Second Life as a Soldier

The next morning, while the forest was still mist-covered and filled with the sounds of distant beasts and birds, I sat on the ground staring at Varric carving out the mammoth’s femur, making grooves on the back end of it and turning it into a proper handle. When I read that he knew how to make crude weapons out of beast parts, I did not know they would be this good. They did not look crude at all.

And I was not the only one focused on Varric’s work. Rokan and Daren were even more invested, practically glued to him. They hovered so close that Varric had to threaten to smash their heads before they finally gave him some space.

I could not blame the brothers either. Even I was curious about how these weapons would turn out.

But the reason for my focus on Varric’s work was not just curiosity but also fear, because Varric was using my rune-carving tool to carve the bones. I was not fully confident that Varric would treat my tool properly, and if not for the urgent need for these weapons, I would have never allowed him to use my rune-carving tool.

“Sergeant, once again, thank you for giving us these weapons,” Rokan said, his face lit up with a wide smile.

Standing behind him, his brother nodded with almost the exact same expression. For some reason, the two of them reminded me of kids who had just been given sweets. It almost made me chuckle, but I held it back. I could not afford to appear too friendly all the time.

While I do not mind people asking questions or even sometimes questioning me, I believe some distance is required when you are leading a squad, especially when dealing with new members who are not familiar with your working style and could breach boundaries, leading you to punish them. So to avoid all these unnecessary steps, it was better to be more rigid with boundaries.

So I kept a serious face and simply nodded.

Then suddenly an idea came to mind, something I had read, something the lieutenant had once said was the most important duty of a sergeant: to keep your squad motivated and earn their loyalty as their leader. I would not get a better opportunity than this to motivate the brothers and strengthen their loyalty, both to the squad and to me.

“These weapons are not gifts. These are responsibilities I am passing to you,” I said, looking into their eyes.

“No doubt you both have earned these weapons after your performance, but so has everyone else in the squad. Do not forget the only reason it is just you three getting these weapons is because I feel our squad is lagging in attacking power. And my hope is that the two of you, with your new weapons, will increase the attacking capacity of our squad, allowing us to deal with more powerful beasts than that mammoth in the future. Can you guys do that? Can you face beasts more powerful than that mammoth without flinching?” I asked.

“Yes, sir! We will do it! No matter what beast comes, we will be the first to strike it with our full might!” both brothers replied without a second thought, their voices filled with enthusiasm.

I nodded and finally smiled at their enthusiasm. If the hammers helped them and increased their speed of level gain, these two brothers could become strong pillars for the squad once they reached Tier-2. Given their nature, I felt like they could be turned into true soldiers of the Royal Army.

“Great! I have high hopes for you both,” I said.

“Now, can you two go ask everyone to assemble? I will do the morning briefing,” I ordered.

While the brothers went to call everyone, I took this opportunity to check my status.

Name: Edward

Class: Battlefield Coordinator

Rank: Initiate (T2)

Level: 24 / 50

EXP: 4000 / 7200

Elemental Affinity: 0.1% Wind

Mana Cultivation: Tier 2 (7/100)

Mana Nodes: 0 / 7

Physical Attributes

Constitution: 49.3 → 50.8

Strength: 39.7 → 39.9

Agility: 32.7 → 33.5

Spiritual Attributes

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Intelligence: 52.4 → 56.9

Wisdom: 41.8 → 45.7

Willpower: 43.6 → 48.2

HP:490 / 508 (+15)

HP Regen: 121.7 (+2.5) per day

MP: 1600/1951(+104)

MP Regen: 201.3 (+13) per hour

Class Skills

[Operational Cognition (A)] – Level 6 → 12

[Unbroken Stride (UC)] – Level 22 → 27

[Flowing Spear Style (UC)] – Level 38 → 41

[Perceptive Instinct (UC)] – Level 32 → 37

[Vital Restoration (UC)] – Level 28 → 33

General Skills

[Battlefield Command (UC)] – Level 4 → 9

[Triage Ward (UC)] – Level 12 → 15

[Rune Analysis (UC)] – Level 20

[Fortification Planner (UC)] – Level 3

[Logistics Routecraft (UC)] – Level 6 → 12

[Mana Manipulation (UC)] – Level 27 → 35

[Mana Reinforcement (UC)] – Level 43 → 45

I had not gained any levels, which was not surprising, but killing a Tier-3 beast did give me 3,400 XP. With my new class and my duties now aligned, I started seeing a significant influx of XP. Since leaving the fort, I had gained more than 10,000 XP. However, with the increased XP requirement for leveling up, my level gains had been limited.

The lieutenant’s shield proved to be an excellent tool for training my [Mana Manipulation (UC)] skill. I gained eight additional levels in that skill, more than in any other, even though it had minimal direct use in combat. My class skills were also progressing steadily, and [Operational Cognition (A)] had become an invaluable asset during battles. At the same time, [Flowing Spear Style (UC)] was nearing its limit and was close to advancing.

But I was not in a hurry to advance it. This was my only true offensive skill, and I wanted to choose its future path carefully. For that, I would seek the lieutenant’s opinion. He was a treasure trove of knowledge, and I never hesitated to ask him questions, no matter how many times he grew irritated or lectured me about being more discreet, even with him. It felt to me that hiding things from him would only hurt me in the long run, and one day I might regret not seeking his advice when I had the chance.

And I was almost certain the lieutenant had my best interests in mind because even after all his grumbling, he always helped. His methods and instructions were far more effective than what I read in books or received from instructors during training.

By the time I finished reviewing my status, the entire squad had assembled.

Looking at everyone, I started addressing them.

“As I have said before, I could not be happier with our performance so far. Each and every one of you has performed far better than I expected, and I want you all to take pride in that. When I was given this mission, the lieutenant told me to expect a high death rate by the halfway point.”

“And here we stand with only one loss, and honestly, I do not even count that as a loss.” I paused, letting my words sink in as I saw a few smiles forming when I dismissed Corvin’s death. But there was also a small hint of pride mixed in, especially in the Tier-1 expressions.

Then I continued.

“But we also need to remember this was only half of our first mission. We still have to complete it. A lot of uncertainties lie ahead. We have to hold this location, and I am not even sure what kind of hurdles we will encounter during this one-month wait. The road to Fort Dunvale will not be easy either.”

”This is just our first mission. There will be more like this in the future, each one harder than the last, each especially designed to kill us. So we do not have time to waste.”

“I want us to use this waiting time as an opportunity. We will not rest. We will not waste our time sitting idle. From today onward, other than sparring like we did yesterday, we will also once again begin formation drills.”

“But most importantly, we will begin hunting,” I said, once again taking a small pause.

“Our squad has a cook now, and I am in no mood to waste his presence,” I said jokingly, directing my comment at Silas, who wore a small tight smile on his face.

“The hunt is not just to satisfy my appetite. It is also to train ourselves,” I said, switching back to a serious tone.

“We are surrounded by targets to practice the things we learn in drills, and I am not going to waste that.”

“Today, Peter, Kael, Barry, Garran, and Varric will remain at the camp,” I said, pointing at my Tier-2 members.

“Varric, you will continue working on the Warhammers. Garran and Kael will keep watch on the ground, while Barry will take position in the tower. Peter, you will coordinate in my absence,” I continued, assigning their duties.

“The rest of us will go on the hunt,” I finished with a smile.

The reason I started with the Tier-1s was not just their lack of combat experience, but also their limited survival skills. They had not gone through the kind of wilderness training I had received. That was not the case with the Tier-2 members of my squad. Kael and Varric were, in some aspects, even better than me when it came to surviving in the wild. Garran and Barry were not experts, but they had learned a great deal from their time in the army.

My aim was to train the newer members of the squad in survival skills, just as I had been trained at Stonegate.