Since the Fifth Age, civilization has originated on the ancient continent, flourished on the Middle Earth continent, and expanded onto the New Lande continent. Aside from the perpetually frozen Lost Lands, all three continents bear the marks of civilization.
Five great powers and seventy-four nations are distributed across the regions already controlled by civilization, together constructing this world filled with oddities and mysteries.
The ancient continent in the east of the planet is unanimously considered by academia to be the cradle of the world's Fifth Age civilization, but it is the broader Middle Earth continent that has carried civilization toward its brilliance. Four of the five great powers have their roots here, and the Kingdom of Lande is one of them.
As an ancient kingdom dating back to the Fourth Age, the Kingdom of Lande controls the peninsula in the northwest of the Middle Earth continent. It faces its arch-rival, the Kingdom of Friedman, across the Gale Bay. Since the beginning of the Fifth Age, the two have been locked in intermittent conflict for over a millennium. In the last hundred years or so, thanks to the mediation of the Rose family, they have been in a rare period of truce, though undercurrents still churn.
The Kingdom of Lande dominates the peninsula, controlling 870,000 square kilometers of land and a population of over 80 million, making it an undisputed world power. Its capital, Norin, is located in the northwest of the peninsula, while Rhine is in the southeast. These two major hubs face each other across the Carlos Mountain Range, which runs from east to west.
The Lande River, one of the three most important waterways in the kingdom, happens to flow from west to east, crossing the Carlos Mountain Range directly from Norin to Rhine. After passing through Rhine City, it flows into Gale Bay from the mouth of the river in the Twin Towers District.
The Twin Towers District is famous for its two giant lighthouses. It is the intersection of Rhine City's inland and oceanic shipping, and the Cross District has even built a dedicated short-distance railway directly to this location, making trade much more convenient.
Therefore, the water transport of the Lande River has become one of the most important modes of inland transportation in the Kingdom of Lande, leading to the hyperbolic saying that the entire national railway network is not worth as much as a single Lande River.
Just past nine in the morning, a motorcade drove out of the Black Night Cathedral in Crown Square.
The motorcade, consisting of four carriages, was built from light and sturdy black steel wood. This wood is moisture-proof, insect-resistant, and has natural ventilation, making it the best raw material for carriage manufacturing. Unfortunately, it is expensive and scarce, impossible to obtain even with money, and only noble families with deep foundations are qualified to use it.
The Church of the Main Gods certainly has the qualifications, and they could bring out four at once; it was not that they only had four, but that four were all that were needed.
The carriages were also full of the characteristics of the Black Night: a black background with golden stars, hanging the holy emblem of the Scepter of the Black Night. Even the coachmen wore black priest robes, making their identities identifiable at a glance.
Lynch sat in the second carriage, his mood quite good at the moment.
It was not because of the magnificent scenery of the Lande River rushing into the sea, nor because of the hustle and bustle unique to the port area that gradually filled the surroundings, but because Archbishop Trinlais had personally invited him to participate in today's activities. He could finally see the memory of the red moon he had been longing for.
Today, Lynch got up early and, under the warm nagging, reluctantly ate a hot breakfast before leaving in formal attire.
According to plan, he rushed to the Hall of Order and practiced half a box of bullets.
The bad news was that only one shot hit the target today; the good news was that the instructor was still not hit and survived the training, which was truly something to celebrate.
Thus, Lynch left the training ground with great regret and went straight to the Black Night Cathedral.
There were already many believers praying and listening to sermons, and the donation box at the entrance was half full. This was not a matter of just tossing in a few copper pennies; Lynch saw with his own eyes that at least a third of them contained silver shillings or even Lande pound notes.
Is the church actually this profitable? Neighbor, how about I open a church in your name before I finish the path of awakening?
【Heh.】
Hell, Neighbor, the person just now stuffed in a five-pound note, right? My Neighbor, I think I saw wrong. How about I sacrifice myself and help them open the donation box to check?
Fortunately, two one-star priests wearing black holy robes had already returned, preventing Lynch's shameful conspiracy in time and bringing him into the reception room to see Archbishop Trinlais. Before they could talk in detail, they were dragged by Trinlais onto the church carriage.
Only then did Lynch learn that it was inconvenient to say in yesterday's letter, but in reality, the memory of the red moon was being transported by a dedicated guard along with other important supplies on a Black Night Church supply ship. It had already entered the Rhine City section of the river and was adjusting its speed to head downstream, waiting in line to enter the port.
To ensure the safety of the important cargo, the main hall of the Black Night Church had specifically replaced the three-star priest normally responsible for escorting with a six-star priest.
Below the Pope, only the highest-ranking cardinals are qualified to wear holy robes with nine golden stars. Regional archbishops like Trinlais only have eight stars on their holy robes. Those who can wear six-star holy robes, besides bishops with real power, are only Soul Severers who are experienced in actual combat and have already reached the intermediate stage. Sending such a powerhouse just to escort a holy memory was enough to show the church's importance to this transaction.
At the same time, the church also made a request, hoping that Lynch could follow the receiving convoy and complete the handover directly on the spot, which was why they hurriedly invited Lynch and had Trinlais accompany him personally.
"Wait, are you saying it's not you handing it over from headquarters, but that I complete the handover directly?" The carriage had already stopped at the pier, but the two had not yet gotten off. Lynch frowned and asked with a puzzled expression, "Does the item belong to me as soon as the handover is complete?"
"Yes, it is not waiting for you to complete the commission before paying the reward, but paying it in advance."
"Why?"
For Lynch, this was naturally a good thing, but it made him vigilant instead. A behemoth like the Church of the Main Gods should not show such a low posture; it was not only against the rules, but could even be considered losing their status.
The archbishop shook his head with a smile and pointed his finger upward silently.
"Above? The Pope's order? That shouldn't be either, wait, are you referring to..."
Lynch swallowed his saliva, and with a strange expression, he also pointed upward. Trinlais nodded to confirm with an equally strange expression.
It was actually an oracle from the Goddess of the Black Night. Then what is there to discuss regarding rules? A god speaking is the rule. The question is, why is she doing this?
Trinlais explained solemnly: "The Soul Severer of the Crimson Moon has appeared. Followers of the Black Night should follow the agreement of the Mythological Era and provide as much help as possible to the followers of the Red Moon. The holy memory originally belonged to the Crimson Lady and should be returned as soon as possible."
'Hiss? So it was for your sake.'
Previously, Lynch had no real feeling, but at this moment, he finally felt that his Neighbor seemed to have an incredible identity.
【Hmm.】
'What is the agreement of the Mythological Era, and why would she help you?'
Quiet, silent, not a word.
'Forget it, the reason doesn't matter, but at least let me know, should I accept it?'
【Help can be accepted, but...】 Ms. Luna was silent for a moment, 【Do not completely trust them.】
'Them?'
【Yes, them.】
This answer feels bad.
However, Lynch still took a deep breath and showed a full face of smiles: "The follower of the Crimson Moon thanks you for the gift from the night."
With similarly complex and strange smiles, the two walked off the carriage. On the water in the distance, a two-masted sailboat was slowly entering the pier.
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