Giant Dragon Lord: Starting from Daily Intelligence-Chapter 188 - 182: Three-Day Aerial Cavalry Training
Raylo swung himself onto Baofeng’s back.
From his high vantage point, his gaze swept slowly over the hundred-odd Sky Knights before him, each with a different expression.
"My name is Raylo. For the foreseeable future, I will be your commander."
His voice carried clearly to every person’s ears.
"I don’t care what family you come from or which Lord you serve. From now on, you have only one identity."
"And that is a member of the Northern Alliance Army’s Flying Knight Order."
"My demands are simple. First, obey orders. Second, forget your undisciplined fighting styles. Learn to fly as one, to fight as one."
Raylo drew the Knight’s Longsword from his waist, its tip pointed toward the sky.
"Three days from now, we will be the first dagger to pierce the heart of the Fiery Sun Kingdom. We will either tear through their defensive lines, claim the heads of three hundred Pegasi, and bring victory to our army... or we will be shattered against the enemy’s blades, leaving not even our bones behind."
"Now, does anyone wish to withdraw?"
A hush fell, broken only by the restless breathing of the mounts.
Not a single person moved.
A Knight’s honor would not allow them to retreat before a battle.
"Very good."
Raylo sheathed his Long Sword.
"Everyone, take to the skies! Circle Panshi Castle three times. I want to see what you’re made of!"
At his command, more than a hundred pairs of massive wings beat simultaneously, kicking up a furious gale.
Over a hundred Flying Magical Beasts carried their masters soaring into the air. They circled above Panshi Castle, casting a vast, shifting shadow below.
Raylo took a deep breath and patted Baofeng’s neck.
"Baofeng, let’s go!"
The Storm Griffin King let out a roar. With a single flap of its wings, it shot toward the heavens like a bolt of brownish-yellow lightning, flying toward the somewhat messy aerial formation.
Above Panshi Castle, the supposedly uniform flight formation had completely fallen apart after just three laps.
Their speeds were inconsistent, their altitudes staggered. They looked like a flock of startled crows.
Some Knights, eager to show off their mounts’ speed, had rushed far ahead of the group.
Others trailed cautiously behind, terrified their precious mounts might collide with another Magical Beast.
Worse yet, two hot-tempered Horned Owl Beasts were screeching and provoking each other mid-air. Instead of stopping them, their masters were shouting insults at each other, causing chaos in the vicinity.
Raylo, mounted on Baofeng’s back, hovered high above, watching the scene unfold with a cold gaze.
His expression was calm; he had anticipated all of this.
"Enough."
His voice cut through the clamor.
The chaotic formation faltered. Everyone looked up at the figure gazing down on them from on high, like a god.
"Descend. Return to the training grounds."
The Knights landed one after another, their lines crooked and uneven. Many of their mounts shoved each other while vying for position, and the scene once again dissolved into a mess.
Raylo landed last. Baofeng folded its wings, its heavy body landing with a dull THUD. The resulting blast of wind pressure forced several nearby Flying Magical Beasts to take a few uneasy steps back.
He walked to the front of the group, his eyes sweeping over their faces, some defiant, others embarrassed.
"I thought I was assembling a group of Knights, not a gaggle of rich fops out for a stroll with their pet birds."
Raylo’s voice was devoid of any emotion.
"A disorganized rabble."
Raylo’s words made all the proud, arrogant Sky Knights lose face.
That one phrase made the faces of most Knights present turn beet-red.
They were the pride of their respective territories. When had they ever suffered such humiliation?
"Alex."
Raylo said to Alex, who was beside him.
"From now on, you will serve as my second-in-command and as the flight instructor."
"Yes, my Lord!"
Alex accepted without a moment’s hesitation.
"Now, re-form the ranks."
Raylo’s voice became stern once more.
"All Knights whose mounts have reached Tier Three, step forward."
A stir went through the crowd, and soon, eleven Knights stepped out.
Their mounts were varied in form—from Scorpion-tailed Lions with the bodies of lions and tails of scorpions, to ferocious Horned Owl Beasts. Every one of them was a powerful Tier Three Magical Beast.
Only the heirs of nobility or exceptionally capable Talent Knights could ride Tier Three Magical Beasts. An unconcealable arrogance was evident in the expressions of these eleven individuals.
"You eleven will form the Sharp Blade Squad."
Then, he turned to the rest.
"The rest of you will form squads of ten and elect your own squad leaders. You have ten minutes."
The first day of training began under this immense pressure.
The drills were mind-numbingly tedious.
Formation flying.
"Third squad, your altitude is too low! Are you trying to be target practice for the Giant Beast Legion on the ground?"
"Seventh squad! Maintain your spacing! Are you trying to kiss in mid-air?"
Alex’s roars were relentless.
Every minor mistake was pointed out without mercy.
By the end of the day, every Knight was exhausted. The mental fatigue far outweighed the physical.
But the results were significant. When they landed at dusk, the formation, while still far from perfect, now had a basic sense of structure and discipline.
「On the second day, the training escalated.」
Squad-based combat drills.
Raylo broke up the ten regular squads and had them conduct simulated aerial battles of two-on-two and three-on-three.
For a time, the sky above the camp was filled with ceaseless whistling sounds as lights of various-colored Fighting Spirit and Magic clashed and intertwined.
However, the Knights’ fighting styles were still steeped in individual heroism.
They were accustomed to fighting alone, seeking opportunities for one-on-one "duels" with the enemy, completely oblivious to how to coordinate and use their numerical advantage.
’A bunch of idiots!’
Raylo frowned as he watched from Baofeng’s back. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮
He shifted his gaze to the Sharp Blade Squad, the one composed of Tier Three Magical Beast Knights.
The eleven of them were gathered off to one side, watching the "rookies pecking at each other" below with expressions of superiority.
"You think they’re fighting poorly?"
Raylo’s voice drifted over to them.
The temporary leader of the Sharp Blade Squad, a young noble named Gavin who rode a magnificent Scorpion-tailed Lion, answered arrogantly.
"My Lord, their fighting is completely undisciplined."
"Oh?"
A knowing smile played on Raylo’s lips.
"Then how would you like a real battle?"
He clapped his hands, and ten brownish-yellow figures shot into the sky from the other side of Panshi Castle. It was the Storm Griffin Knights he had trained himself.
They made no unnecessary screeches, silently forming a standard wedge-shaped attack formation in the air. Their Iron Feathers glinted coldly in the sunlight, and a sharp, killing aura washed over the field.
The faces of the Sharp Blade Squad Knights changed slightly.
"The eleven of you against their ten."
Raylo said flatly.
"The rules are simple. Either render the enemy’s mount incapable of fighting, or... make the enemy Knight fall from the sky."
