When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

When Melia stepped into the command tent, the previous clamor of voices ceased for a moment.

But the next second, the noise transformed into hushed whispers, passed from ear to ear among the nobles and knights.

Looking at these core members, a trace of coldness appeared on Melia's face.

Within Melia's governing circle, there were three types of people.

The first type was the staunch mountain folk, mainly small nobles and landowners, including both knights and commoners, who fully met Melia's "elite" requirements.

They were not loyal to titles or bloodlines, but to Melia herself.

The second type was the mountain nobles, the nobles from Upper Reaver County, North and South Mound County, and so on.

These people were basically descendants of the Kush bloodline, subdued by the old Duke, with the Kush people's unique tradition of valuing blood ties.

They were originally loyal to the old Duke's title and bloodline, but they were also mixed with the staunch mountain folk, leading to internal disagreements and impure loyalty.

The third type was the plain nobles who surrendered later, and their loyalty was quite pure.

They followed whoever was strong.

Except for Horne.

Back then, Horne launched a great holy war in Hotham County, beheading those nobles who should be beheaded and exiling those who should be exiled.

What Melia needed to solve most was the mountain nobles in the middle.

It should be known that within Melia's government team, key positions and military positions were all held by these mountain nobles.

Her cold gaze swept across these mountain nobles, whose eyes darted away unnaturally when they met Melia's.

Seeing Melia enter the camp and sit silently on a chair, someone finally couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, do you have anything to say?"

"What is there to say? The defeat at Brokenstone Plain was indeed my fault. If you want to scold me, then scold away, I'll take it," Melia said bluntly.

"The matter of Brokenstone Plain is secondary," a stout earl with graying hair stood up and asked in a heavy mountain accent, "What we're asking about is the matter of your parentage."

"False rumors," Melia's words were short and disdainful.

The people in the tent were stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting Melia to respond in this way.

They looked at each other, and the previous agitation actually dissipated a bit.

"You, don't you want to explain it a bit?" That stout earl was at a loss instead.

"What do I need to explain? Prove that I am my mother's daughter? Prove that I am my grandfather's granddaughter?" Melia's gaze was as sharp as lightning, "Should I call my mother over for a blood kinship test?"

"Do you admit that your mother is a witch?"

"Yes."

"Then you…"

"Catherine is a witch, Joan is a witch, you all revere them as saints, but I am just the daughter of a witch, and also have the bloodline of the old Duke, and you can't accept it."

"Then does that mean, you are a witch?" A question came from somewhere in the crowd.

"Good, then I'll ask you," Melia stepped forward to stand in front of that person, "I am a witch, what are you going to do?"

The previously chaotic scene quieted down at once, and that little knight shrank behind a pillar, his face embarrassed: "I didn't mean that."

Squinting her eyes to size up the knight, Melia turned her head to look at the crowd:

"The person who led you to resist Codfort was me, this witch!"

"The person who led you to reclaim justice for the Blueblood Monastery was me, this witch!"

"The person who led you from the mountains to the plains, enjoying wealth and prosperity, is still me, this witch!"

"Everything you have is built on the foundation of me being a witch, so what?"

"A hunchback can be a king, a leper can be a pope, not to mention the two lying popes of the current Empire."

It had to be said that the mountain nobles were in a chaotic state.

After all, the secret files of the Imperial Bureau of Heraldry proved that Melia's mother, Lullus, was a witch.

This was why Duke Hema, despite having the ability to compete for the throne, still went to Thousand River Valley, hiding in the mountain gullies to be a local tyrant.

The essence was being implicated by his daughter, which made sense of everything.

Then why the Roan Party of Blackwater Bay so strongly supported Melia also made sense.

After all, the leader of the Roan Party, Lullus, was Melia's "mother", so naturally she would support her daughter.

If they emphasized Melia's ducal bloodline while weakening her witch identity…

Sezinger couldn't help but stand up: "Your Highness, we didn't mean that…"

Before he could finish speaking, Melia interrupted him directly: "Let me tell you, the old Duke fought on the battlefield for so many years, didn't he have any magical items in his hands?

My birth was protected by the holy relics of angels, it's not some adopted daughter at all, that's all lies from the Layerans, and you actually fell for it!

Now, with the Layeran army at hand, you are still arguing over this little matter, it's truly absurd."

Under Melia's gaze, the mountain nobles lowered their heads in shame.

"Tomorrow, I will lead troops to battle. Those who want to participate, gather at the drill ground tonight."

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"Melia, forgive me for speaking frankly…" Herman handed over the thick potion he had brewed, "It's best if you don't directly engage the Layeran army at the moment.

I know you really want to participate in the battle, but the current situation is that Rafe is advancing slowly and steadily.

We are at a disadvantage, it's best to defend first and accumulate strength, and then plan a counterattack. Hotham County has enough depth to defend."

"What kind of person am I in your eyes anyway?" After drinking the potion, Melia's mouth twitched, as if she was about to vomit from the bitterness, but she still forced it down.

"Stubborn?" Herman said.

"Aggressive?" Moret said.

"A dead end?" Philly said.

"That's called perseverance, okay?!" Melia wrinkled her nose, "Of course I know to defend first and then attack, and join forces with Horne, but the question is how to join forces?"

Herman and the others exchanged glances, seeing the solemnity in each other's eyes.

"With my current physical condition, I won't be able to contribute on the battlefield for at least three or four months, and I'm carrying the political baggage of a major defeat," Melia said in a low voice, "If we join forces like this, all the troops will become Horne's."

"That, that is indeed a problem," Herman also felt a headache.

Unlike Melia's forceful power grab, Horne was cutting the flesh with a soft knife, imperceptibly.

Just as Melia had cleaned up Thousand River Valley, Horne had quietly taken Blackwater Bay and Windmill Land, bringing back more than 300,000 pounds.

These pounds were turned into roads, ports, and small canals, connecting all parts of Thousand River Valley.

Through the control of various commodities, tax revenues and household registrations, the current vicars, although subordinates of the county heads, were actually on an equal footing.

If Horne were to seize command again, regardless of the mountain faction or the plain faction, the nobles would merge.

At that time, it would be an external war on the outside and an internal war on the inside.

Melia looked at the burning candlestick on the table: "Besides, do you think I completely suppressed those mountain nobles today?

They bow their heads today, bow their heads tomorrow, and maybe they won't bow their heads the day after tomorrow. I need a victory to unite people's hearts.

Even if it's just a small victory, it can allow the newspapers to launch a propaganda offensive."

Seeing that the three of them still looked hesitant, Melia remained silent for a long time before speaking: "I asked Horne, and he said that he wasn't on the front line, so he didn't have firsthand information and therefore had no right to speak.

But if I combine the intelligence and think it's okay to fight, then he supports me in fighting this battle.

But don't make big moves, because the current main theme is defense, and appropriate counterattacks are part of the defense."

"But with the current situation, it's difficult to have a victory," the few people were troubled.

Melia pointed to the map on the table: "In the past, we had good teeth and could eat fat meat and gnaw on hard bones.

Now that our strength is still there, we have only lost confidence, so we can only gnaw on a little bit of leftovers and accumulate confidence first.

Originally, this opportunity didn't exist, but fortunately, the Cheka provided us with an important piece of information."

"What intelligence?" Herman looked at the marked map, "The vassal army of Sienstonefield?"

"Yes, perhaps because the vassals of Sienstonefield did not accept Rafe's command, or perhaps to seize credit.

These 6,000 people actually broke away from the main force and ran to the town of Komita, forty kilometers away from Greenleaf City.

We have clockwork cannons and holy riflemen, and our numbers, equipment, and training are superior to theirs. The probability of defeating them is very high.

And it's close enough to Greenleaf City that even if we lose, we can retreat calmly."