Chapter 76: Invasion of Darkness
The next morning, a letter from Nyx arrived.
Looking at the words on it, Corleon fell silent.
‘It’s not just York Territory where dark creatures have appeared.’
‘Dark creatures have been sighted in the three baronies to the north—not just werewolves, but also vampires, bearmen, goblins, and cave dwellers.’
‘Those three barons do not possess relics; only the church in Baron Geoffrey Sacks’ territory has nurtured some Mysteries, but they cannot yet be controlled, and that area is also the most severely attacked.’
‘Sir Geoffrey has requested aid from us. Now, Knight Wolf has sent Knight Dean with 150 warriors to Geoffrey’s territory.’
‘At the same time, he has ordered the gentry families in the villages to enter a state of combat readiness.’
‘As for the three villages without gentry families for protection, Administrator Piero has already dispatched people to take charge.’
‘However, the most important matter now is the Mystery in Sir Geoffrey’s place. It absolutely must not fall into the hands of those dark creatures. Knight Wolf has entrusted Knight Dean with the spears blessed by you.’
‘Furthermore, if necessary, Knight Wolf will also head there himself.’
The lord’s departure took away 600 warriors and eight personal guards, and also led the newly appointed knights to march with the army.
He left Knight Wolf in charge of managing military affairs within the territory, while Knight Dean, who led the remaining 200 warriors, was to follow Knight Wolf’s command.
Now that Knight Dean had taken 150 soldiers, the remaining 50, together with the town guards, were barely enough to defend the town.
And those knight families only had the strength to defend their own fiefs.
When knights go to war, they bring their squires and personal warriors with them.
Currently, the only one who could spare any additional force was Knight Wolf.
But evidently, he was ready to depart for Sir Geoffrey’s territory at any moment.
So those three villages...
Corleon fell into silence.
Even if Administrator Piero sent new officials, it would only amount to giving the werewolves an extra meal.
What those places needed now were warriors—commanders.
At that moment, a few people entered the church.
It was Hode and the Temple Warriors of his squad.
Their equipment was extremely simple: leather armor on their upper bodies, leather bracers on their arms, cotton hoods on their heads, and several cloth pouches tied at their waists.
Their weapons were two spears blessed by Corleon and a small round wooden shield.
The only iron equipment on them was a wooden-handled flanged mace, which was also their main weapon.
Hode was slightly better equipped; he also had a hand axe.
After the lord left, those families noticed something off with the believers in the village and thus canceled the originally agreed iron weapon trades with Corleon.
In the end, Corleon had to buy some flanged maces made from scrap iron smelted by the Rat Path.
The quality could only be described as shoddy.
However, although their gear was crude, there was no trace of fear on their faces.
As Temple Warriors, expelling evil and guarding the Lord’s Glory was their sacred mission.
“Bishop, we’re ready,” Hode said.
Corleon put away the letter from Nyx and nodded.
“Very well. I saw steadfast faith in your eyes,” he said with a smile.
“You will go to the village slaughtered by those evil werewolves. Search for any survivors and track the werewolves’ trail.”
“This is a dangerous task, but it is also the mission of those who serve the Lord—the most noble cause for us.”
“No matter what you face, always remember: the Lord is with you.”
As he spoke, Corleon bestowed blessings upon them.
“The Lord is with me!” they shouted fervently.
Corleon stood at the church entrance, watching them depart, his expression tinged with concern.
The vision granted to him only showed a pair of beastly vertical pupils.
He could not see any more.
But regardless, as Corleon had said, this was their mission as servants of the Lord.
He withdrew his gaze and looked at the seven people taking the Sacrament.
Only these seven came today.
They ate the Sacrament with fear written on their faces.
The village had already entered a wartime state of alert.
Under such circumstances, of course no one would come for the Sacrament.
They still knew how to weigh a meal against their own lives.
Corleon walked over to them and said, “It’s very dangerous outside now. All the villages have imposed martial law. You can stay at the church for the time being and return only after the danger passes.”
The seven hesitated.
One person summoned courage and cautiously said, “We’re very dirty and would defile the church. So we’d rather go to the town.”
Corleon listened silently and then nodded. “If you go to the town, it’s also relatively safe. You can take more Sacrament with you.”
They were villagers and had no relatives in town.
Although they could enter the town, in such times, they could only sleep on the streets and beg.
Still, Corleon said nothing more.
It was only natural for them to think that a town with sturdy walls was safer than a church with just a fence.
After the seven left, Corleon turned to Agamemnon.
Now it was Agamemnon who led three apprentices in distributing the Sacrament.
With three adults clearly not commoners accompanying him, even local bullies dared not harass young Agamemnon.
“Priest Nyx sent word: there are werewolves active in the territory now—enough to slaughter a village,” Corleon said to Agamemnon.
The three apprentices who were cleaning up all turned pale.
“Hasn’t Knight Wolf done anything?” Agamemnon asked calmly.
“He has other important matters,” Corleon shook his head. “Your family is in town. You should go back to them for the time being.”
“I will send a group of Temple Warriors to protect the unguarded villages. At that time, the church will have much fewer armed forces.”
Agamemnon hesitated for a moment, but then said, “I’d rather stay at the church. It has the Lord’s protection, and Grandmother hasn’t sent word for me to return.”
“If that’s your decision,” Corleon nodded and said no more.
His gaze turned to the three others.
“You may also choose whether to return.”
The three were tempted, but after a moment of inner struggle, they still said, “We’ll stay.”
Without orders from their families, these three illegitimate sons dared not return.
Doing so would be considered defying family orders and would cost them their identities.
That was a consequence even worse than death for them.
“Then, after you’re done cleaning up, go to the monastery and inform Ando of the news. Ask if he wishes to return for this period,” Corleon instructed Agamemnon.
Having given his orders, Corleon summoned a Temple Warrior.
“Please go to Daniels Village and bring George back,” he said.
He intended to gather ten Temple Warriors to try and protect the villages.
But with only ten Temple Warriors, Corleon feared it wouldn’t be enough, so he planned to recall George to lead the team.
Though this action might cause the small chapel in Daniels Village to suddenly collapse tonight due to old age.