The Knight of Light plants the sun in the eternal night.

Chapter 93 Pilgrims

In July, the weather is getting hotter and hotter.

Leo stood on the castle's attic, gazing for a while at the faint light in the distant, dark world, then looked up at the sky.

A thin crescent moon hangs in the sky today.

Several bright stars were still twinkling in the dome. Leo couldn't identify which constellation they were, but they were clearly not constellations on Earth. He couldn't find a similar star, so they were very likely no longer in the Milky Way.

Of course, it's meaningless to consider whether it's in the Milky Way or not.

With Earth's technology, or even with the extraordinary power of the people of the Eternal Night Continent, they cannot escape their solar system, let alone the distant universe.

"I'll never be able to go back to Earth in this lifetime—and I don't want to. What would I do back there? Be a blind, marginalized person? In the Eternal Night Continent, I am the sun," I am destined to be the savior!

Leo's divergent thinking.

Soon, the focus shifted from the distant horizon back to the sky above: "Why is it so hot without the sun?"

'

Based on his understanding, he deduced that the sun on the Eternal Night Continent had not disappeared, but rather become invisible.

Many local scholars share this view.

They believed that the power of the Shadows had obscured the sun, plunging the Eternal Night Continent into darkness. However, the sun had been gone for so long—over a thousand years—that generations had long since grown accustomed to it and no longer questioned its whereabouts.

For the humans of the Eternal Night Continent, the world was supposed to be like this: pitch black, and then they would try their best to cultivate a little light.

"The sun must still be there, otherwise, why would the city that never sleeps be formed when the dragon tore through the eternal night? Clearly, there is an inevitable connection between the dragon and the sun—but strangely, the daytime is hotter than the nighttime."

The White Nights are actually the real nights.

Night should actually be daytime.

According to Leo's speculation, the sun was only blocked, but the radiation, including temperature, could still reach the Eternal Night Continent.

Then the night must be hotter than the day.

But the result was the opposite: the daytime was hotter than the nighttime. "So why is that? Where did the sun go?"

There is no answer.

He only let his thoughts wander for a while before stopping. After all, it was a fantasy world with extraordinary powers, where anything was possible. He couldn't let his knowledge from Earth limit him and get stuck on trivial details.

"Young Master!" Thomas gasped as he climbed up to the attic. "Several paladins have arrived and request to see you."

"A paladin?" Leo was taken aback.

They quickly realized that paladins were not extraordinary professions, but rather knights representing the Holy Light Church.

The Holy Light Church is a loose organization spanning the entire Eternal Night Continent. It has built Holy Light Churches and Holy Light Monasteries all over the world. As a religious organization, it is naturally not only priests who join, but also many knights.

These knights were no different from ordinary knights; they were called paladins only to distinguish them by their faith.

After Leo went downstairs.

The three paladins had already been invited into the living room by Butler Deck and sat down on the sofa. Upon seeing Leo, the three rose and bowed.

"Your Excellency Leo, greetings. We apologize for our intrusion and would appreciate it if you would allow us to introduce ourselves," one of the paladins said in a resounding voice. "We are pilgrims from the borderlands of the kingdom, on our way to the Lancashire Cathedral."

"Greetings, Holy Light." Leo replied politely.

Pilgrims are a group of fanatical believers, so it's best not to offend them if possible, since the Holy Light Church stands behind them.

Leo asked, "How can I help you?"

"We are passing through this area, and many of our pilgrims are already very weak. We would like to rest and replenish ourselves at your estate—we only need a little food and a place to rest."

Although it was a request, it was clearly impossible to refuse.

Otherwise, if each of these pilgrims were to utter a single negative comment, they could completely ruin Leo's reputation.

Leo could only generously reply, "I am also a believer in the Holy Light, and naturally I am willing to provide some convenience for pilgrims."

"Thank you so much. May the Holy Light forever bless you and your manor," the paladin said devoutly, pressing his palms together.

After obtaining Leo's permission.

The three paladins quickly left and rejoined the pilgrims. Around 9:30, the pilgrims arrived at the Swamp Manor.

This was a group of ragged, emaciated people, including the elderly, children, and women. Each of them wore gloves with inlaid wooden boards hanging in front of them, and knee pads with wooden pieces visible in the damaged areas.

Many people walked along and suddenly crawled down, kneeling on their hands and knees, while devoutly praying to the holy light.

The procession stretched as far as the eye could see.

Aside from the paladins who escorted the pilgrims, who were illuminated, the pilgrims themselves were completely oblivious to the light as they made their way and worshipped in the dark.

"There are probably three to five thousand people." Franken, who had already returned from the town of Glowing Light, crept up behind Leo and muttered softly, "This is terrible. How much food from the manor will be wasted to feed three to five thousand people!"

Although everyone believes in the Holy Light.

But Frankenstein was at best a general believer, not devout at all, so when he saw this group of devout pilgrims, his first thought was trouble.

"Give them some dark bread and thick soup, let them rest for a day, and then send them on their way." Leo also found it troublesome. "Can you really receive the favor of the Holy Light just by praying and worshiping? I really don't understand."

Franken didn't respond.

He often prayed to the Holy Light at home.

If Frankenstein was merely a general believer, then Leo wasn't even a believer. He had no piety towards the Holy Light, but rather viewed it scientifically, studying its principles and considering how to use it for his own purposes.

"Could we persuade a group of pilgrims to stay and become serfs—or free men?" Leo suddenly asked.

Franken shook his head: "Don't think that way. They're too devout; they don't produce anything and just waste food."

.

"Then let's send them away as soon as possible." Leo waved his hand. "I'll entertain the paladins; you take care of these pilgrims."

"Yes." Franken nodded, then added, "Bribe the paladins, and they will urge the pilgrims to leave as soon as possible—otherwise, this rest might last for three to five days."

Leo was speechless upon hearing this.

Soon, pilgrims poured into the swamp manor, numbering over four thousand, all crowding into the plaza inside the fortress.

The entire square was filled with people.

Therefore, the construction site was closed, and the only work assigned to the serfs was to take some flour mixed with bran, germ, and even a lot of wood chips from the Sunflower Fort warehouse, and knead it into bread dough.

Another group of serfs built simple earthen kilns to bake bread dough into dark bread.

The castle kitchen alone could not produce enough dark bread for the pilgrims.

Leo then hosted a dozen paladins who were guarding the pilgrims in the castle restaurant. He not only provided a lot of meat, but also a considerable amount of light rations, making the paladins eat until their mouths were greasy.

After the meal.

He said to the paladins, "I wish to improve my understanding of the Holy Light. I would like to ask for your help. I will discuss the Holy Light with you one-on-one in the study."

The paladins were easy to talk to and all nodded in agreement.

But in reality, the discussion of the Holy Light was a pretense; the real purpose was bribery. To prevent mutual oversight and avoid accepting bribes, bribery was conducted one-on-one.

Half an hour later, apart from one or two devout paladins who refused Leo's bribe of a gold coin, the remaining dozen or so paladins happily accepted the gold coin and readily made their promises.

"Let's leave after we finish this meal!"

"Pilgrims should walk with suffering; how can they covet pleasures while staying on the estate!"

"Lord Leo's faith in the Holy Light is extremely devout. We will certainly spread your fame and let the world know that you are a devout believer in the Holy Light!"

These paladins are actually quite nice; they're genuinely willing to do things for money.

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