When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist
Chapter 78 - 77: Journey, Start!

Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Journey, Start!

Lying in the bedroom, Horn is somewhat absent-minded.

Horn has slept in this room for about a month now.

Honestly, he is quite familiar with it, the cross windows, the vine pattern carpet on the floor, the walnut chairs and desk.

It was here he planned the famous gate seizure, and it was here he was welcomed to assume the papacy.

This small room has witnessed too many crucial moments of the Pope Country, filled with the long and heavy history of the Pope Country.

"Papa, are we really leaving?" Jia Li rubbed her head against Horn’s arm.

This time Horn did not withdraw his arm, but gently stroked Jia Li’s slender white hair: "Yes."

"I kind of miss this place, when can we come back?"

"I don’t know, maybe we will never come back again."

Yes, after completing this arduous 500-mile journey, they will reach Duke Kush Danai’s territory.

There, he might seek a position under the duke, or hide in Black Snake Bay for another two years, or directly seek refuge in Norn.

This small monastery will fall back into the hands of the Church, the only difference might be, might be...

No, there will not be any difference.

Before Horn could withdraw from his memories, the bedroom door slammed open.

"Jeanne, why are you coming here so late?"

Regardless, Jeanne directly lay beside Horn, covering herself with a small blanket and turning her back toward Horn.

"I’m sleeping here to leave together tomorrow."

Isn’t your bedroom just a few steps away next to mine?

Horn turned his head and saw under the moonlight, Jeanne’s petite ears peeking out from her black hair.

The ear with fine hairs was now tinged with a clear blush.

Horn reached out his hand and stroked her ear.

The pale pink capillaries instantly flared up like a bright red.

Horn laughed.

However, upon noticing Jeanne’s hair showing signs of faintly turning golden, Horn’s smile faded.

He hurriedly retracted his hand.

Coughing lightly, Horn asked seriously, "How is the production of my mountain copper bow going?"

"The bow arm has been made. If Sister Qianqian hadn’t brought an entire twenty pounds of mountain copper for sale, this big bow might not have been made."

Mountain copper is named mountain copper only because its appearance resembles red copper, but its essence is steel, also known as Oliha Steel.

Due to its special nature, mountain copper can only be cast, but not forged.

Does this match your expertise now?

"Jeanne, we are leaving tomorrow, are you afraid?"

"Not afraid, as long as you are by my side, I won’t be afraid."

But after this journey, I will leave you, Jeanne. When that time comes, where will you go?

"Do you want to follow me all the way?"

"It is only right to follow you because you are my brother..." Jeanne half-turned her body, lifted her head, and suddenly said loudly, "...and my fiancé!"

"Hmph." Jia Li gave a cold snort, "Yours?"

"Alright, I’m tired. Don’t talk anymore and disturb my sleep." Horn hurriedly stretched his legs, and directly closed his eyes.

The next day, October 2nd, 1444 in the Imperial Calendar, at the hillside where Horn once fought a shocking battle with Durdafer.

In the distant mountains, the tip of the red sun secretly emerged.

Black-hooded cloaks formed clusters of black fog, with various miscellaneous items tied to ragged straps.

Patches of patched bags danced in the wind, with many villagers carrying large bags and holding broken ceramic bowls used for meals.

Since this section is all uphill, to save effort, everyone has taken a stick to support themselves.

When standing in front of this group of people, holding the Pope’s Staff, Horn touched the four cloth bags at his waist, and his boldness and momentum instantly dissipated.

"Jeska, Busak, are all the arrangements made?"

"All arrangements are made, Your Eminence."

Following Jeska’s suggestion, Horn split the national army into two teams, front and back.

After all, the road is so narrow, they definitely can’t walk through it in a large formation with 1,200 people.

Leading the front of each team was a division of the Imperial Guard, three brigades lined up in three straight lines, walking at the forefront, following behind Jeanne carrying the Holy Grail banner.

On both sides and at the end, there were two brigades of the Black Hat Army each, responsible for covering and rearguard duties.

Additionally, there were Child Soldiers, Cheka, some villagers, and the Imperial Guard responsible for reconnaissance and gathering along the route.

The rest journeyed along with the chariots.

Inside the chariots were all the supplies for this long journey, including nearly 2,000 gallons of grain and dried fish and meat, 800 yards of coarse wool fabric, 400 yards of fine wool fabric, 500 pounds of salt, 600 pounds of iron ingots, 150 pounds of refined iron, and various dyes and medicinal herbs weighing 150 pounds.

There were also many livestock such as chickens, pigs, and sheep driven along on either side of the carts.

These ten chariots had already been modified into armored chariots based on Jeska’s suggestion.

The main modification point was the addition of detachable high-fiber composite strong armor on one side of the cart bed—made of leather and oak boards.

It’s essential to know that both the first 150 miles of mountain roads and the latter 300 miles of forest and swamp roads abound with danger.

Traveling through the forest, one might be attacked by giant spiders, while crossing the swamp, one could face attacks from local savages and Beastmen.

Whether on forest roads or swamp roads, magic creatures would launch attacks.

On this journey, Horn decided to adopt the cart trench tactic.

When danger arises, encircling the carts can turn them into a small fortress.

Furthermore, mixing family members and soldiers while marching greatly affects combat effectiveness.

Therefore, Horn specifically implemented a military and civilian separation system.

He divided the entire Pope Country into male and female camps, although the female camp was not composed entirely of women.

The female camp was the family camp, mainly comprising the elderly, women, children, and men who couldn’t join the battle.

During the march, unless major changes arose, interactions were not allowed except during dinner.

For family matters, one could apply to the brigade commander, but couldn’t apply twice within five days.

When the entire 1,182 members of the Pope Country formed a parade stretching a full 30,000 centimeters,

the shock of this scene could only be truly felt when standing before them.

When the first ray of morning sunlight fell on Horn’s face, he couldn’t think of anything that could further boost the morale of these high-spirited nationals.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let’s set off!"

With Horn’s command, heads swirled, and nearly 1,200 villagers leaned on canes, drove the carts, and staggered forward under the guidance of the scouts.

Despite the recent blazing sun, although the dirt road still had muddy sections, it was no longer as difficult to traverse as before.

Some small roads and bridges had gradually been repaired by nearby villagers or minor land-owning nobles.

Looking afar, the bald yellow mountains recovered from the flood, and the azure hills absorbed the nutrients brought by the flood, becoming even more lush.

White irises swayed on the banks of the Honey River, and circling nightingales reflected in the water, seemingly swimming through the sky.

"Eighty acres of good land, and a gentle good in-laws..."

The villagers walked with messy steps, leaning on canes and dragging their feet.

Sometimes, they sang the Celestial Kingdom’s dream songs and at times, songs of gratitude.

The singing echoed, occasionally stirring a few shadowy figures from the undulating hills on either side.

But upon witnessing Horn’s orderly formation and the daunting number of personnel and weapons, they mostly retreated.

Even the Robber Knights who thrived on plunder would avoid upon seeing Horn’s display of Banifus’s banner.

Some vagrants and rural refugees even tried to join them, but Horn did not accept them.

Instead, the monks like Armand from the Truth Department would give them some potato roots and teach them how to wash them.

The army of the Pope Country moved on, but they left behind the eating method of potato roots, anecdotes from the Holy Seat Church, and the haunting Celestial Kingdom dream.

Along the Honey River all the way up, further ahead lay Horn’s hometown, Holy Grail Mountain.

They didn’t continue forward but instead made a detour, going around Holy Grail Mountain, heading further east.

The further east they went, the fewer fields there were on either side, and fewer knights and peasants watched.

Correspondingly, the peaks grew increasingly towering, and the slopes beneath their feet became steeper.

By evening, Horn unexpectedly discovered that regarding the nationals’ usual propensity for accidents, no mishaps occurred—nothing unexpected happened.

Despite this chaotic journey resembling a migration of beggars, they surprisingly reached the campsite.

Only ten people fell behind, two broke legs, and one went missing.

They even arrived ahead of schedule.

As the sunset, villagers gradually entered the campsite, beginning to build tents and shelters using canvas, leaves, and branches.

"This really amazes me." Qianqian watched the bustling villagers and couldn’t help but exclaim, "I was even ready to camp on the road."

To Qianqian’s amazement, Horn could only reply, "Step forward and pray, boy."