Chapter 1: Recruitment
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At last I've turned 21, I can join the ranks of the empire, I can now finally use my childhood's worth of training by the legend himself, my father, over the past decades he has grown old and fragile, but his body may be weak, his spirit is stronger still.

I bid farewell to my Father and paid my respects to my mother’s grave, she died of labor trying to give birth to me, thanks to her determination and sacrifice I am well and healthy.

Father only gave me a pair of rice balls, in confusion I asked him, "Why do I only get to have two rice balls?", “Your food will be the monsters along the way, you will eat those rice balls if you haven’t slain a monster in 4 hours, your training is enough to even slay a dragon, off you go my son.”, I waved goodbye and gave him a smile and descended from the volcanic ranges.

After a day of dangerous travel, I arrived at the capital.

 Recruitment Finally, I have arrived. The journey towards the Capital had been rough as usual, but still uneventful.

The training that my father has given me had been quite helpful as I was able to easily cut down obstacles that stood my way.

From bandits to beasts it was thanks to my father’s training that there were no real troubles for me and I was able to arrive earlier than expected. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath.

“Alright… First things first, I need to buy a map and locate the Recruitment Base…”, With that thought in mind, I set off.

Thankfully, because the Capital’s immense size, Merchants were found all over the place and I was able to quickly buy a map. Locating the Recruitment Base had also been easy, as it was one of the emphasized landmarks on the map of the Capital.

The journey had been a bit lengthy though, as I also took in the sights of the Capital. It’s beauty and the people doing their everyday life. It was a nice change of pace from the harsh volcano that me and my father lived in. Looking at the map once more, I then looked at the building in front of me.

It was quite big, made of solid stones. What made it stood out however, is the two swords crossing above its arching entrance. Also, statues of warriors stood on its side, holding a pole which hanged the flag of Khraelia, as it danced proudly with the breeze. “Looks like I’m here. Well, time to enter the army!”, I cried out proudly, excitedly running towards the halls of the Recruitment Base.

It wasn’t long before I had met the Registrar. He asked me my name and from where I came from. Although I did tell him the truth, he didn’t seem to believe that someone like me came from the Heimrich Volcanoes. We got into an argument, but an Instructor named Commander Vyn had separated us. He had a steely voice as he asked us on why we were arguing.

After telling him what happened, with another argument beginning to leak out between me and the Registrar again, the Commander had enough and just separated us, with me being allowed to enter the army.

“Yeah!”, I yelled out, kicking the barracks doors open. I continued to have this cheery face before I finally took a look at the other applicants. Many were looking at me with amusement, annoyance, or indifference.

“S-Sorry…”, I sheepishly apologized, before quietly going to the bed that I would be using starting today. Tomorrow was the day that we’re officially starting. Sorting my things out, I gave out a silent sigh as I lied down my bed. The sun was setting down and I decided to take a small nap.

Yawn~! Ahh, it’s always much more comfortable sleeping in bed. Stretching my limbs for a bit, I stood up. Hmm? Now that I looked around, it seems that I’m the only one awake. Well, they’re probably just tired. After all, it was a bit rowdy last night. With a deep breath, I went outside. Looking around, the other buildings seems to be inactive yet, save for some which likely belonged to the Instructors and Commanders. I also saw some guards wandering the grounds dutifully.

One even passed nearby and oddly looked at me. Thankfully, he eventually returned to his post without saying anything, though I did salute to him out of courtesy and respect, which was promptly ignored. I headed towards the nearest water source though, and rinsed my face and hands with the cold water.

Without furthermore distractions, I then returned to the Barracks. I didn’t do much, just lying down on my bed, staring at the ceiling in boredom. I was about to head out for an idle walk until…

DING!*DING!*DING!*DING!*DING!

 

The toll of the morning bells had resounded in the area. Of course, being briefed by my father, I immediately stood up and lined at the small hallway of our sleeping area. I also wanted to wake the others up, but I wasn’t able to do so as the doors had opened quite loudly.

 

In the end, I just stood still. I had recognized the person who entered, it was the same man who broke the fight between me and the Registrar, Commander Vyn. I could feel his hard stare set on me, but I remained calm and didn’t move an inch. His gaze eventually removed itself from me and I saw him take something out of his pocket.

 

The ensuing scene was chaos, as the thing, he took out was a strange-looking crystal, with a transparent yet reflective surface, a glowing thing is seen inside to which appears to be some kind of green energy. Commander Vyn told us that it’s a crystal used to seal elements dependent on its type, and this one was used to seal wind element magic.

 

 As soon as the glowing green crystal shattered in the Instructor’s hands, howling winds blew forth. There were probably multiple [Gale Blows] sealed on the thing, as blasts of compressed air hit the area randomly. Some had been on the ceiling, some on the beds, and some even directly to the sleeping inhabitants.

 

Everyone was disoriented, as they were harshly woken up by literal Magic. Me? I had easily dodged the wind blasts of course, and as soon as the bombardment of wind was finished, I looked at the Instructor with a half-lidded eye. Though he just responded with a grin and an impressed look on his face.

 

The day started, with the Instructor harshly reminding us that if we don’t wake up at the sound of the bells next time, we’ll wake up with the sound of magic. However, he also said that provided that we are able to sleep here again.

 

The others looked at each other in confusion, but I perfectly knew what this was. My father had stated that after the first night of sleeping in the camp, our Instructor will test us in combat skills. If the Instructor finds an aspiring soldier’s skills good or acceptable, then they are now officially a recruit.

 

Inversely, if they did the opposite, then they are immediately out of the camp. To me, it makes perfect sense. Those who wish to be soldiers need to at least have proper training so that they’re at the very least be able to handle life here.

 

That, and this is also where I can prove my combat skills. Soon, the Instructor had explained everything to us. And just like my father had said, we weren’t official recruits yet and the combat test is to prove that we have the ability to survive and possibly be on the top here.

 

Upon hearing the Instructor’s explanation, I could see that many around me grew nervous, though some were excited or just… meh. Breakfast passed quickly and 30 minutes later, we found ourselves in the training area of the camp.

 

There a few high-ranking people in there, including the Instructors of the other groups. Soon, the combat exams had begun. Most of the first ones had immediately been defeated by the Instructor paired up against them, though some were able to pass. Later on, the ones sent back and accepted began to even out.

 

It was now nearing noon, and my name hasn’t been called out yet. I suspect that I probably would belong to the batch in the afternoon. “Klayden! Recruit Klayden!”, The guard assisting the Instructors had called out my name. Finally! My time is here! I walked with a slight smile as excitement ran through my body.

 

I couldn’t help it; I could finally show the results of my training. I stood at the opposite side. I could see the Instructors discuss on who my opponent will be, but whoever it was, I’ll give all I have. Eventually, the discussion stopped when Commander Vyn had volunteered to fight me.

 

He waited for no replies as he immediately took the other side of the stage. Again, he gave me another smirk, which contrasted to the steely look that when I had met him and when he interacted with the other soldiers. “Here’s your weapon.”, A soldier handed me a simple spear, making me raise an eyebrow. “A spear?”, I asked him, he merely shrugged and pointed at my opponent. “Don’t worry, I’m sure that would be enough for you.”.

 

The Instructor nonchalantly said, taking out his own weapon. It was a longsword, with a strangely patterned, but beautiful metal. ‘Damascus”, I thought. It was a sword that those on the upper low ranks had wielded, as I had recalled from my father’s lessons.

 

I frowned, then looked at my weapon in hand. It was a simple spear, but now that I had taken a good look at it, it was slightly different from the weapons handed to the other examinees before me. It was made of steel, harder than iron, and the pole was made of very flexible yet still hardwood.

 

It was better than the ones handed to the other recruits. Looking back to the Instructor, his face had set in a thin line as he took on his stance. Hmm… A few openings. Looks like he isn’t an Instructor for nothing after all.

 

Giving out a silent sigh, I twirled the spear expertly in both of my hands. I know that it won’t show my full potential unlike when I wield a sword, but it was enough to guarantee my recruitment. After all, my second preferred weapon is a spear. I swung the spear hard, taking on my own stance. As my focus was slowly beginning to go more on the upcoming battle, I barely noticed the extra attention that the others had paid me with after I showed them a bit of my ability.

 

Even my opponent smiled and steadied himself even better. “3… 2… 1… BEGIN!”, As soon as one of the Instructors had said start, Commander Vyn immediately charged at me, attempting a slash. However, I easily retaliated with an angular slice, forcing him to dodge and back away for a bit.

 

The main advantage of spears is their range and power. If I could perform this well, I will be able to stop any of his attacks while I continue to poke on his defenses. However, in terms of maneuverability, he had it. I need to be careful and time my attacks. If I carelessly stop him from attacking and he’ll easily dodge, we would just be snowballing each other without any clear signs of a winner. He charged again, while I tried to halt him via a horizontal slash.

 

However, he just leaned and slid down and continued onward to me. It was unexpected, but I was able to quickly reorient my body and dodge the point-blank sword thrust that he gave. I then spun all the way around and tried to smack him with the spear pole, but he just blocked it with the flat side of his blade. I grinned before I let out a battle cry. “RAAAHHH!”,

 

I saw the Commander’s eyes widen in surprise as I overpowered him, knocking him away. Still, after a few moments, he was able to easily orient himself and charge right back at me. The coming minutes was just us continuously attacking, evading, and parrying. Though it was clear that I had an advantage when one would look, the Commander had also been able to land some hits on me.

 

I could vaguely hear the cheers of the other recruits, hoping that I would be able to defeat the Commander. The commander again charged at me. It was time to end this. I threw the spear at him and immediately followed through by meeting the commander head-on. He easily dodged the oncoming projectile and raised an eyebrow at me. As we neared each other, he swung his sword.

1

 

However, with a grin, I merely angled and spun my body, dodging the sword swing and coming behind him. Catching the spear midair, I immediately used the blunt edge to hit him. “Guha!”, The commander cried out, as the end of the pole had hit his head. He was knocked on the ground. Capitalizing on, I immediately neared his downed form and placed the spear tip on his nape.

“Surrender.”, I simply said. “Urghh… Cough! Alright…”, He groaned out. Looks like the force I applied had been harder than I thought. I removed the spear from his head and placed it on my side. Closing my eyes, I released a light sigh before opening them. I then looked at the impromptu announcer with a raised eyebrow. He seemed to be shaken and immediately said.

 

“W-Winner, Recruit Klayden!” The cheers of the other recruits were loud and palpable. Even the other Instructors didn’t stop them and instead were looking at Commander Vyn teasingly. The next few more minutes were me being carried and praised for the performance I showed them. However, things have to end. The combat training was halted as it was lunchtime.

 

Many groaned, apparently wanting to continue, though they still proceeded to the cafeteria as ordered. Lunchtime also came by quick, as the other recruits had excitedly returned to the combat testing field. Of course, I had been accepted with flying colors and had been placed on the group who were officially recruited.

 

As I watched on, I couldn’t help but notice the increasing number of recruits who passed, as opposed to the ones who failed.

 

“He’s good too don’t you think?”, A voice had asked to me. Looking about, I saw a green-haired man with yellow eyes and glasses beside me. He had a kind smile on his face, one that’s rarely seen from someone on this job. I looked back at the battle.

 

“Yeah…”, I replied. “I’m Finis Bertholde.”, He introduced himself. “Klayden.”, I introduced myself back. The guy’s pretty cool to me, I guess. We had an idle conversation while we watched the others fight it out. The late-night dinner, we also had talked some more, with him jokingly asking if we were friends. I replied though, that we could and the rest of the dinner time was spent in silence, focusing on the food before us. We eventually finished and later were sent to our new barracks to stay at.

 

The night fell deeper as I lulled me into sleep, smiling. Tomorrow was the day I, my first friend, and the others officially begin.

 

WHOOSH* First I was sleepy and slumbered, the second thing I knew, I was blasted by a very strong wind, I was so tired I was still asleep when the bell went off, “Quite a peaceful sleep you’re having there huh? Just because you passed the test doesn’t mean you’re officially in the military! Now stand up you’ll be receiving your battle gears!”

I stood up with my mind half-asleep, couldn’t decipher what’s going on around me, but my survival instinct made me follow everyone. Finally, fully awake, I went to line with the recruits, each of us was given our battle armor, Leather with Iron plating overlapping to each other, from the upper body to low, and a headpiece which looks like a farmer’s hat, made of leader, wood and some iron, a triangular, pointy arch shape to protect the head and finally the weapon, everyone was given a spear, a thick wooden shaft to support the Iron metal point on the end.

But the problem is, a spear is not my preferred weapon! I can only fight fully if I am wielding a sword, but I can’t complain since I can’t cause any ruckus on my first day as a recruit.

I went to training with Finis we built our friendship from long marches from dawn to sunset, spear stabbing and swinging, and physical exercises, we relied on each other and went through and made it to the end of the 6 months training.

One night as we rested well from the vigorous training, we had a sincere conversation on what would our lives be if we were sent to the battlefield, how will we survive, and do we have what it takes? He was anxious about what would happen and about all the possible deaths he could have painfully or peacefully.

 I gave him a promise, “I would never let anyone do you harm, I will always be by your side be it in triumph or death, they will have to kill me first, this I promise.”.

 For a moment all of his fears disappeared, his face lightened up with high hopes, his shaking arms are calmed by a sense of relief, he replied “I believe you, you’re so strong after all, many thanks.” we went to sleep, we were cozy as our exchanged words of assurance comforts us both, in spite of the cold ambiance of the night we were warm.

 

On the next day, we got up early for the final phase of our training, only a month left before we are deployed onto the battlefield, we rehearsed combat, familiarize techniques, and getting ourselves used to battle moves, everyone was eager, nervous, afraid and uneasy, some puked caused by the overwhelming mix of emotions.

A few moments after, a commanding officer stood in front of us, we looked amongst ourselves in confusion as to why is a high-ranking person is here?

“Attention men!” A Senior Commanding officer shouted, even outranking commander Vyn. He told us how cruel our enemy is, the kingdom of Alreim, their hidden aggressions, their crimes against humanity, sins which are beyond redemption, he told us atrocities this kingdom commits every day. “Do not be deceived by their Princesses, they may be a thing of beauty and appear pure, but they personally lead their armies straight to us, attempting to kill us, and pillage our villages and slaughter our people!”.

The Senior Commanding Officer gave us a speech, “In a few weeks you shall be sent into the fray, you will be seen in the thick of the action, you will carry out our noble cause first hand! You shall wipe those aggressors out from their vile nests, you will be the hammer of justice and the anvil of truth! Do not fear, you will not be sent in the flames of your duty unprepared, you will be well equipped, well trained, and hungry for blood! But do not feel full of yourselves, this duty is not a burden to one but a task for all! For every comrade is equal to ten of your enemies, do not leave him behind, you will not fight by yourselves, you will fight as a company, as a family, YOU! WILL! FIGHT! AS! BROTHERS!!”.

 Everyone cheered on the top of their lungs, everyone felt bloodlust, we were eager to kill the people of Alreim.

After weeks of training, the day has come, we are about to march on a great crusade, to cleanse this world of Alreim’s evil, the day of repentance is here, beg for forgiveness or burn in the heat of our fervor!

 

 

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