Chapter 421 Twilight Province

Since that day, the atmosphere in the caravan has become much more peaceful.

The wheels rolled and the horses' hooves made crisp sounds. The accompanying mercenaries no longer had tense faces like before. The coachman often hummed little tunes in a good mood. Even the wind along the way seemed to become softer.

This incredible transformation actually originated from the new "Sister" Karen in the team.

After being reborn, she changed into a clean set of clothes, which was a gift from Mr. Colin's guard, Miss Sarah, and she accepted it with gratitude.

Although it was a bit tight, she used borrowed scissors and needles to modify it and it still fit.

And no matter what, this dress is much better than that muddy black robe.

After washing off the dirt and dust on her body in the cold river water, she combed her messy hair into a neat braid that hung on her shoulders, and then put on a nun's headscarf made from the blanket given to her by Mr. Colin.

She seemed to have really become a nun.

At first, the mercenaries in the caravan found it incredible, but as time went on, they gradually got used to it.

In the evening, Thomas's caravan set up camp as usual before it got completely dark.

The young mercenary who had nearly gotten into trouble for talking too much was sitting alone by the fire, clumsily treating the wound on his arm that had been cut by a branch, grimacing in pain.

That was an injury sustained during patrol.

He always felt that his boss was deliberately picking on him and sending him to a difficult patrol route.

As he was cursing, Kallen quietly walked over to him with a basin of warm water and a clean cloth.

"Let me help you." Her voice was soft.

The young mercenary was startled and looked up to see that it was her, with an awkward expression on his face.

"No, no need, it's just a minor injury... I can fix it myself."

Kallen didn't say anything, but just squatted down silently, put the basin on the ground, and looked at him with clear eyes.

The young man finally succumbed to her gaze, muttered, and released his hand from the wound.

Kallen washed away the blood with warm water, then took out a clean cloth and carefully wrapped it around his wound.

She didn't say a word during the whole process.

Instead, the young mercenary, perhaps feeling that the atmosphere was too silent, opened up his own conversation.

"...My name is Ben, and I live in a small village south of Dragon's Eye City. My father is a blacksmith, and he always said I wasn't cut out for work and wouldn't have the chance to learn magic, so he sent me out to try my luck... Actually, I know why. It's mainly because there's only one blacksmith shop at home, and he has three sons, so he can't make all of them blacksmiths."

He smiled to himself, sighed and continued.

"Being a mercenary sounds impressive, but it's actually just putting your head on the line in exchange for money. Sometimes I really don't know what the point of doing this is. Once I save enough money, I'm definitely going to quit..."

He talked a lot, from the silly things in his childhood to his confusion about the future.

Kallen listened quietly until he finished speaking, then she spoke softly.

"Saint Sith will bless everyone who works hard to live. I believe you can do it..."

Ben was stunned for a moment, then smiled with relief.

"Really? Thank you. I'm so grateful for your words. Perhaps that's the truth."

He didn't really think he could retire peacefully. He had basically spent all the money he earned and lived from day to day.

But now, he suddenly felt that there was nothing wrong in making some long-term plans. What if his dream of returning to a peaceful life really came true one day?

After all, a miracle happened right in front of him a few days ago...

Perhaps, the gods are still listening to the troubles of mortals.

Ben felt that the wound on his arm was not as painful anymore, and the irritability in his heart also dissipated a lot, and he regained hope in life.

Kallen smiled and nodded, picked up the basin of water, and left quietly.

Looking at the back of her turning and leaving, Ben's Adam's apple moved and he suddenly called her.

"Wait a moment……"

Kallen stopped and looked back at him.

"What's wrong?"

"Um...I'm sorry."

Ben scratched the back of his head, embarrassment written on his young face. After hesitating for a moment, he spoke shamefully.

"I wanted to help you that day, or at least plead for you, but I... I seem to have messed up, and instead made the lord's cavalry suspect that you were with us."

"Of course, luckily everything turned out alright in the end, otherwise I really don't know what I would have done... maybe... uh..."

He hesitated for a long time, but in the end he still couldn't figure out how to express his apology.

Looking at the embarrassed young man, Karen smiled gently and shook her head slightly.

"It's okay now. I don't blame you."

Ben: “But—”

Seeing that he wanted to say something, Kallen continued in a gentle tone.

"And... I also cursed you to hell. But if you think about it carefully, you are just passing through here and have no obligation to take me in. You have your own difficulties. You have already helped me a lot."

Ben looked at Kallen in surprise, as if he didn't expect her to think this way, and his ashamed face became even more embarrassed.

Humans are such weird animals.

If Karen followed his words and criticized him, he wouldn't feel a thing. But if she graciously accepted his confession, he would feel even more ashamed.

After a long silence, Ben whispered.

"If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know... I may not be very reliable, but I'm still quite strong."

Kallen smiled and nodded slightly.

"I will."

Ben breathed a sigh of relief, and a cheerful smile returned to his young face.

He feels much better.

Kallen carried the basin to the stream outside the camp and disposed of the blood-stained water.

She found that, as Mr. Colin said, what people needed was not the profound wisdom in the Book of the Holy Word.

They just long for someone to hear their voices in the difficult lives they face.

In this case, it really doesn't matter whether you have read the book or not.

On the contrary, those who recited Saint Sith's words by heart, who prayed for the people all day long but refused to look down at them, had already forgotten what the Holy Light actually looked like...

By practicing her beliefs with her own actions, Kallen gradually became an indispensable part of this caravan traveling through the wilderness.

She was like a mobile confessional, bringing a little comfort to these weary souls.

At first, some mercenaries would secretly make up obscene jokes about the "nun", but as time went on, they gradually became less comfortable doing so.

By listening to the suffering of the believers, Kallen gradually felt the awakening of her inner strength.

She is no longer the poor person who needs to be saved, but instead becomes someone else's support.

At this point, she also completely understood the true meaning of Mr. Colin's words "I agree" -

Her qualifications and identity do not need to be granted by a superior authority, but need to be fulfilled by herself in the process of fulfilling her mission.

She has realized her own destiny.

…

Inside Luo Yan's carriage, the atmosphere was so quiet that the only sound could be heard was the monotonous sound of the wheels rolling.

He enjoyed the tranquility, which allowed him to calm down and concentrate on reading the book in his hands.

Unfortunately, before he could enjoy it for long, the tranquility was broken by an impatient "click" sound.

I saw a little female dragon, holding her paws, curled up on a soft cushion with a sullen look on her face. Her small tail slapped the wool blanket beneath her again and again, and her golden vertical pupils were full of indignation.

She finally couldn't help it and started complaining to the guy who was reading leisurely.

"Hey! It was clearly me who scared those bad guys away, why is everyone giving you the credit?"

Where is the Dragon God?

Why doesn't anyone worship the Dragon God?

Hearing his pet's complaint, Luo Yan didn't even raise his eyelids. He just turned a page of the book and said casually: "What kind of merit are you referring to? Scaring away a few horses?"

"What else? Isn't this my credit?"

"Then what?"

"Then?" Taffy was stunned by the question. "Then... they ran away! Kallen is safe... isn't that right?"

Luo Yan finally closed the book, turned his gaze to the arrogant little devil, and smiled faintly.

"You look a lot like someone."

"who?"

"Sir Richter, whom we have never met."

"……What's the meaning."

Looking at Tafu, who was confused and didn't even realize that he was insulting her, Luo Yan spoke in a gentle tone.

"It's meaningless. He has a simple sense of honor, and you have a simple sense of justice. You seem completely different, but sometimes you're very similar. You do things on a whim, rarely considering the question 'what next?'"

He had felt it a long time ago when he read her diary. The Dragon God Gutaf was always moving from one right thing to the next, and then his disciples followed him from one hell to the next, until he was sent away and things got a little better.

Of course, that only lasted for a while. Because the Saint Armor Dragon Clan didn't settle the matter with Gutaf, but instead maintained the Great Barrier, one day in the future, a Saint Armor Dragon Clan lizardman, even more abstract than Gutaf, was born.

His will was passed down and became a brand imprinted deep in the souls of the Holy Armor Dragon Clan.

In fact, if this guy had not condensed his divine nature and just been an ordinary researcher or a guinea pig, he would be a pretty good person.

Looking at the speechless Tafu, Luo Yan spoke in a slow voice.

"...While I don't want to argue with you about meaningless things like 'merit', you pulled that human girl out of the fire pit in Eagle Rock Territory, only to have her fall into another fire pit and be roasted by an even more intense fire again."

"That's not salvation, and it didn't solve any problems. On the contrary, I gave her a way forward, an identity where she wouldn't be bullied by anyone anymore... That's salvation."

Taffy was so stunned by these words that she couldn't utter a word, and her cheeks puffed up like balloons.

The Zetas lacked the tradition of being a charlatan. Their logic was rigorous but they lacked the ability to talk nonsense. In the end, they could only mutter in dissatisfaction.

"I don't care, it was me who contributed..."

She turned her head and looked out the window gloomily.

Coincidentally, Kallen was smiling as she put a new bandage on a mercenary with an injured arm.

Her profile looked exceptionally soft in the sunlight, filled with a calmness and strength she had never possessed before.

And those mercenaries also respected her very much, they were completely different from when she was in Eagle Rock Territory.

It's incredible.

They are obviously the same group of people!

Seeing this scene, the dissatisfaction and resentment on Tafu's face gradually dissipated.

She had to admit that Kallen looked much better now than before, and it was all thanks to the Demon King.

Before, she was like a mouse forced into a corner, struggling futilely in a cage of fear. Before being defeated by her tragic fate, she was first defeated by fear.

That girl seemed to have truly found a new direction in life, rather than just continuing her escape to a new place...

It wasn't just Tuff who was looking out the window, but also Sarah who remained silent throughout.

She suddenly remembered something that happened a long time ago.

Come to think of it, she hadn't eaten skewers grilled by the Demon King himself in a long time...

The rat's tail smells delicious when roasted.

…

A few days passed since then.

When the caravan's carriage finally landed on the land of the Kingdom of Ryan, everyone, including Thomas, breathed a sigh of relief and completely let go of the last bit of tension in their hearts.

They had originally worried that pursuers would catch up, but now it seemed that Lord Carbine seemed to realize that his boot had kicked against real steel.

Perhaps he and his men are living in fear, or perhaps he is planning to escape... But no matter what, it has nothing to do with them anymore. At least they will not appear in Eagle Rock Territory for some time.

However, this relief did not last long.

Especially when the caravan entered the Twilight Province in the northeast of the kingdom, even the horses led by the mercenaries gradually sensed the tension in the air.

It was far from the legendary "homeland of knights" that abounded in fine wine and glory. What was presented to everyone was a shocking depression.

The vast fields had long been barren, with no trace of green visible on the cracked earth. The villages along the way were mostly deserted, their tightly closed doors and windows seeming to tell of a silent tragedy.

Ragged, skinny refugees could be seen everywhere on both sides of the road. Their eyes were numb and they moved slowly like ghosts, with no reaction to the passing caravans.

It's not that there is no reaction at all.

In the eyes of many people who had not yet lost their vitality, there was also a chilling desire.

A severe famine seems to have broken out here.

In the evening, the caravan set up camp outside a village that was barely inhabited.

Thomas thought of going into the village to exchange some salt and cloth for some information, but when he and a few of his men approached the village entrance, the villagers immediately closed the door vigilantly like frightened rabbits, their eyes full of fear and distrust.

"That's weird," Ben, who was following behind Thomas, scratched his head and muttered in confusion, "We don't look like robbers."

The mercenary leader on the side did not say anything, but just looked at his employer next to him and spoke in a low voice.

"We'd better leave this area as soon as possible... The situation here may be worse than we imagined."

Famine alone is not enough to scare the locals so much. After all, the caravan might have the supplies they need.

And their reaction at this moment seems more like there are other troubles tormenting them.

"I agree with you," Thomas nodded solemnly, "I'll try my best and leave at daybreak."

This is not the worst-hit village, and it is close to the border of the Kingdom of Rhodes.

He couldn't imagine what was waiting for them...

The caravan camped next to the village, and both sides kept an eye on each other, keeping their distance.

After nightfall, Kallen began to pray.

Just as everyone was silently munching on dry food around the campfire, a thin boy ran out of the darkness of the village crying and stumbled to the side of the camp.

"Stop!" An older mercenary was the first to notice and vigilantly grasped the musket at hand.

The boy stopped in fear and looked at the ferocious face, but finally overcame his fear and did not turn around and run. He asked everyone in a crying voice.

"Excuse me...Excuse me, is there any pastor among you?"

The mercenary was stunned for a moment, exchanged glances with his companion next to him, and didn't know how to answer.

Seeing no one answer, the boy couldn't help sobbing. "My grandfather... he died the day before yesterday. He was a devout man. My father planned to bury him, but I want to ask a clergyman to pray for him and send him off peacefully, or at least prevent his soul from getting lost on the road..."

In the continent of Oss, if the souls of ordinary people have no one to guide them, becoming undead seems to be the most common fate.

The mercenaries actually don’t care much about this, and many of them have only recently regained their faith.

Hearing the noise near the camp, Thomas walked through the crowd and came to the boy, looking at the child who was crying so sadly and asked.

"Don't you have a priest here?"

The boy said with a sob.

"There was one before... but that priest... fled to Dusk City with the lord."

"No wonder we didn't even see a tax collector on the way here." The mercenary leader glanced toward the village entrance and couldn't help but curse, "These guys run faster than rabbits."

Just as Thomas was thinking about how to politely refuse, Karen suddenly walked through the crowd and came over from the side of the caravan.

She walked up to the boy, squatted down gently, and touched his head lightly.

"I am a nun," she said softly, "if you don't mind, I can pray for your grandfather."

The moment he heard these words, a glimmer of hope suddenly appeared in the boy's eyes.

He was overjoyed and was about to kowtow to Karen with tears of gratitude, but Karen gently held him back.

"Thank you! Sister! Thank you!"

"This is the sacred duty entrusted to me by the gods," Kallen made the sign of the cross on her chest and said gently, "Please take me there."

The boy nodded excitedly and was about to take the nun back to the village when Thomas suddenly put his hand on his shoulder.

"It's too late today, let's wait until tomorrow."

Just as the villagers couldn't trust him, he couldn't trust these people he met by chance.

"Well! I can wait no matter how late it is!" The boy didn't think much about it. He just nodded excitedly and expressed his gratitude profusely. Finally, at the urging of everyone, he went back contentedly.

"Is this a complication?" The mercenary leader looked at Thomas, then looked at Miss Karen worriedly.

He knew that the girl was just a village girl and had not been baptized, but had just taken a bath in the river...

Can she really fulfill her sacred obligations on behalf of the gods?

Kindness cannot save the souls of the dead. In the end, it must be holy light or holy water.

"I don't know... maybe. But it shouldn't take long. We'll go with her then, and it should be over soon..." Thomas was also muttering to himself as he said this.

But he still couldn't bring himself to say anything to persuade Kallen to give up, just like he had hesitated for a long time before making up his mind to push her into the fire pit... After all, he grew up watching epic stories of heroes.

Not only that, he is also a devout believer.

Although he only remembered it recently.

…

The next morning, Kallen presided over a simple and solemn funeral for the deceased old man, watched by the villagers and accompanied by mercenaries.

She did not recite complicated scriptures because she did not know how to do it. She used the most sincere and simple language to pray for the peace of the souls of the deceased and for the courage to live for the living.

The old man's body did not turn into a ghost.

Holy Light can purify the soul, but not all souls are ugly enough to require purification by Holy Light.

Whether or not one will become a ghost after death depends largely on one's obsession while alive.

A person who has no regrets will find it difficult to pull him out of the grave even by a necromancer.

At most, it is to inject a false soul into the empty bones.

Luo Yan took a look from afar. The old man's soul lingered in front of the tombstone for a while and then left without any regrets.

As for where he went, he didn't know.

After all, that is not his believer.

Kallen's sincerity touched all the villagers present, and Thomas's caravan gained the favor and trust of these suffering people.

After the funeral.

An old man with a haggard face took the initiative to find Thomas and asked him to come and talk.

According to him, he was a friend of the deceased old man. To thank them for what they did, he had a few words to say...

"Thank you, thank you for what you did for that old man. I finally gave him an explanation..." The old man's cracked lips moved, and after a pause, he said, "You are very good people. I can't watch you walk into the fire pit... There are some things I must tell you."

He glanced at the silent village behind him and lowered his voice.

"You may have discovered that there's not just famine here, there's also war. The reason we don't dare talk to outsiders is, on the one hand, we're afraid you might be the lord's men, and on the other hand, we're also afraid you might be Kailan's men."

Thomas was stunned.

He had heard about the Brass Pass and knew that the pass was located to the east of the Dusk Province, not too far from here.

However, the old man's expression told him that the war in this sentence did not refer to the distant chaos, but something that was very close.

"Kailan?" The mercenary leader frowned and asked in a low voice, "What is that?"

The old man also lowered his voice, glanced around, and then whispered softly.

"He's the leader of the Green Army. He's a good guy, but his men aren't necessarily so good."

"Wait...what are the Green Army?" Thomas looked at him doubtfully, his confusion growing stronger.

"They were a bunch of peasants making trouble, some were bandits and vagrants, and some were outsiders like you who saw an opportunity to join in. There was a mix of all kinds of people," the old man said with a complicated expression, glancing at the mercenaries beside Thomas. "A young man named Kailan led them to attack the nobles' territories, looting granaries and treasures... Because they wore green turbans, everyone called them the Green Forest Army, and later they adopted that name themselves."

Peasant uprising?

Luo Yan, who was standing in the distance, showed a surprised expression.

He was not surprised by the uprising itself, but was surprised that a group of peasants could rise up in rebellion under the suppression of supernatural powers.

This sounds incredible.

After all, even a diamond-level demon king would be nothing more than a poke from a "firewood stick" in front of Grand Duke Campbell.

Following behind Thomas, the mercenary named Ben asked curiously, "They're robbing the nobles' granaries, not you. What are you afraid of?"

Hearing this senseless speech, the old man smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Sir, the nobles have long since fled to Dusk City with their families, or even further afield to the capital. Now, which granary in this land is 'noble' and who is a noble is up to the Green Forest Army to decide... Do you think I am a noble?"

Thomas took one look at the old man's tattered clothes and fell silent.

After a moment, he said.

"Thank you for your advice. We will leave as soon as possible."

He originally thought that going to Dusk City might be better, since it was the capital of Twilight Province, with a large population and prosperous business.

But now it seems that that place is not a good place to go, they have to go further south.

Thomas couldn't help but smile bitterly at the thought. He was already regretting expanding his business to the Ryan Kingdom...

The Knight's Land was not as fragrant as he had imagined.

Looking at the traveler who listened to his advice, the old man nodded with a relieved smile on his face.

"That's better. You can go to the capital, it's still very safe there! As for Twilight Province... this is not a place for you outsiders. Even our provincial governor can't do anything to Kailan."

Thomas nodded solemnly.

"Thank you."

…

At the same time, at the Governor's Mansion in Dusk City.

Governor Baron Elaric Valerius was rubbing his temples tiredly, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at the huge provincial map on the wall.

The map was filled with flags of all sizes, so much so that there were not enough chess pieces in the box.

Each flag corresponds to a floating smoke screen. The rebels wearing green turbans are like spreading mold, spreading from the deepest part of the Duskwood to the edge of Dusk City.

In contrast to the rise of the rebels, the lion flag representing the kingdom's nobility has already fallen to the ground.

Those nobles who claimed that they valued honor as their life either abandoned their territory and feudal obligations and fled, or hid around the castle with their servants, hiding like timid turtles.

The peasants with pitchforks couldn't break down their castle.

As for supernatural powers, those nobles also happened to have some advantages. Fortunately, they did not have to disperse their limited military forces to clean up their messes.

However, even so, the situation in Dusk City is still not optimistic, because the problems in Twilight Province are far more than just the rebellious rebels, there is also the famine that has lasted for nearly a year!

Now we can only hope that His Majesty the King will send his most elite knights to reinforce us...

After all, this is the king's direct territory, and most of the land belongs to the royal palace. I believe that considering the annual taxes paid by Dusk City, His Majesty will not leave this place alone.

Not long ago, he had sent a letter to the palace asking for help, and he estimated that a reply should be coming soon.

Just as Elaric was worrying about the future of the Dusk Province, a servant suddenly rushed in in a hurry.

"Sir, the reply from the royal capital has arrived!" The servant was holding a letter with the royal wax seal in his arms, and at this moment he didn't even bother to knock on the door.

However, Elaric did not blame him. Instead, he cheered up and snatched the letter from the servant's hand and tore it open.

However, when he saw the contents of the letter, he was struck by lightning and froze in place.

There was not a single word about reinforcements in the letter, not even a single word of sympathy for the famine. It only contained an incredible order issued with flowery words:

[Baron Elaric Valerius, may the Holy Light be with you. Leon, the envoy from the Academy, will arrive in Dusk City soon. You must show him Dusk City's prosperity and wealth, to demonstrate the majesty and glory of the Kingdom of Lion. Let those old scholars in the Mage Tower open their eyes and see how far behind us they are...]

Elaric felt his chest shrink, and for a moment it seemed as if his heart stopped beating, and he even forgot to breathe.

glory?

What is your majesty saying?

His expression suddenly twisted, and he angrily crumpled the letter into a ball and slammed it hard on the bookshelf.

The servant standing nearby was startled and trembling with fear, not daring to say a word, and he didn't understand why the governor was so angry.

Slumped in the chair, Elaric's chest heaved violently, his heart filled with despair.

He didn't know what His Majesty the King was thinking. He even began to doubt whether the letter carrying the hopes of millions of people in the province had ever been delivered to the King.

Just when he was getting extremely worried, a calm voice suddenly came from the side.

"Sir, since the king's reinforcements have yet to arrive, perhaps... we can ask for help from the Duchy of Campbell."

The person who spoke was his most trusted aide.

A white-haired old man picked up the crumpled letter, smoothed it out, and gently placed it back on the governor's desk.

Elaric suddenly looked up and looked at his staff in surprise, with a trace of struggle in his eyes.

"Ask for help from the Duchy of Campbell? Are you sure?"

He had a good relationship with Edward Campbell. The young Grand Duke was a very capable man and acted decisively. He would never let him wait indefinitely.

The staff nodded slightly and spoke in a calm tone.

"We have to act swiftly. These are extraordinary times, and we must first overcome the current difficulties."

"Have you considered the consequences?" Alarik laughed bitterly. "That would be tantamount to acknowledging that the royal family is no longer able to control the northern territories!"

"I know, my lord, but this is the reality... It's not just the nobles of Twilight Province who have abandoned their feudal obligations, but also our respected Majesty."

The staff nodded and spoke calmly.

"Furthermore, Archduke Edward is nominally a vassal of Your Majesty, so there's no legal problem in requesting him to send troops. Furthermore, if the flames of the Green Army spread beyond Stromgarde Keep in the southern Dusk Province, his duchy would be the next to suffer... I believe His Highness understands his predicament, and asking him to act as soon as possible is the best option."

"But what about the king?" Alarik's voice was a little hoarse. "His Majesty will not let me go..."

He would be sentenced to death if he lost the Twilight Province, but if he brought shame to His Majesty, who was very concerned about his reputation, he would also be sentenced to death.

The staff member said softly.

"Don't worry for three years."

"reason?"

"There's no reason. This requires you...or us to fight for it."

The aide's voice paused, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes, as if he had used great determination to say this.

"Not only must we allow the Campbell Principality's troops to come in, but we must also allow them to gain sufficient benefits from this war and have enough motivation to continue fighting..."

(End of this chapter)