The Northern Predicament

"Sir, if it weren't for that noble child just now, we…"

"Enough."

Aurelion, walking at the forefront, looked at the busy citizens in the city and nodded with satisfaction.

The evening breeze blew through Aurelion's priest robe, embroidered with golden divine patterns. He inhaled the faint smell of smoke and fireworks in the air, feeling extremely pleased.

"It wasn't going to be easy anyway. Temporary gains and losses don't matter, but…"

Recalling the scene in the conference room, Aurelion chuckled.

"What an interesting child."

"Sir, what did you say?"

"Nothing. Has Dugu returned yet?"

"Not yet, sir."

Meanwhile, after listening to Count Mori's explanation, Havent's brow was furrowed into a knot, and he couldn't help but grit his teeth.

"So, someone in our Northern Territory is really collaborating with an evil religion?"

"Yes and no~"

Hearing Count Mori's ambiguous answer, Havent's mind couldn't immediately process it.

"Huh? Can you answer something like this?"

"Hahahaha, child, you still have a lot to learn. How about this, my daughter Vian is fourteen this year. She's as beautiful as her mother. You two can become friends. I'll teach you this knowledge."

Looking at the roguish Count Mori, Havent rolled his eyes so hard they almost reached the ceiling. He hadn't even met Mori's wife, so who would believe he had a beautiful daughter?

"Ahem, uh-hem~"

Seeing his old friend teasing his son, Count Havent couldn't help but interject.

"If we're talking about the conclusion, then as you said, the Death Cult developing an army of tens of thousands of ghouls in just a few days is indeed terrifying."

"So what?"

Havent asked, confused.

"You participated in the battle, you should have experienced it. Among the ghouls, there were some exceptionally powerful ones."

Seeing Havent nod, Count Havent continued, "That's where the problem lies. Out of these tens of thousands, perhaps only two-thirds were ordinary people, and the remaining one-third were basically low to mid-tier professionals. When we were clearing the battlefield, we discovered that many of the ghouls were fallen knights and professionals from noble families in the Northern Territory. Generally, for fallen soldiers and knights, besides being buried by their families, a large portion were interred in the warrior mausoleums within their own territories. To avoid being targeted by these cults and necromancers, these places are usually kept secret and guarded by soldiers. We have already dispatched personnel to investigate which mausoleums have been breached."

Listening to his father's explanation, Havent also felt something peculiar. However, he quickly reacted, "Couldn't it be that people from the Church of Death found these places themselves?"

"Hmm~ Little Havent, no!"

Havent looked at Count Mori curiously, waiting for his explanation.

"That outcome is even more terrifying. Based on the statistics from clearing the battlefield, there were soldiers from seven or eight families that could be identified. Some ghouls even wore dog tags with the soldiers' names, not to mention the crests on their armor or the markings on their weapons. The territories of these seven or eight families are vast. If the Church of Death really found the soldiers' graves in these territories themselves, it would take at least two to three months. And we haven't found any trace of the Church of Death for such a long time. This is more terrifying and more suspicious."

Havent, momentarily speechless, felt extremely exasperated.

"So?"

"What?"

Count Mori didn't hear Havent clearly and asked back.

"So, can I interpret this as: either someone among our Northern nobles has defected to the cult and caused us great damage, or many of our nobles are secretly plotting something. Is that it…?"

At this moment, only the two Counts and Havent remained in the conference room. Count Mori heard Havent cut straight to the heart of the matter and nodded appreciatively.

"Which outcome do you lean towards more, Count Mori?"

"Hmm~ Little fellow. I must say, you are smarter than I imagined. Based on my understanding of the lords, big and small, in the Northern Territory… Hmm… It's likely that the first scenario you mentioned has a higher probability."

"Probability?"

Hearing Count Mori's answer, Havent couldn't help but exclaim.

"So we're screwed, and we don't even know if it's a dry or wet situation?"

'Cough, cough, cough~'

Hearing his son's crude analogy, Count Havent quickly coughed to interrupt.

"Havent! Watch how you speak to Count Mori!"

Count Mori waved his hand, indicating it was alright, then raised his wine glass to Havent.

"Hahahaha~ Little Havent, a very vivid analogy, but the situation is indeed like that. We can only wait for the investigating soldiers to return before we see what's going on."

"What about that group of people? Didn't the Church of Death flee to Ugalamar with the remaining ghouls? How did they pursue and eliminate them?"

Count Mori didn't answer Havent directly but instead asked, "Little Havent, do you understand the empire's history?"

Havent nodded, then shook his head.

"I've read some. I have a general idea of the events recorded in some books."

"Then what have you gleaned from it?"

"The empire has a lot going on. Does being good at fighting count?"

Upon hearing Havent's answer, Count Mori burst into hearty laughter. Count Havent, standing beside him, also laughed at his son's words.

Havent watched the two of them laughing endlessly, feeling a bit puzzled. What was so funny about that?

"You're right, Little Havent, it is indeed like that. In nearly a thousand years of imperial history, there have probably only been a few decades without war.

We are always initiating various wars, or being forced to take over other countries when tribes attack us.

Do you know why this is?"

Havent shook his head. He had never thought about these issues. When he read these books before, he was just a child. As he got older, he lost interest in reading.

"As a noble, one should read more, not like your father..."

Under Count Havent's murderous glare, Count Mori quickly stopped himself and changed his tune.

"It's very simple. If the other party has something we want, we'll find a way to get it. This can be done through force or through strategy.

Similarly, if we have something the other party wants, they will also try their best to snatch it.

It's the same for people, countries, nobles, and churches, and so on."

Count Mori stated the answer calmly, and for a moment, the conference room was exceptionally quiet.

"So, Aurelion wants what we have?"

"Not Aurelion, it's the Church, child."

There was too much information, and Havent couldn't quite process it all.

"So, what is it that the Church wants from us?"

Count Mori looked out the window at the sky that had completely darkened. He sighed and said in a low voice, "Our people~"