He thought about it and felt that in order not to leave a bad impression Nuolun the players, he still needed to explain the identity and characteristics of this group to them.
"Ahem, Nuolun, there's something I need to tell you."
"Please speak, Son of God Highness."
"There's no need to be so reserved. I think you've already noticed the difference in the group behind us."
Nuolun nodded and looked at Ed.
"Yes... The reason we came to Blue Gum Town is because two days ago we captured a prisoner with... strange behavior. What she said was half true and half false, so we came here to verify its authenticity."
"I thought she was dead; her body was still in our carriage..."
"But actually, no, right?"
Ed countered with a question, and before Nuolun could answer, he began to explain on his own:
"These people are ancient souls I summoned from... uh, Hall of Heroic Spirits, and resurrected in bodies I created... so abandoning their physical bodies is not death for them."
" Saint?!"
Nuolun blurted out, so shocked that he even forgot Ed was still talking.
Ed blinked thoughtfully, then nodded:
"... They can be considered Saint, but they are not the same as those recorded in the Holy Scripture. After all, there are many of them, and there will be more and more in the future (emphasis). The Holy Scripture only record a minority of people, and the Holy Scripture themselves have been embellished, so they cannot be completely trusted."
"I see."
Nuolun fell into deep thought, while Ed secretly felt a little relieved.
He's not only making excuses for the players' behavior, but also giving Nuolun a heads-up.
Otherwise, once the players' chaotic nature is revealed, this devout Pure Ones will inevitably feel confused.
"Then I continued, because the era they lived in was so far removed from the present, that their language and behavior were different from those of people today."
"You don't need to worry about the language; as long as I'm here, you can communicate without any problems. But as for the behavior... you might need some time to get used to it."
Nuolun nodded in response:
"I understand what you mean. Please rest assured, we are all believers in the Tree God, and I will not hold any prejudice against them."
"Moreover, since these souls, who have slumbered for countless years, are willing to sacrifice themselves once again to return to reality for the peace of this world, what right do we, the later-born believers, have to complain?"
Ed was stunned by these words, and couldn't help but marvel at how religious groups seemed to possess this self-deceptive psychological manipulation effect.
Those in the Eternal Domain might place more emphasis on the class and stability of a Soul Returner when encountering Soul Returner; those in the Graycast Corridor might place more emphasis on the knowledge in the Soul Returner's mind.
Only these devout Tree Worship Church, upon learning the true nature of the Soul Returner, immediately chose to express their gratitude, giving the impression of being sold out while still helping the seller count the money.
Thinking of this, Ed continued to instruct:
"Recently, you may encounter many Soul Returner have returned to their ancestral home, asking you all sorts of questions. If you wish to answer, then do so; if not, simply shoo them away."
As he spoke, Ed plucked a tender green leaf from Little Green branch and handed it to Nuolun:
"Once this leaf merges into your flesh and blood, it will connect you to the Root Network. Later, a sum of money will be transferred to your account. If there is anything that the Soul Returner need to do, you can allocate different amounts according to the urgency and importance of the matter. They will be happy to help us solve these problems."
Hearing this, Nuolun asked in confusion:
Don't the Soul Returner use tree seeds?
Ed shook his head:
"In their time, gold and silver were the mainstream currencies. Tree species were only introduced after the Demonic Tide, so they're not used to them. However, I've set an exchange rate between tree species and currency. Your subordinates will still need some precious metal coins if they want to survive in the Second Holy See..."
Ed suddenly fell silent at this point.
Because he realized something—
Strictly speaking, the players are not professional soldiers in this World of Disorder.
Free-spirited players might be fishing yesterday, fighting on the battlefield today, and then taking their money and leaving to buy houses and land tomorrow.
They were more like the ancient military garrison, farming during busy seasons, training during slack seasons, and going to the battlefield whenever needed.
Therefore, for players, the so-called "military pay" is just a reward for completing tasks, and it is settled entirely by the game system based on the completion rate of tasks and the number of battles.
Therefore, they naturally wouldn't be dissatisfied with the reward, because if the reward didn't meet their expectations, they wouldn't have chosen to accept the task in the first place.
But the situation is completely different for Nuolun.
These five hundred Holy Crusaders are a genuine standing army; even when there is no battle, they can train peacefully at their base.
Such a standing army needs to pay its own monthly salary, and if the salary is delayed for a long time, there may really be armed protests to demand the unpaid wages.
After all, everyone came from the Holy City to start this business with him. Their compensation, even if not increased, should at least be the same as before, right?
As for the belief in the Tree God?
Faith can't put food on the table.
Ed, who possessed knowledge of another world, knew that faith only worked when people were willing to believe.
Perhaps the locals do believe in Tree God, but Ed genuinely feels that faith is unreliable.
After all, if faith were truly reliable, the group of Stained Ones wouldn't exist.
When everyone is starving, if the Tree God can't produce some rice for them, he might be chopped into firewood to burn.
Wow, this has to be so realistic!
Ed felt a pang of heartache at the thought of having another expense each month.
Then he remembered that Seraphina's loan even had interest, which made him even less happy.
At this moment, all he wanted was to get Gray back to the Graycast Corridor as soon as possible, so that the sooner the food trade between the two sides could begin, the sooner the Second Holy See could achieve real revenue.
Damn it, why did I only think of standing armies now? This is the second time I've encountered the Holy Crusaders.
Ed suddenly understood the reason --
Motley's men are still undergoing labor reform, so of course they don't get paid.
However, the Pure Ones in the Motley Knights should be able to complete their labor reform after some time, and then they can all be assigned to Nuolun for training.
In that case, military spending will have to be increased again...
" My Son of God, are you alright?"
Nuolun noticed the conflicted expression on Ed's face and asked, somewhat puzzled.
"It's nothing, I was just thinking about some things. Anyway, the Fourteenth Knights ' salaries will be paid monthly, and it will be about a 20% increase compared to when we were in the Holy City."
"But the Holy City is all based on tree species..."
"Yes, I will convert it into currency and distribute it to the soldiers. We can discuss the exchange rate later."