While Zaos was only used to waking up at the same time the sun began to rise, his instincts forced him to wake up when it was dark. It was impossible to know what time it was due to the clouds in that mountainous region. Still, Zaos was pretty sure the army drills would start soon… and yet, he couldn't hear any sound coming from squad mates' rooms.
"These guys…" Zaos frowned. "Hey, it is time."
Zaos knocked on the doors and repeated that several times until he heard the sound of some footsteps. When some of the kids opened the door, Zaos saw in their sleepy faces that they had no idea what he wanted. That is what happens when someone sleeps on a proper bed after so long… they get lazy.
"We are going to be late, and you can guess what will happen if our instructor is Elius," Zaos warned his squadmates.
In the end, they opened their eyes widely and began to equip their armor. Then they noticed that the armor would get pretty cold thanks to the weather, so they put on another layer of clothes as well.
Zaos couldn't help but wonder while he was waiting for his squadmates if he should do something else. Like giving orders to them. After all, he was the leader, and he was going to be punished for any mistakes that his squad may make. In exchange for all that crap, he should have at least the right to give orders. If he was going to be obeyed or not, that was another matter.
Some kids got ready faster than others, but Zaos decided that they should only move as a group. Based on the things he already saw in the base, Zaos concluded that was the best way to act. In the end, Zaos's squad managed to leave the base when the sky still was dark, but after a few moments, the dark blue sky grew weaker, and that revealed two shadows fifty meters away from the gates. They were the two armored guards that were responsible for guarding the entrance, and the other was Elius.
"Sir," Zaos said, slightly confused since, despite his words, he didn't expect that Elius would be their instructor.
"You were almost late," Elius furrowed his eyebrows. "Regardless, it is time to turn your sorry group into a decent squad of warriors."
It was a pity that Elius was going to be their instructor, but at least Zaos was going to learn some things from a veteran. However, much to his surprise, Elius just moved to the entrance along with the armored guards and then laid his back against the wall.
"You need to teach your squad mates a few stances for combat," Elius said. "I can't teach them how to operate on the field of battle as a group, when they don't know how to act alone."
While that made sense, Zaos had no idea why he was the one who had to teach them that. Maybe it was due to his position as the squad leader. Still, Zaos couldn't help but think that Elius was trying to make things as hard as possible for him, for no real reason, once again.
Zaos's squad members looked at each other dumbfounded. While they knew that nobles start their training at an early age, they didn't think that they could learn much from someone of their age. Moreover, they would be forced to train with real swords. Letting a kid instruct them in that kind of situation would be extremely dangerous.
"… All right, divide yourselves in pairs and then move away ten steps from each other," Zaos said after he made up his mind. "Make sure to seal your swords inside the scabbards, we are going to train them while they remain sheathed to prevent accidents."
Elius probably won't let them return to the base and then look for some training swords, so Zaos would have to make do with what they have in hand. While he could use healing magic, he could only do so a certain number of times, and he couldn't risk making his squad members fear being cut while training. At least for now.
Zaos training started with the basics, like defensive stances and how to run while holding a sword and a shield, but he decided to go right to the business with the offensive stances since they didn't have shields. Fortunately, the other kids followed his lead since Zaos didn't hesitate.
"For starters, we will do this, one side will defend five attacks and the other side will attack five times," Zaos said. "We will repeat this until everyone gets used to it. Usually, these swords are meant to be used with a single hand, but you will hold them like this with both hands when you are to attack. When defending, use your sword arm to hold the sword like this and use the other arm like this to provide some support."
In the end, there was a kid who was left behind. Still, Zaos couldn't spar with him since he had to fix his squad members' stances, so he decided to make the kid spar with others when the opportunity came.
"Start!" Zaos said.
As he had expected, the kids responded to his shout and began the training. Also, just as Zaos had expected, they hesitated in being fast and dealing heavy blows when attacked. That was the hesitation one naturally possesses when holding a deadly weapon, unsheathed or not.
"Keep going, and he got used to the feeling," Zaos said. "Spread your legs a little more. You, don't drop your shoulders too much while defending."
It was a pain to teach others when Zaos had come to learn things. While he was learning how to teach, it wasn't a skill he actually wanted… Regardless, at least he knew he made some progress with his squad since they followed his commands. Still was hard to be sure if they did out of respect, or it was because Elius was nearby, though.
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