Chapter Four: Training (Part One)

Chapter Four: Training (Part One)

The gentle sunlight of early morning spilled across a small village nestled in a valley of the Villas Mountains. The melodious ringing of bells, replacing the crowing of roosters, roused the villagers from their warm beds.

This was the infamous hideout of the bandits: Hot Valley.

Ever since the day before, when the bandits had witnessed that mysterious and powerful young man reveal his “ruthless and merciless” side, they had been completely subdued. That very night, they brought Xiu Yi to their lair.

The way Xiu Yi had tormented Rayle the previous evening—with that cruel yet elegant bearing—struck terror into the hearts of all. Few of them truly slept well that night.

Therefore, when the bells tolled at dawn, the bandits, though groggy and reluctant, stumbled out of their huts, bleary-eyed.

They were met with the sight of their new leader, already assembled and impeccably dressed, waiting for them outside.

The youth wore a fitted outfit; his face was solemn.

“I must say, you are the most useless bandits I have ever seen.” The boy’s voice was cold, his words unvarnished and direct.

“You are incompetent, you bully the weak and fear the strong, you lack discipline and organization, and you possess not a trace of courage in battle. From what I’ve seen, you only know how to gang up on those who can barely fight back. I can hardly imagine how you profit by such means. I suppose you spend most of your days idling about, and at the slightest hint of trouble, you scurry into your dark dens, eking out a pitiful existence like rats. You are the dregs of society, cast-offs of humanity, and yet you have no awareness of it. I doubt even in your dreams you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to enjoy the privileges of the upper class. To you, this wandering, lawless life of plundering the open fields already seems perfect.”

“You are aimless, a mass of worthless mud that can never be shaped, a pile of filth no one would bother to step on even if left in the road. In short, you are a rabble in desperate need of a thorough reformation.”

“Therefore, I must say, I am being uncommonly merciful in accepting this lot of scoundrels, degenerates, and villains. I’ll be honest: before you can be of any real use to me, I will have to expend considerable effort teaching you how to become true, outstanding criminals—ones who give the Empire and society genuine headaches. If you are to be bandits, you should be the best; if you are to be rogues, you should be the most feared.”

With these biting words, Gong Hao observed the bandits, carefully watching their reactions.

It was clear that not even the harshest insults could move them. Those who had become bandits had long since discarded their consciences and pride.

“From today on, you are no longer bandits,” the youth suddenly declared.

“No longer bandits? Then what are we supposed to be?” The bandits exchanged astonished looks.

“That is exactly what I shall teach you,” Xiu Yi replied with meaning. “From this day forth, you are no longer bandits, nor scoundrels, nor outlaws wanted by the Empire. You will learn new things and strive to attain new identities for the future.”

“This will be a daunting task, for these new roles require you to learn a great deal. You must abandon your past habits and master new knowledge. I cannot give you much time, but you will have to absorb an enormous amount. You may complain, you may protest, but let me assure you: anyone who fails to meet my requirements will experience a suffering far worse than death.”

The bandits looked at each other in alarm.

Former chief Rayle dared to ask, “Master, what exactly do you intend for us to become?”

“Gentlemen,” Xiu Yi replied coolly, with a hint of mockery. “You will become people who can freely enter high society—perhaps even the royal court—standing above others, the envy of all. In other words: gentlemen, nobles.”

“Therefore, starting today, I will undertake a complete transformation of you all, helping you become new men. Frankly, this will not be easy, but I have always relished a challenge.”

At these words, a wicked smile curled at the corner of the youth’s lips.

A collective shudder went through the crowd.

“Before we officially begin your reformation, let me outline what you must learn.”

“Every morning, you will attend to your hygiene. Good personal habits are essential. In three days, I expect all your yellow teeth to be spotless. If you can’t clean them, use a knife to scrape them. If you can’t manage that, I won’t mind helping—by knocking them out myself. Today is the last time you will appear in this state.”

As Xiu Yi’s icy gaze swept over them, the bandits exchanged glances. They were so filthy that lice could hold conventions on their bodies, and their rags could serve as cleaning cloths.

“Now, everyone strip and get into the river over there for a bath. Make sure you wash yourselves thoroughly.”

“Damn it, it’s winter!” one bandit shouted.

The youth’s voice was as chilling as a ghost’s: “That will make it all the more memorable. I’ll count to ten. Anyone not naked in the river by then... Xu.”

The little dragon gave a menacing roar, fixing its gaze upon the crowd.

The bandits hesitated, but finally Rayle Yessa, their former leader, roared, “Hell with it! Let’s just do it—what are we afraid of? Brothers, strip! There are wenches in the river! Charge!”

“Charge!” they all bellowed, quickly discarding their tattered clothes and rushing toward the river.

Xiu Yi watched the horde of bare, grimy bodies and shook his head with a wry smile. “Quite the rallying cry, wouldn’t you say?”

The little dragon nodded solemnly.

That bath was perhaps the most agonizing the bandits had ever taken.

Men who had barely bathed in their lives floundered in the icy water for two full hours before they were allowed ashore. By the end, their skin was red and raw, as if they’d been scraped clean of a layer.

When they emerged, however, they were shocked to find their clothes missing.

“From today on, you will not wear your old clothes. I’ve prepared new ones for you.”

Xiu Yi gestured toward a pile not far from the riverbank: formal suits, top hats, walking sticks, pocket watches, and gleaming leather shoes.

Surprisingly, there were even court dresses for women.

The bandits stared, dumbstruck.

These had been amassed the night before, after Xiu Yi had traveled nearly a hundred miles to gather them. Unlucky for a few local nobles and cloth merchants, who awoke to find their wardrobes ransacked. Fortunately, Xiu Yi’s wind magic talent had reached the level of Wind Aura, or he could never have traveled so quickly.

Rayle Yessa, naked, picked out a black tailcoat and muttered, “This fabric feels nice.”

“If you like it, put it on. If it doesn’t fit, try another. Fortunately, there’s no shortage of large nobles,” Xiu Yi said with a smile.

After their bath and donning new clothes, the bandits looked quite presentable—one might have mistaken them for rural gentry attending a country fair, if not for the moment they opened their mouths:

“Damn it, these clothes are uncomfortable. Why so many buttons?” grumbled a burly brute, his thick fingers fumbling.

“That’s formal wear, you idiot. Look, mine’s casual, hardly any buttons,” a sly-looking bandit boasted.

“Give me yours, then.”

“You bastard, you dare take my clothes!”

“Yeah, and what if I do?”

“So, you wanna go, do you?” The sly bandit flashed a knife.

“Happy to oblige!” his opponent replied.

A crowd began to shout, “Fight! Fight! Gut that bastard!”

“Bart, I’m betting on you! Rip his arm off!”

“Or his manhood!”

“Ten silver vit, I’m on Bart!”

“Twenty on Van Helsing.”

“You rich bastard!”

“That’s my wife’s dowry!”

A wild uproar broke out.

A chilly cough silenced the chaos. The youth’s cold voice lingered in the air: “I have to say, you’re still a bunch of hopeless fools. Even dressed as nobles, at heart you’re still scum, ruffians, and villains.”

The bandits turned to look at him. Rayle Yessa cleared his throat, “Respected master, the lads do this all the time. For us, fighting is just a way of communicating.”

“They’ll have a new way to communicate from now on,” said the youth icily. “Now, line up by height. You’ll learn to stand at attention. Anyone who speaks during this penalty gets twenty lashes.”

Two hours later.

“After washing, it’s time for morning tea,” Xiu Yi announced as he sat at a nobleman’s table, leisurely pouring himself a fragrant cup of coffee.

He lifted the cup with grace, sipped, then picked up a pastry from a nearby plate.

“Remember, morning tea is an experience to savor, enjoyed with a relaxed and cheerful spirit. Nobles don’t eat merely to fill their bellies, but to enjoy the pleasures of exquisite cuisine.”

He sampled the pastry, an expression of bliss on his face. “Delicious—brought from quite a distance. Care to try some?”

The bandits eyed each other warily.

“After morning tea, you’ll begin your cultural studies. In high society, it’s rare to find an illiterate noble. They may be scoundrels, knaves, and hypocrites, but on the surface, they are always educated and courteous. So, you must learn to read. How many of you can read and write?”

The sly fellow from before stepped forward, “I can read a bit.”

“How much?”

“...I can write my own name.”

The bandits burst into laughter. “Van Helsing, you rascal, you can write your own name?”

“That’s something! Who knew we had scholars among us?”

“Wow! Van Helsing, show me how to write ‘bastard’? And what about ‘manhood’?”

“His name isn’t ‘bastard’ or ‘manhood.’”

“Oh, what a shame!”

Xiu Yi sneered, “Aside from literacy, you’ll study the history, culture, and religions of the Lance Empire and the continent of Windwhisper. You’ll also learn about drinking…”

A bandit laughed, “Learn to drink? We’re all experts—I could drink with my backside!”

Laughter erupted.

Xiu Yi shot him a cold glance. “Hong.”

A fiery bird in the sky unleashed a blast of flame. The bandit collapsed, singed like a plucked chicken.

Xiu Yi calmly sipped his coffee. “I can tolerate your arrogance, ignorance, and vulgarity—for now. But remember: interrupting when someone else is speaking is extremely rude. A true gentleman would never behave so. The first offense is punished by my pet. The second, by me. There is rarely a third. So pay attention—I will test you at any time.”

The bandits fell silent, straining to catch every word.

Xiu Yi continued, “Banquets, tea parties, horse races, and balls are the four main forms of socializing in high society. This afternoon, you will learn how to drink, distinguish various spirits, and related etiquette. You’ll learn to ride and to carry yourself elegantly on horseback. You will also study the appreciation of the arts. Artistic discernment is a mark of noble status. You’ll need at least a basic ability to distinguish poetry, painting, music, and sculpture.”

A bandit muttered, “The only art I know is the art of—”

Xiu Yi raised an eyebrow. “Xu.”

The little dragon bared its fangs and pounced. Screams rose from the crowd, and soon Xu trotted back with a piece of flesh.

“In the evening, you’ll learn dancing and refined speech. You must master at least one form of court language, which is very different from your usual way of speaking. Remember: nobles do not use vulgarities. If I hear words like ‘bastard’ or ‘backside’ from anyone, I won’t hesitate to help him see his own backside with his own eyes.”

Violence is always the most effective way to educate bandits.

So the outlaws learned to accept in silence.

Once he had outlined their curriculum, Xiu Yi finished his tea. He dabbed at his lips with a napkin and announced:

“Today’s first lesson is etiquette.”

“Etiquette is a key distinction between the upper and lower classes. You could say that, for a noble, it is as fundamental as family lineage, crests, wealth, and imperial favor. The latter are material concerns—I’ll see to those. But etiquette is something you must learn for yourselves.”

“Thus, your first subject is etiquette.”

“There is much to etiquette. Greetings, for instance, are strictly codified in high society. For untitled nobles, use terms like ‘sir’ or ‘gentleman’; for titled nobles, use their titles. Never refer to yourself with vulgar terms—learn the difference between ‘your humble servant’ and ‘I’ in various contexts. If in doubt, simply use ‘I.’ Understand: only those who are very close may use ‘you’ informally; ‘you’ in the formal sense is almost always appropriate. Among men, greetings vary by distance. At one to one and a half meters, place your left hand over your chest and bow fifteen degrees. At greater distances, remove your hat. In formal settings, close friends may embrace, but not too vigorously.”

“When meeting a lady, there are three basic greeting forms. First, the hand-kiss—used among peers, appropriate in most circumstances for greetings or farewells. Remember, never pounce like a hungry wolf. The gesture must be gentle and elegant—don’t cling to her hand as if you’ve never met a woman before.”

A bandit raised his hand—a rule Xiu Yi had just established.

“Speak,” Xiu Yi said.

The bandit asked, “May I lick her?”

A chorus of lewd laughter erupted.

Xiu Yi answered coldly, “If anyone dares stick out his tongue, I guarantee he’ll never use it again.”

His tone was so chilling that the bandits quickly fell silent.

“The second form is the forehead kiss, usually reserved for elders greeting juniors. I doubt you’ll have much occasion for this, and frankly, I’d rather you didn’t—since I fear you’d aim lower and refuse to let go.”

The bandits snickered again.

“The third is to kiss the top of the foot, a greeting for servants. When receiving reward or punishment from your master, you must submit humbly, whatever you may feel inside.”

“Let me remind you: not all forty-six of you will become nobles. Most will only be servants. In the past, you had a chief, a second, and a third-in-command. Now all old ranks are abolished. I will give you new rules, and you will play this game according to them. Whether you become master or servant depends on how quickly and well you learn. In the past, only Rayle Yessa was the leader, but now, your prospects depend solely on your efforts. Whoever learns fastest and adapts best will rise.”

“I need a family patriarch, at least two brothers, a steward, and a chief of the family guard. Beyond that, there may be a few other roles, but not many—this is a newly founded family. The rest will be servants: doormen, coachmen, gardeners, footmen, maids. The role you earn is up to you.”

Xiu Yi did not require every bandit to master the manners of a gentleman; he would select the best to play the noble roles, the rest would serve as staff. Yet even servants must learn the rules.

Life is sometimes nothing more than a play, and everyone is an actor.

Those who perform well take the lead; those who do not are left in the background.

As for Xiu Yi himself, four years on Purgatory Island had made him a consummate actor, and had also familiarized him with the ways of the nobility. The traditions of the Glayle family of etiquette had given him ample material to use. Now he was ready to act as both director and playwright, orchestrating scenes for the future.

No one knew what Xiu Yi was really plotting, nor did he care to explain. A leader must sometimes keep an air of mystery. Good subordinates need only know what the boss wants done—not why.

But a leader must always understand the meaning behind each step.

Using bandits as his foundation was a sensible choice, but there was a flaw: men like Rayle, with their rough speech, demeanor, habits, and lifestyle, practically branded themselves as “bad guys.” In their company, he would either remain an outlaw forever or be driven out or arrested the moment he entered a city.

This was something the youth could never tolerate.

The bandit band would serve as his shield, not as a burden.

So, when he decided to take them in, his plan for their reformation was born.

He would transform these bandits into true gentlemen—both in status and demeanor—so that he could move freely in any society rather than remain a wanderer in the wilds.

Undoubtedly, this was a formidable challenge.

A true leader can bend even the most stubborn to his will, molding them as he pleases; those without such ability can only blend into the crowd.

Xiu Yi was clearly not the latter.