The Provocation

Lina’s gaze turned sharp as she looked out over the distant horizon.

"It's fine. I've already studied the maps of the area ahead."

"There is a mid-sized city near Xilin Town. If Zuka wants to escape, he will have to pass through this route."

Xilin Town was a border town of the Kingdom of the Moon.

Because it was so close to the national border, it was quite remote.

If one wanted to follow the main road back to the northeast, they would inevitably pass through that mid-sized city.

"We will resupply once we get there."

Having said that, Lina looked back at Vide.

"Can the skysoar dragon still hold up?"

"That won't be a problem. Lady Ligeia taught us that as long as there is food to supplement them, a skysoar dragon can fly continuously for months."

"Good. That's enough then. Keep flying."

Lina turned back, once again gazing in the direction of Xilin Town.

Zuka's escape this time seemed suspicious. Logically, it should have been impossible to break free from the demon-sealing shackles.

Even for a high-level existence, being bound by those shackles usually meant waiting for death.

Lina knew that even with the sword of holy light and the wings of light in her possession, she likely wouldn't be able to break those chains.

The most critical issue was that once bound by the chains, all mana in the body would cease to flow.

It was a total shutdown.

Under such circumstances, no matter how powerful a person was, they could not use their strength.

Could it be that another demon had saved him?

Lina's brow furrowed as her anxiety grew.

One Zuka was already enough of a headache; if another demon were added to the mix, the situation would change entirely.

In any case, the Demon General Zuka had to be stopped at the small city outside Kosa City!

He must not be allowed to enter Kosa City.

Otherwise, once the demonic energy spread, a large number of demons could appear.

At that point, it would be difficult to hold them back with just the previous Dragon Knight Corps.

Thinking of the words Luo Li had said to her before she left, Lina's heart felt as if it were burning with a sense of urgency.

"Speed up, as fast as possible!"

"Yes!"

The skysoar dragon accelerated once more, racing through the air.

Meanwhile, in the southwest of the Kingdom of the Moon.

Twin-Wing City.

Outside the massive city walls, a knight regiment of thirty thousand was resting.

Inside the main city's reception room.

Yanagi Musashi wore a polite smile on his face.

"I am truly humbled that the city lord has come to welcome me personally."

"Not at all. As the city lord, is it not only natural to welcome guests?"

The man sitting opposite Yanagi Musashi was middle-aged, with a look of resilience on his face.

His eyes were serious, carrying a sharp and piercing gaze.

"Furthermore, now that our two mistresses are cooperating, we are naturally allies."

"Thank you. Allow me to introduce myself once more. I am Yanagi Musashi, a Guardian Knight of the Kingdom of the Sun."

"Mr. Musashi is far too polite. In that case, allow me to reintroduce myself as well."

The man stood up, a slight smile on his face.

"I am Harriet Anjou, the lord of Twin-Wing City and the current head of the Anjou family."

The two introduced themselves and sat back down.

After a few pleasantries, Yanagi Musashi cut straight to the point.

"Lord Harriet, I have come this time to borrow grain from you."

A serious expression crossed Yanagi Musashi's face as he looked up at the middle-aged man.

"As the one in control of Twin-Wing City, you surely understand the current situation. The number of immigrants from the Kingdom of the Sun... is simply too many."

Currently, seventy million people were being transferred from Gorge Island in the Kingdom of the Sun to the Kingdom of the Moon.

With such a massive number, the most critical issue was the supply of food and fodder.

If there wasn't enough food, there was no telling how many people would starve to death along the way.

These were over seventy million people!

Thinking of the situation outside, Yanagi Musashi's heart grew even heavier.

"The people at the very front have already run out of food, and the main force behind them is starting to face a shortage. My mistress just informed me that food won't arrive for at least ten days, so I ask that you lend me some grain to meet this urgent need."

Yanagi Musashi looked at the middle-aged man.

He knew very well that the man before him definitely had the ability to provide a large amount of grain on short notice.

A great family that had been entrenched in the Kingdom of the Moon for hundreds of years and could occupy a main city was no ordinary family.

It could be said that the Anjou family was ranked second among the seven families of the Kingdom of the Moon.

They were second only to the four major noble families.

Providing enough grain would not be a problem.

Moreover, while Twin-Wing City itself was not a major grain-producing province, its reserves were certainly not small.

Harriet's brow furrowed slightly, looking somewhat troubled.

He looked up at Yanagi Musashi and shook his head with a sigh of helplessness.

"I am truly sorry, General Musashi. It's not that I don't want to give it to you, but Twin-Wing City is also having a hard time right now."

"This... Lord Harriet, the people are currently suffering from hunger. As the lord of a city, surely you do not wish to see the ground littered with corpses. I am here on behalf of these suffering people to beg you. No matter what, please lend me some grain."

"In ten days, it will naturally be returned in full."

Harriet lowered his head in thought for a moment and let out a long sigh.

"Then, General, may I ask how much grain you require?"

Yanagi Musashi calculated in his mind. The vanguard consisted of about five million people.

Even if each person ate only half a pound of grain a day, they would need two and a half million pounds of rice.

For ten days, that would be twenty-five million pounds of rice.

"Twenty million pounds. I wonder if Lord Harriet can find it in his heart to be generous."

Yanagi Musashi looked at Harriet with expectation.

He had already reduced the amount significantly. Although it was barely enough to maintain them, if they only ate porridge for the next few days, they should be able to hold on.

"This... I'm afraid that will be very difficult."

"Lord Harriet, please, you must find a way."

Harriet's brow furrowed tightly as he closed his eyes in deep thought.

After a long while, under Yanagi Musashi's expectant gaze, he finally opened his eyes.

"How about this... I can provide five million pounds of grain. Any more than that, and I truly cannot produce it."

"Five... five million pounds? That... that isn't even enough for two days."

Yanagi Musashi was stunned.

But Harriet's expression remained firm as he shook his head.

"Twin-Wing City has no surplus grain either, Mr. Musashi. If you find it too little... then please ask another family."

"Lord Harriet!!"

Seeing Harriet stand up, Yanagi Musashi was frozen in place.

Harriet turned back and looked at Yanagi Musashi with a calm face.

"General Musashi, if you want these five million pounds of grain, take them. If you don't, it will save me some trouble."

"..."

Yanagi Musashi opened his mouth, taking a deep breath as if suppressing the anger in his heart.

He already understood that Harriet was clearly not planning to help.

These five million pounds of grain were only given out of a sense of obligation.

"Lord Harriet, I need to consult with my mistress."

"Fine. Then I will not see you out, General. Once you've decided, please let me know. Even five million pounds is no small amount to prepare; it will take a day or two to get it ready."

A smile returned to Harriet's face, but this smile only made the fire of anger in Yanagi Musashi's heart burn hotter.

This fellow was clearly trying to make a fool of him!

No... it wasn't him!

He and Harriet Anjou had only just met, and this fellow wouldn't target his own mistress.

After all, there was no grievance between Lady Momoka and Harriet.

Then the only explanation was one thing.

This Harriet Anjou was intentionally making things difficult for Lady Luo Li!

Aside from that, he couldn't think of any other possibility.

Having realized this, Yanagi Musashi looked at Harriet with a grim expression.

"Lord Harriet, I will report this matter truthfully."

"As you wish, General."

Yanagi Musashi's brow furrowed as he walked toward the door. However, just an instant before the door closed, he suddenly turned back to look at Harriet.

"Lord Harriet, I have one more thing to say."

Harriet's face still bore that elegant smile.

"Mr. Musashi has more to say? I'm all ears."

"Lord Harriet, I will only say one thing... do you remember the Garnet family?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Harriet's smile instantly froze.

The corners of his mouth slowly flattened, and his previously sharp gaze turned murderous.

"There is no need for General Musashi to worry. See our guest out."

Yanagi Musashi snorted coldly, ignoring the closing door behind him, and headed straight out of the city.

The moment he stepped out of the city gates, they suddenly slammed shut.

At the same time, rows of soldiers quickly appeared on the city walls, seemingly on guard against him.

Seeing this, Yanagi Musashi couldn't help but recall the time they had stormed the Garnet family estate.

Perhaps it was because of that incident that Harriet Anjou had taken precautions.

He had even prepared for a siege.

In this situation, taking it by force was almost impossible.

Storming a city was far too difficult for a knight regiment.

Furthermore, there were many ordinary people in the city. Once war broke out, it would inevitably affect them.

Unlike the Garnet family estate, which was outside the city, the Anjou family estate was located right inside the main city of Twin-Wing City.

He could only consult with Lady Momoka!

Thinking this, Yanagi Musashi returned to the camp and went straight to the temporary communication room.

But as soon as the communication was opened, interference suddenly appeared.

Yanagi Musashi's brow furrowed as he thought for a moment, and then something suddenly occurred to him.

He whipped his head around to look toward Twin-Wing City.

All communication within the range of the main city needed to be routed through the city's magic tower.

In other words, for communication to work, it required the support of the Twin-Wing City main tower.

If the main tower jammed the signal or shut it down directly at this time...

Then his communication would never get through!!

"This... could it be that the Twin-Wing City main tower has been shut down!?"

Yanagi Musashi's brain, which usually wasn't particularly sharp, was working at high speed at this moment.

Harriet wasn't targeting the immigrants of the Kingdom of the Sun, but the current Saintess of the Kingdom of the Moon.

Lady Luo Li.

But what was his purpose in doing this?

Yanagi Musashi couldn't help but follow this line of reasoning.

If a large number of immigrants from the Kingdom of the Sun died here, would Harriet be held accountable?

The possibility was slim.

After all, the person in overall charge of this matter was the Saintess of the Kingdom of the Moon, Lady Luo Li.

If a mass death occurred here, the first person to be held accountable would naturally be Lady Luo Li.

If it were just that, it wouldn't be enough for Harriet to be so decisive.

What did he want to do?

Simply make things difficult?

Or... was there another aim?

Just people dying shouldn't be enough to affect Lady Luo Li's position in the short term.

Wait, if this matter were brought to the Holy See...

If someone intentionally incited public anger and then let the Pope know...

Then this matter could be as big or as small as they wanted it to be.

If only a few people died, a reprimand would be the end of it.

But what if many people died?

Suppose the death toll in this wave exceeded ten million.

Then the first person to be held accountable would definitely be Lady Luo Li.

And if someone were to intentionally stir up public outrage and refuse to let the matter go...

Lady Luo Li's position as Saintess would be in jeopardy!

"They... actually have such a plan?"

No, no, no. The position of Saintess was chosen by the previous generation. Even if they wanted to depose her, it could only be done by God.

He recalled what Lady Momoka had told him before.

The current situation in the Kingdom of the Moon was not optimistic.

Internal struggles were still severe, especially now that the Heavenly Punishment Knight Kevin had become alienated from Lady Luo Li.

If someone took advantage of this situation to push Kevin up...

At that time, even if Lady Luo Li's position as Saintess remained, she would likely have to hand over her military and administrative power.

After all, such a massive death toll was not something that could be resolved with a simple apology.

Even the Holy See would have to consider public opinion.

If the other six nations found out about this, once they were collectively outraged, Lady Luo Li would truly have no choice but to let go of her power.

"Someone, come here! Someone!!!"

Yanagi Musashi, having suddenly understood everything, reacted instantly.

What he needed to do now was not to fight with Harriet over grain, but to send word of this back as quickly as possible.

Now that the communication in Twin-Wing City was down, he could only head south to Stargaze City in the central region.

Rely on the communication there?

No!

That wouldn't work. This provocation was definitely not something a single family could pull off.

Once a blockade was initiated, it would surely be a nationwide one.

All provincial cities not directly controlled by Lady Luo Li had likely stopped their communications.

Yanagi Musashi thought for a moment and shook his head.

Stopping all communication was possible, but the likelihood was low.

After all, that would leave behind massive leverage and evidence, and it would have a huge impact on the Kingdom of the Moon.

The opponent would never be so foolish as to shut down communication directly.

Then the only way was to jam his signal!

He looked at his adjutant with a grim expression.

"You must hide your identity and go to Stargaze City to secretly deliver this news to Lady Momoka!! You must not fail!!"

"Lord Musashi, instead of letting me take the risk alone, why don't we select a dozen people to head to other cities tonight under the cover of darkness? That way, our chances will be much better!"