The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 216 The Benefits of Wartime

As dawn approached, Eric woke Sophie, who was in his arms. She dressed, kissed him deeply, and prepared to return to her resting place.

Eric grabbed her and said, "I'll take you there."

"Your Highness..."

"It's alright, it'll be dawn soon." The parting before departure was especially difficult, and Eric hugged her tightly, wanting to meld her into his body.

Sophie buried her face in his chest, savoring the last moments of tenderness.

After a while, Eric came out of the tent first.

At dawn, the camp was only illuminated by torchlight, and almost silent. He was about to call Sophie out when Natalia's voice came from not far away: "Your Highness?"

"..."

Eric and Sophie exchanged a glance. She took a step back, and he lowered the curtain, looking in the direction the voice came from. "Your Highness Natalia, you're awake so early?"

“I just woke up too.” Natalia walked over. “I guess it’s because we’re leaving today, so I couldn’t fall back asleep after waking up.”

"Me too." Eric regretted saying it as soon as he finished speaking. Why didn't he just say he got up to pee?
“Your Highness, have you ever seen the sunrise in Lutia? Let’s go for a walk on the city walls. We won’t be able to see this place for a long time,” Natalia invited.

"it is good……"

Eric had no choice but to agree, and then said, "I'll change my coat, Your Highness, please wait a moment."

"it is good."

Back in the tent, Eric cupped Sophie's face in his hands. "I can't take you back. Wait for me a little while."

She simply hugged him tightly, saying, "Your Highness, you must come back safely."

“In terms of safety, I’m more worried about your situation here.” Eric stroked her face. “Don’t make me worry, or I’ll get distracted and might get stabbed to death by a fishman with a fork in some southern harbor.”

“…Your Highness!”

"Shhh."

"..."

The final kiss before parting lasted for more than half a minute. Eric came out of the tent first, while Natalia waited under one of the torches in the camp.

She was too far away to see what he was wearing, so she didn't realize he hadn't changed his clothes at all.

"Let's go, Your Highness."

After the two had walked away, Sophie poked her head out of the tent, looked in the direction they had left for a while, pursed her lips, and then crossed the camp and returned to her own tent.

When we got to the bottom of the city wall, it was still quite dark.

Eric raised a finger, activating a light spell, and the first thing he saw was Natalia beside him, her eyes slightly narrowed.

"Is it too bright?"

"It's a little too bright."

Eric extinguished the light spell, and using the faint daylight, the two climbed the city wall and looked eastward.

“Sunrise is still a while away,” Natalia said. “Back when I lived in the palace, I would sometimes get up in the early morning and go to the city walls to watch the sunrise.”

Eric glanced at her. "Your Highness has quite the leisure."

"Because I really didn't have anything else to do before."

Natalia's face showed a hint of regret. "I should have turned my attention to places outside of Lutia sooner... If I had started preparing earlier, many things would have been different."

“Your Highness, it’s not too late for you to wake up,” Eric said. “You understood earlier than most people in the Empire that the threat from the North was real.”

Natalia turned her head and seemed to smile, but he heard her sigh more clearly.

"That was also because of His Highness Eric's reminder. What I regret even more is not having met you sooner."

Eric gazed at the eastern sky. "If we had met too early, His Highness might not have believed me so easily."

Natalia thought for a moment, then remained silent.

The two stood on the city wall, watching the east gradually turn white, the sky turn light blue, the first rays of dawn appear, the sun rises, and finally shines its light on the entire earth.

Natalia gazed at the rising sun, and Eric looked at her.

"A new day has begun, Your Highness."

She gave a rather complicated smile.

"It's time to go."

After descending the city wall, the two bid farewell to the people who were important to them.

“You haven’t been back for a long time either, stay home for a few more days,” Edgar said to his nephew and niece.

Eric nodded.

Sophie still came over to say goodbye, but she was quite restrained, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment before falling away.

"Your Highness, please take care on your journey."

"Ah."

As Eric mounted his horse, he looked back and saw Irene, Elise, Molly, and ten knights following behind him, while Natalia was alone.

She has no relatives or friends; the closest relative she has now is the Empress. She needs no guards; any problem that her companions cannot solve with force, she cannot solve no matter how many guards she brings.

"lets go."

The drawbridge was lowered, and the group left Lutia through the west gate, following the roads within their controlled territory.

The area outside the city, having undergone a scorched-earth policy and repeatedly licked by the flames of war, had long since become barren. Even before autumn arrived, it was difficult to see a trace of green.

The group stopped temporarily a few miles southwest of Lutia and looked back; the demon army outside the city was still faintly visible.

Since the Demon King personally went to the main battlefield, Eric has not left Lutia for such a long time.

"Let's go."

Starting afresh, the group traveled along Heroes' Avenue, venturing into the mountains southwest of Lutia.

The sound of horses' hooves echoed as there were hardly any people to be seen on the roads near Lutia.

Just a few months ago, this would have been unimaginable.

"Shall we go straight home?" Eileen asked loudly, following behind Eric.

Eric then realized that apart from him and Natalia, no one else knew much about the itinerary.

“Let’s go to Heath City first,” he replied, turning his head.

After a morning of horseback riding, when they stopped to rest at noon, Eric told the others in his party the whole itinerary.

"Are you still going to Castelfeld?" Molly stared at him.

“Well, finding your teacher was just a side thing; the large number of mages and alchemists over there are our real targets for recruitment,” Eric said.

Molly frowned. "Are you sure the teacher is in that little hut?"

"I can't be sure about anything."

"..."

“But even you don’t know that place, so I think there’s a pretty high chance that Master Rusdy is hiding there.”

Eric paused, recalling the tattered letter he had seen in Simmagu's office. "The question now is, did Simmagu find that letter before he fled?"

“What if he saw it and found the teacher first?” Molly asked him.

"I will find a way to rescue him."

Molly continued looking at him, "What if the teacher chooses the other side?"

Eric met her gaze. "I'll figure out how to deal with him."

Molly fell silent.

“Of course, without him you wouldn’t be who you are today, so I will try my best to spare his life. Whether I kidnap him or imprison him temporarily, I won’t kill him unless absolutely necessary,” Eric continued. “After all, your teacher is a true master of soul research.”

The more obsessed one is with the study of the soul, the more likely they are to be attracted to the projects offered by Simagu.

Molly was silent for a while before saying, "I'll write you a letter to take with you. If you can really find the teacher, give him the letter. He may not listen to you, but at least he'll believe you're a good person."

Eric smiled. "Okay."

They made a temporary stop at a tavern by the main road, where business had become much quieter due to the war.

Molly asked the tavern owner for paper and pen, then sat down at the table next to her and began writing a letter.

Natalia glanced at her, then at Eric, without saying a word.

Eileen leaned over and taught her to leave a special magical mark on the letter so that her teacher could recognize it at a glance, while Elise sat down next to Eric, saying, "Why don't you take her with you to the South?"

“If she can handle riding a horse for thousands of miles, then I have no objection,” Eric said, then suddenly realized something and looked up at her.

The two looked at each other for a while.

boom!
A short, sharp popping sound suddenly came from the table next to us.

Everyone in the tavern was startled. Eric turned his head and saw Molly standing there with her arms outstretched, while the letter in front of her had vanished into thin air.

“You need to apply the mark with stable, attribute-free magic.” Eileen wiped her face, immediately leaving a black mark. “You didn’t tell me that…” Molly finally recovered from her shock.

“Now you know.” Eileen looked at her.

"My letter—"

"Let's write another one."

"I can't remember what I just wrote!"

Eric spoke up at this point: "It's still early. You can take your time to come up with ideas. You can write your essays when you get to Dantershire."

"Ok."

After eating and drinking their fill, the group continued their journey.

There were still very few people on the road. After driving all afternoon, as dusk approached, they stopped to rest at the last service area they passed, since they didn't know where the next place to rest would be.

There are slightly more people here, and winged people are also taking off and landing here.

One of the winged people noticed their large group of travelers who had come from afar, and quickly recognized Eric and Natalia, who stood out among them, and immediately came over to greet them.

"Your Highness...and Your Highness the Grand Princess, how could you..."

"Shh." Listening to the chatter in the tavern, Eric knew that revealing their identities would definitely cause a commotion.

He gave a brief explanation, then asked, "You came from Lutia?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

When did you leave Lutia?

Five days ago.

“Alright.” Eric realized that the winged man had misunderstood him, so he didn’t expect to get any information about Lutia’s latest movements from him. Instead, he asked about the mission he was sent to Lutia and what he had seen and heard elsewhere.

"Nobody goes to Lutia anymore. The merchants are probably the most affected. I've seen many merchants in taverns with carts full of goods, not knowing what to do... However, some of them are well-informed and have already started trading with Otwell."

Eric grinned, then asked, "Are civilians affected much?"

“The closer we are to Lutia, the greater the impact,” the winged man said. “Even in places further away, the atmosphere is much more tense than before.”

Eric was speechless for a moment, and Natalia asked some questions that concerned her.

A little later, several more winged people landed at the service area here, each heading towards a tavern or inn.

They were specially hired and had just flown over from Lutia to deliver firsthand information—specifically, the movements of the demon army.

The tavern owner handed a Charon gold coin to the winged man, who whispered a few words to him before flying off to the next location.

Eric sent a knight to inquire, and the tavern owner held up his hand, indicating five.

"Five gold coins?"

“I’m not that greedy, Sir Knight, five silver coins will do.”

The knight paid the money, received the tavern owner's whispered message, and returned to Eric's side.

"The demon army has not made a move and remains stationed in Lutia, confronting the army of Gradia."

Eric nodded, his gaze falling on the winged people who had just landed in front of another tavern. "War is a disaster for most races on the continent, but it seems to be an exception for the winged people."

“Intelligence is important, and their talent for flying is irreplaceable,” Natalia said, looking outside. Then she heard Eric add that being an intelligence broker is the most lucrative profession.

She turned around and found that he was talking to the female mage she knew the least.

The latter rolled his eyes at him, but the corners of his mouth were curved.

Natalia looked away before she could look over.

“Perhaps we should also hire a winged person to deliver Lutia’s message to us,” Natalia said.

“I’ve already made the arrangements,” Eric said. “However, it’s difficult for them to find us on the main road. The first meeting point I arranged with them is in Heath City.”

Natalia nodded without saying anything more.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, they checked into a nearby hotel and rested.

Eric had just lain down when he heard rustling sounds outside the window, followed by the soft thud of light footsteps on the floor.

"...If you were caught as a thief, just look at your silver hair, you wouldn't even need to be interrogated, just be shot dead."

Elise lay down beside him. "So, are you just going to watch me get beaten to death?"

Eric rolled over to face her. "If you're so easy to catch, then all that time I spent traveling with you for the past six months has been for nothing."

"I don't have much experience as a thief..." She lowered her head and watched his hand reach inside her clothes.

The sounds from the nearby pub drowned out the momentary joy in the room.

“I can go south with you… I’m not afraid of riding horses.”

Elise rode the motionless horse, her waist swaying.

"I knew you wanted to be with me..."

Eric intertwined his fingers and held her hands tightly. "But I need you to keep an eye on those two frail mages for me."

She leaned down and bit his shoulder hard.

"Don't shift the blame onto them."

Eric winced in pain and straightened his back, causing her to tense up immediately.

“If they wanted to stay in Dante County, that would be fine, but Eileen insists on going back to Lutia, and Molly certainly won’t stay alone. I need a reliable person to take care of them for me.”

"Mmm..." Elise lay on top of him, unable to speak for a moment.

Eric didn't say much for the time being, focusing on racing until he was completely exhausted.

“I want to stay with you…” Elise whispered in his ear, “but if you need me to leave you temporarily, I won’t refuse.”

Eric hugged her tightly and kissed her on the cheek.

It was almost midnight when Elise finally got off his bed, preparing to climb out the window and return to her own room.

"...There's no one outside right now, can't you just use the door?"

"There might still be people awake."

Elise climbed out the window and went back to her room. Eric couldn't sleep either, so he got up and stood by the window for a while, looking at the various taverns and inns that had become quiet again after the night. It was hard not to recall the scene when he first passed through this area.

Although that happened three years ago.

At that time, the old saint was still alive, as was Vili, who drove her chariot, and even the emperor and the old pope whom she had never met.

He raised one hand and looked at his palm in the moonlight.

“We almost lost the Saintess’s Scepter in the occupied territories… Old man, you left just in time.”

Eric had to travel the next day, so he stood by the window for a while before going back to bed.

When I opened my eyes, it was already dawn.

Heath is the largest city in Otwell, a day's journey from County Dante, and further west. It would take about four days to ride there at full speed from Lutia.

Along the main road, Eric and his group basically only rested around noon each day, spending the rest of their time traveling.

On the afternoon of the fourth day, near dusk, they finally arrived outside Heath.

None of them had been here before, but Eric could guess that the strict checks they would face upon entering the city weren't something that happened from the start.

"I wonder who the governor of Otwell is..."

He paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered that Governor Otwell had been driven away by Edgar, and the city was now being managed by a group of people left behind by Edgar.

Following the procession into the city, Eileen looked around and after a while turned her gaze to her brother, "Has Eric been here before?"

“I never left Dante County before I became an adult.”

"Really? I thought Eric had been to many places while I was unconscious."

Eric turned to look at her. "When I'm running around everywhere, that's when you're at your most energetic."

Eileen chuckled.

When it was their turn, Eileen immediately displayed the insignia of the Giminoro family, and the guards at the city gate immediately knelt down and saluted, "Miss Eileen!"

"Are you from the City Lord's Mansion?... I mean, Oren City."

“Yes, young lady, the Earl… the Duke sent us here to take over part of the defense here.”

Eric and Eileen looked at each other. These guards were probably newly recruited by Edgar after they left; none of them looked familiar.

After entering the city, the group went directly to the governor's mansion.

This place is much more impressive than the city lord's mansion in Oren. Eric truly felt the reluctance of the former governor when he was driven away, even though Edgar allowed him to take away more than a dozen boxes of gold coins.

"As far as I know, there are at least six nobles of marquis rank or above currently residing in Hiss City."

After settling down, Natalia discussed her plans with Eric. "It's too late today. Tomorrow morning, I'll start visiting them one by one."

Eric nodded. "I will go with Your Highness."

(End of this chapter)