The slums on the outskirts of Wickidor.
It was not Leah's first time here, but she couldn't help frowning every time she saw the crooked thatched huts that could collapse under the snow at any moment, as well as the lifeless refugees within.
Most of the refugees here were from Lovinia, the former capital of Tierra. As the princess of Tierra, there was an indescribable pain in her heart when she saw her former citizens reduced to such a state.
Even if the mayor of Wickidor did not allow the refugees to seek refuge in the city, he still allocated some resources for them to prevent them from causing trouble.
Still, the limited amount of food provided each day was clearly not enough to fill the stomachs of every refugee. Most of their faces were ashen in despair as they stayed tight in their dilapidated huts, waiting for death to come.
For them, who were tormented by hunger and cold at every moment, being taken away by death in their dreams was a form of happiness.
"So, how do you plan to recruit refugees and make them believers of the God of Games?" Leah asked Marni, who was sitting on the shaft of the carriage, doing her best to ignore the wretched state of the refugees. "Are you going to preach among the refugees and give them food for each one who becomes a true believer?"
Since she had been hiding in the carriage just now, Leah knew very well that Marni's carriage was packed with rations, and the sweet aroma of roasted wheat wafted through the carriage.
"No way. If we do that, Wickidor's city watch would come to arrest us in half a day."
Marni smiled helplessly. He realized that the girl had an air of maturity that did not match her age at first glance, but after spending some time with her, he realized that she had many ideas and was still a little naive. If not for the Yakaran surname that belonged to the former Tierra royal family that could not be faked, she would appear more like a rash village girl than a scheming princess. "After all, it's not time for the God of Games' Church to be exposed yet …"
"That's true …" Leah sighed and sat back in the carriage dejectedly.
"I'm going to use the excuse of hiring laborers to bring along a group of healthy youths, and spread the God of Games' teachings to them along the way. It's fine even if they don't want to become believers of the God of Games when the time comes, and we just have to make sure they don't tell the other churches. "
Marni had no intention of keeping her in suspense, and explained his plan clearly to her. "It's fine even if they run off halfway to tell the other churches. As long as it's not a large-scale report, the churches wouldn't care about refugees with no official status."
Moreover, after receiving the bounty of faith from the God of Games, there probably wouldn't be many who would betray the God of Games for some petty profit.
"Are we only taking the youths …" Leah asked quietly.
"Ah, don't misunderstand. When I said young adults, it also includes women."Marni did a double take, before quickly adding, "Ever since I served in the all-male Valla Empire's Painted Armor Corps for a while, I've learned that things can go awry if there's a huge disparity between men and women …"
As he spoke, he looked at the gloomy sky with a face full of vicissitudes, as if he couldn't bear to recall the past. "If possible, please don't ask me why I know."
Leah had to use all her strength to swallow the retort that was welling up in her throat.
It was only then that she remembered what she meant.
"No, Uncle. I mean … what about the elderly and children among the refugees?"
"If it's the family members of the young adults who have been selected, they can bring them along. Other elderly and children can also follow if they're willing." At those words, Marni turned to look at the girl. "But I have to make one thing clear: I won't stop and wait for them if they can't move or fall behind."
"Your Highness, I'm sure you know how dangerous it is to travel in the wilderness in this weather. Blizzards that could freeze people into ice sculptures, ferocious beasts and magical creatures that roam the wilderness, or even demi-humans that live off of marauders could all threaten the convoy. "He said solemnly." The risk increases with every moment we delay.That's why I won't risk slowing down the entire convoy by doing something like that. "
"Okay. Don't worry, I understand. If something like that really happens, I definitely won't make trouble for no reason. "
As the princess of a fallen kingdom, Leah had naturally seen her fair share of cold, cruel reality, and wasn't going to stand there and talk like a Virgin Mary. "After all, the original sin is that I'm too weak. If I was strong, Tierra wouldn't have fallen, and we wouldn't have to do something like this. So many tragedies wouldn't have happened.It's all because I'm weak. "
At those words, Leah ignored Marni's' Girl, are we really on the same channel 'look, and clasped her hands into fists over her chest, praying softly and piously. "I will work harder to become stronger. God of Games, please protect us."
Far away in his Divine Kingdom, Xi Wei did a double take when he suddenly realized that a zealot had appeared among his believers. He couldn't help checking the records of the Pantheon Computer, and found that Leah, a devout believer, had ascended to the level of a zealot in that split second.
After a moment of delight, Xi Wei suddenly realized that the girl's wish was for him to have the power to stop all tragedies … It seems that the hidden class' Warrior Princess' was not given wrongly. If he had made her a saintess-in-training like Eleena, the Church of Games might have a Saintess with iron fists that could tear the skies apart and crush the earth with her feet …
Even as they spoke, Marni and Leah arrived at the refugee camp.
Just as Marni was thinking about how he would incite the refugees to join his' labor team ', an old voice suddenly spoke beside them.
"Is that Princess Leah? My eyes aren't deceiving me, are they? "
Both Marni and Leah were taken aback, and turned towards the direction where the voice came from.
There was a simple tent propped up by a dirty rag. At the entrance of the tent, a skinny old man was staring blankly at Lia. His wrinkled, tanned face was covered in tears.
"I never thought that I'd see you again in this life, Princess Leah … I have no regrets now …"