The New Civilization of Witches
Chapter 68: The Funeral
Funerals were held in the southern area of Border Town, on the edge of the desert. Calling it a desert is not true. Van'er doesn't know when, but one day someone has built a small stone fence around this area.
Since then, no one has shown any interest in a piece of land. The walls were covered in thick snow, and when viewed from afar it looked like it was wrapped in a layer of silver.
Although the walls were not high, it was easy to pass through. Every time Van'er saw this wall, he couldn't help but think about the city wall –
both have the same color and shape. Until now, he had only heard from traveling merchants about such a ritual.
When an important member of the aristocracy or the royal family dies, the family of the deceased will go to
graves together. There they would play sad music, and everyone would be allowed to mourn the dead until the coffin was buried underground.
The greater the status of the deceased's nobility, the greater the funeral. Even after their deaths, they still get better treatment than us ordinary people, Van'er thought with envy.
He asked himself, what will happen to my body after my death?
Will they just dig a hole in the edge of the forest and throw me into it?
Also, no one knew when the Demon Moon would end, so there would be no guarantee that no demonic beasts would come and dig my body to eat it.
To the people in Border Town, death was not something unknown.
In particular, every winter when they were forced to live in Longsong Stronghold as refugees and live in huts, they said,
many of them died of hunger and cold or died of disease and injuries. It has become the norm.
No one has the time and power to grieve over death, the question of where to get the next piece of bread to eat is much more important.
But today, His Majesty actually wants to hold a funeral for a soldier! I heard he unfortunately fell while chasing a mixed species, his head was bitten along with half his body.
Van'er knew this unlucky guy, he could be considered one of the familiar faces in the old district. No one knows his real name, everyone just calls him Ali.
Van'er knew that Ali was leaving behind a wife and two children; the older one was about six years old and the younger one had just learned to walk.
Under normal circumstances, the family would be finished now. The widow could still find a new man to live with, but which man would also receive the two stepchildren?
Because of this, many children were thrown into the streets to let them fend for themselves. Most of these children then go to bars to attract customers and sell their meat and eventually die from strange diseases.
But His Majesty seems to really intend to keep the promise he gave during the recruitment of the militia. When a soldier falls during a war,
not only did his family get the full payment, but also additional compensation. What does His Majesty call it?
Van'er has to think for a moment. Ah .. yes, he calls it retirement.
And the money his wife got was actually five gold royals!
In addition, His Majesty would give them enough food and charcoal every month, which meant that even if his wife did not work,
she will have enough to take care of herself and her children. Well, it could be that this is just an empty promise, but at least the gold royals are real.
He had seen how His Majesty gave the money to the Chief Knight, who then gave the money to Ali's wife.
Shit, could it be that I am a little jealous of Ali?
No-no. Van'er shook his head again and again, trying to shake off these foolish thoughts. With my talent, I don't have to sell myself so cheaply to take care of my wife ...
after all, it was most likely that she would become someone else's wife later. After giving the money, His Majesty gave a short but charming speech.
Specifically, the phrase
“while protecting his loved ones and the innocent, we will always remember him,”
it makes his blood hotter inside him. So there you have it, he thought, no wonder that in the past few days other than bread and silver royals, I have always thought of following the larger goal –
at least during this winter, we will be able to survive by relying on our own strength instead of hoping for the charity Longsong Stronghold.
The last part is the funeral. Ali's coffin was lowered into a previously dug hole. Then, the Knight Chief made all the militia members march in front of the grave.
Regardless of whether they were from the first team or a substitute, everyone had to step in front of the grave and throw the earth shovel into the grave.
While queuing up, 200 hundred militia members stepped into the four familiar columns. When it was Van'er's turn, he suddenly felt that his spade had become rather heavy as he— picked it up.
He could sense that all the surrounding members were paying attention to his every move, making him slow down.
The tombstone was a rectangular piece of white stone, and there were also some words written on it, but he could not read it.
Ali was not the first to be buried here. Next to his grave stood another similar tombstone, covered in snow.
As Van'er left, he saw the new Vice Captain Brian standing in front of a rock, slowly pouring a bottle of beer into the tombstone.
Van'er couldn't help but think, if this were to be my last destination, it wouldn't be so bad.
*
"Your Majesty," during his return to the castle, Carter suddenly began to speak, saying,
"what are you doing ..."
“Is it inappropriate?” continued Roland.
"No," Carter thought for a moment, but in the end he simply shook his head and replied,
"I don't know how to say it, but I don't think anyone has ever treated his employees like this
they have no title or family background, and most of them don't even have a last name.”
“But in the end, do you think what I did was right?” ask Roland again.
"Yes ..." Roland smiled and laughed, he definitely knew that this kind of ceremony had a strong appeal to Carter, who had also always fought for and protected him.
When people start thinking about who they are fighting for and why they are going to war, such a ceremony can be a good motivation.
For Carter, this change had a greater meaning, now this kind of honor was not just a privilege for the nobility.
During this time, commoners could already obtain the same training and teaching as nobles, but now civilians could also receive the honor of defending their homeland.
The sense of accomplishment that multiplies is truly inexplicable. Of course, the introduction of a public funeral is just the beginning, Roland thought,
he still had many ideas that could be used to enhance a sense of collective honor,
such as using flags, playing military songs, setting examples of heroism and so on.
It was impossible to produce such a spirit out of thin air.
Roland would only be able to increase their sense of belonging step by step and always instill the idea, until it gradually came into effect.
In order to ensure that the retirement project was run and reliable, Roland had arranged everything by himself.
Inside City Hall, he had formed a group of people who were responsible for the payment of food and charcoal.
The further Roland was on his way to raising Border Town, the heavier the pressure on his shoulders.
Even so, mining projects and improving people's living standards seem to be on the right track.
With enough grain reserves, so far no one has starved to death or frozen to death.
Compared to other cities, this seemed to be a miracle, even in Graycastle, some people had to die during the winter.
Even knowing all this, Roland thought that Border Town was still lacking in many places.
The goal is much higher than this, but its operating range has reached its limit. Assistant Minister Barov and the more than a dozen of his students he brought with him now controlled all the financial management and administration of Border Town.
If Roland wanted to expand the department further, recruiting a few management staff alone would be impossible.
Roland had already asked Barov if he still knew some of his fellow students or favorite disciples, but the answer he got poured cold water on him:
“Even if I know some, they won't come. After all, Your Majesty should know what kind of reputation you have, right?”
Well, it sounds kind of reasonable, but it's really sad.
As they returned to the castle's backyard, Nightingale emerged from the mist immediately giving Wendy, who was standing in front of the warehouse, a warm embrace.
Lightning walked around the unfinished steam engine, looking at it, but when she saw Roland, she immediately interrupted Roland to assemble and install the autonomous engine.
Seeing all this, Roland thought that all his hard work was not in vain.
