Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology - Chapter 1166

Capítulo 1166: WW1: Second Kingdom of Lynden (4)

South City, Kingdom of Lynden.

Sumit’s eyes were lifeless and dull, as if no soul remained behind them. He stood before the war tractor, directly in front of the pile of bodies prepared to be set ablaze. When the lieutenant general asked for volunteers to carry out the task, most people stayed back, but Sumit stepped forward and chose to shoulder the responsibility himself.

He did it not out of pity for the fallen indigenous soldiers, nor from any sense of duty. He did it because he felt guilt, deep and gnawing guilt, for having been so ignorant and arrogant that he had once dared to complain about not getting a chance to take action in the war.

Krishna said to Arjuna, “You have the right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction.” Sumit understood this in his mind. He had done only what he had to do, acted so that millions of indigenous people would not have to suffer the same fate. Yet he could not help but wonder whether that truth truly absolved him of the constant complaints he had burdened his squadron with ever since the war began.

Taking the responsibility to handle the bodies of the indigenous people his army ruthlessly butchered, and handling their cremation, was a punishment he imposed on himself to put his mind at ease.

Sumit was not the only one who took on this job. After all, there were nearly 80 to 85,000 dead bodies that had to be handled, so thousands of people took over the task, even using bicycles in the process.

Finally, doused in oil and gunpowder, the five large piles of human bodies suddenly blazed like an inferno, its colour an ominous crimson. The fire burned with raging intensity, lighting up the entire evening sky in an eerie red glow. Maybe the poor souls of the dead were pouring all their unwillingness and regrets into the fire, the expressions of agony and anger constantly appearing in the raging flames.

Vajra Khatta, throwing the torch into the blazing furnace made of human bodies, slumped down on his two knees, looking at the fire with grief and indignation. His heart ached, and hot tears could not help but flow down his cheek.

Ultimately, like floodgates bursting open, he broke down into sobs. Thankfully, the roar of the flames was loud enough to drown out his cries, but even if someone had heard him, he would not have cared. In that moment, all he wanted was to vent, to mourn the injustice suffered by those poor souls, and to ease, if only slightly, the flames of rage burning within his own heart.

Hearing the cries of Vajra Khatta, Sumit Chatur, who was nearby, finally came back to his senses. His eyes regained clarity and showed a hint of intelligence. He now radiated an air of maturity, no longer like the sulking brat he was before. His eyes did not go back to their lively appearance but took on a tranquil form, like that of a calm lake, unshaken, unperturbed, determined.

Lieutenant General Mugund Padmanabham, throughout the time the bodies were burnt, could not utter a word. It was as if a knot had struck in his throat, but in the end, he could only let out a deep breath and shake his head in regret.

“Quickly occupy the city, and get ready to besiege the capital.” He ordered.

Kroonstad, Kingdom of Lynden.

William Stead Lynden was dressed in a military uniform, completely armed to the teeth and protected by his own private royal guards. He was a little nervous about the battle because, no matter how confident he was, it was still the Bharatiya Empire he was facing. But at the same time, it was not as if he had no confidence at all. He still firmly believed that even if the Bharatiya Empire had superior firepower, against his human wave tactics that outnumbered the Bharatiya forces several times, it would cause the Bharatiya Empire a lot of damage.

By the time the Bharatiya Empire recovered, he would take the step his father never took and expand the kingdom to the western coast so that he could receive supplies from the European countries directly, without having to go through Cape Town.

For him, it did not matter if the Bharatiya Empire sent reinforcements of several hundred thousand people. As far back as when his father built the kingdom, he built it in such a way that it would have extreme mobility, and that was one of the main reasons why the kingdom only had three cities. So, if the Bharatiya Empire launched a relentless assault, he would just abandon the kingdom and go even further inland, occupy good geography, and bleed the Bharatiya Empire dry.

He is the person who is destined to be the emperor of Africa. How can the Bharatiya Empire stop him? But unfortunately, the news he received was completely opposite to his expectations.

“Your Highness, the South City has been breached, the army has been completely annihilated, and all the slaves have fled.”

“What!” He immediately stopped groping his maid and stood up, his eyes widened in shock.

“How can that be?” he asked, disbelief clearly written across his face. “How reliable is this information? If I’m not mistaken, the Bharatiyas shouldn’t be able to bring in any heavy artillery. There are no proper roads to transport heavy units, and their cars and tractors shouldn’t be able to cross the jungle either.”

He fell into deep thought, his heart pounding as he relentlessly questioned his own reasoning. In the end, he shook his head.

‘My thinking isn’t wrong. There has to be something I’m missing. Even if the Bharatiya Empire used some underhanded tactic and defeated my army, cutting down more than a hundred thousand men, no matter how incompetent most of them were, it should take at least a few days, especially when South City holds such a strong geographic advantage.’

His eyes sharpened abruptly.

“Are you lying to me?” he squinted his eyes, staring viciously at the soldier who had delivered the intelligence.

The soldier was sweating bullets. “I wouldn’t dare, Your Highness. I’m only telling what I saw.”

Feeling the sincerity in those words, William’s expression changed. The colour on his face became completely white, bloodless, as pale as a piece of paper.

“How did the Bharatiya defeat the army?”

“Um, they used some sort of metal monster, Your Highness. There were 25 of them. These metal monsters were like invincible beasts, impermeable to bullets and artillery. Using these beasts as cover, the Bharatiyas completely butchered our army.”

His expression only turned uglier. When his father warned him that the biggest strength of the Bharatiya Empire was not their money, their troops, or their advanced weapons, but their ingenuity and their ability to evolve, he did not believe it to the full extent to which his father was telling him. As he had participated in various technology development conferences throughout the kingdom, funding several research groups, knowing how difficult it was to get results, he thought his father was simply exaggerating. But now he was forced to realise the true horror behind that truth. Unfortunately, he felt it was too late.

“Retreat. We are abandoning the capital.”

His actions were decisive. Most of the troops of the kingdom had been sent to the South City to defend against the Bharatiya Empire. Now that they were defeated, he did not have enough strength to withstand the Bharatiyas that would be coming after him next.

Adding the city guards, numbering over 4,000, and his royal guards, numbering around 500 of the best, his strength was not too bad, but knowing who he was up against, he did not think it was enough.

“Conscript those animals as well. Let them be the cannon fodder for a while.”

The capital was immediately plunged into turmoil. The people were dissatisfied, but after knowing what was happening, the dissatisfaction turned into panic, and most of the people made preparations to flee along with the army, while the rest decided to stay, betting that the Bharatiya Army would not do anything to the civilians.

William looked back at the city which he and his father had built, and a hint of reluctance appeared in his eyes. But in the end, he knew his life and the continuation of the dynasty were more important, so without hesitation, he decisively turned around and left towards the North City.

A few hours after the capital was evacuated, the Bharatiya Army finally arrived behind the backs of the rhino war tractors.

“General, the enemy seems to have evacuated the city.”

Mugund Padmanabham nodded in understanding. There was a little regret in his expression, but he did not look surprised.

“Alright, take over the city and control the situation.”

“Oh, and anyone who is involved in the slave trade, kill them directly.”

“What about the enemy, sir?”

Mugund fell silent. Then he spoke, answering with a question of his own.

“That’s right. What…about the enemy?”

A faint smile crept onto his face, one that seemed to ridicule the enemy rather than regret their escape. The expression was subtle, but it was enough to intrigue the soldiers watching him.