Chapter 96

In summer, even at the Icarus Far North Cliff, nights come later than usual.

The young man stood on the cliff, pondered for a moment, then raised his hand. A light golden glow appeared, then turned red, with pink edges. The light extended and condensed, transforming into a long staff.

He casually pointed to the horizon, and in an instant, the wind and clouds changed, and lightning flashed and thunder roared.

Veris's face was calm, his heterochromatic pupils reflecting the torrential rain pouring down onto the undulating sea. The wind here was already strong, and with the heavy rain, the surrounding wilderness looked extremely frightening.

A flash of lightning, and the seagulls hid.

The storm came quickly and left just as fast. In no time, the dark clouds dispersed and the rain stopped. The sun, which had been hiding behind the clouds, quietly peeked out, outlining the edges of the dark clouds with white light and shadow. The light became a tangible reality.

A beautiful rainbow appeared above the sea cliff.

The red light from the staff held by Veris shattered, turning into countless specks of light. Veris withdrew his hand, watching the specks of light fly towards the sea cliff, little by little, piece by piece, countless roses spreading across the sky.

Amidst a sea of ​​red roses, creamy white pillars stand tall, with beautiful roses climbing up them, gradually revealing the magnificent architecture to the world from bottom to top.

A romantic deity.

The site has never been opened since Veris inherited it, and it remains as it was arranged by the previous gods.

It was a palace complex, with a sea of ​​roses only surrounding the outermost edge. Inside, all sorts of flowers were planted. Even after the owner left, the flowers here remained evergreen, nourished by divine power.

The young man walked through the corridor, where he had grown up during his childhood. Everything here was both familiar and strange to him. Hundreds of years of memories had piled up, and even his childhood memories were somewhat blurry.

He soon arrived at his destination.

A palace with white walls and golden decorations. Water drips from the dome, pouring into the circular hall. To be precise, the only place to stand in the hall is the central circular platform, surrounded by streams of water.

Unidentified flowers drifted on the water's surface.

At the end of the pedestal stands a tall statue of a deity.

Veris stepped into the temple and looked up at the statue. Before he could speak, a faint but joyful voice rang out: "Oh, my child, you have finally come to see me! Have you changed your mind?"

The young man's face twitched slightly as he politely declined, saying, "If you mean to rename the church the Church of the Rose, then I cannot agree."

"Then you can leave," the voice said angrily. "I'm going to continue my slumber!"

Before Veris could utter a second word, everything went blur before his eyes, and he was kicked out of the ruins. The wind whipped his hair and clothes around his neck, and the magnificent rose palace vanished without a trace.

Veris: "..."

Who exactly owns this ruin?

The consciousness of the god of love is intermittent. Veris is certain that for most of the time, the consciousness of the god of love is in a state of nothingness. Since the revival of the seven gods, the consciousness of the god of love may have appeared. He suspects this, but he has never had time to go to the ruins to take a look.

The remnants of the god of love reside within the ruins, and communication with him can only take place in front of the statue in the water palace of the ruins.

He looked down at his palm, sighed softly, and without dwelling on it, turned and took a step. Instantly, a red magic circle appeared beneath his feet, spreading two meters away. The light shone brightly, and soon, he disappeared above the sea cliff.

Since Cupid says he is asleep, it means he has already begun to awaken.

Two Cupids...can they really coexist? Veris frowned slightly, pondered for a moment but still couldn't figure it out, and finally decided to go back and ask Sylvain.

After all, Sylvain's age far surpasses that of all the gods... cough cough.

Guided by the dragon, in just half a month, the iron cavalry of the Lotheran army had swept across most of Phoenix County. The small team that was chasing the Prince of Phoenix had pursued him all the way to the border of the Demon Forest. There, the place was a mixed bag of people, so they could not conduct a large-scale search and had to temporarily set up camp at the border to await the instructions of Earl Reed.

Veris repeated the steps he took in Salem, first checking the churches in Phoenix's main city.

Surprisingly, the church affairs were handled in an orderly and meticulous manner, so much so that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the church was managed like an ironclad fortress.

The cardinal of Phoenix County was a young man in his twenties with a resolute and profound face.

He was also the first to relay news of the Phoenix County rebellion.

Upon hearing that Veris was sent by the Papacy, he did not immediately express his joy, but only smiled after confirming it several times.

Phoenix County is larger than Salem, but a significant portion of its northern area is wilderness, resulting in a small population and low tax rates. After all, with so few people, collecting more taxes wouldn't make a difference.

No errors or omissions were found in the various cathedrals; many of their rules, which differed from those in the Kingdom of Lortheran, were based on local customs and traditions.

For example, the New God Day is on the third day of each month, but local legends in Phoenix County generally consider the third day of the month to be an unlucky day. After approval from the High Court, Phoenix County changed it to the first day.

With Salem as a comparison, Veris was fairly satisfied with County Phoenix, so he revealed that His Majesty the King intended to include County Phoenix in the union territory, so that the church staff could leave County Phoenix and go to other places in the future.

The young cardinal was initially shocked, but not by the second half of the sentence, but by…

"If it were under the direct jurisdiction of the kingdom, how much more would the kingdom's aid to Phoenix County be?" The young man's skin was rough, showing signs of having experienced the cold winds and heavy snows of the northern land of Phoenix, but his eyes shone brightly. "In previous years, the church has allocated a considerable amount of funds to Phoenix County, and literacy classes and charitable institutions have been running. However, there are already few newborns in the county, making it difficult to promote literacy classes and charitable institutions on a large scale."

He couldn't help but ramble on: "I have visited literacy classes in various cities and towns. They all have standard rooms and charcoal fires, so there is no problem with keeping warm during the learning period. However, many literacy classes are deserted. There are too few newborns. They are only willing to go out for a few months of the year."

“Every spring and summer, I have to help with chores at home, so going to literacy classes is out of the question. The church’s funds have never been short, and compared to the church, the city lord’s mansion is always struggling.”

After listening, Veris couldn't help but ask, "What about the charity home?"

Cardinal: "Sir, there are almost no homeless children in Phoenix County. Kind-hearted residents can't bear to see any child wandering the streets, and they are happy to take these homeless children home."

Compared to having only priests and pastors to look after them, homeless children clearly prefer to find a real home, even if that home is not very good.

The cold air mass moving northward enters the continent of Icarus, and is only blocked by the towering Phoenix Mountains in the southern part of central Phoenix. South of the mountains, the climate is closer to that of Salem, and the population is much larger.

However, most of Phoenix is ​​still directly facing the North Sea cold current.

The winter climate is extremely harsh.

The Prince of Phoenix also established his capital city south of the Phoenix Mountains, so the Lortheran army captured the capital city not long after entering Phoenix, and the Prince of Phoenix fled.

It's also worth mentioning that Phoenix's terrain is higher than that of the neighboring Demon Forest, and can be called a plateau. There are many mountains in the north, but they are not enough to withstand the cold air. Even the tallest mountain in Phoenix County is reduced in size.

Given such a harsh environment, with a population and economy far weaker than Salem, Prince Phoenix's desire for independence and autonomy is infuriating. Veris thinks this man is either out of his mind or simply not smart to begin with.

Upon hearing that Prince Phoenix had gone to the Demon Forest, Veris hissed softly, thinking that he would stay in Phoenix County for a while longer before heading to the Demon Forest.

Faced with the cardinal's expectations, Veris told him gently, "His Majesty the King will not abandon any of his subjects."

The young man was taken aback, but after understanding Veris's words, he breathed a sigh of relief and felt full of energy. Sure enough, it was right of him to inform the Papacy Prince Phoenix that the fool had rebelled.

Almost immediately after the Prince of Phoenix delivered his independence speech in the city, the Cardinal sent a message to the Papacy.

There were already few young men in the county, and now they were being conscripted into the army. Countless families were plunged into despair because of this, and the cardinal was furious whenever he thought about it.

As expected of a nobleman from the capital, he only cares about enjoying himself in the Prince's mansion and is completely oblivious to the suffering of the people!

Veris saw through his reaction clearly and couldn't help but laugh, "Your abilities are quite good. In the future, when Phoenix is ​​reclassified as a directly administered territory, would you consider going south to join the Papacy? I can guarantee you a very good position."

The young man was stunned. He knew that this person, who looked only a few years younger than him, must be of high status, but he never expected that he could make a promise to guarantee a position in the Papacy.

The Papacy is a pilgrimage site for believers across the continent. Those who can serve in the Papacy are either traditional priests with generations of ties to the Papacy or exceptionally talented individuals.

A struggle flashed in his eyes, and after a long while, he said, "I'm sorry, sir, but I still prefer to stay in Phoenix. If one day Phoenix becomes what I envision, I will go to the Papacy to see the most magnificent papal sculpture on the continent."

Veris did not insist, and nodded with a smile, "The Papacy will always welcome a believer who cares about the world."

By the end of June, the Lortheran army had thoroughly traversed every inch of Phoenix's lands, drawn up a new map, and rested for a few more days, awaiting His Majesty the King's instructions.

His Majesty's letter quickly reached Phoenix, praising the soldiers' performance and promising that all the promised rewards had been distributed to the homes listed before the march, with the palace holding the money if no one was home.

Then came the bombshell news.

The second army is already being prepared; when your main force marches south, take advantage of the opportunity to attack Anja.

Reason? No reason!

They could only fabricate a reason, such as the Duke of Anga speaking disrespectfully to His Majesty the King.

His Majesty the King didn't take it seriously, saying that the army had rested for so many days and it was time to stretch their muscles.

As for Duke Angar's groveling before the king after Duke Salem was captured and brought back to the capital, Lortheran doesn't care.

He treated all the letters that arrived as waste paper and destroyed them, pretending that he knew nothing about them.

During his more than one month stay in Phoenix County, except for the days he spent at Phoenix Cathedral, Veris spent the rest of his time traveling in the north, surveying the terrain.

A powerful magician can move mountains and overturn seas, and summon clouds and rain.

In this era, there is only one.

-----------------------

Author's Note: Duke Anga: You can never wake someone who is pretending to be asleep (tears)