Industrial Cthulhu, starting from the island lord

Chapter 401 Recruitment
The mobilization that day was quite successful.

The day after the mobilization meeting ended, Hughes was still looking at the reports when Alexei, who was in charge of recruiting for the Guardians of the Church, came to his door. His office was now packed with people.

As soon as he entered the house, he began to complain to his lord.

"Don't even mention those who want to join the missionary army. Basically all the workers have submitted applications. Even the veterans are now writing letters of request in groups, hoping to join the expeditionary force."

Alexei sat across from Hughes's desk, loosened his collar, and gulped down a mouthful of tea.

"Don't rush, have some water and calm down first." Hughes turned around, picked up a piece of paper and handed it over: "I just received news that Zoe and Josh have both come by ship and will arrive later. They both hope that the expeditionary force will reserve a few more places for the Secret Order."

"A secret society? Hmm..." Alexei frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke in a low voice:
"My lord, I don't quite understand why they're so enthusiastic about joining the army. We haven't set any specific rewards for military merits, have we?"

The empire was at war on all sides, but the supply of soldiers continued to grow. This was because military merit could be directly exchanged for money and power, and there was even a chance to be ennobled—the kind of ennoblement with a proper fief.

For a young person, if their parents haven't left them a large sum of money, the best way out is to join the army and earn a living on the battlefield.

The soldiers' mortality rate was not low, but the Queen really did pay them!
With this incentive mechanism, a steady stream of soldiers went to the battlefield, bringing about a revival of the empire and paving the way for imperial power with their blood.

But Castells doesn't have any of these.

Soldiers can become squad leaders through hard work, and if they have military merits, they can be promoted to non-commissioned officers. If they pass the Holy Scripture test, they can become battle priests of the church, which corresponds to officers of the empire.

If one only studies the scriptures and achieves success in the factory without military merit, then one can follow the path of a technical priest, which corresponds to the title of engineer.

Neither the technical priests nor the combat priests received particularly extravagant monetary rewards, and their power was nowhere near that of their counterparts in the Empire.

Although Imperial Truth is nominally a church, it does not actually have a unified belief system. The clergy are merely figureheads, and no one cares about whether they are divine or not. The scriptures only teach you the physical aspects of faith.

Therefore, Alexei's question is not without merit.

He graduated from the Imperial Royal Army Academy and viewed being a soldier as a profession, so he couldn't understand why his subjects were so fanatical.

Hughes smiled and shook his head.

The nation and the people have not yet truly formed a sense of identity in this world.

For example, if you asked Alexei where he was from, he would most likely answer without hesitation, "From the North."

This northern border is not the northern border of the empire, but the northern border of the continent, including the four northern territories of the empire, the White Raven Duchy, and the ice plains and the boundless sea further north.

He knew, of course, that he was an Imperial, but he didn't subconsciously describe himself by that identity.

Take Hughes, for example. Before coming to Castel, people knew his hometown as the "Duchy of Cohen." No one would consider the Empire their hometown; the concept of a nation was closer to that of a loose alliance.

If it weren't for the Empress, the name "empire" wouldn't even be mentioned; the royal family would be the royal family, and the vassals would be the vassals.

You are loyal to your lord, not to any country.

Castells, however, broke this concept.

At first, Hughes's power only extended to this small island, so he naturally had no vassals. Alexei was more like his personal steward, and the clerks under his command were merely bureaucrats.

Later, after he acquired the entire Martha Islands, he did not distribute them among himself, but instead consolidated power in his own hands. This was almost unthinkable in that era—simply put, the administrative efficiency of the time did not allow for such a system.

The empire's civil service system might be able to support it, but the empire has already implemented a system of feudalism; delegating power is easy, but taking it back is difficult.

Those nobles were the implementers of the policies; now they're being asked to overthrow them?

This is why Isabella would rather start over than reform – breaking into the Rhineland is easier than initiating change.

Castells had no such concerns. He directly reclaimed power, and all the bureaucrats were accountable only to Hughes. He was also the supreme leader of the church, and the army was completely under his control.

Strictly speaking, Castells was a dictatorship.

This not only led to an inevitable personality cult, but also gave the people a sense of belonging to the "nation" for the first time.

This may seem insignificant to modern people, but it is unimaginable for people of this era—land is a physical entity, while the nation is a purely conceptual thing.

"So...you mean they've developed a sense of belonging to the country?" Alexei asked, rubbing his temples.

Hughes' explanation left him somewhat confused and incredulous. Could such vague and ethereal words really make someone willing to give their life for them?

But the public's enthusiasm was undeniable; his office door was even broken from the crowd.

"check it out."

Hughes picked up a booklet and pushed it off the table.

Alexei looked down and his face darkened.

"They've all sent their letters of request to join the fight to you?"

"Take a look and see who wrote it."

Alexei glanced through them, slightly surprised: "These are... those Rhine workers from before? They all applied to join the expeditionary force?"

"Yes, they are Rhine people. Many of them have never set foot in Castel and the North before, but now they have volunteered to avenge Nora."

Transcending the limitations of land and race, people united in the name of Castel.

Alexei was stunned.

He scratched his head, a sudden realization dawning on his eyes: "Is this what it means to identify with one's country?"

"To be precise, it's about the recognition of the concept. They love Castel and will not allow anyone to infringe on it. Castel was once an island, and now it is a flag. Its name is cohesion, and its existence is organization."

"That's why talking about belonging is useless; as long as people love this place, it's more effective than any mobilization."

Hughes stood up and looked out the window: "The people are really simple. If you do them a little bit of kindness, they are willing to do everything to support you. But those lords are unwilling to give even the smallest benefit."

"Now go back to the office and recruit the expeditionary force. Remember to find a banshee to follow you in the banshee duty room. She can pull you out when you're about to be crushed."

(End of this chapter)