Episode 60
“What do you mean by ‘failure is predetermined’?”
Fainan looked troubled.
“It’s hard to explain in detail. If you must go on the mission, stay with the reserve unit.”
With that cryptic warning, Fainan quickly disappeared.
“A mission doomed to fail from the start.”
Something smelled fishy.
Zeke returned to the barracks, pondering Fainan’s warning. From his experience, there were usually two scenarios in such cases.
“Either there’s corruption at the top of the command, or there’s collusion with the target.”
In the first scenario, it could be corruption involving military supplies, where the higher-ups intentionally fail the mission to pocket the diverted funds. There are various ways to siphon off military resources under the guise of failure.
The second scenario involves a cozy relationship between the task force and the target. If the task force stays in the area for too long, they might deliberately leak information to extend their stay, avoiding a return to central command.
“Delpoa is known for its mages’ arrogance, but I don’t recall any military corruption there.”
This made the second scenario more likely.
Zeke decided to keep a close watch on the situation.
The next day, Zeke and his team moved with the Delpoa task force to the region where the Black Night Demons were hiding.
The Black Night Demons had set up a fortress in a rugged mountain area, a place teeming with monsters and devoid of people. They had been there for three years, absorbing other mercenary groups and bandits to grow stronger.
Upon arrival, the mage commander issued orders to the knights.
“Teams 1 to 3, advance along the mountain’s flank. Teams 4 to 6, take the front.”
The plan was to let the knights and soldiers handle the dangerous areas while the mages advanced slowly from the rear, providing long-range support. It was a strategy designed entirely for the mages’ benefit.
Yet, the knights of Delpoa remained silent.
At that moment, Zeke raised his hand.
The mage commander’s eyebrow twitched.
“What is it?”
Zeke addressed the commander.
“What would you have us do?”
The commander’s irritation was evident in his voice.
“Didn’t I tell you to stay in the rear yesterday?”
Zeke replied calmly.
“I’m a Blue Knight, and Diego and Aster behind me are Purple Knights. Since we’re here to assist, I thought we might be of some help.”
The mention of Zeke being a Blue Knight caught the mage commander off guard. The surrounding mages and knights murmured in surprise.
The commander, sensing the shift in atmosphere, decided to step back.
”…Jorge, assign them a scouting mission.”
With that, he turned and retreated into his carriage.
Jorge, the knight commander, approached Zeke, flustered.
“Are you okay with a scouting mission?”
Zeke nodded.
Jorge pointed out a path opposite their current direction. It was a rough terrain but offered a quicker route up the mountain.
Andrei approached Zeke, whispering.
“Why did you provoke the commander? You wouldn’t do that without a reason.”
Zeke replied to Andrei.
“Something’s off about this mission.”
“What do you mean?”
“I suspect collusion between the task force and the Black Night Demons.”
Andrei was startled by Zeke’s words but quickly regained his composure and nodded.
He addressed the team.
“We’ll carry out a scouting mission to the Black Night Demons’ camp. We’ll advance in a single line, with Zeke leading and me covering the rear. Zeke will command the unit.”
With Andrei’s orders, Zeke, Diego, and Aster quickly formed up and headed into the mountains.
The Delpoa knights could only watch in awe as they disappeared into the terrain.
Leading the way, Zeke pulled up a map, marking the route Jorge had indicated, and sprinted along the mountain path.
After some time, something appeared ahead.
Zeke signaled the team to halt.
“Trolls.”
A group of trolls was feasting on wild animals.
Zeke was about to bypass them when he noticed suspicious figures in the distance.
He paused, focusing on the figures.
They seemed to be a patrol from the Black Night Demons.
Zeke immediately hurled daggers at the figures.
Whoosh!
The daggers, imbued with the power of the wind, flew swiftly and struck the patrol’s legs with precision.
“Aaargh!”
The patrol’s screams caught the attention of the trolls, who turned towards the source of the noise.
“Rooaar!”
As the trolls charged towards the patrol, Zeke and his team emerged from the bushes.
Slash!
Zeke decapitated the lead troll, while Diego and Aster attacked the others. Andrei swiftly dispatched the trolls charging at them.
Thud!
In no time, Zeke’s team had eliminated the trolls and erased their tracks.
They dragged the wounded patrol into a nearby cave for interrogation.
Zeke brandished a dagger, questioning the patrol.
“Are the Black Night Demons inside the fortress?”
“Go to hell, you bastards!”
The patrol, mostly mercenaries and bandits, spoke roughly. But Zeke was well-versed in dealing with such types.
He separated the three, starting with a gentle touch on their fingers.
It didn’t take long for them to scream and spill their secrets.
After piecing together the information, Zeke filtered out the lies.
Andrei, witnessing Zeke’s interrogation skills, was impressed.
“The Black Shadow Corps would love to recruit you.”
“I’m not interested, so please keep it to yourself.”
Having suffered at the hands of the Black Shadow Corps in a past life, Zeke had no desire to get involved with them.
After extracting all the necessary information, they dealt with the patrol and headed towards the fortress.
As they approached, they noticed a significant number of patrols.
The fortress, built with solid natural stone in a rugged area, seemed impenetrable.
“This isn’t something we can handle with knights and long-range attacks.”
They would need a siege unit or an infiltration team to see a way forward.
While Zeke could infiltrate and eliminate the Black Night Demons without a trace, he had to be cautious on an official mission.
Zeke’s team decided to retreat to the rendezvous point with the Delpoa knights.
However, the Delpoa knights were nowhere to be seen.
After a long wait, the knights finally arrived at the meeting point.
“You’re already here?”
Jorge, the knight commander, was visibly exhausted even before the battle began.
Zeke asked Jorge.
“Where’s the mage unit?”
Jorge wiped his sweat and replied.
“They’ll start providing support fire from the rear once we clear the area around the fortress.”
Zeke was shocked.
“What do you mean? You plan to clear the fortress with this number? That’s a death sentence!”
“Well, it’s just…”
Jorge, lacking command authority, was in a difficult position.
Andrei spoke to Zeke.
“The situation is worse than expected. The fortress is too fortified.”
Zeke nodded in agreement.
“We’ll have to wait for the mages. We need a new strategy.”
Just then, Diego pointed behind them.
“Something’s coming!”
Zeke reacted first to Diego’s warning.
Enhancing his vision, he identified the object flying towards them.
Zeke shouted in alarm.
“Scatter!”
He grabbed Jorge and rolled to the side.
A massive iron ball crashed down where Zeke’s team had been, exploding on impact.
Boom!
The explosion devastated the area.
Jorge, who barely survived, was pale with shock.
“My God.”
Zeke quickly got up and shouted at him.
“Commander Jorge! Get a grip! Check for survivors and retreat! More are coming!”
Jorge, still dazed, struggled to respond.
Zeke slapped him.
“Snap out of it! Do you want your men to die?”
“No, sir!”
Jorge hurriedly gathered the disoriented knights and led them to the rear.
As Zeke predicted, more iron balls rained down.
Boom!
The explosions engulfed the area in flames.
Zeke used his shield to block the debris.
“Diego! Aster! Over here!”
They regrouped behind Zeke and moved to the side.
At that moment, the Black Night Demons charged down from above, weapons drawn.
“Kill them!”
Zeke’s team engaged the charging enemies.
Slash!
With each swing of Zeke’s sword, several foes fell.
“There are too many! Diego! Aster! Conserve your energy!”
His past experience leading troops came flooding back.
In the chaos of battle, Diego and Aster moved in sync with Zeke’s commanding presence.
“Die, you bastards!”
With eyes blazing red, the frenzied Black Yaksha charged at Zeke and his group like madmen.
Zeke remained calm, methodically clearing the area around him.
‘There’s definitely something off about these guys.’
He grabbed one of the attackers and slammed him to the ground.
“Aaaaargh!”
The man screamed wildly, clearly not in his right mind.
Upon closer inspection, Zeke understood the situation more clearly.
He had encountered people like this in his past life.
‘These bastards are all Soma addicts.’
Soma, distributed from the Southern Cartel to the Central Continent, had spread far and wide.
Its biggest consumers were mercenaries. While mages used it sparingly to temporarily boost their magic, mercenaries had no such restraint.
Living only for today, some consumed more than the safe limit, and others even ingested concentrated Soma extracts.
Zeke gritted his teeth as he looked at the deranged mercenaries.
‘In this state, the knights alone can’t handle them.’
Ordinary mercenaries would usually cower when faced with organized knights.
But those high on drugs charged like lunatics, heedless of injury, attacking friend and foe alike like zombies.
It was a brutal tactic, treating subordinates as mere expendables.
Zeke clenched his jaw, glaring at the fortress.
‘To hell with the mission, maybe I should just wipe them all out.’
Just then, a massive fireball exploded towards the Black Yaksha.
“Argh!”
Fireballs, ice shards, and missiles of light tore through the battlefield.
Zeke shouted to Diego and Aster, “The mage division is here! Fall back!”
To avoid getting caught in the magical onslaught, Zeke led his group to the rear.
The power of the Delphoa Battle Mage Division was immense.
Mages lined up, unleashing memorized combat spells, and as they exhausted their magic, others stepped forward to continue the relentless barrage, devastating the battlefield.
Even the drugged mercenaries were no match for the mages’ magic.
“Cease fire!”
At the commander’s order, the mage division halted and withdrew.
Zeke was puzzled by the sudden stop.
‘What’s going on?’
When the mercenaries poured out of the fortress, it was the perfect chance to launch a full-scale attack and leave the inside defenseless.
It was a prime opportunity to avoid a siege, yet they inexplicably stopped the assault.
The mage division’s commander approached Zeke, shouting angrily.
“You’ve ruined this mission! Do you even know what you’ve done?”