The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 219 Seesaw
Heath City, the mansion of Marquis Herbert.

Eric and Natalia sat together, explaining to the dignified middle-aged nobleman opposite them what the newly established wartime military council was all about.

After a long pause, Marquis Herbert spoke up: "According to you, after joining the Military Council, if Edgar and Memphis want my soldiers to die, even if I object, I will be powerless to stop them?"

Natalia sat up straight. Eric gave her a look and spoke first: "Procedurally speaking, that's correct. Currently, there are only three parties in the Military Council—if you include them—two to one. Your soldiers must act according to military orders."

Herbert snorted coldly.

Natalia continued, "But if you think that the Military Council would still make such a self-destructive choice under the current circumstances, then you do not truly understand the significance of our formation of the Military Council."

“What I see is different from what you see, little princess—don’t look at me like that. I’m from the same generation as your father; you could say I watched you grow up,” Herbert said, staring at Natalia.

Natalia took a slight breath, said nothing, and nodded to let him continue.

"Let me be frank, I don't trust Memphis. If he really wanted to save Lutia, he would have sent troops to support him long ago. His intervention now is simply because he sees that Lutia is about to fall and the demons are about to invade his territory."

"That cannot be denied, Marquis Herbert."

Eric first agreed with him, then continued, "So, setting aside any oath to protect the empire, from a purely self-interested perspective, Governor Memphis would absolutely not want to see Lutia completely fall. As long as he remains lucid, he would never do anything to undermine internal trust or weaken his own strength, such as sending your soldiers to their deaths... Isn't that the logic?"

Marquis Herbert paused for a moment, then frowned and said, "But it's still too risky for me to lose complete control over the soldiers."

“The same applies to every commander who joins the Military Council—those who lose complete control over their soldiers.” Eric looked at him. “What I mean is, if you can convince enough people in the Military Council, you can also send Memphis soldiers to their deaths… Of course, I don’t recommend you do that.”

Herbert raised an eyebrow.

"What I want to remind the Marquis is..."

Natalia spoke in a low voice: "This is not a time of internal strife within the empire, a time for human lords to fight each other, but a time when everyone faces the same annihilation. You should know how terrifying the demons are—you don't need to look at me like that. If you don't think so, why did you come here from Lutia?"

Herbert's face darkened, but he did not refute her.

"My journey with Her Highness the Holy Maiden has only just begun. More and more people will join us, forming a united force to expel the demons. Although everyone in the Military Council has equal power, the earlier you join, the more weight your words will carry, won't you?"

Herbert was silent for a moment, then suddenly sneered: "So, if someone chooses to refuse, will Her Highness send church members to their doorstep to verbally abuse them in the street?"

"You can't say that, Your Excellency."

Eric leaned back. "That old man just wanted to humiliate me. Natalia and I haven't even stepped into his house yet."

Natalia glanced at him quickly.

Eric, oblivious, continued, "And this morning, his son came to apologize to us in person."

Marquis Herbert said nothing, and gave another cold laugh.

Eric knew that the old man was only bringing up this trivial topic to buy himself some time to think.

He pressed further: "If you are well-informed enough, you should know that the Marquis of Temple has already sent his steward to procure supplies for the front lines."

Marquis Herbert, who was indeed aware of the news, said impatiently:
"Tempel has never been that smart. He's only good at making money. He was easily fooled and threw away his life's savings like water droplets... Hmph, his daughter is over twenty and still unmarried, and his family fortune is almost gone. Let's see who will marry her!"

Eric frowned slightly, but patiently continued, "Because this is also a business deal, and the Marquis of Temple foresaw a future where he would reap a great reward. According to you, he certainly has some money-making skills. Do you think he would invest such a large amount of money in a losing proposition?"

Natalia picked up where he left off, speaking softly, "Of course, the Marquis of Temple had no other choice..."

Marquis Herbert looked at her, but she remained silent. He had no choice but to ask, "What does Your Highness mean by this? What have you used to threaten him?"

“We? No, it’s not us.” Natalia shook her head. “Marquis Temple has simply stopped deceiving himself and accepted the fact that demons don’t bargain with anyone; they only take everything, destroy everything, and leave him with nothing!”

Herbert's face darkened.

The fear of loss stimulated his hardened heart far more than the desire to gain—he did indeed have a territory that could be occupied, not very large, but all of which belonged to him and could be destroyed.

"You are still too young; there's nothing of value in talking to you."

Eric and Natalia were both taken aback.

Herbert continued, "I'm going to Lutia myself to talk to Edgar and Memphis."

Eric quickly spoke up: "I suggest that the Marquis take your army directly to negotiate, so as not to have to come back again later."

“Are you so sure I’ll join you?” Herbert stared at him.

Eric met his gaze, his eyes fixed straight ahead.

"The Marquis's valuable experience and wisdom accumulated over more than fifty years are beyond our reach. But when you get to the front lines, you will find that our impetuous suggestions as young people are surprisingly consistent with your well-considered decisions."

"Hmph, I can't tell if you're praising me or insulting me."

"..."

"In short, how I go to Lutia, whether I bring troops or not, is my own business," Herbert added.

Eric rose and bowed. "Of course. I hope your trip will yield results that satisfy both of us."

Although the Marquis Herbert had a cold attitude towards the two men for most of the afternoon, he still warmly and sincerely invited them to stay for dinner after the conversation ended.

With the intention of trying to persuade him a few more times, Eric and Natalia accepted his invitation.

At the dinner, the old marquis did not mention the content of the afternoon's conversation again, but instead talked about the old nobleman who was almost angered to death by Eric yesterday and who was also blocked at the door and scolded by the church people.

Eric listened carefully for a while and then understood: the two were rivals, and he was enjoying watching it.

After having a few drinks with Marquis Herbert, Eric finally gave up the idea of ​​having someone come over and yell at him for another day.

While doing so would greatly increase the likelihood of Herbert leading his troops to surrender to Lutia, it's hard to say whether the old man will admit his mistake after he sobers up tomorrow, and he will definitely offend another marquis completely.

Natalia also drank several glasses, while Herbert and she mainly talked about the late emperor—although now they should be called the former late emperor.

Natalia was the posthumous daughter of the late emperor and had never met her father. Her knowledge of him came from her brothers and sisters. Herbert, on the other hand, described the emperor's life to her from a different perspective.

"Although the current situation where governors ignore the royal family is inextricably linked to the late emperor's decisions, who can say that he wasn't trying to save this aging and ailing empire? The late emperor died young because he devoted himself to the empire!"

Natalia listened intently, and even as Herbert began to incite Eric to continue hurling insults at people, she was still savoring the moment.

The dinner lasted until eight or nine o'clock before Eric and Natalia left.

Both of them had drunk quite a bit, so their planned stroll from last night would have to be canceled.

After bidding farewell to the Marquis, Eric helped Natalia into the carriage and sat with her in the same carriage.

Only after the carriage slowly started moving and left the Marquis's mansion did he turn his gaze away from the carriage window.

"If I had known that Marquis Herbert and Marquis Carter didn't get along, I would have said a few more bad things about him this afternoon, and the old man wouldn't have been so defensive towards us most of the time."

“Hehe…” Natalia chuckled and leaned on his shoulder. “Isn’t that a bit inappropriate?”

"..."

Eric turned and looked at her for a moment.

Natalia closed her eyes, the smell of alcohol mingling with her own scent, wafting against his arm in waves.

As the carriage moved forward, the light and shadows from outside the window shone in, flickering across her face, sometimes clear, sometimes blurry.

"Your Highness has secured another deal today; we make progress every day."

“Hehe…” Natalia closed her eyes and smiled.

The carriage continued toward the governor's mansion, and Eric maintained the position she had when she leaned in until the carriage stopped.

"Call two maids over."

"Yes!"

Eric had Natalia taken back to her room, then went to the balcony for a while to clear his head. He then noticed several intelligence documents on the desk in his room.

"The winged people delivered it last night."

"...Couldn't you have just used the door?" He glanced at Elise, who had climbed in through the window, then looked down and opened the window, quickly scanning the document.

He sobered up quite quickly.

"Fighting has broken out in Lutia." Eric read through several intelligence reports, and they all described similar situations: a large-scale battle had broken out between the demon army and the Grandia army outside Lutia City. There were local victories and defeats on both sides, but overall the demons currently had the upper hand.

Elise walked over to him, sniffed, and frowned. "Your Highness reeks of alcohol. Go take a bath first, and I'll serve you."

"Not urgent."

Eric picked up the intelligence again, this time focusing only on certain aspects that concerned him. "Go and give them a heads-up. If any more winged people land at the governor's mansion, bring them to see me."

"Yes." Iris didn't climb out the window again and went out the door. After a while, having finished her business, she returned to his room and asked, "Should we inform Princess Natalia?"

"She should already be lying down."

Eric hesitated for a moment, then glanced at the intelligence report in his hand. "Never mind, we're not in Lutia anyway, so it doesn't matter whether we find out sooner or later. Let's tell her tomorrow."

Elise didn't say anything, but walked over and stood beside him.

Late at night, a more detailed battle report was delivered from Lutia.

Human and demon armies clashed in a tug-of-war in Lutia, with both sides aiming to eliminate the other's forces, resulting in fierce fighting.

The Military Council believes that the current situation is relatively balanced, but if the tug-of-war continues, the demons may mobilize the remaining troops stationed in the north to support the Lutia battlefield in the south.

They were waiting for military aid from the south.

"..."

After putting down the battle report, Eric covered his face with his hands, took a deep breath, and then began to write a reply to the Military Council, telling them that a large amount of supplies was on its way and that Marquis Herbert had been persuaded to lead his army to Lutia.

After finishing the letter, Elise took it. "Your Highness can rest now."

"Hmm... thankfully I took a shower first."

Eric threw himself onto the bed, sprawled out, closed his eyes, and patted the bedside next to him. "Go and come back quickly."

She smiled, left his room, and handed the letter to the waiting winged man.

“Send it to Lutia and hand it over to the Military Council.”

"Yes."

The winged man took the letter, stuffed it into the letterbox hanging on his chest, spread his wings, and flew away overnight.

Elise doesn't need to pay; she's a messenger hired by the Military Council on an annual contract.

Back in Eric's room, only a few minutes had passed, and he was already asleep, or at least that's how it appeared.

Although she suspected he might be shirking some bedtime responsibilities, Elise didn't wake him; she simply lay down in the spot he had left for himself.

In the darkness, he turned over and wrapped his arms around her waist.

Did Eileen go out today?

"He went out. With Molly."

"Yes. We'll be staying here for another four or five days."

Elise responded.

The next morning, she woke up before sunrise, yawning as she returned to her room, which was right next door.

As dawn broke, she heard a knock on the door next to her.

"Your Highness, Your Highness Eric!"

Natalia, who had just woken up from her hangover, had already seen the battle reports from the front lines.

Elise rolled over and closed her eyes.

When she woke up again, it was still morning, and Eric and Natalia had already gone out again to visit yet another wealthy or military nobleman, as planned.

After eating something, she had nothing to do—except for the two princes, everyone else who had traveled south with them was free to do as they pleased.

Elise went to find Molly and discovered that she and Eileen were in the library again.

"You're awake," Eileen greeted her.

“You’ve come here again.” Elise walked up to her and glanced at the ancient book in her hand.

“I went out for a walk yesterday, and it wasn’t very interesting. It’s better to stay here,” Eileen said with a smile.

Elise didn't say anything.

"Has Eric gone out?" Eileen asked.

"They left a long time ago. With that prince. Didn't you see them?"

"Did not notice……"

Molly leaned closer, also holding a book in her hand. "They seemed to have come back very late last night."

"They were kept behind for the banquet..." Elise glanced at it casually, then paused, noticing that the text on the book cover was in an ancient language.

"Is this book written in an ancient language?"

"Yes, the whole book. There are some parts I don't understand, like this sentence. I was going to ask Eileen about it."

“I can understand it too.” Elise leaned closer. “The sentence is… ‘Gather the purest energy, awaken the spirit and open the mind.’”

The two exchanged a glance and asked simultaneously, "What do you mean?"

"..."

Elise glanced at the cover again, then looked at the context.

"Whose creation myth is this, recorded by which race?"

“The ancient dwarves,” Molly said, “back when they still lived underground.”

"Very interesting, isn't it?"

Eileen also spoke up, "I've read through many ancient books here and discovered that in the myths recorded by most races, the original moon elves were gods left behind on the earth."

She looked at the other two with some excitement, her arms outstretched, "This means that Eric and I may both have half divine blood flowing through our veins!"

Elise and Molly exchanged glances. "But a moon elf with the complete 'blood of the gods' flowing through its veins seems to be nothing more than a moon elf."

“…That’s right.”

Eileen's hand fell to her sides.

"You've been staying here all these days, is it because of this?" Elise asked.

“No, that’s not it.” Eileen shook her head. “The ancient books here contain all sorts of things, and some of the things recorded in them are things I’ve never heard of before. I’ve been staying here looking for books to read because I find them interesting.”

“The governor who was driven away by your uncle was actually quite interested in things from ancient times,” Elise said.

Eileen shook her head again. "I guess it wasn't him who was interested, but some former governor. When I found this library, the books were covered in dust, and it was clear that no one had touched them for a long time."

Elise seemed to have thought of something, smiled briefly, and then quickly composed herself.

"If Eric continues south, he might run into that former governor again."

Eileen shrugged, clearly not caring about such things.

The daytime passed quickly here. Eric and Natalia returned in the evening, and judging from their expressions, they seemed to have both gained something and had some regrets.

That evening, the two rode away from the governor's mansion together.

"Maybe next time it will be the three of us playing together."

"playing what?"

On the balcony at night, Elise and Molly huddled together, enjoying the night breeze, watching the two ride away on horseback until they disappeared from sight.

“Play with him.” Elise turned to look at Molly. “You can play with him too.”

"...I'm not that familiar with that princess, you guys have fun."

Elise rolled her eyes.

The moon sets and the sun rises, the cycle repeats itself, and time in the governor's mansion flows at varying speeds. Elise suddenly comes to her senses and realizes that it is time to leave.

Seeing the sunlight again, Eileen seemed to have just woken up from a long dream, stretching her arms out to the sky.

"Time to go home."

(End of this chapter)