Chapter 30: Fort Northwind
It didn't take long to arrive at the fort. A structure composed of solid stones with its walls reaching 10 meters and thick enough for soldiers to patrol on it. Built to be the barrier to prevent invasion from the Frostaxe Clan, it was designed in a way to make it as inconvenient as possible for creatures of their size to use in case of it being captured.
Besides the main gates and courtyards that needed to be big enough for carriages, all the rooms were around 7 feet tall. For a human, it might be a bit uncomfortable, and taller people would bonk their heads every so often, but it was much worse for orcs. An adult orc's height started at 7 feet, making it impossible to navigate and even worse to live in. If captured, the orcs would be unable to realistically mount a proper defense against the kingdom from retaking the fort, so they would only have two choices. They could try to defend it with its disadvantages or destroy the fort, either way, the Kingdom of Crestelia would be able to easily regain the land.
Sol, along with all the recruited adventurers, was led into a courtyard where the soldiers usually train. All the training equipment like training dummies and specialized equipment for leveling certain skills had all been moved to the sides, and in the middle, a small wooden platform had been erected. Without all the equipment in the middle the courtyard was actually pretty spacious, easily having enough space for the 300 adventurers and more.
Being herded in like cattle, the adventurers didn't know where they should go and wandered around until a man dressed in their officer's uniform walked onto the platform and took out a green crystal that had runes engraved onto it. When he spoke into it, his voice was amplified, and everyone in the courtyard could hear him.
"Everyone gather around!"
The man then patiently waited as the unorganized mob gathered around the podium and quieted down. After 15 minutes of waiting, the man decided it was time to talk.
"Welcome, I thank you for assisting us in our time of need. My name is Xander Pared, Commander of Fort Northwind. It has barely been one year since the Frostaxe Clan attempted to breach into our kingdom. I even see some familiar faces among you who stood alongside us during the last invasion, and to you, I sincerely thank you for your service. Now, I know you are all adventurers and have more… unrestrained nature, but this is an army you are joining. While we don't expect you all to have the training on military formations and discipline, we do expect you to follow the orders of your designated leaders. You will advance and retreat on their orders. Some of you might think this is beneath you, but there is no negotiating over this; if I see anyone going against orders or trying to be a hero, it won't end with just failing the quest but also military punishment."
He paused as he scanned the crowd for their reaction. Seeing nobody openly speaking against him, he elaborated further.
"Think of it as fighting a boss monster; one individual cannot beat a boss. Only with the combined effort of adventurers with different talents can one safely defeat one. The same principle applies here; we work as a team, and together we will push them back with minimum casualties."
He then smirked at the crowd.
"After all, we have thwarted them once before and we will do it again. For Crestelia!"
The adventurers caught up in his speech also started cheering along.
"For Crestelia!"
"For Crestelia!"
"For Crestelia!"
Letting the crowd calm down once more, he gave instructions.
"Everyone already knows what group you are a part of. I will now dictate where each group should go."
One by one different groups were called ranging from combatants like melee fighters and archers to supporting groups like scouts and messengers. Most groups were called in two different batches, one being the frontline group consisting of C-Rank at the very least and the backline group which was mostly D-Rankers. Then Xander called for the group 2 healers to go to their designated leader. Sol followed instructions and went there as well.
The leader of his group was an older woman noticeable by the slight wrinkles on her face and with long blond hair and wearing priest robes that dragged against the floor. She had a kind motherly aura to her that made those who were in her group feel reassured and safe. Once all the healers of group 2 gathered around her, she introduced herself.
Sol also felt a similar sense of security, but he didn't dare to underestimate her because of what he saw with [Mana Perception].
With [Mana Perception], he could see the invisible and intangible mana in the air and in people. If everyone around him had an amount of mana to fill a bucket, then this woman had enough to fill an entire bath. Sol knows that mana isn't the only determining factor of strength but when he used [Analysis], he was left even more surprised.
Name: ???
Race: ???
Talents:
[???], [???], [???] Level: ???
HP: ???
MP: ???
Str: ???
Vit: ???
Agi: ???
Int: ???
Wis: ???
Talent Skills:
[???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?
Passive Skills:
[???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?
Active Skills:
[???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?
Sol was barely able to hold in his surprise. For a second, he believed all group leaders were as strong as her and used [Analysis] on a few of them but quickly realized that she was different.
'Not a single detail was revealed? When I used it on Jayce even when he was 20 levels above me I could still see some information. The skill has leveled up since then so I should be able to see something, anything, right?'
As if detecting Sol's attempt at [Analysis], the woman looks directly at him and smiles.
'Crap.'
"It's rude to stare, young one."
"I'm sorry! I was just curious after seeing the mana density!"
Making no attempt to deny her comment or play dumb, Sol immediately fessed up not wanting to anger her and incur her wrath.
"You can see mana? Interesting… It's fine, but tread lightly, others might not be as easy going as me."
Feeling relieved as Sol felt like he just survived a near death encounter, he immediately thanked her.
"Yes! Thank you!"