King-Chapter 1406 - 276: Outsmarting Oneself

The fear did not last long. When it was mealtime, they soon received the treatment fitting of their given identities.

Each person was given two fist-sized potatoes and a ladle of vegetable soup. This portion wasn’t enough to fill even one stomach.

Pregnant women and children had slightly better rations, receiving an additional slice of black bread and a small piece of dried fish. A few bits of oil floated atop their vegetable soup.

Such a blatant disparity in treatment was a clear signal to the observant—this was a deliberate move to keep them hungry.

The real serfs showed no reaction. Starvation was already their norm. They had rarely ever eaten their fill since childhood. However, this was pure torment for Mike and Hatcher, clergy members who had infiltrated among them.

Though they were at the bottom rungs of the Clergy, they were still part of the ruling class. Their fathers were clergy personnel too, so they at least had the means to keep their stomachs full.

Mike and Hatcher fared slightly better, as they were illegitimate children and had been overlooked since childhood. They could savor the potato and vegetable soup without complaint.

On the other hand, some clergy members from more privileged families stared blankly at the food in their hands, unsure of what to do.

What they didn’t realize was that this brief lapse in composure had already betrayed their true identity.

In no time, the exposed clergy members were dragged out for interrogation, leaving Mike and Hatcher trembling with fear.

Given the tense relationship between the Clergy and the Alpha Kingdom, ordinary serfs might escape needless scrutiny, but clergy members like them were certainly on the list for purging.

As expected, the camp soon erected several wooden poles, from which hung the unlucky clergy members exposed earlier.

In fact, there was no need for extensive testing; simply looking at their faces was enough to identify most of the disguised clergy members.

The lowly serfs, unless assigned to roles like cooks, all bore the telltale signs of malnutrition on their faces.

"Listen up, all of you! This is your final chance. Come forward and confess your identity voluntarily. Those who hide and refuse to report their status will end up like those hanging there!"

"From this moment on, each housing unit will supervise one another. Any suspicious activity must be reported immediately.

Report a single danger element, and your food rations will be upgraded one level, along with an additional reward of three pounds of meat.

The first person to report will be directly promoted to housing leader, responsible for managing daily affairs in the camp.

Those who withhold knowledge and fail to report will face collective punishment!

If we uncover a danger element without anyone reporting it, everyone in the same housing unit will be demoted to slaves, and their daily food rations halved."

The young officer pointed to the corpses hanging from the poles as he addressed the crowd.

The Alpha Kingdom had a manpower shortage, but that didn’t mean they would take just anyone. Unstable elements, once aboard the ships, would pose a serious threat and must be rooted out beforehand.

Relying solely on their own inspections would be too much of a time drain. The best option was to incite these people to report on one another.

Unless they had undergone professional training, no amount of disguise could mask the subtle details of one’s daily habits and behavior.

Upon hearing the young officer’s lecture, Mike and Hatcher, already fraught with anxiety, became glaringly conspicuous.

Under the strange gazes of the crowd, an alarmed Mike quickly shouted, "We confess!"

With that, he pulled Hatcher along and walked straight up to the officer, truthfully revealing their identities.

"You’ve passed the test. From now on, behave yourselves in the camp and return to your place!"

After noting their basic information, the young officer waved them off dismissively.

Undoubtedly, this was a performance meant for the other hidden personnel in the camp. It also served to solidify trust within the camp.

The promise of "leniency for confession" had been fulfilled, so naturally, the promise of rewards for reporting would also be honored.

For Mike and Hatcher, who had taken the initiative to confess, they were now considered traitors among the hidden clergy members.

Even if any conspiracies or plots were afoot, no one dared approach them. Due to their identities, even the serfs sharing their housing unit would proactively distance themselves to avoid being implicated.

As expected, after seeing that the two had not been punished, a few more people emerged to confess their identities over time.

However, luck ran out on the seventh person, as someone stepped forward to make a report.

Regardless of how thoroughly the masses were indoctrinated, grudges remained. A serf recognized his enemy stepping forward to confess and quickly leapt up to report him.

Unsurprisingly, the unlucky priest, slow by just a step, was soon hanging from the pole above.

With this negative example on display, the subsequent cleansing process proceeded much more smoothly.

Aside from clergy members, merchants, mercenaries, cultists, and even spies planted by other major powers were uncovered within the crowd.

Unsurprisingly, all these unstable elements were detained.

As for the serfs and freedmen whose identities were verified, they were sent aboard the ships after undergoing health checks. The entire process was efficient, displaying evident expertise.

With the sounding of the departing ship horns, the once-bustling Canoton Port quickly fell into eerie silence.

Yet, this was merely the beginning. As the Alpha Kingdom Army advanced onward, every place they passed by fell into desolation.

In addition to seizing population, any goods deemed worth more than their shipping cost were also packed up and taken.

Perhaps realizing that efficiency was hindered when working alone, the Kingdom Government promptly negotiated with the high-ranking officials of the Three Kingdoms in the Central Continent. After paying a certain price, they gained three additional allies in their campaign of plunder.

As for the Moxi Duchy, they too were severely short of labor. At the moment, they were busy transporting people back to their own territories and naturally had no interest in cooperating.

Due to geographical constraints, the people they captured still needed to traverse the Alpha Kingdom on foot before they could be sent back home.

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