Ch.367Chapter 367 – Gema Harbor (4)

I couldn’t help but ask in response to the village chief’s words.

“All citizens within the New Kingdom… what did you say?”

“All citizens are ordered to become soldiers of the New Kingdom and serve it.”

What kind of madness is this?

Along with a strangely familiar feeling, fear and anger rose from deep within me. I barely suppressed them and asked quietly.

“Why? For what reason?”

“Well, I don’t know that much…”

The village chief answered softly.

“But what I do know for certain is that right after the order was issued, people started being taken away, beginning with large cities like Gema Port.”

So that’s why there was absolutely no one in Gema Port.

The village chief continued speaking.

“Naturally, I don’t know what happened to those people. But according to those who barely escaped before being caught, they were taken away mercilessly, like animals.”

The village chief trembled slightly as he spoke.

Come to think of it, he must be remembering what happened to him personally.

Considering the villagers who were being transported in cages earlier, it was clear they weren’t being treated as human beings.

“By the way, there were people who escaped?”

“Incredibly lucky folks. We benefited from them too.”

“You benefited?”

“That’s right,” the village chief nodded once.

“I heard you’re indebted to him as well, but as you know, our village has a trading post owner. That day, he had gone to Gema Port to make a delivery and was leaving the city right after finishing his business.”

The village chief looked at me and said:

“After everything was done and he left with a full wallet, the owner realized he had dropped a water canteen. He could have just abandoned it, but it was valuable, and since he hadn’t gone far, he decided to turn back briefly.”

In a way, it was a minor misfortune.

However, that misfortune seemed to have brought luck to the entire village.

“What he saw when Gema Port came into view were people screaming and black-armored holy knights dragging people away. Shocked, he fled backward and hid to observe the situation. Then, realizing that the Emiris Order was capturing the city’s people, he turned around and came back to our village.”

“And then it was our village’s turn,” the village chief added.

‘So they knew it was the Order’s doing.’

Now that I think about it, Anna was briefly frightened when she saw Kurs.

At the time, I couldn’t pay proper attention due to the situation, but on reflection, it was strange that people from the New Kingdom would be alarmed at the sight of the Order’s holy knights.

Apparently, it was because they had realized the Order was abducting people.

“How did you know it was the Order’s doing?”

“The trading post owner is quite perceptive. Gema Port has an Order church, and holy knights frequently come and go there. He noticed that no one was stopping the black-armored holy knights.”

The village chief lowered his voice further, speaking as if it were his own experience.

“So he hurried back and quickly advised the villagers to evacuate. We were lucky there too. The trading post owner was well-liked among the villagers because he often helped others. When someone like him urged evacuation, we thought something must be wrong and accepted his suggestion.”

Of course, there were people who wanted to stay to protect their homeland, but fortunately, the villagers quickly unified their opinions and fled with only essential valuables.

“…And the very next day, a young man from our village who was secretly watching the village witnessed black holy knights entering the village and destroying everything. That was the moment our suspicions turned into certainty.”

Afterward, they continued to flee deeper into the mountains, the village chief added.

“Of course, we were many in number with many elderly among us. We weren’t professionally trained either. We could only flee for about 3 days.”

“That’s unfortunate.”

When I expressed my sympathy, the village chief replied with a gentle face:

“No, we were lucky… Many villages were taken away without any chance to respond, but we managed to hold out for 3 days.”

The village chief added that this was an exceptionally long time to have lasted.

“And thanks to that, we were rescued by you folks. We are extremely fortunate.”

“…I see.”

I nodded at the village chief’s words.

Then the village chief quietly continued:

“More importantly, this is happening nationwide now. No matter how long we held out, it would have been difficult to last more than a week.”

“It’s happening nationwide?”

The village chief nodded at my question.

“Actually, while we were fleeing, we had a chance to contact an informant from a neighboring village. I didn’t mention it before, but in the New Kingdom, village chiefs and lords have their own communication methods, and they sometimes employ informants to quickly relay urgent information to residents.”

He added that village chiefs typically use carrier birds, while lords use magical devices.

“After we fled, it seems the lords across the region and their subordinates urgently contacted each other. ‘Flee, don’t trust the Order… those who were captured have completely disappeared’… that sort of thing.”

“I see.”

Thanks to this village chief’s contact with the neighboring village’s informant, they learned that this large-scale conscription was happening nationwide and continuing.

‘This could lead to enormous casualties.’

As we suspected earlier, if they were kidnapping people to create black holy knights, and if this was happening nationwide, the numbers would be staggering.

‘Are they really mobilizing all citizens for war?’

It seemed excessive for mere defense, as there had been no news of the New Kingdom being attacked by another country or force.

Yet gathering forces by any means necessary suggested preparations for an attack.

‘Common sense makes me want to ask how this helps them, but…’

The opponent was the Emiris Order.

These madmen could go in strange directions at any time—that much I had to keep in mind.

‘But it might be difficult to learn more than this.’

I wanted to hear definitive information, but the village chief’s knowledge was limited.

After all, the chief’s information gathering was coincidental.

Unlike Beatrice, he wasn’t someone who professionally handled and collected information, so the quality and quantity of information was inevitably lacking.

Still, it wasn’t meaningless as it helped us understand the situation and supported our hypotheses.

Learning that this was happening throughout the New Kingdom was valuable information I hadn’t known before.

‘This is enough.’

This was sufficient information to gather from the villagers.

They had been generally cooperative, so there was no need to press for more.

Now, another problem arose.

‘What should we do with these people?’

I couldn’t just leave them behind after getting the information I needed.

They weren’t strangers to me; I was acquainted with them.

‘I do owe them a debt.’

If I were to be specific, they had saved me from starvation, and they had provided space and time for me to regroup before fleeing the New Kingdom.

First, I needed to understand if they had thought about what to do next.

“Have you thought about what to do from here?”

“…We’re considering fleeing overseas, but…”

The village chief gently looked toward the port.

Come to think of it, there were still ships remaining there.

It seemed that when the port people were abducted, the ships were largely untouched, as ownerless vessels remained docked.

If they knew how to sail, departure itself would be possible.

If sailing was possible, that is.

‘How many villagers would be capable of that?’

Unless they were people who lived in the port, these people, as I remembered, lived in the mountains.

I honestly doubted how many of them had the knowledge to navigate a ship, or whether they could secure enough supplies for all the villagers—who weren’t few in number—to flee to a foreign country.

Eve, also aware of this issue, spoke with a worried expression:

“That would be dangerous.”

“…Indeed it would be. Most of us lived in the mountains and know nothing about the sea. Even if we reach the coast, we don’t know which direction to go or what monsters we might encounter.”

The village chief quietly responded to Eve’s concern.

“But we must survive.”

The village chief said.

“When we fled our homeland, I resolved that we must live. Whether we eventually return to our homeland or build a new one… we need to do something.”

The village chief briefly looked at his wife.

The elderly couple smiled at each other.

Then, the village chief smiled at Anna, who had been quietly listening.

“And I can’t just sit here and wait for death in front of the younger generation.”

“Chief.”

Anna looked slightly embarrassed.

“This old life, if I may say so, must keep moving as long as it exists. That’s a right everyone has. So, I intend to struggle as much as possible.”

The village chief said with a smile.

And his wife smiled back at him.

“You’re being sentimental, old man.”

“Quiet, woman.”

Seeing them tease each other while smiling, they seemed to be a couple with a good relationship.

Perhaps inspired, Eve pressed herself closer to my arm.

Then she quietly spoke to me:

“Kei. What will you do?”

Eve didn’t ask specifically what I would do.

But I already knew what she was asking.

And the person who could solve this problem was already determined.

“Let’s consult with Lady Diana.”

I’d like to personally secure a way for these people to survive, but unfortunately, it was beyond our capabilities.

We lacked the knowledge to operate a ship.

In other words, only Diana could help these people safely escape to a foreign country.

Whatever the case, I needed to discuss and decide with her.

Of course, I couldn’t just ask her to take responsibility without reason.

I needed to present some benefit in protecting these people.

“Fortunately, I might be able to convince her that these people are worth it.”

I said, looking at Eve.

The mobilization order spreading throughout the New Kingdom and people being abducted.

Suspicious monsters like the black holy knights who seemed to be modified humans.

The circumstances suggesting the New Kingdom’s war preparations.

If there were testimonies about these matters, foreign countries would likely move to check the New Kingdom or prepare in advance.

And for that…

“We’ll need evidence. Testimonies about what’s happening within the New Kingdom.”

To prepare for something, corresponding evidence is necessary.

The villagers’ testimonies, though somewhat insufficient, could at least raise awareness.

And…

“They would support the testimonies and information about the black holy knights.”

Eve quietly said.

Information about the black holy knights that ordinary people could never confront.

Unless countries like Florence or the Kingdom had experienced black holy knights appearing within their borders, foreign countries would likely perceive them as merely knights in black armor.

It was questionable how much these creatures had been sighted abroad.

They might not know that these knights actually had terribly distorted appearances, with forcibly enhanced bodies.

But if they learned that such beings had appeared and were actively abducting villagers to turn them into soldiers, it would become information that couldn’t be ignored.

“I don’t know if it will work out well, but for that, the villagers need to leave the New Kingdom and go to a safe country first.”

“That’s right. Since they’re people, they should go somewhere with appropriate facilities.”

Eve agreed and then smiled.

“That way, you’ll feel better too. Should we call it repaying a debt?”

“…Well.”

“You’re a kind person.”

Eve said with a smile.

“You might not realize it, Kei, but honestly, we all know. You’re trying to create reasons to help the villagers.”

Eve’s tone was slightly teasing.

Thinking that I was indeed too simple-minded, I slightly bowed my head.

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay. If you want to apologize, do it to Lady Diana, who keeps getting more burdens from us.”

But Eve said that person wouldn’t resent me either.

“However, you understand, right? According to the villagers…”

“We don’t know when their additional forces might arrive.”

Of course, since that regent was conducting operations nationwide, it would take time to notice a problem in one location and deploy black holy knights immediately.

But we couldn’t be certain.

We hadn’t thoroughly scouted the surroundings, so we couldn’t be sure there were no enemies near Gema Port.

We needed to secure some safety in a short time.

“First, we’ll entrust the villagers to Lady Diana and establish a defensive line. And then…”

“And then?”

Looking at Eve, I quietly said:

“…Let’s finish our business on the island as quickly as possible and get out of here.”

“Yes.”

Eve nodded.