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Pretend to accept Norris’s conditions for surrender and then, renege and kill him.

Lambert was somewhat tempted by the plan but ultimately rejected it.

Indeed, as Bradford had said, it would save a lot of effort not to fight at all. A hard assault, with thousands of people, even if they were just ordinary workers armed with light weapons, defending inside a reinforced factory, would require considerable force to overcome and could even result in significant casualties.

But Lambert still intended to do it.

The main reason was that he did not want Gu Hang to bear the name of a traitor.

In private, any means were acceptable, but publicly, as a ruler, credibility was extremely important; it even signified the reliability of public policy and the ease with which it could be believed by the people.

Under such circumstances, one must put on a fair and upright front.

Playing smart here might save a lot of effort in dealing with Norris, but the cost of taking shortcuts now could very well be paid doubly elsewhere.

After making this decision, he even mocked Bradford, saying he could only ever be a merchant and would never understand the grandeur that a politician aspires to achieve in accomplishing great things.

Bradford was left speechless.

And Lambert received additional support for his actions.

He assembled two battalions that had accompanied the governor into the city, and from the captured military supplies, he pulled out about ten heavy cannons and adopted a posture for a forceful attack.

Norris sent envoys to negotiate terms of surrender, but was once again sternly rejected by Lambert.

Lambert demanded that everyone resisting inside the factory surrender unconditionally, lay down their weapons, and await the governor’s trial.

This was the final ultimatum, and Lambert would only give them one hour.

The message was taken back inside the factory by the envoys, and everyone fell silent.

An hour later, no one came out to surrender, and Lambert ordered the battle to commence.

He ordered Perbov, who he had brought along for assistance, to command his second battalion to start playing with their newly acquired “toys.”

Those were five 155mm howitzers; next door, the sixth battalion, which was also dragged into work, was equipped with five captured artillery pieces as battalion firepower support.

Ten heavy guns fired in unison, with shell after shell being launched into the factory.

With a salvo, thick black smoke billowed from the factory.

The governor’s soldiers did not rush in hastily.

With the enemy completely surrounded and heavy artillery at their disposal, it would be foolish to send soldiers in as cannon fodder. They had plenty of ammunition in stock, so they would let the ten cannons fire a dozen or twenty rounds first—after a few hundred heavy shells bombarded them, then they would discuss sending in the infantry to mop up.

In the midst of this, Lambert received additional assistance.

Superior Georgette arrived with six nuns.

…

Lambert had seen the nuns of the Holy Lily of Mercy before.

To be honest, compared to the Phoenixes who always had a grim face and an unwelcoming demeanor, he preferred these battle nuns who always wore a gentle smile.

Although when it came to fighting, the nuns were just as ruthless.

However, despite having seen them before, this was his first time communicating with them, and Lambert seemed somewhat reserved.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Superior Georgette. I thank you very much for coming to our aid,” he said.

Georgette said, “No thanks are necessary; we are all fighting for the Empire. Mr. Lambert, I have heard about the tragedy that befell your family, and I am truly sorry that such a thing happened to you.”

“Thank you. However, I remember that you and your subordinates are supposed to be investigating the traces of the Cult within the city. How do you find the time to participate in the battle here at the factory?”

Georgette replied, “This factory harbors evil. Moreover, the Cultists’ activities may be related to the calamity that has befallen the Hodgson Family.”

Lambert immediately took the matter seriously.

“Can you tell me about it?”

“There is no harm in doing so.”

Following that, Superior Georgette gave Lambert, the descendant of the victim, a rather detailed account of her recent discoveries.

She had investigated the scene of old Hodgson’s death and had found remnants of heretical energy in the Hodgson Family estate.

Therefore, she believed that the assassination of old Hodgson involved the participation of Heretic Cultists.

The other sisters went to investigate other clues, but she came here with six people.

The mastermind behind the assassination plot was Mondok, but that man was already dead; the remaining two participants were here, and she was here to gather information.

After learning of this, Lambert immediately dragged Bradford out.

This guy had not mentioned anything about the Cult when he previously revealed details about old Hodgson’s death.

Upon hearing Superior Georgette’s questions, Bradford was also baffled.

He had no idea!

He was not lying; with things having reached this point, he was desperately seeking a way to save his own life, hoping for a possible sentence reduction. If he had been aware of the Cult, why would he ever conceal information for those deranged individuals? He would have been eager to betray them in their entirety.

But indeed, he was not aware of this matter. The assassination was Mondok’s scheme; Bradford was only involved in the aftermath and the division of spoils. He had not concerned himself with the details of the assassination.

In his eyes, it was not difficult for Mondok, who had control over the Alliance Army, to accomplish this task.

The results proved him right: the Hodgson Family disappeared from their mansion one night.

Upon confirming that Bradford was indeed not lying and that there were no traces of heretical energy on him, Superior Georgette let him go.

Afterward, she turned her attention to the factory area, which was still under the bombardment of artillery fire.

There, the last conspirator involved in the Hodgson assassination plot was located — old Norris.

Within that factory, she could sense the vibrations of Storm Heresy.

This was the energy of heretical sorcery — any extraordinary power not derived from the Divine Emperor and instead solicited through foreign prayers was considered heretical by the state religion.

Even some hardliners believe that self-manifested Spiritual Energy wielders are also heretics and that the world should not tolerate legal users of Spiritual Energy.

And these extremists are often accused by the Empire’s Spirit Cultivation Association of heresy themselves; verbal sparring between them is a daily occurrence so much so that physical destruction of each other is not uncommon.

The Order of Merciful Lilies is not one of those extremist factions; otherwise, they would be the first to oppose the Governor himself.

However, the supernatural energy obtained from other extraordinary beings through faith connections and heretical rituals is something that members of the state religion from all factions detest intensely.

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All five chapters have been posted!!! I hope everyone will continue to support me!

Two more chapters are coming at noon tomorrow; see you then!