Chapter 330: Militia Yingdi - Wooden Map and the Old Scribe

The militiamen, who had been waiting for a long time, were all astonished to see Jier return carrying the heads and weapons of three bandits. The squad leader of this militia unit was just about to come over to say something when Knight Kela waved his hand, directly instructing everyone to continue with the day's mission: "It's just a minor nuisance, no need to worry."

Jier found a tree branch to tie the heads onto; the bandits all had very long hair, so it was convenient to tie their disheveled heads to the branch by their hair for transport.

It wasn't that Jier wouldn't tie the bandit heads to his belt, but mainly because the smell of blood was unpleasant, and the bandits rarely bathed, so their heads had a very thick, sour, and foul odor in addition to the smell of blood.

Although Jier himself didn't smell very good either, he couldn't smell his own scent.

By the afternoon, Knight Kela and his party had finally circled the mountain ridge where the bandits' lair was hidden. On the map, Knight Kela drew four patrol areas for the outposts in addition to the front of the Militia Yingdi, and the Knight intended to arrange a group of Melee Militia for each outpost to be responsible for the encirclement of the other areas of the bandit lair.

This was an arrangement that would only be made if the number of militia was very abundant; if the number of militia were not so large, Knight Kela would likely have completely abandoned the patrols at the back of the bandit lair, intentionally letting the bandits who lacked the will to fight flee westward to reduce the number of usable bandits at the front.

Of course, the number of militia was very high every year now, so he had enough teams on hand to completely surround the bandit lair, ensuring that not a single bandit would be let go in the subsequent battle.

Still in the afternoon, Jier and the others returned to the Militia Yingdi.

During the day while Knight Kela was away, the militiamen had just been honestly conducting simple training, and the militia units that had pushed forward also returned one after another around this time.

As soon as they returned to the Yingdi, Knight Kela had the various militia squad leaders come to the entrance of his tent to await orders. Then, Knight Kela took out the parchment he had used during the day and asked Jier to find a wooden board to simply draw the contents of the parchment onto it using charcoal.

Upon receiving the task, Jier immediately put the confiscated weapons back into his tent, then carried the branch with the three bandit heads to the camp Craftsman, threw the heads he had mentioned earlier onto the Craftsman's table, and then hurriedly asked a scribe for the wooden board Knight Kela needed.

Wooden boards were easy to find; among the logistical supplies, one only needed to take off the bottom board of an empty cargo wagon. As for charcoal, one could find this byproduct of improperly burned firewood beside any campfire.

Jier hugged the wide wooden board, ignoring the Craftsman calling him, saying only that he would come back during dinner, and carried the item to the entrance of Knight Kela's tent.

Knight Kela had gone to inspect the Militia Yingdi, and only the guard who shared the same tent was keeping watch at the entrance. Jier placed the wooden board on the ground, first using his Dagger to scrape off some footprints and stains, simply cleaning the entire wide board to make it easier for him to draw the upcoming content.

Spreading out the parchment the Knight had given him, Jier first determined the north-south direction. When the Knight drew it, he had used the Militia Yingdi as the main area at the bottom of the map.

Then, the bandit lair, acting as the enemy, was drawn in the center of the parchment map. Surrounding it was a circle of the routes they had traveled during the day; the Knight had drawn simple icons for some places that could be directly observed in the areas where the routes passed and along the way.

At the same time, the places and routes where they had previously climbed the bandit mountain ridge were also firmly remembered by the Knight and represented by a wavy line.

Jier observed the contents of the parchment for a while, and the guard watching from the side also curiously came over to see how Jier would do it.

Unlike Knight Kela, Jier first confirmed the north-south orientation according to his own habits.

He was not entirely unfamiliar with the surrounding terrain; he had kept the orientation of the surrounding mountains in his mind, and he knew in his heart where the south was and where the north was.

He first drew the mountains near the battlefield, drawing them on the edges of the wooden board. The center naturally contained the mountain ridge where the bandit lair was located, the surrounding mountains, and the Militia Yingdi.

Jier drew the exact location of the Militia Yingdi in the bottom right corner of the map, accurately drawing the camp gate and the several sections with different functions.

Immediately after, Jier began to mark the many outposts that Knight Kela had determined during the day needed to be garrisoned for short-term reconnaissance on the outer circle of the middle of the map.

The appearance of the outposts was different from the Knight's simple black dots; because the wooden board was large enough, Jier carefully drew the simple reconnaissance watchtowers that Knight Kela had mentioned on the road.

This watchtower combined what Knight Kela had said and also incorporated the appearance of the kind of warning watchtower in Doraerlin Cunzi that Jier had seen.

Afterward, Jier used local script to label which militia unit was responsible for which watchtower. There were ten watchtowers in total, responsible to four units; some had more, and although some had fewer, the area they needed to cover was large, mainly because there wasn't much flat terrain there to arrange for the construction of watchtowers, so it could only be done this way.

Most importantly, Jier marked the mountain ridge where the bandit lair was located, the entrance, and the simple roads leading out.

The main road for the bandits to go out was blocked by the Militia Yingdi, so unless the bandits were willing to abandon all the supplies stored in their lair, it was impossible for them to transport so many things out of the mountain ridge.

Looking at it this way, Jier discovered that the situation for these bandits was truly dire, and he was quite happy about this point.

The more dire the bandits' situation, the harder it would be for the bandits, who were bound together by simple interests, to unite against the militia, and perhaps their own battles would be easier.

One after another, the militia squad leaders summoned by Knight Kela gathered, and some idle scribes also came over to see how Knight Kela intended to attack this bandit lair that they considered a tough nut to crack.

Everyone gathered around Jier, pointing at the situation map of the surrounding terrain that Jier was about to finish drawing.

Some militiamen from farms or remote villages had never seen a map and asked the people around them in astonishment what the thing was. The principle of a map was easy to understand, so they quickly accepted this good thing they had never seen before.

They pointed and gestured, looking for where they were currently on the map.

Some guessed what all the marked locations around were for.

Others said they wanted to invite Jier to their villages to make a map of their villages as well, so that in the future, each family could confirm the location of their land according to the map. Whose fields were good, and whose fields were far from water sources, could be seen clearly.

The scribes praised Jier, a guy who made a living by killing Monster, for actually having such a skill. Someone said they wanted to recommend Jier to the high-ranking government official in their Government Office, hoping to make an accurate large map of Kendall City, so that in the future, whoever was responsible for tax collection in which area, or whoever was responsible for public security in which area, would not be so troublesome. Work would not be shirked, and it would be much easier to do.

But others said that Jier's skill was actually average, and that among the Craftsman of Kendall, the most technically outstanding Stonemason actually possessed this very impressive technique.

That scribe was not young, but he was in good health, and what he said caught the attention of Jier, who had just finished drawing.

"I know several excellent Stonemason, and they have all received praise from the Earl in the Province Capital. Of course, of course, they are all disciples of Master Lianshude, so the one with the highest skill among the Stonemason is still Master Lianshude. Even the current Regent speaks highly of his craftsmanship. I heard that even the Elf envoy asked for the works of Master Lianshude that were on display in the royal palace."

Another scribe wrapped his sturdy and thick clothing tighter and said: "Of course you don't need to tell me about the Master's technique; everyone knows about this matter. Do you know about that incident?"

The old scribe asked suspiciously: "Which one? Are there still old matters in Kendall City that I don't know about?"

"It's the matter of the design of the city's underground sewers. I heard it was also completed by Master Lianshude?" someone took over the topic.

The old scribe hummed: "I thought you were talking about something else. You are young, so you haven't experienced it. When I was young, I personally participated in the construction of the city's underground sewers." He paused, and the old scribe pounded his waist: "It was too complicated inside. I heard that they even invited Mage from the Province Capital to participate at the time. I remember that everyone moved from the mountains in the city to the Baron's fields below to live simply. In order not to occupy the residents' fields and affect the harvest, the Baron gave up two years of crop harvests from the fields."

"The Baron had so many fields; two years, that must be a lot of grain and a lot of wealth," the surrounding scribes discussed in low voices.

Jier leaned the wooden board against the entrance of the Knight's tent, supported it with a wooden stick, and even had the guard he knew light torches around it to illuminate it.

The militia Captains and the scribes did not gather together; after all, their status and identities were very different. Although the scribes were now all with the army, responsible for managing logistics and taking care of all the militia who had come out, the status of the scribes was actually much higher than the militia squad leaders Jier saw.

Except for those squad leaders who might be descendants of important families in the villages and were higher than the scribes in terms of property and status, the vast majority of the squad leaders were children of Farmer families, with only a difference in how much land everyone had.

Since the next matters were mainly for Knight Kela to instruct the militia squad leaders, they were all very close to the wooden board map Jier had drawn, while the scribes were further back.

The scribes were simply idle in the Yingdi, so they came over to join in the fun, but because of their status and work, all affairs of the entire Yingdi could not be separated from their management, so it was nothing for the scribes to watch.

As for some ordinary militiamen, as soon as they approached, they were driven away by the squad leaders, telling them to wait to go eat in a while.

After Jier finished the things the Knight had entrusted to him, he wandered over to the scribes' side, eavesdropping on the story about the Kendall City underground sewers they had mentioned earlier.

He was also very curious about this; after all, in this remote and backward feudal region of the Middle Ages, it was incredible to have a city with such perfect underground water supply and drainage for residential houses. Having just heard that there were Mage involved in the construction of the city sewers, Jier really wanted to hear more.

Unlike others, the scribes were all well-informed guys; they at least all knew that the young man in front of them, wearing full armor and a wolf-fur Cloak, was a guy who had recently been making a splash in Kendall City.

And for some reason, this young man seemed to know the power-wielder in Kendall City, Knight Kela, and looked very familiar with him, even naming him to be temporarily borrowed from another Knight—Knight Lanisha—to suppress the Bandit.

Jier approached to listen to them talk, and these scribes did not drive him away, just letting Jier listen as he pleased.

"I was young at the time, just when I was ready to do something big. I was responsible for the construction management of the underground part of the peripheral area of Kendall City, which now includes the wealthy district, the commoner district, and the Craftsman District. Calling it work, it was actually directing the people who joined to transport building materials and dig tunnels and waterways." The old scribe said while pointing at the air, as if he had already returned to that scene at the time.

Another scribe interjected: "I don't think the people would spontaneously help the lord build those things, and I remember that our Kendall County didn't conscript the people for corvée labor, right? The whole province didn't."

The old scribe replied: "That's right, there is no such decree. After all, our Kingdom is composed of immigrants from the Empire, and everyone was tired of the endless labor of the Empire, so when the country was founded, it is said that His Majesty the King swore an oath to the gods to never conscript the people for labor."

Stroking his beard, the old scribe continued: "Actually, it's not difficult to want to use the power of the people. At that time, the Baron and the church specifically signed a contract. With the church as the witness and supervisor of the contract, the Baron made a guarantee: all families who participated in the transformation process of Kendall City and worked to a certain level would receive convenient water supply wells and sewage channels that their families could use."

The other scribes grew excited, one after another speaking of how their own family homes had originally come to be. Some scribes who were the Liege of their households spoke of how, when taking over their families, they had indeed received a simple-looking glowing contract from their elders. They had not expected that it was the very contract the Baron had commissioned the Church to establish for each family participating in the labor.

The old scribe then spoke of the stories from the time of the initial construction, but the topic of the other scribes shifted to whether those contracts were still effective today, and whether the glowing Divine Power upon them possessed magical strength.

Jier, however, moved up to the old scribe and listened attentively to the story the old scribe was telling.

Seeing that a young person like Jier was willing to listen to him talk about stories of the past, the old scribe also grew spirited and began to speak in detail about the situation as it was when he was young.

The story continued until Knight Kela had circled the entire Yingdi, confirming that the Militia in each Militia Tent had not engaged in brawls during the time he was out, nor had anyone exchanged fire with Bandits during the day and suffered casualties. It seemed the Bandits had been disrupted by their group during the day and had focused all their attention on them.

When Knight Kela returned, he saw that the Militia Squad Leaders had already arrived, and Jier had also transferred the contents of his parchment onto a truck bed board.

It looked not bad.

With just a single glance, he could see that Jier had not followed the center points of the Militia Yingdi and the Bandit lair as depicted on his parchment, but had instead rearranged the respective positions of the two based on the correct north-south orientation.

"Oh, this is not bad, not bad; at least people with poor senses of direction won't get it wrong." He came before the wooden board and gave a light cough, and the whole scene went quiet.

The Militia Squad Leaders sat down according to the Knight's gesture; the ground was all frozen, hard soil, nothing dirty, and it was not the rainy, muddy ground of spring or summer.

Meanwhile, the scribes and Jier stood behind the Militia Squad Leaders and watched, barely able to see the contents on the board.

Clang! Knight Kela drew the sword at his waist. As Jier had expected, a powerful Warrior like Knight Kela did not use an ordinary weapon.

It was a sword that looked ordinary on the outside, but the blade hidden beneath the Sword Sheath was extraordinarily gorgeous and mysterious. It was entirely bright gold, and the surface was covered in a type of unknown script; a bright, glowing energy flowed within the indentations of these characters. The source of the energy was a row of five red Gems embedded in the spine of the blade. Those Gems radiated a faint light; they looked inconspicuous, but one could imagine that powerful energy must be hidden within them.

After the Knight drew the sword, he pointed at the wooden board map with the tip of the blade: "During the day, I led men around the mountain ridge where the Bandits are hiding. Hmph, the Bandits' level is limited; they only have one main entrance and exit, right here." He pointed at the entrance to the Bandit Shandong.

"This place and the large area in front, connecting all the way to the entrance of our Yingdi, will be the main combat area later. The main force of the Militia must seize this, then attack inside from the Bandit entrance."

Then, he continued to use his sword to draw a semi-enclosing net around the mark Jier had left: "The Bandits might have those who flee, or those who launch a surprise attack trying to escape a failed outcome; they will certainly flee from these places. But there aren't many places around here where people can walk, only here, here, and here, here." He pointed to four main mountain paths that provided passage for people in succession.

He looked at the crowd and found that everyone was focusing their attention on his sword, which made Knight Kela feel helpless.

Thinking for a moment, he sheathed his sword directly, then said to Jier: "Jier!" and waved his hand twice.

Jier understood and knew what Knight Kela meant; he drew his own Hunting Longsword and threw it over with a spin.

The Knight didn't even look; his hand simply grabbed into the air, and Jier's Hunting Longsword flew into the Knight's hand like a young swallow returning to the woods. Because the two moved so quickly, no one present realized that Jier hadn't aimed the Long Sword at the position of Knight Kela's hand, but rather that Jier had thrown it casually and his own Long Sword had automatically flown into Knight Kela's hand.

Jier's Hunting Longsword was much more ordinary compared to the sword; although it was also an exquisite weapon that was tough and sharp, with fish-scale reflective indentations on the surface, it was at least not as special as the sword from just a moment ago.

Resuming the previous topic, Knight Kela pointed again to the four directions and paths where the Bandits might flee: "Eagle Team, Lion Team, Mountain Leopard Team, Wild Boar Team. You four teams are the best close-combat Militia teams in the current force; I want you to be responsible for these four areas."

"Understood!" "Yes!" "No problem!" "Alright!" the four responded.

"As for who wants to be responsible for where, we will discuss it next. Because the four places look different, some places are spacious, so it is necessary to build relatively dense reconnaissance wooden towers. That is the thing Jier drew on there, and your main force will act as a mobile team within the range; usually you will rest, but when you see the warning signal from the reconnaissance tower, you must immediately rush over to eliminate the Bandits attempting to flee."

"The timber needed for the reconnaissance towers has already been prepared for you when we went over during the day; as long as you carry enough tools, you can build them quickly."

"Knight! Is this warning tower the same as the watchtowers in the village used to guard fields and guard against wild wolves or goblins?" a Militia Squad Leader asked.

"That is the one; I call it a warning tower. As for what you call it yourselves, I don't care. In short, I require that when the main force attacks the Bandit lair later, you must not let a single Bandit escape. Of the four teams, whoever kills the most Bandits in the end, that team will have the opportunity to transfer into official Town Guard of Kendall City."

Once the Knight said this, the eyes of the four Squad Leaders lit up. Compared to farming in the village for a lifetime, it was better to become a prestigious guard in the city. Especially since they themselves, as Squad Leaders, already had some status in the village, but the Militia under them did not. If young partners from the same village became Town Guard, it would be even better if they could provide all kinds of conveniences to the village later.

Not to mention anything else, just the news of fair prices for various supplies in the town would prevent the village from being gouged too hard when trading with the Caravan.