Dawn was approaching, just one day left.
The figure of a scout appeared in the distance, his mount panting heavily, hooves thudding rapidly.
He dismounted, his movements slightly stiff from exhaustion, and hurried towards the highest peak.
Arthur was already waiting there.
"Lord Arthur!!!" the scout knelt on one knee, his voice urgent and furious. "The Legge Family soldiers still occupy the western Vicon Gorge and have not retreated!"
"And there's news! News! They!!! They yesterday afternoon!! Occupied the Dreadfort… Lord's family castle!!"
The air seemed to solidify. Lucien and Hakon trembled, looking furiously at Lord Arthur. Although Dreadfort was an empty castle, with everyone moved to the newly cultivated land, it was still a noble family's castle, the place where Lord Arthur's family had lived for generations!
Arthur slowly turned around, looking down at the scout, who was kneeling on one knee with a same furious expression. There was no expression on his face,
neither anger nor surprise, only a bottomless calm.
But in his heart, he was ecstatic. He hadn't even made a move yet, and the other side had already acted first, directly occupying another noble family's castle, which he had no legal claim to. What was originally a limited war had now directly become an unlimited war, placing him in opposition to everyone.
"Understood," Arthur said only three words.
Then, he walked towards the soldier guarding the beacon tower on the peak.
The soldier nervously tightened his grip on his spear, raising his head and puffing out his chest, watching Lord Arthur approach.
Arthur's order was still brief: "Light it."
The soldier was stunned for a moment, then straightened his chest and roared loudly: "Yes!!! My Lord!!!"
The huge haystack was ignited by a torch. The dry grass soaked in grease, mixed with wolf dung and red dye, instantly erupted into a blazing inferno.
A thick, pungent pillar of crimson smoke tore through the white sky, soaring straight into the heavens.
In the morning light, it was like a bleeding wound, proclaiming iron and blood!
Arthur quietly watched the crimson smoke rising into the sky, then turned his gaze to the distance.
A few minutes later, on the distant mountain peaks, a second identical pillar of crimson smoke rose, echoing the first.
Immediately following were the third, fourth, and fifth.
Five pillars of blood-colored smoke, like five blood-stained spears piercing the sky.
In a short time, they spread the signal of war throughout this rugged mountainous region.
From the Lions Den to Gap Fort, every military fort, every person, saw these crimson smoke pillars, a sight that was both expected and ominous.
Farmers in the fields put down their pitchforks, second sons in the valleys moving large rocks stopped their work, lumberjacks in the forest ceased swinging their axes, and blacksmiths by the furnace laid down their hammers.
They looked up at the smoke, their faces devoid of panic, breathing heavily in tension.
As midnight approached, the area outside the Lions Den valley became lively.
At first, only scattered torches appeared in the distance, like fireflies in the dark night, flickering on and off along the mountain paths from all directions.
Gradually, they drew closer, no longer fireflies, but streams, and then these streams transformed into rivers.
Countless torches illuminated the distant roads leading to the Lions Den as bright as day.
Evelyn, Hakon, Brin, and Lucien stood side by side with Arthur, high on the peak, excitedly and thrilled overlooking this magnificent scene.
"They've all come!!!" Hakon's voice was filled with awe and excitement. "They've come!! Everyone has come!!!"
Lucien's voice was high-pitched, breathing heavily, his eyes gleaming with an unusual light as he looked at Arthur, shouting excitedly.
"Lord Arthur!! They've come!! Everyone has come!!!"
As he said, what poured into the valley was not a chaotic crowd.
They formed distinct teams, organized by four military forts.
Men in cloth clothes walked at the forefront, carrying various weapons: tattered pitchforks, sickles, hoes, felling axes, and even hunters' longbows.
On their backs were their travel bags and the rations they brought.
Evelyn's gaze swept over the teams, then turned to Arthur. She saw the system, the Three Chiefs system, operating silently.
Within those teams, every five men would naturally gather together, led by the strongest and best-equipped man, who served as the "Head of Household," filled by their veteran comrades who lived with them day and night.
And each large team, consisting of one hundred and twenty-five men, was led by a veteran "Clan Chief."
They held high their self-made, simple banners representing their identifiable "Households," and under the guidance of the Lions Den soldiers, orderly led their people to the designated assembly areas outside the valley to stand.
Streams flowed into rivers, and rivers converged into the sea.
Although the crowd was noisy, there was no pushing or shoving, just countless footsteps and the crackling of burning torches.
It was clearly chaotic, yet there was a heart-stopping sense of order.
At midnight, the large open space in the center outside the Lions Den was ablaze with fire.
Nearly eight hundred conscripted commoners had all arrived,
They stood according to their respective military fort areas, heads bobbing, torches flickering, and shouts constant.
The fatigue of the long journey, the fear of the unknown, and the clamor of reunion made the entire open space hum, everyone buzzing like bees.
Arthur ascended the temporary wooden platform at this moment.
He was still wearing the simple black noble robe he wore during the barbarian war, without armor or elaborate decorations, with his Myr longsword at his waist. He needed the veterans of the army to know who he was immediately.
Lucien and Brin guarded him from left and right, their hands on their sword hilts.
The moment Arthur appeared on the platform, he did not speak, silently observing. The clamor below quieted a little, then gradually became silent.
Countless gazes converged, carrying inquiry, trust, reliance, confusion, and anxiety.
Arthur still did not speak immediately. He just stood there, surveying the bobbing heads and swaying torchlight below.
His actions caused all sounds to cease, until everyone's gaze was directed towards his presence.
Then, he raised his left hand high and spoke, his roaring voice piercing the night sky, overwhelming all other sounds.
"Everyone!! Listen to my command!!!"
The buzzing completely ceased.
"By 'household' units!! Find your 'Head of Household'!!!"
The crowd began to stir, but no longer in disorder. People began to move within small areas, starting to find their neighbors whom they saw day and night.
Arthur waited quietly until the teams had gradually adjusted and quieted down.
"Heads of Household!!! Find your 'Leader'!!!"
Small groups of people began to merge. Small groups of twenty-five people quickly gathered together, standing as one block.
"Leaders!!! Find your 'Clan Chief'!!!"
The final order was given.
The teams, organized by 'neighbor' units, began to quickly assemble under the self-made banners of their respective Clan Chiefs, used for the identification of each household's commoners.
The previously loose crowd, like chess pieces controlled by an invisible large hand, quickly moved, arranged, and reorganized.
An army forged in a day.
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