Chapter 10: Shield and Spear
Time passed, and three days went by.
Corleon stood in the world of light, gazing at the surging light orb.
Only a single strand of pale golden thread connected to it, appearing somewhat peculiar.
Under his watchful eyes, a fingernail-sized Commandment, resembling a ruby, was expelled.
The light orb returned to tranquility.
【Commandment · Holy Knight】
The bearer of this Commandment experiences a significant enhancement in physical constitution; resistance to toxins increases based on bodily purity; aiding the weak further boosts physical strength; confronting evil augments effectiveness against malevolent forces; wielding an oak shield enhances resistance to magical power; wielding an oak spear increases effectiveness against evil forces and adds anti-magic attributes.
However, if the bearer loses courage or breaks their oath, physical strength diminishes, resistance to evil forces decreases, and the rate of life depletion accelerates significantly.
The densely packed positive enhancements made Corleon take a deep breath. If not for the direct life-draining negative effects, he might have immediately bestowed this newly formed Commandment upon himself.
Regrettably, Corleon lacked confidence in his ability to uphold the Commandment.
Feeling a sense of regret, he reached out and lightly tapped the thread belonging to George.
Soon, from an unknown distant end, a pulse traveled along the thread into the light orb, and then a transparent light point was expelled.
This was the previously given Commandment · Toward Life for George.
Given George's current state, he could only accept one Commandment.
Therefore, to bestow the Holy Knight Commandment upon him, the Toward Life Commandment had to be retrieved.
During this time, Corleon had also explored and discovered a method to directly bestow Commandments through the threads of Faith.
Perhaps under this method, the recipient would believe they had received enlightenment from the Lord.
...
The next day, Corleon summoned George.
"Priest Corleon."
In just three days, George's entire demeanor had changed.
From a sallow and emaciated appearance to gradually fuller cheekbones; although still limping, his steps now felt more forceful.
Looking into his bright eyes, Corleon could sense that the Holy Knight Commandment was slowly taking effect.
"I need to make a trip to the town, and you should also return to your birthplace. You need to inform the families of your companions about their fate," Corleon said.
"Perhaps their families are still worried. Although conveying the news of their loved ones' passing is cruel, it is a necessary experience. After their grief, they must continue living."
In reality, this was just a pretext; Corleon simply wanted George to go out.
This was also a form of cultivation.
Only by continuously adhering to the Commandments during practice and constantly strengthening one's faith could one gain more power from the Commandments.
Moreover, seeing George's transformation might attract some people to the church.
"Yes, Priest Corleon," George responded.
"Take these silver coins." Corleon took out three silver coins.
These were the silver coins received from Honey's wife.
"The Lord will not let His servants be troubled by poverty."
"Listening to the Lord's teachings." George accepted the three silver coins, held them, and placed them on the cross at his chest.
...
Three days ago, Corleon had visited York Town once, and even then, he could feel a tense atmosphere.
Today, upon entering the town, Corleon noticed a significant increase in the number of guards.
Checkpoints were set up at the town gates, and some equipped soldiers were leaving the town.
He speculated that this was related to the war with the Lundex territory.
However, Corleon couldn't obtain more detailed information.
He could only ignore the tense atmosphere, verify his identity, enter the town, and head to his destination—a lumber processing workshop.
"Oh, Priest Corleon." As soon as he arrived, the potbellied workshop owner came up to greet him.
"Mr. Alton." Corleon nodded slightly in greeting.
"Fortunately, nothing has happened to you." However, Alton's greeting surprised him a bit.
"Something happened?"
"You haven't heard? Yesterday, two villages were destroyed, with at least three hundred people dead. Now, the survivors from those villages are flocking to the town seeking shelter," Alton leaned in and whispered.
"Over at the west gate, there's an official registering the refugees."
Corleon truly hadn't heard about this.
The church was located near the east gate and was relatively secluded, so few people came by, making his information quite limited.
Regarding the war with the Lundex territory, he could only make judgments based on the comings and goings of the military.
"The villages were destroyed? Was it done by Lord Lundex's people?" Corleon asked.
"Oh, how could that be?" Alton laughed. "Lord Lundex doesn't have that capability."
"Not to mention destroying two villages, even taking down one would be enough to start a small war with Lundex."
"Of course, I mean if there were knights leading the charge."
His words were full of superiority.
Although it was a lumber workshop, its main business was actually forging wooden shields, bows, crossbows, and spears.
So, in a sense, Alton could be considered an arms dealer.
He was involved in almost all the wars in York territory, so through casual chats with his clients, he could roughly understand the strength of the Lundex territory.
"Then who did it?" Corleon followed up.
"Who knows? But Lord Helvin has already sent people to investigate. Results should come soon," Alton said.
"However, those refugees claim they were attacked by the dead—white, rotting corpses that bit through their throats with their teeth."
"Oh, come on. If it really were corpses that destroyed their villages, shouldn't the church with the cemetery be the first target?"
"I think they were just scared out of their wits."
At this point, Alton smacked his lips and looked at Corleon.
"Of course, I don't mean to wish harm upon the church. I'm just saying these frightened people are full of lies."
"By the way, Priest Corleon, your custom order is ready. Please come and take a look."
Corleon merely smiled and followed him.
Due to its hardness, oak was a controlled resource.
Only a few with connections could obtain high-quality oak, and Alton's sister had once been the lord's mistress.
Of course, his sister had since passed away.
However, during the time she was alive, he did quite well and was very sociable, so it was later accepted that he would run the oak business.
"Look, a sturdy oak shield. My guys used some iron pieces and hoops. It won't crack even under heavy blows," Alton boasted, holding up a shield.
"And look at this spear. Although it's much shorter than a war spear, it's more convenient to use." Alton twirled the spear, his big belly wobbling.
"Of course, if it were a full-length war spear, you wouldn't be able to take it out of the city," Alton joked.
The lord wouldn't completely prohibit civilians from keeping such small weapons at home.
After all, in times of full-scale war, the lord wouldn't distribute weapons to each recruit.
However, war-grade spears were still subject to some control.