Lily glanced at Yuphie, and the girl nodded at her. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 infoSince he is the commander of this operation, there should be nothing bad about it. Lily thought so as she followed the man to the other side of the crowd.

There were two wounded young men lying on the ground, the same two daredevils who had run to their deaths this morning.

"Heal them, Yuffie." The man spoke in a deep voice.

What exactly do you want to do? Lily was a little dissatisfied, but Yuffie stopped her with her gaze. The girl stepped forward and put her hand on the wounds of the two men. After a few moments, the two stood up with incredulous expressions, carefully moving their injured parts, and then looked excited.

There were whispers of discussion and exclamations all around.

"Silence." The man's voice was not high, but it was imposing, "You two—" He looked coldly at the two excited young men, "draw your weapons." ”

They looked at each other with puzzled faces. Lily roughly guessed the man's intentions, and didn't look at the two men at first.

The chatter reignited, and the commotion attracted attention from afar, and the mercenaries gradually gathered around.

"It should be mentioned in the commission that the Empire's troops are not to act rashly until they arrive." The man exclaimed, "Aren't you brave? Then I command you, draw your sword, and strike at me. ”

There was whistles and cheers from the crowd of mercenaries, some cheering on the two young men, but she knew they were just trying to see the action.

"Both...... Since that's what you said, don't blame me for the injury! ”

The young man gritted his teeth, drew a sharp long sword from his waist, and slowly surrounded the man from left to right. They cautiously walked around in circles, looking for opportunities for each other to relax. And in this regard, the man did not even lift his eyelids.

"I'm talking about 'attack'. You can't do it by obeying orders, it's just waste. ”

He raised his sheathed heavy sword in his hand. Lily saw only a flash of light flash in front of her eyes, and heard the cries of two young men crying out in pain. Their swords came out of their hands, their wrists twisting unnaturally. The man slammed his sword on the ground, his gaze swept across the forest, and everyone was silent for a moment.

"Imperial General, Barak, has come to exterminate the Knights of the Crow." He took a roll of parchment from his bosom and showed it to the crowd around him. At the end of the parchment, the seal of the Guild is clearly visible, "According to the appointment of the Guild and its principals, I will be your commander-in-chief. ”

"Some of you should have heard of me. As one of the members of the Brigade, I am your senior. The man kept his mouth shut, waiting for the mercenaries to understand what he was saying, "When I led my army into battle, I never failed. I'm not here to see you die. ”

The mercenaries whispered to each other, and many people's eyes lit up. The story of "Brigade" is almost legendary, and as a mercenary, Lily understands that this name alone is enough to give them a lot of confidence.

"As mercenaries, you're used to working alone and in small groups. That's not a bad thing. Barak raised his voice, just enough for everyone in the woods to hear, "But from now on, until the end of the mission, you are only my soldiers. Obey my commands, and I will work with you to achieve the final victory—"

……

The inventory of personnel was quickly completed, and it was decided that there were a total of forty-seven mercenary groups that would remain to participate in this war, with a total of five hundred and forty people. That's roughly the same number as the number of knights in Holly Castle - Lily is sure that even if the Imperial sergeants are taken into account, if the two sides line up now and face each other head-to-head, it will be her side that loses.

The "Lilianor's Regiment" is not counted as a 'soldier', but is specifically designated by Barak as a deputy. Probably because of Yuffie...... Or Al, right? She thought so, after all, in the team, the only two of them were the most special.

A dozen wagons, along with the Imperial sergeants, were now quietly parked in the middle of the woods. Barak led the way and lifted the tarpaulin from a wagon. The carts were loaded with a variety of weapons and shields - but they were all wooden practice kits.

The mercenaries whispered to each other. Lily looked at Barak with some confusion, just in time to meet his gaze.

"For example." Barak picked up a wooden shield that covered most of his body, and a wooden sword about a meter long. "The combination of sword and shield is not as offensive as a two-handed sword, and the power of forming a battle formation is not as good as that of a spear, but the advantage is that it is both offensive and defensive." He turned and looked at the crowd gathered around, "Those who use swords and shields as weapons, raise their hands." ”

About a few dozen people raised their hands.

"Good." Barak took a few steps out and turned to look at the mercenary, "Pick up your sword, Lily." Attack me without mercy. ”

She nodded, raised her obsidian greatsword, and took a stance, "So, be careful!" ”

The rest of the mercenaries spontaneously stepped back, leaving an open space more than ten meters in diameter for the two of them.

Lily took a deep breath and kicked the ground hard, and the greatsword fell like a meteor into the man's chest. Barak took a half-step back, raised his wooden shield to attack, and then stepped forward, his sword sweeping.

Unlike the last time, Barak's movements were not fast, and her moves were not very complicated, but she was almost out of breath. Each of the man's swords seemed to be straight and straight, but it was just stuck in the gap between her exertions, attacking a position that she could not care about; And the shield in his hand always blocked every blow just right when her sword swing was about to run out.

She gritted her teeth and continued to swing her sword, trying to suppress Barak with the frequency of her attacks, but to little avail. When she slashed her sword again, the man quickly approached, raising his shield to block her hastily swung fist, the sword sliding down the back of the obsidian greatsword, striking her hilt accurately. She felt a wave of paralysis coming from the tiger's mouth, and involuntarily let go of her right hand, letting the giant sword fall to the ground.

There was silence for a moment, then exclamations, whistles, and cheers echoed through the woods.

"This is the military skill of the Empire. It is no better than your swordsmanship, but it is better than simplicity and practicality. Barak said word for word, "Take the weapons you are good at, and then divide them into teams." When it's time of war, I need you to be able to gain a definite advantage in hand-to-hand combat with the Crow Knights. ”

……

Time passes slowly. The mercenaries were instructed by Barak in turn, and then fought in pairs. Bell happily grabbed a large wooden scimitar and patted his chest to say that he would definitely become stronger than Lily this time. Yuffie sat quietly reading a book, occasionally getting up to treat the mercenaries who had been wounded in battle. Alphonse stayed with her without saying a word.

More than a hundred Imperial sergeants were divided into two groups, one group took shovels and pickaxes from the wagons, dug ditches in the ramp in front of Holly Castle, and set up sharp repulsion horses; Another group stood by with spears in hand, acting as their guards.

Lily stood by Barak's side, occasionally fighting one of the mercenaries at his request, or against himself. The opponents the men chose for her were basically the best of the mercenaries, and it would take some effort and skill to achieve victory—Barak required her to use a two-handed sword instead of her own body as a weapon.

It was exactly the kind of fight she expected. Most of her swordsmanship came from her own comprehension. Her master, Pfister, was not good at two-handed swordsmanship, and the swordsmen she knew were ...... Basically, I can't beat her.

Barak is different from them. This man was proficient in almost every weapon, from the common swords, axes, war hammers, etc., to the seldom-used double-headed swords, barbed chains, and even long whips, all of which seemed to have life in his hands. All afternoon, Lily had not won against Barak once. Every time she fails, she gets guidance from the other party and feels more proficient in her swordsmanship.

She is not the only one who has improved. It was evident from the excited or exclamatory looks of the other mercenaries that they had all gained something - and at the same time, they had more trust in the man.

As the sun set, the mercenaries and the Imperial sergeants prepared dinner together - the wagons were loaded with bread, jerky, pickles, and ale, enough to sustain the entire crew for more than a week. Lily gathered her weapons and walked over to the man, looking up at his face.

"Na ......" she seemed to think of the reason why the other party took special "care" of herself, "You, and our master, thank you?" ”

"I don't owe Pfister a favor, and I don't need to listen to his orders." Barak replied coldly, "I see you're a good seedling." ”

"Uh-huh...... Master, he's as powerful as you, right? ”

Barak smiled wryly, with a hint of bitterness in his voice. "He's so much better than me. In battle, but also emotionally. But after all, he is an irresponsible bastard. ”

She blinked, not understanding the meaning of the man's words for a moment.

"Don't let him fool you." Barak turned and strode away. An evening breeze blows, and the autumn leaves rustle.

Lily stood there and thought for a moment, deciding that she had a chance to ask Master herself, or Yuffie, directly.

"People who talk half of the way are the most annoying—"