The first day of ’integration’ with the Ranger Group proved to be remarkably effective.
The ronin gathered from the surrounding areas no longer referred to Lann as an ’outsider’ or ’foreign person’.
Lann’s memories and knowledge guided him in establishing his own authority, and the ronin quickly adapted to it.
Or rather, Lann made them adapt quickly.
"Good morning, Leader!"*N
In the longhouse, Lann awoke from meditation, and all the ronin would approach him, sitting cross-legged on the ground, and bowing their heads in greeting.
Lann still wasn’t accustomed to such formal greetings, but to maintain the atmosphere of authority, he had to accept it.
"Get ready to patrol."
The Demon Hunter’s physique naturally recovered energy quickly, and the genetic seed along with the [Second Heart] made Lann extraordinarily vigorous.
Although he had already arranged the patrol schedule on the first day, because he wanted to channel his abundant energy into learning new knowledge, he joined over eighty percent of the patrol shifts daily.
The area outside Hirata Manor was spacious; more importantly, it was only outside Hirata Manor that the ninja known as Wolf, identified as the instructor, could be encountered.
According to the reward agreement with Jiulang, he could only approach Wolf for questions when the latter was not busy.
The shortfall in manpower for the Hirate family was evident.
What seemed abnormal to Lann was that recent information suggested that the Hirate family’s status within Iwami Country was not ordinary.
They were considered top-ranking ministers in Iwami Country and geographically served as the southern gateway for Iwami, a barrier the Inner Mansion Army would have to face if they invaded.
That a vassal household of such status would be so understaffed... Somehow it all seemed a bit strange.
Moreover, this Inner Mansion Army invasion didn’t seem like a ferocious, all-out attack. It was more like a routine offensive-defense battle.
Thus, the Hirate family’s struggle in this campaign was even more unjustifiable.
This abnormality made Lann worried.
He feared that the Hirata family might be easily overrun before the celestial alignment occurred again to reopen the rift.
The Demon Hunter shook his head, discarding such unfounded speculations.
A few subordinates from the Ranger Group followed Lann respectfully and neatly, heading towards the gate of Hirata Manor.
Though the armed forces of the Hirate family had decreased in number, their formations and defenses remained strict. The soldiers were generally spirited, strong in body and spirit. Their armor and weapons were also top-grade within Iwami Country.
Just yesterday, Lann’s group helped gather boats from more than ten miles up and down the Longquan River to the manor’s side.
To cross the river on a large scale, one would need to conjure boats out of thin air; otherwise, they’d have to use the wooden bridge at the manor’s main entrance.
In such circumstances, even professional soldiers would need several hundred or even close to a thousand men to breach this manor.
If forces of that scale were allowed inside the borders, then the Iwami Country warriors on the frontlines might as well collectively commit seppuku.
The disciplined ranks of the Ranger Group amazed the Castle Town residents, as even the family’s soldiers rarely maintained such serious attitudes ordinarily.
But for Lann, if a small organization of less than fifty couldn’t be operated as smoothly as an extension of one’s arm, it would be quite unacceptable.
Setting rules, establishing rewards and penalties, delineating hierarchies, and guiding the crowd’s mindset... Lann didn’t even need to draft a detailed individualized plan; the rigid routine plan produced by Mentos sufficed.
Exchanging tokens with the soldiers guarding the gate and greeting them, the Ranger Group patrol team moved towards the outside of Hirata Manor.
As the situation visibly intensified, the soldiers guarding the gate began equipping themselves with muskets.
Moreover, under Lann’s acute sense of smell, he noticed the small stronghold at the entrance had a considerable stockpile of gunpowder and bullets.
It was indeed heavily fortified.
Among the Ranger Group, Kotaro followed behind Lann; as they stepped out of the gate, he and the other patrol members became vigilant.
This guy often looked over at Lann with an eager expression after Lann had forced the ronin to apologize to him with a deep bow.
It made him slightly anxious.
Later, Kotaro repeatedly joined Lann on patrols he wasn’t assigned to, attempting with ordinary stamina to keep up with a Demon Hunter possessing the [Second Heart].
Eventually, Lann added more shifts for him, which stopped this almost suicidal behavior.
Lann didn’t quite know what to make of the situation, but vaguely felt that Kotaro’s unseemly appearance now seemed a little more amicable.
The ronin, hand on sword hilts, right thumb against the guard, were ready to draw at any moment.
Those with spears rested the weapons on their shoulders, following in step.
The few with bows drew an arrow, nocking it, and carefully scanned the surroundings.
As the atmosphere and tension grew palpably, the nerves of the Ranger Group and other patrol members tightened.
However, oddly, these ronin always glanced around before looking forward at the head of the group.
Only when they saw that tall figure with silver hair did they briefly relax, release their tension, and continue observing.
The reason being, Lann’s presence and voice were extraordinarily subtle.
This required his subordinates to use their eyes directly to confirm he was still at the front of the group.
Just as he first sensed when receiving the cracked version of the Lonely Shadow Group Ninja Technique Book, his progress in Assassination Technique and Silent Breathing Technique was exceedingly rapid.
Such a knowledge-heavy, practice-light skill was easily mastered under Mentos’s learning model.
Mentos had allowed Lann, within days, to go from someone who had never ridden a horse to having riding habits akin to a nomadic horse-riding people.
Now, the ninja knowledge simply required Mentos to allocate an hour a day from the [Light Body Skill] simulation and calculation.
After a week, Lann’s lifestyle closely resembled a ninja’s movement pattern.
He would maintain slight but adequate breathing when not in combat, reducing the activity of his sweat glands, minimizing body odor.
Along with this, he developed a technique to control the activity of the native heart and the [Second Heart] within a certain range using breathing.
On various surfaces, his footsteps would adapt accordingly, moving like a ghost silently.
This already approached the level of a ninja newly trained and ready for assignments.
Even the most obscure rural ninja organizations in East Japan had never heard of apprenticeships shorter than five years.
A training period less than five years, if spread around, could even cause these ninja to lose the opportunity for serving their masters!
Because such a short training time made it impossible to trust their proficiency.
But for Lann, the only thing lacking from being a novice ninja was the [Light Body Skill].
While the group was walking, Lann’s peripheral vision caught a glimpse of an orange-yellow figure through the gaps in the foliage by the river.
He cheered softly, "Ha, lucky day!"
Then waved in that direction.
"Wolf! We meet again!"