Werewolf Hunting Rules.

Chapter 474 Jumping into the water
The ancient Viodia were renowned for their shipbuilding industry until Conionnai restricted the size and number of highly polluting factories, boosting the textile industry and causing many workers to leave or change professions. The new rulers then recklessly entrusted the future development of the textile industry.

Generally speaking, this kind of thing won't happen. Local governments don't interfere much with market freedom. As long as taxes can be collected and goods don't violate regulations, merchants can do whatever business they want. Even if industrial transformation occurs, it's a change made spontaneously by merchants to better pursue their profits.

However, Conionne's core ideology remained that of the old aristocracy. They considered themselves lords, forcibly changed local laws, and did whatever they pleased.

Such a radical industrial transformation is most vulnerable to unexpected events, but an unexpected event did happen.

Insect pests and plagues thousands of miles away caused the price of textile raw materials to increase several times over. There was no time to change suppliers in time. Even if a supplier capable of supplying goods immediately could be found, the textiles of Wei Aodi had lost their price advantage and were unable to compete with those of the surrounding areas.

Weaudi then declined from its peak, with a large number of workers losing their jobs. Merchants affected by the crisis began to sell off their assets to cut their losses and were determined to leave the city.

Before the Bassbee Railway Company extended its railway here, Weodia relied primarily on the Southern Railway and shipping for transportation. Located at the southern end of the railway network, it was seen merely as a convenient transit point, with few outsiders choosing to settle there. However, the large amount of assets mortgaged at low prices attracted outside attention. While locals left, a group of merchants came to Weodia, hoping to profit from the local chaos.

Because this is one of the final nodes of the southern railway network and the edge of Druid territory, smuggling will automatically become rampant as long as there is no control. All sorts of people form a force that cannot be ignored, fueling the chaos itself.

Conionne, the culprit who caused the chaos, was forced to retreat to Bodarabik due to pressure from all sides of society.

Oranster saw an opportunity, secretly contacted various parties, facilitated the organization of the Friendship Society, and brought the final winners under his control.

So what did Conioni do wrong?

They were simply overconfident, which weakened their ability to withstand risks, and they just happened to be unlucky.

Who can prevent natural disasters thousands of miles away in advance?

"Perhaps they will learn from their previous failure. Conionai has taken in another clan of werewolves, and the current chieftain is Opiros of the Bloodeye clan. This guy went to university and graduated successfully."

The priest was surprised by Opiros's academic credentials: "That's quite remarkable."

These days, not a small number of people have attended university, but graduating is quite difficult. There are intricate connections between academia and the occult; for those occult experts, knowledge is power, which makes them pragmatic and averse to deception. With these individuals joining universities, the rigorous atmosphere has influenced school development, and those who do graduate are invariably exceptionally intelligent, becoming industry elites after a few years of work.

"So, you're also a supporter of Conionne?" the priest asked curiously.

Clayton denied this claim: "It's not about support. Within the same city, once werewolves meet, their relationship is established. They're either family, guests, or enemies. I'm definitely not either of those right now, and I wouldn't benefit from putting them on the stage."

Father Tom nodded in realization.

Clayton continued, “I just think that Opiros is a smart and cautious man, and wouldn’t drag the clan into this mess. Is there any other explanation for Conionai’s current behavior in the secular world? Otherwise, isn’t it absurd that people would take this claim as legitimate just because Conionai once controlled Weiod, and turn a blind eye to their attempts to expel incumbent officials?”

The priest smiled: "Actually, it's not what you think. Conionai's reasons for advancing into Weaude are actually quite reasonable."

“Election,” he uttered the word.

"If we were to investigate strictly, the current Weodi municipal government is not entirely legitimate."

"Besides the main city, the Weodi region also has three subordinate towns: Sagerkin, Slimwe, and Bodarabik. These areas also have the right to vote during the municipal elections. However, after a river flood, the roads were blocked, and the messengers delivering ballots to Sagerkin and Bodarabik were stuck on the road for a week. Many municipal officials at the time believed that such delays should not be tolerated, because it was unknown when the roads would be cleared, and delaying the elections would prevent many urgent matters from being handled. Therefore, they ignored these towns and only counted the citizens' votes."

“After that, it suddenly became a tradition not to count the votes of residents in the subordinate towns, as if abandoning the idea of ​​them as part of Weodie.”

"The core reason Conionnai is now intervening in Weodia is that the current municipal government is not recognized by the majority of voters; it is illegitimate and incompetent. Because they are local nobles and were once the enforcers of the Duke of Weodia, they have a certain degree of adjudicative power. Since no one else governs Weodia, they are the only ones who can uphold justice."

"This is really complicated." Clayton hadn't expected that the Friendship Society would leave Conionne with this kind of leverage.

The idea that only urban residents are voters has taken root in many places. Even Clayton himself subconsciously felt that as long as urban residents didn't interfere too much with the countryside, it didn't matter how closed the election was.

Because of the vast disparity in population and economy between cities and towns, politicians in cities can determine the outcome of a conflict simply by effectively promoting their policies to the citizens.

The practice of abandoning rural votes has become commonplace, but now that Conionne has the power and will to intervene, the situation is quite different.

Thinking about this, Clayton suddenly realized another force that could concentrate votes.

"Father, which side do societies affiliated with gangs and cults lean more towards?"

This question clearly crossed some indefinable line, and for the first time, Father Tom's face showed displeasure: "I have nothing to say about them. They are just rats hiding in the shadows. Heretics are one thing, but criminals who spread heretical ideas in the name of the church are the most despicable."

He spoke earnestly in the tone of an old friend: "Mr. Bello, I advise you not to associate with them, and it's best not to develop any interest in them. Your identity is already very sensitive. Associating with this group will not only harm your interests, but also make it difficult for our Huang Guang Society's path of redemption to be practiced."

Clayton nodded. "Thank you for your advice. But I'm not interested in heresy; I just want to know the attitudes of the Fraternity and Conionne towards them. If they're colluding with either side, the Church wouldn't tolerate it, would it?"

The priest fell silent, staring into Clayton's eyes, trying to find a hint of cunning and shrewdness, but to no avail.

This person wasn't there to mock him; he genuinely wanted to know the answer.

He finally had to answer Clayton: "The Church is not a spy or a dictator, and it will not actively investigate such matters. The kingdom's laws now emphasize freedom of religion, and as long as they do not worship demons or perform blood sacrifices for pagan beliefs, the Church has no reason to intervene."

“I’ve heard that the Witches of Weaudi are thriving; they are the licentious followers of the Inath,” Clayton said.

The priest took a deep breath: “We have been trying to get rid of these devil worshippers, but they are as numerous as cockroaches. People know what is wrong, but they just won’t walk the right path. All we can do is talk more about the benefits of abstaining from lust in our sermons.”

The Witchcraft Society poses little threat to society, but that doesn't mean the church will condone it. On the contrary, the church is the most severe in its crackdown on the Witchcraft Society.

Because these worshippers of the licentious demon king are very good at competing with the church for believers.

Young men willingly offer their freedom to beautiful women, and women lose their minds for handsome and strong men. The natural instinct to pursue lust is the beginning of depravity. The followers of the licentious devil use their legs as sacrificial vessels; they can easily recruit followers by simply taking off their pants. The church simply has no ability to compete with them on this path.

Arrests won't solve anything; demon worship is illegal, but sleeping with strangers isn't.

Every time the church's knights destroyed a stronghold of the Witchcraft Guild, only the organizers could be immediately convicted. The others claimed that they had only come because they heard there was a place where they could find excitement. The church couldn't kill all of them, and they knew very well that there must be some who worshipped demons who had slipped through the net.

Although the organizers will never see the light of day again, some of those released by the church will surely inherit his will and the desires of the Demon Lord and continue to commit adultery.

The thought of the endless stream of members of the Witchcraft Society made Father Tom feel uneasy, as if he were pushing a huge boulder up a mountain every day.

Regardless of the guest's purpose, the priest is gradually losing interest in entertaining him because he always says things that are unpleasant to hear.

Clayton realized this and immediately apologized, which finally eased the priest's expression.

"Please don't mind, I asked this question simply to satisfy my own thirst for knowledge."

"It's good to have a thirst for knowledge, but it's best not to meddle in areas you don't understand, especially when it comes to criticizing the church," the priest cautioned. "Not everyone admires Huang Guang's mercy and believes that you can still be redeemed."

Clayton simply nodded.

Then he asked himself a question.

"If they decide to fight, they will definitely resort to unconventional methods. If ordinary people are accidentally injured, will the church and the army intervene?"

“Unless an incident similar to the Pied Piper of the Night occurs, and there aren’t a large number of eyewitnesses, the Church will not intervene.” The priest’s tone was somewhat strained, and his expression, which had just relaxed, stiffened again.

But he did not explain how much "large quantity" is, or how to determine "similar quantity".

Having said that, Clayton realized he couldn't give himself an answer.

Father Tom didn't know the answer either; he wasn't of high enough rank. But he couldn't refuse to answer, so he simply repeated the contents of the church's internal regulations. Whoever could explain the details of this judgment to the public had the right to define the scope. As for who had that right—it certainly wasn't him.

After thanking the priest, Clayton took his leave and walked alone down the street with his cane.

In this peaceful southern district, he suddenly looked up at the moon and thought about taking a trip to the northern district.

It wasn't that he wanted to duel Opius himself, but rather that one of the two questions the priest hadn't answered might be resolved there.

The key to his recollection was his origins in Weaudi—the lost helpers Ginger and Edgar. According to Lind, Edgar had been seriously injured when he came to participate in the wolf blood ritual, which caused the ritual to fail.

Edgar had worked for the gang, and after being injured, instead of hiding in the gang's stronghold to recover, he quickly went to Bodarabik to join the werewolves.

Those grassroots societies must have undergone significant changes, forcing Edgar to seek another force that could protect him.

However, Father Tom certainly didn't know those things. He was a resident of the South End, while Edgar's experience took place in the North End, but the source was in the West End—don't ask how Clayton knew, he had already obtained clues when he was investigating the matter at the police station.

The people in the South said the two men disappeared, and the fact that they eventually arrived at Bodarabik indicates that their route was northward.

The West End is the main area of ​​the labor market and also gang territory, so it's not surprising that Ginger and Edgar are involved with gangs. But if Edgar gets into trouble in the West End, escaping is easy; there's no need to risk everything by traversing the dangerous North End to Conionne.

The reason they ran to Bodarabik was simple: the place where they had the accident was in the North District, and they couldn't go south.

If he goes to the North District, he will be able to better observe how the gangs under the Society's control are operating in this war.

Another reason was that Joseph had stayed with him for too long, and due to a series of unforeseen events, he was unable to take care of the child himself, which was really unacceptable.

Ten days had passed since Joseph's mother received his blood transfusion, and she should have regained her mobility by now.

He should make the mother responsible for sending her own child to Sasha, and if she wants to take other children, he will pay for their travel expenses.