Thirty minutes later, on the outskirts of [Holy Radiant City], Astrid found Lyra standing before the formation of the Church's knightly army, accompanying them in a choral hymn to hold back the bitter wind.
The Church of Light's missionary campaign against the Valeria Empire had failed. As the military arm, the Church's Knight Order had borne the brunt of it, suffering heavy losses and losing a vast number of able fighters. If they wanted to replenish their immediate combat strength, the only option was to select suitable candidates from among the younger faithful, equip them with weapons and armor, and send them onto the battlefield.
Most of the Church Knights here had only been chosen by clergy and inducted into the Church's Knight Order after the two battles at Liya Tower Fortress and White Maple Town.
Before that, they'd all been reserve troops and had never personally experienced the battlefield. Naturally, they didn't hate Lyra, once an enemy, quite as much.
