Due to the current backwards modes of labor, most armies today still rely on a mercenary recruitment system. When war breaks out, farmers are hired to join the army. After the war, they were paid in grain or money and sent home. Sometimes, soldiers even have to prepare their own dry food and weapons during the march. Consequently, it’s not uncommon to see scenes on the battlefield where spears and rakes are flying, and wooden clubs and dung forks are clashing. This form of military composition cannot guarantee a fixed training period for the army, let alone stable combat effectiveness.

    Coexisting with the recruitment system is a conscription system that trains professional soldiers. Able-bodied adult males are selected to reside in military camps year-round to receive military training. The army would provide them with a regular salary, food and other basic necessities. Everyone understands the benefits of a conscription system: it can train highly combat-effective soldiers, stabilize military strength, foster strong morale and cohesion....

    However, alongside these benefits is a significant drawback: the high cost.

    The cost of supporting a group of adult men who basically do nothing all day cannot be underestimated. Money is spent like water, and there is no guarantee of return. An army of a thousand people requires an annual expenditure of about 100,000 gold florins. Such expenditure would bankrupt a small country with insufficient strength. Most royal families could only afford to maintain a regular army of few hundred men to safeguard the royal family and the capital, relying on mercenaries for the rest of the troops.

    In contrast, powerful nations like Rome, Calais, and Assyria all had their own standing armies, which was why they were able to hold an important position in the world for a long time.

    Rafael was determined not to entrust his life and the safety of Florence to mercenaries of unknown integrity. Throughout history, there have been countless mercenaries who took money from their employers before stabbing them in the back. The mercenaries of the Black Sea region were notorious for this, and many of their former employers’ heads are buried beneath their mountains of gold. As a result, no organization is willing to accept those from the Black Sea region, and many employers would run away at the mere mention of the Black Sea. This has forced honest Black Sea mercenaries to fabricate themselves a more ‘respectable’ background.

    No matter the place or era, a loyal and combat-effective army directly under one’s command is an invaluable treasure. Even if feeding them requires cutting out one’s flesh and blood, Rafael was determined to grit his teeth and carry on. Moreover, he had already secured sufficient funds—the wool coming from those sheep, although the lords who died in the public square would not be pleased to hear such a statement.

    Rafael assigned several black monks recommended by Ferrante to Leshert to handle the inventory and distribution of all property seized during the army’s conquest of territories. Leshert acquiesced to this arrangement, and Rafael was relieved.

    Throughout history, burning, killing and pillaging after capturing a castle was one of the most common things for soldiers to do. Through this means, they would obtain vast wealth unimaginable during their lifetime. However, for an army to have long-term vitality and stability, plundering and pillaging wasn’t sustainable. The Ancient Assyrian cavalry that once dominated the world also fell victim to this trap. Their commanders allowed soldiers to plunder and wreak havoc in captured cities without restraint. Their lack of discipline and excessive greed made them resistant to tactics other than direct assault, which eventually resulted in them being worn down and defeated by the Knights Templar during a long battle of attrition.

    Strictness, purity, integrity, patience, and self-discipline were the qualities upheld by the Knights Templar. Rafael had no intention of tempting them with riches and simply cut off this possibility at the source. He was pleased that Leshert was a rational and clear-headed military leader and that he didn’t need to waste any more effort to argue with him about the nuances.

    Of course, he didn’t rule out the possibility of using the Arbitration Bureau and the Knights Templar to check and balance the other.

    The former held the money, while the latter wielded great military power. And the strings of both were undoubtedly held by the Pope.

    In August, the conscription in Florence came to an end, with 18,000 men signing up, nearly 90% of all able-bodied men in Florence. After excluding those unfit for military service due to physical condition or family circumstances, Leshert selected 3,500 men to form the initial expeditionary force. These men would be slowly tempered and polished in the crucible of war. The survivors would then undergo rigorous selection and evaluation to join the Knights Templar, forming the foundation for the future protectors of the Pope and Florence.

    This was only the first phase of conscription. As the civil unrest in Assyria develops, Rome and Calais’s movements would become clearer, and the frequency of conscriptions would gradually increase. Ultimately, Rafael envisioned an army of at least 8,000 permanent soldiers would be established in Florence and even the Papal States.

    Although 8,000 might not seem like a large number, it should be considered that the King’s army stationed in the capital of Calais has only a little over 3,000 men. Those massive armies numbering in the tens of thousands were scattered throughout the country.

    If he was given the opportunity to develop this quietly...

    Rafael thought silently that if he was given the time and opportunity, he would make Florence the most impregnable fortress and wield the sharpest sword in the world.

    In mid-August, as the weather grew warmer and everyone shed their thick cloaks for colorful, light garments. Leshert led the newly formed Florentine army into battle.

    Their first target was the city of Casso, closest to Florence. The city name was based off the Ancient Language meaning “Pearl of the Gods.” After the Papal States split, the Quentin family had eventually established their rule here and had been the undisputed lords for two centuries.

    However, Quentin had been killed by the Pope in Florence and stripped of all his titles, lands, and possessions before his death. The legitimacy of the Quentin family’s rule over Casso immediately collapsed, and Leshert captured this rich city with little effort.

    Rafael first opened Leshert’s battle report.

    The beginning, as usual, was a long and flowery greeting. He skipped over this part directly: ‘...The morale of the army is high, and our advance has been very smooth. We haven’t encountered any major resistance along the way. Of course, there have been scattered battles, mostly caused by the remnants of the lords’ forces, who are unwilling to surrender their power so easily. But these are all minor problems that can be dealt with. I expect that by the end of the year, we will be able to completely clear the twelve cities and bring you a great and glorious victory...’

    “As you predicted earlier, Rome will invite you to their capital in the second half of the year. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to spare myself at that time. Your safety is most paramount. I request that we delay the advance of the battle, or that you dispatch another trustworthy general to take control of the army, allowing me to lead the Knights Templar to follow you to Rome and protect you...”

    Rafael sighed when he saw this. Julius, who had entered with the rolled-up war report and some documents, pushed up his glasses and glanced at the letter in Rafael’s hand. His eyes were cold, but there was a slight smile in his tone: “What’s wrong? Has our Knight Commander encountered any difficulties?”

    Rafael didn’t look up at him, so he didn’t notice the fake smile on Julius’s lips. “No, Leshert said he wanted to accompany me to Rome.”

    Rafael hesitated.

    The queen had yet to send him an official invitation, and he was unsure when it would come. But according to the news from Assyria, the civil unrest in Assyria had gradually expanded to engulf the entire country. There was no more time left for the queen to make arrangements. She would definitely arrange everything in Rome as soon as possible and then personally go to Assyria to suppress the rebellion—this was something that had actually happened before, but last time Rafael hadn’t focused himself too much on such a distant matter. He was still groping for his own path, trying to solve all problems in a more gentle way.

    At that time, it was Julius who had handled everything.

    Thinking of this, Rafael glanced at the secretary-general in front of him. The secretary-general, who was neatly dressed with his shirt buttoned up tightly, tilted his head slightly in confusion, and a small question mark seemed to appear above his head. He was wearing a snow-white scarf with a large emerald gemstone embedded in the knot, and the soft scarf draped down, covering the last bit of skin on his neck.

    Julius, who was used to wrapping himself up tightly in any weather, looked at Rafael: “Rafa?”

    Rafael came back to his senses: “Oh... I would like to ask for your opinion.”

    “My opinion,” Julius paused. It seemed like he hadn’t heard such a phrase in a long time. He thought about it dazedly for a moment, before remembering the knight who was fighting for Rafael. A trace of wariness flashed in his eyes. Leshert was galloping through the lords’ lands, while the Papal States, apart from Florence, had only one remaining lord, Portia. This instinctively made him feel threatened. Julius forcibly suppressed this instinctive warning. “His opinion is very reasonable. You’re going to Rome, a place so far away. You’ll need strong military protection to ensure your safety. I... I don’t wish to see another coffin sent back to Florence.”

    His tone was a little vague.

    Both of them fell silent at the same time.

    The last pope to leave Florence and return in the form of a coffin was Rafael’s father and Julius’s cousin.

    It was Julius himself who had collected the body of Pope Vitalian III.

    For once, Julius said sincerely, “I hope he does as he promised and protect you well.”

    Author’s Note

    Julius: Beware of that golden-haired knight.