Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 149 Airborne Boss

   It’s late December, the comfortable and cool autumn has passed, and now I don’t feel warm even with two layers of clothes on.

   Located in the low latitudes, Paratu is only icy on the coldest days of the year, but you can occasionally see hoarfrost on the ground in the morning.

   Outside Shuangqiao City, in the corner of the army camp, Bell was sitting in a daze in front of the fire.

  The wood was crackling and the wind blew the outer flame away from time to time, but the flame still stubbornly radiated light and heat.

   On a wet and cold winter day, this little flame is the only thing that makes one feel warm.

   Next to the bonfire is the top military tent, and Berrian came out of the tent with an iron pot.

   Seeing the blacksmith coming, Bell used a stick to make the fire more vigorous. Berian put the pot on the fire and turned back to the tent.

  Beside the tent, Anglo was humming an out-of-tune ditty, happily brushing a reddish-brown horse.

   "Second lieutenant doesn't usually ride Lezhik, why are you so diligent in brushing?" Bell picked up a stone and threw it at the stable: "If you have spare time! Come and help the blacksmith and me get food!"

   Anglo turned a deaf ear, still busy around the horse. Along with the rustling sound of the brush, Red Mane snored comfortably.

  The horse shepherd now only sees horses and ignores people at all.

   But another person by the fire crawled out of the blanket.

   "It's ready?" Pierre, who was half asleep, stretched his waist and asked tiredly, "I think I heard something to eat?"

   "There is something to eat, but it will be in an hour." Bell said, leaning on a fire stick, "If you two are willing to help, we can have something to eat earlier."

   "That's fine." Pierre slid back into the blanket: "Call me in an hour."

   "Slacker."

   "Let the shepherd help you, I was on the night watch last night."

   "Then can you go back to sleep in the tent? Don't get in the way."

   "It's colder in the tent than outside, there's the sun and fire outside." Pierre's consciousness gradually blurred: "I'm not you, I can hug the lion to keep warm."

  Bell was speechless.

  …

   The little hunter may be able to deceive others, but he can't deceive the comrades who share a wok and a tent.

   News spread quickly in the barracks, and the militiamen of the Wolf Town Centurion now knew that the second lieutenant had a pet.

   But most people thought it was a rare hound, only Pierre knew that it was a lion.

   Berian, Pierre, Anglo and Bale were all in the 10-man team in Vasica, and all of the 10-man team except the blacksmith were Dussac.

  Because he often had to take the lion cubs to the wild where no one else was in the air, the secret of the little hunter was soon discovered by several other members of the ten-member team.

  Although others were surprised when they first learned about this, they chose to hide it for Bell in the end.

   First, it is because of the friendship of "brothers on the same account". Second, the little lion is now about the size of a large dog, and it is still in a period of cuteness rather than scary.

  Because they shared the same secret, the relationship between them became even closer.

   Of course there is another potential reason: the lion cubs are kept in the officers' tent, and the background of this incident is obviously the Centurion of Montagne, and no one wants to feel uncomfortable with his immediate superior.

   In fact, Winters also had his own considerations for incorporating several people into a "group".

  [Note: Because the ten-person team shares a tent, it is also called "partner" or "tent"]

  Pierre and the pony are the best friends of the little hunter, and Vashka and the other three Dussacs are Pierre's friends. As for Berian, the blacksmith is usually taciturn, and is the most unlikely person to leak secrets.

   Those who knew the inside story kept their mouths shut, others spread the truth, and the news became "the second lieutenant raised a dog" in the end.

  …

  Angelo took care of the red bristles and pulled out the bristles for forced transport.

  The little stables were reluctant to keep two good horses in the stables of the large camp, so they built a stable on the edge of the camp.

  The water in the pot was already boiling, and Berian took out the wheat flour, meat, and a few wild vegetables from the tent, and started the soup.

   The sun is at its highest and it is the warmest time of the winter day.

  The other soldiers and civilians in the barracks were busy getting food to eat while the sun was shining.

  The hunter Bell can bring back a few rabbits and pheasants from the woods from time to time, and the blacksmith Bellion's cooking skills are excellent, so the food of the Wahika Ten is quite good.

  Other people's meals are good or bad, depending to a large extent on the level of the soldiers in charge.

  …

  Shuangqiao Camp is divided into areas by 100-man teams, and around the tents of the ten-man team in Wahika are the military tents of the people of Wolf Town. Next to the people of Wolf Town are the people of Heishui Town, and then the people of Sanke Town.

   Auxiliary soldiers from various sub-towns in the New Reclaimed Province camped in the open space on the east wing of the barracks, and they were now nominally affiliated with the First Auxiliary Corps of New Reclaimed Land.

  The wooden houses in the west wing of the main camp are mostly empty, which is the camp of the standing army.

  Although there are not many standing army soldiers in the main camp, the auxiliary soldiers are not qualified to live in the prefabricated houses and can only sleep in tents.

   In the center of the camp, the most heavily defended place, there were mountains of weapons and provisions.

  Shuangqiao Camp is close to the border and is the largest warehouse of the Pratu Army.

  A blood vessel-like network of roads brought war supplies from every city, town, and village of the Republic to this place.

   All baggage units that deliver supplies to the troops in the front must start from the Shuangqiao Camp.

   The Wolf Town Centuries are currently stationed in Shuangqiao Camp, responsible for loading and unloading operations.

  …

  Boiled water, wheat flour, vegetables, meat, sprinkled with a little salt and spices, boiled into a pot of fragrant noodle soup.

   Smelling the fragrance, Pierre climbed up, and Anglo also led Qiangyun back to the stable.

   Bell, Berrian, Pierre and Anglo sat around the fire. Berian, as usual, always gave others the first.

  Pierre took out the wooden bowl from his bag, wiped his clothes, and handed it to the blacksmith.

  Mr. Mitchell looked around sleepily, yawned, and asked, "Where are the four of them?"

   "Go to play." The blacksmith's answer was succinct.

   "Aren't you coming back now?"

   "Just went in the morning."

   Berrian handed Pierre the bowl with the noodle soup, and Pierre took the bowl and stared blankly at the fire.

   After a while, he lamented: "If you say it's a militia, what's the difference between us and the people?"

   "Of course there is a difference. The people have money to take it, but you don't have it." Bell said without looking up.

Next to   , Anglo snorted the noodle soup.

  …

   On October 27, 558, the imperial calendar, the Montagne Centuries arrived in Maplestone.

  After receiving the weapons from the garrison army camp, the centenarians went to Hosenberg non-stop to **** the baggage.

   Not only weapons were issued at the same time, the Legion also assigned twice as many laborers to the Centurions.

  The experienced Girard is right, he is called a militiaman, which is actually a civilian man with a weapon.

   Lieutenant Winters Montagne had eighty militiamen and one hundred and sixty men in name, but in reality two hundred and forty laborers.

For nearly two months after   , Winters led his men to travel around the Republic of Palatu, escorting, loading and unloading, building camps, and repairing roads...

  The Land of Galloping Horses had already fought with the Hurd tribes, but basically it had nothing to do with the Wolf Town Centuries.

   In mid-October, when the 5th and 6th legions of Palatu crossed the boundary river, Wolf Town had not yet drawn a dice.

When the    follow-up troops marched towards the territory of the Heard tribes, the Wolf Town Centurion was driving a cart on the country road.

  For the people of Wolftown, "war" is nothing but hard physical labor, good news chanted on the street, and the occasional news from other soldiers.

   Pierre and other young Dussacs sighed. For them, war was originally a saber hanging on the wall, an adventure story told by their parents, and an uncle and uncle's drunken boast.

   They all still have some dreams of making achievements and heroism. As a result, I have been working as a poor for two months, and I have only done physical labor for two months.

   But not having to take risks in combat, Winters was satisfied. In the military camps such as Maplestone Camp and Shuangqiao Camp, he also unexpectedly reunited with many classmates.

   Before, Lieutenant Veneta was scattered all over Palatu, and it was rare to meet each other. Now that the army is recruiting militias from all over the country, everyone has the opportunity to leave the station and encounter them on the road or in the military camp from time to time.

   During the few months in Palato, Lieutenant Veneta had a very difficult time, and they had endless things to say to each other.

After    inquiries, Winters got bad news: Lieutenant Veneta never saw Gold, and naturally he didn't receive the gold coins that Torgold brought him.

  The pirate chief was greedy for money and stole the money?

  Impossible, if that's the case, it's impossible for Ciel to make it to Wolf Town alive. The only possibility was that Gold had an accident.

   With no other way, Winters had no choice but to write to Girard for help, hoping that Girard could help inquire through the relationship of Major Ronald in the county station, but he has not replied yet.

   By mid-December, the collection of materials in the Land of Galloping Horses had come to an end.

  The mountains of grain, ordnance, and ammunition are stored in the Shuangqiao Camp. The Palatu Army is not short of materials now, but it lacks the ability to transport the baggage to the front line.

   Therefore, starting from mid-December, auxiliary troops from all over the country have successively concentrated towards the Shuangqiao Camp.

It has been more than a week since the   Montagne Centuries arrived at Camp Shuangqiao.

  …

   Depression is depression, but you still have to eat.

   A pot of noodle soup was eaten cleanly by four people.

   Anglo scraped the bottom of the pot with a spoon and praised, "Blacksmith, why are your things so delicious?"

  Berion smiled and said nothing.

  Pierre hiccupped and asked casually, "Are you on duty in the afternoon?"

   "No, it's Little Rock's turn today."

   "Then we can play dice?"

   "I can't." Anglo replied while eating, "I'm going to take Ryzhik out for a run in the afternoon."

   "What about you?" Pierre looked at the hunter.

  Bell shook his head: "I have something to do too."

  Pierre looked at the blacksmith again, who didn't even need to ask.

  Mr. Mitchell got back into the blanket again: "Then I'd better go to sleep."

   Several people were chatting, and a man with a saber in his left hand and a suitcase on his right shoulder walked into the wolf town camp.

  The man stopped a wolf town militiaman and asked casually, "Is this the Montagne Centuries?"

   The number is rarely used in the army, and it is customary to call a unit by the name of the commander. For example, the Montagne Centuries, the Contél Brigade and so on. But for the militia, they prefer to call someone from the town of so-and-so.

   The wolf town militiaman who was stopped was stunned for a moment, then nodded and answered yes.

   "Where are the Bud and Cellini Centuries?"

  Wolf Town Militia asked in confusion: "What Budd Centurion and Cellini Centurion?"

"He's asking about the people from St. Kee and Blackwater." Pierre heard the conversation and crawled out of the blanket: "It's over there, the people from Lieutenant Cellini over there, and over there Lieutenant Bud's men."

   Pierre pointed it casually, and his eyes were involuntarily attracted to the man in front of him.

   This is a tall, strong male wearing an old cavalry uniform. The outline of the lower jaw is covered by a thick beard, and the high nose bridge divides the facial features in half.

   This face will never be forgotten by anyone because a black eye patch covers the man's left eye - he is a one-eyed dragon.

   But when he looked at a person with his only right eye, it was more oppressive than other people's two eyes combined.

   "Where is Lieutenant Montagne now?"

   "It should be in the officer's quarters." Pierre asked as politely as possible: "Who are you?"

The    Cyclops man did not answer, but said coldly: "Call Lieutenant Montagne, Lieutenant Cellini and Lieutenant Bud to come and see me."

   "Who are you?" Pierre asked again.

   "I'm John Jessica." The one-eyed man seemed to smile, and threw the luggage on his shoulders to the ground. He stared at Pierre and said, "I am your lieutenant colonel."

  …

  When Pierre found Winters, the three centurions were having lunch with Friar Carmen and Friar Rhett.

   Hearing that someone claimed to be Lieutenant Colonel Jesska, Winters, Andre and Bud threw down the cutlery and went to the Wolftown camp.

Although the   Auxiliary Corps is an auxiliary corps, it also has a complete organization, and there is also a brigade command layer between the corps and the Centuries.

The   Montagne Centuries were nominally the 1st Auxiliary Corps, 3rd Battalion, 1st Centuries of the New Reclaimed Province, and Andre and Budd commanded the 2nd and 3rd Centuries.

   There are currently only three hundred teams in the entire third brigade, which is considered a half.

   The previous missions were based on centenary operations, so there was no group commander, and Winters received orders directly from the Palatine Army Logistics Department.

   It was only yesterday that Winters was informed that Lieutenant Colonel Jan Jesska had been appointed as the commander of the 3rd Brigade and was due to take up his post soon.

   A few people were chatting at the dinner table just now, guessing the whereabouts of the captain, but they didn't expect this "Lieutenant Colonel Jesska" to come so quickly.

   The three of them had just arrived at the centenary camp in Wolf Town, but they learned that the lieutenant colonel had already gone to the legion headquarters. The three centurions who had just trotted all the way from the officers' quarters in the center of the camp had no choice but to turn back.

   Finally, they met the one-eyed lieutenant colonel at the Legion Archives.

   The one-eyed lieutenant colonel stood in front of the desk of the chief archive officer [Carl Heinrich Angus], with a saber and a rucksack on the colonel's desk.

   And Lieutenant Colonel Jesska himself was looking at a file with his only right eye left.

   Seeing the three second lieutenants knocking on the door and entering the room, Colonel Angus found a reason to walk away, leaving Jesska and his three subordinates alone.

   "You three." The one-eyed lieutenant colonel leaned on the desk and asked in a bad tone, "How come you have been reduced to commanding the militia?"

   Thanks to the book friends who have voted for recommendation before;

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Thanks to the book friends Moonlight Frontier, the Yellow Rabbit of the Flower Gardener, the Yellow Rabbit of the Flower Gardener, the Stone of Last Night, the Kingfisher, I Don’t Know What It’s Called, Calm Ashes, Sky Lens, Book Friends 20191007064305842, Soda Bird, book friend 120325172509365, Jiang Xue Diao Weng, Wu is Xiao Gao's recommendation ticket, thank you all.

   (end of this chapter)