Chapter 892 - Plague
Chapter 892: Plague
General Dunkirk was the garrison commander of Glass.
He enjoyed the position to a certain extent.
It was a high position, which helped feed his ego. More importantly… it was extremely safe! Unlike his peers, he did not have to quell the aboriginals of the Nightmare Ocean, guard the Golden Ocean’s plantation, nor fight in the East.
As an island nation, Ettoman’s geographical advantage was unquestionable, allowing Ettoman to avoid the chaos of the mainland, Opher.
Even wars that specifically targeted Ettoman were settled by the navy.
It was only during the ‘First War between Ettoman and Cecil’ that Ettoman had once sent armies to attack the lands of Cecil. However, that had happened hundreds of years ago. Furthermore, the war eventually ended in a humiliating defeat for Ettoman.
Ever since, all of Ettoman recognized two things: First, the army was inferior to the navy. Second, to protect their lands, a single invincible naval force was enough.
Sadly, many members of the army agreed with these viewpoints.
Fast forward to now, and many posts under Dunkirk exhibited a peculiar trait—they were allowed to be sold and bought. They could even be used to bet on like futures.
For example, a lucrative position would immediately be sought after, causing its price to increase several times over.
However, if these positions were to be sent to dangerous battlefields soon, then apologies… no one except those insane people seeking military glory would want them. Consequently, its price would plummet even faster than a collapsing stock market.
Dunkirk found himself yearning to sell his post and military title, even willing to pay others to buy them from him.
Although he commanded a formal military force of thirty thousand men and ten thousand reserves, he still feared the giant monsters.
“Gods… Queen… can anyone tell me what’s going on?”
General Dunkirk looked at the army of green men that he was facing and sadly buried his head in his hands.
Everything had begun in the morning.
At the time, he was enjoying a scrumptious breakfast of bacon and caviar that his butler had prepared. As he was about to enjoy yet another scoop of golden caviar while contemplating over whether he should go to the club or his mistress’ place tonight, a messenger hurriedly reported that a large army was moving toward Glass.
The general was rather unimpressed at the time.
He was dismissive of the situation because they were not at sea. Even though he had received the news that the pirates had attacked Birming Port, they would at most plunder and maybe kill a few people. And they would flee before the army arrived.
A pirate army on land was an absolute joke!
Unfortunately, the general realized that he was the one that was about to become the joke.
“They are fast and strong, and their skin seems to be covered in armor. Even muskets can only put a small hole in them… Furthermore, they are very organized!” a major general reported to General Dunkirk in a tone that came close to sobbing.
This fellow had lost all the land and passes that he was supposed to guard. His army was lost as well. These losses were enough to put him guilty in front of the military court.
General Dunkirk waved his hand in disgust and summoned the military police. “Lock him up!”
“No! You can’t do this! It’s not my fault!
“… Those things are monsters, monsters from the deep sea and hell…”
The pitiful major general was dragged out of the room while roaring in protest. His cries soon became softer and softer.
“All right, everyone head out. Be on guard!
“I have reported to the Queen and the prime minister and signed the mobilization order. There will be reinforcements soon!
“Now…” General Dunkirk cleared his throat and prepared to boost the morale of his men with a speech.
However, it was interrupted by a shrill voice. “They… are attacking!”
General Dunkirk raised his binoculars and saw a wave of green rushing fiercely toward him, brutally shoving everything in their way aside.
Muskets were only able to leave a few bloody holes in their chests, which did nothing to slow their charge. Only cannon fire was able to blast the monsters into pieces.
“Ettoman will never yield! Behind you stands your Queen and our families! Fight!”
The general’s eyes were bloodshot, and the only thing left in his mind was the battle at hand.
Bang! Bang!
The cannons blew numerous green men into pieces.
On the front lines, sinister machines guns lashed out with tongues of flames that formed a barrier of death, clearing everything in their way.
However, the green giants on the opposing side had overwhelming numbers.
There were at least thirty thousand of them! And they were continuously being reinforced! General Dunkirk was very puzzled. What were the naval and army ministers doing, letting so many of them into Ettoman without any warning!
“Enemy attack!!!” shouted a terrified voice.
The machine gun technology at this time was not yet mature. They required short cooldown periods and had a scarily high probability of malfunctioning.
The green men rushed forth between the gaps in the gunfire.
The young men in Ettoman’s army were immediately locked in a melee battle with them.
Unfortunately, even though the soldiers demonstrated sufficient courage, they suffered one loss after another when confronting the inhuman strength.
The green monsters rushed forward recklessly and came close to the command center.
“Commander, please retreat for the time being!” Military police rushed in urgently. “Those monsters are already close!”
“No! I can’t leave!” shouted General Dunkirk. Immediately afterward, he heard a loud crash.
A green-skinned monster had charged into the tent.
It was at least eight feet tall, and its body was covered in bulging muscles like the strongest of bodybuilders. It had greenish-black skin, and bits and pieces of clothes covered it, as though it had burst open the original clothing from the inside.
Large amounts of green blood gushed from its wounds. However, it did nothing to hinder its movements.
The monster roared as it grabbed a clerk at its side.
The clerk cried pitifully. A wound appeared on his hand, and slivers of green liquid immediately crept throughout his entire body along his veins.
“Ahh… What’s going on? It hurts!”
He screamed as green veins covered his body. Lumps of muscles formed on his body, and with a rip… his shirt exploded. He turned into a smaller-sized green monster, appearing like the brother of the bigger green monster.
“Pirate King… Long live the Pirate King!”
The new green monster roared before trying to grab his former comrades.
“My god!”
General Dunkirk and the military police who had just witnessed the scene were terrified.
“We’ve… been fighting our comrades and citizens all this time?”
After learning how the opponent replenished his army, even the most optimistic people would start to doubt if Glass could last much longer.
In normal warfare, population meant potential. However, in the battle against these monsters, it turned out to be the opponent’s advantage instead.
With Glass City’s population, once this ‘plague’ started to spread, the consequences would be…
General Dunkirk trembled.
Swoosh!
A few rays of light flew toward them and started dancing inside the tent. They effortlessly severed the two monsters into pieces.
“General, Ettoman’s Special Forces are reporting for duty!”
The tent opened, and two men in black robes entered. They wore masks that looked like poker cards and held authorization documents in their hands.
“Special Forces? All right… I knew it… What secrets has the prime minister been hiding from me…” General Dunkirk muttered with dissatisfaction. He looked at the two men in anticipation. “Can you guys… get rid of all these monsters?”
“Apologies, General!” Dunkirk recognized the resignation in their voices. “Extraordinary powers are limited and can’t be used to solve every problem… Furthermore, our sole purpose here is to guarantee your personal safety to prevent the immediate collapse of our army…”
“Prevent its immediate collapse… looks like there’s no hope of victory…” General Dunkirk concluded disgruntledly, but he did not try to argue.
The staff officers and military police at their side swallowed tensely while looking at the swords of the two black-robed men.
“Be careful. Their blood is highly contagious! Extended contact with it isn’t advised either. The kingdom has already paid a heavy price. Thirty-nine specialized autopsists have already turned into monsters…” The black-robed man reminded them.
“I understand…”
General Dunkirk raised his binoculars and surveyed the battlefield.
There was no doubt that chaos engulfed the battlefield.
Although individual camps were still putting up a resistance, it was not long before the sea of green swept them away.
“We must retreat! Glass City… Oh no!”
He spun around with the binoculars and saw the city that he was supposed to be guarding.
The explosions and large columns of smoke towering into the sky were clearly visible to him. He could hear faint sobs and roars as well.
“What happened inside the city?” he asked with a dry voice, looking at the black-robed man beside him.
“A group of monsters in green robes ambushed us… They used the sewage system and the rivers to find their way in. Although my colleagues arrived to control the situation at first notice, their numbers were overwhelming. Coupled with the intensity of contagiousness…” a voice filled with regret answered. “The only thing we can do is to make sure to evacuate the important personnel first… General, you must try to fight for as much time as possible for the ordinary citizens!”
“Yes, fight for time…” Dunkirk’s heart sank.
Roar! Roar!
He soon realized that even that was too much to ask for.
While roaring, large amounts of green monsters poured from Glass City into their rear.
Under the pincer attack from the front and the rear, the entire camp collapsed immediately.
World Calendar 699, January. The Great Pirate Army attacked Ettoman and conquered Glass City in a single day!