They are all characters I control.

There were more than a dozen children, ranging in age from four or five to twelve or thirteen. They were all thin and sallow, wearing tattered clothes covered in patches, with high cheekbones and sunken eyes.

Similarly, there were only a handful; Claire saw only six adults capable of doing farm work.

Why would a village that can't even get enough to eat hold a grand feast?

Where did the meat come from? Where did the flour come from? Where did the spices come from?

Another major problem is the lack of livestock.

Even the poorest villages in the North will raise a few sheep and chickens.

Claire searched the entire village but saw nothing alive. There were no roosters crowing, no dogs barking, and no cow or sheep droppings.

The whole village was unusually quiet, yet there were still so many people there.

These people clearly flinched at the sight of Claire's (Eleanor's) knightly armor, unlike Old Grey and Mel who dared to approach and make contact.

However, their fear of Claire was limited to that.

When they saw old Gray, the villagers were even more respectful than when they saw Claire, some even kneeling and kowtowing.

"Everyone, don't be so nervous. Sir Eleanor is the savior who saved our children, but the savior is very kind and doesn't like everyone kneeling. Get up, there's no need to kneel!"

Although Old Gray was speaking and trying to stop the villagers from kneeling with his eyes, many villagers still desperately knelt on the ground, kowtowing and raising their hands high.

Others stepped forward to help the villagers up, but these villagers, who appeared to be of significantly lower status, continued to kneel and kowtow in succession.

Such a devout posture, however, was not directed at Claire (Eleanor) of the Church of Goddess.

"I'm so sorry, Sir Knight. You see, our villagers are very grateful for your arrival. Let's go over there and rest." Village Elder Gray quickly pulled Claire towards an empty wooden house.

Claire glanced back at the villagers.

On the surface, they were kneeling before Elder Gray, but in reality, it was more like they were bowing to Mel, who was standing next to Elder Gray.

Although Mel was putting on an innocent look.

When they arrived at the cabin, Elder Grey called over a few people to Claire (Eleanor).

"Sir Knight, please rest first."

"You all stay here and serve the knight well, so that he can get some rest."

"Go and lay out thick hay and wool for the knight. Then, if you have any orders, please just say so, and we will do them for you."

Village elder Gray chuckled as he spoke, but Mel didn't follow him into the wooden house; instead, he stood at the doorway.

"And what about my companion?" Claire grinned at old Grey. "Mel mentioned there was a church knight in the village. Where is he?"

Old Gray's lips curled into a smile.

"That knight is still resting."

"I want to see him."

“As you know, there are no priests or good medicines in the North,” Old Grey sighed. “We can only do our best to take care of him, but his injuries are much more severe than yours.”

"Then shouldn't I be allowed to meet him?"

Claire made a move to get up, but old Grey quickly stopped her.

"Sir Knight, you are injured yourself. Why don't you rest for a while before I take you to see him? Wouldn't it be worse if your injuries aggravated?"

Claire glanced at him, then at Mel, who was standing silently in the doorway.

The girl met his gaze and smiled slightly.

"Sister Eleanor, you should rest first. I'll call you when the banquet is ready, and your companions will come out together then."

Claire shrugged, seemingly helpless, and nodded in agreement: "Alright then."

Old Grey breathed a sigh of relief and bowed to Claire: "Then you rest first, I'll go prepare dinner."

After saying that, he turned and walked out of the wooden house.

Mel followed him out.

Claire and three villagers remained in the cabin, and the door closed steadily without being too heavy or too light.

Chapter 114 Red Potion

Claire sat on the edge of the bed, her gaze sweeping over the three villagers who remained in the room.

The three women were all middle-aged.

They are among the few adults in the village, but their status is obviously much lower, as can be seen from their tattered clothes and hands covered with frostbite and calluses.

However, these villagers were clearly not as devout as the villagers outside.

Although they showed some fear and respect for the village elders Gray and Mel, they did not kneel on the ground in such a panicked manner to beg for anything.

"Sir Knight, what are your orders? What do you need us to do for you? Please tell us."

"Yes, yes! I can sew up and treat wounds."

"Here's some medicine. Would you like some treatment, Sir Knight?"

Looking at these women, there was nothing wrong with them from the outside; they were just ordinary village girls.

Come to think of it, Eleanor was a country girl too?

She too was raised in the village by others, and only later, with the support of the village priest, did she participate in the selection for the Church Knights, thus discovering her talent for holy magic.

That's why Eleanor is now a vice-captain of the Church Knights. Looking at these village girls in front of her must evoke some memories of her past.

However, Eleanor is not currently controlling this body.

“You can definitely help me, and I hope you can be more proactive in the future.” Claire’s words sounded gentle, but her tone was actually intimidating.

"Of course, we'd love to. Let us apply the medicine for you."

"Please lie down, my lord."

"Let me help you take off your armor. You must be having trouble moving around right now because of your injury. Let us help you."

After saying that, the group of people came over to help Claire (Eleanor) take off her armor, while taking out the potions from the basket they had brought.

However, the medicine wasn't an ordinary color; it was red.

The blood-red potion was something Claire had never seen before, but the village girls in front of her seemed to take it for granted.

He watched as they gradually walked to his side, away from the doorway.

Without hesitation, Claire raised her hand and unleashed the magic she had prepared.

Three dark red magical energy burst silently from his fingertips, though he was startled and dodged at Claire's sudden movement.

But the Whispers of Pain is a formless and intangible mental magic, which cannot be blocked or dodged.

The village girls groaned in unison, their bodies tensing up as if their nerves were being gripped by invisible iron clamps.

Claire went up and stabbed someone first.

The cross-shaped sword only made a small cut on their bodies, and the village girls opened their mouths wide, unable to make a sound.

The so-called 'pain so intense it was speechless' was exactly what they were experiencing, but not enough to make them faint. The village girls stared at Claire in disbelief, their eyes filled with confusion.

They had no idea why they were being attacked suddenly, nor did they know what they had done wrong to anger the church knight.

“I ask, you answer,” Claire said calmly. “Nod or shake your head. Understand?”

The three people nodded vigorously.

Claire, holding her knight's sword slightly unsheathed, sat leisurely on the bed, looking down at them.

After a moment's thought, Claire decided to start with the current situation.

"Are you from Lingu Village?"

All three shook their heads at the same time.

"Where did it come from?"

The tall, thin village girl spoke with difficulty: "North... North Wind Ridge... the village next door..."

How long have you been here?

“Three days,” the tall, thin man said. “We just arrived. This place has nothing to do with us. We heard the church is here…”

Claire looked at the village girl who was trying to defend herself and absolve herself of any responsibility.

Claire narrowed her eyes.

If they confess first, it saves him the trouble of interrogating them.

"Join what? What kind of place is this village?"

The tall, thin man's lips trembled, but he did not answer.

Clearly, she wasn't that stupid.

Claire, not wanting to waste words with her, drew her cross-shaped sword and slashed the village girl's neck.

Seeing their companion collapse, convulse, and quickly become motionless, the other two village girls were terrified.

“I won’t ask you a second time, understand?” Claire’s cold gaze swept over the remaining two.

"Spare me...spare me...Sir Knight, spare me!"

"We just heard from others that there is a bishop from the Goddess Church here who can heal wounds and make people beautiful, so we came here!"

Looking at the village girl who answered so fluently, Claire wiped the blood off her sword and continued to ask questions.

"Who's in charge here? Is it Mel? Are there any other big shots behind Mel?"

"No, I don't know. We've never met any Mel or any important person!"

The village girl, who was usually the most eloquent, shook her head vigorously.

"Yes, yes. We just arrived, we haven't been here long, there are many things we don't know."

The stuttering village girl looked up at the cross-shaped sword in Claire's hand with fear, wondering if she could dodge it if it were to strike her.

"Yeah……"

Claire was somewhat disappointed, but also felt it was reasonable.

If it were him, he wouldn't have allowed someone who knew the whole truth to be sent to take care of him.

Because that would make them easy targets for interrogation, forced confessions, and control. These village girls are from the lowest rungs of society; they know little, and even if Claire interrogates them, she won't get any useful information.

"What are those red potions in your basket for? They're not ordinary recovery potions, are they?"

Claire glanced at the basket beside her, picked up the red potion, and brought it to her nose to smell it.

This appears to be blood. Although it looks like it has been treated with some magic, you can still smell the blood.

"This is for treatment; that's what the other people told me when they gave it to me."

"Yes, yes, if you take it, it will help your wounds heal."

The two village girls learned from their companion's mistake and were afraid of being taken advantage of if they answered too late.

"Then you two drink," Claire gestured for them to take a sip.

However, they hesitated, exchanged glances, and lowered their heads one by one.

Although they were told that the medicine was for treating wounds, they didn't necessarily think it was truly a healing medicine.

However, Claire lacked patience and tapped the knight's sword in his hand.

Seeing that something was wrong, the two had no choice but to each drink half of the red potion.

For the first few seconds, nothing happened.

The two village girls stood there, their expressions changing from fear to confusion. Just as they thought this was the healing potion, the change began.

Then, change began.

They seemed to have something wriggling and trembling beneath their skin, which was loosening and wrinkling at a visible speed, like paper being crumpled by an invisible hand.

"My...my hand..."

"Help! Help me!"

The village girls' voices changed, from hoarse to dry, like the sound of withered leaves rubbing together.