The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 258 White Horse City

Natalia opened her eyes as her hands touched the hard bed frame, finding herself lying on a hotel bed instead of a soft pile of fallen leaves.

She sat up and looked out the window; it was already daylight.

Consciousness is returning.

Last night's experience was not a dream. She vividly remembered the feel of the dormouse, which was smaller than her palm, lying in her hand, and the various scents of the forest that she smelled while lying on the fallen leaves.

and also……

Because the memories were so vivid, these things and experiences inevitably intruded into her dreams.

She yawned and looked out the window again.

"Time to get up..."

They continued their journey towards White Horse City, the brief adventure of the previous night having no impact on their plans.

After traveling for another two days, one afternoon when the sun was still high, a mountain range appeared in the distance ahead.

“Cogano is just over the other side of the mountain,” Eric said.

The territory of Kus is all plains. When you can see mountains, it means that you have arrived at the border between Kus and Cogano.

This mountain range, stretching for hundreds of miles, is actually the boundary between Kogano and Dorne. To the west of the mountain range is Kus, to the south is Kogano, and not far to the east is the ancient battlefield of Dorne.

Natalia looked ahead. "It doesn't look far, but by the time we get there, it'll be at least evening."

Eric responded, "But we don't need to cross mountains. That's the end of the mountain range. The main road winds around the foot of the mountain, and the resting place should be over there."

Sure enough, when they arrived at the foot of the mountain in the evening, there was a service area right next to the main road.

Meanwhile, the owners of the inns and taverns here have already called themselves Cogano people.

"If we ride a horse, can we reach White Horse City by tomorrow?" Eric asked the tavern owner.

"Tomorrow? That won't do, it has to be at least the day after tomorrow morning."

The tavern owner glanced at him, and then at Natalia and Kasha behind him. "What are you two doing in White Horse City? The governor is recruiting soldiers. You look quite strong; be careful you don't end up being drafted into the army to guard the border."

Eric was taken aback. "Forced conscription?"

"There's no coercion involved, but anyone who can wield a weapon will be targeted by the recruiting officers. Although you can refuse, it's still a hassle, isn't it? If it's not necessary, don't go to White Horse City."

Eric and Natalia exchanged glances. "It seems the governor is quite enthusiastic. How come we hadn't heard anything about it before?"

"It only started recently," the tavern owner said. "Are you here to do business?"

Eric smiled. "Go borrow the money."

The tavern owner paused for a moment, then said, "Sir, our tavern's custom is that you have to pay after you order, but business hasn't been good lately..."

Eric was speechless, then pulled out a handful of gold coins.

"That's enough."

"That's enough, that's more than enough! You're so rich, why would you need to borrow money? You must be joking... Huh?"

As the tavern owner was talking, he suddenly saw a group of church knights walk into his tavern.

Eric ignored him, put down two gold coins, and then sat down in a corner with Natalia and Kasha.

“Is Sterling’s sudden large-scale conscription because of the war in Tebniz?” Natalia wondered.

Sterling is the governor of Cogano. Eric shook his head. "It's hard to say. Cogano and Tebunet are separated by the two provinces of Guladia and Dorne. It's hard to imagine that a little change there would cause him to react so strongly."

Natalia glanced at the church knights who were gradually finding seats and said, "It seems we won't know the real reason until we see Sterling the day after tomorrow."

"Ah."

Silent all night.

The next day, they continued their journey. When they stopped to rest again in the evening, they found recruiting officers from Baima City even at the service area by the main road.

Upon seeing Eric riding in, the recruiter's eyes lit up. He stepped forward as Eric was being tied up, but before he could get close, he was stopped by several church knights.

"you……"

The recruiting officer looked at the church knight's clearly visible church features, then at Eric, "Are you also a member of the church?"

“Doesn’t it look like it?” Eric retorted.

"Doesn't seem like it. Are you a knight or a clergyman?"

“A bit more advanced than them.” Eric glanced at the insignia on his chest. “Are you from the White Horse City Governor’s Office?”

“Yes,” the recruiting officer replied, his gaze still fixed on the man’s face, trying to guess his identity. “I am here on the orders of Governor Stirling to recruit soldiers to serve the Governor.”

"Not serving the Empire?" Natalia, who had been standing next to Eric for a while after dismounting, suddenly spoke up.

The recruiting officer glanced at her, then suddenly seemed to remember something. He looked at Eric again and tentatively asked, "Are you... Her Highness the Saintess?"

Eric raised an eyebrow. "You guessed it all."

"Your Highness the Saint!"

The conscription officer immediately saluted, then turned to Natalia beside him, "Your Highness, Grand Princess! Please forgive my rudeness just now."

“You guys go find an inn first,” Eric said to the knights beside him. “We want to stay upstairs, that’s all.”

"Yes!"

The knights dispersed, and Eric asked the recruiting officer, "Why did Sterling suddenly start recruiting now, instead of earlier or later?"

The conscription officer replied, "The old king of the Kingdom of Arsha is critically ill, the situation is turbulent, and a large number of soldiers have appeared on the imperial border, so the governor has mobilized troops to deal with the situation."

Eric thought for a moment. In his limited memories, after the new king of Arsha ascended the throne, he did not take advantage of the chaos caused by the demons to invade the empire. The biggest upheaval in the country was the suppression of the second prince, who had gathered a group of rebels from who-knows-where.

The old king is still alive, and the second prince's whereabouts are unknown. The troops being deployed to the border seem more like a precaution against a surprise attack by the Empire taking advantage of the turmoil within Arsha.

I don't know who started the misunderstanding...

Eric continued, "Even if Arsha really intends to invade, it's too late for you to conscript soldiers now."

The recruiting officer replied, "Your Highness, our Kogano forces have already been deployed to the border. The current recruitment is primarily to prepare for the future invasion of the demon race from the south."

Eric looked at Natalia, who didn't say anything for the time being.

"Alright. I'm sorry to disappoint you, I can't work for your governor."

The conscription officer quickly bowed, "Your Highness..."

“But we still have to see Sterling tomorrow.” Eric patted him on the shoulder. “Thank you for your hard work.”

The recruiting officer kept his head down and bowed until the two men were far away.

“I have a feeling we won’t get any support from Sterling,” Eric said.

Natalia frowned. "The borderlands... but does Arsha really have designs on the Empire?"

"They're afraid the empire will have designs on them. If I die, the second son will cause trouble, and that eldest prince must be having a real headache right now... Oh, he doesn't know yet that the second son is going to cause trouble."

Eric looked up at the sky. "But it's probably going to be hard to convince Sterling, who's always been wary of that neighbor."

Natalia was somewhat concerned about what he said about Prince Arsha II causing trouble, but she refrained from asking. "In any case, we should at least see him first."

"What I mean is that Your Highness can start adjusting your expectations now."

"...No need. If I give up now, it will only shake my resolve to persuade Sterling tomorrow."

"Ok."

After a night's rest, Eric made a point of looking for the recruiter before setting off the next morning, but couldn't find him. He didn't know if the recruiter hadn't gotten up yet or had already returned to White Horse City. With only half a day's journey left, Eric wasn't in such a rush when he set off again, and took his time to appreciate the increasingly vibrant autumn scenery along the main road.

When they arrived outside White Horse City, it was only noon.

“It seems Sterling has already received word of our arrival,” Eric said, looking at the welcoming procession outside the city.

Natalia responded and rode forward to receive a warm welcome from the nobles and citizens of the Atmosphere Group outside the city.

Sterling himself also came; he was probably the youngest governor the two had met, and he looked a few years younger than Edgar.

"Welcome to White Horse City, Your Highnesses."

Eric dismounted. "The governor has taken time out of his busy schedule to wait here; I hope I haven't delayed your work. How is the situation at the border? Are the Arsairs showing any signs of aggression?"

Sterling paused for a moment, then quickly shook his head. “There are no new developments for now. I didn’t expect Your Highness to already know about the situation here. Let’s go into the city first, to the Governor’s Mansion, where I will discuss the details with the two princes.”

Upon entering the city, before heading to the Governor's Palace, Sterling deliberately led the two princes past the iconic White Horse City landmark—the statue of the Hero King "Reining in His Horse." Natalia dismounted and paid her respects to the statue of her ancestor, while Eric, naturally, could not remain seated on horseback to watch.

“More than five hundred years ago, after the hero King Utu founded the Delan Empire, he expanded his territory to the surrounding areas and personally conquered this place before returning to Lutia. Further south, the Arsha region was conquered by Capcona, one of the twelve knight nobles.”

Eric looked up at the statue of the Hero King on horseback, then at Natalia in front of him. "Perhaps it was for this reason that the Capcona family was the first to rebel, and the Alsha region became the first region in the empire to break away and become independent."

“The main reason is that the Capcona family’s territory should not have been directly granted here,” Natalia said, then shook her head. “Of course, our ancestors must have had their reasons for making that decision, and I have no right to criticize them.”

Eric was even less qualified, so he didn't say anything more.

The two quickly returned to their horses and continued on their way to the governor's mansion.

"Speaking of which, the necromancer sealed beneath the mines outside Oren City was wanted more than two hundred years ago for disrespecting the statues of His Highness's ancestors here, and fled all the way there."

"How did your Highness know?"

"It's a long story..."

Upon arriving at the governor's mansion in Whitehorse, Kasha was first led to a guest room to rest, while Eric and Natalia followed Sterling directly to his study to discuss the current situation.

"About a month ago, news suddenly came from the border that the Kingdom of Arsha had sent a large number of troops to the border. Just in case, I mobilized most of the troops in Kogano to the border to defend it, and the standoff has continued until now."

Sterling used a map to show the two princes the specific situation of the two armies' confrontation, "And the movements of the demons in Tebuniti are even more unsettling. I suspect their true purpose is to conquer Grandia, and we must take precautions..."

“So you chose this time to recruit soldiers,” Eric continued, “to defend on two fronts.”

Sterling nodded.

Eric continued, "The governor's assessment is similar to that of the Lutia frontline: the demons are definitely heading towards Gradia."

"What are your plans?" Sterling asked.

Eric looked at him. "That depends on the governor's choice."

Sterling paused for a moment. "Isn't this the main reason why the two princes came to me? To have me join your so-called military council and use my troops to fight against the demons of Tebnitti."

"For the Military Commission, this is the most efficient option."

Natalia chimed in, "And for Governor Sterling, this is also the best opportunity to join us. Since you've chosen to recruit soldiers, it shows you already have plans to fight the demons, so what reason is there not to unite with us?"

“There are many reasons, Your Highness.”

Sterling shook his head. “You can’t make fighting the demons my only concern. Kogano is at the southernmost tip of the empire, and on the other side of the border is the menacing Kingdom of Arsha. Asking us to support Lutia and act on the orders of your so-called military council would be too passive.”

Eric and Natalia exchanged a glance and said, "Kogano's situation is special, so we can make special arrangements. You and the Military Commission can cooperate with each other, and you don't need to be completely under the command of the Military Commission."

"As for support, the money, food and soldiers we obtained from various provinces were originally intended to fight against the demons on the front lines. Since Governor Sterling is going to fight against the demons in the south, it is the most efficient choice to let Kogano's resources be under your control."

"Even if we take a step back and say that the governor refuses to cooperate with Lutia and fights the demons on his own, that is still an option we are willing to accept, although it will inevitably lead to some waste in certain aspects. Neither you nor we have reached the point where we have no other choice."

Sterling remained silent for a while before saying, "If we can truly achieve this ideal cooperative relationship, I wouldn't mind supporting Lutia in the manner Your Highness has suggested."

Eric and Natalia both breathed a sigh of relief. "Now that His Highness and I are here, we can represent the Military Council to coordinate with the Governor. As long as we are sincere, there is nothing we cannot reach an agreement on, especially since we are on the same side."

Sterling looked at the two of them and smiled. "Then I hope we can reach an agreement and unite our will as soon as possible."

“No need to allocate resources or beg for favors; this is the most effortless way for Prince Eric and me,” Natalia said, then stood up. “May I borrow your quill and stationery? We’ll write to Lutia now.”

Eric and Natalia entered the governor's study just past noon, and by the time they came out, it was almost dark.

As in other places, Sterling still managed to prepare a welcoming banquet for the two despite his busy schedule.

This time, however, the two didn't need to make a special effort to get to know this nobleman or that wealthy merchant. They simply found a place to sit down and basically didn't move an inch.

"Hopefully they won't feel disappointed..."

"Don't worry, they're all locals. Nobody knows how enthusiastic we are in Westwind City and Sunset City."

Natalia smiled, swirling her wine glass in her hand, and looked towards the other side of the courtyard, where Governor Sterling was chatting with several nobles.

"There's something... Has Your Highness noticed?"

Eric looked at her, then followed her gaze to Sterling. "What is it?"

“Sterling didn’t negotiate with us, unless you count the obvious thing like having Lutia cooperate with our operations,” Natalia said.

Eric thought for a moment, “It’s probably because we didn’t ask him to provide anything for Lutia. In the way we cooperate now, his soldiers are under his command, and all the resources are controlled by him.”

Natalia nodded, then asked, "Does Your Highness think this is a good thing?"

Eric looked at her. "Is Your Highness worried that after the demons are driven out, Kogano will still ignore the central government of the empire as before?"

“In my view, at least this generation of governors… except for Memphis, can regain their responsibility and obligation to the empire by granting their families permanent governance rights,” Natalia said. “Before this system becomes corrupt, the central government of the empire can quickly regain its control over the entire empire.”

“Conversely, once the imperial central government regains its strength, it will also be able to prevent this system from becoming corrupt… or even simply overthrow it and start anew,” Eric said.

Natalia looked at him, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Eric thought for a moment, then glanced at the governor on the other side of the courtyard. "I think he's currently preoccupied with the border and the demons, and probably hasn't even realized this aspect."

"Um……"

"So what does Your Highness plan to do? Will you take the initiative to approach Sterling?"

Natalia shook her head. "If we take the initiative, we'll become passive. Let's wait and see, and then talk about Lutia's situation. We can subtly hint at it to Sterling so he realizes it and takes the initiative to speak up."

Eric said no more, raised his glass, and said, "I hope everything goes well."

She smiled slightly and clinked glasses with him.

"Oh! Your Highnesses, would you mind if I had a drink with you?"

"Of course I don't mind."

Even if the two of them didn't take the initiative, given their status, people would still approach them. Over the course of the night, the two of them got to know quite a few local nobles or wealthy merchants in White Horse City.

As the banquet gradually ended and night deepened, Eric and Natalia, unusually, did not drink too much. They stood together on the terrace connected to their room, gazing down at the courtyard below.

"Perhaps because I'm used to the prosperity of Westwind City, I actually feel a bit deserted here."

Natalia leaned against the edge of the terrace, the glass in her hand no longer containing wine, but water.

"Your Highness's intuition is correct; White Horse City is not as developed as port cities."

Eric didn't look down, but looked at her. "Cogano is surrounded by the sea on three sides. It's a pity that it doesn't have a natural harbor like Goddess Bay. There's a decent port at the South Pole, but it's still quite far from White Horse City."

Natalia nodded. "It's only because our ancestors conquered this place that it became the capital of Cogano..."

wow-

The floor-to-ceiling window on the other side of the terrace was open, and Kasha peeked out at them: "Aren't you going to sleep yet?"

(End of this chapter)