Chapter 60 CHAPTER 60
Garon did not immediately learn of Catelyn's decision.
For several consecutive days, he had not entered the Heart Tree through his warging ability.
As the coming war drew closer, Garon had become increasingly occupied with drilling the soldiers of Deepwood Motte and coordinating supplies and preparations.
Every single day was packed with work, leaving him mentally exhausted.
As a result, once night fell, he would quickly collapse into deep sleep without even having the energy to activate his warging talent.
Near noon, Garon assembled all the soldiers of Deepwood Motte upon the training ground.
Excluding servants, attendants, and the hundred men Newgate had already taken to Moat Cailin, there remained exactly six hundred soldiers.
Among them were two hundred cavalry and four hundred infantry.
Because of Deepwood Motte's geographical location, horses had always been scarce in the Wolfswood, and those two hundred warhorses were precious assets accumulated painstakingly over many years.
At this moment, the six hundred soldiers stood arranged in sixty rows of ten men each before Garon.
Behind him stood the Steel Fist Group he had painstakingly trained for the past half year.
Garon walked steadily across the training ground, passing between the rows of soldiers and the Steel Fist Group, while Robert, clad in full armor, followed closely behind him.
Every pair of eyes upon the field remained fixed upon Garon, filled with expectation and fervor.
Suddenly, Garon stopped walking.
With his back facing the Steel Fist Group, he looked toward the soldiers lined before him.
"I believe all of you already understand why you were gathered here today."
"War is approaching, and I intend to select squad leaders from among you for further drill training."
The moment Garon's words fell, the training ground instantly erupted into noise.
The soldiers looked toward him excitedly, hope filling their eyes as each secretly wished to be selected.
No one could blame them for their excitement.
In this feudal age where opportunities for advancement were painfully narrow, unless a man received special favor from his lord, most soldiers would remain ordinary soldiers until death.
No matter how bravely they fought on the battlefield, the greatest rewards always belonged to the nobles serving directly under the lord.
As for common soldiers, at most they received a little coin or empty honor.
Their lives were the same as their fathers', and their sons would inherit the same fate afterward.
Yet now, Garon had truly opened a path upward for them.
How could they not be excited?
"The opportunity has already been placed before you."
"Whether you can seize it depends entirely on yourselves."
As Garon observed the restless expressions of the soldiers, he silently reviewed the current military strength of Deepwood Motte in his mind.
The soldiers of Deepwood Motte were divided into three categories.
The first category consisted of the standing garrison soldiers currently gathered before him.
These men were responsible for defending Deepwood Motte year-round and numbered around seven hundred in total.
They were the true core forces trusted by House Glover.
The second category consisted of conscripted soldiers.
Once war began, Garon could levy additional forces from the four great clans loyal to Deepwood Motte.
However, those men were primarily hunters and woodsmen from the clans and possessed almost no formal military training.
Furthermore, to ensure the continued survival of the clans throughout the Wolfswood, each levy could not exceed two thousand men in total.
The final category consisted of miscellaneous support personnel.
These men handled horses, transported provisions, and managed logistical tasks, numbering around two to three hundred.
In other words, even if all available manpower were combined together, the actual fighting force under Garon's command would not exceed two thousand seven hundred men.
Trying to confront the Iron Islands head-on with only that number would be no different from courting death.
Therefore, before the war even began, Garon could only desperately improve his odds of victory.
That was why he cultivated the Steel Fist Group as an officer corps and invested so much effort into researching the new composite bow.
Now, before the true war erupted, Garon planned to integrate the Steel Fist Group into the existing six hundred soldiers.
Once those six hundred men were fully drilled and organized, they would then be used to command and stabilize over a thousand future conscripts.
Combined with the new bows and improved equipment, Deepwood Motte would then possess the strength to unexpectedly deal the Ironborn a devastating blow.
Only then could Garon begin preparing for his greater ambition of occupying the Iron Islands themselves.
Garon waited until the commotion quieted slightly before continuing.
"There are six hundred men upon this field."
"Each row contains ten soldiers, which means every row will select its own ten-man squad leader."
"Each member of the Steel Fist Group standing behind me will challenge one of your rows for the right to become squad leader."
Whoosh—
The six hundred soldiers immediately became even more restless.
Many turned their heads toward the Steel Fist Group behind Garon while whispering among themselves.
Garon calmly swept his gaze across the training ground, suppressing the growing commotion before continuing to explain the rules.
"The rules are simple."
"Each row will first choose its strongest fighter."
"That man will then compete against the assigned member of the Steel Fist Group."
"The victor will become the ten-man squad leader."
"As for the hundred-man squad leaders, they will later be selected from among those ten-man leaders."
"Does anyone object?"
The moment Garon finished speaking, the soldiers immediately roared in unison.
"No!"
Some of the older soldiers even laughed loudly.
"If we can't beat a bunch of youngsters, then we might as well go home and raise babies!"
Instantly, laughter exploded across the training ground.
The Steel Fist Group became indignant at those words.
One youth immediately sneered back.
"If your old bones get broken later, don't cry for someone to set them back in place!"
"Hahaha!"
The entire Steel Fist Group burst into laughter together.
Even Ghost barked twice beside Jon as if cheering him on.
This instantly angered the opposing soldiers.
Soon both sides began shouting curses and threats at one another.
In the blink of an eye, the entire training ground became noisy and chaotic.
Before the competition had even begun, the two sides already looked ready to fight.
Yet Garon did not stop them.
Instead, he silently thought to himself,
"The Steel Fist Group was personally trained by me, but they are still too young."
"If I simply forced these soldiers to accept them as officers, resentment would inevitably grow."
"They must win their positions openly through competition."
"Only then will victory truly convince the men beneath them."
As for whether the Steel Fist Group could defeat these veteran soldiers, Garon felt no concern at all.
Although some members of the Steel Fist Group specialized more in tactics and strategy and were weaker in direct combat, Garon had already arranged suitable opponents for each of them.
As long as they did not act carelessly, victory should come easily.
And if someone still lost under those circumstances?
Then Garon would simply abandon them.
After all, if an opportunity had already been handed to them and they still failed to grasp it, then they could blame no one but themselves.
After observing the field for a moment longer and seeing no problems, Garon finally clapped his hands sharply to quiet the crowd.
"Now, we will begin assigning opponents."
"Shanks, step forward!"
At Garon's command, a sturdy red-haired youth with a carefree grin stepped out from the Steel Fist Group.
"You will challenge the first ten-man squad on the left."
Shanks nodded and immediately walked toward the designated row.
"Jon Snow, step forward!"
"You will challenge the second ten-man squad."
"…"
The assignments continued one after another.
By the time all sixty rows had received opponents, half an hour had already passed, and it was nearly time for the midday meal.
Garon glanced toward the forty remaining members of the Steel Fist Group.
Some among them would later be assigned to Mihawk's archer corps and remain directly under Garon's command.
The others were blood relatives of the various clan chiefs and would eventually be handed over to Robert.
Once the conscripted soldiers were gathered later, Robert would oversee their management and deployment.
Seeing that everything was finally prepared, Garon drew a deep breath and raised his voice.
"Silence!"
"Now, beginning with the first row, the contest for the position of first ten-man squad leader shall commence!"