Firstborn: Return of the heir

“I will never grow tired of this sight.”

Standing on top of the wall, Saulus spoke to his closest subordinate, Rylas. From the moment he left the stage, while his officers rushed to rally the troops, he had his own fair share of tasks to fulfill. Saulus had claimed frequently that he would need some time to finish his affairs in Istoa. If he were to roam the camp with no point behind his actions, his story wouldn’t hold up much longer. That’s why this was the very first moment today that Saulus could use for his own leisure.

“Truly magnificent. It’s a pity most of the people only know the war from sights like this… If they were to see how it really looks once soldiers get down to business…”

“It’s not something that we can change. People don’t want to know about the reality of the war. It’s easier to believe it’s all about justice and truth, when in fact it’s nothing more than a glorified slaughterhouse.”

Rylas’ remark sparked no action from his superior. Gazing down at the orderly columns of the legionaries, Saulus rubbed the side of his arm. The old wound from one of the early battles of his career always acted up whenever anything involving the military was happening.

Shaking his head, Saulus got rid of the useless thoughts that plagued his mind. There was no point in wasting his break on morals like that. After a moment of hesitation, he finally replied to Rylas.

“Either way, I won’t impose on you any longer. The quartermasters should finish their packing before the second detachment passes the gates. Given how we are practically turning a standard legion into a super heavy one with all the auxiliary troops that I’m sending with you… ”

This was the primary source of the commotion within the camp behind the two men. Normally, a legion would be four thousand heads strong, with all the logistics, officers and scouting groups already included in its organizational scheme. To make this type of army more mobile, the entire legion was split into three detachments. Each of them had its own administrative unit tasked with everything that soldiers needed but were unwilling or incapable of dealing with themselves.

Yet, when Saulus was coming up with this reformed design for the army, he also included the option of increasing the strength of this main operational unit. By glueing additional detachments to the legion or specialized companies on the hierarchical level just below the detachment, a general could prepare his army for special occasions…

In reality, though, it all boiled down to the problem of managing the soldiers and properly commanding them. While officially the legion was the basic operating unit on a strategic scale, Saulus stealthily forced the detachment, numbering only slightly above thirteen hundred, to be the basic tactical unit on the battlefield.

On the scale of a country, this wasn’t a vast scheme, yet it allowed Saulus to be far more versatile with his units. After all, a single legion was all that the patriarch would ever allow him to command. That’s why instead of officially increasing his strength and creating another one, Saulus could indefinitely add more detachments to a single corpus.

Looking to the side, Saulus glanced at his old friend. With all the battles they went through together, he could tell that this young officer of his perfectly understood the meaning of this scheme.

After all, this was the one and only trick behind the magical way in which Saulus turned a group of just forty hundred veterans into an army of nearly ten thousand highly disciplined men!

Now that I think about the numbers… It’s a pity they can’t stay. Thinking to himself, Saulus threw the last glance at the orderly rows of legionaries marching out of the eastern gate of the city. With those men, even after the initial curbing of the unnecessarily loyal patriots, he could take the entire east lands of Retesia within a few weeks. With those veteran soldiers, no force of a subsidiary house in the country could challenge him.

Sadly, a combined force of the high nobles of the realm would gather for the war… It had to be held back, far away from the main theater of rebellion. With this threat to the uprising hanging in the south, Saulus had to pacify it.

Both the veteran first legion in its expanded form and the group of greenhorn recruits making up the second legion could start the fire of the rebellion. Sadly, only the veterans had any chance of handling the threat of the lords from the south. After all, given the patriarch’s policies, the invasion would see the rise of the greatest Retesian army ever to walk the ground!

“Sir, you don’t need to worry. I will keep them together before your arrival.”

Seeing through the complicated gaze of his general, Rylas kneeled on one leg while trying to reassure his superior. Even though he was slightly lower in the pecking order, this chief officer of the Retesian first legion often took on the burden of supporting his general. After all, it would be strange to expect someone as young as Saulus to manage entire armies and wars, with no effort at all.

“Thanks, it’s good to hear that at least one of us is confident in the current situation.”

Forcing himself to laugh a bit at his own joke in order to diffuse the tension, Saulus felt a sting in his soul. While this outstanding officer of his was doing his best to improve his mood, Saulus was about to hand him the letters containing the truth of their fake friendship of the past years!

“Either way, we need to wrap this up. I know you don’t like to be left behind by the front guards.”

Patting his old friend on the shoulder, Saulus reached under his upper robe, pulling a fat stack of papers held together by a thin, golden thread.

“The unsealed letters contain the general directions and advice for the march. The sealed papers contain the orders I told you about, while the double-sealed piece is to be read last, only if I fail to appear in time. It’s better to keep… those highly unpolitical but rational orders a secret from all the high nobles you might find at the border. Make sure not to make those letters public before the time is nigh.”

Reaching with his hand, Saulus passed the documents to his subordinate. When the weight of those papers left his hand, a strange burden vanished from his soul. It would be heartbreaking for Rylas to read the content of the letters given how truly patriotic he was. Thankfully, once the things were set in motion, Saulus could put everything he already did behind him. That’s why, as much as he hated himself for betraying his friend’s trust, the deed was already done.

“With this, I will take my leave.”

Nodding with gratitude at Saulus’s suggestion, Rylas quickly descended the stairs before grabbing the reins of his horse, jumping on the saddle and galloping towards the gate. By the time his loyal subordinate entered the gatehouse and disappeared from the general’s eyes, Saulus was already moving towards the outer area of the camp.

Thanks to leaving his coat back at his temporary tent and wearing a simple uniform, by pulling a hoodie on his head Saulus became practically invisible in the crowd of people rushing about in the camp. After just a few more minutes, a small building appeared before the general’s eyes, showing the crucial point of his interest appearing within his reach.

Pushing the doors of the building open, Saulus was about to enter when a glint reflecting off a blade warned him about incoming danger.

Dodge.

Even though fighting was not actually something he liked doing, years of service as a soldier taught Saulus how to keep himself alive in a battle.

Instead of jumping back, away from the confines of the door, the general leaned to the side. The blade just missed scraping his cheek before lodging itself into the thick, wooden frame of the doors.

“Stop it at once.”

Not even bothering to change the tone of his voice, Saulus quickly regained his normal stance. Pushing away with his hand at the shadows, the general shoved the assailant, forcing him to step into the illuminated part of the room.

“Oh… I’m… Standing for orders, sir!”

Taking a moment to reconcile his thoughts once the man realized who he dared to attack a moment ago, ultimately the failed assailant simply straightened his posture and reported to the general.

“The time has come. Rally the second legion. In two, three day’s time, we will set the torch to this oil keg that the eastern provinces are.”