Chapter 595: The Grand First-Year Combat Festival: The Sun vs The Gun VII

"What do you do when facing someone you cannot beat?"

Ezra asked one of his fellow soldiers, a close friend who had been fighting alongside him for quite some time.

The soldiers were in the middle of preparing their camp for the mission ahead, surrounded by the rough wilderness that stretched far beyond the temporary military position they had established. Tents had already been put up, crates of ammunition and supplies were being moved into place, and several soldiers were checking their weapons before the operation began.

Not far away, the captains of the mission were busy reviewing the distance between their current position and the enemy base. A watch team remained back at the main military center, communicating with them while keeping track of the enemy's movements.

The atmosphere was serious.

At least, it was supposed to be.

Ezra's friend looked at him with an expression that made it obvious he had not expected such a question.

"Why are you asking me a question like that?"

He stared at Ezra as though Ezra had suddenly asked him something embarrassing.

Before Ezra could respond, another soldier appeared from behind his friend and leaned forward to see what the two were talking about. A mischievous smile had already formed on his face.

"Hey, hey, hey. What did Ezra ask you?"

His eyes moved between the two men.

Ezra glanced at him.

"Maybe you will be more mature and answer my question instead of making that stupid expression like him."

He pointed at his close friend, clearly annoyed.

His friend raised an eyebrow.

"You're asking me how I defeat someone stronger than me when I don't even know how to?"

He lifted the battle rifle resting against his side and adjusted his grip on it as he spoke.

"Bitch, I only use a gun to fight. If I see some MF stronger than me, I'm obviously going to blow their head off."

The other soldier gave a helpless smile.

"Oh, he's talking about that situation."

He shook his head.

"I thought the Captain told you to forget about your loss."

Ezra's expression hardened.

"I lost miserably even though I've been on the field for more than three years now."

His voice became quieter as he looked down at the ground.

"How could I almost get myself killed because I got disarmed and couldn't handle hand-to-hand combat?"

His teeth pressed together.

The memory still irritated him.

"This bitch was literally bleeding dangerously, and I couldn't do anything except become another piece of baggage the Captain had to save."

Ezra's fist tightened.

He pointed toward his close friend.

"And you stupidly played hero and went risking your life, which caused all this problem in the first place. I almost died because of you."

His friend shrugged.

"You're still alive, aren't you?"

Ezra glared at him.

"That isn't the point."

"It usually is."

"Shut up."

The other soldier snickered.

The conversation might have continued if not for the familiar voice that suddenly came from behind them.

"What about you? Didn't you also stupidly play the hero and went risking your life to save him."

The voice was soft.

Cold.

And familiar.

The three soldiers immediately stopped.

Their bodies reacted before their minds did.

All three straightened their backs and adjusted their posture at almost the exact same time.

They turned around.

"Greetings, Captain Claudia."

They spoke together.

Claudia stood a short distance behind them.

She looked quietly at the three soldiers before her eyes settled on Ezra.

There was no need for her to raise her voice.

Her presence alone was enough to make the three men stand properly.

"I just finished the briefing with the other captains, and I'm seeing three members of my squad chilling like ducklings instead of preparing for action."

Her eyes remained on Ezra.

The other two soldiers immediately exchanged glances.

His close friend raised one hand and pointed directly at Ezra.

"He's the one who kept asking me a cringe question, Ma'am."

Ezra slowly turned his head toward him.

Claudia narrowed her eyes.

"I already knew it would be you, Ezra."

Ezra stared at his friend with disbelief.

"Are you freaking kidding me?"

He muttered the words under his breath.

His friend leaned slightly toward him and whispered back.

"Hey, she's not looking at me or him. Her attention is on you, bro."

Ezra's expression became even more irritated.

Claudia folded her arms.

"The rest of you can leave, but your punishment will be decided when I'm done with him."

The other two soldiers immediately straightened.

"Yes, Ma'am."

They answered loudly before turning around and leaving the three of them behind.

Ezra remained where he was.

His gaze slowly dropped toward the ground.

He could feel Claudia staring at him.

For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.

Then Claudia sighed.

"You are not even a woman, and you are going through numerous mood swings every day. Ahh."

Ezra's shoulders stiffened.

The words struck him harder than he expected.

"Urgh."

He flinched slightly.

Claudia shook her head.

"I thought I really trained a man. To think you keep regressing every time."

The veins on the side of Ezra's face slowly became visible.

His fingers twitched.

He knew exactly what she was doing.

She was provoking him.

And the worst part was that it was working.

"Ara, are you getting angry at your Captain?"

Claudia's expression remained calm, but a faint pleased smile appeared on her face.

Ezra immediately forced his expression into an innocent smile.

"No, Ma'am."

Claudia stared at him.

"Ugh. Your smile is irritating for some reason."

She knew him too well.

That simple smile was not displaying his innocence.

It was Ezra trying very hard not to say what he was thinking.

"So, what's the question?"

Claudia asked.

Ezra's smile disappeared.

"Why do I have to tell you?"

His eyes narrowed slightly.

Claudia's right hand slowly curled into a fist.

"Do you want to die? You are talking to your Captain."

Ezra immediately straightened his posture.

"Sorry, Ma'am."

"Speak."

Claudia's tone returned to its usual calmness.

Ezra hesitated.

He stared at her for several seconds.

Claudia simply waited.

She did not need to repeat herself.

Her eyes remained fixed on him, and the longer the silence continued, the more Ezra realized that he was not getting out of this conversation.

Eventually, he gave in.

"I wanted to know how I can beat someone stronger than me."

Ezra asked the question seriously this time.

Claudia frowned.

"You mean in hand-to-hand combat, or if you are surrounded?"

Her expression showed that she was genuinely questioning why he was asking this after everything he had already been taught.

"You've been trained for all of this, and you're still asking this type of question, my dear Ezra?"

Ezra looked at her.

He had already expected that reaction.

"Ahh… what will I do with you?"

Claudia rubbed her forehead.

For a moment, she looked more tired than angry.

Then her expression became serious.

"You are a smart person, Ezra. That's one of the things I love about you."

Ezra froze.

His eyes widened slightly.

"Love?"

He staggered backward.

"Don't go saying random things out loud, Captain."

A flush immediately spread across his face.

Claudia's own expression changed.

"Shut up, and listen, dimwit."

She frowned harder and raised her right hand close to her mouth.

The tips of her ears had turned red.

She had clearly realized how her words had sounded, but instead of correcting herself, she simply looked away for a moment.

"If you want to face anyone strong, or encounter a situation where you have to fight a logical losing battle…"

Her voice became serious again.

"All you have to do is observe, analyze, predict, prepare, act, counter for a failsafe, and repeat the same cycle again. It's just like when a rat is cornered by a group of cats. The rat first has to keep watching its surroundings around it, so to prevent any of the cats from pouncing on him at once, while doing that… It also has to watch out for the smacks of the cat's claws, it also has to look out for the one cat who is weaker than the group, and finally it also has to search for the nearest hole to escape through. With everything I just said, do you see the alignment?"

***

During the day of break, while the semifinalists were preparing for their upcoming semifinal matches of the Combat Festival...

Ezra stood inside his academy residence and looked over the stock of firearms he had collected.

The crates had been delivered by the Ashenlocke servants.

Several of them were still stacked against the walls.

Others had already been opened.

Firearms rested in their proper places while ammunition was organized beside them.

Ezra's fingers moved across one of the weapons as he inspected it before his gaze shifted toward the holographic screen in front of him.

The screen replayed Maxwell's previous fight against Ravenor.

The golden flames.

The Mass Alchemy.

The overwhelming destructive power of the Sun.

Ezra watched without speaking much.

"Observe, analyze, predict, prepare, act, counter for a failsafe, and repeat the same cycle again."

He muttered the words to himself.

It was not simply something he remembered from his past-self's memories.

His entire Alchemy strategy had followed that rule since the day he had experienced the vision connected to this moment of his past life and that woman.

His black eyes remained on the holographic screen.

The footage showed Maxwell's previous battle again.

"The Sun Alchemy itself is a force on its own, even though Maxwell is in the Meister Alchemist rank."

Ezra's expression remained plain.

"The power level is not something any Gun Alchemist under his Alchemist rank, or even close to his Alchemist rank, can handle."

He paused.

"But…"

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"An Alchemist isn't meant to enter a fight blindly."

The screen changed.

Maxwell's movements were shown again.

Ezra studied them carefully.

Maxwell's first weakness is that his hand-to-hand combat skills are quite average compared to people like Desmond, Gareth, Veda, Nate, and even Gena.

He rested one hand against the table beside him.

But his raw physical stats from the Meister Alchemist rank gives him the boost he needs to cover up for that weakness.

Ezra's gaze followed Maxwell's movements on the screen.

The boy's physical strength was not something that could simply be ignored.

Even if his hand-to-hand combat ability was not at the same level as certain other young Alchemists below his Alchemist rank, his Alchemist rank itself gave him an advantage that could cover that gap.

Ezra continued watching.

But Maxwell's biggest weakness is the fact that he comes to every fight without the full idea of using everything he has.

His expression became slightly more serious.

But that could easily change if he does use all his power.

Ezra looked plainly at the holographic screen.

The image of Maxwell and Ravenor remained frozen for a moment before the replay continued.

Ezra understood what that meant.

The weakness he had identified could disappear the moment Maxwell decided to stop holding back.

And that was exactly why Ezra could not rely on the same plan forever.

He could prepare for what Maxwell had already shown.

But if Maxwell changed his approach, Ezra would have to change with him.

"Well, I will just have to think about a newer solution when that happens."

He spoke to himself calmly.

The holographic screen continued playing the battle.

Ezra remained still for several moments, watching the golden flames move across the screen.

***

Back to the present…

Ezra's black eyes widened.

The change was immediate.

The moment Maxwell's next Alchemy began to form, Ezra understood that something had changed.

Several High-ranking Alchemists watching the battle also reacted.

Unlike the ordinary spectators, they could clearly see what was happening between the two Young Alchemists.

Maxwell's Sun Alchemy Circle had ignited.

It had absorbed the Sun Barrier.

Then it had begun remolding that golden heat wave into something else.

Ezra watched the transformation with his eyes fixed on Maxwell.

The golden hate wave gathered.

The light became denser.

Ezra's expression became serious.

He was still descending through the air with the Barrett M107 in his hands.

The sniper rifle was already aimed.

His finger rested against the trigger.

The target was directly in front of him.

Maxwell.

Ezra pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The Barrett M107 fired.

The recoil struck Ezra's shoulder and pushed his body backward while the bullet left the barrel with immense force.

A large sound wave of wind burst outward from the rifle, spreading through the air like something heavy crashing into the surface of calm water.

The wind tore through the smoke.

The white light of the bullet flashed through the battlefield.

For a fraction of a millisecond, the bullet appeared to be heading directly toward Maxwell.

Ezra's eyes remained focused.

Then something appeared.

A small vortex of golden light formed directly in the path of the moving bullet.

The vortex rotated.

The bullet entered it.

And disappeared.

It was consumed so completely that it looked as though the projectile had never existed.

Ezra's eyes widened.

KZZRAK!

Another Alchemy Circle ignited from Maxwell's side.

The sound cut through the battlefield.

Before Ezra could fully react, another small Sun vortex appeared.

This time, it formed directly around the muzzle of the Barrett M107.

The golden vortex spun around the front section of the rifle.

Ezra's grip tightened.

The weapon began to disappear into the vortex.

The muzzle vanished first.

Then the barrel.

The golden vortex continued spreading across the body of the Barrett M107.

Ezra tried to pull the weapon away, but the vortex had already consumed too much of it.

The sniper rifle was swallowed piece by piece.

Then the vortex suddenly expanded.

The golden spiral grew outward from the weapon and rushed toward Ezra himself.

The air around him twisted.

His clothes were pulled toward the rotating force.

Ezra's black eyes widened as the Sun Vortex expanded over his body.

The battlefield seemed to narrow around him as golden light filled his vision.

And for the first time in the exchange, the weapon he had prepared to use against Maxwell was completely gone.

He hadn't even gotten the chance to use it against him.