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I used the confusion of the aftermath to quietly free Priest Jucht and brought him to the governor’s mansion, commandeering a room there for him.

Firniel poked her head in and asked me.

“What are you going to do with that old man?”
“I sent him out as an envoy of the Demon Lord’s army. That makes it my responsibility to protect him.”
“Is that how it is?”

Truth is, no such obligation really exists. In this world, envoys being used and discarded isn’t unusual at all. In fact, one of Firniel’s centaur messengers was just killed when she tried to deliver a surrender request to Tübahn. It’s a dangerous role by nature.

Priest Jucht, cleaned up by the governor’s servants, looked too weak to even rise from bed. He seemed to be suffering from a severe infection brought on by injuries and exhaustion.
Maybe I should just let him die in peace.

But the fact is, I have the power to save him. And if I can do something, I will. My healing magic isn’t great, but I have basic medical knowledge, so I can apply proper treatment.
This was likely an infection, so sterilization through detoxification magic and the side benefits of immune support from body-strengthening spells would help. I also infused him with some of my mana to serve as a magical IV.
Whether he makes it from here or not, well, ask the gods of Sonnenlicht Faith.

Watching from the side, Kurtze muttered:

“You are kind, Sir Veit.”
“He ended up in this state partly because of me. That’s why, just this once, I’ll help him.”
“Even if you treat him, he might rise against you again, no?”
“If that happens, I’ll just kill him.”

Luckily, my treatment seemed effective. That night, Jucht’s condition stabilized, and he began to recover.
Though still weak, he looked up at me with sharp, focused eyes.

“Lord Veit… why are you here? No—Tübahn has fallen, hasn’t it?”

“Exactly, sir Jucht.” I sighed and continued. “Once you’ve recovered a bit more, we’re heading back. Start getting ready.”

Jucht looked startled. He sat up and asked:

“Back…? You mean…?”
“You’re the priest of the Sonnenlicht Temple in Lüenheit, aren’t you? Or do you plan to retire and spend your days in Tübahn?”

Jucht dropped his gaze and shook his head. “No… this place is no longer somewhere I belong. I’ll return to Lüenheit.”

I ordered the skeleton soldiers to guard and monitor him, then went to check on the other room.
I could hear Firniel arguing with the governor of Tübahn.

“You killed my envoy, didn’t you? And now you think surrendering will get you decent treatment?”
“I mean, I did, but…”

I popped my werewolf head in. “How’s the negotiation going?”

At that very moment, the governor threw himself to the ground in a full bow.
“Forgive me! If you will spare my life, I ask for nothing more! Please, have mercy!”

Wait, did you just start crying the moment you saw my face?
To be fair, he was the one who had put Jucht through all that, but Jucht was technically a criminal. I’d overlook that part for now.
So stop crying already.

From there, the negotiations went astonishingly smoothly. All I had to do was glare or click my tongue and we got nearly everything we wanted.
Then we turned to the matter of the governor’s fate.

“Senior, what should we do with him?”
“I don’t want to sit at the same table as someone who disrespects envoys.”

I replied with a low growl, baring my fangs. The governor immediately fell out of his chair in terror.

Firniel clopped over, pointed her short spear at the governor’s chest, and said in a grim tone:
“My envoy was killed too. I don’t like you.”

“Eeeep!”
“You’re not needed in my rule over Tübahn. That’s fine, right?”

The governor nodded rapidly, mouth flapping like a fish.

Though he’s not exactly a villain or incompetent, both Firniel and I agreed: We can’t trust this guy.
A typical governor won’t cut it if we’re to work with the Demon Lord’s army.
Given the choice to retire in Tübahn or leave for another city, the governor immediately chose exile.
Anyone who’d abandon his people out of fear is no use to us. He can go wherever he wants. I’ll pray he doesn’t end up like Jucht, but even if he does, he’d better not blame me.

On another note, I’m truly glad Aylia is such a capable person.
I guess I should treat her something. Maybe I’ll get her a little gift, something Tübahn is famous for.
Would she like a looted fixed crossbow, or a cavalry training manual better?

I couldn’t stay away from Lüenheit for too long, so I decided to head back as quickly as possible with Kurtze and the draconic engineers.
The skeleton troops at the south gate had been blown up, so I brought half of those stationed at the north gate—1,000 skeletons.
Would Master send reinforcements? Probably not….

The remaining 1,000 skeletons stayed behind to guard key locations like the governor’s mansion and the gates. The citizens probably see it as a nightmare, but centaur warriors struggle in urban environments, so it’s necessary.
Apparently, Merlene would be staying a while to support Firniel.
Master’s also here, so I went to check in on her.

In one of the mansion’s rooms, Merlene was reviewing Tübahn’s important documents. Master was sleeping on the nearby bed.

“How’s Master doing, Merlene?”
“She’s sleeping soundly, as you can see. I think she’ll wake up in a few days.”

During the Tübahn campaign, Master had overused powerful spells for healing and support, completely draining her energy.
Now she lay with a peaceful, innocent expression, her soft breathing almost cute.

Her body is so frail, she can’t even keep her heart beating without mana.
Apparently, she was nearly killed back when she was still human, hence she froze her physical time to preserve her life.
Because of that, when she expends too much mana, it stresses her life functions and she enters a hibernation state.
There’s some complicated magical theory behind it, but I just think of it as her HP and MP being the same stat.
No idea if that’s right.
I’m not the brightest disciple.

Two days later, I left everything to Merlene and hurried back to Lüenheit.
Priest Jucht still couldn’t walk, so we laid him in a draconic wagon.
His family and former disciples followed behind. They requested asylum in Lüenheit, and I agreed to take them.
Apparently, they’d secretly helped Jucht survive. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have made it out of that situation alive.
Most of them are craftsmen or ex-guards working in workshops. They might come in handy.

Anyway, time to hurry home. I’m worried about Lüenheit.
There’s probably a mountain of paperwork waiting on my desk. I really don’t want to go back… Wait, no, I can’t say that!.

“All forces, we march for Lüenheit!”

And so, with 1,000 skeletons, 24 draconic engineers, and a group of asylum seekers, I made my safe return to Lüenheit.

P.S. Upon returning, I got absolutely blasted by big sis Fern for “rushing off again!?”