Ares bowed and exited the room, closing the door behind them.
The Kendrician army had already collapsed to the point where they could no longer fight back thanks to Ares’ involvement.
‘By now…they should be preparing for the negotiations with Commander Malkarum. Commander Malkarum is an expert negotiator, he should bring us favorable terms. Including negotiations and stationing our troops to the Veintil Canyon, should take at least 6 months. That would be before the rankings exam, I must train the recruits to survive in those 6 months.”
Yijun Military will no longer need recruits in a few years, it would be accurate to say that these were the batch of recruits.
The era of humanity was ending.
***
The high altitude of the Tanza Mountains made it cold all year round, even in the middle of summer.
Out of 1500 participants, only 500 remained after extensive work. In reality, most of the recruits weren’t chosen for their skills, it was just to meet the headcount.
The strict person who donned the blank mask stood in front on them.
“Attention!”
This time, every soldier uniformly stood at attention. As if united by their combined fear, their movements were shockingly in sync.
“10 laps around the field, stay together, any deviations will be punished. Go!”
Once more, they ran until their lungs would burst. Luckily, everyone stayed together so no one was punished.
Just when they thought everything was over, the next task arrived.
“40 push ups, 40 sit ups, 20 minutes horse stances in between!”
They obediently followed the orders and pushed themselves to the limit.
“5 laps and then take a break!”
After the 5 laps were done.
“Ughhh my legs feel like they’re going to fall off. I thought I could finally get away from all that running, how come you don’t look as tired as me?”, Arun said.
“Haha, maybe it’s because I did some exercise before I came here?”, Lucas responded.
“Oh come on! We all know simple exercises don’t do that much! Teach me your secrets!”
Lucas only laughed it off and diverted his attention.
“What do you think of the commander?”
“Hmm, he seems strict yesterday but he’s only making us do simple exercises today, I hope he’s a good person.”
“Yeah, I hope so too.”
“Break time over! Stand at attention!”
They ran into formation.
“Pair up and stand at the edge on the field.”
“Lucas, let’s be partners!”
“Sure.”
They felt something ominous.
“Carry your partner to the end of the field, then switch. Repeat until you have carried everyone.”
There was a moment of silence where they thought the commander was joking, but when met with the commander’s serious gaze, they realized their situation.
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T-this- this is truly the devil!
Was what everyone thought.
“That’s impossible!
“Yeah! This is too much even if you are the commander!”
“Oh?”
Lucas could guess the expression of the commander behind that mask.
“Who says I can’t do what I want?”
The crowd hesitated.
“If anyone wants to object, fight me and you can be the new commander.”
The recruits looked at each other.
“C-can you validate your words?”
“Of course. I’ll only fight using my left hand and right foot, if anyone makes me use more than that, I swear to make them the commander.”
The recruits discussed among themselves.
“Hey, what do you think Lucas?”
“Hmm, honestly it doesn’t sound like a bad deal, but there must be a reason the commander is so confident. Still, it doesn’t hurt to try.”
“I also agree!”
‘Is there a reason why the commander is so confident? Are they that strong?’
“So, anyone willing to try?”, the commander mockingly asked.
One brave soldier stepped forward.
“I will try.”
His face showed determination.
The commander scoffed at them.
“Only one? You guys are underestimating me too much.”
“T-this guy! Everyone charge!”
All at once the recruits charged at the lone commander.
The attacks of the unorganized recruits were easily dodged by the commander. The commander dodged in a way that made it look effortless, like they were simply playing.
This enraged the recruits even more. They tried charging at full force, blocking the commander’s way, and even tried holding the commander still. But that was all in vain as the commander simply jumped using their right foot.
Lucas observed closely, all this time, no one had been able to touch the commander. They moved easily like the wind and agilely like the water.
“Come on Lucas!” Arun called.
‘Still, this is a good opportunity to test out my skills.’
Lucas did not have much experience fighting against other people.
He charged forward, weaving between the crowds of people to cover himself. He approached behind the commander, intending to land a blow on the commander’s back.
“Oh? This one is a little better.”
The voice was carefree and relaxed, as if one was going on a morning stroll.
Lucas’ eyes widened as he saw the commander disappearing in front of him.
‘Behind me!’
Twack!
The commander flicked Lucas’ forehead with their index finger just as he turned around.
Hot pain made his forehead burn.
“But you’re still too careless.”
‘That’s no reason to flick my forehead!’
The small red spot that had just been flicked seemed to burn even more as if to respond to his protest.
Thump!
Callia Garner, who had also tried to attack from behind, fell face first into the ground. The commander had invaded his attack by slightly turning their body and then lightly pushed Callia’s back, making him fall as such.
“Is there anyone else?” The commander asked.
The crowd was silent as they realized it was their complete defeat.
“That’s great. Now, pair up!”
Lucas swallowed the groan that wanted to come out of his mouth.
***
As expected, carrying 499 people across the field was not doable.
The commander must’ve known this, so why did they make us do it?
I really can’t understand the commander.
Lucas got out of the showered and prepared for his evening lecture.
The uniform consisted of a high neck tunic, a draping winter coat, and trousers.
“First of all, I would like to congratulate you all on entering Yijun academy,” said the middle-age examiner from before.
“However, you shouldn’t be too overjoyed just yet. Yijun is extremely harsh towards Class 10 recruits. There are a total of 10 classes, only when you graduate class 1 will you become an official solider. You are at the very bottom of the hierarchy right now, however, you have a class to advance forward. Every 6 months, there will be a ranking exam for you to move up the ranks. This means that you can also move down the ranks. There are 3 types of ranking exams, strategical , monster combat, and individual combat. From year 3 onward, you can start forming teams, so you should start thinking about your comrades. Recruits from class 9-1 have 2 years to move up the ranks or else they will be expelled. However, class 10 will only have 1 year to move up or they will be disqualified. With that said, I hope you will work hard to succeed.”
In truth, Lucas had already spotted some people to recruit into his team.
‘Forming a small team of trustworthy comrades would make my life easier.’
The rest of the lecture was simply introducing the facilities available.
Lucas headed for the training grounds as soon as the lecture finished.
‘My current specialty is monster combat, so I should prioritize training for the next 6 months.’
“Hey you!”
‘Should I work on my form today?’
“I said hey!”
A hand grabbed my shoulder.
“Why are you grabbing me?”
I said coldly.
‘Is he trying to pick a fight? I should avoid a fight…I so don’t think I’ll be able to win against him anyway.’
“I called you multiple times!”
It was Callie Garner.