Vol 3 Chapter 21: Spiral ladder

"Shouldn't that guy step on the magic trap and turn into a statue?" Ursini asked a little uneasily, and Chidav shrugged in confusion. When the Ranger was going to go up to the tower to see what happened, Roland just came out of the ruins, looking tired.
"It's really slow! Even all the herbs have been made, and I'll wait for you now." The Ranger frowned dissatisfied. "Really, no matter how good the sword skills are, you shouldn't act alone for a long time."
"Because I was searching for clues, I was delayed for a while." The young man replied a little apologetically, and then turned to look at the broken tower that was divided into two. "But it was finally clear that the master of the tower should be the Master Council Former leader. "
"So it's no wonder that even if it was ruined, the magic of living here is still quite amazing." Ursini's tone was uncontrollably mixed with a little scorn, "It turned out to be the mansion of the famous Canossa. "
"Canossa ...?" The young man slowly repeated the strange words, the syllables on his tongue seemed hollow, but the name must be heavy and unusual for Shi Fan.
"Canossa is a very good mage. He can walk around in both the field of spell research and politics. If it were not for this disaster, Motidal would probably have no way to suppress his power." Shrugged, "But the guy's personality is also very cruel. It is said that in order to become the head of the wizard council, he also colluded with the mysterious shadow dancer of Barmartin to assassinate political opponents. Of course, although the rumors are wide, they are just rumors."
It wasn't a shadow dancer, but Shi Fan did it ... so it was so clean, because that guy relentlessly used prayer to kill. Roland clenched his fist subconsciously. It's just that it's futile no matter how unwilling to be here, time won't go backwards, and the only thing I can do now is to protect her, not to fall into a broken past.
Thinking of this, a bright flame ran through the eyes of the blonde swordsman. He looked up and changed his tired tone, and said in a firm tone: "Let's go, I want to go back to Shifan a little faster."
How long did you sleep?
How long have you waited?
It must be a long, long time, right? But in the end, a ray of light finally shot in front of the girl.
Through the faint light, Shi Fan saw the surrounding environment clearly.
The cracked earth greedily sucked every trace of moisture in the air, and the desolate wind rolled up a large piece of loess and circled in the air. But it was those bookshelves that took the girl's attention-by the way, hundreds of broken bookshelves were standing in this barren land, and their twisted bodies slanted into the sky, like giant tombstones.
It is them that shield the sun shining on the earth.
"If you can't find the scroll before the sun goes down, it's all over." A cold voice crossed the thin ink-filled sky and imprinted in the hearts of viewers.
I don't end it!
The girl hurriedly rushed into the open-air library, which was quieter than the cemetery, and wanted to find her own book from the mountain-like bookshelf.
Time passes bit by bit. Although each drop has a small amount, the flow rate is much faster than the searcher's footsteps. The sun silently climbed to the top of the sky, and then fell downwards at a relentless speed. Soon, the light coming from the sieve between the peaks of the mountains became more and more dim, like a candle in the wind.
If not anymore ... it's over ...
Even though her whole body was so tired that she couldn't stop shaking, her hands and feet seemed to wither, and her chest was as hot as an explosion, the dark-haired girl forced herself to speed up and repeat her rummaging motion.
Just before the sunset was about to be sucked into the dark earth, the small, thin picture book finally reflected in the seeker's anxious pupil. Although it was caught in a pile of dusty ancient books, the girl recognized it at a glance-because no one would not even know it.
"I found it!" Shi Fan breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to take out the scroll.
However, when the girl opened the title page expectantly, the smile at the corner of her mouth froze completely for a moment.
That voice ... lied to me?
The girl closed the book expressionlessly and looked up at the sky in despair. The cold and humid mist began to flow from the bookshelves lined with tombstones, quietly occupying the barren land, and hanging them with a layer of gray tulle that could not be torn. Through this layer of tulle, the setting sun passed through her eyes for the last time, and then fell into the prison cage at the end of the earth, and was no longer visible.
It turned out that even if a book was found, it was useless. Efforts to this point have all been futile. From the moment the sun just rises, the ending is doomed and can never be changed.
It's over.
"Don't ~!" Shi Fan opened his eyes, violently trying to get up from the bed.
With the violent ups and downs, a sudden pain came from the back, and the girl couldn't help groaning. At the same time, a pair of powerful hands quickly forced her back to bed.
"Don't mess around, the wound will crack!" A familiar voice came from overhead. Then, the anxious eyes of the blond man and the girl's eyes blended together.
"Roland?" It took a few seconds for Shifan to react.
"How do you feel now? Anyway, don't disturb it anymore." Although the posture between the two is easy to cause misunderstandings, Roland can no longer be ambiguous, and a series of instructions blurted out from his mouth. "Listen, now you have a long wound on your back, from the shoulder blade to the waist, with an average depth of more than six centimeters. Although you have restored your consciousness, your lower body may be paralyzed, and if you move your upper body at will, the wound that just healed will It will crack again, and the big bleeding at that time is not a joke. The only way now is to use prayer to cure it completely, can you do it? "
The youth's pupils were disturbed.
From the beginning, Doiru had judged that there was no possibility of complete recovery. The reason why Roland relentlessly regained Shi Fan's consciousness was to hope that she would heal himself through prayer. If the answer is no now ... then the young girl who has just passed the flowering season may have to spend the second half of her life in a wheelchair.
Why is reality so unfair? At the thought of this, Roland felt tingling in his heart.
"Well, although the mastery of the power of life is not very familiar, but there is no problem with wounds of this level." Shi Fan answered for granted, and the young man sighed with satisfaction.
"But can you let go of your hand first?" The girl added.
"Ah? When, of course!" Roland, who was still so aggressive, quickly retracted his hand, and returned to the usual calm swordsman.
Under the call of the will of the praying man, the golden light from the underworld gently covered her petite body, and walked up and down the body like a stream of water. The dark-haired girl precisely manipulates the dissociation and reorganization of her own flesh—decomposing the necrotic nerves and tissues into four major elements, rebuilding the power of life into a new body, and finally stabilizing the soul in which it resides.
However, her attention was actually attracted by the guardian next to her-that person was also seriously injured.
There is no trauma, which shows that Roland won all victory, but the prayer technique makes the girl clearly feel the pain of the other party's depression: there is a considerable degree of strain on the muscles, I am afraid that it is difficult to even lift it now; Due to the huge acceleration, the beautiful pupil of the water is now cloudy, and it will be completely blind in a few years; the same reason makes the eardrum chapped and the hearing is probably greatly weakened; the same is true of the nerves hidden under these, and the fighting order continues They were prematurely depleted or even burned.
It's almost like a heavily overloaded machine ... what did he do when I was unconscious?
"How long have I slept?" Shi Fan asked in a circle.
"Six days."
"What about those demons?" The girl asked again.
"All have been driven back to the Umbra." The other party answered briefly, then added, "Don't worry, the one that stained your blood was completely destroyed by me, and the blood spilled on the ground was also properly treated. In short, You won't let anyone use your power. "He smiled slightly.
"Now ... in the town on the surface?" Shi Fan tilted his head and looked around.
"Of course." Roland nodded. "Is this okay? You'd better focus on the treatment now. If you want to ask a question, later ..."
"Don't lay fingers here, okay?" The girl interrupted the other without mercy, and then stretched out her white arm from the bed. "Give me your hand."
"What's wrong?" The youth held the girl strangely. Just as he was confused, the golden water flowed through the hands held by the two and spread to Roland's whole body.
"That's it." Shi Fan replied lightly.
Nothing is explained and nothing needs to be explained. At that moment, the two just held hands and quietly tasted hard-won peacetime. For the goddess who can't escape the battle, this time may be short, maybe it will break like glass tomorrow, but even so ...
... still worth cherishing.
"It's amazing ~! He can be completely cured ~!" The middle-aged mage who has always been Swen can't help feeling excited at the moment, "Sorry, I'm not saying that it can't be cured ... but this level of treatment It ’s really amazing ~! It really exceeds the level that mortals can achieve. "
"If you can't restore your consciousness, it's useless to be terrible." Roland's eyes looked at the other three. The adventurers are still the same, Chidav seems to have a sword that can never be worn, the tauren are still making herbs, and Ernie is still doing nothing.
"Thanks to Doiru for his magical treatment, and also to Eusnie, Chidav, and Aldrouq." Shi Fan neatly raised the skirt corners of his new clothes and made an elegant gift.
"Oh, happy ending." Ranger blinked at Roland.
Aside, Qi Dafu's eyes have a few more grievances and hostility-in fact, after seeing Shi Fan in a cute dress, any normal man may irresistibly have a bitter hatred for Roland. ?
This kid ... so lucky ~! The brown-haired swordsman sharpened his sword a bit more.
"But it is indeed a very powerful force. It can not only treat trauma, but also the sequelae of the battle of Roland." The tauren sighed with emotion, "Is this the power of Rev. Ishtoli ... belongs to God power……"
"Priest of Ishtoli", this is a lie that Roland took to conceal the truth of the girl after considering the relationship between Shifan, Silvermoon City, and Manurin Town-after all, completely cured The fact of serious injuries cannot be concealed at all, so they can only resort to other means. The youth originally thought that Shi Fan would refuse to accept this status, but later discovered that this worry was unnecessary-the girl readily agreed to lie and pretended to be her priest.
"Actually, after discussing with Aldrouq, I would like to ask you a favor anyway." Doiru cleared his throat and then said, "Can you stay here for a while and use the magic? Treat residents of Manurin? "
Roland's heart sank in an instant.
"I think Miss Shi Fan probably knows a little about it, too," said the doctor, eagerly looking at the girl. "The residents of this town are the survivors of the Silvermoon Disaster. Although they survived the calamity, the sequelae are very It is difficult to eradicate. Even if the magic treatment is not effective, but I think it should be completely cured if it is divine magic ... At least, I hope to try it out !! "
How to do? The youth glanced at the slender back. Although it was very selfish and ruthless to do so, he had already decided that Shi Fan alone would be given priority, and the others would not matter.
I don't want anyone to reveal the sealed wounds of opening, so ... it must be rejected.
"Well." The girl's voice brought Roland back to reality. "I'm willing to stay and help them."
"Shifan?" The other person shouted uncertainly.
"It's just a small request." The dark-haired girl ignored the doubts of her companions. "Hope you and those who are being treated, don't tell me and Roland outside the town, can you? Because ..." She said hesitating here.
"Of course, we understand that, in short, we want to travel without interruption, right?" The middle-aged mage nodded solemnly, and the three behind him also nodded together. "Since I decided to help you in the beginning, I also kept confidentiality. It's definitely not ambiguous. As for the residents, don't worry, just leave it to me. "
"That would be fine." Shi Fan smiled slightly.
But ... was her heart shaking under that smile? Roland looked worriedly at the smiling girl, but didn't know how to ask questions.
"Priest of Ishtoli" is an unfamiliar term to anyone. In fact, compared to other goddesses, Ishtoli is a symbol of mystery. Although the aurora dyed the sky into colorful auras is dazzling, although the name imprinted in the calendar contains supreme majesty, those who can only prove the existence of the goddess cannot outline her true image.
No one knows what kind of deity Ishtoli is, because she has never preached the doctrines and never decreed them. No, maybe there is no reason to guide mortals to this goddess born from ice and snow.
Except for the calendar that constrains the world, the only spokesperson for Ishtoli in this world is the death knight—obviously, the undead who controls the power of death and the priests who control the power of life cannot intersect.
"So, Shi Fan is probably the only priest in the world, right?" The Ranger speculated, turning his head to look at the tauren. "Can natural spells do that?"
"Neither natural spells nor arcanes can reach that level," Aldrouq answered honestly, "and, from my past experience, this little girl is quite powerful. For more than two decades I once met the high-ranking priest of Lovis in the Lorendan continent, and even that arrogant guy could not achieve such a perfect treatment. "
"It's incredible." Ursini pursed her lips. "The mysterious combination of Rev. Ishtoli and the unknown swordsman ..."
"What? What did our third-rate minstrel think of it?" Chidav asked indifferently.
"It's nothing, I just want to know who dares to ... chase ... the goddess' spokesperson." Although Roland and his party were in the treatment room next door, the Ranger's words were still very cautious. , Can even seriously hurt his most protected object in battle? "
After a while, the soldier shrugged hard: "I don't know, the technique of 'Yunyao' is beyond the scope I can imagine, let alone defeat the guy of 'Yunyao'?"
"In case they chase Manurin ..." Ursine blurted out subconsciously, and at the same time she closed her mouth tightly. But in fact, everyone knows what the second sentence means.
Once it becomes a battlefield, I am afraid the first victims are the defenseless villagers. But in the face of that unimaginable power, what can you do, even if you have a weapon?
The relaxed atmosphere of the chat was heavy in an instant, and the silence filled the room. As the tauren wrought their brains to ease the atmosphere, the sound of opening the door cleared the frozen atmosphere.
"That's the end of today's treatment, and the two should almost rest." Doiru said springly, and walked into the room with the two adventurers behind him.
"I just watched and didn't help anything." Roland's gaze stayed on the petite companion. "Is Shifan, tired?"
"There is no problem with this strength." The dark-haired girl shook her head, and then suddenly held Roland's hand. "It's just that I'm mentally tired, go out and let me out."
"Okay." Although he didn't understand why the other party made such a request suddenly, the young man agreed without thinking.
The magical treatment has been going on for three days, so few of the young and old in Manurin town don't know the goddess' lovely spokesperson. But today is different. When Roland and Shi Fan were walking on the streets at dusk, the residents passing by did not even look at them, and the empty sight passed through so straight.
The two went straight ahead without interruption, and soon left Manurin behind. When even the watchtower was covered by the dense pine forest, the girl finally stopped.
"Well, it's terrific, isn't it? It's as if it's become a hidden person." Shi Fan looked up and asked his travel companion.
"Is that a twist of consciousness?" Roland remembered the recent defeat of Arthas, and he couldn't help feeling a little bit chilled from the soldier's standpoint.
"Well, but my highest degree is only to distract them, as Liser is impossible." The girl explained in a low voice, "and the duration is quite short, otherwise, you can easily rely on this technique Through the enemy ’s siege. "
"Faster than expected, the other party is not universal." The young man frowned, and there was no surprise in his voice-the enemy will always appear, everything is just a matter of time, "but ... why should it be so silent Away? At least you should say goodbye. "
"Roland, is there any problem in throwing that Jingwang sword in this way?" Shi Fan rarely switched the subject.
"'Filian'?" Roland stunned, then acquiesced in the answer, "It doesn't matter, it's safer to fall into the hands of mortals than to be taken by the demon king."
"So, let's go." The dark-haired girl nodded, and ended the conversation simply.
Covered by the cold moonlight in winter, the black Yufeng horses carried two people in the forest. This time, the rider was not the youth who was good at equestrianism, but the prayer man in front of him. Although the course of action is different from the previous one, Roland knows Shi Fan's destination--
Silvermoon City seals the grave of her memory.
Why would you want to go? The dark eagle who lost his memory finds it difficult to understand, but he has no reason to stop the other party.
"It's going to be a good battlefield here." After Mercedes' horses crossed the corroded Arc de Triomphe, Shi Fan whispered, then strangled the mount and jumped off the horse. The surrounding scenery no longer flows away, and the ruins under the night are presented in front of it. The endless black silhouette seems to draw the two of them into the air, which contains strange magic.
"A few days ago, did Roland come here to pick the jade lily of the valley?" The girl asked.
The young man nodded silently.
"Lisser told me that fate is something that even God can't figure out, and it seems to be true now. After walking around for a while, I will actually return to the starting point again." She faintly began to narrate, "After coming to Silver Moon Before the city, I had been living like a beast. It was the city and its managers that gave me wisdom, strength, and affection. But ... it was this city that took away the only person I trusted at the time. "
Then, with the pleasant voice, Roland's wounds found from the ruins were lifted again.
Assassination.
Assassination without a trace.
Assassinate accurately and perfectly.
Canossa is a cruel and ruthless mage, so the narrative is naturally indifferent, but at this moment, the girl's narrative is even more indifferent than the mage's diary mixed with anxiety and suspicion, which is concise and clear, and it is only for everything The style is just like recitation of textbooks.
"Ferredo would think he didn't have to worry about anything when he was there, but he couldn't come to see me anymore. So ... I have to pay them." Shi Fan paused and observed the expression of the knight behind him. I want to destroy the mage tower, but in the end I lose control-perhaps because of the strong relationship of hatred, and sensitive prayer has in turn swallowed my will-by the time I wake up, the entire city has been destroyed. "
"What later?" The questioner's eyes flickered.
"Later, I met Richer, found a place to live, someone who could talk and trust, and understood some truths." The girl's eyes fixed on the half-tall tower in the distance. "It's just ..."
"The inhabitants of Manurin town are being treated simply because I have that ability, not for reasons such as 'atonement.'" She suddenly emphasized that.
"I don't intend to use this behavior to deceive myself. The wounds that have been caused can never be remedied." Shi Fan's voice had no regrets. "And if you feel remorse, it is equivalent to denying Ferredo. And my own efforts. It does n’t matter if you create even more sin, I ’ve decided to try my best to survive anyway so I do n’t lose to the world that calls me.

Roland opened his mouth and tried to say something, but his brain, which could not speak, was blank.
She is similar to the Dark Eagle who wants to destroy everything for hatred. But it ’s actually different. I think the similarity is just because I was erased from the past, right?
There is absolutely no similarity, because girls are stronger than they think.
The next moment, the girl's words interrupted his thoughts.
Shi Fan's soft body suddenly tightened: "The enemy is here."
Her eyes regained the coldness of the past. This is the expression of entering the battle. The prayer quickly opened the sand table between the two hands and examined the miniature model of the entire Silver Moon City by moonlight.
Yes, we must live first. Roland let his eyes look over the girl's shoulder, and the sight of his pupil surprised him.
"So many regular troops ~!"
The Riders of the Riddle Empire have laid down layers of defense around them, not only surrounding the entire ruins, but also apparently continuing to increase troops.
"I discovered the scouts at two o'clock in the afternoon. I didn't expect that there are so many now." Shi Fan's tone of regret seemed to be saying, "If only left immediately then."
However, the experienced tactical commander discovered at this time that the opponent did not adopt the human-sea tactics. After the completion of the encirclement, there was no tendency to shrink. Only three small points rushed towards the target, just a blink of an eye. , Has reached a position close to the center of the sand table.
Elite battles to avoid mass destruction by prayer? Roland guessed. This is also good, at least it can save a lot of trouble. The guardian of the end then drew out the two-handed sword that he was holding behind, and the icy edge of the moonlight leaping pointed directly across the street.
The first thing that jumped into the sight of the soldier was the elegant and delicate nightmare-Zephylis. After being in harmony with Shi Fan's power, Roland can be sure that Yun Yao, born of prayer, has completely surpassed the opponent's level. Even so, when he saw the beautiful figure, his chest still choked uncontrollably.
But this time, the female swordsman in front of her didn't have the murderous spirit. Instead, she stopped almost fifty meters away from the prey, standing side by side with another sturdy black thief.
Then, the tall man holding the holy cross sword walked slowly along the cold night, his face was paler than the moonlight, and the light was shining in the gem-like pupils.
"Very good." A deep, icy voice shook the air. "This time it's definitely over."