Chapter 1345: Chapter 1345

"Telascallans? Eating our tortillas?!"

The sun was high, blazing brightly. There was no winter on the Mexica Plateau, and the deep autumn sun could still make one sweat. The colony leader, Taishan, with beads of sweat on his forehead, stared intently at the station master, Luo One-arm, and shouted fiercely.

"Old Luo! This is our village’s food! Our village’s tortillas! What gives the Telascallans the right to eat them?!"

"Taishan...it’s in times of war! Kuluka, the Marshal, represents His Majesty and issued the royal decree for the westward expedition! Full mobilization, attacking the Chapala Lake Region in the northwest... this campaign is going to be a big one!"

The station master, Luo One-arm, stretched out his only hand and gestured a "big". His expression was very serious, and his tone was also very firm, allowing no compromise.

"You know this! In our kingdom, war is of utmost importance! During wartime, the warriors are the most important! The Marshal’s scouts ordered the logistics and supply, and I must fulfill it!!"

Hearing the station master’s resolute words, Taishan, the leader of the colonies, opened his mouth but was momentarily speechless. The Kingdom of the Lake was based on farming and warfare, waging wars every year without fail. And as a retired third-level warrior, he clearly understood the military’s requirements during wartime.

The kingdom’s military machine operated entirely for war! Without war, there would be no agricultural slaves, no feudal land grants, and no upward path for commoners and tribal warriors!

And without war, the tens of thousands of recently subdued tribes would become internal instability factors in the kingdom. Those warlike warriors from various tribes, if unable to rise, without military merits for titles, and a chance to join the ruling class, might very well become local bandits and rebels... Therefore, for the Kingdom of the Lake, stopping war was not an option.

Although Taishan, the colony leader, did not understand these grand principles, he was well aware of the kingdom’s emphasis on war. Once war began, villages everywhere had to serve the kingdom’s army, making it their primary task to meet the army’s needs. Regardless of whether these troops were local legions, hometown militias, or even foreign troops, or whatever kind of messed-up Telascallans.

"Damn it! Those damned Telascallans... weren’t they captured and turned into agricultural slaves? How do such tribes have legions?..."

Taishan’s voice grew softer, but the anger on his face did not dissipate.

"Witness of the Chief Divine! Since I lead the team, my word is my bond! I’ve already promised to reward the hardest-working, best-performing groups with those tortillas! If I break my promise, how will I manage this flock of dumb turkeys in the future!... Old Luo, no matter what, you have to save a bit of those tortillas for me!..."

"Ha! Taishan, of course the Telascallans have legions. Their warriors are formidable! During our eastward expedition, we captured mountains full of Telascalan tribes...many warriors among them were very skilled!... When I was charging the city walls with the Divine Power Globes, the enemy’s arrows came down like rain in the rainy season!..."

As an old veteran of the Imperial Guards who participated in eastward expeditions, Luo One-arm waved his hand vigorously, spewing saliva while talking about the eastern battlefield over a thousand miles away, describing the Telascalan’s outstanding archery skills, and recounting his own glorious experiences of injury. Although uneducated, he understood a simple truth: The one who catches a rabbit might be a cat, or it might be a jaguar. And to catch a wolf, it could only be a jaguar... Only when the enemy is stronger is there glory in defeating them!

"His Majesty issued an edict last year, forming an entire 8,000-man brigade from tens of thousands of Telascallan tribes captured, stationed right in the two southern counties!... And today, a whole thousand-man camp of Telascalans will come! I must feed them first, and the tortillas definitely won’t be enough!..."

At this point, the station master Luo One-arm paused. Looking at the dissatisfaction on Taishan’s face, he thought for a moment and suddenly came up with an idea.

"Witness of the Chief Divine! Taishan, you just said, it’s not about filling their stomachs but rewarding those who performed well?"

"Yes! I patted my chest and promised them! Good performance gets rewarded..."

"Hmm... since it’s a reward, how about replacing it with meat? No need for much, just a couple of bites per person! I suppose the able-bodied men in the village barely eat meat all year round..."

The station master Luo One-arm blinked, looking at his clan brother.

"Luo Cang, take out the twenty or thirty pounds of cured meat you got from hunting, and roast it... oh no, make a big pot of meat stew!... Don’t rush, don’t do it now! Wait until the Telascalan camp moves past, to avoid causing any unnecessary trouble with the warriors..." ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by novel[f]ire.net

After instructing his clan brother, the station master Luo One-arm turned again to Taishan, grinning with a "ferocious" smile.

"Taishan, how is it? Two pieces of meat per person, and a few mouthfuls of meat soup, surely that can fulfill the promise of reward, right?"

"Ah, eh!... Praise the Chief Divine! If there’s meat soup, then that’s definitely enough! These foolish turkeys haven’t tasted any meat all year, they would be delighted..."

Upon hearing Luo One-arm’s arrangement, Taishishan, the leader of the garrison, was momentarily stunned, and the anger on his face instantly disappeared, becoming somewhat embarrassed.

"But, eh... Old Luo, this meat is from your own... I brought them to eat... uh... money..."

"Haha! Praise the Chief Divine! It’s nothing! Just consider it my treat to you!..."

Luo One-arm, the stationmaster, grinned, and the scars on his face "amicably" twitched.

"Since I’m stationed here, next to your village, there will be more opportunities to interact in the future! When my clan’s younger generation comes over, if they join the military, they’ll be in the same group as the warriors from your village, considered as fellow villagers..."

"Indeed! Since you are stationed here, anything you need from the village in the future is just a matter of a word!"

Two retired warriors from the kingdom, one blind and one one-armed, laughed and chatted about their past battles, feeling a deep connection, even referring to each other as brothers.

The sun gradually tilted west, and the large pot of food was ready. On the recently constructed county road of the South, a faint dust began to rise. A team of running scouts first arrived, shouting a few phrases in the eastern accented Navajo. Following them, a large group of Tlaxcalan warriors appeared before everyone, carrying long bamboo bows, hefting spears as tall as a person, wearing brand new paper armor.

This Telask warrior camp does not belong to the newly formed Long Snake Legion but is an additionally summoned archer camp, as a long-range supplement to the First Spear Legion of Rivermouth County. Before they were summoned, they were still busy in the newly cultivated farm fields of the South. When the conscription order reached various flag teams, almost all able-bodied Tlaxcalans who could shoot participated in the selection.

"The days of pioneering and farming in the South are really tough! During busy farming times, we rush in the fields, during idle times, we cut trees and build canals. We’re exhausted like bees all day, can’t straighten our backs, and there’s no prospect... It’s better to come out, fight for the Divine Descendant King inheriting the Grim Reaper’s Skull, establish merits, and receive titles and land!..."

Faced with the enthusiastic conscription of the able-bodied Tlaxcalans, the kingdom’s recruiting officer had to temporarily raise the standards: fifty feet distance, aiming at military leather helmets with the Tlaxcalan Bow, hitting seven out of ten shots with bone arrows not dropping, to join the legion. Even with such stringent standards, a thousand archers were selected. Apparently, even after multiple selections, there were still quite a few Tlaxcalan warriors hidden among the Colony Tribes.

In mid-October, a thousand Tlaxcalan archers were recruited from various Colony flag teams, and without pause they were led to the Capital City Qin Congcan. In the large camp outside the Capital City, they changed into new paper armor, bamboo longbows, and close combat spears.

Then, a batch of Mexica and Prepetcha officers were drawn from the Jingji Legion, officially organizing these thousand tribal archers into a Thousand-man Archery Camp. The camp commander of the Thousand-man Camp was Aitz under the command of Olosh, a Warrior Captain from the Holy City, and also a family warrior of the Royal Family of the Holy City.

"Phew! Chief Divine bless! After rushing for half a day, finally, we can rest!"

Among the large group of Tlaxcalans carrying bamboo bows and wearing paper armor, a young leader wearing an Eagle Feather Crown, carrying a long spruce bow, and holding the camp’s battle flag was particularly noticeable. He was the camp commander of the Thousand-man Camp, "Woodpecker" Aitz.

In the Mexica Alliance, being named after the Woodpecker is not a mockery. On the contrary, "Woodpecker" has excellent vision, and its beak like a sharp arrowhead is an honorary title for archers with outstanding skills, roughly equivalent to "Divine Shooter". Among the Mexica warriors who value close combat and don’t focus on archery, there are actually very few shooters with such a title.

"Quick! Tell the stationmaster to bring up the prepared food!... Quick! Everyone, hurry up! Within an hour, eat entirely and get ready, continue heading north!"

Woodpecker Aitz waved the battle flag in his hand, pointing here and there with agile and swift movements. His voice was very loud, his tone was short and powerful, like the "knocking" sound of a woodpecker.

"Chief Divine witnesses! Quick, everyone hurry up! The day after tomorrow, the day after tomorrow is the Grand Festival of departure!"

"This time, for the Grand Festival, the Alliance’s High Priesthood even sent a Fifth Level Elder Priest! And the Kingdom Priesthood’s Fourth Level Chief Priest will also attend in person! Both the Alliance and Kingdom’s Supreme Priests are present, I must arrive on time! No one is allowed to embarrass me! Quick!..."