Hearing sounds from inside the stone cave, two cultists rushed in. Seeing Bishop Karian before them, they hurriedly knelt. "Greetings, Bishop."
"Rusi betrayed the church and has been executed by me. Take his head and display it to every stronghold to stabilize morale."
"We shall obey your command, great Bishop Karian."
The two cultists kowtowed respectfully, accepted Rusi's head from Karian, and backed out of the stone cave.
After the two cultists left, Karian waved his hand to close the stone gate, then beckoned toward a wall on the west side.
In an instant, the restriction hidden within the stone wall was broken, and a magical transmission crystal floated before Karian.
"March, Radiant Calendar 9745. Bishop Karian traveled to the Michichi tribe of Gray-skinned Goblins in the west."
"May, Radiant Calendar 9745. Bellamy, disciple of Bishop Karian, returned after being missing for three months. She appears to be preparing a way out. Bishop Urania, please take note."
"August, Radiant Calendar 9745. The number of Black Evil Beasts has dwindled. Although Bishop Karian attributed this to natural losses, this subordinate suspects that he is secretly cultivating a backup plan to deal with you, Bishop."
"Radiant Calendar..."
Using a special method, Karian extracted from the magical transmission crystal some of the information Rusi had sent to his wife, Bishop Urania.
"A waste put to use."
Karian crushed the magical transmission crystal and left.
He had long known Rusi's identity. He had merely kept him around as an idle move, never expecting him to prove useful today.
Time was pressing, and he could not determine who had betrayed him and exposed Lookout River Valley's location.
To ensure that the army's morale remained under his control, he could only use Rusi's head to placate them first.
Rusi held a position in the upper middle