The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

Chapter 174 The Army of Anjou

At the border between the Kingdom of Cape and the Kingdom of Anjou, a reconnaissance squad from the Kingdom of Anjou is traversing the forest, searching for opportunities for the professional army behind them.

Under the reforms of Alberto, the new ruler of Anjou, the main fighting force of Anjou's army is now a well-organized legion of professionals.

Their combat power is more than one level stronger than that of the Cape Kingdom.

This doesn't mean that the Cape has fewer professionals, but rather that the Cape simply lacks the power to bring these professionals together and make them obey a single command.

Capet's combat system is more like a mercenary model where one or more professionals lead a group of ordinary people into battle.

The advantage is that it can quickly build up combat power. Professionals themselves have enough deterrent power, so there is no need to consider whether their subordinates will obey orders. Whether it is to suppress bandits or defend the border, the Cape system can quickly bring up combat power.

This system is even more cost-effective, since when you pay military salaries, you only need to pay the leading professional, and the professional can solve the rest of the problems within their own team.

Of course, the main reason for the formation of this system is that the entire kingdom of Capet lacks a unified command system, and can only let those professionals fight for their own lords in the form of mercenaries.

It wasn't until the Lars family reformed the border army system in order to fight against the demons, and then implemented this system throughout the entire kingdom.

At least now the border troops are no longer managed by individual border lords, but are commanded by the ducal families of each territory. Although the form of the army has not changed much, at least the border troops have a unified command system.

Even so, compared to the Kingdom of Anjou today, the overall quality of its army is vastly different, and Anjou does not rely entirely on organized professional armies.

Anjou's rise to power was not instantaneous. Before Alberto rapidly consolidated power through bloody means, previous kings of Anjou had already laid the groundwork for reforms.

The most important aspect is the professional training. In Cape, if someone only knows one type of magic and doesn't understand how magic works, they might not even qualify as an apprentice. They would be a typical good-for-nothing who wouldn't even be wanted by professionals, and their life might not be much better than that of an ordinary person.

However, Anjou has a specialized education system to cultivate these "typical failures".

Even if you have no magical talent whatsoever, as long as you have a little magical affinity and can learn the most basic spell, even if it takes many times the time, Anjou has special schools and courses for you to learn.

The simplest example is Eagle Eye. Anjou already has the prototype of a military academy, and it will also train scouts who can use Eagle Eye. These students usually undergo normal military scout training, and in addition to this training, they will also be taught the most basic Eagle Eye technique.

Students who are typically sent here to learn Eagle Eye take several times, or even dozens of times, longer than proper spellcasters. Such people are typical good-for-nothings in the Kingdom of Cape; they may have magical affinity, but that's all.

Unless they are children of nobles, no one in the Kingdom of Capet would invest a lot of resources in such people.

However, Anjou already has a relatively complete education system in this regard. You don't need to understand the working principle behind Eagle Eye, or even understand what magic is. You just need to learn how to use Eagle Eye.

Once you've learned it, you'll be sent to the military camp to become a reconnaissance scout specializing in eagle-eye techniques.

This is completely different from the concept of a scout-type professional in Cape. A scout-type professional in Cape not only needs to master the most basic Eagle Eye spell, but also many auxiliary detection spells, as well as shadow magic needed for escape and basic professional skills. They are professionals in the true sense.

However, such professionals are extremely rare. Some minor lords, or even lords with a sizable private army, may not have even one such reconnaissance professional.

In Anjou, almost every unit, even every squad, has a soldier who uses Eagle Eye.

For example, the Anjou reconnaissance team that is moving through the forest is led by a user of Eagle Eye.

However, Anjou's courses included more than just Eagle Eye; most of them were similar and quite practical spells.

These individuals were then assembled into a highly comprehensive reconnaissance team.

The way of thinking is quite advanced in this world. If Linde were to learn more about the military systems of Alberto and the Kingdom of Anjou, he would definitely marvel at how they are the perfect protagonists.

And that is indeed the case; Alberto is one of the male protagonists in the second part of this game.

If Anjou really continues to dig deeper into this system, it's only a matter of time before they take over Capela.

However, this system is not without its flaws. Magic is something that depends on aptitude; if you don't know it, you don't know it, and the success rate is questionable. Even if someone does learn Eagle Eye, the skill level of each soldier in using it varies greatly.

Someone like Antoine, who can use Eagle Eye at will, is already a top-tier soldier in Anjou. In fact, Antoine has already stepped into the threshold of becoming a professional. But even so, under Doug's command, Antoine can only become an unknown Doug army squad leader through hard work and struggle.

The ordinary soldiers of Anjou were mainly responsible for reconnaissance, harassment, and logistics, as well as serving as cannon fodder when necessary—a term that has now spread to the border between Anjou and Cape.

However, precisely because of this, ordinary people's units were somewhat outmatched in encounters with the Capet army, since the enemy had real professionals leading the troops, especially when the enemy was equipped with firearms.

Even so, Anjou was still able to overpower Capet, since with Eagle Eye users in every squadron, it was difficult for ordinary squadrons to engage in skirmishes with Capet's army.

The captain of the Anjou reconnaissance squad, who was now moving through the forest, had already used Eagle Eye to spot the Southwest Allied Forces of the Kingdom of Cape in the distance.

"That's strange. Weren't these turtles of Capet supposed to just stay in the city and fire their cannons?"

One of the soldiers in the reconnaissance team asked the question.

"That's normal. After all, our emperor had teased the other party's queen quite a bit before. It would be strange if the other party wasn't anxious."

The squad leader, having withdrawn his Eagle Eye technique, smiled confidently and continued, "I wonder what that queen looks like. If she's ugly, wouldn't our Majesty be at a disadvantage?"

After he finished speaking, the entire reconnaissance team burst into laughter.

"She must be very beautiful. I heard that the current Queen of Capet is the widow of the former King of Capet. How could she become the former King's queen if she wasn't beautiful?"

"Alright, then let's go and capture them for His Majesty to be his concubines!"

The reconnaissance team chatted and laughed as they went back to report.

Although they didn't know the specific reasons why the Kingdom of Capet suddenly dared to come out and fight, they believed that with their legion of professionals, they could still crush the Kingdom of Capet.