Chapter 2: New Century (Epilogue)
Chapter 48: How Can Those Who Carry The Fire for All Be Allowed to Freeze to Death in the Wind and Snow?
Inside Winter City stood a tall clock tower. It chimed eight times daily at regular intervals of three hours, accurately marking the time for the townsfolk of Winter City.
When the clock tower’s bells rang, their clear and melodious tones carried far, audible even in the wilderness outside the city.
However, today was destined to be an unusual day.
At four in the afternoon, the clock tower, which should not have chimed at this hour, rang out “clang, clang, clang” thirteen times in succession.
The townsfolk turned their gazes towards Winter Fort, pausing their activities.
This was the bell that summoned the townsfolk, and thirteen chimes signified a public execution.
The town square, usually sparsely populated, was now crowded with a bustling throng.
Two rows of knights stood solemnly on either side of the plaza, forming a cordon.
Behind them, in the center of the town square, a makeshift wooden platform had been erected. Upon it stood a sturdy gallows, its noose swaying gently in the wind.
Following a series of shouts, the condemned man, about to be hanged, was dragged forward like a dead dog by two knights.
He appeared severely injured, his face bruised and swollen, with blood seeping from his torn white knight’s tunic.
The atmosphere of the execution grounds grew even more solemn and oppressive at that moment.
“Enoch, Kelly, we used to drink together…”
“No one can save you, Grand Knight Gall.”
Two knights stood frigidly beneath the noose, their hands gripping Grand Knight Gall tightly, rendering him immobile as he had already been crippled by the Lord.
Xi Wei walked onto the platform with a stern expression, stopping beside Gall.
His gaze was piercing as he looked down at all the townsfolk present. The previously murmuring plaza fell into absolute silence.
During his week in office, this Lord had rarely appeared before the townsfolk, with the exception of the conferral of titles ceremony. This was the only other occasion where he had summoned them all.
Even so, he still held immense prestige among the people, not only due to his powerful army and deep background but, most importantly, because he had abolished the tithe.
This was almost an impossible feat in the Kolon Empire at the time. For a lord to abolish the tithe was equivalent to forfeiting half of his income. What would he eat, wear, or use to maintain his army?
Yet, Xi Wei had done just that. Furthermore, he usually kept a low profile, occasionally riding his horse through the city with an impassive expression, unlike the hypocritical lords of other territories.
Gradually, an image of a cold-hearted but kind, powerful, and mysterious lord had been forged in the hearts of the townsfolk.
“Today, I have summoned you to announce some matters and to hang one person.”
“This is Grand Knight Gall, of my command.”
Xi Wei’s words caused the townsfolk to look at each other, surprise and doubt reflected in their gazes.
They looked at the prisoner being held on the wooden platform in disbelief, then at the stern and cold-faced Lord.
A low murmur of discussion rippled through the town square.
“Gods above, I can’t believe it…”
“His Lordship is going to hang a knight?”
“And a Grand Knight at that.”
“How is this possible? What did he do? Did he sleep with the Lord’s wife?”
…
“Silence—!”
The knight beside Xi Wei roared, and the town square immediately fell silent.
“Why is he being hanged?”
“First: Disobeying orders and seizing compensation.”
“Second: As a knight, bullying the weak.”
“Third: Inciting hooligans and disrupting public order.”
“So, even though he is a Grand Knight, I will still hang him!”
Xi Wei’s gaze was icy as it swept over everyone in the plaza, including his own knights and soldiers.
“I have summoned you here today to witness this execution so that you may know. In Eagle Territory, the honor of soldiers is inviolable, and their reputation is not to be insulted.”
“They died fighting for Eagle Territory, they died fighting for those who live, and they died protecting every single one of you present, including myself as your Lord.”
“Whether they were militia, guards, or knights, there is no distinction between high or low.”
“How can those who carry the fire for all be allowed to freeze to death in the wind and snow?”
“If anyone insists on becoming this wind and snow, I, Xi Wei Jinshi, shall be the blazing sun that scorches everything.”
Xi Wei’s eyes were like the gale winds of midwinter. No one dared to meet the gaze of the enraged Lord.
After a moment of silence, Xi Wei’s solemn command echoed from the wooden platform.
“Execute!”
As Xi Wei’s words fell, the knights, who were already in position, placed the noose around Gall’s neck and then kicked away the wooden plank beneath him.
Due to gravity, Gall’s body dropped from the high platform, his legs dangling. The rope tightened, and his feet were less than half a meter from the ground, almost level with the townsfolk standing on the steps of the plaza.
While the Kolon Empire had a variety of punishments for criminals, none were as effective as hanging in making everyone clearly witness the terror of death without being excessively bloody.
Under normal circumstances, hanging would snap the victim’s spine. However, Grand Knights, being stronger and having a more robust physique than ordinary individuals, would not have their spines broken. Instead, they would be slowly strangled to death, suffocating.
The townsfolk would thus witness the victim’s slow asphyxiation, their faces turning from red to a bluish-purple; their eyelids bulging and eyes protruding; their involuntary defecation and urination as their souls were slowly drawn away by the God of Death.
There were no piteous cries, no possibility of struggle, but in this silent stillness, it was all the more shocking.
This was the Lord’s deterrence and warning to them.
Soon, the Grand Knight hanging from the noose ceased to move.
The Lord on the wooden platform continued to speak.
“From today onwards, I will purge all scoundrels and vagabonds within Winter City and establish a militia and city guard. This command will be relayed by my knights to several other towns for simultaneous implementation.”
“After six o’clock this evening, anyone with ambitions can report to the Castle Military and Political Office to sign up. Militia members will receive a monthly remuneration of five silver coins, but I want to make this clear in advance.” Xi Wei paused, then continued with a chilling tone:
“If any of you dare to abuse your power for personal gain, or bully civilians, using your status, I will personally subject you to the over two hundred torture methods listed in the Kolon Empire’s laws.”
With that, Xi Wei turned and departed, accompanied by two knights.
All that remained in the plaza were the undertakers and the townsfolk, still in shock and as silent as cicadas.
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