“Are they some kind of idiot?” Nisa couldn’t help frowning. “We are on the same side. What the hell will they gain by staving their own army.”

“I don’t think they think of us as their own army.” Ondor added, “They think of our leader as an enemy. However, what was surprising, was that the fourth prince was an idiot too.”

“That is what I am saying. We have gotten rid of the enemy army. They should have given us a reward.  How can they tell us that we can not take the ration? We are a royal knight's army. Our ration was supposed to come from the royal treasury.”

“What are you worried about? It was just a week. We have more than enough food for now.” Rika said. She was least worried about the punishment of denying rations for seven days.

“No, it is not enough.”

“No, it’s not.”

Nisa and Fanger didn’t agree with her. Fanger explained, “The food we have brought won’t last for more than two months. We need to keep our food for emergencies. So it would have been better to use up the food from the royal ration.”

“And if we were to forge every day during a prolonged war, it would be hard for the soldiers to rest.”

“But, didn’t you and your scout unit recover food from the enemy camp?”

At Rika’s question, Fanger turned toward Thyra, adding, “Leader, next time you use your thunder, you should control yourself. More than half of the food supply was destroyed by the fire you started.”

Thyra smiled, asking, “How much were you able to recover?”

“About 20% of them. I have left almost half of what was good.”

“That is also what I want to say.” Nisa looked at Thyra with a frown on her face, “Why do we have to leave the food for them when they are trying to starve us? We should have recovered every last bit of the food.”

Selda answered, “I know you are angry, my lady, but what the leader has done is right. We were the only ones to attack the enemy camp. If all the food went missing after the attack, they would be suspicious of our actions. The punishment would have been much harsher than it is right now.”

“That amount is enough. Even if we have too much food, it won’t be good if we have too long of a logistical train. It will be easier for enemies to locate and attack us,” Thyra said. “Fanger, what about the weapons and armour?”

“We have already delivered it to Eisen.”

Eisen started where Fanger stopped. “It isn’t much. We need to melt it and turn it into shape before weaving it into chainmail. It will take some time, but we will be able to arm the rest of the force.”

“How many days will it take?”

“That?” Fanger hesitated for a moment before saying, “We can’t work at full capacity. A total of only 12 blacksmiths are present.”

“How many days?” Thyra repeated the question.

“Even if we use those who can use the hammer well, we will be able to make about 15-20 armours.”

“In a week?” 

“In a month. Only if we can do it nonstop every day.” Thyra’s face said it all. She wasn’t happy with the time frame. Eisen added with caution, “There is a way. If we choose a different kind of armour, we can equip all of them within three weeks at the absolute latest. If we do it nonstop, it will take two weeks."

“What type of armour are you talking about?”

“It’s called layered armour. Instead of one full plate, we will use strips of metal to layer upon one another and riveted to the leather. The layered part and leather would give extra protection.”

“Is it good?” Thyra remembered the description of this type of armour in some war novel she had read but wasn’t sure if it was just the author’s fantasy or could provide realistic protection. On top of that, with this novel being her reality, she couldn’t decide what to do.

“The knights used it in the past. Before they decided to make full-plated armour, all the knights used this type of armour.”

“And how long ago are we talking about?”

“What my master had told me was that it was still in use about 200 years ago. Maybe a little more before that.”

“That’s old.” Thyra shook her head, “Didn’t they change them because they weren’t useful?”

“That was not the case. The knights used it for about 500 years before. It was that effective. They changed it because the royal academy discovered how to make full-plate armour without hindering the integrity of the armour joints.”

“So they didn’t have any type of weakness?”

“If it is not about fighting against magic, then it will do more than good work.”

“It’s not like we are using magic against chain mail.”

“Then it will be enough.” Fanger paused, adding, “However, there is a weakness. That is for shoulders. However, making small pieces of chainmail to protect our shoulders will do the job. The domains on the eastern part of the continents have used this type of variant for a long time.”

Thinking about it, Thyra couldn’t help but ask, “Then why didn’t we use that before?”

Eisen smiled and said, "Leader, at the barracks, we had all the tools, and also, there were so many experienced blacksmiths in the city we could use. The padded armour with chainmail would indeed give well-round protection.”

“That doesn’t mean this is bad. However, we lacked time. Also, the armour that Fanger had recovered is mostly full plate armour. It would be easier and quicker to cut off the plate and use it than to start from scratch.”

Thyra sighed, saying, “Proceed with it. Don’t cut corners. Make the best armour possible.”

“Yes, leader. You don’t have to worry.” Eisen nodded, adding, “Leader, I don’t think there are any other soldiers who were better armed than our army except for maybe the royal guard unit.”

“It doesn’t matter. I can’t take chances when it comes to protection. I didn’t train them just to let them die. I want them to be with me until the end. I will prepare that for everything; whether they can survive is up to them.”

Hearing such words makes them realise they have chosen the right person to follow. It was especially true for Selda and Ondor. 

“Take rest for today. The soldiers had marched for so long. Divide the soldiers into three groups, and put them on guard duty for eight hours while the others rest. Rest for the next two days. If we do not get a deployment order by tomorrow, they have to start training the day after.”

“Training?”

“Yes. They don’t need to march. Just some running and weapon training. Two hours every day. Resting too much will rust their body.”

“Leave for now,” Thyra ordered. “One more thing. During the war, there will be an influx of orphans. If you find someone between 14-18, bring them in. Even if you find someone with younger siblings, don’t hesitate. We need to replenish our numbers continuously. But don’t bring too many of them.”