Empire of Shadows

When the first gunshot tore through the silence of the dark night, the terrified soldiers climbed up from the sleeping mats on the ground, sensing with terror everything that was happening outside. The collapse, uncontrollably, had begun.

Very intense gunfire.

The continuous firing of five hundred bolt-action rifles made it impossible for people to distinguish how many enemies there were, and in what direction they were.

The one in charge of commanding this battle was an army colonel.

Rapa also had a navy, but it was more like a ”coast guard.” Even if a small country had a warship, it couldn’t afford to maintain it.

Sometimes reality is really like a heavy fist, constantly pounding on people’s most vulnerable places, until people cover their crotches and kneel down.

The colonel officer was also awakened by the gunshots. He fumbled on his body for a while, and found his lighter. His hands were trembling a little as he lit the lighter. With the faint light, he grabbed his handgun.

Outside the tent were miserable screams and dense gunshots. As a military officer, at this moment when he was most needed, he was actually, because of fear, terror, trembling, and did not dare to leave his tent.

It’s unknown how long had passed. He was already so nervous that his palms were covered in cold sweat. At this time, his adjutant from outside the tent had found him, ”Colonel?”

”I’m in here.”He swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and felt a little better.

The faint light of the lighter allowed him to barely see the panicked expressions of his two adjutants. They were not properly dressed either, and had also run over in their underwear.

”What on earth is happening outside?” he asked.

In fact, he already had an answer in his heart, but he was just not willing to believe it.

”It’s Pedro. He’s here with his men,” one of the adjutants shouted.

Without a doubt, Pedro’s actions tonight would bring him a huge psychological shadow, which might last for a long time.

The gunshots outside were still constantly ringing. He could also vaguely hear the cries of some soldiers, and them advocating for escape, and the sounds they made when they were fleeing.

His other adjutant also couldn’t help but say loudly, ”Let’s get out of here first. We’ll make plans when it’s light!”

”Now... it’s too dark. We can’t see anything!”

The colonel officer did not hesitate for too long, and immediately agreed.

But the sky was too dark. They could only, instinctively, run in the opposite direction of the gunshots, and had run until the gunshots were far away from them, before they had stopped.

The whole battle actually did not have much that could be described. It was a one-sided ”massacre.” To use this word in the description of a battle between an anti-government armed force and a government army was a little... too much!

In about thirty or forty minutes, the gunshots had gradually subsided. Pedro’s men, holding torches high, had entered the field.

In the darkness, their shooting had indeed hit some of the Rapa’s government army soldiers. Some, after being shot, had quickly died, but there were still some, at this time, lying on the ground, struggling.

They were just seriously injured, and had not died immediately, but at this time, the arrival of Pedro and his men had announced their death sentence.

Pedro stood in front of the first Rapa soldier in the camp area, who had not yet died. He had been shot in the abdomen, and had lost a lot of blood, but he looked to be still conscious, which showed that he had not been hit in a vital part.

He was sitting on the ground, leaning against a tent. One hand was pressed on the place where he had been shot. Blood was still slowly flowing, which looked scary, but in fact, it was not much.

Pedro stared at him for about a dozen seconds. The people around him, who were holding torches, were gathering more and more. He knew that he had to do this.

He pulled back the bolt of his gun and glanced at it, and then aimed at the soldier.

The soldier was trembling all over with fear. ”No, please don’t do this...”

But Pedro still pulled the trigger.

With a ”bang,” the bullet, at a very close range, had entered the soldier’s brain. His whole person, as if he had been fiercely punched, his head had sunk, and he had fallen, and was completely silent.

This was the first time Pedro had, in a situation where he could witness the person being killed, watched him die because of his own shooting.

It might sound a little complicated. To put it more bluntly, it was the first time he had seen a person who had been killed by himself.

It was a little uncomfortable.

As a teacher, he still had a bottom line, but now he was, bit by bit, destroying his own bottom line with his own hands. Although he knew very well that to do so was necessary, that uncomfortable emotion, that feeling, was still surging in his body.

He held back his psychological discomfort, glanced at the corpse, and then looked at the others. ”Finish off all the soldiers who are not dead. We can’t save them.”

”Quickly clean up the battlefield. Collect the things they have left behind. Take away what you can, and what you can’t... destroy it on the spot.”

The eyes of those who were looking at him were at this time filled with an admiring expression!

Before this, the mood in Saige City was actually a bit low and pessimistic. Many people had thought that they were no match for the Rapa’s government army. Some had even been secretly fleeing Saige City.

It’s unknown who had been spreading some false news. They had said that all the ordinary people in Saige City might be implicated.

The best way was to leave Saige City.

In these few days, many people had left one after another. It didn’t matter that these people had left. Their departure had made the people under Pedro also feel uneasy.

These people’s level of education was not high. They didn’t understand any big principles. They only knew that when everyone felt that something was dangerous, it must be unsafe!

Some had questioned Pedro’s decision, to fight the government army in Saige City, and had suspected what his purpose in doing so was.

There were also some who had supported his decision, but these people were not many.

More, were just silent onlookers.

Until this moment!

All the people who had come with the preparation that they might die on this trip, were standing here, feeling the joy of that victory, and their eyes, as they looked at Pedro, were also filled with a deep admiration!

Pedro felt this aura. He pursed his lips. ”Do as I say. We don’t have much time. We must evacuate here before dawn.”

Now in Rapa, it started to get light at a little after five. In fact, their time was not so tight, but Pedro was worried about any accidents.

Soon everyone had begun to act. The sky above the camp, along with the pleas of some, had been constantly filled with gunshots.

Not long after, the entire camp had fallen into silence again.

They had found a large amount of equipment in the camp.

Old-fashioned rifles and already-used bolt-action rifles, and also all kinds of supplies.

There were too many things. He wanted to take every one of them, but he also knew that it was impossible to take all of them.

”Weapons, ammunition, dried meat. Take as much of these as you can. The rest that you can’t... burn them on the spot.”

With Pedro’s orders beginning to be implemented, soon the camp was engulfed in a large fire, and they, in the light of the fire, had left this place.

When they had returned to the city, the sky had just begun to brighten. Some of the people in the city still didn’t know what had happened.

But as the sky became brighter and brighter, some news had also begun to circulate in the city.

When people had heard that Pedro had led the ”five hundred warriors” to defeat the federal government army, and had also captured a large amount of supplies, they had all, in disbelief, run to verify.

Pedro was a smart person. He had piled up the captured supplies, and had not stopped people from watching.

Seeing the military equipment that was clearly from the Rapa government army, everyone had shown an incredulous look.

At the same time, they had also begun to believe this.

To believe that Pedro might really be able, as some had said, to change this country!

Some of the people who had been on the sidelines had begun to become active, and they had begun to join Pedro’s team.

It was not yet seven o’clock when Diego had suddenly opened his eyes.

The exquisite and luxurious ceiling had not brought him any pleasure.

He had turned his head and had glanced at the faint light that had penetrated through the curtains. He had slowly supported his huge body and had sat up, and then had pressed the button on his bedside.

Two minutes later, the butler, with the maids, had come here. ”Master, are you getting up now?”

Diego nodded. ”What time is it now?”

The butler had taken out his pocket watch and had glanced at it. ”It’s three minutes to seven, Master.”

Diego had gotten off the bed with the help of the maids, and had asked, ”They should be launching their attack in the morning, right?”

The butler had nodded again. ”As far as I know, that is indeed the case.”

Diego had sighed and had not said anything more. He had entered the washroom with the maids.

His body needed to be cleaned every day. The grease that was naturally secreted from his pores had aggravated his bad body odor. After more than ten minutes of cleaning, he had changed into clean and tidy clothes and had gone to the dining room.

Now he needed to eat something to comfort his somewhat bad mood.

Perhaps realizing that he needed ”comfort,” the food that the chef had made this morning was all very sweet.

They had added a lot of extra sugar.

Sugar is a very bad thing. It is addictive. The research on this aspect in the Federation is very advanced, because sugar and its addictiveness can bring huge profits to capital.

As long as it can provide profits, and it is a large profit, the capitalists of the Federation will be keen to study it.

They had concealed many of the research reports on sugar, and in order to let people eat more sugar, they had also added many flavors to solve the problem of the pure sweet taste being easy to get tired of.

Diego’s chef had not received this knowledge, but he also knew that when you are in a bad mood, to eat something sweet will make your mood better.

He had used some of the sweet and sour tropical fruit juice and pulp to make a breakfast that looked very healthy, but in fact, the sugar was already off the charts.

The intake of sugar had quickly taken effect, and Diego’s anxious mood had been greatly relieved.

It was just... he had not yet completely finished enjoying his breakfast when a military officer had hurriedly walked over.

The butler, in the distance, had had a simple communication with him, and had suddenly realized that a bad situation, which they had least wanted to see, had appeared.

He had quickly walked to Diego’s side and had bent his waist.

Diego had also noticed the military officer. He did not know what had happened, so he was not nervous.

”What happened?” he had asked casually, while enjoying the dish that was stewed with tropical fruit pulp and the drumstick meat of a wild brocade chicken.

So early, he didn’t think that anything would have happened.

The butler did not answer immediately. In just three or four seconds, he had stopped eating. With a look of doubt and a trace of disbelief, he had looked at the butler. He already had some premonition.

The butler’s voice was very low.

”Pedro had led his men to attack our army at a little after four. At that time, they were all sleeping, and had not realized that those people would do so, so...”

”So?” Diego’s voice had suddenly become much louder. He had directly reached out and had grabbed the butler’s collar, and had forcefully pulled him to his side. ”So what?”

The butler was already used to Diego’s terrible and irritable temper. He behaved very stably. ”So they failed.”

Diego had suddenly pushed the butler away. He had leaned back in his chair, his chest heaving violently. ”So, they failed?”

”Fuck!”

”Those military officers told me that Pedro is just a small bug, and that they can easily crush him.”

”But now this small bug, who can be easily crushed by them, has defeated them?”

”Damn it!”

”Gather everyone. In addition, go and find out if this is fake news!”

He had glanced at the sumptuous breakfast on the table, and no longer had the slightest appetite.

Soon, the military officers had all arrived at his office. Diego’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and was even dropping ashes.

His gaze had continuously roamed over the faces of these people. ”You told me before that Pedro, and the men under him, are all ordinary people, school teachers, and also a few of the supervisors of the local companies.”

”You said that to deal with this resistance group that has not received any military training, and does not know any strategy or tactics, you don’t even need to send out many troops.”

”But, he has made me realize that you and the ’they’ in your mouths are actually not much different. You fucking also don’t understand military and combat!”

The faces of the military officers were all very ugly. To be defeated by a group of non-professional soldiers was simply a huge humiliation for them.

A lieutenant general couldn’t help but say, ”It’s possible that someone has helped them, which is why they were able to, in a situation we hadn’t anticipated, to attack first and to achieve a victory.”

Diego looked at the lieutenant general who was speaking, without blinking.

Don’t be fooled by the fact that Rapa’s army is pitifully small, but there is definitely no shortage of military officers and generals.

”So you mean, someone has provided military aid.”

”Are you trying to say, it’s the federal people?”

The lieutenant general did not speak, but his attitude had already made it clear to Diego that this was what he thought.

Diego’s gloomy eyes had lingered on him for a moment. Now he was actually also not too sure if it was really like this.

Before, these people had said that Pedro was so useless, that he had deeply believed this—

A high school teacher, leading a group of people with a similar status as him, to rebel. How can it be successful?

So now his success is clearly not in line with the actual situation.

Diego’s hatred for the federal people in his heart had become even deeper, but he also knew that now was not the time.

”How are you planning to solve this problem?”

The only admiral had stood up. ”We will remobilize the army to eliminate them, and I am applying to you for a batch of artillery.”

”I am not very clear about the details of this battle, but I can imagine that they might have captured some military supplies, so what we are going to face next is a rebel army with a larger number of weapons.”

”This time, we will treat them seriously, and not as a joke.”

Diego had a bit of a headache when he heard his words, because he had mentioned the expansion of the rebel army. This 3,000-man team, to have gone over, was tantamount to taking military supplies to ”supply the enemy.”

The thought of, because of these people’s carelessness and stupidity, that this little bug, Pedro, had become much stronger, had made Diego’s gaze, as he looked at these people, be filled with unkindness.

However, he had still agreed to the admiral’s request. ”Alright, I’ll give you six cannons.”

”You can mobilize all the troops you need, but you must promise me that you will definitely bring Pedro’s corpse back!”

”And, you will not lose the cannons again!”

The admiral had clicked his heels together. ”Snap!” ”I promise!”

Diego had stared at him for a while, and only then had he agreed.

He had asked people to, as much as possible, not to spread this matter. For the government army to be defeated by an anti-government armed force, no matter what the reason, was a huge negative impact on the Rapa regime.

But the more he was afraid of something, the more it would happen.

It wasn’t just him who was paying attention to this battle. Lance was also paying attention. The reason why he had come back in advance was to, more and faster, to understand the situation of the battle, and to make a response.

It was also at a little after seven o’clock that Lance had received a call from Pedro.

”Mr. Lance, just a short while ago, we have just experienced a great victory!”

”We have defeated the Rapa’s government army, and have also captured some military supplies.”

”I think we have more to talk about.”

When Lance had heard his voice, he had known that he had won this battle. Otherwise, he would not have taken the initiative to call at a time like this. ”Can I ask how you did it?”

Pedro had briefly recounted the matter of the night raid. Although the description was very simple, Lance could still feel his determination!

”A smart choice. Diego should be having a big headache right now. Then what do you want from me?”

Pedro took a deep breath. ”I want you to report this in the newspaper. And we need more medical supplies, all kinds of supplies, and also some military advice and help.”

Lance considered for a moment. ”I will arrange it for you, but likewise, it has an exchange condition.”

”To the west of Saige, there are two more cities. Please let your flag also fly over those cities...”

At a little after ten in the morning, the new newspaper had begun to be distributed for free, but the content today was clearly much more explosive than before!

The federal people’s newspaper had, at the first opportunity, disclosed that the government army had suffered a huge failure in Saige City, with hundreds of casualties, and hundreds of missing. For a time, the entire society was in an uproar.

Ross, who was in the process of preparing for a big move, after he had learned of this, had immediately made the decision to seize the surrounding cities.