I'm really not a Sanctuary Warlock.

Her voice was so soft that it was almost carried away by the wind.

“Holy Song City… is the last answer I can think of.”

She looked down at her hands.

"But now even that answer is gone."

Lynn opened his mouth, but didn't speak immediately.

"I see no hope."

Anna's voice lowered even further.

"This world... seems to be just like this."

There's no way to change it.

She looked up, her eyes devoid of any luster in the moonlight.

"The weak should be enslaved, and the strong should be superior."

"Most people live in fear rather than happiness."

Her lips twitched, as if she wanted to laugh, but she didn't.

"When I was a saint, I fought for the happiness of people. When we realized that we could not change anything, we began to travel south in search of the legendary land of freedom."

"I thought... as long as I kept going, things would get better someday."

"But now that I'm standing here, I suddenly don't know where we're going."

Lynn heard Anna's voice tremble.

Since he met Anna, she had crushed demons with holy light magic, defeated dragon knights with forbidden spells, and never even flinched when facing tens of thousands of undead.

She will always be the one standing at the forefront, bearing everything.

But now she stands before him, like an ordinary girl who has lost her way.

Lynn didn't say any of those encouraging platitudes.

Because he knew that empty words of comfort would have no effect on Anna.

He stood up abruptly and pulled Anna into his arms.

Anna's body visibly trembled.

"you……"

“Your Highness.” Lynn’s voice came from above her head.

"what?"

"Don't you still have me and Lisa?"

His arms tightened a little.

Anna did not struggle, but she also did not respond.

Her face was buried in Lynn's chest, as if she didn't know how to handle this sudden hug.

“I don’t know what the end of the journey is,” Lynn’s voice continued. “Essence City is gone, but there are other places.”

"If there's nowhere else to build one, then we'll build one ourselves."

"No matter what, the end will surely be bright. A single spark can start a prairie fire, and so can we."

Anna didn't move; her hand hovered in mid-air, neither pushing Lynn away nor reaching out to him.

Time passed second by second.

The night wind rustled through the bushes.

Two calls came from a distance, from which I couldn't make out.

Anna remained silent.

Lynn didn't say anything more.

Because it's no longer needed.

A long time passed.

It went on for so long that Lynn thought Anna might have fallen asleep.

Anna moved only slightly.

She raised her hands, gently placed them on Lynn's back, and then lowered them again.

It's like they're testing something.

Then she slowly took half a step back and pulled herself out of Lynn's arms.

She kept her head down and didn't look at Lynn.

"I'm going to talk to Lisa about tomorrow's plan."

"it is good."

Anna turned around, took two steps, and then stopped.

"Lynn."

"Ok?"

Anna's back paused for a second.

"Thank you."

Then she quickly walked into the night.

Lynn stood there, watching Anna's figure disappear behind the bushes.

He slowly lowered his head and looked at his hands.

A faint warmth and a subtle fragrance lingered in my palm.

"..."

Lynn's lips curled up slightly.

This trip is getting more and more fun.

......

Lynn sat alone for about ten minutes.

He replayed the hug in his mind.

Objectively speaking, Anna's figure was even better than he had imagined.

She has a very slim waist.

and......

Forget it.

Don't think about such things at times like this.

Lynn suppressed his chaotic thoughts and began to seriously consider his next plan.

The city of Holy Song has been occupied by the Black Robe Order.

The city is holding human sacrifices every day.

The nearby lords sided with the religious order and provided troops to maintain the blockade.

And the three of them, together, only make three people.

Even if he could use the Song of Ten Thousand Seas to deal with a group of cavalry, or use the Temple Guards to crush an army, Holy Song City is a city.

How many members of the religious order are there in the city?

Are there any stronger leaders?

What exactly is that altar doing?

The amount of information is completely insufficient.

To rashly attack the city is tantamount to suicide.

But do nothing...

Just then, footsteps came from behind the bushes.

Lisa came out first, carrying a leather bag full of water, followed by Anna.

“Lisa and I discussed it.” Anna sat down opposite Lynn.

"Tell me," Lynn said, sitting cross-legged.

"The situation in Holy Song City is more complicated than I expected. The Black Robe Order is not an ordinary cult. They dare to take action on such a large scale in Toussaint, so they must be backed by a high-level Abyss power."

“They sacrifice living people every day, they must be using that blood and heart to do something shady.”

"Based on my understanding of Abyss rituals, this scale of continuous sacrifice usually serves only one purpose."

She raised her head, her eyes shining brightly in the firelight.

"call."

Lynn felt a slight chill run down her spine.

What are they summoning?

“I’m not sure,” Anna shook her head. “But back in Nikolai Mountain, all the cultists needed to open the gates of hell was the life force of an infant, but this time, they used the heart and blood of many adults.”

"The specifications are definitely higher."

Lynn remained silent for a few seconds.

So what do we do next?

Anna did not answer immediately.

She took a map from her sleeve, spread it out on her lap, and pointed to the location of Holy Song City.

"A frontal assault is impossible. We don't know how many religious groups are in the city, nor do we know the specific structure of the altar."

"But if we do nothing, every day we delay, dozens more people will die on the altar."

“So…” Anna’s finger moved away from the sign for Holy Song City and traced towards the southwest corner of the city.

"We need intelligence."

"What do we do?"

“There is an underground aqueduct on the southwest side of Holy Song City. It is a drainage system built by the dwarves hundreds of years ago. If the Order has not discovered and sealed it, they should be able to sneak into the city from there.”

"Infiltrate?" Lynn frowned. "Just the three of us?"

"It's just you."

Lynn was taken aback.

"Because you have an invisibility cloak."

Lynn opened his mouth.

He does indeed have an invisibility cloak.

Moreover, that thing only works on him.

"You infiltrate the city, find out the cult's deployment and the situation at the altar, and then come back."

"I don't need you to do anything extra, just gather some information."

Lynn looked at Anna and felt a little uneasy.

It's not about my own anxiety.

It was the unease of leaving Anna and Lisa outside.

What if more cavalry arrives outside after he goes in?

“You don’t need to worry about me.” Anna seemed to see through his thoughts. “You just helped me restore my sanity. Now let me rest for the night, and I will be almost fully recovered by tomorrow.”

"Row."