Chapter 4

Progress, retreat, jump…

Slash, thrust, defend…

Aaron held the cross sword, training with precise movements. Before long, he was panting, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

“Phew… This greatsword is powerful, but if I go all out, I’ll be exhausted in a few minutes… On the battlefield, this is something to be mindful of.”

In life-and-death struggles, one’s energy is most easily drained.

As some people say, in a life-or-death fight between two people, if it goes beyond five minutes, it’s just for show.

Aaron deeply understood this and knew that the initial clash on the battlefield is often the most brutal, and soldiers’ stamina would quickly be depleted.

“As long as I can survive the initial dangerous moments, avoid stray arrows, and the problem of staying alive shouldn’t be too big…”

He thought to himself, seeing Collin not far away, excitedly trying on a set of armor.

This was a gift from the lord, a finely crafted set of armor worth as much as a knight’s estate. Wearing it, one’s defenses on the battlefield would be incredibly strong, greatly increasing the chances of survival!

As for Aaron himself, he only had a leather armor…

Perhaps, only when he left the territory would he obtain a set of armor, becoming a wandering knight, which would depend on Collin’s generosity.

However, Aaron didn’t feel much jealousy, silently returning to the castle.

After lunch, he instructed the maid not to disturb him and immediately began to rest.

Even during the day, one can enter a dream…

…

Boom.

The same darkness, the same sensation of falling and convulsing.

Aaron was already familiar with it, opening his eyes to see a dark sea.

Blood, scales… still floating on the surface, seemingly telling the tale of a previous fierce battle.

He looked up, seeing a night sky like a black velvet curtain, and… a crimson moon!

“Damn… The original moon wasn’t this color, but the moon, or rather, the satellite at night, reflects the light of the star, so it has turned crimson?”

Although this world may not strictly follow the rules of his previous life, this was the most reasonable explanation Aaron could come up with.

“I’m sorry… I really didn’t mean to.”

Aaron Soto apologized to the air, then began to feel himself.

In this world, he was a pure observer outside multiple dimensions. Apart from changing the sun last time, he couldn’t do much else.

But tonight, things seemed different.

“I… can move?”

Aaron pulled his perspective closer, changed it… and finally confirmed that he had moved a short distance, almost bursting into tears of joy.

Thank goodness!

Since he started dreaming as a baby, he had been standing at this coordinate, almost sick of the fixed scenery!

And now, he could finally move his perspective!

“It seems that all the changes started with changing the sun…”

Aaron carefully recalled the subtle differences.

“Could it be that after sixteen years of accumulation, a qualitative change has finally occurred… Although I used all my sixteen years of accumulated power to change the sun, my essence has also undergone some change, which won’t revert. So, after accumulating one unit of energy in today’s dream, I can move?”

Aaron named the daily enhancement he gained from dreaming as one unit of energy.

His recent movement had consumed this energy, and since it was only one day’s accumulation in the real world, he had only moved a short distance.

“Being able to do this, it seems my life in the dream world will no longer be so monotonous…”

Aaron let out a long breath.

To be honest, when he changed the sun, he had to admit the surge of madness in his heart, containing some of his dark and crazy thoughts, even the desire to destroy the world.

After all, being confined here for sixteen years, not going mad was already a miracle.

“But what will this world look like after the anomaly?”

Aaron was somewhat excited, using the moon and stars in the sky to choose a direction and began to move.

“I hope there’s a continent at the end of the ocean… although… I don’t know what state I’m in now…”

…

The Soto family occupied the Lower Green Forest, with Soto Castle at its core, forming a small town with a population of over ten thousand.

In addition, several villages had been cultivated in the forest, and some wild tribes were also under their command.

The castle always had about a hundred guards, which was already a limit in the feudal era.

Of course, if a real war broke out, peasants could be conscripted to become peasant soldiers, but they lacked discipline and combat effectiveness. To Aaron, they were just for show.

At this moment, Aaron was looking at a group of peasant soldiers just pulled from the fields, most of them barely clothed, armed with simple weapons like pitchforks, and he frowned deeply.

‘These guys, even on the battlefield, would just be cannon fodder…’

‘A cannon fodder leader leading a cannon fodder battalion, fitting indeed.’

Aaron looked at the chaotic, misaligned formation of peasant soldiers, showing no emotion on his face, and loudly said, “I am Aaron of the Soto family! Aaron Soto, your captain! From today, you will all follow my orders! Now, form groups of ten and choose your own squad leaders!”

He watched the peasant soldiers instantly become even more chaotic, deep in thought.

In the feudal era, wars between the noble classes were often very polite.

For example, during the Spring and Autumn period, wars were very ritualistic, and it was even forbidden to capture the enemy’s ruler. Noble enemies were not to be harmed and were to be treated with respect, waiting for their ransom.

In Japan and medieval Europe, the situation was roughly the same, and even the descendants of nobles who lost their land were widely sympathized with.

The repeated performances of ‘Prince’s Revenge’ were possible because of such ideals.

‘But this is a different world, and the situation is somewhat different. This time, it’s not for a wild boar.’

Two lords fighting over a game animal, calling hundreds of henchmen to settle the score, might just be a form of entertainment for medieval lords.

But this time, it’s different!

Aaron could sense Theodore’s ambition. The Green Forest was too small to accommodate two lords!

And the Davis family upstream seemed to have the same idea.

This war would be different, and it was the last thing Aaron wanted to see.

“Perhaps, after this battle, one of the families in the Green Forest will be completely erased…”