413: Chapter 51: Gathering the Defeated Soldiers_1 413: Chapter 51: Gathering the Defeated Soldiers_1 Defeat was an avalanche, the ground teeming with routed soldiers.
The so-called orderly retreat was purely a joke.
When disaster strikes, every man fears for himself, and even the Crown Prince’s orders were unable to stop the determination to escape.
It didn’t matter if they couldn’t outrun the Bimon Cavalry, as long as they could run faster than their comrades.
The Second Legion, which was supposed to cover the retreat, used their strength to run to the very front of the fleeing crowd.
As for Crown Prince Caesar, the commander-in-chief, he was forcibly evacuated by his subordinates the moment the army collapsed.
At such a time, to follow his orders would be to put their families at risk.
The chase began, and bloody scenes were continuously played out.
Nothing but routed soldiers could be seen, so much so that the pursuing Bimon Cavalry couldn’t keep up.
…
In Dapes City, Chris the Ninth, anxiously waiting for news, spewed out a mouthful of blood upon receiving the casualty report.
“A single incompetent soldier can be the downfall of an entire army.”
He understood that now.
But it was all too late.
A much-anticipated battle, ending in a crushing defeat, and brought Moxi Duchy to the brink of destruction.
The Orton Duchy Expeditionary Army wiped out, the Ruilin Kingdom’s Expeditionary Army decimated, and the newly established legions also exhausted in the conflict.
The much-anticipated Alpha Kingdom Expeditionary Army, after this battle, was left with only the First Legion.
Such a heavy price was paid, and the result was nothing but wiping out a few tens of thousands of Orc Cannon fodder.
The losses among the elite orcs were uncertain, but it was unclear if the losses reached four digits.
After all, they had omnipotent medic “Sacrifice Shaman”.
As long as they weren’t killed on the spot or seriously injured, they could be saved.
Despite the heavy losses, the person seemingly responsible for the command of the battle, Crown Prince Caesar, was actually not the one who set off the series of consequent events.
It was Moxi Duchy that was responsible for paying the price.
There was no blame to be placed.
They were simply assisting voluntarily, fighting to the death on the battlefield, even if they lost, they were doing their best.
On paper, the biggest loss was the Alpha Kingdom Expeditionary Army.
Five legions went into battle, and it was unknown whether the soldiers who withdrew could form a single legion.
Alpha Kingdom didn’t blame them, fearing that they were not even prepared to be allies.
The king fell ill, the Crown Prince was young, and obviously unsuited to oversee the overall situation.
Crown Prince Caesar of the neighboring kingdom had just suffered a costly lesson, which inevitably frightened the Moxi Royal Family.
Facing the current complex situation, they did not dare to push their inexperienced Crown Prince to take charge.
The power of the Duchy naturally fell into the hands of a group of ministers.
Under normal circumstances, everyone would be scrambling to seize such an opportunity.
But this time was different, the nobles had learned humility, all of them acting courteously and showing no intention of seizing power.
“Since everyone is so humble and unwilling to become the Deputy Prime Minister, let’s wait until His Majesty the King wakes up.
As for the aftermath, it is now urgent.
We must come up with a strategy as soon as possible.
Let’s simply have everyone present their thoughts and opinions, and then have all the ministers on the scene vote.
The proposal that gets the highest number of votes will be the final decision.”
Chancellor Helcheg said with a bitter smile.
The current situation is very unfavorable to the Duchy, and any negligence could lead to the fall of the Duchy.
Nobody wants to shoulder the blame.
The defense of Dapes City was about to begin, and chances of holding it were slim according to the current situation.
Whoever took charge would be undertaking the responsibility of the possible collapse of Dapes City.
The blame for the collapse of the Duchy would probably also fall on them.
Once such a huge blame is borne, it can never be waived.
Infamy and a tarnished reputation would be the least of the concern.
The critical thing would be the future’s reckoning.
Not only would they sacrifice themselves but their clans would involve too.
Once the political game starts, there will be no retreat.
There can be no mercy.
While others could hide, Chancellor Helcheg could not.
To reduce his liability, he just dragged everyone in for collective decision-making.
People looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
This may not be the best way, but it is the most effective way at this moment.
Collective decision-making and collective responsibility is always better than continuous evasion, and everyone working together to cover up the problem.
Seeing no opposition, Chancellor Helcheg braced himself and proposed:
“Since everyone is so humble, let me share my thoughts first.
The Duchy is currently in a difficult situation, we must do the following:
Firstly, His Majesty the King can’t have an accident.
This is related to the stability of the Duchy’s morale, and we must do our best to save him.
Bring out any life-sustaining treasures!
It’s not about personal gain and loss now.
As long as there is effort, there will be gain.
Let us all be witnesses, and the Duchy will compensate for it afterwards.
Secondly, the defense of Dapes City must be immediately fully launched.
Given the current situation, if we can’t hold Dapes City, the Duchy still needs to keep fighting, so relocating the capital needs to be considered.
…
Most of the proposals were passive, none were about a counterattack.
These incredibly pessimistic proposals all miraculously gained the approval of most of the people in the room, clearly, the recent battle had greatly shocked the upper echelons of Moxi Duchy.
“Your Excellency the Prime Minister, everything else can be done, but it is currently impossible to pull back the forces on the Terence Defense Line.