The Villain Saint is my secondary account

"Who said we should fight with only our own troops?"

However, Theresa chuckled softly.

"Young Miss, do you mean... to request aid from the Holy City?"

Elder Cassius paused.

"By the time the Holy City's fleet arrives, those Dark Shepherds will probably have all fled."

Theresa categorically denied it, saying, "Even rats in the gutter know to move around, so why would they obediently wait for us to call reinforcements?"

"But one thing is certain: the fact that a mere group of heretics dared to ambush us this time shows that there must be something they have to accomplish on this island, even if it means paying a heavy price to confront the Holy Army head-on."

“Therefore, Elder Cassius, losing the location of the Holy Casket does not mean that this battle is meaningless. The more fiercely these Dark Shepherds resist, the more important their plans are. If we can destroy their conspiracy, that is also a victory.”

Elder Cassius agreed with this statement.

In the past, any heretics would flee with their tails between their legs upon encountering the Holy Army, but the Dark Shepherds on this island actually chose to confront them head-on, which was very unusual.

Even if such an action brings temporary success, it will definitely lead to losses in the long run.

After all, no matter how powerful the Dark Cult is, its strength is still just a drop in the ocean compared to the Holy Temple that dominates the continent. It's only a matter of time before the Holy City's reinforcements arrive and wipe them out.

Therefore, for secret cults, once discovered, the best option is often to fight and retreat as quickly as possible—unless, they now have a reason to fight.

"Even so... Miss, the problem of our limited manpower has not been solved."

"This problem, of course, should be solved for us by the owners here."

Theresa said leisurely, "This is not a deserted island. It is the responsibility of every order power to punish heretics who are harming the area. How can the free port city-state, as the ruler, remain aloof?"

"We can send a messenger shortly to earnestly invite our Lord Torred to send troops to join us in the campaign against the heretics."

"Will he agree to this?"

Elder Cassius asked in surprise.

"Agreement is naturally the best,"

Theresa's face showed a hint of contempt. "If you disagree, then I can only wait for the arrival of the family's reinforcements and regretfully announce that the city lord of Freeport is suspected of harboring heretics."

"I believe he's a smart man, he should understand... if I can't catch the Dark Shepherd, can't I catch him?"

Chapter Thirty-Two: The Promise of the Sanctuary

The main study of the city lord's mansion in the Freeport district.

Lord Torred sat at his desk, his forehead tucked in his hand, looking visibly distraught.

His subordinates had already relayed to him via magical messages that the Holy Army was engaged in battle with the Dark Shepherds in the dense forest outside the city.

As he expected, the church would soon send someone to find him.

"dong dong dong"

As if in response to his thoughts, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

As Torred finished speaking, a dwarf servant entered from outside the door. "Lord of the city... a messenger from the Holy Temple just sent a letter requesting our assistance in defeating the heretics entrenched in the western part of the island."

Torred sighed; this was precisely the reason for his unease.

He had already anticipated this outcome after hearing the battle report from his subordinates.

"Just tell them... I'm sick and can't see guests."

Torred's lips twitched.

That was an army he had painstakingly built up with his own hard-earned money; sending the Holy Church to serve as cannon fodder was heartbreaking.

But even if he had nine times the courage, he wouldn't dare to directly refuse the Holy Temple, unless he didn't want to die.

Pretending to be sick and dragging it out was probably the only thing he could do.

"Understood, Lord City Lord."

The attendant was a clever man and immediately understood Torred's meaning.

But before he could step back, a cold, sharp snort drifted from behind him.

"Ah, Lord Torred, how come you're unwell after just one day?"

The sound immediately made Torred's body tremble, and his eyes widened in disbelief.

A tall, blonde girl, dressed in a wide cloak and white top from the court, leaning on a cane and wearing knee-high boots, stepped past the servants and into the doorway.

Beside her stood a tall, expressionless young Templar captain, his signature silver armor gleaming with a cold light, his brows exuding an air of authority.

This was Theresa, and Reinaldo, the Knight Commander of the Inquisition who served her.

Behind the knight commander, several panicked servants from the city lord's mansion stumbled over, but when they saw the two standing at the door of the main study, they were at a loss and dared not take a step closer.

Torred broke out in a cold sweat, never expecting these two to appear so directly at his doorstep.

Are the guards downstairs just sitting around doing nothing? How could they let these two in like that?

"Lady Theresa, how could I trouble you to come all the way back from outside the city? You know how much I admire the Holy Temple. If there was anything, you could have just sent a messenger."

"I came here specifically because I thought that the wind and waves here are strong, and our city lord might not be in good health after not seeing him for a day, which would force me to postpone my small request."

Theresa smiled slightly and strode into the study with ease, as if the city lord's mansion were her own backyard.

She had anticipated that Torred would find some excuse to decline, but time was of the essence, and it would be more prudent for her to personally come and undertake the important task of borrowing troops.

The girl's tall and elegant figure was like that of a proud swan, and her aura of authority made the dwarf city lord, who was the rightful owner of the territory, feel inferior.

"Lord Torred, eradicating heretics is a great achievement, and the Holy Church will certainly not treat you unfairly."

Theresa looked down into Torred's eyes. "Besides, these are heretics entrenched in your territory. With such a huge threat on your land, are you really going to turn a blind eye?"

"How could that be? Hahaha, God have mercy! In the name of the great God of Light, I would love to eradicate those cursed heretics."

Torred wiped the sweat from his brow. "But Lady Theresa, as you can see, this free port is nominally my territory, but I only have a handful of men under my command. It's been a turbulent winter lately, and I've heard that a band of pirates has come to my place to execute Aslan's prince. The Aslan royal ship is coming to pay the ransom in a couple of days. If those pirates kill the prince right under my nose, I'm finished."

"My men are too busy trying to find those pirates to deal with the heretics hiding in that desolate, barren place on the west side of the island."

Torred wasn't entirely lying. He was even more anxious than the Aslan royal family about Edward's execution of Prince Aslan. If that unfortunate prince really died on his island, his dwarf brothers wouldn't be able to protect it either.

Under normal circumstances, the army would have reluctantly lent the troops the money, and even if some soldiers died, the Holy Temple would have provided some compensation. After all, they were the current hegemon of the continent, and he believed the Holy Temple had that much magnanimity.

But at this critical juncture, with less than four days left until Edward's execution of the prince, his men were still desperately searching for that damned pirate den. To have to divert a large portion of his forces to fight at this time was simply suicidal.

Theresa studied Torred's frightened expression and pondered for a moment.

She agreed with this reasoning. If Torred truly had a life-or-death crisis and couldn't borrow troops, there would be no point in her simply threatening and forcing him.

"Hmm... that's indeed a concern of yours. I did hear about this news within the city. How long until the pirates execute the prince?"

"Four days... to be precise, starting from today, it's noon on the fourth day."

Torred swallowed hard. "The Aslan fleet will arrive here the day after tomorrow. If we don't give them a reasonable explanation, sacrificing myself is a small matter. What I fear is that all the citizens of this city will perish with their anger."

"Hehe, Your Excellency, there's no need to exaggerate. No matter how fanatical the Aslans are, they still follow the glorious empire and wouldn't do anything so heinous."

Theresa chuckled, "However, it would indeed be a considerable trouble for you. How about this, I will only borrow troops from the city lord's mansion for two days. After two days, regardless of whether the heretics have been eradicated, I will turn around and do my best to help you search for that Prince Aslan."

"But, Lady Theresa, my time is already very limited..."

"If the prince is found, we will be responsible for protecting his safety until the Aslans take him away from the island."

Theresa added, "If we don't find him, or if the prince really runs into trouble on this island, I'll help you deal with the Aslans. At the very least, I can promise to guarantee your safety."

Hearing this, Torred felt a huge weight lifted from his shoulders.

The moment he saw Theresa arrive in person, he knew that he had no choice but to lend the army today.

The key is how to protect one's own interests as much as possible when one has no choice but to lend money out.

This is what negotiation is all about. Even when you can no longer control the direction of the negotiation, you can still find a good outcome.

This promise from the sanctuary was exactly what Torred wanted most.

To be honest, Torred could tolerate anything, whether it was heresy, pirates causing trouble, or his own army suffering losses.

But if Prince Aslan were to die on the island, that would be a real problem for him.

Now that Theresa has given him a promise to take on the matter, Torred, as the lord of a small island, is caught between the two behemoths, the Sanctuary and Aslan, and can't think of a better outcome.

Chapter Thirty-Three: A Restless Night

The crows crouching outside the city watched as the massive army of dwarves marched out of the city. Ye Xiao, whose vision was connected to the crows's from the other side, was also slightly surprised.

Theresa was indeed much smarter than her sister Agnes, and she even knew how to borrow troops from Freeport.

This should be enough to give those Dark Shepherds a run for their money.

As evening approached, the armies of the Sanctuary and Freeport assembled outside the scree mountains on the western side of the island.

White tents dotted the hillsides, and the campfires burning in the allied camp twinkled like stars in the gradually descending night, stretching for miles. Sensing the ominous atmosphere, the surrounding monsters all retreated.

Ye Xiao and his companions also secretly set up camp under a cave a few miles away from the main army's position.

Compared to the luxurious tents at the Holy Temple military camp, the furnishings here were obviously much simpler.

A pyroxene rod was stuck in the ground, and its cold light served as a temporary small camp light, preventing the smoke from a fire from attracting unnecessary attention.

Ye Xiao sat leaning against the stone wall, while Greta nestled in his arms, holding a sketchbook and reading leisurely.

Since she became a young girl and could stay in Ye Xiao's arms and act coquettishly, the little maid's behavior has become increasingly unrestrained.

Ye Xiao, just like he always teased the other person in kitten form, put one arm around the other person's waist and occasionally rubbed the soft cheek with the other hand.

Smelling the sweet milky scent emanating from the girl's pinkish-white hair, Ye Xiao's gaze passed over the girl's shoulder and fell upon the picture book in her hands.

"Are those comics drawn for you by your subordinates again, the ones you mentioned before?"

"Yes... Ah~"

Greta yawned, her small mouth slightly open, and rubbed her cheek against Ye Xiao's hand that was resting on her neck. "The development of this comic has been so boring lately, the romance is so drawn out."

How dare this little guy talk about others like that?

Ye Xiao recalled that back in the capital, if she hadn't used Ella's identity to enlighten this guy, she didn't know how long she would have remained withdrawn.

"Oh dear, why haven't we reached the point of handing in Pei yet?"

Greta impatiently flipped through several pages of the paper, her small hands gripping it tightly. "Honestly, what's the point of talking about love if you're not dating someone?"

Good guy.

Ye Xiao almost couldn't hold back, "No, Maid-sama, this should be the kind of story-driven manga, it wouldn't have this kind of plot."

"what."

Greta frowned on her small face. "Then I've been looking at it for nothing."

"So you read comics just for this?"

Ye Xiao chuckled and poked Greta's cheek with his finger.

"of course."

Greta closed the picture book. "How boring, Ye Xiao. Why don't we hand in Pei again?"

Ye Xiao was speechless. "Where did your ladylike modesty go? Maid, what happened?"

"Tsk tsk, what a lewd demon god, so shameless."

The black dog lying nearby pouted.

"What are you saying, you stupid dog!"

Greta immediately showed off her little tiger teeth.

Having been a cat for so long, she unconsciously repeats some of the actions she used after turning into a young girl, making her look inexplicably adorable.

Ye Xiao had gotten used to listening to Greta and the dog god arguing. As long as the two of them didn't start fighting, he couldn't be bothered to interfere.

While smoothing down Greta's frizzy hair, Ye Xiao turned his gaze to another maid, Fisher, who had been kneeling silently beside him. After a moment's thought, he tentatively asked, "Miss Fisher, are you familiar with that prince of Aslan?"

Upon hearing this, Fisher turned his head and slowly nodded.

"You work at his residence?"