They don't want me to try anymore.

Immediately afterwards, clumps of sticky fungal threads emerged from his clothes, covering the gap in his face.

That's right, the shoemaker was a member of the Order of the Empty Man, and if Richard remembered correctly, he was a minor official—this was what he learned in the simulation by reading newspaper interviews with witnesses.

"This……"

Benjamin's eyes widened, then he quickly realized what was happening, displaying the qualities expected of a bishop.

He took out a silver coin from his pocket, a pure white light flashing between his fingers, and pressed the coin directly onto the "shoemaker's" forehead.

It's sizzling!

The sound of roasting meat filled the air around the silver coin, along with the aroma of oil and mushrooms.

This creature, whose very existence was uncertain, let out a scream and collapsed to the ground.

But in an instant, his limbs defied the natural structure of his joints and flipped upside down, clicking and clattering, like a spider lifting his body and scurrying into the inner room...

Bilibili!

Fortunately, Richard took over in time, using the wind element to unleash a five-hit combo of loose, springy, and trembling lightning, followed by two fiery, roasting fireballs. With this saturation attack, he completely reduced the thing to ashes.

But at that very moment, he heard a deep voice in his ear.

"Lost souls, Lord of the Sky, your embrace will always be open to you..."

Along with the sound, an upside-down figure with eight arms and a pitch-black face appeared before his eyes... but these phenomena disappeared when Richard shook his head.

"Mr. Richard, you're recovering so quickly..."

Benjamin, who was standing nearby and had already taken out a bottle of holy water to help, was somewhat surprised to see this:

"The Void Cult has always used bizarre methods. Before they die, they inject their fanatical obsessions into the minds of those nearby. Sometimes they can even directly convert ordinary people into believers, making them extremely difficult to deal with..."

"Although professionals usually don't get sick, they'll still feel dizzy for a while. Mr. Richard, it's unbelievable that you seem completely unaffected."

Richard shrugged, recalling the characteristic of "fighting against God".

Even the true God has looked me straight in the eye, so what can the curses of cultists on their deathbeds do to me?

After a brief moment of self-satisfaction, he said, "Bishop, as you can see, cultists have indeed infiltrated this city!"

Benjamin's expression turned serious.

As he summoned his men to seal off the shoemaker's shop and search it for sacrilege items, he asked, "Mr. Richard, could you elaborate?"

"It was early in the night, and I was taking off my clothes to go to sleep when I happened to see the moonlight shining into the room. Inspired, I went out for a walk..."

Richard recounted the fabricated story, which roughly involved overhearing a conversation between the Hollow Order at an inn. He learned that they planned to ambush the Baron's army, summon a giant monster in the mountains, and intend to sacrifice the entire city of Nion, blah blah blah...

The more Benjamin listened, the paler his face became, as if he had seen a large group of seven- or eight-year-old children opening his own closet.

"So, according to you, Lord Follett..."

"It's too late, they've probably already fallen into the trap."

"This... is really hard to believe."

Benjamin looked around and saw his men quickly find sacrificial items such as the book in human skin and human skulls. Finally, his gaze settled on Richard's face, as if he were assessing the credibility of the evidence.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, "But we really need to prepare for the worst. Even if it's a false alarm, it's better than regretting it when we're about to die."

After only a moment's hesitation, Benjamin decided to trust Richard and decisively ordered his entourage to gather the city's militia and then use church channels to request aid from neighboring cities. He then asked:

“Mr. Richard, if our enemy is really as terrible as you say, I’m afraid we won’t live to see reinforcements arrive.”

It's okay, there's a weird auntie who likes to force people to get married nearby.

Of course, this was difficult to explain, so Richard revealed his plan to upgrade the defensive array on the spot.

After listening, Benjamin thought the plan was feasible.

Richard added, "I also need a lot of mercury."

“The situation is urgent. I can help you forcibly collect the money at the hospital, but it will take some time.”

"That's great! Also, if possible, could you give me some more holy water?"

"A small amount is fine, but too much won't do. I don't have much stock left..."

"Doesn't the church have any way to quickly produce holy water? Like having the nuns drink lots of water and not letting them go to the toilet, or something like that..."

Benjamin blinked: "...Do you have some misunderstanding about our church?"

"Ahem, it's nothing."

After clearing his mind of the terrible comics he had seen in his past life, Richard finally managed to get a small box of holy water.

"Tsk, that's far too little. Your church should really research the technology for mass-producing holy water..."

Benjamin rolled his eyes and prepared to search for the Sky Cult in other parts of the city.

Before parting, he pointed to a pointed tower in the northwest and said, "The magic array is over there. There should be a few Black Iron level apprentices inside. You can ask them any questions you have about the magic array."

"it is good."

With time running out, Richard immediately summoned his horse and galloped towards the tower.

On the way, he saw church personnel and militiamen, having received Benjamin's orders, begin searching house to house with religious implements in hand—to be fair, the mobilization efficiency was quite good.

Conversely, Nyon, already in chaos due to the Baron's military campaign, became even more turbulent, with shouts of battle and even fires breaking out in many places.

And those affected by this atmosphere are naturally not just ordinary citizens...

Richard Targaryen!

Just as Richard was about to reach the tower entrance, Daniel, also on horseback, emerged from the street with a group of thugs and blocked his way.

The coal mine owner surveyed the chaotic scene around him, his eyes widening with a mixture of anger and mockery. He sneered, "..."

"Look what you've done! You've indeed colluded with the bandits. After my dear brother sent out his troops, you stirred up trouble in the city, disrupted morale, and delayed our efforts to suppress the bandits!"

With a slight gesture, his lackeys immediately bared their teeth and claws, completely blocking the road.

"I don't know how you managed to fool that young Benjamin so easily, but don't even think about fooling me! I advise you to go back to the hotel and stay there, otherwise, if something unexpected happens, we won't be able to explain it to Saint Goethe..."

"Then there's no need to explain!"

Richard Sae cracked his whip and charged straight through the several rows of people in front of him, completely ignoring them.

Tap tap tap!

"Damn, this guy's gone mad!"

"Get out of the way!"

These thugs, who usually only bully the poor, aren't heavily armed infantry in formation. How could they possibly have the guts to use their bodies to block a horse's hooves? In a panic, they dodged, and Daniel was also knocked down, falling face-first from his horse in a very disheveled state.

After being helped up, he touched the cuts on his face from the stones, his features contorting in pain. He shouted at Richard, "You—how dare you…"

"Shut up, idiot!"

Richard gave him the middle finger, then turned his horse around and charged again!

This time, he didn't use magic. He simply reached down with his right hand, grabbed Daniel's collar, and captured him like a baby!

He used to be somewhat wary of the local bullies, but now that the entire city is facing a crisis, he no longer cares about those things.

Daniel, oh Daniel, you're messing with me now, it's like Khrushchev burping—eating too much corn on the cob!

Even if it's just to properly study the formation, I can't let you guys cause trouble!

"So fast!"

The thugs around him were dumbfounded. They never expected Richard to be so bold, and they couldn't understand how a summoner who was supposed to be physically weak could be so fast without using magic, leaving them no time to react.

Seeing their leader arrested, they didn't dare to move even though they had their guns drawn.

"...Richard, do you know what you're doing?!"

Perhaps realizing that the foreign prince in front of him was not in a good mood, or perhaps because he was being pulled in pain, Daniel's arrogance gradually faded, and fear appeared on his face.

He wondered, "Has this man gone mad? Doesn't he have any sense of propriety at all? Openly attacking a relative of an imperial nobleman, is he trying to fight to the death?"

No, I don't want to die here...

Richard ignored him and planned to knock him unconscious and tie him up.

Before he could even make a move...

"Help!"

"Our army is defeated!"

"It's over, it's all over!"

Suddenly, a large number of disheveled defeated soldiers and "defeatist strategists" poured in at the city gate.

At the same time, the earth trembled.

In the distance, among the mountains, a strange, solitary peak seems to be swaying.

Richard frowned:

"Damn, how did it get here so fast?!"

Chapter Sixty-Nine: That Woman Arrives Late