"A God's Sphere of power is their lifeblood, To tap it is to ascend, to cut it is to kill that which is unkillable"

Theologist Carkui. rumored to be the first mortal to ascend into godhood without any help

 

The War party made up of Druids stalked the empty city streets, they heard the weapons that the humans had forged fire for the first time and trembled at the noise, Gabriel led them using hawks to scout ahead, no guards were coming from their fort out of the bar the other two patrols he saw earlier.

"I can't believe we will use this abomination against all that is holy," a druid said, to which Gabriel responded, "The many lives we will spare by using the spell will far outweigh its usage on your mind young one, be sure of that." the Arch-Druid stepped in a deserted square, he could feel the eyes of the city populace on them, all hiding inside their homes, the battle had yet to reach this part of town. d

"I'm picking up at least eighty people inside that fort Gabriel, more in the dungeons" Another of the war party gave her report, her eyes glowing pale, he nodded and pulled Lucrezia's gift for him, a contraption she called a "flare gun" loading the strange projectile on it the ancient druid fired it to the sky just as he was told to.

Green smoke colored the sky as Velkariu's birds closed on them, they were cawing at Gabriel's Hawks, saying that backup was on the way.

Few minutes after the shot, he could hear the hooves of Dire Horses coming his way, a platoon of Knights came riding fast, Lucrezia on her Horse, a golden-red Dire Mare, her armor stained red with blood, Gabriel narrowed his eyes when he saw the young human's face, her cheeks were flushed red, he also noticed shaky hands and legs.

"Battle Fever" an elf near him whispered and did a hand sign to ward off evil, what rotten luck, he would need to speak with the Knight's Commander if this was the one particular strain of battle fever nobles were more likely to catch, he would need to make some potions for it.

"Not a word" he barked to his druids as the woman got closer.

"Gabriel! we just finished mopping up the first patrol, I've received word from my scouts that the other two will be ambushed" she looked at her arm, a small band hanging on her wrist, another contraption she had made and it was quite popular with his people. a time watching device called the Watch.

Gabriel didn't want to judge the human's poor naming sense, he coughed and spoke.

"We need to be close to the fort to deploy the countermeasures so the spore doesn't kill half the city, are you sure the usurpers won't leave the fort?"

"Pretty sure, we will take out the sentries in the walls and you people can move in unless you want to participate in the battle?" the war party screamed aye, Spirits of the land the fever was getting to them! Bleh, he was unlucky to get the variant that spreads. blasted nobles.

Gabriel nodded and they moved up towards the fort, like the castle there was a large plaza just before the place proper, Barricades were set and he could see the fear in the eyes of the people manning them, not just humans but elves and beastfolk, it seems these usurpers weren't picky when it came to recruiting.

One of the druids got up in a horse with the help of a Knight and began to chant, the enemies coating their weapons and armor with Ki of various hues, as a terrifying thunderbolt fell in the middle of the first barricade, with a crack and bomb the spell honed into a panicked dwarf and it killed him on the spot before exploding the second barricade.

"KNIGHTS OF WULFGREM, CHARGE!" the human boomed and they went forward with the speed of a drake, Gabriel felt in his bones the power of the man, his blessing making the old elf feel like he was young once again, with a war cry he and his war party went forward, shapeshifting into various magical beasts, crashing into the people who didn't die when the thunderbolt went off, the Knights went around them, their spears skewing and their hooves trampling anyone left standing, one of the druids morphed from a giant spider into a griffon and went to the walls, killing the archers who had begun firing at them.

Gabriel had just finished burning a man alive with his phoenix form when he saw Lucrezia form a huge iron halo around her and a disc beneath her legs, she leaped from her mare and landed in a group of enemies, time seemed to slow as Gabriel watched the young noble lady extend her two hands and crush two men like they were rotten fruits, that was when he saw a fine dark mist coming from her hands.

"Winter Spirits protect me, she's manipulating iron in mist form" he spoke to no one, Gabriel had seen a single battlemage capable of magnetism before, and that man was a terror on the battlefield.

Lucrezia parried a flurry of attacks with her blade, as one of the remaining enemies circled behind her, another raised a bastard sword to hit her with a Ki empowered strike, she quickly bent the sword to its breaking point, making the warrior stumble, she pounced. slicing his throat and grabbing the huge man like a shield, the other attacked and she threw the dying man at the woman who tried to backstab her.

A nasty grin formed on Lucrezia's face as the enemy woman fell, she slammed her boot into the woman's leg who cried in agony, in a flash Lucrezia grabbed the woman's face and bashed in the wet mud, killing her.

the final enemy begged for mercy but his cries were silenced when the Knight Commander blew his head with a pistol, Gabriel flew to Lucrezia and rested on her left shoulder, the other druids were mopping up the survivors with the Knights.

"Control yourself Young Human, Cruelty has its uses but abusing it will earn you nothing but scorn" he turned to the Commander "Your liege suffers from Battle Fever of the infectious kind, Train her, and I shall make the right potions later" the man narrowed his eyes and nodded "It shall be done, Master Gabriel" Lucrezia didn't speak a word, but he could still see her cheeks flushing red, he turned back into his elven form and called his druids.

"The ritual will take thirty minutes" he spoke, the Knight Commander and his people formed up and waited for an enemy response.

The ritual began, pale roots growing from the streets stones, they closed off the fort slowly, it took 20 minutes for the fort defenders to muster a response, a squad of heavily armed guards came from the front gates, their tower shields tinged with crimson Ki

"Carson and the Senior squires" the commander spat out as he saw the men marching towards them.

"HALT IN THE NAME OF THE DUKE STOP THIS AT-" Every Knight and Lucrezia pointed their weapons and fired, the sound as strong as the thunderbolt from earlier, everyone bar Carson and the man to his left went down, their Ki control unable to muster enough power to stop the barrage, Carson himself had a nasty hole drilled in his left arm, he looked down aghast when a second volley was fired, the last two survivors going down like a puppet with its strings being cut.

Gabriel cleared his mind, focusing on the ritual, when he finally felt the barrier going up he told Lucrezia to take her men out of it and told one of the druids to bar the fort in case someone there tried to escape, in the blink of eye vines thicker than a cows torso went up, they englobed the main exits and windows.

"Prepare the spore," Gabriel said with gravitas, the druids nodded and formed a circle, one summoned a box and opened, the dried fungi waiting to be used.

spell after the spell was cast as they prepared to deploy it, Gabriel heard the noises coming from the fort, apparently, the rest of the soldiers there finally waking up to reality, he shook his head and began the chant, calling for the favors of the winter spirits, as they descended into the ritual ground the dried fungi came to life, fingers growing into the ground straight into the main keep, the screaming had begun in earnest now.

"No wonder the queen herself decided to destroy Granarius Prime after this was used, All-Father above forgive me" one of the druids spoke and the other nodded, as the chanting grew faster the fingers bore into the walls and began infecting the people inside, louder and louder they screamed as the spores grew at an alarming rate and fingers came from their skin, choking them, some using their weapons to kill them and others. after forty minutes the screaming stopped, Gabriel felt a click in his mana, indicating the spores were out of targets and looking for more, he began chanting again, his druids following along as the spores accumulated themselves into a cloud and pooled together back in the box. another druid closed it.

"Perform the test," he said and soon a locust was thrown into the zone, the insect made some noise and complained of being throw but didn't immediately die, everyone nodded and a few sighs of relief could be heard, it had worked.

"Thank the Spirits, thank the fucking Spirits," Gabriel said, laughing nervously, he took down the barrier and spoke with Lucrezia "As agreed we have helped you root out the usurpers here in the city, as we speak the twins together with your mages and knights will attack the prison outside the city" He prayed to the Spirits those two could handle the mission, their hunting and geomancy skills were on par with any master druid for their age.

Lucrezia nodded, she fired a flare to the sky, its blue smoke signaling it was time for the main force of the Knights to finally move in and retake what was theirs, Gabriel heard the war cries from the main city gates and the galloping of Dire Horses.

"You may rest at the castle if you want Arch-Druid, the people at the gates already know your face." she said pointing to a road behind her, Gabriel nodded and called his people, now that the battle was over he could feel the tiredness seeping into his old bones, he spoke with the war party and they went off to the castle.

Hopefully to be met with a hot meal and warm bed the old druid thought.

---

Freya and her sister were scouting ahead while the mages set up awards around the prison, the guards were barely paying attention to the outside, the news from the attacks, her sister was already working on the tunnels to reach the prisoners.

One of the mages Lucrezia had loaned told according to his divinations there were at least 300 people there, and 100 in dire need of healing, it was enough for Gunn to send a Wind Hawk back to the village and request aid, which should take just enough time for them to mop this butcher's shop clean.

"Miss Freya. my man is ready to charge in, we are waiting on your word" the Knight spoke in a grave tone, they all knew how bad the situation was down there. the mage's earlier divinations giving them ample evidence of the atrocities committed by the so-called usurpers.

"Gunn, I need a timetable, these Knights are getting twitchy"

"4 more minutes, I'll blow up their watchtowers and main tents. there's about 50 of them here, with that I can kill at least a good 20 or so"

"Then get on it you loaf"

Freya cut off the mental link, using mind magic without a license was asking for trouble but she doubted anyone could've spotted that, she turned to the Knight and said "3 Minutes, get the mages ready for the first spell barrage" the Knight nodded and barked orders to the robed fellows, who were all trembling, bookworms who had never seen a true fight, huh the human was running short on battle mages it seemed.

Freya got up from the trench she was hiding in and walked to the mage line, these people were barely on the level of acolytes! their mana control was all over the place too, then she focused on their gear, shiny, pretty.

Powerful.

Ahh, so that was how the mage managed to cast such detailed divination before! Spirits of the land that human was sparing no expanse huh? then again if your land and bloodline were on the line, would you spare?

Freya caught herself thinking deep thoughts when she got the ping from her sister, she called out for the Knights and Mages to form up.

"3.2.1" the earth shattered with a kaboom, the fence went up skyward and the same happened to the watchtowers, the part of the camp where the guards were sleeping also went flying, Freya picking flying guards with her eyes.

 

"CHARGE"

 

A mighty warhorn was blasted and the mages rained fire, lighting, and ice upon the dazed guards who were trying to muster a defense, globs of acid and a nasty 5 man empowered firestorm blossomed in the middle of their formation, as the camp came alive and the second wave of defenders stormed in to fight, the hooves of dire horses drowned the field with their oppressive sound, that and the firing of those new weapons Lady Lucrezia had made with her dwarves hidden in that underground fortress, they tore through armor and bone like a sword saint blade, the mages who now had run out of mana pulled the bigger weapons, and began laying down fire, some of the projectiles conjuring flames and lighting just like spells, Freya's eyes bulged, Elemental crystals as ammo!

Humans were greedy, weren't they?

The second wave went down as the Knights hunted stragglers with extreme prejudice, those who tried surrender were killed on the spot, Freya had heard from Lucrezia herself, the Spirits demanded blood to wet the grounds and she was duty-bound to do it.

"Not joining on the fun sister?"

"This is slaughter, No I'm not joining on it" Freya turned to her sister who had popped out of the ground like a mole, she dusted herself off and summoned an earthen chair.

"Reckon they will be done after a few minutes or so, and my earthen elementals tell me the healers are about to get here, It's nasty down there Freya, the things those poor people went thought..."

"Think they will need blessings from Hefe'Ir?"

Gunn looked at the battle and nodded "For sure, the mind sickness they have will probably need full High Priest on detail attention, I'll tell the Lady myself once we get back to the city"

Freya got up as she got a ping from her Wind Hawk, the healers had arrived, they looked aghast at the carnage happening in front of them. but Freya calmed them down enough to explain what was happening, their faces growing worried by the second.

Once the Knight came back and told them the guards were all dead the healers moved in, as the Knights and mages broke the prisoners free a sense of hope could be felt in the air, many crying at the sight of the Knights, thanking All-Father and Morugarius. the mages went around asking for names, another order from Lucrezia to find out who died and who was missing, to enact a monument to them she was told.

Freya had just finished burying the remains of the guards when an elven woman sat beside her, a city dweller Freya noticed, the woman was missing an eye and hand, Freya cringed as she saw them, and a deep hatred inside of her chest was starting to take root.

"We prayed you to know? every day we prayed for Uumaries to save us, as they took husbands, wives, mothers, and sons to gods knows where, but the goddess never responded" the elven woman was crying softly, but her voice had steel on it

"The Knights told me that Lady Lucrezia's pact with the Spirits demanded the girl to Kill them all, to pay for their sins with enough blood that a river may flow from it, is it true Kin of the Forest?"

Freya nodded, eyes growing misty, to be called Kin of the Forest was something very few elves heard, it was paramount of a city elf saying you were like family to them, which was rare these days as the conveniences of the big cities were so appetizing for elves of all ages.

The elven woman spat on the mass grave and said "Is Master Gabriel accepting new druids? I-My family used to be druids for his circle before we moved to the city and my parents had me, I'm not much of a fighter but I can still feel the call..."

"He is, Talk with the healers Kin, and they will take you to him" Freya hugged her and guided her to the healers, on her way there she heard the Knights and Mages telling their side of the story to the people, and she saw the fire on their eyes, the rage of being forgotten by their Goddess in the direst of moments.

Many were asking to join the Knights or even the Mages, and more than a few non-elves asked for a council with Master Gabriel, Imagine that, Humans and Beastfolk in the circle once again! but Freya knew they weren't joining for their love of nature, no these people would become the cornerstone of something bigger, something that would shake the very core of this country.

---

Lucrezia for the first time since this madness had begun was scared for William, she had heard before how nobles lose themselves in battle, how some who bury their desires too much let loose a bit too much in combat and get drunk on it.

"Battle Fever" she spoke the words the druid said to Erwin, what a disgrace, but then again who was at fault here? the boy hadn't talked about it but she could feel him bottling his urges up, even using mana meditation for it, it wasn't healthy, it wasn't safe but he was doing it.

For her.

"William you fool," she said touching the Monolith, the room now looked like a mixture of woodland and apartment blocks, it was beautiful, she could hear birds, there was a stream running across it, ever since they established the Oath their inner shared soul was breathtaking.

And he was out there Killing, for her.

Lucrezia wanted to scream, she wanted to give up and run to the wastes, live life as a marauder, screw this city and kingdom! but she couldn't her pride wouldn't let her, and she demanded the boy wet his hands with blood, again and again teasing that evil, that greed that was inside of him, his Terran baggage had already made them powerful beyond belief with those guns, the combat in the city couldn't even be called that because it was a massacre, a one-sided massacre that had the boy almost lose himself to bloodlust.

Lucrezia knew she could kill him right now, with but a word her contract she established with him would kill him and...gods knew what happened next, did they both go to the long queue? would the All-Father notice William's soul?

No, she wouldn't do that, Gods above she had grown to like the silly boy, sure he had his faults but he was trying! every command she gave he would do it, he whined for some but he did them all the same.

"I hope this isn't a sign of a blessing from Saal’Xhir, I've heard the stories and if that happens it would be bad for both of us" Lucrezia sighed " I hope that potion and the training help him, help us," she said touching the Monolith, it felt warm and welcoming, Lucrezia sat down in a bench and rested her head, one of the few benefits of sharing a soul was that William's memories were all open for her to peruse, some had caused them to fight sure but the boy had gotten good at filtering those out, she didn't want another Avers incident.

Lucrezia watched as the Monolith pulsed and glowed, the contract she signed so long ago weighing on her mind and soul, William's fear coming down from above like cold rain, she tried to speak with him but he wasn't listening.

With a sigh Lucrezia decided to sleep, the final battle was yet to come.

---

It had been an hour since the druid gave his two cents to William and Erwin, they had ambushed the final patrol and killed every single soldier in it, the crown pinged William and then pinged the castle.

four more remained.

William felt his hands shake, he was sitting on the sidewalk trying to regain his cool but the shakes were getting too hard, he was sucking in the air but felt like there wasn't enough, his heart was slamming against his chest, he was having a panic attack.

Those were common after he had left his parents to live in Alberta, they had gotten better as the year went on but this one he was having right now was real bad, he was unable to move at all.

Erwin finished talking with another Knight, the streets were full of civilians who were cheering the Knights and him, it would've been an endearing sight if he wasn't in such a dire situation.

Erwin finished talking and came to rest beside him, the man took his helmet off, placed it on the streets, and sighed.

"Lady Lucrezia, can you hear me?"

William nodded, he tried to speak but words didn't come out, Jesus he thought, it was this bad?

"Battle fever is a common condition to any noble that never fought before My Lady, I know you killed before and must be asking yourself why this is happening now yes?"

Wiliam nodded again.

"As I'm sure you know, given you are the heir of one of the five, this land and her people were blessed by Morugarius herself once that long voyage ended and we first made landfall here, from the dirtiest of peasants to the king and queen themselves, that speck of power is there, now most don't get to tease it out, but sometimes in the heat of battle, it can happen, especially for those of noble blood such as yourself" he took out a flask and sipped from it "You, in particular, Lady Lucrezia, being a Wulfgrem, would be far more likely to get it, now that's not all so bad as Battle Fever if properly trained can be an extra edge" he handed him the flask "Drink this, the others are already noticing you are under the Silent's curse" William grabbed the flask and took a swing at it, the taste of blueberries and pineapple? he opened his eyes, oh wow that was Nina's Brew!

Coughing a little thanks to the delayed kicked he finally spoke "I...Thank you, Commander Erwin" he smiled "Think nothing of it, the Silent Soldier is an Imperium God but the curse is anything but, at least you didn't sob in the fetal position, those we usually need a healer...anyway that drink there should keep you level headed until this battle is over"

"And the training?"

"Once this whole ordeal is over, I and Sigrun will hone that edge Lady Lucrezia, and with the potions of an Arch-Druid? give me 5 months and you will be set" he smiled, feeling a bit proud of himself William noticed.

He got up and extended his hand to William, who took it, dusting himself off in the process

"Ah, speak with Master Idun when you can, swinging rods of iron like a peasant does you no favors Lady Lucrezia, the dwarf told me he's making a sword fit for a king for you" they whistled for their horses and rode for the castle, William fired a blue flare, signaling total victory, when Lucrezia arrived in the central plaza she saw the faces of her people, the castle guard, knights, and acolytes all brimming with hope and happiness, but it was the people who surprised him the most, they were singing and screaming cheers to Lucrezia, a druid came running when William entered the castle grounds, the battle at the prison camp had been a resounding success and the twins were on their way back with healers from Gabriel's village helping the captives there.

Wilson came shortly afterward, the man was decked out to the nines with the best gear the dwarfs could put out in the short notice, he and 3 more acolytes all dressed in pitch black, their robes more like suits of armor, giant staffs made from pure mana crystals on their backs.

"The ritual is ready, I've stationed every able body person in the castle to defend the checkpoints we established earlier should your parents unleash anything that can get past us, as you asked I've put a team to assist us in the final push to the private wing" Wilson was shaking William could see, it was strange, in the game the lich that was once the man in front of him was brimming with expectations for the siege, Serkj came running and took William out of his thoughts.

"My Lady, the outer defenses are ready, we managed to get one of the druids to set up these nasty trap vines that can explode on contact, I've crossbows and muskets posted on the walls and watchtowers, and men across every exit!" he was panting, William nodded and looked for Erwin, who was speaking with Gabriel while sharpening his sword, the druid looking like he had rested enough for the final push.

"-as I was saying, with the potions her Battle Fever won't evolve into the Lust variant, I can sense the taint of Saal’Xhir on her Commander Erwin, so you best hope that training works"

"Saal’Xhir seldom blesses nobles who aren't her followers Master Gabriel, but I'll heed your warnings, Oh Lady Lucrezia? is there anything I can do for you?"

"You believe Saal’Xhir blessed me, Master Gabriel?" William could feel the cold sweat on his back, battle lust was no joke, the lore books in-game spoke of it as something that could completely change someone if not cured or bargained with Saal’Xhir herself, which usually involves building a church for her, or outright conversion of the person in question.

"Yes young one, but as I was saying to Commander Erwin here, my potions will do their work as long you train hard enough you hear me?"

William couldn't help but smile, Gabriel always had that grumpy grandfather thing going for him in-game, it was nice to see it surfacing a bit here, even if things were dire.

"Okay Grandpa, I'll do it..." the wizened elf took a minute to compose himself before smiling, his teeth pearly white shining, he shook his head and said.

"O to be young, now Young Duchess, if you are done having fun at my expense, call me when you decide to strike the final enemy, my people still need some time to rest"

"I shall, thank you, Master Gabriel"

"No need to thank me, girl, thank the Spirits for giving you strength to do what you must today" he bowed and walked off inside the main hall, around William and Erwin people were running around, setting up barricades and traps, rows of ammo for the muskets.

"If only I had a cannon, maybe once we get blessed eh Lucrezia?"

She didn't respond, William tried to focus on his soul and he felt that she was sleeping, not wanting to wake her up early he sat down on a table and took a deep breath, closing his eyes to rest for a spell before the final battle, He was awakened a few minutes later by a Knight, the man telling him that Idun had sent his vanguard with the upgraded armor to act as a shield against the court mage.

She saw 10 dwarves looking like they were ready to raze the entire city block to the ground, their new armor making them taller, bulkier, tower shields gleaming with runes made to ward off magic, huh William thought, they had a runesmith with them? one of the humans he guessed, he would have a word with Idun later, if this runesmith could train others it would be a great boon for the duchy.

Gotta go down there after this is over, I don't know why I've delayed this much William through as he inspected the dwarves, he nodded approvingly and sent then to Erwin, as he was about to sit down again, Karl showed up, worry plastered in his face.

"Lucrezia we have a situation"

"That's Lady Lucrezia for you priest," Saa'ryu said, emerging from the shadows, William raised his hand in her direction and said, "From the top Karl, what happened?"

"Some of the locals are trying to hang the High Priestess of Uumaries, I've tried to tell them the poor woman has nothing to do with this whole ordeal but they want more blood, you must calm them down Lucrezia, Chloe helped me when the food started to run out, I will vouch for her"

William thought it over, Uumaries sphere of power, the very essence that gave her dominion over her faithful was very strong in the duchy before the protagonist changed the faith in-game, If he could turn the people of Wulfgrem into Velkarius's faithful, thus expanding her sphere, it would shift the balance of power of the god's and let him strike at that rotten Goddess faster, mayhap even an Alliance with Friede.

It would take months, and Lucrezia might object to it, but Uumaries was the perpetrator of so many atrocities in the game, he felt he had to, he had to strike at that demon and shrink her sphere of power if only a little.

After all, that was how the Gods played their game.

"Let's go then, With luck, we might even get a new patron Goddess for the duchy" Karl's eyes bulged, Saa'ryu gave a small yelp, yep William thought, that's the right reaction all right, he was declaring war against the goddess, which meant his next step of this half baked plan had to go as smooth as possible, lest he pisses off a good number of nobles from Vermilion and other countries.

"My Lady, we would suffer heavy economic sanctions if you do that, are you sure?" Saa'ryu looked worried, which was understandable, William smiled and said "I have a few choice items in my head that will make us the richest Duchy in the country Saa, all I must do is establish strong trade deals with House Maygriam" Both Saa'ryu and Karl spat when he mentioned the name.

"Scum the lot of them," Saa'ryu said with acid on her voice, Karl nodded, William didn't forget how badly some viewed the Merchant House, after all, they had to grease too many palms to end the last war with Granarius.

"Lets the horses" William walked to the stables, both he and Saa'ryu got into their Mares, Karl elected to walk, they made their way to the temple of Uumaries, as William trotted around town, civilians would join them, in the five minutes it took to reach the church, he had dragged a good 50 or so individuals, all ready to see what was going to happen to the Goddess's Priestess.

Arriving at the church plaza, he was met with an angry mob full of pitchforks, old rusted weapons, and even a Knight screaming at the poor woman trying her best to defend herself, some were screaming in Chloe's favor, reminding people she offered them food and shelter.

In short, a shitshow William thought

Karl leaped through the air, the mob silencing as he landed near Chloe.

"EVERYONE, HIGH PRIESTESS CHOLE IS NOT AT FAULT HERE" He bellowed to grab their attention, now that they were quiet he pointed to William and said "I bring you Lady Lucrezia herself, She will deliver the final Judgment" they all turned to William as he got off the horse, Saa'ryu by his side, the people bowed and kneeled, quiet as undead, he walked among them and said

"Raise your heads, my People, the time for cowering is over" as he stood facing Chloe, the older woman stood tall, not a shadow of doubt on her face.

"High Priestess Chole, is it true that you, before Priest Karl arrived, was supplying food, shelter, and healing to those who asked?" as William spoke, he summoned the garb from the Winter Spirits, sharp intakes from the mob meant the desired effect was achieved.

One of the few powers the Crown gave was to see if someone was lying to the user, William heard a whisper saying the woman spoke true and turned to the mob

"It's true" he spoke loud and clear, some of the mob calmed down, but the Knight he saw earlier screamed, her voice ringing with anger.

"She saw our loved ones being dragged to the prison and did NOTHING"

The others began to speak again, their voices rising in volume until Saa'ryu removed a pistol and fired to the air, which made everyone clamp down once again.

"High Priestess, did you collaborate with the usurpers in sending innocent people away?" A wrong answer and William would need to the deed himself, otherwise, the mob would likely beat the poor woman to death in blind fury.

The older woman stared at William, her red eyes brimming with conviction and certainty

"No, I didn't aid them"

seconds pass, then the whisper came again, the woman spoke the truth, she was innocent.

"The Winter Spirits have spoken, and they declare High Priestess Chloe INNOCENT" Willaim bellowed to the mob, even using his mana to project the voice a little bit further, he was no wind mage but in such proximity as this, it did the trick just fine.

Chloe nodded and whispered a quiet thank you to William, Karl took her inside the temple and barreled the doors, William turned to the crowd once again, they were all watching him, waiting for something, Yes he felt, this was the right time to being the change to Velkarius, from here word of mouth would spread and in months Uumaries Sphere wouldn't have sway over his lands.

he motioned to Saa'ryu who went by his side, then walking in front of the people he spoke in a loud commanding force

"MY PEOPLE HEAR ME"

They all snapped to attention, William took a deep breath and went to commit intellectual theft once again.

"Today marks the day of vengeance, of fighting back against the darkness that has corrupted and poisoned our land, that took our loved ones to butcher and defile in the name of the fallen, People of the Wulfgrem Duchy, today I ask for time, time to heal, time to build our home from the ashes once again just as we did so long ago after the Imperium War, so that we might strike back! today you saw the power I BROUGHT TO THIS WORLD! their shields and armor were torn apart like paper! tell all from city to farm, merchant, and criminal that I Lucrezia Sommer Wulfgrem have come to remove this pus from our lands, with steel and crystal, and our enemies who hide in that castle will shatter against the unbreakable rock that is our WILL! and you people of the Wulfgrem Duchy, you will be the strength of my arm, the holders of my dreams will be the ones to usher this new age, this much I vow, the history of the upcoming days will be written in THEIR BLOOD"

William took a second to catch some air, the mob was dead quiet, you could hear people gulping, but that cold fire that was almost dead in them was roaring in their eyes

"Sons and Daughters of Wulfgrem, your destiny beckons, stand with you brothers and sisters, stand with me, and together we will be undefeated, The past is our penance, the present is our strength, and the future... the future is our VENGEANCE!"

William was heaving when he noticed the people were bowing to him, he felt a click, deep in his soul, and at that moment he knew.

He got them.