Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

"Not yet." Mason shook his head helplessly.

...

Before Andre returned, Mason and Winters were drafting the formal battle report.

The victory announcement had already been sent back to Revodan immediately, but the official, statistical battle report had to wait until the dust settled before being penned.

As for the bulletin to be published in the "Communiqué," informing the entire county, every word and sentence had to be carefully considered.

The main battle that erupted in River Valley Village, starting when the Parliamentary Army entered the battlefield at noon and ending when their last regimented units were defeated by dusk, lasted less than nine hours in total.

On the day the battle ended, Winters, Gessa, and Skool discussed and allocated the tasks for the next stage:

Colonel Gessa would lead the relatively intact Bai Mountain County troops north to reclaim Snake Swamp and Bazenaur;

Colonel Skul would lead the remnant forces of Thunder Group County and Riverside County south, targeting Green Valley and Maplestone City;

While the Iron Peak County New Army, which had preserved its strength the best, was assigned the task of staying to clean the battlefield.

The unreasonable extent of this plan was comparable to the subtle atmosphere when Winters, Gessa, and Skul were deciding the plan.

That night, in the same tent where Colonel Bod had passed away, in front of the flag-covered body of Colonel Bod, Winters, Gessa, and Skul looked at each other in silence.

What more was there to say?

The allied forces won, but it was a Pyrrhic victory.

And due to the heavy losses suffered by the Bai Mountain, Thunder Group, and Riverside County troops, the already fragile balance within the allied forces was completely broken.

Colonel Bod's death also equated to cutting the most crucial bond tying together the Four Counties Allied Forces.

To put it bluntly, from the moment the last regimented Parliamentary Army was defeated, Gessa and Skul's greatest threat became the nearby Iron Peak County New Army.

Because once the Iron Peak County New Army regrouped, it would have the capability to destroy the Three Counties Allied Forces—whether Winters Montagne had that intention or not.

And Winters also had to consider whether Gessa and Skul might take desperate risks under pressure.

Thus, a chain of suspicion formed.

If pushed further, both sides would come to the same conclusion—only by striking first could they ensure invincibility.

"So?" Winters was the first to speak. He looked at Colonel Bod's body and softly asked, "Are we going to turn our armor on each other?"

Gessa and Skul exchanged a glance.

"No." Gessa exhaled a long, weary breath: "Too much blood has flowed in the Newly Reclaimed Land today."

"And tomorrow?" Winters lifted his head, his gaze as sharp as arrows, pressing hard, "The day after? After the day after?"

Gessa clamped his lips shut and said nothing.

Colonel Skul cleared his throat and answered ambiguously, "That depends on your decision, not ours."

Winters looked again at Colonel Bod's body, recalling Major Moritz's words, "For the dead, death is complete annihilation. But the thoughts, actions, appearance, and demeanor of the deceased do not disappear. They are stored in the memories of the living. But that does not mean the dead are still alive, nor do they live in memory. For memory is just a painting, a page of notes, a segment of sound, and he will never respond to you again."

"The Iron Peak County Military will not attack you on its own initiative." Winters looked at the two colonels and calmly said, "My subordinates and I will remain in River Valley Village until the cleanup work is complete."

Colonel Skul and Colonel Gessa exchanged glances again, the former showing confusion and suspicion in his eyes.

"You plan to stay to clean the battlefield?" Skul asked.

Cleaning the battlefield may seem like an easy assignment, but it actually means forfeiting the chance to seize the spoils of war to others.

"Yes." Winters directly tore away the pretense: "Bazenaur is the most prosperous port in the Newly Reclaimed Land, and Maplestone City stores a large amount of supplies hoarded by General Adams. Which one do you want to give me?"

Skul and Gessa said nothing.

"Neither of them, right?" Winters sighed, "So I want neither."

This time, not only did Skul's expression change, but even Gessa's face turned a little unnatural.

Colonel Skul asked sternly, "How do we know that you are not planning to defeat us separately?"

"I will dispatch my troops in companies to hunt down the deserters." Winters crossed his arms and added, "If that's not enough, I have something else I can pledge to you."

"What?"

"My credibility."

Gessa chuckled silently, while Skul snorted lightly.

"Then what should we pledge to you?" Skul retorted, "So you can trust that we won't turn and attack?"

"You've already pledged it."

"What?"

"Your lives." Winters smiled calmly, "The lives of all of you."

The day after the battle ended, after a day's rest, Colonel Gessa led his troops to Snake Swamp, while Colonel Skul set out for Green Valley.

Winters also kept his promise, devoting all his strength to treating the wounded, cleaning up the battlefield, capturing fugitives, tallying casualties, and holding deserters during the final tasks.

Until the fourth day after the battle ended, it was not until the last body was buried that the Iron Peak County Military escorted Colonel Bod's remains and set off for Green Valley.

Then today—the sixth day after the battle ended—as Winters was about to reach Green Valley, he suddenly realized that the development of the situation seemed subtly deviating from what he had anticipated.