It wasn't until evening that all the PN Soldiers in the city were completely wiped out.
The civilians who had been hiding were finally allowed to return home.
Before letting them go, they were warned to stay alert. If anything seemed strange at home or if they saw any suspicious people, they were told to report it immediately.
Some PN Soldiers had escaped into the mountains during the chaos. For now, there weren't enough soldiers to go after them.
So the civilians were asked to be extra careful. If they saw any unfamiliar faces or suspicious people, they should report them right away.
There were over a hundred thousand dead bodies lying all over the city. That wasn't acceptable.
There wasn't even space to walk on the streets.
So they started hiring workers. All healthy people between fifteen and sixty years old in the city had to come and help.
Although it was unpaid work, meals were provided.
They also needed to recruit several dozen young women to help cook food, and meals would be provided for them as well.
Some people helped move the bodies, others dug holes.
The higher-ups gave orders to dig pits and burn the bodies overnight, to prevent any possible spread of disease.
The army had only done a rough cleanup after the battle, because the enemy had too many people. Their main task was to collect the weapons.
So the people who helped move the bodies had a big benefit—there was a chance they might find something valuable.
At the very least, there might be silver coins.
Everyone got excited. Many underage kids also wanted to join in.
Some sneaky children ran off ahead of the adults to search for things in empty spots.
As long as no one saw them, it didn't matter. After all, nobody would refuse money.
The fire burned all night and was still going. There were just too many bodies to burn quickly.
At least the streets had been cleared of bodies. After a cleanup during the day, life could return to normal.
The PN Official waited all night but no one contacted him.
He had no choice but to call PN Officer Ma and asked him to go check what was going on with PN Leader Sa.
At the same time, he told him to receive the journalists arriving that day.
After all, in that area, he had the highest rank.
Originally, the siege commander was PN Officer Ma. He had passed the role to PN Leader Sa because of illness.
Now asking him to host the journalists was appropriate.
But when the journalists arrived, they were all shocked.
Where were the people? Where was the army? Where was the camp?
Weren't they supposed to have won? Weren't they supposed to have entered the city?
Why were the defending forces still the Hua Nation army?
PN Officer Ma and the others were full of confusion.
"PN Officer Ma, didn't you say our army already took the city?
Are you trying to lie to the public?" the PN Reporter asked.
"No no no, as soldiers, we must always be truthful.
Since PN Leader Sa said he entered the city, then he must have.
Maybe they were ambushed and captured. The Hua Nation people are full of tricks," PN Officer Ma quickly explained.
"Earlier reports said that under our fierce attack, the enemy suffered huge losses.
Their supplies were heavily consumed, and their defense lines nearly collapsed.
In contrast, our side had almost no casualties in the intense battle, as if blessed by heaven.
Now you're telling us that our army of over 100,000 well-equipped, well-trained soldiers, as if supported by the gods, was captured by a bunch of starving, dying, and isolated Hua Nation people?
Can you give a reasonable explanation?
Are you lying about military information to cover up the fact that we lost?" the PN Reporter asked again.
After all, at the beginning, someone had boasted they would take over Huaguo in three months.
Who would have thought the war itself would last three months?
Now, regarding this capital city, even though all the news being sent back had been victories, no one had actually seen it with their own eyes.
But what they were seeing now made them start to doubt the truth of the military reports.
"This is complete nonsense. I personally commanded the attack here before. Do you think I don't know what really happened?
Right now, PN Leader Sa is just temporarily missing. We still don't know where he went.
The most important thing right now is to find him, not to answer your interviews." PN Officer Ma was so angry his liver hurt.
This war had been under his command. If any bad reports came out, his reputation from all these years would be ruined.
"So what you mean is, everything was going perfectly when you were in charge, the soldiers were invincible like they had divine help.
And only after PN Leader Sa took over did everything fall apart?
Because of his poor leadership, in just a few days he caused the deaths of over 100,000 of our PN Soldiers.
Is that what you're saying?" the PN Reporter kept pressing.
"I didn't say that, don't twist my words.
Besides, PN Leader Sa is currently missing. There's no clear evidence that he was captured.
Don't spread false reports. Falsifying military news is punishable by military court." PN Officer Ma began to cough violently from anger.
He had been replaced because of his health, and had been waiting nearby, hoping to witness the moment of victory with his own eyes.
Who would have thought he'd face this situation instead? If he had known, he would have left earlier.
But what on earth happened to that useless PN Leader Sa? He was perfectly fine—where did he go?
Even if they lost the battle, how could not a single one of them survive?
The group didn't dare approach the city, afraid they'd be mistaken for enemies and attacked, so they quickly retreated to their camp.
PN Officer Ma reported what he saw. The person on the other end of the call told him to wait for orders, then hung up.
Soon after, the buzzing of aircraft filled the city skies.
Paige looked up at the planes circling above. If they weren't here to launch a surprise attack, then they were here to gather intelligence.
She pulled out a sniper rifle and took aim at the aircraft.
Inside the plane, the pilot saw something that shocked him.
He noticed black smoke rising from many parts of the city but didn't think much of it at first.
But then he saw something else—those uniforms next to the smoke were from their PN Soldiers.
Could those piles be the bodies of their own soldiers?
Before he could get a closer look—
Bang. A loud explosion.
The plane burst into flames mid-air.
The PN Official didn't get the information he needed. Instead, he got news that the plane had exploded.
He was so furious he nearly passed out.
"Send more planes. We must find out what really happened," the PN Official ordered, clutching his chest.
Paige, with a sniper rifle slung over her shoulder, sat proudly on the city wall.
She knew they wouldn't give up easily. She was waiting for more planes.
Paige was now a legend in the camp.
Because only she had the skill to shoot down enemy planes with a sniper rifle.
Sure enough, more planes soon arrived.
Seeing the planes preparing to dive, she knew they were up to something.
This time, their orders were to bomb the area while also scouting it.