“Clack-clack-clack, clack-clack-clack!”

The soldiers of the Flying Bear Army assembled in formation within Tie Mu City, their footsteps crisp and precise.

Though they had been called to battle almost immediately after a brief respite, the soldiers’ faces showed no signs of discontent. Rather, their expressions brimmed with an irrepressible excitement.

This was an army that truly reveled in battle.

They feared not the cruelty of war; so long as there was a chance to fight, they were willing to stake their lives. What they feared most was idleness, the wasting of time, and the prospect of returning to their villages as farmers when they grew old, following the same path trodden by their forefathers.

This transformation was inextricably linked to Richard’s merit-based rewards system. The compensation soldiers received for fighting was no longer limited to gold and silver; more importantly, it was an opportunity for advancement.

To put it in modern terms, what Richard offered them in exchange for military service was not merely breathing techniques and energy-refinement techniques, but a chance to rise above their station. This was a rare opportunity even in the modern world, one that most people would fight—and perhaps even die—to grasp.

In the past, farmers were farmers, and soldiers were soldiers. Every few decades, there might be a great war during which a common soldier might grasp a minuscule chance to rise above his station.

Now, under Richard’s command, that one-in-ten-thousand chance had become a one-in-a-hundred. Though still small, it was now tangible, something one could reach out and touch.

If anyone doubted the truth of this, they need only look to soldiers like Matt, who had received the gift of breathing techniques. Every hundred-man squad had at least a few such soldiers, and all were more than happy to share their experiences. This further stoked the passion for battle among the Flying Bear Army’s soldiers.

Under Richard’s guidance—whether intentional or not—the men of the Flying Bear Army, whether career soldiers or farmers, became fanatical warriors, much like the old Qin people before the unification of the Six Nations.

After annexing the House of Wil, Richard accelerated his pace of military expansion. Before, it had been to prepare for potential retaliation from the kingdom, but now it was to fight against the cannibals. The Flying Bear Army’s expansion showed no signs of slowing down.

Fortunately, the Hunter family’s forces were well-stocked with recruits. All new enlistees came from the ranks of the peasant soldiers, who already underwent significant training under their village constables’ supervision. Most even trained on their own time, supplementing their basic training. After a month or two of additional training upon enlistment, these new recruits were more than capable of fighting alongside their fellow soldiers.

The large-scale expansion did affect the army’s overall combat capabilities, but the effect was acceptable. After experiencing one or two battles, these new recruits would be no different from veterans.

The Flying Bear Army had expanded to eight divisions, nearly four thousand men. If one were to include the Hunter family’s own cavalry and the knights conscripted from other noble houses, the total number of conventional forces under the Hunter family’s control was approaching a banner.

Even without counting their systematically trained warriors, the Hunter family’s strength, save for the city of Flooding Snow, rivaled that of many earldoms.

The only shortcoming of the Flying Bear Army was their lack of elite forces. Although, under Richard’s leadership, the Hunter family had seen rapid development in recent years, they were still somewhat lacking in resources when compared to families with more established roots.

They had fostered a number of quasi-knights; all eight division commanders under Richard’s command were quasi-knight rank. However, it wasn’t a simple task to cultivate a knight, and even individuals like Quill and Cress, whom Richard held in high regard, had only recently reached the peak of quasi-knight status. It would likely be difficult for them to achieve knight rank in the near future.

Recruitment from the outside would present its own challenges: one couldn’t simply trust the loyalties of outsiders, and the Hunter family had little to entice knights to join their cause. Thus, Richard preferred to cultivate his own men.

Though it was a slower process, it better guaranteed their loyalties. The official academy in Tie Mu City had begun to bear fruit: after studying and training at the academy for several years, many students graduated with the strength of quasi-knight rank, ready to join the army as junior officers.

The only notable gap in their ranks was at the level of knights and higher, but perhaps in a few more years, the training system Richard had established would yield even more startling results.

Of course, because of the System, the Flying Bear Army’s so-called weakness at this level was no big deal. The System allowed them to field more than twenty knights, a quantity of elite fighters that would have been sufficient for an entire regiment of the Northern Expeditionary Army.

If one added the System’s troops under Richard’s command, there was no force in the northern lands that could challenge the Hunter family’s authority, save for Flooding Snow City.

“Formations, open!”

“Clack-clack-clack…”

The sound of soldiers’ footsteps mingled with the clanging of metal against ironwood.

Under Quill’s orders, four thousand Flying Bear Army soldiers swiftly split into two columns, leaving a wide path open through Tie Mu City.

A squadron of knights rode through the city gates, led by Richard himself. Dressed in white armor with gold trim and seated atop a snow-white warhorse, his handsome features made for an incomparably dashing sight.

Unfortunately, the ranks flanking him were filled with formidable soldiers rather than young ladies who admired his handsome appearance, leaving Richard somewhat disappointed. It was akin to trying to flirt with someone blind.

Close behind were Ron and Viscount Nade, as well as the other noble families. In order to respond to the Northern Expeditionary Army’s devastating defeat, the Hunter family, as the commanding noble of this region, had mobilized their own forces, and naturally, they also called upon the other noble families to send troops and supplies.

Richard felt he’d be remiss if he didn’t take this chance to squeeze some coin out of them, given how he had set up his own persona.

“Present arms!”

“Ready!”

As the handful of nobles rode into the town, Quill shouted, and the soldiers of the Flying Bear Army raised their weapons in a crisp salute, the metallic sound ringing out clearly.

Viscount Nade squinted, and the three other barons’ faces also twitched slightly.

Amateurs look only at the surface, but professionals delve into the depths. The northern nobles were certainly experts; the Flying Bear Army’s discipline and equipment demonstrated their formidable capabilities.

This grand entrance was naturally Richard’s idea. It served both as a welcome to his guests and a show of force, allowing Richard to achieve his goals in the upcoming negotiations.

With a painful screech, the gates of Tie Mu Fort slowly opened. Ttie Mu City was small, and it took little time for Richard’s procession to pass through the streets and arrive at Tie Mu Fort.

“Welcome!”

Viscount Soutte, the governor of Tie Mu Fort, welcomed them at the gate. Viscount Nade and the other nobles dared not put on airs before him and dismounted from their horses to walk alongside Viscount Soutte toward the Boule Chamber.

“What is this?” The nobles, who had maintained a veneer of civility before Soutte and Richard, froze as they turned a corner, looking stupefied, as if they had seen a ghost.

If their eyes didn’t deceive them, the twenty-odd iron-clad warriors flanking the steps leading to the Boule Chamber seemed to be wearing the exact same armor as the dozen or so knights who had ambushed them last time. Or were they all knights?

Before Viscount Nade and the others could ponder this any further, the energy of the twenty-some Crusaders ignited simultaneously.

However, they did not draw their weapons this time, but stood their ground, forming a dazzling array of light on both sides of the Boule Chamber, almost as if in welcome—but also as if in demonstration of force.

Viscount Nade rubbed his eyes, scrutinizing the scene before him.

The fuck! What negotiations?!

This was Viscount Nade’s honest sentiment at that moment, and the other nobles shared his thoughts…

Only Richard, standing to the side, acted as if he knew nothing of this. With a smile, he invited them, “After you…”