The quiet countryside was filled with the sound of bones grinding together; it was the sound of some angry warlords clenching their fists.
It was as if only in this way could they restrain their urge to beat the person in front of them.
Everyone's mood had sunk to its lowest point, like a student who scored 99 points on a test coming home only to be told, "Reflect on why you lost one point."
Everyone, you've clearly already tried your best!
Anger surged within him, yet he had no outlet for it.
Because that was an order from the councilors.
Although there is no monarchy, the orders of the councilors are no different from the royal decrees and imperial edicts of human kingdoms; they are all inviolable and mandatory commands.
If you take action now, countless accusations will be leveled against you.
By then, even if everyone is innocent, they will be completely unable to clear their name.
But if they do nothing, Colin clearly won't live to see sunset today.
What should we do?
Just as I was struggling with my decision, a voice that sounded confused and somewhat bewildered suddenly came:
"I'm not a member of the Skeleton Alliance, so may I ask—"
[ The Ginseng Rooster ] tilted his head and asked:
"At the very bottom of the conscription order for us Soul Returner mercenaries, the councilors who signed the code names were [ Crown ], [ Divine Wings ], [ Whale Tail ], [ Hard Armor ], and [ Nether Crossing ]."
"May I ask, sir, who is this ' Thousand Faces '?"
The Wing Army officer was surprised that the first person to ask a question was a human mercenary.
In an effort to minimize the impact and prevent unrest, he had just relayed the councilors' instructions to everyone in both Psionic Energy and Imperial languages, but he never expected to be asked such a question.
He said coldly, his face grim:
"[ Thousand Faces ] is a newly elected member of parliament."
"Oh, really? Where does he come from? And what is his Authority?"
No comment.
No comment?
[ Ginseng Rooster ] raised an eyebrow--
"Sir, is there really such a person as [ Thousand Faces ]? You're not just kidding us, are you?"
"What?"
The Wing Army officer was taken aback.
"What?"
Colin was taken aback by what he heard.
"What?"
The dozen or so military governors were all taken aback.
What's wrong with what I said?
[ Ginseng Rooster ] shrugs:
"We could at least understand the change from [ Giant Arms ] to [ Nether Crossing ] before, as it was a normal replacement. But now, how come there's suddenly a [ Thousand Faces ]?"
Whose seat is he sitting in? Lord [ Whale Tail ]'s? Or Lord [ Divine Wings ]'s?
"It can't be a new chair, can it?"
At this point, his voice rose a few decibels, and he looked at everyone with an inquiring expression:
"I've heard that the memories of skeletal beings are stored in their bones, is that correct?"
Although this is a secret of the skeletons, everyone knows it, so it's really not a big deal.
Moreover, these human mercenaries have been living with everyone for several months; it would be a big problem if we couldn't see the issues.
Everyone nodded in agreement, and [ the Ginseng Rooster ] continued logically:
"Since that's the case, then if Councilor [ Thousand Faces ] inherited the Holy Remains of a certain councilor, then I have nothing to say. I only ask that esteemed person to recall some of the councilor's memories from their lifetime, and to clear our names—"
"None of the skeletal warriors and Soul Returner mercenaries present made peace with the enemy during the battle!"
"Good!!!!"
One of the warlords shouted first, and then more and more people joined in the cheering.
The skeletal men were among the most uncouth of the uncouth; it was already quite an achievement for them to be able to command, let alone express their frustrations in such an organized manner.
All I can say is that a reliable document is extremely important.
[ The Ginseng Rooster ] hadn't finished speaking when he abruptly changed his tone and manner:
"But if Councilor [ Thousand Faces ] didn't become a councilor by inheriting the Holy Remains, then what is his/her basis for this position?"
"In terms of merit, Lord Colin's achievement in preserving one-third of the Alliance's fighting force from a battlefield thousands of miles away is truly immense."
"In terms of strength, Lord Colin accepted Lord [ Divine Wings ]'s relic and easily advanced to High Tier. Is that enough strength?"
"No matter how you look at it, Lord Colin is more qualified to be a senator than that unknown [ Thousand Faces ]."
"Unless..."
[ Ginseng Rooster ] stopped looking at the warlords and instead looked at the officers of the Wing Army:
There is no such senator as "[ Thousand Faces ]" at all, or...
"This is a forged imperial edict, a chaotic decree!"
Upon hearing this, the officers of the Wing Army were immediately speechless.
As a guard officer in the councilors' personal guard, he did know the origin of [ Thousand Faces ].
But he couldn't say it, especially not to these guys who had just fought the Blood Corpse, saying things like, "Ah, [ Thousand Faces ] really exists, he's Blood Corpse in disguise..." He just couldn't bring himself to say such things.
So he could only remain silent.
[ The Ginseng Rooster ] immediately pointed at the Wing Army officer:
"Look everyone, he's speechless!"
The Wing Army officer's imposing manner had vanished. He slightly raised his hands to indicate that he meant no harm, and then addressed the crowd:
"In that case, I will relay your demands to the councilors."
"Please share your thoughts first. I can't make decisions for the councilors, but I can at least act as a mouthpiece."
These words meant that the officers of the Wing Army had completely admitted defeat.
Then the warlords all started talking at once:
Some say they must enter the Sand Capital to return to their original base, regroup, and resurrect their fallen brothers;
Some suggested meeting with Colin to present the facts to the congressmen and prevent this hero from suffering further injustice.
Some suggested that First Air Transport Wing Army be dispatched immediately to dispel the rumors of their defection and arrest the masterminds behind it.
The Wing Army officer nodded repeatedly, indicating that he would definitely convey everyone's requests, and asked the governor and "acting councilors" to rest near Sand Capital first.
Just then, another person descended from the sky; it was a completely crystallized skeleton.
"I am Councilor [ Thousand Faces ], what do you all want to say?"
[ Ginseng Rooster ] looked at the skeleton who called himself [ Thousand Faces ] and felt that the other party exuded a strange aura.
Although the newcomer possessed an extraordinary aura, the Psionic Energy flames in his eyes were unusually dim. Instead, his Incarnation had a far greater number of visible planes than the other councilors, as if the model's precision had been adjusted incorrectly during modeling. The entire person looked like an irregular polyhedron.
Behind each face of this polyhedron, it seems as if an eye is secretly watching.
This feeling was unlike anything any of the other councilors had experienced before. Whether it was [ Giant Arms ], [ Nether Crossing ], [ Whale Tail ], or [ Divine Wings ], they were all far removed from the style of the person in front of them.
If it weren't for its imposing presence, [ the Ginseng Rooster ] might have genuinely thought this was someone impersonating a member of parliament.