Chapter 12

Rodi and Carter walked straight into Soding's room, only to find that the expression on their superior's face was not good.

Usually, such an expression meant that the two scout teams would have a tough time for the next three days. Soding could be considered a standard "wine sack and rice bag": he had little ability, a big temper, was lazy, and loved to boast, basically lacking in every possible way.

In "Rodi's" memory, this man had only managed to get his current chicken rib of a military rank by relying on his father's former status as a knight's retainer. Although he had a military rank, he was only a salary-drawer.

Everyone knew that Soding's father had died on the battlefield when this brat was only eight years old. His father, a skilled retainer, had no time to pass on his skills before Soding's mother became a widow. She died of illness two years later. The broken family did not teach Soding to strive, but instead fostered his lofty ambitions and laziness.

Soding had originally planned to use a bag of orc heads to claim credit yesterday. However, after some thought, he felt that these things were not enough for his promotion. "A failure in success and a success in failure" described him perfectly. He wanted to claim credit without effort, and when he couldn't get it, he would resent it. At this moment, Soding was indignant that Carter and others hadn't killed more orcs yesterday, and his frustration had nowhere to vent. But when he saw the string of orc heads in Carter's hand, his mood instantly changed from bad to good, and he asked in surprise, "You killed so many orcs again?!"

"Yes, sir, these are the bodies of eight orc wolf riders. We—"

Carter wanted to continue, but Soding seemed to have no intention of letting him. Ignoring the stench of blood, he snatched the string of heads and patted Carter's shoulder with a smile, "One, two, three... eight? I never thought you were so capable. Are the orcs really so weak?"

Soding, who had never been on the battlefield, naturally did not understand the danger of the battle. Carter's attitude had also changed, and he felt a growing disgust for Soding—disgust not only for Soding's unmasked greed but also for his former self, who had been somewhat similar to Soding.

"These are the bodies of eight orc wolf riders, sir," Carter said, without the usual flattery, instead showing a hint of detachment. "We discovered an orc camp in the northwest and were pursued by them, but we managed to eliminate these wolf riders—"

"Good job!"

Soding did not realize the importance of Carter's words. His mind was only on how many silver coins and military credits these orc heads could bring. A few empty praises and pleasantries blocked Carter's words, and he then indicated that Carter could leave. As for Rodi, he didn't even look at him from start to finish.

Carter was extremely awkward.

He admitted that he had little ability and liked to talk big, and sometimes even took pride in his good interpersonal relationships. But at this moment, he felt that his previous flattery and sycophancy towards Soding, which led to this result, made him feel nauseous.

Carter came from a humble background, but that didn't mean he was ungrateful. Bringing Rodi here was because he recognized Rodi's efforts and status in his heart—today's battle had thoroughly proven Rodi's capabilities, and he believed that Rodi would be a much better leader than himself.

But while Carter had the intention, Soding had none, as this shit lieutenant had no concept of the importance of "discovering an orc camp"!

Carter had been worried that the noble lords would ignore this news as Rodi had said, but now it seemed that even a lieutenant had no brain to care about this important report.

He turned to look at Rodi and found that the young man was not anxious or angry, but only shook his head with a lowered gaze. Carter sighed helplessly. The two of them didn't say anything more and left together, leaving Soding alone, excitedly contemplating whether he could be promoted to a captain.

"I didn't expect—sigh..."

Walking out of the room, Carter wanted to laugh bitterly but found his voice dry. His words turned into a sigh.

"The Kingdom of Carlen has experienced too long a period of peace. People are unwilling to face war, and even when war is imminent, they prefer to deceive themselves. This is all normal."

Rodi recalled the tasks in the Carlen Kingdom's new player village a year after "Rift" opened. The information reflected that even when orcs were rampaging on the border, the people of Carlen Kingdom still didn't believe that the orcs would really invade, considering it just the "radical behavior" of a "few orcs"—because the agreement signed after the kingdom repelled the orcs stated that orcs could not step onto Carro Kingdom's territory, people naively believed that the orcs would not break their word...

The fact proved that any war was the result of accumulated contradictions, and the so-called "trigger" was just a small matter, not worth mentioning, because what was bound to happen would happen, just like people who fight over a quarrel, cursing each other before the fight, just to find a reason to fight harder. Rodi understood that the orcs would eventually invade, but he couldn't now loudly proclaim to the world that it would definitely happen.

Still, the same old question—would anyone take a scout's "guess" seriously?

Carter returned to the village with Rodi in silence, and today's mission was over. Unlike the cavalry or the elite units of Holier City, the scout team was relatively relaxed, and the soldiers were mostly idle. Apart from eating, sleeping, and patrolling the border, their only entertainment was gambling. The soldiers were poor, and the stakes were just a few copper coins. In such a remote area, there were no brothels, and they didn't dare to do anything that would cost them their jobs, so the most they could do was make some lewd remarks to the widows in the village.

But today, these usually energetic soldiers were eerily silent. When Carter and Rodi entered the dining tent, the second team of scouts stood up as if waiting for some news.

"Gentlemen... I have something to say today."

Carter had no leadership qualities and his current position was not that of a superior, but his words made the thirteen scouts of the two teams look at him.

This did not bring any sense of vanity, but rather made him feel even more bitter. He lowered his eyelids and said in a hoarse voice, "We are a group of scouts who risk our lives for a meager salary. In a way, none of us is better than the others. Today... we killed a team of orc wolf riders. Many may not understand what this means, but I remember clearly who led our second team's brothers to survive in that situation."

The first team of scouts were puzzled, but recalling the string of heads and the word "wolf riders," they remained silent.

"Lieutenant Soding thinks those orcs are not a threat, and he didn't even care about the news of the camp. But... but I believe what Rodi said."

"These are orcs... not humans! These damn orc beasts will eventually extend their fangs to us, to Nolan Village, and even to Holier City..." Carter lowered his head and slowly removed the scout captain's badge from his chest. He looked up at his comrades and suddenly felt a surge of courage, "I won't say much more. Rodi led us to victory, and I believe he can also lead us to make the right decisions."

Turning, Carter firmly pinned the captain's badge on Rodi's chest and then stood at attention, giving a very serious military salute.

Everyone understood the significance of this action. But for Carter to make such a firm decision, Rodi was very impressed.

As a modern person, the concepts of "ability-based leadership" and "stepping down for a better person" were far too advanced compared to the medieval feudal society of "Rift." He couldn't fully understand what Carter had given up, but he instinctively felt that it was not easy for someone who might spend their whole life at the bottom to give up the little power they had.

The dozen or so soldiers who looked at Rodi and Carter were silent for a moment, but there was no objection—Rug, sitting in the corner, also understood what had happened and sighed, asking, "Can you explain to us?"

This was a very polite way of speaking. When had Rug ever been so polite to Carter or Rodi? But whether it was the beating Rodi gave him that morning or the victory in the biggest battle the scout team had faced in nearly a decade, it had a profound meaning for the old soldier.

Unlike Carter, Rug was not a new recruit or a deceitful lieutenant like Soding. In a sense, he was the only veteran in Nolan Village who had seen the power of wolf riders.

So, no matter how much conflict there had been between Rodi and him, in the face of the orc threat, they were united.

As the captain of the first team of scouts, Rug had always been at odds with the second team's captain. He looked down on those young, naive men, but after hearing Carter's words, his sharp, never-satisfied eyes turned to Rodi, not in surprise, but in a measuring look.

Rug, with his bruised face, had a big temper, but it also showed that he was straightforward—"You killed eight wolf riders? Without any losses?"

Carter understood that the conflict between the two that morning would not be easily resolved, so he explained the entire battle in detail. After his words, the way all the scouts looked at Rodi changed dramatically.

Even Rug was momentarily stunned, as if he remembered something. His tightly pressed lips and closed eyes suggested that this memory was a lifelong pain...

When he opened his eyes again, his face seemed more haggard than usual. He looked at Carter and asked in a low voice, "What did Soding say?"

"He? He was too busy counting how many military credits those heads would bring."

Carter snorted, and the scouts around him couldn't help but feel angry and frustrated.

"The problem we face now is... the orcs are setting up a camp thirty kilometers away. If we let them establish a forward base, Nolan Village will eventually face attacks from those beasts." Carter's face was grim, and the thought of Soding's attitude made him angry, "Rodi made these predictions, and I initially didn't want to believe it, but now... I have no choice."

Rodi saw Rug's reaction and knew that the beating he gave him that morning, though it made him suffer, had a significant effect—now the entire scout team was beginning to center around him.

Carter's voluntary "stepping down" was something Rodi hadn't expected. He had already planned to use various means to get the captain's position. If Rug had objected, he would have found a way to make him submit. But now, both of their reactions were much better than he had imagined, and he believed that the next plan would not be difficult to implement...

For his own purposes, Rodi deliberated for a moment and then said in a serious tone, "The lieutenant did not give any specific orders, so our mission continues."

Hearing this, the scouts seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, but their hidden expectations were also dashed. However, Rodi's next words made them suddenly look up—

"I just hope... that tomorrow we can take advantage of the situation and attack the orc camp."

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