The Western Holy Church was able to develop not just because of Luminous and the Vampire's covert manipulation, but also due to the substantial financial support from the Western Nations.
"Replacing him wouldn't guarantee his piety to the Holy Church, nor would it compensate for the financial losses."
Because of this, even now, although Reyhiem feared Hinata, he still had enough influence to be taken seriously by the Holy Church headquarters.
"How could this be…?"
This was the first time Litus was learning any of this. She finally realized that the seemingly radiant Holy Church had many dark corners hidden beneath its surface.
For a moment, the young girl struggled to accept it.
"Everything is for humanity."
Just then, Hinata returned from the Falmuth King's tent.
As soon as she entered the military tent, she heard the conversation.
As for Leonard, the task of negotiating with the nobles and the King was, of course, left to him.
Hinata had no intention of wasting her breath on parasites who thrived on the people's blood.
"Humanity?"
Hinata's words made everyone fall into contemplation.
"Yeah."
Hinata closed her eyes and spoke helplessly. "If there were no monsters or Demon Lords in this world, the Holy Church definitely wouldn't turn a blind eye."
But the Church couldn't act rashly.
If chaos broke out within the human factions, Demon Lords could seize the opportunity to invade.
That would be a true catastrophe.
After all, very 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 within, the Western Nations' ambition for conquest is still alive."
"Under these circumstances, the humans of the Western Nations can only maintain peace and stability by uniting."
A chaotic Kingdom of Falmuth was not what the Holy Church wanted.
So, no matter who sat on the throne of this country,
No matter how cruel his domestic rule, how he hoarded wealth or indulged in decadence,
As long as he ensured the stability of Western civilization, and upheld a unified anti-monster racial stance, the Holy Church could turn a blind eye.
"I see…"
Though it was cruel, Litus couldn't think of a better answer.
A swift, clean resolution was satisfying.
But who could guarantee that the Demon Lords would let humanity ride out a period of internal turmoil unscathed?
Luminous?
Leaving aside the fact that everyone except Hinata saw her as a god, her very existence was still uncertain.
Only Hinata knew Luminous's true identity.
The Night Demon Queen wouldn't actively harm humans, but she wouldn't help them either.
The Holy Empire of Lubelius had essentially been established to provide the Vampire with delicious food—namely, human blood.
In the Cardinal World, Vampires were very particular about blood quality.
Happier, more content humans produced sweeter blood.
Conversely, fear and unrest made blood bitter and hard to swallow.
That was why Luminous had given the people of Falmuth a stable and fair environment.
But that was all.
Expecting Luminous to help Hinata resist the pressure from other Demon Lords? Impossible.
To put it simply, as long as the Holy Empire of Lubelius remained intact, Luminous didn't care about the rest of the Western Nations.
Likewise, the Demon Lords respected Luminous and wouldn't touch the humans under her rule.
'Humans can only rely on themselves.'
Hinata knew this all too well. Luminous wouldn't offer any aid here.
For a while, silence filled the tent.
"How did it go?"
Soon after, Leonard returned from the nobles' banquet.
Seeing him, everyone—including Hinata—turned to ask.
"The schedule is set. We rest tonight and depart tomorrow morning."
To get that answer, Leonard had spent a lot of effort mingling with the powerful nobles of Falmuth.
Fortunately, these people didn't treat the war as a complete game.
Their apathetic attitude was simply posturing, a means to extract benefits from the Holy Empire of Lubelius.
"However, they did make a request."
Leonard continued. "They want our Holy Knights to take point and clear the way for them."
"…"
When it came to shamelessness, these nobles truly had no equal.
They even wanted to use them as disposable tools.
"It doesn't matter."
Hinata was actually quite satisfied with the result.
She had thought it might be delayed ten days or even half a month.
As for acting as the vanguard, Hinata didn't care at all.
If they encountered monsters even the Holy Knights couldn't handle, the 50,000 troops following them wouldn't survive anyway.
Frankly, Hinata would rather they not drag her down.
"Speaking of which, I picked up some information at the banquet."
"What is it?"
"Razen, the Great Mage of the Falmuth Kingdom, along with five hundred elite knights, disappeared in the Great Forest."
As he said this, Leonard's expression turned extremely grim. "Leader, do you know this man?"
"Razen?"
Hinata was a bit surprised. She did remember that old mage named Razen.
The last time they met, she could tell he was a formidable magician.
His strength was considerable.
Though not on par with herself, he could definitely go toe-to-toe with ordinary Demon Lords.
But now, such a powerful individual had gone missing without a trace?
"Even if he couldn't win, he should at least have been able to escape, right?"
Hinata's question mirrored what Leonard and the others had been thinking.
"Around the Great Forest, there's already a strange barrier that blocks communication magic."
"But if even someone like Razen vanished," Leonard said, "then this situation in the Great Jura Forest is likely far worse than we imagined."
"The nobles of Falmuth are clearly very anxious."
Leonard could sense that these men no longer wished to stall.
They were scared.
Afraid of facing monsters they couldn't handle, which would result in massive casualties.
So they tried to shift the risk onto the Holy Knights.
"Hmph."
Hinata's gaze turned cold. Her disgust toward the nobles reached its peak.
"Either way, let's deal with this nuisance first."
The Great Jura Forest, a vital trade route, had been blocked for nearly a month.
The losses suffered by the Western Nations were already incalculable.
That was why the Kingdom of Falmuth had requested help from the Holy Empire of Lubelius.
And for the sake of the Western Nations' shared interest, Hinata had to thoroughly investigate what had happened here.
(To be continued.)
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