The Broken Hill was quiet now, its scrubland dotted with the charred remnants of raider camps. Leonidas stood with his men at the crest, the wind tugging at their crimson cloaks. The air smelled of ash and wet earth, but also of victory.
As the last fires smoldered, the system's voice rang through his mind:
[Milestone Achieved: Stabilize two allied formations simultaneously and secure victory.]
[Reward Granted: Unit Upgrade – Iron Cohort.]
The overlay flooded his vision. His fifty's names shimmered, numbers bending, climbing.
Strength: +2 baseline
Endurance: +15%
Morale: Unshakable against equal foes
New Trait: Formation Instinct – Each man senses his brother's position within one shield's breadth, reducing gaps and collapses.
Leonidas blinked as his men straightened, as if the very air had thickened their bones. Their eyes gleamed sharper, movements tighter, as though invisible threads bound them together. Even recruits carried themselves differently, posture locked as if they'd trained for years.
Doros flexed his shield arm, grinning. "Feels lighter."
Kyros jabbed with his spear, the strike snapping faster than before. "Or maybe we're heavier, and the world feels lighter."
Theron tilted his head, studying the line. "No. It's more than strength. We're moving as one. I don't even need to look to know where Nikas stands."
Leonidas hid his awe. This is no longer training. They are becoming something else. Iron, not flesh.
---
That night, as campfires burned low, the system stirred again.
[World Progress Update.]
[First Global Leaderboard Unlocked.]
Across the sky, banners ignited like constellations. Each one bore the mark of a faction chosen by the transmigrated: Roman eagle, Persian lion, Egyptian falcon, Norse raven, Japanese chrysanthemum, and more.
Leonidas's heart clenched as the Spartan lambda burned into the firmament. Next to each banner, numbers unfurled.
Military Might Rankings:
1. Knights of Europe – Evelyne
Units: 700 (500 Knights, 200 levies)
Average Cohesion: 73% (cap reached)
Gift: Blessing of Steel (Durability boost)
Hero: [Summoned]
2. Rome – Marcus
Units: 600 (450 Legionaries, 150 Auxiliaries)
Average Cohesion: 72% (cap reached)
Gift: Eagle's Rally (Morale boost)
3. Egypt – Nefara
Units: 580 (400 Spearmen, 100 Charioteers, 80 Archers)
Average Cohesion: 74% (cap reached)
Gift: Sand's Endurance (Terrain bonus in deserts)
4. Persia – Darius
Units: 550 (450 Immortals, 100 Cavalry)
Average Cohesion: 70% (cap reached)
Gift: Immortal Terror (Enemy morale debuff)
5. Norse – Erik
Units: 500 (300 Huskarls, 200 Berserkers)
Average Cohesion: 68% (cap reached)
Gift: Blood Rage (Temporary berserk boost)
6. Samurai – Takeda
Units: 520 (400 Samurai, 120 Ashigaru)
Average Cohesion: 75% (hard cap)
Gift: Honor's Blade (Dueling advantage)
7. Sparta – Leonidas
Units: 50 (Iron Cohort)
Average Cohesion: 96% (no cap)
Gifts: Rally Pulse, Steadfast Step, Iron Cohort
The sight stunned his men into silence.
Doros finally broke it with a laugh. "Seventh? With fifty? They have armies, we have a boulder—and the boulder's heavier."
Kyros smirked. "And we're already above half the board. Cohesion's worth more than steel."
Theron's eyes narrowed on Evelyne's shining banner. "Look at her. Seven hundred men. A Hero already. And she still can't push them past seventy-three."
Leonidas's chest tightened. Evelyne's name gleamed brightest of all, her army vast, her gifts heavy. Yet her loyalty bar sat frozen, capped where it began. No matter her numbers, they could not trust her beyond what was assigned at birth.
The system whispered confirmation:
[Note: Transmigrated rulers' forces begin loyal to position, not person. Cohesion capped at 75%.]
[Exception: Leonidas. System recognizes earned command. No cap applies.]
Leonidas exhaled, slow and steady. So this is my edge. They command armies they did not earn. I command men who bleed for me because I bled beside them.
---
The next morning, the Iron Cohort drilled with their new precision. Overseers whispered uneasily, watching the wall move with unnatural rhythm. Kleon's glare burned hotter than ever, his pride wounded by the fact that Leonidas's fifty outperformed his hundred in cohesion alone.
Theron murmured quietly, "They'll come for you. Overseers, rivals, even Sparta itself. No one likes a man who holds tighter than the rest."
Leonidas nodded. "Let them come. They can't touch what's earned."
He raised his voice so all fifty could hear. "Sparta may count us fifty, but the world already counts us as iron. And when the First Wave comes, we'll show them why walls outlast towers."
The men roared, shields thundering in answer.
Above them, Evelyne's knights still blazed across the sky—but Leonidas smiled faintly. Steel bends. Iron does not.