Chapter 94

First Cavalry Division's guard, Selis, wore a bitter smile, unsure of how to respond to the black-haired girl's persistent questioning.

From the intelligence delivered by the Seven-Trick Swift Eagle perched on his shoulder, Lord Ande was also inquiring whether the First Cavalry Division knew anything about the matter. It seemed that not only the "Reversing Scale" Corps, but even the high-ranking officers of the Eastern Military District were unaware of who was behind it.

To completely annihilate a 50,000-strong corps in a short time, even with a comparable number of troops, would be far from enough. The odds of victory would be at best fifty-fifty.

Moreover, the number of personnel in the Slan Empire's corps was less than that of the Portland Republic. Two Slan corps were equivalent to one Portland corps, and at least three Slan corps would be needed to ensure the annihilation of the Portland "Thundercloud Tiger" Corps. This was under the condition that the tactics were correct and executed properly. Otherwise, even if they succeeded, it would be a Pyrrhic victory, with heavy losses on both sides.

After the decisive battle in the central mountains of Hailar, the war between the Slan Empire and the neighboring Tesei Empire on the western border had not yet ended, with sporadic skirmishes still occurring. The domestic military forces were still focused on the Western Military District. In the eastern border region of the empire, the closest army to Lian City was the "Reversing Scale" Corps, and other local garrisons were at least a week's journey away.

This meant that the Slan Empire did not have enough troops in the short term to annihilate the aggressive Portland Corps.

Unbelievable, inconceivable, unimaginable—a series of words that defied description came to mind. Although it was unknown who did it, the fact remained that the Portlanders had lost a corps, and the Slan Empire had unexpectedly gained a significant advantage.

"Is it because of confidentiality that you can't say?"

Li Mubing, noticing Selis's hesitation and doubt, tilted her head and sized him up.

"No, no, no, it's not about confidentiality. We really don't know which army did it. It wasn't our army, perhaps a civilian force, but that's highly unlikely."

Selis spread his hands and shook his head, indicating that he had no intention of hiding anything.

"Then, where was the 'Thundercloud Tiger' Corps annihilated?"

Li Mubing unfurled a rough map of the eastern part of the Slan Empire, instinctively entering work mode. As an intelligence officer, a map was an essential tool in such missions.

"Here, east of Dansmoke Town, 121 kilometers northeast of Minlu Snow Mountain. Yes, in your units of measurement, it's roughly that number."

In this world, the unit of length similar to meters was called "bu," with one bu equal to 1.2 meters. The unit for kilometers was "dao," also a thousand-based unit, with one dao equal to 1200 meters. To facilitate the calculations of the twin female rangers from another world, Selis readily accepted Earth's units of measurement to accommodate their work.

This precise and rigorous system of length measurement, besides surprising the "Reversing Scale" Corps, was easily accepted, being far more accurate than the "bu" and "dao" used in the Slan Empire.

"Here?! That's strange! With such a big commotion, it should be easy to find clues!"

Li Mubing did not press further. For one, the Seven-Trick Swift Eagle could carry only a limited amount of information, and it was impossible to find all the answers she wanted. For another, with the Slan Empire's reconnaissance methods, if they had discovered anything, it would have been included in the intelligence. Therefore, it could be inferred that the Portland Corps was annihilated suddenly and without warning.

By making inferences from limited information, this was one of the basic skills of a professional intelligence officer. The younger twin, with a bit of thought, deduced the truth with remarkable accuracy. In fact, the Portland Corps was indeed annihilated overnight.

In the chaos of the camp, the Portlanders frantically killed and trampled each other. Lin Mo used the "Magic Square" to recover all the triangular spinning blades and a few bullets fired by Su, making it impossible for the Slan scouts to identify the metal fragments. The carnage left a battlefield that was indistinguishable, with bodies strewn everywhere.

Even the few survivors of the "Thundercloud Tiger" Corps could not clearly explain what had happened in the dark and chaotic night. The appearance of the golden dragon Su was so sudden that the news did not spread in time within the camp. The "Bashan Lion" Corps, which knew that the "Thundercloud Tiger" Corps was hunting a dragon, only suspected and guessed, finding it hard to believe that a dragon, weakened by a curse, could turn the tables and slaughter a 50,000-strong corps.

The intense firepower of the electromagnetic railguns and the powerful wind spells cast by the wind dragon Wuyin severely damaged the scene, making it appear as if the "Thundercloud Tiger" Corps had been invaded by an army that had then launched a devastating central attack, leading to a complete and unexpected annihilation.

The Anstrather Empire's dragon-hunting family, the Morix family, who truly knew the truth, vanished without a trace, making it impossible to find any of their members, as if the entire family had disappeared into thin air.

While Li Mubing and her sister Li Muxin were troubled by the unexpected changes in the battle, Lin Mo had already entered the temporary camp of the Portland "Bashan Lion" Corps.

Everyone, regardless of age or gender, was bound like mummies and piled up like goods.

They were too weak to struggle, having been without food or water for a day and a night. They had no strength to even cry out, as if they had been abandoned to die of hunger and thirst. In war, human life was as worthless as grass, fragile and valueless.

In the tent, filled with weak breathing, a blinding light suddenly shone in, dispelling all the darkness.

A warrior, enveloped in a golden glow from the radiant Sun of Holy Flame, walked in, clad in dark heavy armor.

The bound people were stunned, as if the moment of their fate's judgment had come early. In the next second, they mustered their last strength and cried out in a desperate chorus.

The warrior in black heavy armor casually drew his longsword, which glinted in the sunlight, and with lightning-fast movements, cut through the ropes, freeing the people who had been bound so tightly that their joints and blood flow were restricted, leaving them numb. It took a while for them to regain some mobility.

"Lord Morin, thank you so much. That damned Roger was a Portland spy! What a bastard."

As one of the bound hostages, Lord Kras Bart, the head of the Bart family of Snow Pine Town, angrily told Lin Mo. The treacherous nephew had not only colluded with the Portlanders to kidnap his entire family but had also forcibly taken his daughter, Samir.

How had he not seen through this wolf in sheep's clothing before? In Snow Pine Town, he had even publicly questioned Lin Mo's status as a dragon knight. Now it was clear that the man had ulterior motives.

Fortunately, he had not made a mistake and had instead formed a good relationship with Lin Mo. Good deeds were rewarded, and today, Lin Mo had come to rescue him.

Lord Kras Bart could not imagine what a terrible fate they would have faced if they had been left bound on the ground for two or three days.

"My companions had their suspicions, but Lord Bart, you and your family are safe now. Everything will be fine."

Lin Mo removed his tactical helmet and allowed the man to hold his hand tightly, venting his emotions.

"Lord Morin, I am truly sorry."

The speaker was Baron Hong Yu, the lord of Lian City. To the surprise of others, he did not start with gratitude but with an apology, even lowering his status as a viscount.

After losing his fief, he felt utterly dejected.

Captured nobles had only two fates: to be ransomed by wealthy relatives or sold into slavery in a foreign land. The former was often a matter of having the means but not the will, while the latter meant the end of the noble lineage, with no more glory of the ancestral title, and future generations reduced to struggling and begging, forever in poverty.

It was only after Lin Mo cut his ropes without hesitation that he realized how unwise it had been to offend him. The two beautiful girls and the noble title were insignificant in comparison.

"I accept your apology!"

Nobles, though often despicable, were also straightforward. Lin Mo nodded, graciously accepting the apology.

If he had refused, the man would likely have challenged him to a duel, citing the insult to his noble honor. A man's dignity could be taken, but not his honor, a principle that applied equally to the noble class.

For a hereditary viscount to apologize to a meritorious lord was a significant loss of face. Even if Lin Mo had killed him in a duel, it would have damaged his own reputation, a rule of the noble class.

"Everyone, go outside and stretch your limbs, clean up, and I will take you to a safe place!"

The dragon knight, who usually only dealt with killing, did not know how to comfort the emotionally charged survivors. He simply gave them a few words of reassurance and began to get them moving.

Due to the prolonged binding, the tent was filled with a foul odor. Lin Mo's words caused everyone to look embarrassed. If they did not clean up, they would find it difficult to travel.

Fortunately, military camps were often near water sources, and a nearby stream met their cleaning needs. However, these over two hundred people were not as efficient as an army and took until sunset to clean up, making the original travel plans impossible. Fortunately, a light cavalry unit from the "Reversing Scale" Corps' First Cavalry Division arrived with supplies and rehoused them.

The unexpected annihilation of a corps had a significant impact on the Portland Republic's invasion, forcing them to strategically retreat and pull back several corps that had already entered the Slan Empire, consolidating their positions. They also sent out numerous scouts to gather intelligence on the Slan forces and to find the culprit behind the destruction.

With the enemy retreating, the Slan forces recaptured Lian City two days later, and the standoff between the two countries gradually stabilized. The root cause of this shift was the mysterious annihilation of the "Thundercloud Tiger" Corps, which still baffled both sides.

Several corps from the Slan Empire's Eastern Military District were already on the move, heading towards Lian City and the Portland Corps. The border between the two countries entered a state of emergency. In response to the Portlanders' unprovoked attack, the Slan Empire sent envoys to strongly protest and even threatened to deploy the dragon knight corps to engage the enemy. (To be continued. Search for Piaotianwenxue for faster updates and better quality!)

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