Mercenary Wars

Chapter 143 Cult
“…I wanted to drink the soup, but you know, if I drank it like a living person, it would just spill everywhere, so I thought, since that’s the case, I might as well just sit in the soup.” Daryls explained as she squatted on the ground, washing the pot.

"So you used my pot to take a bath?" Gao Jiano said with a long face. From his perspective, Dariss's bizarre behavior was exactly like taking a bath.

Darius: "The bones of the undead skeletons are very clean and have no smell..."

After a while.

"It's all cleaned up."

"Refresh it again."

"Oh……"

The sky was darkening, but Gaucano's appetite, which had been aroused, had dissipated. He ate only some bread and asked Dariss about her recent situation, mainly the war situation.

Currently, the Duchy of Nordanron is clearly in a passive position.

In fact, since the start of the war, Nordanron has almost only been on the defensive and has not been on the offensive. Not only has it failed to recapture the silver mines, but it has also been attacked by Dibto several times, which is quite frustrating.

The reason for this situation is quite simple.

Pope Favre hoped to resolve the dispute through peaceful negotiations in order to maintain the peace enshrined by the Nicong Pact as much as possible and prevent the war from escalating into a religious war.

After all, for the monotheistic people of Falaluo, religious wars are the most typical example of endless cycles of revenge, their intensity virtually limitless; the phrase "blood staining the Nikon River" is by no means an exaggeration. Pope Falaluo, a consistent advocate of peace, certainly did not wish to see such a situation.

This claim also appears to have made some progress, slowing down Dibto's recent offensive through mediation.

But it's clear that not everyone agrees with this approach. Even through Daryls's retelling, Gaucano could sense that many people preferred a tougher stance and a strong response to Dibto.

Daryls finally finished washing the pot.

Gaucano asked, "Based on what you saw and heard decades ago, how do you think the situation will develop next?"

“I don’t believe Pope Favre can save the peace,” Daryls said. “Neither the Mosa nor the Yemen seem to care about the suffering of the world, letting those fanatical believers start wars… I’ve heard of their miracles, and my friends have even witnessed them, but not a single miracle has ever been performed to stop a war!”

Gaucano remained noncommittal.

Daryls added, "Many high-ranking priests of the Redemption Order are in Southshore. They're using the guise of preaching to incite war. I've heard their rhetoric countless times in my lifetime!"

"High-ranking priest?" Gao Jiano's brow furrowed. "How high-ranking?"

“I’m not sure,” Daryls shook her head. “I saw a purple-robed bishop near the church, and then I didn’t dare to go out. But I heard from my neighbors that Cardinal Gregory is in Southsea Town.”

She added, "And there's Cardinal Fabian of the Pentecostal Order, who seems to have come to carry out the Pope's will... It's said that the priests of the Pentecostal Order and the Redemption Order had several unpleasant incidents in public, which seemed quite interesting, but unfortunately I didn't dare to watch, sigh."

Gao Jiano stroked his chin, deep in thought.

It wasn't until Daryls asked, "Why are you only coming back now? I heard the silver mine was attacked, and you hadn't returned. I thought something had happened to you!"

“Something did happen, but it’s complicated. I’ll tell you about it when I have time,” Gao Jiano said.

Daryls was taken aback: "Don't you have time now?"

"I'm going to rest now, and I have to deliver a message tomorrow." Gao Jiano yawned, then got up to rest. "Do you have time now?"

"Yes, I have."

"Then let's wash the pot again." ...

the next day.

Carrying the letter of goodwill from the Red Dwarfs, Gaucano wandered around the South Sea Town church for a while, asking people about the situation from time to time.

Just as Darius said, Southshore now had a bunch of high-ranking priests, including two cardinals, Gleman and Fabian.

The relationship between the two cardinals seemed to have always been strained, much like the religious order to which they belonged.

In Gaucano's understanding, the so-called "religious order" is actually an internal church community composed of a group of like-minded clergy with the permission of the Pope.

In theory, as believers of Mosa, all clergy are like-minded.

However, there are degrees to "having the same ideals and goals".

Therefore, those clergy who share the same ideals will form religious orders, which preach ideas that are in line with Mosaic doctrine but each has its own characteristics.

The penitent and the redemptive societies are typical examples.

Both have cardinals presiding over them and both have a wide influence, but their ideologies differ in many ways, and in some aspects they can even be described as diametrically opposed.

For example, one of the important duties of the penitent order is to "uphold justice" for the poor, such as helping them recover unpaid wages. Members of the penitent order also enjoy asceticism, often dressing in rags and begging on the streets, or going barefoot to various holy sites for pilgrimage, sometimes walking thousands of kilometers at a time.

The Redemption Church, on the other hand, rejects asceticism. They believe that outward cleanliness is a reflection of inner purity, and a presentable appearance better demonstrates the devotion of their faith. Therefore, Redemption Church pastors are usually neat and tidy, and are more popular with the wealthy.

At the same time, compared with the Pentecostal Society, the Salvation Society did not seem to have any special business, just ordinary doctrinal preaching, and its most distinctive feature was its fondness for talking about "salvation".

Many pastors from the two major religious orders now reside at the Southsea Church, and townspeople participate in their sermons or sacraments according to their own preferences.

Of course, if Fabien or Gréman were to attend the event, all the townspeople would flock to participate—even if it was just to catch a glimpse of the cardinal.

This is undoubtedly good news for Gaugano.

The Red Dwarf wanted him to deliver the letter to the higher-ups of the Mosaic Church, and now there were two cardinals in Southshore, whose status was second only to the Pope. They were absolutely the perfect candidates to deliver the letter, and since both of them were publicly visible, it shouldn't be difficult to get the letter to them.

But Gaucano must make a choice.

There were two cardinals, but he only had one letter, which was either sent to Fabien or Glemen.

Given the strained relationship between the two cardinals, his choice could also offend the other.

This made Gaucano think about it repeatedly.

However, his understanding of high-ranking church officials like cardinals was not much deeper than that of ordinary people.

The only thing he could think of was that the Redeemers, whom Daryls described as "inciting war," would probably be even less likely to accept the Red Dwarfs' friendliness than the Penitentiary.

Apart from that, he can only choose according to his own preferences.

Gaucano remembered that Fabian had at least given him three bottles of tonics, and finally made a decision.

—Then send the letter to Bishop Fabien!

(End of this chapter)