Later, her husband suddenly died, and Anya, worried about being persecuted by the church, joined forces with other witches for self-protection, thus creating the witch assembly.
Severus had a similar background; his ancestors were generals under Heretic Julian.
In a certain sense, Heretic Julian, the emperor of the empire, represented the last counterattack of the remaining forces of polytheism, and this emperor was indeed a sage, as evidenced by the legacy he left to posterity.
(Anyone with free time can help copy the legacy into the chapter comments, so it doesn't take up word count. He was the last sage emperor under the influence of polytheism.)
This emperor loved only one person throughout his life, treated the people kindly, promoted commoners, and lived a simple, humble, and compassionate life, quite remarkable. During his expedition to Persia, in a desperate battle, he burned the transport ships, and when his army fell into distress, he rode without armor to aid his rear guard. Unfortunately, he was suspected to have died from a backstab by a Christian, killed by a javelin.
In the entire continent of Europe, it was the Romans' legions that excelled in using javelins.
However, he still badly injured the Persian army, slaughtering two generals and over fifty nobles, leaving the Sassanid Persia severely weakened, temporarily unable to contend with the Roman army.
This emperor suddenly died under the protection of many polytheist priests, and his death signaled the complete failure of polytheism.
Duncan nodded slightly, focusing as he entered the God's perspective.
——Franks Elite Axemen (One-Star).
——Saxon Forest Hunters.
——Goth Caravan Guards.
——Western Goth Mercenary Soldiers (One-Star).
Under the God's perspective, the units surrounding the inn were all in neutral factions, with no red-pointed enemy marks observed; those with additional marks were combat-capable individuals, while most of the others were identified as farmers, slaves, militia, etc.
These people posed little threat; a well-trained soldier could handle quite a few of them.
The Hunnic Empire claimed to have five hundred thousand troops, though genuine soldiers numbered only about a hundred thousand, mainly consisting of medium-to-low-level soldiers, most of whom were conquered slaves and vassal armies, slightly armed, sent to the battlefield without armor.
Since there wasn't much happening at the moment, Duncan simply expanded his view to observe the entirety of Paris.
Blacksmiths, quarries, inns, residences, commercial areas, the governor's residence, vineyards, and so on, various types of buildings were marked out clearly, like a detailed map that made Duncan understand the architectural layout of Paris.
"The defending troops only numbered around a hundred; it seems most got transferred away."
Nominally, this land still belonged to the empire, but it was already beyond governance; the imperial dukes and generals had become like warlords. The Franks are still foreign mercenary troops of the empire, currently joining forces with cavalry from the Western Goth kingdom to confront the massive invasion of the Huns.
Duncan didn't favor the foods of this era, finding them hard to swallow, but Roman Italian cuisine suited his taste more, so he simply controlled the character to devour food under the God's perspective, activating the passive ability of the 'Power of Gluttony.'
Normally, eating a little to fill the stomach was fine, but attempting 'gluttony' was somewhat torturous for him.
At this moment, others inside the inn had quietly noticed him, as he consumed roughly two days' worth of food for an average person in one go.
The witch's expression was rather subtle, surprised at Duncan's appetite, but calmly pouring water and cutting meat for him, as if tenderly acting like a maid. Crow Queen Triss always concealed her beauty, knowing very well that beauty could invite unnecessary trouble in a chaotic era.
It was unclear how much time had passed.
Duncan's God perspective suddenly showed a marked unit.
——Witch-Anya (Two-Star) [Neutral].
After so long, Duncan saw a unit marked as 'witch' with supernatural powers again.
Hmm?
Two-Star Whiteboard?
It seems not all witches are marked with skulls.
Duncan moved the God's perspective and saw a hooded woman on horseback approaching from the direction of Paris's gate, with three guard riders behind her.
——Sarmatian Foreign Rider.
——Private Cavalry Rider.
——Imperial Retired Forbidden Guard Knight (One-Star).
This should be the person Crow Queen Triss was waiting for.
This witch is quite valuable, hailing from an old imperial noble origin. Her ancestor once conquered Cologne; this time, she intended to cross the sea to Great Britain and relied on the witch's help.
However, after the death of Imperial Heretic Julian, the polytheist noble forces like hers all diminished. Fortunately for Anya, her ancestors included a commander of the imperial field army, from which the title 'Count' used by French nobility later derived.
According to medieval noble ranks, she belonged to the Roman noble descendants of Count.
Witches currently weren't slandered like in the medieval age, as most were inheritors of polytheist priests from the past, where only nobles were eligible to serve as priests for divine spirits.
Many Roman emperors were High Priests, and Caesar the Great served as High Priest for life.
Duncan suddenly put down his wine glass.
As soon as Anya's group entered Paris, a small team of red-marked units quickly appeared and entered here.
——Witch Hunter (1-Star).
——Heretic Judge (2-Star).
——Divine Concealment Assault Assassin (1-Star Silver Gray).
——Hidden Monastery Cultivator (1-Star Silver Gray).
——Hermitage Holy Hall Guard [Blood of the Holy Grail] (2-Star Silver Gray).
What the...!
Under the God's perspective, Duncan couldn't help but curse, but outwardly remained calm, simply picking up his weapon and signaling to the two beside him to step out first.
If cornered inside the inn, they might be hacked to death by people from the Inquisition Court.
.........