| Author: Cherish the World | Original Source: SFACG |
| Translator: raltzero | English Source: Re:Library |
Three days later, 81 soldiers returned without a single one missing.
Their complexions clearly improved and a smile was upon all their faces. After seeing me, all of them started talking simultaneously:
“Sir Feudal Lord, when will we start the training!”1
“That’s right! Let’s start the training a bit earlier so that we’ll be able to gain the ability to resist the invasion of the Demons from the west!”
“We can’t just rely on Felita, we West-Resisting City youngsters aren’t just here to stay as spectators!”
Their enthusiasm, which could be said to be unprecedented, was surging, and each and every one of them had appearances vastly different from their original half-dead state.
It’s very simple, really. Originally, they were going forward with enlisting knowing that they were going to die in order to gain some compensation money for their families. However, they didn’t expect that the compensation money would be sent out in advance, nor that they weren’t battling in order to die, so naturally they ignited their will to live. Only when there is a will to live will they ponder over how they’re going to survive. On the battlefield, there’s only one way to survive; be stronger than the enemy side, manifold stronger, so that when they do fight with the enemy side, they’ll be able to absolutely crush them and lessen casualties as far as possible!
That is why they wish to become stronger.
In my opinion, the root of whether or not an individual is strong lies in whether or not he has the notion of becoming stronger.
When every person has this kind of thought, only then will an army’s combat power enter the stage of steadily rising.
——Even so.
Ignorance is intolerable.
I instantly roared at them:
“You want to fight the Demons? Have you all lost your minds, or do you think I’ve lost my mind? What do you guys have right now? Nothing! Your martial arts is still in the entry-level stage, you don’t even know a bit of magic, you haven’t trained in formations, and most importantly, you guys don’t even know each other. You want to go fight the Demons in this state? Being hot-blooded is a fine thing indeed since your blood won’t go cold, but don’t let it get to your head! Don’t be impulsive, and don’t unnecessarily sacrifice your life.”
A spell of silence fell onto the crowd.
I scoured the crowd and discovered that the strongest out of this group of 81 was a 25 or 26 year-old man. From what I could see, he uses a blade and should be approximately a Level 1 Bladesman with strength nearing Level 2. Therefore, I raised my hand and called him out:
“You, leave ranks.”
The young man soundlessly stood before my eyes.
“What’s your name?”
“Lugh.”
I nodded then said to the remaining people:
“As of right now, this person has power close to that of a Level 2 Bladesman. I don’t know much about you all, so I’ll make him your temporary captain. If you are unsatisfied with this arrangement, you can go up on stage immediately to fight him. If you win, the position of captain is yours.”
There were two young men who were unconvinced so they went up on stage, but Lugh won them in the end.
The other people naturally didn’t have anything to say. I had never even seen Lugh before, so there were no acts of favoritism at all and it could be said that I was acting impartially.
After seeing everyone approve of my arrangement, I sternly lectured:
“You all want to defeat Demons, this is very good. Having this thought is very good, but it isn’t suitable to put into practice as of right now. You all still need a great deal of training and not just to promote your own strength, but also to promote the tacit understanding within your troop. I know I won’t be able to raise an army of several thousands, so I plan on nurturing you all to be my blade. You must become sufficiently sharp, must be able to overcome dangers, and must be able to dare fight battles that other people dare not to. 81 people, excluding the captain Lugh, will split into 8 squadrons with 10 people to each squadron and one person shall be elected as the team leader. During this period of time, apart from training, each person within the squadron must be as familiar as to each member’s name, age, physical characteristics and so on. Again, what I want is an army, not a simple ‘rag-tag group’.”
Every one of them yelled with all their might:
“Yes!”
I turned to Aleya and said:
“During this time, you’ll need to visit the barracks every morning and evening. Teach them the foundation that I taught you when you were learning swordsmanship, that 5 kilometer run, push-ups, sit-ups, single parallel bar and so on, let these inexperienced bodies undergo these trials. In addition, teach them military boxing since it’ll be useful.”
The people below were at a total loss as to what I was talking about.
Aleya coolly nodded and exposed a trace of a smile.
I still remember in those days when she would fall down due to dehydration and the heavy weight on her back as she ran, with her bloody knees wiping blood onto the ground beneath. There was a time when I indifferently stood by her side with a sun-blocking parasol and squatted down to ask her:
——“Tired?”
At the time, Aleya nodded. In response, I asked her with a grin her:
——“Suppose on another day my head is chopped off by someone and you’re just watching on powerlessly by the side. It might very well be because you weren’t able to complete today’s training and weren’t able to become sufficiently strong……do you believe me?”
At that time, Aleya crawled up from the ground with a face full of tears, as if she had seen that miserable future, and began running staggeringly. And I, who had casually threatened her, followed behind her, waiting to bring her back once she was thoroughly exhausted.
Recalling these past events, it truly wasn’t easy for her.
And now, these ignorant young people were most likely going to experience that pain of transformation from Aleya.
How truly exciting to think about!
I shook my head with a smile on my face, then beckoned towards Lugh:
“You stay behind, I still have something to tell you.”
