Chapter 139: You Know I Love You, Right? (3)
“I agree. Perhaps the City Council has concluded that they will not comply with any requests or coercion.”
“They won’t cooperate, but they won’t interfere either. So just leave them alone? Tsk. A place that doesn’t know war.”
War is when the narrow-minded way of thinking that if you don’t antagonize my enemy, you are also my enemy becomes commonplace. Black and white logic is truly convenient.
“First Sword Martin, send a letter. Will they open it, or will they open it? 2 hours.”
“Hoo, I like that, Commander Arisein.”
First Sword Martin let out a nasty laugh and gave orders to his subordinate. At the same time, I ordered all troops to advance to 1,500 meters in front of the wall.
The 5,000 troops slowly advanced and stopped at 1,500 meters in front of the wall. They were divided into five groups and deployed according to pre-determined formations based on their respective branches.
Meanwhile, the archer of the 1024th Infantry quickly ran and shot the arrow letter, and I prepared for the siege.
Hooked ropes and long ladders appeared here and there, and soldiers, armed with weapons and cloaked in hostility hotter than the scorching sun of the drought, were staring at the walls.
But…… why is there no one on the wall?
“Isn’t it strange?”
“Yes. It’s strange.”
First Sword Exofi tilted her head and looked strangely at the city, which was locked without any reaction.
Even so, isn’t it a big problem that not even one guard appears on the wall?
That’s when it happened.
“The gates are opening!”
“Huh?”
I quickly put the telescope to my eye.
The tightly closed gates opened, and a horse carrying a person on it rushed out. And there was a group of people beating the people who opened the gates, and there were also people aiming their bows at the person who ran out of the gates.
Huh? What the hell is going on?
Again, people on horses rushed out of the gates. They were all armed with spears or crossbows, pointing at the person who came out first and running out.
I reflexively gave the order.
“First Sword Toledo, protect the first person who came out!”
“Yes, Commander! 3rd Platoon deployed at the front, secure the first rider!”
The order was quickly relayed, and within a minute, a group of cavalry rushed out at full speed.
Hooves kicked up the dry ground, raising a cloud of dust, and the narrow view of the telescope was soon filled with dust clouds.
“Tsk. I can’t see.”
I took my eyes off the telescope and narrowed my eyes to see through the dust cloud. However, I couldn’t see exactly what was happening because of the distance.
Thinking that a fight might have broken out, I ordered Sispa.
“Chief Greyman, call Namia.”
“Yes, Commander.”
A few riders returned towards Atzuma City after a while, and the cavalry of the 3rd Platoon of the 1144th Infantry brought a person here.
He looked as if he was about to collapse at any moment, and he was wearing a leather armor with a lot of scratches. I almost missed it because there were so many wounds, but I was able to find the emblem of the Imperial Security Bureau on his leather armor.
“Are you a member of the Atzuma City Security Force?”
“Cough! Yes. Atzuma City Security Bureau, 1st Division…… Section Chief Rekilt Osma. Are you the Imperial Army?”
“Eastern Army. I am Commander Arisein Pen Herduke, commanding the five Infantry units of 1024, 1087, 1099, 1104, and 1144.”
“Ha! The Eastern Army. No, it doesn’t matter anymore. Cough!”
Just then, Namia arrived, and I silently pointed to Rekilt. Namia approached him and quietly recited a verse from the scriptures. The surroundings became quiet for a moment at her devout appearance.
When a white light stroked his whole body, Rekilt exhaled deeply, looking much better.
Noticing that his lips were parched, I handed him a canteen, and he emptied the water gratefully, albeit embarrassed.
“Haha! Thank you. I feel alive again.”
“I’m glad. But Section Chief Osma, what the hell happened? What’s going on in Atzuma?”
“Ugh! Cough! Hoo, don’t even ask. I never dreamed that my position would be so powerless in my entire life.”
Rekilt Osma explained what had happened in Atzuma with a self-deprecating expression.
Atzuma was embroiled in controversy over what to do in the face of the prolonged drought, on top of the existing drought.
Then, right after my first surrender request reached the mayor, a messenger from Narvilt arrived.
The messenger, who arrived looking quite exhausted, seemed to have had a meeting with the mayor.
Then, five days ago, the Imperial Army stationed for maintaining security and the City Council completely disappeared.
Based on the remaining traces, they could guess that they had gone to Narvilt, but they couldn’t chase them. This was because the criminal organizations moved quickly after realizing that the rulers and security forces had disappeared.
The remaining security officers at the Security Bureau were not enough to stop them.
The criminal organizations, without hesitation, first occupied the wells throughout the village and imprisoned the priests of the temple, blocking even the purification of water that was barely being done.
Their only goal was abundant drinking water.
Those who believed that it was enough to survive until the drought ended by any means took over the wells and made them their own. The citizens and security officers, unable to contain their anger, rose up to drive them out.
However, the weight of future righteousness and a sip of water today can only be different.
Among the citizens, there were also those who joined the criminal organizations. In addition, the decline in trust in the city’s ruling class, who had abandoned the city, led to a decline in trust in the security officers.
The power structure began to crumble, and eventually, the criminal organizations took control of 90% of the wells in the city.
In the midst of all this, a large army appeared near the city. The criminal organizations panicked, locked the gates, and concluded that they would not take any action.
Behind that, there was a valid belief that the army would not last long without water anyway.
But there was one who did not give up resistance until the end. Rekilt Osma managed to escape with the help of his colleagues and citizens and came here.
“Not only criminal organizations, but also wealthy people who colluded with them, and not only water, but all kinds of property are being manipulated by them. Atzuma City is now a city made of great chaos.”
Rekilt bit his lip sadly and lowered his head.
It makes sense that there was no response from the city.
The city’s ruling class disappeared? Along with the security forces?
I had expected things to be quite different from the history I knew, but it seems to be changing dramatically as the war begins.
Well, it’s fortunate that the climate hasn’t changed.
“First Sword Doreneu Exofi.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“Your Infantry specializes in urban warfare, right?”
She understood the hidden meaning in my words. The soldier, who had been waiting for the time to fight, showed a confident smile on her face.
“Yes. They are experts who are more confident than anyone else when it comes to fighting inside the city.”
“You will be in charge of the main battle.”
“I understand.”
First Sword Doreneu Exofi nodded, and I turned my head and spoke to First Sword Binaris Aranas.
“You will begin preparations to support the siege. The primary objective is to open the gates, First Sword Dregorn Martin.”
“Covering fire, you mean? I understand.”
“Good. First Sword Hickson Toledo, prepare to charge in as soon as the gates open. Move!”
At my command, the four First Swords saluted and ran towards their respective Infantry units. And First Sword Hanos Luxilen, the only one left, was looking at his colleagues with envious eyes. I decided to give him an order to keep him from getting bored.
“First Sword Hanos Luxilen.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“We will release 1/3 of the remaining water to the citizens of Atzuma. Prepare to follow First Sword Toledo into the city as soon as he charges through the gates.”
“Yes. I understand.”
Although it wasn’t a combat mission, First Sword Hanos Luxilen, who was old enough to know that war isn’t just about fighting, silently headed towards his unit.
“Chief Greyman, what’s the current time?”
“It’s 2:24 PM.”
“Operation commences at 2:40 PM. This will be called Operation Atzuma City Occupation.”
“Yes, Commander.”
Sispa saluted and stepped back.
Looking up at the cloudless sky, the only smile I could muster was a bitter, self-deprecating one.
Make the ruling class abandon the city. Leave the stabilization work to the occupying forces, and the post-drought cleanup to the occupying forces.
Then, after the drought lifts, the Western Army’s intention to defeat the exhausted occupying forces at once and secure a foothold is obvious.
I’m very curious who the commander is.
“Chet. I feel like having a smoke.”
To see such a ruthless plan even before the battle begins……
Boo Woo-!
The trumpet signaling the preparation for battle sounded long.
Hoo- Ha-.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Although it was a step I took of my own volition, my body and mind were still outside of the war.
Breathing pulls me in.
To this time and space.
When I opened my eyes, I was on the battlefield.
Same day, 5:20 PM.
“Tch! You’re all the same anyway! What’s the difference, pretending you’re not going to take all the water for yourselves once we’re gone!”
“There is a difference. I have no desire to explain it.”
“Damn Eastern bastards! You start a rebellion for no reason and then act all high and mighty……”
“I don’t want to hear that from guys who are no better than us in comparison. Take them away.”
I ordered the servants to clean up the trash as if I were ordering them to lock up the captured criminal group, and the soldiers took them away as if they had been ordered to clean a room that had been left unattended for three years.
We completely occupied Atzuma City in less than three hours. It was easier than picking up coins on the street. Naturally, no one gets hurt picking up coins.
If a serial killer wanted poster and an ordinary soldier were to fight, you should worry about the latter, and if both had more than a thousand people, you should still worry about the latter. Now that the after-meal exercise is over, what should we do?
“If Levidian had a thousand people, I’d still have to worry about the latter. It would be annihilation.”
“That’s a bit gruesome. Unless there’s a remarkable difference in individual skill, there’s no way a disorganized mob could defeat those trained in group action. There are still some remnants left, right?”
“That’s true, but the citizens are quite cooperative. As expected, one should always have a good heart.”
“You’re right. By the way, did the mayor and the ruling class intend to abandon the city and return?”
“From what I heard, they seem to have been kidnapped. They intentionally created a power vacuum to cause unrest.”
We also repelled the last group that was holding out in City Hall, and now we’re cleaning the mayor’s office. Once the cleaning is done, it will become the command center.
Aila was looking through Atzuma City’s operational records and comparing them to the list of abductees.
Considering how quickly it happened, it makes me wonder if there was an operational plan in place.
“It seems like it. Unless the garrisoned troops here all have a history of kidnapping.”
“There’s no such strange unit in the world.”
It seems that the Western Army had more control over the garrison here.
The order of events is roughly predictable.
There must have been a secret contact from the Western Army to the garrison commander, and the messenger from the Western Army who visited after my surrender request was sent must have been the signal to start the operation.
Aila finished comparing the documents and tossed them onto the table next to her.
“They took only the essential personnel needed from the city. The chief of the Security Bureau was among them, so that says it all. It seems they took his entire family as well. There are about 100 missing persons.”
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