I find it very sacred to pick someone up and make them a saint.

Lucia gazed at the view outside the window with a kind of fascination.

After a day on the road, they had already passed through three or four city-states, and the different and fresh scenery stimulated Lucia's eyes.

Less than a year ago, she was just a dying child in Tin Can Street, trapped in a well for her entire life; now she can ride in a royal carriage across the entire empire.

Mountains, harbors, grasslands, forests... these are all places I heard about in stories from my childhood.

"Do you like these places?" Mien asked with a smile.

Lucia nodded excitedly.

"Perhaps soon we will understand them more deeply."

Lucia was puzzled; wasn't they going to an enemy country? But she didn't dwell on it and put it out of her mind.

But her feelings for Mien were even stronger, and a hazy mist formed in her eyes.

No one bothered them along the way, neither Rachel nor Flammy.

However, the marching footsteps around them grew increasingly dense and noisy.

Hundreds of thousands of troops gradually surrounded them. The night and torches were like a galaxy, and the clanging of armor and vulgar shouts were endless, making it feel as if they were already on the battlefield.

One afternoon, there was a knocking sound outside the car door.

Lucia lifted the curtain and found that Poppy and his Silver Moon Knight squad had arrived.

They shielded the two men's carriage in the middle.

After responding to Poppy's respect, Mien used his magic to check their strength and found that they were all around level 5.

That's enough to handle most of the trouble.

With their arrival, the surrounding noise subsided considerably; Neuer's troops were always very disciplined.

Three or four days passed quickly, and the car gradually slowed down.

Lucia looked out the window and saw a large valley, with the surrounding dense forest and rocks appearing dark.

It looked as if it had been baptized by flames.

Then we entered a magnificent city, built right in the middle of several mountain ranges, as if it were being lifted up by them.

The buildings inside all seemed to be a size larger than those in the capital, giving them a more imposing and majestic appearance.

Mien looked toward one of the mountains on which the city depended, where flickering lights still shone.

It was a famous volcano, rumored to be inhabited by dragons, but because it was completely hidden by the city of Reno, it was estimated that only Flami and his companions had ever seen it.

On the opposite side of him was a continuous mountain range, with valleys crisscrossing it.

Mien pointed to it: "This is the border with the Severn Empire."

There might already be tens of thousands of troops stationed in the valley.

Lucia's gaze turned serious.

The car jolted as they gradually drove into Reno City.

The two were ushered off the carriage by servants and, like the other nobles, were respectfully invited into the central manor of the city-state.

Mien gestured for Pope to lead his men to the military camp first, while he and Lucia headed towards the manor.

But he was suddenly stopped by a servant beside him:

"Your Excellency, Your Highness, Lord Flami invites you to the command post in the Governor's Mansion."

They discussed the specific plans for the war together.

Lucia looked at Mien blankly.

After a moment's thought, Mien replied, "In that case, we'll accept it without further ado."

The governor's residence was built on a higher hillside, and they walked up a long slope.

"Teacher, why did you specifically invite us?" Lucia looked at the unfamiliar surroundings, a hint of worry in her heart.

"It's alright. Remember what I said? Adults deal with adults, and children deal with children. There's nothing to worry about."

The governor's mansion was already surrounded by many soldiers with swords and armor.

They were taken aback when they saw Mien and Lucia approaching, dressed in scholar's robes and saint's cloaks; it was all too incongruous.

Then it quickly turned into contempt and disdain.

It was as if their eyes were saying: This is not a place for scholars and saintly vases.

Lucia's initial fear was immediately dispelled by the provocation, and she met their gaze with pride.

Mien simply smiled and led Lucia inside.

Upon entering the enormous command and council hall, everyone's attention was immediately drawn to it.

It was an open-air area surrounded by high walls and covered by a magical barrier, which blocked sight and sound while allowing one to observe the outside world and distant areas from the highest point.

Inside, Mien saw one powerful official after another, all of them lords and dukes of various city-states, along with their subordinates and core generals.

They all sat around the round table with a rough and bold demeanor.

But there was not a single Imperial Army general in sight, nor Rachel or her men.

Upon seeing Mien and Lucia, they immediately gave each other the same look.

Even someone couldn't tell who let out a sneer.

Mien seemed completely unconcerned and calmly walked to the round table, where he saw Flami at the far end, with Sestan sitting beside him.

Mien casually asked loudly, "Why can't I see any Imperial soldiers?"

Flammy stared intently into Mien's eyes and replied:

"As usual, tonight is our local army's combat meeting, and the Imperial Army will also hold a unified meeting. The joint meeting will be tomorrow morning."

He then smiled and said, "The Chief indeed knows very little about war."

This caused slight laughter from those around them.

Some even stood up and asked, "Why are the Chief Scholar of the Academy and the Holy Maiden of Light present at our war council?"

Flammy then laughed and said loudly:

"Gentlemen, this is my invitation. I believe that with Chief Mien's wisdom, he will certainly be able to provide us with some assistance."

He's not what we see.

The people nearby chuckled and didn't take it seriously.

Flamme then rose again to guide Mien and his companion, saying, "Please, both of you, sit here."

Mien understood Flami's intention: he was pushing himself.

Forcing yourself to stop hiding, or only thinking about staying behind the scenes.

Therefore, he was not angry at all, but walked around while scanning every city lord or general around him.

It should be noted that these are people who wield power within the empire.

A slight smile even appeared at the corner of her mouth.

This is also an opportunity for me to meet them for the first time.

He led Lucia to a seat, squeezing her soft little hand firmly to make her feel safer.

He looked up at Sestan sitting close together beside Flami.

Unlike Flami, whose gaze was stern and cold, Sestan made no attempt to hide his disdain for Mien and his companion, as well as the battlefield glory emanating from him.

He should have originally belonged to the Imperial Army, but since he had long since stepped down and held no real position, he only wielded enormous political influence, so he was free to come as an old friend of Flammy.

Instead, Neuer can attend the meeting on the other side.

"Alright," Flammy said with a smile to everyone.

"As the master of Rino City, I will reluctantly preside over this operational meeting. Now..."

"Wait a moment!"

He was interrupted after saying only two words.

Everyone looked over and saw that he was a young general, only in his early twenties.

It belongs to the neighboring city of Tantel and has close ties with Lino City.

"Lord of the City, please forgive my intrusion."

The young general turned to look at Mien and Lucia.

"I believe the Chief Scholar of the Academy and the Holy Maiden of Light are of no help in commanding this battle. In order to ensure that the war is not leaked, could you two please leave?"

His eyes were full of youthful arrogance and high spirits.

Upon hearing this, Flammy was not angry at all, but instead smiled somewhat 'kindly':

"Xavier, this is my decision, don't cause trouble."

Mien wasn't stupid; he immediately recognized him as someone Flami had placed there.

He sighed helplessly to himself.

"Do you really have to make this child die?"