a pool of blood, and the winners will walk forward in their blood.

The Pope simply flew up, looking down at the chess game, his playing was really terrible, like two novices playing carelessly.The black queen died, and the three white guards died, but the white king disappeared after the sword that killed the black queen, and so did the black king, which gave him a faint sense of foreboding.

Amiens was watching the battle from the edge of Black. He observed the situation from the air. Lyle always disappeared and reappeared.

When he was still thinking about where the god of death was, he suddenly realized that someone was watching him, and there were more than one.The pope looked around, and the white king and black king were floating at the same height as him, exactly corresponding to the positions on the chessboard.The two kings both wore masks, and they looked at each other, as if looking for a small flaw and slack.

Although the Pope was a little surprised, he did not intend to intervene. He flew to the middle, expressed his attitude, and prepared to land.But at this moment, the Black King took off the mask on his face and grinned mockingly at him.

"Remember me, 'Mother Killer'?"

The pope suddenly stopped, and the biting cold began to spread in his body.He felt something awaken again, and they roared angrily, just because there was a demon card on the other side's chest.

----Chapter45. Perception & End----

The author has something to say:

In fact, my readers have always been patient and soft-hearted QuQ. After all, it’s still rare to see a scumbag author like me, and I feel that it’s not easy to catch up with them until now. I was spoiled, so from New Year's Day to the final review period on the 17th, my mother had to ban the computer. I wanted to collapse instantly, and then I suddenly realized that it's not like I haven't done this before. The 60 days of the summer vacation agreed to change the day... ...well, I won't say anything.

So are you used to it? TAT feels so guilty...

Today is New Year's Day, I climbed up to post a chapter. In fact, this chapter was finished last week, but because I have been busy with the New Year's Day party, I have no time (._.) Well, I hope everyone has a happy New Year's Day~~

[I really wonder if I still have the courage to open a new hole when this article is over (.