Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

The "Wolf Cavalry" moved along the river, turned a corner in front of the pond where the infantry were washing clothes, and galloped towards the military camp.

Infantrymen enviously watched the dazzling new shirts, trousers, and boots worn by the light cavalry, while they themselves were washing the coarse old clothes from when they enlisted. Many of them had only one set of old clothes, so once they washed them, they had nothing to wear.

"Hey! Did you see that? Brand new clothes and trousers! Which squad is that wealthy?"

The response was lukewarm: "Who else could it be? Of course, it's the 'Wolf Cavalry.' Hmph, they made a fortune devouring Green Valley's six brigades in one go."

"But... weren't Green Valley's puppet troops defeated by us?" someone asked with confusion, "Moreover, Blood Wolf personally ordered not to strip the prisoners of their clothes."

The responder pounded his clothes fiercely, curling his lips contemptuously: "What's the point of saying this now? They just got lucky! Under Pierre Mitchell's command are either Dusack or mixed-blood mongrels. As soon as the battle ended, they changed into new clothes, unlike us who obey orders..."

"Enough!" Lu Xirong stood up, his gaze briefly lingering on Bunir before scolding sternly: "What nonsense are you talking? Stay silent and you're not considered dumb!"

The others then remembered: the company commander was sitting nearby. Everyone consciously shut their mouths, and the dull sound of clothes being pounded filled the area near the pond again.

Only Peter Bunir seemed oblivious, still bare-chested, focusing on washing his only old shirt.

...

Following previous patterns, the Iron Peak County forces set up camp outside Artemis City.

To accommodate three infantry battalions, three cavalry squads, and the logistics units, the camp was larger than many towns, resembling a small city.

Pierre, Vashka, and the light cavalry dismounted in front of the third checkpoint, leading their mounts toward the main camp.

Halfway, they encountered Company Commander Li Wei.

Li Wei was not one of the "Centurion's old subordinates," because he hadn't participated in the Battle of the Great Wilderness.

However, before the first muster, Li Wei had ambushed the grain requisition team with "Monta the Garrison Officer," so his relationship with Pierre was also deep.

From afar, Li Wei cheerfully called out loudly: "Lieutenant Mitchell! Vasya!"

Pierre also waved with a smile.

Li Wei gave several orders to the clerk beside him, then tucked the hard-covered notebook under his arm and walked towards Pierre.

He glanced at Pierre's group of subordinates, leaned back slightly, and exclaimed exaggeratedly: "Wow! Just a few days of not seeing each other, and you've all changed into new clothes!"

Before Pierre could speak, Vashka answered proudly: "Of course! When have we Dusack ever treated ourselves poorly?"

Li Wei chuckled, helplessly shook his head, switched to another topic, and asked: "Is 'lassoing horses' going smoothly?"

"Certainly smoothly." Vashka pulled out a leather pouch from the saddlebag like performing a magic trick, proudly showed it to Li Wei: "Look at this!"

Pierre frowned slightly, sternly stopped him: "Put it away."

Vashka shrugged and obediently stuffed the pouch back into the saddlebag.

Throughout the process, the clinking sound of metal was constantly coming from inside the pouch.

"What about you? Li Wei? What are you busy with? Not taking a rest?" Pierre cast a glance at the hard-covered notebook under Li Wei's arm and questioned slightly incredulously: "From what I've seen on the road, everyone seemed exhausted, lacking any fighting spirit—does the Civil Guard Officer allow this to happen?"

Li Wei listened with a smile and responded kindly: "I understand what you're saying, but we can't have everyone always tense! The soldiers are worn out, haven't had a day's rest since leaving Revodan, and still fought a major battle in between. They've finally returned to a safe area; letting them take a bath is necessary."

"Artemis is hardly safe—just across the river is Thunder Group County." Pierre frowned: "Besides, the battle isn't over yet."

"That's something for you guys to worry about." Li Wei laughed heartily, saying: "Don't worry about Thunder Group County. We have dedicated people monitoring it, and nothing across the river will escape your notice. Besides, even if the battle continues tomorrow, letting everyone rest well today won't interfere."

Pierre nodded slowly.

Li Wei unobtrusively switched topics, holding the hard-covered notebook in his hand: "As for me? I'm busy rewarding you all."

Li Wei explained with a smile: "There is an order from you gentlemen, to let everyone eat something good. But all there is in the logistics carts are flour, jerky, and gunpowder.

No way, we have to purchase locally. But you don't know how difficult it is to buy something from the villages. Often, before we enter the village, everyone has gone.

You gentlemen taught me a trick—to set up a market next to the camp, openly buy fruits, vegetables, cattle, and sheep, and wait for nearby villagers to bring them over."

"You said the Centurion taught you..." Vashka puzzled: "Draw a circle on the ground and call it a market, and bumpkins will obediently bring things over?"

"If the price is tempting enough, yes." Li Wei patted the cover of the ledger.

"Still a loss, isn't it?"

"Of course, only the first day's price is the highest; each subsequent day is lower than the previous. But, the villagers wanting to sell will still come because they've learned to trust us."