War Declared

Most people believed the Pope had attended the funeral.

But only a few knew that the person who had actually arrived was not the Pope himself, but the "Papal Envoy."

As the leader of all the Mosa Followers, the Pope was both the most revered person on the entire continent and the busiest. Naturally, he could not attend everything in person.

Thus, the system of "Papal Envoys" came into existence. Whenever an important ceremonial matter arose and the Pope was unable to attend, he would authorize an envoy—usually a Cardinal—to attend the ceremony in his own likeness.

An envoy authorized by the Pope was ceremonially identical to the Pope himself and would also refer to himself as the Pope.

Of course, they were identical only in ceremonial terms.

As Mosa's representative in the mortal world and the successor to the first Pope, Saint Roden, the Pope could never truly be replaced by someone else.

Therefore, envoys who used magic to assume the Pope's appearance would all have a gray triangle on the back of their right hand, distinguishing them from the Pope himself.

Anyone familiar with the situation would know that the person who had arrived was an envoy rather than the real Pope upon seeing the gray triangle.

At that very moment, "Pope Fangfro VII," who had appeared at the Earl's funeral, had such a gray triangle on the back of his right hand, and it was extremely conspicuous.

In fact, by ordinary standards, the funeral of an Earl was not worthy of the Church's attention. Forget the Pope or a Papal Envoy—even the arrival of a Cardinal would have been considered a great honor.

It was only because Earl Presto had been on good terms with the Pope during his lifetime that the funeral received such an honor.

Funerals were always tedious affairs, and noble funerals especially so. Today's ceremony was merely the "condolence" stage.

After this came the funeral procession. A convoy made up of family members, attendants, priests, and others would carry the Earl's coffin through the streets while distributing gifts to churches and the poor along the way. Then came the requiem ceremony, and only afterward would the burial take place.

Everything proceeded according to the established order.

Until a discordant voice rang out.

"The old Earl has ascended to heaven. I would like to know who will become the next Earl Presto?" The speaker was a burly, bald man seated at the edge of the nobles' section. He was clearly only a minor noble, but his tone was utterly unapologetic.

Although a funeral was a solemn ceremony, those words still caused the atmosphere at the scene to freeze.

Lena's expression stiffened for about a second before she said, "The next Earl Presto will be decided by the Pope's proclamation."

"Decided?" The other man gave a cold laugh. "The succession of a noble title is clearly determined by The Datuk Act. The Pope's proclamation merely confirms it!"

He continued, "Lady Lena, I believe you should know that The Datuk Act was revealed by Mosa and formulated by Nadu VIII. It is a law that has been in effect for a thousand years!"

Lena's face turned somewhat pale.

Clearly, whether from a legal or doctrinal standpoint, there was nothing wrong with what he had said.

The Datuk Act laid out the rules for noble succession in detail and had been recognized by the Church and nearly all Mosaism nations. Whether King or Pope, no one could bypass the act to appoint a noble's successor.

According to this act, there was only one possible candidate for the next Earl Presto: Viscount Yuris, who should have attended the funeral but had neither been invited nor come of his own accord.

This was something Lena and the old Earl had not wanted to see.

Fortunately, they were not the only ones who did not want to see Yuris become the Earl. The Pope himself was among them.

Naturally, the Papal Envoy was as well.

"The Church will determine the next Earl Presto in accordance with the law and doctrine," the Papal Envoy said. His face and voice both belonged to the real Pope Fangfro VII—a white-haired old man with a kindly appearance and voice.

Even the bald man did not dare act too arrogantly before the Papal Envoy.

He first bowed, then said, "Holy See, may I ask whether Viscount Yuris will become the new Earl Presto? According to The Datuk Act, he is the only qualified heir."

The Papal Envoy did not answer. Instead, he said, "After the funeral ends, you will see the result in my proclamation."

The funeral would take at least several days to conclude completely. If it was delayed, it could even take several months.

Upon hearing this reply, the bald man's courtesy toward the Papal Envoy faded considerably. "My lord Bishop, as far as I know, the heir is determined on the very day a noble dies!"

Papal Envoy: "But the coronation ceremony takes place after the funeral ends. Until the coronation is complete, the succession is not complete. This is also stated in The Datuk Act. I believe you know that, Baron Terosos."

Baron Terosos froze for a moment, then became even more impolite. "Are you planning to promulgate a new law during this period?"

The Papal Envoy frowned, and a trace of dignity appeared on Fangfro VII's kindly face. "That is the responsibility of me and the College of Cardinals. It is not a matter you need to concern yourself with."

Baron Terosos: "I believe the College of Cardinals will not profane Mosa's laws. Viscount Yuris is unquestionably the heir to the title. In three days, he will come to take possession of his country!"

"Of course, I also believe in the Holy See," he added, displaying what little respect he had left.

He then left the condolence ceremony without another word.

The entire venue fell silent.

After a moment, the condolences continued as though nothing had happened.

But in sharp contrast to the surface calm at the condolence ceremony, Presto Fortress was seething with activity.

With Baron Terosos's declaration—or rather, his "declaration of war"—no one held on to any remaining hope of avoiding conflict. Those who should avoid the war did so, those who should prepare for war made preparations, and those who sought to profit from the chaos began doing so.

The Gray Hawk Mercenary Group was no exception.

Following the arrangements made by their superiors, all the Gray Eagle Mercenaries hurried to their defensive positions, carrying out final familiarization drills and exercises while guarding against the approaching army of Yuris.

Gagnor also climbed onto the walls and stood at a high point, gazing into the distance. Several rookie teammates stood beside him.

Most of the guards on the walls were rookies or archers. The true elites were stationed below the walls, a disposition determined by the warfare system of Falaro's world.

Gagnor had heard about Falaro's unique warfare system long ago, but he had always lacked a direct understanding of it.

Fortunately, it would not be long before he could understand how wars were actually fought in this supernatural world. He was filled with curiosity and even a little anticipation.

"Huh? Why is the castle glowing?" a young rookie mercenary said in surprise, pointing toward Presto Castle in the distance.

The guards all turned to look.

On the upper part of the castle, a dazzling multicolored radiance suddenly lit up. It then spread rapidly along the walls, soon forming a huge curtain of light. After expanding once more, it enclosed the entirety of Presto Fortress.

"It's a defensive magic formation!"