When the Saint comes, she does not collect food

Chapter 1173 Internal and External

With the water system at the Holy See now repaired, Horn said goodbye to working from home and returned to the Holy See.

At the weekly meeting, Horn sat at the head of the table, with the heads or deputy heads of the courts and their secretaries sitting on either side.

The regular meeting is a day to summarize the work of the previous week and assign the work of the next week. It is also the time for Horn to reward or punish these presiding judges.

Reward those who do well, punish those who do poorly.

As for Petit, the Privy Councilor, he sat beside Horn, handing out documents to the long table in an assembly line fashion, passing them among the judges.

Paper rubbed against hands and tabletops, while the Privy Council monks held coffee pots and poured the latest type of coffee—cappuccino—for the assembled high monks.

Horn lowered his head; a lot had happened this week as well.

First of all, the World's Fair successfully concluded in late October, and at the closing ceremony, Saint Sun and all four single women attended and officially announced their engagement.

The second thing was that the Brass Discipline Bureau was finally established with the consent of the Holy Treasury.

The Truth Court is currently allocating personnel and selecting a suitable candidate for director.

The third item was the plan to renovate the Sacred Mechanism Court proposed by the Civil Engineering Monastery.

Given the current trend of the Ether Spire, the Holy Mechanism Court will likely see a large number of middle-class and poor people in the future.

The Holy Armory will definitely see a housing boom, which will require many temporary housing units built a decade ago to be renovated and rebuilt.

With the advent of slime filter beds and fully automatic spring mixers, mortar production has once again increased.

At the same time, as the Holy Alliance began large-scale steel production, iron plates replaced wooden boards, and steel frames and metal components replaced iron frames and wooden components.

Concrete decorative components replaced hand-carved stone components, and advancements in glassmaking have enabled the production of two-meter-long flat glass panels.

Within the realm of etheric clocks, what's even more outrageous is the latest masterpiece from the Sacred Heart Technologists:
A clockwork crane can lift stone or cast iron components weighing more than 10 tons, such as cast iron beams for roofs or granite bases for facades.

A wind-operated ram is used to compact the foundation and prevent subsequent settlement.

Clockwork saws and planers have enabled standardized processing and mass production of timber.

This means that, without significantly increasing costs, the six- or seven-story classical revival buildings that scholars used to live in can now be mass-produced in the St. Armory.

The Holy Armory City Hall even commissioned an artist to create illustrations for Horn.

Upon seeing the illustration, Horn thought it was a friend from his hometown, as it had such a distinct 19th-century feel to it.

But looking at the beautiful vision in the picture, Horn couldn't really feel happy.

Today, the Holy Alliance is visibly experiencing an imbalance in development. It can be said that the Holy Armory is based in the 19th century, the other towns in the 18th century, and the countryside in the 17th century.

As for the other rural and even urban areas of the empire, it is estimated to be around the 17th century or even the Middle Ages.

But the good thing about them is that they are all bad and unable to develop, so they are exceptionally balanced.

This internal imbalance in development can easily lead to social division.

The economic base determines the superstructure. A person living in the 19th century obviously cannot understand a person living in the 17th century, and the ideological rift between the two sides will inevitably become more pronounced.

Sigh, the generation gap.

Horn stroked his chin, wondering if he should slow down the development of the Holy Mechanism Court.

Or you could just do some financial transfer. Your Holy Mechanism Court has sucked so much blood from all over the Holy Alliance, it would be reasonable for you to give back some milk to your brothers, right?

This is just a stopgap measure; the real solution is to create the same etheric spire and clock elsewhere.

"How's the Holy Church's investigation into these weak points in the Star Realm coming along?"

Although Sylph was the president of the Holy Church, the daily operations were handled by the General Secretary of the Holy Church.

This is a lean, fifty-year-old scholar wearing large, black-rimmed glasses—thanks to advancements in glassmaking, the price of glasses has dropped dramatically.

He nodded slightly to Horn: "Previously, we were just searching like headless flies, but since we learned the principle that areas where monsters appear are prone to astral weak points, we have several points of suspicion."

By the end of the year at the latest, we should be able to identify at least one astral vulnerability in Lower Rivershire, but we'll need the support of the Difference Engine.

Is it just two months until the end of the year?

Horn nodded: "I approve the use of the Difference Engine. You can coordinate the usage time yourselves." After resolving several major development issues within the Holy Alliance, Horn looked around and placed his hands, crossed, on the folder.

Seeing this, without being reminded, the other judges put down their pens, straightened up, and looked at Horn.

"Have you all heard about the beef burger incident? I bet you'll see it in the Pravda tonight."

“The Border Knights are nothing but dogs of the old church!” Hakuto immediately cursed.

The faces of the crowd also revealed expressions of disdain; the Border Knights had been disgusting the Holy Alliance for a long time.

You've been involved in several major battles, including this one.

The first Battle of the Thousand Rivers Valley was attended by Lacunio, the former Grand Master of the Frontier Knights.

In the Second War of the Thousand Rivers, the Frontier Knights even personally intervened, attempting to attack Upper Rivershire.

Even from a purely visual perspective, the Border Knights have always occupied the Kush River steppe, the homeland most missed by the Kush people of the Holy Alliance.

In the middle of the year, upon hearing that the Border Knights were besieged by vampires, the high monks of the Holy Alliance were eager to hold a celebration.

This surrender only makes him a traitor and incites even more hatred towards him.

The Holy Alliance had been paying attention to the news of the Border Knights' siege, but they were powerless to intervene due to their distance.

Not only was the journey too long, but it was also separated by the Thorn Garden and the Norn territory.

If there were a clockwork train, this distance would be a breeze, but unfortunately, the clockwork train hasn't even left Longsandshire yet, let alone reached the border.

When news of the Border Knights' surrender arrived, Horn could only say it was both unexpected and inevitable.

They were enemies in the Empire, and Leia, the only one who could support them, only said, "Hold on tight and there's a way," and gave them all the support they could.

As for the Knights, they were already in a state of warlordism.

The border knights had no choice but to surrender.

However, to Horn's surprise, the vampires advanced at an extremely fast pace, and their plans were far-reaching than he had imagined.

I don't know what methods they used, but they rapidly advanced to the walls of Fei Niu Bao in less than a month.

Inside Fei Niu Bao city, the city gates were opened in just three days by an internal traitor who had been lying in wait for more than ten years, and the city fell directly.

The Shooting Army was still locked in battle with the dwarves at Bluewyn Castle and didn't even have a chance to return to their aid.

"The Court of Truth should take note of the vampires' actions and condemn them, but not gloat."

"Understood." Madeleine took out her notebook and made two strokes.

"Do you think the vampires' actions are tantamount to declaring war on the Empire?" Hakuto asked. "What does the Privy Council think?"

"The Privy Council also has two opposing views. The radicals believe that the royal court is preparing to invade within the next five years, while the conservatives believe that the radicals are too conservative and that the invasion should take place within the next three years."

"Will there be another war in three to five years?"

"Don't be afraid. The Holy Alliance is located inland. If a real war breaks out, it will probably take three to five years, or even another three to five years."

What happened to the royal court?

"What else could it be? The political system collapsed, and a powerful ruler emerged..."

Serfaye, Horn silently repeated the name in his heart.

Horn had anticipated her intrusion; it was only a matter of time.

"What's the whereabouts of the shooting corps?" Horn asked amidst the commotion.

Hakuto turned his head: "The Shooting Army has now gathered a group of Grand Duke Petrov's old ministers and is putting up a stubborn resistance, but their strength is still too weak."

“Provide some shelter at the Shattered Stone Plains,” Horn said, glancing at René beside him. “Where is that Grand Duke Petrov’s son now?”

"They're still in the Holy Armory."

"That's good." Horn pondered for a moment. "Let's keep this Grand Duke's son under control for now. As for a formal response to the Royal Court, we should wait and see how things develop."

(End of this chapter)