The Beginning of White Flower Territory

"Hello, would you like to learn more about our great Lord?"

A guard turned around in surprise, somewhat unprepared for someone to say these words to him.

When he saw the person who spoke, the scene before him made him scratch his head in surprise.

Those outsiders whom the lord had instructed him not to neglect were looking at him with smiles on their faces.

This left him somewhat bewildered.

Normally, this behavior would be considered spreading a cult.

According to the traditions passed down in Antir since the founding of their nation, this kind of proselytizing without naming Deity deity is definitely a cult.

If you worship Deity like the Goddess of Ocean Currents or the Elephant of Mountains, then when others proselytize, they will directly state the Deity's name, instead of being so vague.

Although he had only encountered this kind of cult twice during his ten years as a guard in White Flower Territory, each time it left a deep impression on him.

If it were before, he probably would have kicked the person, dragged them to jail, found out the details, and then put them on the gallows...

But it's clear that if he really dared to do that now, then he could try it now, since he wasn't labeled a vagrant when Theodore set things right.

The guard swallowed hard; he knew how much the lord valued these people and what their background was.

If only the lord values the other party, then maintaining respect is sufficient. However, if the other party also has connections within the Alliance, then things become more complicated.

"Um... that..."

The guard racked his brains, but ultimately couldn't come up with any solution.

Looking at the other person's undeniable smile, he reluctantly agreed.

"Then... how should I understand...?"

Then the person in front of him immediately grabbed his hand and bombarded him with a barrage of words, making him feel extremely embarrassed.

Finley and Fran were walking down the street when Finley saw what was happening before him, and he couldn't help but frown.

One of his guards stood at the door, his hands gripped by those brought by Fran, listening stiffly to their words.

And after hearing what that person said, Finley's brow furrowed even more.

"Our great Lord will give us bread and water..."

"The first ray of sunlight each morning heralds the arrival of our Lord..."

"Those who do not believe will..."

Even if Finley was slow on the uptake, after hearing these words he understood the contents of Fran's 'experiment', and he glanced at her sideways.

Fran's face remained calm as she met Finley's gaze with her eyes.

Finley clenched his fist and then released it.

"Lord Lai, is this part of your experiment?"

Finley looked up at Fran and asked.

Fran nodded slightly, her lips parting.

"That's right, this is the experiment I'm here to investigate, but I've only just arrived and haven't had time to prepare yet..."

Finley, completely unconcerned about how Fran intended to conduct the experiment, asked somewhat cautiously.

"Your Excellency, could you please refrain from harming my subordinates? I will make arrangements immediately..."

"As you know, my men can't withstand such methods, and finding suitable replacements isn't easy for me right now."

Finley's words were very tactful; he looked at the guard whose hand had been grabbed, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

"Methods?..." A hint of doubt rose in Fran's eyes, then she seemed to understand something and slowly said.

"I think you've misunderstood. My man didn't use those 'methods' you're talking about. He simply sincerely drew a stranger into a faith."

Fran blinked. Before coming to White Flower Territory, she had consulted a lot of materials, including information related to religion.

While some religions possess extraordinary powers, many others exist that rely solely on deception and lack any such power.

The latter are collectively referred to as cults and are a scourge on the mainland; of course, the former are similarly problematic for many other forces.

However, overall, the latter is far more harmful.

Many cults started by using a magical powder—made from crushed special herbs—that could cause people to become mentally unstable, almost lose their self-awareness, and blindly obey others' orders.

This is just one example; in this world with supernatural powers, there are countless cheap and effective methods.

The cults Finley encountered were utterly depraved. Even though Finley, as a knight, usually looked down on commoners, he couldn't help but feel angry when he saw what those cults did.

When he saw what Fran's men were doing, he instinctively wondered if Fran was going to do the same thing.

Even knowing what Fran might do, he could only save his own men for now...

"Huh? Then..." Finley narrowed his eyes, finally seeing the truth of the matter.

He initially thought the guard might have been drugged and that the other party was implanting certain words into the guard's mind.

But when he looked closer, he saw the guard's eyes darting around in embarrassment.

This is not an external characteristic that indicates a loss of self-awareness.

Fran smiled, and then she continued.

"I could certainly use those cult methods, but..."

She looked at Finley and then spoke, word by word.

"Who says I can't use the methods of those Sect that have Deity?"

Finley swallowed hard, the complex emotions in his eyes vanishing, replaced by astonishment at the mage. He finally understood the true nature of the mage's experiment.

The good news is that it doesn't seem to have a significant impact on his White Flower Territory, and he can continue to trade with a clear conscience.

The bad news is, he always felt something was off.

Those Priest Deity to the common people to worship their Deity, surely a mage could use his own methods to experiment with that?

That being said, Finley was still impressed by the audacity of the mage before him; if it were him, he certainly wouldn't have dared to do such things.

After all, who knows if doing that would lead to a united attack from other Sect sects?

The behavior itself is not wrong, but it may attract a lot of criticism for its mistake later.

Fran turned her gaze to the person in front of her and looked at the Priest who was preaching to the guards.

"If he truly changes his faith and follows the great Lord, I don't think anyone would object; it's his own personal decision."

Finley shook his head, clearing his mind of all worries. This wasn't the time to dwell on things so far ahead; he needed to think about what to do next.

He must seize this opportunity now, otherwise what has happened on Antir's side alone will be enough to kill him.

After calming himself down slightly, Finley straightened his expression and then slowly spoke.

"Then, Venerable Master, is there anything else you need?"

"Some."

Fran blinked, then continued.

"I also need a group of strong and healthy people. They don't need to be literate, just obedient and hardworking."

Although Finley was somewhat Fran about what Fran was up to, he didn't ask anything. After thinking for a moment, he said...

"Then, Your Excellency, may I bring you 100 people?"

Fran nodded, then smiled and said.

"That's enough. Go back and find that man named Brian under my command. He'll arrange what to do with these people."

"Is there anything else you need, Master?"

"No need," Fran said, wringing her hands on her clothes.

"That's enough for now. If there's nothing else, don't contact me."

"OK."

Finley glanced one last time at the guard's lifeless face, sighed softly, and walked away.

"Anna." Fran entered the house that Finley had prepared for her. Anna was holding a long-barreled weapon.

When she saw Fran enter, she quickly moved closer and asked Fran.

"Fran, you've finally arrived. You still haven't told me what this is? I pressed this button but nothing happened..."

Anna pointed to a groove-like part on the Spear, pressed her finger on it, making a clicking sound, but nothing happened after that.

"This thing isn't for you; it's for people who aren't even Profession."

Fran explained, then took the weapon from Anna.

"When I gave you this weapon, I forgot to mention that this is how it's actually used. Of course, I doubt you'll ever need it."

Fran pulled a piece of paper, which looked like it was engraved with inscriptions, from a groove on the long tube, covered the back half of the tube, and then continued.

"When using it, you not only have to pull this thing out, but this is the energy source I've provided..."

This is Wind Element Jet Scroll Fran made using some low-grade materials, based on the principles of Magic Scroll.

With the right ingredients, one hundred of these scroll Fran can be made in an hour.

Of course, she'll have to spend some time working on the main body of this gun.

She isn't switching the power source to gunpowder right now simply because the raw materials are hard to find, so she has to use magical items as a temporary substitute.

Fran pointed the gun barrel at the wall and then pressed the button.

After a crisp click, a loud bang came from the gun barrel.

A loud "bang!" startled Anna. She immediately used her powerful physique as First Order Profession to look at the spot where the flying black shadow had struck.

A brown object, as if flattened, was embedded in a hole that had suddenly appeared in the wall.

Anna scratched her head and then said:

"This weapon is indeed quite powerful, but there's only one... It would be truly formidable if there were many..."

Fran responded with her usual smile.

All that could be heard was Fran speaking slowly:

"There will be many more later, I'm just demonstrating for you now."

"And it will be here soon... Now you can start taking your men to capture that mine."