Wizard Farming Guide

Chapter 41 Military Merit System

Stepping over Flynn's body, Rod came to the girl curled up on the ground.

The knife sliced ​​half of her face, and blood flowed down, trickling into her delicate collarbone.

The large patches of crimson stood out starkly against the snow-white skin.

A disinfectant made from high-grade lavender was poured onto a handkerchief, and Rod helped her up, gently wiping the wounds on her face.

It looks scary, but thankfully the wound isn't too deep.

As long as no infection or other problems occur during the subsequent scab formation process, it will at least not endanger life.

After disinfecting and stopping the bleeding, and treating the wound with bandages, Rod put one hand through the gap between Lucia's shoulder and arm, and supported her legs below the knees with the other hand, picking her up in a princess carry.

After leaving the restaurant, take her into the castle's bathroom and clean her blood-stained clothes.

Except for the wounds on her face, which should not get wet, after washing the rest of her body clean, I took her to my bedroom bed.

Throughout the entire process, Lucia lay listlessly in Rhodes' arms, letting him do as he pleased, as if she had become a real doll.

After helping the girl put on her pajamas and covering her with a blanket, Rod left the bedroom, shaking his head in dismay.

Mansaru clearly didn't care about his daughter, and Flynn's attitude towards her was even worse. The knife that was used to stab her will probably leave the girl with a lifelong trauma.

Out of respect for the Knight of Loren, Rhodes originally planned to keep her in the castle and take care of her as a little pet.

But now it seems that the pets have turned into dolls.

The maids inside the castle had already been dismissed, and only a few shield-wielding soldiers remained outside.

After Rhodes had them dispose of Flynn's body, he looked at the empty castle he had looted and had no interest in exploring it further, so he walked straight out the gate.

Holmes and Loren were waiting outside, chatting.

At the same time, he subtly observed the other person.

After all, they would be working together from now on, and as fellow elite knights, they would naturally pay close attention to each other's situation.

"What's the situation in the town?" As Rod walked along the streets of River Mouth, he looked at both sides of the road and asked Loren.

"As per your request, all town officials who had close ties with Mansaru and were involved in collusion with the barbarians have been executed."

Loren reported, "The residents here know that a new lord has arrived, a glorious Knight of the Round Table."

Rod looked up and gazed toward the center of town.

There were more than a dozen corpses hanging on the wooden frame there, including Mansaru.

As Flynn's body was also hoisted up, more and more residents gathered around.

They circled the wooden frame, staring at the corpses of the powerful figures who had once oppressed them.

Fear and panic were etched in their numb eyes. This was a characteristic of the era; while the brutal lords were hateful, the serfs, once freed from their lord's rule, could hardly survive on their own.

The serfs only gradually calmed down after hearing news of the new lord.

Looking again at the hanging corpses, a hint of vengeful pleasure appeared in his eyes, and he let out a low whimper.

Many serfs were discussing the scene of Rhodes killing Mansaru on horseback that day.

As serf soldiers conscripted for the war, they witnessed that shocking scene firsthand and spread his name.

The simplest and most direct way to announce the arrival of a new leader to the locals is to hang the lord who once oppressed them and his wicked servants on ropes.

Unlike the previous plan, now that he has become the lord of Hekou Town, there is no need to lure the residents to Pingdingshan anymore; he can put them to use directly.

Rhodes plans to divide the residents here into two groups.

Some migrated to Pingdingshan to make bricks and build walls, while others stayed to transform the town and build ranches and fish farms.

More importantly, it was about expanding the military.

"Currently, the army consists of only twelve cavalrymen, forty-six regular soldiers, and fifty militiamen. I plan to recruit two hundred men here to join the army and form a reserve force."

Rod said that the so-called reserve army was the serf army, which was one level lower than the militia.

Of the more than two thousand residents of Hekou Town, over 90% were serfs of the territory and had no personal freedom.

The local militia were just ordinary serfs, lacking training and completely incapable of fighting.

Rhodes simply disbanded and reorganized the troops, training them according to the standard army configuration of two hundred shield-spearmen and one hundred longbowmen.

"I'll arrange it immediately." Loren nodded, but then hesitated and said, "Sir, forming a reserve force of two hundred men isn't difficult, but training them to be effective will probably..."

The former army in Hekou Town is a ready example.

On the one hand, training soldiers requires a lot of food and gold coins.

On the other hand, these serfs who joined the army had no motivation to train.

If they can be lazy, they will never stand still; even whipping them from behind won't help.

Not only do they waste their time on ordinary days, but when they actually go to the battlefield, they can only cheer from the sidelines and act as the atmosphere-building group when they are winning.

Once faced with headwinds, they can crumble and flee in no time.

Rod also understood that the serfs of River Mouth Town were different from the militia he had recruited from Sword Ridge.

To improve the army's combat effectiveness, he had to motivate the serfs to train.

"After the reserve army was formed, the training intensity was divided into three standards. After completing the minimum training standard, the soldiers could receive a full loaf of bread every day."

"Upon completing the intermediate standard, you will receive bread and a share of broth for the entire family; the highest standard will also grant you additional copper coins."

Rhodes explained the training system to Loren.

In essence, the treatment of the Pingdingshan army was divided into three parts, with the higher the serfs' training completion rate, the more rewards they received.

"In addition, a reserve force competition is held every week, and the top ten will receive generous rewards based on their training results."

"It could be silver coins, sugar, or large chunks of beef or mutton; the specifics will be discussed later."

"Finally, tell all the reserve soldiers that killing a barbarian soldier during the war will earn you one merit point."

"Three merit points will promote them to the regular army, and their whole family will go from serfs to free citizens."

In addition to normal rewards and incentives, Rhodes plans to establish a merit-based promotion system within the military.

To maximize the military's war potential.

The kingdom's aristocratic system was built upon the serf system.

If measures were rashly implemented within the kingdom to free serfs from their status restrictions, it could easily break the rules and provoke collective rejection from the nobles.

However, the pioneer knights were an exception. Their military achievements in fighting against barbarians were politically correct, and no one dared to say anything about it.

In addition to the serf army, this merit-based military merit system also applies to the regular army.

In the future, this will become one of the criteria for Rhodes to prioritize soldiers when forming extraordinary units in conjunction with magic potions.

After listening to Rhodes's entire explanation, Loren tried to understand it in his mind.

Then his eyes shone with an amazing light.

As a descendant of pioneers and raised in a family of knights, Loren could clearly sense the terrifying power of this military merit system once it was established.

If it can be implemented effectively, war will no longer be just for the nobility.

Every soldier will fight for himself!

(End of this chapter)