Chapter 528: I Know Everything (1)

The Artrode Kingdom.

One of the most powerful nations on the continent, it was the center of the Salvation Church.

Duke Leinster, the king's younger brother and the true power behind the kingdom, was a devout follower of the church and provided it with a safe haven.

Gartros, the court scholar who had served Duke Leinster since his days as a prince, was the one who had gradually indoctrinated him into the Salvation Church's ideology over many years.

Through covert maneuvering, Gartros managed to elevate Duke Leinster, once a low-ranking heir in the succession line, to the kingdom's most powerful figure.

It was only natural for Duke Leinster to deeply trust Gartros.

When Gartros returned after failing in Lutania, Duke Leinster was taken aback.

"I never imagined you would suffer such a setback, teacher."

"My apologies, Your Grace. There was an unexpected variable in the Lutania Kingdom."

"I've heard the news. Count Fenris... no, he's now risen to the rank of Grand Duke, hasn't he? To think that such a man could defeat the mighty Duke Delphine."

"His rate of growth was extraordinary. Beyond that, many other variables hindered us."

As Gartros spoke, he struggled to contain his frustration. Countless individuals had interfered with their plans.

What he couldn't possibly know was that Ghislain had experienced the same frustration in his previous life.

Duke Leinster smiled gently as he said, "It's fine. We can start again, can't we? This kingdom is nearly ours now, after all."

Indeed, most of the Artrode Kingdom was under Duke Leinster's control. Only the area near the capital remained.

The resistance was fierce, and they were being cautious to avoid unnecessary losses, but it was only a matter of time before the kingdom fell entirely into his hands.

To Duke Leinster, the Lutania Kingdom could be dealt with later. He had only permitted Gartros to seek the holy relic because he deemed it a priority.

"What do you plan to do now?" Leinster asked.

"I've ordered the priests to gather here once more. We must regroup and prepare to fend off the Lutania forces."

"Hmm. Are they that formidable?"

"They are armed with unknown technologies. We must not underestimate them."

"I see. If even you were pushed back, teacher, then they must be no ordinary opponents. Let's secure the kingdom quickly and prepare for them."

Duke Leinster's ambitions extended far beyond conquering this kingdom.

His dream was to use the Salvation Church's power to dominate the continent and establish an empire.

At first, it had seemed achievable. Most of the kingdoms on the continent had been thrown into chaos by the Salvation Church's actions.

But now, Grand Duke Fenris was traveling around, systematically quelling the unrest. For Duke Leinster, this was a troubling development.

"We must find the holy relic quickly. At this rate, other regions will fall soon. No, we might even be attacked ourselves."

"Hmm…"

Gartros fell into thought.

The next holy relic was believed to be in the Grimwell Kingdom. The problem was that it, too, was a powerful nation.

Despite being in the midst of a civil war, the Grimwell Kingdom had enough resources to send troops to the allied forces. Consequently, the Salvation Church was gathering priests to prepare for an attack on Grimwell.

However, removing priests from other regions would weaken the church's position there, making it easier for the allied forces to gain ground.

Gartros sighed.

"This is a dilemma. If we focus all our efforts on Grimwell, we'll be easily pushed back by the allied forces elsewhere. They might even come to Grimwell's aid before we can take the kingdom."

On the other hand, prioritizing the allied forces meant delaying the conquest of Grimwell indefinitely.

Ultimately, they would have to split their forces—stalling the allied forces while attempting to topple the Grimwell Kingdom. Given their current disadvantage, it was no easy task.

"If not for that man…"

Gartros swallowed his rising anger.

While many obstacles had arisen, Grand Duke Fenris's actions had been the most decisive blow.

He longed for revenge against that man, but the current situation left no room for such desires.

As the two deliberated their next steps over the following days, Idun arrived at the Artrode Kingdom with his forces.

Having heard on his way back that Lutania's civil war had ended, he decided to return to Artrode.

"Oh, my loyal blade has finally returned."

Duke Leinster welcomed Idun warmly. He had already received word via letter that Idun had recruited the revolutionary forces and even won over Hellnik.

"I hope you have been well, Your Grace," Idun said with a graceful bow. The Order of the Silver Knights that he commanded had been established by Duke Leinster.

Since it was not tied to any single nation, Idun had the freedom to travel across kingdoms.

"Yes, I've heard that your mission was a success."

"The leader of the revolutionaries will soon join us with their forces."

"In these challenging times, you bring excellent news. I am truly pleased."

Duke Leinster laughed heartily and praised Idun's achievements.

He then turned to Hellnik, who stood beside Idun, and asked, "Are you the one they call the 'Master of the Dead'?"

"That's correct."

Hellnik gave only a slight nod. Duke Leinster frowned at his lack of courtesy but held his tongue, knowing full well how powerful Hellnik was.

This was a time when even one more strong ally was invaluable.

Gartros felt the same. As much as he wished to tear apart the man who had slain one of the church's priests, it was not the time for internal conflict.

The pressing issue was how to deal with the allied forces gathering under Grand Duke Fenris. Discussions about this dominated the meetings between the duke's household and key figures of the Salvation Church.

"Shouldn't we deal with the allied forces first? It's better to face them now before they grow stronger."

"If we take out the allied forces, we'll have free rein. We can retrieve the holy relics afterward."

"Foolishness! The holy relics are the most important thing. How can we postpone that?"

"The holy relics are needed to control the rifts and fulfill the church's objectives!"

"If we lose to the allied forces, it's all over for us. Who knows how many years the war will drag on? It's better to defend and focus on retrieving the relic first."

"But if we prioritize the holy relics and get defeated first, that will also be a disaster, won't it?"

Both sides had valid points. With the continent's situation increasingly turning against them, they needed to make a careful decision.

It was Hellnik, who had been silently listening, who finally spoke.

"The best course of action is to prevent the allied forces from uniting before we take the Grimwell Kingdom. That way, we can secure the holy relics and focus our strength on Grimwell."

Gartros nodded in agreement.

"True. But Grand Duke Fenris's forces are formidable. Ordinary strength won't even slow them down."

Gartros was well aware of how many powerful individuals had gathered in Lutania's northern army. That information had already been shared with everyone present.

The problem wasn't just Grand Duke Fenris. A new, extraordinary warrior had also emerged from the Turian Kingdom. Additionally, powerful figures from various kingdoms were joining forces.

The situation was dire.

"No matter how strong we are, dividing our forces will make it difficult to prevail. That's why we're deliberating on which side to prioritize," Gartros explained.

Hearing this, Hellnik shrugged and laughed. What an amusing situation.

"I'd like to meet that powerful army myself. Just provide me with a small force. I'll buy you some time. In the meantime, take down Grimwell."

"Can you manage it?"

"I'll blanket the battlefield with an army of the dead, won't I? That should buy plenty of time. As long as you prepare what I need," Hellnik replied.

"Does that mean…" Gartros's eyes gleamed. He knew Hellnik was a necromancer. But could he really face the allied forces alone?

Hellnik grinned as he continued, "You don't seem to understand. The battlefield is where I am at my strongest."

***

Having dealt with the rifts and rebels in the Byron Kingdom, the Lutania army entered a brief period of rest.

Before moving to the next kingdom, they needed to secure provisions and rearm.

Thanks to Ghislain, the Byron Kingdom, now barely surviving, also decided to support with some troops. The plan was to increase their numbers by enlisting forces from each kingdom they passed through.

While waiting for the preparations to be completed, Ghislain was visited by a messenger from the Turian Kingdom.

"Hm, so the Turian Kingdom's army plans to come this way?" Ghislain asked.

"Yes. If Your Grace permits, it might be wise to establish Sardina Kingdom as the center of the allied forces."

"Not a bad idea."

The Sardina Kingdom was located at the center of the continent, making it easy to extend their reach in any direction.

From Byron to Sardina, only a few kingdoms lay in between. The same was true for the Turian Kingdom.

The entire continent was embroiled in war. Although Ghislain was moving from one kingdom to another to help, a centralized location for the allied forces was becoming essential.

Claude, standing beside him, asked, "We won't face much difficulty getting there. The Salvation Church doesn't have much presence between Byron and Sardina. But... will the Turian army make it safely?"

They would need to suppress rebellions in at least two kingdoms before they could meet the Lutania forces.

However, the Turian army planning to join the allied forces was reportedly less than 50,000 strong.

While a significant force for a nation that had just ended a civil war, it was small compared to what would be needed to quell other countries' unrest.

At Claude's concern, Ghislain smirked and answered on behalf of the messenger, "That shouldn't be a problem. Right?"

The messenger straightened his chest with pride, his face radiating confidence.

"That's correct. There's no need to worry about that."

The Turian Kingdom's army boasted Yulian, who had single-handedly dealt with the rifts. To the people of Turian, Yulian was nothing short of a deity.

"Very well, let's proceed with that."

In his previous life, Sardina had also been the center of the allied forces. Every organization of the alliance had been built around Sardina. The person who had orchestrated this was none other than Yulian.

Ghislain had intended to do the same this time, so he had no reason to object. A central gathering place for the scattered allied forces was essential.

The messenger left with a delighted expression after receiving Ghislain's approval.

"What's the current situation? Any updates?" Ghislain asked Claude as soon as the messenger departed. Lutania's intelligence network was tirelessly gathering and delivering information.

"The rebels' momentum is clearly waning. It's mostly because the number of priests from the Salvation Church has suddenly decreased," Claude replied.

"Where are the priests gathering?"

"Judging by their movements, it's most likely the Artrode Kingdom... But how did you know?"

"I know everything."

"…"

Claude was left speechless as always. There was no evidence, but the results were always correct, leaving no room for argument.

In truth, even Ghislain hadn't known the Salvation Church's hideouts in his past life. Not only him, but no one else had managed to uncover them either.

They had been too preoccupied with fighting the rifts to focus on the church.

However, after realizing that the "we" Idun had referred to meant the Salvation Church, Ghislain had been able to deduce their location.

The Order of the Silver Knights led by Idun was under the command of Duke Leinster of the Artrode Kingdom.

'So, they're feeling a bit more desperate this time.'

In his past life, those shameless individuals had even joined the allied forces and acted within them.

Since the rebellions hadn't been as widespread back then, they had had the luxury of concealing their forces.

But in this life, the Salvation Church's plans had been disrupted, and Duke Leinster had openly rebelled.

"We need to deal with the regions we can handle quickly. We don't know when the Salvation Church will resurface."

Although Ghislain had significantly weakened the church's forces, their unified strength remained formidable. Hidden assets like Idun still existed.

He needed to rescue other kingdoms as swiftly as possible to unite their forces.

Just as the church was wary of Ghislain, he was equally cautious of them.

Given their covert activities and their success in his past life, he couldn't afford to let his guard down.

"Complete the preparations as quickly as possible and move out."

Under Ghislain's orders, the Lutania army worked diligently. With active cooperation from the Byron Kingdom, resupply and reorganization proceeded smoothly.

That wasn't all. The Byron Kingdom also played a significant role in identifying refugees who had fled from other nations.

"We've found her," said a Byron Kingdom administrator.

Claude asked in a trembling voice, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, we've verified it. While accounting for refugees, we confirmed her identity. She's currently being safely guarded at a refugee camp."

Claude, though a slave, was the second-in-command of the northern army of Lutania. The officials in Byron had been doing everything they could to win his favor.

Thanks to their efforts, Claude had finally found Anna's whereabouts.

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