This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 492: Dealing with Spoils of War

Chapter 492: Chapter 492: Dealing with Spoils of War

"I, on behalf of the Falcon Royal Family, hereby declare that the Falcon Kingdom’s air and ground forces are surrendering to the Alliance, the Business Expeditionary Army, and combating nations such as the Lion Kingdom, Honey Badger Kingdom, Golden Lizard, and Hump, effective immediately."

"From the day the surrender agreement is signed, all military units loyal to the Falcon Royal Family must immediately abandon their current positions and proceed to the Alliance or Business Army’s garrison to surrender their weapons and ammunition. The Alliance and the businesses have promised to ensure the safety of everyone’s lives."

"I also inform my subjects that the Kingdom declared war on the countries of the Sunset Province because the blessings bestowed by the Spirit of the Sand Sea have been diminishing year by year. The expenses for the military, royal household, and industry remain high due to the pressing circumstances, and this situation was never my intention."

"I hope you all understand my intentions."

Within the holographic image,

King Montegarde, crowned and robed, sat in the castle office, pronouncing the decree of surrender to the camera.

Just five minutes earlier, he had already signed the formal written surrender agreement, handing it over to the Burning Corps of the Alliance stationed at the castle.

This holographic video would be broadcast throughout the entire Falcon Kingdom in the form of audio and sent to the various army units of the Falcon Kingdom through the command system.

One could anticipate that the players stationed in Bister Town were now busy.

Finally having read the decree of surrender to the end, Montegarde paused and glanced at the holographic image projected in front of him.

The image that appeared was that of the Manager of the Alliance.

The man was younger than he had expected, unlike the portraits collected by his officials from within the Honey Badger Kingdom.

Especially those eyes, deep as the stars above.

Although they lacked much edge and sharpness, those pitch-black pupils had a haunting penetrating power that made him unable to meet his gaze—as if lingering on those pupils for an extra second would steal all his secrets.

"Do you see any need for changes?" King Montegarde asked deferentially.

Chu Guang was rather satisfied with his decree of surrender, especially since he had placed the essential details at the forefront and left the trivialities for the end.

Regarding the Falcon Kingdom, he had already made plans, but there was no need to disclose them at this moment.

To thwart General Griffin’s mad scheme, the second thing he had to do now was to disarm the frontline troops!

Looking at the old man with a low gaze on the holographic screen, he said succinctly,

"No need, this version will do."

Montegarde nodded slightly, sighed inwardly, bid farewell, and then disappeared from the holographic screen.

Watching the old man disappear from the screen, Chu Guang turned his gaze to Xiao Qi perched on the pencil holder.

"Did you get the communication interface?"

The Army not only helped the Falcon Kingdom establish a relatively modern command system but also provided the Falcon Kingdom with a full set of information technology services.

After all, inheriting some of the pre-war military technologies, the Army still had expertise in information security and cryptography, which even the Academy and businesses found challenging.

Not to mention a general-purpose assistant AI like Xiao Qi.

To make a vivid but inappropriate comparison, the Army’s information warfare defense capability is a 4, and its offensive capability has probably degenerated to a 3 over time.

The business is roughly a 3 and a 4, and the Academy, targeted simultaneously by the Army and the businesses, is about a 5 and a 2.

As for the refuge with maximum defense power, it is probably a 6 and somewhere between 0.5 to 1.

This is determined by a series of historical reasons, including the budget.

As for the nations of the Luo Xia Province, from various indications, the only thing they inherited from the pre-war civilization was the "dike," and even this sole inheritance was endowed with religious significance due to its inexplicability.

Unless the Falcon Kingdom, like the Lion Kingdom, entirely abandons radios for long-distance communication and relies on carrier pigeons or swift horses, with the feudal kingdom’s IT capability and encryption level, this war would not have needed to last so long.

Even with a mere "attack power" of 0.5, the "primitive civilizations" before the Prosperity Epoch couldn’t have resisted.

If the Army hadn’t provided encrypted information services, Xiao Qi could have crippled the Falcon Kingdom’s communication systems like it would crush networks in the real world.

But now that was no longer necessary.

The Alliance’s Army had physically obtained the "key" to open the door from the Falcon Kingdom, and the signal relay was already installed at the top of the castle tower.

"... The interface has been confirmed, and the signal condition is good! Master, shall we send the earlier video to the Falcon Kingdom’s headquarters?"

"Yes," Chu Guang said, nodding appreciatively at the bright-eyed Xiao Qi, "not just to the headquarters, try to send it to all operational units at all levels... if possible."

Xiao Qi playfully placed her right fist against her chest.

"Received!"

The broadcast of surrender first played in Falcon City.

Through the loudspeakers and speakers throughout the city, it repeated over and over again.

When the guards heard their king declare surrender, those who were fighting to the death in the castle finally gave up their last illusion and, disheveled, raised their hands and walked out from the attic of the storeroom and from under the kitchen stove.

Of course,

not everyone could accept such an outcome calmly.

"Long live His Majesty the King!"

With his facial muscles twisted in madness, a guard pulled the pin of the last grenade and was blown to pieces with a bang.

Others, without a word, shoved the barrel of their gun into their mouths and closed their eyes as they pulled the trigger... choosing to die as warriors.

But no matter what, it could not change the fact that they had been defeated.

Everything was over.

Even before their king had surrendered, their kingdom had already lost...

Seized rifles were scattered in the great hall of the Royal Palace, while the ammunition was separately stored in the storeroom. Guards, with their hands on their heads, were escorted out of the castle in line by Alliance soldiers.

A soldier stopped in front of Middel, looked at his superior officer, whose face was wrapped in bandages, and hesitantly saluted.

"Sir, where do we go from here?"

Middel watched him with mixed feelings.

"Go and stay with your family."

The soldier was stunned, standing there bewildered until his comrade came over and pulled him aside.

The scruffy man muttered and patted his shoulder.

"Come on... come to my place."

Watching the two men walk away, Middel then suddenly remembered; this young man had an impression... he had enlisted in place of his brother, who had enlisted in place of their father.

This young man had no home to return to.

Middel closed his eyes in pain and faced the long line without saying a word for a long time.

On the other side,

Standing at the entrance to the dungeon, Corner Old Six approached Old White.

"Members of the Royal Family are now under control, and those nobles who depended on the Royal Family... should we let them stay in the dungeon, or let them go back to their rooms to sleep?"

Old White thought for a moment and then said,

"Let them manage in the dungeon for tonight, the NPCs taking over can handle them afterward."

Corner Old Six made an OK sign.

"Okay."

Before the airship flew above the castle, they needed to take over the guard duties for the NPC of the First Army Corp.

This was easy for players.

They just took turns logging out to rest.

Apart from controlling the entire castle, Wild Wind also allocated a hundred-men squad to Quit Smoking, who was tasked by Montegarde’s appointed courier and Pofu’s deputy city defense commander, to head to Falcon City’s south gate to relieve the city guard and militia of their duties.

Several anti-aircraft cannons were still deployed on the riverbank.

Before the airship arrived, they needed to concentrate on destroying those anti-aircraft cannons that hadn’t been blown up.

On the way to the southern gate on the riverbank, the squadron led by Quit Smoking happened to meet the militia units rushing to support the castle.

These people, among them old men, children, and even women, were a group of over a hundred, with only about twenty guns. The rest, dozens of people, even carried pitchforks and flails.

It was clear they did not want to come.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have taken so long to cover the ten kilometers.

There was no need for the Centurion named "Quit Smoking" to command; Pofu’s deputy immediately ran up, waving his hands and shouting at them.

"War has ended! Drop your weapons and you can go home now!"

No one moved.

Finally, a man in his fifties squeezed out from the crowd and stared at the adjutant, asking,

"Do your words count? If we drop our weapons... won’t His Majesty... hang us?"

The adjutant couldn’t help but laugh as he shouted,

"Rest assured! No, he won’t! His Majesty has already surrendered!"

Once it was confirmed that their king had surrendered, and the recent broadcast was not a lie fabricated by the enemy, these militia dropped their weapons and farming tools, relieved, and scattered, disappearing into the streets.

At that moment, a laborer carrying a shovel emerged from an alley.

He was followed by a group of ragged individuals who had been with him ever since the soldiers of the Alliance had left the castle.

Looking at the official, who seemed to have some authority, a dark-skinned man called out,

"What about us? Do we still need to keep repairing those barriers?"

The adjutant, bemused, said,

"That’s not necessary... Don’t waste your time anymore, you all go home too."

The castle had fallen; what was the point of repairing these things?

These servants really had no insight...

When they heard they could go home, everyone’s eyes brimmed with tears, crying tears of joy; some even threw down their shovels and cheered,

"Long live the Alliance!"

Unfortunately, just as the words were spoken, the emotionally charged man was quickly silenced and dragged away by his companions.

The war had ended.

But the city’s name hadn’t changed yet.

The king sitting in the castle was still the same.

No one knew what the future would hold...

...

At the same time,

The frontline of the Eastern Oasis No. 2.

When news of King Montegarde’s surrender reached him, Prince William, sitting in his tent, was stunned for a full ten minutes.

Finally regaining his composure, he stretched out a trembling index finger to his forehead, and after a long while, he looked toward the guard standing before him,

"... Play it again."

"Yes!"

The guard nodded anxiously and opened the holographic imaging device he was holding, replaying the holographic image from Falcon City.

Within the pale blue particles of light,

The aging king spoke calmly,

"... On behalf of the Falcon Royal Family, I hereby declare that the armies of Falcon Kingdom, both terrestrial and aerial, surrender to the Alliance, Business Expeditionary Army, and the warring nations of the Lion, Honey Badger, Golden Lizard, and Hump, effective today."

William stared intently at the holographic image of the old man, trying to discern any sign of deceit in his expression, his voice, or even within the tiny pixels of light.

Regrettably, he found nothing until the image’s last second.

Undoubtedly.

That person was his father—

Montegarde of Falcon!

The supreme sovereign of Falcon Kingdom.

William closed his eyes in agony, his bold eyebrows filled with sorrow and struggle.

Watching the clenched fists of the prince, the guard in front of him bowed his head and asked seriously,

"Your Highness, what should we do?"

If Prince William refused to acknowledge King Montegarde’s decree of surrender, he would stand with the prince and correct the old king’s mistake.

The border of Oasis No. 2 was still in their hands.

They were backed by the Corps Headquarters.

As long as Prince William was willing to fight, they would not possibly lose!

Prince William remained silent for a long time, his fists clenched and then relaxed on his knees, and finally, all his reluctance, astonishment, and anger turned into a long sigh.

"Mikalite."

"Present," the guard replied solemnly.

Prince William paused, then continued.

"...I never thought Falcon City would fall into the hands of the Alliance."

"We fought bravely for General Griffin, for Triumph City, for their marshal, and yet none of their promises to us have ever been fulfilled."

The guard stared at His Highness blankly, his expression already guessing something from the prince’s demeanor.

Prince William didn’t look at the young guard.

He just suddenly remembered the words unilaterally declared to him by that haughty officer outside the City of Abundance.

Whenever the progress of the war was unfavorable, the Weilante people would have them charge, and when it was time to retreat, the Weilante people would ruthlessly abandon them and demand they cover the retreat.

It always seemed to be that way.

Tonight was no different; only when the decree of surrender reached his hands did he know that the Royal City behind him had been occupied by the Alliance’s people.

The Falcon Kingdom had already lost at least hundreds of thousands of youths to the war, not to mention the countless people who had fled the kingdom...

And those from Weilante had never really considered them as their own.

He could take the throne from his father and declare the ceasefire decree invalid. His army was loyal to the royal family, but even more loyal to him as the kingdom’s marshal.

He could lead his men to continue the fight, to clash with the Alliance and the Business Expeditionary Army till the end...

But he knew.

Even if he did that, the outcome would not change.

If the Weilante people had never considered them as their own, then all the promises were nothing but self-deceptive lies...

They would never get reinforcements from Triumph City.

Even if they did, it would all be futile by then.

"Order all troops to break camp immediately... Leave the weapons and ammunition behind, shut down the radio, and head to Bister Town to surrender."

Upon hearing the prince’s voice, the guard’s shoulders shuddered slightly in surprise, but eventually he bowed his head profoundly.

"Yes!"

...

Not only Prince William and the various locations of the Falcon Kingdom Army had received the decree of surrender, but naturally, so had the Corps Headquarters, which held the highest command of the frontline.

The Servant Country Army’s every move was under their surveillance, and such significant news could not possibly be overlooked.

Staring blankly at the direction of the south, General Griffin cursed furiously after a half-minute pause.

"These despicable traitors! Incapable of success but all too capable of failure, damn dogs!"

Not loyal at all!

His right fist heavily pounded the command table, his eyes bloodshot as he stared fixedly at the map spread out on the table.

His worst fear had indeed come to pass.

From the start, the Alliance had planned to take Falcon City, not just a simple strategic bombing.

But he had never expected that Falcon City, with over five thousand garrison soldiers, could be overtaken by an Alliance airborne unit of merely less than a thousand.

What he had not foreseen even more was that the old man who had always treated him with utmost respect would choose to surrender so decisively...

The officers standing in front of the command table similarly had heavy expressions.

Including the militia mobilized to the frontline and the defense armies, there were currently eight ten-thousand-strong troops at the borders of Oasis No. 2, responsible for a defense line 120 kilometers wide, extending thirty kilometers deep.

Once these eight squads turned their backs on us,

the defense line that they had hardly managed to build would instantly become riddled with deep holes.

Unless they could disperse the remaining five ten-thousand-strong troops to those vacant defensive positions... but that would only make the situation worse.

A staff officer couldn’t help but steal a glance at General Griffin and whispered a reminder.

"If the Alliance’s armored forces set out now, we would quickly be encircled and cut off..."

"You don’t need to remind me," General Griffin coldly cut him off.

The expression on the staff officer’s face froze slightly.

Several officers standing in front of the command table exchanged looks, eventually turning their eyes to the adjutant closest to General Griffin.

Support from the rear was arriving soon.

But professional intuition told them, even if it arrived, it would be of no help.

Their Servant Country had already declared surrender; from now on, they had to face the survivors of the entire desert and the Expeditionary Army from the east alone.

Not only was ammunition supply a problem.

Even the supplies of bread, beef, eggs, and milk had been cut off, without rear supply delivery, even if the Alliance did nothing, they wouldn’t last long.

Unless they turned their guns and took down the Falcon Kingdom... but that was clearly impossible. Occupying a kingdom was much harder than coercing one; they could not spare the manpower to establish a puppet, not to mention the Alliance’s army was closely watching them.

No matter what General Griffin was thinking.

They no longer wanted to fight...

Pressured by the gaze of his peers, the adjutant, steeling himself, looked towards General Griffin, lowering his voice to say.

"General... what should we do?"

General Griffin remained silent for a long, long time.

Finally, under the expectant gazes of everyone around, he slowly spoke.

"Move to the military base one hundred kilometers away... our reinforcements are about to arrive." General Griffin paused every word as he glanced over the officers standing at the command table, "Surrender is not in my dictionary. As long as I am standing here... forget about it."

He was ready to go to hell.

For Triumph City.

For His Excellency the Marshal.

For the glory of being undefeated.

At the moment he uttered those words, pairs of eyes instantly filled with disappointment.

Even despair.

They had no idea about the plan in Griffin’s heart and were certainly not ready to follow him to death.

A silent atmosphere spread in front of the command table.

Feeling the pressure from those gazes, the adjutant helplessly lowered his head, clenched his teeth, and said.

"Yes..."

...

The next morning.

A strange scene emerged on the border of Oasis No. 2.

At the heavily guarded positions, a large group of people left their positions empty-handed and walked towards the desert.

Another group also left the trenches but retreated in the completely opposite direction.

Both groups, as if they had agreed on it, did not interfere with each other.

"My goodness... those Weilante people surely don’t want to fight anymore, right?"

Standing on top of a tank turret, Gnome King Riches, holding a pair of binoculars, looked into the distance and suddenly clicked his tongue.

Groups of prisoners gathered at the west gate of Bister Town, where the leading commander was handing over to the officer the Alliance had sent to accept the surrender.

He looked around but did not see any Weilante People with big noses.

He also didn’t see any Old Soldiers.

"No one can go against the flow of history... look forward," said the Mole, squinting his eyes and pretending to be deep with a phrase he didn’t even understand himself.

At that moment, the newbie leaning against the tank suddenly sighed.

"If one cannon fired... it would take down quite a few, huh?"

The Mole rolled his eyes.

"Then your account would be gone, remember to sell off the silver coins in your account first."

The price of silver coins was always fluctuating.

Especially since there had been several auctions recently, though no one knew what was auctioned, they all ended with transactions worth billions.

Although the newbie probably didn’t have much money, exchanging a thousand or two wasn’t a problem.

The newbie was stunned.

"Oh... they even ban trade accounts?"

The Mole looked at him strangely.

"This is a closed beta game... The helmets were given in a lottery, so it’s not unreasonable if the beta access got revoked."

The newbie chuckled bitterly.

"Damn! But isn’t that punishment a bit too harsh?"

Jumping down from the gun tower, Gnome King Riches playfully slapped the guy on the shoulder.

"Well, you see, in this game, every NPC is data-deleted upon death. It’s not just about the Game Manager wanting to get you, if they don’t, we would have to."

"That’s right," Elena nodded with a subtle expression, "... continuing to fight, the expansion pack settlement would probably be postponed."

"The Army’s collective score would be deducted too."

"You might even miss the end-of-the-year ’Tide’ event."

"Shit... that definitely can’t happen!"

Seeing that people were starting to look at him unfavorably, the newbie hurriedly laughed and waved his hands.

"I was just talking big... I definitely can’t screw everyone over!"

He was just thinking about it.

The keys to the tank were in the hands of the vehicle commander, and those level ten or twenty leaders certainly wouldn’t accompany him in causing trouble.

Besides, the silver coins in his account were worth a good few thousand.

The Mole meaningfully glanced at the newbie and said nothing.

But then again.

If someday a player suddenly sold all their equipment and consigned all their silver coins, as long as the Game Manager wasn’t a complete idiot, they would definitely know what he was planning.

Although he dared not try it, he was still curious.

Would the Game Manager use their authority to suspect a player of causing trouble?

Or would they enforce it by using a decoy method...

Unfortunately, due to the existence of the BAN mechanism, even those outliers who disregarded others’ gaming experience would disappear from the forums if their accounts were locked.

It’s unknowable now.

...

The afternoon sunlight shone on the streets of Falcon City.

For most residents of Falcon City, today’s sunlight was exceptionally bright. This war, provoked by the foolishness and ambition of a few, had finally ended.

Many people left the city early in the morning carrying wicker baskets, planning to dig up some unattended potatoes or wheat spikes in the fields outside to take home and make porridge.

It had been a long time since they had seen the sun outside.

Ever since the "War Act" and "Mobilization Ordinance" had been issued, civilians without titles needed approved documents to leave the city.

Worried that people would flee to other oasis with their families or hide in the forests to evade conscription, the noble lords preferred that they starve in the city than be allowed to leave and fend for themselves.

Thank heavens.

It was all finally over.

No matter what the future held, everyone was liberated.

Of course, not everyone who left the city did so because of hunger, many primarily sought to escape the chaos brought about by war.

As the militia, city guard, and royal guards were disbanded one after another, public safety in the city soon deteriorated.

There’s never a shortage of those who capitalize on chaos.

Not to mention, among a group of old and sickly, anyone who had a bit of strength could brand themselves a king, and if they could bring home a rifle from the battlefield, they could easily become a "general" ruling over several streets.

Added to this were the demobilized veterans, who posed another disturbing factor.

However, the chaos did not last long.

Perhaps disliking those who took advantage of the situation and bullied both men and women, the victorious Alliance soldiers did not stand idly by.

Instead, they took action.

They did two things.

The first was to gather representatives from various professions within the city to form the "Citizens’ Self-Government Committee," selecting a group of young men from the demobilized militia to whom they distributed weapons seized from the guards and city guard.

The second was to ruthlessly punish those bandits who looted and committed public violence, handing them over to the newly formed "Citizens’ Self-Government Committee" for punishment.

Inside the castle’s palace.

A few men, battered and bruised, were kneeling on the ground, tightly bound by ropes.

Not far from them stood several elders, women, and children, brought here as victims and witnesses.

Standing alongside the players of the Burning Corps and the representatives of the Citizens’ Self-Government Committee, were tailors, stone masons, and a butcher who even held an "Opener" rifle.

It was evident that it was their first time at the royal palace, everyone looked very constrained, even nervous, not daring to look at the king seated on the throne.

Had it not been for the Alliance soldiers’ instruction to stand there, they might have been kneeling on the ground like the criminals.

Without looking at the men kneeling on the ground, Old White looked towards the old king on the throne.

"...In the Alliance, robbery is a serious crime, with the maximum punishment being labeled as a Looter, deprived of all personal freedom, political rights, and even human rights, and worked like an animal in the mines until death."

As he spoke, Old White suddenly shifted his gaze from the face of the king to the civilian representatives they had selected.

"How do you deal with such cases here?"

The people hesitated for a moment, but finally, the butcher stood out and said fiercely,

"By the law of the Falcon Kingdom... they should be beheaded as a public example!"

On hearing they were to be executed, the men kneeling on the ground cried out like rats whose tails were stepped on.

"Wait! I am a noble! I was personally titled a baron by His Majesty... the penalty of beheading does not apply to me!"

Old White was unsurprised by the man’s plea.

Apart from the small fry, those who were able to take advantage of the situation at this time were usually the nobles exempt from military service.

Especially those of moderate status.

These few men had not admitted their crimes before due to pride, but on hearing of their impending execution, immediately revealed their noble status.

All five of them turned out to be barons.

The old king watched them with complete disapproval.

These men had utterly disgraced him.

Old White shook his head.

"Beheading is too bloody... uncivilized."

However, before the kneeling men could rejoice, his next words plunged them into a bottomless icy pit.

"Let’s make it hanging instead."

Hearing that they couldn’t escape death after all, the kneeling nobles all turned their eyes to the king.

"Your Majesty!"

"Spare my life, Your Majesty!"

Looking at those nobles who desperately pleaded with him, the old king sighed, only wishing to remind them that they were pleading to the wrong person.

But there was no helping it, since he himself had knighted these nobles.

He turned to the Army Corps commander and said in a low voice,

"He just... bullied a few civilians, is that really necessary?"

After all, a dog refers to its owner.

These were his subordinates, he had already surrendered, what more did these people want?

Moreover, he didn’t understand why the Alliance wanted to do this.

Was it to win over the hearts of the people?

Or to humiliate him?

It was completely unnecessary to "stage this drama" for him, what dignity did he, a king defeated in war, have left?

However...

That "Citizens’ Self-Government Committee" always gave Montegarde a sense of unease.

Although he would bestow noble status to civilians who demonstrated valor in battle, he was always vigilant about sharing power with anyone beyond the nobility.

Especially now, these people were not only empowered by the soldiers of the Alliance but also held guns.

Under the majesty of the Royal Family, these peasants might not do much, but it would probably be very difficult to retrieve the guns from their hands.

At that thought, Montegarde couldn’t help but feel a headache.

The temporary chaos in the city didn’t worry him too much; such turmoil was like a gust of wind, soon to pass.

But what the Alliance was doing filled him with a subtle unease.

He always felt like they had planted a formidable bomb right beneath his feet...

Old White smiled and said,

"This is the Manager’s order, do you have any objections?"

King Montegarde fell silent upon hearing this and shook his head after a long pause.

"No, please proceed as you wish."

The words had barely left his mouth.

Even without a stance from the Alliance people, the citizens around the few prisoners immediately grabbed the kneeling barons fiercely, dragging them out of the door despite their cries.

Clearly.

They had been enduring these fellows for a long time, even before today.

The dragging carried a personal vendetta.

Old White didn’t intervene, tacitly condoning their lynching.

Although he found the Manager’s style to his liking, he knew deep down that Chu Guang didn’t do this to proclaim any justice.

It was merely to throw a portion of the power from his Castle into the outside, distributing it to those citizens treated like fish on the chopping board.

And then further tearing apart the two strata of citizens and feudal nobles...

As one of the means to cripple the Falcon Kingdom’s potential for war, this was more effective than destroying their industries... those expendable items wouldn’t throw themselves onto the battlefield.

Listening to the despairing screams and coarse curses fading away outside the palace gates, King Montegarde sighed and closed his eyes.

Even though his heart was filled with reluctance, what more could he say?

Even he himself was a spoil of war for the Alliance.

And everything the Alliance did was merely handling their own spoils of war...

-

(The book group exploded, you can join the new group; let’s not always discuss dangerous topics... Ah, the chicken soup I stewed today was also a failure, everything did not go well, and I’m late by several minutes, sorry!)