CHAPTER 375: CHAPTER 260: CONFLICT_2

The Nun, however, showed no sign of surrendering. Although no obvious act of blasphemy had been witnessed, she believed it was impossible for the clergy here to have disappeared without reason.

Seeing the wary and resistant demeanor of the surrounding populace only strengthened her belief that she had fallen into a depraved town.

It must be purged!

Just as the Nun was about to strike with her warhammer, a shout shattered the atmosphere.

"Stop!"

The crowd parted, and Lance emerged, his gaze immediately locking onto the Nun.

He had actually been standing there for quite some time, but everyone’s attention had been focused on the Nun.

Lance had anticipated that the Nun would cause trouble; this had crossed his mind when he rescued her.

He had intentionally allowed the Nun to enter. That was why he had left her at the inn without any restrictions; otherwise, he would have taken her away as he had with Catherine.

He did this to test how much influence the Church still had in the town and to see who still held a favorable view of it. Such people were unsuitable for significant positions; he would even have to remove them from key posts if they currently held any.

However, his recent observations indicated that no one in the school or the peacekeeping force favored the Church; they were all maintaining the order he had established.

You could call it religious persecution or the removal of dissent, but those were the terms of losers; Lance preferred to call it "sweeping away feudal thought."

It was the Church that had oppressed ordinary people in the past, calling it "judgment," but now it was simply their turn.

As for religious discrimination, yes, Lance was indeed prejudiced against the Church, and not just that one—all religions were rotten to the core.

Those charlatans, clearly human themselves, dragged others into their web of lies, causing them to sink into delusion while they enjoyed superior lifestyles—all at the expense of the common people. This sort of thing offered no benefit to societal progress and development; rather, it was a drag on technological advancement.

Lance championed a material-based concept of scientific development. Without freeing the mind, even a thousand years of progress would lead to stagnation.

I’m fed up with this mad and ignorant world! I will carve out a new path for myself and for humanity, to break free from this nauseating feudal era! And it starts with Hamlet!

But first, he needed to resolve the current situation to prevent greater dangers.

The Lord’s appearance suddenly lessened the pressure everyone felt, enveloping them in a powerful sense of security.

The focus had been on the Nun, but now it shifted entirely to the Lord; his presence alone commanded absolute prestige.

"I rescued you from a monster’s grasp, yet you barge into the school with a weapon and wreak havoc. Is this how people of the Church repay their saviors? Is this how you treat innocent civilians?"

Lance seized the initiative, his demeanor calm but his words laced with traps.

His remarks were not meant for the Nun, but for the onlookers.

By slinging mud and positioning the Nun as an enemy of the masses, he also implicated the Church, whose members were, after all, its representatives among the people.

The disdainful and repulsed looks from the crowd indicated his words had achieved their desired effect.

Although the Nun recognized him as the man who had saved her the previous night, she was oblivious to the implications of his words and stuck to her script.

"How dare you occupy the Church’s Sanctuary! This is blasphemy!" the Nun declared with righteous indignation, her resolute face showing no sign of retreat, the very picture of unyielding principle.

Seeing her like this, it’s a miracle she’s survived this long,

Lance thought.

But hotheads are the easiest to deal with...

"I ask you, who am I?" Lance inquired.

"The Lord here," the Nun responded, puzzled by the question. She had learned from Geralt that morning that this man was indeed the local Lord.

"I am the Lord of this land. With my money, my building materials, and my workers, I constructed this building. It is all mine, the property of Hamlet’s People. By what right do you claim it’s the Church’s church? Saying we’ve encroached on your Church’s place? It’s more accurate to say your Church has encroached on our land!"

This statement utterly confused the Nun. She remained bewildered for a long moment, unable to process it. However, she quickly recovered, raised her warhammer, pointed it at Lance, and rebuked him.

"Damned heretic, trying to delude me!"

Lance wasn’t angry; on the contrary, he was pleased. Dealing with someone more composed would have been tricky, but young people are just too inexperienced, he mused. He immediately turned to the crowd, emphasizing her actions.

"Everyone, see for yourselves! She bursts in, tries to seize things, resorts to violence when out-argued, and labels anyone who disagrees a heretic! There’s no difference between people of the Church and common robbers and bandits! No, wait, at least bandits don’t go around randomly calling people heretics..."

Once stoked, the emotions of ordinary people overwhelmed their ability to discern. Their thoughts automatically condensed into a single idea:

The Church is a band of robbers!

"Kill her!"

"This is our place!"

Those youths, in the prime of their vigor, had minds easily swayed by hormones and were quick to succumb to violent impulses.

Lance noticed this, which wasn’t what he wanted. He immediately spoke up to control the situation.

"Quiet! Violence and anger solve nothing; they only escalate problems. To become a true human being, you must learn to control your emotions and let reason guide your mind. Only beasts are controlled by their emotions."

Lance’s words brought a momentary pause to the tense situation. Even the Nun, who had been ready to fight, was taken aback. What on earth are these people doing? she wondered.

The young people, as if doused by a bucket of cold water, calmed down. Lance’s gaze swept over them. Such reckless zeal could easily be exploited. Their education must be strengthened, he thought.

However, Lance’s gaze lingered slightly on Joan, not only because she was one of the few girls present but also for the calmness she had displayed.

"All of you, go outside and resume the school’s operations. I’ll handle this," Lance said, gesturing to the people behind him.

Seeing this, William and Rosa had no choice but to lead their respective groups out. The atmosphere, so tense moments ago, suddenly became strangely quiet.

Lance, unconcerned, casually sat on a nearby bench and motioned for the Nun to join him.

"Sit down. We can discuss things calmly. There’s no need for all this shouting and talk of fighting and killing."

Seeing Lance’s calm, even nonchalant demeanor further confounded the Nun, leaving her mired in confusion.

"I heard from the innkeeper that you left without paying?"

Lance’s casual remark made the Nun visibly uneasy. Her face turned red, veins popping on her forehead, as she stammered, "A debt isn’t the same as... as skipping out on a debt! A debt! How could the Church possibly... skip out on paying?"

She followed this with a string of barely coherent phrases like "just need to find the Church" and "Holy Flame Protection," which made Lance laugh.

"Alright, alright," Lance said. "You stood up to the Wizard last night without backing down, which bought me some time. That was a good deed. Consider the bill settled, on my account."

From her demeanor, Lance could tell that although the Nun seemed thoroughly indoctrinated by the Church, her mind completely consumed by its teachings, she wasn’t inherently bad. Otherwise, such a small debt wouldn’t have troubled her so much. Her capacity for shame indicated she still possessed her humanity.

After all, if it had been one of those seasoned old hands from the Church in this situation, they’d probably demand money from the innkeeper, not the other way around! The fact that *I’m* not asking *them* for money would be considered a great kindness. What expenses? That was clearly an offering to the gods. Are you going to ask the gods for money?

"Sit down," Lance invited again. "We aren’t enemies."

This time, the Nun finally set down her warhammer and sat. However, she quickly grew restless again, stood up, clutched her Holy Canon, and murmured something. When she opened her eyes, she had reverted to her previous zealous state.

"Don’t think you can delude me! My pure devotion will not falter!"

"Hamlet is a peaceful place. No one here wants to delude you, nor does anyone care about the purity of your faith. I am here because you are causing destruction and creating a disturbance. I am here to resolve the problem, understand?"