Flillian, I want to live.

She tried hard to recall what happened when she just returned to the hotel. At that time, she had just run all the way back to the hotel from the church. Because her mouth felt a little dry, she went to the kettle at the counter and poured a bowl of water to drink.

"I drank the water in the store..."

Phelan muttered.

Is the problem with the water source? Guter stood up from the bed as if he had thought of something.

"Let's go check the well in the backyard."

Guter brought Hugh Tark to the backyard of the hotel. In the middle of the yard, there was an old well built with blue bricks. The entire hotel's daily water supply depended on this well.

Theoretically, the groundwater pumped from the well should be relatively clean. Compared to the river water that Fulilian drank while traveling in the open, the well water here is much sweeter.

"Is this the water you just drew from?"

Guter asked Hugh Tark.

"Yes, this is it."

Hugh Tark lowered the bucket hanging on the wellhead, then turned the winch on one side with force and lifted up the bucket full of water.

"It looks pretty normal."

Guter looked down at the well water and it looked quite clear.

"So what's the problem?"

Guter walked to the well, stretched out his hand, and released a small fireball into the well.

As the fireball fell, the situation underground was also illuminated.

A wet-looking rat lying on the wall of the well appeared in Guter's sight.

"mouse……"

Guter muttered.

"Rats, yes, rats. From the cats I saw in the trees when I went out, to the cattle that started to go crazy for no apparent reason, they were all scared by something. It was the rats moving in the corners that people couldn't see, and these animals noticed them..."

Xutark thought about what happened when he went out before and connected them together.

"Indeed, if it were rats, they could have contaminated the entire city's water supply without anyone noticing... No, not just the water, but also the food. These could all spread the disease."

Following Hugh Turk's line of thought, Guter continued to make inferences.

"Yes, it's rats. As long as we find the guy who's controlling these rats..."

Xu Turk clenched his fists a little excitedly.

"Even if we find him now, it's meaningless. I'm afraid the city's water source has been polluted. People can't live without drinking water. This is the most urgent problem to be solved."

Gutel looked at the well that had been contaminated by rats and said thoughtfully.

Chapter 134 Let the People Suffer Again

"Thank you for your hard work. What should I call you?"

In the castle in the center of the town, the baron who ruled this land looked at the dirty, beggar-like gray-haired girl. Although he couldn't help feeling a little disgusted, he still spoke to her politely.

"My name is Mars, sir."

Although the blind girl could not see the baron's expression at the moment, she could probably guess that the other party probably didn't like her very much. However, she didn't care about it.

"To be honest, if it wasn't to clear my suspicion, I wouldn't want to stay in this place for even a minute."

The baron picked up the aged wine from the table beside him, poured it into an exquisite crystal glass, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

Because monsters have become increasingly active since the death of the brave Sinmel, the fortress checkpoints between the Central Kingdoms and the Northern Continent have been closed for three years. Although I heard some time ago that the great demon clan entrenched in the Earldom of Gulanat on the south side of the Xuevia Mountains has been eliminated, the unsealing of the checkpoints is still a long way off.

This town, with the help of the brave Sinmer, once cleared out the demons that were endangering the area, just like the Earldom of Gulanat. For a long time, it became a hub for caravans traveling between the north and the south.

But now, this place no longer has the hustle and bustle of the past, because the caravans from the south cannot pass through the blocked checkpoints to enter the north, and the merchants have left one after another. Even the Norm Chamber of Commerce in the northern plateau withdrew its office in this city not long ago.

Although the residents here can be self-sufficient even without the passing caravans, this is far from enough for the Baron.

As the saying goes, it is difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. The baron, who had long been accustomed to spending money lavishly, soon fell into a huge debt due to the sharp drop in income caused by the interruption of trade routes.

In fact, if it weren't for his status as a noble, the debt collectors from the capital would have probably been ready to demolish his castle to pay off the debt.

As the deadline for debt repayment is getting closer, if there is no way to pay off the debt, once the scandal is exposed to the king and the royal cabinet, he may be ordered to be stripped of his fiefdom and demoted to a commoner.

Have all the plans been exhausted?

Just when the Baron was considering whether to find a way to transfer the citizens' taxes to repay the debt in a hundred years, a letter sent from the royal capital became his life-saving straw.

He was a big shot from the royal capital. He had heard of the Baron's troubles from somewhere and offered him a solution.

"It's okay. In just a few weeks, the city's population will be reduced by two-thirds, and you just need to wait here quietly."

Mars clasped her hands together, with a sweet smile on her face, but said some frightening words.

"Two-thirds of the population? That's thousands of lives."

The baron shook the expensive crystal glass in his hand. Although he never cared about his subjects, he couldn't help but feel nervous about killing so many people at once.

"This isn't your fault, sir. After all, plague is a natural disaster. Not only are you not responsible, you can even apply for disaster relief funds from the kingdom."

Mars, however, comforted the Baron without any concern.

"Yes, and with so many people dying at once, their houses and land can be sold cheaply to merchants in the capital. Not only can their debts be paid off immediately, but they can also make a lot of money."

When the Baron first saw the proposal in the letter sent by the great man from the royal capital, his hair stood on end.

But after calculating the benefits behind it and the imminent debt crisis, the baron finally chose to agree.

"Perfect deal, isn't it?"

Mars said with a smile.

"Squeak..."

Suddenly, some hurried shouts were heard in the room.

"Ok?"

Mars lowered her head and looked at the beam above her head. A little gray mouse jumped from the beam onto her arm.

"Hey, d-how did you let them into the castle!? Didn't I tell you your mice aren't allowed here?"

Seeing the little mouse trying hard to climb onto Mars' shoulder, the baron's face suddenly darkened. He slammed the table and questioned the other party nervously.

"Don't be nervous, Master... This child just came to give me some news."

However, Mars did not care about the baron's anger. Instead, she tilted her head and listened patiently to the little mouse on her shoulder standing up and squeaking something in her ear.

"Report..."

The Baron looked at Mars who was listening to what the little mouse was saying. Although it was the first time they met, he knew very well that the girl in front of him was not some harmless performing girl. She had the ability to communicate with mice and could spread the plague to an entire city without anyone noticing.

And since Mars appeared in front of him, it proved that all the water sources in the city had been contaminated by the rats controlled by the girl. Unless the baron only drank bottled and sealed wine during this period, it was only a matter of time before he was infected with the plague.

"Someone sneaked out of the city, and it seems that they went to collect herbs."

On the other side, Mars also got important information from the little mouse.

"Sneaking out to collect herbs? Isn't there any medicine that can cure your disease?"

The baron raised his eyebrows. He had already ordered the city to be blocked in advance to prevent the spread of the plague. If he wanted to sneak out, he would have to climb over the town's high walls with his bare hands. Picking herbs was even more bizarre.

Theoretically, there should be no medicine that can cure the plague spread by Mars, except for the healing magic cast by the monks of the church.

"They probably mistake the disease for a cold, so they want to use herbs to treat it, right? But it would be bad if they spread the news in advance."

Mars tilted her head, put her index finger on her lips, and spoke speculatively.

"What should I do? Do you want me to send someone after them?"

the Baron asked nervously.

"Oh, sir, isn't it clear what the bishop told you in the letter? Just leave it to our people."

However, Mars calmly took out a somewhat torn piece of letter paper from her pocket, then walked to the baron's desk, picked up the feather pen he had placed on the table, and wrote a few words on it.

"Go."

After putting the written message into the mouth of the little mouse that came to report the news and letting it hold it in its mouth, Mars gave it an order.

Under the Baron's gaze, the little mouse scurried up to the beam with the letter and soon disappeared.

"Then I just have to wait?"

The baron sat down a little tiredly. He took out a cigarette from his jacket pocket and put it between his lips.

"That's right. Next, we just have to wait for the outbreak..."

As Mars was speaking, suddenly, the smell of cigarette smoke wafting in from the window made her nose move.

Chapter 135 The Hope of the Whole Village

“This taste is…”

Mars sniffed, her brows slightly furrowed, and a bad feeling arose in her heart.

"Smell? Is there any smell in here?"

Seeing Mars's appearance, the Baron raised his head and sniffed, but he could not smell any special smell in the room except the sour body odor emanating from the dirty blind girl.

"Outside, in the square."

Although she lost her eyesight since childhood, this made Mars' other senses extremely sensitive. Although she could not see what was happening outside the window, she could smell the strange smell in the air from a long distance away from the square.

"square?"

The baron walked to the window doubtfully and leaned out to look outside.

The scene before him made his eyes widen in shock.

"Everyone line up and come get water one by one."

In the center of the square, several large cauldrons were set up. Steam rose from the boiling water, purifying the water contaminated by Mars's rats in the blazing fire. At the urging of Hugh Tark, who diligently added wood to the fire, bare-chested, the citizens lined up with their kettles to receive the clean, boiling water.

"What the hell are these people doing? Where are the guards on duty? Tell them to get rid of these guys right away!"

The baron gripped the wooden window frame tightly with his hands, turned around and called out to his men.

"My Lord Baron! It's not that we don't want to drive them away!"

However, a moment later, the guards who hurried back from the scene brought bad news to the baron.

"What do you mean?"

The baron reached out, pulled the guard's collar, and questioned him loudly.

"They have a document signed by the Bishop of the Royal Capital. It says that a brave man chosen by the Goddess is organizing everyone to fight the plague in the name of the Church."

The guard replied tremblingly.

"A brave warrior from the church?"

The baron let go of the guard's hand, then turned to look at Mars, who was standing thoughtfully by the window.

"What kind of drama is this?"

The baron asked Mars in a tone of accusation.

"It's really a flood that has washed away the Goddess Temple. Family members no longer recognize each other as family, sir."

Mars spread out her hands, a helpless expression on her face.

"In that case, you should be able to solve it, right?"

The baron frowned and spoke in a dissatisfied tone.

"Of course, I'll take care of it..."

Mars bent down respectfully and agreed readily.

"What an unfortunate coincidence..."

After leaving the Baron's room, Mars put away the harmless smile on her face and her expression became gloomy.

Monica's identity as a brave warrior imposed on her by the bishop came in handy at this moment. Under her call, Guter's plan for the current situation was quickly implemented. Not only did the townspeople know that the water source had been polluted, but the infected patients were also sent to the hotel for isolation.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly. As long as Fulilian, who had gone out to collect herbs, came back with the herbs that could cure the disease, the disaster caused by the plague would be ameliorated.