The light behind Liam exploded like a star tearing through the night. Villagers staggered back, shielding their faces. Weapons clattered. Children screamed. Even Vlad halted mid-step, eyes narrowing with predatory anticipation.
Sun Tzu's calm voice barely rose above a whisper. "Another one."
The glow condensed—twisting, tightening—until a human shape emerged. Broad shoulders. A round shield. A long spear. A helmet crested with red horsehair. A scarred, battle-forged body.
When the light snapped away, a man stood where it had been.
Bronzed skin. A square jaw. Muscles hardened by endless campaigns. A red cloak draped over his shoulders like flowing blood. His eyes—cold, sharp, disciplined—swept Ridgebrook as if judging the worth of everyone present.
He spoke in Greek, his voice a thunderous low rumble.
"Τι τόπος είναι αυτός;"
("What place is this?")
Silence. The villagers stared at him as if a god had stepped out of myth.
Leonidas.
King of Sparta.
The man who once stood against impossible odds.
Leonidas shifted his grip on his spear and approached Liam—the closest person to him. "You look too young to command warriors. Are you the one who brought me here?"
Liam swallowed. "Uh… yeah. That would be me."
Leonidas studied him with a warrior's intensity. "You summoned me to a place of danger. Good. Danger keeps men awake."
Vlad appeared beside Liam without sound. "If he annoys you, I can kill him," Vlad whispered politely.
Liam elbowed him. "Stop. Please."
Leonidas turned his gaze to Vlad. They stared at each other for a long moment—two predators circling without moving.
"You carry the scent of death," Leonidas said.
Vlad grinned. "I kill well."
"That much is obvious."
Sun Tzu stepped forward, observing Leonidas with curiosity but no recognition. "Your stance is firm. Your discipline radiates. You are… a commander?"
Leonidas nodded once. "A king. And a warrior. Both by blood and by choice."
Sun Tzu returned the nod respectfully. "I command strategy. You command men. Our skills differ, but may serve each other well."
Leonidas studied Sun Tzu the way a veteran examines a blade. "Your calm is unnatural. You are either wise or dangerous."
Sun Tzu answered simply. "Both, I hope."
Vlad clapped his hands. "Excellent. More warriors. More blood.
Liam stepped between them before they formed a new war council of madness. "Okay, so—quick summary. I'm chief of this village. I have a system that summons historical figures like you. This is a medieval world with qi cultivation. We're in a war. A noble named Rathmore is trying to destroy us."
Leonidas listened without interrupting.
Liam pointed to the battlefield beyond the wall. "We beat his second attack yesterday. Hard battle. Lost people. He'll send more."
Leonidas looked over the torn ground, the bloodstained earth, the hastily reinforced barricades. His eyes sharpened.
"You are villagers, not soldiers. But you fought."
"We had to," Liam said.
Leonidas nodded approvingly. "Then you may become warriors yet."
He walked toward a militia man trembling beside a spear. Leonidas took the spear from the man's hands, tested its balance, twisted it in the air, then handed it back.
"This weapon is flawed," he said plainly.
The man's face fell. "I—I'm sorry—"
"No," Leonidas interrupted. "You wield it poorly because no one has taught you. Strength is nothing without discipline."
He turned to Liam. "How many soldiers do you command?"
"Uh… soldiers? Zero. Militia? Maybe thirty? But they're not—"
Leonidas cut him off. "They will be."
He strode into the village center, raising his shield. "Men! Form rows! Now!"
The militia scrambled into clumsy lines.
Leonidas scanned them.
"Unacceptable.
They shifted.
"Still unacceptable."
They rearranged again, sweating under his glare.
Leonidas pinched the bridge of his nose. "This is chaos wearing the clothes of order."
Sun Tzu stepped beside him. "I have been attempting to instill discipline."
Leonidas snorted. "Their feet are too close. Their weight too high. Their shields too loose. If they face a charge, they will shatter.
Vlad shouted from the rear, "Throw them in the mud! Toughens them!"
Leonidas actually considered it. "Not a bad idea."
Sun Tzu sighed. "Why do they always agree with each other…?"
For the next hours, Leonidas reshaped Ridgebrook's militia with tireless intensity.
"FEET WIDE! BRACE!"
"SHIELD UP—NO, HIGHER! DO YOU WANT TO DIE?"
"THRUST LIKE YOU MEAN IT!"
"AGAIN!"
"AGAIN!"
"AGAIN!"
Vlad joined in by physically flipping people who didn't brace properly—"To teach balance," he claimed—while Sun Tzu observed with fascinated, horrified interest.
Lira watched from a distance, whispering to Liam, "Is this normal?"
"For him? Probably," Liam murmured.
Orin wiped sweat from her forehead and grinned fiercely. "I like this guy."
Of course she does, Liam thought.
By midnight, the militia's formations looked… different. Imperfect, but stronger. More unified. Fear still clung to their eyes, but beneath it—something new.
Resolve.
Leonidas inspected the line, nodding once. "You are not Spartans. But you are becoming warriors."
Pride rippled through the villagers.
Liam exhaled, relief warming his chest. "This… this might actually save us."
Then the ground trembled.
Sun Tzu's eyes snapped toward the treeline. "Movement."
The horn blared from the watchtower.
"ENEMY SCOUTS!" a voice yelled. "MULTIPLE! MOVING FAST!"
Leonidas lifted his spear. "Good."
Vlad drew his sword. "Very good."
Orin sprinted to the wall. Lira grabbed medical satchels. Sun Tzu stepped calmly into position.
Liam felt his pulse spike.
Leonidas planted his shield into the dirt with a heavy thud.
"Let them come," he said quietly, fiercely. "Tonight, Ridgebrook stands as Sparta stood—unbroken."
And Ridgebrook, for the third time, braced itself for war.
Leonidas had arrived—
and the wolves of Ridgebrook had gained a king.