New Recruit Training

Even though his attitude was so-so, he didn't make things difficult for Evan. Taking the letter, the Major glanced at the wax seal on it. Without even opening it, he simply wrote a few words and put it in the right-hand drawer.

Evan, with his excellent eyesight, caught a glimpse of several similar letters inside, also unopened. He immediately understood that he wasn't the only new recruit in a similar situation.

He took out a stamp and marked Evan's form, placing it on a pile of only a few pages among the two stacks on the desk. Evan noticed that this pile of forms all bore the same mark as his.

This was probably the effect of the letter of introduction.

"Alright, I'll be your instructor for the next three months of recruit training. You can call me Instructor or Major Eugene.

Remember to come here tomorrow for the physical fitness test. Even if it might be a waste of time for you, the basic procedures still need to be followed. Go call the next person in!"

"Yes, Major Eugene!" Evan adapted quickly, changing to a military salute as he stood up. He turned and walked out of the room.

Waiting in the corridor of the courtyard for Gary to come out, Evan sighed. As expected, no matter where you go, there are always people with connections, even in another world.

From the moment they stepped out of the recruitment office, the new Navy soldiers were already divided into different classes.

And this Major Eugene had clearly mistaken his identity because of that letter. However, with a benefit delivered to his doorstep, Evan wasn't foolish enough to correct him.

Moreover, he had saved the Yellow Swan this time, preventing enormous financial and personnel losses for the elders. This letter of introduction felt well-earned.

Because the Navy was currently short-handed, they employed open-ended recruitment throughout the year. As soon as a batch of applicants reached a certain number, the training process would begin.

Evan and Gary were lucky to have just made it into the tail end of this batch.

The next day, the physical fitness test was naturally a piece of cake for Evan. He and Gary passed with flying colors, officially becoming proud members of the Navy's Third Fleet.

What awaited these new recruits was a three-month training period before boarding their ships.

At the very least, it would give newcomers like them a foundation so they wouldn't be a hindrance or even get themselves killed after boarding. After experiencing the trial by fire, as long as they survived, they would basically be qualified Navy soldiers.

Evan didn't know how the Navy's higher-ups arranged things. However, through the complaints of the testing staff, he heard an interesting anecdote and finally understood why the recruitment office was so shabby.

"It's all thanks to Vice Admiral Snyder, the head of the Base Logistics Department," the staff member said.

Vice Admiral Snyder, who came from a merchant family, was not only a qualified quartermaster but also a successful businessman.

He habitually put a price tag on everything he had and, using the Navy's special status, turned it into profits several times the original value. This naturally included the once magnificent and spacious recruitment office that had made the Navy look so impressive!

His philosophy was: "When we're making money, the buyer is our god; when we're spending money, we are everyone else's god."

As a result, the recruitment office, which could only spend money and not earn it, became like this. The original space had been converted into the office of a major trading company, bringing in a substantial annual rental income.

This simple, unpretentious, and pragmatic guiding ideology drove Gabreid's rapid development and also brought substantial military funds to the Third Fleet, making him the veritable God of Wealth in everyone's hearts.

The recruitment office staff could only grumble; they dared not speak out despite the poor working environment.

Evan thought this Base Quartermaster was indeed an interesting person. He saw things very clearly: what always attracted young people to join the military was never the luxurious Navy bases, but the bright future of being a Navy soldier or even an officer.

Instead, they could use the sense of security the naval ports provided to merchants, fully utilizing the land in prime locations to generate profits for the Navy. Then, use these revenues to improve military pay and benefits, truly spending money where it mattered most.

"I'll have to deal with this Quartermaster sooner or later," Evan had a premonition.

On the training grounds, the Navy recruits of this batch sat on the ground in a circle.

"Clang!"

The training wooden swords clashed. The two individuals in combat used the momentum to leap back, and after landing, they quickly sprang up and resumed their engagement.

It was clear that the physical condition of the two combatants was far beyond that of ordinary people. As they moved and their wooden swords struck, ordinary people's reaction times couldn't keep up with their movements.

Moreover, although they were only using training wooden swords, they emitted loud whistling sounds as they swung them. One could imagine that being hit by them would inflict injuries no less severe than real swords.

But these two individuals paid no mind, clearly having immense confidence in their swordsmanship.

"Alright, stop!"

The combat paused, and the dust swirling in the air settled, revealing two figures in Naval Training Uniforms.

One of them was Major Eugene, the instructor for this batch of cadets, and the other was Cadet Evan, who had been honorably chosen as the sparring partner.

Without paying any attention to Evan's panting and his appearance of being on the verge of collapse, Major Eugene had already figured out the young man's personality over the past month.

Diligence, hard work, perseverance, and determination – these were qualities unlike many of the privileged youths he knew. Only the "no profit, no early rising" aspect was exactly the same as those people.

When he first mentioned teaching him the Navy's unique military swordsmanship in advance, Evan had been so diligent and obedient, always rushing forward even without being called.

Then, after mastering the basics in a week like a genius, he would put on this half-dead, listless "salted fish" demeanor whenever he was asked to be his sparring partner to demonstrate for other cadets.

He even shamelessly complained to him that being a sparring partner was delaying his own training and the learning of navigation skills!

"But, it doesn't matter! Who made me a Formal Knight? He can't beat this instructor, so he has to obey."

After suppressing him forcefully, training continued as usual.

In less than a month, the other "Insignia Trainees" from distinguished backgrounds had already left the training camp one after another. Eugene knew they had their futures arranged by their fathers and never stopped them.

Only Evan Garratt remained, spending his days immersed in the training camp, absorbing knowledge like a sponge, frantically studying all sorts of information that others disdained.

If I don't rope you in as a helper, who else can I rope in?

Even though the Navy was a place where talent was concentrated, for most new recruits from commoner backgrounds, the mere problem of literacy was a significant hurdle.

Faletis's literacy rate, after years of promotion, had reached twenty percent, meaning one in five people could read. Many other countries, which restricted the spread of knowledge to the commoner class, had single-digit literacy rates as the norm.

Even simple text is like this, let alone extraordinary swordsmanship, which can be called a grand avenue.

So, if Evan started as a commoner in this era, it would truly be a hellish beginning. Even if you were given a Divine Manual, you wouldn't be able to learn it without the foundation of systematic knowledge!

The huge class divide was always present, but this situation was even more apparent in a world with extraordinary power than in the previous life.

Eugene's choice was also a form of helplessness.

"Soldiers! I announce that starting tomorrow, Assistant Instructor Evan will take over teaching you the military swordsmanship I just demonstrated..."

At this point, his words were interrupted by the thunderous cheers from below. What were these people fighting for? Was it really to fight pirates and protect their homeland as advertised? Wasn't it to rise above their station, get promoted, and become rich?

Yes! The original intentions of the common people were just that simple, real, and honest!

Any knowledge and skills passed down from the upper echelons were related to whether they could reverse their fortunes in life and escape the lower strata of society. To give their descendants a chance to escape the predetermined fate of being born a peasant, herdsman, or fisherman!

Although Evan was annoyed by Instructor Eugene's unilateral decision, he couldn't bring himself to refuse when faced with so many eager eyes.