Knowing that the fact of the night attack was irreversible, Alfonso immediately and [ Practice More If You're Bad ] completed a tacit cooperation.
So, back to the present, Centurion Atli and his few remaining troops, who had just returned to the camp, had just decided to grab some peaches when they found themselves surrounded by the [ Practice More If You're Bad ] hundred-man squad.
"You knew from the beginning! It was all a trap! Didn't you!"
Atli charged at [ Practice More If You're Bad ] once more on his Hoofed Beast, he roared and questioned him.
Are you out of your mind?
[ Practice More If You're Bad ] The tone was laced with barely suppressed sarcasm:
"I invited you to play sandcastle?"
Did I force you to fight sandcastles?
"Or should I put a knife to your throat and say I'll kill you if you don't go fight the sandcastle?"
"No, right?"
He looked at the furious Atli with a thoughtful expression:
"I seem to remember someone begging me to take their hundred-man squad with me. Am I remembering wrong?"
"Drink it!!!"
Knowing he was in the wrong, Atli stopped arguing and instead mustered his remaining strength to attack [ Practice More If You're Bad ].
However, the Atli "hundred-man squad," consisting of only four or five men, had virtually no fighting strength left after their escape.
Players didn't treat him as an ordinary enemy, but rather as a randomly spawning mini-boss.
In other words, they started a brawl without any psychological pressure.
About fifteen minutes later, the five people, including Atli, were tied up, and to prevent him from talking, the player even used a vine ball to stuff his mouth full.
As dawn broke, after a period of regrouping, the routed soldiers who had been scattered the previous night gradually returned to their camp.
After taking stock Saili confirmed that there were only about fifty casualties.
Although this accounts for nearly 10% of the total number of people, it is not considered a heavy loss from the perspective of a night raid.
It seems that the bandits last night also had the idea of pulling off a quick heist and leaving, and their numbers were also somewhat misrepresented.
Under the watchful eyes of hundreds, Atli was dragged onto the rammed earth platform and forced to kneel before the Viscount by two players kicking his knees.
Alfonso gave [ Practice More If You're Bad ] a wink, and the rather shrewd player nodded indifferently. A few seconds later, [ Howling Pothos ] led a small group of players and disappeared into the crowd.
"Centurion Atli!"
The viscount suddenly roared angrily, drawing everyone's attention:
"Your hundred-man squad was supposed to be on guard duty at the camp last night. Why were you completely unprepared for the night raid?"
Why is your hundred-man squad reduced to only four or five soldiers?
"What were you doing last night?!"
If you want to carry out a fair and just execution, you must make sure everyone understands what kind of mistake Atli made; otherwise, you might as well just find a secluded corner and kill him.
With the vine ball removed from his mouth, Centurion Atli was on the verge of collapse.
"Your Excellency, I... my hundred-man squad went to raid the sandcastle at night."
Who gave the order to raid the sandcastle at night?
Atli remained silent for a moment before whispering:
"It was my unauthorized decision, Your Excellency!"
"[ The Practice More If You're Bad ] 100-man team also went. They betrayed us at Sandcastle, otherwise I wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses..."
"Really?"
The viscount wore a half-smile on his face:
"[ Practice More If You're Bad ] Centurion, tell Centurion Atli what you did last night."
"Yes!"
[ Practice More If You're Bad ] gave an imperial salute, then addressed the crowd:
"My hundred-man squad was resting all night. After the night raid, the Viscount ordered my troops to flank and block the bandits, and we did not venture into the sandcastle within the territory of the Skeleton Alliance without authorization."
As he spoke, he pointed to the half-dragon's head on the ground, where the bloodstains had just dried:
"My elite troops fought a fierce battle with the bandits outside the camp, losing many skilled men before finally capturing this bandit leader. If anyone has any doubts, please speak up!"
"No, you're lying!"
Atli's struggle became even more desperate:
"You're the one who lured me there! You led the way, you said there weren't many defenders and we could definitely take Sand Castle! It was you! Ugh--"
The vine ball was stuffed back into Atli's mouth. At this moment, the truth was clear, and the Viscount's gaze towards Atli was now filled with nothing but pure disgust.
The young viscount had many insights that night, but he was still one final step away from becoming a qualified member of the Lang Family.
He withdrew his gaze from Atli and scanned the group of soldiers below, their faces covered in soot and grime from the burning camp:
"Centurion Atli, you have neglected your duties and led troops out without authorization, resulting in the camp being attacked by bandits at night!"
"After being exposed, he attempted to frame a colleague, which aggravates his crime!"
" Saili Serri, according to the military law of the Starlight Empire, how should this crime be judged?"
The tall knight slammed his longsword into the ground, and his deep voice followed:
"Decapitation."
"Um."
Alfonso waved his hand:
"You shall carry out the execution, now."
"Yes!"
Amid Atli's groans, the two players dragged him to the edge of the rammed earth platform. Without even preparing a chopping board to put his neck in, they simply pushed his head off the platform.
Saili calmly drew his longsword from his waist, walked to Atli's side, and then slashed down with his sword.
Warm blood surged high, his head rolled unpredictably on the ground, and his body tensed for a moment before going completely limp.
At this moment, the designation of the Atli Hundred-Man Squad of the Second Legion of the Starlight Empire was officially cancelled.
Saili picked Atli's head up from the ground and then showed it to the soldiers watching with an expression on it.
A drop of blood fell onto the viscount's cheek as he sat upright in the wooden chair. He reached out to wipe it away but suddenly asked:
" Atli was my father's old subordinate, but he acted recklessly and violated many imperial military laws, so he must be punished according to the law."
"Have you all seen how this person fared?"
Although the viscount was young, his tone was filled with a chilling killing intent.
The hundreds of soldiers watching felt a tightness in their throats and their legs trembled; for a moment, they could only respond with silence.
"Did you see it clearly?!"
The viscount suddenly shouted, and almost instinctively, all the soldiers immediately stood up straight, tensed their bodies, and responded loudly:
"I saw it clearly!"
"Very well, I want you to remember that in my thousand-man unit, whoever violates military law must be punished accordingly, understand?"
"Understood!"
This time, all the soldiers responded without hesitation, immediately shouting at the top of their lungs.
"Very good."
Alfonso's tone gradually softened, but the next moment he suddenly raised his voice again in a stern tone:
"Men! Seize Vogt, Luca, and Jeffrey!"