blogombal Chapter 42 Jules: I'm covered in mud right now!
Chapter 42 Jules: I'm covered in mud right now!
Tippi smiled slightly.
He had long known that Lisanglu would hesitate and waver, but he already had a plan to deal with this question in mind.
Be the second person?
No, Tiberius can only be the first in this new legion!
He himself must train this new army!
"Don't worry, Lisanro. I practically grew up in the White Legion's barracks. I know exactly how to train soldiers, how to maintain discipline, and how to teach them martial arts! After all, I personally witnessed how Uncle Jules trained his troops, and how those battle-hardened veterans worked together from the very beginning... It's all etched in my mind!"
"Besides," Tiberius saw the wavering in Lisanro's eyes and quickly pressed his advantage.
"Besides, you said you wanted experienced mercenary leaders? My uncle Jules has plenty of those under his command. I can use my connections in the White Legion to bring in several experienced and trustworthy veterans to serve as training officers! They are experts in battle formations, command, and combat techniques; they are true professionals. Moreover, having them train the mercenaries is much better than having some random mercenary leader whose background I don't even know, right?"
At this point, Tiberius deliberately lowered his voice:
"You don't know! Some people borrow their employers' money to train soldiers, and then the soldiers leave with them! The employers suffer huge losses! And now there's war with Valantis coming up again; if they run into a swindler like that..."
He paused, then stopped talking, leaving them to imagine the consequences in their minds.
"A veteran of the White Legion..." Risangro murmured, the hesitation in his eyes noticeably lessening.
The reputation of "The Keeper of Faith" is a golden brand in Ries, and the quality of its veteran soldiers is naturally incomparable to those wandering mercenaries on the market.
Besides, Tiberius could certainly persuade them; it was a small matter. Tiberius was Jules' nephew, so would those veterans dare to turn against "Lightning Boy" to his face?
At that moment, the noble lads who had already been stirred up by Mario's arrogance and Tiberius's incitement also spoke up, expressing their support for Tiberius:
"We can't let ourselves be outdone! Lisanro, have Tiberius train the mercenaries, let's fight!"
"Yes, Lisangluo, the White Legion is far more trustworthy than other mercenary groups!"
"That bastard Mario, he's so arrogant, it's like someone put horse manure under his nose! This time, we're going to show him what we're made of!"
"Alright, in that case, Tiberius, you help me train a true iron-blooded legion. I want this legion to dominate the entire Three Daughters Kingdom! Most importantly, I want to give that Mario guy a good beating! I want to see him slink away from me with his tail between his legs!" Finally, under the encouragement of everyone, Lisanro decisively made the decision.
"Just do it! Just do it!"
[Plan is in place!]
Tiberius was secretly pleased, but on the surface he wore a calm smile.
"Thank you for your trust! I will definitely turn this legion into a powerful force capable of shaking the political elite of the entire Reiss!" Tippi bowed slightly and said with a fawning expression.
"Oh, right, I'll give you three thousand... no! I'll allocate eight thousand gold coins for you, Tiberius. I'll send the money to you tomorrow!"
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Inside the legion's encampment, Jules sat behind a rough wooden table, meticulously sharpening the blades of his twin swords with a whetstone, producing a rhythmic "shh-shh" sound.
When Tiberius walked in, Jules didn't even look up, but his movements slowed down slightly.
"Tiberius," Jules's deep voice broke the silence, "I heard you're planning to help that kid Lisanro set up... um, what's his name, 'Lightning Group' mercenary thing?"
Tiberius felt a chill run down his spine, knowing he couldn't hide this from his uncle, but he didn't intend to.
So he answered frankly, "Yes, Uncle. Lisanro needs a team to deal with Mario Ferrero's challenge. It's a matter of the Rogal family's reputation, and... it's also a way of repaying him a favor." He paused, then added, "What's wrong? Is there something amiss? I was originally thinking of transferring a few people from you. If you don't agree, I'll think of another way."
Jules finally stopped sharpening his knife, raised his gray eyes, and looked sharply at Tiberius: "What kind of troops are you planning to train? How much budget has Lisanro given you? I hope you're smart enough not to create one of those mercenary entourages dressed in silk robes and carrying flashy but impractical swords?"
Tiberius certainly knew about these mercenary groups. Generally speaking, these mercenary groups could only serve as a ceremonial guard, to showcase the wealth of a rich merchant and, incidentally, to show off their status.
Mercenaries who actually go to the battlefield still need heavy armor, greatswords, spears, and crossbows!
Tiberius had already considered this question and answered fluently: "The core are crossbowmen and spearmen. Spearmen are quick to form and are indeed the backbone of the army; in most wars, spearmen are undoubtedly the core unit. Crossbowmen are expensive to equip, but Lisanro is paying for it, so I'm not worried. We might also supplement with some light infantry for cover and patrols. If the budget allows, we can recruit a few patrol cavalry for reconnaissance and driving away enemy skirmishers, mainly for use in outpost battles. As for the budget..."
Tiberius smiled and said, "Lisanro's offer is: up to five thousand gold coins, he can decide. At the same time, he will be responsible for food, weapons and training grounds. I just need to train a mercenary group that can go to the battlefield... or beat Mario Ferrero's face."
He then added, "Furthermore, I don't need to worry about any obstacles from Risangzhuo's side..."
At this point, he suddenly smiled slightly: "I heard that Gastos humiliated him at the governor's council meeting a couple of days ago, and he's furious about it now!"
Jules listened quietly, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the spine of his sword, as if weighing something. Only the soft crackling of the charcoal in the brazier remained in the tent. After a moment, as if having made up his mind, he took a deep breath and said:
"Alright then," Jules said with an undeniable decisiveness, "I'll assign Vito and old Tom to you for a while. In addition, I'll pick a few old guys from various teams who have been through at least five years of hard work, whose brains haven't been ruined by alcohol, and whose bodies haven't been drained by women, to be your backbone."
This decision greatly surprised Tiberius. Vito was the captain of the crossbowmen, and old Tom was the best of the spearmen; they were both veterans in the White Legion, capable of leading independently.
He had only hoped that Jules would tacitly allow him to consult privately, or borrow one or two ordinary veterans, but he never expected his uncle to give such great support.
"Vito's a chatterbox, his head's full of his lousy poetry, broken prose, and dirty jokes! But he can write, he can keep accounts, and besides training your archers, he can be your second-in-command; old Tom's an old soldier, a gambler, he can't shake that habit. Besides that, he's the best pikeman centurion! How to form ranks, how to lead pikemen like a hedgehog to hold off cavalry charges, how to maintain formation in melee, how to get pikemen charging through a hail of arrows right under the enemy's nose—he knows it all by heart!"
"Besides, he's loyal to me too, and he won't be poached by someone because of some small favor from Lisanro. And old Tom is ruthless enough; with him around, at least you'll have someone to play the bad cop when you're training mercenaries!"
Tiberius's face betrayed his surprise: "Uncle... I... I thought you would choose to avoid suspicion." He chose his words carefully, "After all, our White Legion just received so many rewards from Lord Lisandro, and our relationship with him is closer than that of an ordinary mercenary group and employer. Now I'm helping his son train a private army, won't that make outsiders think..."
"What do you think?" Jules sneered, interrupting him, his laughter carrying a hint of mockery and anger.
He slammed a sword on the table with a "bang," stood up, and cast a huge shadow in the lamplight: "Right now, everyone in Ries with eyes and ears, who doesn't think this way? Who isn't pointing fingers behind their backs, saying that 'The Keeper of Faith' Jules has been bought off by the Governor of Ries with the Golden Dragon and the manor, and that the White Legion will soon be Lisandro's private army!"
"I'm like a piece of mud stuck in my pants—even if it's not shit, it's still shit! I can't explain it! Damn it, without even thinking, this must be Lisangzhuo's doing! Cultural offensive, cultural offensive... Kid, now your cultural offensive has reached me!"
His voice echoed in the tent, carrying a pent-up anger.
After venting his anger, he calmed down a bit and looked at Tiberius, his eyes regaining their usual calm and deep expression: "Since we can't avoid it, then we won't. But even as 'private soldiers,' we must be the sharpest and most useful blade, not rusty decorations on a shelf. Lisanro has some brains; having you train this army is better than letting him find some useless idiots and swindlers to mess around with."
"That's why I gave Vito and Old Tom to you. After all, they both know how to train soldiers who can fight. With their help, this 'Lightning Regiment' won't be a fragile, easily destroyed showpiece, or a stupid legion that only knows 'courage' and 'honor'."
He said in a deep voice, "This isn't just helping Lisangluo, it's helping ourselves too. Let the people of Ries see that our White Legion has always been a tough nut to crack, capable of getting things done and fighting! If you embarrass yourself, you embarrass the entire White Legion, do you understand?"
Tiberius looked at the complex and unfathomable expression in his uncle's eyes and nodded heavily: "I understand, Uncle."
Jules patted him on the shoulder, quite forcefully: "Go, do a good job. Don't tarnish the name of 'Lightning Boy,' and even more so, don't tarnish the reputation of the White Legion."