Thud*
Farcandus's lifeless body fell onto the cold stone floor as Sera sighed with pity. To him, Farcandus was one of the most prized knights in the church army, yet he fell like this to fulfill his meager duty as a paladin.
Perhaps he could become one of the greatest generals in history but now was impossible. His humble soul never managed to break his cocoon, fading into eternal darkness and forgotten in the pages of old books.
" Bury him in the yard of the church. Never disrespect this man who gave his life for his purpose."
Sera said calmly, proceeding into the castle with a solemn expression. This battle had drawn too much blood and he needed to end this now by taking the saintess away. The head nun was a just bonus for his mission, so he didn't care that much unlike a saintess who held tremendous power.
Meanwhile in the secret tunnel.
The knight bit his lips, looking back at the tunnel with a white face. They couldn't go like this forever as they desperately needed support but what choice he have here? It was either the saintess or the castle and he was given an order.
" Saintess, we must proceed to the end of the tunnel. It should lead us to a nearby safe house where we regularly stock things for the hunters and people. There are hidden clothes inside the wall and some weapons alongside with it. We can get them and use the sack of gold under the rock near the river."
He mentioned these locations to Anna who didn't know much about knights, considering he might be separated from her if things turned worse.
" What about the head nun Evangeline? Where would she go?"
Anna asked while panting, slightly feeling dry in her throat while blood curled in her chest. She had great stamina compared to a normal woman but they had to run almost miles from the castle at their best speed without stopping.
" Sister Evangeline should be in the town near the river. We can get a carriage from the town to Neapolis. Neapolis is near to Rome which is 2 days of worth trip."
The knight carefully explained the details to her on their way, thinking it might be a good idea to fill in some info. Neapolis ( Naples in modern times) is one of the biggest cities in the empire, thus making it absolutely impossible to catch them even if they were imperial army.
They couldn't just invade the whole city for 2 people and they wouldn't want to deal with angry nobles and citizens of Neopolis.
" But they would surely guard Roma. The headquarters are in the center of the city, so they would expect us there."
Anna pulled out a sack from her pocket, picking up a coin from it. There was a symbol of a lion on the coin on one side while the other had a sword on it.
" Take this coin to the Duke of Saxony. He will surely be willing to help us in the worst scenario. He doesn't like a current emperor and his supporter of the church."
She gave the coin to the knight, gesturing him to go different ways after reaching the surface.
" But your Holiness!"
Before he could say something to her, Anna shut him down almost instantly. She would be a fool to go there without any foolproof plan and she didn't trust the church completely after this.
Although the pope was on her side, the same didn't go with cardinals who shared different values.
" Go to Saxony with your fastest speed and look for Lord Henry on the way. Lord Henry is a paladin who could breach the capital city if dashed through it with his men, thus bringing him to our side would spell our victory."
Anna first thought of Henry who was hailed as the lion of the empire. His tactical mind and strength far surpassed most of the generals despite his low-numbered paladins and he had a huge influence on the people.
" I understand, saintess. I will deliver it with everything that I have got."
The knight didn't refute her, bowing his head to accept her mission even if it was a suicidal mission.