Yeah, you need to see at least the face.

“Vice! Please guide Senior Ho to the training center. Also, make sure to explain the overall situation of the trainees on the way!”

I left for the training center again under the guidance of my vice.

“The trainees of the Golden Guards undergo a selection test first. We assess physical fitness, martial arts level, knowledge, character, and various other skills. Although they were recommended as talents by the local officials, there are still a few gems among them.”

“Oh. Is that so?”

“Yes. The unit that the external advisor will be taking charge of also meets the minimum requirements to be recruited by the Golden Guards. They’ve all been called geniuses or prodigies back in my hometown, so their egos might be a bit inflated. Especially when they learn about the advisor’s background, you can bet there will be those who underestimate them, just like confident young folks do.”

“I understand.”

In the martial world, it’s the martial skills that matter, but in the military, it’s the rank that counts. No matter how much of an expert one might be or a child of a renowned family, if the instructor says to do it, the trainees have to do it.

“The selection test doesn’t end in a day, so it’s still ongoing. The final number of trainees will probably be decided in a day or two. So, apart from the ones you see today, there might be a few more added.”

First, my vice introduced me to another training instructor. After making brief acquaintance with the instructors, the vice suddenly said as if he just remembered.

“I almost forgot to mention this. The external advisor doesn’t have to conduct training strictly according to the manual. You have the discretion to do it your way. Of course, following the training manual is also fine, but…”

Is this what it sounds like?

“If I proceed with training in my own way, which I’m completely unexperienced in military life, it might cause some chaos.”

“Ha-ha, yes. But you were invited to inject some fresh air into the Golden Guards, right?”

So basically, he was saying to mess around a bit and create an excuse to throw me out later.

“You don’t need to feel burdened. If it seems like things aren’t going well, it’s perfectly fine not to intervene. We’ve prepared various things on our side, so we can adjust things as needed. Now, we’ve arrived.”

Seeing the similar palace halls lined up, I thought to myself, “A military is still a military no matter where you go.” The buildings that looked like barracks may be old, but they were probably decent when they were first built.

However, the traces of years of repairs! It didn’t seem like they were done by professional carpenters or plasterers, but rather hastily carried out by soldiers with decent handiwork but no expertise, resulting in a patchwork job everywhere.

The exterior was just emanating a strong odor of mediocrity!

Overcome with a mild PTSD episode, I collected my thoughts. I’m not a soldier; I’m an instructor. Not just any instructor, but a special forces instructor, a leader!

Well, even if I think of myself as a leader, that doesn’t particularly improve my mood.

“The buildings are old, huh? But they’ll be reborn as ‘advanced barracks’ next year.”

I flinched.

“…That’s impressive.”

“Yes. The plan for advanced barracks was established a long time ago. Yet, it kept getting rejected due to a lack of budget. For years it was held back, but this time it seems money just dropped from the sky and got approved, right?”

Could it be the funds from the Golden Clan sent by Samayeom?

“We need to repair or expand the old buildings and replace all furniture and living tools with new ones. Just recently, there was an accident where an upper bunk bed broke down, causing non-combat losses.”

“Ha-ha-ha…”

“Oh, by the way! You need to think long and hard before deciding to give out a ball for soccer during free time. It’s great for morale, but every time we have selection processes, some end up with head injuries or broken limbs from playing soccer, getting eliminated. Please be cautious during friendly matches with other training crews.”

“….”

This was how I made my way to the hall, rummaging through the missing two years triggered by those words.

“One building will be utilized by one unit. It seems this cohort of trainees will be split into ten squads. So, you will be the training instructor responsible for squad number ten.”

“Got it. Thank you for the kind introduction.”

After exchanging some customary farewells, my vice hurriedly left, telling me to have a good day. Well, being the vice of an admiral meant he probably had a lot to do. I stood in front of the door and took a moment to breathe.

Song Chang-sik had gathered those among the applicants with clear disqualifying reasons. It’s unlikely that any of them would be pushovers.

I steadied my heart. Who am I? I’m Ho Cheon-an, a discharged corporal after two years of military service.

Even if they’ve just assembled those with shortcomings, compared to the darkness of K Barracks, they should be easier to deal with.

I recalled the despair of dealing with a new recruit who took more than a minute just to tie one shoelace.

A junior in my same company who claimed it hurt whenever he worked with a demon haunting his left arm.

That one-month senior who would slack off while asking if I really had to do this “during this stint.”

The squad leader who acted like a veteran after returning from three years of soldier life and threw a tantrum in the dorm.

The squad leader who was causing a ruckus in the company with gossip about military corruption.

Oh… I’m going black.

“Chuckle.”

That’s right, I’m Ho Cheon-an, the proud son of Korea who survived the darkness of K Barracks. There was no need to be intimidated by mere trainees who were nothing but newborns in comparison to me.

Upon opening the door, I found a unified space. It didn’t seem to show any respect for personal privacy. The space was big enough to put up walls, yet only had beds and cabinets placed at even intervals.

The number of people seemed to be around ten to twenty. The looks cast at me as I suddenly entered were filled with curiosity.

One of them approached me.

“I’m Jo Ga-ju, currently acting as the temporary leader of this hall. What brings you here today?”

Looks like we already have a military fellow among them! No, did he come up based on recommendations after his military service in the regions?

“I’m the training instructor in charge of this unit. I just came to see some faces.”

“Salute! My apologies. I didn’t recognize you in civilian attire.”

“Hmm.”

I observed Jo Ga-ju, who saluted respectfully. His martial arts level seems to be at the peak?

“Jo Ga-ju trainee. Did you get recommended here after military service?”

“Yes, that’s correct. I was involved with the military at Sangsan.”

…No way, is this guy the founder of the Jo Ga-style spear technique?

“Is your primary weapon a spear?”

Jo Ga-ju’s eyebrows twitched.

“You have a keen eye.”

In the future, the Jo Ga-ju before me will invent the Jo Ga-style spear technique, which will be recognized for excellence in the Imperial Army and spread as their spear technique. Later, the Imperial Army will be known for its terrifying spear techniques, all because they fundamentally learned the Jo Ga-style spear technique.

Should I say he’s a historical figure who left his mark?

But to think this Jo Ga-ju was already a certifiable disqualifier? Of course, while making historical achievements is years away, he must still be quite the talent even now…

“Hmm.”

Thinking about it, it wasn’t all that unreasonable. Jo Ga-ju is, after all, the founder of the Jo Ga-style spear technique.

Creating a martial art that will leave a mark is not easy after all.

Focusing solely on creating those martial arts would still be quite demanding. So, it seems less likely that he could be in the Imperial Guards while simultaneously creating a martial art that would make it into history.

There seems to be something about Jo Ga-ju that would render him unacceptable in the Golden Guards.

I tore my gaze away from Jo Ga-ju and scanned the other trainees.

While I don’t have any special talent in reading people, there’s still a feeling you get when looking at someone. Although they might not be martial artists, they all seem to have something notable about them, yet already being labeled as disqualifiers is shocking.

The Golden Guards must be quite something.

It implies that they’re at a level capable of discarding talents simply due to disqualifying reasons.

Even those at the top of their class and failing to enter Seoul National University seem to have a tough time at the Golden Guards’ high bar.

“I just came to look around a bit. It was nice to meet you, Jo Ga-ju.”

“Salute!”

At least my mind felt lighter. I honestly expected to be struck by the despair of facing hopeless trainees who were only complete failures, but all of them seemed generally fine.

“Hmm.”

I expected some outrageous talents to be lining up.

Instead, I just stirred up some dark memories that I tried hard to suppress.

But still, Jo Ga-ju.

I unexpectedly met a name I didn’t foresee in such a place. Naturally, my thoughts drifted toward future knowledge.

Sure, you could call Jo Ga-ju a historical figure worth noting, but he’s not a key player determining the direction of game play. That caused my memory to become vague.

I guess I need to open up the setting book and review the palace section a bit.

I was thinking about it, but I guess I’ll need to learn martial arts in the palace archives. Since I have no ready peak martial arts prepared, I wanted to sift through some useful ones, but I should at least pick up those that can only be obtained from the palace archives.

Most importantly, I had a few days of free time, which was a boon. It felt like I unexpectedly received a vacation in a situation I was not expecting.

Since there are a few days until the selection of trainees is finished, it seems like I can do some sightseeing in Nangyang and visit the palace archives.

With such thoughts, I finished my first day of work.