Mystic Overlord: Reading Gives Strength-Chapter 1304 - 1298: The Elderly Priest

The old Priest dared not refuse Ronald's inquiry.

He immediately began to describe the situation of his tribe, and the content perfectly matched the account given by Senator Lama.

Only through certain unique perspectives of observation.

This was something that troubled the old Priest, but was unknown to Ham City's residents.

Such as what the tribe's name implies—this is not a tribe ruled by the Priest, but one that belongs to the Great Commander Ivan.

Simply because they are now unable to connect with their original area.

As someone with a unique status, the old Priest took on the leadership role for the tribe, but there are many things he cannot usurp.

They have profound traditional customs.

For instance, in their interactions with Ham City's residents, the tribe members would not agree to let the old Priest act fully as their representative, and the old Priest himself would not allow interference.

In their original tribal structure, only the Great Commander has the authority to make such decisions.

In fact, this migrating tribe.

Came here at the behest of Great Commander Ivan, acting as preliminary explorers.

"..."

Ronald carefully listened to the old Priest's exposition.

Regarding the disputes occurring in the city, the old Priest was also quite helpless.

Any organization comprised of humans, once the number increases, due to differing opinions, inevitably splits into several factions.

Under Great Commander Ivan's rule, the main factions were the warriors and the pacifists. Those causing disputes in the city, even engaging in fights, were actually part of the warrior faction.

Unfortunately, the old Priest's stance was with the pacifists.

In normal times, he might have been able to say a few words, but in the current explosive environment, just opening his mouth—rather than calming the situation, the warriors might even start fighting amongst themselves with ease!

"..."

"Can you not contact the Great Commander now?"

This issue was difficult to resolve, so Ronald thought about it and could only start by asking this key point.

According to the old Priest, if he could contact the Great Commander now,

then the problems of this migrating tribe could be almost immediately resolved.

The old Priest shook his head with a pained expression, saying:

"Sir, this is precisely what's troubling me now."

"The distance between here and our homeland is so far that even if I gave it my all, I couldn't establish contact with the Great Commander."

"..."

It was an expected answer.

Ronald's question was asked more out of a sense of trying.

However, just as Ronald was about to respond, the old Priest proactively spoke:

"Sir, actually, the prophecy I previously interpreted was that the tribe would encounter a great crisis here, and although the Great Commander is not physically present, his gaze is still observing us, waiting for some change or opportunity to arrive."

At this point, the old Priest paused slightly.

He looked seriously at Ronald and the others, then continued resignedly:

"But after you three arrived, I realized my earlier interpretation of the prophecy was likely mistaken."

"The tribe's issues are essentially the problems with the indigenous people here; and that lofty, all-seeing divine bird that possesses supreme power—is indeed you!"

As he finished speaking, the old Priest almost simultaneously bowed his head.

He knew he was powerless to resist in front of Ronald and the others, or rather now, everyone in the tribe combined could not oppose the will of these three.

With a naturally calm disposition, the old Priest could only adopt this stance, to plead for the man's compassion.

"..."

Ronald also felt pity for the old Priest's plight.

But Ham City is also an innocent place, and moreover, Ronald had accepted the commission.

Given this premise, Ronald chose to be open and frank:

"Priest, I won't hide from you, the three of us have actually accepted a commission from Ham City, hoping to resolve your current issues."

"..."

The words 'despair' were practically written all over the old Priest's face.

Ronald's words were almost a judgment for him, and for the tribe, indicating the final direction of their fate.

The old Priest could not remain silent; he used all the strength left in his frail body to make one last plea to Ronald:

"Sir, our tribe's issues are extremely serious."

"I do not wish to defy your will—but with scarce resources, an unfamiliar environment, and the shifting hearts of people, if we were to journey afar under such circumstances, the tribe would likely not have many people left."

—You are pushing us onto a dead-end.

The old Priest didn't place the blame on Ronald; he simply stated the consequences of acting in such a manner.

And Ronald... his blood pressure was already rising.

Even knowing before taking on this task that it would likely be troublesome, coming here and seeing the situation made clear how complex it truly was.

If Ronald could have arrived earlier.

He could have directly suppressed the warriors, and everything might have dissipated before getting out of control.

But now... the matter couldn't be resolved so simply.

The conflict between the migrating tribe and Ham City had escalated into a physical confrontation, so even if the warriors were dealt with now, the tribe members' relatives and friends would likely turn extreme in the heightened situation.

"Poof—"

Suddenly, a laugh came from the side.

As Ronald's mind was muddled with concerns, Catherine also broke free from her thoughts.

Seeing Ronald's current situation, she immediately understood everything.

Then, Catherine jokingly said:

"Ronald, aren't you just looking for trouble yourself?"

"If you went by my methods, you'd either forcefully compel Ham City to assist us or just clear it out. Both methods are straightforward and require no thinking, wouldn't that be a thousand times more pleasant than your current state of confusion?"

Ronald immediately rolled his eyes at Catherine.

But at the same time, the old Priest widened his murky eyes—he was utterly startled.

These words coming from the master of astronomical disciplines sound as though they could be real.

But Ronald knew this was just Catherine's joke. If this person were actually to act, they wouldn't sit here joking with him, but would have already acted directly!

Next, under the old Priest's shocked gaze, Ronald carefully said:

"In any case, the three of us will first return to Ham City to inform them of the situation."

"This concerns the lives of many people; it's not something that can be decided by just our will!"

Catherine and Lama naturally had no objections to Ronald's decision.

All three rose from the tent, each chanting spells to activate the Flying Spell, preparing to immediately return to Ham City.

However, at that moment, an unexpected development occurred.

The old Priest suddenly stood upright, following directly behind Ronald:

"Mr. Ronald, please allow me to come with you."

"After all, barring unforeseen circumstances—this should be the last chance for our tribe."