Strange little town

“Whoever owns that knife is a chosen one of the evil gods,” Rowan said, staring at Lilith.

Anne gestured to her teammates to hold Rowan down, then drew her sword back and pointed it at Lilith.

Lilith saw Annie's sword and sneered, "We're the ones who helped you find this dwarf, and we're the ones who stopped the railcar from derailing. And now you're pointing your swords at us."

As soon as Lilith finished speaking, Annie pressed closer, "An unregistered demigod is most likely a heretic!"

Gavin did not stop Annie from approaching, and his hand was placed on the sword at his waist.

Unlike Annie, Gavin's gaze was fixed on Solaya, whom he saw as a greater threat than Lilith.

Sorea walked unhurriedly to Lilith's side, under Gavin's watchful eye, to show her support for Lilith.

Upon seeing Soraya's movement, all the knights except those guarding Rowan took a step forward.

Lilith has always had a bad temper. Her demigod power pressed down on all sides, and the knife in her hand flashed with a layer of golden inscriptions because of her power.

The moment Lilith's power appeared, Gavin's power pressed towards her. The clash between the powers of the two demigod-level inscription mages forced everyone except Annie and Soleria to use their powers to protect themselves from the impact.

“Number 043, King Arthur’s Sword.” Gavin recognized the sword, and his expression became even more serious.

Anne's power also joined the duel. "This sword is only passed down within the pirate Arthurian family." Anne finished speaking and looked at Lilith with an even colder gaze. "A follower of the evil god Kraken, indeed a heretic."

Lilith had only recently become a demigod-level Inscription Mage, and at level ten, she was no match for Gavin and Annie, who had long been level eleven Inscription Mages.

"Beauty, no, young lady, help me!" Lilith was forced back by Gavin and the other man's strength, and looked towards Solaya.

Just as Lilith was about to press against Solaya, Solaya reached out and channeled her power into Lilith's body, relieving her pressure. Then, Solaya stepped in front of Lilith.

Although Soraya is only a level 10 inscription mage now, her demigod body, which has been nourished by divine power for hundreds of years, is not something that can be shaken by ordinary forces.

Golden runes appeared on Soraya's body, and runic totems emerged from her body, eventually gathering behind her.

This inscribed totem has no offensive power, but it displays the identity of Talmawen, the god of the sea and hurricanes.

Soraya stood beneath the totem, watching the others. The golden light of the inscriptions illuminated the sewers, making the previously dark sewers incredibly bright.

The countless rats and cockroaches that had been startled earlier also stopped moving under this light.

The members of the Knights, including Gavin and Annie, were stunned for a moment upon seeing the inscribed totem, and then, disregarding the filth on the ground, they all knelt on one knee.

Everyone felt a gaze coming from behind Soraya through the inscriptions, watching them.

This totem represents the favor of the gods and is a reward bestowed by the gods upon their most loyal believers. It has no offensive power, but it is an inscribed totem that will attract the attention of the gods.

“Lilith Arthur, once a follower of the evil god Kraken, has now submitted to my lord, and I will oversee her actions,” Soraya said.

On his way back to the Knights' Guild, Gavin was still not recovered from the shock of being stared at by Talmawen.

Although humans worship different gods, almost all humans have a deep respect and love for the Talmud, who ushered in a new era for humankind.

The respect shown by the members of the Knights of the Order of Knights to Talmawen is particularly evident. The Knights of the Order originated from the knights who followed Talmawen, who was then the human king, in his fight against various non-human races.

Therefore, those who join the Knights are either followers of the sea god or people who have abandoned their former beliefs to fight for the glory of mankind and regard Talmawen as a hero.

“How should I address you, Saint Sorea?” Anne rode up to Sorea and bowed respectfully.

Soraya was very uncomfortable with Anne adding the word "Saint" before her name. All believers who added "Saint" before their names were demigods who were most loyal to God, but Soraya herself did not actually have any faith.

Sorea quickly shook her head and replied, "Just call me Miss, that's what everyone else calls me."

Although Anne felt that this title was not quite in accordance with etiquette, she still called her Miss according to Sorea's wishes.

Three days later.

Rowan was imprisoned by the Knights using inscribed items that could seal his power. The Knights will take him to their headquarters, as it is extremely dangerous to not know how the dwarves escaped surveillance and came to the continent.

"Can you ride a horse?" Anne asked Sorea with concern.

Sorea smiled at Anne, then mounted her horse. "Of course I can. Do I look like someone who can't ride a horse?"

Anne looked at the beautiful and sacred Soria, who was shimmering in the sunlight, and wanted to nod and say that she looked like her, but the knights who kept coming and all sorts of things to think about kept her from speaking.

As one of only two demigods in Ram City, Gavin will not participate in the mission to escort Rowan; he needs to stay in Ram City.

Anne, as the captain of this operation, walked at the very front of the procession, followed by Solalia. Lily and Solalia walked side by side, while the carriage escorting Rowan was in the middle of the procession.

However, Lilith, who grew up on a pirate ship, tried many times but could not mount the horse. In the end, Sorea helped her mount the horse.

"Are we about to enter the Empire of the Goddess of Abundance?" Lilith pointed out the map to Soraya.

Sorea looked at the map and asked curiously, "Logically, the shortest route to the Knights' headquarters should be along the border between the two countries. Why do we have to go around through the middle of the Shengxi Empire instead?"

“Your map is quite old, as it doesn’t mark the actual border between the two countries. It’s a bottomless abyss that we can’t cross. The current map-making method was provided by Prince Euan of Osenia, which marks some terrain features along with the route.”

Anne, who had been keeping a close eye on Sorea's movements, answered her question immediately.

Sorea nodded, indicating that she understood.

Soraya herself didn't know why she felt uncomfortable whenever she heard anything related to the goddess of fertility, even though the goddess of fertility was praised for her benevolence throughout the ages.

With a sense of unease, Soraya entered a small, nameless town in the Life-Giving Empire.

Although this small town has no name, as a border town, trade is extremely developed, with countless roadside stalls and everyone wearing a smile.

Sorea frowned deeply at the sight before her. "Why is everyone so happy?"

“It’s harvest season now, and as believers of the goddess, they must be overjoyed by the bountiful harvest!” Lilith said nonchalantly, her attention completely drawn to the strange plants and fruits in the shop.

Anne arranged for them to stay at the largest hotel in the city.

"Is there no knighthood stationed here?" Sorea looked at Anne.

Anne thought for a moment and shook her head. "This place wasn't originally a city, but just a few villages. It only became a town because many people passed through. The Knights have never been stationed here."

Anne thought for a moment and also felt something was wrong. "It's only a ten-day journey from here to the Knights' headquarters. I'll propose that the Knights' headquarters be stationed here when I go."

As night fell, Lilith fell asleep on the bed next to Soleria.

Sorea, however, couldn't fall asleep; her intuition told her that something was wrong.

After thinking about it for half the night, Solaya decided to go out and take a look by herself.

She put on the apron that was on the sofa in front of the bed, covered her face, and jumped out of the window.

The small town was silent at night, not even the chirping of birds could be heard.

Sorea found it increasingly strange as she walked; a prosperous little town couldn't possibly be so quiet at night.

Soon, Sorea had toured the entire town. She knew about the town's oddities, but she couldn't find the source of them.

Sorea remembered that Anne had mentioned during the day that the small town was originally just a few villages, so she decided to leave the small town and go to see the surrounding area.

Outside the small town stretched an endless wheat field, the wheat swaying vigorously in the wind, a scene of abundant harvest.

Could it really be my imagination, or am I being too sensitive? Sorea looked at the wheat field, pondering, but she couldn't find anything amiss.

Sorea glanced at the sky and realized that dawn was approaching, so she decided to hurry up and explore further.

With this decision, Sorea finally realized that her feelings were not wrong; this small town did indeed have a big problem.

The golden and vibrant wheat fields have disappeared here. On the fertile land, where countless plump crops should have grown, there are only scattered, withered crops.

And now this place is finally inhabited. Compared to the silent little town, there are many animals breathing, and the faint sounds of human snoring can be heard.

However, this place has fertile land, yet it is incredibly barren.

Sorea could clearly see that none of the houses in front of her were intact.

"Velderien, are you there?" Sorea called softly.

But there was no response. Undeterred, Sorea called out a few more times.

Soon a tree began to sway.

"Aya, get out of here, quickly!" Veldrian's anxious voice rang out as Soraya touched the tree.

Soleria knew that Veldrian couldn't possibly deceive her, but she couldn't abandon the Knights, so she immediately ran towards the inn.

As soon as she stepped into the city, she sensed the power of the goddess of abundance at the place where she had just met Veldrian.