Chương 101: Medals

Early the next morning, Li Qinwu received a report from Knight Leo: the 500 human soldiers had been successfully recruited, and the acquisition of livestock could begin immediately. This velocity was so staggering that Li Qinwu found it hard to believe. No matter how righteous their cause, the Union was still fundamentally an invading force. Shouldn't the local population be fiercely resistant?

Li Qinwu realized that the people of Poloia—or rather, the humans of this world—had simply not achieved national consciousness. They behaved like the commoners of the Qing Dynasty, merrily munching melon seeds while watching foreign powers pound the imperial army. This revelation made Li Qinwu seriously consider a new prospect: What if... we just don't leave? What if we develop Poloia as our core territory? This idea caused Li Qinwu's heart to throb with excitement.

By implementing a few policies that benefited the populace, coupled with the system-provided commoner favorability bonuses, this goal was by no means impossible! However, by the afternoon, a Goblin scout rushed back to report that scouting forces from other lords had been spotted in the surrounding areas. This forced Li Qinwu to realize that whether they could stay was not for him to decide. There were still hundreds of nobles throughout Halyun Province.

If they wished, assembling an army of tens of thousands would not be a difficult task. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Thasos possessed 11 other provinces, and it was currently embroiled in a world war. While the kingdom's regular legions were presently deployed on the front lines, if they managed to catch their breath and decided to purge him, a single mobilized regular legion would still force him to flee.

For now, he could only accelerate the gathering of large livestock to explosively expand his troops, waiting to assess the situation and decide whether to fight or bolt once the enemy army arrived. A few days later, Knight Leo's militia had successfully purchased nearly a thousand head of livestock, making it time to bestow rewards. The Punisher Army assembled on the training grounds of the Governor's Manor. The soldiers stood in rigid phalanxes, every eye burning as they stared intently at Li Qinwu.

Having waited for so long, they were finally about to receive their rewards. They had all seen the massive herd of livestock; the Hobgoblins stood straighter than they ever had before! Li Qinwu roared at the top of his lungs, "Gobu Spear! Gobu Bow! Step forward!" Under the envious gazes of the entire assembly, the two veterans strode out of the formation. Li Qinwu produced two gold-colored medals and pinned them to their chests.

"Gobu Spear, Gobu Bow, you two possess outstanding merits. You have fought for the Union from its very inception to the present day, rendering immortal contributions. You are hereby specially awarded the Medal of the Rounded Star." Back when he executed Count Cali, Li Qinwu had noticed the string of decorations pinned to the old man's chest. This had reminded him that if he wished to build a sense of military honor, introducing a medal system was a stellar approach.

With his own complex crafting skills, producing incredibly exquisite medals was an easy feat. Consequently, he had spent several nights forging the Union's highest decoration: the Medal of the Rounded Star. Its design featured a solid gold disc bordered with silver plating. In the center of the disc were small stars crafted from silver, representing the current members of the Union.

This item possessed immense collector value; because the Union's membership would continuously expand, the fewer stars a Medal of the Rounded Star possessed, the more it proved that the recipient was a founding veteran among veterans! Moreover, the item actively manifested system attributes: one granting Pride +10 and another granting Glory +10, both serving as highly positive buffs. Gobu Spear and Gobu Bow were thrilled.

Goblins were inherently greedy, and the medal handcrafted by Li Qinwu was so intricate that it was a treasure in its own right; their vanity was immensely satisfied.

"For the Union!!" they screamed in pure excitement. Li Qinwu clapped both of them on the shoulders.

"From this moment forth, you two are promoted to Regiment Commanders. Gobu Spear shall command the 1st Regiment, and Gobu Bow shall command the 2nd Regiment. I am about to expand our forces immediately, so you two had better lead your units well!" Gobu Spear and Gobu Bow grew even more ecstatic. The power they had yearned for so deeply had arrived once again! Li Qinwu had the two step to the side and continued the investiture.

"Gobu Scout, Gobu Blast, Gobu... Step forward!" You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Li Qinwu called out 20 company and deputy company commanders, awarding them the Silver Musket-Soldier Medal, the Silver Artillery Medal, and the Silver Cavalry Medal, respectively. Crafted from pure silver, the medals were engraved with the detailed likenesses of musketeers, artillerymen, and cavalry, appearing exceptionally refined.

He specially singled out Gobu Scout and Gobu Blast, bestowing upon them the Medal of Valor as well. The Medal of Valor was shaped like a star enclosed by stalks of wheat, with two crossed muskets overlapping in the center. It was designed to be worn hanging from the neck over the chest. This was a progressive decoration containing multiple tiers, functioning similarly to an Iron Cross. It could be upgraded from Tier 1 to Tier 7, and the higher the tier, the more precious the materials used to craft it.

Li Qinwu had designed three distinct medal systems: The Medal of the Rounded Star: Awarded to military or civilian personnel who made outstanding contributions to the Union, serving as the highest honor. The Branch Badges: Such as the Musket, Artillery, and Cavalry medals, divided into Bronze, Silver, and Gold tiers. Receiving one proved excellent performance and prominent service within that specific branch.

The Medal of Valor: To obtain this, one required not only battlefield merit but also a sufficient accumulation of military seniority. Li Qinwu intended to make Tiers 1 and 2 of this medal fairly commonplace. Any soldier serving normally in the army without committing errors could obtain them over time, but climbing any higher would require a significant increase in seniority and battlefield achievements.

Following this, Li Qinwu presented branch badges to several squad and deputy squad leaders, and bestowed Tier 1 Wound Medals upon all the wounded soldiers, officially concluding the ceremony. With this round of investiture, everyone's rank had been elevated. Battalion commanders became regiment commanders, company commanders became battalion commanders, squad leaders became company commanders, and common soldiers became squad leaders.

Glancing across the assembly, there wasn't a single common private left in the entire clearing, a detail that immediately caught the attention of the Goblins. While their official ranks had risen, they didn't have a single soul beneath them to command. Li Qinwu explained with a hearty chuckle, "I know exactly what you lot are thinking. You've all become officers, but you don't have any soldiers to command—doesn't that look like a sham! Rest assured, your Boss wouldn't pull such a low-class stunt. You want soldiers?

Go breed them yourselves!" Li Qinwu pointed toward the distant herds of livestock. In an instant, the Goblins' eyes turned bloodshot with greed, and the Hobgoblins roared in pure excitement, clamoring to launch their "assault"! Chuckling merrily, Li Qinwu returned to the Governor's Manor. Before long, his army would swell from 1, 000 to 2, 000, and from 2, 000 to 4, 000, growing larger and larger. Great things lay ahead—immense things lay ahead!

In the blink of an eye, a month slipped by, and news of Poloia's fall reverberated across the entirety of Halyun Province. The nearly one hundred nobles of Halyun convened a lords' council to deliberate on how to counter this development. In truth, they had known of Poloia's occupation early on, but had deliberately delayed mobilizing their forces. They had secretly hoped the monster army would capture the city and slaughter that absolute savage, Count Cali!

Now that Count Cali was dead, it was time to draw in the net. After all, if they reclaimed the provincial capital of Poloia, would His Majesty the King not directly appoint one of the local lords as the new governor for such immense merit? Presiding over the council was a prominent local count named Fischer. He was the most powerful lord in Halyun second only to the governor, and the most promising candidate to become the new governor.

Count Fischer was aggressively proactive; it was he who had convened this council to initiate a wartime mobilization.

"My Lords!" Inside the grand hall of his ancestral castle, Count Fischer addressed the hundred-odd lords, great and small.

"Poloia has been captured by a demonic army, and our beloved Count Cali has returned his soul to the embrace of the Goddess of Life. This is an absolute, towering disgrace! As lords of Halyun, we must reclaim Poloia. What say you all? How many troops can each of your houses deploy?" The lords stared back with vacant eyes, letting their minds wander to ponder the deepest mysteries of the universe.

Count Fischer rattled on at length, preaching about honor, love, steel, and peace, even reciting the entire chivalric code from memory, yet the nobles seated below remained completely silent. They were all centuries-old succubi; why was he trying to lecture them with tales of pure and noble knights? Count Fischer hadn't actually expected to move them into action through mere speeches; he had simply hoped to use his rhetoric to drive down the price they would demand to mobilize.

"Gentlemen, I shall entirely cover the military rations for this campaign. Once we breach Poloia, every lord shall be permitted to plunder the city for three days and three nights strictly according to their own capabilities. How does that sound?" Count Fischer cut directly to the core of the matter. The moment he brought this up, the lords were no longer drowsy. Every single spine straightened, and their eyes locked directly onto Count Fischer.

Poloia was the wealthiest town in Halyun Province, boasting a massive population of 150, 000, and served as the commercial heart of the entire region. If they could plunder it for three days and three nights, the wealth they would obtain would outstrip ten years of farming! The lords broke into radiant smiles, starting to shout out one after another the military forces their respective houses could mobilize.

After piecing together their contributions from all sides, the total strength the hundred-odd lords could field came to a staggering 80, 000 men. They would mass from four different directions, led by their respective lords to launch a coordinated offensive toward Poloia. However, they would have to wait for Count Fischer's military rations to be positioned and for the forces to finish assembling. By the time the actual march commenced, several months would likely pass.