Alea followed the commander towards the barracks with the rest of the alphas. When they arrived. They saw soldiers practicing hand to hand, archery, horsemanship. She knew they wouldn't have the chance to learn what the more advanced units were training. As meat shields it was their duty to bear the brunt of the opposing army's force. They'd definitely be sent outside of the city, exhausting them so that they couldn't easily breach the city walls.
Alea didn't agree with this style of combat. It was too wasteful. Though it definitely was effective. But if she could choose, she'd rather use the wall itself to tire out the enemy. Maintain a strong defensive position on on the outer wall and it would be difficult for them to break it. At least it would save more lives so that they could fight for longer. However she guesses that the general in charge may have seen what happened when they managed to push onto the wall, making the general want to keep them from doing it again.
She had to put away her thoughts when a burly male alpha walked towards them. He was a hulking figure even compared to Alea, who had never seen anyone larger than her since she's been in this world. He was currently wearing the training garb and his muscular physique could not be hidden in the slightest. Adding it to the scar that ran vertically down his forehead and dragged itself diagonally down the left side of his face, and his deep eyes and face adorned with a scowl. The group could all tell that they were not going to treated kindly.
They were right. After the group commander saluted the deputy General, he stood aside awaiting the deputy generals order. The deputy Generals name was Rodan. Rodans voice was as intimidating as his figure and he spoke concisely.
"From now on you are all members of the Northern army. You will follow the orders of your superiors. You will train when you're told to train. You will fight when you're ordered to fight. If any of you betray the Northern army, you'll be executed. If you try to desert, you'll be executed. If you do well in battle you'll be rewarded. If you don't do well, then it means you're probably going to die there. Does anyone have any questions? ".
A more confident alpha asked "How long will we have to stay here?"
Rodan smirked as he answered "You'll stay here as long as you're needed. Until the border can be considered peaceful, you won't be going anywhere. However some of you may be worried about your families financial situation. The army will pay you a salary, that you can choose to use or send home. There will also be a severance pay to your family if you are to die in battle".
Seeing as they weren't asking any more questions Rodan told the commander to divide them among the squads that didn't have enough members. After finishing his orders, he left to return to his duties.
The commander did as Rodan had ordered and sent them where they could fill up the gaps in those squads. Alea didn't know if she was lucky or not, but she was placed in a squad with only one spot missing. The people in the squad were lukewarm to her. Perhaps they had seen this situation to often and lost the excitement they once had. She didn't care much though, she just placed her stuff next to her bunk, laid down and rested her eyes. This process has made her feel too familiar.
She could hear the members of the squad whispering about her, wondering how long she'd be able to last. She didn't know if they thought she couldn't hear them, or if they didn't care if she heard. It didn't make a difference, she will try her best to go back alive. She has a reason to live, and that is enough.
Raya on the other side of the city is currently looking for a place to buy according to Alea's warning. She met a intermediary and asked them if there were any houses closer to the area where the officers families lived. The intermediary was surprised that she was clever enough to think of this. It's not that she looks down on omegas, but that the one in front of her seems to be a well protected young lady. Looking at her hairstlye, the intermediary can see that she's married. However, what alpha would allow their wife to come to this dangerous place with only a few servants? But seeing that she was clever enough to understand the benefits of living close to the official residences, the intermediary chose to give her a sincere warning. He said
"The prices around that area are very high. Are you sure you want to choose to live there?"
Raya had already guessed it would not be cheap, so she said calmly "Yes. Price isn't an issue. The closer the better".
Hearing that price was not an issue the intermediary was very happy. He took her to the street closest to the official residences. These houses were all large estates that wealthy businessman had put up for sale before they left Kaesan. The cost of the one they were looking at now, which was only fifty meters from the entrance to the officers residences, was over three thousand taels of silver. Alea had told her that it didn't matter the price, it was worth it for the security it brought. Raya accepted it. She brought out all the money she had from her dowry, and the amount that Alea managed to haggle out of her father and Eldest brother. So three thousand taels was not something she would complain about. The intermediary was ecstatic after hearing her choosing to buy this one. He wanted to see if she really had no problem with the price by bringing her to the most expensive one that fit the parameters she had. He quickly signed the deed over to her, took the silver and left. Raya knew that four servants weren't enough to take care of this estate, so she sent her personal servant to the tooth market to buy back a few hard-working and honest servants that could maintain the house. She also sent one of her trained servants to recruit a few guards to stand at the gates. She didn't expect them to do much, just to make it look like the house wasn't something easy to break into. After the servants returned. She gave each of them a task and sent them off to complete their tasks. The guards were housed in the outer courtyard and she sent one of her trained servants to take charge of them. The other would still act as her personal guard, while she also promoted one of her personal servants to housekeeper. So she could take care of all the new servants in the house.
This was the first time she had ever taken care of a house. After the journey to Kaesan, and the matters of buying the property, she was exhausted. So after a quick wash and an even quicker dinner. She fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow.