When the Saintess Arrives, No King Exist-Chapter 812 - 763: Simple-Minded Norn People

As Jeanne entered the conference room, officers of all ranks were seated around the long table, intently listening to Horn explain the situation.

She gently patted her chest and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Tiptoeing to the table, Jeanne had just turned to pull out a chair when a whistle sounded behind her.

Jeanne turned sharply, only to see two rows of resolute faces, unable to discern who had whistled.

Rudilo and Kolman, those big mouths!

Feeling her ears turn red, Jeanne glared at them viciously before sitting down next to the main seat.

"Ah, good, now that Jeanne is here, we can get to the main topic." Horn quickly steered the conversation back on track.

Even though it was an emergency meeting, Horn had sent word to them in the afternoon, so they were fairly well-prepared.

One by one, items were placed on the table, and these battle group officers and staff monks approved them one by one.

How many soldiers need to be recruited this time? How many civilian workers need to be mobilized locally? How many orders for guns and cannons should be issued to Gray Furnace Town? How many carts, horses, and mules need to be assembled?

Field officers and central staff monks quickly exchanged information, and clerks came in and out, piling up even more documents, maps, and ink bottles on the table.

"Your Majesty," Jeanne suddenly spoke up, "regarding the personnel issue we discussed earlier, there is someone who might have a solution."

Horn, who was struggling with the household register, looked up: "Who?"

"When I went out earlier, a teacher from Saint Danji Military Academy gave us a suggestion, and I think it's reliable," Jeanne said straightforwardly, "though his identity is somewhat special."

"Somewhat special? Bring him in then; if he has a good idea, his identity doesn't matter."

A minute later, a scruffy middle-aged man walked in.

Looking at the man who had walked in, Horn felt he looked familiar but couldn't recall where he'd seen him before.

Fortunately, the secret monk beside him reminded him: "This is Griffin, the head of the Eagle Corps."

Horn suddenly realized that these were the mercenary corps that had fought a bloody battle with them at Cheese Bay.

After the war, these top two imperial mercenary corps were disbanded, and most of the soldiers were integrated into new local armies or became instructors.

Of the two mercenary corps leaders, Jidado had previously been favored by Moliat and became a military advisor.

But due to involvement in a noble espionage case, he was exiled to the eastern county of Black Snake Bay.

Griffin and other mid-level officers, such as Square Array Commanders, were integrated into Saint Danji Military Academy to teach officers.

Previously, Victor and the others had complained about how a defeated underling was now teaching them classes.

But the truth was, the Eagle Corps, as a prominent mercenary corps for decades, had a wealth of experience and combat history from fighting across various countries and regions.

Although their military theory wasn't systematic or profound, they were quite adept at basic theory and command for lower and mid-level officers.

This was precisely what Horn's young army lacked the most.

"Mr. Griffin, it's been a long time." Horn stepped forward and shook his hand.

Griffin's expression was complicated: "I salute you, Your Majesty."

"Jeanne said you have some insights to share?" Lefi asked sardonically.

"I wouldn't call them insights," Griffin said. "When I heard of the Duke's crushing defeat and Nedbach's setback, I knew you must be worried about manpower.

From my perspective, with your control, recruiting another twenty to thirty thousand wouldn't be a problem, but I'm still moved by your compassion.

I'll put forth a humble suggestion: have you considered using foreign mercenaries to supplement your manpower shortage?"

"Mercenaries are of too low quality," an officer below interrupted before Horn could speak, "in the past, my infantry regiment of 500 could sweep through your array of 2500!"

"That's impressive," Griffin didn't bother looking at the speaking officer, "but what I mean is that after hiring mercenaries, we could break them down and retrain them."

Horn blinked: "Please continue."

"You see, mercenaries have undergone basic drill and weapon training.

By weeding out the freeloaders and retraining the rest, they could meet your minimum combat requirements in one or two months."

Horn realized what he meant.

Just like standardized units, the Holy Alliance's training system was standardized.

Commands were identical, training was identical, replacing an officer would result in identical command, so why insist on using Thousand River Valley people?

Of course, the basic conditions must be met; it's just a matter of lifting identity restrictions.

They might struggle in a tough battle like at Cheese Bay, but they'd suffice for conventional engagements.

Dass spoke up: "Are you suggesting we recruit from others' territories and use their manpower to fight our battles?"

"Exactly."

"So where would we recruit from?"

Hearing foreign recruits would join, many officers felt uncomfortable.

"The classic source of recruits, the Norn Mountain People on the eastern side of the Dragon Sleep Mountain Range: they're close, fight hard, and have a good reputation."

"What about morale and wages?"

"Offer them half the daily wage, cover their meals and board, and for three years they won't have any complaints." Griffin looked like no one understood the Norn people better than him. "Pay them enough and, while their morale isn't the same as yours, it's not too far off."

"Why?"

"The Norn people are very straightforward; they live for loyalty to money."

The senior officers exchanged whispers, with some supporting and others opposing.

"We can give it a try," Horn ultimately decided. "Let's start by recruiting 4000 as a trial run."

......

After a night of meetings, the officers gradually left to start preparations.

Horn and Jeanne, however, decided to grab breakfast and catch three hours of sleep before heading to Rapids City.

After all, Moliat's war bond mess was still left there.

Horn already had some clues on how to alleviate the war bond issue.

Withdrawing money from the Holy Treasury for a short time wouldn't sustain the finances.

Since domestic debt and finances were not free for use, they'd have to rely on foreign debt.

On this matter, Catherine had already discussed with him: if the Holy Alliance sold bonds to them using workshops and land as collateral, the Falan Kingdom would certainly buy.

Falan people wanted workshops and land, but they hadn't declared it.

If the Holy Alliance sold them bonds, and should King Jiji occupy the Thousand River Valley in the future, they'd have a legitimate reason to invade, and it could unite many new nobles and citizens at home.

Because for them, land claims and titles were unimportant; what mattered was the market and workshops.

Currently, Catherine was handling this affair.

Based on Horn's observations of the Falan people's behavior, they were very likely to take the bait.

"Your Majesty..."

As they stepped out of the Holy Arrival Hall, Horn had just placed one foot outside when he saw the nearly hundred officers who had acted as guards earlier still present.

In the morning light, the officers formed a circle, quietly waiting outside the door.

Most of these officers had been promoted from the rank of Captain Ten, and upon graduation, could sequentially take the position of commander of a fifty-member unit.

Previously, many fifty-member unit commanders had to return to military school to take supplementary courses.

Entrance to military school also required exams to ensure familiarity with reading, writing, and arithmetic, allowing for normal reading and comprehension.

At a minimum, they had served in the military for two years and attended military supplemental classes.

Military school was designed to teach specialized tactics and knowledge related to their troop type, as well as cultural courses and related concepts.

Quick learners could graduate in one to two years, while slower ones took two to three years.

However, as Saint Danji Military Academy had only been established for two and a half years, the highest grade students were only in the first half of their second year.

Now, upon hearing of impending war, they were understandably anxious.

"Your Majesty, are the Leia people going to invade ahead of schedule?"

Horn hesitated for a moment, but decided to speak the truth: "Yes."

"What should we do? I've only been in school for half a year," said a worried young officer from Black Snake Bay.

Horn surveyed the surroundings: "I know what you're thinking. Soon, you'll have to end your studies early and enter the battlefield.

I know you're being thrown into the deep end, just as I am, and we're all in the same boat.

Read when you don't know something, ask people when you're unsure, learn as you go, you're all real combat veterans, is that really a concern?

Let me tell you, your teachers at military school will also join the army as staff advisors.

It's estimated to be more than half a year until the outbreak of war, so consider it your new semester's practical and final exam."