Unas opened his eyes as soon as it was light. He was getting less and less sleep these days. Looking back on yesterday, he had been busy from early morning until late at night and had only slept for two or three hours. Now he felt full of energy again.
Upon arriving at the command tent, the first thing to do was to summon the logistics officer, as the promise made to Perella needed to be fulfilled as soon as possible.
The logistics officer had been busy all day yesterday. He was dragged out of bed still half asleep, feeling a little resentful of the new Warden's diligence. Helplessly, he hurried to the main tent.
Although Unas came here with the goal of uniting all races, he would not abandon his human identity. Abandoning his identity to befriend other races would only lead to Evan's fate—being disliked by both sides.
All other races must unite under the banner of humanity; the interests of humanity will always supersede those of other races—this is the fundamental principle. Therefore, Unas wouldn't reprimand the logistics officer for showing favoritism towards humans; doing so would only alienate his own people. "Thank you for your hard work yesterday, Brighton."
The middle-aged logistics officer Brighton, suppressed a yawn and bowed slightly, flattering him, "It is my honor to serve you, sir, and you work far harder than I do."
"Please have a seat," Unas said, skipping the usual bureaucratic pleasantries and instead asking in a more conciliatory tone, "Regarding the mushroom cultivation trainees, I've carefully reviewed the list, and they're all humans. How is that possible? I remember my orders were for all races to be included."
When his selfish motives were exposed, Brighton didn't panic. Instead, he explained confidently, "Those sickly Elves and clumsy Dwarves are nowhere near as skilled as us human farmers, and the best mushroom cultivation techniques are in our hands."
That was blatant hawkish thinking, Unas had to remind him, "But don't forget, the one who taught us how to cultivate mushrooms was an alien. Holsa Oakleaf is just a guest here, not under the jurisdiction of the Argent Dawn. He helped us entirely voluntarily."
"Is Master Oakleaf dissatisfied with my actions?"
"Yes," Unas shifted the blame to the Druids, since Brighton wouldn't confront Oakleaf anyway. "I've already come up with a solution: add ten more spots—spots exclusively for other races."
This is a relatively mild solution; if more people are added, those already hired won't need to be laid off. Unas hopes to resolve the issue in a way that pleases everyone.
Brighton thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. Unas continued, "I don't know how Holiya instructed you to do things, but under my rule, racial equality is no longer just a slogan. From now on, my orders must be carried out in a concrete manner. I don't want any other races to complain to me about injustice anymore."
Seeing that Unas was speaking very seriously, Brighton did not dare to directly oppose his superior's order. He was very disapproving in his heart, but outwardly he respectfully withdrew.
Unas frowned as he watched the logistics officer's retreating figure, knowing that the man might not be convinced, but his goal was to eliminate these people's prejudices as much as possible through gentle means and truly unite all the forces in the stronghold.
Next, Unas summoned Stonebrow and several Dwarf architects, all of whom had bloodshot eyes, indicating they hadn't slept much the night before.
Unas took the Cave design drawings and looked at them. He couldn't understand the dense data, but the framework pattern was clear at a glance.
Based on the geological findings and the direction of the mountain's water veins obtained yesterday, the Dwarves plan to excavate the entire mountain where those damp caves are located in layers. They intend to use a composite structure to maximize the area of the plantation while ensuring ventilation, irrigation, and heating systems. The entire Cave project is both arduous and meticulous, and no one but the Dwarves can handle it.
"I will allocate all the Kobold slaves to you, and all Dwarves must put aside their other work to complete this project," Unas stood up and clapped his hands. "Time is of the essence, so get to work immediately!"
The Dwarves loudly accepted the order. Stonebrow let the others go ahead, while he stayed behind and said to Unas, "My brother has brought his two strongest Warriors; they're waiting outside. What do you think...?"
"Quickly, invite them in." Redbrow was efficient; Unas didn't want to neglect a powerful figure.
Heavy, rhythmic footsteps approached, and the tent flap was forcefully lifted. Two fully armed, cube-shaped Dwarf Warriors entered. They saluted Unas in unison and shouted in unison, "Baer(te) Tongchui, here on the orders of Lord Dugal Redbrow to serve Lord Unas!"
Their spirit and energy clearly indicated they were battle-hardened warriors. Unas exchanged pleasantries with them for a while, and Stonebrow chimed in, praising the Copperhammer Brothers were quite famous throughout the entire Dwarven Kingdom.
Just then, a messenger brought new information. "As instructed by the lord, those on the selection list have assembled at the training ground and are awaiting the lord's inspection."
"It just so happens to be time for me to select my elite troops. Why don't you two warriors come and take a look?" Unas invited the two Dwarf Warriors, thinking it would be a good opportunity to test their skills at the training grounds.
Stonebrow surprisingly expressed his desire to join in the fun, Unas refused him without hesitation. This good-for-nothing should go back to his cave and become a foreman.
Unas quickly led Raphael and the Dwarf brothers to the training ground, where many soldiers were already drilling. Several centurions and their recommended men occupied a corner.
Unas has a total of over twenty soldiers to choose from, most of whom are strong young men. Unas's elite squad already includes Perella, the Troll Haikesi, Nightmoon, and the Copperhammer Brothers, and he can select a maximum of five more to join.
As for how to choose, after discussing with several centurions, to be fair, they decided to stick to the old three skills—horsemanship, archery, and swordsmanship—and compete in each of the three skills one by one. The five men with the best overall scores would be the winners.
The first test was riding skills. Qiaosen immediately sent people to set up various obstacles around the training ground. The examinees had to ride around the ground on a fixed route. The less time they took, the better their riding skills were.
This format was quite similar to a sports meet, which greatly piqued Unas's interest. He urged the Dwarf Warriors to participate as well. The Copperhammer Brothers knew that the new Warden wanted to see their skills, so they couldn't show any weakness and had no choice but to reluctantly agree.
The youngest centurion Kaipa Liante, couldn't resist the jeers from his men and also expressed his desire to join in. Unas, of course, wouldn't spoil the fun.
Unexpectedly, this ignited a firestorm, with many onlookers who were not on the selection list expressing their dissatisfaction and wanting to participate in the competition as well.
Unas thought this was for the best; the officers might be holding back, and the people they recommended might not be the best. Perhaps there were even more experts hidden among the audience.
But many people were just making a fuss, all talk and no action. He had a sudden inspiration and ordered the soldiers watching to nominate five people to participate in the competition, giving those who were all talk a chance to back down.
Sure enough, in the end only three people dared to stand up, while the loudest ones chickened out. This is what they mean by "a barking dog doesn't bite."
Unas instructed the three volunteers to join the competition, and once all the obstacles on the track were set up, the equestrian competition began quickly.