Tenebrous Sovereign

The Sylvia Great Wall

The imposing figure at the desk didn't raise his head but merely gave a soft "Mm." The kneeling shadow on the ground, seeing that the message had been delivered, respectfully clenched his fist and placed it over his chest. Just as he had come, he disappeared silently, leaving only a snow-white letter on the desk.

After finishing the work at hand, the imposing figure's gaze finally landed on the snow-white letter. His thick eyebrows, as sharp as blades, slightly lifted. He casually opened it and gave it a brief scan. Seeing that all indeed met the passing line of less than five degrees, he was just about to put it down when suddenly his gaze froze on a detection value at the bottom corner.

"Zero point eight?" The imposing figure stared at this number for a moment, then put the letter away, stood up, put on the coat from the coat rack by the door, and pushed the door open.

In the hall, the slightly plump middle-aged butler looked at his master in surprise and said, "Sir, it's so late. Are you going out?"

"Yes." The imposing figure instructed, "Prepare the car."

...

...

"Three hundred years ago, natural disasters befell the world. Our ancestors fought bravely and relied on their boundless wisdom and strength to survive in adversity and built this Sylvia Great Wall to keep the disasters outside the wall and protect all future generations! The Sylvia Great Wall is sacred and great and must never be desecrated. Do you understand?" On the podium, an old man with a white beard said solemnly.

Despite his snowy beard, he was actually only just over sixty years old. But here, this was already considered a long life.

Dean listened attentively. Three days after he signed up, the school officially started. This was his first class today. Instead of starting with explaining legal knowledge, this old man simply introduced some well-known things. It seemed that his purpose was just to get familiar with the children and reinforce the faith in their hearts. Regarding the story of the Sylvia Great Wall, almost every child who wasn't an orphan had heard it countless times from their parents since childhood.

The other children were bored but were too timid to misbehave in front of this white-bearded old man whom they met for the first time.

Dean, however, listened with great interest. These were precisely the things he wanted to understand the most at this moment. Seeing that the old man seemed to be getting tired of speaking himself and had no intention of delving deeper, he couldn't help but raise his hand and ask, "Teacher, what are the natural disasters you mentioned?"

The white-bearded old man and the other children were stunned. They didn't expect Dean to be so bold as to take the initiative to ask a question, and that someone would not know such a well-known thing.

The old man, seeing Dean's serious and expectant expression, couldn't bear to dampen the child's enthusiasm. But he secretly grumbled in his heart. Didn't this child's parents tell him? But on his lips, he smiled and replied, "There are many natural disasters, such as volcanic eruptions, floods, earthquakes, and splits, etc."

Dean was stunned and persisted, "Is that all?"

The old man was a bit speechless and said, "These disasters are already very terrifying. Haven't your parents told you? Just a volcanic eruption can cause countless people to die. Do you see the dark clouds in the sky? This is caused by volcanic eruptions."

Dean slightly frowned and said no more but thought to himself. Because he knew that the disaster three hundred years ago was not a simple natural disaster. Although the various disasters the old man mentioned did occur, they were caused by nuclear bomb explosions. The reason why he asked despite knowing the answer was to see what information was left by those survivors. Apparently, by the time it reached these descendants, they had no idea about the true cause and inside story of the disaster.

Perhaps, the inside story was too terrifying, so it might have been blocked by the rulers above.

"Teacher, my mother said it's very dangerous outside the great wall. If you go out, you'll die. Is that true?" A chubby boy, seeing Dean ask a question, also plucked up the courage to raise his hand and ask.

The old man's expression turned solemn and he said seriously, "Yes. Outside the great wall, there are demons and plagues. Once you go out, you'll never come back. We can sit here and study and have rice and vegetables to eat, all thanks to the great wall. Therefore, you should respect the great wall and also the wall-builders. This is as great a profession as doctors and us law-abiders!"

"Law-abiders" refer to those who study law. Children like Dean who are just learning law are all called apprentice law-abiders. If they graduate and pass the assessment of the Tribunal, they can become a cleric. That is a very sacred existence, as noble as a noble. They can not only freely enter and exit the business district and the residential area but also enter the inner wall area!

"Demons and plagues..." All the children turned pale with fear. Even the youngest ones knew how terrifying these two were.

Dean, however, felt a hint of curiosity in his heart. Of course, he didn't believe in demons. Nuclear bombs had washed the world, and ninety-nine percent of all living things had gone extinct. This was just a fabricated story to scare children. Of course, the targets of the scare might not only be children but also adults.

This made him even more curious about what the world outside the great wall looked like. Was it still full of the remnants of nuclear bomb explosions? Or had it turned into a primeval forest due to no one exploring it?

"Time's up. Class is over." The white-bearded old man said, looking at the hourglass.

The other children immediately cheered.

Just then, two young men in black standard leather armor suddenly appeared at the door and walked into the classroom as if no one else was there. The white-bearded old man was just about to speak when he suddenly noticed the black eagle-head medals on their shoulders. His face immediately broke into a smile and he stepped forward, "Have the two adults come to take those children away?"

Dean pricked up his ears, feeling somewhat vigilant and puzzled.

One of the slightly thinner young men nodded slightly, his expression cold and meticulous, and said sternly, "Now I'll call names. Those I mention, stand up. Understand?" His sharp gaze swept across the entire room, not softening at all because the targets were children.

All the children were immediately intimidated and became nervous. The white-bearded old man hurriedly comforted, "Don't be nervous. These two adults are guards. Those whose names are mentioned have the hope of joining the public service. This is a great joyous event."

Public service? Dean had heard about it from Jura. Simply put, it was equivalent to a civil servant in the old era. One would never have to worry about livelihood for a lifetime. It was a career that many civilians in this world dreamed of.

However, Dean noticed the medals on their shoulders. When he entered the residential area from the slum area, he didn't see such medals on the guards and the standard leather armor was also different. Moreover, there was no reason for a mere guard to be so revered by a teaching staff. This made a hint of doubt surface in his heart. Immediately, he remained calm and watched quietly.

"Locke!" The young man in black armor shouted.

A thin child at the desk in front of Dean trembled in fear and said weakly, "Here..."

"Stand up!" The young man in black armor shouted.

The thin child immediately jumped up in fear.

"Matta!"

"Yes!" A girl quickly stood up.

"Ramil!"

"Carrie!"

One child after another was called and stood up. The young man shouted, "Dean!"

Dean narrowed his eyes and slowly stood up.

Among the children called, including him, there were a total of eight.