Recruitment System

Upon completing the second weekly mission, unlocking the Recruitment System, and receiving five Veteran Nord Archers, he also activated a new mission:

Knight's Path: Have twenty subordinates recruited through the Recruitment System.

Reward: Guardian Template, Guardian Standard Armor, Slayer Greatsword, armored warhorse.

After Ronan completed the second weekly mission and claimed the rewards, he already had five subordinates. He only needed to recruit fifteen more to complete this mission, so it would be fairly easy.

Ronan came back to his senses from the system panel and looked at the five Veteran Nord Archers standing beside him. They had suddenly appeared after he claimed the mission reward, without any warning or sign. He needed to keep that in mind. He would probably have to stay out of sight when claiming rewards in the future.

All five archers were men, with Nordic-style bushy beards and sturdy builds, around thirty years old. They wore short-sleeved hardened leather armor, iron bracers and leather gloves on their hands, and only leather protection on their legs. On their heads were simple dome-shaped iron-rimmed helmets. They carried longbows in their hands, quivers on their backs, and short-handled fighting axes tucked at their lower backs. Their equipment did not look particularly refined. Still, that was normal. The Nord Kingdom was famous for its formidable infantry and did not even have cavalry. Its archers received little attention and were weaker than those of other kingdoms, but they were cheap and easy to train.

"Do you have names?" Ronan asked them.

"No, sir," the archer closest to Ronan said with a bow.

"Fine. I'll call you by numbers from now on. You're Number One, you're Number Two. Come up with names for yourselves while you're at it. We'll need them when we enter towns later." Ronan could only assign them numbers to make commanding them easier. After all, he had terminal naming syndrome.

"Deal with the nearby bodies. Bring me anything useful. Once you're done, we'll continue on our way. We don't have much food or fresh water, so I'll have to trouble you all with finding food and water from here on."

"Yes, sir!" The five soldiers all bent forward and nodded before dispersing to get to work.

Ronan sat on the tree root and continued studying the Recruitment System. The five troop types available today were all basic units, and there were no fantasy troops from the mod. They were two groups of Nord Recruits, Rhodok Tribesmen, Vigjian Recruits, and Swadian Recruits. Once recruited, soldiers would take up Ronan's already limited troop capacity, so he did not intend to recruit these basic units simply to make up the numbers and finish the mission. Training them would take time and be troublesome, and they could not become immediate fighting strength.

Basic units were not expensive. Recruiting each one only cost five copper coins, and their weekly wage was only one copper coin. Ronan currently had only the ten gold coins from the mission reward, along with twelve silver coins and one hundred and thirty-six copper coins looted from the Eagle Corpse Retrieval Squad, the Eagle Pursuit Squad, and Amuda. According to the exchange rates in his memories, one gold coin was roughly equal to ten silver coins, one silver coin to roughly one hundred copper coins, and one copper coin could be exchanged for five copper bits. Different nations minted different currencies, so the exchange rates varied slightly, but they were generally similar. Ronan's predecessor had earned only one silver coin a week as an attendant to that junior Knight, while one gold coin, spent carefully, was enough to support an ordinary family for half a year.

After putting the useful spoils collected by the five Nord Archers into his inventory, Ronan decided that once day broke, he would first find a water source and clean himself properly. He had not taken off his armor for several days. The stench of blood and sweat mixed on his body made him extremely uncomfortable. Ronan, who had only been an ordinary person before crossing over, simply could not stand his current condition.

A sizeable Savage tribe lived nearby, which meant there had to be a water source in the area. Ronan could hardly wait. He had the five Nord Archers spread out around him to protect him, then rose from the tree root, planning to move farther away and find somewhere to spend the night. So many people had died here that predators might soon arrive, and the Savages might pursue them after putting out the fire. Ronan was already exhausted and did not want another fierce battle.

At a clearing roughly two miles from the battlefield, Ronan and the other five stopped. They lit a fire and set up tents, while the five archers took turns keeping watch. Ronan finally did not need to handle everything himself, and with someone standing watch at night, he could rest peacefully. He could not help sighing inwardly at how convenient it was to have subordinates.

Nordic archers were generally experienced hunters as well. It did not take them long to set up a temporary camp, and Ronan fell asleep soon after lying down in his tent.

Early the next morning, Ronan was lured awake by a burst of fragrance. Yawning, he stepped out of the tent and saw that a simple rack had already been set over the campfire, with an iron pot seized from the Eagle Pursuit Squad placed on top. Chunks of meat and wild vegetables simmered inside, and the white broth bubbled as it gave off an enticing aroma. Number Five stood beside it, stirring with a branch and occasionally sprinkling in some spices and salt.

When Number One saw Ronan emerge from the tent, he hurried over and handed him a roasted bird skewered on a branch. "Here, sir. Number Three and Number Four caught this bird this morning. Number Five is stewing the rabbit Number Two caught with dew collected from the leaves this morning. It should be ready soon. Please eat this first."

Ronan took the roasted bird, which looked like a pigeon, and did not stand on ceremony. After blowing on it twice, he tore off a leg with his hand and began gnawing on it. As he ate, he walked over to the large pot and sat beside Number Three. Before long, the meat soup was ready. Number Five first filled a wooden bowl, also seized from the Eagle Pursuit Squad, for Ronan, then called the other brothers over to serve themselves. Ronan soaked the dry, hard flatbread in the meat soup until it absorbed the broth and softened, then ate a bite of flatbread, a bite of roasted bird, and a sip of soup whenever he was thirsty. The best meal Ronan had eaten since coming to this world gradually came to an end.

Full and satisfied, they packed up their belongings. Ronan and the five others set out once more. As noon approached, they finally found a water source: a small stream with clear water, little fish, about one meter wide and half a meter deep. After filling all their prepared waterskins to the brim, Ronan planned to boil the water in the large pot that evening to kill off any germs before drinking it. After all, his modern education had taught him that drinking untreated water in the wilderness was dangerous.

Once they had filled the waterskins, Ronan had Numbers Three, Four, and Five stand watch nearby. Then, after having Numbers One and Two help him remove his armor, he stripped naked and plunged into the water with a splash, happily washing himself. Downstream, Numbers One and Two were washing his armor and clothes for him. Looking at the reflection of the blond, blue-eyed young man in the water, Ronan knew he could not go back. The small comfort was that he was rather handsome in this life, probably handsome enough to fool quite a few young girls.

After happily bathing for roughly half an hour, Ronan climbed ashore and changed into the spare clothes he had taken from Amuda. Once he put on the armor Number Two had washed and dried, he prepared to continue onward. It was not that he did not want to wash a little longer, but the longer they stayed, the less safe it became. Besides, it was already close to noon, and they still had to find food for lunch. Though roasted meat without seasonings tasted rather plain, it was still much better than dry, hard rations.