(Eris POV)
The march towards Death Pass Town was quite arduous.
Without any time to lose, Guiying had rushed with the equipping of the soldiers before getting them to mobilise as fast as they could.
Labourers, builders and blacksmiths were sent first along with the supply convoy and scouts to set up a base of operations within the town.
Brendan went with them as well, stating something about 'helping out in his own way'.
If I had to guess, it's either manual labour or something to do with his alchemy skills.
The princess then split the rest of the troops up, sending a thousand professional soldiers with every three thousand or so conscripts and Practitioners to make their way towards the town as soon as those conscripts were outfitted.
The idea was to have as many people moving towards the town as soon as possible. The soldiers would then train their accompanying group of conscripts along the way to make sure they at least know which end of a spear needs to be pointed at the enemy by the time we reach there.
I joined in on the first group of four thousand that would be heading towards the town, the leader of the group being this young captain that obviously hasn't had much battle experience judging by how ridiculously shiny his armour was.
Master was very clear in teaching us that a knight in shining armour is most likely a knight who has never seen the grime and dirt of battle before. So if you want someone reliable to rescue you, those are the people you should least want to see.
We were all a little confused at why he would bring that up but now I see Master's wisdom.
But truthfully… The only person we want to see rescuing our humble selves is Master right? [Denna]
HA! Like we're gonna let ah'selves be captured in the first place! I'll rip anyone who tries to shreds! [Bait]
Manami and Kiyomi were captured the other day, weren't they? [Eris]
Master… Dreamy… [Laverna]
Oh yes, this one humbly thinks Master was especially dashing! This one wouldn't mind being rescued like that! [Denna]
Mmm… But I wouldn't want to trouble Master either. [Eris]
Heh heh… Maybe… Ya know? We coulda… Ask for a little play pretend or sumin' on our nex' session? [Bait]
Agreed… [Laverna]
Ohhh~ This one thinks that is a wonderful idea! [Denna]
"Alright men! We'll unpack here for today! Plenty of trees and shade around here!" The officer shouted from atop his horse.
Wait… Now? Here? We've barely walked for a quarter of a day! Wat da hell?! [Bait]
Slow… [Laverna]
Indeed, I thought we were walking this slow because he thought to make us walk for longer, but it seems like this is not the case. [Eris]
At this rate… Would we even reach Death Pass Town in time? The groups that leave after us will catch up! [Denna]
The other soldiers and peasants seemed to have the same thinking as we did since most of them hesitated, looking at each other to confirm what they had heard.
"Come on! Hop to it!" He shouted again.
"Sir? Isn't this a little bit too early?" One of the squad leaders asked.
"All this riding is killing my back, you want me to ride into battle with a sore back, soldier?"
"N… No, sir…"
"Then what are you waiting for?!"
I pushed my way to the front, "There's a battle that will decide the fate of this land and you're worried about a sore back? Do you want me to break that back of yours so that it won't ever be sore again?"
The Captain looked at me and whistled, "Whew, didn't know they let such a hottie into my group. What's your name sweetie cakes?"
I gave him four different looks of disgust.
Unfortunately, even that was not enough to give him a clue.
"Ooh, a spicy one. Why not join me in my tent tonight? My bed is really soft, you know? You'll even forget that you're sleeping outdoors!"
Just to be clear, I am not the only female in this group of people, there were a number of female soldiers and volunteer conscripts as well. I do not even need to look at them to know that they were sending their own looks of disgust at him.
I believe most of these people are here because they have been inspired by Guiying's speech and really wanted to fight in the defense of their home. Barely a few hours had passed after we had set off from the city and this guy is already dampening the mood.
I turned my back to him and shouted, "We shall continue marching! Da' bloody Dong dogs ain't gunna be sittin' around and wait for us! We'll get dere' quick before them and shove our pikes down their goddamn throats when 'dey come outta their bleedin' caves!"
There were a few roars of approval, but it was obvious a large number of them were still worried about going against the Captain because of his position.
"Hey, hey. Insubordination huh?" The stupid face chuckled. "You know you can be executed for that? I am the first son of the Ginna House you know? A single word from me and your entire family will be made to live on the streets."
I turned my head slightly to look at him with a single eye, "Sorry, but I am an orphan. Your threat means nothing to me."
"Ha ha! What about you? You think a single person like you can stand against me with my Family's backing? You are but a nobody!"
Master's Name… [Laverna]
This one thinks using His Name in vain is a grave offence. [Denna]
Could we jus' beat 'im to a damn pulp pleeeeease? [Bait]
I agree that we should not depend on Master's name… We shall challenge him then. [Eris]
I drew my sword and held it by my side, "I challenge you for the right to lead this group by right of combat."
The Captain took a second to comprehend my words before bursting out in laughter, "Hahahahaha! What kind of time do you think we live in, sweet cakes? Who even challenges others by 'right of combat'?! You are hilarious!"
My hand twitched, "We are facing the threat of being killed or enslaved by the Dongs and all you care about is a sore back? Do you think this is a goddamn game?!"
"Hahahaha! Oh stop it, this is why you commoners will never get anywhere! Come now, be a good little thing and come with me, I'll even exempt you from tent pitching duties."
For this guy to actually be able to obtain a position in the army… The imperial government must be more corrupt than I thought… [Eris]
Purge… [Laverna]
We had plans didn't we? This one does not think we should delay in those plans. [Denna]
We still hafta' deal with this stupid ass war first. [Bait]
I sucked in a breath before exhaling, concentrating on the quarks that were in the air.
Full Focus… Lightning… [Laverna]
I slashed my sword out in an arc, letting a blast of lightning crash and explode on the ground beside him with a deafening roar.
Surprisingly, he does not seem threatened but instead, even more happy.
"A Practitioner swordswoman? Now I really got to have you. Want to be my personal maid? I'm sure your Master wouldn't mind sending you over if I paid him handsomely for you."
There was the sound of something snapping inside my head.
I held my sword parallel to my chest, "My Master is Master Lin of Heaven Sect. His strength, compassion and divinity is beyond your mortal comprehension."
His face quickly changed from a smile to confusion to horror.
"Death is too good of a fate for you," I swung my blade in front of me, smacking the flat end across his back.
His body bent with a loud crack before he was flung off his horse, bouncing on the ground three times before stopping with his face in the ground and butt in the air.
That hit guaranteed at least a fracture of his spine, probably leaving him crippled for the rest of his life if he does not seek medical aid.
I turned back to the assembled troops, "This one is now taking charge, is anybody of disagreement?"
No one did.
"Then move out, we wasted enough time as it is! Someone pick that useless sack of crap up! Tie him to his damn horse and bring him along!"
"Yes mam!"
We'll probably run some practice drills with them tonight, just like how Master had taught us. That might at least help them do better in the upcoming war… [Eris[
Contact sister Manami, they need to know about the corrupt officers. This one thinks a purge should be in order before the battle is mounted. [Denna]
Useless… Kill… [Laverna]
Hell yeah! Tell da' princess to let us replace 'em! A'm sure she wouldna' mind! [Bait]
Yes, a quick purge of the corrupt will help us in the upcoming war, we do not need idiots who can't even pull their own weight. We'll get to control a good portion of the military too, then we can make use of them later. [Eris]
Yes, after all this is over, this land will finally take its first steps towards being cleansed for Master!