Linde picked up the blood-stained dagger and cast a Cleanse spell on it, instantly making the blood-stained dagger as clean as new.
The dagger is well-proportioned in the hand, with a comfortable weight distribution. The brass material makes it look shiny, which also proves that this dagger is just a ceremonial tool and cannot be used as a weapon.
The dagger was covered with intricate and peculiar patterns, markings of unknown origin, which made it look extremely unique.
"This cult is quite formidable; an ordinary ritual dagger can be transformed into a divine weapon under the enhancement of magic."
It's important to know that the shield that blocked this dagger was a genuine high-level enchanted shield, made with rare materials such as mithril and molten gold, and also imbued with some powerful protective enchantments.
"No wonder these cults keep coming back after being wiped out. There are always people who want power that can be obtained easily, but how can such easily obtained power come without a price?"
I'll take the dagger to Alice later and ask her if she knows the secret behind it.
In the distance, Astaire, covered in blood, walked over and reported to Lind: "Sir, the casualties have been tallied. There are 18 lightly wounded, 2 seriously wounded, and 4 dead. Apart from the one cultist we captured, all the other cultists have been killed."
Seeing Astaire covered in blood before him, Lind stepped forward and cast a Cleanse spell on him, then patted him on the shoulder and said:
“Well done. Send someone to clean up the battlefield, separate the bodies of these cultists from the bodies of the soldiers, burn the bodies of the cultists on the spot, and prepare some firewood. Let’s hold a simple funeral for these fallen soldiers in the evening.”
"After cleaning, gather all the soldiers covered in blood and I'll clean them up. After all, who knows if this stuff is harmful?"
"Yes, sir."
Aster immediately accepted the order and quickly led his soldiers to get to work.
Linde then went to the place where the prisoners were being held.
Inside the makeshift tent, a man covered in cold sweat was chained to the ground with a rag stuffed in his mouth, while several bronze warriors sat nearby, poised to attack.
Several bronze warriors saw Linde walk in and quickly stood up and said:
"My lord, you have arrived."
"Well, did he say anything?"
The burly men looked embarrassed and chuckled, "Sir, we didn't know what to ask, so we just beat him up first..."
Linde was speechless for a moment, then stepped forward and pulled the rag out of the cultist's mouth. The cultist gagged a few times and then coughed violently.
Seeing the cultists' miserable state, Lind ordered, "Bring me a bowl of water. I will interrogate them myself."
"Alright." The big man quickly brought over a bowl of water, which the cultist drank in one gulp.
"Now, I'll ask you a question, and you answer it, or else..."
"I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!" The cultist became visibly excited, looking at the burly men beside him with fear on his face.
Linde rolled his eyes at them, then asked, "Did your order move to the earldom, or did it develop within the earldom?"
"I...I don't know. I was introduced to the cult by someone, and I don't know when they arrived."
Who is the highest-ranking among you?
"I don't know. The highest-ranking person I can contact is Director Muri. He... he carries a dagger."
Seeing this, Linde took out the ceremonial dagger and asked, "So his name is Muri. Is this the dagger?"
"Yes...yes, the...the head steward is dead?"
"Yes, now everyone else is dead except you."
Lind's words were like a cold, sharp blade, piercing straight into the cultist's brain.
It took the cultist a while to react, but he seemed to have been drained of his soul, becoming utterly dejected, and said:
"I...I'm going to die."
Linde asked doubtfully, "I'm not going to kill you. If you answer me properly, I might spare your life." Although that was impossible.
"No...it wasn't you. Our leader said that if he died, we would all have to go with him..."
Before he could finish speaking, the cultist visibly shriveled up, as if all the blood had been drained from his body, and in a moment he became a dried-up corpse. Lin De was shocked.
Holy crap, so you're saying you'd still be alive if I hadn't told you the bishop was dead? You died the moment I mentioned it? That's ridiculous.
The soldiers nearby looked at each other in bewilderment. Linde turned to them and ordered, "Pack them up and throw them all in the fire."
He walked out of the tent dejectedly, leaving behind a few burly men who shrugged at each other. The leader of the group said, "Let's get to work."
...
Dusk soon arrived, a mysterious moment between day and night that always possessed an indescribable magic.
The sun slowly sank, dyeing the sky a brilliant golden-red, like nature's most generous painter, splashing the sky with the most intense colors.
At this moment, the clouds were no longer the pure white or gray-blue of the daytime, but turned into a fiery orange-red, just like the scenery on the ground.
"...May the Holy Spirit guide the souls of these fallen brothers to a place of peace..."
The flames illuminated everyone's faces. Some were secretly pleased to have escaped, some hoped for a safe journey ahead, and others swore a blood oath to make the heretics pay for their crimes.
Amidst this atmosphere of grief and indignation, the celebratory banquet began. Everyone sang and danced, turning their relief at surviving the ordeal into an emotional boost. Linde, watching the jubilant crowd, couldn't help but feel happy as well.
Astaire, standing to the side, said, "We are so grateful to you today, sir. In the past, when we encountered cultists, we could only let them do whatever they wanted. Even if we spent a lot of manpower and resources to clear them out, the results were minimal. We could only ask the priests and soldiers of the Holy Church to deal with them."
"How have previous immigrant groups handled similar situations?"
Aster paused for a moment, then said, “Although I haven’t seen it with my own eyes, according to others… a merciful lord would seek the help of the Holy Church, but would have to pay a sum of money, while a slightly… more powerful lord would simply kill a portion of the immigrants until they found the cultists.”
Linde fell silent. In his view, whether it was a cruel official or a ruthless cult member who killed his people, they were all the same and unforgivable.
Seeing that Lind still looked somewhat depressed, Astaire had a sudden inspiration and said, "Sir, if you have any doubts or questions, why not ask Miss Alice? After all, I am not a cultured person and I certainly do not know as much as she does."
Linde slapped his thigh, almost forgetting about today's important contestant. If it weren't for her suppression magic, that Muri manager might not have been taken down so easily.
"Well... sir, I'm going to lead my men on a night patrol. I'll take my leave now." Seeing that Lind was ready to leave, Astaire took the opportunity to slip away.
Alice was kneeling on a flat, open ground, with a thick felt mat she had taken from her magic sleeve on the ground. She was meditating there to restore her mental energy.
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