Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

"Saint John, you finally woke up."

Min Cai'er's consciousness was awakened by a sound, as if someone was drawing the icy chill from his bones bit by bit.

He felt his body swaying slightly to some rhythm, as if he was in a moving carriage.

I slowly opened my heavy eyelids, and the dazzling sunlight poured in through the gaps in the car window, casting mottled light and shadows on the floor of the car.

He found himself in a carriage with simple but neat decoration. Next to him sat a middle-aged man in a dark brown clerical robe. The golden cross on his chest gleamed steadily in the sun.

"Thank you so much."

Min Caier propped himself up, his throat so dry from being unconscious for so long that he couldn't utter a complete word.

"No need to thank me. As a priest, I cannot stand by and watch someone die."

The man who claimed to be a priest turned around, his face was kind but with the majesty unique to clergymen.

There were fine wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, which were the marks left by years of wind and sun. His gray temples shone silver in the sunlight.

He reached out and held Min Caier's trembling arm, his movements as gentle as if he was touching fragile porcelain.

"You had a frighteningly high temperature when you passed out. How do you feel now?"

Min Caier tried to move his stiff limbs and found that the feeling of weakness in his body was gradually subsiding.

"Much better, but..."

He looked around. The interior of the carriage was simple but spotless. Several strings of dried herbs were hung on the wall, making slight clinking sounds as the carriage swayed.

"I just don't know how to repay you for saving my life."

"Don't worry about it."

The priest took a leather bag from his waist and handed it to him.

"Drink some medicine soup, it can help you recover your strength."

Münzer then noticed that he spoke with a Midland accent, with a slight rising sound at the end, similar to the accent he had heard from the Helderland soldiers in the prisoner-of-war camp.

Min Caier took the leather bag, and the rich aroma of herbs hit him in the face. He tilted his head back and took a sip. The bitter yet slightly sweet taste instantly moistened his dry throat.

"You are not a priest employed by the Yoda Empire."

"No."

The priest straightened the wrinkled cuffs of his robe, revealing the lining with intricate embroidery.

"I am a priest from the Holy Kingdom of Helderland. I was ordered to go to Ravenna to serve as the priest of the Helderland Chamber of Commerce branch. My main job is to preach and provide psychological counseling for the local Helderland expatriates."

"Oh? This is the first time I've heard of psychological counseling."

"Answer believers' questions and resolve their doubts, helping them overcome their psychological difficulties."

The priest's expression turned serious, and his fingers unconsciously rubbed the cross pendant.

“It is a compulsory course for every priest in our Helderland Church.”

He paused and took out a book from the briefcase he carried with him.

"Besides that, there are things like agriculture and herbal medicine that need to be learned."

The yellowed pages were densely covered with words, and various translation notes were marked on the edges.

"So that's it."

Min Caier thought of the clergy of the Yoda Empire who could only recite scriptures, and then looked at the knowledgeable and talented priest in front of him, and suddenly felt that this was the standard clergyman in his mind.

If all Yoda's clergy were like the priest, life for ordinary people might be much easier.

During the conversation with the priest, Minzer also told him his name and the purpose of his trip to Ravenna.

When the priest heard that Minzer was investigating the murder of a family of businessmen in which Fugger might have been involved, his originally kind face suddenly became solemn.

"You are truly a hero who is willing to sacrifice his life for the pursuit of truth."

The priest's voice was low and full of respect. He clasped his hands in front of his chest, and the golden cross shone brightly in the sun.

After hearing this, Min Caier felt confused. He didn't know whether he was pursuing some truth or whether he would become a hero.

He just wanted the miners to live a normal life, without being heavily in debt, to have enough food and clothing and enough money for their children to go to school.

This simple wish burned in his heart like a faint fire in the darkness.

A few days later, as the carriage slowly passed through the tall city gate, what came into Minzer's sight was the city life of Ravenna.

As an important port city, the flow of people here is as dense as the surging tide.

The streets are lined with stalls of all kinds, with vendors shouting enthusiastically and displaying their wares - everything from fresh fruits and cured meats to handmade leather products.

There were also various artists performing acrobatics on the streets. Their agile postures and wonderful performances drew cheers from the crowd.

On both sides of the street are the magnificent buildings of various guilds of commerce. The towering stone pillars and exquisite reliefs demonstrate their wealth and power.

After passing through the crowded crowd, the convoy turned left and right and came to an open iron gate.

Min Caier glanced at the walls on both sides and found that they were winding like giant pythons, surrounding a large area.

The wall is high and has sharp iron spikes on the top. It is obviously a heavily guarded private territory.

"Stop the car! Everyone, show us your identification documents!"

A loud voice suddenly sounded, interrupting Min Caier's thoughts.

He looked in the direction of the voice and saw two Black Watch mercenaries striding towards them. The mercenaries asked for identification documents from the people in the carriage one by one, and the people cooperated by taking out a piece of paper from their pockets and handing it over.

"Where's your paperwork?"

A mercenary walked to the car window, his rough voice carrying unquestionable majesty.

"He's a Yoda, so no."

Father Paul turned around and explained calmly.

"But I want him to come in with me."

"Then you need to give a guarantee."

The mercenary's eyes swept over Min Caier, finally stopping on his tattered monk's robe.

"Let him come down to register so that we can give him a temporary pass."

Minzer nodded, bent down and got out of the carriage. He followed the priest to a carriage parked on the side of the road, where a civil servant in a black robe sat.

A thick registration book was spread out in front of the civil servant, and the feather pen was dipped into the ink bottle, making a slight "swish" sound.

Münzer filled out the paperwork with his information, including his name, where he was from, and the purpose of his trip to Ravenna.

Then, the priest took the feather pen, solemnly signed his name in the guarantor column, and pressed a bright red fingerprint. Min Zeer also knew the priest named Paul through the signature.

After completing the formalities, the civil servant handed Minzer a temporary pass with the seal of the Helderland Chamber of Commerce.

After the carriage entered, the scene inside was somewhat different from that in Ravenna.

In addition to the fact that the flow of people is not as dense as before, the streets are also very clean, the cobblestone roads are washed to a shine, and there is almost no garbage or dirt to be seen.

Min Caier even saw that there were special people here to clean up horse manure and the like. The cleaners were wearing uniform gray uniforms and holding long-handled brooms. Their movements were skillful and quick.

"Father Paul, what are you doing here?"

“It’s my first time here too.”

Father Paul explained to him.

"During the training, they said that the chambers of commerce of the Northern Alliance countries had jointly rented a piece of land here for trade and other matters."

His eyes swept across the flags on the surrounding buildings, which were embroidered with various unfamiliar emblems.

"The Helderan Chamber of Commerce felt that the security in Yoda was poor, so they isolated the area from the outside world and hired Black Watch mercenaries to guard it."

"And all the people working here are from the Northern Alliance countries. If outsiders want to come in, they must have someone inside to guarantee them before they can be given a temporary pass."

The carriage slowly stopped and finally stopped in front of a large building.

The gate of the building is several meters high and made of thick oak with exquisite patterns carved on the surface. The black, white and red tricolor flag hanging above the door shines brightly in the sun.

"Thank you very much, Father Paul. I have something else to do. See you later."

Minzer said goodbye to the priest, his heart full of gratitude.

“May Saint John bless you in your mission.”

Father Paul also smiled and blessed.

After saying goodbye to Father Paul, Minzer stood alone on the street and suddenly found that he seemed to have no idea where to stay.