Grim News Strikes

The Dragonbone Mountains.

Ten days had passed since the battle ended, and the entire army was still busy curing meat.

There were few trees on the grasslands, and the nomads burned animal dung for fuel, but the soldiers of the Third Army couldn't stand it.

Their customs were different, and this wasn't something they could be forced to accept.

To make it easier to gather materials, the meat-curing work had been moved to the outskirts of the mountains.

Looking at the bare mountaintops, Victor felt a pang of guilt.

He feared that cutting down too many trees would bring a friendly greeting from the magical beasts in the mountains.

Having seen the Cors Tribe's devastating losses, he genuinely didn't want to provoke any magical beasts.

Hunting magical beasts was out of the question. Winning meant a crushing loss, and losing meant an even greater one.

Unless they had delicious meat or were special magical beasts with striking looks, ordinary low-level magical beasts were practically worthless.

The Berserk Porcupines the Cors Tribe had provoked were a classic cautionary example.

Their meat was old and tough, and without special preparation, it was impossible to swallow.

Their magic cores were worth some money, but only a little.

A first-tier magic core was worth about the same as a sheep in the Holy Glory Empire, roughly three to five silver coins, depending on its quality.

(Note: 1 gold coin = 10 silver coins = 1,000 copper coins. Prices fluctuate by region and are affected by many factors, including war and natural disasters.)

A second-tier magic core was worth twice as much, and a third-tier core twice as much again. In any case, low-tier magic cores weren't worth all that much.

The reason was simple: low-tier magic cores could be replaced with magic crystals.

Even a tiny magic crystal mine could produce over ten thousand crystals a year, so who would be foolish enough to hunt magical beasts?

Mid- and high-tier magic cores had a higher energy density and cost more to replace, but mid- and high-tier magical beasts were too dangerous to mess with.

Knights and mages of the same tier were unlikely to defeat a magical beast.

Some exceptionally powerful species of magical beasts could even overpower knights one or two tiers above them.

There was no helping it. Magical beasts could be ranked by the energy in their magic cores, but it wasn't so easy to establish a uniform standard for knights.

No one was willing to open their minds and let others examine their condition.

Circulating battle qi and projecting it outside the body were all wishful thinking; neither could be demonstrated without reaching a certain level of cultivation.

The only standard recognized across the continent was combat strength.

The assessment was extremely crude: defeat two armored soldiers, and you were a first-tier knight.

Whether one achieved that through physical training, innate divine strength, or cultivating battle qi, the empire didn't care.

Because the armored soldiers varied in strength, there were also considerable differences in strength among knights assessed by that standard.

Even among knights of similar rank, there were plenty of cases where a lower-ranked knight defeated a higher-ranked one.

By comparison, the ranking of mages was much simpler.

Whatever tier of magic a mage could cast was their tier. There was nothing to argue about.

"Commander, the assessment of military merits is complete. Would you like to make any changes?"

Seeing that Victor had finished his morning training, Clyde, the chief steward, stepped forward to report.

Assessing military merits had always been a top priority, especially for a force like theirs operating in isolation, which made solid evidence all the more important.

Simply stating how many enemies they had wiped out wouldn't suffice. Unless they brought back the heads, getting the military department's approval would be a great deal of trouble.

Relatively speaking, the Third Army was fortunate.

The Goshawk Tribe and the Cors Tribe, both of which they had destroyed, were on record with the empire.

The totem banners they had seized were the best evidence.

As long as the intelligence department verified that the two tribes had been wiped out, the claim could be approved.

As for whether their military merits would be discounted, no one could say for sure.

Although the Holy Glory Empire collected intelligence on the Tuwu People as a hostile force, corruption in the bureaucracy meant that much of it was outdated.

If the empire's records showed a smaller population for the two tribes than the number of enemies they had killed, they would simply be out of luck for the excess.

If the population in the empire's records exceeded the number of enemies they had killed, then, with some physical evidence added, their military merits could be verified and approved.

"Mm."

"Draw up the register according to the information here, and make several backups in case they're lost in battle."

After looking it over, Victor promptly signed his name.

The list was much as he had expected, with all the main contributors included.

All the evidence that needed to be collected had been gathered.

The battle reports and such had long since been prepared.

What remained was beyond his control.

An army commander's authority over personnel was limited to appointing and dismissing officers at the squadron commander level and below.

For officers above squadron commander, he could only make recommendations; he had no power to make the final decision.

The military officers currently appointed were all like him, with "acting" added before their titles.

Whether and when their appointments would become permanent was entirely up to the military department.

Of course, it was more likely that the day their appointments became permanent would never come.

A supplementary army was a temporary force, after all. Without an official place in the imperial military's establishment, it would be disbanded as soon as the war ended.

Those with military merits were better off. If they wanted to stay in the army, they could still be reassigned to other units.

Exactly where they went depended entirely on how strong their family connections were.

Those with powerful backgrounds would stay in the imperial capital, those a step below would go to the main legions, and those below them would join the garrison forces.

Those unable to pull strings could only leave it to fate and accept wherever they were assigned.

Those without military merits would receive travel money and then return to their homes.

Unfortunately, the officers of the Third Supplementary Army were all unlucky souls who lacked connections.

Let alone pulling strings at the military department, they probably couldn't even say for certain which way its doors faced.

Of course, lacking connections and a powerful background didn't mean they had no chance at all.

Even the most closed-off world operated on equivalent exchange.

Military merit itself was a bargaining chip.

No general wanted his subordinates to be a bunch of good-for-nothings.

If a general took a liking to someone, it was entirely possible he would lend a hand.

"Commander, it's been some time since we wiped out the two major tribes. Even though we've done our utmost to keep the news contained, we can't guarantee no one slipped through the net.

"For all we know, the enemy has already received word and is mobilizing troops."

Clyde offered the tactful reminder.

Being chief steward didn't involve military command, but that didn't mean he wasn't concerned about military affairs.

In fact, everyone in a leadership position in the army needed to keep a constant eye on the situation on the battlefield.

"No need to panic!"

"The enemy's objective is to seize Dragon Spine Pass. Even if they've received word, they won't have time to settle accounts with us until after they've taken it.

"Unable to draw troops from the front, the enemy can only call upon the tribal warriors nearby.

"The Tuwu tribes in the surrounding area aren't fools. Before they know how strong we are, they won't risk sending out troops.

"The nature of nomadic peoples means the Golden Horde Khanate's control over its local territories can't match the empire's.

"Even if the royal court issues an order, they can pay lip service to it while secretly defying it."

Victor answered with a calm expression.

He still had confidence in Dragon Spine Pass.

It was the foremost stronghold in the north, after all. Surely it could hold out for at least half a year!

"Commander, terrible news!"

"Dragon Spine Pass... Dragon Spine Pass has fallen..."