Harem Legion: Queens of the Apocalypse-Chapter 67 She Smiles While They Bleed

It was the fifteenth day since Magnus left. Inside the lumber warehouse, the senior women of Ice Regiment gathered on the sleeper bus for a meeting.

"I’m telling you, we can’t wait anymore!" Sophia snapped, voice sharp. "When he didn’t return after ten days, you all insisted he’d be back in two more. Now how many ’two days’ has it been? Where is he?"

"I think... we should wait another two days... Magnus will come back..." Sarah mumbled, almost like she was convincing herself. She, Taylor, and Victoria were sitting on Magnus’s bed. Victoria had even moved to sleep there at night - said the bed still carried his scent, made her feel safe.

"I agree with Sarah," Grace chimed in, supporting Sarah. In the last few weeks, she and Sarah had gotten close, often seen together whispering in low tones.

Sophia’s temper flared. She pointed at her sister and swung her glare toward Charlotte. "So it’s just these brainless, big-chested girls daydreaming again? Charlotte, Emily, Liana - are you following them too?"

"Brainless?" Charlotte had just taken a sip of water and nearly choked. Among this crew, aside from Victoria, she was probably the bustiest. Was Sophia out of her mind, daring to say that to her face?

Sophia didn’t stop. She raised her voice again. "We’re too close to Springvale City. It won’t take long before we’re discovered. Sure, we’ve got more weapons now - but only compared to civilians! If we run into the 7th Sovereign Vanguard’s infantry vehicles or their jets, do you really think we stand a chance?"

"And who’re you calling brainless?" Grace snapped back, pointing right at her sister. "You call me dumb? We share the same blood! If I’ve got no brains, what does that say about you?"

"Shut your mouth!" Sophia barked, visibly on edge.

Emily and Liana kept their heads down. Charlotte cleared her throat, forcing out a little cough. "Alright, enough. How about we vote like usual? All in favor of waiting another two days, raise your hand."

Grace, Sarah, and Taylor were the first to raise theirs.

"You three can’t vote!" Sophia cut in immediately.

"Why not?" Grace shot back, ready for a fight - until she caught Charlotte winking at her. She huffed. "Fine. Then we won’t vote."

Even without them, results came out 3-1 - Charlotte, Liana, and Emily in favor. Only Sophia against.

Sophia slumped back onto her seat, face cold. Still, deep down, she let out a silent breath of relief. It was the third vote already. She knew how this would go. Maybe this was her way of giving herself some peace for breaking protocol.

"Right, that’s settled then," Charlotte said, moving on. "Now, about the villagers and the captives - what do we do with them?"

Over the past half-month, under Magnus’s instructions, the Ice Regiment had collected a fortune in Crystals. But problems came with them - like Emily had warned. The survivors they had rescued and the prisoners they had taken.

There were 47 villagers - men, women, old, young. Survivors. But they’d also captured 78 rebels from the Rockford uprising - 21 of those were Awakened.

On this matter, Charlotte and Sophia stood firmly together. No room for mercy. The enemy had to die. Mercy toward them was cruelty to their own. They’d already buried 52 sisters from Ice Regiment. Every one of those prisoners had blood on their hands.

As for the villagers, the plan was simple - find them a place, give them some rations. Let them fend for themselves. The Ice Regiment couldn’t feed them forever. But Liana and Emily were clearly hesitant.

After all, they used to be just university professors. The end times hadn’t lasted that long - killing prisoners wasn’t something they could bring themselves to do. Still, they knew keeping or releasing the prisoners wasn’t a wise move.

They were waiting for Magnus to return and make the final decision.

"What the hell is there to wait for?" Sophia snapped, her anger flaring as she stood up again. "They killed fifty-two of our sisters! And you still want to feed these scum? I don’t care if Magnus comes back right now - he’d agree with me! If not, I’ll strip and parade through the streets for you all to watch!"

Neither Emily nor Liana argued this time. The room fell into a heavy silence.

Emily sighed, her voice low. "It’s not that we don’t want them dead... it’s just - who’s actually willing to do it?"

"I am."

The calm voice cut through the room. Everyone turned in surprise as Victoria stood up slowly, wearing a faint smile. "No need to waste ammo. Just give me a knife."

The others stared at her in disbelief. Seventy-eight lives. Saying you’ll kill seventy-eight people with a smile - and using a blade, not a gun. That kind of killing... it’s not the same. A trigger pull is one thing. But cutting someone open? That’s something else entirely.

It’s like shooting a bird with a pellet gun versus slicing it open with a knife. One is distant. The other - makes it real.

And this wasn’t a bird. It was seventy-eight men.

"Sarah, hand me that knife Magnus gave you," Victoria said with a soft smile as she reached out to Sarah.

Sarah just stared wide-eyed, frozen.

Victoria chuckled and teased, "Relax. I’m not going to kill your precious Magnus." She bent down, slid the knife from the sheath strapped to Sarah’s thigh, and turned to look at everyone else in the transport truck - squad and unit leaders of Ice Regiment. She gave them a nod and stepped out lightly from the vehicle.

At the far corner of the lumber mill warehouse, seventy-eight men in military uniforms sat bound together. Hands, feet, mouths - completely taped. Cloth over their heads. They couldn’t see a thing.

Two female Ice Regiment guards held rifles, their eyes full of hatred for these men. Their sisters had died at their hands. And yet, for some reason, the prisoners were still alive and even being given water.

Victoria’s figure swayed slightly as she walked up to the two guards.

"You’ve done enough. You can go now," she said gently.

The two guards blinked in confusion. They’d been at the meeting earlier and saw Sophia and the others follow Victoria out of the truck. Now, they stood at a distance, watching closely.

Realizing what was happening, the guards quickly stepped aside.

Victoria nodded, smiling faintly. She walked over to the nearest man. He was sitting on the ground, head buried between his knees. Whether unconscious or asleep, he didn’t notice her approach. Victoria knelt beside him and quietly pulled his head to rest on her shoulder.

"Let me ask you for a favor," she whispered by his ear.