Chapter 111. Screening the Prisoners
William swept his gaze over the still-stunned soldiers and shouted, “What are you standing around for? Take the prisoners! What are you waiting for?”
Only then did the soldiers snap out of it as if waking from a dream, and they imdiately threw themselves at the defeated Silver Oakleaf soldiers around them.
Amid the chaos, Silver Oakleaf’s two monster legions reacted with astonishing speed. The mont they sensed that things had gone wrong, they scattered in all directions and fled into the distance on griffins and triceratopses.
Seeing this, the soldiers of the Gold Legion imdiately split off into small squads to pursue them, but William raised a hand and stopped them.
“There’s no need to chase them.”
His voice sank as he continued, “We don’t have enough manpower, and there are too many prisoners. The Gold Legion must stay here to hold the line. If a riot breaks out, no one will be able to suppress it.”
At his words, the soldiers of the Gold Legion imdiately returned to formation and ford a tight periter around the prisoners. Their cold gazes swept over every surrendering soldier who looked as though he might make a move, and the situation was instantly brought under control.
Just then, a scout ca running over, panting heavily, and dropped to one knee.
“Your Highness, Iron Skull Fortress has co under attack from the Silver Oakleaf Legion. It’s about to fall.”
Hearing this, William curled his lips into a cold sneer. “Heh. So they really were trying to encircle ?”
Ancestor Fenlilan looked at him and said, “I’ll leave this place to you. I’m taking the Legends back.”
“Thank you, Ancestor,” William replied with a nod.
Fenlilan waved his hand, and with the Legendary Combatants of Kroll, transford into dozens of streaks of light that shot toward the Kroll Kingdom.
After they left, William turned to Zoe beside him and said, “Zoe, take my two Knight Orders, along with the Royal Seventh Legion, the Royal Eighth Legion, and the Royal Ninth Legion, and head to Iron Skull Fortress imdiately.”
A trace of cunning flashed through his eyes.
“Go there and ‘receive’ so prisoners. It’s hard to say exactly how many, but I’d guess Silver Oakleaf will be ‘informing’ them very soon.”
“After all, the Silver Oakleaf royal family can’t bear to let these people actually die in the fortress. See whether you can intercept so of them.”
Zoe imdiately understood and bowed as she accepted the order. “Understood, my lord. I’ll depart at once.”
Watching Zoe race off with the legions, William then looked toward the prisoners who had been surrounded on all sides and gave Kru a grim order.
“Count the prisoners and register them. Any who resist stubbornly are to be imprisoned imdiately.”
“In addition, send n to take control of Bluestone Pass’s granaries and armory. Anyone who dares to hide supplies will be treated as colluding with the enemy.”
“The royal family will send people later to take over the Eastern Frontier.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The setting sun sank completely below the horizon, and the battlefield was gradually swallowed by the night.
Torches and illumination magic lit up one after another, revealing the wreckage strewn across the ground and the densely packed masses of prisoners.
William prepared to begin selecting prisoners through the night. After all, the might of the Gold Legion had already been fully displayed on the battlefield. The impact of an entire legion possessing Gold-Rank Combat Power was truly staggering.
He personally led people into the crowd of prisoners to make selections, picking out all those with Gold Aptitude or higher. Before he knew it, the eastern sky had already begun to pale, and he had selected seven hundred twenty-three people.
At breakfast, William imdiately gave the order, “Have the Ninth Battalion of the Royal First Monster Legion escort these seven hundred twenty-three n to the Northern Frontier Secret Realm.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Very soon, hundreds of two-headed wyverns spread their wings and took flight. Their enormous wings stirred fierce gusts of wind as they carried the selected prisoners toward the Northern Frontier.
Although these prisoners should have been uneasy, they were strangely excited, even delighted, and were exceptionally cooperative. The Two-Headed Wyvern Riders, however, could not help curling their lips in envy. To be honest, they also wanted to beco Gold-Rank Combatants, but...
William did not pause for rest. He turned to the ssenger soldier and said, “Transmit my order. The Sixth through Eighth Battalions of the monster legion stationed at Galefall Fortress are to co here imdiately and assist with transporting the personnel selected afterward.”
These were all valuable talents. Sending them over in batches was the safest thod for now.
He intended to let these soldiers from an enemy kingdom undergo a complete transformation in the Secret Realm of the Northern Frontier, until they ultimately beca sharp blades loyal to Kroll.
Morning light fell across William’s young yet steady face.
Over the following days, William continued screening the prisoners in an orderly fashion. Every day, another batch was escorted to the Northern Frontier Secret Realm under the guard of the Two-Headed Wyvern Riders.
These selected soldiers would undergo harsh training in the Secret Realm, shedding Silver Oakleaf’s imprint and becoming Kroll’s military strength of the future.
At the sa ti, the officials sent by the Kroll royal family had already entered the Eastern Frontier and begun taking over the land, household registrations, and town affairs.
The situation in the Eastern Frontier was far more complicated than anyone had imagined.
The nobles of Silver Oakleaf had not withdrawn completely. Many remained entrenched within their own manors or towns. On the surface, they appeared obedient, but in secret they kept making small moves without end. So hid grain and fodder, while others stirred up their forr subordinates, trying to preserve even the slightest chance of turning the situation around.
Kru had once asked William whether they should intervene and purge those nobles.
But William had shaken his head. “The royal family’s people will deal with it themselves. We only need to focus on reorganizing the army. These trivial matters consu too much energy. There’s no need to waste our ti on them.”
Besides, the continued presence of Silver Oakleaf’s nobles would instead make the people sent by the royal family feel a greater sense of urgency, forcing them to establish an effective order of rule as quickly as possible.
In this campaign, they had captured nearly one hundred thousand Silver Oakleaf soldiers. If the Kroll Legions had not been short on manpower, they could have captured tens of thousands more. What a pity.
During this period, William had screened out roughly eight thousand n from among them, while more than thirty thousand prisoners still remained to be assessed.
By his estimate, if they were carefully examined, gathering a full ten thousand would not be a problem at all.
During the screening process, whenever William discovered a soldier with Domain Aptitude or Legendary potential, he would mark that person heavily in red ink on the roster. These people would beco key targets for focused training in the Secret Realm.
After finishing one roster, he handed it to the battalion commander in charge of transport and instructed him, “Send them into the Secret Realm in batches according to the marked grades. Those with the best aptitudes are to be ford into separate units. You must ensure their safety on the way.”
“Please rest assured, Your Highness. I will handle it properly.” The battalion commander bowed, accepted the roster, then turned and strode away.
Only William remained inside the tent. He rubbed his throbbing temples.
Ten thousand seed candidates—given enough ti, that would be more than enough to forge another elite force. When that ti ca, Kroll’s military strength would undergo a qualitative leap.
The roar of a two-headed wyvern ca from outside the tent. Another batch of prisoners was about to depart.
William walked to the window and watched as the wyvern carried its human cargo into the distance until it vanished into the horizon. A trace of anticipation flashed through his eyes.
At that mont, the Communication Crystal at William’s side suddenly lit up with a faint glow.
He raised a hand to connect it, and Zoe’s voice ca from within the crystal, carrying a hint of regret.
“Your Highness, the situation is exactly as you predicted. But by the ti we arrived, the fortress was already empty. I think they must have received the news and withdrawn in advance. What should we do now?”
William smiled when he heard that, his tone relaxed. “If they ran, then they ran.”
He paused for a mont.
“Zoe, keep the troops stationed at Iron Skull Fortress. Once I finish dealing with the prisoners here, I’ll lead the army back and rejoin you.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
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