"You dare point a gun at me?!"
Looking at the dark muzzles of the Sheng Lu soldiers' guns, James was not afraid at all; instead, he became even angrier and took a few steps forward, grabbing the gun held by one of the Sheng Lu soldiers.
For a long time, the people of Sein Lu have always been subservient to their own country. When did they start daring to confront them?! Who gave them the audacity?! Who gave them the confidence?!
The annihilation of the Allied forces had already caused James deep grief, accompanied by anger. Now, faced with the tough stance of the Sheng Lu people, he felt greatly humiliated, and his anger intensified. He felt hot all over, and his eyes even began to bloodshot.
Enraged, he gripped the gun barrel, leaned forward, pressed his forehead against the muzzle, and roared:
"Come on! Shoot here!"
"shot!!"
The soldier holding the gun in the Sun-Lu army felt his heart pounding wildly at the sound of the soldier's roar, his eyes filled with panic. Of course, he dared not fire his gun. The man in front of him was the commander-in-chief of the Second Fleet of the Sa-Ri Kingdom. His importance was self-evident. Even if he were not the commander-in-chief and were just an ordinary private, he still could not fire his gun.
Behind all of them was the behemoth that was the Kingdom of Sari, which ruled the continent of Leon for many years and whose power, whether on land or at sea, was so great that it forced everyone to submit.
Their navy is powerful enough to sweep across the entire seas of the Leon continent, and their army is so strong that it can reach the capital, Pério, in just a few months. How could such a behemoth dare to have an irreparable conflict with them?
The soldier was at a loss, but he still carefully lowered the muzzle of his gun and looked at Lucat, sending him a pleading look.
"What are you doing! Put down your guns!"
Lucat remained rational; he did not let momentary anger cloud his judgment and calmly ordered the soldiers to lay down their weapons to avoid escalating the conflict.
The soldiers quickly lowered their guns and breathed a sigh of relief. Leto, of course, understood that they couldn't actually engage in a firefight. Although he was still angry, he simply lowered his head and remained silent.
"What's wrong? Weren't you pointing a gun at me?!"
"Just putting on an act?! Huh?!"
Although the soldier had lowered his gun, James was still furious. He suddenly swung his hand and knocked the gun out of the private's hand.
The soldier hurriedly bent down to pick it up, but James kicked him.
"You can't even hold a gun properly, yet you dare to point it at me?!"
As a major general in the army, James's rank of "major general" was not something he obtained by gilding the lily like his colleagues who were sons of noble families. The numerous medals hanging on his body showed that he had risen to this position through battles. He had hoped to add another achievement to his record during this naval campaign, but now it seems that all of that has gone down the drain.
Therefore, he kicked very hard, and the soldier was not only knocked down, but also crashed against the railing while still on the deck before stopping.
After kicking the soldier, James didn't even glance at him. Instead, he turned around and abruptly slapped Leto hard across the face.
The slap was equally forceful, but Leto simply stepped back with his right foot and remained standing, though a bright red handprint gradually appeared on his face.
"What were you yelling about? You think it's glorious to surrender to the Yan Kingdom?!"
“Those soldiers sacrificed their lives, but you returned safely. Aren’t you very fortunate?!” James shouted at Leto with a fierce look on his face.
Leto's face twitched slightly, but he didn't speak, only pursed his lips.
He knew he couldn't afford to be provoked any further; the volatile man in front of him was nothing more than raging impotently.
“And you!! What did you lead the fleet to do on this voyage?!” Seeing that Leto remained silent, James turned his attention to Lucat.
Lucat's face remained largely expressionless. He shifted his gaze from the soldier who had been helped up to James, who was reprimanding him.
After a moment of silence, he opened his mouth and said:
"Major General James, I also do not want the war to be lost, but it has already happened, and we can only accept reality."
"This time, we lost completely."
Upon hearing this, James was about to speak when Lucart changed the subject, saying:
"However, we also gained a lot of intelligence from this battle, so we won't make the same mistake next time."
After saying this, James snorted coldly, and his adjutant stepped forward and whispered:
"Sir, they are the only ones with useful intelligence right now. We can't push them too hard. They will eventually have to give us an explanation."
James listened with a grim face, then glanced sideways at Lucart and said coldly:
"Explain every piece of information you have in detail!"
Lucat remained noncommittal, saying only, "You'll find out."
"But the most important thing now is for us to return immediately."
“There are still people on Coral Island waiting to be redeemed. The longer it drags on, the harder it will be for them to survive. We need to prepare compensation as soon as possible.”
Upon hearing this, James immediately asked, "Is Marshal Clemento on the island?"
Lucart shook his head: "He's already dead, but General Winston is still alive."
"Damn it!" James clutched his face, his heart filled with both pain and anger.
Then, he suddenly cursed again: "Damn Yan people, they destroyed our warships, killed our people, and now they want us to pay compensation? These bastards!"
Are they currently stationed around Coral Island to keep watch?
Lucate shook his head and said, "Probably, but my information is limited."
"Alright, Major General James, I will organize all the remaining intelligence after I return home, and you will all know about it."
Having said that, Lucat said no more and prepared to leave with his men.
James was about to call a halt, but the adjutant shook his head and whispered, "Sir, let's stop here."
“They will explain everything right under our noses. We need to return immediately to report to Her Majesty the Queen and obey all her orders.”
"Your anger... will only create irreconcilable conflicts between us and the Shenglu people."
After the adjutant said those words, James belatedly realized what was happening. He had no choice but to suppress his displeasure and slap the railing of the ship.
But Lucat, who was walking towards the wooden bridge, suddenly turned around and said:
"By the way, regarding the compensation issue raised by the Yan people, I think I need to inform you in advance."
Everyone looked at him. Lucat paused for a moment before continuing:
"They want one hundred million taels of gold."
These words caused an uproar on the ship, and everyone was shocked.
"How much...how much?" James thought he had misheard.
Lucat stretched out one hand and said to them:
Five thousand tons of gold.
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