After I died, my personal maid rebelled.

The interrogation went very smoothly; the goddess faction, a complete mess, fully demonstrated its excellent style of creating endless secrets.

Experience has shown that to accomplish great things, organization is essential; without scale, there is no value; without scale, there is no harm.

The Mage Guild cannot represent all mages, but they are organized, disciplined, and have a unified action plan, so they can do whatever they want under the banner of the goddess, and even great sages may not know what they are doing.

For a regime to function stably, it must either establish bottom-up collective trust or implement social stratification, destroying trust among the lower classes, isolating them from one another, and repeatedly reinforcing individual consciousness.

In the latter world, the lower classes always naively believe that the upper classes will fight amongst themselves just like them... In fact, the upper classes are much more united than they are, and there are quite a few organizations similar to the Mage Guild.

Unfortunately, even the eccentric Felix only knew some irrelevant information. As for how to hunt down the Mage Guild, that was something Dane and his group had to figure out for themselves.

But those troublemaking nuns didn't seem to intend to hide themselves.

"I know the nuns. Most of them were suppressed by the former archbishop. They are radical in their thinking, believe in the theory of the Great Judgment, and think that only the goddess can distinguish between good and evil. Anyone who opposes the goddess is their enemy. They were originally just a marginal group, with their power concentrated in a closed village. But I heard that they are now supporting another saint."

Having obtained the information they wanted, the three adventurers concluded their interrogation. On their return journey to the surface, Catherine, who had remained silent until now, suddenly exclaimed with a look of realization, "Isn't this a cult?"

"Otherwise what?"

Dane snapped at her, annoyed, "You're only just realizing this now? Just how long is your reaction time...?"

If the goddess is determined to destroy humanity, what right does she have to judge the good and evil of each person? Does she just like to point fingers?

Passing by the second basement level of the prison, soldiers were surrounding a construction team laying electrical wires. The dim environment of the prison is inseparable from lighting facilities, which will also facilitate the soldiers' patrols later.

The first task of the construction team in Ice City was to install streetlights and connect the circuits to the official buildings. Even now, the Duke's meaningful smile still echoes in the minds of the construction team members.

"Great, at least there's a place to hang people now," Duke Oswald said.

Ice City changes every day, and with the Duke and the young lady in charge, the people have seen not only convoys transporting weapons, but also convoys transporting gold coins.

But they had never seen the lights that could reach every household.

As night fell, the residents who had been waiting for a long time gathered by the roadside and cheered as they watched the streetlights turn on on time.

Merchants who frequently travel between the north and south boasted that these small streetlights were nothing compared to the fact that every city in the entire Northern Territory, from Green Gorge City to Starfall City, was building lighthouses. They said that once the city was brightly lit, no one would lose their way.

In the bustling city, amidst the busy people, Catherine settled in Ice City for over a month, mainly to help Dane establish the "Special Forces Department." Dane was in charge of management, Robert was in charge of training new recruits, and Catherine was in charge of running errands.

This strange department is gathering a large number of adventurers and veterans with special abilities from the army. The training ground is located in the military academy, and almost everyone who passes the selection process must receive guidance from Saintess Jane before joining the department.

That's right, Saint Jane is now their boss, and everything in the department must be reported to Jane.

Catherine didn't care about these political issues and left them to Dane. She just felt that these newcomers seemed a bit eccentric and often said things she couldn't understand.

Harbin is a vibrant city that is expanding outwards almost every moment.

To paraphrase the Duke of Oswald, you must either expand upwards or outwards. Ice City is the capital; it belongs to every Northern Territory resident, so please, don't huddle together like sardines.

The city is now mainly divided into three areas. The most central area is the Duke's Mansion and the surrounding noble residences. Most of these former noble houses have been converted into office areas, and even the Special Forces Department has been allocated a large connected building.

Incidentally, the Special Forces' neighbor is the Tax Department, and Catherine thinks the Tax Department members are more like secret assassins than they are.

The second area is the residential and commercial area, which is also the place with the highest foot traffic.

The third area is the industrial and military control zone. This massive steel structure tightly envelops the city, resembling a ferocious beast.

However, in order to cope with the increasingly crowded situation, most factories are relocating in full swing. Perhaps for the sake of future development, the Duke of Oswald did not order the construction of another city wall.

In mid-August, with the promotion of electricity, the tavern Catherine frequented began operating at night. Gazing at the dazzling wall made up of glowing bottles, Catherine couldn't help but imagine the future.

The night breeze was cool, and the chilly glasses dissipated the summer heat. There weren't many customers in the tavern; most of them were government officials, Catherine's current colleagues.

This is one of the few times they can relax and rest.

"teacher……"

Hearing the voice, Catherine turned around in surprise. A little boy was standing in front of the gate, calling out to her timidly.

The decline of his family had robbed him of his former elegance, but his wounded kitten-like appearance quickly touched Catherine's heart.

Catherine reached out her hand. "Come here. Don't dwell on the past. We need to start a new life."

Robert came with the little boy. He looked haggard, and the girl holding his hand looked around with curiosity, chattering like a little sparrow.

Frenda, Robert's adopted daughter and apprentice, was seen through by Catherine the moment she met her.

A greedy little girl has no idea what selfless love is.

"I often feel out of place because I'm too normal."

Standing on the street, Dane sighed, looking at the cozy yet strange scene in the tavern. He shook his head, as if trying to banish the image from his mind.

"It's a good thing to have concerns. We can't make everyone great, and sometimes we have to tolerate their inner ailments."

Oswald patted Dane on the shoulder, though he himself found it hard to look at Dane.

A woman was groping a little boy, while a little girl next to her was equally restless, teasing a certain innocent-looking older man every now and then.

Social progress and morbidity go hand in hand. In the world Oswald originally lived in, it wasn't just love that transcended age.

Oswald always believed that simple morality was the key to maintaining a civilization, so he valued Dane highly, even though the great battles Dane participated in always ended in defeat, Dane never gave up.

Because he carries a sense of responsibility in his heart, believing that with great power comes great responsibility.

"Help me do this well, and you can name your reward now."

Walking along the empty streets under the streetlights, Dane pondered for a long time before finally refusing, saying, "I feel this is what I should do. After Mr. Medivh passed away, I thought a lot. What's the point of having a fortune if there's no prosperity for the human race?"

Oswald nodded, then suddenly asked, "Don't you want me to help you and Evelyn connect?"

"This..." Dane blushed, "I think she can see my charm."

"Haha, then I'll wait for good news from the two ministers."