Chapter 450

Chapter 73 – Torrential Rain

“…So, how much longer do we have to sit here?”

Isaac finally broke the silence. He rubbed his bald head and then slammed the secret letter on the table with a loud thud. “A bunch of stinking rats from the Eastern Continent! Twenty-one years ago, we destroyed their nest. Now they dare to show their faces again. This time, I’ll make sure those bastards are all dead! Your Holiness, please give the order.”

As he spoke, he turned to look at Angel, but before His Holiness could say anything, the Captain of the Knights spoke first.

“Lord Isaac, we should first analyze the current situation and develop a solid combat plan…”

Hearing this, Isaac slammed the table again. “Combat plan? Harren, when did the Fist of Judgment ever need to do something like this?”

“This time, the enemy is different…”

“What’s different about them? Those who wield the heretical fire, how many have we killed over the years? Can you count them all? The Third Order doesn’t know how to deal with them, so what makes us any different?” The bald brute stood up abruptly, his face fierce, shaking the sword hanging by his waist. “In the second phase, chop off their heads; in the third phase, crush them with divine miracles! Captain Harren, have you been in the Holy City for too long that you’ve forgotten how to wield a sword or lead an army?”

“Things won’t be simple with the jester involved…”

“Jester? Do you mean that coward who used to run around like a dog, hiding behind the Great Demon?”

“Lord Isaac, I didn’t mean anything else. Please calm down…”

“Calm down? We have thousands of knights fighting in the south! They might all die! You want me to stay calm? Calmly sit down and discuss tactics for three days and nights?”

Seeing the two arguing, the Bishop sitting aside rubbed his forehead and looked at the silent Angel. “Your Holiness, we must be wary of the heretics’ tricks and not act rashly. I suggest increasing the search efforts along the northern coast immediately, and finding Archbishop Ansel as soon as possible… At least find surviving ships. We must first figure out where the relics are located…”

“Your meaning is…” Isaac suddenly turned back, staring at the Bishop with a hint of anger in his eyes, “Are those relics more important than the lives of thousands of knights?!”

The Bishop straightened up and stared back firmly, “Lord Isaac! Don’t you see that the relics brought from the royal city are the source of the heretics’ actions this time! They are willing to go to war with the Church for it! The jester disappeared for twenty years. What made him suddenly appear again in such a hurry? Please read the letter again and see how Commander Nick describes them! If the jester had such an army twenty years ago, would we have been able to advance to the Eastern Continent so easily?”

“What kind of army? A bunch of riffraff trading with demons!”

“Riffraff? They have ten third-stage fighters! The heretics might have sent everyone out! This is a desperate move, an irrational and insane act! They’re willing to spend such a huge cost. For what? Do you know? You don’t! None of us do! But one thing I’m very clear about is that if they succeed, the number of deaths will certainly not be limited to just thousands of knights!”

“Do you mean we should abandon the Third Order and go looking for a responsible person from the Vosler Diocese whose fate is uncertain?!”

“I didn’t say that. Please don’t rush…”

Just moments ago, the command tent was quiet, but now it was bustling with noise. I watched them, not wanting to say a word.

Ten third-stage fighters…

That means the heretics actually sent over ten strong individuals like Teresa this time.

I took a deep breath, suppressing the emotions surging inside me, telling myself I must remain calm, not panic, not rush.

Maybe the commander misunderstood the third stage… How could there be so many…

No…

It’s not impossible either…

After all, none of us know how many third-stage fighters there are among the heretics…

What should we do…

Can we fight?

I turned my head and looked at each of the people around the table, my gaze finally resting on the envoy who was silently rubbing his hands. Suddenly remembering what he said about food earlier, I quickly turned to ask Angel beside me, “We can’t leave immediately, right?”

Angel didn’t speak.

He still had his head lowered, as if thinking about something. His eyes were slightly narrowed, and his fingers tapped lightly on the table. I stared at his profile for a while, but Angel ignored me, and the voices of the others filled my ears, with Isaac’s being the loudest, which made me feel somewhat agitated.

“Your, Holiness.”

Unable to hold back, I nudged Angel with my elbow and called him out word by word.

Angel lifted his head.

“What’s all the fuss about? Sit down.”

He still didn’t look at me, only straightening his body, his right hand pressing down several times, causing the people in front of the table to fall silent. Isaac sat back down, turning his gaze toward this side. “Your Holiness, the Fist of Judgment has never relaxed in training over these years. We have been waiting for this day for a long time. Please give the order. We will surely eradicate all heretics who cause trouble, no matter who they are.”

“…Envoy Ian.”

Angel ignored Isaac, his eyelids drooping as he slowly looked at the envoy, “Shouldn’t we continue our previous discussion? Regarding the army and food, how does the Republic plan to address them.”

He knocked on the table again. Although his voice was not loud and his expression seemed relaxed, somehow, sitting next to him, I felt something emanating from him.

A chill aura suddenly sent a shiver down my spine.

Deterrence.

By keeping him to listen to the war reports, Angel was trying to intimidate the other party…

I immediately understood.

The issue with food might not be as smooth as we hoped.

“Your Holiness…” The envoy wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face tightening. “Given the situation has reached this point, the Republic will undoubtedly spare no effort and provide strong support for the knight heroes to fight against those devils coming from the East Continent… The work of gathering grain in the South has always been closely coordinated with various chambers of commerce, but…”

He hesitated for a moment, seemingly weighing his words.

“But you also know that our country is mainly agricultural and loves peace. Eighty percent of the people living on this land are farmers… And among these farmers, eighty percent of them can only produce enough to feed themselves and their families each year… We don’t have many soldiers. Now, with multiple regions suffering from famine, merely escorting relief grain has already exhausted the palace, leaving the lords and landowners in a state of panic…”

As he spoke, the envoy cautiously watched Angel’s expression.

“Previously, when the Williams Chamber of Commerce raised military rations, some wealthy farmers even donated half of their savings, but the transportation routes went awry. Not only were the grains seized, but many people also died… Most merchants dare not venture south anymore. The chamber of commerce has no solution, and we are doing our best to mediate, but it’s not something that can be resolved in just two or three days…”

“Those knights fighting in the South are spilling blood. Do you say you dare not go there?!” Isaac, with his hot temper, couldn’t help but slam the table again.

The envoy smiled apologetically. “It’s not that we dare not go, but those merchants… they have concerns, after all, they are not warriors… The landowners do not have much stored grain either, and they all have private armed forces. To forcefully gather supplies, we might need the Church’s assistance, spending a lot of time and manpower to truly implement it… At present, this is not practical…”

“How ridiculous! Silgaya is such a large country, with the most fertile land in the West. Many farmers here are richer than the nobles in the Holy City! Now you tell me that you can’t provide more grain?!”

Facing Isaac’s questioning, the envoy showed a bitter smile. “If it were any other year, even if it were fifty thousand soldiers’ rations, as long as the granaries of the Emerald Capital were open, there would be no need for donations; it wouldn’t be an issue at all… But this year is special.”

He paused, his expression increasingly gloomy.

“Perhaps it’s a sign that the demons are about to set foot on this land… Starting four months ago, almost the entire territory of Silgaya… except for the areas north of Woodworth Forest, which still receive normal rainfall, the South, West, and East have experienced varying degrees of flooding. Floods have submerged villages and vast farmlands, and some places are still experiencing heavy rains… With no food left, many disaster victims have become bandits, plundering everywhere…”

“They are desperate for food, willing to do anything to survive… The reason why the lords and merchants dare not act rashly is partly because of them… Actually, we had started calling on farmers and merchants to donate grain before the Williams Chamber of Commerce began its operations, but it was like pouring water on a burning cart… King has been insomniac for two months over this matter, but what else can be done besides praying to the gods… If His Holiness goes further south, he might see that scene.”

…………

This meeting lasted longer than any of the others in recent days.

As night deepened and the campsite filled with the sound of crickets, I stepped out of the command tent, rubbed my eyes, and dragged my weary body back to my small tent on a hillside. I sat down on the ground covered with a blanket.

The light from the lamp flickered, casting a reddish glow on the black leather box in the corner.

I pulled out the short sword Victoria gave me, held it up in front of me, and breathed onto the blade after a while.

Six days…

After the talks were finally coordinated under Angel’s firm stance, the envoy released a carrier pigeon to fly back to the Emerald Capital, conveying the Pope’s order to provide the latest batch of grain destined for the disaster area… to us, to be used as marching rations.

If rationed properly, these provisions could ensure that nearly a thousand knights would reach Aletheia City safely.

This was currently the fastest and best solution.

But it would still take at least six days for the grain to arrive.

Then…

Maybe more victims would starve to death as a result.

For a moment, I even considered breaking my agreement with Angel, slipping away alone tonight to do something to those guys in that city.

However, this impulse didn’t last long, and I quickly calmed down, telling myself that such action would take much longer and might not solve the problem, nor rescue Barry.

Even…

I wasn’t sure if Barry was still alive…

That was…

Ten stage threes.

I tried hard not to think about these things.

Time for sleep…

But that night, I tossed and turned unable to fall asleep, my mind filled with the chaotic events of late. Eventually, my thoughts focused on one idea: Why did such a terrible flood happen?

Why, coincidentally, during the time the heretics attacked, did nearly half of Silgaya’s territory suddenly start raining heavily without warning…

Was it reasonable…