So Being a Company Commander Makes You This Badass?

Facing a hundred pairs of trusting eyes, Ruan Wenbo took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He was just a gaming blogger and knew nothing about real-world military command. Fortunately, he understood the basics of military organization. Besides, after playing so many strategy games, he had plenty of armchair-commanding experience.

"Everyone, attention!" Ruan Wenbo cleared his throat, his voice steadier and more forceful than he had expected. "I'm issuing my first order! All veteran Players who participated in the first closed beta, step forward!"

Assassin, Big Eagle Cop, and seven others immediately stepped forward.

"You nine will serve as Temporary Squad Leaders. Start dividing into groups now. Each Squad Leader will lead nine new Players, forming a Combat Squad. Ten squads in total."

As soon as he finished speaking, group assignments automatically appeared on every Player's system panel. Clearly, the system had made the fastest possible allocation based on his orders.

However, just as the grouping was completed, a discordant voice rang out.

In the Seventh Squad's formation, a new Player raised his hand with a miserable expression. "Um... Company Commander, reporting!"

"Speak." Ruan Wenbo looked at him.

"Are you sure... you want that Ogryn to command us?" The Player pointed at Big Eagle Cop, who stood at the front of their squad, massive in build and clearly not blessed with much intelligence.

"Pfft—"

The moment he said that, not only did Ruan Wenbo fall silent for a moment, but the other Players could no longer hold it in either. Suppressed laughter filled the trenches.

Only Big Eagle Cop himself glared at the Player who had asked the question and said in a booming voice, "What, you lookin' down on me? Come fight me, then!"

As he spoke, he flexed his body, thicker around than an ordinary person's thigh and wrapped in heavy metal plating.

The Player took one look at Big Eagle Cop's gear, which was practically light armor, wisely shrank back, returned to the formation, and muttered under his breath, "I won't stoop to an Ogryn's level..."

"Ahem..." Ruan Wenbo gave two dry coughs, breaking the awkward yet amusing atmosphere. "How about this? I'll make some manual adjustments."

He looked around at everyone and came up with a new idea. "All Players who like or are good at melee combat, raise your hands!"

Eight or nine Players raised their hands sporadically, including Big Eagle Cop. Most had combative looks in their eyes, while others simply enjoyed the thrill of "feeling every slash cut into flesh."

"Very good." Ruan Wenbo nodded. "The Seventh Squad will be reorganized. From now on, it will consist entirely of melee Players, with Big Eagle Cop as Squad Leader. You will serve as the company's reserve and assault force. Whenever a position is in critical danger or a countercharge is needed, the Seventh Squad will move in and fight hand-to-hand!"

The arrangement made perfect sense. Let those skilled at something do what they were skilled at. The Players all nodded in agreement, while those assigned to the Melee Squad rubbed their hands together eagerly, looking especially excited.

Next, following the deployment methods of those Astra Militarum veterans he remembered, Ruan Wenbo assigned the remaining nine squads to key positions throughout the trenches. He made simple arrangements for crossfire and priority defense zones. Once everything was done, the defensive posture finally looked somewhat proper.

With the orders delivered, the trenches temporarily fell quiet, leaving only the wind and the occasional distant echo of artillery fire. The Players checked their weapons, waiting for the enemy to appear.

Squatting in the makeshift command post, Ruan Wenbo could not help reviewing the matter of suddenly becoming Company Commander. No matter how he looked at it, a new recruit who had enlisted only days ago being promoted on the battlefield to command a hundred-man company—and entrusted with the vital duty of holding a position—was extraordinarily abnormal in any serious military setting.

Perhaps in another game, it could be explained with a simple "it's a game." But in this game, which was real to an outrageous degree, Ruan Wenbo believed that every NPC decision had rigorous logic behind it. Otherwise, the game developers would never have been so confident as to let Players freely stir up trouble in the game world.

Could it be... that the battle situation has already collapsed beyond saving? A terrifying thought flashed through his mind.

He recalled that even their original ten-man squad had been personally received by someone as important as a Commissar. Could it be that... all the other low- and mid-ranking officers in this regiment were already dead?

Perhaps there was another factor: the position they were defending had already lost its original strategic importance and become a disposable "chicken rib." If that was the case, it explained why Commissar Walter had thrown a group of new recruits here and casually appointed a "veteran" who had only fought for three days as their Company Commander. It was nothing more than cheap waste utilization.

Ruan Wenbo shook his head, casting those negative speculations from his mind. Wild thoughts would not help him complete the mission. What mattered most now was improving both his own survival chances and those of the entire company.

He decided to check the newly unlocked "Faction Store" and see what his pitiful amount of merit could buy.

However, when he opened the exchange list with a thought and saw the few glittering options at the very top, he was completely stunned.

"Holy shit!" he blurted out. "I'm just a Company Commander... and I can exchange for a Venom Blade super-heavy tank?! Are we an Elite Reinforced Company of the Cadian Shock Troops?"

His shout immediately drew the attention of several nearby Players.

"What? A Venom Blade? Company Commander, let me see! Let me see!"

"Damn, we really can exchange for it! This exchange list is insane! Company Commander privileges are this badass?"

"Damn... it's fucking expensive... How long would we have to save merit for this...?"

The Players crowded around and took one look at the astronomical merit requirements, all sucking in sharp breaths.

Ruan Wenbo also recovered from his initial shock, scratched his head, and raised a very practical question. "Even if I really save up enough merit to exchange for it... where are we supposed to get the Venom Blade from?"

The Players had no answer to that question.

But deep within the Warp, beyond mortal perception, Bit, the God of Information, heard the question and could not help smiling faintly.

Where else would it come from? Of course this hidden "planner" behind the scenes would personally make one for you.

Bit even hoped the Players would exchange for more things, especially these complex war machines. Every act of creating something from nothing was a deep application and practice of His authority, greatly improving His grasp and understanding of its essence. Besides, all of this took place in the real universe. The energy fluctuations would be diluted by the vast material world, so there was no need to worry about making too much noise and drawing the attention of those greedy, filthy "neighbors" in the Warp.