Ceasefire Negotiations (1)
The apostles reached a consensus on the matter of negotiation. Regardless of who the enemy was or what the enemy wanted to do, the apostles wanted to understand the enemy's purpose and at the very least, to find out about the enemy's origins.
Furthermore, ceasefire negotiations could give the Faith Order some buffer time. The Faith Order has suffered too many losses in the battles fought during this period and urgently needs time to adjust.
Even though the enemy has been temporarily driven back today, the number of casualties suffered by the Faith Order's army is still quite large.
Since this morning, the Faith Order has lost more than 5,000 believers. The Faith Order can only muster about 10,000 troops with the last of its Order Warriors. This is already the Faith Order's all-out effort.
Moreover, these troops are unlikely to continue fighting and must be reorganized, otherwise they will be a bunch of depleted and ineffective troops.
Furthermore, several apostles also did not want to continue fighting, but before surrendering, they at least had to figure out the enemy's purpose.
If the enemy's goal is to eliminate the Faith Order, what is the point of their surrender?
If not, then everything is negotiable, and the Faith Order might very well choose to submit to the other side.
The Faith Order is first and foremost a religious organization, not a political entity, and everything Faith Order is in service of spreading Faith Order ideology.
The apostles did not actually value their own power and status. If they could maintain the existence of the Faith Order or continue to preach, surrendering, even if it meant losing power and status, would not be unacceptable to them.
The reason why the Faith Order did not surrender when it was besieged by Barbarian Tribes was simply that those Barbarian Tribes were unwilling to give the Faith Order a chance to surrender.
After all, the Faith Order had a much stronger appeal and influence on the grasslands than most Barbarian Tribes at the time. It was perfectly normal for the tribal chiefs and leaders who were threatened to want to eliminate the Faith Order it could develop.
The apostles discussed the matter and decided on the terms for negotiation. They then immediately sent messengers to negotiate.
Soon, messengers, carrying the banner of the Faith Order, set off towards the Expeditionary Army's defense zone.
Santos and Mizhene, who were conducting a post-war debriefing, also heard the news that the Faith Order had sent people to negotiate. Mizhene was about to leave, but Santos stopped him.
He said to Mizhene, "If we're going to negotiate with the Faith Order, I think you might be better off here!"
Mizhene hesitated for a moment, while Santos continued, "The Duke sent me here not to completely annihilate the Faith Order."
After all, Keledu had once made a request to the Duke: if the Faith Order was to be destroyed, please spare the life of the 'Venerable Lord,' and if the believers did not resist, please do not slaughter them.
This is something His Excellency the Duke personally promised, and I will obey his orders.
You've seen what's happened these past few days. If those unruly believers hadn't been so uncooperative, the Expeditionary Army might have dealt with them harshly from the start, and you wouldn't have had the chance to appease and manage them.
Mizhene also knew about this, after all, Keledu mentioned it to him in his letter, but he really didn't expect that the Golden Sunflower Family's Expeditionary Army would carry out the Duke Golden Sunflower's orders so well.
Mizhene had never seen an army like this before. Unlike most elite armies, which were full of violence, this army actually restrained its emotions when faced with uncooperative civilians and did not use harsh methods against them.
After listening to Santos's words, Mizhene understood that if he could help the Expeditionary Army end the war more quickly, it would also be a good thing for the believers of the Faith Order, at least most of them would not have to continue to sacrifice.