Chapter 74 Training Camp

  (Released two days in advance)

  The new recruit camp where Johnny was located was a lively scene. Following the instructor, they saw young people wearing colorful clothes shuttling in the camp, with different expressions but all very leisurely. Some exceptionally tall guys stood near the camp gate and when they saw Johnny's group approaching, they loudly commented, "Look at that guy, he's so thin" or "I bet five coppers that the fourth one on the left who looks strong can't beat me".

  The new recruits who had just been indiscriminately attacked by the instructor were all somewhat angry. They looked up and glared at the commentators, their eyes carrying a warning.

  "What are you looking at?" A burly man with a menacing expression spat on the ground, "Not convinced?"

  Before the new recruits could react, the instructor spoke up: "Watch your words and actions, trash!"

  "What did you say?" The tall and sturdy man came over, "Say it again?"

  Including Joanie, the twenty new recruits were all tense. No matter how you looked at it, this soldier who had "trash" on his lips was not a match for those provocateurs. But looking at him with a serious face, even disdain, he seemed very confident.

  "Watch your language, trash!" The instructor was very respectful of his opponent's request. "Are you trying to threaten me?"

  "You...!" The big man stopped mid-sentence and suddenly jerked his body backward, avoiding the instructor's kick. Before he could even react, the instructor had already pulled out a whistle and started blowing it.

  A shrill whistle pierced the air, and a dozen or so soldiers clad in armor had already closed in.

  "Awaiting your orders, sir!" The soldier standing at attention then saluted with a clenched fist and raised arm.

  The instructor returned a courtesy, then pointed at the robust man and said: "Are all the new recruits like this today? Take him away, three days of confinement."

  "Yes!"

  Many bully the few, and what's more, they were fully armed against those who were unarmed. The four troublemakers could only be subdued by the soldiers and taken away to a detention room.

  "Alright, that's enough." The instructor said to the twenty new recruits, "Remember, you are now in the military camp and must take responsibility for your actions. If you fail the previous assessment, you may still have a face to go home with, but if you are expelled from the army, try it out and see how your old acquaintances will look at you."

  The words are plain, but the threatening effect is better. Here are almost all hot-blooded young people, carrying the expectations of their hometown parents, looking up to the glorious deeds of those old soldiers living around them. When those companions who were eliminated from the beginning return to their hometown, they can still practice hard in their spare time; but if they are expelled by the army...

  The land of Ossetia belongs to large and small vassals, of course, most of it still belongs directly to the royal family. However, the use of this land is self-governed by the residents, as long as it is not left barren. Those who were expelled, rural-born soldiers naturally did not get land to cultivate for themselves, and some people even had difficulty entering the village. If they were children in the city, they would also be driven out of their homes by their parents and cut off relations.

  Joni had heard Bruny mention that, unless they had distinguished themselves in battle, soldiers who were cashiered rarely survived the next winter. Out of respect for their military service, the people of Osadin could barely tolerate these discharged men.

  Many new recruits in the camp saw this scene from afar, and if there were instructors or soldiers next to them, they would also be warned. In this corner, the loud noise suddenly disappeared, leaving only footsteps and low whispers.

  "Jonny," William leaned in closer to Jonny and lowered his voice, "what if you get fired?"

  "Two roads." Johnny gazed ahead, his lips moving slightly. "First, wait for death. Second, go south to be a mercenary. But neither is a good road. And you're fine, how could you get expelled? Don't think too much, let's talk when we arrive at our destination."

  The barracks of the new recruits were a row of tents.

  "Sir," someone called out, "are we going to stay here?"

  "Yes, what's wrong, rookie?"

  Everyone involuntarily looked around. The campsite was relatively flat and clean due to the activities of the personnel, but outside the campsite, there were still white marks.

  "Isn't it cold at night, Instructor?" It was still the same person asking.

  "Cold?" The instructor let out a cold snort. "We're still over ten days' march from the border, and it's even colder there! As an Orcadinian, tell me, recruit, are you afraid of the cold?"

  "Don't be afraid..." The man forced himself to say.

  "Alright!" The instructor bellowed, startling everyone. "This is more like it. Four to a room, these five rooms next to each other are yours. Don't worry, you won't freeze to death."

  Having said that, the instructor turned around and walked towards the camp entrance, leaving behind twenty new recruits looking at each other in dismay.

  The new recruits were stunned for a moment, looking worriedly at the tent in front of them, and finally reluctantly followed some familiar people on the road into the tent.

  Johnny and William naturally settled in together. The other two people who shared the same account seemed to be more familiar with others, putting down their equipment and personal belongings and running into someone else's tent, leaving only Johnny and William slowly arranging their own beds.

  "It's not cold." William's face was a bit red and hot, "The tent is warmer than outside."

  Joni nodded in agreement. He looked around at his surroundings and then reached out to touch the fabric of the tent.

  "It's double-layered." Johnny poked at the outer wall beside him, then walked to the tent entrance and pinched the edge, "There's something else sandwiched inside."

  "Who knows, maybe this is what they use in the army. I heard from my neighbor, a veteran, that sometimes they live in tents and it's not cold at all." William excitedly observed his first military dwelling.

  Qiao Ni's face turned thoughtful: "I remember that old man in our village told me, when he was a soldier in the north, during battles in the wilderness, they would dig a hole and sleep together. He said it was to prevent freezing and also made it harder to be discovered."

  "Sleep on the ground?" William was somewhat surprised. "I've heard it's very cold in the north, won't you freeze to death sleeping on the ground?"

  "Who knows?" Joni shrugged and pulled out the same set of words Bruny had answered him with at first, "Anyway, no one froze to death."

  Then he showed an expression of sudden realization - the principle that a double-layered tent could keep warm was remembered by him. However, he did not plan to say this discovery out loud.

  William gathered up his bedclothes, sat down on them with a flop, and lay back on the thick fur mattress, letting out a contented sigh. He lay there for a while, then suddenly sat up again and asked, "Say, Johnny, what ever became of Tabor City?"

  When the pseudo-bard Joni told his own legendary story, Odara had already returned to the Morrol outpost and reported the results of the investigation to the new centurion inside the outpost. After reporting layer by layer, the military situation was quickly presented in front of Iwida Heinrich.

  "Have all the barbarians fled?" Iwida asked calmly, then nodded, "Inform Lord Albert Heinrich of this news."

  Afraid of retaliation, quickly retreat. This is indeed the most reasonable possibility deduced by the high-level military in the North.

  Although the barbarians have fled, a grudge cannot be left unreported. The Oserdin Kingdom and the barbarians of the Frozen Wilderness are sworn enemies for life. No child is innocent, nor does any taboo exist regarding the elderly, women, or children. That old man with loose teeth and white hair may once have been a butcher who stained his axe with fresh blood; that woman who appears to be overflowing with maternal love is likely wearing clothes that once belonged to an Oserdin woman; and her child's eyes often reveal a declaration of bloodlust.

  Only the barbarians who surrender to civilization, rely on Odin, put away their claws and show their true sincerity can be accepted by Asgard and become Asgardians. The beasts who take pride in plundering and delight in killing are not worthy of sympathy.

  "Is the army almost ready?" Iwida got a satisfactory answer, "Leave the garrison troops behind, and the rest of you, set off, out of the pass!"

  The army, on the expedition. The first army soldiers who had already gathered near the border poured out of the border outpost in an orderly manner and reassembled on the wasteland. They are warriors, they are soldiers, they want to defend their homes and country, they want to make achievements.

  Received new information from some scattered scouts who have returned from their reconnaissance mission.

  "Crossbow? Metal armor?" Iwida, who had already moved to the wilderness, slapped her hand on the table and stood up. The generals in the military tent were also shocked.

  "Yes, sir." Al. Fhiedrich stood at attention five paces in front of Iwida and replied, "The matter of the metal armor was brought back from the battlefield by another comrade under my command. According to him, all the barbarians who were arrayed against us were wearing a suit of chain mail under their animal hide armor."

  "When did barbarians become so rich?" Iwida sat down slowly, tapping her fingers on the table, "How powerful is that crossbow?"

  As a member of the Hohenstaufen family, Al would never say "They can kill us". Instead he says: "They can pierce shields but the shafts will get stuck in the shields."

  Killing a man and piercing some shields are the only things those crossbow bolts can do.

  "How far away are the barbarians who are sneaking up on you?"

  "The ambushing axe warriors were about fifty paces away, hiding in the forest, and I didn't know how far they were from us at first. There were about three crossbowmen, hiding in trees, about... "Arin quickly estimated," forty paces or so."

  "A distance of forty paces, and it pierces the shield." Iwida looked at the generals present, and the generals were also looking at him, "The quality of this crossbow is not very good."

  A burst of laughter, but it was immediately stifled - Ossetin's warriors had just fallen in battle, and this was no time for merriment.

  "Go take a rest, Decurion." Iwida nodded to Arl, "Regarding your arrangements, soldiers will come to inform you later."

  Al stood up straight, his right hand saluted his chest, and he turned around and left the commander's tent.

  "Report this message to Lord Albert Heinrich," Iwida ordered, "Let him worry about what to do next."

  Things have already gone beyond what the First Army can be responsible for as a military organization.

  The city of Rielgeng gradually returned to its former order, although the new barracks outside the city were always filled with noise, but the continuous intense scenes finally came to an end. The kingdom's recruitment work had ended.

  Ossetia is on the brink of collapse, it's almost done, if everyone becomes a soldier, something will go wrong.

  Although the young people who came and went all dispersed, there were many more transportation teams. All the military rations stored in the surrounding cities and villages were taken out, and the kingdom was also actively purchasing them. The logistics support for a new army of over 10,000 people is not a small problem.

  But these issues don't need to concern Johnny and his friends for now. The only thing they need to worry about is how to complete their training as soon as possible.

  "How many times must I say it? How many times must I say it?"

  Joni and everyone around him straightened up, not daring to move, only their heads tilted towards the source of the sound. There, a tall and robust man stood upright, looking straight ahead, seemingly completely ignoring his instructor's reprimand.

  "It's always you, damn it, every time! Yes, that's right, a warrior wielding a great sword doesn't need to be packed in like a pike man. But we're on the march! Listen up, on the march! What are you doing running so far ahead? Answer me, soldier!"

  The man finally reacted: "Nothing, sir!"

  "Then just stay in line obediently! You're going around...". The instructor looked at the soldier's robust body and sighed, "Roll back to the team."

  Let him run, maybe he'll be very happy, thought the instructor.

  "What do the troops want? Discipline!" he bellowed at the new recruits in front of him, "I've said it many times before, discipline! I don't care how you were back in your own homes, or what those retired veterans near your homes told you, but discipline! This is the lesson that Ossetin's brave warriors have bought with their blood!"

  This has indeed been said many times before, from start to finish, without stopping. But it's really hard for the soldiers to understand this point.

  Discipline? Isn't that something only a long spearman would worry about?

  Young people like epics and worship heroes. What is a hero? Those who charge into battle with swords are heroes. Perhaps the likes of Tanias require formation battles, but aren't we supposed to be fighting against barbarians?

  Even in the old men's memories, wars with barbarians were just formations, charges, and a bit of chaotic hacking. Of course, there are also examples of not forming arrays and directly charging. In extreme cases, there are also many examples of single-handedly breaking into enemy camps. The greatest hero is none other than Old Man Stefan Ludwig, who single-handedly took down one of the enemy's allied leaders!

  So what's the big deal? We're using a giant sword, just slash and be done with it, why bother lining up?

  But now no one dares to say that. The first person who fiercely raised questions was defeated by the instructor in battle and sent to solitary confinement; later, of course, there were also opponents, but they all failed.

  Finally, the instructors ended this futile resistance with the simplest method. Ten new recruits were defeated by five instructors.

  Of course, there is a factor of strength disparity, but being defeated one by one due to the difference in speed is quite embarrassing.

  So, the new recruits finally settled down and began to take discipline seriously.

  That's also why the big fellow didn't retort back.

  "Keep training!" The instructor bellowed, "You can't even walk on a straight road, what else can I expect from you?"

  Compared with the male barracks, the female barracks are much more relaxed. However, this relaxation makes the female soldiers very unhappy.

  "Is this what boot camp is?" Lancelot chatted with Daphne in the cabin, "Does this count as training?"

  "How many times is this now? Daphne couldn't recall, but she didn't show any signs of impatience: 'It shouldn't be, that would be too childish, unless they don't want us to go into battle.'"

  "If you ask me, these rabbits just don't want us to go into battle." A sturdy-looking girl next to her - who was indeed so according to the age she gave - chimed in, "Think about it, what have we been training for in this camp?"

  It didn't take long. They lined up outside, walked around a couple of times, and then dispersed.

  "This is discrimination against us!" another robust girl said, "Is this pampering young ladies?"

  "Even madams don't raise them like that." The girl said earlier, "Only the village girls and those noblewomen like Versa have so much free time."

  It wasn't just this room. Lancelot heard a faint murmur of noise coming from outside.

  "Protest! Protest! You bunch of bastards, look down on Osaetin's woman!" The door opened and a thick female voice reached everyone's ears. Following that were more protest voices.

  "The people's hearts are thinking of war!" Daphne said with a smile.