The Path to Sainthood from Fairy Tail

The young nobleman looked at the white-clad body with a sigh, "I've long heard that the battlefield is incredibly cruel. This person must have been hacked to pieces on the battlefield."

Upon hearing this, the eldest brother recalled the bloody memories he had witnessed during the war, and his face instantly turned pale.

He didn't want to recall those terrifying memories at all.

So the eldest brother changed the subject: "Let's not talk about that for now. I heard that the army at the front has been defeated. What do you nobles plan to do?"

The young man shrugged, saying helplessly, "What else can we do but go with the flow? Anyway, it's just a change of leadership. As long as we pay our tribute on time, what can they do?"

The eldest brother couldn't help but ask, "What if those people want a lot of money?"

The young nobleman said nonchalantly, "Anyway, the money comes from the people, so we can just collect more taxes. It's better for the common people to suffer than for us to suffer."

The eldest brother: "..." He really is a born evil nobleman. Looks like I'll have to find a way to get noble status myself someday. Maybe this period will be an opportunity...

Fortunately, the diversionary tactic was successful, and the young nobleman's attention was now diverted from his boss.

At least until they receive the money, they must not tarnish their image in front of this young man, lest unforeseen consequences arise.

For the rest of the journey, although the young nobleman was very lively and could even be said to be very talkative, the leader always managed to defuse the situation with various rhetoric, and the group arrived at the Dia Pass in peace.

The young nobleman gazed at the distant Dia Pass and sighed, "I never thought I would be able to come back. I originally thought I would die in that trap."

He turned to look at the group of leaders and said, "No matter what, thank you so much this time."

The group of leaders gave stiff smiles, which served as a response to the young man's gratitude.

The leader coughed lightly, stepped forward, and said, "It's luck that we met, so let's not talk about that. More than that, I really want to know when we'll get the money?"

The young man said nonchalantly, "We'll wait until we get into the city. I still have some assets here. We'll be able to gather a hundred gold coins soon."

"Wow, I only used a hundred gold coins to save my life, it was such a good deal."

Normally, the Dia Pass serves as a vital transportation route connecting the northwest of the Golden Rooster Kingdom, saving a lot of time.

Therefore, even though the war was lost, the number of people passing through this side did not decrease.

When the eldest brother and the young nobleman arrived at the checkpoint, they could only follow the long queue and slowly pass through.

When it was finally their turn, the guard at the gate reached out and stopped them for inspection.

The soldier counted their men, then glanced at the goods, and said to the leader, "Toll fee: one silver coin per person, and ten silver coins for the horses and the goods on the wagons."

The eldest brother exclaimed in surprise, "What! It's so expensive?"

The soldier retorted irritably, "What do you know? The allied forces have already reached the capital. If they want to get to the northwest, Dia Pass is the only passage. This price is already cheap enough!"

If it were an ordinary person, the soldier would definitely start urging or chasing them away after saying all that.

But this group of people was different. First of all, the horses following the procession and the goods on the wagons were not things that ordinary people could possess; they might belong to merchants from some place.

Although these merchants were stingy, they knew what was important and could weigh the pros and cons. They wouldn't risk their lives by refusing to pay even a toll.

Moreover, once the goods they transported reached the northwest, they could raise the price and sell them to cover the cost of the tolls.

Secondly, there was the handsome young man in the group.

Although the soldier was just a gatekeeper, he had probably seen more people in such a long time than the entire population of the Golden Rooster Kingdom.

Although the young man's clothes were not fancy, his skin was noticeably smoother and fairer than that of an average person.

Clearly, this person is of high status and position, at least not someone who needs to work outside all day.

People like that are definitely not short of money.

It is for these reasons that the soldiers patiently waited for these people to arrive.

The leader's current status is practically no different from that of a deserter. Moreover, they've committed many atrocities along the way. If they don't hurry to a place where no one knows them, they won't be able to do anything once the land stabilizes.

The toll for Dia Pass wasn't too bad, and besides, they were about to get a hundred gold coins, so the leader quickly came to terms with it.

He waved to his underlings who had rushed over and said, "Go over there and count the money, then pay the toll."

The younger brother accepted the order and went to the carriage, where he began counting money from his purse.

The money in the purse was mostly copper coins, with only a few silver coins. The gold coins were all in the hands of the boss, but they didn't know how many gold coins he had.

A short while later, the younger brother came to his boss's side with a bag and said awkwardly, "Boss, we don't have enough money..."

The eldest brother was already ready to head into the city when he unexpectedly received this news.

"Not enough? How is that possible!?"

They had stolen food and drink along the way, and even their horses and carriages belonged to the army. They had nowhere to spend money, so how could they not even be able to scrape together enough for tolls?

The eldest brother frowned slightly, hesitating: "This..."

Just then, the young nobleman suggested, "Why don't you split up and go into the city in half, while the rest stay behind to guard the carriages and goods? Once you've received the money, you can all go in together, right?"

The eldest brother nodded slightly. In fact, when he heard the suggestion, he had thought of a better way, but he quickly put it out of his mind.

He said to the soldier, "We need to discuss this. It will take some time before we can enter the city. Could we perhaps talk to each other over there first?"

Adhering to the principle of handling matters officially, the soldier directly refused his boss's request, but then, persuaded by the boss's offer of gold coins, he flexibly adjusted his principles.

"Wait a while, but not too long."

After saying this, the soldier put a glittering gold coin into his pocket.

The leader pulled the others away from the noble youth and said seriously, "Everyone, I know we've only been together for a short time, and the word 'trust' is completely foreign to us."

He paused, then continued, "But we are indeed short of money right now. I just gave my only gold coin to the soldier guarding the city gate, so those who stay outside shouldn't be mistreated."

At this moment, a seemingly shrewd henchman raised a question: "Sorry, boss, although I know that bringing up this kind of thing at this time is not good for unity, I have to ask!"

The eldest brother nodded, signaling him to continue.

"What if those who stay outside get abandoned? After all, when it comes to money, the fewer people who share it, the better. We've come all this way, and if we're all left behind, all our efforts will be wasted!"

The leader had clearly thought about the problem, and responded immediately when asked: "Of course I wouldn't do such a thing, but to put the brothers outside at ease, I will leave all the horses behind."

"In the current situation, horses are hard currency no matter where they are, let alone warhorses in the army."

The man then asked, "Wait a minute, where's the owner who brews wine?"

The boss naturally wouldn't do something like picking up a sesame seed and losing a watermelon. What if that person is left out and then embezzled?

"I'll take him into the city first..."

"No! What if you run off with him and all that money first?"

The leader patiently explained, "Don't worry, I can't just disappear without a trace, otherwise I wouldn't have bribed that soldier."

"The reason we're taking that person away is to ensure their safety. Once inside the city, their safety will be significantly enhanced."...