Chapter 517 - Seed of Sunlight (2/2)

Despite his age, he was a veteran already. When he was 16, the king of Delonga had gone crazy. He’d been separated from his family during the chaos and fled all the way from the South. He didn’t have anything other than his life when he arrived at Ferde. Coincidentally, Ferde had been recruiting soldiers. He’d been a bag of bones at the time but had a large frame, so he’d been recruited. Almost two years had passed.

He’d fought in the border war last year and killed more than 20 Undead Warriors. Now, he was a captain in charge of more than 50 soldiers. His strength had reached Level-4 too. He didn’t have to care about food or necessities in the army; he could even receive two gold coins for his monthly salary.

To him, Ferde was now his homeland, and the army was his family.

This place contained his brothers, comrades, and the glory he yearned for. Even if his family were alive and wanted him to go back to the South, he would refuse. The South was too messy compared to Ferde.

Today, he returned from the training field and was wiping his sweat in his own room when the door suddenly opened. A middle-aged man stood in the doorway. He had a gold star pinned on his chest—he was an associate general. Allen knew this man. It was General Rotokan, commander of his corps. He was a Level-6 Warrior.

“General!” Allen immediately straightened and saluted.

General Rotokan nodded. He studied this spirited youth, appreciation flashing past his eyes. “Allen, there is a mission,” he said. “It’s very dangerous, but if you succeed, you’ll become a major and have authority over 500 soldiers.”

As soon as he finished, Allen replied without hesitation, “General, I’ll definitely complete the mission!”

“Very good. Remember, this is a mission announced personally by the lord. Don’t disappoint me,” Rotokan reminded.

Allen’s heart started pounding; his body was even trembling. This was the lord’s mission. Did this mean that he would have the chance to see the lord in person?

He was so excited. To the soldiers, even though Marshal Jacker was just a human, he was extremely powerful and had a high status. One would feel honored to meet him. The lord of Ferde, though, was from legends. He was an undefeatable war god—able to do anything, was impossibly wise, and extremely brilliant.

Practically every soldier’s dream was to be appreciated by the lord. They would feel unparalleled honor even if they could only exchange a phrase. Now, he received the lord’s mission! What did he do to deserve this?

“General, I know!” Allen almost yelled.

“Good. Come with me but keep low. This is a secret mission.”

Hearing this, Allen forced down his excitement. He put on his armor and tried to act normal.

He followed the general outside the training grounds and climbed onto a black carriage. There were three other soldiers there.

The four stared at each other. They wanted to speak but remembering that this was a secret mission, they kept silent.

After a while, the carriage rode out of the camp and all the way to a big house in the inner city of Scorched Ridge. After getting out of the carriage, Allen saw that there were almost 100 other youths like him. They all had repressed excitement on their faces. He knew many of them too—they were all elites of the army.

Seems that many people are here for the secret mission. I have to work hard! Allen thought.

The other youths had similar thoughts. They looked at each other, feeling slightly competitive.

More carriages arrived after that. When there were close to 100 people, the carriages stopped coming. After a while, Marshal Jacker actually came.

He announced some rules. Basically, they would rest at this house tonight and head to the Mage Tower tomorrow morning.

Since the marshal was announcing this personally and they’d go to the lord’s Mage Tower, the youths went “crazy.” Thankfully, they were soldiers. Ferde’s military discipline was very strict. Even though they were totally excited now, they didn’t dare make a sound with the marshal present.

When Jacker finally left, they immediately started discussing amongst themselves.

“What kind of secret mission is this? We’re even going to the Mage Tower.”

“Is it to use a portal? The type of magic that sends you hundreds of miles instantly?”

“It’s time to accomplish something!”

“We might see the lord tomorrow. What if I can’t fall asleep tonight?”

All sorts of voices sounded in a cacophony. Allen listened quietly without speaking. He clenched his fists and thought, No matter what, I must accomplish this mission perfectly!