Chapter 25

◈ Chapter 25: One-Man Army

"Did you bring backup?"

She craned her neck to peer behind me.

There was no one.

"Just you? A Trainee?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"A Trainee, all alone, here to... ah, forget it. I can't be bothered to ask. Follow me."

"Where are we going?"

"Down."

She jabbed a finger toward the ground.

"The civilians are hiding underground. In tunnels the local Thieves dug out. The Thieves must've foreseen the attack today—don't ask me how. Lucky for us, they evacuated first, which left the tunnels empty for the citizens."

"Are you sure you should be telling me all this? I only told you I'm a Trainee. What if I'm a Spy?"

"A Spy? Are you?"

"No, I meant hypothetically."

"Then it doesn't matter, does it? If you give off a suspicious vibe, I'll kill you then. For now, hear me out."

Marjelo cleared her throat.

"The tunnels are just the Thieves' secret base, not an escape route. Eventually, everyone has to come back up to ground level and head south. The Capital is being abandoned—we're punching a path for evacuation. That's the Imperial Army's orders."

"Yes, understood. And—"

I looked up, in the opposite direction from her.

I pointed at the sky.

"More are coming."

Monsters clinging to each other's claws began to rain down.

"Trainee. What were your scores at the academy?"

"Top Student, ma'am."

"Top Student? Impressive."

"You make it sound like it has nothing to do with you. As if you were never one yourself."

"Are you planning to apply for the Special Forces? Actually, no—I hope you do."

"Really?"

"Not because I want you, specifically. It's that Special Forces Captain Simena Extin keeps singing about how he needs to expand his numbers."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Whether I want you or not, Trainee... you'll have to prove it to me here."

Marjelo drew the sword from her belt as she spoke.

"Trainee. Pull out the arrows."

"Understood."

I ripped the two arrows lodged in my left arm clean out.

Flesh tore, blood burst from the wounds, but I didn't care.

"Not a flicker of hesitation. You know about my Magic Tools, don't you?"

"You're famous for them."

Without warning, she stabbed my left arm.

The attack was so fast I wasn't even allowed the time to focus on the tip of her blade.

The moment the sword touched me, the torn muscles began to regenerate.

Her primary weapons were a sword and a spear.

Magic Tools, they were called.

The sword and spear were connected by a thin, transparent tube that hummed with tension.

Inside that transparent tube, a green liquid flowed like blood.

The spear that had carved through Orcs like potatoes.

The sword that healed the wounded in an instant.

The spear killed.

The sword healed.

That was the kind of person Marjelo Arnis was—someone who toyed with life and death on her own terms.

"I used to have something like that, too..."

Then I broke it two years later.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing."

Monsters surrounded us on all sides.

The bastards were dead set on chasing me.

"Alright, Trainee. You lure them in, and I'll—"

I just broke into a sprint.

"Damn, you're fast."

I kept circling around Marjelo, leading the monsters on a wild chase.

"Trainee. When are you going to show me the skills that got you the Top Student spot?"

My left arm had healed completely.

The fatigue had vanished too.

Even that familiar word—"Light"—was ringing in my head.

And I still had my sword.

But I'd used up all my Lake.

Every ounce of recovered stamina was being poured into this mad dash.

"And this is the Top Student...?"

I was herding them like a sheepdog.

No—that was just how it looked.

In reality, I was the one being herded.

"Why aren't you doing anything?!"

"I'm just a little dumbfounded..."

Marjelo narrowed one eye.

"Trainee, stop playing tag here. Mount your horse and regroup. To your right, you'll see some navy uniforms. That cluster of soldiers is the Thieves' base."

"I already know where it is!"

"Great! Then stop wasting my time and get lost!"

"Just give me a minute!"

"What, you warming up or something?"

"No. It's because I don't have red hair..."

I was waiting for Lake to come back.

Not that I planned to wait until tomorrow.

I couldn't forget.

The Demon King Army's second invasion—even if I wanted to forget it, my mind wouldn't let me.

That day, the sky rained down in fury, just like I felt now.

It would rain any minute now.

I was waiting for the moment when infinite Lake would spread out beneath me.

Shadows began to creep across the ground.

It wasn't the silhouettes of winged monsters.

It was the rain cloud.

"Trainee! I said GO!"

Thump.

Something brushed past the tip of my nose.

A cool, light sensation.

Some called it a sandstorm in the desert.

Some called it the sway of a bamboo grove, the tremor of the earth.

Others called it a wave.

In the place where the image in your mind became real, you didn't need mana to cast magic.

"Just go! I can handle it alone—"

In that place, there were no limits.

"Enough."

I planted my right foot on the ground.

I skidded so far that the friction burned the sole of my boot.

I stopped, then spun on my heel.

At the same time, I closed my eyes.

An Orc that had been chasing my tail was right in front of me.

It was about to crash into my body as I slowed down.

Right then, I backhanded it across the face.

The creature flew backward and slammed into the ground.

"Trainee...?"

The rain came.

It started pouring like the sky had split open.

The cascading raindrops created black clouds on the ground as well—the darkening stone floor looked like the earth's own storm clouds.

A black sheet spread beneath my feet.

That darkness felt like a map of the area I could see even with my eyes closed.

And with it, waves pulsed outward.

One after another, so fast it made my head spin.

Like someone pounding a drum after splashing water on it.

The ripples burst in every direction.

That was it—my domain was now filled without a single gap.

"All that's left now... is to catch the Special Forces' attention."

I drew my sword.

I started walking slowly in the opposite direction from where I'd run, cutting down monsters as I went.

The bastards that had been chasing me this whole time.

I carved through them with every step.

Their breathing.

Their tremors.

I could feel everything with perfect clarity.

What you know, you see.

I moved forward, taking them down one by one.

Dodging was just a slight tilt of my head.

Attacking was just choosing a vital point with the tip of my blade.

Everything flowed with minimal movement.

I gave up counting after the thirty-second one.

I just kept killing until there were no monsters left in sight.

When they were all down, I turned my head and looked at Marjelo.

She was catching her breath too, having finished off her own share.

She was always black and white, even in this chaos.

Her pale skin contrasted with her short black hair.

Eyes as clear as a child's, black as night.

She was the only one who didn't look any different even after using Lake.

"It'll work."

"What do you mean, ma'am?"

"Clearing the evacuation route. I think we can do it now."

"Yes, I'll cooperate."

"Good. You'd better. I just thought of it, Trainee. It's a plan that can't work without you."

*

"There are too many... There's no end to them!"

"Are they really trying to settle this today?!"

The imperial soldiers groaned in despair.

I could feel the raindrops slipping between my fingers.

I gripped my spear tightly, making sure not to lose it.

Fierce raindrops streaked past my eyes.

The rain was a nuisance, but I had no time to wipe it away.

They were all dealing with an endless stream of green monsters falling from the sky.

In the midst of it, I noticed a shadow approaching.

"Who...?"

It was a figure wrapped in a black raincoat.

The hood was pulled down low, hiding the face.

The black raincoat—Mago snatched a spear from one of the soldiers as if stealing it.

"Wh-what..."

Mago held the spear in their right hand.

With their left, they pointed at an Orc caught in the claws of a winged monster.

As if zeroing in on a target, Mago aimed with the tip of his left finger. He dropped his stance, rolled his shoulder back, and drew a deep breath. One step forward—and with the motion, he hurled the spear with all his strength. It cut through the falling rain, flying true to his aim. The Orc took the spear to the head and went limp.

The winged monster unceremoniously dropped the dead Orc, probably realizing it was just dead weight. But in that instant, another spear flew in and slammed into its wing. The beast spiraled down, landing right where the Orc it had discarded lay.

Mago flexed his throwing hand. "I need more spears."

Nearby, a Goblin lay dead with a spear jutting from its chest. He walked over, planted a foot on the creature's gut, and wrenched the weapon free. He spun on his heel—half a turn—and launched the spear toward a direction he hadn't even glanced at. He'd never seen behind him, yet his movement was filled with the conviction that the spear wouldn't hit empty air. Only Mago, who had no blind spots, could pull off such a throw.

The spear flew like an arrow and lodged itself in the winged monster's head. "Kreeeek!" The creature fell lifelessly. The Orc dangling from its claws plummeted with it. That was three—three times he'd taken down monsters with a thrown spear.

Intercepting flying monsters as they soared through the air—no one had ever tried it before. No one had even considered it. They lacked both the confidence to aim and the sheer physical strength to make the throw.

Mago drew the sword at his waist. He cut down the green monsters closing in with breathtaking speed. His movements were seamless, flowing like water—as if he'd become one with the falling rain itself. Natural. Fluid. And yet, each strike was a one-hit kill. A single dodge, followed by an instant counter. Those two motions were all it took to bring down one monster.

"Marjelo...?"

"Marjelo went to the city center, didn't she?"

"Yeah, she definitely did..."

The soldiers murmured, staring at Mago's back.

"Then who is that?"

Mago lowered his hood. He craned his neck and gazed up at the sky—measuring, calculating.

I could feel the raindrops—how thick they were, how long they'd keep falling.

"Wait, isn't that... Mago, not Marjelo?"

I shook off the water from my white hair.

*

"Long time no see. Trainee #71, 66th Class, First Training Center. Mago reporting."

I saluted the soldiers.

"Yeah, we know, we know...! Man, how did you change so much?"

"Is that so? Have I... really changed that much?"

The Capital soldiers welcomed me warmly. I'd spent a month in the Capital before, building connections.

"This is the last push. We need to give it everything we've got."

"The last push?"

I showed them the insignia.

A hexagonal emblem on a red background. A black horse rearing its head inside. The white number "1" above it.

Special Mission Unit 1st Unit.

Marjelo's insignia.

"Sir! Company Commander!"

One of the soldiers called out. A moment later, a man walked over. I saluted again and stated my name.

The armband on the Company Commander's arm caught my eye first.

The number.

6

3.

The 63rd Company—the fastest scouting company in the Imperial Army.

The company I had led in my past life.

"What's a Trainee doing here?"

I didn't have time to explain who I was or why I'd come down to the Capital. I pulled out the insignia again.

"I'll be the bait. I'll draw all their attention. That'll give you the chance to evacuate the civilians—"

"What are you even talking about? You'll be bait? More importantly, why should I listen to some trainee brat?"

He was right.

I was the one in the wrong.

I wasn't in a position to move the Imperial Army. I was literally just a trainee brat.

"I'm only here to deliver a message."

"Then Marjelo Arnis herself should be here to deliver it, not you."

The 63rd Company Commander cut me off twice.

In the military, it doesn't matter whether your choice is right or wrong.

Without rank, you have the power to choose nothing at all.

That's why I was obsessed with rank.

That's why I was trying to get into the Special Forces.

"I've heard the gist, Trainee."

A deep, resonant voice cut through the air.

A man on a black horse spoke. Black hair sprinkled with gray. He'd swept it all back, leaving his forehead fully visible.

"The Special Forces will handle the support from now on. You follow Marjelo's orders."

The same insignia as Marjelo's sat on his chest.

The 1st Unit Captain. The Special Forces Captain.

The man who would one day become the Army Commander.

He rode up to me and whispered,

"If you wanted to get in with the Special Forces, you should've come to me first."

Then he smirked and rode away.