At first, no one really paid attention to Callum. There was a time when they felt he would hold them back during this Battle Phase but that thought soon died when they saw how devoted he was.
Callum and Fifty-Eight displayed strict military discipline, making it easier for the others to follow. But Callum was paid special attention by the Seventh Captain. She grilled him ruthlessly even personally sparring with him during sparring sessions. It wasn't long before Callum's independent mindset broke and he began working with others.
While they could not say he was the best of them, he was the most methodical of them all.
"The instruction was to work together without hierarchy so I suggest we talk through things together" Callum was quick to object. He was very particular about rules.
Fifty-eight suddenly cleared her throat attracting the attention of the others.
"We got lucky with the Seventh Captain, she taught us way ahead of the Training Regimen which means we are the best trained among all camps. I suggest we attack some others now while they are still figuring out what to do. It's a month-long event, we attack, hold back, and sustain ourselves during the rest of it" she aired her opinion.
"But many camps are larger than ours," Twelve pointed out. He was a bald man, which made training under the sun difficult for him, but everyone else had supported him whenever they could, while he in turn helped them during endurance training. His stamina could be said to be the highest...as long as there was no sun beating him down.
The others quickly nodded and Callum asked. "Three of three?"
"Game" Fifty-Eight immediately replied and the others expressed their agreements as well.
Three of three was the formation in which they stood but also one of the formations taught by the Seventh Captain during one of their morning lessons.
The group quickly discussed details of the plan and returned to their tents to prepare. They had to hide their food and nutritional fluids since it was now scarce. By now they had realized the effect of nutrition fluid on their health and physiques.
Then they packed their things and headed out of the camp with a sword strapped to their waists, a bow in hand, and a quiver on their backs alongside backpacks containing their belongings. It was considerable weight but after endurance training with weight straps for the past month, it was nothing. Especially so for Callum who for the first time in four weeks was free of weight straps and suddenly felt like he could fly.
Meanwhile, in the Main Camp, Mentors sat inside a large tent which served as the cafeteria, and enjoyed their meals.
The Seventh Captain sat across from the First Captain and a few other Captains. They were different from other Mentors in that they were Combat Captains while the others were mainly Mentors. Combat Captains led squads and only did Mentorship when assigned to.
For every batch, there were twelve Captains mixed with the Mentors.
"Did the same thing again and prioritized Mind over body?" The First Captain asked, his eyes fixed on the Seventh.
"Ari always does that, I tried it once but most of my Retainers became Decorations after the Battle Phase" A blonde Captain shook his head as he picked at his plate. The number 3 was etched on the shoulder of his armor.
"I gave up long ago, only Ari does it right. I just spent the first month on combat and fitness" the First Captain shook his head with a meek smile.
Ari, the Seventh Captain watched them talk without commenting but her smug smile made the others groan.
"You think this is good but why the rush? They don't even know combat basics yet but you're already teaching them ideology" another Captain couldn't stand her smug expression and criticized.
The others turned to him with teasing looks.
"First time as a mentor, right?" The First Captain asked with a chuckle.
"Ari has proven time and time again that ideology controls a lot about how we think and fight more so than skill. What her group of Nine believes in is greater than victory and greater than strength or skill. That's why Ari's Retainers always make it through this phase without a single loss" A Captain tagged 12 explained to the newbie who gaped.
"This time might be different though. She took that kid the Princess was investigating" the First Captain reminded.
"Do we know why she is looking for him?" Ari finally spoke.
"Who knows. At first, she thought he was here for a Legal Hearing and wanted to oversee his case but when she didn't find him she almost turned the city upside down. The Director had to inform her he was with us before she calmed down."
"Princess Zina can be impulsive" Ari shook her head with a helpless smile.
She knew the Director hated getting involved with Imperials but Princess Zina always found a way to make that grey haired women intervene.
"Enough talking, time for bets. Let's bet on which Mentor's group will beat a Captain's group this time" Another Captain chipped in, hitting the table to gather attention.
"As usual, Ari is out" She tuned to Ari with an unapologetic smile.
As far as the other Captains were concerned, Ari's training method was a cheat so she was never involved in bets. For her, this Assignment was free credit while others had to work hard to earn this credit.