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nWith the head of Duke Daemon and the questionable vial, Sylvester prepared to head out to Riveria with Lady Aurora. They had also decided to use Lady Aurora’s carriage since it was easily recognisable.

nBut they were not taking any helpers with them. He couldn’t risk having more eyes and ears on him, even if they were the Inquisitors with unquestionable worship towards him, because there was no telling who was a whisperer of the Saint Seer.

n“Sylvester, be careful, brother. Don’t let that old fart walk over you.” Felix said as he helped put some supplies in the carriage.

nSylvester scoffed. “Oh, he won’t be walking over anyone, that I’m sure of. You should also prepare to head back home as soon as I return. Release the Inquisitor Army from the command as well. Also, oversee the release of our noble prisoners in return for money from their families.”

n“Got it, boss.” Felix jokingly saluted.

n“Sylvester!”

nJust as Sylvester was finishing up, Isabella appeared. Her face seemed as glum as before. But she just ran up to him and hugged him tightly. “I’m going back to Green City. Thank you for clearing up my family’s name and bringing light to the conspiracy. What happened, in the end, is depressing… But I don’t blame you.

n“I will also work hard and try to improve on what I learned here, and one day will fix the eyes.”

nSylvester patted the back of her head and hugged her back. It wasn’t like they had any feelings for each other. He saw her as a naive child needing guidance, while he reckoned she saw him as an older, wiser brother.

n“I will see you later in Green City again, Isabella. For now, just pray that King Riveria doesn’t do something stupid.”

nShe nodded and let him go. “I will pray.”

nSylvester then shared a glance with the rest. “Don’t go easy. Always expect the unexpected to happen. That’s the least we can do after facing all that we have. But, if everything goes well, I will see you in two weeks.”

nWith that, he climbed up to sit in the reinsman seat with Lady Aurora. He did feel bad for not taking Sir Dolorem along, but he didn’t want to put his life at risk.

n“Ha!”

nSylvester whipped the horses, and soon, they started moving. The sun was bright, and winter had disappeared. So they didn’t have to worry about keeping themselves protected. In fact, the wind hitting them felt soothing.

n“What was that?” Lady Aurora asked Sylvester all of a sudden.

n“What are you talking about?”

n“That hug.”

nSylvester grunted, and his shoulders fell in exhaustion. “Come on. We’re not having that talk. Isabella is just a naive little girl. That’s how I see her. I’m not Felix.”

nLady Aurora chuckled and relaxed back into the seat, folding her arms behind her head. “I reckoned as much. The only thing young about you is your face. Rest is like an old man. Though, you still must have a type. For example, I like tall, strong men who know when to be serious and when to have fun.”

n“Have you been with a man?”

n“No! Never!” She nearly shouted. “How can you say that? I’m a good girl, a faithful girl. But I can still have a type, right? What about you?”

nSylvester sighed and looked at the sky. “I don’t know. I only like one big fat blob of light in the sky. I’m a Heliophile.”

n“…”

nLady Aurora sighed and shook her head. “You’re the most monk-like man I’ve met in my life. Even my father had a crush on someone when I was little.”

nSylvester’s head turned to her abruptly. “Say what? Inquisitor High Lord liked a woman?”

nShe giggled as she reminisced. “Of course. She was a wizard Countess of Gracia Kingdom. Sadly, she was not as high ranking in magic as the old man, so she ended up growing old and dying.”

n‘Our long lifespan ensures we can’t find long-living partners. What a sad fate for someone strong.’ Sylvester thought and continued to move on the road.

nThe journey was good. They spent most of their time talking about useless things. They spend one night at a monastery in a small random village. Then, they continued to move further West, entering the Riveria Kingdom. Finally, they saw the Kingdom’s vast agricultural land, full of fluttering crops, ready to be harvested.

nThe Kingdom seemed genuinely graced by the god as it had not only the best agricultural land but also the best industry. While the Northern Duchy was best for growing food, the south was best for building anything one could envision. 𝐨𝘃𝗹.

n“This is where I was attacked by the assassins once,” Sylvester said, remembering the first time he entered the Riveria Kingdom.

n“Is this road always this crowded, though?” She inquired as they soon noticed a lot of people in the front.

nThere were hundreds of people walking on foot towards the Gracia Kingdom’s border. But the most common thing about them was their attire. They all looked dirty, with cracked, dry skin, thin, frail bodies and eyes full of hopelessness. Their clothes were mostly torn and dirty, and even their footwear was lacking.

nAs Sylvester slowed his carriage, the people parted and made way for him. They were too silent, and even the little babies in the frail arms of their mothers didn’t cry. They just watched Sylvester and Lady Aurora with their heads held low.

n“This is not normal,” Sylvester muttered.

nSlowly, the carriage kept moving. But, even after three minutes, the crowd didn’t disappear. It felt as if the entire road was full of them in both directions.

nEventually, Sylvester decided to ask them. So he stopped the carriage and looked at the closest man to his side, an older man with a hunched back and a long white beard. “Who are you people, and where are you going?”

nBut he instantly felt strong emotions. ‘Ah! Such an overwhelming smell of tangerines and vibrations. Why are they so scared with just a single question from me?’

nHeck, the old man started shaking as if he’d fall apart at any moment. But the man did reply while keeping his head low, not daring to look Sylvester in the eye. “G-Great Holy man, we are refugees from the Sorrow Kingdom. We… forgive us for coming into your path, my Lord…”

n‘They must have had bad experiences with the nobles and clergymen on their long journey here, hence the fear.’

nSo, Sylvester raised his hand and let his palm shine light on the man. But he didn’t sing any hymns. “Be at ease, my friend. I am Sylvester Maximilian, Bard of the Lord. Tell me, how did you get here? I was told that the war had stopped, and the Holy Land was setting up camps in the Sorrow Kingdom itself.”

nThe old man’s eyes shone in reverence as Sylvester suddenly appeared so godly. This time, he shivered in warmth and excitement. “Y-Yes… You are right, my Lord. But the camps being set there are run mainly by the army of the Grand Duke of the Patch. Only one or two Clergymen remain for every five camps.

n“There… those soldiers beat us and ask for payment in return for food. They force us to do hard labour and women to give their bodies so that we can feed ourselves and our children. If we dare try to complain to the clergyman, they kill us right away.

n“We… Most of us are from different camps. We are those who couldn’t trade our dignity for their vile pity. So we made the long journey into the Highland Kingdom, where King Highland graciously helped her for months. But he’s not rich and sent us to River City on boats.

n“But, in the River city, too, the locals were against us and tried to lynch us in mobs. The soldiers locked many of us, once again harassed us, and raped us. Eventually, they let us go further north, telling us to reach the Holy Land, for only the true home of the Lord and Holy father can help us.”

nSylvester felt pity for them, but he wasn’t foolish enough to make any promises. There were thousands of them from what he could see, which was a considerable burden to support on one’s head.

nSo he did the second-best thing. “Then you are on the right path. You shall reach Goldstown if you keep going on this path. They may not let you enter the Gracia Kingdom without the King’s nod, but if you say my name to the town’s chief, Marigold Roger, they will at least feed you until words from the Holy Land arrive.”

n“Thank you, my lord!”

n“We are forever indebted!”

n“Thank you!”

nThe people in the vicinity started thanking him suddenly and touching his feet. Some even put their heads near his feet before moving away. They cried and smiled. Sylvester was perhaps the only shining ray of hope they had witnessed in months.

nSylvester let them be and slowly made the carriage move. At the same time, he kept pouring light from his palm. But he also spoke just a few lines of a hymn to show them his halo and turn this short meeting into a permanent memory in their minds.

nI see your misery, as does the Lord.

nDon’t be afraid; your cries won’t be ignored.

nThe sinners will be punished; rest assured.

nI promise, there will be a cure for the pain endured.?

nLet this be just a momentary, painful fall.

nLet the Lord’s warmth in your hearts install.

nI pray, may the holy light enlighten you all.?

nBy the end of his hymn, the carriage had started to move faster, and soon enough, they left the crowd behind. The people, however, remained there for a few minutes, digesting what they just saw and then continued their journey with newfound hope in their eyes.

nAs for Sylvester, he didn’t stop this time as what he saw was not too out of the ordinary. He already expected the refugee situation to be bad. So, in one long journey, he completed the last stretch to reach the beautiful River City, the famed capital of the Eastern side of the Sol Continent.

nEven before he entered the main parts of the city, he could see the beauty as the wide bridge let them cross the river. All places were clean. The roads were wide and full of life. All the buildings were beautiful with their blue tiled roofs and various engravings. Even on the streets, there was a water fountain in the middle of every road intersection.

nThe people even spread their buildings to stand on waterways, making narrow alleys of water where only boats could go.

nIt was a strange yet beautiful city where prosperity could be seen everywhere. The same was the case with the giant castle at the other end of the city.

nTall, mighty, majestic and beautiful. It had tall walls and a deep moat around. The guards patrolled everything with utmost care. In fact, the walls were so high that Sylvester could only see the top of the towers inside.

nSo, he and Lady Aurora traversed through the crowded city and arrived at the front gates of the castle boundary wall. There, Sylvester revealed his name and showed the stamped document from Inquisitor High Lord, Saint Seer and King Harold Gracia.

n“It’s urgent,” Sylvester added.

nBut the guard instantly gave back the letter while staring at his face. “Apologies, Lord Bard. But the King is not in the city. Please come again tomorrow.”

n“…”

nOf course, Sylvester exploded internally in rage. ‘These bloody bastards! They’re lying! Why? Why can’t anything be normal with me?’

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