Chapter 82: Chapter 82

In the small square in front of the castle’s main keep.

Facing the uncertain outcome of the battle outside, the only thing the territorial subjects could do was wait. Of course, now they had one more thing to do, which was to recite the Radiant Maxims.

This allowed them to feel a bit more relaxed and also made it easier for them to ignore the passage of time.

Around noon, when Steward Severn was arranging food on the castle side again, Ron suddenly realized that it had been a long time since any new movement had come from the east.

Even the Pollution Secret Patterns in the air seemed to have stopped flowing!

“Could the battle be over?” Ron couldn’t help but think.

Just as he was about to squeeze to the south side of the square to observe carefully, the city gate at the south end of the square suddenly opened, and then he saw a lone rider galloping across the bridge from further south.

However, because the small square inside the gate was already packed with territorial subjects, the Knight could only dismount outside the gate, and then, while shouting urgent military news, tried hard to push through the crowd to squeeze inside.

Seeing this, the crowd quickly made way under the command of the Apprentices. The Knight ran to Steward Severn’s side, whispered a few words, and then immediately left.

Afterward, Steward Severn quickly walked into the main keep, and soon came back outside, loudly announcing to everyone:

“Citizens of the Sis Territory, I bring you good news. The Territory Guard has just defeated the attacking enemies. They can no longer threaten the territory, and you can all go home with peace of mind!

“But there is one thing that must be stated in advance. During the previous battle, the enemy caused significant destruction to the territory. Therefore, after you return, you must rebuild your homes as soon as possible. All necessary supplies will be provided by the territory.”

“Oh! That’s great! We can finally go home!” The territorial subjects immediately cheered.

The voices echoed continuously over the small square. The fear and repression that the territorial subjects had endured for a night and a morning were finally released at this moment.

Even Ron, upon seeing this outcome, felt an indescribable sense of relief in his heart.

…

“Prospective soldiers of the Territory Guard, after lunch, organize the territorial subjects to leave the castle in an orderly manner!”

After the cheering, Steward Severn left these words and walked into the main keep once more.

However, at this time, the excited crowd didn’t want to stay here at all, including Ron. He was now eager to learn the details of the battle outside.

He had noticed that Steward Severn announced to the crowd that they had “defeated the enemies,” not that they had “completely wiped out the enemies.” The difference between the two was still very obvious.

It was just that the territorial subjects’ minds were already fully occupied by the good news of the lifted threat, so not many of them might have noticed this detail.

“Laurie, Dennis, organize the territorial subjects to leave in an orderly manner!”

Because the teams had already been organized when they arrived, now it was simply a matter of reversing the order of operations. The biggest problem was actually how to pacify the territorial subjects’ excited emotions.

Just like panic, excitement or fanaticism was also an enemy of Order.

Fortunately, the territorial subjects were mostly just excited about the danger being over and looking forward to returning home. Under the loud shouts of the Apprentices, they quickly regained their calm.

…

Escorting the territorial subjects across the bridge to the Bell Tower Square meant that Ron and the others’ work was successfully completed. The Bell Tower Square was large enough to divert the subjects’ subsequent departure, just as it had when they came last night.

By the time most of the territorial subjects had left, only Aunt Mary and Liya, both looking worried, remained by Ron’s side.

The reason the territorial subjects had been able to regain their calm so quickly earlier, aside from the territory’s tradition of Order, was largely because they realized that for this sudden incident to end this way, the price was very likely the lives of their loved ones.

“Liya, take Aunt Mary home first. I’ll go find Instructor Morris to ask about the situation. He usually takes good care of me, so I should be able to get some information.”

“Yes, Mom, let’s go home first. When Dad gets back later, he’ll definitely want to see us right away!” Liya also persuaded from the side.

Although her own eyes were also full of worry, she knew at the same time that she was her mother’s only support right now.

With both her daughter and prospective son-in-law persuading her, Mary ultimately didn’t insist on staying at the Bell Tower Square. Before leaving, she instructed Ron, “Then I’ll leave it to you. If there’s any news, tell me immediately. I… I can handle it!”

Hearing these words, Ron blanked for a moment, while a bad premonition rose in his heart. No way, no way!

“Don’t worry, Uncle Jason only became a Formal Knight in the last two years. He shouldn’t have been arranged to fight the enemy head-on in a vanguard assault. You guys go back first and wait for my good news!”

“Mhm.”

Mary nodded, and then left together with Liya.

…

“Sigh!”

Looking at the slightly staggering backs of Aunt Mary and Liya, Ron could only pray silently in his heart, hoping that Uncle Jason was alright. Otherwise, he didn’t know how he would break the news to those two.

After secretly letting out a long sigh, Ron was about to head east to the site of the battle to take a look. But after taking just two steps, he stopped, turned around, and headed toward the training ground to the west.

The closer he got to the training ground, the more intense the smell of blood permeating the air became.

Just as he was about to approach, a soldier whose face was still streaked with blood suddenly emerged from inside and shouted, “Who goes there?!”

Accompanying this shout was the sound of a sword being drawn from its sheath. Ron was instantly startled and hurriedly revealed his identity: “I am an Apprentice here. I came to find my Instructor.”

Hearing Ron claim to be an Apprentice, the soldier’s tense expression relaxed slightly, and then he asked, “What is your name, and who is your Instructor?”

“My name is Ron, and my Instructor is Morris.”

Even though Ron had given his own name and his Instructor’s name, the soldier before him still didn’t let Ron enter the training ground. He only left the words “Wait here, stay right there and don’t move,” before disappearing at the entrance.

Ron had no choice but to wait. He could understand the feelings of a soldier who had just experienced battle, and he could also understand the necessity of such an arrangement.

But even until that soldier returned and let him into the training ground, Ron had still somewhat underestimated the opponent’s reaction. If he were in the opponent’s shoes, his reaction might have been even more intense.

As soon as he entered the training ground, despite it being only separated by a single door, it felt as if he had entered another world. A thick, pungent smell of blood assailed his nostrils, even though Ron had already seen blood during yesterday’s training.

Aside from wolf blood, there was even the blood of Wastelanders, who were identical to humans.

But now, seeing the blood of his comrades, he still couldn’t help but feel a wave of panic. It was a sense of sorrow for his own kind. He had even begun to wonder if his own future would end in the same way…

Too many soldiers were missing arms or legs, and these were the lucky ones. Not far from the wounded, those lying flat on the ground, motionless, with their limbs clearly stitched back together, were the most tragic of all!