Chapter 1
“I’ll only count to three. Three!” Nose flaring behind her lower face mask and eyes narrowing, General Ril’m bellowed that almost the entire camp could hear her voice. Or maybe her loud but husky voice had even crossed the Fronduro Border, where they were stationed to defend the northern border of the Mondealté Kingdom. But she didn’t care. Her hands were on her hips, poised like a man should⸺as her men were clueless to her true gender. Her golden brown almond eyes shot daggers at her six misbehaved troops.
All six men were punished by making them climb the nearest tallest tree and hang on the highest branch with only one pinky for at least an hour. Her men called it Savage Suspension, saying beating them was far better than this. It could result in severe injury, dislocation, or losing a finger, which could hinder their performance as soldiers. Not only that, they could get broken bones in the different parts of their bodies and break their necks upon falling to the ground, at worst.
None of her men were able to hang on for ten minutes, let alone an hour or so. The highest record was herself, hanging for almost two hours when she demonstrated her prowess. Her fellow soldiers were all in awe, and that was some years back before earning her current title as a general.
“You know what happens if you fail, you shizits! No food or drink for a couple of days!” she added, roaring and eyeing the six soldiers sharply.
It wasn’t even two minutes that passed by, but the men on top of the branches were already sweating pearls. She signaled one of the lower generals to watch them, and she went to their Commander-in-Chief’s tent.
She entered after opening the flap and cupped her hands and bowed to him in greeting. She then straightened her back, watching the highest-ranked military officer in their kingdom.
“What was that I heard? You’re punishing our men so early in the morning, Ril’m. The sun isn’t even out yet.” The Commander-in-Chief General was washing his face using the warm water in a silver basin. His personal guard and assistant stood erect with his left forearm in a ninety-degree parallel to the ground. On his forearm was a white linen face towel. The man in his late fifties, tall, and well-built general straightened and reached for the towel to dry his slightly wrinkly oval face. Duty and stress must have caught up with him as he aged.
“Forgive my impudence for not conferring with you, My Lord. I received a report yesterday that they sneakily rode to Gezzo City to…” she paused, searching for the appropriate words in her brain, “look for intimate services.”
“Hmm… They went out of the camp to go whoring. Do you have any evidence? It may be a false report, Ril’m.”
She knew he tried to see the reason for the other party. He was always like that, weighing things to be fair.
“My Lord, they have been absent from the barracks since yesterday morning. Gezzo City is about five hundred miles from here, so they could ride the military gi’z for about four hours or less,” she replied with a grim expression on her face and referred to the powerful beasts they were using instead of horses.
The gi’z were twice or thrice faster than horses, and the only differences from these beasts were that these were all black, stronger, more enduring, more slender beasts with small wings on their calves, and diamond-shaped faces instead of elongated ones. While gi’z were utilized by the royal family, royal guards, and military, horses were usually used in the cities and towns by ordinary and noble folks. The gi’z were specifically bred and trained on Ireso Island, in the eastern part of the kingdom, to serve as such.
“My Lord, I did witness them with my own two eyes, thus their harsh punishment.” She almost grimaced upon recalling what she saw last night, and she did not want to linger on it. Totally outrageous! The six men were new to the northern garrison, just transferred from the northeastern outpost, in Flurivie Town. There were new enlistments, thus the addition to their forces.
After the Commander-in-Chief General Daramir dried his face, he signaled his trusted assistant, General Hild’m who was in his thirties, to aid him in putting the body armor on. She knew he would go on patrol after eating his breakfast as usual.
A series of screams were heard coming from outside. The three in the tent listened well, knowing what was going on.
“Very well, but I did tell you to stop using this Savage Suspension of yours in punishing our men, Ril’m. Even if they practice strengthening their hands and fingers everyday, they’re unlike you who have flexibility and joint strength. It’s your natural ability and exceptional conditioning,” he uttered meaningfully. His deep gray eyes bored into hers.
She knew very well what it meant. After all, she was trained by this man since she was little.
“Still, they should be disciplined and trained more rigorously, My Lord,” she insisted, standing her ground.
He waved a hand. “Stop it, Ril’m. Just get ready for the border patrol. You’re coming with me today.”
“Yes, My Lord,” she uttered without protest, bowed, and exited the tent.
She checked on the six punished men, who were now in the infirmary tent with a few broken bones upon landing on the ground in less than ten minutes.
“Good. They’re still alive. Just medicine and plain water for them, no food,” she instructed the physician firmly and turned around to leave.
The latter hurried to catch up with her. “General, I think it’s too much. They⸺”
She stopped walking to glare at the average-looking Heceq. “They have to get used to the rules here at the Fronduro Border, doctor. Otherwise, they’re going to be laxed and undisciplined. To think that they came from the northeastern outpost, they should know how critical it is at the border! It’s logical.”
The lean-built medicine man with green eyes, perfect nose, and peach lips had no words for it.
She continued, “We don’t know when our enemies are going to make a move again! If we let any of them leave anytime they want just to⸺”
He held his hands up, knowing the reason why she punished them. “Okay, okay. I understand. I was only trying to say that they’re injured, so they need proper sustenance to recuperate faster,” Heceq explained, cutting her off. It wasn’t their first time to discuss such matters. Nonetheless, the physician brought it up again with concern about his patients.
General Ril’m gave him a cold look and turned away, leaving him while he followed her with his eyes.
‘Cant he be flexible even for once?’ he thought sourly. ‘But of course, what do I expect from the overly uptight Flower General?’ He sighed helplessly and was stunned when one of his assistants came out hurriedly in alarm.
