Chapter 707.1: The Ceasefire Line 100 Kilometers Away

The fighting at Kalaba Market was over. More than 1,000 soldiers laid down their weapons, clasped their hands over their heads, and walked out of cover. They were filthy and dejected, most of them bearing wounds that had not yet scabbed over. In their dust-clouded eyes there was not a trace of light.

If they had lost to the New Alliance, they might have felt a little better about it. But facing these militiamen, people who could not even piece together a complete set of clothing, the only thing left in their hearts was humiliation.

The militia drove them from the northern side of Kalaba Market to the east, lining them up in a long row at the market entrance.

The survivors watching from afar all wore the same incredulous expressions.

“... His Majesty’s army actually lost.”

“That was the invincible Gray Wolves...”

“And they even lost to the Moonfolk.”

In truth, it wasn’t only the Moonfolk. It was just that most of the slaves in Rowell Camp were Moonfolk, so the militia force naturally consisted mainly of them.

Devout believers stared blankly toward Kalaba Market, their lips moving as they murmured prayers.

“Sacred Ox God of the Sun above...”

The world really might be changing.

As the militiamen approached, Satish’s face turned ashen. After struggling inwardly for a long moment, he finally handed over his sidearm.

The radio had already been seized. Continuing to resist would have been meaningless.

What he hadn’t expected, however, was that after the bare-armed man took the pistol, he removed the magazine and tossed the gun back to him.

“Run east.”

Satish froze.

“Wha...?”

He was about to ask what that meant when the man fired a shot at the ground in front of his boots without another word. The flying gravel and dust made him jump.

Are you insane?!

Satish stared at him wide-eyed, the question written plainly on his face. Seeing that the man wasn’t joking, he could only back away in a few hurried steps, then break into a jog.

He ran from the center of the market all the way to the east side. No one stopped him along the way, until he reached the crowd of disarmed prisoners packed at the eastern gate.

What are they trying to do?!

Fear filled Satish’s heart. Compared to the fate of being captured, the uncertainty of what was about to happen felt even more terrifying.

The group of soldiers at the eastern side stared at him in shock as well, clearly not expecting to reunite with their commander after surrendering.

Their confusion didn’t last long. A man carrying an LD-47 rifle walked up to them and, without saying a word, raised the muzzle skyward and pulled the trigger.

Ratatata!

The sudden gunfire startled the prisoners at the gate like frightened birds. They instinctively recoiled, stumbling backward. The survivors watching from afar were also frightened and hurried back into their homes.

The man grinned viciously at the prisoners, as if toying with a flock of terrified sheep. He pointed the empty rifle at them, making firing sounds with his mouth as he snapped at them from time to time.

As the crowd retreated in terror, he cleanly knocked out the empty magazine, slapped in a new one, and racked the bolt with a sharp clack.

What that meant was obvious, this time, he was going to shoot for real.

Without needing another word, the panicked prisoners turned and ran, backs to Kalaba Market, fleeing in all directions.

Bullets whizzed overhead. The prisoners had no time to think, no time even to see whether the people beside them had fallen. Driven by the gunfire of the ragtag militia, they fled in chaos toward the outskirts of the settlement.

At the same time, standing in the center of Kalaba Market, Laxi contacted Ample Time at the temporary command post via the earpiece hooked over his ear. “As instructed, the prisoners are fleeing through the east gate toward the outskirts. I’ve detached a company to follow them.”

A response soon came through the channel. “... Received. Well done. I need you to take everyone else and move to the northern side of the settlement to await orders. Our forces will support your strikes there.”

Although the plan had deviated slightly, it wasn’t beyond salvaging. They had confiscated the prisoners’ weapons. Letting them keep running was fine. At worst, they could just capture them again once they reached the outer positions.

Laxi’s crisp response came. “Yes.”

Although the intelligence indicated that an entire division lay in wait there, he felt not the slightest fear or hesitation.

Having gone through two battles already, he knew very well who was truly invincible. It wasn’t the Gray Wolves, and it wasn’t himself, it was the “iron men” standing behind him.

As long as they stood at his back, there was nothing to fear.

After ending the transmission, he immediately summoned his captains and ordered them to lead their men northward according to plan.

What the New Alliance had provided them wasn’t just light weapons and ammunition, but also communications equipment issued down to the squad level.

Because of that, although this hastily assembled rabble was still inexperienced in combat, communication barriers between all command levels had essentially been eliminated. Their degree of communication was even slightly higher than that of the Gray Wolves, whose radios were issued only down to the company level.

Even when orders weren’t perfectly clear, it was nothing more than a matter of shouting a bit louder.

At least there was no situation where captains couldn’t find their men, or commanders didn’t know where their units were.

A singular logistical issue alone already gave them a far stronger starting point than most guerrilla forces, let alone the automatic weapons shipped in from the port...

At the same moment that the New Alliance First Avengers Corps withdrew from Kalaba Market, inside a three-story civilian building slightly south of the market center, a head was hidden behind the curtains of a second-floor window, eyes peering nervously outside through a narrow gap.

Seeing the thugs who had occupied the market begin to withdraw, Prince Dilip slowly let out a breath, unaware that his back was already soaked with cold sweat.

It seemed the Ox God of the Sun still favored him.

Although he had lost this battle, fortunately these foolish traitors had not conducted a thorough search of the entire market, instead rushing off elsewhere.

Moreover, that cowardly Satish had not betrayed him, allowing his presence to remain hidden.

Perhaps... He could slip away quietly while those people were gone, without anyone noticing.

The New Alliance and the militia wouldn’t even know he had come...

Prince Dilip cautiously left the window and turned back, about to discuss the plan with the guards holding their breath inside the room.

Before he could speak, however, he heard a voice from downstairs. “Yes, sir, this is the place...”

...

North of Port Gallon.

At a frontline position less than a kilometer from the city, inside an observation post covered with camouflage netting, the division commander Manu held binoculars to his eyes, watching the distant city with a grim expression.

The shelling of the settlement had stopped. To cover that idiot’s retreat, they had already wasted nearly 500 precious shells. Yet the silent city showed no movement at all, not a single figure emerged.

The adjutant beside him looked nervous. “Prince Dilip... he hasn’t gotten into trouble, has he?”

Manu let out a cold laugh and said nothing. If that were the case, it wouldn’t be so bad.

Compared to that, what truly pained him was the loss of over 5,000 of his men, brave young men who, if they were to die, deserved to die for something meaningful.

He hoped more of them would make it out...

Just then, figures suddenly appeared in the morning mist. They were running in disarray, with gunfire seemingly chasing them from behind.

Manu’s pupils shrank. He instinctively leaned forward, quickly adjusting the binoculars to zoom in.

“It’s our guys!”

A flash of joy crossed his face, but it was quickly replaced by alarm.

No, something’s wrong!

There are too many of them!

Countless possibilities raced through his mind, but no matter which one he considered, he couldn’t imagine the New Alliance launching a counterattack against their positions with fewer than 1,000 soldiers.

That would be absurd!

The Army’s RPGs could even penetrate exoskeletons! With support from field guns hidden in the positions, flat-fired 100mm howitzers, and machine-gun emplacements, he was confident he could stop even an assault from an armored company.

Yet despite his disbelief, he prepared for the worst. Grabbing the radio at his side, he roared, “All units, attention! Prepare for battle!”

Calls to arms echoed through radio after radio, and piercing alarms blared across the 10 kilometer-wide defensive line.

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