Goddess Kaleidoscope

It just so happened that the mercenaries who came this time were Hume and Fallen Leaf, so Ludwig simply used them as cover to train the militia according to his own ideas.

As a result, Rom, who was supervising the whole process, discovered that the two mercenaries they had hired seemed to be different from the usual ones. In addition to teaching the villagers regular gun and sword skills, they also specifically taught them how to line up and walk.

The old man vaguely felt that this was similar to the basic training he had received in the army, but there were also some differences.

It's worth mentioning that the villagers who were called in for training were initially very enthusiastic, but they soon discovered that the physical training was killing them. The two mercenaries were like sadists, forcing them to run laps around the village every day, and the number of laps increased day by day.

Some villagers couldn't take it anymore, feeling that this running training was completely meaningless. What they wanted to learn was how to use weapons to surround their homes, not how to run away in panic. As a result, these protests were ruthlessly suppressed by Hume. Some villagers, seeing that she was a woman, were careless and were dealt with as easily as beating a child on a cloudy day.

With the village chief and the priest both supporting this training, the villagers had no choice but to grit their teeth and persevere.

During the militia training, Ludwig followed along, carrying a first-aid kit to treat villagers who collapsed from exhaustion, earning the villagers' deep gratitude. However, Ludwig, who outwardly never interfered with the training, was actually the mastermind behind the villagers' miserable lives. He drafted the training syllabus the night before, and Hume was simply carrying out his orders.

This training lasted for nearly two weeks, undeterred by wind or snow!

Apart from a small number of villagers who were eliminated due to health issues, most of them persevered despite the difficulties. Although the training of more than ten days was not enough to completely transform these honest and hardworking farmers, their spirits and energy were indeed significantly improved.

On this day, the villagers received good news: the first batch of weapons that the blacksmith Bank had forged for them was finally finished. There were ten broadswords and twenty spears, each weapon accompanied by a wooden shield for the second hand.

According to the kingdom's laws, as long as civilians do not forge armor privately, it is not illegal to manufacture and possess conventional weapons, and in remote mountain villages like Pine Village, no one cares at all.

However, the village was not very wealthy. Just to make these iron weapons, they had used up all of their limited surplus grain for the year. If they wanted to have money to buy iron ingots, they would have to wait until tomorrow.

Seeing the real weapons, the militiamen were all envious and rushed forward to try them out. Hume thought the weapons made by the village were quite decent, and after hearing about the blacksmith Bank from Ludd, he also stepped forward, picked up an iron sword, and compared it with the others. He found that the forging of the blade was quite exquisite, and that the handle had been carefully balanced.

"The blacksmith in your village is quite skilled; he must have taken orders from the army before, right?"

"Bank used to live in a big city, but his wife's illness drained his savings, forcing him to come to the North to make a living. What's wrong with that?"

"There's no problem. I just feel that your village is full of talented people. You have blacksmiths, carpenters, and even priests. If you continue to develop, upgrading to a town will be a piece of cake."

"If only it were that simple! I'm afraid that just as things are starting to look up, the king will bestow this place upon the land, and then some difficult nobleman will be parachuted in... That would be a real problem!"

Ludwig and Hume were chatting quietly when the muscular Fallen Leaf suddenly sensed something. He quickly lay down on the ground, listened to the vibrations for a while, and then stood up and pointed south.

"Master... Boss! A group of people are coming from the south, about twenty riders and a carriage."

"Twenty riders and a carriage? Could this be a display of nobility?"

Luther and Hume exchanged bewildered glances, thinking to themselves that what they feared most had come true; their own mouths seemed to be blessed, and the truth came true so quickly!

End of this chapter

Amidst the snow-covered mountains and forests, a troop of black cavalry stood out conspicuously. Upon discovering that they were heading straight for Pine Tree Village, the villagers couldn't help but feel a little panicked, until the village chief, Rom, roared in his booming voice.

"What's the panic? They're not bandits!"

Among the crowd present, Ludwig and Hume remained calm, for they had clearly seen that the group that had arrived was extremely well-equipped. The cavalrymen were all mounted on tall horses and wore plate armor, and their equipment was uniform in style. This was definitely not the kind of equipment that bandits or outlaws could possess, and even ordinary minor nobles did not have it.

At that moment, Hume whispered in Ludd's ear.

"The coat of arms of Earl Ramley is on the carriage."

Earl Ramley is one of the most powerful lords in the Kingdom of Duran. Although his title may not seem high, his family is very influential and his territory is extremely wealthy. The current earl and the current king are childhood friends who grew up together and are even brothers who married each other's sisters.

However, Pine Village is only adjacent to Earl Ramli's territory and is still directly under the royal family's control, so the sudden appearance of the Earl's knights here is obviously not a normal phenomenon.

Soon, the knights arrived at the village entrance. The burly man leading them lifted his visor, looked around, and shouted loudly.

Who is the village chief here?

"It is I, sir knight. What are your orders?"

Hearing the knight calling for the village chief, old Rom, leaning on his cane, stepped forward from the crowd and approached him. The middle-aged knight dismounted and spoke in a fairly amiable tone.

“We are Silverwing Knights under Earl Ramley, and we plan to stay here for one night. We hope the village can provide us with shelter, food, and fodder for our horses. Money is not a problem.”

The middle knight spoke, tossing Rom a small pouch. It didn't look very big, but it felt quite heavy. Old Rom didn't even need to open it to know that there were at least five gold coins inside. Rom, who had originally wanted to refuse, couldn't bring himself to say it for a long time because the other party had given him so much.

"In that case... I'll have someone prepare it right away."

Old Rom carefully put the money bag the knight had given him into his arms, then turned and called to the villagers to tidy up the houses. There were no vacant houses left in the village, so they had to find someone to temporarily vacate a few decent ones.

Seeing that the village chief had led his men to prepare, the middle-aged knight, who seemed to be the captain, signaled his men to dismount and rest. However, the group did not enter the village directly, but stood in place and waited patiently, showing great politeness and manners.

You should know that ordinary knights wouldn't be so polite to mere villagers. If they wanted to stay overnight in a village, they wouldn't bother to talk to the locals properly, let alone offer to pay for their lodging. If they didn't rob you when you left, it was already a huge favor.

At this moment, the middle-aged knight noticed Lud, who was dressed in priest's robes, so he walked up to him and asked in a humble manner.

"Sir, are you a priest?"

"Yes, I am indeed a priest."

"That would be wonderful. I have a distinguished guest in my carriage who is unwell. I would like to ask you to use your divine powers to heal him. We will pay for it."

The middle-aged knight spoke very politely, and after thinking for a moment, Lud decided to agree.

When he was still a fake priest, Rudd lied that he was undergoing a trial by the goddess in order to avoid revealing the truth that he could not use divine magic. Later, when Aina was born, Rudd became a real priest and won the gratitude and respect of the villagers by "breaking the rules to save the village".

After that, Rudd told a second lie, saying that the goddess had given him a new trial because he had broken his vows to save people. Therefore, Rudd now occasionally shows off his skills in front of the villagers. However, most of the time, he still uses common herbs to treat people's illnesses.

Seeing that Ludwig agreed, the middle-aged knight led him to the carriage and asked the people inside for permission.

“Master, there is a priest in this village. I have invited him over. He should be able to help alleviate your pain.”

"...Let him come up."

A moment of silence fell over the carriage, then an elderly man's voice rang out. The middle-aged knight then opened the door and invited Ludwig to board. Because of a good first impression, Ludwig casually asked the middle-aged knight a question.

"Sir Knight, may I ask your name?"

"My name is Jegan, and I am the captain of this Knights squad."

"Great name, no wonder he's the captain."

With Captain Jegan's help, Lud entered the carriage and found two people sitting inside. One was an old man around sixty years old, who, judging from his clothes, should be a magician. The other was a boy of thirteen or fourteen, who should be the old man's servant or apprentice.

Interestingly, the old man had three down cushions under his buttocks, but he still looked restless, as if he was enduring something. Lu De immediately realized that something was wrong with him.

"Sir, are you feeling unwell?"

"You, you don't need to worry about where I feel unwell. Just cast one or two healing spells on me, and then you can leave."

Upon hearing Ludl ask where his ailment was, the old man's lips twitched noticeably, showing considerable impatience. Seeing this, Ludl couldn't help but laugh.

"Sir, if it hurts in that area, I advise you to get treatment as soon as possible. The longer you delay, the more dangerous it will become!"

"you……"

The old man glared at Lude, about to explode, but his expression suddenly changed, and he forced himself to speak.

"Don't worry about it. This illness has been going on for years. I've consulted many priests before, but they could only alleviate the symptoms, not cure it."

"That's because you didn't find the right person. I guess the priests who treated you probably used their healing spells on your whole body, right? Did anyone do any enhanced treatment on the affected area?"

"..."

Seeing the old man's somewhat subtle expression, Lud knew he had guessed correctly.

Rudd had long discovered that although all the priests in this world possessed the two great healing spells, Holy Healing and Holy Purification, the former could accelerate the recovery of patients' injuries and the latter could cure all poisons, most priests were actually completely ignorant of medicine and had passed down many wrong habits from generation to generation.

One of the most serious mistakes was the use of Healing Hands. This lesser divine spell is extremely powerful, but most priests insisted on using it incorrectly, greatly diminishing its healing effectiveness.

Priests often use their magic to cover the patient's entire body during rituals for missionary purposes, creating a visual effect of holy light. To onlookers, it looks very powerful, and the recipient feels a sense of comfort and pleasure. However, this is actually very wasteful and rarely effective in treating internal injuries.

This was discovered by Ludwig when he was treating the blacksmith's daughter. He inquired in detail about the symptoms of Bank's deceased wife during her illness and the process of receiving treatment from the priest, and finally came to a conclusion.

Because of the priest's incorrect use of the Holy Healing spell, coupled with Bank's deceased wife's large breasts, the Holy Healing spell ultimately failed to directly target the affected lung lobe, leading to the tragedy.

With this discovery, Lud believed that he had successfully reached the forefront of the world in the use of Holy Healing, and he was confident that he could help the restless old magician in front of him solve his unspeakable problem once and for all.

End of this chapter

If Lude wasn't mistaken, the old mage in front of him, who seemed to have a high-frequency vibrating object stuffed in his anus, should be Hamilton, the chief archmage of the three-person tower who had recently grabbed a fallen leaf in Unos.

The news about his "abrupt anal sex" hadn't actually spread outside; it was a rumor Hume overheard from some servants when he sneaked into the city lord's mansion. And as it turns out, not only is the news true, but the old mage's condition is also far more serious than imagined.

However, to be fair, although Hamilton once grabbed a fallen leaf in Unos, and Lude is now a quasi-ally of the God of Thieves, there is actually no conflict between the two.

Therefore, adhering to the principle of "having more friends means having more paths in life," Lude intended to take advantage of this treatment to make friends with this top-level mortal magician.

Not only did he need treatment, but he also needed treatment that left a deep impression on him!

However, when Luther inquired further about the patient's condition, Hamilton, sitting opposite him, became very resistant and showed no intention of cooperating with the treatment.

The short-tempered old mage didn't want to see the priest in the first place, and now an old man of similar age had come along. Instead of telling him to finish his divine spell and get out of there, he kept asking all sorts of questions, especially about his private matters that he was ashamed to talk about. This infuriated Hamilton, who wished he could conjure a fireball and throw it at the man so that he would know just how healthy his body really was... except for the burning pain in his anus.

Hamilton knew very well that this was an old problem of his, all because of his fondness for spicy food. It satisfied his upper body but caused suffering in his lower body, and it got worse and worse as he got older, tormenting him to the point of near death.

Over the years, the old mage had considered curing this painful and embarrassing ailment once and for all, but as a fire-specialized archmage, healing was not his forte. He consulted many people, but whether it was herbs, magic, or powerful divine spells, they could only provide temporary relief, and the ailment would always recur soon afterward.

What infuriated the old man most was that he had been subjected to malicious ridicule from the religious community because of this unspeakable problem.

Magic and divine arts have been hostile to each other since ancient times. Magicians believe that the divine arts of priests are given by the gods and are not their own, so they are not real skills. Priests, on the other hand, think that magicians are just jealous. When the two sides fight, magicians always lose more than they win. It's just a matter of being unbalanced in their hearts!

Hamilton, with his fiery temper and outspokenness, has always been at the forefront of confrontations as a top figure in the magical world.

He might not be the most skilled fighter among all magicians, but he was definitely the most foul-mouthed. Yet, in his old age, he had to humbly beg for help from his former adversaries because of this very flaw, which made this old spitting man feel quite embarrassed.

Hamilton still remembers that three years ago, relations between the two sides improved, and a brief honeymoon period ensued. In order to improve relations with the three-person tower of the prestigious magic family, the Pope of the Holy Light Church offered to help Hamilton cure his chronic illness.

The high-level healing technique performed by the Pope himself was indeed extraordinary. Hamilton not only immediately felt that his buttocks were no longer painful, but he also grew black hair on the spot, making him feel like he had become many years younger.

However, this period of good fortune was short-lived. Less than six months later, Hamilton's chronic illness resurfaced. But the Pope of the Church of Light refused to admit that his divine magic was ineffective. Instead, during a call to prayer, he told the outside world that Hamilton's long-standing disrespectful remarks about God had caused him such a calamity due to his heavy sins.

If you truly want to eradicate the disease, you must sincerely repent to the gods for the sins you have committed; only in this way can you receive true salvation.

The other party's shameless remarks infuriated the old monk so much that he almost went to the Pope's house and demolished it, ultimately making everyone unhappy.

After this unpleasant experience, Hamilton suffered several more attacks, but out of pride, he gritted his teeth and endured them by other means, trying his best not to go to those hypocritical priests. Until he encountered what could be called the most severe attack of his life, Hamilton, who could remain calm even when facing thousands of troops, really couldn't take it anymore!

Hamilton had initially intended to kick them out, but as soon as he got excited, his expression suddenly changed, and even his hands, which were holding his staff, began to tremble slightly.

Seeing this, Lud quickly signaled him not to get angry, and then casually used a low-level Holy Healing spell to help him relieve the pain a little.

"Sir, please don't get so agitated. I just want to determine the cause of your illness before I can treat you. I don't mean anything else."

"I...I don't need you to determine the cause of the illness. I've seen priests of higher rank than you, and I've even tried the highest level of divine healing, but none of them worked!"

"That must be because they're using the wrong methods. I guess you know that most priests only know how to use divine magic and don't understand medicine. This has nothing to do with rank; it's simply a lack of professional knowledge. Please believe me, because I am not just a priest."