Restart:Untalented Man

Chapter 531: Leuphan 2

To Sarika, it was disappointing more than anything else.

Within the hour, the outer districts of Leuphan had fallen. But there was no reckless rush to storm the heart of the city.

Ryntum's soldiers, unlike raiders looting for sport, understood that the true value lay beyond mere gold and silver.

Unlike the armies of other nations, Ryntum's military was deeply intertwined with education.

Their schools, their officers, even the average soldier possessed a higher standard of literacy and scientific understanding than most civilians elsewhere on the continent.

In the half-collapsed wings of Leuphan's outer district, soldiers pried open iron-bound doors to discover rows upon rows of books—volumes on history, science, philosophy, engineering.

Crates of manuscripts, maps, blueprints, and research documents were carefully catalogued by scribes attached to the army's logistics division.

"Amazing! There's so much! And we have not even gone into the city yet. I wonder how much treasure there is," said the person in charge of handling logistics.

Officers marked them with paint, ordering their immediate confiscation and transport. This pile of treasures must be sent to the capital as soon as possible.

Sarika was happy to see the gains they got from attacking Leuphan.

"In other armies, you loot for coin, but in Ryntum... we loot for the future."

Even among common infantry, there was a quiet awe at the troves they found. Except for the library in the capital, many had never seen so many books in one place.

"Look at this... medical journals from thirty years ago."

"Physics treatises... some of this is original research."

By nightfall, the outer districts were secured, the press and scholarly centres stripped clean of intellectual wealth.

After gaining control of all exit points of the city, Sarika finally led the troops to storm into the city.

Ryntum's forces advanced into the inner city. Columns of soldiers flowed through barricaded streets.

As per their usual practice, the soldiers methodically swept through government buildings, banks, and militia strongholds. Every strategic site fell in succession.

Some squads branched off to target locations deemed 'worth looting'. Not for petty plunder, but to claim art, records, valuables, and technology.

Sarika, however, didn't concern herself with silverware or paintings. Her target was the Leuphan Mansion.

They found no defenders at the entrance. No guards. No officers. The gates stood half-open.

Sarika strode in without hesitation. This luxurious place didn't move her. After all, she also came from a ducal descent and was very well off.

'I grew up in a palace twice this size.'

Her eyes swept the corridors, the staircases, the archways. She wasn't here to admire architecture. She wanted the Leuphans themselves.

But something was wrong. Aside from a few trembling maids, there was no sign of the family.

No Lord Leuphan. No heirs. Not even minor stewards or senior retainers.

Interrogations began immediately.

"Where are they?" Sarika asked the pale-faced housekeeper.

"They're gone... They left... days ago, perhaps longer..." the woman stammered, her eyes shifting between the soldiers and the rifles pointed at her.

"Gone where?"

"I... I don't know, my lady. They left without a word... took only what was light to carry."

"Damn it!" Sarika released that woman. Now she finally understands.

The resistance they put up earlier was intended to mislead them and buy as much time as possible.

Still, an escape was an escape. She considers it to be a minor inconvenience.

Her troops were still scattered throughout the mansion. Ledgers were seized, documents were archived, and maps, among other items, were collected. Secret compartments were searched. Safes cracked.

The mansion's treasury of books and art was packed for transport.

With both Lindau and Leuphan, the two largest and most significant cities in the region, firmly in Ryntum's grasp, the path toward the total subjugation of the Leuphan region lay wide open.

On the very next morning, the Ryntum army was split into numerous smaller detachments, each with its own target.

Columns of infantry, backed by light artillery and mobile supply wagons, fanned out like a net cast across the region.

No settlement, no matter how small or remote, was overlooked. Towns, villages, hamlets, and estates—one after another, they were "visited."

The process became almost formulaic. First, approach with overwhelming presence; show them flags and artillery.

Next, announce the terms. Let them surrender peacefully, retain their homes and lives. If they resist, they will suffer the consequences.

Lastly, raise the banner of Ryntum and move on to the next target.

For the scattered rural communities of Leuphan, there was never truly a choice.

News travelled fast, and people were terrified. Tales of Lindau's swift fall and Leuphan's futile resistance spread ahead of the army like wildfire.

These were not cities with standing armies or fortified defences. They were farms, market towns, and fishing ports. Their people had neither the will nor the means to resist.

And so, when the banners of Ryntum appeared on the horizon, the answer was always the same.

White flags were raised. Town gates swung open.

From her command post in the former Leuphan mansion, Sarika continuously received good news, which pleased her.

"It's done," she remarked one evening as the final reports came in. "The region is ours."

Her adjutant nodded. "Shall we begin preparations for integration, Commander?"

"Tch. Leave those complicated things to the civil servants from the capital. Let them argue about taxes and laws. My work here is done."

She added, "I want to go to the beach."

There was no surprise on her adjutant's face. This request wasn't born solely of boredom.

Leuphan was located closer to the northern sea than her former home of Klover. On clear days, one can see a distant silhouette on the horizon—the Land of Ice.

"They say from those cliffs, you can see it," she mused aloud, "The frozen land across the sea. A place untouched by kings and emperors."

Sarika had no intention of invading it as it was not her mission. But curiosity gnawed at her.

She had to take a look.