Speaking of the changes in the size of the Arda Army—or the Northwest Legion—it was impossible to avoid discussing the years when they resisted the Orcs' second invasion. At the time, to deal with the Orcish Cavalry's ability to harass the country from place to place at high speed, Arda launched a full mobilization. The army rapidly expanded like a snowball until it eventually reached a hundred thousand men. Though this huge force, hastily assembled from farmers, craftsmen, and merchants, lacked formal training, their conviction to defend their homes and country drove them to force the Orcs out of their territory.
Once the fighting died down, Paul knew that maintaining such a huge army placed a heavy burden on logistics and finances. Moreover, keeping so many able-bodied men in service would affect social production. He immediately ordered the mobilization ended, allowing most of the temporarily conscripted soldiers to demobilize and return home while retaining only the core combat forces. After being streamlined, Arda's regular army was fixed at forty-five thousand men. On that foundation, four infantry divisions were formally established. The troops stationed in the homeland were reorganized into the First, Second, and Third Divisions, while the Grassland Legion, still stationed on the steppe under Andrew's command, was reorganized into the Fourth Division. Because of its outstanding performance in resisting the Orcs and stabilizing the situation along the grassland's borders, it continued to shoulder the important task of monitoring activity on the steppe.
Time quietly advanced to the spring of 1999 in the Holy Calendar, and Arda's military reforms reached an important milestone. The First and Second Divisions were the first to complete their full transition to the new equipment. The centerpiece of the change was the Type 98 Breech-loading Rifle, an improved design led by the firearms designer Tannimoni