The militia and the knightly orders were formally reorganized. Together with a thousand-man logistics battalion, they were restructured into the First Legion of Tarth.
A fully professional army of fifteen thousand men, completely detached from civilian production!
"By your will, we obey!"
"Rest assured, Commander. We'll follow through to the end."
From within the crowd, Galedun's grandfather Kennedy and Koda stepped forward. Lifting their heads, they gave Galedun their solemn assurances.
Galedun looked down at his grandfather Kennedy—silver-haired, steady and composed—and at Koda, brimming with enthusiasm for his work. He finally let out a small breath of relief.
At least now, he shouldn't have to worry about his title changing from the Dawn of Tarth to the Frost of Tarth.
Koda bowed once more and reported, "Commander, Mr. Taichu, the representative from the Iron Bank, wishes to meet you."
"Not seeing him."
Galedun planned to leave them hanging for a few days. Only after the Bank of Tarth made some demands would the other side be more willing to compromise.
"Those from the Ministry of War, follow me. People from City Hall and the merchant guilds—dismiss!"
When Galedun changed into his uniform and entered the military parade ground, the First Legion had already endured over an hour of blazing sunlight.
Yet no one removed their armor. No one complained. No one shifted their stance.
Every soldier stood tall and straight, like sculpted statues.
"Salute the General—!"
"Hah!"
As he stepped onto the high platform of the parade ground, all infantry regiments, under their commanders' orders, roared as they raised their weapons in unison.
"Boom—!"
Like a mountain collapsing!Like thunder roaring!Like the earth itself shaking!
Galedun's heart leapt straight into his throat with excitement.
The quietest were actually the two knightly orders on the flanks, who saluted him with the traditional Westerosi knight's salute.
"Warriors of the First Legion, I won't say much."
Galedun showed no stage fright at all. Building a cold-weapon army like this seemed far less helpful to him than the Three Little Ones.
He was very clear in his heart—Zhi Nao and the Three Little Ones were his true foundation. One day, after he had completely extracted everything this world had to offer, he would find a way to leave it behind.
But for now, the stronger his power became, the more resources he could pour into the Three Little Ones.
"Three iron rules—engrave them into the very soul of the First Legion!"
"The capable rise, the mediocre fall;the strong rise, the weak fall;those with merit are rewarded, those who err are punished!"
"Let these words be shared by the entire army!"
...
After attending the military reform ceremony, Galedun rushed without pause to the shipyard at the estuary of the Linshade River.
He easily mediated the conflicts among the three shipwright teams from Westeros, Braavos, and the Summer Isles. He then split the shipyard into three parts and changed the incentive system that had caused the disputes in the first place.
Originally, the shipyard could build one longship per month. After being divided into three, the three shipyards together could produce three ships in just two months.
When he returned to Evenfall Hall Castle, he arrived just in time for the trial of Ser Ailien.
He was also curious—why would a loyal knight who had saved Count Selwyn's life multiple times betray his own house?
The Ministry of War's Military High Court was located in a four-story building in the eastern castle district of Evenfall Hall.
In the end, Count Selwyn decided to personally attend Ailien's trial. Galedun and Selwyn would serve as jurors.
The Supreme Judge of the High Court, Divine Sword Colin, a General of the Ministry of War, would preside over the trial.
Divine Sword Colin with his short black hair; Thunderfist Cade, a towering nine-foot brute; Hawkeye the sharpshooter with pale golden eyes; and white-haired Nick—these four were Galedun's personal guard knights, the most outstanding and loyal among his retinue.
Compared to the Kingsguard who protected a king, Galedun had given his four guard knights even greater authority.
On the Isle of Tarth, only Galedun and these four were Generals of the Ministry of War. Only they could mobilize troops and issue combat orders.
When Galedun arrived at the High Court with his four guard knights, all commanders at the level of hundred-man units and above were already present, as required.
This included commanders from the First Legion, the Demon-Slaying Army, the Castle Guard, the home-port commanders of the three fleets, fleet captains stationed on the island, and more.
A total of 316 mid- and lower-ranking knight commanders.
After all, Ailien himself was a landed knight—commander of the Second Knightly Order, a close friend of Count Selwyn, and the first high-ranking military officer ever to be put on trial.
What did it feel like to be stared at by over three hundred hardened men, their eyes sharp as if looking at prey?
Seated in the juror's position, Galedun lowered his gaze to examine Ailien—broad-backed, bear-like, with golden hair and beard. It was obvious that the once calm and composed knight was now breathing rapidly, his proud head buried deep into his chest.
"Clang—!"
"Court is in session!"
Colin disliked little wooden gavels. Instead, he removed his helmet—larger than dozens of gavels combined—and slammed it onto the long table. His sword-like gaze swept across the room. Instantly, every commander straightened their posture, chests out, eyes forward!
He spoke first. "Ser Ailien, do you know why you were arrested?"
"I didn't before. Now I do."
Standing in the center of the court, shackled hand and foot, Ailien glanced at Colin, then looked toward Galedun with a sigh of awe.
"You're terrifying. Truly terrifying."
"Four hours ago, I had just contacted the people sent by the Duke—yet your people knew immediately."
"For the sake of the times I saved your father's life, can you tell me—was it me who was exposed, or the Duke's people?"
The moment these words fell, the over three hundred commanders erupted in an uproar. Colin silently pressed his sword down onto the table as well, and the courtroom instantly returned to silence.
Galedun leaned forward, fingers interlaced beneath his chin, calmly looking at Ailien without saying a word.
Even as the commanders' curious, almost worshipful gazes focused on him.
"Ser Ailien, answer the question!"Knowing his commander would not respond, Colin shot Ailien a glare and continued.
"Ser Ailien—why did you betray the Isle of Tarth?"
"Betrayal? I wish I were even qualified to speak of betrayal."
Ailien gave a bitter laugh. Tears shimmered in his eyes as he met Count Selwyn's equally reddened gaze.
"Selwyn, my friend—do you remember when I first began following you?"
"Twelve years ago," Count Selwyn replied, his face filled with remembrance, fists clenched so tightly his knuckles turned white."After the defeat at the Battle of Summerhall, when I fled with King Robert to the Riverlands to join up with the Northern army."
"I called myself Ailien Rivers—a bastard."
Ailien let out a long breath, a relieved smile spreading across his face.
"My friend, that was the only lie I ever told you. My true surname… is Hill."
"I am Ailien Hill—a bastard of House Lannister!"
Rivers was the surname for bastards of the Riverlands.Hill was the surname for bastards of the Westerlands—just as Snow belonged exclusively to Northern bastards like Jon Snow.
"My gods! That means—how is that possible?!"
Selwyn cried out in disbelief.
"By the Dawn! Ser Ailien is actually a Lannister!"
"Seven above! They say all Lannisters have golden hair—how did we only realize this today?!"
"Twelve years ago! Why would the Lannisters send Ailien as a spy?!"
"Maybe it was for the Usurper!"
"That's right! At Summerhall, milord led us in retreat the fastest—later we were the strongest—uh—! I'm talking nonsense!"
"..."
The courtroom erupted once again. Who could have imagined that a landed knight, a noble, had been a spy planted by the Westerlands more than ten years ago?
"Silence!"
Colin spoke. The pressure of authority spread through the hall. All commanders immediately straightened, lips tightly pressed together.
Galedun narrowed his eyes, deep in thought.
Twelve years as a sleeper agent—and such genuine emotion now. It clearly meant Ailien had long since slipped beyond the Westerlands' control.
Then why choose today to expose himself?
He was a landed knight, a high-ranking officer. From the very beginning, he had known many of Tarth's secrets.
Two years ago, Galedun had already smashed the old, inefficient system of rule and preliminarily established a power structure centered on five major organizations: City Hall, the Department of Justice, the Tarth Merchant Guild, the Bank of Tarth, and the United Guilds.
At that time, he lacked large numbers of grassroots officials. Relying only on his retinue, Zhi Nao, and the landed knights to control the island, it would not have been difficult at all for Ailien to flee abroad.
...
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(End Chapter)