A man's reputation was like a tree's shadow.
After years of painstaking effort, Hudson now possessed formidable prestige. The moment a dragon's roar tore through the sky, everyone knew the kingdom's only marshal had arrived.
Although Hudson had yet to do anything, his arrival alone changed the morale of the frontline officers and soldiers.
The previously lifeless command headquarters suddenly brimmed with hope.
The kingdom had finally changed commanders. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, including Marquis James himself.
Stepping down now meant nothing more than bearing the disgrace of incompetence and retiring from military service. If he suffered a few more defeats, he could forget about getting away intact.
Frankly speaking, his command had been steady and proper. There were no great highlights, but few major mistakes either. Overall, his performance had been passable.
For Marquis James to stand out among so many generals, his abilities were beyond doubt. He had reached his current position by fighting his way through the battlefield with blade and spear.
Perhaps his performance had not been the most dazzling, but James had better luck than any general of his generation.
Those competitors who had once performed better than him had died one after another on the battlefield. As he endured, he gradually became one of the army's old hands.
During the previous war, when he had assisted Hudson in commanding the army, he had also performed exceptionally well.
Unfortunately, he had been placed in the wrong position.
James was more than steady enough but somewhat lacking in flexibility. He was an outstanding executor, but merely average when commanding an entire front.
If paired with a staff department to make up for his shortcomings in adaptability, he could have become an excellent commander as well.
Unfortunately, no such thing as a staff department existed