Chapter 1465: Chapter 1463: Way Out
Two days later, night.
Inside the Chaotic Mountain Range, Soron’s staff department military tent.
A staff officer was reporting to Soron, his face worried: "General, we have very little grain left, estimated to be exhausted in another day. Even if we reduce the quantity distributed per meal, we won’t last three days, and the soldiers below are very discontent. I suggest..."
At the end, the staff officer swallowed his saliva, somewhat hesitant.
Soron looked at the staff officer, squinting, and asked: "Mr. Kubo, what do you suggest?"
"I suggest..." The staff officer raised his head, glanced at Soron, and whispered, "Should we try to contact the Shalin side?"
"Are you suggesting surrender?"
"This..." The staff officer hesitated for a long while, ultimately did not deny it, and nodded.
"I want to know, is this the meaning of the entire staff or just yours?"
"It’s... it’s my own idea, General."
"Do you understand what this represents?"
"This..."
"This is treason!" Soron said sternly.
The staff officer’s eyes shrank, and he said sharply: "General, I’m considering this for everyone’s sake. If we’re trapped like this, we’ll all starve to death."
Soron didn’t listen at all, turned towards the outside of the tent, and shouted: "Guards!"
Immediately, two fully armed Magic Knights came in, scanned around, and at Soron’s signal, dragged the staff officer who suggested surrender out.
After the guards left, Soron surveyed all the staff in the military tent and asked solemnly: "Is there anyone else who wants to suggest surrender?"
No one spoke.
"Very good." Soron said, raising his tone slightly, "Gentlemen, I know the situation is very bad now, but I think it’s not yet the worst. To prepare to surrender now would be premature."
Taking a deep breath, Soron continued: "Over three years ago, the Soma Alliance was still the most powerful country on this continent. Suddenly, His Majesty passed away, and many princes fought for power, leading to sustained decline of the Soma Alliance. Now, the new Emperor has been openly killed, the murderer is at large, and enemy nations are watching, ready to strike. The entire Alliance can be said to be on the verge of collapse, and as soldiers, we are powerless to reverse all this, but as soldiers, one must do something.
Indeed, only a day’s worth of food remains, but if we sequentially kill the war horses and appropriately reduce intake, we can hold out for at least seven more days. Seven days are enough to accomplish many things.
I cannot demand everyone to die with me for the country, but I wish everyone could at least hold on to the end, hold on until there really is no hope, then talk about giving up. Can you do that?"
There was a moment of silence in the military tent, then the staff began to nod one after another.
"Very good." Soron once again faced the outside of the tent and called, "Guards, go bring Wizard Yule."
"Yes."
Soon, Wizard Abu Yule entered the military tent, a wrinkled green robe sticking to his body, his face tired, as if he hadn’t slept for days.
Soron looked at him, apologetically said: "Wizard Yule, sorry for waking you up after only a short rest. However, due to the special situation now, please tell everyone what you’ve found."
"Okay, General." Wizard Yule nodded, without much fuss, walked to the sand table, picked up a wooden stick, and began speaking to the many staff, "Gentlemen, these past few days, I have been following the General’s instructions, leading numerous wizards to investigate the entire Chaotic Mountain Range, attempting to find a way out of this ’encirclement’.
Forget about the two mountain passes, some minor paths are also completely blocked by Shalin. However, Shalin doesn’t have the ability to turn the entire Chaotic Mountain Range into an Iron Bucket. Among these numerous mountains, I have successfully found three small paths."
The staff, hearing this, were first surprised, then their eyes lit up altogether.
After all, having a small path means there is hope.
"Among the three small paths, two are relatively narrow and steep, making marching difficult." Wizard Yule continued, "But there is one that is relatively smooth, and this path can bypass Loxs Pass, allowing our First Officer to shorten the distance and directly reach the outer edge of Shalin Territory for a surprise attack, reversing the current situation."
After hearing this, the staff became excited. They never expected there to be such a turnaround and looked at Soron, asking eagerly: "General, give the order."
"Mm." Soron nodded, said solemnly, "Staff department, devise a marching plan as quickly as possible. Let the soldiers eat well, then set off overnight. I want us to jump out of this encirclement before dawn, before Shalin discovers, and hit them with surprise."
"Yes." The many staff got busy immediately.
...
Shortly thereafter, in the dense night, Soron’s army trapped in the Chaotic Mountain Range began to move.
At first, small teams left the camp, followed by larger groups stepping onto the paths found by Wizard Yule, and finally, whole regiments collectively entered the Chaotic Mountain Range, into the almost unexplored crevices of the desolate mountains.
Late night, high mountains, fog lingering.
Mario, along with the rest of the Red Maple Cavalry Group, carefully walked on the mountain road less than half a meter wide—on his right side was the thick stone wall, and on his left was an abyss with no visible bottom; a slip, and no remains would be found.
If infantry were walking, it would be relatively easy, but for these cavalry leading horses, it became much more difficult.
Yet, no matter how difficult, they had to overcome it. The whole group moved silently forward without a word of complaint.
Having traveled several miles, Mario saw a cavalryman ahead leading a horse, when suddenly its four hooves softened, slumped on the mountain road, and refused to rise, blocking the entire path.
"What’s happening?" Someone asked softly.
"Injured in battle a few days ago, barely eats, terribly weak. Originally wanted to leave it to fend for itself, but couldn’t bear it, hoped to lead it out of this Chaotic Mountain Range. Didn’t expect to get here, couldn’t hold on anymore." The soldier leading the horse answered with a sigh, "Been with me for three years, what a pity."
"It is a pity..." The questioner echoed, paused, then said, "But at this time, no one wants that."
"Yes, no one wants that." The soldier leading the horse said, silent for two seconds, then requested, "Give a hand, please."
"Ah, fine." A few people carefully squeezed past, squeezed to the side of the horse collapsed on the ground, hands placed on the horse’s body.
"One, two, three, push!"
"Hiss—"
The group exerted force simultaneously, and the horse let out a long cry, twisting its body and falling into the abyss, disappearing without a trace.
The team resumed its march, Mario pursed his lips, said nothing, and followed along.
...
