September 2nd, 1449.

Holy Machinery Court, Mechanical Palace.

"Have all the Witches from Black Snake Bay arrived at the Mechanical Palace?" Wearing a thin embroidered linen–spider-silk blended dress, Hilov finally put down the little scissors she used to trim her tail fur and asked Horn in front of her.

Horn, who had been lying in the wicker chair eating melon, sat up: "They're all here. A full fifteen Witches gathered in one city—anywhere else, the Archbishop would probably have fled in panic."

"Just like that Puliano Pope."

"Hahaha, yes, just like that Puliano."

This time, fifteen Witches had gathered in the Holy Machinery Court to discuss the future status of Witches and the future direction of the Holy Alliance.

The great victory in the Gray Robe Valley not only forced the entire Empire to truly take the Holy Alliance seriously, it also had the new effect of attracting quite a few Witches' attention.

Especially after Horn let the word out that he intended to develop an alchemical potion to suppress Witch outbreaks, and would guarantee that Witches could live in cities.

Not only the reclusive, worldly-indifferent Witches hiding in Black Snake Bay; even the Witches hidden among the Norn and in the frontier lands had come to the Holy Machinery Court under Ottatila's introduction.

At present there were only fifteen Witches in the Holy Machinery Court; according to Ottatila, three more Witches had contacted her.

They were expected to arrive in the Holy Machinery Court within a week, which would make a full eighteen Witches (including Jeanne and the others).

Right now in the Holy Machinery Court, the Witch density was unusually high, especially in the northern bank area of the Parra River.

Mentioning the fleeing Pope inevitably led to post-war resettlement issues; Hilov spoke again: "Have the pensions for the fallen soldiers and the resettlement of those returning home all been arranged?"

"All arranged. Fallen town troops get a pension of five times their annual pay, plus perks like free primary schooling for their children."

That was just for the rank-and-file; fallen officers would receive even more benefits.

For example, additional bonds, lifelong tax exemption, and even direct allocation of large ranches on the Shattered Stone Plain.

"But these benefits generally only work in urban areas. Village soldiers don't get much of it—it's unfair to them.

So for fallen village soldiers, besides the pension and perks they should get, they'll also be allocated farmland."

The two Thousand River Valley wars, plus two floods, had brutally punched the simmering land-consolidation problem in the Thousand River Valley back to its original state.

There were fewer people, the land was still the same amount—wouldn't that ease the land–population contradiction?

Originally, the registered population in the Hundred Households District was about 4.5 million; the actual population exceeded that, because quite a few areas had not been counted.

But after this war, the household registers hadn't yet been updated, and Horn estimated the actual population was only about 4.5 million now.

Especially in Hotam County, after being ravaged several times over, the population had dropped by more than one third.

According to the earlier estimates, deaths plus flight meant almost four hundred thousand people had been lost.

Some had died, some had fled, some had drifted into Langsande County and Lower Reif County, and some had even drifted to Black Snake Bay.

"Let me guess, no less than a thousand square kilometers of farmland have been left vacant?"

"More than that." At this point Horn couldn't help feeling a bit of a headache. "Xia Lvcheng has already opened its gates and surrendered, but there are still small groups of enemies, deserters and bandits roaming the countryside, so we can't make an accurate estimate yet.

But we're guessing that nearly three thousand square kilometers, about four and a half million mu of farmland, may be left empty.

If we give each soldier a hundred mu, there's still plenty left."

"My god." Hilov's tail clamped together as she said expressionlessly, "What are you going to do about that?"

"We'll discuss it in council. With so much idle farmland and a three-year tax exemption policy, I suspect every city-dweller will rush to the countryside…" Horn pulled another melon from the ice-water bucket beside him. "We'll attract some refugees from outside, and send those prisoners of war to farm as well."

"Didn't you say you'd give them some travel money and have them go home in groups?"

Chewing melon, Horn rocked the wicker chair: "Those with family and homes but no intention of staying, we'll send them back. Those who want to bring their families here, or homeless refugees, we'll send to cultivate the land."

In this campaign, Horn had smashed a hundred thousand of the Leia Army, and behind them there had been nearly two hundred thousand laborers.

The war wasn't completely over yet, and Horn currently had close to a hundred thousand prisoners of war in his hands.

For the Thousand River Valley, where the population loss in war had been severe, these men were simply timely rain.

At present, not only the emptied Hotam County needed people, but the ranches on the northern Shattered Stone Plain needed people, and the new plantations in the southern Black Snake Bay still needed people.

If half of these people could be retained, the Holy Alliance's current manpower shortage would be greatly alleviated.

"However, distributing land to the rear will definitely boost the soldiers' morale." Hilov plucked off the loose fur from her tail and snipped it into a satisfactory shape with the scissors before lifting her head, tail swaying. "When do you intend to stop?"

So far, more than a month had passed since the Gray Robe Valley battle, and the vast majority of the Leia Army had been driven out of the Thousand River Valley.

Those Dukes, Counts, Barons, and Baron Knights of all sizes were currently filling up the Holy Trinity Monastery outside the Holy Machinery Court.

But Horn still hadn't stopped his advance.

In fact, when Charles VIII marched off to the Windmill Lands, Horn simultaneously launched an attack on the nearby Immortal Stone Field region.

On the other side, after negotiations with the Norn people were concluded, both the Iron Fist Battle Group and the Black Crown Battle Group continued toward the Thorn Garden to support the mountain cavalry regiment under Jia Li's command.

Even after retaking the whole of Hotam County and capturing the entire Shattered Stone Plain, Horn felt it wasn't enough.

It wasn't greed; it was a simple matter of geopolitics.

Right now the Thousand River Valley's geography had no natural defenses. Anyone could follow the Narran River to attack him; there was no sufficient strategic depth.

Otherwise, why would he have to build so many fortresses along the border?

If the Holy Alliance kept pushing forward and invaded Leia's Immortal Stone Field from Hotam County—

Taking Upper Seine County, Lower Seine County, and Red Sand County in Immortal Stone Field, as well as Raven Roost County and Wolf Bridge County in the Thorn Garden—

Then the Holy Alliance would gain a natural defensive line formed by the east–west Northern Falcon Mountains and the Narran River, plus the north–south Seine River.

As long as shore batteries were set up along the rivers, whether it was the Falan who wanted to attack or the Leia people who couldn't swallow their loss, they would all be kept outside the gates.

That distance barely stretched to the current administrative limit of the Holy Alliance.

As for justification, the Holy Path faction had a doctrine of Great Inquisitorial Holy War.

And besides, is it only allowed for the Leia people to attack the Holy Alliance, but not for the people of the Holy Alliance to strike at the Leia Kingdom?

"When do you think the war can end?"

"Within a year, I'd say. After all, we've already smashed the core strength of the Leia people, and they were the ones who attacked us first. Seizing five of their counties is hardly excessive."

Hilov nodded. She couldn't say she loathed war, but she certainly didn't like it.

For a scholar, a relatively stable environment was what she actually wanted.

Fortunately, the fighting at the front for the moment hadn't affected developments in the rear, especially her greatest concern—education.

The year 1449 was supposed to be the start of the second Four-Year Plan.

With Holy Machinery Court University students returning from the front one after another, the new written-language reform movement that Horn and she had studied for so long could finally begin.

On this point, Catherine's position actually aligned with that of the Wolf Woman.

She had long been preparing to start building a supply and distribution system, and the paper currency that would rest on that system.

Road-building in the countryside everywhere was precisely to lay the foundation for her three-tier supply-and-marketing market.

Seeing the slight curve at the corner of Hilov's mouth, Horn could sense that she was finally showing a bit of human-like expression.

But after pondering for a long time, Horn still decided to tell her something.

"Hilov…"

"Mm?"

"Do you remember that we captured King Jiji?"

"Yes. Are you planning to execute him?"

"No, I plan to auction him off, sell him to whoever pays the highest… but that's not what I came to talk about today." Horn lowered his voice. "Do you remember the Blood Knights and those Red Robe Monks?"

Hilov straightened up in her wheelchair: "You mean…"

"We've also captured the Alchemist who helped King Jiji create the Blood Knights…"