Starting from Ainz Ooal Gown, simultaneously traveling through time

The fire burned for a full five minutes.

During this time, Leylin was not idle.

He secretly cast several small-scale detection and auxiliary spells, using the dissipated life energy and elemental turbulence on the battlefield to quickly collect and verify some data, which was a rare sample of a real combat environment.

After the flames went out, the air was filled with the pungent smell of burning protein, mixed with a strange, slightly burnt aroma.

The once ferocious orc army is now reduced to a pile of distorted, charred, and indescribable objects.

Leylin calmly surveyed the hellish scene and ordered the still-shocked garrison soldiers, "Clean up the battlefield."

The garrison commander, Kabu, stepped forward and asked in a low voice, "Your Highness, should we follow the old custom and build a mound of skulls as a show of force?"

He was referring to the practice of stacking enemy heads into towers, a method Leylin had previously taught him.

After a moment's thought, Leylin shook his head and said, "My father said that it is not advisable to provoke the neighboring country too much at the moment. We should clean this place up completely, erase all traces, and treat today's events as if they never happened."

"Understood, sir." Kabu understood immediately and commanded his soldiers to begin their operation.

The well-trained soldiers quickly began their work, moving, burying, and cleaning.

Soon, apart from the lingering smell in the air and some burn marks on the ground, the battlefield was restored to its former state as a normal wilderness, as clean as the stone-paved streets of the capital.

But Leylin knew that for those with keen senses or certain special spells, the traces of such a large-scale massacre and death could not be eradicated by ordinary cleaning.

He raised his hand and began chanting an obscure incantation. A soft, holy light rippled outwards from him, like an invisible tide washing over the entire area—

This is a high-level magic that combines purification and soothing effects, specifically designed to dispel the remnants of death and resentment.

Wherever the light passed, the last trace of bloodshed and violence vanished like melting snow.

"Alright," Leylin nodded in satisfaction.

"In this way, even if the orcs send shamans or trackers, they won't find anything. If they send someone to ask, you can just pretend you don't know anything. Let them have a headache over the mysterious disappearance of an army of several thousand on the border."

Kabu solemnly noted it down.

Leylin's gaze then fell upon the defenders on the city wall. Although he had intervened in time to reverse the tide of battle and used large-scale healing magic to save many of the wounded, a considerable number of soldiers had still fallen forever in the previous fierce attack and defense and close combat.

Compensation is essential; the families of the fallen need to receive both physical and emotional support.

Similarly, soldiers who fought bravely and captured enemy leaders in this battle must also be rewarded for their merits.

Leylin quickly calculated in his mind and decided to pay the expense in advance and then apply for reimbursement from his father, the King.

"Kabu," he ordered, "get me two lists as soon as possible: one is a list of all the soldiers who died in this battle and their home addresses; the other is a list of those who made outstanding contributions and their specific deeds."

"Yes, Your Highness!" Kabu solemnly accepted the order.

..............................

One hour later, in the command room of Lapis Lazuli Fortress.

Leylin stood in front of the huge sand table, his gaze fixed on the area representing the orc kingdom, his fingers unconsciously tapping the edge of the table.

"The Orc Kingdom...has it been a bit too active lately? Is it because it's become too urbanized? Should we 'de-urbanize' it?" he wondered to himself.

At that moment, Kabu walked in, carrying two carefully transcribed lists.

"Your Highness, the list has been compiled. Please take a look."

Lei Lin took the two sheets of fine silk paper and quickly scanned them.

"Three thousand one hundred and twenty-four people were killed in action..." he read the number softly, his brows furrowing slightly.

"Yes," Kabu's voice lowered.

"The orcs' offensive this time was exceptionally fierce, and Siba's war cries greatly amplified the frenzy of their army. If His Highness had not arrived in time and cast a miraculous healing spell, the casualty figures would probably have been... several times higher."

Three thousand men was a devastating loss for the garrison of the Lapis Lazuli Fortress, which had a total strength of about 20,000.

The border guards of the Kingdom of Inberia were not like the peasant conscripts of the Kingdom of Riyestege in later generations, who could easily gather two or three hundred thousand cannon fodder.

They are highly trained, well-equipped professional soldiers capable of directly confronting orcs; their training period is long and they are difficult to replenish.

Leylin even considered using resurrection magic.

He has mastered the fifth-tier faith-based magic, "Resurrection of the Dead." This magic is not in the same system as magic-based magic, but he has indeed mastered it. This spell has level requirements for the target, which usually needs to be level 5 or higher, and the body needs to be relatively intact.

The fortress garrison is generally around level 10, which meets the requirements. If there were only sporadic casualties, he would have already cast a spell.

But more than three thousand people... even if he exhausted all his magic power, it would be difficult to complete.

Perhaps later we can select those who have made outstanding contributions or have exceptional talents to be resurrected, but for now, the priority is to handle the aftermath properly.

"The compensation for the fallen soldiers shall be paid at the standard of one hundred royal gold coins per person, and it must be delivered to their families in full and as quickly as possible," Leylin decided.

Upon hearing this, Kabu's face flashed with surprise: "Your Highness, isn't this... a bit too high?"

According to the kingdom's old custom, the death penalty was usually a one-time payment equivalent to five years' worth of military pay, about fifty large gold coins. Leylin's standard was double that.

"They sacrificed their lives for their country, but their war merits did not directly benefit them," Lei Lin said calmly but with an unquestionable tone.

"This compensation should be generous. Converted to gold coins, it's only enough to provide some security for their families for the next twenty or thirty years. It's not much."

Seeing Leylin's resolute attitude, Kabu said no more, but felt admiration in his heart.

Lei Lin walked to the corner of the command room, waved his hand, and with a crisp and melodious "clink," countless glittering coins appeared out of thin air, quickly piling up into a dazzling little mountain.

Kabu was astonished, thinking to himself, "His Highness actually keeps such a huge amount of gold coins in his storage space at all times?"

He subconsciously stepped forward, picked up a gold coin and examined it closely, but couldn't help but be stunned.

The surface of this gold coin is as smooth as a mirror. The original relief patterns seem to have been deliberately smoothed out. Moreover, the color, weight, texture... the more I look at it, the more it resembles the standard gold coin circulated in the orc kingdom.

If Leylin knew his doubts, he would probably smile calmly: That's right, this was "borrowed" from the vault of the orc town. With a little processing and the markings removed, it becomes a universal hard currency.

"This should be enough for compensation," Leylin said, pointing to the pile of gold coins. "Distribute them properly and keep clear records."

"Yes!" Kabu suppressed his curiosity and solemnly replied.

"Next are the details of the rewards for meritorious service, which need to be verified one by one based on the list and the deeds, but..." Leylin returned to the sand table, his tone changed, and his eyes turned slightly cold.

"Before rewarding those who have rendered meritorious service, I'm more curious about something else: why did these orcs suddenly launch such a large-scale attack?"

"Although they are barbarians, there must be a reason for launching a surprise attack of this scale without provocation. Didn't that surviving wolf-headed orc officer say that the commander acted without authorization?"

"So, what exactly was their original mission?"

His destruction of an orc border town did not seem to have deterred the entire orc kingdom enough; perhaps the lesson of one city was not profound enough.

Kabu suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said, "Your Highness, that wolf-headed beastman named Stor has been captured and is being held in the dungeon. Should I arrange for an interrogation?"

A hint of interest flashed in Leylin's eyes: "Ordinary interrogation methods have limited effect on a race like orcs, who are tough and resilient. Let's bring him here directly, and I'll question him."