Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World-Chapter 694: Understanding

TL: Rui88

“This is so boring. Are we just going to keep waiting around here?”

Private Jose West grumbled as he added firewood to the fire.

He took a full bowl of porridge and stirred it fiercely with his spoon.

“What, is waiting around not good enough for you? Are you in such a hurry to fight the orcs to the death?”

The squad leader next to him found it somewhat amusing.

Jose explained, “What I mean is, the sooner we fight, the sooner we can go back. Sleeping in tents every day is nowhere near as comfortable as living in proper barracks.”

The squad leader’s face hardened, and he admonished him, “Finish the fight early? How much do you underestimate the orcs? They’re not like those peasants who just put down their hoes. You’ll suffer if you look down on them like that. I reckon the higher-ups must want to be fully prepared before they attack.”

“Anyway, they’re not as terrifying as the legends say!” Jose’s eyebrows danced. “It’s just a matter of one bullet…”

Recalling the battle from a few days ago, the feeling, both frightening and stimulating, was unforgettable.

Especially when those tall savages, brandishing their swords, charged right up to him, their ferocious and terrifying faces right in front of his own. Jose had been so nervous and scared that he felt an urge to urinate, but within that urge, there was, inexplicably, a thrilling sensation that went to his head. It was damned strange.

“Stand! Salute!”

The squad leader suddenly stood up and roared.

Jose quickly stood up, as did the others.

Only then did they notice a tall, blonde woman walking towards them, followed by a group of people.

They were all dressed in impeccably tailored, magnificent clothes, their coats embroidered with intricate and exquisite patterns, like the crests of those noble families with long histories in the south.

This was vastly different from the style of dress in Northwest Bay. For a long time, due to a lack of material resources, the people of the Northwest, from nobles to commoners, had rather plain attire, prioritizing convenience.

This had already become a tradition, one that was maintained even after so many years of rapid progress.

“Your Highness! My lords!”

The squad leader, with great solemnity, led the salute to Catherine and her retinue.

She was the royal princess? The fiancée of Lord Grayman?

Jose raised his hand and saluted Catherine in a proper manner.

“Relax, soldiers!”

A smile appeared on the princess’s face. Her demeanor was dignified yet approachable. Her long, wavy hair seemed to be veiled in a holy light under the sun’s rays, and her azure eyes were reminiscent of sapphires.

“Ah, Lord Grayman must be very happy,” Jose thought with envy.

Just then, he felt a chill and subconsciously shifted his gaze. He saw a black-haired female knight beside the princess staring at him with a cold gaze.

“This black-haired one is quite stuck-up,” Jose thought, feeling a little intimidated by her stare, like he was being reprimanded by an instructor.

The person he was grumbling about was Ofina.

Ever since experiencing the betrayal of the Bradley Family, the female knight had come to view everyone in this land, so far from Crystal Shine, with a scrutinizing eye.

“Are you having your meal?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Catherine observed the small squad’s meal with great interest.

In front of each man was a cold vegetable salad, the aroma indicating the use of vinegar and sauce, which was very appetizing. The staple food was large pieces of flatbread or bread, along with a generous portion of dried meat. A large bowl of thick porridge made with flour, vegetables, and minced meat ensured that the soldiers did not have to chew and swallow dryly.

Although it was not refined, it was certainly sincere.

To their surprise, they also noticed a small bottle next to one soldier’s utensils, which seemed to contain… salt!

Salt as white as snow!

Catherine asked, “Is this what you eat?”

“Uh… since we’re at the front, we can only make do,” the squad leader said, scratching his head with some embarrassment.

The people from Crystal Shine were having a hard time containing themselves.

Through their observations over the past few days, they could now identify the ranks of the Alda army soldiers by the striped insignia on their shoulders—that is, their military rank.

It was clear that this group of men were just ordinary soldiers, the very bottom layer of the military pyramid.

For a mere bunch of grunts, a meal where the staple food was plentiful, with meat and vegetables, and even seasonings, was in their eyes “making do.”

In other parts of the kingdom, for the lords’ armies… and even the royal army, the lowest-ranking soldiers were lucky to have a piece of black bread to gnaw on and a sip of light beer to drink. They could only get better food after a victory—either as a reward or from plunder.

After all these years, Klein and Ofina and the others had long since shed their old stereotype of Northwest Bay as a barren land. They knew Alda was wealthy, but they had not expected them to be this wealthy.

Just as people were focusing on the soldiers’ food, Catherine was drawn to something else.

“What is this?”

She bent down and picked up a book, or rather, a small booklet.

“Ah, that’s mine,” Jose said hastily.

“Your Highness, this is a natural history handbook,” the squad leader explained proactively. “Uh… actually, that’s not quite accurate. Specifically, it only records various matters in the Blackstone region.”

“Including local customs and traditions, mountains and rivers, geography, plants, and so on. For example, which plants are edible, which are poisonous, as well as various local slang and taboos.”

Catherine looked at Jose. “You can read?”

Jose nodded honestly. “Yes, Your Highness.” 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

“Does that mean you are usually responsible for teaching them this knowledge?”

Catherine felt a little injustice for the soldier before her. That Paul would let such a person be a common grunt.

“No,” Jose shook his head. “They read it themselves.”

“They read it themselves?” Catherine and her retinue were surprised.

“Your Highness, each of us has one,” the squad leader said, also taking out his own booklet.

“You can all read?” Klein could not help but ask.

“Yes,” the squad leader nodded. “It’s a mandatory requirement in the army. We must master reading and writing.”

Incredible!

That was all Catherine could say in her heart.

“May I have a look?”

“Of course, Your Highness. Please, take a look. There are no secrets in it.”

Catherine quickly finished flipping through the booklet and returned it to Jose.

She said to them with a solemn expression, “Soldiers, you must not let your booklets fall into the hands of the orcs. It would be better to destroy them.”

Although the contents did not involve any military secrets, it could still provide great convenience to whoever possessed it.

“Your Highness!”

At that moment, an attendant came running over in a hurry, somewhat out of breath.

“I have finally found you!”

Catherine’s heart suddenly clenched. Could something have happened? Were the orcs about to attack?

“What is it? Speak quickly!” Her tone could not help but carry a note of severity.

The attendant quickly replied, “Count Grayman has arrived here!”