[Year 60 Month 0]
After finishing the debate on the existential questions of the State, Yggdrasil. Many refugees from various regions and kingdoms began to join us, and the population had to expand the metropolis to allow other elves and humans to live under its protection.
The population of 5,000 inhabitants gradually became an overcrowded city of 80,000 inhabitants of humans, elves, and other minorities who joined. Noah implemented countermeasures by establishing other cities nearby to avoid slums that could increase inequalities and poverty in society. The generation of new constructions required manpower, allowing migrants to earn money and participate in the construction of their own city.
With Noah's protection, military training sessions proceeded smoothly with Maestros and Christine. Time was peacefully prolonged. Since the last battle that had been repelled by Noah and the escape of the Archmage Xenoth, no diplomat or emissary from the Kingdom of Wood had manifested. Noah thought that their situation must not be good due to the loss of an Archmage.
"Are Archmages very important for kingdoms?" Noah asked, scrutinizing the desiccated body of the young Archmage that had been buried in his roots for absorption.
Maestros pondered. "Indeed, they are mobile weapons that exert pressure against other nations. It is also an asset that helps avoid being invaded by others under diplomatic circumstances. After all, the loss of a single Archmage constitutes a heavy sorrow."
There were several types of Archmages. Those employed directly by the kingdom were the Archmages of the royal court, and others were sent by a service on behalf of the Mage Tower.
They were gatherings of wizards and mages to discuss magical inventions and theses, even though Noah didn't have much knowledge on the subject. He would have liked to see it up close. Would it be like Hogwarts in Harry Potter?
Flying on magical broomsticks, discussing school life, and other themes...
Noah was already starting to envy the wizard towers.
Perhaps he could build one in Yggdrasil? He should bring up this topic with others in the next council meeting. Maybe it could be feasible.
In the distance, buildings began to be constructed in the middle of a personally arranged plain for a specific purpose. Noah monitored the new military base stationed at the borders of TreeCity.
In the training camps with scarecrow targets, Christine trained young elf soldiers by beating them severely. "Good grief, how do you expect to become real men with unparalleled cowardice! Yggdrasil doesn't need weakness but strong men!"
The soldiers who were being beaten trembled in pain.
"We are not weak! You're just a demon! Wicked sorceress!"
Christine, who seemed to strangely hear their thoughts, began to beat them even more severely than usual. Several groans emanated from the training ground until late in the evening.
He could see Marie trembling. "Oh my god! My grandmother seems angry today!" she murmured, even though Noah could hear her words.
On the other side, Maestros fought the young human soldiers who were crawling on the ground, with minor injuries all over their bodies. Noah thought that it was probably the Spartan training of this world; since he had no idea how soldiers were trained.
Obviously, it was more of a one-sided beating than training itself, but as the soldiers seemed to improve, he overlooked the abuses of his subordinates. After all, a Spartan is trained only after violent trials!
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In any case, he could see that the older folks were motivated to train the young soldiers, the future defenders of the nation. It amused him a little, so he asked curiously, "Why are you so invested in training?"
Both answered spontaneously, "Because we bet that whoever trains the best soldiers in the nation will get the highest hierarchy!" they shouted, hitting the soldiers' bodies with wooden sticks.
Noah was a bit confused.
"Who do you think will get the title of Marshal?" Marianna asked curiously.
She was sitting on the wooden benches beside Marie, who trembled periodically every time the stick was lowered. Both were monitoring the training sessions and noting improvements that could help the army continually get better.
Even if one person seemed traumatized and widened their eyes every time. Perhaps a law against child violence should be necessary, Noah thought.
"I would think it's my grandfather Maestros! Otherwise, Christine, who was a former adventurer. In fact, I can't figure out who trains the best in the training camps!" she said, grabbing her head with both hands, as if to show the difficulty of choosing.
"Hm... That's a difficult question!" replied Noah with his wooden doll body.
During the last council conference, Noah had proposed the need to create a military hierarchy to effectively use each person's roles in specific contexts.
After all, using thousands of men as a reconnaissance battalion would be a bit disproportionate, and mobilizing a hundred men immediately against a massive army would be too out of proportion.
Especially for another obvious reason.
Because citizens had started enlisting in the army, the positions were quickly filled, and a clear and easy-to-follow hierarchy was needed. Especially when the number of soldiers was almost reaching 10,000. In other words, almost 1/8 of the population was soldiers.
Thanks to Noah's daily supplies, the population didn't die of hunger, and magical beasts died daily when they ventured too close to his territories, so food wasn't a concern.
Among the roles in question, some carried heavy responsibilities and powers:
Marshal: The one who held the supreme authority of the nation's army, overseeing all soldiers and leading generals during wars.
Army Corps Generals: They held authoritative power under the marshal, each leading 1000 soldiers under their command, directing a section of battles.
Then there were other less important ranks like commanders, lieutenants, and soldiers.
For now, the important ranks were handled with great caution. Among the candidates for the position of Marshal, only four people could contest it: Marie, Marianne, Maestros, and Christine.
There was a strong chance that Christine would emerge victorious.
It was just an instinctive thought.
[Year 61 Month 0]
Almost all the surrounding territories began to turn green on Noah's lands; the purifying bombs had done a good job, and trade routes started to open. With messengers led by Maestros and Christine, Noah eagerly awaited the next updates.
At the same time, he looked away and focused on his vast and impressive forest from the inside. Perhaps his forest seemed strangely frightening due to the optical illusion emitted by his abilities, but war treants took up the majority of the spaces.
[Forest Illusion].
This was a new skill he had unlocked, allowing him to camouflage internal events within the sacred forest (the forest where Noah resided).
It was very practical, as he could no longer be spotted in the red leaves, and an invisibility ability was appreciated. Especially when he could move them in spaces without causing panic, even if the inhabitants were warned.
[Year 61 Month 2]
Christine came into the forest with good news. "We've managed to build a trade route with the Southern Elf Kingdom; they wish to establish good relations to exchange goods from our regions!" she explained with enthusiasm.
Noah calmly nodded, pondering a few likely reasons that could have led to accepting their agreements. Normally, kingdoms wouldn't want to trade with a new independent state as there was no benefit on the table. However, given our hostile relationship with the Kingdom of Wood, they must have thought our role and position were well-placed between the two nations.
Well, there had to be at least such a reason for building a trade relationship.
"Do the Southern Elves harbor any hostile intentions towards our new state?" Noah inquired.
Christine shook her head. "Actually, it's very common for nations to emerge after such a catastrophic event on this scale. Most kingdoms have been built under the same circumstances for decades, especially the human kingdoms."
So that was the reason...
However, Noah felt an ominous feeling.
"Increase security in the south of Yggdrasil, in case an unexpected event occurs," Noah ordered, intentionally moving war treants to the southern part of the forest, protecting the region where some peripheral cities were located.
Christine nodded and relayed the order to the soldiers who began moving south with a few thousand troops.
Noah, on the other hand, remained in the forest, deeply lost in his thoughts.