The more Zaos and the others approached, the more they understood the might of those mountains around the Northern base. Not only were they covered in snow, but it was also possible to see several parts covered in a thick layer of ice. It wasn't normal ice since the temperature wasn't that low…

                  Everyone thought they would have to climb the ice mountains as a final test, but much to their surprise, Elius guided them through a well-hidden cave. It was obvious that it had been man-made since the place was strangely illuminated, and the cave was actually a tunnel that crossed a five kilometers long mountain.

"Sir, is it wise to cross this path with so many people at the same time?" Zaos asked. "I imagine this place was built to prevent enemies from invading, but by letting so many people use this path, I believe we will leave many traces behind and even be seen from quite a distance."

"Those who built this place are aware of that, genius," Elius said. "This is one of many other secret entrances. Even if we try to keep hidden all the entrances, that is impossible. We have to receive materials and food from several nearby cities, you fool."

              Zaos made a mental note to ask questions to another person once he reaches the base. It was annoying to hear an insult at the end of every single sentence. Still, Zaos realized that made sense. It was impossible to hide all the movements of people coming and leaving the northern base.

              After a few minutes, Zaos and the others finally crossed the mountain and arrived at a field covered in snow. It was a pretty large place considering that the fortress took most of the open field between the mountains. While Zaos didn't see a single person around the fortress, he could sense some eyes in the dark windows. While the floors were bigger than usual, the whole building still had five floors. Probably a few dozen thousand soldiers could use the base to sleep and other activities every day.

"Assume position, and organize yourselves in several lines," Elius said. "The commander will personally greet all of you."

"How exactly should we organize ourselves, sir?"

"Hell, if I know!" Elius shouted. "Do it quickly, otherwise I will make each one of you fail!"

              The fear made the boys divide themselves into thirty lines and then organized themselves pretty quickly. If a stranger didn't know any better, they would have thought that the kids trained hard to organize themselves so quickly.

              After a while, the main gate of the fortress opened, and a tall, gray-haired man that was carrying a massive sword on his back showed up. Several armored individuals followed him from behind. Although the old man seemed to be in his sixties, he still could walk wearing full plate armor and that massive sword with ease. Zaos couldn't help but stare at that sword in amazement. It was the exact type of weapon he imagined himself using while he trained.

"Good morning, commander Ruvyn," Elius said after fixing his stance when the commander approached.

"You are early, Elius," Ruvyn said. "Two days earlier, to be precise, you brought less kids than usual as well."

"Only the weaklings failed, commander," Elius said. "The weather was good and the nights were warm enough, so I decided to pick up the pace."

              Zaos rolled his eyes since that was obviously a lie. He sped up because he wanted to make a lot of kids fail. At some point, he noticed that Zaos was gathering herbs, so he tried several times to increase the pace in order to make the second group reach Zaos. Still, he already knew how he would have his revenge. Whenever Zaos sees Elius leaving the fortress, he will throw a snowball on his back.

"… Congratulations on reaching this place, gentlemen," Ruvyn said. "Only those who truly want to serve the kingdom manage to succeed and I am sure that all of you will succeed in polishing your bodies and spirits over these three years. My name is Ruvyn Ianceran, the only commander of the Northern Military base of the Sairus Kingdom and from today onward, you are my soldiers. I am sure you are tired of this journey and want to rest on a bed after eating a warm meal, so follow me. I will show you a small part of your new home."

                Commander Ruvyn seemed like a good man, so many of the kids couldn't help but feel excited. They had all the reasons to be, after all. When Zaos looked to the side, he also saw Drannor grinning from ear to ear. 

              As soon as they entered the fortress, the air around them changed. The walls were sturdy, but they also could maintain the temperature inside at a decent level. The corridors were massive as if they had been built with the idea in mind that dozens of soldiers would cross them all at the same time. Still, while things inside were quite big, it was also crude… an environment truly created by soldiers to soldiers.

"As you already have seen, we have five floors in this building," Commander Ruvyn said. "The first floor is used for meetings, meals and to organize ourselves since we do many things here. From scouting and guarding our borders to patrol work on the nearest cities and towns. While each one of you are just recruits, you will also participate in all aspects of the activities that we are responsible for."

              That was unexpected, but it made sense since Zaos recalled that some recruits might die while they are trying to graduate from the army. In any case, things around there were made in order to make the recruits experience several types of tasks and then maybe one day give them the chance to choose a path to follow. That didn't seem like a good idea though, after all, most kids would want to work as guards near their homes…