From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

March 24, 7 p.m.

Night is approaching, the moon is dark and the wind is high

In the Place de Chevalier at the Paris Military Academy, a few kerosene lampposts stood on the edge of the square, and the weak light cast the shadows of more than five hundred people into darkness.

These more than 500 people were all wearing uniforms of student soldiers. They wore an officer's sword on their left waist and a standard pistol on their right waist. All of them had serious faces and held their breaths, just like a well-prepared elite army.

A chilling air suddenly arose in the square. Those students who had nothing to do with it didn't even bother to watch when they saw this momentum. They quickened their pace and left the Knights Square in a hurry.

Although the square was crowded with people, there were no whispers. Everyone looked at Charles Bornaba on the stage in silence. They had already anticipated that this situation was unusual and were waiting for the leader to speak.

On the podium, Lawrence nodded to Prince Louis and Duke Charles beside him, took out his pocket watch and took a look.

Although Lawrence ordered to assemble within two hours, in less than an hour, all members of the 21st cadet camp and the Shire Gang had already assembled here.

This force composed of reserve officers can definitely be regarded as an elite army no matter where it is placed.

Seeing that everyone was almost there, Lawrence stopped dawdling, took a step forward and said in a deep voice:

"Everyone, I am very sorry to disturb your rest, but as a member of the Paris Military Academy, we are now facing an unprecedented humiliation."

Everyone listened with rapt attention, even those senior students had never encountered such a situation.

Lawrence looked around at everyone, clenched his fists and said bitterly:

"The shameless Count Isaac blatantly kidnapped our closest companion, the just and selfless president of the Student Association, and the dedicated gang organizer, Mr. Berthier."

As soon as this statement came out, the whole place was in an uproar. Although everyone did not say a word, the shock on their faces was enough to show that this incident was unexpected.

Berthier has a high reputation within the gang and among the students of the same period, especially those students who have received scholarships, and this credit is directly attributed to Charles and Berthier.

They never expected that Count Isaac would forcibly take away the respected president of the Federation of Students.

After briefly describing Earl Isaac’s actions, Lawrence on the stage raised his arms and shouted:

"This is a provocation, and even more a humiliation. It is a blatant trampling on the dignity of our military cadets! We are sacred soldiers and the guardians of the kingdom. How much power and courage does Count Isaac have to kidnap an inviolable person?" Soldier! I, Charles Bornaba, will never accept such an insult!”

The exciting words echoed in everyone's ears, and their sense of identity as fellow military academy cadets linked everyone together. Many people clenched their fists together, deeply touched by these words.

They were all proud of their status as soldiers and the uniforms they wore. Even if the other party was an earl, they could not accept the other party's wanton and arrogant behavior.

However, there are also quite a few students whose faces are full of hesitation.

They all probably guessed the meaning of Charles Bornaba's words, which was to lead everyone to directly confront Earl Isaac.

Not to mention that such behavior will definitely offend a powerful count to death. Within the school alone, the school committee definitely did not authorize this action. All of this is most likely the work of Charles Bornaba. He argued that if you follow him rashly, you might risk being expelled from the military academy or even jailed.

Moreover, Count Isaac was originally brought upon by Charles Bornaparte himself. Do I really need to follow him to fight against Count Isaac?

Such risks and considerations have made many people hesitate, lowering their heads in thought, and not daring to make a rash statement.

Lawrence could naturally predict the reaction of these students, so he added loudly:

"Of course, this time we are facing the chief administrator of Torsi and the Count of the Isaac family. This is really a powerful enemy, and we may even fall into a desperate situation; I also know that seeking profit It is human nature to avoid harm. You all have a bright future, so there is no need to sacrifice your future to accompany me through this journey. "

With everyone staring blankly, Lawrence raised the pocket watch in his hand, then turned around in front of everyone, facing away from everyone:

"From now on, you have three minutes to leave on your own. I fully understand those who leave voluntarily and promise that there will not be any pursuit."

Duke Charles and Crown Prince Louis on the stage also reacted after a brief daze, turned around with Lawrence, and turned their backs to everyone in the audience.

The pointer on the pocket watch was ticking, and many students looked at each other in confusion, not knowing what to do for a while.

Join in the tit-for-tat action against Count Isaac? However, no student present was sure that he would be able to escape the subsequent liquidation and accountability.

Turn around and leave silently? Although Charles Bornaba has promised not to pursue the case and everyone believes in his character, there is no doubt that only those who choose to stay at this moment will become the core members of the Charles Gang in the future.

The three-minute countdown has begun. Despite all the entanglements, the students gritted their teeth and began to make their own choices.

Gradually, there was a sound of thin footsteps in Knights Square.

Crown Prince Louis wanted to turn his head to see how many people were left in the square, but he tried his best to resist the urge before the time came.

Lawrence silently stared at the pocket watch in his hand, watching the time intently.

Soon, three minutes passed quietly. In fact, after the first minute, there were no footsteps in the square.

Lawrence put his pocket watch in his pocket, turned around and glanced at the somewhat fragmented team in the audience, and smiled happily:

"There are about three hundred people left."

In the Knights Square, the orderly and majestic team just now seemed a little scattered. About half of the students chose to leave within the first minute, and the remaining 300 people suffered in silence for three minutes. After all the suffering, he still chooses to stand here.

The faces of many of them looked familiar to Lawrence, and most of them should be members of the Shire Gang.

To be honest, it was beyond Lawrence's expectation that there were still so many people left. It seemed that Berthier was indeed very careful when selecting members.

"battalion commander!"

I don’t know if it was because of nervousness, but one student’s voice seemed a little trembling, but his proud posture was extremely strong:

"I will never sit back and watch Chairman Berthier's affairs. He has done too much for the gang. Now it is time for us to lend a helping hand to him and help each other, right now!"

These students who resolutely chose to stay where they were all had almost the same thought in their hearts:

If we can't share hardships now, then there will be no talk of sharing joys and sorrows in the future. If the gang falls apart when facing the first crisis, then the concept of mutual help they firmly believe in will become a joke.

And his words instantly aroused a resonance among the students. Everyone also had firm faces and echoed loudly, and the sound wave became louder and louder:

"Help each other, right now!"

"Help each other, right now!"

Bathed in this majestic momentum, even Crown Prince Louis and Duke Charles glanced at each other subconsciously, and then couldn't help raising their right arms and joined in shouting:

"Help each other, right now!"

Almost at the same time, the town of Torcy under Paris, Moon Lake Manor.

This historic and large-scale manor has stood on the outskirts of Paris for more than two hundred years. After years of renovation and expansion, the main building of the manor has become like an exquisite small castle.

Gardens, orchards, mills and other facilities are all available, including dozens of acres of fertile farmland surrounding the main building, which are also part of this manor.

Count Isaac, who occupies this fertile land, is therefore considered very wealthy. There are more than 200 tenant farmers and domestic servants working in the manor alone. He even has spare money to form a small but well-equipped army. An excellent private guard, claiming to be the guard of the manor.

In his free time on weekdays, Count Isaac would spend a lot of money to invite Parisian theater troupes to perform at Moon Lake Manor, but tonight, he had a more important thing to deal with.

In the hall of the main building of the manor, bright candlelight and oil lamps cast the entire hall in a warm yellow color.

Count Isaac, who has curvy eyebrows and plump cheeks, hummed a tune easily and comfortably, while shaking the goblet in his hand while looking playfully at Berthier, whose hands were tied and his face was covered with dirt.

It was obvious that Count Isaac did not use gentle means to invite Berthier to this manor.

Behind the Earl, stood a young man with bandages all over his body and an injury that was not healed. This was Gul who was beaten up by the three Lawrences on the first day of school.

Compared to his father's relaxed and freehand attitude, Gul seemed much more irritable. He gritted his teeth and stared at Berthier in front of him. During the time he was recovering from his injuries, he had already engraved the faces of the four people in the school building that day into his mind. .

After waiting for a long time, Gur glanced at the clock in the hall, punched the table with his fist, and said harshly:

"Father, I don't think those three idiots will take the initiative to come to your door. Their revenge will be dealt with later. I want to kill this kid first."

Berthier glanced at Gour silently, and then closed his eyes calmly. There was neither timidity nor regret in his expression, and he just said silently in his heart:

"Charle, you shouldn't be so impulsive as to come here in person, right? Count Isaac won't dare to do anything to me in a short time. Contact my father and the school as soon as possible, and use them to put pressure on Count Isaac. As long as I hold on, During this period, you should be able to leave this manor soon."

Although Berthier had anticipated that he was about to go through a painful period of torture, he believed that Charles Bornaba would be able to make the right choice and save himself from here through pressure.

Count Isaac took a sip of champagne jokingly, stared at Berthier and sneered:

"Boy, didn't you think of this moment when you and those three idiots beat my son? You should be lucky that you have a lieutenant colonel father, otherwise you would have been buried outside to fertilize the wheat."

Count Isaac was also extremely angry about the fact that his son was beaten and dropped out of school.

It's not that Gur's injury was serious, but that the fact that Earl Isaac's eldest son was beaten to the point of dropping out of school had already spread in his circle, which made the already extremely vain Earl Isaac completely His face was disgraced.

Several times, Count Isaac even bumped into his subordinates in the town of Torsi and secretly discussed the matter behind their backs.

If he hadn't had time to deal with the land dispute with the Invalides some time ago, he would have wanted to cut those four beasts into pieces with his own hands.

In the hall, Count Isaac swung the champagne in his glass again. He naturally liked the pleasure of controlling everything, especially the pleasure of playing with his enemies, so he nodded to Gul and said:

"Okay, my child, let's vent some of your anger first, but don't do it too harshly. The other three mudbloods can be tortured at will, but this kid still has to live."

In Count Isaac's investigation, only the background of Berthier in front of him required a little attention. As for the other three untouchables from other places, there was no need to worry at all.

As long as there are no too obvious flaws, the Paris Military Academy will not be able to investigate the disappearance of the three students. Even if everyone knows that it is Count Isaac's handiwork, the military academy will not fight with Count Isaac for the sake of three civilians. Be against.

After receiving his father's consent, Gul couldn't help but have a sneer on his face. Of course he knew what it meant to save the other party's life. As long as it didn't cause death or disability, he could do whatever he wanted with the rest.

The arrogant and proud Gur immediately called two servants and dragged Berthier, who was unable to struggle but calm and composed, into a hidden basement.

Many noble houses have such basements that serve as dungeons. They are usually used to imprison and torture disobedient servants. Occasionally, some shady characters are imprisoned in their own homes. Oga Coomas once did this in Choiseul. Duke Er suffered some inhuman torture in the dungeon.

Earl Isaac continued to sit in the hall and taste the wine, with a proud smile on his lips:

"Then, let's wait for the other three guests. I hope they can come to the appointment as scheduled. I heard that they were so loyal that they left the invitation letter. Don't let me down. Humph, I heard that they even What kind of gang is this? It’s ridiculous.”

Feeling that everything was under control, Earl Isaac was in a very good mood at the moment. He had already planned to cut off the limbs of the three mudbloods, bury them alive in the garden, let insects eat their bodies, and finally let them rot alive. In the land, it turns into nutrients for your own flowers.

Just as Count Isaac was reflecting on his torture plan and wondering whether he could make the process more painful, his butler hurriedly came over.

"My lord, my lord!"

I saw the anxious butler trotting in from outside, and shouted loudly and at a loss:

"Outside the manor. There is a group coming outside."

"Ah, my guests." Count Isaac drank the champagne from the glass happily, stood up gracefully and flamboyantly, stretched his body, and laughed:

"It's finally here, let's go, I'll entertain them myself."

"My lord, it seems that the people outside are not your guests."

The steward glanced at Earl Isaac cautiously, swallowed hard, and said:

"It's an army."