The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

The Dark Night Holy Court, as usual, gathered in the dream and began a new round of meetings.

The Pope of the Morning Star has brought Garcia in again, but Garcia seems to be in much better condition recently, unlike before when he seemed to be still drunk when he was first brought into the dream.

However, the Pope did not pay much attention to this, since Garcia had recently become more and more devout, even more and more like a true believer.

The old pope was considering whether or not to formally incorporate Garcia into the church.

The dreamscape of the Dark Night Holy Court has become increasingly realistic, to the point that when the old Pope is distracted, he can't even tell whether he's dreaming or actually attending a meeting.

It was probably this sense of realism that made the pope increasingly sleepy, even in his dreams.

After a brief nap, the pope immediately woke up and saw the cardinals discussing something enthusiastically. The old pope was initially pleased that even in his absence, the cardinals could find a way out. However, upon looking at his surroundings, the old pope instantly felt a sense of unease.

The Lord of the Morning Star has no anthropomorphic icon, so why did the old Pope see a human figure through the reflection in the glass just a moment ago?

Listening to the cardinals talking about things he couldn't understand at all, the Pope, who had survived persecution by the Dragon Church and was a veteran of countless battles, felt his heart pounding violently in this dream.

Dongdong~dongdong~

Feeling his heart pounding, sitting at the long table that symbolized the power and glory of the Morning Star, amidst the clamor of the crowd, the old Pope slowly turned his head.

Behind him stood a statue of a compassionate woman, looking at him with a slightly pitying expression.

This can't be the Lord of Morning Star!

In that instant, the old pope felt something shatter before his eyes, something mist was pierced through.

The old pope turned around and found that the cardinals, who had just been arguing fiercely, had all stopped arguing and turned back to stare intently at him.

"Did you notice?"

Levian asked the question first, through his mask.

"You finally figured it out?"

The other cardinals also joined in the inquiry.

"You, who are you?"

The old pope finally managed to squeeze out these words through his dry throat.

“Your Majesty, we are the cardinals appointed by you, don’t you remember?”

Upon hearing Levian's words, the old pope was almost drenched in cold sweat.

Yes, I appointed all these cardinals myself, and I replaced them one by one during this period. I should be very clear about this, but why is my memory of that time so vague when I think back on it?

Looking at the silent cardinals, the old pope prayed incessantly to his God, but clearly his God did not respond.

"I regained consciousness faster than I expected."

At that moment, a cold female voice rang out from the side.

The old pope then noticed a nun praying devoutly beneath the statue of the goddess. The nun turned around and looked at the old pope with a hint of regret: "If you had just continued to dream obediently, at least you could have left without suffering so much."

The other cardinals also bowed to the nun, including Garcia, who was sitting at the back. Their eyes revealed piety and madness.

Looking at these believers, the old pope finally understood that their piety was not for the Lord of the Morning Star, but for the nun, or rather, for the god the nun believed in.

The message, "Goddess, the faith of the Mu Continent," instantly flooded the old Pope's mind.

Looking at the old pope who still wanted to say something, Bernice said with a hint of pity, "It's a real pity that you woke up at such an inopportune time. The countries under your control have already broken away from you and come to the embrace of the goddess."

Bernice, carrying a lantern, approached the Pope of the Dark Night Holy Court, while the old Pope felt his consciousness growing increasingly blurred: "Either you should never have fallen into this beautiful dream in the first place, or you should never have woken up from it. Unfortunately, you chose the most painful one."

The old pope's figure vanished in the dream, as if he had never existed.

"Is he dead?"

Garcia asked in an icy tone.

"No, I just kicked him out of the dream and brought him back to reality, but I'm afraid he won't survive once he wakes up."

After she finished speaking, the old pope's chair disappeared, and a new chair appeared in its place. After Bernice sat down, the long table in front of her, which symbolized the Dark Night Holy Court, was replaced with a more solemn and exquisite stone table.

"Alright, let's continue discussing the plan for the remaining three countries to join Neo-Castilla."

......

The three kingdoms under the control of the Dark Night Holy Court directly joined New Castile, which did not even cause any trouble. After all, these three kingdoms were originally puppet states, and had long been exploited by the Dark Night Holy Court. As long as the nobles and cultivators of the Dark Night Holy Court were controlled, it would be easy to control the remaining three Castiles.

However, while it didn't cause much of a stir for the three Castilians, it was a huge upheaval for other countries, especially the Avars.

The Avars were originally a nation that cooperated with the dragons, and could even be considered slaves of the dragons. But now even the dragons are running away. Among the imperial ships that returned to the Mu continent, many Sauron dragons had already gone with them. Not to mention whether there will be more and more in the future, it is basically impossible for the Avars to rely on the dragons for protection.

"That Sean is demanding territory from us again."

At the Avar meeting, the leading nobleman pointed with his cane to the map behind him.

By ceding a portion of territory, one can gain temporary peace, and even acquire many advanced handicrafts and luxury goods.

"Today we cede five cities, tomorrow we cede ten more. In a while, we'll find those damned Lars Knights back at our border!"

Another Avar nobleman slammed his fist on the table in anger, stood up and roared, "Where is your pride as Avars? Has it been so easily destroyed by the Empire's cannons?"

"If you continue to cede territory like this, Avar will be destroyed sooner or later, and what you merge into that empire will be even worse than Castile, because you won't even be able to keep the name of Avar!"

Upon hearing this nobleman's words, the other Avar nobles also lowered their heads.

"Actually, merging into the empire wouldn't be bad either."

An Avar nobleman muttered to himself.

Some people looked helpless and asked, "Then what do you suggest we do?"

"Prepare your super-tier magic, let's fight to the death!"

Upon hearing this nobleman's words, the other nobles shook their heads and sighed.

"Everyone, let's take a look at the conditions offered by the Empire."