Centurion.

He has now started afresh, and the woman was someone he specifically recruited. The woman has lost her authority, which, in a sense, will also affect his authority within the team.

So after a moment of silence, he slowly spoke.

"Is there any other way?"

He wanted the woman to demonstrate something to convince others...

"I have two options..."

The woman understood the other person's thoughts and their current predicament, so she didn't refuse their question. She simply shook her head slightly and continued speaking.

"To be honest, I still don't understand what you're all struggling with right now."

"Since you came out of that so-called Kazdel Royal City, wasn't your purpose to break free from the influence of that demon king of Kazdel and thus develop on your own initiative?"

"You need a complete business system to provide funding, a stable support system to provide resources, and a strong fortress... Kazdel is no longer related to you."

The woman shook her head slightly, then slowly sat up straight.

"What you need to do now is build... develop..."

She raised her head, glanced around the scene, and then spoke.

"Now, select your core team members, and then disband the rest..."

"Leverage your strengths; those with good physical abilities should cultivate arable land and make it the most basic source of supplies."

"Of course, that's a later-stage issue. Right now, you're already having problems with just operations."

"As for your current funding problem... go and unite with neighboring countries."

"I've heard of your infamous reputation, and I know that the Sarkaz are disliked in this world... Your Demon Lord has always wanted to change that, but these are things we can use now."

As she spoke, the woman stood up, drew her ceremonial staff, and pointed to the map.

This is the border region of Kazdel, bordering at least three countries and seven medium-sized cities.

"I've looked into some of the policies and systems of these countries... One very interesting point is that these countries all have a rather unique regulation."

"They provide a substantial amount of funding every year to invest here in border defense."

"The leaders in these places did indeed do that, but... that's where the problem lies."

"If the countries behind them realize that a location in Sarkaz hasn't been attacked for a long time, then they will cut off this funding."

"However, if the attacks become too frequent, the rear will send people to replace the leader here, in order to prevent a large-scale war from breaking out at any time..."

Do you know what this means?

The woman raised her head and looked at the people present.

Seeing the slightly bewildered look in these people's eyes, she sighed helplessly.

These people clearly possessed physical abilities far beyond their time, but because of this, they often forgot about strategic planning.

So she gave up on playing games and just spoke directly.

"Send someone directly over there to discuss it with them."

"Among these people, there are definitely opportunists who will embezzle some of the funds sent to them... You can directly cooperate with them and send troops to harass them every now and then."

"Maintain a state of tension in the rear, but not to the point of full-scale war... As for the approved funds, you can discuss and divide them yourselves..."

The woman spoke, taking a slight step back.

She had many plans in mind, but at this moment, this was the most relaxed one.

The people around them also frowned after hearing this.

The woman's method does sound quite credible, but the problems are also obvious.

Even if it's just harassment, they have to send troops... and inevitably some of their compatriots will die because of it.

Their actions will inevitably be questioned by Theresa from behind. After several rounds of questioning, Theresis's identity will remain unchanged, but they will be in trouble.

And then there's the most crucial point... will the enemy really trust the Sarkaz?

In a short time, numerous problems arose.

But the woman made no attempt to explain.

She's already given us the simplest and most direct method... As for a faster way... well, the only option is to lead an army to plunder.

Theresis certainly didn't want things to come to that.

Whether Theresis would choose the method she offered, the woman neither knew nor cared.

She simply offered a choice...

And just as everyone was silently watching Theresis, he slowly exhaled a breath of stale air...

"I see..."

363

Chapter 363 Centurion.

"We've arrived..."

Outside the city, on the plains, a group of people dressed in tattered red robes were collectively gazing up at the distant city... The city was not wealthy, but its menacing appearance was particularly striking. Its dark exterior was filled with a terrifying sense of oppression, so much so that everyone who saw the scene couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts.

After all, this was a fortress built on the border of Kazdel, specifically to defend against enemies.

But these people didn't show much fear; they just watched with excitement, their eyes gleaming.

A moment later, the figure in the lead turned around and looked at his compatriots behind him.

"The great Lord has revealed the secret; the glorious future of the Sarkaz is in our hands!"

He whispered, as if in prayer, or perhaps in encouragement.

His face was shrouded in darkness, but his cold, greedy eyes appeared particularly ferocious.

On its body surface, worms vaguely flickered...

In the sky, the clouds gradually obscured the moonlight.

"We're leaving..."

Outside the village, just after the carpenters had repaired the two-person carriage, Maria told everyone that they were leaving.

This surprised the group of Caster, but they could understand it.

After all, Maria arrived here in the first place to get the car repaired, right?

Once the problem is fixed, it's time to leave.

Only...

"Won't you stay a few more days? We haven't properly thanked you yet."

The old man spoke, his words tinged with a sigh.

After dealing with the fanatics that day, Maria returned and told everyone that they no longer needed to worry about enemy attacks.

She has already dealt with it all.

At first, everyone found it hard to believe, but as time went by, and for several days in a row, neither they nor the neighboring villages were attacked... This made them realize that Maria had truly single-handedly taken care of all the enemies!

This filled them with excitement and gratitude towards Maria.

Some Caster even considered Maria as 'family'.

They desperately wanted Maria to stay.

Among this group of people, the elderly are considered to be among the more lucid ones.

He knew that Maria was ultimately not one of them, and that her departure was only a matter of time.

So, after a few moments of silence, he sighed and shook his head.

"No need... we have other things to do."

Maria calmly gave her answer, her expression unchanged.

After a moment of reflection, the old man tightened the wooden wheel a little more, then looked at Maria in front of him.

"In that case, we won't stop you... When do you plan to leave?"

"... Now."

Maria reached out and lifted the lithe Doctor like a cat, placing him on the car seat before getting in herself.

Matters concerning Great Beast, Great Ones, Gordan have always been her top priorities.

She doesn't waste too much time on interpersonal relationships.

"Now?"

Although the old man was somewhat prepared, he was still surprised to hear that the other party was leaving now.

What could possibly be causing them such a rush?

After a moment's thought, the old man nodded seriously.

"I understand... Then you can set off. We'll remind the surrounding villages so they can offer some assistance if you encounter any unexpected problems."

"Thanks."

Maria nodded, and then said nothing more.

With a gentle flick of the whip, the obedient beast began to slowly walk into the distance.

At that moment, the Doctor noticed two little girls among the crowd seeing them off in the distance.

One is Tessi, whom Maria saved; the other is Luya, a little girl Maria rescued from the group of fanatics.

Although everyone else felt reluctant to part, there was something else in the eyes of these two girls.

This surprised the Doctor, who also looked at Maria with curiosity.

"You're such a heartthrob..."

The Doctor spoke with a hint of sarcasm in his words.

Maria shook her head.

"It's just because I saved them... In a few years, they'll forget me."

"... perhaps?"

The Doctor's lips curled into a slight smile. "Perhaps they'll remember you for the rest of their lives?"

"After all, meeting such a handsome, mysterious, and powerful older sister when you're young, it's hard to say whether they'll remember you for a long time."

"... That's not important either."

Maria blinked, her eyes fixed on the distance. "Anyway, we don't have many chances of seeing each other again..."

Even if we do meet, the matters we need to deal with won't overlap...

Maria spoke calmly, while the Doctor beside her smiled.

"... Yeah."

Maria remained silent as she continued driving.

Little by little, slowly moving forward in the direction where the sun sets...

More than a month passed quickly.

During this time, Maria dedicated herself to destroying the strongholds of those fanatics.

What troubled Maria was that the other side's arrangements were very meticulous... At least so far, Maria had not been able to find their true core leader; most of them were just a group of henchmen.

These low-level thugs couldn't provide any useful information... Their minds had been completely corrupted; even when faced with the threat of death, they could still laugh arrogantly.

Its frenzied behavior was terrifying.

Fortunately, as Maria became more and more skilled at stealing memories, she managed to catch her opponent making some mistakes.

The reason Maria came to this border city was because Maria knew that this was their next destination.