Our Family Has Fallen

Chapter 432: Chapter 284: Have Faith in the Wisdom of Future Generations_1

”You all rest later; I’ll keep watch,” Lance habitually offered. Sleep was unimportant to him anyway, and this way he could use the time to organize more books and teaching materials.

The school was still in its fledgling stage, offering only literacy and arithmetic. There was so much that needed improvement.

But for some reason, such an ordinary sentence brought tears to Junia’s eyes.

”This... is a bit much, isn’t it?” Lance hadn’t expected this reaction and was momentarily stunned.

Fortunately, although Junia’s emotions were intense, they quickly subsided. As she recounted her experiences, the others began to understand why she had reacted this way.

To put it simply, ever since she left the Monastery, she had always been alone. Even when she stayed in local churches, the Clerics there weren’t very welcoming. They only tolerated her because she could perform Divine Arts and create Holy Water.

Staying alone in the wilderness was a common occurrence for her. However, the experience was far from pleasant. She would be constantly startled awake—sometimes by a gust of wind, other times by wild wolves, venomous snakes, rats, or hostile bandits.

Such mental pressure would have made anyone else collapse; it was only her devout faith that sustained her and allowed her to make it all the way here.

Now, in a secure camp, after a satisfying meal, and hearing that someone would keep watch through the night—the feeling of being enveloped by safety, such a stark contrast to her past, made her unable to hold back her tears.

No one, absolutely no one, had ever been so kind to her. Right now, she felt incredibly happy.

Geralt, too, fell into silent contemplation upon hearing this. He had experienced similar feelings when he first set out on his own path, but that was so long ago he had almost forgotten how he had persevered.

”Isn’t this perfectly normal?” Lance said with a smile, looking at them. ”After all, we are companions.”

Lance’s words, that this was simply what companions do, struck a chord deep within their hearts.

In a way, all of them were lonely.

Boudica had been exiled from her tribe and, even after arriving in Hamlet, still found it somewhat difficult to truly integrate.

Ever since her Sister Nuns were executed because of her, no one in this world had cared for Junia like this.

And Geralt, due to his identity as a Witcher, mostly found it difficult to integrate into human society.

Even Lance himself was, in reality, lonely; he too had secrets that he couldn’t tell anyone, secrets that had to remain buried deep within his heart.

The word ”companions” linked them together. This seemingly fragile bond left a profound impact on each of their hearts.

”My Lord, what are your plans next? What can I do?” Geralt spoke up. He now truly acknowledged Lance.

He had originally planned to complete this task, take the money, and leave this strange, troubled place. But now, he felt he needed to stay and help the Lord fight the evil cult.

After all, he had just been wandering aimlessly with no destination in mind. Now, here was a place that needed him, and his companions needed him.

Lance was somewhat surprised to hear his commitment. Honestly, throughout the latter half of their journey, anyone could have sensed Geralt’s wariness towards him. Even his words at the entrance to the Beast Lair hadn’t shown much change in that regard.

Truthfully, Lance had understood that there wasn’t much hope of winning over this veteran adventurer, Geralt, but unexpectedly, Geralt had relented at this moment.

In truth, Lance hadn’t harbored any ulterior motives in his recent actions; what he said was purely based on genuine principles.

Lance himself came from the lower rungs of society, so he naturally understood that if you wanted people to follow you, you had to ensure their well-being was taken care of. The first things he did upon taking charge of Hamlet were to improve benefits and establish clear rules.

He had said such things to Dismas and to Boudica before; it was simply Geralt and Junia’s turn now. He wasn’t giving them special treatment.

As the saying goes, sincerity begets sincerity. What truly moves people isn’t flashy displays; sometimes, an unintentional word or a small gesture is all it takes.

”Eliminating the evil cult is our undeniable duty!” Junia declared, her voice full of newfound confidence now that she had eaten her fill.

In truth, she had nowhere else to go. Moreover, she owed so much to Hamlet and the Lord that staying seemed like a good option. Besides, just as she said, other matters could be set aside for now—the evil cult had to be destroyed.

Lance merely smiled at her words and then briefly explained Hamlet’s current situation to them.

”We’ve lost too much territory. The entire Hamlet has been fragmented by the evil cult, making it difficult to organize an effective resistance...”

Geralt and Junia were both primarily fighters and weren’t very astute when it came to judging the overall battle situation. Thus, Lance had no choice but to lay out his intentions.

”The Sect of Ascension has occupied the ruins of the old city. They’ve built a dungeon beneath my family’s ancestral home where they conduct their evil rituals. So, we just need to fight our way up, reclaim the ancestral home, kill the Heretics, and seal the dungeon.”

”Can’t we destroy the ritual?”

Lance could only sigh before explaining, ”That’s impossible. The ritual is linked to Hamlet, and even to the world itself. Unless we want to destroy the world, we can only reseal it.”

Hearing this, Geralt’s stoic face filled with concern. An evil ritual that couldn’t be destroyed meant this would be an endless battle.

”We have to believe in the wisdom of future generations,” Lance said reassuringly with a smile. ”We just need to do our part now. Who can say for sure what the future holds? Maybe they’ll find a solution, don’t you agree?” He knew full well this was an unsolvable problem, but for now, this was the only way.