Chapter 160: Turmoil
The unexpected twist began the moment the Church took action.
Due to various obstacles from the Fourth Knights Order, a small troop of cavalry from the New City of Kaliye finally couldn’t hold back any longer. They decided to sneak through the Moon Mountain tunnel dug secretly by the Northern Army on a snowy night, hoping to bypass the City Guard and the Church’s heavily fortified defenses, and slip into Chielis City for a little assassination party—specifically, to take out Emperor Kains.
What they ended up doing was getting themselves into a bit of a pickle outside the city, where they slaughtered hundreds of nuns and missionaries—news that Tarlasya just received last night.
Nobody quite knew what those cavalry lads were thinking.
When the men finally rushed to the scene, nearly everyone was already dead—brutally, I might add. This included the clergy, nuns, and over a hundred elite warriors from New City of Kaliye. The only one left standing, drenched in bl**d, was Sister Kaimilante. She was under the moonlight, hanging the corpses of Northern officers from the pillars, removing their heads, and peeling off their skins—just a casual day of divine judgment for her.
Hot on the heels of this chaos came news that Baihao City had erupted into flames.
The whole fiasco happened so fast that Tarlasya was momentarily at a loss for words.
By the time he gathered his people to head towards the smoke-filled city, all four gates of Baihao City had already been breached two hours prior, with the yells of battle filling the air and bloodied corpses scattered everywhere. What was once a bustling scene of steadiness had now turned into a gruesome battlefield again.
In that moment, he realized that the Fourth Knights Order… no, the Temple Church had been preparing for this moment for far too long. Their original mission wasn’t about saving anyone or resolving royal disputes; they were here for war and plunder, seeking to reestablish control over the Empire, regardless of throwing the citizens into chaos.
“And whether it’s me or that detestable nun—regardless of whether she knew the truth or not—we didn’t come to intimidate the Northern Army to mediate conflicts and resolve wars. Our goal was to k*ll more people in the chaos of war.”
Tarlasya was privy to some of the Church’s dark secrets.
But he didn’t expect that those pious-looking high-ups in the Temple, who preached about justice for the citizens, had let things spiral into such chaos.
It was the first time in hundreds of years that the Church’s army had proactively declared war on the nation’s power structure, using force to meddle in a foreign domestic affair, and they were even prepared to have “heroes” like him—symbols of the highest knightly honor awarded with the Iris badge—become executioners at the front lines.
As for their enemies—
Not the Abyss.
And not the bloodthirsty heretics who killed on a whim.
No, their enemies were the average imperial soldiers who had just distributed food to the fleeing civilians the previous day and helped settle them in.
In that moment, Tarlasya’s stance became rock-solid.
Once inside the city, he seized the chaos to quickly locate Queen Ethanbel in the Black Fort. After a brief negotiation, Her Majesty informed him that Duke Skarlick had already left the city, likely heading straight into a trap laid by the Church. She, however, had sent two Pope Knights after him; if they did indeed encounter an ambush, the chances of escape were still quite high…
Both were thinking along those lines, but before dawn, news of the two’s deaths outside the city arrived, shattering their hopes.
According to Tarlasya, the message came from a talking raven, handwritten by Skarlij himself, stating they had been ambushed on their way to Moon Mountain Gorge by a bunch of guys in black robes and a nun. There were fewer than twenty of them, yet they instantly wiped out their nearly hundred-strong party.
The two strong reinforcements, sent by Queen Elizabeth, had barely met the enemy when one was killed instantly. The other, dragging his severely injured body trying to cover their escape, was soon executed as well—by that same nun, who was succinctly described in the letter as: “Do not engage her head-on.”
“One of those Pope Knights I never met, but I knew him from before.”
Tarlasya said. “He was an extraordinary swordsman from the Order of Wood, with formidable overall strength. No way he should’ve been taken down in one encounter. Yet that’s exactly what happened. I waited on the wall for what felt like ages, but neither Skarlij nor the two of them returned.”
However, they had originally intended to return to the city.
This upheaval completely disrupted Queen Elizabeth’s plan.
By dawn, the fighting in the city had dwindled to just the foundry still putting up a resistance. The hunters had been scattered, and the Fourth Knights Order began their purge in the city. News of Duke Skarlick had vanished, throwing the entire Northern Army into disarray…
As the situation grew dire, Her Majesty quickly decided, in coordination with Tarlasya, to hide her mother in the church and orchestrate a “swap,” allowing a stand-in queen to do the praying while she donned a Choir of Saints cloak, slipped out of the city, and vanished.
“When you entered the Black Fort, that whole act was arranged between me and Her Majesty. Once I led the charge inside, it was crucial to support her decoy, leading everyone to believe Lady Catherine was hiding in the fort, all aimed at buying time for her escape and to merge with the Northern forces again.”
It sounded easy when said like that, but while executing it, it must have been quite the hair-raising experience… One slip, and the entire Ethanbel might’ve been dragged down with them.
“So, you really have no clue where my father is.”
I said, only to see the man shake his head.
“Well, not entirely.”
He looked at the worried Lady Catherine and said gravely, “This is the news I intended to deliver to you earlier, but your daughter’s unreasonable actions left no chance to share it. Skarlick’s side has indeed gone dark, but I still have information from Captain Selamus… I know he was safe at least three hours ago.”
The man paused.
“They got ambushed on their way back to Baihao City, being blocked by an army personally led by the Fourth Knights Commander, with a senior Archbishop Anseier from the Church present. They were dead set on taking Duke Skarlick’s head outside the city, but even then, they didn’t succeed. The Duke had capable hands by his side and managed to fight through the encirclement, fleeing east.”
“Phew…”
Hearing this, I felt my mother exhale deeply, her tense shoulders gradually relaxing.
I glanced at her.
Then I reached out to gently pat her back.
“This is why I still have command of the situation in the city.”
Tarlasya continued, “Captain Selamus believes Baihao City is as good as theirs. With a vice captain, myself, and nearly ten black-cloaked fellows, plus three thousand church knights already inside the city, wiping out the remaining Northern forces here should be a piece of cake.”
“So, he and the Archbishop mobilized some knights stationed at Moon Mountain Gorge to pursue Duke Skarlick east. Another thirty kilometers past the Ice River is a town guarded by two thousand Northern troops. They didn’t want the Duke escaping there… But it seems it might be too late.”
“Lady Catherine, your daughter’s arrival was quite timely. We’re out of time if we want to rescue the Duke; we must first retake Baihao City, or we will be cut off… I’ve said my piece; you should leave now. I’ll head east first; you need to catch up quickly, especially you, Miss Silvya.”
Tarlasya stated firmly, ready to turn and leave.
“Wait.”
I called after him.
“Do you know where Queen Elizabeth has gone?”
The man paused in his tracks.
“…Yesterday evening, I received another piece of news. The army originally stationed west of Moon Mountain Gorge seems to have started making its way toward Chielis City.”
“I don’t know if that counts as her whereabouts.”
