Chapter 39: Before The War: Inner Reflection (3)

Chapter 39: Before The War: Inner Reflection (3)

Meanwhile, those who had become our prisoners in the blink of an eye now understood their impending fate and pleaded for mercy, fear lacing their eyes. And a corporal among them, seemingly the most senior, spoke earnestly.

“Please spare us. We don’t know who you are, but we are just mere soldiers. We didn’t come to fight against the Reich Empire willingly. We are just powerless peasants dragged here. Have mercy and spare our lives.”

Here and in Korea, unless someone willingly applied to become a non-commissioned officer or an officer, no sane person wanted to become a soldier. In Korea, unique circumstances and battles were rare, but soldiers in this world had to face real combat in worse conditions.

“These are not my concerns. But if you answer my questions accurately, all three of you can return safely.”

I threw a rope of hope at them, and they asked with more hope in their voices than before.

“Is that true? Will you really spare us?”

“That depends on how sincerely you answer. If any one of you talks nonsense, you will all die.”

Soon after, I was satisfied with the information they had given, but to extract more ungiven information, I gave a command that could convince them further.

“Good information. Lieutenant Laura, release their binds as promised.”L1tLagoon witnessed the first publication of this chapter on Ñøv€l--B1n.

“Commander, even so, there is a risk that the scouts may flee. To release their binds is...”

“Even if we let them go, they can’t escape from here. There are more than twenty of us here, and we are all surrounding the three of them. How can they escape?”

Laura, conceding to my point, released their binds.

“Then...”

I raised my hand to stop him from talking further.

“I have enough information. As promised, you can leave now. Don’t look back and leave with your men.”

At this, the man, who had been obediently answering my questions, bowed repeatedly in joy, thinking he would really live, and tried to escape with his subordinates.

At that moment, I signaled to kill them the moment they turned their backs.

I felt a bit sorry for the scouts who obediently provided the information, but I valued the life of one of my soldiers more than thousands of them. The moment they let their guards down, thinking they were safe, my men, including Laura, drew their swords and struck them down instantly.

“So, now we will collect the maps they left and check the enemy’s location and scale. Get ready quickly.”

The next day, I headed to the hill where the deceased scout said the enemy was located with 20 detachment members. There were about 50,000 Chekovia soldiers, knights, and various sizes of wagons moving around.

The most striking thing was that despite the army walking in formation, wagons filled with various foods were continuously joining and leaving.

As the scout said, the Chekovia army must be confiscating as much food as possible from nearby villages. Otherwise, there was no reason for the wagons to come and go like that.

After confirming the approximate number, location, and marching speed of the Chekovia army, I ordered,

“The detachment will now quickly return the way we came and move to a village near the starting point. We will implement new plans to torment them! Hurry!”