Warlords of the witcher world

Chapter 144 The Invitation of the Eternal Flame

In Kaedwen, the Lord Protector did not relax because of the completion of the purge, he is still carrying out the transformation of the country.

For this important and important part of the Kaedwen army, Herme established a division and brigade organization in accordance with Aarden's practice, and set up five divisions in Kaedwen.

These five divisions are also named after the large city of Kaedwen, they are the Division of Ad Kale, Lida, Ban Green, Ban Ad and Tridamm.

Of course, like the Aden Division, these divisions have 4000 people, but in fact there are only 1000 people, which adds up to [-] standing troops.

These 5000 people have been checked at least twice to keep them from having any major interest connection with the Unicorn Dynasty, and their backgrounds are clean. They are basically ordinary people and the beneficiaries of the occupation of Aedirn.

After finally completing the reform of the Kaedwen army, Herme was relieved. The army is the most critical part of controlling Kaedwen.

And after the problem of Kaedwen's army is settled, the Lord Protector can also withdraw the Aedirn army one after another, and only guarantee their existence in some key positions.

Finally, there is the re-planning of Kaedwen's administrative divisions.

Just as Aedirn is now divided into the Upper Aeden District centered on Vergen, the Lower Aeden District centered on Edelsberg, and the Middle Aeden District centered on Wengerburg, Kaedwen also be divided.

Heme planned to divide Lower Kaedwen with Lida as the center into the Lower Kaedwen District, Ad Kale as the center of the Middle Kaedwen District, and Ban Ade as the center of the Upper Kaedwen District.

The Lower Kaedwen District manages mainly the Pontar River on the north bank of Kaedwen, the Middle Kaedwen District is the traditionally wealthy area of ​​Kaedwen, and the Upper Kaedwen District is the barbaric mountain tribes in the north.

Of course, each Kaedwinian region controls a portion of the two Kaedwinian aortas.

And this division, the most important thing is to cut Kaedwin horizontally, not vertically.

The quintessence of Kaedwen is along the Buina and Lakshira rivers, along which a great deal of population and wealth lie.

Therefore, Herme wanted to cut the two rivers into three, so as to avoid the scene of a one-time mutiny in the entire elite area of ​​Kaedwen to the greatest extent.

Of course, it will take a lot of time to implement everything, but Herme is very confident about it.

By April, the Lord Protector's affairs in Kaedwen were basically over, and the next thing was to see how everything was executed.

The Duke Protector originally planned to return to Wengerburg, take a good rest for a while, and write the fourth volume of his manuscript by the way, when Herme received an invitation.

The arrival of this invitation surprised Herme.

For the inviter was Cyrus Engelkaed Hemelfate, Archbishop of the Eternal Flame.

The archbishop invited Herme to Novigrad, where the main altar of the eternal flame is located.

"The fat old man invited me at this time... Everyone, what do you think? What kind of medicine do you think our lord bishop sells in the gourd?"

Herme played with the envelope in her hand. The quality of the letter paper was very good, and Herme was very comfortable to touch. It had the symbol of eternal fire on it, and the edge was gilded with flames.

The whole letter looks very magnificent, which is very in line with the identity of the sender of the letter, Bishop Cyrus of the Eternal Flame.

The Church of the Eternal Flame was founded centuries ago in the free city of Novigrad.

At that time, people discovered a group of eternal flames in Novigrad, which was later recognized as a miracle by the Cliff Church.

The belief in worshiping the Eternal Flame was born, Cliff Church helped the Eternal Flame build the church structure, and then the church began to expand.

The main symbol of the Church of the Eternal Flame is the ever-burning flame that symbolizes hope. Over the years, the number of believers in the church has increased.

Now it has become the most powerful mainstream religion in the north, has a strong influence in the northern countries, and is an ally with the powerful Cliff Church.

Followers of the Eternal Flame believe that the unquenchable flame is a living symbol that guides them through darkness, toward progress, and to a better tomorrow.

In the temple of the Church, the blazing flame is never extinguished.

In this respect, the teaching of the Eternal Fire is similar to the Great Sun Disk of the South.

The only difference is that the Eternal Flame has not acquired the supreme religious status like the great sun disc of the south.

"Since the bishop issued an invitation, let's respond. No matter what, the meeting with the archbishop of Eternal Flame will help enhance the power of our country."

Selchik made his proposal, the general didn't think so much, he was not good at politics before and he is not good at politics now.

But what he said was actually correct. The main character of Eternal Flame made an invitation, and Herme responded to the invitation. No one could fault this.

"There is still too little information, Lord Herme, we don't know much about this Archbishop of the Eternal Flame, but judging by the goodwill that the Church of Eternal Flame has released to our country, Archbishop Cyrus may have further cooperation with you." Collaborative negotiations."

It was Charlene who spoke next, and he evaluated the matter from the eyes of an intelligence officer.

Although I don't know the situation in Novigrad, accepting the archbishop's invitation is definitely beneficial.

"I think there is still a problem. What if Master Herme goes to Novigrad and is intercepted by Redania on the way? If you go south, you can only take the Pontar River, and the entire lower reaches of the Pontar River are in the Redania. Under the control of Dania, if the Redania fleet wants, they can block the river and even capture the Lord Protector."

Saskia presented her concerns from another angle.

It has to be said that this worry is very real. If the Redanians want to capture the Protector alive, they only need to block the Pontar River.

"Ms. Saskia, in my opinion, there is nothing to worry about."

It was Marcius who spoke. Although he was assigned to manage Kaedwen, he still had the right to participate in such an important meeting.

At present, no Kaedweni has been trusted by Herme, and the Marquess of Mansfield is half of them, but he also needs the test of time, so all the people present are Ardian.

"The current ruler of Redania is Ms. Philippa. That lady would not do such a thing that breaks the political rules. I have had contact with that lady, and she behaves very well."

As the former Chief Civil Officer of Aedirn, Marshall has more experience in dealing with government officials from various countries than everyone here combined.

I think he also negotiated with Philippa back then, but it was a pity that it failed miserably in the end.

Whether it's long sentence bombing or twisted logic, none of him has played Philippa.

"Therefore, I suggest Lord Herme to go to Novigrad with peace of mind, nothing will happen at all."

Herme thought for a while. In the current situation, Philipa is probably still thinking about how to deal with the situation. Assassination is unlikely and not in time, so she can go to Novigrad with peace of mind.

Compared with Philippa's threat, the invitation of the Eternal Flame is obviously more important. Where is the power of the Eternal Flame? If you can get their help, it will be of great help to the future.

So the Lord Protector decided to go to Novigrad, so the next step is naturally to prepare for this trip.

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On board the Vergen, the Lord Protector crossed his voyage of the Pontar in his cabin.

The scale of the Lord Protector's patrol this time can be described as luxurious, with the Vergen as the main ship, six large ships as escorts, and a dozen or so small boats wandering around, guaranteeing that it can deal with any form of assault.

The Lord Protector was very afraid that someone would mess with him along the way, so he ordered so many guards, and in order to prevent magic attacks, a large amount of anti-magic gold was equipped on the Vergen.

Due to the hobby of the Lord Protector, the Devil's Gold has now become a must-have item for the upper class in the Kingdom of Aedirn.

This makes warlocks very annoying. You must know that in the era when the order of warlocks still existed, holding magic gold and wearing magic gold jewelry was regarded as a naked provocation to warlocks.

The sorceresses hated it even more. The people of Aedirn brought so much magic-resistant gold, and their magic ointment would be ineffective immediately. This is their sharp weapon to play with men.

There are even tragedies in which a sorceress casts charm magic, but encounters the magic resistance gold, and then causes her face to be blown black.

Herme has now been given a nickname by some sorceresses, "Shrinking Turtle", which is yin and yang because of Herme's timidity.

After hearing this, Lord Protector said that it doesn't matter, anyway, you can just scold me, and I still tie the magic gold all over my body.

Influenced by the Lord Protector, more and more people did this.

In fact, many people imagined that Lord Protector did this, but because of the status and ability of the warlock, and now that Lord Protector of Yadian took the lead, everyone quickly followed up.

The Lord Protector didn't want to stroll on the river. Ever since he was smeared by the fishy smell of the river once, he could not leave the hatch without leaving the hatch.

Speaking of which, the peaceful scene of the Pontar River now makes it difficult for Herme to connect it with the war front in his impression.

About the Pontar River, Herme thought a lot, and he had a lot of ideas about the river.

In Herme's view, the Pontal River is the key to controlling the north.

Taking this river is equivalent to directly radiating power to the entire north.

All the four main powers in the north have important rivers originating from the Pontar River. Therefore, starting from the Pontar River, you can reach any place in the four northern countries.

The Lord Protector thought that if he could unify the north in the future, he must set up the capital in the floating port, which is in the center of the north, in the center of the key Pontar River.

However, this is a matter of horoscope, and the floating port is still the territory of Temeria, but this does not affect Herme's thinking.

The Lord Protector, who was staying in the cabin, was writing his fourth volume, which he would publish when he was about to arrive in Novigrad, as a gift to the city.

"Here we are, Novigrad!"

Howled the dwarf sailor atop the masthead, his arms pointed forward, excited to have reached his destination.

These words made the whole ship agitated, and then spread to nearby ships. Many soldiers crawled out of the cabins, and finally they no longer had to sleep with the horses.

Everyone looked at the famous city. Many people here saw this place for the first time. Only those who had been to Novigrad looked at these people with the eyes of country bumpkins.

However, Lord Protector of Aedirn was also among those who went to see Novigrad, but no one dared to look at him with contempt. He was quite eager to see the city.

After all, this is Novigrad.

The first thing that appeared in the eyes of the Lord Protector was the city's solid city wall, which gathered the most advanced defense technology in the entire north, and even the Nilfgaardians could not easily take it down.

Behind the city wall, you can see countless apartments with red bricks and red tiles in Novigrad.

At first glance, it is really beautiful and full of civilization.

The Temple of the Eternal Fire on Temple Isle overlooks the city, its sprawling towers a striking sight.

And I don't know if it was an illusion, but Herme felt that she saw a burning flame.

When Herme looked at Novigrad, the information related to the city also emerged in her mind.

Novigrad, the city of freedom, is the largest city in the north. It is located at the mouth of the Ponta River and is also the most important port in the north and even the entire continent.

The resident population here is almost [-], and the business travelers and visitors who come here are twice as many, which means that the total population of this place has maintained a figure of more than [-] for a long time.

The main roads are paved with stone, and the area is home to a seaport, warehouses, four watermills, slaughterhouses and sawmills, an enormous shoe factory, a mint, eight banks, and nineteen pawn shop.

And besides that there are all the trades and walks of life imaginable: a guillotine, a gallows, 35 taverns, a theater, a zoo, a market, and a dozen brothels.

When you walk around the city's port and admire the magnificent architecture, it's hard to imagine that Novigrad was just a small elf square a few centuries ago.

When cities fall into the hands of northerners, there are many problems: northerners are known to have many good traditions, but peaceful coexistence is definitely not one of them.

Therefore, Novigrad began to belong to Redania, and then was included in the territory of Temeria. After countless compromises and disputes, this city full of wealth and vitality finally became the only free city in the north.

People here call themselves the capital of the world, the center and cradle of culture, where the inspired man can breathe its richness, so long as he keeps his distance from those dark back alleys.

But this city is not really free, and the distribution of power in the city is intricate.

In addition to religions like Eternal Flame firmly controlling the fate of the city, various underground underworld forces also control the lifeline of the city.

In other words, the City Council is nothing but a puppet, and it is the Eternal Flame and the Mafia who really control the city.

Not to mention, although Novigrad became independent from Redania and became a free city, the influence of Redania can be seen everywhere.

Whether it is the architectural style or the language habits of the residents, there are heavy imprints of eternal fire.

As a free city, the city council developed its own currency and units of measurement.Through these, Novigrad can guarantee its trade status in this continent.

In the fierce confrontation between the North and the South, the economies of all countries have been severely impacted, and the currency with the most guaranteed value is the Novigrad Krona.

Although Novigrad is not a country, as a free commercial city-state, Novigrad has a prosperous economy, and the value of krona has naturally risen. It is now the only universal payment method in the world.

Whether it is merchants, nobles, townspeople and ordinary farmers in the north, or Nilfgaardian quartermasters, dwarf bankers, prostitutes, and of course witchers, all are accepted.

All of these make Novigrad the most dazzling pearl in the north.

All parties want to take it into their pockets, but everyone who makes a move against Novigrad will immediately encounter countermeasures from other countries, and all actions to increase influence in this city will also be resisted.

So you have the special situation of eternal fire and gangsters controlling everything, power never disappears, it just keeps rent seeking.

Herme was quite excited about the fact that he was going to enter Novigrad. He had long wanted to see the splendor of the free city.

Novigrad sent out guide ships early on, and after discovering Herme's fleet, they immediately began to guide the Ardians into the port of Novigrad.

These ships bear the emblem of the Eternal Flame, denoting that they belong to the Eternal Flame.

The fleet soon docked at the port of Novigrad. As a wound that handles countless ships every day, the port is full of merchants, prostitutes and laborers.

Herme saw that there were still many Lebioda believers in the port, and they all carried the Prophet's "Holy Book".

He was a little surprised at first, but he was not surprised when he thought that Novigrad was the place where Lebioda's body was located.

Speaking of which, Eternal Flame has absorbed a lot of ideas from Lebioda's "Holy Book", which is also a religious classic recognized by Eternal Flame.

When it comes to the relationship between Eternal Flame and Cliff, Herme couldn't help sighing that this belief is indeed very similar to a stitch monster, with everything.

Herme did not dock at the noisy and chaotic ordinary port, but at the exclusive port of Eternal Flame.

The ordinary port area is cut off by the wall, and here even the flame decoration can be seen on the trestle.

As for the brazier representing the eternal fire, there are more.

There are also many ships belonging to the Eternal Flame, which are docked on the pier.

A large number of Firesworn (the followers of Eternal Flame call themselves) gathered at the port, and Herme saw many temple guards wearing armor. They were the army of Eternal Flame and the city's defense force.

When the Vergen approached the shore, the Firesworn laborers who had been waiting for a long time immediately got busy to let the Lord Protector's ship dock.

The boards were immediately put on the boat, and the guards of the Duke of the Protector immediately went down, forming a queue to wrap the Duke of the Protector in it.

Herme didn't bring Weilang guards this time, and Eternal Flame hated non-human races no less than Cliff Church.

And I don't know anyone in the Church of Eternal Flame, so it won't be fun if I get embarrassed at that time.

The Lord Protector stepped off the boat and looked at the Firesworn in front of him. He was under the protection of the temple guards.

The leader was a small man, wearing a white tight top and a short gray coat. The gold necklace around his neck swayed with his steps, shining with golden light like the sun.

He is Chape, the captain of the Temple Guard and the de facto administrator of Novigrad.

For this person, Herme had heard of his name a long time ago, and his reputation was very bad.

However, Herme knew that the current Chape was no longer the former Chape. Under his rule, Novigrad was thriving.

It wasn't until later that he was discovered to be a doppelganger.

But now, he is still the ruler of Novigrad who is under one man and over ten thousand people.

Herme noticed a metallic tinge in Chappe's unusually cold eyes, a sickly pallor with unnatural sweat on his brow, and mottled red spots on his cheeks.

I have to say that the ability of the shapeshifter is really scary.

"Welcome to the City of Liberty, Lord Herme. I am Chape. Next, I will lead a tour of the city and go to the Temple Island to meet the Archbishop."

Chape bowed respectfully to Herme, the etiquette was perfect, obviously it had been practiced a long time ago.

At this moment, Valentine brought a horse for Herme, and the Lord Protector also got on the horse.

"Then please, Mr. Chapei."

Herme on the horse said, just like a monarch.

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Walking on the streets of Novigrad, Herme really felt that this city really lived up to its reputation.

Whether it is the width of the street or the density of pedestrians, Novigrad surpassed any city that Herme had ever seen.

But it's not surprising when you think about it. After all, this is the capital of the north and the largest city in the north.

Along the way, the guards of the temple cleared the way for Lord Protector, but even so, there were still crowds of spectators standing behind the guards.

And there are many fans of Hemei's books. As the cultural center in the north, there are always many readers of Hemei's works.

Together with the fire swearers, they continued to cheer for Herme. Because of Cliff's blessing, there were quite a few fire swearers who supported Herme.

There are many fire-sworn people on the streets, and it can be said that most of them wear necklaces and rings that symbolize the eternal fire.

Although today's Novigrad has not yet started the strong religious rejection behind it, the power of the Fire Sworn has also shown an overwhelming advantage.

Shrines of the Eternal Fire can also be seen everywhere. The small pavilions with burning braziers are the ones. Herme thinks this kind of shrines are very good. At least they can keep beggars and homeless around here to keep warm, so as not to freeze to death.

"How do you feel about Novigrad, Lord Herme."

Chapei, who led the way, asked, and he seemed to be just asking casually.

"Very well, this city is very good, every monarch wants to get its sufficient city treasury, a large number of craftsmen and workshops, and its huge fleet, whoever gets all these can become An unprecedentedly powerful monarch, but unfortunately, all monarchs will not let people get it easily."

Having been in this world for so long, Herme is very clear about the power of Novigrad. His words are not exaggerated at all. Whoever gets the resources of Novigrad can do too much.

Not to mention its huge merchant fleet... That really made Herme salivate. If he had this fleet, he would have the capital to compete with the Kervirs at sea.

But these are still too far away for Herme, so Herme just thinks about it.

Hearing Herme's answer, Chapei didn't say anything, but fell silent. Presumably, in his opinion, this was just another monarch who had ambitions for Novigrad.

Unknowingly, the team came to the famous Hierarch Square, which was much bigger than Herme's impression, but he still found a few "familiar" places.

Herme saw the Vivaldi Bank there. Speaking of which, this bank was the dwarven bank that cooperated most closely with the Kingdom of Aedirn.

There is also a very "famous" equipment manufacturer... that is "Superior Good Sword".

And above the square, a grand prayer is now being held.

Priest Firesworn stood in front of the crowd, behind him was a typical brazier of eternal fire, and a flame was burning inside, chanting the prayer of eternal fire, and the crowd followed suit:

"The fire ignites us and protects us from evil.

The pure and supreme flame heals our hearts.

Most holy fire, drive away all beasts.

The fire burns everything and burns the hearts of enemies.

The flame keeps dancing, shining the brightest way for us.

The red flame flickers brightly, protecting us from suffering.

The flame is never extinguished and still guides us after death.

Fire gives warmth and guides the direction of our lives.

Eternal fire, we pray to you.

Eternal fire, we place our faith in you.

Eternal fire, we see no other gods. "

The sound of chanting became louder and louder, and people seemed to be in some kind of emotion, becoming more and more fanatical, following the priest's actions and acting fanatically.

Herme is no stranger to this, mobilizing people's sense of participation and emotions, and finally achieving a strong release of emotions.

It has to be said that this scene was quite shocking, and Herme involuntarily glanced at Chape.

This scene is definitely arranged. Is the eternal flame showing its power?
Herme became more and more interested in the thoughts of the Archbishop of Salem. This journey was to let him see the prosperity of the city, and it was also a religious ceremony, which was to show his strength.

"Speaking of which, how are the gangsters in the city doing now?"

Herme took the initiative to turn the topic to the gangsters in the city. He didn't want to brag about the Eternal Flame here, but talked about something he was interested in.

"What else can change? The endless street wars are still going on, and the gangs are vying for all possible interests. The Dark Alley Gang and the Ghost Face Gang killed eleven people yesterday, and more than 20 people were injured. When will Sang and the Beggar King end their conflict, they will turn the night of Novigrad into a war zone. The Tide Wave Gang and the Black Gold Society are fighting again because of the interests of beef smuggling, and only one warehouse of the Tide Wave Gang was destroyed The dwarves are burned, that woman will never swallow this breath, revenge is only a matter of time, I don’t know how many people will die, and the machete is not a weak person, and there will be a big battle when the time comes. Recently, a Siggy Lewin, brought a bunch of Harkland savages, and he bought all the bathhouses in the city, and he's doing a great show, and I don't know if he has the ability to keep them."

For the gangsters, Chapena is simply familiar.

It is no exaggeration to say that he is the one who knows the struggle between these gangs best in the whole city, and he has also seen the rise and demise of many gangs with his own eyes.

Herme felt a little ashamed when she heard that, the city was so chaotic, she thought it was Night City before she knew it.

In addition, Dijkstra went to Novigrad at this time, which surprised Herme, but it seemed that he hadn't been here for long, and he was still stabilizing his power.

"Does the Church of Eternal Flame not care? Aren't you the most fundamental managers of the city? Just let Novigrad mess around like this?"

"To eradicate these gangsters is a very simple matter for Eternal Flame, but the problem is that the cost of doing so is too high, and it may destroy this prosperous city illuminated by Eternal Flame. And the gangsters are very Proper, their street wars will not go to Hierarch Square and Temple Island, which is enough for the Church."

This passage made Herme ponder the situation. It seems that Novigrad is still in a period of chaos, and the organization Syndicate that will overshadow the sky in the future has not yet appeared.

The so-called Syndicate is the master of Novigrad's underground world and even the entire city.

They are an alliance formed by gangs, religious groups, and spy agencies in the city with the common goal of money.

They control the lifelines of the city. Everyone cooperates and helps each other, earns benefits together, stops unnecessary internal friction, and expands their influence to the entire north.

Novigrad under the rule of the Syndicate was like an iron barrel. The loosening of this iron barrel was accompanied by the third Northern War. Emhyr led the Nilfgaardian army to the Pontar River.

"Oh, we're about to enter Temple Island soon."

Herme looked at the bridge entering the upper city in front of her, and suddenly realized where she was.

So his line of sight shifted to the right subconsciously, and what appeared in front of him was indeed a big brothel.

Duke Protector really felt it was subtle, it was too subtle, which made him laugh involuntarily.

Next, the team stepped onto the bridge. There were many temple guards on the bridge. Passing through here was considered to have officially entered the upper city.

The surrounding rooms immediately upgraded to a higher level. This is a residential area belonging to the rich and middle class in Novigrad, and the residents are also dressed decently.

Moreover, there are many flower and plant landscape decorations in this area, which look very beautiful. In comparison, everything Herme has seen before is like a garbage dump.

And most importantly, Herme saw far more temple guards than those on the streets before.

At the same time, the number of fire-swearers here is not small at all, and even the more you enter the upper city, the more fire-swearers.

It is the existence of these temple guards that the upper city can be in tranquility and peace, in stark contrast to those areas in Novigrad that are ruled by gangsters.

This made the Lord Protector's sense of sight more and more intense, but he was relieved in a blink of an eye. Many cities are like this, so it's not surprising.

In the upper city, there were not a few people watching Herme's team, and the Duke Protector's team also had to pass through a large crowd and make a way out with the help of the temple guards.

And the first place that Lord Protector went to was the Great Temple of Eternal Fire.

There, Cyrus Engelkaide Hemelfart was waiting for Herme's arrival, and Herme was also very curious about why this powerful archbishop wanted to see him.

(End of this chapter)