I'm really not a Sanctuary Warlock.

“A church delegation from the royal city is on its way, led by two bishops, both of whom are at least level 70.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the relaxed and carefree look on Lynn's face disappeared.

Two bishops of the 70th rank.

This lineup is more than just rebuilding the church.

Chapter 165 Winter

The snow in Holy Song City lasted for two whole weeks.

Large, feathery snowflakes fell from the gray sky, covering both the ravages of war and the newly established order.

The spires of the churches, the newly built city hall, the mansions in the aristocratic district, and the slums of the downtown area were all enveloped in a thick layer of silence in BC.

The tense atmosphere that had arisen due to the return of the nobles seemed to have been frozen by this sudden heavy snow.

The nobles huddled in front of the warm fireplaces, and the members of the fire-lighting team reduced their patrols; both sides tacitly chose a temporary truce.

But beneath this silence, a more deadly undercurrent is surging.

With roads blocked by heavy snow, the city's food reserves are being depleted at an alarming rate.

Those ordinary people who had exhausted their savings in the reconstruction were the first to feel the malice of winter.

Hunger and cold choked the city, which had just begun to catch its breath.

……

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The knocking broke the warmth and tranquility of the room.

Lynn reluctantly got off Lisa. He had been enjoying a rare moment of leisure, listening to the howling wind and snow outside the window, and feeling the faint fragrance emanating from the beauty beside him, pondering what excuse he would use to stay here any longer that night.

As soon as the door opened, a gust of cold wind mixed with snowflakes rushed in.

Nora stood outside the door, but her usually calm face was now filled with undisguised seriousness and urgency. Her eyebrows and the ends of her hair were covered in frost, clearly indicating that she had rushed all the way from the stronghold.

"Something's happened." Without uttering a single unnecessary word, she went straight into the room.

Anna also came out of her room, her gaze fixed on Nora.

"Have the nobles made their move again?" Lynn asked, frowning as he closed the door, shutting out the wind and snow outside.

“It’s worse than that.” Nora walked to the fireplace, warming her hands, which were red from the cold, by the fire. Her voice was quick and urgent. “Remember when I told you that I had a caravan purchase a batch of grain from outside?”

Lynn nodded. He remembered this incident; it was Nora's preparation in advance to deal with the blockade by the nobles.

“The people responsible for receiving the grain trucks have been missing for two days.” Nora’s voice was filled with deep worry. “They should have been back yesterday as agreed. I sent two groups of people to search along the road out of the city, but the snow was too heavy and we found nothing.”

“People are dying of hunger and cold every day in the city. If this continues... we'll collapse on our own before the nobles even have a chance to act.”

The atmosphere in the room instantly turned heavy.

Anna frowned slightly. She knew very well that for the Holy Song City, which had just experienced a disaster, the devastating consequences of a famine were no less than those of a war.

Lynn remained silent for a moment, looking at Nora's anxious face and then at the flickering flames in the fireplace.

To be honest, he really enjoys his current laid-back life of eating, sleeping, and spending time with beautiful women.

He couldn't be bothered with any political struggles or the future of the city.

Can……

He glanced at Anna. Her beautiful eyes reflected the wind and snow outside the window, and also a hint of worry.

Lynn sighed inwardly.

Never mind, let's just treat it as a way to stretch our muscles.

"I'll go take a look," Lynn said. "It's pretty boring to just sit around doing nothing."

Nora nodded. "Okay, but the snow outside is too heavy, so be careful."

"Don't worry." Lynn had his usual relaxed smile on his face. "Tell me the approximate location where they last disappeared."

“The road to Graystone Town in the east of the city,” Nora replied immediately. “The leader of the support team is Martin, a very experienced veteran. He would never have lost contact unless he encountered an insurmountable problem.”

"Understood." Lynn nodded and turned to put on her outdoor clothes.

Anna stood up and softly reminded her, "Be careful."

"Don't worry, if I can't beat them, I'll just run away, right?" Lynn winked at her. "Keep an eye on the house, don't let anyone take our place."

Lisa kept a cold expression and let out a soft snort through her nose.

After making all the preparations, Lynn didn't delay any longer. He pushed open the door and his figure quickly disappeared into the vast snowstorm.

……

Outside the east gate of the city.

The world was a vast expanse of white, and the howling north wind whipped up snowflakes that stung my face.

Visibility was extremely low and the snow was very thick, but fortunately the unicorn could walk on the snow without leaving a trace.

After traveling along the main road Nora had mentioned for about half an hour, he finally found a clue in a low-lying area covered by snow by the roadside.

A broken axle protruded from the snowdrift, with several strands of torn reins still attached to it.

Lynn stepped forward and brushed away the thick snow.

An overturned carriage was revealed, its carriage severely damaged, with several empty sacks scattered around it.

There were no corpses, but a faint smell of blood permeated the air.

Lynn crouched down and found a patch of blood that had congealed into a dark red color at the opening in the carriage.

He reached out his finger and gently touched the bloodstain.

"Tracing the source."

A faint trace of magic seeped from his fingertips into the bloodstains, and a trail of pale blue light spots stretched out into the distant mountains and forests amidst the wind and snow.

Without hesitation, Lynn followed the direction indicated by the light.

The trail wound its way through rugged mountains and forests, becoming increasingly remote.

The surrounding trees grew taller and denser, blocking out the sun and dimming the light.

After walking for another ten minutes or so, the pale blue trail of light finally disappeared in front of a steep mountain wall.

Lynn stopped and looked up at the bare rock wall in front of him.

Ok?

He frowned and checked again; the traces of magic had indeed ended there.

what happened?

Lynn walked to the cliff face, and with a puzzled look, gently touched the rock.

The instant his fingertips touched the mountain wall, an extremely faint elemental fluctuation emanated from his fingertips.

Lynn's heart skipped a beat, and a knowing glint flashed in his eyes.

It was just an illusion.

This method isn't particularly sophisticated, but it's sufficient to deceive ordinary people or to remain hidden in the snow.

He took two steps back, and a ball of pale blue wind element gathered in his right palm.

Without any fancy incantations or complicated movements, he simply pushed the wind element in his hand forward with a sudden burst.

"break!"

hum.

The air vibrated slightly.

The mountain wall in front of me rippled like water, and then the scene began to distort and blur before finally revealing its true appearance.

A dark cave appeared before Lynn.

The wind blowing out of the cave entrance carried a damp, musty smell, as if it led to some forgotten tomb.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lynn stepped inside.

The cave is very deep, and the slope goes all the way down.

The walls were covered with traces of human excavation, and at intervals there was an oil lamp burning with a ghostly green flame, making the passageway eerie and sinister.

The stench of decay in the air grew stronger, mixed with the smell of blood.

After walking for several hundred meters, the view suddenly opened up ahead.

This place is actually a vast underground ancient site.

Huge stone pillars support the towering dome, and the walls are covered with ancient runes and murals that are difficult to understand, depicting some ferocious monsters and scenes of sacrifice.

In the center of the ruins, there are several huge iron cages.

Lynn's pupils suddenly contracted.

In one of the cages, several tall, gray-green, and ferocious-looking humanoid monsters were sitting together.

They are cannibalistic monsters, a lowly form of monster that feeds on flesh and blood.

And what they are currently gnawing on... are actually several human thighs!

In the corner of the cage, there were more than a dozen mutilated corpses piled up.

Lynn's eyes instantly turned cold.

Not far from the cage, around a campfire, sat three men dressed in mercenary attire.

Beside them lay dozens of bulging sacks, containing the stolen grain.

One of the slightly taller men was picking his teeth with a dagger, watching the bloody scene in the cage with complete indifference.

The other man, who was thin, seemed restless. He kept rubbing his hands together, his eyes darting around, and he didn't dare to look in the direction of the cage.

Finally, as if he could no longer bear the torment, he spoke in a low voice.

"Kyle...is this really the right thing for us to do?"

The tall man called Kyle didn't even lift his eyelids upon hearing this, only letting out a cold snort through his nose.

“What’s wrong with that, Finn? It’s only right to do things for money.”

The thin man named Finn was even paler. He glanced at the mountains of grain, his voice trembling.

“But…but that’s the life-saving food for the civilians of Holy Song City! We’ve killed so many people and looted so much food…what are we going to do with the civilians in the city? They’ll starve to death.”

"What do we care if they starve to death?" Kyle finally looked up impatiently. "Those noble lords paid the money. Our job is to steal the food, understand?"

“Besides, you sympathize with them? Who will sympathize with us?” Kyle stood up and kicked Finn, knocking him to the ground.

"We mercenaries, aren't we risking our lives every single day? If we're not going to make money, are you fucking stupid?"

The third burly man, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up and advised, "Finn, don't think too much about it. Brother Kyle is right, we just need to take the money."

Finn got up from the ground, his lips trembling, as if he wanted to say something.

Kyle had lost his patience. He walked up to Finn and tapped him on the face with the back of his dagger.

“I’m warning you, Finn, if you utter another word of this, I’ll throw you in a cage and put you in the company of those monsters.”

"Remember, we are mercenaries, not some damn philanthropists."

Finn trembled, and finally lowered his head, not daring to say another word.

Kyle gave a satisfied, cold laugh, sat back down by the campfire, picked up a jug of wine, and began to drink it in large gulps.

Chapter 166 We can have a good talk now

In the shadows deep within the cave, Lynn's eyes had turned cold.

He watched silently as the bloody and cruel scene unfolded in the cage, observing the indifferent faces of the mercenaries and listening to their conversation that treated human life as worthless.

In the city of Holy Song, Nora was frantic with worry about the food supplies, as countless civilians struggled with hunger and cold, and people were even collapsing every day.

Here, their life-saving food has become a bargaining chip for these scoundrels to exchange for money.