Chapter 22: So the Military Banner Can Also Serve as a Resurrection Point?

Following Andrei’s encouragement, the spirits of the soldiers visibly lifted. While their physical exhaustion remained, their morale had at least seen a modest recovery. With the red banner of the double-headed eagle resting on his shoulder, Andrei took the opportunity to check his system interface.

His first priority was recruiting more players. The more brutal the fighting became, the more Andrei realized their importance. Though players could be erratic and difficult to command, their unique nature made them devastating as shock troops on the battlefield. Most importantly, their morale never wavered. He quickly recruited 20 more, bringing his total force to 40 players.

After the recent skirmish, he noticed his influence points had grown significantly, reaching 15,000. Yet, by his own calculations, he should have had much more. Beyond the ordinary soldiers they had neutralized, the steam-powered armored troops alone should have netted him at least 3,000 points. Furthermore, the system had granted him a 10,000-point bonus for successfully breaking through the encirclement. By his estimates, he should have been sitting on at least 30,000 to 40,000 points, even after accounting for the costs of unlocking the flamethrower units.

However, after carefully reviewing his expenditure logs, the truth became clear. While players did not generally cost influence to fire their weapons, every time they deployed a medkit, an ammo pack, or performed a "miracle" resurrection with a tiny syringe, it consumed his points. It seemed these irrational, near-magical feats required influence to sustain. The biggest drain had been the flamethrower kits; although their ammunition was infinite, Andrei realized he was being charged one influence point for every second they were in use. The discovery was heart-wrenching, as he had originally planned to arm all his players with flamethrowers and carve a path through the enemy with a dragon of fire.

Despite the regret of these extra costs, Andrei acknowledged that the expenditure was worth it. Without those surreal, game-like abilities, the players' combat effectiveness would be severely diminished. If they performed no better than ordinary soldiers, they would be inferior to a professional army, given their lack of organizational discipline.

Since he still had plenty of points left, Andrei decided to upgrade his minimap function. Its utility in warfare was immense, but its limited range had hampered its effectiveness. Previously, the 10,000-point cost had been prohibitive, but now he felt it was time. Upon upgrading, the range expanded from a 100-meter radius to 300 meters. This was a significant tactical improvement; 100 meters was only useful for urban or close-quarters combat, but 300 meters matched the standard effective engagement range for infantry. At that distance, most rifles became ineffective, and only elite marksmen could maintain accuracy.

To his surprise, the detail on the map remained impeccable even with the expanded range. He didn't know how the system achieved this—it was as if he had unlocked an "eagle eye" ability that allowed him to see clearly despite the scale being reduced. He could only attribute it to the system's omnipotence. With 5,000 points remaining, he decided to save the rest for emergency player resurrections or future combat needs.

Speaking of resurrections, he recalled a minor predicament: the system required buildings to serve as respawn points. As they marched through the forest, they lacked any such facility. If a player were to fall, they would be forced to respawn back at their initial dugout. Fortunately, the players' coordination was good, and the combat medics were diligent with their syringes, so no one had needed to respawn yet. Still, the lack of a nearby point was a liability.

Andrei was eager to reach the village on the other side of the forest to establish a proper respawn point. Suddenly, however, his system interface indicated that a respawn point could be set in his immediate vicinity. He was stunned to find the location marked exactly where he stood. Could he, as the commander, serve as a respawn point? But if so, why hadn't he noticed this back in the trenches?

His eyes drifted to the banner on his shoulder. He had never carried the flag before; perhaps the respawn point was linked not to him, but to the standard itself. Glancing around, he realized it would look suspicious to suddenly drop the banner and start fiddling with it in front of his men. He made an excuse about needing to relieve himself, handed the flag to the veteran Boris, and stepped to the side of the road. Checking his minimap, his hypothesis was confirmed: the military banner could function as a mobile respawn point.