Hye's bloodshot eyes couldn't see any color other than red, a red that blended with the rage escaping through his skin from deep within him. The sweat on his face was not because of the hot weather in the south, but because his anger had reached an irreversible level. Seeing a dead Razaasia soldier in front of him with an embedded sword, he ran forward. He pulled out the weapon and swung it towards the first two arrow machines he saw.
Hye's actions left the Magoli soldiers guarding the five arrow machines speechless. They didn't know what made their captain lose control. Normally, Hye is a very calm person, but what happened at the gate of Hosha City must have made him very unhappy, causing him to lose his temper, as they saw. So, they did not stop him, but stayed away from him, fearing that he might accidentally hit them.
Haitao walked up to the Magoli soldiers and said, "Go and help others clean the enemy tents and collect the bodies of our fallen soldiers." He looked at Hye. "I'll deal with him."
Seeing that Haitao had rescued them, the Magoli soldiers felt relieved and left quickly.
Haitao sighed and said, "You spent so much time and energy on making them. If they are destroyed, all your hard work and time will be in vain."
Hye turned around and said angrily, "I would rather destroy them than let that reneger continue to use them."
Haitao said, "It's wrong to call Chinua a reneger."
Hye took two steps towards Haitao. "What else could I call her? She swore never to harm a surrendering enemy soldier, but now she...she begged Prince Mandla to kill them."
Haitao said, "You are a smart man, you should know that those prisoners of war are not Chinua's, they are prisoners of war of Musian soldiers. According to the peace treaty of any military alliance, aiding allies cannot claim prisoners of war, so Chinua made the right decision by asking Prince Mandla to kill the surrendering Razaasia soldiers with dignity." He sighed. "Or do you want them to be tortured to death like the Ginmiao soldiers and their family members in front of the city wall of Nue-Li City?" The sword on Hye's hand fell to the ground. "Or would you rather they were skinned alive and slowly bled to death like the Magoli soldiers who surrendered in front of the same city wall?" He looked at Hye, seeing his trembling lips and angry tears flowing down his cheeks. "Therefore, dying with dignity is the right call for those Razaasia soldiers." He stretched out his left hand and gently pinched Hye's right shoulder. "You and I, we all know that in war, there is no winning side, only losing sides. However, the people who suffer the most in war are ordinary citizens, the parents, wives and children waiting at home, not the soldiers who are willing to sacrifice their lives to maintain the order they are given."
Hye did not look at Haitao, his eyes were lowered to the ground. "You knew?" he asked.
Haitao said, "As far as I know, there is no race in this land that hates the Magoli people more than the Ginmiao people, but you...you surprised me."
Hye said through gritted teeth, "I don't hate the Magoli people." He looked at Haitao. "I hated the Magoli northern soldiers."
Haitao smiled at Hye and said, "You don't hate Magoli northern soldiers, you just hate those soldiers who caused harm to the innocent Ginmiao people. Otherwise, you will not become friends with Chinua, me or my men." He turned to look at the battlefield and found that the bodies of some dead Magoli soldiers were already lying on the ground near the camp. "Better go pick your tent or you'll be sharing a tent with the other soldiers."
Hye said, "There are plenty of tents for me to choose."
Haitao said, "I'm afraid not."
Hye looked at Haitao for the first time. "Chinua and her soldiers have successfully saved Hosha City. I believe Prince Mandla will definitely prepare a welcome banquet and warm beds for them."
Haitao said, Haitao said, "Chinua will not choose a warm bed over the strong bond of your friendship."
Standing next to Chinua, Mandla watched as the Magoli soldiers laid the bodies of their fallen comrades on the ground and began to remove their armor.
"Won't the armor go with them?" Mandla asked.
"The armor will go back to their families," Chinua said, turning to look at Mandla. "I believe you have a lot to worry about now. Therefore, we will not stay in the city. We will stay in the enemy camp until reinforcements arrive." Chinua looked at a pile of dead Razaasia soldiers. "For the next few days, they probably wouldn't come back to attack the city with such huge losses." She turned to look at Mandla. "Are you going to send your soldiers through the enemy camp before we can settle in?"
Mandla laughed and said, "My friend, this is the funniest thing I have heard today." He took two steps back, put his hand on his left chest, and bowed lightly to Chinua. "Chinua, Princess of Hmagol, I thank you on behalf of my people." He raised his head and looked at the young woman standing in front of him. "If you need anything that is not beyond my capabilities, I won't hesitate to come in your aid."
Chinua said, "Thank you for letting the Razaasia soldiers die with dignity."
Mandla asked, "I have always wanted to ask you why you asked me such favor?"
Chinua sighed and said, "I made a promise never to harm any surrendering soldiers or civilians."
Mandla said, "To keep your promise, that person must be someone you value very much."
Chinua said, "Yes, he is the reason why Hosha City did not fall today."
Mandla sneered in surprise, and he realized that the person Chinua mentioned was none other than Hye. "No wonder he flew into a rage when he saw the surrendered Razaasia being beaten," he said.
"I have never seen so many female soldiers fighting as bravely as the Musian women," Chinua said, staring at her female soldiers. "No wonder you didn't burst out laughing like everyone else when you saw my female soldiers in Hmagol."
Mandla said, "Since ancient times, the Musian women have always stood by the side of Musian men. We believe that if Musian women can die defending the motherland, then they should also uphold the same rights as Musian men."
Chinua said with a smile, "I envy Musian women."
Khunbish walked up to Chinua and said, "Chinua, the bodies of the Magoli soldiers have been collected."
Mandla said, "I think I should go back to the city. Now Femi may have taken care of Kianga's wounds."
Chinua said, "You don't have to worry about us. We can take care of ourselves."
After saying goodbye to Chinua, Mandla returned to Hosha City with some Musian soldiers.
Just as dusk enveloped the night sky, the dead Magoli soldiers were laid to rest. Hye, Naksh, Jeet, Zhi, Khawn and Drystan watched as Chinua and the other Magoli soldiers started wiping the blood off the faces of their dead.
Khawn turned to Haitao and asked, "Does Chinua need to clean up the dead soldiers with others?"
Haitao said, "It is normal for the commander-in-chief to help clean up the dead soldiers."
Drystan said, "They are already dead, what else can they know. I personally don't think they need to clean up."
Haitao said, "The Magoli people believe that when people are born into this world, they are innocent and pure, so when they return to the ground, they should also return to a state of purity and flawlessness for their final journey to meet their ancestors." He looked at some soldiers who began to put a silver coin into each palm of the deceased. "Two coins placed in the hands of the dead soldiers; one to pay for the ferry fare, so Or'en can take their soul across the seven rivers; Pride, Greed, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, and Sloth. The other coin was to bribe Ozumeg not to weigh the sins accumulated in their lives against the weight of the pure white eagle feather."
Khawn asked, "What are those gourd bottles used for?"
Haitao said, "This is how they get back to their families."
Drystan looked at Khawn and said with a smile, "In other words, after they are cremated into ashes, you collect their ashes, put them into the gourd bottle, and send them back to their families together with their armor."
Naksh broke into laughter. He looked at Drystan and said, "Do you really need to go into detail with the innocent kid."
Drystan said, "Yesterday he was innocent, but today it's different. He killed a lot of Razaasia soldiers, so he's not an innocent kid anymore." He hit Khawn's upper left arm. "Kid, you just became a man today."
Jeet smiled and said, "Stop teasing the kid."
The six people were chatting when a sudden silence interrupted their conversation. The six men saw the Magoli soldiers gathered in front of the dead. Two hundred and twenty-three soldiers, holding lit torches, stood over the bodies of the two hundred and twenty-three fallen comrades.
Chinua began to walk around the dead Magoli soldier in front of her, followed by two hundred and twenty-three other soldiers. As the flames rose into the darkening sky, Chinua and the torchbearers walked back and stood in front of the other soldiers. The soldiers standing in front of the fallen soldiers began to hum, and then their voices rose in song.
"Fallen brothers, rise up and march forward, following the footsteps, of our fallen brothers of the past. As our guardians, light up the darkness in our night, guiding our living brothers to victory."
"Fallen sisters, spread your wings wide, soar into the sky, join us, our fallen sisters of the past. As our shield, protect us through rain and storm, leading our living sisters to victory."
"O, our fallen fathers, give us your courage, to chase our enemies, from our motherland. With your blood flowing in our veins, we should never forget, the names of the fallen ones."
Khawn asked, "What song are they singing?"
Hye said, "The song is called 'A message to the fallen ones'." He stared at the scene in front of him. A similar scene, one from many years ago, had made him realize he would not make the same mistake again in his life. Yet here he stood, looking at the consequences of his brilliant creation.