The outer city of Green Shade Territory.
Fogen Inn.
Lian walked inside, brushing the rain from his clothes.
The front desk was empty. There was no one left to work.
This inn was one of the first places to be infected, as it had the misfortune of being chosen by Giovanni Keegan as a place to stay.
Three floors, 20 rooms, 33 people.
Lian pushed open the door to the first room and saw Andre's parents, the inn's owners.
"I'm sorry, sir. You shouldn't be here. We're all sick. Please, leave as quickly as you can."
Andre's father, wearing a Cloak and leaning on a cane, was holding a piece of bread with a hand that was a bloody, mangled mess. Andre's mother was huddled on the bed, clutching their young daughter wrapped in a blanket, letting out ragged, heavy breaths.
The three of them looked at Lian with expressions of both shock and fear.
"If you were sick, you should have reported it immediately. Why hide it?"
Lian asked.
"We... We don't want to die."
The man under the black robe said, his voice trembling, "Ma Qionglin is only eight years old. She doesn't deserve this."
"And what about now? Does this mean you won't die?"
Lian asked.
The man lowered his head and said in a hoarse voice,
"I'm sorry, sir. We don't want to infect you. Please, hurry and leave."
"Apologies are useless. You will be fined."
'I don't want to treat everyone in the inn for free, but I also don't want to charge a treatment fee. That would make me seem like some kind of traveling quack. I'm a dignified Lord; charging my subjects for treatment is simply beneath me.'
'So, everyone will be fined!'
Andre's family was stunned.
If it weren't for the pain of their illness, they would have certainly thought the handsome young man before them was a lunatic.
'Fining people in a disaster zone? Fining a group of people who are about to die? Is he serious?'
Outside Fogen Inn, Anderson had returned to the ranks of the Guards, but his heart was fraught with anxiety.
Every minute he spent waiting outside the gate was agony.
But he couldn't disobey the Lord's command to not enter the inn.
Captain Cobb, the brawny, towering Guard captain with a face full of scars, felt his own heart leap into his throat.
If anything happened to Lian, he would be unable to escape the blame.
He recalled the instructions the old Lord Moria had given him before he left.
'Since I can't persuade Lord Lian myself, I'll have to find the three ministers.'
"Lier, Pick, Hunter! Go and notify the three ministers at once. Tell them to come here as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir."
The three Guards stepped out from the ranks, mounted their horses, and quickly vanished into the rainy night.
An hour later, the three ministers arrived at Fogen Inn in a galloping carriage.
They disembarked without even taking an umbrella, rushing through the rain to the inn's entrance.
The Minister of Internal Affairs, Karel Dennis, wiped at his rain-smeared makeup and launched into a tirade against Cobb.
"How could you let the Lord go in by himself? Do you have any idea how important the Lord is to Green Shade Territory?"
Cobb lowered his head, knowing any explanation would be pointless.
The Minister of Finance, Omari Hani, asked nervously, "How long has Lord Lian been inside?"
"It's already been an hour."
Cobb said.
"We must go in at once and bring the Lord out."
Alex Pool moved toward Annie.
Annie didn't stop him.
Because the inn's main door was already being pushed open from the inside.
Lian's magnificent coat was stained with a considerable amount of blood, and his face was somewhat pale from excessive exertion of his Physical Strength.
Annie held an umbrella over him.
Lian looked at the three ministers in surprise. "What are you all doing here? Did you want to come to the church for a Holy Water baptism with me?"
"Lord Lian, are you alright?"
Alex Pool asked.
"I'm fine."
Lian had cleansed 23 red entries at once, gaining 4600 Points. As for the others, they had already died from the Plague, their bodies already beginning to rot in the inn's rooms.
The source of the infection, Giovanni Keegan, was also dead, preventing Lian from gaining any more Points.
Lian wiped the filth from his hands and said to Cobb,
"Captain Cobb, take down the names of everyone inside. Fine every living person 10,000 Copper Coins. Find a place to bury the dead. As for those who can't afford the fine, send them to the church to serve as volunteers."
"Yes, sir!"
Cobb, his spirits high, gave a military salute, placing a fist over his heart.
He hadn't expected that Lian, such a young Lord, could actually cure the Red Itch Plague, one of the ten great incurable diseases.
"Since the three of you are here, you can accompany me to the church."
Lian got into the carriage, and the three ministers followed him inside.
Annie, her heart aching for him, helped him take off the blood-stained coat. It was the best-fitting one she had ever made for him.
The downpour grew heavier, but the procession of Guards marched on in perfect formation toward the church.
Inside the luxurious carriage, the three ministers couldn't help but ask Lian about the situation.
"My Lord, has the Red Itch Plague really appeared inside the High Wall?"
"Yes. Starting tomorrow, have everyone go to the church to receive Holy Water. There's no telling who the sources of infection and the critically ill patients have come into contact with."
Lian said with a calm expression. 'I'm waiting for the Item Mall to refresh with new entries, but the system seems to be lagging.'
'Without new entries, I'll remain this weak.'
'If it doesn't refresh, I'll have to exchange for the old entries.'
"Why would the Red Itch Plague appear? We've already strictly forbidden the refugees from Blue Moon Territory from entering the city."
Karel Dennis asked, confused.
"You know about Blue Moon Territory?"
Lian asked.
"Yes. A little over half a month ago, Blue Moon Territory was destroyed because a Witch lost control."
Karel Dennis said in a low voice, "A great number of refugees poured out of Blue Moon Territory. These people were all infected with the Plague, so no territory was willing to take them in."
"How many refugees have come to us for shelter?"
Lian asked.
"There's no official count, but the vast majority were taken to be buried alive as soon as they reached the city gate."
Karel Dennis said.
Lian rubbed the bridge of his nose, remembering how he himself had been taken to be buried alive right after arriving in Green Shade Territory. If Sophie hadn't appeared in time, he probably would have died in the Bone Forest.
"Don't do that ever again. Have the Guards build a village for them outside the High Wall."
Where Karel Dennis saw refugees, Lian saw throbbing Points.
"You're going to save them?"
Karel Dennis asked in astonishment.
A strange light also glinted in Alex Pool's eyes.
The Minister of Finance, Omari Hani, vehemently objected. "Lord Lian, Green Shade Territory has only just paid off its first loan! Our economy hasn't recovered yet. We don't have the capacity to take in so many people. We have no money."
"Does the bank have no money?"
"The bank has money, but we should be taking out loans for more meaningful projects, not spending it on them. They are refugees from Blue Moon Territory; they shouldn't become our burden."
The Minister of Finance, Omari Hani, said.
"Then let them pay. If they have no money, they can pay with their labor. Green Shade Territory needs to be developed; we need a large workforce. As for their illnesses, you don't need to worry. I will handle it."
'Saving these refugees has more pros than cons for me. First, I can cleanse their entries to get Points. Second, I can collect silver coins to fill my private coffers. Finally, those who can't pay will become hard labor for Green Shade Territory, contributing to its construction and boosting its GDP for free.'
"Can you really save so many refugees all by yourself?"
The three ministers asked worriedly.
"Who said I'm doing it alone? It's about time the church contributed."
'I'll handle the ones with entries. As for those who haven't developed entries yet—the mildly infected or those at risk of infection—the church can naturally take care of them.'
'Otherwise, why did Green Shade Territory build so many churches? It's time to put the power of the gods to use!'