The professors of the Royal Academy of Sciences were experiencing what the King’s officials had experienced some time ago.

The King didn’t care about how they assessed the sewage system in the town, and he simply interrupted their long speeches——the King directly threw them next door to the Lunatic Academy so that they could have a face-to-face debate with Mr. Architect, fellow with the obsessive-compulsive disorder and serious obsession with cleanliness.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

The two sides argued with each other, and whoever managed to persuade the other would be able to come see the King again.

Before the pitiful professors had even recovered from the joy of meeting the King for the first time, they found that they were now neighbors with a bunch of lunatics.

However, it was estimated that the officials would not be feeling schadenfreude amusement about this, at most they would be sympathetic to each other…..

Because they were once again “invited” over by the King.

The familiar Rose Palace, the familiar royal guards, and the familiar Head of the Households.

This time, the task was to recount the many records left by the Five Port Alliance, and to reassess the large and small chambers of commerce in the southeast of the original Five Port Alliance system…..After hearing the report from the Head of the Households on the King’s request, the officials all slowly sat down on the chairs.

But this time, their luck was better.

Because the main targets being exploited this time were not them.

——But the two remaining family heads of the Five Port Alliance, Patriarch Dawson and Madam Poisonous Spider.

“You don’t seem to have mentioned this habit of His Majesty.”

Madam Poisonous Spider sat in the moving carriage, looking at the writ for a long time, before turning her head slowly to stare at Patriarch Dawson quietly, her voice cold.

Patriarch Dawson faced the same situation.

The both of them were former leaders of the Five Port Alliance, and no one was more familiar with the many southeast ports and chambers of commerce, large and small, than them. Therefore, the task of forming the “Free Chamber of Commerce” was directly placed on their shoulders by the King.

At first, when the two of them had just received the appointment for the chairman of the Free Chamber of Commerce, they thought it would be an honorable task.

At that time, they actually naively thought that the King had seen their contribution in the Battle of Koszoya and planned to reward them.

But when they finally had an audience with the King, and after listening to the King’s hurried and rapid speech listing his requirements, the expressions of the two people froze on their faces.

They were really just the former leaders of the Five Port Alliance…..

“I believe in your abilities.”

At that time, the King said this with a smile on his face.

Patriarch Dawson, who almost developed a psychological shadow in regards to the King’s smile, broke down in a cold sweat. In his interpretation, the King’s words should be translated as followed:

——If you can’t do this well, then prepare to go to the guillotine.

“What habit?”

Patriarch Dawson was currently looking through the urgently recorded list of the King’s request when he heard the words of Madam Poisonous Spider, and raised his head blankly.

“Making the best use of everything.”

Madam Poisonous Spider said quietly.

Patriarch Dawson, one of the “things” made use of by the King, couldn’t find words to respond for a while.

Outside the carriage, accompanying the two family heads back to the southeast coast, was a cavalry led by a vow knight of the King.

They represented the King’s will, both to help the patriarch Dawson and Madam Poisonous Spider suppress the local nobles, and to monitor the two family heads. Once they were in the process of forming the Free Chamber of Commerce, and committed “mistakes” they shouldn’t have, then these knights would chop off their heads without hesitation.

“This is our only opportunity.”

Patriarch Dawson rubbed his forehead. The people responsible for the establishment of the Free Chamber of Commerce naturally would not just be the two of them. The King’s officials would also arrive later.

“That is a majesty uncaring of conventions and niceties. He even dared to appoint a pirate like Hawkins as admiral. As long as we perform well enough, we may have more chances to be used for important matters.”

“Thank him for making the best use of everything.”

He concluded.

………………

The King who was accustomed to “making the best use of everything” was currently receiving General Sheehan.

At the meeting of the Moon River Fortress, the Bressi Expeditionary Force appeared to be very unwilling, so the handling of the hostage affairs was very protracted. The King estimated that they had been waiting for the Five Port Alliance Incident to take the opportunity to exert pressure and obtain greater benefits while Legrand was overwhelmed.

But they did not expect the naval battle to end so quickly.

After the collapse of the Five Port Alliance, the Bressi expedition lost the reason for further delay. They finally returned Moon River Fortress and the hostages, and quickly evacuated.

General Johan, who had been detained for several months, would arrive in Metzl City in three days.

Before that, it was General Sheehan who was in charge of the formation of the new army who arrived at the palace earlier than him.

The King listened to General Sheehan’s report.

After the big exchange of blood for the county lords in the parliament, the recruitment of new soldiers was much smoother than before. General Sheehan conducted a second screening from the people selected from various places, and formed the first “Iron Rose” cavalry directly under the King, the number of which was a little more than the King originally expected.

This was good news.

This prototype of a “standing army” had already begun to enter training.

After the King listened to the report, he pondered for a moment, and had General Sheehan take his army to the southeast area immediately.

Regarding where to choose the location of the barracks, the King pondered the map for a while, and finally decided on Koszoya.

Koszoya was the former headquarters of the Five Port Alliance. The cavalry could be used as an excuse to “prevent the remnants of the Five Port Alliance” from making trouble. In this way, suspicion would not be so easily aroused, after all, the King had just experienced two rebellions and being more cautious was in line with common sense.

The King knew that news about the upcoming outbreak of the Black Death must not be leaked out.

Even if the cause of the “Black Death” could, to a certain extent, make people more coordinated and support the King’s series of preparations, at the same time, it would certainly cause widespread panic.

Concealment and prevention were the most appropriate choices.

“I hope you can show me something I want. Sir Sheehan.”

The King watched General Sheehan.

General Sheehan took the order from the King: “I shall follow your orders.”

The first mission to be performed by the King’s Iron Rose Cavalry:

Prepare to impose martial law and blockade on the southeast port cities at any time.

A series of plans that were originally scheduled to take place in a longer period of time were compressed and advanced by the King. With the King as the core, Legrand’s governmental agencies spun like a top.

At this time, people were completely oblivious.

They sat in front of their fires, talking briskly about the King’s newly appointed county lords doing a much better job than before, and hoped that the King’s rage would continue to vent on those useless meat and wine sacks.

They were unaware that the King was pulling a long line of safety for them.

……………………

On the other side of the Abyss Strait, the Holy Court.

From small villages to prosperous cities, the shadow of the cross was everywhere on this side of the Abyss Strait. The churches of the Holy Court often stood in the center of the cities here, and in particular, the Kingdom of Bressi in the north used the emblem of the Holy Court in the palace in great amounts. Compared with Legrand on the other side of the Abyss Strait, the Kingdom of God was more brilliant here.

And even more ubiquitous.

The most glorious place among them was the location of the Holy Court.

The Pope’s Hall.

A person walked into this hall, which was shrouded in the glory and will of God.

The light of the candlelight shone down on him. He was wearing a black priest’s robe and had his head down. Many people had seen him in Legrand. He followed the proud cardinal at that time as if he was his guardian, and he was called “Aynauld” by the other.

However, at this time, he was very different from the time when he accompanied the young cardinal, the illegitimate son of the Pope, to Legrand.

The servant-like humility from him had now faded away, leaving only a black iron-like silence.

After the black priest walked into the hall, the door closed behind him.

The candlelight was brilliant, and all the angels mentioned in the holy book were carved on the walls on both sides. Stone inlay art was used, and it possessed a simplicity as well as magnificence. The spokesperson of the supreme god was currently sitting on his ornate chair, reading the holy book decorated with gold.

“Your Holiness.”

The black priest went to the Pope and knelt down.

“You have arrived.”

The Pope closed the holy book, his tone when speaking to the priest in black was very gentle.

“The astrologers have completed the divination.” The black-clothed priest lowered his head and reported, “The Holy Lord’s armies are coming, and their fiery arrows will point to the criminals.”

The Pope laughed: “I thought there was no one but you and me who would understand my meaning…..Don’t be tactful, we all know that the place where the plague will first break out is the Kingdom of the Lord. You are worried.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

The black priest fell silent for a moment.

“The plague a thousand years ago allowed us to establish the Kingdom of God on the other side of the Abyss Strait, but this time the plague may destroy our efforts over these thousand years.”

“I know what you are worried about.” The Pope said lightly. His hair was grayed at the temples, but as the Pope he was already quite young. “You are worried that we will not be able to fight the plague.”

The black priest remained silent.

“This is our Father’s punishment to purge sinners. His arrows point to our enemies. All devout believers will be blessed by Him.” The Pope raised his hand and made the sign of the cross on his chest, “Our enemy is not the plague. It’s not Legrand, but those who should be the lambs of God. You have returned from Legrand and traveled through many countries and cities. You must have heard a lot of voices.”

“I heard noise embedded in the sacred carols.” The black priest lowered his head deeply, “Although the voice is still very weak, it has indeed appeared.”

“No, their voices are not weak.” The Pope’s eyes reflected the candlelight. “In those ports where large numbers of people and ships come and go, the servants of the Holy Lord are forgetting their duties, and the merchants who have been reprimanded in the past are gradually becoming distinguished guests, the sound of falling gold coins overwhelm the sound of sacred chants. The Hermits in the Lowlands are trying to connect with them. Our Eleventh Tax collection has already encountered some resistance.”

“The Holy Lord’s sword will shatter those resistance.”

The black priest gently made the sign of the cross on his chest.

“I don’t want to go to war with them.” The Pope said, “Mortals will never be able to restrain desire and greed. We used to think that a unified nation-state is our greatest enemy, but in fact, even in the nearest place to the Holy Court, once the shadow of greed spreads, our enemies will be everywhere.”

“Do you mean…..”

“Human nature is our real enemy.” The Pope raised his head, “No matter how pious the country, no matter how pious the monarch, they will embark on the path of abandoning us in the end. I have seen that in the future the Kingdom of God will shrink and dim…..Is that something we, as the apostles of the Holy Lord, can sit and ignore?”

The Pope’s voice changed sharply.

“We are still strong now, but how long can we be strong? How long can our strength be supported? With the first voice of opposition, would the second and the third be far behind?”

Under the Pope’s aggressive questioning, the black priest unknowingly broke out in a cold sweat.

“So what should we do?”

He seemed to have returned to the first time he touched the cross. At that time, he was guided by the Holy Father, who was the guide that would give him his holy mission.

“Gather our strength and gather our army.”

The Pope stood up and turned to face the sacrificial image of the Son of God behind him.

“The first black death allowed us to establish an invisible Kingdom of God, and the second black death shall allow us to build a real empire!”

The black priest followed the other’s gaze and looked at the image as well, the Pope’s words causing him to reveal a look of surprise.

What the Pope meant was that he planned to——

The Holy Court planned to establish a real kingdom!

“The thousand-year kingdom is about to be established! We must build an earthly Kingdom of God for the Holy Lord!”

The Pope said sternly.

All the candlelights in the Pope’s Hall shone a white flame in an instant, the fire almost compelling and overwhelming. The angels all around seemed to have really descended down at the words of the Pope. They came from a high altitude, looking down on this land, holding swords and blades that judged the world in their hands.

The sounds of clashing metal echoed.

The black priest stood up in shock, as if he had seen the biggest and most sacred prophecy in the painting of the holy book——

God fell into a deep sleep after winning the thousand-year war for his apostles, but it was only temporary. When a thousand years had passed, evil began to breed and darkness returned, and at that time He would eventually awaken. He would finally come to the world and bring the judgment of the last days. On the barren land of the Apocalypse, the Kingdom of God would be reborn. All believers would revive His glory.

The millennium was approaching.

The Kingdom was coming.

“The Kingdom of God is not built at the arrival of a thousand years, rather we should build the Kingdom for God before He comes.” The Pope turned and said quietly, “We are His servants, His lamb, This is our mission.”

“Our mission.”

The black priest lowered his head slowly and deeply again, pressing his forehead to the icy ground, as if sacred glory gathered in his soul.

“I will go personally for the coronation of the new King of Bressi.” The Pope returned to his seat, “We must not tolerate any surprises.”

“Understood.”

“This time you met Legrand’s King Pureland. What impression do you have of him?”

“He is similar to the rumors but not the same.” The black priest organized his thoughts and described, “I can feel that the brand of madness still remains on him, but he has not completely lost his mind because of his madness.”

“The Rose family is indeed the original Rose family.”

“Will he hinder us?”

“No, he won’t.” The Pope replied coldly, “William III’s methods were clever, but the Holy Court was prepared earlier than him.”

The priest in black waited for his instructions.

“William III is already dead, and his son will be no exception.”

The Pope said slowly.

“Do I need to go to Legrand again?”

“No.”

The Pope vetoed it.

“This time, it’s the sword of God’s ruling.”

The black priest understood.

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

The sword of God’s ruling referred to the most secretive, frightening, and least-known group of people within the Holy Court. They hid behind the shadow of the cross, and were the weapons of the Holy Lord, who cleansed all the most intolerable sinners for the Lord. Sometimes, he even suspected that these people…..

Were they even human in the first place?

“Pureland, a good name, although broken and fallen, will eventually rise beautifully in the fires of rebirth. Hmph, broken and fallen…..”

The Pope sneered.

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