Arknights, but the sickly pretty girl starts

"Warship? Hydroponic workshop? This seems... different from the Londinium in the novel... Ah! Sorry, please don't interrupt me." Jenny's knowledge of Londinium was limited to novels and street literature, which almost turned Londinium into a legendary city, so it was naturally not very reliable.

"Lontinium is just the capital of Victoria. It's not some legendary city, nor is it one of those cities full of unknown mysteries you find in popular literature..." Noah began. "My history teacher at Columbia told me that Londinium is one of the largest cities on Terra. It's indeed prosperous and has a rich history. But if you're to be believed, Jenny, then Londinium is probably full of myths and legends."

"...So, there really are no aliens in Londinium?" Jenny looked at Fengpi curiously, hoping to learn the so-called "truth" from him.

"No...at least I haven't heard of it." Bagpipe bluntly stopped Jenny's delusion. "How could there be aliens? Even if there are, they wouldn't be in Londinium."

"Ah..." Jenny lowered her head in disappointment. "I thought at least aliens were real."

"Okay, Jenny, you said you came to Xiaoqiu County to investigate a case. What are you investigating? Can you tell me? Maybe I can help you," Noah asked curiously. "Of course, if it's confidential, then there's no need to tell me. I'm just asking casually. I hope I can be of help."

"There's nothing to hide... We're here because a batch of military supplies was stolen. They're very dangerous Originium products, which can be used to make bombs and other weapons. So the higher-ups took it very seriously, and that's why we were sent here," Bagpipe said. "But we still have no clue. The suspect we arrested earlier was inexplicably disposed of by the military... That's Mr. Damian. Honestly, I feel really sorry for him now."

"Mr. Damian..." Jenny seemed to have heard of this person. "He's not a bad person..."

"Yeah, but is the relationship between the soldiers and the people here so bad?" Bagpipe sighed, but she still couldn't understand why these people looked at her like an enemy when they were all Victorians. Being hit was nothing, but such treatment hurt her a lot.

"It used to be just minor friction, but things have suddenly gotten tense recently," Jenny said. "Like you heard, there have been several attacks on our soldiers, and everyone's nerves are on edge... It's not surprising that something like this has happened."

"Could it really be a ghost army... Strange, they never targeted ordinary soldiers before." Bagpipe muttered to himself.

"Ghost...what are you talking about?" Jenny asked, not being able to hear clearly.

"...Nothing." Fengpi closed his mouth at this time, "Sorry, I can't say that."

"Ah...is this confidential?" Jenny knew her limits and nodded.

But Noah could hear it clearly: the Ghost Army. It looked like Fengpi and the others had come here just for the Ghost Army. The people of Tara, the Ghost Army, the military, and even Xiaoqiu County were probably caught up in this chaos.

"Speaking of which, did the patrol just call the residents here 'Tara scum'?"

"Wait a minute...you can't use this word casually!" Jenny stood up nervously and looked outside the office door. "You can't say this word here, at least not in front of the public."

"Ah... then, are they really not Victorians?" Bagpipe asked curiously.

"This is what history class is about. The Victorian Empire wasn't a monolithic entity. Although it's collectively referred to as the Victorians, the Victorian Empire encompassed the remnants of three kingdoms: the Kingdom of Victoria, the Kingdom of Lower Gaul, and the Kingdom of Tara. So, strictly speaking, within Victoria, there was a distinction between Tara people and Gauls," Noah explained. "This is clearly recorded in history books, so these people are probably just saying that the people here should be considered Tara people."

"So that's how it is..." The village girl, whose whole body exuded a clear aura, clapped her hands. "So that's why—I was wondering, it always sounded familiar to me. It turns out I really saw it in history textbooks."

"...How did you pass the exam?" Noah and Jenny were speechless.

"Ahahaha... When I was at the Royal Guard Academy, I basically copied Chenchen's homework..." Fengdi scratched his head and said a little embarrassedly, "But I also passed the exam on my own, although I almost forgot it afterwards."

"...Okay, then I'll talk a little about the history of Victoria..." Noah sighed and decided to help Bagpipe review the grievances and hatreds between the Kingdom of Tara and the Kingdom of Victoria.

——A long, long time ago...

Chapter 8: See Through

The Tara people have always been here. Hundreds of years ago, when Hill County was not yet Hill County and the tiny mobile city had not yet been built, and when all that could be seen were valleys covered with green grass, this place was their home.

The Drak, two Draks, one founded the Kingdom of Victoria, the other, far removed from the center of power, brought its people to this mountainous region, continuing its nomadic existence. In Victorian, "Tara" was a gift given by ancient nomads to refer to a gathering place. Today, it generally refers to a geographical region south of Victoria, its boundaries blurred and constantly shifting according to the itineraries of the local mobile city.

However, it is certain that the history of civilization in the Tara region began with Sargon's expansion. It is also certain that, starting around 100 B.C., the region was ruled by Tingai-speaking Drak nomads from Victoria. By the time Harandu Khan roamed the land and entered the desert, these Victorians had already established an independent state, the Kingdom of Tara.

It is generally believed that in order to resist the Nightmare Khan, the two kingdoms of Victoria and Tara chose to merge, thus forming the prototype of the later Victoria Empire.

The Kingdom of Tara and the Kingdom of Victoria are of the same origin. Theoretically, after forming the Victoria Empire, they should be indistinguishable from each other.

However, blood may not allow two ethnic groups with completely different lifestyles to merge smoothly. On the contrary, although they were forced to unite because of the invasion of Nightmare Khan, the Kingdom of Tara no longer existed after that.

In fact, the Victoria Empire did swallow up the Kingdom of Tara——

The king of the Tora Kingdom was finally called "King Gael".

Everything changed in the ninth century, when Aslan ascended the throne, Draxon came to power, and the Gaelic kings died out. Today, Tara is ruled by the Grand Duke of Wellington.

He was the Iron Duke, Duke of Wellington, who was known as the death knell of the empire and presided over the war that destroyed Gaul.

The history class is over. Noah heard all this from his history professor at Columbia. The content has been investigated and verified and is highly credible.

The two Waifans listening to the lecture nodded repeatedly. Jenny was fine, but Bagpipe had the clear eyes of a truly clear-headed university student. However, trying to get a village girl like Bagpipe to understand the profoundness of history was too difficult, so Noya gave a brief summary.

"Simply put, the Tara people are a group of people who want to restore the ancient Kingdom of Tara," Noya explained concisely. "Of course, according to past history, the Kingdom of Tara has disappeared. Unless King Gale's bloodline reappears, there's little chance of success."

"Now I understand!" Bagpipe clapped his hands. "So that's how it is. I was wondering why the Tara people and Victorians were specifically separated. After all, they're just dissatisfied with the Victorian government and want independence, right?"

"You can think of it this way." Noah nodded. "So the contradiction now is the vicious cycle of the Victorian government's high-pressure policy against the Tara people and the resistance among the Tara people. The more the Tara people resist and band together, the more severe the Victorian government's suppression will be. The more difficult life becomes, the easier it is for the Tara people to grow in number. I have reason to believe that the current situation in Xiaoqiu County is not accidental, but someone is inciting the people."

"Victoria is constantly changing, and we, Vaifan, haven't always lived here, but we are all citizens of Victoria now." Jenny sighed. "If possible, I really don't want brothers of the same bloodline to kill each other. There should be a better outcome..."

"If everyone thought this way, many conflicts would not happen." Bagpipe sighed, but they were not Tara people, and perhaps they could not understand the Tara people's experience, so they could only lament like this.

"Don't be discouraged. We at Rhodes Island are investigating the treatment of the Tara people. We can at least help ease the conflict," Noa consoled him. "We can't truly resolve this matter. We can only try to save as many lives as possible."

——Actually, you can do it——

At this moment, the Witch King's voice appeared in Noya's ears. "Your sonata can control the emotions of this group of people. Isn't this a good testing ground? Try to become the so-called king of the Tara people, or help the Victorian army suppress the Tara people. You will definitely gain enough emotions so that you can continue to play the nameless harp. This will be beneficial to you, right?"

“…I’m not that crazy yet.”

Noah sighed and responded in his heart, "I have my own way, Mr. Herhunzollon, I will not do anything that exceeds my bottom line."

—Hehehe…

Herhunzollon sneered, but he did not continue to persuade Noah, but hid again.

Logically speaking, Noah's ability is called the Originium skill of telepathy in the category of Leithania's spells. It is the least studied and most mysterious subject. Noah rarely receives teaching and demonstration from others. After all, the rarity of this ability can be said to be the highest among all spell subjects. Noah can absorb the emotions of others and store them deep in his soul like this.

It would have been fine if he was just absorbing, but when Noah showed his ability to manipulate emotions, Herhunzollon realized how terrifying Noah's ability was.

If Noya were a villain, she could incite war at any time and anywhere, determining its outcome. The larger the battlefield, the greater her power's effectiveness. Controlling the course of battle is merely the simplest form of her ability. She can also influence morale, direct commanders' decisions, and even control the rulers of both sides, conquering the enemy without fighting. On the battlefield, any physical attack has its own ways of evasion and defense, but facing this invisible power of the mind, Noya can completely subvert it.

Even in the imperial court, for someone who can understand people's hearts and influence their inner emotions, it seems so easy for him to become a powerful official or even usurp the throne.

Rather, Noa is the most formidable opponent in human society. Given time, she can spread the war to the entire world.

It is very difficult to prevent a war, but it only takes a small spark to start one.

Now, she was wasting her talent. Herhunzoren had only reminded her how to maximize her benefits out of amusement. As for the Tara and Victorians? He didn't care. It was more accurate to say he cared about nothing but Leithnia. The chaos here was none of his business. Rather, what if Noa could continue playing the Nameless Harp, or compose new music?

This is what is interesting to Herhunzollon. Besides, Victoria? Ha.

Of course, Noah couldn't just be a joker with Herhunzollon. She still hoped to prevent a large-scale conflict between the two sides. However, she was just stunned for a moment, then shook her head and shook off her distracting thoughts.

"In any case, we have to find the instigator and prevent a larger conflict!" Fengdi nodded firmly. "Thank you, Sister Noah, for helping me analyze this. I immediately know what to do!"

"I also... I also want to do something, but I'm just a ceremonial soldier. I don't know what I can do... But I must do something, otherwise I will feel uneasy." Jenny was also encouraged.

"What's wrong with being a guard of honor? You are also a member of the Victorian army. Of course you can change this situation that you don't like!" The two Vaifans fell in love with each other this time and began to encourage each other. The two Vaifans were of similar age and were both soldiers of Victoria, so they had a lot in common.

"...Really?!" Jenny's face flushed red. This wasn't shyness, but pure excitement. "Thank you... You're the first person to talk to me like that. Well, I'll try it next time!"

Listening to the two men's encouragement, Noya smiled. There were always such pure emotions in this world, so she felt that manipulating others' emotions was inherently wrong. Using one's own abilities, as Casimir had done, was already slightly over the line for Noya. While her intentions were good, honestly... she was still selfish.

Manipulating other people's emotions for one's own selfish purposes is a sin in itself.

She smiled a lonely smile, but said nothing. Compared to these enthusiastic people, a selfish person like herself felt a little ashamed...

Well... my mentality is indeed a bit old.

"Sister Noah! I'll have to trouble you again later! Compared to the two of us, you still have to rely on your brain, Sister Noah!" At this moment, the two Waifans turned around enthusiastically and stretched out their hands to Noah.

Noah was stunned for a moment, then a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth and he shook his head silently, "If you need any help, just tell me, there's no need to be so grand."

After all, I will definitely help you——

If Margaret were here, she would definitely do the same, even take the lead in the charge.

Then, there is no reason for me to refuse to help these two lovely children, right?

"Then...is there anything else I can do to help? After all, I've been in Xiaoqiu County for so long, I should be of some use, like connections, or... directions for investigation?" Jenny asked hurriedly. After all, she was a local, and she should know more than Noah and Fengdi, who had just arrived.

"Let me think... Do you have any local friends? I want to ask where Damian Barry usually goes." Bagpipe scratched his head and felt that the opportunity should not be missed, so he simply told him everything about Damian Barry.

"A friend I know... Saoirse might know something." Jenny touched her nose, thought for a moment, and then hesitantly gave a new name. "Give me their contact information. I'll go to the newspaper office later. I don't think the sergeant will care whether I'm there or not today!"

"Then after you get the news, you can gather with me and I will help you analyze the situation. Besides, this place can guarantee your safety. If anything happens, run here." Noah's words were not casual. Where Kuro was, that was the real safe house. Noah found it hard to imagine who here could fight against Kuro.

The entanglement between the Tara people, the Victorian army, and the ghost army is definitely not an easy thing - it is always good to have a place where you can discuss it in peace.

And in the worst case scenario, he could also use some of the spells sealed in the Holy Bell by Yelagund to solve some minor problems.

Before leaving Kjerag, Noah was forced to have a pair of buffs given to him by Yaer. The reason why he was able to run in the wasteland for so long was also due to these buffs.

"I'm also going to meet up with the captain. Maybe he can get some information from there. If the captain can sit down and think about it with you, Sister Noah, maybe there will be more information... However, with the captain's personality, I'm afraid he won't be willing to let Sister Noah get involved..." Fengdi was a little worried. In her mind, the captain should have more information that she didn't know. If the captain was willing to cooperate with Sister Noah, with Sister Noah's brain that could figure out the situation in such a short time, he would definitely be able to get more information.

But she just thought about it. She stood up, wrote down her contact information on a piece of paper, handed it to Jenny, waved to Noah and Jenny, and left.

Jenny was about to leave for the newspaper office. Before leaving, she took the initiative to refill Noah's cup of milk tea and said, "I will definitely do what I can!"

The two Vaifans left one after another, and the room suddenly became deserted. However, this desertedness did not last long. Soon, a person pushed open the door and walked into the room. The light bulbs in the room flickered. It was not because they were broken, but the halo on the visitor's head might be a little dazzling, which slightly affected the lighting.

"It seems like I've arrived just in time." Outcast came to Noya's side and sat down comfortably. "After talking with those two kids, you should have come to a conclusion, right? So what do you think? Are you still going to hide it from an old man like me?"

"The Ghost Army is definitely related to the Tara people." Noah sighed, "The enemy they are facing should be the leader of the Ghost Army."

"Investigating this matter is dangerous. After all, even the military has been repeatedly attacked, which suggests there's a mole within the military—so why aren't you willing to clarify this?" Outcast asked curiously. "The doctor said you can see through people's minds and can manipulate them at will, but it seems to me that you've been resisting guiding others. You just clarified the situation, but didn't tell them what they should do—why?"

"I haven't come up with an answer."

"You're lying," Outcast said. "You've already figured it out, and you almost know what to do... but you have to keep it a secret from them."

"...Yes." Noah finally nodded, "Because this battle is unavoidable."

Chapter 9: Believed

If it was Casimir who was pushed into an irreversible situation by Noah deliberately, then the situation in Xiaoqiu County was completely different. Noah and others came here, or it could be said that the timing of Bagpipe's arrival here was already late. Conflicts had already arisen, and the people and the military had begun to clash. The ice is three feet thick, and it didn't freeze overnight.

Nowadays, there is almost no so-called "perfect solution". Noah manipulates emotions, so he understands that emotions are like rolling stones. Once they start, it is difficult to stop.

Even if Bagpipe brings the culprit to justice now, it is highly likely that he will not be able to prevent this split, because in the final analysis - this is the real contradiction between the Tara people and the military. It is a blood debt, a deep-rooted problem that is difficult to reverse, and a revenge that has no room for maneuver.

Asking the Tara people or the military to let go of their hatred? It's not time to dream yet.

If people could understand each other so easily, it wouldn't have reached this point. The people here are doing the same thing as themselves, planting seeds, watering them with blood, and waiting for them to sprout. The moment the seeds sprout, they will naturally push away the heavy rocks.

The opponent should not have the ability to manipulate emotions at this level, so he should be a pretty crazy guy who has no intention of braking.

Facing this possibly evil version of himself, Noah was not sure. It was better to say that the other party's methods were even more extreme than his own.

After pushing the situation to an irreversible point, he also believed that Silver Spear Pegasus and Ms. Russell could stabilize the situation. However, this guy prepared the so-called ghost army with the purpose of taking control of the overall situation after the situation became chaotic. His ideas were very vicious, his goals were very clear, and his methods... were also very clever.

The more I thought about it, the more I felt that the guy I was dealing with was either a madman, a genius, or both.

She's not a pushover, after all. Noah shook his head and then complained helplessly, "But I don't want to dampen the enthusiasm of those two kids... It's irreversible anyway, so why not just let them go? Even if things get bad, there's always a way out, right?"

After all, creatures like Vaifan are naturally thick-skinned and tough—and he himself said that as long as he came to him, Kuro would take action.

Anyway, I have said it here. No matter how bad the situation is, at least I can help these two stupid Waifans escape.

Still, she was a little worried, so she sent Outcast with a message—to Tora outside the city, who was probably still dazed by the car. She told Tora to find a time to come into the city that night and keep an eye on Jenny. Bagpipe was a soldier after all, so the chances of him getting into trouble shouldn't be high.

——Although she said so, she was still a little uneasy inside.

I just hope I'm just worrying too much.

-

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the weather had gradually turned cloudy. There were few pedestrians on the streets of Xiaoqiu County. The atmosphere of impending rain had filled the entire Xiaoqiu County. Even the most dull-witted person would realize that the number of patrols had increased and violent conflicts occurred from time to time. It was obvious that something big was about to happen.

On the second floor of the McMartin Brothers French Fries store, Bagpipe quietly looked out the window and sighed.

"Still no reply?" Horn asked McMartin. The other party was Victoria, a secret agent based in Hill County. Although many people had a distorted impression of Victoria due to the movie series, the middle-aged man in front of him, with grease spots on his apron, a bit of middle-aged weight, a medium build and ordinary appearance, was what a normal secret agent should look like.

"No, from yesterday to today, I haven't received any news from Londinium." McMartin could also feel that something big was about to happen. He had already started trying to contact Londinium before Horn gave the order, but now he had not received a reply, so naturally he could only report to Horn like this.

"Over twenty hours have passed. They must have received my last message," Horn asked, frowning. "Could there be a problem with the encrypted line?"

"It's hard to say, sir. Honestly, it's been almost ten years since I graduated and was transferred to Xiaoqiu County. I haven't had much intelligence needed to activate this secret communication line." McMartin was also worried. "At the end of the year before last, I reported to our team leader, and he asked if I had anything to say besides the number of birth accidents. If not, we could skip the regular report."

"Oh... no wonder you opened this French fry shop." Bagpipe, holding French fries in his hand, nodded in understanding.

"Hey, that's a good idea, isn't it? My code name has always been Cook. We at MI6 have always had a fine tradition of falling where we fall. At the time, I was thinking that even if outsiders wanted to find our contact station, they would only suspect the bookstore next door." Cook Mike Martin said proudly, "At least the old guy in the bookstore next door will chat with others all day long."

"Hmm, and the French fries taste great!" Bagpipe praised French fries without hesitation. The inventor of this method of cutting potatoes into strips and then frying them should be enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple.

"Really? Haha, help yourself, I've got plenty here. The potatoes from Hill County are just great, and the locals love my fries. If I hadn't remembered my roots as a lamplighter, I would have opened five or six branches long ago." McMartin sighed as he spoke. "Anyway, when you guys came to my house using the code yesterday, I thought I was dreaming about my training again."

"It looks like this line might have been abandoned..." Looking at this situation, Horn could only sigh. Because the line was unimportant and neglected, it wouldn't be used when it was needed... This was actually very Victorian. It was precisely because of his understanding of his country that Horn found this kind of thing unsurprising. "Or maybe someone received the message but didn't want to reply."

"Captain, do you mean someone is intentionally intercepting our intelligence?"

"It's hard to say. After all, the purpose of an intelligence organization is to convince the military that we have one." Horn's words revealed a certain degree of helplessness. "Back when Ursus was still expanding, the speed at which Ursus could obtain intelligence on Victoria was probably faster than our internal intelligence network."