Rome Must Perish
Chapter 74 - 71: Young Men (Seeking Subscriptions)_2

Chapter 74: Chapter 71: Young Men (Seeking Subscriptions)_2

Valles listened intently, feeling a warmth in his heart, and nodded firmly.

After a while, Akegu shouted loudly, "Everyone, come here and form up!"

The resting children immediately gathered together, quickly forming a dense phalanx 10 wide and 5 deep, and Valles quickly took his position.

From the sidelines came an elderly man with graying hair and a dignified expression. His name was Lufus Gracchus, once a Roman veteran who had later fallen into the hands of Rome as a public slave. Now he was a member of the Supply Camp’s military advisory group. Over a month ago, when Maximus wanted to select a military instructor for the newly formed youth team, Gracchus had voluntarily applied and secured the position.

He stopped in front of the formation. Akegu immediately strode forward, clenched his right fist, pounded it against his chest, and reported loudly with clear annunciation, "Instructor, the formation is ready. A total of 52 people, all present. Please issue your orders!"

"Very good, fall in." Gracchus scanned the children before him. Every time he saw their youthful and energetic faces, he felt a bit younger himself. His gaze lingered slightly on a few of the children—those were children of the Lukaiya people, once enemies and now comrades in the slave-led rebellion against Rome. The arrangements of the Goddess of Fate were truly wondrous!

Gracchus felt ripples in his heart but said aloud, "Next, we will proceed with formation training."

Youths were different from adults. Their bones and muscles were not yet fully developed, and excessive emphasis on strength training could harm their bodies. However, they were young and quick learners, making formation training far more effective for them than for adults. This was a military training plan that Maximus and Flanitnus had devised after multiple discussions.

Gracchus held a military horn and played various signals. The youths responded to the commands issued through the horn, advancing at times, halting at others, forming shield formations, charging forward, or retreating en masse...

Afterward, Gracchus gave further commands, directing the youth team to turn left and right, transform into circular formations or columns, or have the rear ranks advance while the phalanx extended to both flanks. During training, their formation was often messy because newcomers like Valles were completely unacquainted with the instructions, slowing down the pace of the entire formation shift.

However, Gracchus never called for a stop or issued corrections. Instead, the other youths actively guided the newcomers on what to do. Everyone eagerly collaborated, with very little complaining. As a result, though the training was somewhat sloppy, the atmosphere was good, and gradually it began to improve.

After formation training ended, the children took a short break before beginning engineering training.

Gracchus divided the 52 youths into two groups for a competition. Each group was tasked with digging a trench 5 meters long, 1 meter wide, and 1 meter deep, setting traps within it, and using the excavated soil to build a 1-meter-high, 5-meter-long mud wall. The team that finished fastest and best would win, while the losing team would have to run three laps around the field.

Both teams threw themselves into the task with all their energy, working fiercely.

Valles was assigned to the group led by Casius. Casius specifically placed Magus at Valles’ side to personally instruct him on what to do. Earlier at breakfast, the meticulous Magus had handed Valles his weapons; now, Magus was being extremely strict.

Since the deaths of his parents, Valles’ grandfather, though neglectful in care, had never let him endure hardship. This was his first time doing such heavy work. Yet influenced by the lively atmosphere, he neither shirked his duty nor resented Magus’ strictness. Instead, he diligently followed Magus’ guidance and focused on the task at hand.

Two hours later, Gracchus began inspecting the trenches completed by the two groups.

"The first group finished first, but the walls of the trench are not steep enough, the sharpened stakes placed in the bottom of the trench are neither deep nor numerous, and not enough water was poured in... Imagine if you were on a real battlefield, and the enemy wanted to cross a wide trench to attack your camp. Steep walls and slippery ground would make it very difficult for the enemy to climb out of the trench. If they lay a wooden ladder across it and try to rush over, a single slip could send them falling onto a dense array of stakes below, where death would await them." Gracchus explained the deficiencies as he demonstrated with actions.

The dust-covered youths stood in formation nearby. At an age when they should be playing without care, they now listened as an old soldier described life and death on the bloody battlefield. None of them thought it odd; instead, they listened attentively.

"...By comparison, though the second group was slower, they did better in these areas." Gracchus calmly delivered his final assessment, "Based on your performance, the winner this time is the second group!"

Casius, Magus, and their teammates cheered loudly. Valles couldn’t help but join in enthusiastically. He had sweat for this too and deeply felt the sense of collective honor.

The youths in the first group were a bit crestfallen. Akegu voluntarily took responsibility: "Our group lost this time—it was my fault. I only focused on speed and didn’t enforce strict standards. I hope everyone can forgive me!"

One youth immediately responded, "This isn’t just the captain’s fault; all of us are to blame! Maximus once said, ’No one is without fault. It’s okay to make mistakes, just as long as you correct them!’"

"Gaurus is right. We should learn from today’s mistakes and strive to beat the second group next time!" another youth declared loudly.

"Yes, we’ll definitely win next time!!" the first group’s youths shouted, their morale reignited.

Ah, to be young! Gracchus smiled silently as he watched the scene of jubilation before him. After a while, he finally said loudly, "Next, we’ll proceed with one-on-one combat training!"

The youths let out an even louder cheer. Compared to the heavily regulated formation training and the tough, exhausting engineering tasks, this was their most eagerly anticipated activity. What child doesn’t enjoy some playful sparring?

Only Valles and a few other newcomers felt nervous. Although they had already participated in two days of training, this was their first time engaging in one-on-one sword combat exercises.

Lufus first paired the youths, aiming to match opponents of similar skill levels to maximize the training’s purpose.

"Valles, your opponent is Dorin."

Gracchus’ words rendered Valles speechless: My opponent is a girl?!

Maximus held no bias against women. Of the youths in this team, five were girls who underwent the same training as the boys. While he didn’t intend for them to engage in combat when grown, he hoped the training would develop their health, making them less prone to illness and better able to endure the hardships of marching.

But when Dorin stood before Valles, his complaints stopped abruptly.

Dorin, 14 years old, was the daughter of farm slaves. She had joined the rebel Supply Camp very early on. When she first arrived, she was frail, but after half a year of improved nutrition and hitting a growth spurt, she now stood a full head taller than Valles of the same age, with a robust physique. If not for her soft facial features and slightly pronounced chest, she could easily be mistaken for a boy.

"Hey, watch out. I won’t go easy on you," Dorin said, staring straight at Valles. After issuing her threat, she immediately charged with her wooden shield raised.

Valles raised his shield to block. When their shields collided, he found himself overpowered, stumbling back a step.

Dorin charged again with her shield. Valles resisted, but once more he was forced back, his arm tingling from the impact. When Dorin made her third charge, Valles dared not block. He sidestepped to evade instead.