Chapter 14: Garrisoning in Marken Village

"Children, ahead of us is Marly. That's our destination for this mission. After nearly two months of marching, we have finally arrived." Instructor Pearson suddenly stopped the march, pointing towards the distant outline of the city.

"Is that Marly?"

"It doesn't seem as bustling as Paris."

"Are we going to carry out our mission here next? This city looks decent. After we enter the city, I'm definitely going to explore and see if there's anything fun." As Pearson finished speaking, the students behind him became excited one by one. Although they had become soldiers now, they were ultimately just seventeen or eighteen-year-old kids. So when they saw the city of Marly, their first thought wasn't about how to defend the city, but rather how to enjoy themselves. Pearson didn't scold them too harshly for this; he didn't want to put too much pressure on these kids.

"Look, ahead is Marly, my hometown." In the marching column, Jobs also exclaimed loudly to Roland and others. His words were filled with excitement; he was finally back in his hometown.

Upon hearing Jobs' words, Roland also lifted his feet and looked ahead. Sure enough, he saw the outline of a city not far away.

That was Marly, Jobs' hometown, located to the west of Turin. Originally, Marly was a small city with a strong commercial atmosphere. But because Turin had turned into a battlefield, the nearby cities were also affected by the flames of war. Therefore, Marly, located near Turin, naturally became a rear camp for the battlefield of Turin.

A continuous stream of war materials was being transported through this small city to Turin. It was precisely because of this that this little-known city had become extremely important.

Although this was the rear of the battlefield, it was inevitable that enemy spies would infiltrate. Roland and the others were ordered to protect the military supplies here, ensuring they were not destroyed by the enemy. When the time came, they would also be responsible for transporting supplies to the soldiers fighting on the front lines, delivering weapons and ammunition to the soldiers defending their homeland.

"Alright, children. Let's enter the city now! There are people waiting for us inside! We need to get into the city before sunset," Pearson cleared his throat and continued, commanding the students.

"Yes, Instructor!" the students shouted loudly. At this moment, because they saw the new city, the students appeared excited. They couldn't wait to explore this unfamiliar city. The temptation of a new city even increased their marching speed.

...

"What are you people? Please show your identification!" Just as Pearson and the others arrived at the gates of Marly, a soldier holding a long rifle and wearing military attire quickly ran up to them, loudly demanding.

The soldier's face looked quite young; he was probably also a member of the student army.

"We are the student army from Brienne Military School. I am their commander, Pearson. Here is my officer's identification." Seeing the soldier approaching, Pearson responded loudly and took out his credentials from his chest.

The soldier then took Pearson's officer's identification, carefully examined it, and after confirming that it was not forged, he saluted Pearson heavily and shouted loudly, "It's an honor to have you join the fight to defend our homeland, Major."

"Can we enter the city now?" Pearson didn't show much concern for the soldier's respect. He just asked calmly.

"Of course. Your unit is stationed in Marquen Village."

"Alright, understood." Pearson nodded and then gestured to the student army.

"Now everyone, move towards Marquen Village at a running pace."

Marquen Village was to the south of Marly, not far from the city. It was considered relatively safe. This was also the arrangement made by the Marly city commander based on the situation on the ground. After all, Roland's unit consisted mostly of sixteen and seventeen-year-old students. It couldn't be expected that students would have strong combat capabilities.

Perhaps because the camp was right in front of them, and they could rest as soon as they arrived, the marching speed of Roland's student army was very fast. In less than ten minutes, Roland had already reached Marquen Village.

"Where did this army come from? Why are they stationed here in our village?"

"I don't know! But aren't these soldiers too young? They look almost the same age as my son. What are soldiers of this age doing here?"

"Who knows? Could it be that the army has fallen to such a state that they need children to go to the front lines and fight?"

The villagers in the village were curious and discussed one after another upon seeing such a military force arrive in their village. However, they mostly expressed distrust towards this unit. After all, Roland and the others were too young, making it hard for people to believe.

Even so, the villagers didn't approach Roland and the others. Both sides went about their business as if they were strangers, not interfering with each other.

"Pearson Instructor, what should we do next?" After entering the village, Roland came up to Pearson and inquired. He came to receive tasks from Pearson.

The military is a place of discipline and courage. Pearson alone can't effectively manage these 600 people. Therefore, before the battle began, not only was Pearson appointed as the commander of this army, outstanding students like Roland and Marin were also designated as squad leaders, responsible for commanding a small portion of the troops.

"Due to the war, this village has been temporarily designated as a storage depot for gunpowder. Our task is to protect it from enemy destruction and to ensure the ammunition is counted and sent to the front lines," Pearson rubbed his chin and stated the mission.

"But don't be nervous. This is the rear of the battlefield after all. There won't be any enemies here unless they manage to break through our defense line in Turin. So your main task is to manage the supplies here," Pearson continued, perhaps worried that Roland and the others would be anxious.

"Yes, Instructor, I understand," Roland saluted and then left.

"How was it? What's our task?" As soon as Roland returned to his camp, Jobs approached and asked.