In Terra, I Have No Books to Read

The Banshee pondered for a moment before speaking. "The new Emperor announced two decrees from the late Emperor during the funeral. The first was to disband Ursus's Wendigo units in the north, stating that Ursus's loyal Sixth Army Group would take over that part of the demon defense line. The second was to have Crown Prince Feodor take over the reorganization of the Fifth Army Group."

"They actually disbanded them?"

Theresica asked in disbelief. Demons were a type of malignant entity from outside the civilized range of Terra. If there was any benefit for the nations of Terra from Ursus's existence, besides keeping them up at night, it was that this country shielded Terra from these terrifying creatures.

"They have been disbanded, and the Sixth Army Group has already marched towards the Northern Plains."

The Banshee nodded. "I can tell that the commander of the Army Group was very reluctant, but the signatories of those two decrees were indeed the late Emperor, and the Ursus Imperial Council has checked and confirmed it was the late Emperor's handwriting."

"..."

Theresica couldn't quite understand. This late Emperor had been playing games during his final period. He hastily ordered troops to attack East, and he wasn't even sure which unit suffered the initial setback, but then he forcefully ordered the Fifth Army Group to continue the offensive, reducing a fully staffed unit to an empty shell.

After doing all this, he made adjustments to the Northern Plains. It would make sense to replace the Wendigos with the Sixth Army Group for rotation and rest, but this late Emperor actually disbanded them directly. Now the Sixth Army Group could only be pinned to the snowfields. Did he not want them anymore?

'No, that's not right...'

These events were too numerous, as if he knew the final deadline and was rushing to submit his homework. If the late Emperor had truly become senile, he wouldn't have had the energy to do so many things in his final moments.

"Although I don't know what's really going on, Ursus is likely stuck in a quagmire for a while... Have the Shapeshifters closely monitor Ursus's Fifth Army Group. The changes within should reveal something."

After calling the Shapeshifters to give orders, Theresica sat alone in the room. Before him was a large map of Terra, and by his side were newspapers from various countries. They were messy but recorded a lot of information.

Now that Ursus and Victoria were both busy with their internal affairs, nearly a quarter of the continent of Terra had lost its ballast, and everyone's minds had become active.

Columbia invaded Sargos. This was the Federal Army's first battle after its own war of independence. However, it seemed that after too long a period of peace, the fighting was not going well.

After the war ended, Kazimierz's military spending not only did not decrease but doubled from the wartime standard. It looked like they were preparing for revenge. But were their citizens perpetual motion machines? Did they not need to eat? Where did they get so much money?

Kazdel was currently relying on the huge profits brought by the Originium arbitrage between Ursus and Victoria. They weren't paying salaries, only ensuring everyone's basic needs for food and living were met. They were using this method to free up funds for national development, and they were already financially strained. Was Kazimierz so wealthy?

However, if Kazdel fought against Ursus, Kazdel would definitely not lose out.

Victoria was also in a similar situation. Leithanien was in a stalemate with the Victoria regular army sent by the late Duke of Cumberland. The dukes in the civil war still had to import Originium from Kazdel, and the price was even higher than before.

Leithanien was not idle either. They were harassing the borders of both Siracusa and Victoria, and there were constant small actions with Kazimierz. They were quite proactive.

Seeing that a chaotic situation seemed imminent, Laterano's international envoys were mediating simultaneously in Leithanien and Leithanien, striving to prevent the entire Terra from erupting.

As for Yan... there was no news from them, like a stabilizing force, remaining in a corner of Terra.

"Your Majesty, yesterday's newspapers have arrived."

Shining entered with a batch of new newspapers, with Yelena following behind her holding another half.

"Thank you for your hard work. And you? How are you feeling?"

Theresica took the newspapers and looked at the Catus before him. She had been in Kazdel for some time, and after receiving ample food and rest, the color in her face had recovered considerably.

"Doctor Warfarin gave me medicine, and I'm feeling much better."

"Is that so? That's good."

He didn't expose it, but those were just painkillers. Kazdel didn't have much of the actual Originium infection containment medicine. Currently, they were importing it from Siracusa, and it was all being distributed to miners and refinery workers.

Theresica first found the content about Columbia. It was the most active one right now. Over a hundred thousand federal troops had charged into the rainforests of Columbia's eastern region, an area with dense vegetation and abundant waterways.

Newly enlisted recruits were assigned here by their officers, only to be slaughtered by the Adaklis tribesmen who were familiar with the terrain, with few survivors.

The wounded soldiers who managed to return cried to the Columbia reporters about how the Adaklis people used the terrain to hide themselves, then released bait to lure their attacks. When their firepower had a loading gap, these Adaklis people would suddenly rush out from their sides and kill them all, or use javelins to nail the retreating soldiers one by one as they fled.

Now the Columbia Federal Army was issuing tenders to all enterprises within the country, seeking a single-soldier crossbow that could fire continuously, in order to improve the federal army's firepower gaps.

'Should I call Zeppelin?'

Theresica thought this was a good opportunity. Wasn't there a 'Rhine Metal' around...

Huh?

The fountain pen on the table slowly rolled and finally fell to the ground.

Theresica subconsciously picked it up. He just treated it as an accidental phenomenon, feeling a slight heartache for the pen's bump, but the next second, the water cup also overturned to the ground.

An unforgettable word appeared in his mind.

'Earthquake!'

PS: Daily vote request!!!

Chapter 38: What Should Be Done

His muscles reacted faster than his brain. Theresica rushed to an open space in panic, with Shining and Yelena following behind him.

The entire Kazdel was shaking slightly, and many people also felt the anomaly and ran out. But what made people feel complicated was that Kazdel, being underdeveloped, had not built any tall buildings. Coupled with the low intensity of the earthquake, the urban area was completely unharmed.

"Has Kazdel ever had an earthquake before?"

Theresica quickly asked Shining. But the King of the Scavengers appeared here the next second.

"Kazdel has never had an earthquake before. This is a tsunami."

Theresica's eyes widened. He remembered that the Sarkaz also had settlements by the sea!

"Quick, send a drone to check! Hurry!"

Theresica paced back and forth in the council hall, unable to remain as calm as the other clan leaders. Kazdel was most short of population right now. How many people would die from this!

Originally, Theresica thought he could just watch the chaos in Terra unfold and quietly develop on the sidelines, but now he had encountered a disaster!

"They're here, the data is ready!"

After waiting for a while, Mel rushed in, placing the monitor in the center of the council hall so everyone could see.

The pitch-black screen lit up, displaying images of the coastal region. The original ground had become a vast ocean, and even the higher ground had lost its original appearance, everything was in disarray. Looking down from high above, it felt like looking at a palette smeared with random colors. On the dirt road leading to Kazdel, groups of displaced Sarkaz were aimlessly heading towards the city.

"Order Experiment Division One to deploy all forces to the coastal region to prepare for disaster relief. All medical and logistics personnel from Experiment Division Two are to assemble and accompany Experiment Division One. We will mobilize as many medical personnel from Kazdel as possible. Together with the soldiers of Experiment Division Two, set up resettlement areas outside the city, and pay close attention to epidemic prevention. The Planning Committee will handle the allocation of supplies. Don't worry about inventory, prioritize saving lives first!"

Warfarin immediately ran out, and the Goliath Sarkaz named Cole, who was in charge of the Planning Committee, bowed and also rushed out. However, after a moment of stunned silence, Theresica's questioning gaze fell upon the Military Committee.

"What are you standing here for? Hurry up!"

"...Your Majesty, the troops are in a critical training period. Halting training will affect national defense..."

"Affect my ass! Do as I say immediately!"

Theresica roared, but the members of the Military Committee, glancing at the various clan leaders around them, remained in place.

"Your Majesty, it's highly possible there will be a second wave of the tsunami. The soldiers of the Experiment Divisions are all carefully selected from the army. If they are sent to such a place and caught in the second wave, everything will be lost."

The coast was a place where Scalebeasts could be caught from the sea, making food acquisition relatively easy. Therefore, those living in coastal areas were mostly Sarkaz races who lacked Royal Court combat strength and were not highly skilled. In the eyes of the Military Committee, it was extremely inefficient to have elite soldiers risk the danger of a possible second tsunami to save coastal residents who were of little use.

CRASH—

A cup flew and hit the Sarkaz who was speaking directly in the face; it was thrown by Theresica.

"Absolver!"

"Present."

"If someone disobeys my orders, what can I do?"

"Whatever your will dictates."

The Absolver bowed very low. It was the first time he had seen the young King so enraged.

"Guard! I don't want to see him again!"

He said, turning and leaving directly. The Royal Court Guards who rushed in immediately drew their weapons. Listening to a scream from behind him, Theresica said without looking back.

"As for the rest of you, I'll deal with you when I get back!"

Theresica went directly to the military camp. Manfred was just gathering the troops for a speech. Seeing Theresia approaching, he quickly went to greet him.

"Your Majesty, why have you suddenly come here?"

"What are you doing?"

"Your Majesty, there was negligence in my management. Just now, there were deserters in the army."

"Where did they desert to?"

"The soldiers transporting supplies today were chatting with people, which caused the news of the tsunami in the coastal areas to spread."

Noticing that Theresica's expression was not good, Manfred cautiously said, "Some soldiers have families very close to the coastal areas, and they are worried about the safety of their homes."

"I understand. Since you've gathered the soldiers, I will now take over command of all troops."

"As you command, Your Majesty." Manfred bowed in assent.

Theresica walked directly in front of the soldiers and stood on a stone. He shouted with all his might.

"Everyone! Sit down!"

The Sarkaz soldiers who were standing all sat down on the ground.

Theresica didn't know how many people were in front of him, but the sight of a vast crowd making neat movements at his command was still quite shocking.

"I! Am the King of Kazdel! Theresica! The coastal areas have been hit by a tsunami! Those of you whose homes are nearby! Raise your hands!"

Several hands went up, but not many.

"I! Order you in the name of the King! Put down your training equipment!"

The Sarkaz present all began to act, taking off their various training armor.

"Experiment Division One! Immediately head to the coastal areas for disaster relief! Experiment Division Two! Coordinate with medical personnel outside Kazdel City! Set up resettlement points!"

Theresica shouted with all his might, "I know that Experiment Division Two also has families in the coastal areas! All I want to tell you now is! Please believe me! Believe your comrades!"

The displaced refugees who had suffered disasters suddenly noticed that at intervals along the road, there were people standing by the roadside, distributing food and dry clothing to them.

"You all follow this road! There are temporary shelters and food at the resettlement point set up ahead! These are all Your Majesty's orders! He ordered you to go there to be resettled!"

Warfarin shouted hoarsely at the people in front of her. To prevent them from wandering off disobediently, she directly added Theresica's name to these few sentences.

And he himself was currently accompanying the troops, participating in the clearing of ruins alongside the ordinary soldiers, deep within the tsunami-stricken areas.

Arters probed for signs of life buried under houses, then worked with ordinary soldiers to clear the debris. The army's logistics were deployed on-site, with medical and cooking points simultaneously put into operation.

The trapped and stranded disaster victims looked at what the Sarkaz soldiers were doing with disbelief. They had never seen this before, but Theresica had! This was an indelible impression for him, and what he believed must be done.

PS: Asking for votes as usual!!!!

Chapter 39: Life Not Belonging to the Land

Within the safe zone near the sea, the army had set up large temporary resettlement tents, providing for the rescued stranded disaster victims. Inside one of the larger command tents, Theresica, covered in mud, stared intently at the 11 equally dirty soldiers in front of him.

These were the deserters who had left the barracks without authorization earlier. The tent was so quiet you could hear breathing, but Theresica broke the stiff silence.

"Is your family... are they all safe?"

"Mm, just a few bumps and bruises..."

"My younger siblings are fine..."

"Nothing serious..."

The burly soldiers spoke in hushed, soft tones, all with their heads bowed. Their occasional tremors betrayed their inner fear.

"You actually disregard military discipline!"

Upon hearing their answers, Theresica suddenly roared. He grabbed the disaster casualty roster, rolled it into a tube, and then, like playing whack-a-mole, he struck each soldier lined up before him on the head.

"If you set this bad precedent, how will the Sarkaz army be managed in the future?! I must punish you severely!"

The hearts of the eleven men immediately leaped into their throats.

"I order you... to immediately join the disaster relief efforts. However, as punishment, from today until the end of the relief mission, none of you will receive any extra food allowances."

"Huh?"

"Didn't you hear my order!"

"Yes!"

The soldiers ran out, and Theresica immediately sat down on the ground without regard for his appearance. His whole body ached. Disaster relief was no simple task; he was already exhausted after just clearing two multi-story buildings, and his earlier lecture was just an act.

Just then, the King of the Scavengers floated in. His feet didn't touch the ground, and he made no sound. Theresica was taken aback, then could only smile wryly.

"I'm sorry, this is the only state I can show you."

The King of the Scavengers was silent for a moment, then suddenly deactivated his Originium Arts and stood on the ground. Theresica felt a force appear beside him, helping him into a seated position.