Lord of Rot

Leech said casually, ”Little Bill has become the new lord of the Monkey Territory, and they’re preparing to take their revenge on me.”

Lacy, however, wasn’t smiling like Leech. His expression was grim. ”To die on the battlefield is an honor for every Knight and every noble. How can they seek revenge for that? It’s a desecration of the Four Gods! A stain on honor!”

Dying on the battlefield was an honor, and it was not to be avenged. This was an unspoken agreement among the nobility.

Leech said, ”It’s probably because I invaded Shanzhang Castle and slaughtered Bill’s entire family.”

”...” Lacy fell silent.

’When it comes to being ruthless, my Lord is in a class of his own.’

’You could call him devious, but he still dared to charge into the enemy’s castle all by himself and even ended up tearing half of it down.’

The two of them didn’t dwell on the topic, as neither took Little Bill seriously.

Lacy then remembered why he had come to see Leech and handed him a few sheets of paper.

”My Lord, this is Luca’s file.”

”Luca, age 16.”

Leech quickly scanned the file on Luca. He was very curious about where this boy came from and how he had managed to become a Transcendent.

Among the people he knew, Stacy and Bode had become Transcendents because they possessed the bloodlines of ancient noble families.

Chuina had become one because her mother was a silver-haired Hunter.

Suddenly, Leech’s gaze froze on a particular line.

”Descendant of the Red Dragon Furnace?!”

...

Having successfully passed the selection, Luca became a new recruit and moved from the slave quarters to the recruit barracks.

As new recruits, they received no pay, but their food and lodging were provided during training.

None of the new recruits complained.

For them, simply escaping slavery was the greatest gift of all, to say nothing of the soldier’s pay they would receive after becoming official. It was more than they could have earned in a lifetime of slavery.

Early in the morning, the sound of a whistle from outside startled Luca awake, and he instinctively sat up in bed.

After getting dressed, they all assembled outside.

Running drills, then breakfast.

They were sorted into groups and squads.

They were kept busy until noon. Ravenous, Luca was relieved when it was finally time to eat.

His stomach was already GROWLING loudly.

”We can eat our fill?” Luca asked in disbelief, staring at the platters of fish, pork, and crab before him.

The other young recruits reacted similarly.

Just yesterday, they had been eating potatoes and black bread. Today, they could suddenly feast on meat. The change was so drastic it felt unreal.

’No wonder everyone is so desperate to become a soldier.’

’The benefits are incredible!’

The veteran serving the food said, ”You think you get this every day? This is a special reward from the Lord for all you new recruits.”

One of the boys crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and tilted his head back. ”I thank the War God for this gift!”

SMACK! A boy next to him slapped him on the back of the head.

The boy who’d been hit opened his eyes and glared angrily at the other. ”What was that for?!”

Yesterday’s selection may not have made these former slaves the most capable fighters, but it had certainly stirred their fighting spirit.

The boy who’d hit him said, ”This meat is a gift from our Lord. You should be thanking the Lord, not some god who didn’t lift a finger to help when you were a slave.”

The boy who’d been hit looked furious, but he couldn’t find the words to argue back.

After a long pause, he finally said, ”Then it must be the War God rewarding me through the hands of the Lord!”

”Our Lord believes in the Four Gods, not the War God!” a nearby boy who worshipped the Four Gods stood up to argue.

”Get in line for food!” With a booming shout, all the boys got in line to eat.

Any argument seemed insignificant in the face of a full stomach.