The Extra Wants To Live-Chapter 273: The March of Shadows

Carl's advancing army captured several castles and cities without a fight.

The terrible losses in the ensuing civil war and the mythical victories of Archduke Carl struck fear into many. Above all, the discontent and fear of women—the focal point of the rebellious sultans and the Kuah Haddad sect, led by Siana—were growing increasingly uncontrollable.

After Yusuf learned about Siana, he began deploying manpower to spread rumors about the terrible and evil witch known as Heretic Siana, and this finally began to take effect. This situation provided the Sultan's vassals, the instigators of the rebellion, with an indirect pretext for surrender.

They argued that the people's fears and groans were all caused by the witch heretic Siana and that this wicked witch was controlling the sultans by blinding their eyes and deafening their ears. Therefore, it became possible to claim that it was morally right to fight to save the master who was possessed by the witch rather than to obey the master's orders while he remained under her spell.

It was truly petty to surrender one after another under that pretext and then eventually decide not to fight in order to preserve troops and resources, but the people of the surrendered territories welcomed this decision with open arms.

For the common people, civil wars and holy wars were all useless.

If only they could trust Hadad as before, follow the Padishah, and live in peace, that would be all they could ask for.

Of course, war was not something that could be resolved so smoothly.

Carl carried out a local conscription for supply purposes, taking away a significant amount of manpower and food. For those who refused, he even resorted to plundering, exercising his legitimate rights as the victor.

Because of his promise with Yusuf and with Akhtar Ali watching, he could not commit massacres or burn down cities. However, when the Tumarians cried, begged, and pleaded that they would starve to death if they were forced to leave, they were beaten and driven away, and their food was confiscated as often as necessary.

Carl even kicked and pushed away a mother who knelt before him, pleading that she could not send her son to the battlefield, and conscripted the man regardless.

Some argued that burning cities and committing massacres and looting would increase morale and maximize the violence of soldiers exposed to the stress of close combat.

This was not simply the opinion of a few commanders. It was a claim made after careful examination of military science, which had been accumulated and organized since ancient times.

"You don't even have the right to kill the enemy after victory! We came here to fight and win, not to take care of the people of the enemy country!"

Even the nobles, knights, and soldiers expressed great discontent.

"After the war, Hardion will rule over the western part of Tumaria as its colony. This land was taken over with a promise of peace, so if Hardion burns the cities and commits massacres here, it will have a devastating effect on his future rule. The territory that he has completely taken over may turn against him in order to resist higher taxes. Look at the situation calmly."

Instead of mentioning Yusuf and Ali, Carl addressed these grievances by discussing only practical matters. Fortunately, the noble commanders of the First Expeditionary Force and the Laurel League, who had actually participated in the war, enthusiastically supported Carl, and the issue was quietly resolved.

But eventually, problems arose.

Despite Carl's orders not to kill the Tumarian people unnecessarily, soldiers killed an entire Tumarian family of nine—from the elderly to an infant—during a recruitment process.

To cover up the incident, they set fire to the house, but the flames spread, burning down five adjacent buildings and killing or injuring dozens of people.

"You have disobeyed orders, so I will execute you according to military law."

Carl reacted to the matter with chilling composure.

Some argued that this was an excessively harsh punishment for killing a few enemy soldiers, but the soldiers had directly disobeyed an order issued by Carl, the Archduke of the Empire and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, and thus had to be executed.

By publicly executing the soldiers who had committed crimes, Carl managed to suppress the raging discontent among the Tumarians. However, no compensation was given for the dead or the lost property. This decision, at least, somewhat eased the dissatisfaction within the Hardion army.

After all, the dead could not speak, and the words of those who had lost everything and suffered burns carried no weight. That was the end of it.

Everyone feared criticism, so they kept their mouths shut and pretended not to know.

Carl was becoming increasingly anxious as these minor incidents continued to occur without even fighting a single battle. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com

The soldiers who fought under the Laurel Wreath obeyed Carl's orders without question. However, the Second Expeditionary Force did not practice such unconventional obedience, and above all, maintaining discipline was difficult due to the large number of conscripts in their ranks.

More than anything, what probably weighed on Carl's mind the most was Camilla, whom he had left behind.

He wished he could at least hear news that she had recovered safely, but it was impossible to exchange information since he had to keep her existence a secret.

Regardless, he could not stop now.

Carl continued his advance eastward, leading his 50,000-strong army, which felt like a band of unruly children.

"Siana's forces are stationed two days away."

It was not a military scout who brought the news, but an agent with a bloody ring finger.

It was difficult to sneak into an army composed of standing troops, making espionage impractical. However, in an army with many conscripts and a large, chaotic structure, infiltration was much easier.

"Their number is 80,000, and it is a force barely gathered by fully demonstrating their wicked abilities, so there is no way back for them."

The agent respectfully presented Carl with a piece of paper containing detailed information on the enemy's force composition, troop deployment, and supply status.

"...."

Carl read it silently, his gaze dark and unreadable. Then, without hesitation, he threw the paper into the brazier, watching it burn.

The agent hesitated for a moment instead of retreating immediately.

He trembled, not raising his head as he knelt, before speaking in a small voice.

"Master, may I ask you something?"

"Camilla was treated and left behind to recover."

"...Thank you."

At Carl's calm words, the agent let out a trembling sigh of relief, bowed his head in gratitude, then stepped back and quietly walked away.

Camilla was important to Carl—she was a precious person—but ultimately, she remained nothing more than a pawn on the board. Even Carl himself saw her that way.

But to the bloody ring finger, Camilla was almost like a princess.

When contact was lost, everyone's heart had sunk.