The Western Holy Church's rise was fueled not only by Luminous and the vampires' covert influence but also by substantial funding from the Western Nations.
"Replacing someone like Reyhiem would neither guarantee loyalty to the Church nor offset the financial loss."
Thus, while Reyhiem still feared Hinata, he now held enough sway to command the Church's headquarters' attention.
"How could this be..."
Litus, learning this for the first time, felt disillusioned. The once-glorious Holy Church harbored dark secrets beneath its shining facade.
For a moment, the young woman struggled to accept it.
"All for humanity!"
At that moment, Hinata returned from the king's tent.
Entering the camp, she overheard the group's discussion.
As for Leonard...
Dealing with the nobles and king was naturally left to him.
Hinata had no patience for wasting words with those bloodsuckers preying on the common folk!
"Humanity?"
Hinata's words prompted reflection among the group.
"Yes."
Hinata closed her eyes, sighing. "If this world had no monsters, no Demon Lords, the Holy Church would never turn a blind eye."
But the Church couldn't make bold moves.
Internal chaos in the human faction would give Demon Lords an opening to strike.
That would be the real crisis.
After all, few Demon Lords were willing to coexist peacefully with humans.
The only one Hinata knew of was Luminous.
"With Demon Lords lurking outside and human empires eyeing conquest within..."
"In such times, the humans of the Western Nations must unite to maintain peace and stability."
A chaotic Kingdom of Falmuth was not what the Holy Church wanted.
Thus, no matter who led the nation...
Regardless of their tyranny, wealth-hoarding, or debauchery...
As long as they ensured the stability of Western civilization and stood united against monsters, the Church could overlook their flaws.
"I see..."
Though harsh, Litus couldn't think of a better solution.
Swiftly cutting through the mess would feel good.
But who could guarantee the Demon Lords would let humans weather the chaos in peace?
Luminous?
Setting aside that, except for Hinata, everyone viewed her as a deity whose existence was uncertain...
Only Hinata knew Luminous's true identity.
The Queen of Nightmare wouldn't actively harm humans, but she wouldn't help them either.
The Holy Empire of Ruberios was established to provide vampires with high-quality human blood.
On the Central World, vampires had specific demands for blood quality.
The happier and more fulfilled the human, the tastier their blood.
Conversely, fear and unease made blood unpalatable, even hard to swallow.
Thus, Luminous granted the people of Ruberios a fair, stable environment.
But that was the extent of it.
Expecting Luminous to aid Hinata against other Demon Lords was impossible.
To put it bluntly...
As long as the Holy Empire of Ruberios was fine, Luminous didn't care about the Western Nations' fate.
Likewise, Demon Lords respected Luminous enough not to harm her humans.
'Humans can only rely on themselves!'
Knowing this, Hinata was certain Luminous wouldn't help in this matter.
The group fell silent.
"How did it go?"
Soon, Leonard returned from the nobles' banquet.
Seeing him, Hinata and the others immediately asked for updates.
"It's set. We rest tonight and move out tomorrow morning."
Leonard had gone to great lengths to negotiate with Falmuth's elites for this outcome.
Fortunately, they weren't treating the war as a game.
Their nonchalant attitude was merely a ploy to extract benefits from the Holy Empire.
"But they made a demand."
"They want our Crusaders to lead as the vanguard and clear the path."
"..."
When it came to shamelessness, the nobles took the cake.
They even wanted to exploit the knights!
"No matter!"
Hinata was satisfied with the result.
She'd expected a delay of ten days or more.
As for leading the charge, she didn't care.
If they encountered monsters even the Crusaders couldn't handle, the 50,000-strong army wouldn't escape either.
If anything, Hinata hoped these nobles wouldn't hold her back.
"Speaking of which, I heard something at the banquet."
"What?"
"The Archmage Razen of Falmuth, leading a 500-strong elite knight order, went missing in the forest."
Leonard's expression was grave as he spoke. "Captain, do you know this man?"
"Razen?"
Hinata was surprised. She remembered the old mage.
The last time they met, she'd sensed his formidable magical power.
He was strong.
Though not on her level, he could handle typical Demon Lord Seeds.
Yet such a powerhouse had lost contact with the rear without warning?
"Even if he couldn't win, couldn't he at least escape?"
Hinata's question echoed the confusion felt by Leonard and the Archbishop.
"The forest is surrounded by a strange barrier that disrupts communication magic."
"But for someone like Razen to fall there," Leonard said, "this calamity in the Jura Forest is likely far worse than we imagined."
"The Falmuth nobles are clearly nervous."
Leonard could sense they didn't want to delay further.
They were afraid.
Afraid of encountering unstoppable monsters and suffering heavy losses.
That's why they shifted the risk to the Crusaders.
"Hmph!"
Hinata's gaze grew colder, her disdain for these nobles reaching its peak.
"No matter. Let's deal with this trouble first."
The Jura Forest, a vital trade route, had been sealed for nearly a month.
The losses to the Western Nations were incalculable.
Falmuth had sought the Holy Empire's aid for this reason.
For the shared interests of the Western Nations, Hinata had to investigate what was happening here.
***
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