Chapter 1553: Chapter 51, Province 1_2
In a voice only he could hear, he kept murmuring:
“It’s over!”
“It’s over!”
…
The defeat was as sudden as a landslide.
A tentative battle was inexplicably turned by him into a battle for the survival of his species.
Deep down, the Centipede Marshal was filled with regret. If he had known how strong the enemy was, he would never have tried to chew on this hard bone.
The centipede officers who followed him were all moving with their heads down, clearly shocked by the recent battle.
With humans being so powerful, what future does the Giant Centipede Clan have?
If they had a choice, they would rather not have this war. Even if it ant staying in the Black Stone Mountain Range among the magical beasts, they wouldn’t have initiated this war for an uncertain future.
Compared to the barren Earth Core World, the Black Stone Mountain Range was wealthy.
There were ga animals, wild vegetables, wild fruits, and various flora and fauna that could stave off hunger.
Even just occupying the Hundred Mile Corridor, the resources they acquired could rival the output of tens of thousands of square kiloters in the Earth Core World.
Primarily because the Giant Centipedes were not picky eaters; any plant or animal that wasn’t poisonous and was easy to digest beca their food.
The chase continued, while Hudson had already stopped taking action, or rather, there weren’t any targets worthy of his action left on the battlefield.
In the recent battle, he had killed at least twenty Eighth-order strongn of the enemy, most of whom fell through the cooperation with the Dragon Bear.
The unlucky ones killed by Hudson alone were just four brave but foolish warriors.
Nothing more to say, they all willingly ca to their deaths. Knowing he wasn’t to be trifled with, so even rushed in attempting to die with him.
Unfortunately, these guys were unlucky, for Hudson wielding a Divine Artifact was nothing like a fragile Saint of Law.
Casting magic in the recent battle was just to show that he knew magic.
In close combat, he could also be a Holy Knight.
The result of misjudgnt was naturally a separated head from the body.
One must admit that a Divine Artifact is sothing extraordinary. No matter how strong the defense of a Giant Centipede is, one sword strike could penetrate it.
Adding in the battle efforts of others, the loss of high-end forces by the enemy was even greater.
Even Hudson found it hard to believe such results.
Eighth-order strongn are not cabbages. Under normal circumstances, even if they lost, there was a good chance of leaving alive.
The battle tonight was different; these guys weren’t mixed in with the main army but stood out to cover their Sanctuary’s retreat, willingly delaying the enemy.
But their effects weren’t in vain; even though Hudson had already planned for it, he only managed to capture two of the enemy’s Sanctuaries.
In earlier battles, if these Eighth-order strongn of the enemy had risked pushing forward, the powerhouses of the Southeastern Province might not have been able to hold them back.
Of course, there’s a flip side to everything.
If they had truly advanced together with the Sanctuary Powerhouses, the volleys of the Magic Crossbows could have taken down many centipedes.
The frontline troops already had slightly inferior combat capability. Without their help, taking the city, or even reaching the city walls, was questionable.
Without the army’s cooperation to push forward, it would’ve been like voluntarily jumping into an encirclent.
The Sanctuary Powerhouses could still run, but the Eighth-order strongn didn’t have the strength to kill through and out of the army when confronted by opponents of the sa tier.
…
As night faded, a red sun rose on the horizon. The morning sun illuminated the earth, marking the start of a new day.
The necromancers were busily cleaning up the battlefield, weary eyes mixed with happiness. The enemy corpses before them were all magic materials for them.
Every great battle was a celebration for the necromancers!
Having degenerated to infamous criminals by killing for power alone, what could be as comfortable as scavenging alongside the Kingdom’s army?
Today was sowhat different; aside from necromancers, wizards and arcanists also ca to “steal business.”
Luckily, enough enemies had died, leaving tens of thousands of corpses on the battlefield.
For research enthusiasts, these mutated centipedes from the Earth Core World were the best Dark System materials.
Whether for crafting puppets, studying the Earth Core World, or producing magical equipnt, they served critical roles.
Publicly, Hudson was also a research fanatic, with the accompanying Magician Regint reserving a large share for him, though Hudson politely declined it.
Feigning enthusiasm was one thing, but actually engaging with these corpses every day would drive him insane.
Lacking a bit of willpower or having weak nerves ant one wasn’t fit for magic research.
Accompanied by the provincial leaders, as he patrolled the battlefield, a satisfied smile crept on Hudson’s lips.
It seems internal competition still has its benefits!
Ever since he led military reform and intensified troop training, his neighbors couldn’t help but be influenced.
Judging by last night’s performance, the Southeastern Province’s Nobles’ Allied Forces now had a combat power not far off from the Kingdom’s standing army.
With more practice in normal tis, catching up with the Kingdom’s standing army was just a matter of ti.
If this news got out, it would probably shock the entire Kingdom.
The private armies of the Alpha Kingdom’s Nobles, looking across the continent, were considered capable, yet still had significant gaps compared to the standing army.
The most significant issue was that the standing army was fully professional, while only a small portion of the Noble’s Private Army could fully devote themselves, with the rest being part-ti.
Co the busy farming seasons, they still had to work the fields.
The Kingdom’s standing army had its resources covered by the overall Kingdom. The military expenses were allocated early from the fiscal budget, and strategic resources had fixed quotas.
The logistics of the Noble’s Private Army entirely depended on the investnt level of the Noble Lords.
In a militaristic state like the Alpha Kingdom, those unwilling to invest heavily in military were already weeded out.
Those left were the ones who took military preparedness seriously, engrained to the bone.
Training private armies to this level only showed that the Noble Lords of the Southeastern Province provided their private forces with logistical support comparable to the Kingdom’s standing army.
In so lords’ standards, the logistics might even surpass the Kingdom’s standing army.
The first to raise the standards of private army resources was Hudson. From the day his army was founded, the treatnt under Lord Ha was higher than peers.
With increasing financial abundance, Hudson’s investnt in the army also continued to rise.
The logistics support level of several main armies had long surpassed that of the Kingdom’s standing army.
Other Noble Lords didn’t follow suit, primarily due to financial constraints.
Compared to other provinces in the Kingdom, the Southeastern Province had much better finances.
Not only was the land fertile enough, but there were also dividends from the Magic Crystal mines.
Undoubtedly, once they got the money, instead of splurging on luxuries, they invested it in the army.
With consistent investnt year after year, the current elite force was ford.
Thinking of this, Hudson couldn’t help but lant the fate of the centipedes. They didn’t choose the soft target but picked on the Southeastern Province whose military power was growing fastest.
“Your Excellency Governor, last night’s battle was well fought.
If not for special circumstances making it unsuitable to publicize the battle process, now would be the ti for our Southeastern Province to shock the entire nation!”
Hudson remarked with feigned regret.
You can’t have fa and profit!
Last night’s battle still had quite a few flaws.
The costly bombardnts and the noticeable Magic Crossbows were glaring presences.
With attention, it wouldn’t be hard to discover the discrepancy between the Magic Crystals allocated from the Kingdom to the Southeastern Province and those consud in the battle.
With issues in plain sight, good things might turn into bad things.
Giving up the profit from the Magic Crystal mines for a mont of fa was clearly unwise.
“Haha…
Marshal, such fa is better left unsought!
Looking back ten years, our Southeastern Province had economic power but lacked matching military strength, and was even forcefully robbed by the Nobles of the Northland.
Who would have thought that within just ten years, the once half-Kingdom Northern Group would have declined.
As arrogant as they once were, now their five families are just as miserable…”
Governor Piers couldn’t help but marvel.
Strength determines one’s voice!
The standing of a Governor within the Kingdom depended entirely on the comprehensive strength of the province they governed.
The Southeastern Province now unquestionably held the title of the Kingdom’s foremost province.
As the province’s strength rose, Governor Piers’s influence in the court rose alongside it.
Most importantly, everyone rolled up their sleeves together, lifting the Dalton Family’s military strength in the process.
Their robust economic strength had already transford into military power.
Confronted with the five major families of the North again, Governor Piers no longer had anything to fear.
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