Chapter 45: Low Prosperity

When Alexander led his troops to Carius Village, he was shocked by what he saw.

The entire village was extremely dilapidated. The farmland was overgrown with weeds, the roads were muddy, and even the roofs of some wooden houses were burning with raging flames. At a glance, there were no villagers to be seen, only a gang of pirates dressed in Wiedel attire looting the area.

They were clutching valuables they had scavenged from who knows where, staring in shock at the fully armed Saint Martin troops appearing on the village road.

"Drop those things right now! They all belong to me! Mine!"

Seeing these guys leaving him nothing, Alexander was furious on the spot—how dare these petty thieves touch the village under the name of Lord Alexander Castile, dilapidated as it may be.

In a crucial moment, Victor showed his shrewdness and shouted, "Our lord protects the kingdom's villages, protects the kingdom's people! Fight for the great Saint Martin!"

He successfully portrayed Alexander as a lord loyal to the Kingdom of Saint Martin, as if Alexander was fighting not for himself but for the kingdom.

"Fight for the great Saint Martin! Charge!"

All the cavalry trotted heavily, trampling on the muddy paths of the village.

Seeing this, the Wiedel pirates hurriedly dropped their loot and fled in all directions.

But no matter how fast they ran, could they be faster than the warhorses?

In no time, these pirates were all dealt with, and Alexander even captured seven of them as prisoners.

The main reason was that these guys were too weak in combat. Alexander and his troops were no longer the greenhorns they once were; they were now battle-hardened elites. At least now, they no longer needed Alexander's self-created move (Righteous Knight Kick) to kill pirates.

At the same time, Alexander realized the seriousness of the situation. Developing a village in such a war-torn land was extremely difficult.

**Congratulations to Lord Alexander for unlocking the Territory Module**

**Current Territory: Carius Village Prosperity: -2**

**Task Triggered—Rebuild Carius Village**

**Task Reward: Water Channel*1**

Looking at the village with a negative prosperity value, Alexander had long known that the situation in this village wouldn't be great, but he didn't expect it to be this bad.

However, no matter how dilapidated it is, it's still his territory. According to the task given by the system, the prosperity must be raised above 0 to consider the task of rebuilding complete.

"Where have all the villagers gone?" Alexander directly grabbed a prisoner for questioning.

"Sir, when we arrived, there were no villagers here. They must have fled to the city to take refuge due to the war," the Wiedel pirate replied trembling.

Alexander thought it was highly likely that they had escaped to Carius Castle or the nearest border town, Roel City.

Roel City was the place where King Hadser and Alexander had previously recuperated. It was also where King Hadser accepted Alexander's allegiance.

Going back to Roel City to bring them back was unrealistic; they would have to return on their own. The immediate task was to clear out the bandits around the area, ensuring a safe path for the villagers to return.

**Congratulations to Lord Alexander for achieving the feat—Dreaded by Enemies**

**Reward: Charisma +1**

Just as Alexander was about to lead his men to eliminate the surrounding bandits, the system's voice suddenly rang out.

Alexander was taken aback for a moment before realizing that King Hadser must have displayed the warhammer he had won, indirectly helping to publicize his exploits.

His current attribute panel was:

**Level**: 9 

**Strength**: 13 

**Agility**: 10 

**Intelligence**: 8 

**Charisma**: 10 

**Available Attribute Points**: 0 

**Experience**: 20600/25600 

**System Coins**: 8000

With a charisma of 10, Alexander could now command up to 50 troops. However, he was not in a hurry to recruit more soldiers. The priority was to clear the bandits on the road from Roel City to Carius Village.

His method was simple: he had Victor and others dress as commoners and walk ahead, while he and his men followed at a distance.

To make the disguise more convincing, Alexander had Victor carry a large bag of valuables, deliberately exposing a corner of it.

This trick repeatedly lured the bandits, who sought fortune in danger, into traps. Eventually, the number of bandits Alexander captured reached thirty.

They tied these greedy bandits together with a rope, and Alexander and his men continued their bandit-clearing operation.

...

In the distant Southern Empire.

The younger brother of the bishop of the Truth Church knelt on the ground, begging frantically for mercy. The Raven Knights he led had been completely annihilated, and the ground was littered with corpses dressed in black robes.

Phobos stood on the shattered Raven banner, his gaze passing over the bishop's brother as if he were admiring the beautiful yet bloody dawn—if he could see it.

He quietly listened to the bishop's brother of the Truth Church singing his praises.

"Is this your last words?" Phobos spoke softly, his tone exceptionally cold, colder than the ice and snow atop the northern mountains.

"Uh, honorable…" The bishop's brother choked, looking at Phobos in despair, trying to argue further.

Slash!

The Judgement Knight standing behind him swung his long-handled battle axe without hesitation. In a single motion, the bishop's brother and captain of the Raven Knights was decapitated, his head rolling away like a ball, his death as easy as picking an apple.

"God says he wants to hear your confession personally. As God's emissary, it is my duty to send you on your way to the supreme light. May your journey be painless and not lonely, leaving all darkness and baseness behind, with only a pure body," Phobos said softly. It was unclear whether he was speaking to the deceased captain or someone else.

After dealing with the Raven Knights, he looked in another direction—the direction in which the Black Spear Knights were fleeing.

With the entrance of the seven knight orders of the Light Church, the situation in the Southern Empire reversed instantly.

Queen Laya's forces, originally at a disadvantage, suddenly surged in combat strength, forcibly turning the tide of battle. Currently, Queen Laya was still in the western part of the Southern Empire, locked in a fierce battle with Duke Andrew.

However, the victory on the side of the Light Church was already decided. As one of the oldest and most mysterious religious forces, their deep foundation caused the Truth Church to flee everywhere.

Queen Laya's strategy of using one power to eliminate another was indeed brilliant. Secular forces and religious forces might not go all out against each other, but when two religions with different beliefs met, the result was clear—absolute, unrelenting conflict.

As for whether Queen Laya had considered whether she could suppress the Light Church, she would say, "I have considered it, but it is irrelevant."

As long as the Light Church acknowledged her as the holy emperor of the empire, she did not mind bringing in the power of the Light Church, even knowing that the pope of the Light Church had his own schemes.