Chapter 443

Chapter Sixty-Six Journey

In the central part of Xizhou, within the territory of the Xierjiaya Republic.

The lush green mountains in the distance stretched out in undulating rows. Green trees and red flowers dotted the hillsides, and wisps of clouds lingered on the peaks, creating an ethereal scene like a dragon’s paradise. The rugged mountain ranges formed a chain, with clear streams flowing along the mountainside. From above, the streams looked like the veins of the earth, twisting and turning, from the mountain tops all the way down to the base, where they eventually converged into a mighty river.

Early August’s warm wind carried the scent of leaves, gently blowing through the winding mountain path.

At the foot of the mountain, by the riverside, a broad road was strewn with loose stones. As the sound of “rumbling rumbling” approached from afar, dust billowed up and spread. Squirrels that had been perched on tree branches darted into their holes in fright. Dozens of Church knights rode on rhinos, their armor gleaming in the sunlight. Following closely were six luxurious rhino-drawn carriages adorned with silk and gold, bearing the emblem of the Holy Cross. Behind the carriages, there were more knights, and then several merchant rhino-drawn wagons…

The long procession galloped past the mountain stream and headed southwest. In the most spacious and ornate Church rhino carriage, a man’s singing could be heard, sounding rather bored.

“Brave knight… ah~ you will raise your sword… and pierce the dragon’s chest… oh~ blessed saint… you must feel evil, feel pain… it is your sincere death… bringing despair to the world… hmm hmm hmm…”

In the gem-encrusted carriage, a young man wearing a lavish crown and solemn robes swayed his head, humming off-key. His fingers tapped rhythmically on the armrest of the seat, his eyes slightly closed, a look of ecstasy on his handsome face. After humming for a while, he suddenly sat up straight.

“No, wait! Not despair but hope, I sang it wrong just now, let me start again… it is your sincere death, bringing hope to the world… hmm hmm… Little Black Charcoal, what do you think of my singing?”

He glanced at the girl across from him, his gaze filled with anticipation, like a child hoping for praise from an adult.

However, the girl lowered her eyelids, resting her chin on her hand, looking listless and completely uninterested.

“…Little Black Charcoal?”

“Hey~”

“…You’re so annoying.”

The girl finally responded, lifting her eyelids slightly, her brows furrowing in disdain as she glanced at the man, then shifted her gaze away, clicking her tongue softly.

“What a boring guy, a hyperactive lunatic…”

I turned my gaze to the green mountains and clear waters outside the carriage and sighed softly after a moment.

Fifteen days have passed.

Since leaving the Order Capital, it has been exactly fifteen days.

During these fifteen days, if I had to describe the most profound feeling, it would be one word—torture.

Physical torture, mental torture, and… physiological torture.

Long journeys are truly unpleasant…

Though the Pope’s exclusive rhino carriage is indeed the most comfortable one I’ve ever ridden in, although it lacks advanced braking systems or shock absorbers, the seat is made of some kind of special leather, softer than any sofa I’ve ever sat on. Most importantly, the carriage is large, so the seats are also large, big enough to be used as beds—designed with Angel in mind, after all, he is precious.

But I never slept on this bed, not even for a nap.

As for the reason…

I’m afraid Angel might take advantage of me.

Although there is no evidence, I always feel that he is such a person.

During these fifteen days of travel, every night, or whenever the team stopped to rest, I would get out of the carriage, set up a tent, and sleep near the nuns, who usually rested at a distance from the men, which gave me peace of mind.

But the ground was too hard.

Even with double-layer blankets, I still found it difficult to sleep comfortably, often waking up with cold hands and feet, half of my body numb.

This led to restless nights, insomnia.

For the first few nights, it was manageable, but as time went on, I felt more and more exhausted, and the more exhausted I became, the worse I slept, making me even more tired the next day. To save time, we mostly took the shortest routes, and three days ago, we crossed the country’s border through the most barren checkpoint, making it difficult to get sufficient supplies. To avoid detours, I ate dry biscuits and drank river water every day, never really feeling full. Now, entering the mountains, the journey made my buttocks sore.

This vicious cycle continued, and over time, I truly felt like I was floating, like Victoria, with my feet off the ground, drifting in the sky.

While floating, I worried about the Moselle coast battle. What was the current situation? Was Barry safe? How were those heretics doing…

These days, I desperately wanted new information, but obtaining news on the road was already difficult, let alone in the last three days since arriving in Xierjiaya territory, I didn’t see a single town, not even a small settlement—Angel told me that to save time and reach the destination as quickly as possible, he had planned a route that involved crossing the mountains, avoiding cities to minimize detours, ensuring only the bare minimum of supplies—simply put, we weren’t taking the usual roads.

So, there was no way to know what was happening…

Not knowing anything, unable to ask anyone, I could only be anxious all day, which was already distressing.

But even more distressing was—

A few days ago, I got my period.

But when I left, I forgot to bring sanitary pads.

The signs started near the end of the month, and when I felt pain in my lower abdomen, I tried to sneak away to change, fumbling through my suitcase for a while before suddenly realizing my predicament, followed by a surge of emotions that almost drove me mad.

But the flow couldn’t be stopped, and blood was about to spill.

What should I do?

I had to ask the nuns for help, despite the embarrassment.

I’ll never forget the expression on the woman in her late twenties when I quietly asked, “Do you have sanitary pads?” She looked at me with disbelief, then surprise, followed by elation, mixed with teasing and mockery, a hint of pride on her face. She turned around and shouted, “Oh heavens, the Church knight is having her period, who can go get some tampons? Oh, sorry, you’re still a girl, right? Go get sanitary pads—”

Ah…

I really don’t want to remember that.

Fortunately, the nun’s voice wasn’t loud, and there weren’t many men nearby… So, let’s forget that incident.

But regardless of whether I can forget it or not, these past two days, my mood has been very irritable, and I often feel like lashing out.

There is another person who feels equally frustrated.

Bayard.

On this journey, he sat in the rhino carriage at the back of the team, while I was almost at the front. Everyone had their own worries, so we didn’t meet often. We only saw each other occasionally during breaks or when fetching water. Every time he smiled, but the growing unease and anxiety hidden in his eyes were still sensitively caught by me.

He no longer chatted idly with me, surrounded by merchants every day, speaking less and less.

One night, I saw him…

The person climbed up the hill, sat at the top, gazing at the stars in the sky for a long time, unmoving, lost in thought.

Compared to Beaudet, even though Archangel was a high-ranking Papal dignitary, he seemed like a heartless fool, and also the person who most made me unable to hold back my temper.

“Hmm… hm~”

At this moment, he was still singing annoying songs on the opposite side, tapping his fingers to the beat, looking utterly foolish, completely absorbed, like someone with ADHD.

“Oh right, Little Charcoal, you haven’t said how I sang just now.”

He would often do this, as if suddenly remembering something, he would ask me meaningless questions over and over again.

“Terrible.”

I struggled to suppress the urge to hit him.

“Really?”

“What you sang, it’s garbage.”

“The Song of Dragons, meant to praise the heroes who once slayed dragons in ancient times… isn’t it beautiful? Such powerful lyrics.”

“It’s because you sang it too stupidly.”

“No way?”

“Don’t talk to me.”

“But I think I sang it well, it’s just that your appreciation level isn’t high enough. You can’t understand the power in my voice—”

“Archangel.”

“What?”

“Don’t talk to me, don’t make me angry.”

After I calmly said these words, the blonde man nodded in understanding.

“I know, it’s your menstrual period.”

“…”

“Don’t hit my face, ah—”

“Ouch!”

“Stop! Enough! I’ll shut up, okay!”

Strange noises continued to come from the swaying carriage, and the nearby knights naturally heard every word clearly.

The knights accompanying this trip were originally responsible for protecting the Papal dignitary, members of the invincible first knight legion of the church. They were selected from each knight order, excelling in swordsmanship, physical training, and willpower, far surpassing ordinary knights. The Papal dignitary gave them the best conditions, the finest equipment, and the best teachers, forging them into the most reliable and steadfast force of the church, the elite of the elites.

If it were any other day, as long as they were alive and held their swords, no one could harm the Papal dignitary, even from ten meters away, taking an enemy’s head would be effortless.

All they had now was a gift from the Papal dignitary, their loyalty to him evident and divine.

But now, these loyal knights heard the Papal dignitary scream several times, yet only maintained their stern expressions, indifferent, or even wanting to laugh.

Because they were used to it.

This journey had seen countless such incidents, especially in recent days, where such situations were becoming more frequent. Several times, people had witnessed the Papal dignitary with messy hair and flowing nosebleeds, trying hard not to laugh but pretending not to see anything, acting as if nothing happened.

After all, the Papal dignitary seemed very willing to play around with Miss Sylviega.

After all, Miss Sylviega was so adorable that even treating the Papal dignitary with such disrespect, they found it hard to blame her.

The knights secretly speculated that perhaps the Papal dignitary, like them, enjoyed seeing the petite and cute Sylviega with a puffed-up, fierce expression.

Listening to the commotion behind the carriage, they imagined Sylviega’s angry appearance in their minds, their lips involuntarily curling into smiles, while their eyes remained focused ahead, leading the team over the hill, moving southwest along the river.

Soon, the sun would set.

“Let’s find a place to rest for the night later.”

Inside the carriage, Archangel lay on the seat, wiping his nosebleed with a handkerchief, releasing golden light mixed with green starlight, enveloping the Papal dignitary and restoring his swollen eyes to normal.

“Get a good sleep tonight, gather your energy, and we’ll go around another mountain tomorrow. The road ahead won’t be as difficult. In the coming days, we won’t stop until we reach our destination.”

“…”

I was picking at my fingernails, deliberately turning my head when he spoke, clearly showing my disinterest.

But…

Fine, let’s get to the point.

“You promised me, when we reach Woodville Forest, we’d go to that village first.”

Many days ago, I thought our destination was Mosley Coast.

Later, hearing Archangel discussing the route with the knights, I felt something was off, so I asked, then learned that we were actually heading to Woodville Forest.

“Go to Mosley Coast? Count how many of us there are, what can we do there? Over two thousand heretics, wandering for so long, do you want to find and kill each one? Would you kill them faster or would they kill the knights and civilians faster? We don’t even know where the third knight order is…”

“We came here to control the situation, not to rush blindly into battle. That’s reckless behavior. I know you’re eager to save people, but do you know where the people you want to save are now? You don’t. To truly solve the problem, you need to first figure out where the problem lies, and then have enough people and means to handle it.”

“The heretics are searching for the land of dragons, so they will inevitably arrive at Woodville Forest. That’s their destination. First, we must ensure they can never achieve their goal. While doing that, we also need to gather enough intelligence, then strike them down decisively… It’s not difficult, but it requires step-by-step actions. I believe my lovely knights should already have Woodville Forest heavily surrounded, waiting for our arrival.”

“I promise, once we get the exact location of the third knight order, I’ll tell you immediately. But you must also promise me, you can’t secretly slip out to save people after knowing the news. You must listen to me.”

That day, I argued with Archangel for a long time, finally reaching a verbal agreement with the condition of obeying him. We agreed that once the team reached Woodville Forest, we would camp near Grandma Claire’s village, and if possible, camp directly in the village.

In this way, no matter what happens, the village would be the safest place, because Archangel is there. Even in the worst-case scenario, we could ensure that the villagers evacuate first.

And…

Arriving at Woodville Forest and setting up camp in the village meant…

I would see Grandma Claire.

Time flowed quietly.

Over a year ago, I emerged from the abyss at the edge of the forest, being slashed by countless knights who hated me, viewing me as a monster that brought calamity.

Now, just a year has passed, yet many things have changed.

The knights no longer wielded their swords against me.

They called me a hero.

That guy who once stabbed me twice with a cold expression now liked to smile at me, patting my head.

He always bought me food.

I had someone precious.

Someone precious to me also cherished me.

Over a year has passed.

I still couldn’t forget that cold morning when I wrapped myself in a dirty, old cloak, walking nervously on muddy paths to enter a populated village, where I met the wrinkled old woman who had given me the first ray of light in the darkness.

I missed her a little.