Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters-Chapter 913 - 20 Qamp;A_2

Chapter 913: Chapter 20 Q&A_2 Chapter 913: Chapter 20 Q&A_2 “Why have you come back?” Winters asked with a smile, “Isn’t there a lot to handle down in Iron Peak County?”

Old friend, just seeing you makes me so happy, Winters thought to himself.

“Winter has come, so there’s not much to do.” Bard had grown a bit thinner: “Have you thought about how to deal with the Heretic Priest?”

“Did you come back just to discuss this with me? Couldn’t you just write a letter?”

Bard answered earnestly: “This matter can be big or small, we must take it seriously.”

“I don’t have any good solution. Caman has asked me to buy him some time; he seems to have his own plan.”

“And what’s your plan?”

...

“I only have a backup plan. I wrote to General Serviati, asking him to get in touch with the Alliance Magic Combat Bureau. But the time it takes to go back and forth is probably more than Caman needs.”

Bard nodded: “How do you plan to buy time?”

“Delay, just drag it out.” Winters smiled helplessly: “What else can I do? After all, this is not the Empire; the Church does not have the power to act.”

“Delaying is a good strategy, but not delaying forcefully.”

Winters knew his good friend all too well, so as soon as he heard Bard’s words, he immediately burst into a smile: “If you have a way, just say it, don’t give me difficult problems.”

“It’s actually quite simple.” Bard raised his hand in a polite gesture: “If we view the Church as a religious organization, then sheltering a heretic is a very serious matter.”

“So what?”

“On the other hand, if we view the Church as a bureaucratic institution, then this matter is not that big of a deal. You need to understand that the clergy of Revodan are not persistent in eliminating Saul because of devout faith or hatred towards heretics. They want to judge Saul simply because their superiors once ordered them to do so, nothing more.”

“Um… The current acting bishop of the Revodan Church is probably one of those ‘extremely devout’ clerics. And he’s particularly inflexible; it would probably be hard to negotiate with him.”

“Inflexibility means adherence to order; it’s easier to deal with him. Don’t worry about this; leave it to me. I will talk to the Revodan Church.”

“Great.” Winters let out a relieved sigh from deep within: “How do you plan to talk to them?”

“The Church’s judgment of Saul, of course, has no problems—we respect the Church’s internal jurisdiction.” Bard cleared his throat, adopting the tone of a public servant:

“But the Revodan garrison is a branch facility under the New Reclamation Legion. Procedurally, this matter must first obtain the consent of the New Reclamation Legion; we don’t have the authority to comply directly. In short, we must patiently follow the process; we can’t rush it.”

“What if they really get permission from the Legion?”

“Don’t forget, the bishop of Revodan unfortunately perished, and a new bishop has yet to be assigned. Whether the acting bishop is qualified to apply to the Legion is still a matter for debate.” Bard smiled: “After all, you are not planning on solving the problem completely; just delaying is enough.”

Winters laughed heartily.

Bard also smiled warmly. He gazed at Winters and asked softly, “I heard you’ve not been doing so well lately?”

“What hasn’t been well?” Winters wiped tears of laughter: “Aren’t I quite well?”

“They say you’re becoming more and more like Colonel Moritz, hardly ever being seen.”

“Who said that?”

“Senior Mason. There are rumors in Iron Peak County too, saying your old wounds have flared up and you’re not faring well.”

Knowing others cared about him gave Winters an indescribable feeling. He sighed: “Senior Mason probably did it out of spite. Let others say what they will.”

“I don’t often get a chance to return to Revodan.” Bard suggested: “Accompany me out for a walk?”

Winters instinctively refused: “It’s too cold outside; I don’t want to move.”

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

Bard stood up, grabbed both of their coats, and looked at Winters.

Winters had no choice but to give in: “Alright, let’s go for a walk. But not too far, my leg has been hurting recently—you grab my cane as well.”

Upon leaving the residence, Winters realized that Bard had come prepared.

Because a carriage was waiting in the courtyard.

“I knew you had an injury in your leg.” Bard smiled: “I borrowed a carriage.”

“Where are we going?” Winters asked bitterly: “You’re not planning to drag me to Iron Peak County, right? Are the rumors there that bad?”

“No, just a casual stroll.” Bard urged Winters: “Get in.”

Both men got in the carriage, Bard knocked on the carriage window, and the coachman spurred the horses, with the carriage smoothly heading towards the St. George River.

The carriage isolated them from the outside view, slightly alleviating Winters’ discomfort.

Smoking fire pits split the road in the middle, with pedestrians and carriages each sticking to one side, neat and orderly.

Bard suddenly spoke: “I’ve been seriously considering General Serviati’s suggestion lately.”

“Which suggestion?” Winters raised an eyebrow: “To defect to Alpad’s military government?”

“Yes.”

“And the result of your consideration?”

“I think we can try to make contact.”

“Alpad’s faction is an orthodox Paratu warlord; they won’t accept us.”

“If we can avoid fighting, then we should strive not to fight.” A glimmer shone in Bard’s eyes: “Even if it means making local concessions in exchange for the legitimacy of our efforts in Iron Peak County, it would be worth it.”

If someone else had said this, Winters would think that person was scared and wanted to surrender. But Bard… Winters believed that Bard would never waver.