By the time Haskins completed the population count of the sea refugees and returned to the Western Kingdom, a full month had passed.

Holding a thick stack of reports, Huggins walked to the door of the King's audience chamber, only to find that the guards stopped him.

"The Dragon God has decreed that no one may enter."

Upon closer inspection, Huggins discovered that the person speaking had the face of a male orc beneath his helmet.

Looking to the side, the other soldier guarding the door to the audience chamber was still a human member of the Knights.

The human knight nodded slightly to Huggins, confirming that His Majesty had indeed issued such an order.

Huggins took a step back, verbally agreeing but inwardly wondering when the Crusaders had appeared in the inner palace guard ranks.

He found a sofa in the side hall outside the audience room, placed the report on the tea table, crossed his arms, and closed his eyes to rest.

A few minutes later, a female elf dressed in a sky-blue clerk's robe gently placed a silver plate in front of Huggins.

On the plate was a pot of hot apple tea, a glass, and a small snack platter.

A hint of surprise crossed Huggins' face. Before he could speak, the beautiful and elegant female elf bowed and left the side hall.

Smelling the aroma of tea, Huggins stroked his chin and looked towards the door of the audience chamber, lost in thought.

Half an hour later, the door to the audience chamber opened.

Nine high shamans from different races emerged from the room one after another.

The leader was an elf shaman, who said to the others, "I believe none of you have any objections to this arrangement?"

The tauren shaman behind him said in a deep voice, "After the rebellion of that year, humanity has increasingly proven to be an unreliable race. The guards around the Supreme Dragon God should have been replaced by the Crusader long ago."

The elven shaman nodded: "In the past, whenever we brought up this matter, the High Priest would only add some Crusaders to the royal city guards under the pretext of personnel transfer, but he never included his children in his personal guard. Now, the High Priest has finally relented. This is a great victory for the Crusaders and a sign that the human race is no longer valued by the gods."

The human knight standing outside the audience chamber listened to the shamans' conversation, his hands clenched tightly, and his head slowly drooped.

The werewolf shaman glanced cautiously at the tightly closed door behind him and whispered to the others, "Don't gossip here. The Supreme One doesn't like to hear such things."

The orc shaman glanced at the elf shaman and said as he walked, "It is indeed a great thing that the Crusaders have joined the Sentinel, but perhaps we should discuss the racial ratio again."

The perceptive elven shaman turned his head, stared at the orc shaman, and asked, "What do you mean?"

The orc shaman scoffed, "Elves make up a full 40% of the Crusader's guards this time. Is that fair to the other races?"

The elven shaman whispered, "The royal library, the archives of supernatural abilities, and the court of doctrine in the royal city—these places need learned, meticulous, and thoughtful individuals, and elves are the most suitable choice for these positions!"

The orc shaman sneered, "You elves couldn't even keep an eye on a mad female, and she did something that shamed the entire Crusader. In the end, the High Priest had to condescend to clean up the mess for you, and you have the nerve to call yourselves attentive?"

The elven shaman roared in fury, "You impudent green-skinned fool! Have you forgotten the sins committed by your last great shaman? Blasphemy against the Supreme Being, falsely proclaiming holy decrees—that man's soul is still suffering eternal torment in hell!"

"Don't mention that matter again!"

"You brought it up first!"

Seeing the two men, their faces flushed, about to roll up their sleeves and start fighting, the werewolf shaman rushed over to break them up: "Keep your voices down! Keep your voices down! The Supreme One is right next door! If you keep bringing up each other's weaknesses, what if the Dragon God changes his mind?"

The minotaur shaman sighed and strode away from this troublesome place.

Soon, the noisy shamans left the side hall one after another.

The knight guard approached the sofa and said to Huggins, "His Majesty invites you in."

Huggins nodded, took the report, and walked into the audience room. The first person he saw was Todd, who looked sullen and kept rubbing his temples.

"You heard everything?"

When Todd asked him the question, Huggins nodded awkwardly.

Todd picked up a roster from the table and tossed it to Huggins: "This is the list of the Crusader Guards. Go back and take a look."

Huggins hesitated before saying, "The matter of the Crusaders joining the Royal Guard..."

"This matter had already been mentioned many times before you returned to the city. The earliest time was... when the rebellion in Muxi City was quelled."

"Originally, the Holy Army was responsible for the protection of the outer perimeter of the royal city, while the Knights and the municipal government were responsible for the military and political affairs of the inner palace."

Huggins nodded: "That's right, that's how it was originally."

Todd said with a headache, "At the beginning of this month, the Shamanic Gathering once again launched a joint request, demanding that the guard work inside and outside the royal city be racially equalized. The reason is that the Crusaders and the Knights are both citizens of the Dragon Kingdom and should not be treated differently."

Huggins said with difficulty, "That reason... isn't wrong."

Todd continued, "My plan is to integrate the Crusaders and the Knights into a single unit. Working together will deepen their bond and foster mutual understanding."

Huggins asked, "Did it work?"

“The effects are not obvious at the moment. The Knights and the Crusades are clearly separated, and apart from necessary official exchanges, there is not much communication between the two sides.” Todd pondered, “But in the long run, it should be useful.”

This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!