The attackers finally retreated in the night. After the two most powerful Holy See knights and several other mages, knights, and priests who led the team fell, the few remaining people took advantage of the night to flee in panic. Into the deep darkness, they left behind more than a dozen corpses and a mess, but ultimately found nothing.
A Cecil combat soldier was seriously injured. His force field shield was shattered during a close fight with a knight, and then an almost visible hole was opened under his chest. There was a bone wound, but after pouring down several bottles of alchemical potions, the combat soldier's injury had stabilized.
Other than that, there were no other casualties on Cecil’s side.
The soldiers who had finished the battle began to inspect the battlefield, organize their equipment, and confirm the enemy's situation, but no one approached the open space next to the well.
Wright stood quietly in this open space, a layer of clear and bright holy light still shrouded around him, covering him like an armor and cloak made of light, the holy light shining The sky was also shining all around, and in the open space shrouded in holy light, Emily had closed her eyes.
Those big, bright eyes will never open again.
"Do you believe in the Holy Light or the God of Holy Light?"
The words that the lord asked himself before setting out appeared in Wright's mind, and this sentence has already impressed him It lingered in his mind for many days, and the contradictory feeling caused by this sentence kept him awake at night day after day. He didn't understand, didn't understand why he had to make a choice between the Holy Light and the God of Holy Light, but now He got it.
In the midst of anger and great disappointment to the God of Holy Light, he understood that it was a bright light in his mind, a loud bang that broke away from some kind of spiritual seal, and a moment of enlightenment. , he abandoned the Lord he had believed in for decades and embraced the true Holy Light.
But someone paid a price that they should not have paid.
A slight chill fell on my face, and strands of rain fell from the sky, falling on this land full of misfortune and sorrow. The summer rain, which had been late all night, finally came at dawn. He arrived early, and in the cool rain, Wright half-knelt beside Emily and put his hand on the little girl's forehead.
"...May the Holy Light protect your way forward...May you no longer be trapped in the cold and darkness...May your soul be at peace...No more hunger and suffering..."
Ansu 736, the 22nd of the Fire Month, the beginning of summer.
The first white knight in human history was born in the wilderness of the South.
Although at this moment, no one knows what this new profession should be named.
In Cecil Territory, in the lord's mansion, Gawain met two knights, Byron and Philip, who had just returned from the front line.
They rushed back to the territory from the Hosman Prisoner of War Camp, and arriving with them were thousands of special prisoners brought out from the noble coalition.
“According to your order, we brought those nobles and their knights and mages with them,As well as the Holy Light Priests, Holy See Knights, and Extraordinary mercenaries who were mixed with the coalition forces, they were brought back in advance," Byron reported the situation. "But because we had to hurry, we only brought some of them - there are more than a thousand people in Hoth. Man prisoner of war camp, two hundred people were not brought over from the Tanzanian prisoner of war camp. "
"That's enough. The main thing is to bring those nobles and their vassals over. Others don't have to worry," Gawain said casually. "Before the entire southern territory is integrated, we can do There are still many things to do. "
"Lord, what do you plan to do with those nobles and their followers? "Knight Philip asked curiously, "Those people... have been clamoring to meet you after eating, and to explain to you the... misunderstandings in this war. "
"...Is this why you are clamoring to meet me to discuss this? Fortunately, their minds haven't completely frozen, but it's not much better." Gao Wenhun waved his hands carelessly, "They can save their energy, they still haven't figured out what this war means. Woolen cloth. "
After hearing this, Byron immediately went to Philip and whispered: "Look, I'll tell you, just keep those people locked up. If they yell, let them yell. At worst, we can lock them together with the big machine pumps in the water plant, and see who makes the loudest noise..."
Philip ignored Byron at all, but continued to say to Gawain: "We try to catch them as much as possible. The Holy See Knights and Holy Light Priests in the noble coalition were captured, but many people still escaped pursuit after entering the plain area. Some of them were trapped in the Cecil-controlled area and are currently being slowly captured, but There are also a considerable number of Holy See knights and priests who have fled to St. Luan's Cathedral in the northwest... which is not in our control area. "
Byron next to him couldn't help but muttered: "If we beat it down, it will become a controlled area. "
"Ahem. "Gawain suddenly coughed twice - although he wanted to say that Byron's words were exactly what he meant, he still avoided being too unrestrained at the last moment, because he knew very well that St. Luan's Cathedral and the city of Luan where the church is located are more than just It has a very special significance within the Holy Light Sect and even in the entire southern region.
It is the headquarters of the Holy Light Church in the southern diocese and is also a theoretical "neutral place"
Theoretically, Luan City is under the direct control of the royal family. There are no local lords, only the general affairs officer assigned by the royal family, but the general affairs officer is basically a cover. The real control of Luan City is the St. Luan Cathedral in the city. The southern bishops and priests in the cathedral
Of course, there are no more bishops in the southern diocese, and the high-ranking knights and priests of St. Louis Cathedral also died in this war. Seventy-seven or eighty-eight, the strength of the entire Saint-Louan Cathedral is not a problem for Cecil today, but what Gawain has to consider is not the defensive power of Saint-Louan Cathedral at all.
What he needs to consider is whether he can attack there directly and under what name.
This is directly related to the southern border.The next order is also related to his influence on a large number of Holy Light believers in the southern border.
And there is a more realistic question: What happens after the Saint-Louis Cathedral is knocked down? Should we just occupy Luan City, or arrest all the Holy Light Church priests in Luan City, or even destroy the church? If it is the former, then I am afraid that it will not be able to completely expel the influence of the Holy Light Church from the Southern Territory. If it is the latter, then I am afraid that the social order in the Southern Territory will face great fluctuations, and the more pious Holy Light in its new territory will Believers will also question the "righteousness" of the new lord.
After all, occupying cities and churches can be said to be a normal procedure of war, because the southern bishop Lemont "attacked" Cecil with twelve fully armed Holy See knights and a high-ranking priest. City, this can be regarded as an act of declaration of war, but if the Holy Light belief system in the south is further destroyed after occupying the city, hundreds of thousands of Holy Light believers in the south will have doubts about the rule of Gawain Cecil.
Gawain cannot directly erase the Faith of Holy Light from the minds of hundreds of thousands of people, and with his current influence in the South and the actual situation of religious beliefs in this world, he cannot It is impossible to promote too drastic a program of church reform.
Of course, you can also consider a compromise approach, forcing all priests to accept Cecil's Law after the Saint-Louis Cathedral is laid down, and severing contact with the Holy Light Church headquarters in the Holy Spirit Plains. , and after that, he will replace, purify, and transform the entire group of priests little by little, but the effect of this cannot be guaranteed, and there may be hidden dangers...
Now that he has begun to take over the southern territory, he will We must start thinking about these practical issues as the ruler of the South.
Philip and Byron saw that Gawain was thinking about the problem, so they did not disturb them. They waited quietly, and then heard Gawain tapping the table lightly with his fingers, and said As if saying to himself: "There must be a Holy Light Church..."
Philip didn't hear clearly at once: "What?"
"Nothing," Gawain shook his head, "We will solve the problem of St. Luan's Cathedral, but for now we can let the priests and Vatican knights continue to shake in the cathedral for a while. In addition, there are also those nobles locked in various prison camps. ... Let them wait for a while to let them fully understand the situation at hand. This will help them cooperate with Cecil's laws in the future. Before solving the problem of St. Louis Cathedral and reshaping the order in the south, we will. Another thing should be done first..."
Byron and Philip said in unison: "Another thing?"
"The South must be made 'our South'," Gawain stood up from the desk and came to the huge map hanging on the wall. His eyes fell on the northernmost portal of the Southern Territory - the Rock Fortress. "You can't hand over the key to your home to outsiders. ”
Philip and Byron followed Gawain’s line of sight and saw the special building.The gateway fortress of meaning.
Philip's expression became serious, and Byron couldn't help but whistle: "Wow - this is an incredible goal."
"It is indeed one. "An impossible target," Gawain nodded, "The Rock Fortress is completely different from the weakly defended stone fortresses in the south. Its entire city wall is enchanted, which is almost equivalent to an extra layer of magic shield shrouding it at all times. On the fortress, and all the elite soldiers stationed in the rock fortress - Count Pompeii is the theoretical owner of the fortress, but the garrison of the fortress is directly trained and controlled by the royal family. A rock fortress is more powerful than Count Horsman The 70,000 people gathered together are even more powerful."
Byron chuckled: "After all, it is to seal off the entire southern border."
"So we may need it. It will take a lot of cannon fire to knock down this fortress," Gawain also laughed, "But no matter what, we must knock it down...and then control this door in our own hands."
After that, it doesn’t matter how he fights on the Holy Spirit Plain. He can calm down and take care of the southern border, such as taking care of the Holy Light Priests hiding in St. Luan’s Cathedral, or taking care of those who are still under attack. Noble prisoners in cells.
"When are you going to launch an attack?" Byron put away his usual playful smile and asked seriously, "We are now at the stage of highest morale..."
"No rush," Gawain waved his hand and looked at the map in front of him quietly, "I'm waiting for news..."
"Waiting for news?"
"Waiting A reason to attack the Rock Fortress, waiting for the opportunity to attack, and waiting for new information," Gawain said, "and these...maybe available soon."