Chapter 151: | 151 | Disagreements in Eisenberg
The two warships of the Storm Fleet, UNS Light Bringer and UNS Jaeger of the Blue Seas, found itself near ashore of the devastated port of the capital island. They were currently managing the surrender of the colony and to assure no chaos befalls over the island.
With them were the Liberation Front who were the ones fighting inside the island. Through them, the United Navy managed to give internal pressure that aided the decision of the remaining generals to surrender to the fleet.
Otherwise, the colonial military would have tried to buckle in despite the heavy bombardment they were sustaining from the skies.
Though, things weren\'t going smoothly as expected. The dealings of how war criminals get treated became an issue amongst the liberators of Eisenberg. It was a disagreement between the United Navy and the Liberation Front.
Somewhere in the central square of the ruined city, two sides met in a massive tent separated by a side of a table. The one leading the processing efforts of the United Navy was none other than Captain Lux. On the other hand, Hermona sat with the tribe leaders beside her.
She had managed to acquire the assistance of five tribes, which already included the Leo, Deerfolk and Tigris Tribe. Besides them, there was the Crok and Rattus Tribe. They required an extensive effort to attain, much more than the former tribes.
Her relationship between the two of them wasn\'t also extremely good when compared to the first three.
"I have heard about some disagreement regarding how prisoners of war are dealt." Captain Lux squinted his eyes and gazed at the beastfolks from the other side. "I\'d like to hear about it."
Hermona was about to respond to the captain, but before she could do so, the Rat Chief of the Rattus Tribe had already opened his mouth, presenting his disagreement. "The imprisoned humans should belong to us, beastfolk tribes."
"We have fought against them for so long. Reparations are needed for what they had done to us." The furry guy explained to Captain Lux, who merely raised his eyebrows and asked. "And what do you want to do with them?"
"What we want from them is simple. We want them to be our slaves for their remaining lifetime." The Rat Chief answered with confidence, not understanding the troubles that came with his words. But it seems that he wasn\'t the only one who thought of using human slaves.
"We, of the Crok Tribe, have the same thoughts. For the betterment of our tribe, we need human slaves and their labor to expand our land. For the price of this war, I believe that we have the right to keep them as ours." The Crok Chief appears to be supporting the furry chief.
Hermona furrowed her eyebrows while Leonidas and Tora merely lowered their heads. They understood the thoughts going through their leader\'s mind. They understood the anger about to erupt from her heart.
Captain Lux nodded after hearing their explanation as though he was seriously thinking about it. But, he turned his gaze towards Hermona and questioned her. "As the leader of the Liberation Front, do you have the same thoughts?"
It was a simple question, but it weighed on her deeply.
The Liberation Front had just formed, and her answer would determine its future. Would she throw aside her principles for the continuation of the front? Or will she destroy such a dirty organization herself? The answer was already clear.
"No, don\'t lump me with these idiots." Hermona shook her head and glared at the tribe leaders beside her. A nerve emerged on her forehead as she slammed her fist on the table. "The archipelago just got liberated, and you already want slaves?"
"Do you want to become one again?" It sounded like a threat, but it wasn\'t. Liberation only came when the concept of slavery gets thrown into the caldera of a volcano where it belongs. If slavery hadn\'t disappeared with the liberation, it simply meant that no one got liberated to begin with.
The Crok Chief seemed to take her words as a threat from a human, so he lashed out at her. "Don\'t talk to me with such insolent tone, girl. We only accepted y-."
"You only accepted because you knew you couldn\'t do it alone." Leonidas interrupted his words and coldly gazed at the Crok Chief. "Don\'t think highly of yourself, you\'re talking to the leader of the rebellion. She isn\'t just a girl, she is the liberator."
"While we kept our heads bowed at the colonist, she immediately killed one and set the torch of freedom for the rest of us. Such thing was something you couldn\'t do. None of us could do it. So, don\'t consider yourself as the same level as her!" Leonidas yelled at the Crok Chief.
"For the first time in my life, I agree with a Leo." Tora looked at the Crock Chief and Rat Chief before sighing. "The terms between the United Navy and the Liberation Front isn\'t set up by the two of you. Remember that the leader of the rebellion is Hermona. Nothing more, nothing less."
"We don\'t need your dirty politics in the table. Just follow her orders." Tora stated at the two, who clenched their teeth in anger. They had never faced this much disgrace. It made them angry at the root cause of it.
"There\'s no used getting angry about it. If there\'s something you want to say to me, say it. We can settle in this table." Hermona remarked while glaring at the two tribe leaders. She couldn\'t believe that these two were already trying to reinstate slavery into the archipelago.
The gall.
"But let me remind you of one thing. Do you know what we do with enslavers? The Liberation Front isn\'t merely a freedom-fighting group for the beastfolks, but a front for every liberation. The moment a beastfolk tribe enslaves another."
"They will meet the same fate as the colonist of this island." She declared, making Captain Lux smile and applause at the speech of the young lady before him. It seems that rumors didn\'t lie. She really had the makings of a rebel leader.
"As expected of the leader of the Liberation Front, your authority is impeccable." He remarked while clapping. It was hard to not give applause, and there was no reason not to.
"Eh?" Hermona blushed as she didn\'t expect for the stern old man to applaud her out of nowhere. Tora and Leonidas also chuckled, giving their remarks. "As expected of the leader!" "I didn\'t pick the wrong person."
"At any rate, what you said is true, Hermona." Captain Lux stopped clapping and affirmed. "The United Navy cannot simply reinstate slavery into the lands it has liberated. Please do not misunderstand. We aren\'t liberating others for them to become enslavers."
"That does not stand with the United Navy\'s code of conduct."
"If human or beastfolk trafficking resides in the sea of the United Navy, we will destroy it without a doubt. Just like how we destroyed the colonists of the Colonial Dominion of Terra." Captain Lux looked at the two tribe leaders, who shivered from his gaze.
"I don\'t want to return to the archipelago to capture criminals of the United Navy. That would be unfortunate don\'t you think?" Captain Lux calmly uttered towards the two. They nodded at him in agreement as they realized that it was a warning for them.
"Regardless... The prisoners of war will be sent to the Port of Dawn for processing. The scattered operations had already ended, and the only one that remains is the Colonial Dominion of Terra." He remarked, making Hermona raise her eyebrows in shock.
"Does that mean you also attacked all of the major colonies in the sea region?" She asked as she found it hard to believe what she was hearing.
"Yes, the operation in this archipelago is part of many more. The fleet of the United Navy is far larger than you have imagined. I have heard that over ten thousand slaves were liberated in the southern colony." Captain Lux answered since he found no reason to hide it from an ally.
"I-I see... I just thought we would be colony hopping, destroying them one by one." Hermona uttered, and her words had some truth in it. If the United Navy really wanted the safest route, they could attack the colonies one by one.
This would help them preserve most of their naval power without a problem. But such a path was far from efficient, and the more time they wasted the more variables would emerged. It simply wasn\'t worth it.
"Please don\'t misunderstand, Hermona. The war is far from over. As long as the Colonial Dominion of Terra stands, it will never end." Captain Lux clarified as their goal wasn\'t merely the liberation of slaves. It was to liberate the entirety of the sea region.
"But don\'t worry much, for the wisdom of the fleet admiral is unending. His strategies goes far beyond our understanding. It will not take long before the Colonial Dominion sinks to the abyssal depths of this sea." Out of nowhere, he began spouting the most faithful words in the United Navy.