Chapter 31: The Trial of Endurance
By sunrise, the first Black Dragon squads were already far beyond Blackwood Manor.
The endurance phase had begun the previous morning, with groups leaving the estate at staggered intervals and moving south along routes marked by Darius, Bram, local hunters, and several village guides. Each squad consisted of ten applicants who had been deliberately mixed wherever possible. Nobles marched beside commoners, mercenaries beside hunters, former soldiers beside people who had never worn military colors in their lives.
The arrangement had already caused arguments.
Darius considered that part of the test.
From Blackwood Manor’s western balcony, Kael could still see the last applicants preparing to leave. The field no longer held all eighteen hundred and eleven competitors at once. Hundreds were already scattered across Blackwood’s roads and hills, while the remaining squads waited beside supply tables to have their packs weighed and inspected.
Behind Kael, a new banner moved in the morning wind.
Black cloth.
A silver dragon.
No crown.
Kael had removed the Imperial crown from the original design after staring at the first sketch for almost an hour.
The Black Dragon was supposed to belong to Blackwood, not advertise Kael’s position in the succession.
Garrick had approved.
Darius had approved after pretending not to care.
Rowan had complained that everyone suddenly believed making banners qualified as military planning.
The result now hung from the manor wall for the first time.
Lily stood beside Kael.
People keep staring at it
Kael looked over his shoulder.
Good or bad?
Mostly curious
Walter, seated nearby with breakfast in his lap, grinned.
Give people a new symbol and they’ll invent ten meanings before lunch
Kael looked toward the silver dragon.
Then we’ll have to give it a meaning worth keeping
Darius approached carrying a narrow wooden chest.
He placed it on the table and opened the lid.
Inside lay fifty folded strips of black cloth.
Each bore the same silver dragon.
Nothing else.
No gold thread.
No gemstones.
No noble title.
Kael touched one.
The first fifty armbands
Darius nodded.
Assuming we find fifty people worth giving them to
You sound optimistic
I’m being generous
Lily picked one up carefully.
That’s all they receive?
For now, Kael said.
Darius looked toward the remaining applicants below.
Anyone disappointed by that should probably fail early
Kael understood what he meant.
The first Black Dragon soldiers would eventually receive armor, weapons, wages, housing, and proper military equipment if Blackwood could support them.
But the cloth itself was not meant to be valuable.
Its value would come from the people who earned it.
The final departure preparations began shortly after sunrise.
Quartermasters checked packs before each squad approached the road.
Despite what some applicants had expected, everyone did not carry the exact same weight. Darius and Kael had already settled that argument the previous day.
Loads were standardized by role and body size, generally averaging around thirty kilograms.
Food.
Blankets.
Water.
Basic equipment.
A small amount of shared squad material.
Applicants capable of carrying more had slightly heavier loads. Smaller competitors carried less, though nobody’s pack was light enough to make the march comfortable.
A young noble standing near the inspection table lifted his pack and immediately frowned.
This is excessive
The older mercenary behind him laughed.
That’s because your servants normally carry everything heavier than your ego
Several applicants burst out laughing.
The noble turned red.
Darius, standing nearby, did not even look up from his checklist.
Applicant Four-Seventeen
The mercenary’s smile disappeared.
Yes, Sir Darius?
One more unnecessary argument and you can spend the next two days walking home instead
Understood
The noble looked pleased until Darius turned toward him.
And you
Yes, Sir?
Carry your own pack without complaining about the existence of gravity
Walter nearly choked on his breakfast.
Kael looked away before Darius caught him smiling.
The route covered approximately eighty kilometers across two days.
It had been designed to cross real Blackwood terrain rather than a controlled military road.
Fields.
Hills.
Forest tracks.
A shallow river crossing.
Two long sections of damaged road.
Several steep climbs.
And enough variation that endurance alone would not guarantee success.
Checkpoint stations had been established where the territory could manage them.
Water.
Basic food.
Healers.
Observers.
Written logs.
Applicants were warned that portions of the route would have no official watchers at all.
Darius considered that important.
People behaved differently when they believed authority had stopped looking.
Kael agreed.
The previous Chapter’s rule remained unchanged.
A squad would not automatically fail because one person could no longer continue.
That would have been easy.
The real test was what everyone else did next.
Kael descended from the balcony.
Lily noticed the pack resting near the stairs.
Her eyes narrowed.
No
Kael looked at her.
Good morning to you too
You’re not marching
I’m joining the southern section
You were stabbed at, hit, bruised, and bandaged less than two days ago
Mostly bruised
Lily pointed toward Darius.
Tell him
Darius looked at Kael.
Your ribs?
Fine
That’s not an answer
Usable
Darius stared for several seconds.
Kael waited.
Finally Darius pointed toward the pack.
Half-load
Kael frowned.
I’m not asking anyone to—
You’re not an applicant
I know
Then stop behaving like one
Darius stepped closer.
You’re observing. You carry enough to understand the road without turning a military selection into another opportunity to injure yourself
Kael glanced toward Lily.
She looked far too satisfied.
Half-load, Kael muttered.
Lily smiled.
Wonderful
Kael picked up the reduced pack.
I’m surrounded by tyrants
Walter raised his bowl.
We learned from the Empire
Kael joined one of the later supervisory groups several miles from the manor.
He did not march at the front.
Darius had forbidden that too.
A prince walking ahead would change the pace of every squad near him, either because applicants tried impressing him or because they spent the entire march watching his back instead of their own people.
So Kael moved between groups when the terrain allowed it.
Mostly listening.
The first ten kilometers fooled almost everyone.
The morning remained cool.
Legs were fresh.
Applicants introduced themselves and exchanged stories.
Mercenaries exaggerated old battles.
Hunters compared terrain.
Nobles discussed Houses.
Commoners tried deciding which nobles were unbearable before being forced to spend two days with them.
By fifteen kilometers, conversation became shorter.
At twenty, most of it disappeared.
Mud covered boots after the first river crossing. Sweat darkened tunics. Shoulder straps began rubbing skin raw, and the first blisters appeared among applicants whose expensive boots had apparently never experienced a road longer than a palace courtyard.
Kael’s own ribs reminded him several times that Lily and Darius had been right.
He refused to acknowledge this publicly.
A voice appeared beside him.
Regretting the pack?
Kael looked over.
Sir Victor Ravenshade walked several paces away.
Victor had been the noble applicant who challenged Grom’s presence before the opening trial. He remained proud, outspoken, and considerably less polished after twenty kilometers of mud.
Kael looked toward his pack.
No
Victor smiled.
Liar
You’re becoming very brave around royalty
Everyone here is tired
Apparently fatigue destroys manners
Victor adjusted one shoulder strap.
You could’ve stayed at the manor
I could’ve
Then why come?
Kael looked toward the applicants ahead.
Because I helped approve this route
That doesn’t mean you need to walk it
No
Kael thought for a moment.
But I wanted to know whether Darius created something difficult or something stupid
Victor laughed.
And?
Still deciding
Ahead of them, Darius turned without breaking stride.
I heard that
Kael sighed.
Of course you did
Around midday, the first serious collapse happened.
Squad Thirty-Nine had been moving at a reasonable pace when a young hunter named Pell stumbled near a long uphill section.
One knee hit the ground.
Then both.
His squad stopped.
Pell tried standing immediately.
His legs failed.
A mercenary farther ahead looked back.
Come on. We lose time every minute we stand here
Another applicant frowned.
We’re not racing
Everyone says that until they’re behind
Pell reached for his pack.
I can walk
He couldn’t.
Kael watched from several dozen paces away.
Darius stood farther uphill.
Neither intervened.
That was the point.
One member of the squad, a young man in patched leather armor, crouched beside Pell.
What’s wrong?
Cramping
Both legs?
Mostly left
Water?
Pell raised his canteen.
Almost gone
The man looked toward the rest of the squad.
Who has extra?
Silence.
Then one woman handed over part of hers.
The patched-armored applicant removed Pell’s pack.
The mercenary frowned.
What are you doing?
Redistributing it
We’re already carrying our own weight
Then carry some of his too
The mercenary laughed.
Why should I?
Because we still have another checkpoint before dark
That wasn’t an emotional speech.
Just logic.
Two more squad members stepped forward.
The applicant began dividing equipment instead of attempting to carry an entire second thirty-kilogram pack himself.
Kael smiled faintly.
Better
Victor looked over.
What?
Original instinct would have been to carry everything
And?
Darius answered from ahead.
Dramatic. Stupid. Exhausts one useful soldier to solve another man’s problem
Kael nodded.
They reorganized the squad
Exactly
The patched-armored applicant took the heaviest portion himself, but he didn’t turn helping into a performance.
Pell was given several minutes to drink, stretch, and recover.
Then they moved again.
Slower.
Together.
Kael pulled out his notebook.
Darius glanced back.
Name?
Already written
Good
Not every squad handled problems as well.
One group abandoned a struggling applicant after he repeatedly insisted he could not maintain their pace.
They reached the next checkpoint quickly.
Darius was waiting.
Where’s your tenth?
One applicant shrugged.
Couldn’t keep up
Injured?
Tired
So you left him alone
He told us to go
Darius looked toward the checkpoint recorder.
Mark every name
The squad leader frowned.
Are we eliminated?
Not yet
That surprised them.
Darius continued.
But you’ve given me useful information
What information?
That when someone becomes inconvenient, your first solution is to make him someone else’s problem
The man’s face tightened.
Darius pointed toward the road.
Continue
Kael watched them leave.
You didn’t eliminate them
No
Why?
Because one bad decision should sometimes be observed longer
Kael looked toward the squad.
You want to see whether they learn
Or whether the mistake becomes a pattern
That was more useful than a rigid pass-or-fail rule.
The Black Dragon Trials were not supposed to reward people for guessing what Darius wanted.
They were supposed to reveal habits.
Grom Ironfang marched with Squad Ninety-Two.
The old goblin carried his assigned pack without complaint.
His enormous spear had been secured according to trial rules so it could not be used casually, and his squad had spent the first several kilometers unsure how to speak around him.
By midday, that problem had disappeared.
Mostly because Grom was irritating them on purpose.
A young applicant named Davren wiped sweat from his forehead.
You aren’t tired at all?
Grom breathed heavily.
Of course I’m tired
You don’t look tired
That’s because I’m seventy-four and have had decades to practice looking superior
A woman beside them laughed.
Davren frowned.
I thought goblins only lived forty years
Grom looked offended.
I thought humans became intelligent by twenty
The entire squad laughed.
Kael, observing from farther back, shook his head.
Grom noticed him.
Enjoying yourself, Prince?
Immensely
Good. Your trial is terrible
Darius joined them.
Still walking
I didn’t say ineffective
Grom looked toward the hills ahead.
Then his eyes narrowed slightly.
Something about the terrain had changed.
Kael noticed.
What?
Nothing yet
Darius followed Grom’s gaze.
The route ahead entered a narrow ravine bordered by steep wooded slopes.
Not a true canyon.
Blackwood did not suddenly possess a dramatic mountain gorge ten miles from its manor.
But the old road did narrow there between two rocky ridges before emerging into wider southern farmland.
Darius had selected it deliberately.
Good place to test route discipline.
Bad place to lose awareness.
By late afternoon, several squads had reached the ravine.
They entered in staggered intervals, with enough distance between groups to avoid turning the trial into one enormous marching column.
Kael traveled with one of the supervisory teams along a side trail above the route.
Bram walked beside him.
The old gardener stopped.
Kael noticed immediately.
What?
Bram looked toward the trees.
Movement
Kael followed his gaze.
Nothing obvious.
Then the System appeared.
[Irregular movement detected near route perimeter]
[Multiple individuals]
[Intent unknown]
No exact number.
Kael’s hand moved toward his sword.
Darius saw it.
Why?
Bram answered.
We’re not alone
Darius’s expression changed.
Not alarm.
Focus.
He raised one hand toward the nearest route observer.
Signal a halt at the southern entrance
The observer reached for a horn.
Before he could blow it, an arrow struck the road below.
It buried itself several feet ahead of Squad Eighty-Eight.
Everyone froze.
Then a second arrow came down.
This one struck a wooden pack frame.
The applicant carrying it shouted and spun around.
Weapons started leaving sheaths.
Darius’s voice cracked across the ravine.
Hold formation!
That command saved the moment from becoming chaos.
Applicants who had started scattering stopped.
Not all.
Enough.
Figures appeared along the rocky slope above the road.
Twelve.
Maybe thirteen.
Small compared with the mass of applicants spread across Blackwood, but close enough to the nearest squads to matter.
Several carried crude bows.
Others short spears and curved blades.
Green skin.
Goblin.
A human applicant shouted immediately.
Raiders!
Another reached for his sword.
Grom’s expression changed before anyone else’s.
Not fear.
Anger.
He stepped away from his squad and stared toward the painted markings across the attackers’ arms.
Kael looked toward him.
You recognize them
Grom’s jaw tightened.
Not personally
Then what?
Young fools
One of the raiders shouted something from the ridge in a goblin dialect Kael did not understand.
Grom answered.
Loudly.
The raider stopped.
Several others looked toward him.
Kael turned.
What did you say?
I told them to stop before they embarrass their ancestors more than they already have
Despite the danger, Victor Ravenshade actually laughed.
One of the raiders raised his bow again.
Grom’s amusement disappeared.
Eastern clan markings, he said. Splinter youths, most likely. Looking for raids, trophies, reputation
Darius stared toward the ridge.
How many more?
Grom shook his head.
No idea
The System appeared.
[Hostile action confirmed]
[Trial route compromised]
[Priority: Protect applicants and determine whether attackers are isolated or part of a larger force]
Kael dismissed it.
The endurance trial had just become something else.
Below them, eighteen applicants closest to the arrows had already begun reacting in completely different ways.
Some drew weapons.
Some moved behind stronger fighters.
One applicant abandoned his pack and ran backward.
Another grabbed him and pulled him behind cover instead of letting him panic into open ground.
Kael saw everything.
So did Darius.
The Imperial Shield drew his spear.
This part was not planned
Kael looked toward him.
I assumed
Good
Darius pointed toward the squads below.
Then now we find out who remembers the purpose of the trial when nobody knows the rules
Kael drew his sword.
Grom removed the bindings securing his black spear.
His expression had become grim.
Kael noticed.
Those are your people?
Grom looked toward the young goblin raiders.
My race
Not necessarily my people
Then he stepped toward the ravine.
But if they force me to teach them the difference, I will
Another arrow flew.
The Black Dragon Trial of Endurance had begun as a march.
By sunset, it was about to test something Kael had not intended.
Whether eighteen hundred applicants who claimed they wanted to become soldiers could remain disciplined when a real enemy appeared.