Chapter 2: Send
Four years of war had given Locke the habit of eating quickly. He quickly finished his meal, wiped his hands, and said to Hans, "Hans, let's go."
Locke arrived at the supply camp again. It was noon, and most people were either sleeping or in the taverns. Locke walked straight to the courier station at the back of the camp, took the money from Hans, and entered.
"Warner! Warner! "Locke yelled.
"I'm going to die! You're going to die! Damn you, Locke, I heard you. You can't even let me have a good afternoon nap, you damned bastard! " Warner, who was in charge of the courier station's communications, walked out of a room and complained, "You're sending money home again, aren't you? Come on, give it to me! "
"Here, this is mine. This is for the guys in my squad. Don't mix it up!" Locke warned.
"I know, I know. It's not the first time I've sent money to you. Other squads aren't as fussy as you!" Warner was still unhappy that Locke had woken him up from his afternoon nap.
"You brat, if you mix it up, I'll teach you a lesson," Locke said through gritted teeth. Warner was lucky because he was in charge of the courier station. Not only did he enjoy the pay of a third-rate soldier, but he also enjoyed the security of his position. After all, anything could go wrong, except logistics. Moreover, he didn't have to be subservient to others in this position. Ordinary squad jarls wouldn't dare to provoke Warner. However, there was no way to get promoted here. Warner had been in charge of the courier station when Locke was still a third-rate soldier. Locke had been promoted to second-rate for more than a year, but he was still here. However, he heard that he was related to the baron's butler, so he would probably have a way to get promoted in the future.
"Yes, do you have any other requests? Something like a message? " It wasn't Warner's first day or two with Locke. He knew that Locke would always send a message home every time he received his pay.
"Yes. Tell my parents to take care of themselves. Also, tell my sister not to always save money and to buy whatever she wants. I don't need that much money now. " Locke had already thought of what he wanted to say. He believed that his sister knew what he wanted her to buy. A hair scarf was his obsession.
"Alright, got it. The caravan will set off tomorrow. It will first go to Bideslane in the eastern province of Tyre, then to the royal capital of Felor, and finally to the southern province of Dor. The caravan will be back in 20 days at the latest," said Warner. After exchanging some pleasantries with Warner, he took his leave. He didn't want to disturb Warner's lunch break either. Although he was the only one in Warner right now, it would be lively in the afternoon. Because today was the day of payday.
After leaving the relay station, Locke brought Hans back to their team's tent. "Hans, what do you think our village is like now?" Locke chatted with Hans on the way back. They came from the same village, and their families were neighbors.
"Let's go with the usual. The maple tree at the entrance of the village should be bigger. My brother has another son this year, and I have three nephews now. We don't have to worry about our land anymore. I heard that this year's harvest is pretty good. The village slaughtered a pig for us, and every family got a share. Also... " Hans was usually a quiet person, but he couldn't stop talking once he started talking. He kept talking until the two returned to their tent.
"This war has been going on for four years, and it's almost over. I really want to go back soon," sighed Locke.
When Locke and Hans returned to their tents, the rest of the team, except for Ferr, who was on duty, were taking an afternoon nap. Those who had been on the battlefield knew that having enough energy would allow you to live longer on the battlefield.
Locke walked to his bed, took off his coat and got into bed, but he didn't fall asleep. He was thinking about how he could get promoted to first-class soldier as soon as possible. The Faustian army had its own promotion system: servant-soldiers were cannon fodder on the battlefield. They could be promoted after two months of training. Third-rate soldiers were the main combat force in the kingdom's army. They needed more than two years of military service (more than one year in wartime) and had the strength to deal with three third-rate soldiers. First-rate soldiers were the trump card of the army. They needed more than four years of military service (more than three years in wartime) and had the strength to deal with three third-rate soldiers. First-rate soldiers were the trump card of the army. They needed more than four years of military service (more than three years in wartime) and had the strength to defeat at least three second-rate soldiers. That's right, they had to defeat them. First-rate soldiers had the right to practice impetus. As for the promotion of first-class soldiers to Knights, the army didn't specify it clearly. Presumably, it wouldn't be announced to the public until they reached that level.
Locke was well aware of his own strength. It wouldn't be a problem for him to deal with three second-rate soldiers of the same rank as him in a short period of time. He had enough military service, but he wasn't sure if he could get promoted. There were many people in the camp who were as strong as him. Because of the battle two months ago, one-third of their battalion had been killed. The platoon jarl of 3rd Platoon and the deputy platoon jarl of 4th Platoon had died in battle, leaving only two vacant positions. There were too many monks but not enough gruel. Who knew how many people were secretly eyeing these two positions?
Locke shuddered at the thought of the battle two months ago. It was second only to the bloody battle at Gordon Heights that Locke had experienced. In order to take down the Felmo Grand Canyon that led to the hinterland of the enemy, the kingdom's three major corps had sacrificed their lives. In order to break the stalemate, the three corps took turns to attack the canyon. It was said that the enemy defending the canyon only had one corps, so how could they possibly defend it? The battle was extremely difficult. The enemy had fought with all their might to defend this last line of defense. Locke had more than once experienced heavily injured enemy soldiers desperately attacking after being surrounded. Was this to protect their homeland? Locke asked himself, if his kingdom was invaded, would he do the same? He thought of the things his army had done in Shalor after successfully defeating the main force of the kingdom last year and occupying Bideslane. They burned, killed, and looted. The families of those with a little bit of wealth were reduced to slaves, and the beautiful women were either snatched by the nobles or used as prostitutes for the army. He then thought of his simple parents and kind sister. Locke could understand these opponents. Under the same circumstances, he would be more ruthless.
Locke was full of respect for these unyielding opponents, but he didn't show any mercy. This was war, and his brothers were also suffering casualties.
The three major corps had attacked for nearly a month before taking down the Felmo Grand Canyon. Their battalion belonged to Falcon, the fifth brigade of 2nd Infantry Division. 2nd Infantry Division was the vanguard of the entire corps in that battle, while 3rd and 4th Platoons were the vanguard of their battalion. The two platoons were the first to attack. The deafening sounds of killing never stopped. Even Locke, who was resting at the rear, could hear the screams, curses, and the clashing of swords. From time to time, fireballs or lightning streaked across the sky. It was said to be the power of magic, and the whole sky was dyed red with blood.
When it was Locke's and 1st Platoon's turn to participate in the attack, 3rd Platoon and 4th Platoon had lost nearly half of their men. This caused a lot of panic among the soldiers in the barracks. However, Locke, who had been fighting for four years, suppressed the fear in his heart. He had lived on the battlefield like a meat grinder for four years, and he knew that one couldn't be timid on the battlefield. The more afraid you were, the faster you would die. Under Locke's command, their squad avoided several waves of magic bombardment. He didn't fight the enemy head-on. These enemies who were determined to die were the worst to deal with. He suggested that Yoshk participate in the battle on the flanks of the canyon. There were many steep cliffs and strange rocks there, so it was easy to avoid arrows and magic attacks. There weren't many enemy troops stationed there, so they were easy targets. Plus, occupying the high ground on the flanks of the canyon was considered a meritorious deed.
War was war, after all. Locke's squad still lost two people: third-rate soldier Gale, a strong swordsman and shield bearer, servant soldier Jarl, and a humorous sixteen-year-old boy. In this battle, Locke killed a second-rate soldier, a third-rate soldier, and five or six servant soldiers. The price he paid was a stab in the right chest and a lot of minor injuries. The final result of the battle was that their team had killed a second-rate soldier, five third-rate soldiers, and more than ten servant soldiers. The reason they could achieve such a great result was not only because they had the advantage in numbers from beginning to end, but also because of the strong cohesion of their team.
After killing the enemy, they could exchange their waist tags for military merit in the barracks. Servant soldiers were worth one merit point in the army, third-rate soldiers were worth five points, and second-rate soldiers were worth ten points. Currently, he had almost fifty points of military merit. In the barracks, merit points could be exchanged for promotions. A hundred merit points could be exchanged for the rank of first-rate soldier. Soldiers could also use merit points to buy whatever they wanted in the barracks. It was more versatile than silver thalers and had more purchasing power. Lastly, it could be exchanged for money. One merit could be exchanged for one silver thaler. Most soldiers chose to exchange merit points for money. Faustian had been experiencing drought for two years, so food prices were high. Most soldiers wanted to make a living for their families. The nobles and the military dared not embezzle the money they exchanged for merit points. They could send the money back to their families so that their families could live.
Locke had always exchanged his merit points for money, but after the bloody battle in Gordon Heights last year, he changed his mind. How could he make a better life for his family if he couldn't survive? On the battlefield, the ones who died the most and died the fastest were the cannon fodder at the bottom. Servant soldiers died the fastest in high-intensity wars. Even he, who was a third-class soldier with some power, finally survived by hiding in a pile of corpses after exhausting himself. After that bloody battle, his strength had improved a lot. With the help of a large number of IDs seized from the enemy and Uncle Yoshk, who had also survived and had been promoted to platoon jarl, he became a squad jarl and was no longer a soldier.
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