Chapter 498.1: This Victory Belongs To Us!

Dusk gradually fell.

On the vast plain outside Horn Fortress, a soldier of the Lion Kingdom was squatting in the trench eating rations when he suddenly noticed a white flag being raised on the enemy's bunker.

At first, the soldiers thought they were seeing things.

It wasn’t until they realized the enemy positions were completely deserted that more and more people began to react.

A veteran immediately shoved the half-eaten ration back into his pocket, jogged to the rear of the trench, and reported, “Report! Horn Fortress has raised a white flag!”

“A white flag?” The captain was shocked upon hearing the news. He grabbed his binoculars and rushed to the front lines to see for himself, confirming that it was indeed a white flag. Uncertain whether this was a trap set by the Army, he didn’t dare take it lightly and promptly reported the news up the chain of command.

Thus, through multiple layers of reporting, the information quickly reached the Skeleton Corps.

Leading 20 tanks to the front line, Escaping Mole raised his binoculars and glanced at the distant fortifications.

He had already learned of Griffin’s death from Battlefield Cheerleader half an hour earlier, so he wasn’t the least bit surprised by the white flag flying over the fort.

The administrator in faraway Falcon City had already reached an agreement with the governor-general dispatched by the Army.

The Army would relinquish their claim to Bist Town. In exchange, the New Alliance would tacitly allow over 50,000 ‘de facto prisoners’ in Horn Fortress to lay down their weapons and leave the military stronghold with dignity, heading to the northern riverbank of Oasis No.2 to await the ceasefire agreement taking effect.

Lowering his binoculars, Escaping Mole turned to a nearby Lion Kingdom soldier and said, “... Tell the 17th Battalion stationed north of Horn Fortress to fall back and let those defeated soldiers leave.”

“Yes, sir!” The messenger saluted and quickly ran toward the communications post.

Though the Lion Kingdom’s army was nominally under the command of Prince Wint, it was in fact jointly directed by the New Alliance. Even their radios were provided by the New Alliance.

A commander accompanying the unit looked at Escaping Mole, who was standing on the tank turret, and asked in confusion, “Why aren’t we seizing the opportunity to wipe them out?”

“Griffin is dead,” Escaping Mole replied casually.

The commander froze.

There had been no such news through his own channels. “What?! Then isn’t this the perfect chance?!”

“War is a means, not the end.” Escaping Mole narrowed his eyes toward the horizon and tossed out a line for effect. “The war is already over. You’ll all be going home soon.”

The Lion Kingdom officers looked at each other in disbelief.

They had followed the New Alliance forces all the way to Horn Fortress, chasing after the Army and Falcon Kingdom’s retreat across 1,000 kilometers. But aside from picking up prisoners along the way, many of them hadn’t even seen an armed enemy. Thinking back over the past month or two, nearly all offensive operations had been monopolized by the Skeleton Corps and Storm Corps.

All they did was pour tea, deliver supplies, dig trenches, backfill, clean up battlefields, and then, poof, the enemy surrendered.

The war had been far too easy.

For the New Alliance doggies to fight this comfortably was beyond what these subordinate kingdom officers could comprehend.

Escaping Mole then turned to the other players craning their necks curiously from behind and shouted in Mandarin, “Brothers, rotate offline for dinner. Log in again when you’re free.”

A yawning newbie following the tank asked, “Will there be any events tonight? Why can’t we stay logged out for longer? Didn’t the other side already surrender?”

“You just don’t get it,” Escaping Mole chuckled. “The Army fled so fast, no way they took all their supplies with them. The administrator’s agreement only lets them leave, nobody said we couldn’t visit their home before we leave. The ceasefire talks will take two days at least.”

They probably wouldn’t find much ammunition or gear, the New Alliance’s artillery already bombed their pots and pans, but they could still haul away leftover weapons, artillery, anti-aircraft guns, and those spherical armored turrets made of steel.

The New Alliance needed alloy for shipbuilding in Heavenly Water Municipality and industrial production in West Continent Municipality. Even scrap steel fetched a decent price. As for transporting it back, it wasn’t a problem.

The entire Lion Kingdom army had effectively become the New Alliance’s logistics team. With tens of thousands of helpers, even moving stuff bit by bit like ants could empty the damn fortress!

The newbies nearby were stunned by what they heard.

“Damn, we’re really doing this?”

“This is just straight-up shameless!”

“What else did you expect?” Escaping Mole teased, glancing at the stunned rookies. “How do you think we got our tanks and artillery in the first place?”

From the driver’s seat, Elf Wang chuckled. “I’ll go fetch a transport truck.”

Armored trucks with heavy machine guns weren’t good for hauling loot. A proper cargo truck was way more efficient for looting.

Escaping Mole waved his arms and roared, “Don’t just bring trucks, get our Lion Kingdom friends too. No guns needed. Just let them pick up stuff from the Army’s positions!”

Elf Wang grinned. “Got it!”

...

Horn Fortress.

Less than two hours after Griffin’s death, the massive fortress spanning several square kilometers had been completely abandoned.

Under Acting Commander General Yalek’s orders, the 50,000-strong army laid down their weapons and marched north to the riverbank along a path designated by the New Alliance.

The clone soldiers would be left behind, after all, with their short lifespans, it wasn’t economical to bring them back. It was better to leave them to their governor-general to do some construction work. When they died, they could even be used as fertilizer. After all... Waste not, want not.

Several hundred Wislander officers and over a thousand other warrant officers would return to Triumphant City by airship after the ceasefire took effect. Hearing they could finally go home, nearly every weary face lit up with joy.

They had followed the call of Griffin and the Expansionists to seek riches, glory, and adventure. But upon arrival, they discovered their target wasn’t a golden amusement park.

As for non-Wislander officers, such as bodyguards who had been promoted due to special circumstances, they were allowed to choose whether to stay or leave. Those who stayed would receive severance pay ranging from 1,000 to 50,000 Dinars based on rank, as per usual practice.

But most chose to return to Triumphant City.

Though Wislander society was deeply xenophobic, things were less extreme in their hometown.

Even the lowest of the low enjoyed protection there. Only in Triumphant City were laws like no arbitrary executions of slaves and guaranteed rights to health and life strictly enforced. Violators faced huge fines or even criminal charges.

Out in the frontlines or on noble estates, slave conditions were little better than livestock. Most governors or administrators didn’t care if outsiders lived or died.

If they were discharged with severance and left behind, who knew what awaited them?

Especially after clashing with the New Alliance who was like a starving wolf ready to devour them down to their bones, nearly every soldier and officer carried psychological scars. They just wanted to leave the cursed land.

But... Not everyone was in a rush to go.

At the entrance of the central bunker in Horn Fortress, a Wislander soldier stationed at an observation post glanced south, then ducked into the bunker.

They were Griffin’s personal guard.

During the evacuation, General Yalek had ordered them to withdraw, but their commander Karloff refused the acting commander’s order. In the end, they all stayed.

Running up to Karloff, the soldier nervously reported, “General, New Alliance forces have arrived.”

Karloff nodded, expressionless. He exited the bunker and followed the narrow concrete passage to the top of the fort’s southern observation post.

The southern gate had been blasted open, barricades cleared by soldiers. Trucks rolled into Horn Fortress. Before they even stopped, excited Lion Kingdom soldiers leapt out and rushed toward the abandoned camps and defense zones under their officers’ direction to loot what the Wislanders hadn’t taken.

Karloff quietly watched as tents were torn down, supplies thrown onto trucks, full vehicles driving off and empty ones returning, all with utter indifference.

Those people were like hyenas crawling over a lion's carcass...

A nearby soldier took a deep breath and looked at Karloff. “General, we...”

“Leave them be,” Karloff said coldly, watching the looters. “There’s nothing we can do.”

They were only a few hundred strong and desperately low on ammunition. They couldn’t win in open battle, let alone when boxed in a bunker.

The war was over. All he wanted now was to protect Griffin’s corpse.

Just as Karloff stared at the plundering soldiers, those soldiers noticed him too. A newbie ran to Escaping Mole and reported, “Boss, there’s a few Wislanders up ahead!”

“Got it,” Escaping Mole raised an eyebrow. “Take me there.”

“Sure!”

Following the player forward, Escaping Mole looked up at the Wislander standing in the observation post and introduced himself curtly, “Skeleton Corps Commander, Escaping Mole.”

Karloff slowly replied, “Griffin’s personal guard, Karloff.”

“Why didn’t you leave?” Escaping Mole glanced at the sealed bunker door and asked with a half-smile, “Or is there something valuable inside?”

Karloff stayed silent for a moment, then finally replied honestly. “General Yalek took all the documents. What couldn’t be taken was burned. There’s nothing left in there, only the remains of my fallen commander. We were ordered to escort him on his final journey.”

“Oh.” Escaping Mole lost interest.

That made sense.

There had been plenty of time to evacuate anything important. If the acting commander wasn’t an idiot, he wouldn’t have left valuables in the bunker. As for Griffin’s body...

Survivors from Sunset Province might want to dig him out for revenge, but Escaping Mole wasn’t one of them. He was just a player. He didn’t feel the pain of war’s aftermath that deeply, nor did he care about a corpse.

Still, out of curiosity, he asked, “How did he die?”

“Stroke.”

“

Pfft

, if you don’t want to say, forget it.” Escaping Mole shrugged and smiled. “Oh, by the way, we’re claiming everything here. That okay with you?”

Karloff nodded silently. “No objections.”