"Whether we can survive depends on those two witches, but... their situation doesn't look good either."

Inside a small chamber of the Justice Church.

Veronica lay pale-faced on a bed, a place originally meant for church staff to rest, now cleared for her and Teresa to recuperate. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The long eyelashes of the Jialan Witch fluttered twice, she barely opened her eyes to the dry air of the room and the dim light of candle flames.

"You're awake?" A cold voice sounded in her ear.

"What are you doing here, Little Princess?" Upon hearing this voice, Veronica closed her eyes again.

"Of course, I'm here to watch your performance." Teresa replied irritably, "Since you're awake, get up quickly, there's some food on the table, eat quickly. We have managed to hold the church, but no one has experience dealing with the Ratmen, Laine is not here now, and you know the most about them."

"Trovik, didn't your mother ever teach you to be polite?" Veronica felt a headache, aware that it was a sign of magic power overuse, blue veins appeared on the Jialan Witch's forehead. She forcefully flung off the blanket and was about to get up when something stopped her in her tracks.

Teresa was injured, her right arm wrapped in thick bandages and hung in a sling against her chest, and her left hand was supported by a Magic Staff.

"Oh dear, injured again, Trovik?" Veronica stared for a few seconds, then quickly mocked, "If Elder Aurora knew, she'd feel heartache for half a day! Tell me, Trovik, how did you get injured?"

"What's it to you?" Teresa didn't want to bicker with Veronica: "Don't think I don't know, you're injured too, Lady Surya said you were hit by a Rat Giant, but fortunately not too badly."

Veronica opened her mouth—she had meant to sharply taunt the female sorcerer, but in the end, just sighed: "The situation is dire, now is not the time to rest, my magic reserves are nearly depleted. What about yours?"

"My magic reserves are fine, it's January outside, snow falling heavily, I can easily absorb a large amount of Ice Magic," Teresa looked dejectedly at her arm, "Unfortunately, I can't use a musket now."

"Skaven Ratmen... Trovik, to resist their offensive we must repel the Ratmen's infiltration at all costs..." Veronica turned over, the Jialan Witch got to her feet, put on boots, and hastily took a few bites of something, "We must fortify the church's defenses."

"Fortify? How?" The room door opened, a valiant female Knight and her maid Sylvia walked in, seeing Veronica up, Surya's mouth curved into a joyful smile, "That's good, Veronica, you look better."

"My lady, the situation isn't good at all, my magic is running low." Veronica promptly stood to show respect, and only after Surya and Sylvia sat did Veronica sit down, "How's the morale of the soldiers?"

"Still passable, at least the appearance of Imperial Captain Huber raised spirits, and the presence of two Rick Guards gave the soldiers a sense of purpose," Surya replied with a serious expression and nodded, "Everyone is still hopeful for reinforcements."

"Hmm, the refugees hardly matter, to put it bluntly, they're burdens hindering our survival," Veronica stated bluntly, "Six hundred refugees, panicked, helpless, needing food, drink, waste management, contributing nothing to the battle but a heavy load on our defenses."

Surya frowned a bit, first noting Teresa's silence, the sorceress choosing not to speak, clearly sharing the sentiment though she promised Laine to treat everyone equally.

The Knight remained composed, but Sylvia, the stern and nearly rigid maid, couldn't stand it. Wearing a standard Brittania Knight Plate Armor, rapier in hand, she listened to Veronica's assessment and was about to retort.

Surya gestured for Sylvia to be silent; Veronica wasn't finished speaking.

"But we cannot abandon them. Hemgart is lost, but the people remain. A city's existence isn't defined by buildings but by its people. As long as they live, there's hope," Veronica said, her delicate brows nearly furrowing into a knot. "Rebuilding Hemgart will need these people. Only if they survive does the city have a future. So we can't abandon them; it would not only cause riots among the refugees but also make soldiers lose faith in us, especially in Laine."

Her reasoning was irrefutable, and everyone nodded.

"Now we're down to two hopes: First, news from Laine. If he can decapitate the Ratman Commander, considering their penchant for infighting, the Rat tide would likely retreat. Second, reinforcements from the Duke of Montfort or Emperor Carl Franz. If they arrive quickly... Lady Surya, any news from Laine?" Veronica first inquired of Surya.