Chapter 201.1

VOLUME 3: CHAPTER 200 – RETREATING BATTLE 2 (1/2)

The main armies of the Merchant Nation of Pena were the Blue Knights and the mercs that were considered a mixed army . They didn’t really acknowledge being called a mixed army, however, as the mercs were affiliated with various clans and were paid according to their achievements in battle .

What was most important here was the Blue Knights, which was employed by Pena as the regular army .

“…Knight-commander . This is the 15th group,” a knight said with a faint voice .

Allen sighed . “I”m not asking for the Swallows or something on that level, but couldn’t you at least find someone decent?”

“That’s…”

“Sorry . I didn’t mean to complain . Forget I said anything . ”

The problem at hand was the maintenance of order among the mixed army which was made up of various clans .

The Blue Knights were half destroyed in the last battle, so they needed to make up their missing numbers with the strength of the mixed army and with conscription . Unfortunately, that meant diluting the number of troops .

When the Blue Knights took back the territory usurped by the goblins, the Blue Knights were always at the front . And while they did manage to take all the territories back in the blink of an eye, unfortunately, Allen had no idea how to govern them .

The Blue Knights were both prideful and a standing army . As such, they did not engage in pillaging or needless violence . When such cases did arise, they were rare .

Unfortunately, with the dilution of the troops, more and more of such cases were appearing .

The clans of the mixed army ranged from populations of 100 to 1000, and it was the bad apples from those clans that were causing them much trouble .

Or at the very least, that’s how Allen saw it .

But the elder council had decided to employ the decent part of the different clans .

The clans along the level of the Swallow clan that Allen was talking about were hard to use in battle without direct command . Not only was each clan member expensive, they were also few in number . Unfortunately, number was needed when maintaining the public order in a territory .

As such, the kind of power that Allen wanted from clans was the sort that would cost so much money it would tilt an entire nation .

Clans such as the Leon Heart Clan and the Red King Clan have discipline ingrained into their very bones .

Clans like the Elks Clan share a familial bond among themselves .

Clans like the Swallow Clan have many elites among their ranks .

Unfortunately, those sort of elite clans weren’t the only ones around .

In fact, they were rare, and it was because of that rarity that they were highly valued .

“Valkyuria doesn’t seem like she has any plans of moving from the east,” Allen’s aide said with a troubled voice .

Allen sighed deeply . “No point in insisting on the impossible . ”

Allen no longer joked as much after becoming the knight-commander . He needed to become a suitable knight-commander, so he was always putting in the effort .

As such, the trust of the remaining members naturally gathered onto Allen, who has yet to abandon hope and continues to push forward yet .

But if one asked if that had any connection with the trust of the clan members, then the answer would be a resounding no .

The only thing the clans cared about was compensation and the assurance of survival .

Unfortunately, even though Allen was now the knight commander, the money was held by the elder council . Hence, there was nothing he could do in the face of such problems .

“Commander Allen!”

Suddenly, a messenger barged into the office, causing Allen to turn his sharp gaze toward him .

“Reporting!” Said the messenger . “The Kushain Believers and the Red King clashed at Cultidian . Germion Kingdom helped the Red King, and as a result, the Red King won!”

“…What happened to the Kushain Believers? Were they wiped out?” Allen asked .

“They are currently holding up in their castle!”