The old woman retrieved her short sword, laid the man with the needle wound on the ground, wiped herself with the medicine bottle, and handed it back to the priest.

"Well done," Ferl nodded. "Drag him out and dispose of him."

"Yes," she responded in a hoarse voice. However, she showed no sign of strain when dragging the body, not at all like an old woman nearing the end of her life.

"Sir, do you believe what he said?" the priest of Shatas asked after the administrator left. "The merchants are mixed up with witches, and it's all under the orders of the lord of Border Town—if I remember correctly, isn't that the Fourth Prince, Roland Wimbledon?"

"We'll only know if it's true after we send someone to investigate," Ferl said with a serious expression. "But I think it's unlikely he's lying. Anyone who takes a look at the walls can see the movements of the refugees. If he wanted to make up a lie to get the Holy Medicine, he would have at least made it harder to verify."

"I'll send someone to double-check right away," the priest bowed.

"Go ahead. Report any news to me immediately."

Ferl slowly walked to the table and sat down, playing with the Holy Medicine in his hand. These refugees were already in his pocket. To control their movements and prevent them from escaping on their own, he had instructed the Dream Waters to send rats to mingle with the refugees and spread the news that the church was coming to save them after the Evil Plague spread. As long as they endured a few more days, they would not only receive divine salvation but also be accepted by the church and become a part of the Graycastle royal capital. As for those lurking rats, most of them were patients infected with the Evil Plague. To get the Holy Spirit Potion, they would definitely spare no effort to work for him.

If the rats' information was correct, this group had been transporting refugees since at least yesterday, and at this rate, they wouldn't stop until they had transported them all away. This was seriously hindering his plan. What was even more serious was that they were colluding with witches. Ferl believed that those who could cure the Evil Plague must also be witches.

"Sir, the body has been disposed of," the old woman quietly entered the secret chamber. "Has another Fallen One appeared?"

"Most likely," Ferl said in a deep voice, "and probably more than one." He paused. "There are no outsiders here. You don't have to pretend to be so ugly anymore. It's disgusting to look at."

"Yes."

She bent down, and then her whole body crackled, as if all her bones were rubbing together. Her figure grew rapidly, her gray hair turned black in an instant, and the wrinkles and loose skin gradually tightened, becoming taut and elastic again. Time seemed to be flowing backward on her. When she stretched her body again, she had turned into a beautiful and moving woman.

"That's much better," Ferl smiled contentedly. "If I remember correctly, this person was… the one who was hanged at the city gate?"

"Yes, sir," she nodded. "You spent the most time on her out of the four."

"You really know how to please me," the priest smacked his lips. "But Shatas will probably be back soon. There's not much time." He suppressed the desire in his heart. "And those Fallen Ones still need you to deal with—just like before."

"Leave it to me, sir," she bowed. "I won't let any of the Fallen Witches escape."

About a quarter of an hour later, Shatas returned to the secret chamber. He first glanced at the witch, then reported to Ferl, "Sir, there are indeed fewer people in the refugee camp outside the west gate. I was afraid I couldn't see clearly in the dark, so I also had my men hold torches and take a look around below. Many tents are already empty. But there isn't a single light in the dock area. I don't know if that merchant group is still stationed there. As for the witches…"

"No need to check," Ferl interrupted. "Since they dare to transport sick refugees, the rats' information shouldn't be too far off. In that case, this group has at least two witches, one monitoring the situation in the air and one who can eliminate the Evil Plague. Especially the latter, who poses a great threat to my plan. We must stop them." Now they were still pulling people outside the city. If they brought the witches into the city and openly treated the infected citizens, his "Holy Spirit Potion" would become a joke!

"Then what should we do?" the priest asked. "Send the Judgment Army to capture the witches?"

He shook his head. "This is the royal capital, not Hermes Holy City. The church only has twenty or so Judgment Army soldiers. Who will maintain order when we distribute the medicine tomorrow if we send them out? And if there are too few people, it will only alert the enemy without achieving anything. Even if we can defeat those mercenaries, the witches will probably run away." Precisely because it was in the royal capital, the Judgment Army responsible for guarding the church was only maintained at a scale of dozens of people. Otherwise, if a force of several hundred people were stationed permanently, the king would probably not be able to sleep.

"Then… write a letter to the Holy City and ask the bishop to send reinforcements before taking action?"

"By the time the Judgment Army arrives, the refugees will probably be gone." Priest Ferl sneered. "And dealing with a group of mercenaries doesn't require the church's elite to take action. Let the Dream Waters handle this matter."

"Give it to the rats?" Shatas was stunned.

"At least they are numerous and can surround the dock in advance, and then swarm in. Do you think mercenaries without armor, using wooden pole spears, can deal with a few rats?" he asked rhetorically.

"About two or three."

"So they can only handle up to two hundred people, while the Dream Waters can gather more than a thousand thugs. Of course, these brave and fierce scum may not even be a match for a Judgment Army squad in formation, but they are more than enough to crush that group of unarmored mercenaries." Ferl stood up. "Take my words to 'Fangtooth' Tanis. Give him a day to gather manpower, the more the better. Take action tomorrow night. Don't reveal that there are other ways to treat the Evil Plague, and don't say that it's to deal with the witches. Just tell him not to let anyone escape. The reward is a whole box of Holy Spirit Potions. If he wants to push back or be perfunctory, tell him he can forget about getting poppies and long sleep fern from me in the future."

"But what about the witches… especially the one who can fly in the air?"

"She won't fly forever, and the rats can't end the battle in a short time. Or rather… their role is more to attract the other side's attention," Ferl walked to the witch, reaching out to caress her face. "As long as the Faceless One can find an opening and sneak into the camp, the result will be without suspense."

By touching, one can completely disguise themselves or others as another person. Not only the appearance but also the figure and voice can be perfectly replaced, and even the God's Stone of Retribution cannot undo it after it takes effect. This ability is impeccable for an assassin. That's why she became one of the few remaining witches retained and specially trained by the church.

"When the other side realizes they can't win, there will inevitably be chaos in the camp. At this time, the Faceless One can guarantee that not a single witch will survive," the priest smiled.