Chapter 29, Skeleton Society_1

That's too optimistic. Hudson didn't know where this confidence came from, but he felt like everyone around him was brimming with an inexplicable self-assuredness, as though quelling a rebellion was as simple as picking something out of a bag.

But after reviewing the Skeleton Society's battle records, Hudson had no comments. As an old cult organization in the Alpha Kingdom, rebellion was second nature to the Skeleton Society.

About every few years, they would launch some form of rebellion. Each time it would start off fierce but peter out towards the end, never amounting to any notable achievements.

Almost every old noble had personal experience with suppressing the Skeleton Society's insurrections. Facing such a group of old failures, it was understandable for them to be overly confident.

No wonder Earl Piers had allowed these old losers to stir up trouble. If they hadn't gotten involved with the Blood Moon Horn, they would probably still be in a stalemate.

Judging by everyone's reactions, it seemed that most people had doubts about the "Blood Moon Horn", including Hudson. Aside from the initial shock, he too figured that it might have been a distraction thrown out by Earl Piers.

After all, the "Blood Moon Horn" was sealed in the Papal State, guarded by the Judgement Knights. Could the rats of the Skeleton Society really steal it?

If it was really stolen, wouldn't the Papal State at least react?

If this scandal got out, the Church wouldn't be able to cover it up.

Disregarding anything else, would they still want to collect tithes? Would they still want to sell indulgences?

The clergy's reaction in the Southeastern Province showed the Church's absolute focus on the Blood Moon Horn. They had just received this news, not even having confirmed whether it was true or not, and already priests and paladins had hurried over.

It was a known fact that in past human civil wars, the clergy had remained strictly neutral. Even if a high price was paid to request that several priests participate, their only duty would be to heal injured nobles.

Hudson didn't care about the truth. The Church's involvement was definitely a good thing for the Allied Forces, ensuring better safety for everyone.

Even if they eventually proved that the news was false, it would be up to Earl Piers to explain it to the Church, and Hudson wouldn't be the one taking the fall.

In Hudson's eyes, assigning the Fifth Army to transport provisions wasn't necessarily a demotion.

After all, someone had to transport the provisions. Among all the armies, the Fifth Army had the weakest strength. From a larger perspective, it made sense for the Fifth Army to undertake this task.

This arrangement not only considered the bigger picture but could also create divisions among the minor nobles. From Governor Piers' standpoint, it was a win-win situation.

Listening to the continuous swearing, Hudson chose to be a quiet listener. Escorting the provisions wouldn't earn any merits, but at least it was safe.

Regardless of the other troops, his Tenth Regiment couldn't go to the battlefield anyway. Even in terms of inefficiency, the Tenth Regiment was one of the most inept regiments in the Allied Forces.

After enlisting 600 serf soldiers, the combat capabilities of the regiment hadn't improved. The only reason they hadn't fallen further behind was their soldier's exposure to bloodshed.

To build combat capabilities, they either needed time for integration and training, or they needed to be sent to the battlefield for shaping through fire and blood.

...

Perhaps it was because Hudson seemed too carefree, or perhaps he wanted to divert attention from his own embarrassment, Charles asked his opinion, "Hudson, what do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Hudson was dismayed internally. If the situation were different, he would've snapped back with "I'm sitting and watching."

"Legion Commander, what has happened has happened. Discussing all this no longer makes a difference; we can't change the Governor's Mansion's decision.

The order to escort the provisions has been issued, all we can do is try to gain as much military merit as possible while transporting the provisions."

Originally, Hudson wanted to say 'gain benefits', but seeing the displeased faces of everyone, he modified it to 'military merits' at the last minute.

Ever since receiving the military order, Hudson was pondering how to maximize benefits. Making him, a pauper, transport the provisions was practically forcing him to become a bandit.

If he didn't scrape off some profit from this task, wouldn't it seem as if he didn't have the abilities?

From the very beginning, Hudson never expected to lead a motley crew to the battlefield and achieve a great victory.

"Easy for you to say, military merits aren't so easily obtained!"

Unknown if he didn't see the subtext or was just an argumentative person, Baron Brogite directly rebuked Hudson.

Hudson rolled his eyes, decided not to bicker with a brute, and replied with a chuckle, "Uncle Brogite, the Governor only ordered us to transport the provisions. He didn't specify that we couldn't do jobs on the side."

The Rebel Army now occupies two counties, surely they can't gather all their forces together?

The main force of the rebels is being held back by the first four armies in the front, leaving their rear weak.

While completing our transportation duties, we can easily recapture some small towns held by the rebels."

Hudson's suggestion brightened the faces of everyone, who had previously been in despair. The recapturing of several rebel-held towns wouldn't be considered a great military accomplishment, but was this about military merit?

Recovering lost territories was secondary to seizing the wealth in the hands of the rebels. For the nobility, there were only two reasons for going to battle "military merit" and "making money".

Since they didn't have much hope for military merits, they could only try to make money. To say the least, to inspire morale in his allies, Hudson really had racked his brains.

...

Dardiel City, once the startup location of the rebels and a bustling city, was now desolate and bleak.

Conquering the world and governing the world are two different concepts. Regrettably, the Skeleton Society, as a cult organization, didn't have the concept of governing the world.

Inside the City Lord's Mansion, a group of high-ranking Skeleton Society members were glowering at each other, the atmosphere incredibly tense.

"High Priest, we lost many soldiers and suffered heavy casualties outside Ersel Fort. Don't you think you owe us an explanation?"

The man in the purple robe, sitting on the left itself, was the first to question.

"Explain, what kind of explanation do you want?"

"You…"

The indifferent response from the man in the grey robe left the man in the purple robe too angry to speak. The atmosphere in the room became even more severe. Just as it looked as though a fight would break out, the masked man sitting in the main seat suddenly spoke:

"Enough! You are all high-ranking members of the Society, yet you're squabbling like children. Is this acceptable?

However, Iman, despite his harsh words, has a point. We do need an explanation from the High Priest regarding the Battle of Ersel Fort."

The man in the grey robe, who was initially confrontational, instantly changed his color, and hastened to explain, "Holy Master, the battle of Ersel Fort happened because of my greed.

I had initially thought that given the nobles' penchant for scheming against each other, their reinforcements wouldn't arrive on the same day. So, I planned to lure out the Crimson Knights' Brigade and hoped to wipe them out under the city walls with the power of the sacred artifacts.

I didn't expect the enemy's reinforcements to arrive so quickly, catching us off guard.

However, we didn't lose this battle. Although we were almost annihilated, we only lost cannon fodder. Using these cannon fodder to take down the enemy..."