The Lich of Glory Knight Spirit: Moving towards Krimasha!
Chapter 93 - 25: Guardian of Justice (3) (Second Update)

Chapter 93: Chapter 25: Guardian of Justice (3) (Second Update)

In the thirty-sixth hour of battle, Duke Fernandes fell. This was undoubtedly the worst possible news for Benedict II.

He had to face the Silver Moon Knight Order alone, with no chance of even a brief respite for one or two hours. Meanwhile, upon hearing the news of Duke Fernandes’s downfall, Duke Tangjis, Fernandes’s close ally, would also be unable to appear around Lion King City for the foreseeable future.

The moment of failure was already approaching him, measured in hours.

Thus, in the fortieth hour of battle, Benedict II resolutely made a decision—retreat.

He reluctantly abandoned part of his forces, including the wounded, rearranged his formation, and endured the relentless pursuit from the Silver Moon Knight Order, heading east. Finally, by the fifty-second hour of battle, he reached an eastern town, taking over the castle and its surrounding defensive facilities. From there, he began a defensive standoff against Gray.

Of course, failure still awaited him, though he might be able to hold out a little longer. Although the presence of the castle prevented Gray’s Silver Moon Knight Order from fully leveraging their mobility as they would in open battles, food became Benedict II’s major problem.

The castle, originally designed to accommodate only one thousand soldiers, turned unbearable with ten thousand soldiers squeezed inside. Including the provisions already stored in the castle, the food he had on hand could sustain his remaining army of ten thousand men for less than a week. After that, he faced three possible outcomes: venturing out of the castle to be harassed incessantly by Gray’s Silver Moon Knight Order until his forces collapsed entirely, starvation within the castle, or a mutiny driven by hunger.

Meanwhile, Yilin had already begun to gather the soldiers fleeing from him and Duke Fernandes.

This was, undoubtedly, a nightmare. And Gray was the nightmare incarnate.

"I must hold on. I refuse to believe it—the old men in the Church will tolerate his behavior!" Benedict II spat bitterly.

...

Meanwhile, the news from Lion King City was spreading across the entire continent like snowflakes.

If Gray’s emergence as a Holy Knight during the White City battle had marked his debut on the stage of history primarily as a symbol of religion, then this time, the cavalry raids on Lion King City had undoubtedly added a layer of lordship to his reputation. The continent’s nobility could no longer ignore this Holy Knight proclaiming justice, nor the indomitable Silver Moon Knight Order under his command.

Suffice it to say, everyone who saw this news was left utterly astounded. Among them, none were more shocked than the King of Allen, Barnett III, and the Church.

...

"What is going on here? You told me he hadn’t received the authority of the Holy Spirit! Now explain this to me! What is happening?" Barnett III shouted furiously at the military chaplain, clutching a handful of newly delivered encrypted letters. "Are you telling me this is his true power?"

The chaplain stammered, "Perhaps, Your Majesty, I mean perhaps this is truly his natural combat capability..."

"So, the true combat capability of the entire Silver Moon Knight Order is also like this?" Barnett III’s eyes widened as he pulled out letter after letter and slammed them in the chaplain’s face. "Never tiring! Needing no food! Not even requiring water! Fighting continuously for twenty-four hours! Healing instantly even from severe injuries! You tell me—this insane battle prowess isn’t granted by the Holy Spirit? Where else could it come from?"

The chaplain, struck dumb and squinting from the blows, could only stand there, dazed.

Finally, Barnett III stepped back, gasping, and said, "I’m giving you one last chance. Go investigate immediately and give me a satisfactory answer. Or else—you know the consequences of angering a king!"

"Y-yes... yes!"

...

The Church.

In the solemn and sacred hall, the cardinals of the Cardinal Court had once again gathered, their expressions notably grim.

At the center of the room, the Holy Father, dressed in a white robe embroidered with gold, kept his eyes shut tightly.

A cleric walked in from outside, hunched over with a letter in his hands, which bore a red wax seal.

"Holy Father, this is an urgent dispatch from the Bishop of Allen Kingdom."

"Give it a look," the Holy Father replied without opening his eyes.

"Understood." A nearby cardinal took the letter from the cleric, opened it, and lowered his eyes to scan its contents. His face immediately took on an awkward expression.

"What does it say?" the Holy Father asked softly.

"King Barnett III of Allen Kingdom is furious. He has developed a sense of distrust toward us. He is questioning us and demanding that we explain the recent battles in Lion King City. Until he receives our response, he will suspend advancing his forces."

As he spoke, the cardinal handed the letter to the other cardinals, allowing them to read it one by one.

Instantly, the cardinals began discussing the matter with grim expressions.

"It seems the situation is far worse than we anticipated."

"If the Holy Spirit hasn’t bestowed him power, then where does his strength come from? Has he fallen and made a pact with the devil?"

"Impossible. If he had made a pact with the devil, we would surely receive a divine warning from the Holy Spirit."

"This situation is even worse than if he had fallen. If he had fallen, we could proclaim him a heretic and launch a Holy War against him. But if he hasn’t fallen, it means we can do nothing at all."

The Holy Father remained silent, his eyes still closed, quietly listening.

"What should we do, then? If we take no action, we might face the worst possible outcome. That would be if he defeats the lords opposing him and turns Isaac into a complete theocracy. And we... we, due to our prior relationship, would be unable to intervene. The continent would see the rise of a new force representing the Holy Spirit apart from the Church, and we’d be forced to recognize it as legitimate."

"A single uncontrollable Holy Knight is already bad enough. But an uncontrollable theocracy... I believe this would be the greatest crisis the Church has faced in thousands of years."

All the cardinals turned their eyes toward the Holy Father, hoping for guidance. Yet, the Holy Father remained silent, his eyes still closed, merely listening.

The hall fell quiet.

After a long while, someone spoke softly, "Our ignorance about him is the crux of the matter. We never anticipated that he could possess enough power to challenge other lords without divine aid. This has made us miss the opportunity to stand by his side from the beginning. Now, we must reevaluate this situation. Perhaps we should send someone to attempt contact with him again, mediating to help him resolve his crisis. This way, at least we could avoid losing all influence if he does succeed in establishing a theocracy."

"But if we intervene, how will we account for this to the kings and lords?" someone else objected. "His victory and establishment of a theocracy are merely potential outcomes. If we now show support or assist in mediation, how will the remaining twenty-two royal families view us? Three thousand years ago, when we tried to establish an absolute theocracy, the backlash was immense, reducing our influence on the continent to its lowest point. Every monarchy remains highly sensitive about the idea of a theocracy. Noninterference with their rule has always been a tacit understanding between us and them. Are we prepared to repeat the mistakes of three thousand years ago?"

"It’s not about interfering with their rule. We only need to obscure our stance on this matter. If Holy Knight Gray does emerge victorious and establishes a theocracy, we shouldn’t completely lose control over this new state."

"But the monarchies won’t see it that way. As long as we show even a hint of support, they’ll assume we’re colluding with the Holy Knight behind the scenes, preparing to threaten their rule."

"If we intervene in Isaac’s affairs after he establishes a theocracy, won’t it be the same? The monarchies will still believe we’ve sided with the Holy Knight from the outset, suspecting that it was all a conspiracy between us and Gray. How should we respond then? Abandon control over Isaac’s Church altogether or face a continent-wide crisis of faith?"

"In reality, even if we were willing to relinquish control of Isaac’s Church, it would still result in a severe faith crisis. There’s no doubt about that. At that point, two forces representing the Holy Spirit will exist on the continent, and believers will start questioning whom they should truly trust..."

The hall fell into silence once again.

It was an extraordinarily grim situation, and every cardinal present understood its gravity.

If Gray succeeded in founding a theocracy, they would only face two scenarios. One: they became involved in this theocracy, jeopardizing the Church’s relationship with every monarchy and noble family on the continent besides Isaac. This would trigger a continent-wide crisis of faith. Two: they refrained from involvement in this theocracy. As a result, two forces representing the Holy Spirit would coexist, and should Gray leverage his military success to demand allegiance from regional churches, a similar crisis of faith would arise.

This was an impossible choice.

Silence enveloped them; prolonged silence. Every cardinal could only look toward the Holy Father.

Finally, the Holy Father slowly opened his eyes and asked softly, "Do we have anyone who has ties with Holy Knight Gray? Someone who can at least make contact with him?"

Someone replied, "There is one, I believe—Dean. Previously a priest at White City Church, though he has since been reassigned to Lion King City by Anthony III."

"Promote Anthony III to Cardinal and admit him to the Cardinal Court. Promote Dean to the new Bishop of Isaac and have him establish contact with Holy Knight Gray. Our understanding of him is still far too limited. Also, summon Grand Master Andrew."

"As you command." A cleric standing nearby respectfully made the sign of the cross on his chest and exited the hall.

Looking around at the gathered cardinals, the Holy Father said softly, "If the establishment of a theocracy will place us in an utterly impossible dilemma where no option leads to a good outcome, then make sure it never happens, no matter what."

The cardinals all lowered their heads silently and made a reverent bow.

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