I rode my horse all the way toward the direction of Poros, encountering several groups of bandits and robbers along the way. However, since they were few in number and none were mounted, I easily avoided them. In my mind, I was still thinking about solving the bandit problem for the village of Zestya. Losing over a dozen men and nearly getting myself killed left me unwilling to accept defeat.
As the future unifier of the Calradian continent and the future king of the "Great Tang Empire" (the name I planned to give my empire), how could I let these bandits tarnish my reputation? Most crucially, my denars were running low. I could only use the little I had left to recruit more troops, take down a few more groups of bandits, secure the rewards, and sell the loot in town for a decent profit. This way, I could sustain my forces through warfare and rebuild a formidable army.
I silently plotted my next moves as my horse galloped at full speed. Finally, just before nightfall, I arrived at the city of Poros.
Upon reaching Poros, my first stop was the grain merchant to stock up on supplies. As the saying goes, "An army marches on its stomach." Ensuring I had enough food would prevent my soldiers from deserting due to hunger.
Next, I went to the town administrator and successfully recruited twelve Imperial recruits, three of whom were armed with shields—Imperial Vigla recruits, slightly better than the regular recruits. By then, I had less than a hundred denars left, not even enough to pay my soldiers for a week. I was truly gambling everything now.
The caravan leader had mentioned that I could earn denars by trading goods, but I disliked such small-scale ventures. I also hated the idea of being chased around the world by bandits in the early stages of a merchant's life. No, I preferred making money through war. With a small, weak force, I would target small groups of bandits. Once my army grew stronger, I would join warring nations as a mercenary, picking on weaker lords—defeating them, releasing them for goodwill, and earning money in the process. A perfect arrangement.
When the time was ripe, I would declare myself king and conquer the entire continent.
After spending a night in Poros, I set out on my quest for vengeance against the bandits. I couldn't afford to stay too long—every extra day meant more wages to pay. If I ran out of money and my soldiers deserted, all my efforts would be for nothing.
I headed west from Poros, as I had only seen small groups of bandits on my way here. It seemed I had chosen the wrong direction when leaving Zestya Village. I had assumed the main bandit forces were southeast, on the road to Poros, but they were actually northeast of Zestya.
Just a few hours after leaving Poros, we successfully caught up with a group of bandits—about seven or eight men. Seeing our superior numbers, one of them shouted:
"Who are you people? We have no quarrel with you. Why are you chasing us? Let us go today, and we'll repay you in the future."
"Why not repay us now?"
"How can we repay you now?"
"With your lives!"
"If that's how it is, we'll fight to the death!"
"Then I'll grant your wish! Charge! Kill them all!"
With my command, my soldiers rushed forward in a frenzy. I didn't personally join the fight, instead observing from the rear, confident in the outcome. We outnumbered them, and they were nothing but ragged, disorganized rabble. If I lost this battle, I might as well give up leading armies and become a farmer. (Of course, I was just saying that—I knew I'd win. Clearly, the heavens didn't want me to be a peasant, haha!)
The battle lasted less than five minutes, ending in a crushing victory. Only one of my men was injured, while seven of the eight bandits were killed, and one was captured. I ordered my troops to loot the battlefield. These bandits were pathetically poor—even stripping them bare wouldn't yield much. The only things of value were their shoddy weapons, which were little more than scrap metal.
This wouldn't do. Fighting smaller groups of bandits yielded too little loot—not enough to recruit more men or upgrade their gear. But taking on larger groups was too risky. I needed a way to recruit stronger troops.
On the way to Zestya Village, I wiped out several more groups of bandits, killing over twenty. However, my forces also suffered losses, dwindling to just seven men. Fortunately, I completed the village elder's task and received my reward. I then returned to Poros to sell the loot, using the proceeds to upgrade my soldiers' equipment—adding three Imperial archers to my ranks.
Since this world had no firearms, bows ruled the battlefield. At a distance, archers could inflict maximum damage with minimal risk. I intended to completely overturn the traditional reliance on heavy cavalry charges, replacing it with my "no-contact warfare" doctrine to unify the continent.
With over a thousand denars now, I made another risky decision: a long journey to the land of Battania to recruit their archers. The Battanian Fian Champions were the finest archers on the continent. I would bring them under my banner, laying the foundation for future victories against overwhelming odds. Only this would allow me to amass denars quickly. Otherwise, slow skirmishes and gradual savings would waste too much time, making it impossible to raise a proper army in the short term.
No sooner had the thought crossed my mind than I acted. With my seven remaining men, I set off on the long trek to Battania. To bring peace to the lands we passed through—and out of a sense of righteous justice—we kept an eye out for small groups of bandits. Whenever we found a weak, outnumbered group, we chased them down, stripped them clean, and sold the loot in town.
After a week of travel, I estimated we had reached Battanian territory.
"Master, there's a force ahead. Judging by the banners, it must belong to a Swadian lord."
"A Swadian lord? Let's go take a look."
"Halt! Don't come any closer! Keep your distance, or our swords won't be merciful!" one of their soldiers warned.
"We mean no harm. I just have some questions for your lord. Please inform him."
Seeing that we looked like a band of hunters and posed little threat, they relaxed and went to report to their leader. About five or six minutes later, a guard returned.
"His Majesty has agreed. You may approach—alone. The rest stay here."
"Understood."
I dismounted and walked forward. Before me stood a man in a silver helmet adorned with a golden crown, wearing red-and-silver chainmail, with a thick yellow beard—the very image of a medieval Crusader knight. Behind him stood several heavily armed guards. This was no mere lord—it was the king himself. Before I could speak, he addressed me first:
"Who are you? What do you want?"
"Your Majesty, my name is Gattar. I, too, am a Vlandian. I have a small matter to ask you about."
"I see. Since you're Vlandian, speak freely. I won't punish you for honest words."
"Your Majesty, do you know the meaning of 'Nereztes' Folly'?"
The king fell into deep thought at my question, his gaze distant as if recalling something profound. Then, with a heavy sigh, he spoke:
"That was a bitter battle—a victory that tasted like defeat. We once swore an oath to the Empire: if they were attacked, we would stand with them against foreign invaders. In my view, we should have honored that vow. At the time, Battania and Sturgia were the aggressors, and we should have fought alongside the Empire. But the details were always debatable. In the end, our barons refused to march, unwilling to fight for the Empire. When Nereztes learned of our hesitation, he sent a letter calling us cowards and traitors. You must understand—to insult Vlandian nobility like that was to gamble with his life. Nereztes had no idea what he was doing. In our fury, we joined the Sturgians instead. I didn't personally fight in that battle but commanded from the hills, directing our forces where to strike. Though the battle seemed to go well, our losses were severe, and our gains meager. The barons blamed me… even though it was their idea to fight. From that day, I learned a hard lesson: a king must lead, never follow. But the price of that lesson was far too high..."
The king spoke at length, and I listened intently. I hadn't expected a monarch to share so much with me—it felt like listening to a cautionary tale. His words, "A king must lead, never follow," would serve as a guiding principle for my future reign.
"Very well, young man. I'm in a good mood today, and since you asked, I've spoken at length. Treat it as a story."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. It's an honor to hear your tale—I'd have never known the history otherwise."
"Good. I'll remember your name. My guards mentioned you lead a band of Imperial soldiers. If you wish to serve as a mercenary under me, you may pledge your service to any lord in my kingdom—myself included."
"Of course, Your Majesty. I'll remember that. I hope to serve you one day."
Though in my heart, I added: *And I hope you won't resent me too much when we become enemies—it's all for the sake of unification.*
After parting ways with the king, I continued toward Battania with my men. Another day passed, yet we still hadn't reached the border.
"Check the map—where are we? Why are we still seeing Swadians everywhere?" I ordered.
"Master, we've just passed Sargot. Going further west will take us deep into Swadia. We've gone the wrong way."
"Damn it! No wonder it didn't match the game. How could we not have reached Battania yet? No wonder we ran into the Swadian king's army."
"Master, what game are you talking about?"
"Never mind. We overshot. Head north now—we'll reach the river soon."
After wasting two days, we finally arrived at the Battanian border village of Wercheg. Nestled on a mountainside, its stone houses with thatched roofs and round, primitive-looking structures gave it a rugged charm.
I entered the village and explained my purpose to the elder. But he shook his head.
"We have no archers left. The war's taken them all—fresh recruits are drafted into the army as soon as they're trained. If you want to recruit, all we have are young men fit for infantry. They're brave, though."
"Then I'll pass for now. I'll just buy some supplies."
"Our village produces iron ore. Do you need any? It's excellent for forging weapons if you're leading troops to war."
In the end, I only bought some grain before moving on. The old man wanted me to recruit infantry? Did I need bravery? No—I needed specialized troops for overwhelming tactics. If I wanted infantry, I wouldn't have come all this way—I'd have gone to Aserai for their Palace Guards. And iron ore? I had no intention of smithing my way to wealth. Too time-consuming, too dull.
Leaving Wercheg behind, we pressed deeper into Battania. In the villages of Imlac and Gain, I successfully recruited twelve archers—eight Battanian Highborn Youths and four Battanian Highborn Warriors.
Not long after leaving Gain, we encountered three groups of mountain bandits—about twenty men. The moment they saw us, they turned and fled. We gave chase, and when they realized they couldn't outrun us, they charged at us instead.
I remained calm, issuing orders:
"Archers, form a line! Infantry, fall back for now—charge only when the enemy closes in!"
A dozen archers loosed volleys as the bandits entered range. Though the Battanian Highborn archers were still green, they were more than a match for poorly equipped bandits.
With a final *thud*, the last bandit fell to the archers' arrows. The battle had lasted mere minutes. My soldiers raised their weapons, cheering in victory.
For the first time, I felt the exhilaration of a crushing victory. Though the enemy had been rabble, this further validated my "no-contact warfare" doctrine. With this strategy and Battanian troops, I would conquer nation after nation, reshaping the continent under my rule.