[41st Division Encampment, South of Omashu]
I'm positive that Fire Nation Command will overlook the fact that I had a commissioned officer impaled through the anus, roasted and fed to the Ostrich-Horses!
All I have to do is prove that I'm more competent at getting results than he was- which was a low bar if we're going to be honest- and bribe them with pillaged Earth Kingdom goods. No sweat. It was after combing through the former captain's correspondence that I found out just how I was going to impress them with my competency. was going to complete the mission that the 41st Division was supposed to do in this region.
Our purpose was very simple really: Act as live bait.
It was a fairly clever strategy, I'll give Fire Lord Ozai that much. Let me explain. The 41st Division was supposed to land in this area and harass Earth Kingdom towns between {Omashu}- the second greatest stronghold of the Earth Kingdom- and {Gaoling}- Toph's wealthy hometown to the East. The Earth Kingdom, seeing the disruption on one of their most vital trade routes, will be forced to commit forces away from their strongholds to stamp us out... just long enough for the Fire Nation to assault Omashu itself. Fire Nation Command fully meant for us to be eventually surrounded and annihilated by an overwhelming number of Earth Kingdom forces; but in doing so, it will make every surrounding Earth Kingdom fortress undermanned and ripe for assault.
New Quest:
RAID AND PILLAGE
Main Objective: Completely disrupt the Gailong-Omashu trade route
Rewards:
Large Reputation increase with the {Fire Nation}
Massive bonus exp
Legendary Item x2
+ R +
I was going to raid and pillage anyway, but now I'm doubly eager to do it now! Thank you, Game! Legendary items right off the bat, what a treat!
Moreover, it was a good feeling participating in a canon event in the show, however indirectly. None of Captain Tuan's letters mention anything about it, but for someone who knows how the ATLA timeline goes, it was easy to see that the fortress that the Fire Nation wanted was none other than {Omashu}, King Bumi's domain. It was there that you could see the broad strokes of Fire Lord Ozai's Grand Master Plan™ and likely with input from Daddy's Little Girl™, Azula. I could even appreciate the simple elegance of the plan... apart from the fact that I was part of the live bait, of course.
It'll be fine. After I level up a few times and whip the 41st Division into shape, there will not be an Earth Kingdom army strong enough to defeat us.
I looked out to the encampment- to their eager little faces.
"Make some space!" I boomed to them, "We're going to do some training."
(Later that noon)
The 41st Division was an infantry division.
That meant that we had none of those cool metal tanks that could climb vertical cliff faces, or powerful rhinos that could uproot trees or even the nimble Ostrich-Horses... just infantry fresh from boot camp- cheap and disposable with a barebones logistics platoon. The fighting force of this division consisted of three platoons of {Fire Nation Recruits}, one platoon of {Firebender Recruits}, and several barely-trained {Ostrich-Horse Scouts} on Ostrich-Horses that we claimed in the last few days. More of a company than a division, but I couldn't expect Fire Nation military organisation to be 1-to-1 with Earth's.
But the point I was trying to make was that they were utter shit.
Frankly, I would have just written this entire division off as cannon fodder that wouldn't even win against a squad of little girls if not for one thing: Me.
At the centre of the encampment, three fully-armoured Fire nation soldiers stood on shaky legs as they panted from exertion and a bruise or two. And after sparring with almost half the division all morning, I was almost in the same boat to be honest. Who knew that the [Weapon Proficiency] perk which gave me a working understanding of every weapon I held was extremely useful in training people? Specifically, it granted a "Lvl 3 proficiency - Novice" in any weapon, and it was a really sad indicator to know that even at a paltry 'Novice' level proficiency, I still had a lot to teach these recruits.
Subdued {Fire Nation Recruit}, +2 exp!
Subdued {Fire Nation Recruit}, +0 exp!
Subdued {Fire Nation Recruit}, +1 exp!
Spear Weapon Proficiency is now Level 4 - Novice!
I tossed the spear that I was sparring with them back onto the rack, and turned towards the three trainees to give my final critique for the day.
"You're a spineless, pale pathetic lot. And you haven't got a clue. Number 12... grow some balls, your knees are still bending inwards when you block. Number 185... I don't care if your tits are getting in the way, engage your pecs when you go for the lunge. Number 98... Adequate skill, but work on your stamina- Earth Kingdom geriatrics could outpace you. Dismissed!"
"Sir, thank you, sir!"
For demonstrating martial knowledge and building rapport with the troops...
{41st Division} Reputation : 27 -> 37
{41st Division} Obedience : 50 -> 55
+ R +
Trainer Level 5 Reached - New Skill Perk Unlocked!
Group Comprehension (Passive): Monkey see, Monkey do. Train up to (6) students at a time without suffering training speed penalties.
It's funny how a little public execution, destroying an Earth Kingdom platoon and almost two extra feet in height could make you so respectable. But they were listening and obeying me, and that was what mattered. If I keep this up, the {41st Division} might actually become a force to be reckoned with. But that was a long road to travel down on, because if Aang and his friends dropped by right now, they'd definitely wipe the floor with the 41st. Not that it was possible, the Winter Solstice was just 2-3 days from now. The Gaang should be on the way to Fire Sage island to converse with Roku about the Sozin's Comet. We still had time to train and complete [Quest: Raid and Pillage].
I can already taste those two Legendary reward items...
"Khan, sir..." Captain Tuan's former {Firebender Bodyguard} saluted as she stopped in front of me. "Our questioning of the villagers has concluded. We now know the locations of at least four other villages in the area, as well as the route where the trade caravans pass through, it's further east in the forests by a small river, about three day's travel from here."
"... so why didn't they make their village right along that route instead of out here in the middle of nowhere with barren soil and zero water?"
"The villagers mentioned that this place used to be fertile land when a river flowed here just a few decades ago... they couldn't bear to relocate from their home."
"They're stubborn idiots clinging to their ways even if it meant their entire family starved or died of thirst." I grunted in understanding, "Order the men to loot the village of anything that's valuable. The villagers are now our sla- I mean, indentured servants of the Fire Nation Army. If there are any carpenters and woodworkers among the villagers, have them build carts out of their wooden doors and tables. Any Ostrich-Horse the villagers own should be used to pull them. The 41st Division must become more mobile if we are to survive behind enemy lines."
"Sir, we do not have the supplies to support this many people. Even without the villagers, we might have ten days at most... otherwise, just two. Further exacerbating our situation is that our next resupply is scheduled two weeks from now, and with how stretched our supply lines have been, we should expect delays."
"So, either way, we're short on supplies." I groaned in frustration, "Tell me, did the thought of hunting wildlife ever occur to Tuan or you?"
"They... didn't teach us how to do that in boot camp, sir?"
I narrowed my eyes at her.
"So if I hadn't taken over, Captain Tuan really was going to run this unit to the ground and let us starve, wasn't he?"
"... Yes, sir."
"Ugh..." I sighed- palming my helmet with an armoured hand. I just knew that if I had let that fat cat live, he definitely would have given me a quest to forage for food, no doubt. Now that I was the boss though, I could just delegate, but this was a good time to scout around with my own eyes since all our current scouts were damn new at their jobs.
"Just... focus on those carts." I told her as I picked up my [Iron Meteor Hammer]- the ball and chain rattled in my fist as I walked past her. "I'll go secure some food."
And without another word, I jogged off into the distance.
(Later that dusk)
Here's a fun fact: Did you know that a single field-dressed deer could feed up to 200 people? Well, I just killed half a herd just to be on the safe side! Twenty-three of them to be exact, their carcasses perfectly preserved in the bullshit that was the Gamer System Inventory. That and a massive amount of assorted flowers, berries, and every suspicious looking mushroom that I came across. I'm glad that I took [Expanded Inventory] then because I don't think this would have fit in the space of a storage shed.
Skill Level up: [Herbalism]! Lvl 1 -> Lvl 2
Tonics, poultices and poisons... Here I come!
Speaking of the Gamer System, I suppose I have held off levelling up enough.
Level up Achieved!
Name: Khan "The Giant"
Level: 1 -> 2
Level exp: 174/500
Rank: Private First Class. 41st Division, Fire Nation Army.
HP: 400/400
Strength: 20 -> 22
Dexterity: 18 -> 20
Constitution: 18 -> 20
Intelligence: 0 -> 1
Spirit: 17 -> 19
* 1 Perk Points Available.*
(Increase Intelligence to earn more Perk points per level!)
+ R +
Strength Level 20 Reached - New Perks Available!
Power Move (Passive): You don't 'run.' You kick the ground until it takes you where you want to go. On top of your Dexterity, add 25% Strength to your running speed and jumping height.
Furor of Furious Fury (Active): Angry caveman powers, activate! For the next 4 strikes you make, your strength is doubled.
Dexterity Level 20 Reached - New Perks Available!
Parkour Prodigy (Passive): Running? On the ground?! Like some peasant!?! Double your Dexterity bonus while performing parkour.
Riposte (Passive): A skill distilled from a billion hours in Soulsborne games. Attacking directly after a successful parry now carries a guaranteed crit.
Constitution Level 20 Reached - New Perks Available!
Iron Gut (Passive): Not to be confused with iron abs. Double your Endurance bonus to resist Poisons, Toxins and illnesses.
Clench! (Passive): Brace your glutes! You gain 10% damage reduction for all attacks that you see coming.
* 1 Perk Points Available.*
+ R +
Six very useful perks... and I could only buy one of them. This was not a good omen.
If reaching stat milestones made two perks available for purchase, I will definitely not have enough Perk Points to purchase them all. Now I knew for certain that I made a grave mistake crippling the progression of my Intelligence stat with [Dull Mind]. I desperately needed more Intelligence stat for more perk points, and the current rate of increase for intelligence was far too slow. I can easily imagine that my enemies will be scaling with me by level, rather than by how many perks I've purchased. And eventually, they just might surpass me in power. This is just like Skyrim or Fallout 4 all over again! So many perks, but not enough perk points! It's infuriating!
The Perk [Power Move] Purchased!
* 0 Perk Points Available.*
For the moment however, the perk [Power Move] seems like the best fit for my current fighting style: Keeping opponents powerless at a distance while I thrash them with my meteor hammer. Moreover, the ability to quickly reposition on the battlefield should not be underestimated. But a part of me still yearned for that [Parkour Prodigy].
"... I could have been a giant flipping ninja." I muttered to myself in dismay. "I need more perk points. Game, where is that quest to remove the [Dull Mind] perk?"
= Right here, my Lord. =
New Quest:
THE JOURNEY FOR INTELLIGENCE
Main Objective: Impress {Wan Shi Tong} with 100 books for his library.
Reward: Removal of the [Dull Mind] perk
Optional Objective: Impress {Wan Shi Tong} with 20 books you authored yourself
Reward: [Able Mind]
+ R +
Wan Shi Tong? The Owl Spirit of Knowledge curating his personal library in the Si Wong Desert?
Hmmm... That's a very generous quest seeing as I just need to pillage 100 books from various libraries around the Earth Kingdom and deliver them to the library.
As for the 20 books that I need to write myself however... It would be difficult, but doable. I will need to tackle that problem with a bit more creativity since I did not have much in the way of worthwhile knowledge, but I'm sure some smart and learned people out in the world will let me borrow theirs. I just need to find them, imprison them, and conduct a few interviews at knifepoint... and voila- I have memoirs and biographies and first-hand accounts of events. And who said writing books was hard? But first things first...
I glanced up at the sky that was soon turning into night.