"So, what exactly are those things you had me prepare for?"
Gazing at Lynn, who was leaning on the railing at the edge of the high platform, Glaya asked out of curiosity.
At this moment, the two of them were standing at the top of an extremely tall building, with a large brass bell, engraved with historical marks and traces of the years, hanging in the center. It was simple and heavy in design.
It was undoubtedly the highest point of a bell tower.
This bell tower was known as the Lun’en Bell Tower, one of the most iconic structures in Orn City, built with funds from the city council, towering at one hundred and sixty-nine meters and the tallest building in the city.
It had a history of over three hundred years.
Just a street away from Lun’en Bell Tower lay the South District’s municipal building and the immensely wide City Square in front of it.
A statue stood at the center of the square, commemorating the first Mayor of Orn City.
However, these weren’t the focal points.
The key was that from Lynn’s current position, one had an excellent view, with more than half of the neighborhood in sight.
At this moment, the City Square, which should have been nearly deserted on a rest day, was inexplicably surrounded by crowds of all sorts.
Even at this distance, the din of noise and chatter could be faintly heard.
Hearing Glaya’s question, Lynn didn’t even turn his head, "Those things? Of course, they’re for fundraising."
Last night, upon his return to the manor, he had ordered Glaya to have someone make twelve massive glass storage boxes, made of transparent material, so one could clearly see inside from the outside.
Not only that, but each glass box also had an opening at the top.
At that time, Glaya had no idea what they were for.
Thinking about it now, they were simply donation boxes.
Just made very big and transparent.
"Fundraising?" Glaya was taken aback for a few seconds, then looked at him doubtfully, "Then, what’s the difference between what you’re doing and the charity dinners hosted by the Duke?"
"The difference is, he’s begging on his knees, and I’m outright robbing."
Upon hearing this, Glaya became even more bewildered.
And typically, this guy just enjoyed keeping people in suspense.
"You mean to say... you want to make money off the poor?"
"Then whose money do you want to make?"
"Whoever has money, I’ll take theirs," Lynn spoke with a certain inscrutability, "In any case, let the nobility and the Church suffer, I’ll take the infamy upon myself."
Looking at Lynn’s back, now exuding a sense of concern for the country and its people, Glaya suddenly felt an urge to hit him.
In the center of City Square, out of nowhere, a row of large, transparent glass boxes had appeared.
Each box was as tall as a person, empty inside, with nothing stored.
Carefully counting, there were twelve glass boxes in total.
The size of each box was identical, neatly arranged together.
What exactly this number represented was anyone’s guess.
Looking at the originally empty City Square, now with these peculiar items appearing, many people stopped to look.
Some were just passing by and inadvertently noticed what was in front of them, others had received the news and specifically came to join in the excitement.
Orn City was neither too small nor too big.
The city’s population was around eight or nine hundred thousand, but once there was any sudden big news, it would take no more than two days to spread through the mouths of the city’s residents.
At this moment, looking at those boxes, the people present were unanimously puzzled about their purpose.
It was also unknown if this was related to the new tax law the city council was about to enact.
"What do you think these boxes are for?"
In the midst of the noisy crowd, people occasionally whispered their inquiries.
"I don’t know, maybe... they’re for collecting public opinion?"
Another person shrugged their shoulders, making a not-so-funny joke.
"Wait, look, someone’s coming!"
Just then, at the front of the crowd, a sharp-eyed person seemed to have spotted something.
Soldiers clad in the standard armor of the Augusta Family’s private guard were seen carrying a pile of items towards the twelve glass donation boxes in the center of the square.
This inevitably attracted the attention of many people once again.
It seemed that these matters were probably the doing of the Augusta Family.
Since the family usually had a good reputation and was rather low-key, it did not provoke any backlash from the people present.
Under the gaze of countless eyes, the guards began hanging wooden plaques, inscribed with writing, in a certain order on the fronts of those twelve glass boxes.
People instinctively looked toward the plaques.
After seeing the writing clearly, they were unanimously stunned.
Heavenly Principle Church, Silent Church, Fertility Church, Desolate Sect, War God Cathedral, Adur Knowledge Society, the Slan Sect...
The writing was neat yet succinct.
Just as they had seen.
Each wooden plaque bore the name of a local church in Orn City.
Not only that, each plaque corresponded to an empty glass box.
At this point, the crowd had an epiphany.
The reason for the twelve glass boxes was precisely to correspond with the twelve well-known local churches in the area.
Given Orn City’s location on the border, it had more relaxed control over religious beliefs.
Additionally, being adjacent to surrounding countries, some foreign faiths were able to take root and grow here.
For instance, the state religion of the Dust Sand Country, Tutankhamun, the War God Cathedral.
These adherents of strength had not given up on this small piece of the Saint Laurent Empire.
Moreover, since this area was close to the Demon Clan battlefield with frequent wars, over time it had actually gathered a large number of devoted followers.
There were several other similar churches.
However, compared to the Heavenly Principle, Silent, and Fertility— the three major churches of the Saint Laurent Empire itself, they were still at some disadvantage.
Add to that the conflicts of doctrines, so the friction between these churches, both openly and in secret, was not insignificant.
At this moment, the actions of the Augusta Family had everyone baffled.
What exactly were they up to with this display?
Not only the crowd present, but also many nobles and church clerics hidden in carriages or secret spots were experiencing an unprecedented confusion.
Fortunately, moments later, the confusion was resolved.
Looking at the glass donation boxes marked with the names of churches, those guards then brought over some ladders and climbed up high with several banner signs.
Then, the first banner was hung.
It carried a long string of writing, clear enough for everyone to see.
"Every year, approximately thirty percent of soldiers drafted into war return as permanently disabled veterans. According to incomplete statistics, after leaving the military service, these disabled vets tend to become detached from society and live without any security."
Looking at the content on the banner, the people’s eyes widened in shock.
Clearly, everyone was unable to grasp the current situation.
But moments later, another banner was hung below the first one.
"Another set of data, sixty percent of these disabled veterans develop mental health issues, or even choose suicide, within three years after retiring from service."
Were those disabled veterans they had never paid attention to really facing such a miserable fate after retiring?
People exchanged glances, at a loss for words.
Then, the third and fourth banners were hung.
"The Governor of the Southern Province, Duke Tierus, hereby initiates a call for charity, hoping that the local churches and nobles of Orn City will be motivated to ."
"We cannot let those soldiers who have bled and cried for our homeland, suffer in vain!"
The square fell into a rare state of collective silence.
At this moment, rather than the initial confusion over what they were doing, the crowd was now totally captivated by the content recorded on the banners.
Was this a fundraising initiative?
Yet, it seemed that the intended recipients of the fundraising were not the average citizens, but the local churches and nobility instead.
People’s minds began to race.
Lastly, the fifth banner was hung directly above the twelve large glass boxes.
Undeniably conspicuous.
"Let us see, which faith is the kindest and most generous."