Chapter 408: As Long as They Don’t Rob Us, They’re Good People (Part 2)

Chapter 408 -278: As Long as They Don’t Rob Us, They’re Good People (Part 2)

Once the city fell, endless disaster awaited them. The streets were a chaotic mess of cries, crashes, and pleas for mercy.

“Run! Run!” a little boy screamed in terror, pulling at his mother’s hand.

His mother held him tight, her eyes filled with helplessness. “Don’t be scared, child. Mama will hide you.”

They hid in a dilapidated little hut, the air thick with the smell of dust.

The mother clutched the little boy to her chest and whispered, “Don’t make a sound. Don’t make a sound. They’ll pass by.”

But the boy couldn’t stop trembling. He looked at his mother, his eyes filled with fear. “Mama, are they going to kill us?”

His mother fought back tears, comforting him softly. “No, they won’t. They’re here to drive out the bad people. They won’t hurt us.”

However, the chaos outside drew closer. A group of soldiers stormed into a shop, smashed the glass, and turned everything inside upside down.

The shop owner knelt on the ground, begging bitterly. “Sirs, I beg you, please spare me! I’m just an ordinary shopkeeper. I don’t have any money.”

A soldier kicked him hard and cursed, “No money? Do you take us for fools? Hand it over, or I’ll make your death an ugly one!”

The shop owner was kicked so hard he couldn’t get up. He could only plead, “I really don’t have any money. I used it all to stock my inventory. Please, I beg you, spare me.”

But the soldiers paid no attention to his pleas and continued to search the shop. They smashed open the counter, found a few Dinars and a case of Silver Coins, and greedily snatched them up before rushing to their next target.

“Help! Help!” a woman’s scream came from not far away.

A group of soldiers had burst into her home. She resisted with all her might but was violently thrown to the ground by one of them.

Her husband rushed out to protect her, only to be run through by another soldier’s sword. Blood gushed out.

“No—!” the woman shrieked, throwing herself onto her husband’s body and sobbing her heart out.

“Captain, why did he rush over?”

“I don’t know. Probably trying to protect his wife. Forget it. Grab the money! This guy has a noble’s crest by his door. He must be rich!”

Hearing these miserable screams, the surrounding citizens were even more terrified.

They hid in their homes, not daring to make a sound for fear of attracting the soldiers’ attention.

An old woman sat in a corner, muttering over and over, “Your Majesty the Emperor, save us… Save us poor people…”

Her grandson gripped her hand tightly, his eyes filled with terror. “Grandma, are they going to kill us?”

The old woman’s voice trembled as she said, “No, child. The Emperor will protect us.”

However, she knew in her heart that even the Emperor probably couldn’t save them.

The sounds of smashing and looting outside grew closer, the soldiers’ footsteps clearer. All she could do was hold her grandson tight and pray for it all to end quickly.

Meanwhile, Henry’s army was fanning out across the city. Their targets were very clear: the petty nobles, shop owners, Workshop owners, and gang leaders.

They stormed into a luxurious mansion, exquisitely decorated and opulent. The petty noble inside watched them in terror, his voice trembling as he said, “You can’t do this! I am a nobleman! I have status!”

A soldier sneered and said, “A nobleman? Hmph, what kind of nobleman are you? You have no fiefdom, no army! And you’re the enemy!” He brandished his sword and charged at the petty noble.

The petty noble backed away in terror, but another soldier grabbed him by the hair and yanked him back.

He struggled desperately, but to no avail. The soldiers dragged him to the ground and beat and kicked him until he could no longer move.

“Quick, search this place! See if there’s anything valuable!” a soldier shouted.

The other soldiers immediately sprang into action. They smashed open cabinets, found gold, silver, and jewels, and greedily stuffed them into their own pockets.

They tore down walls, searching for hidden treasures, and turned the entire mansion upside down.

“Nothing left here! Let’s go! To the next place!” a soldier shouted.

They then charged toward another high-end-looking shop. Seeing them rush in, the shop owner was so frightened he fell to his knees, begging bitterly. “Sirs, I beg you, please spare me! I’m just an ordinary shopkeeper. I don’t have any money.”

But the soldiers paid no attention to his pleas and continued to search the shop. They smashed open the counter, found a chest full of Dinars, and snatched it away in shock. They gave the owner a slap across the face and then rushed to their next target.

This looting spree continued until the next morning. The streets of Akakarat City were filled with the thick stench of blood and the faint smell of smoke from fires.

The sky slowly brightened. The first rays of sunlight fell upon the ravaged city, but they could not dispel the gloom that hung over people’s hearts.

The ordinary citizens had spent the night in terror, hiding in their dilapidated homes and holding their loved ones tight.

Listening to the sounds of smashing, screaming, and soldiers shouting outside, their hearts were filled with fear and despair.

However, as time passed, the chaos outside gradually subsided, replaced by an eerie silence.

Only when the first rays of sunlight shone through the cracks in their windows did people dare to cautiously peek their heads out.

They saw that the streets were in shambles, littered with wrecked shops, scattered valuables, and the bodies of the defending soldiers.

However, the soldiers did not continue to harass them, which gave the common citizens a sense of surprise and relief.

In fact, Henry and his men had never intended to harm the ordinary citizens from the very beginning.

What they wanted was a complete and functional city, not an empty one.

These citizens were the cornerstone of the city, the key to maintaining its operation and order.

Though they didn’t have much wealth, they were the city’s labor force, the foundation for Henry and his men to rule the city in the future.

Besides, they weren’t short on serfs. The Akakarat Earl’s Domain itself had a large number of them.

Henry stood on the city walls, looking down at the city now under his control.

His army and the armies of his nobles were maintaining order within the city, while the ordinary citizens, still shaken, were gradually calming down.

“My Lord, the situation in the city has mostly stabilized,” a Personal Guard reported quietly, approaching Henry’s side.

Henry nodded, his gaze profound. “Very good. The next task is to restore order to the city as quickly as possible. Have Claude and Bain go and calm the citizens’ emotions. We need to make them understand that we are not here to destroy them.”

The Personal Guard nodded. “Understood, my lord.”

Meanwhile, the city’s inhabitants were also gradually recovering from their fear. When they saw that the soldiers were no longer looting or harming them, a great weight was finally lifted from their hearts.

They began to cautiously step out of their homes, asking each other how they were and trying to understand the truth of this disaster.

After all, they couldn’t stay inside forever, could they? They had to face life eventually.

“It seems they didn’t harm us,” a man said in a low voice.

“Yeah, they only robbed the rich,” another man chimed in.

“That’s good, then. At least we’re still alive,” said a woman holding her child, a flicker of relief in her eyes.

‘As long as they don’t rob us, they’re good people. As for the rich and the nobles getting robbed, what does that have to do with us?’

“I just went to the next street over to ask around. I heard that Butcher Count is sending people to give speeches. Do you guys want to go have a listen?”

“Speeches? What are they about? He’s not going to start collecting taxes, is he?!”