Divine Kingship

Chapter 636 The Ratman Quiro, the Adventurer Luca, and Archbishop Sers
When the saint's magnificent flames turned the marble into lava, no one dared to resist.

Then Karin found someone who could be considered in charge, gathered the people of the old Holy City of the Torch Church, and then migrated to the new Holy City in the south.

These people are bound to be useless; they are a group of heretics whose ideas have already deviated from the orthodoxy of the Torch Church, and weaklings.

If they surrender to Karin, they might also surrender to evil.

However, Karin still planned to send these people to the southern front.

Once they get there, they won't have the chance to compromise with evil.

According to Rand's intelligence, the plague has already begun to spread. When the time comes, they will either become rivets in the new holy city to fight against the tide of the undead, or they will die.

In short, it should have some effect in delaying the process.

Karin only needed them to do this, and she needed a title.

Although Karin had no intention of subjugating these heretics, in the public eye, Karin, who united the three factions of the Torch Church, was far more convincing than Karin, who only represented the early Torch Church.

The reunion of the divided Torch Church, though merely a facade, may raise concerns in peacetime, but in times of calamity, it will surely unite hearts and minds.

The human heart is something that can be very useless, but it can also be very useful.

Karin watched over the heretics of the old Holy City of the Torch Church; she would oversee these cowards' journey to the new Holy City.

……

Meanwhile, in the south, the adventurers who were assigned to handle odd jobs as an unorganized team had also arrived.

The adventurers at the adventurer camp are teaching some adventurers who have never been to the vicinity of the resort before.

Although the reputation of the resort as an adventure paradise has already spread among adventurers thanks to the photo crystals and word-of-mouth recommendations from adventurers.

However, not all adventurers have the ability to travel long distances. Judging from the population ratio, nearly half of the adventurers are fixed in certain areas. After all, going to unfamiliar places to adventure, facing unfamiliar environments and unfamiliar enemies will increase the risk.

For adventurers who don't come from resorts, being an adventurer is a job that is not highly regarded and has low pay.

There are still considerable risks.

Such adventurers are unlikely to be able to trek through mountains and rivers to visit resorts.

Now, adventurers from a resort have come to carry out a mission, and the adventurers' guild there has also sent people to set up camp.

This attracted many adventurers who had heard about it to come here, wanting to see what the adventurers and guild members of the legendary adventurer's holy land were like.

And they did indeed quickly discover the difference.

These adventurers from the Moon Phase Kingdom's resort were clearly much wealthier and better equipped, and seemed to possess some magical items they had never seen before.

For example, the relic lamp that can absorb sunlight during the day and emit light at night.

For example, there are relic constructs that can be controlled by humans, or resistant equipment and flamethrowers.

These were things that the local adventurers had never seen before.

When they tried to test or buy these items, they were reminded that these were things that only adventurers with sufficient Sanctuary certification could possess.

Many local adventurers have now realized that the resort depicted in the photographic crystal may indeed be a sacred place for adventurers.

They are now eager to join, and the people of Rand need their familiarity with the local area to learn more detailed intelligence.

The Sunburst Adventurer Team arrived earlier than the other adventurers, but they had a special mission and did not appear at the temporary Sanctuary Adventurer Guild headquarters.

This meant that many adventurer fans who had heard of their exploits didn't have the chance to see their idols in person.

The mission of the Sunburst Adventurer Squad is to accompany Serth to meet Quiro, the leader of the ratmen.

Luca arrived at the Skaven settlement.

Contrary to expectations of a dirty and disgusting place, this place is very clean and orderly, even more so than a typical human town... more like Crescent Moon City.

Two short but well-equipped ratman guards blocked Luca and his companions' path.

“Although human access is not prohibited here, you are still too… frightening.” The two ratmen stared at Luca’s group.

Luca and the others had, of course, hidden the magical equipment that Rand had given them, but their demeanor and mannerisms still alerted the ratman guards; they were definitely not ordinary human adventurers.

Luca stepped aside, and a rather handsome man dressed as a bishop stepped forward: "I am Serth, Archbishop of the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health. I bring a message from His Majesty Rand: I wish to see Quiro."

During Operation Sunrise, after the ratman Quirrell and Rand cooperated, they parted ways. Quirrell accepted Rand's advice to search for the ratmen's sacred artifacts and established a settlement for the ratmen.

Nowadays, at least in many parts of the south, the ratmen no longer need to roam around human towns and do the dirty and tiring work that most humans are unwilling to do.

The ratman guard looked at Thurs with great surprise.

They certainly knew the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health, and they also knew Rand.

But why did the archbishop of the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health come here?
Soon, one of the ratman guards went back to report, and after a while, the ratman hero Quiro came to greet him in person.

Quiro and Rand occasionally exchanged letters.

However, their numbers are very small; after all, compared to a great figure like His Majesty Rand, the ratmen race is really insignificant.

The ratman Quiro was unwilling to harass Rand too often, lest the already thin bond between them be diminished by such harassment.

And now, the archbishop of the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health has come personally to deliver the letter.

The rat-man, Kui Ruo, sensed danger.

"It's because of the plague, isn't it?" Quiro asked seriously after leading Luca's adventurer party and Serth to the private reception room in the settlement.

“Yes, the situation is very serious. I have brought a letter from His Majesty Rand.” Serth handed the letter to Quiro.

After carefully reading it word by word, Kui Ruo frowned.

The Luca Adventurer Party was also watching the ratmen leader, Quiro. They were initially puzzled by Rand's high regard for the ratmen.

But now, at least this rat-man settlement is completely different from what I imagined, and as its leader, Quiro is also not the weak and gloomy rat-man I had imagined.

Quiro's physique was no different from other rat-people; he was short and had rat-like ears and a tail.

But he possesses exceptional leadership qualities, inspiring confidence and respect in others, and his abilities...

Luca is now a top-tier professional, but he lacks confidence in defeating this ratman. Despite the racial disparity, even if this ratman is a top-tier professional, he is still no match for a top-tier human professional.

"So this plague can be carried by rats, which are ubiquitous creatures, and can be transmitted to humans, rat-people." Quiro quickly understood the situation.

“If this plague really escalates to a very serious level, then rats will become the source of everyone’s fear, and the ratmen, because of their habits which are not too different from rats, will also be ostracized. This could very well lead to the destruction of the ratmen race first,” Quiro analyzed. “We don’t know exactly how much this will affect the ratmen, but it will certainly be very serious. In fact, the plague is already very serious,” Sers said slowly, handing Quiro a recording crystal.

The photo crystal was played in the reception room.

Before Archbishop Thurs arrived, Quiro had already discovered that some of the ratmen were infected with some plague.

Upon discovering this, Quiro immediately arranged for the rat-men to be isolated.

Rats are more resistant to disease than ordinary humans. They are less likely to contract plagues, and even if they do, the symptoms are relatively mild.

However, since many ratmen often do dirty work in dark places or even near sewers, it is not uncommon for them to contract the plague. Although the ratman Quiro dealt with it in time, he did not take it too seriously.

Now it is clear that this is not the case at all.

"Does His Majesty Rand have any suggestions?" The ratman Quiro's expression was already very grim.

The ratmen are a race that is very easy to capture and enslave, making the establishment of ratman settlements extremely difficult.

Quiro wanted the ratmen to have a better life, and he made many efforts to achieve this, such as improving the ratmen's image among humans and building a ratmen army to make some bandits and bandit nobles realize that the ratmen's settlements were not to be trifled with.

However, if the ratmen are antagonized by humans because of the plague, then when the plague is finally eradicated, the ratmen race may be destroyed because of human hostility or even direct action.

Serth looked at Quiro: "His Majesty Rand has ordered you to immediately relocate all the ratmen you can control to the place His Majesty has designated. His Majesty Rand has high hopes for you. Given our relatively friendly relationship, we will provide you with weapons and invite you to join us in fighting against the impending plague and the undead army that will follow."

Quiro was silent for a while. His Majesty Rand's request was not a suggestion, but rather an order. The ratmen were certainly not subordinate to Rand, and Rand's request was not the most beneficial solution for the ratmen's survival at present.

But obviously.

If they do not act as His Majesty Rand requests, then Rand, the human king who could have been an ally and who has respect and understanding for the ratmen, will surely make the situation most unfavorable to the ratmen's survival.

Rand sent the archbishop of the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health to deliver the message in person, and his tone was very calm and non-threatening, which was already a great show of respect.

If a rat-man doesn't know what's good for him, he will truly lose his chance to survive.

“I cannot currently control all the ratman tribes or ratman settlements. Those ratmen living in human towns are even more difficult to control. At most, I can only deliver a message, but I will do my best to fulfill His Majesty Rand’s orders,” the ratman Quiro replied.

Sers stared at Quiro for a while. The boy from back then was now a shrewd adult. He knew very well what Quiro meant when he first said "suggestion" and now he was following "decree".

He smiled and said, "We will have the power to assist you then, but you will have to rely on yourself for most of the time. None of us will have an easy time during this plague."

The ratman Quiro quickly went back to make arrangements, and Serth, as a sufficiently influential envoy, would not linger here for long, as he had many important tasks awaiting him.

Next, he will go to some places in the south where the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health can lend a hand, to revise some health scriptures.

And doing what I can.

Luca of the Sunburst Adventurers' Party returned with Seth.

Although they did not encounter any crisis during the operation, they still got to experience different local customs and culture.

This made them very satisfied with the mission, which was highly rewarding yet seemed relatively safe.

If it weren't for the difficulty in arranging for Holy Knights from the Sanctuary to act as guards this time, they wouldn't have had such a good job.

Not to mention, you'll also get to see some unusual things.

They had always thought that ratmen were actually the kind of creatures that hid in sewers, were short in stature and acted in a sleazy manner, and were not much different from real rats in terms of habits, and could be considered as intelligent beings.

But Luca soon found himself in a somewhat helpless situation.

It certainly won't be completely easy.

On their way back, they encountered the enemy.

Five death knights, accompanied by a horde of festering ratmen, some of whom appeared dead and others alive.

“As expected, the mission wasn’t so easy to complete.” Luca drew his gleaming magic greatsword. “Lord Serth, please step back. We will protect you.”

Sers smiled and stepped back: "I will assist you, so there's no need to treat me as someone without fighting ability."

Luca was unaware of Archbishop Sers's combat prowess, as there was no report on Archbishop Sers's combat level in the intelligence.

However, someone who can sit in the position of archbishop should not be too bad in terms of combat ability.

The Sunburst Adventurer Squad took their positions and prepared to face the enemy.

Death Knights are high-ranking undead; it takes about five elite professionals to defeat one.

If there are five, then only an adventurer team with advanced professionals can solve the problem.

Fortunately, the Sunrise Adventurer Party had Luca, a fully armed, top-ranking adventurer with extensive combat experience.

Thurs clenched his fists, and then the festering ratman undead collapsed to the ground, turning into withered bones.

Luca's sword struck the body of a death knight; the sharp magical blade could easily destroy the undead's skeletal form.

At this moment, Luca also felt a kind of blessing from Bishop Sers.

This allows his blade to inflict more damage on the undead.

It's like... applying the Torch Church's special sword oil to the blade.

This meant that the Death Knight, who theoretically had no obvious weaknesses, was killed with a single sword strike.

Now only a few remaining, crazed ratmen who are still alive, and four death knights remain.

Serth looked relaxed, as the power from the Mother Goddess was currently only mastered by a few high-ranking church members.

This power has a significant impact on reason, while Thurs is even more resistant to it.

This divine art, which borrows the power of the Mother Goddess, was not widespread in the Church of the Goddess of Harvest and Health, but it was very useful to Seth, who was able to master it.

It has a special effect on both ordinary living beings and evil things.

Soon, all the Death Knights fell.

After defeating the enemies, Serth and the adventurers investigated their surroundings.

“It’s not aimed at us; it’s more likely intended to attack travelers and merchants, or even small villages,” Luca said.

"It seems the situation is more serious than we anticipated," Thurs sighed.

(End of this chapter)