Alex III's thoughts were accurate.
With most of their small cities evacuated and most of their farmlands destroyed, the Candle Dynasty began having problems feeding themselves in less than a month.
They had no way to start farming now, as it would take time; farming cannot be done and completed overnight.
However, before they grew desperate, the Clements Empire began increasing the resources they were sending to the Candle Dynasty.
But even with that, it didn't improve the situation by much.
Feeding tens of millions is no simple task.
Alex's kingdom had the Mountains and Rivers Alliance, but Candles only had the Clements Empire.
In a desperate situation, Candles decided to invade the headquarters of Alex kingdom's invading forces.
They were left with no other choice.
If they wait, their food supplies will end, and they won't have any more energy to move, let alone fight.
With 10 million people, they marched toward Alex Kingdom's headquarters.
...
Alex III read the news and smiled.
Defenders always have an advantage.
One, the invading army would be tired after marching a long distance.
Two, because the defenders know the landscape better.
Third, defenders can use walls to protect themselves.
Fourth, because, usually, defenders have better spirits.
Five, because defenders are generally better fed.
And other reasons.
The 10,000,000 'army' of the Candle Dynasty is barely even an army. Their only chance was fighting on the city walls or in ambush. With them attacking head-on, it would be easy to destroy them.
"Jack!" Alex III called.
"Your majesty!" he responded.
"Take the third, fourth, and fifth armies and destroy them!"
Jack looked with wide eyes!
This was the first time Alex III made him directly responsible for leading an army.
"Yes, your honor!" he bowed and left.
...
Alex Kingdom's side was comprised of 3,500,000 conscripted troops. The conscripted troops of Alex Kingdom were not that well-trained, and their morale was also low, but still, they were healthy young men.
Candles Dynasty's army, on the other hand, was comprised of old men and women, sick people, and disabled individuals, along with some young men.
Perhaps in modern times, old people could fight as well or even better than young people; after all, shooting a gun doesn't require much physical strength.
However, in medieval times, such an army is a disaster. Even an untrained conscripted army could defeat them.
The two sides met on flat land, and the battle began in one day.
One factor in Candles's favor was that they knew there was nowhere to run to. They all fought to the death.
After six days of intense fighting, 1,500,000 people from Alex Kingdom died or lost the ability to fight. On the other hand, nearly all of the 10 million people from the Candle Dynasty had been slaughtered!
Candles Dynasty lost 10,000,000 of its 17,000,000 army.
However, these 10 million were mostly older people.
Why did they send so many people to die with no chance of success? It was because of food.
Even though old people had reduced combat capacity, they still consumed the same amount of food. To last longer, they had no choice but to send them all to die to be able to feed their young population for longer.
Now, with ten million fewer people to worry about, they could feed the remaining ones better, and the grief for losing ten million people, who were their fathers and mothers, motivated the remaining ones to fight harder.
A few months later, in Alex Kingdom's headquarters.
Alex III was frustrated.
With fewer people to worry about feeding, the combination of resources sent by Clements and the remaining farming lands of the Candles Dynasty was enough to sustain them for a long time.
The army of Candles had increased to ten million; now, nearly every man who could swing a sword was part of the military.
They were being trained and could now be considered a semi-trained army.
With Alex Kingdom only having around 2,500,000 conscripted army and 1,000,000 elite army, it is no longer guaranteed that they would win, and they have a good chance of losing.
Alex III wrote twenty-five letters to twenty-five countries.
He wrote and signed them personally.
As the Mountains and Rivers Alliance president, he ordered them to send 250,000 troops within one month; otherwise, the supply of UD would stop.
He wrote another letter to Clements' country, stating that if they didn't stop resources sent to Candles, Alex Kingdom would declare war on them.
He sent another letter to the Purple Empire, ordering them to stop their invasion of Clements Empire and, instead, send 1,000,000 troops to Alex Kingdom's headquarters in three months, with at least 300,000 each month.
"Jack!" he called.
Jack came in in military armor. He had been appointed as the general of the five armies, the leader of all the invading armies.
"Send these letters," Alex III ordered.
"Consider it done, your majesty." Jack took them, bowed, and left.
...
Candles Dynasty's intelligence agencies were good.
They found out about all the letters sent personally by Alex III.
Simply put, if the Mountains and Rivers Alliance does what it ordered in those letters, Candles Dynasty would be done for.
Therefore, they made a decisive decision.
All of their ten million armies were mobilized and attacked the headquarters of Alex Kingdom.
They must destroy Alex Kingdom's invading army before any reinforcements arrive.
...
Alex III had wrinkles on his forehead, but after a while, his wrinkles eased.
Jack and Lisa were in the room.
"Lisa, you are appointed as the leader in this battle! Take 2,500,000 conscripted army to defend against the invading army. Jack, you are appointed as the sneak attack army! Take the 1,000,000 elite army and attack Candles' palace now that they don't have much defense!"
Lisa was shaken. To take on an army of 10 million relatively trained soldiers with 2,500,000 troops was suicide.
Still, she bowed and said, "Yes, your majesty!"
After some hesitation, Jack asked, "Your majesty, will you be fine? There is a great chance that Lisa will lose, and the invading army might reach here!"
Lisa looked at Jack, dissatisfied; Jack considered her defeated before the battle began.
Alex III waved his hand and said, "I will be alright!"
At the moment, Alex III only felt uncomfortable under the sun; he wouldn't be burned to death by contact.
Maybe in the future, when he gets older, he must be more careful about the sunlight, but for now, it's alright.
Both Lisa and Jack bowed and left.
...
Lisa took 2,500,000 people and went to battle with a 10,000,000-strong army.
On the battlefield, the Candles' army was on one side, and Alex Kingdom's was on the other.
The sizes of the armies were so large that tens of kilometers were filled with people. However, Candles had the advantage.
After noon, both sides attacked on a cloudy day.
After an intense fight on the same day, both sides retreated.
Alex Kingdom lost 1,000,000 people on the first day, while Candles lost 1,200,000 troops.
Alex Kingdom was clearly at a disadvantage. Therefore, Lisa didn't ready her troops for an attack. It was too late to create a castle to defend, but she could still buy time by stalling, waiting for Jack to take Candles' palace.
However, the Candles Dynasty didn't want to kill time; they attacked Lisa's camp and defeated her after a long fight.
With 1,900,000 casualties, the Candles Dynasty killed 1,400,000 of Alex Kingdom's troops. Lisa barely managed to escape to the headquarters with less than 5,000 units.
...
"Your majesty! We must run!" Lisa came in screaming.
The headquarters had less than 10,000 guards, and with the Candles Dynasty still having 6,000,000 people, they had no chance of winning.
Candles had won this war.
That is, if it can be called a win; after all, more than half of its entire population had been killed, either from war or starvation.
Alex III sighed and said, "Let's go!"
He could kill them all by himself, but as a king, he shouldn't fight personally. If they reached him and attacked him, however, he would kill them all personally.
...
Soon, ten thousand people started evacuating headquarters.
Their speed, however, was confusing. They didn't look like they were running; they moved slowly as if strolling a park.
So, a 100,000-strong advance invading force by the Candles Dynasty reached and surrounded them.
...
"Why did we stop?" Alex II asked, confused. Lisa came and said with anxiety, "Your majesty, the invading army has surrounded us!"
Alex III sighed.
Fighting seemed inevitable.
He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, the world stopped.
Then, he started moving. Strolling in the enemy camp, he stood in front of a soldier from Candles Dynasty.
He thought, "Do I need more eunuchs?" He asked himself.
The previous eunuchs had been trained and were now serving in his harem. It was a success.
"Let's choose a few!" he thought with a smile.
He needed around 1,000, so the other 99,000 must be killed.
He looked at the soldier in front.
He was tall and good-looking and looked educated and clean, unlike most other soldiers in the Candles Dynasty.
"He is suitable!" Alex III nodded in approval, and in one move, he eunuched him.
Looking at his hand, he nodded; there was no blood.
His movements were too fast for any blood to stain his hands and clothes.
He did it in a way that the soldier wouldn't die as a result of blood loss.
Then, he patted his new eunuch servant on the shoulder and hit him on the head.
When the time came back to normal, he would become unconscious so that he wouldn't suffer. That is, at least initially.
One by one, he slashed the throats of the overwhelming majority and kept some for his harem.
After some time, he sighed and stretched.
He felt tired, so he chose a few strong ones to drink.
He couldn't drink when in this state, so he closed his eyes, and when he opened them, screams came from the enemy camp.
After a few minutes, all the screams disappeared.
The few people he brought as a drink were on the ground, unconscious.
He picked one up, and with his fang, he drained him in a second, to the point he looked like a mummy.
Alex III doesn't like wasting good blood.
After a few seconds, he ate ten people and wiped his mouth with a handkerchief. Then, he returned to his camp.
...
"Lisa, send a few thousand to the Candles camp; I made a few eunuchs. Go and collect them for the harem!"
Lisa looked in confusion.
"Your majesty, what are you talking about?" she asked.
Lisa had been frustrated by Alex III lately. When running, he slow-walked everything to the point the enemy reached them, even though they had horses and Candles didn't.
"Do as I said," Alex III looked at her with unprecedented coldness.
Just now, he felt Lisa looking down on him. How dare any subordinate think of him badly?
They had to be careful of what they said about him, even in their minds.
Still, for now, he was in a good mood after eating good blood, so he let it go.
Lisa did as ordered.
The soldiers who went into the enemy camp returned in fright.
What they saw was terrifying.
The enemy camp was coated in blood and had a horrible smell.
The soldiers picked the new eunuchs and ran out as quickly as possible.
...
Lisa looked at Alex III with absolute horror.
When did he find time to kill all those people?
She personally looked at some of those soldiers who had been eunuched; It was cut in a way that caused no bleeding.
Not only could Alex III kill 100,000 people in a moment, but he could do it with such precision!
At that moment, Lisa felt her previous thoughts were so naïve.
Alex III doesn't need anyone for protection; he does the protecting, not vice versa.
Before, her expression showed her contempt for his leadership; now, she regrets it. She decided to be careful about her expression in the future.
After putting the new eunuchs in prison, he said with peace, "Let's go back."
Alex III smiled.
This war is not lost.