After everything with Rocky was settled, Lin Feng left, and with the day having fully dawned and Rocky needing recuperation, the entire defense of the village fell on Lin Feng alone, which meant he couldn’t afford to stay for long.
After Lin Feng had left, Rocky assigned Liliya a new task, asking her to check on the mood of the Guard Corps. At such a critical moment, it would be very troubling if there were any issues among the Guard Corps.
This task would normally have been done by Rocky himself, because even though Liliya and Monte were highly regarded in the hearts of the guards, they still couldn’t compare to Rocky. In the eyes of the guards, Rocky was not only their City Lord but also their idol. His personal presence would have definitely boosted their morale considerably.
Regrettably, it wasn’t that Rocky didn’t want to go, but his body simply didn’t allow it. The previous battle had completely drained him, and he couldn’t get out of bed without a day’s rest. If he had gone to the Guard Corps in his frail condition, it likely would not have boosted their morale, but instead, might have demoralized them even further.
Therefore, this task could only be entrusted to Liliya to first check on the spirits of the guards.
And once Liliya had also left the tent, the bedridden Rocky quietly lay on his bed, pondering how to defend next while he waited for time to slowly pass.
A day slowly went by, and it was yet another uneventful day…
As for today’s calm, whether it was Rocky, Lin Feng, or anyone else, they all had expected it, since a similar situation had just happened recently.
The recurrence of similar conditions had given everyone experience; they all knew this moment of calm was just the quiet before the next storm arrived.
Yet likewise, this foreboding also increased everyone’s stress, because it implied that when the demons appeared next time, a fierce battle would erupt again!
Facing this imminent fierce battle, no one could prevent it; everyone could only wait behind the small high walls, waiting for what was inevitable to gradually arrive.
However, this calm wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for Backhill Village now; at the very least, it allowed the soldiers who had just fought in the dreadful battle to fully rest and the injured soldiers to take the chance to heal.
Just like that, the next day arrived in the blink of an eye.
The bedridden Rocky was finally able to get out of bed. After he left his bed, he moved around to stretch his muscles and found that although there was still a sensation of soreness, it was essentially manageable; participating in the next battle would absolutely not be a problem.
With that, he immediately went to the Guard Corps.
The day before, Rocky had arranged for Liliya to check on the guards, but the news Liliya brought back wasn’t good. After the previous dreadful battle, the morale of the guards was very low, almost as if they had been through a devastating defeat.
This worried Rocky a lot, because in the upcoming battle, the Guard Corps would be the main defense force. If there were issues with their mindset, then the battle could not be fought. So the moment Rocky recovered, he hurried to the Guard Corps.
It wasn’t long before Rocky arrived at the small training field of the camp. The guards had just finished their routine training and were resting.
“My lord!”
“My lord!”
“My lord, you’ve come!”
The guards, who were resting on the spot, quickly stood up at the sight of Rocky and instinctively began to form ranks.
“No need to form ranks; I just came to see how you all are. Please, sit down.”
Waving his hand at everyone, Rocky not only dispensed with formalities but also sat down on the ground with them.
“How are you holding up?”
Sitting in a circle with the guards, Rocky didn’t give a speech but instead started chatting with them.
Through this mission, especially after several consecutive battles, Rocky had become very familiar with these guards, and now he could accurately name each person in the Guard Corps.
Similarly, the guards had become more familiar with him than before. At this point, although they still respected Rocky greatly, they no longer felt he was so unapproachable, but rather more affable.
However, even so, when Rocky finished speaking, everyone still fell into silence, their heads lowered, none responding to his question, which made the atmosphere turn tense.
“I heard from Liliya that you are not in a good state?”
In this tense atmosphere, Rocky spoke again.
Unfortunately, no one answered him this time either.
“Are you… afraid of battle?” Rocky asked calmly as he looked at the silent guards, “Or is it that… you are afraid of dying?”
When he finished these words, some of the silent guards raised their heads, some even with tears in their eyes.
Death, a common occurrence on battlefields, is something no one wants to accept or even mention. Yet, in the last battle, although the casualties within the Guard Corps were fewer than those of Backhill Village’s troops, people still died on the battlefield, an unprecedented occurrence for everyone, leaving them unsure of how to cope.
“Lord… Uncle Reed died… he died…”
At that moment, a young figure suddenly stood up and looked at Rocky.
“Robin…”
The one who stood up was none other than Robin, the youngest member of the Guard Corps. He looked at Rocky while tears streamed down his face, appearing overwhelmingly distressed.
As for Reed, whom he mentioned, Rocky knew him well. Reed was a naively honest uncle, just a year younger than Aga, and was considered an elder in the Guard Corps. He usually took good care of everyone and was particularly protective of Robin, the youngest. Therefore, the two had a very good relationship and emotional connection.
However, during the last battle, Reed did not survive; he was pierced in the chest by a demon and died instantly.
This incident had deeply affected Robin. Therefore, when Rocky mentioned death, Robin thought of Reed, and his emotions instantly became uncontrollable, bursting into tears and sobs.
Rocky had a profound impression of Robin. He still remembered how this tiger-headed young man looked during the assessment, and through their interactions over this period, he understood that Robin was entirely driven by emotions.
Following that, Rocky beckoned to Robin, signaling him to come over.
“Robin, are you scared? Scared of dying on the battlefield like Reed?”
“No! I’m not scared! I want to avenge Uncle Reed!”
Asked thus by Rocky, Robin immediately lifted his head, his assertion unwavering.
This response made Rocky nod and then he turned to the other guards, asking the same question.
“Are you scared? Are you scared of dying on the battlefield like Reed?”
The same question, yet there were different answers. Some guards shook their heads, others lowered theirs, everyone reacted differently.
“Sir… aren’t you… aren’t you scared? Aren’t you afraid of dying…”
It was unclear who suddenly asked Rocky in return, directing everyone’s gaze towards him.
“Not scared.”
Without the slightest hesitation, Rocky shook his head: “I am not afraid, because I have all of you.”
Such a reply stunned all the guards, but Rocky did not elaborate further. He promptly stood up: “Everyone, buck up! We will definitely make it back alive this time!”
After saying this, he left the drill ground and headed straight for his tent, moving very hurriedly.
He was indeed in a hurry because while he was chatting with the guards, he saw Monte arriving at the camp with Felly, and Monte soon gave him a meaningful glance from afar, indicating they go inside the tent first.
Given the circumstances, Rocky had to abruptly end the conversation, as clearly something was up!
In this mission, Felly had not stayed in Backhill Village to participate in the frontal combat but had been assigned by Rocky as the Commander of the Skyship, in charge of directing ten skyships to support the battlefield. Enjoy exclusive adventures from empire
After the last battle, Rocky had ordered the skyships to patrol in groups of two around Backhill Village daily, and to immediately report any demon sightings; Felly was responsible for this task.
Therefore, in principle, Felly should not have appeared at the camp; he should have been commanding the skyships from the sky!
Back in the tent, Rocky saw Felly and Monte already waiting for him.
“Felly, what’s the problem?”
As soon as he saw Felly, Rocky immediately asked.
“Sir, I spotted demons while patrolling!”
Without wasting any time, Felly directly said, and upon hearing this, Rocky couldn’t help but take a deep breath. The demons came so soon?
“How many demons did you see? When are they likely to attack?”
As he spoke, Rocky was ready to leave the tent and lead his troops out to strike.
But at that moment, Felly stopped him: “Sir, please don’t worry, we’ve scattered the demons, but I came back to report because something seemed off.”
“What?”
Rocky sharply turned towards Felly, not understanding his meaning.