Chapter 104: The Knight Order

With Pelleti no longer dragging things out behind them, the horses were finally free to run at full speed, and the squad’s pace increased dramatically.

“Ah—ah—so bumpy!”

Pelleti was jolted so hard she felt like her organs were shifting out of place, her brain spinning inside her skull as waves of dizziness surged up.

She glanced at Anasha’s upright, pine-like back in front of her. Even amidst the violent jolting, that figure remained as steady as a rock. A trace of dependence rose in her heart—if she could just lean on her, it might ease the discomfort.

She cautiously leaned forward, just about to touch her shoulder—

Anasha suddenly shrugged violently.

Pelleti lost her balance and fell backward uncontrollably. Startled, she flailed her hands wildly and barely managed to grab the edge of the saddle, avoiding being thrown off.

“It’s already generous enough to let you sit properly. Don’t push your luck,” Anasha’s voice was cold as iron, carrying an unmistakable threat. It was clearly just a first warning.

Rubbing her sore waist where it had been slammed, Pelleti muttered unhappily, “Cheapskate… At least take off the chains on my wrists! Without anything to hold onto, I’ll fall sooner or later—and then you’ll be the one delayed!”

Anasha fell silent for a moment. Then, carried faintly by the wind, came a barely audible reply:

“Hold onto me.”

“What?”

Pelleti thought she must’ve misheard from all the shaking. She instinctively asked again, but only the howling wind answered her.

No response means yes.

Her eyes darted, and she immediately reached forward, grabbing onto the back of Anasha’s clothes—just to be safe, she even grabbed a few strands of her hair along the way.

“You bastard, stop pulling my hair!”

Not long after, Anasha’s furious roar rang out, and the horse came to an abrupt halt.

Pelleti nearly slipped off the horse again.

“Wasn’t it you who told me to hold onto you? Why are you getting mad?” Pelleti complained righteously, completely unaware of any wrongdoing in pulling her hair.

Anasha’s face turned livid. She leaned down and yanked Pelleti off the horse with such force that Pelleti staggered a few steps before regaining her footing.

“You heretic! How dare you disrespect Captain Anasha!” The squad members behind them glared angrily, hands already on their weapons, ready to step forward and teach her a lesson—only to be stopped by Anasha raising her hand.

“Calm down. Don’t be so rash,” Anasha said in a low voice, her gaze settling on Pelleti with scrutiny.

She knew very well that the probability of Pelleti being a heretic was extremely high—but “extremely high” was not the same as “certain.”

The girl carried a considerable amount of money, but that wasn’t unusual for a traveler. As for the suspicious cloak, Pelleti had already claimed she picked it up.

Without solid evidence, they had to follow procedure—escort her to the church and let the Inquisitor decide. They couldn’t administer punishment privately.

At that moment, a young man in a silver-gray military uniform approached from the distance, followed by several subordinates. A bright smile hung on his face as he greeted them:

“Hey there, are you escorting a prisoner?”

His gaze fell on the chains around Pelleti’s wrists, and a hint of curiosity flickered in his eyes.

“Who are you?” Anasha instantly became alert, her hand instinctively moving to the sword at her waist.

This was a border region—already a complicated situation. The sudden appearance of a soldier naturally put her on guard.

Seeing her tense reaction, the young man quickly waved to show he meant no harm and handed over a gilded certificate.

“No need to be so tense. I’m Fakenna, commander of the Third Army’s Knight Order. It’s been peaceful for too long—my hands are practically itching for a fight. I heard the sound of hooves and came out to take a look. Didn’t expect to run into you.”

Anasha took the certificate, carefully checking the name, appearance, and seal. After confirming its authenticity, her guard lowered slightly.

It was her first time in this region, and she wasn’t familiar with the local military. But judging from his demeanor and the sword at his waist, his strength was undoubtedly formidable. And that comment about “itching for a fight” clearly marked him as a battle-hungry type—someone to be handled with caution.

“My apologies, Mr. Fakenna,” Anasha returned the certificate, her tone easing.

“No problem,” Fakenna waved it off casually, his eyes sweeping over their uniforms with curiosity.

“From your attire, you’re from the Church’s Harmonization Squad? Now that’s interesting. I heard a few days ago that a squad was coming, but after waiting so long without seeing anyone, I thought my subordinates were messing with me.”

“Well… we should’ve arrived earlier, but something unexpected happened along the way,” Anasha explained awkwardly.

In truth, the mission had been assigned over a month ago. If not for Ilene and Naer delaying things, there wouldn’t have been such a discrepancy in timing.

Fakenna nodded knowingly, and the two began chatting, the atmosphere gradually becoming more relaxed.

Meanwhile, Pelleti’s gaze never left Fakenna.

She was naturally sensitive to the scent of blood. Even though he carried a strong smell of dust, it couldn’t completely mask the faint trace of fresh blood still lingering on him.

Someone who still carried the scent of recent bloodshed was claiming things had been “peaceful for too long.”

The contradiction set off alarm bells in Pelleti’s mind.

This Knight Order commander was definitely suspicious.

She quietly stepped back a few paces, distancing herself from the center. If a fight broke out, it was their problem. She was just a “wrongfully captured civilian”—no need to get involved.

If anything, slipping away would be the best option.

“Oh? What did this young lady do to warrant being escorted personally by the Harmonization Squad?” Fakenna suddenly shifted his gaze toward Pelleti, who had retreated to the back.

Anasha followed his gaze, noticing the distance Pelleti had deliberately created. Her brows furrowed slightly.

“A dishonest heretic,” Anasha replied, suddenly yanking the chain on Pelleti’s wrist.

Caught off guard, Pelleti was dragged back to the spot, the metal biting painfully into her skin.

“Hey! Do you have any evidence that I’m a heretic?” Pelleti bared her teeth in pain and protested, “Arresting people without proof—I’ll report you for abuse of power when we get to the church!”

“Go ahead. The Inquisitor can interrogate you properly—I’d welcome it,” Anasha sneered, clearly not taking her threat seriously.

“That’s not right,” Fakenna interjected, stroking his chin with a half-smile. “According to Church rules, if someone is confirmed as a heretic, shouldn’t they be executed on the spot? Why are you taking her to the church instead?”

“That’s because this ‘soldier sister’ here is arresting people randomly!” Pelleti immediately seized the chance to complain, pointing at Anasha. “I just picked up a cloak by the roadside, and they insisted it belonged to some Gluttony cultist. Without any proof, they chained me up!”

“You don’t get to speak. Shut up!” Anasha snapped, her face darkening. She wished she had something to gag her with, but lacking anything suitable, she could only suppress her anger.

Fakenna listened to Pelleti’s complaint, nodding thoughtfully. “Sounds a bit far-fetched… but considering it’s the Church, it does make some sense.”

“Exactly! These heretics are always slick with their words,” Anasha agreed.

Pelleti, however, suddenly tapped her shoulder, her tone strangely calm:

“Um… not to interrupt your conversation, but… have you noticed there are more and more soldiers gathering around us?”