One month later, beneath a sky of piercing blue, the sun hung high overhead.
Outside Whispering City, on the Thorn Legion's training grounds.
With a look of utter disbelief etched across his face, Emparra watched as Green drew the bowstring with ease.
The longbow in Green's hands was no ordinary weapon—it was a specially crafted bow, pulling at roughly 200 pounds of draw weight.
Whsst! The arrow released from Green's bow whistled through the air with a shriek that sent a chill down the spine, its power undeniable.
Reina stared, wide-eyed in shock. Her face froze mid-expression, lips forming a round "O" as she stood rooted to the spot like a wooden doll.
For the past month, Green had set aside time each day to hone his archery.
He had already been a skilled archer in his previous life, and now, with his body growing stronger and more capable since crossing over, he could feel himself drawing ever closer to the realm of a beyond-visual-range marksman.
The 200-pound longbow had been forged by his order, tailor-made by his craftsmen. Green estimated its effective killing range extended up to 300 meters.
Beyond that, the arrow's penetrating power would fall off sharply.
As he loosed the arrow, some of the quiet dread in his heart—dread for dragons—began to wane.
Green understood all too well just how terrifying dragonfire would become in the future. He had no desire to see the soldiers he'd painstakingly trained reduced to ash by a few breaths of flame.
He had pored over the Clayburn family's lineage and confirmed one brutal truth: there was no trace of Targaryen blood, no dragon's blood, in their veins. He could never tame a dragon.
And so, since he could not be a dragonrider, Green had resolved to become a dragonslayer.
A rational man, Green would of course do everything in his power to avoid a direct clash between his legions and a dragon. But should that day come—should conflict be unavoidable—he would not rely solely on cumbersome scorpion bolts. No, he himself would be the most dangerous weapon on the field.
He could tolerate the existence of dragons—but if they ever became a threat to him, he would be ready to destroy them.
His preparations began now.
His carpenters would continue crafting bows of even greater draw weight. As long as Green could wield them freely, the stronger the weapon, the better.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Ooo-hrah!
Cheers and applause rang out from the men as they hailed their lord's unmatched marksmanship.
Green gave the carpenter his orders: "Make another just like it in strength… and wrap it well—make it look fine."
The 200-pound longbow would serve as Green's public weapon. Anything more powerful would be kept secret, practiced with in private.
The standard Clayburn longbows were too plain in appearance. When he traveled to King's Landing, Green would go with a bow at his back—one that made a statement.
Green intended to decorate his personal longbow—nothing that would hinder its use, but enough to give it a refined, noble appearance.
Everything Green wielded was a reflection of House Clayburn. In a world where noble appearances mattered greatly, it was wise to conform—at least outwardly—to the expectations of status and dignity.
He was preparing to contest the realm, after all. He could not afford to waste energy on petty provocations or meaningless slights.
Reina came bouncing up to him. "My lord, my lord! You're a man of divine strength!"
"Truly, since following your training methods, the girls have all grown stronger. Drawing the bow feels easier every day! Except for me… I haven't improved much at all."
"Reina, you must be patient. You're still young, and strength takes time. Besides, you're a commander now. Your voice carries far—that's something others lack, and it's a great advantage when leading soldiers."
Though small in stature, Reina had the loudest voice in the Thorn Legion. In a world where battle cries and orders were shouted across bloodied fields, that gift made her invaluable as a field commander.
"Mmh! My lord, just wait and see. I'll give it my all—for unity is strength!"
Green nodded with a smile. "I'm watching, Reina. Unity is strength."
Emparra's voice called from across the yard. "Reina, formation drill!"
As the girl ran off, Emparra approached and stopped before Green.
"My lord, shall I prepare a place for you to rest?"
Green shook his head. "No need. I'll be departing shortly."
He reached out and lightly clapped Emparra's upper arm. "You've done well. You've always been diligent. Training soldiers is thankless and repetitive. It's a life of tedium—but one we must embrace. Only through persistence will more of them survive the battlefield."
"I always remember your words, my lord," Emparra replied solemnly. "You said the more sweat we shed in training, the less blood we'll lose in war."
In the last battle, the Thorn Legion had made a name for itself. Riding that momentum, Green quickly recruited another 180 spearwomen from his original lands. Combined with the 200 captured wildling women who had been trained and accepted into the ranks, the Thorn Legion now stood five hundred strong.
As legion commander, Emparra knew the lord was preparing to reclaim the ancestral lands of House Clayburn. War loomed once more. She took their training with absolute seriousness.
After the battle, Green founded a new legion—this one composed mainly of men, with the longbow as its standard armament. Its full name: the Clayburn Longbow Legion, though most simply called it the Longbow Legion.
Green personally chose a handful of seasoned soldiers from his household troops to serve as officers. Following the initial recruitment, the Longbow Legion counted just over one hundred men.
In time, the Longbow Legion would become the most widely populated force in the territory. As the armory continued crafting longbows in greater numbers, many of the common folk would take on the role of archers as a second vocation—every able-bodied subject would be a reserve soldier of the Longbow Legion.
Under Green's new laws, every subject of the Clayburn lands was required to devote at least one day out of every ten to longbow training. The content and standards of the training were meticulously defined by Green himself. Absentees, slackers, or those who failed to meet the benchmarks would face strict penalties.
Moreover, Green planned to hold an archery tournament every three moons—open to all subjects, divided by skill levels, and with generous prizes—to ignite enthusiasm for archery among the people.
This was Green's vision: a land of longbowmen.
Once the Longbow Legion was established, Green turned to form another unit: the Clayburn Spear Legion, with the 3-meter pike as its standard weapon. It would be known simply as the Spear Legion.
The household troops of House Clayburn were loyal and battle-hardened—Green treated them as his reserve pool of officers.
He personally appointed the commanders of the Spear Legion from among them. After a round of recruitment and equipping, the Spear Legion numbered around two hundred soldiers.
Lacking warhorses, the Clayburn domain could not yet field cavalry. The Spear Legion had been created to protect the longbowmen in open battle, forming dense ranks to withstand enemy cavalry charges.
Aside from cavalry, Green's forces now had all major types represented. With daily drills and iron discipline, the overall strength of the Clayburn army grew steadily stronger by the day.
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