This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 405: The Reward for the Warrior is Not Just Spoils of War, but Also Applause and Flowers

Chapter 405: Chapter 405: The Reward for the Warrior is Not Just Spoils of War, but Also Applause and Flowers

On the bridge of the Iron Heart.

Beside a chair skewed to one side lay documents they hadn’t managed to burn, and the console connected to the radar had its screen smashed. However, the computer case was still intact; repairing it wouldn’t be too difficult.

It was clear that those people fled in such a haste and disarray that they didn’t even have time to completely destroy everything here.

Thanks to their oversight.

The Iron Heart could nearly fall completely intact into the hands of the Alliance.

"There’s been a sighting of a thousand troops to the north of Dawn City, suspected mercenaries... but they’ve already been dealt with by Xiao Qi!"

"Master, you can rest easy now!"

Standing at the forefront of the bridge, by the floor-to-ceiling window, Chu Guang quietly listened to Xiao Qi’s report about the situation in the northern territories of the Alliance, his lips curling into a smile of relief.

"Well done."

After the battle, communication between Rui Valley City and City of Dawn had been restored, particularly the airborne signals were exceptionally clear, and he could finally have a direct conversation with Xiao Qi, without having to worry about losing connection.

Long ago, probably right after the Northern Expedition had ended, Chu Guang had already started to guard against threats from the north.

Whether it was investigating the origin of the arms supplied to the Chewing Bone Tribe or through contact with the emissaries of the "Firestone" group, it all indicated that the Army had an intelligence network in the Bugra Free State and had murky dealings with the locals.

According to the testimony of the officers who had surrendered under Dylon’s command, the Ten Thousand Leader of the Fourteenth Ten Thousand Troops, Condra, was in the Bugra Free State.

Chu Guang could even assert that the turmoil sweeping across River Valley Province caused by the Chewing Bone Tribe was the handiwork of this intelligence network, possibly aiming to establish a vassal in the River Valley Province, akin to the Falcon Kingdom.

Clearly, the Army had not given up due to the failure of one expedition, including their military movements in Luo Xia Province; they all hinted at preparations for the next expedition.

The main forces of the Alliance being tied up in the west by the Iron Heart had made it strange if the Army’s intelligence network in the Bugra Free State had not made a move.

And after hearing Xiao Qi’s report, the stone that had been weighing on Chu Guang’s heart had finally landed on the ground.

The downpour outside the window had ceased.

Gazing at the rickety twilight and the land on the brink of nightfall, Chu Guang’s thoughts couldn’t help but fly off toward the land bathed in the glow of dusk, hundreds of kilometers away.

Although only a blurry outline was visible, he could feel the storm brewing there.

Regardless, he had now finished the fight at his doorstep; Iron Heart would remain forever in River Valley Province, and for the time being, the Army would no longer covet the land beneath his feet.

With the help of Yun Song and Assault Team No.26, the allied forces of the Four Kingdoms should be able to hold on for a while.

And before the grand army marched to Luo Xia Province, he could take a brief respite, pausing to marvel at the rainbow after the storm...

At that moment, the sound of footsteps approaching from outside interrupted Chu Guang’s thoughts.

Lu Bei, wearing the Type Five "Light Cavalry" exoskeleton, stood at the door, his right fist pressed against his scarred and cracked breastplate, speaking with respectful tone.

"Sir, I have brought the person you requested!"

In the eyes of the young man as he reported, there shone not just respect, but also evident admiration.

As part of Chu Guang’s Personal Body Guard, the Guard Corps had also partaken in the encirclement of the first thousand Airborne Marine Troops in the previous battle.

The figure who had ridden atop the Claw of Death, charging with a warhammer raised high, was deeply etched in his mind.

Although his presence on the front lines didn’t affect the greatness of the man in charge, in that moment, the formidable silhouette bathed in holy light seemed to have been elevated.

He was certain that he wasn’t the only one to feel that way.

Withdrawing his gaze from the window, Chu Guang turned around to face the doorway.

There stood a man with a pale complexion and a prominent nose beside Lu Bei.

Physically, he was far from the large stature of the ground combat officers and appeared more like a civilian or technical staff member.

And indeed, that was the case.

According to the information provided by Old Soldier and the testimonies of the captives, this man was named Finod and served as the logistical commander of the Iron Heart, holding the rank of a Centurion.

Although he did not lead troops, the stars on his epaulettes totaled two more than Vanus’s.

When the fighting had started, he’d been at the Marine Corps garrison, and afterward, the camp was attacked by the Jungle Corps, forcing a retreat to the Fallen Leaf Camp a kilometer away.

He missed General McCullen’s escape pod and then missed Coleway’s last transportation; ultimately, he ran smack into the Skeleton Corps’s armored formation.

The fact he surrendered alive was, in some sense, quite an accomplishment.

Seeing Chu Guang looking at him, Finod swallowed hard, trying to conjure up a strained smile on his face, taking the initiative to speak.

"I... can pay a ransom."

Hearing this, Chu Guang smiled faintly.

"Five million dinars."

Upon hearing this astronomical figure, Finod’s already pale and greenish face turned even paler as his voice trembled, attempting to haggle.

"I, I’m just a Thousands of leaders... isn’t five million too much?"

Chu Guang replied offhandedly,

"Then make it six million dinars."

Hearing the figure of six million, Finod immediately closed his mouth and stopped talking.

He had guessed that this person in front of him had no intention of letting him go; the ransom amount was completely arbitrary.

Six million dinars...

That amount of money was enough to equip three thousand team!

Although the position of logistics officer did indeed bring him some occupational conveniences, even if he had ten thousand times the courage, he wouldn’t dare be so corrupt.

Finod swallowed his saliva, his eyes gradually filled with a hint of fear.

Is this guy planning to make an example of me simply because he didn’t catch any bigger fish?

As his mind wandered with wild thoughts, Finod felt his legs go weak.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of death.

He just wasn’t mentally prepared to die loyally for the marshal...

Chu Guang glanced at the man and asked with interest,

"You’ve become a logistics officer, and you can’t come up with this amount of money?"

Finod said bitterly,

"Sir, do you know what five million dinars mean?"

"I don’t know, and I’m not interested. Moreover, your ransom is six million. If you can’t pay, then work earnestly, hoping for a more lenient treatment," Chu Guang said with a faint smile as he saw a glimmer of hope reignite on the face filled with despair, then he asked, "Can you operate an airship?"

Finod nodded nervously,

"I know a little... I roughly know how to get it moving."

"That’s enough," Chu Guang nodded and continued, "I’ll be watching here; you operate it. The destination is Qingquan City. If there’s any deviation, you probably don’t need me to spell out the consequences."

Upon hearing these words, Finod’s face instantly twisted into a bitter melon, and he stammered in a trembling voice.

"Sir..."

"What is it?"

"The left wing of the airship has been dismantled by you guys... now only the tail power remains," Finod said with a bitter expression, "Not to mention heading to Qingquan City, even pulling up the anchor chain now carries the risk of drifting away..."

Oh, right.

The wing seemed to be broken.

Chu Guang admitted that he may have gotten a little too excited; after all, capturing such a huge device was hard not to get thrilled about.

Just inventorying the loot clearly would probably take days.

Chu Guang believed not only himself but also the players who had defeated the first world-class BOSS in "Wasteland OL" were probably ecstatic at the moment.

Once the loot was fully inventoried and the battle settlement list was produced, he would share the joy of victory thoroughly with his beloved players.

After a light cough, Chu Guang looked at Finod with a troubled expression and said,

"Well, of course I knew it couldn’t be operated; I was just seeing if you had any ulterior motives... I’m satisfied with your performance. The ransom can be reduced by 100,000 dinars; it’s now 5.9 million."

Finod gave a bitter smile and said nothing.

Chu Guang composed his facial expression and continued speaking.

"Take me around here to have a look."

Finod let out a sigh of relief, bowed his head respectfully, and said,

"Yes."

...

After the Jungle Corps and the Burning Corps took control of the airship, they coerced the remaining crew to lower the airship’s altitude.

Now, the Iron Heart was only one hundred meters above the ground.

Except for players on a mission, most players gathered below the Iron Heart, standing next to the anchor chain to take photos as souvenirs.

After all, this was the first world-class BOSS in "Wasteland OL."

And it was the server’s first ten-thousand-player battle.

It definitely deserved a proper commemoration!

Especially seeing the alliance flag hanging on the Iron Heart, for all you know, this airship might become the new meeting point for the alliance.

Take a photo and a group picture now; later on, you can boast to the newbies—"Look at this, your Novice Village was conquered by yours truly!"

While the players were busy preparing material to brag about after logging off, Chu Guang, leading the Guards Corps, was taking over various areas of the airship from the Jungle Corps.

There were about five hundred prisoners from the crew.

Most of these crew members were non-combat personnel, primarily responsible for correcting firepower, operating radar, charting courses, and tasks such as driving and repairing the ship.

Understanding how to pilot this airship and how its logistic system operated was indispensable, and these people’s help was crucial.

For prisoners willing to cooperate, Chu Guang didn’t treat them too harshly; he handed them all over to the logistics department and arranged for people to learn how to steer the airship from them.

If they performed well, their sentences could be reduced.

Frankly speaking, given the size of the alliance at present, there were certain difficulties in fully assimilating the behemoth that was the Iron Heart.

Although the Iron Heart was an aerial unit, its mode of combat was more akin to that of a navy than an air force.

Regrettably, within the alliance’s territory, there were only two lakes, and there was no such thing as a navy.

A range of personnel, including the captain, could only be temporarily promoted from the reserve officers within the army and air force systems.

Under Finod’s guidance, Chu Guang arrived at the ammunition depot of the Iron Heart.

A steel vault door with a thickness of twenty millimeters stretched across the end of the corridor, requiring both a password and a key to enter.

"The code is 4731."

After entering the password, Finod took out the key to open the door, then respectfully handed the key back to Chu Guang.

Chu Guang took the key and casually pocketed it, glanced inside the door, and was soon taken aback by the astonishing sight.

The ammunition racks, several meters tall, were crammed with shells thicker than a leg, and folded mechanical arms stood next to the racks, their bases fixed on T-shaped rails.

Chu Guang, looking at the warehouse full of ammunition, suddenly asked on a whim.

"Are all the airship ammunition depots in the same location?"

Finod respectfully answered.

"Of course not, sir. Each nuclear-powered airship of the corps is designed specifically around its ’Shield Core,’ and each ’Shield Core’ has different preservation conditions... Moreover, this is one of the corps’ topmost secrets."

"Including myself, I only knew the specific locations of various compartments of the Iron Heart after I started my post. Many junior officers, until their service ends and they leave the airship, may not know the exact locations of the ammunition and power compartments."

That so-called Shield Core probably referred to the remnants of a Human Alliance Era escort ship.

Chu Guang nodded to show he understood and didn’t continue to inquire into this fruitless matter; instead, he turned his attention to the reputation of the ammunition inventory.

With the help of the former logistics chief officer of the Iron Heart, Chu Guang did a rough tally.

The loot was indeed quite gratifying.

In total, there were fifty 400mm rocket-boosted shells in the ammunition depot, each weighing close to 1.5 tons, composed of two types of warheads: cloud burst bombs and conventional bombs.

These "sub-nuclear weapons," which General McCullen had not yet managed to use, were now all spoils of war for the alliance.

Not just the main gun’s ammunition, but also nearly ten thousand 100mm shells and millions of bullets of various models and calibers, stored in different compartments.

During combat, these ammunitions would be transported to various fighting positions through mechanical arms and fixed rails, and depending on the type of ammunition, some would be manually loaded while others would be automatically loaded by machinery.

In addition to this, Chu Guang also found 500 medium-range 500kg air-to-ground missiles and 70 large 1000kg air-to-ground missiles in the ammunition depot!

The power of these weapons might be even greater than that of the 400mm main guns!

After all, a large part of the weight of the 400mm rocket-boosted shells was allocated to the propellant, while most of the weight of these 900kg air-to-ground missiles was in the warhead!

A typical cloud burst bomb’s yield was over 8 tons; by comparison, the yield of these missiles might well be up to 20 tons.

According to Finod, the logistics chief, these air-to-ground missiles were mainly used to counteract sturdy fixed fortifications and underground bunkers.

Looking at that full row of ammunition racks, Chu Guang couldn’t help but feel a tinge of relief inside.

It was a close call getting ahold of this airship.

If that shield had flown at someone’s face while activated, I’m afraid that apart from the people in the shelter, very few on the surface would have survived...

The spoils of war weren’t limited to the ammunition on the airship, but also included military supplies stored in the warehouse—500 tons of canned beef and almost 1700 tons of compressed biscuits, pickled vegetables, and various other supplies—enough to last an army of ten thousand for a whole year.

Even in a small-sized cold storage room, Chu Guang found ice cream and milk ice lollies preserved in freezers.

Looking at the desserts in the freezer, a trace of surprise appeared in Chu Guang’s eyes as he made a teasing remark.

"You all seem to be living quite comfortably."

Finod smiled awkwardly and didn’t know what to say in response.

Chu Guang turned to Lu Bei, who was standing beside him, and said with a smile,

"Call a few brothers over in a bit and move all these popsicles and ice lollies down. We’ll share them with the soldiers during dinner."

"They’re labeled ’Centurion’s Special Supply’ on the top, so they must taste pretty good. Let everyone try them and see what they’re like."

After all, he is still a child and can’t resist the temptation of food.

The moment Lu Bei heard about eating, he couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.

However, he quickly realized his lapse in manners and promptly stood up straight to give a military salute.

"Yes, Sir!"

Seeing the excited look on Lu Bei’s face, Chu Guang smiled and didn’t say anything else.

Ice cream wasn’t anything particularly rare in the City of Dawn; however, this was the frontline, and it wasn’t easy to get a bite of something cold here.

Now was the height of the sweltering summer, and having just gone through a major battle, both players and indigenous people were nearing their physical limits.

At this time, getting an ice lolly to cool off would be a delightful treat.

Although there weren’t as many ice lollies as there were cans of beef, several freezers were still packed full, enough for everyone to get one.

Upon hearing Chu Guang’s "share," the soldiers of the Guards Corps were all smiles, all except for Finod, who wore a look of regret.

No one knew better than him, the logistics officer, just how expensive those white-as-mutton-fat-jade ice lollies were.

Just the milk used to make these ice lollies was far from cheap goods, but rather it came from the high mountain pastures by the Sorate River, held by the army, with each barrel valued at over ten thousand dinars. Ordinary civilians neither had the privilege nor the means to purchase it.

Although the freezer was labeled "Centurion’s Special Supply," because this place was too far from the core territory of the army, it had long been supplied only to officers above the rank of Thousands of leaders.

To give these away to the servants was sheer extravagance!

But Finod didn’t say anything.

After all, how to handle the spoils of war was the prerogative of the man before him, and he was merely a captive...

...

Apart from ammunition and military supplies, the airship also carried some as-yet-unemployed construction vehicles and manufacturing equipment.

Chu Guang planned to hand those over to the logistics department.

Beyond those immovable goods, in the lower cabin of the airship, slaves of the army were housed.

To Chu Guang’s surprise, although the living conditions for these slaves couldn’t be considered great, they were unexpectedly not too harsh.

Inside a shared sleeping area of close to two to three hundred square meters, there were about a hundred triple bunk beds crammed in. The beds were so close together that there was just enough room to fit two feet in between.’’

One side of the shared space led to a communal bathroom, with no privacy partitions, and an open room hung with rows of showerheads.

In a corner of the room lay a few bars of soap.

Compared to the Looter’s dungeon that made one physically ill, this place seemed relatively more civilized, barely reaching the standard of a prison.

However, the things that had happened here could not be considered civilized.

Seeing Chu Guang and Finod walk into the room, the slaves’ faces were covered in confusion and anxiety.

Even though this place hadn’t turned into a battlefield, and they were long used to the deafening gunfire and explosions outside, they still sensed something unusual from Finod’s expression and the attire of the people beside him.

Chu Guang noticed that while making eye contact with him, though there was fear in their eyes, they did not shyly look away.

Even though most of them were only clad in a thin piece of clothing that barely covered their bodies.

Standing beside Chu Guang, Finod coughed softly and said in a servile tone,

"Sir, most of these slaves are of low birth, and some are even Waste Land Wanderers that those roughnecks have abducted from the Wasteland. I believe they won’t interest you..."

In his view, these were the spoils of war that should be given to the servants, unlike the invaluable ice cream in the freezer.

Chu Guang looked at him with a bit of surprise.

"You categorize slaves into different levels?"

Finod: "Well, not exactly levels, but centurions and above usually have their own rooms, and those above the rank of thousand leader even have additional chambers. Those places are not just for storing war trophies, but they often serve as quarters for their servants too..."

"Including yourself?"

Seeing Chu Guang’s somewhat amused expression, Finod’s face turned slightly awkward as he stiffly continued.

"Of course... I cannot deny it, but compared to my tastes, I believe you will find General McCullen’s collection much more interesting."

Chu Guang’s eyebrows rose slightly.

"Take me there."

Finod immediately replied with respect.

"Yes, my lord."

General McCullen’s chamber was located at the very end of the airship, not far from the entrance to the escape pods. A few soldiers from the Guards Corps were busy cleaning up blood and bodies from the floor.

There had been a fierce exchange of fire here before, as the walls of the corridor were riddled with bullet marks—a testament to the brutality of the battle.

Upon seeing Chu Guang and his entourage approaching, the two standing at the door immediately saluted.

"Manager!"

Chu Guang nodded at them, signaling for them to continue, then he casually let the pale-faced Finod lead the way.

They quickly arrived at General McCullen’s room.

The space here was quite spacious, a stark contrast to the cramped crew quarters.

Interestingly enough, Chu Guang actually saw Yong’s head here.

The ugly skull was the size of a double-headed cow and seemed to have been treated with formalin or a similar substance, having been turned into a specimen.

However, it seemed that General McCullen probably wouldn’t have the chance to hang this oddity on the bow of the Steel Heart.

Besides Yong’s head, there were piles of pretty stones, gold and silver utensils studded with diamonds, as well as some high-tech-looking devices whose purpose was totally unknown.

According to Finod, whenever General McCullen conquered a survivor settlement, he would select a few of the most valuable trophies to add to his collection.

Some were made by the indigenous people themselves, and others were salvaged from pre-war relics.

Chu Guang wasn’t particularly interested in these treasures and didn’t understand them well, but the nobles of Giant Stone City’s inner city would probably find them intriguing.

He planned to let Yin Fang pick out some valuable items from them once they were transported back, and find a few familiar merchants to help sell the rest.

General McCullen’s private collection.

If brought to the auction in Giant Stone City, it should fetch a fair amount of chips.

Next to the room storing the treasures was a bedroom. As Chu Guang pushed open the door and entered, he found a woman standing inside.

She was in her early twenties and wore a luxurious long dress. Whether it was her looks or the temperament in her expression, she was noticeably different from the slaves Chu Guang had seen in the lower deck cabins.

However...

The panic and bewilderment written in her eyes seemed all too similar.

Standing beside Chu Guang, Finod respectfully introduced her.

"This lady has no ordinary status, she is one of the consorts of the Falcon Kingdom... her name is Teresa, the daughter of a certain influential noble."

Chu Guang looked at him in surprise.

"You’ve even taken their queen captive?"

Finod explained in a low voice: "This shouldn’t be considered as taking by force; the king of Falcon Kingdom offered her willingly to General McCullen."

Teresa’s face was pale as she bit her lip without speaking, her gaze shifting back and forth between Chu Guang and Finod, trying to understand the situation.

Chu Guang stared at her for a while, pondering how to deal with her.

Just then, an idea struck him, and he spoke up.

"Hello, Miss Teresa."

Seeing the person clad in azure power armor addressing her, Teresa said nervously.

"Hello... may I know who you are?"

Chu Guang continued.

"The Manager of the Alliance."

"The... Alliance?"

Teresa’s face showed a subconscious sense of bewilderment.

However, she quickly realized that her ignorance could be taken as an offense, and hurriedly bowed her head in sincere trepidation.

"Sorry, I... I didn’t mean to offend, it’s just that I have never been to such a distant place, and I don’t understand the situation here at all..."

"No need to be nervous, we’re not that petty," Chu Guang smiled faintly and continued, "And you are a victim of the war, we won’t make things difficult for you."

Teresa looked at him blankly, then turned to look at Finod.

Finod did not know what Chu Guang was planning, but being a smart man, he consciously shut his mouth, silently pretending he did not exist.

Seeing that she did not speak, Chu Guang guessed she might still be completely in the dark about the current situation, so he spoke up.

"You may not have figured out the situation yet, but to put it simply, we have defeated the Army, and this airship has now been occupied by the Alliance."

Confirming from Finod’s expression that this was not a joke, Teresa looked tensely at the man in front of her and asked with a trembling voice.

"What about me..."

"You are free now."

Before she could be relieved, Chu Guang continued.

"However, your identity is special, and we might soon be at war with your country, so we cannot release you directly. After all, you wouldn’t want to travel thousands of kilometers home alone and then be captured by us as an enemy, would you?"

Teresa’s lips lightly pursed, and a multitude of thoughts flashed through her eyes for an instant, and finally, she slowly nodded her head, submissively saying.

"What do you... need me to do?"

There was a faint hint of alluring, beguiling purity in that gesture.

However, she had clearly misunderstood.

Joking.

Hanging out on the Forum with a bunch of handsome men and beautiful women every day, what kind of big waves had Chu Guang not seen?

He didn’t care about her little trick at all and went straight to the point.

"Do you have any offspring?"

Teresa’s face turned slightly red as she gently shook her head.

"No..."

Chu Guang’s expression showed a hint of disappointment.

Seeing how young the princess was, he had hoped that she might have a son who was one or two years old. It now seemed she was too young for that.

After pondering for a moment, Chu Guang continued.

"Can you read and write?"

Teresa immediately nodded.

"I can read and write... including poetry and music composition."

"Being literate is good enough."

Chu Guang nodded and then said.

"The military action of the Army in Rui Valley City has caused many local survivors to be displaced. The Home of the Refugees of the Alliance needs manpower, and I will arrange for you to work there."

Teresa’s face was filled with confusion, and she asked in a low voice after a long pause.

"May I ask, what specifically... do you need me to do?"

"Somebody will teach you. What you need to do is help people here rebuild their homes and learn how to rebuild."

With that, Chu Guang smiled faintly.

"You’ll make use of this knowledge."

...

The administrative divisions of the Human Alliance Era were outrageously large, with the area of River Valley Province being large enough, and the area of Luo Xia Province being several times that of River Valley.

The Falcon Kingdom and the core territories of the Alliance were separated by thousands of kilometers. Even if there were one person per kilometer, it would take a ’thousand team’ to fill that space.

Direct occupation of the Falcon Kingdom was not practical.

With a population of less than one hundred thousand, the Alliance simply didn’t have the capacity to control an exclave a thousand kilometers away, which was a burden for both sides.

Not to mention, their cultural concepts were entirely different.

The best solution was to prop up a puppet government, ensure a smooth power transition, then gradually enhance the Alliance’s economic and cultural influence locally, and annex it into the Alliance at an appropriate time... if necessary.

It was a bit of a pity not to get "legitimacy."

But...

It didn’t matter anymore.

After all, it was a last-minute bad idea, and Chu Guang hadn’t expected it to be of any real use in the end.

He preferred the idea of a military cleanup of the Falcon Kingdom’s Royal Family after their defeat, to disarm the area, and then hand it over to the Lion Kingdom for trusteeship.

An indirect vassal was also an option.

It’s just that this approach also came with its risks and uncertainties...

...

In the North of Dawn City.

With the Goblin Corps’ flight squadron’s full return, news of victory was also brought back from the front line.

Outside the wire fence of the airport, residents of Dawn City stood packed.

Flowers thrown vigorously into the air drifted from outside the airport all the way to the runway, alongside the applause and cheers of the people.

Although it was already nighttime, people’s enthusiasm did not wane in the least.

Amid the cheers of the residents of Dawn City, players from the Goblin Corps began to land on the airport runway one after the other.

The main force’s homecoming would be in a few days.

The joy of victory could only be tasted by them in advance.

The aircraft slowly entered the brightly lit hangar, and Feng Qing, descending from the plane, looked at the two lines of poetry etched under the hatch and sighed with a slight regret.

"What a pity..."

She had been ready to die gloriously; she even wrote a poem.

But she didn’t expect to make it back alive.

At this moment, a curious head popped up next to her, peering at the two lines of poetry on the hatch and mumbling them out loud.

"Autumn Shura Field, spirited steeds race with divine wind, pursuit arrows fly like locusts... Awesome, did you write this?"

Her ID was Gui Gui, an Agility System player like Feng Qing and Falling Feather, belonging to the same batch that entered Game, previously participating in the air raid on Qingshi Town and the battle at Pine Forest Valley.

Her piloting skills weren’t outstanding, managing just enough to bring the plane back.

However, the ability to bring back a beaten-up Mosquito plane, in a sense, was also pretty Niubi.

Hearing that voice, Feng Qing’s face flushed crimson like liver, and she hurriedly pounced to pull the other player away, babbling incoherently.

"No, it’s not mine... Stop reading it!"

Meanwhile, in the sky outside the hangar.

The show-off Mosquito, who was reluctant to land, performed a flying display, overestimated the quality of its own product, and nearly buckled the wings. It then landed obediently.

Residents awaiting at the airport offered flowers to these victorious warriors.

Tonight, all through the night until the Sun rose tomorrow, every restaurant and tavern in Dawn City would offer free meals to these warriors who returned safely.

At this moment, in the lobby of the Highway Inn, the clinking of glasses and the sound of celebration echoed, as people raised their toasts to the hard-fought victory.

Not all were residents of Dawn City; there were also traders from Giant Stone City, the Red River Alliance, Garbage City, or even farther places who had come here.

Due to the war, they had stayed here for several days.

Now, it was all finally over.

"Long live the Alliance!"

"To victory, a toast!"

"May the Manager live forever!"

At that point, someone called out, laughing.

"Hahaha, our Manager is still young, wish him many sons and blessings instead of a long life!"

The inn’s lobby was filled with cheerful laughter.

Old Hooke, sitting behind the bar, also started to laugh.

At that moment, the clerk standing to the side couldn’t help but sigh.

"The war is about to end... In a few days, this place probably won’t be as bustling."

Due to the war in the west, a large number of commercial teams traveling from the Eastern Provinces to the west had been forced to stay in the City of Dawn.

Despite the fierce battlefront and the war’s drain on resources, the big inns in the City of Dawn were thriving.

Perhaps it was to drown their sorrows in alcohol, but beer, in particular, was selling well.

But now that the war was over, those commercial teams were probably beginning to think about packing up and hitting the road again.

"How could it be?"

Old Hooke gave a faint smile, squinting at the lively lobby, and said in a casual tone.

"The triumphal ceremonies and celebrations are just in these few days, and many people are waiting to witness that person’s honor. They’ll probably stay a few more days, right?"

After all, a win is a win.

Once the celebration was over, business at the inn might indeed not be as hot as it is now, but that would only be temporary.

Once those traveling commercial teams and merchants carried the heroic deeds and tales of courage from here to farther away places...

This place would only become more lively than it is now.

...

At the same time, several kilometers away in Giant Stone City.

Unlike the residents of the City of Dawn, the people here were still living in yesterday’s news, unaware of the situation on the frontline.

The first to receive the good news from the frontline was the Survivor’s Daily newspaper office.

Backed by Alliance funding, Hal not only got the first-hand battle reports but even got his hands on the casualty list.

"...A casualty list?! Let me see!"

Watching the whirring fax machine, Dolly, who heard that the casualty list had arrived, immediately rushed over, her face full of anxiety.

"It seems like he was in the Burning Corps!"

Hal, standing next to the fax machine, beat her to it, snatching the still-warm firsthand document into his hands.

"Don’t worry... I’ll help you look. The Burning Corps, right? There was mention of news about that corps... Hiss..."

Hal scanned the paper for a moment and then involuntarily sucked in a breath of cold air.

Seeing the subtle expression on his face, Dolly became even more anxious and quickly pressed him.

"What is it?"

Hal’s expression was a bit awkward as he hid the fax behind him.

"Uh, it’s better if you don’t look—"

Before he could finish, he suddenly took a punch to the stomach.

The clash of metal and flesh made Hal gasp in pain, clenching his teeth grimly as he crouched down, clutching his belly.

"You... are you a barbarian?!"

Actually, hitting the boss!

Although, considering their mutual friend, he probably couldn’t really fire her...

Dolly didn’t care about that guy at all, snatching the fax from him and swiftly locating the Burning Corps’ line.

It was also at the instant she saw those lines of text that her right eye slightly contracted, and her youthful face instantly lost all color,

turning deathly pale.

[The Burning Corps had a total of 500 men participate in the airdrop landing combat against the Steel Heart. They wiped out a total of 751 enemies.]

[The battle ended in a Pyrrhic victory.]

[Only one survivor.]

...

(Thanks for the crown rewards from "pk52" and "Shen Chao_Ye Mao kull"!!!)

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