Chapter 36: Final Preparations
The cold winter air played with Sollivan’s hair as he stared into the dark forest ahead. A faint glimmer appeared in his already dark pupils, and then, calmly, he turned and took a quick glance at Devlin beside him, whose face was marked by fear and a determined look that refused to fade. Despite this, his movements remained smooth, and he didn’t allow himself to stumble. Even as they ran for nearly a mile, carrying Sollivan and the heavy, filled buckets, Devlin kept his composure.
Sollivan didn’t focus much on Devlin’s struggles and turned again to take a quick look at Darnell on his other side. Unlike Devlin, Darnell’s gaze was filled with determination and strength, his expression fierce and wild, with a mysterious enthusiasm.
’This cunning bastard seems excited. This is expected from a golden commander.’
In the Golden Lion Empire, military ranks were strictly divided. At the top of the hierarchy was the Grand Marshal, who controlled all military forces in the empire, followed by the Chief Tactician, who meticulously oversaw war affairs and the deployment of all troops.
Below them were the Four Great Generals, each responsible for protecting a specific part of the empire. Thus, they were commonly referred to as the "Generals of the Four Directions." Currently, Sollivan was in the territory protected by the Southern General, or rather, his uncle by division. Beneath the Four Great Generals were the Golden Commanders, eight of whom served under each general.
The Golden Commanders were divided into three types: Dukes of War, who were responsible for protecting highly important and strategic fortresses; Field Generals, specialists in direct warfare involving over twenty thousand soldiers; and finally, the Brigade Masters, also known as Tactical Officers, who organized brigades, distributed military weapons and essential resources, and provided advice and counsel to the Grand Marshal and other Golden Commanders.
Most importantly, the Tactical Officers worked directly under the imperial palace’s banner, monitoring the generals and commanders to prevent any rebellion or disregard for orders. Below them were several lower ranks, such as the Silver Commanders, who led ten thousand soldiers, the Cavalry Leaders, the Archery Masters, the Bombardment Experts, and the Centurions.
While Sollivan mocked inwardly, he felt something strange in his mind and immediately heard Darnell’s voice in his head, asking with clear confusion, "I want to know, how did you figure out my true identity when so many others failed?"
Sollivan stared at Darnell’s mouth and noticed his lips moving without making any sound, realizing, ’Voice transmission technique, this annoying bastard. Doesn’t he know it harms ordinary people’s minds if they’re exposed to it for too long?’
The voice transmission technique was a simple skill that any expert Arcane Master in the early Path Opening realm could use. In essence, it converted speech into Auraxis sound vibrations and transmitted them directly to the target’s head. However, since ordinary humans couldn’t withstand high Auraxis energy for long, they might experience dizziness, headaches, or even worse. But this didn’t apply to Sollivan, who had once been an Arcane Master. Still, he was annoyed.