Chapter 95: Captain Hector
"We've arrived, my lord."
"Thank you." Lionel nodded.
Without waiting for any help, he stepped out of the carriage. He took a step to the side and pulled out both of his suitcases. The weight immediately settled into his arms when he carried them.
Now that nobody was helping him, the realization hit that he was now all alone.
When he looked around, a small smile appeared on his lips. Every trainee was carrying their own belongings, just like him. Whether noble or commoner, everyone looked the same right now.
After Lionel arrived, more trainees continued arriving. This time, they were unfamiliar faces. It seemed like there were newbies aside from him and the people he saw last time.
"ALL NEW TRAINEES, FORM UP IMMEDIATELY! THE GATES WILL CLOSE IN 30 MINUTES!"
A loud and powerful shout came right at the entrance area. In there, a soldier appeared to remind everyone of the time.
Because of it, the people fastened their steps to enter.
"Move!" One look from the soldier kept everyone moving. Now, everyone was hurrying to enter the gates.
"I'll go now, Sir." Lionel looked at the coachman and offered him a small bow.
"Take care, my lord." The coachman offered his goodbye to the young Lionel.
Lionel briefly smiled. After a second, he firmly held onto his suitcase and ran a little to join the people who were now lined up to go inside.
Soon, several lines were formed before the gates. Everyone stood with their luggage placed neatly beside them. Before they could enter, their luggage had to be inspected first.
In the line, Lionel felt the atmosphere gradually change
The excitement of the people earlier disappeared as the reality finally settled in.
Also, with the presence of Imperial soldiers, nobody dared to talk or even say anything. Even the nobles who were familiar to Lionel were quiet too.
Soon, the lines began moving forward one by one.
At the front of each line, several Imperial soldiers stood beside long inspection tables. Their expressions were stern as they examined every piece of luggage brought into the training grounds.
"Next."
A trainee hurried forward and placed his suitcase on the table. The soldier opened it immediately and checked what was inside. The contents were inspected thoroughly before the soldier closed the luggage once more.
"Proceed."
The trainee quickly grabbed his belongings and moved on.
The process was repeated over and over again. In this, nobody was exempt, not even nobles.
Lionel watched as a visibly wealthy young man protested when a soldier began rummaging through his belongings.
"Be careful with that. It's expens—"
"Do you wish to enter the Imperial Army or not?" the soldier interrupted coldly, not caring about him.
The person immediately shut his mouth. Several nearby trainees wisely looked away at it, not wanting to be involved.
A few minutes later, Lionel finally reached the inspection table.
"Suitcases."
Lionel placed both of them down without complaint. He just pressed his lips together as a soldier opened the 1st one.
In there were his training clothes and garments. The 2nd suitcase was opened, and in there lies his more casual clothes and daily necessities. The soldier carefully examined everything before his gaze briefly paused on the wrapped hourglass.
"What is this?"
"An hourglass, Sir." Lionel respectfully answered.
The soldier stared at him. After a few seconds, the soldier simply unwrapped it enough to confirm the contents before placing it back. When he saw that it was just an ordinary hourglass, he let it pass.
After all, there were really some people who bring things that reminds them of their own home.
"You may proceed."
"Thank you."
Lionel closed the suitcases himself before picking them up once more. Then, finally time, he stepped through the gates.
The moment he crossed the entrance, his eyes swept across the enormous training grounds.
The newly arrived trainees were immediately directed toward a large open field.
"Move forward!"
"Keep walking!"
"Move faster!"
The crowd obeyed without question at the soldiers' shouting out loud. Lionel followed the flow of people while carrying his luggage.
Soon, they arrived at the center of the massive training ground. In there, hundreds f trainees were already gathered, while some were still lined up outside.
However, instead of just one cluster, the people who had entered before them were no longer standing randomly. Instead, they had already been divided into groups.
Each group was standing beneath a numbered banner held by an Imperial soldier. At the same time, he heard several officers calling out names continuously.
"Group Seven!"
"Group Ten!"
"Group Four!"
Trainees quickly moved toward their assigned groups whenever their names were called out. Lionel placed his luggage down momentarily and looked toward the board where their names were posted.
He scanned them calmly. While doing that, a few familiar names immediately entered his vision. Then, after a while, he found his name.
Lionel's eyes stopped on one section.
Group 9.
Without hesitation, he picked up his suitcases again and began walking toward the designated area. As he approached, he wasn't familiar with anyone. There were around twenty new trainees who had gathered under the banner already.
Most was standing quietly, uncaring of the world. While there were some who looked nervous. A few, though, were already sizing up everyone around them.
Lionel calmly took his place within the group and set his luggage beside him. The moment he did, he felt several curious gazes land on him.
He just gave a small smile to everyone. After all, he realized that he can't be a snob in the army, especially if they were people with whom he would be for the next 3 months.
As they waited there, an Imperial officer started walking toward their group's banner. The man was wearing a more advanced uniform, signalling that he should be someone with a ranking in the army.
I guess he's the commander of the group. Judging from the expression on the man's face, he concluded that he would be the one overseeing them.
And true to it, the officer stopped before them. The man's sharp eyes swept across every trainee. He was tall, and his body was in good shape. He had black hair and brown eyes.
The man smiled, but for some reason, that smile made several trainees feel uneasy.
"Congratulations." His voice echoed clearly across the group.
"You are now officially trainees of the Imperial Army." The smile on his face widened slightly.
"Unfortunately for all of you..."
Several trainees immediately stiffened.
"your suffering begins today." The officer's smile remained on his face. Unfortunately, that did not make him look any friendlier.
Several trainees swallowed nervously at what the officer had said, but the officer just seemed amused by their reactions.
"My name is Captain Hector." His hands moved behind his back as he slowly walked in front of the group.
"For the next three months, I will be one of the officers overseeing this group." As he spoke, he looked at everyone, and nobody dared to look away.
"Before anything else, there is something all of you need to understand."
Several trainees immediately became attentive.
Captain Hector pointed toward the banner standing above them.
"This banner symbolizes that you are one of the higher intermediate groups among this year's trainees." His gaze narrowed slightly as he tapped a finger against his arm.
"Compared to the lower groups, you have shown better fundamentals during the entrance examinations."
Some of the trainees visibly straightened at the praise, thinking that it was a good thing.
"But don't misunderstand." The captain's voice immediately became colder.
"Being placed in a higher group does not mean you're talented. Maybe for some, yes. But overall, it just means you're expected to know the basics already."
His eyes moved from one trainee to another.
"You are expected to know how to run."
"How to fight."
"How to follow orders."
"How to maintain discipline."
"So unlike the lower groups, we will not waste time teaching you things you should already know."
His voice echoed clearly throughout the group, and several faces immediately turned pale.
The captain smiled when they saw their reaction.
"Good. Some of you are finally understanding that."
A few trainees suddenly felt very uneasy.
"And let me make something clear if it's still not clear for you all." Captain Hector raised one finger.
"The Imperial Army does not care about your family." He raised a second finger.
"We do not care about your status." Third finger.
"We don't care about how much money you have." Fourth finger.
"And we certainly do not care how talented you think you are." Fifth finger.
The trainees fell completely silent, and Hector nodded in satisfaction. He suddenly pointed toward the massive training fields in the distance.
"You see those?"
Everyone turned and there they saw the large fields of the training grounds.
"That is where most of your time will be spent." The captain's smile widened.
"Some of you will quit." His voice suddenly became serious.
"Some of you will fail."
"And some of you will realize that military life is far more difficult than whatever fantasy you imagined."
Then Captain Hector folded his arms.
"However."
The trainees looked at him.
"If you survive the next three months..." A different expression appeared on his face, one that almost resembled pride.
"You will leave this place stronger than you entered." A small smile appeared on the man's lips.
"Now, let's go to your barracks."