Chapter 363: Sent to Die

Three days later, a ragged knight came galloping from the south, charging straight for the south gate of Jilan Town. However, not only he, but even his horse seemed to have reached the limit of its physical endurance; its speed grew slower and slower, until finally, the man and the horse collapsed together, exhausted. They fell not far from the south gate of Jilan Town. Immediately after, a commotion erupted inside the walls, and one voice barked, "Open the gate, quickly! That is the Scout sent to the Southern Forest! Hurry!"

With a creak, the heavy wooden gate opened, and a figure rushed out first, heading straight for the Scout's position. Unfortunately, by the time he arrived, the Scout had only left behind one final sentence—

"Orcs, the Orcs have reached White Sheep Village!"

What?! The Captain who had rushed out first was shocked. He hurriedly had his subordinates, who had arrived afterward, help carry the Scout's remains back, while he himself ran frantically back into the town.

……

Jilan Town Council Hall.

Priest Walixi and Lord Kubo sat side by side in the seats of honor, while below them were representatives from the various villages and towns in the rear, as well as Aierwen, the leader of the Holy Light Brotherhood.

While the others were arguing noisily, Aierwen did not speak. From the moment he arrived here, he had already prepared himself for sacrifice; everything was just to allow the members and supporters of the Holy Light Brotherhood to walk freely and openly under the sun.

As a Believer of Radiance.

At this moment, the main issue being debated in the Council Hall was that someone must go to the east to intercept the Orcs on the plains, so as to prevent them from scattering after failing to assault Jilan Town, which would cause even greater damage.

And to go to the plains to fight the Orcs head-on, humans had almost no chance of winning. It could be said that these people were being sent to their deaths, and they had to be made willing to go to their deaths, rather than simply fleeing halfway there.

Every village and town naturally had some elite Warriors who dared to fight to the death, but who would truly be willing to expend such soldiers, who were almost the foundation of their standing?

Priest Walixi watched Lord Kubo exchange verbal blows with the representatives of the rear villages and towns, while using his peripheral vision to observe Aierwen, who was sitting in the corner.

Ever since this leader of the Rebels, who had long been on the blacklist, arrived three days ago, he had been quiet and had not shown the slightest resistance to his arrangements. Regarding this, Priest Walixi even felt some suspicion: was this truly Aierwen himself, or was it a body double?

Just as everyone was arguing endlessly and the atmosphere had gradually become rigid, a series of continuous shouts came from the direction of the nearby square—"Urgent intelligence from the south, I must see the Priest, I must see the Lord, do not block the way!"

Priest Walixi's mind was not on the debate in the Council Hall to begin with. He vaguely heard someone shouting about urgent intelligence from the south, which made him feel somewhat nervous.

Several batches of Scouts had been sent out before, but either the people disappeared or they brought back no news at all. What kind of news would this be?

Just as he was thinking this, the voice became increasingly clear. Many of the town gate guards knew him, and since he was shouting that he had urgent intelligence, no one dared to stop him, allowing him to charge all the way to the Council Hall.

As soon as he entered, the people inside who had been arguing stopped, and all eyes turned to the Captain. He swallowed, feeling somewhat nervous. He first glanced at the others, then looked at Priest Walixi, as if asking, should I say it here? "Speak!" Priest Walixi asked urgently.

In any case, the Orc invasion was no secret. Ordinary villagers and townspeople had long since retreated to the rear, and depending on the situation, they could cross the river at any time to take refuge on the west bank of the Netheril River. At this moment, Jilan Town was filled with combat personnel or support staff related to combat personnel.

"Yes, my lord."

Having received permission, the Captain quickly relayed the last words he had just heard from the Scout, "The Orcs have already reached White Sheep Village!"

With a swoosh, nearly half the people in the Council Hall, including Priest Walixi and the Paladin Aierwen, stood up in unison. It was truly—

White Sheep Village was already the closest village to the south of Jilan Town! "Prepare for battle immediately!" Priest Walixi's sharp gaze swept over every person in the Council Hall, "Someone must go to the east, otherwise the ones who will be unlucky are yourselves!"

However, at this point, although the other representatives were anxious, none were willing to speak up voluntarily. Whether it was farmland being destroyed and people starving, or soldiers dying in battle, it actually did not have much impact on them personally.

In fact, soldiers dying in battle might have an even greater impact on them!

It was just that this thought of theirs must never be exposed, because most of those soldiers were the sons of farmers, and one of the reasons they dared to fight to the death was that their superiors were willing to ensure the Stabilization of their fields and assets.

Otherwise, what would they fight for! And this was the very origin of rule! The representatives hesitated, but Aierwen would not hesitate. This was perhaps his opportunity, so he stepped forward and said to the representatives with a serious expression:

"The Holy Light Brotherhood is willing to go to the east of Jilan Town to intercept the Orcs, but we alone are far from enough; we need more Warriors!"

Several representatives immediately showed expressions of surprise. In all honesty, under the current circumstances, these Rebels who possessed Holy Power were best used as support, where their effect would be greater.

But—

Priest Walixi glanced at the representative wearing priestly robes, exchanged a look with him without a trace, and then said: "Very well, but the Warriors who go to the east must do so of their own volition. You cannot force them, and especially, you must not use your evil arts to bewitch them!"

Hearing words like "force," "evil arts," and "bewitch," Aierwen's breath hitched. He wanted to retort on the spot: who was the one "forcing," who was "bewitching," and who was using "evil arts"! But he still remembered his purpose. Arguing alone was meaningless. As long as they, the Apostles of Radiance, remained steadfast in practicing the vows promised by the Holy Stele, then regardless of prejudice or smears, one day they would dissipate under the radiance.

"I understand!" Aierwen replied coldly and left the Council Hall.

Priest Walixi did not care about this at all, and the content they continued to discuss was precisely to continue sending personnel to the east. Of course, the specific timing of this would have to be carefully studied.

……

Outside the Council Hall, Jiaer was waiting anxiously. Three days ago, they were formally received by Lord Kubo of Jilan Town, after which it was confirmed that the reconciliation information from the Nether King was indeed true, and only then did they return to notify their leader, Aierwen.

But what he did not expect was that Aierwen wanted to enter Jilan Town himself. No one could stop him, and Jiaer could only follow along.

Today's discussion was the longest one in three days. Jiaer was very worried about whether Aierwen would be ambushed inside. While waiting outside, he had lost count of how many times he had picked up and put down the longsword in his hand!

Just as he was thinking about whether to rush in, a familiar figure appeared in his line of sight—

"Aierwen!"

Jiaer shouted excitedly, rushed forward, grabbed his arm, and looked him up and down, while secretly checking Aierwen's state through Holy Power.

His small actions naturally could not escape Aierwen, but Aierwen did not stop him, instead telling him the news he had heard inside and his decision.

(End of chapter)