Chapter 989Seven more casualties, adding up to a hundred and fifteen deaths. It was abysmally low if they looked at the scale of the war. Even so, Tang Shaoyang felt like he could minimize the casualties even more if he used [Spirit Fusion] for the weaker Tarrior. Obviously, he did not have a thousand spirits, but his available spirits would be enough to suppress the casualty.
He had the solution, but he did not use it. The reason was simple, he wanted them to survive on their own. This war would not be their last war, so he wanted them to survive with their own skills. If they died, that was their limit. That was his thoughts back then, but he regretted coming up with such a decision.
"The good news is today is our last day in this world," Kang Xue tried to look at the situation from the positive side. Leaving the tenth floor meant there would be no war anymore.
"I guess so," Tang Shaoyang replied in a low voice. He was the leader, regardless of how good they were doing in this war. He took responsibility for the casualties because he was their leader.
'I don't think you should blame yourself. This is the path they have to go through, like it or not. We saw what you have done in all battles. You took down most of the demons, so they fought fewer demons. Also, you can't just babysit them in every battle. They are soldiers; they are warriors who fight for you and the empire,' Rosalie, the Flame Empress, spoke in Tang Shaoyang's mind.
'What if you are not with them in the future? You can't always protect them, but they have to fight for themselves for their survival. If they can't protect themselves, how are they supposed to protect the empire and the people?'
'I know, but you know, the feeling that you can do more, but you just don't do it. That's the regret I feel right now. I also know that I will face more wars and battles in the future. Maybe we will face even more dangerous foes or even more bloody battles, but it does not change the fact that I can save more of my subordinates, yet I don't do it. The worse thing, I enjoyed the battle more than I expected while some children lost their fathers, and the girls lost their husbands,' Tang Shaoyang reflected.
'I also know you mean to console me, but you should not do it. I can't expect all of you to console me each time I feel guilty. I can't place that burden on you guys,' He closed his eyes, focusing on his senses. He could hear the cries from the knight who lost their comrade, the anger, and the sorrow, 'I have to bear and accept my mistake. I have to learn from my regret. That is life, no?'
Tang Shaoyang opened his eyes, "Let's go back. We are done here."
"Mnn," Kang Xue nodded and followed the man. She was mentally exhausted from what she had faced in the last two months. However, she was also aware that the man in front of her held more burdens than her. He faced more dead bodies than her, 'I have to remain strong and keep supporting him.'
The war was over, and the kingdom armies took over the demon city. The demon they faced was an insect-like demon. The head of the ground battle with strong carapace protected their bodies plus the plate armor on top of it.
Tang Shaoyang and his party, the Tang Mercenary, walked through the street, heading toward where General Deon was. The sight of the demon being butchered by the knights could be seen here and there as they headed to the center of the city. The demons inside the city were incapable of fighting, mostly young demons or old demons.
"This is just not right, even if they are demons," Wei Xi muttered in a low voice.
"This is a war between races. If the demon wins the battle, they will do the same to the children, the women, and the elderly in our city. Also, those knights are venting out their anger to the surviving demon because they lost a lot of comrades in the battle. This is a common sight in a war between races," Marshal Alton did not forget to remind Wei Xi, "Please don't let the knights or the people of this kingdom hear what you just said, Vice Supreme Commander. They may see us as the demon sympathizer. We don't want to make a kingdom with over a billion armies to be our enemy if we want to return to this place."
Wei Xi was a rank higher in the military, but it did not deter Marshal Alton from speaking up. He served the empire and the emperor, so he was not afraid to speak up. Of course, he was aware that Wei Xi would not be offended by the reminder; hence he spoke up.
Wei Xi let out a sigh, "This is a war, huh? I still need more time to adapt."
"Wrong! You need to experience more wars so you can get used to this kind of thing faster," It was not Marshal Alton who spoke, but Tang Shaoyang.
"But we still break from time to time, or else we will be broken mentally because we are not ready," Wei Xi responded. That was just normal banter between the two. But then, Wei Xi frowned as he remembered something. He came closer to Tang Shaoyang and whispered, "We need to talk once we return. I have a concern about someone. I can't say it here."
"I thought you needed a break…." Tang Shaoyang wanted to joke around to light up the atmosphere, but he stopped after seeing how serious Wei Xi was, "You know where to look me."
Wei Xi nodded as they proceeded to the biggest building in the city. The mansion was big, but it looked crudely made. The shape of the building was also weird.
Tang Shaoyang did not care about the demon's architecture. The party stayed outside as Tang Shaoyang, Wei Xi, Zhang Mengyao, Kang Xue, and Marshal Alton entered the building.
General Deon was in the main hall of the building, standing next to a throne-like chair. There was a man sitting there, a young man in his twenties, lazily leaning his elbow on the armchair as he gazed toward Tang Shaoyang.
General Deon was in charge of the armies, but the man on the chair was the person that owned the armies. Ophilio Linare Lovius, the son of the current king, the 17th prince.
Tang Shaoyang did not kneel or even bow to the prince. He was direct with his purpose to meet General Deon, "We have achieved our mission, and we plan to return right away."
General Deon and Prince Ophilio obviously knew Tang Shaoyang's identity. Not the people of this world, and they came for a mission. General Deon smiled and was about to give his approval, "I…" his words cut midway by Prince Ophilio.
"Do you think you can come and leave whenever you want to? You have now achieved your goal and don't need us anymore, so you want to leave?"
General Deon was stunned as he did not expect that to come out of the prince's mouth. The Prince told him nothing about holding up the players from outside the tower.