Papal States, Tero capital, public cemetery.

Tristan, dressed in black, stopped in front of a tombstone, quietly took off his hood, stared at the words on the stone, and remained silent for a long time.

"Mia Avandeline, our beloved daughter, an angel with broken wings fallen to earth, may her soul rest in heaven."

Tristan reached out and stroked the name 'Mia Evandellin,' muttering to himself, 'Why did you abandon the name Mia? If it's just because of hatred for your family, can't twenty long years resolve everything?'

Taking the teardrop-shaped earring from his pocket, Tristan stroked the piece and calmly said, "I gave you this pair of earrings for your birthday. Although you treasured them, you eventually returned one of them to me... What does that mean? Is it a desire to completely erase the memories of the past...?"

Tristan closed his eyes in anguish: "Ratchel, I never knew that time could change a person so drastically."

"Deacon Tristan!"

A sudden sound shattered the tranquility of the cemetery.

Tristan carefully tucked the pendant into his pocket, stood up, and looked back. Five external affairs personnel from the First Inquisition surrounded him in a fan shape.

Brushing the dust off his clothes and straightening his wrinkled garments, Tristan looked at the group with an air of aloofness: "What is it?"

"There is a case involving a Vatican fugitive that requires your cooperation, Your Excellency Tristan." The head of the tribunal pointed to the carriage at the cemetery entrance and said with a smile, "It won't take up much of your time."

Tristan frowned: "This kind of thing should be handled by the Holy See's Orders, why is it being handed over to you?"

The court official unfolded a document from his sleeve: "We have a personal letter from His Holiness the Pope, requesting everyone's cooperation in the investigation. Therefore, Your Excellency Tristan, please do not waste time; dragging this out will not be good for anyone's reputation."

Tristan carefully read the letter, nodded solemnly, left the cemetery, and boarded the Inquisition's carriage.

In the western city at dusk, in the king's audience chamber.

Todd sat at his desk, carefully looking at the book that Father Moore had just finished—"The Critical Programme of the Apostles of the Father".

"Justification by faith means salvation through faith; everyone can communicate directly with God without going through the church; the Bible is the sole source of faith, the Pope is merely a spokesperson, not God; the sins of believers are determined by God, indulgences should not be implemented; the tithe should be re-examined and re-established; royal succession is a secular matter, the church should not be involved; excommunication should be handled by religious courts, not by the Pope himself..."

As Todd read on, word by word, Moore wiped the cold sweat from his brow: "Your Majesty, what do you think?"

Todd placed the file on the table, smiled, and said, "Very good, I'm very satisfied."

Moore breathed a sigh of relief: "Then I'll arrange for the printing plant to do the typesetting and printing right away."

"Furthermore, organize priests to go to the surrounding churches and spread the main points of the text through lectures." Todd looked at Moore's face and said, "Focus the key points of the conflict on the Pope first; you should understand what I mean..."

Moore thought for a moment, then nodded.

After giving the instructions, Todd sat down at the table and carefully considered the situation around Muxi City.

In the eastern city of Saint Guard, the succession to the throne has been settled. Cumberland is working with Mary to handle and coordinate various matters within Saint Guard, and the main force of the Twilight Knights is also stationed there. With Rachel leading the Alien Association to assist, it's believed that the situation in the city will stabilize soon.

In the barbarian camp to the north, five thousand refugees from Saint Guard City had just arrived in the North, along with more than ten thousand slaves and several thousand barbarian warriors. Under the intensive training of Alfonso and the gladiators, they had already acquired the basic combat capabilities.

Having figured all this out, Todd had someone summon the kingdom's prime minister, Emerson.

"After I finish these two days of work, I need to go to the north."

Upon entering the room, before Emerson could even sit down properly, the first words he heard startled him.

"Your Majesty, are you heading north? Is it because something happened there?"

Todd shook his head: "No, it's just that I now believe the situation in the North is of paramount importance to Muxi City."

Emerson asked, somewhat puzzled, "Why?"

"From a geographical and strategic perspective, Muxi City has serious problems. To the south of the city lies the Moon Creek Plain, without any strategic passes or crossings, allowing enemy troops to quickly reach Muxi City without any obstacles. To the west of the city is the endless sea, and the kingdom's navy currently lacks military superiority, making it impossible to even maintain basic shipping lanes, let alone defeat invading fleets. To the north of the city are the Falling Star Mountains, whose towering peaks make passage impossible. This means that if the kingdom suffers a defeat in battle, we will have no way to retreat northward by land."

Todd chuckled and touched his forehead, saying, "The only thing that makes me feel a little better is the East. At least we won over Holy Guard City, which is a solid bulwark."

“Based on this analysis, Twilight City is actually not suitable as a front line of the battlefield. If the war develops in an unfavorable direction, we will inevitably have to move our personnel and wealth to a safer area.” Todd looked into Emerson’s eyes and said quietly, “That’s why I’m so concerned about the North. If we can establish a solid base in the North, then Twilight City can be both offensive and defensive, and will be more flexible in dealing with external threats.”

Emerson pondered for a moment before asking, "Your Majesty, what you're truly worried about now isn't actually the Church, but rather the threat from the south, isn't it?"

“That’s right. If we really have to categorize them by threat level, a Southern Empire with the potential for unification is far superior to the corrupt Church.”

"Your Majesty, I agree with your point of view."

Todd tapped his fingers on the table: "There are a few key things I need you to do during this time. First, get a grasp of the situation in the South as soon as possible, whether it's through the Commerce Guild or cultural exchanges, just get through to the South as quickly as possible; second, the alien warships that Wayne is in charge of are the most important research and manufacturing project in Twilight City right now, and we need to give them our full support; third, the religious reform cannot be neglected. I have already handed this matter over to Father Moore, and you need to do your best to cooperate."

Emerson noted down these three things, nodded, and said, "I understand."

Todd glanced at him: "I don't want to hear any more suggestions about the Queen, because there's no point in discussing it anymore."

Emerson was taken aback: "Is there no point in discussing this at all?"

"Once the Reformation is over, you will understand what I mean."