킬 더 드래곤

백수귀족
Han made a new communication channel in the Ark Network for the second year
squad leaders. The squad leaders were in the middle of going around Ark grounds to
capture the inspectors. They collected spare R-2 guns and any ammunition they kept
in their dorms.

-Squad 5 reporting, we’ve arrived at the shooting range. We will be securing the spare
ammunition in this area.

Dimitri transmitted over the communication channel.

Han drew a map of the second year campus grounds and marked the positions of all
the second year squads.

“Good. Dimitri, secure the ammunition. How many inspectors has everyone secured?

– Squad 1 reporting, four inspectors.

– Squad 2 reporting, two inspectors.

– Squad 3 reporting, six inspectors.

Each squad confirmed their status. Han became the temporary head squad commander.

Nobody protested because Han had already proved himself in their recent past battles.
There was no fool amongst the second years whose pride was bigger than their ego
and the objective for the newly formed chain of command.

“We’ve found a lot of inspectors. Right now, mobile warfare is not possible.”

Han thought of the fourth mock battle ground. The enemies were unfamiliar with the
terrain while the second years had already long become accustomed to the forest
battle field.
‘We need to secure a place where we can both detain and protect the inspectors.’

He thought of various spots around Ark. The enemy intruders were too close to the
second year dorm buildings. Their hideout would be found immediately. The forest
terrain was harder to locate and advantageous tactically

“We will be assembling at the fourth mock battle grounds. Secure extra battle gear and
items while we make our way to the mock battle ground.”

The squads confirmed in succession.

Han checked his squad members’ conditions. The youths looked calm outwardly, but
their eyes reflected anxiety and fear. Everyone had one question in mind.

‘Why would humans, that aren’t minions, attack us?’

Ark was established for the sake of humanity’s continued existence. They were the top
stronghold with the best chance at defeating dragons on earth.

The youths thought that there was no reason for people to attack those who had yet
to finish Ark’s military training.

“They are from True Humanity, an activist group.” Inspector Rue, who remained tied
up, said.

It seemed he had come to understand the current situation of Ark.

“The True Humanity group?”

A few of the squad members murmured questioningly. Inspector Rue let out a light
chuckle.

“I see that Ark’s drill instructors have not bothered to mention this at all.”

Jose frowned and muffled Inspector Rue’s mouth.

“It would be better to be quiet. Inspector.”

Jose was a year older than the other kids in the squad, and was much more
knowledgeable about the outside world. He knew of the True Humanity group.
“Jose. We must confirm our enemies.” Han said while observing Jose.

Jose sighed.

“The True Humanity Group is usually referred to as the True Group. They believe
psykers are not humans, but are instead those who have become insane. They believe
that all psykers should be killed. They frequently appear in the news for terrorist-like
behavior. I’m not too sure on the specific details myself.”

They were all humans, but the other party wished death to all psykers. This short
explanation had many connotations.

“Their military strength is strong enough that they have the guts to attempt an attack
against Ark?”

Han did not have a deep understanding of the outside world. The little information
that he had was only his street smarts. Everything else was only the ideals that Ark
had lectured them about.

Inspector Rue began to speak once again as if lecturing them.

“The True Humanity Group is a bigger existence than what you imagine them to be.
It’s not like every nation of the world has agreed with Ark’s existence. There are
countries that would outright execute humans that develop psychic powers. There are
three countries that have denied Ark’s existence. They hold fear against the
mysteriousness of psychic powers. Blind faith moves the True Group. They believe
that the existence of psychics is the reason that dragons are attacking this world.
These are all baseless rumors, of course. Psychics only appeared after the formation
of the dimensional gate and dragons had already invaded Earth. However, the True
Group continued to reject factual evidence while blindly believing in the teachings of
their own cult. Whatever their reason might be, they do not agree with the existence
of psychics.”

The squad members became increasingly agitated as they listened. This went against
what they had been taught all this time in Ark. It was hard to believe.

“They are crazy. Dragons will invade again in three years time! Yet, they want to kill
us?”

This was the reason Ark had been built on an artificial island, which was constantly
being moved around the Pacific Ocean. There was always top secret information being
withheld from the youths. Their current enemies were not minions, but humans.

“The True Group believes that the prophecy of the Second Wave of Aggression is a lie
that the psychic institutions have created. In some cases, there are those who believe
the invasion of dragons could be stopped when all the psychics of earth are killed.”
Inspector Rue calmly said.

Ark had not taught their youths these facts of the world.

The youths of Ark were only twelve and thirteen year olds. They had come to Ark
before they could fully understand the ways of the world. Many others, as well as Han,
were learning of the True Group for the first time.

‘Is this, truly, our enemy’s identity?’ Han gradually accepted the truth.

Many people working for Ark shared the same ultimate goal of destroying the dragons,
yet worked against each other. It was much easier to understand the intruder’s points
of views.

There was no gray area at all. The True Group is a clear enemy force.

“Let’s move out. The other squads already took off,” Han commanded Squad 13.

The drill instructors gave commands to the thirteenth squad leader first before the
other squad leaders.

‘A member of the True group has infiltrated the inspector’s group as a mole.’

The traitor leaked the whereabouts of Ark to the True Group military stronghold. In
turn, the True Group decided to lead a frontal attack with their full force. Everything
fit like a puzzle.

The main task was to defend against the surprise attack and weed out the traitors
amongst the inspectors.

Canute rejoined Squad 13 with many guns lugged on his back.

Each squad member took a gun and loaded their hip pockets with spare magazines.
‘Each person has 60 total bullets.’

Han loaded his gun. The breechblock shut smoothly.

Chk! Chk!

The sound of the squads loading their guns rang in consecutive order.

“Continue forward for 1.5 kilometers. March.”

The next moment, the end of the island exploded from a bomb, everyone felt a cold
chill run down their spine.

BOOM!

The squad members looked up. The enemy planes were getting shot down one after
another.

Ark’s military forces were currently in battle against the enemy. Ark’s anti-aircraft
guns barraged against the planes. The planes fell down like a flock of birds.

Woooong!

A subtle earthquake shook Ark. Ark was usually kept in an incredibly slow and
constant motion, which went by unnoticed by those living on the artificial island. The
current speed of Ark was however many times faster. Han could visually see the
horizon moving with his naked eye.

“A plane is coming this way.”

A plane managed to squeeze through a wall of fire and penetrated into the inner island
of Ark.

o the plane, the soldiers marching along below looked like mere dots.

-The enemy infiltrated into the second year zone of Ark. Kill on sight.

The instructors said through the data bracelets. Han bitterly smiled. The enemy’s
invasion was progressing faster than he originally thought possible.
-Squad 2 reporting, we’ve encountered the enemy. Engaging battle.

Background noises of gunfire muffled the audio message. The expressions of the
surrounding squad members darkened. Their enemies were not minions, but fellow
humans.

“Canute and I will lead the front. Jose and Kuro protect the inspector. Stay in formation
while moving forward.”

Han kept a cool head. He only understood a fraction of the current state of Ark. He was
put in charge of the second year zone. All the drill instructors were at the outskirts of
Ark, fighting to stop the enemy invasion, and the only people present in this area were
the second year squads, inspectors, and their entourage.

Requesting for additional military support was not possible.

The enemy would be armed.

‘The enemy’s battle power is unknown.’

It is unknown how well trained and armed the enemy forces are.

‘We will refrain from battle to the best of our ability, joining the other squads should
be prioritized.’

Han sent the same message to the other squads. Join with the nearest squad, assemble
at the fourth mock battle ground. Squad 2 seemed to have barely managed to scrape
past the enemy.

‘This goes for the enemy as well. They will prioritize assembling their team together
before coming to attack us.’

Han and Squad 13 marched toward the urban city, squad mock battle zone. This place
would have the much needed battle gear and equipment necessary to make cover
shelters before permanently settling into the fourth battle ground.

“Haa, haa.”

Kuro’s breathing was erratic. He didn’t feel physically tired, but fighting against
another human stressed him out to the degree that his chest began to hurt.
Fighting against minions was much easier. It was distressing fighting against another
human like himself. His hand wouldn’t stop trembling.

“Do you think you’ll be able to shoot at all in that condition?”

Inspector Rue said while watching Kuro. He had noticed Kuro’s eyes shaking in fear.

‘I see, everyone is not like Han.’

Inspector Rue continued to take note of Squad 13 as battle ensued. His keen eyes
caught the smallest details and changes in his surroundings.

‘Han could fully withstand the stress of battle. A handful of children can also maintain
calmness, but there are also a few whose skills and judgements grow dramatically
worse from nerves. Kuro’s condition is the worst amongst everyone.’

Inspector Rue’s hands were tied, but at the same time, was pretty much the same as
any other free person.

He could easily oppress Kuro at this moment if he wanted to.

‘They’re stronger than normal soldiers due to their psychic skills, body strengthening,
and a higher standard of military training. The main problem right now is that their
enemies don’t consider psykers as humans. They are veteran assassins who are
trained to kill psykers on sight. These youths, however have not fully hardened their
hearts for this type of war.’

Inspector Rue thought in the same direction as Han. Han already understood his
squad’s condition.

‘I can’t use half the members of my squad for this battle.’

Han thought of the first time he had killed another person. It had not been intentional
on his part. It was an accident. Technically speaking, he had not killed the person. He
stole some fruits and made a run for it over the train tracks. A majority of the farmland
in Korea had become desolate and fresh fruit were extremely expensive.

The fruit vendor had continued to chase him to the train tracks. Although the sound
of the train could be heard, the vendor was persistent to chase him. Han pushed the
vendor at the tracks and continued to run. At that time, the vendor’s foot got stuck in
the train tracks and he could not escape.

‘The train ran the man over.’

Han couldn’t stop shaking seeing the vendor’s body shredded to pieces. The red fruit
he held, seemed bloody. Even so, he shared the fruit with his younger siblings. The
bloody fruit tasted delicious.

The fact that it tasted so delicious made him so sad that he spent all night crying
quietly under his blanket. Now, this was just a faint memory of the past. The clouded
feelings he felt back then, had gone and dispersed.

“Canute, are you okay?”

“No problem. Don’t worry.”

Canute was courageous and mentally strong. He was born in a fishing village of
Norway. He had been able to build a raft during the deserted island drill to escape due
to his experience at the fishing village.

He frequently followed his father into the forest to hunt. He had experienced many
things already since young due to his experience fishing and hunting. This became a
great strength for him as he grew up in Ark.

‘This will be the first time I’ll shoot another human, but I’ll just pretend it’s a deer.’

Canute’s eyes chilled. I must shoot even a human. Just think of it as a deer. He repeated
this over and over in his mind.

‘If I don’t kill them, my friends and I will be the ones to die.’

Han and Canute lead the way. Canute was like a pillar of strength. Canute never let
others down. Even if Han gave him difficult tasks, Canute always pulled through.

When Han’s plans failed during their squad battles, he would be able to adjust the
battle tactics and adapt due to Canute’s strength.

“Shh.”

Canute narrowed his eyes and raised his hand. There were strange movements at the
end of the urban warfare battle grounds. They were not second years. They were
definitely not drill instructors neither.

“It’s the enemy. How many?”

“Minimum of three people.”

“Have they seen us?”

“I’m not sure.”

Han picked out a few of the members that looked to be in good condition and directed
them behind a sturdy looking cover wall. He left the remaining squad members to
protect the inspector and the entourage. The squad members split in two and hid in
between two covers.

“Throw the airbeat forward.”

A squad member threw an airbeat into the air.

BANG!

The enemies shot their guns. The airbeat that was thrown flew back from the impact.

“The enemies are at the 3 o’clock direction behind the fast food store. Canute, take two
people to make a detour around the back. Jose, burn the ground to make smoke. Can
you do it?”

There were not many inflammable objects in the urban warfare battleground. They
must constantly uphold their psychic powers through until the end.

“I will try.”

Jose’s eyes burned red. He burned the place Han pointed towards to make smoke. The
concrete ground below charred black.

“Run, Canute. We will cover you.”

Han poked out the barrel of his gun and began to shoot. Their bullets wouldn’t last if
they were to confront the enemy from the front. Canute must make a detour to quickly
end this battle as soon as possible.

“However, the enemy would probably think in the same way. This is the standard
procedure for a battle with many obstacles.’

Han suddenly had a thought. His enemies were not minions, but humans. They will act
in an organized tactical way. He looked back.

“Kuro!”

He spotted movement from the back. He had gathered all the panicked members in
the back side. If they were to meet the enemy, they would be helpless.

“Enemy?”

Kuro felt a chill at the back of his neck. His eyes shined with blue light. He could foresee
the enemy coming this way. His foresight had always been right. Immediate foresight
users could only see their immediate future.

“GET DOWN!”

Kuro shouted to his squad members. His squad members reflexively fell flat to the
ground. Kuro’s warnings had never fell short. His squad members reacted in this way
through repeated experience.

Tudududu!

Soldiers suited in black began blindly shooting. The enemy didn’t have the slightest
bit of hesitancy. They moved with a sense of duty to kill psykers.

“Ah, aah.”

Kuro took erratic breaths of air. He saw a soldier appear in front with his foresight.

I must kill him.

If I hesitate, my peers will be the ones to die.

Click.
Kuro held his gun.

Kuro aimed his gun to his enemy. They were humans.

‘I must shoot this person.’

Kuro’s barrel kept trembling. The enemy soldier spotted Kuro. Kuro’s arms shook
violently.

“Give it here.”

BANG!

Inspector Rue took Kuro’s gun and shot. He had undone his handcuffs at some point
through this havoc. He took out a small knife from beneath the sole of his shoe and cut
the rope tying his hands.

“You’re still too young. You probably learned many things under Squad Leader Han.”

Kuro looked up to Inspector Rue. Rather than realizing that his gun has been stolen by
Inspector Rue, he felt a sense of relief for surviving the ordeal. Inspector Rue had killed
the enemy in place of Kuro.

‘Another enemy.’

More enemies appeared from the side of the building. Kuro calculated the oncoming
battle with his immediate foresight. He used his telekinesis to lift a steel door from
amongst the urban warfare training battle grounds. The steel door protected
Inspector Rue’s flank.

Kang!

The bullet hit the steel door, causing a loud ringing. Inspector Rue looked to Kuro with
surprised eyes.

‘He only hesitates to attack. It is a difficult thing to shoot another person after all.’

Inspector Rue and Kuro took care of the enemies who came attacking from the back.
Inspector Rue wore a colder expression than usual.
Inspector Rue also used to be a military officer. He was an intelligence officer, and was
chosen to become one of the top inspectors of the military committee board.

-Situation Terminated. Enemy has been ki-killed.

Canute reported. It was Canute’s first time killing another person as well.

He wore a bitter expression. He would not be able to get a good night’s rest for a long
while. He would not be able to forget the first person he killed for the rest of his life.

“Squad 13, assemble. How many are injured?”

Nobody in Squad 13 suffered injuries. Han and his squad members assembled.
Inspector Rue appeared straggling along in the back while carrying a gun.

“…”

Han didn’t say anything and glared toward Inspector Rue. He generally understood
the situation already. A skirmish broke out at the back, and Inspector Rue had helped
fight against them.

‘If Inspector Rue had not fought, there would have most likely been casualties.’

Inspector Rue returned Kuro’s gun and raised his hands up in the air.

“I didn’t intentionally resist. It was an emergency situation, I will do as you command.”

Han nodded. He didn’t trust Inspector Rue. He was used to being doubtful of others.

Humans are never friendly without reason. There is a reason for all action. Adults
become used to this type of lifestyle easily.

“Kuro, you stay next to me. Canute, you protect Inspector Rue.”

“Understood.”

Han left Canute to survey the Inspector. Kuro was not competent enough to look after
the inspector.

It would be better if Kuro helped to defend the squad with his psychic powers. Kuro
lacked the power to attack, but he was a ranking psyker and this mere support helped
to keep a heavy load off his shoulders.

Han was able to confirm one thing through this battle.

‘The enemy is weaker than us.’

Second years of Ark are artificially strengthened so that they could manipulate psychic
energy with ease.

It is harder to find a better kind of human resource for battle than these youths. With
the addition of actual battle experience, these soldiers would become terrifying
existences.

They drew closer to the fourth mock battle zone. They were able to join forces with
the other squads.

A few of the members from the other squads that were thrown into fights against the
enemy were injured. The youths who suffered gunshot wounds were trudging along
as they hung on barely for their lives…

“Each squad select two sentries from your team. Each squad will dispatch pair of
sentries around the outskirts of the mock battle grounds. The injured should gather
toward the inside of the battle formation. Squads should take turns surveying the
inspectors. The remainder of the squad members should dig traps and make cover
shelters.”

All the second year squads gathered at the fourth battle grounds. This forest was the
perfect place to set up a defensive fortress.

The trees had been planted here to confuse the students, but in turn it became the
greatest defensive maze against enemies. The second year youths were already
familiar with this forest, but to the enemy, this place was perplexing.

“Squads, come collect a box of bullets.”

Squad 5 and Dimitri handed out the boxes of bullets. Students all around began
reloading their magazines on the spot. Dimitri had blood all over his face. His hands
were also soaked in blood.
“Are you okay, Dimitri?”

Han patted his shoulder and asked. It seemed like a skirmish broke out at Dimitri’s
side as well.

“You don’t need to worry about that, Han. Just focus on your own job.”

Dimitri had strong pride. He might be suffering a mental breakdown mentally

suffering a great, but he was the type to sort out his feelings privately.

‘The most trustworthy person here, is probably Simon.’

Han glanced over to Simon from Squad 3. It seems Simon had single-handedly taken
care of the enemies that they met on their way here.

He expertly used his psychic skills. He had been personally selected by Sergeant Red
as one of the greatest talents amongst those in Ark. Simon didn’t have any major
psychological problems. He was just a bit unpleasant to be around.

“Do you think you’ll get away with this?”

One person amongst the inspectors shouted. He had a huge bruise on his face. It seems
there has been a discord through the capturing procedure.

“We’re acting on Ark’s orders, Inspector.”

Han said. The inspector’s anger soared.

“We’re inspectors. We’re not something brats like you can even… AAHK!”

Simon stood up and grabbed the inspectors neck and threw him up into the air.

“Shut up, old man. Before I decide to kill you.”

Blue light flowed from Simon’s eyes. Simon has killed a person moments before,
making this threat that much more unsettling. The inspector paled as a cold chill ran
down his spine.

“That’s enough, Simon. It’s our job to provide safety for the inspectors.”
Han held Simon’s arm and said. Simon nodded and went his way, but shouted loud
enough for the inspector to hear.

“Of course. I’m sure the suspect for this havoc is amongst them. Damn traitors.”

“Be quiet. Simon. Must I give you official orders before you listen to me?”

Han growled lowly. Han held the highest level of command in this place amongst
everyone.

Simon said no more and went to return to his original position. After the formation of
Squad Whiskey, Simon and Han had settled their differences a great deal.

Simon had acknowledged Han’s strength, so he complied quietly.

You’re pretty good, Han. I can’t believe Simon is obediently listening to your orders.”
Jose said while watching the two. Simon was famous for his independent and high
handed nature.

The leader of Squad 3 also had trouble controlling Simon. Squad 3’s victory and losses
all depended on Simon’s battle strength. This was a rare sight to see amongst second
years who were led by squad leaders.

“Simon isn’t an idiot.”

Han continued to calmly give out orders. Han could see many of the youths he had
worked with at the dimensional crack zone.

Han’s words held clarity and confidence. He had the natural charisma of a leader
which people liked to put their trust in.

‘I see this is the strength of the leader who led the survivors of the dimensional crack
zone.’

Inspector Rue continued to observe the second years. The youths were all different
and varied in personality. Han’s presence shined stronger than many others.

‘Such skills are obtained through more than just repeated military training drills.’

A good commander cannot be defined by one word. There are all kinds of complex
factors that must work together in harmony. You could set up a library if one were to
compile all the idiotic mistakes that graduate officers had made.

It was common place to find superiors randomly killed while in battle. It didn’t matter
how many subordinates one obtained through an institution, only strong commanders
could obtain the trust and obedience of their subordinates.

‘Soldiers put their own lives in the hands of their commander. There wouldn’t be a
single person willing to sacrifice their own life while working under a commander
they do not fully trust.’

Han let squads take a break in rotation. Everyone looked exhausted.

–Tsstsst.

Static sounded from the data bracelet. The second year squads used a local network
so it didn’t static at all. Communication with drill instructors, however would have
static because they were relayed through a radio communicator.

“Squad 13 leader Han Lee reporting, I am listening.”

–Tsstsst. Han, what is the situation over there?

“We are providing protection for the inspectors at the fourth mock battle grounds. All
the second years have been assembled here.”

Han shortly briefed. He could hear the chaotic back noise through the communication
line. He could hear guns being fired and bombs exploding.

-We’ve confirmed that the enemy forces are heading toward the first year defense
shelter. The enemy has given up on attacking the second years, and have diverted their
attack toward the first years. The only military forces that are able to provide aid to
stop the enemy are the second year squads. Do you understand?

“We will deploy a team.”

The drill instructors didn’t wish to resort to this. However, currently Ark was short on
manpower.

After the recent events that occurred around the dimensional crack, many forces from
around the world had been dispatched for constant surveyance. At the moment, the
best backup manpower available in the Ark were the second year squads.

-Extermination is not necessary, it’s good enough to simply stop them. We’ve divided
a portion of our military forces to be deployed to the first years.

“Understood.”

Han hung up his communication line and looked around his surroundings.

‘It’s impossible to take Squad 13 with me. I need members who can work skillfully as
a team.’

If all of Squad 13 were able to battle, he would have immediately dispatched his own
squad out. However, there were not many members who could display their full
strength in this situation.

‘I also need someone to take care of this place. It will be better for Jose to remain here.
Dimitri is the second-in-command here, so it would be bad to take him.’

Han chose Canute and Simon among a team of eight. These eight members were able
to fully display their strength in battle.

The dispatched eight members of this team had similar personalities to Han. They
didn’t have much fluctuation in emotions and had a strong sense of self. These types
of people adapted to battle the quickest.

“This temporary squad name is Squad Zero. Our communication channel is 9.”

Han and Squad Zero moved out with haste. First years had a negligible amount of
battle strength. It didn’t matter how much potential these first years had, they would
be powerless in the face of fully armed soldiers. If Han delayed even a little, all of the
first years would probably be decimated.

“Monsters who have strayed from heaven’s blessings.”

The first years who couldn’t reach the first year defense shelter were already captured
by the enemy soldiers. The soldiers stepped on the necks of the first years and put
them out of their misery. They pulled their triggers without batting an eye.
Baang!

A bullet flew into a first year student’s head; the youth’s body fell and spasmed. The
youth died, disbelieving until the last moment, with his eyes open. Blood flowed
through the cracks of the ground.

The True Group held strong hostility towards all that manifested psychic powers. This
hostility would be best described as pure disgust.

Like a person who reacts to a cockroach in their own house, to these people, psykers
were demonic. Psykers were tumors of the human race.

The True Group had many organizations around the world. This was the proof that
humans all around the world held great fear towards psykers.

Humans feared one another due to their different skin color in history. For humans to
be born with otherworldly strange powers only helped to flame the increasing
prejudice and assumptions.

“It’s pretty sturdy.”

The double doors that secured the defense shelter didn’t budge at all through normal
means. The soldiers slathered explosive sludge onto the door. They backed away a safe
distance and waited for the explosion.

“1, 2, 3.”

KWAANG!

A dense cloud of dust burst. The door creaked back and forth until it fell flat on the
floor.

“Earth belongs to humans. There’s no room for monsters like you here!”

A soldier shouted. The rest of the soldiers followed suit and fist pumped into the air.

“ONLY FOR HUMANS!”

To the True Group, the existence of Ark was the equivalent to the extinction of the
human race.
‘What are they trying to do making these super human soldiers? It’s already been ten
years since dragons had disappeared from the world. There will be no more invasions.
Those dirty scammers!’

“If we don’t stand up for ourselves, these mutant humans will rule the world. We must
fight for the human race!”

The soldiers became drunk in madness. These soldiers were fighting a holy war. This
was their chance to destroy the origin of evil, Ark.

“Even if it means sacrificing our own lives…!”

The soldiers decimated the defense shelter door and orderly marched in.

The inside of the defense shelter was shaped like a maze. The inside of the shelter was
sealed and dark. The soldiers turned on the nightvision of their helmets.

“Easy team enter the shelter. Next, Delta.”

“Understood.”

The soldiers moved like one entity. They were all trained military soldiers. They had
made up their minds to kill all psykers on sight, whether children or not.

Tudududu!

Gun shots sounded. Easy team, who lead the group of soldiers, was actively fighting
against those inside. The first years appeared from within the darkness to initiate
their counter-attack.

-Remain calm. They’re armed with only close combat weapons.

Someone screamed. The fully armed soldiers shot their guns ruthlessly toward the
first years. Children around the age of ten fell to the ground one after another. They
cried in pain and fear.

“…These are just young children.”

An enemy soldier said removing his night vision goggles. His eyes shook. This was just
a one sided massacre. They were killing unarmed young children.
“I understand. Private. However, in the future they will become the monsters that rule
over our daughters and sons.”

“What we’re doing is crazy. This is murder! This isn’t something humans should be
doing. How can you kill children?”

A mid commander sighed. He pulled the trigger to his associate’s head.

BANG!

The soldier faltered with a face full of tears and blood.

“Our future generations will be glad for our decisions today. We must do what we
must.”

The mid commander said coldly. The other soldiers nodded.

-This is Alpha Team. We’ve encountered enemies at the back. We’re in the middle of
battle.

The commander received the message and nodded.

“Understood, Alpha. Kill the enemy.”

Han and Squad Zero arrived at the defense shelter’s entrance. Sentry guards were
scattered around the entrance. The squad raised their guard and used the surrounding
wreckage as cover.

“The enemy has already infiltrated the defense shelter. We have to hurry.” Canute said.

Time was on the enemy’s side. Han quickly established a plan.

“Simon, do you think you can lure their attention towards you? We don’t have time.
We’re going to rush in.”

Han said to Simon. Simon narrowed his eyes. There were six sentry guards, none of
them were armed with heavy firearms.

“You call that a question? Who do you think I am? I’m Simon Dell.”
Han nodded. He locked his gaze with each of his squad members and spoke.

“Simon will enter first, when Simon deflects their attention, we will go to ambush and
kill them. Go!”

Simon dashed out. He used his telekinesis to lift up concrete and steel planks as
shields. He shielded his whole body as he ran out. The enemy tried to shoot in between
the cracks of the shield. The enemy focused all their bullets toward Simon.

Tudududu!

One by one, the shield he held up splintered off and broke.

A bullet grazed his ear. He had ran out without a bulletproof vest. He would die if he
lost focus now.

Simon clenched his jaw tight. A strong beam of light streamed out from his eyes.

Clank!

The enemy emptied their magazine and paused their shots to reload. Han, who waited
for this moment shouted.

“Attack!”

Squad Zero scattered and dashed forward while holding up a shield covering made up
of a random object from the area. They divided into two groups so that they could
continuously shoot while moving forward.

“It’s a hand grenade!”

An enemy soldier threw a grenade. Han glared sharply. He ran toward the grenade,
and used his telekinesis to snatch it and throw it back into the air.

“Don’t give them a chance! We have to kill them at once!” Han shouted.

Canute sniped down the two guards in front, and rolled forward.

Canute was always full of courage like the vikings that ruled the north of Scandinavia.
He didn’t hold a shred of fear in his heart. It didn’t matter that bullets were raining
towards him, he dashed forward.

‘It’s dangerous. Canute, you’re moving up too much.’

Han’s expression stiffered seeing Canute. Canute was up in front much more than the
rest of the squad.

The soldiers focused their shot toward Canute. Canute jumped to the side and took
cover.

Canute groaned while grimacing. A bullet landed on his hip. It wasn’t just one but
about a dozen.

“Damn it, it hurts!”

Canute shouted while crazily shooting his gun. The cover material flopped on top of
his body only after he emptied his magazine.

Blood gushed out like a fountain from his wounds. He put pressure on his hip to stop
the blood.

The enemy sentries could not withstand Squad Zero. They all fell to the ground while
gasping for their life.

“Monsters.” The soldiers said.

Simon kicked the enemy soldier’s head and silenced the other.

“Canute remain on standby. Hide yourself and wait for messages from the drill
instructors. I’m sorry but I can’t string you with an additional person for evacuation.
You can endure this much, right?”

Canute nodded. Han looked over his other squad member’s conditions.

Nobody was injured other than Canute. Simon only looked a little tired. It’s to be
expected after using so much psychic power. They were able to take care of the enemy
easily due to Simon’s aide.

“We will continue to move forward. It’s dark inside. Take their gear.”
Han peered into the defense shelter and said. Squad Zero took the night vision goggles
from the dead soldiers.

They had already been trained to use night vision equipment. Though this wasn’t the
same model, it was easy to figure it out.

“B#@$@!”

A few of the squad members cursed. They could see many corpses of the first years
inside. The further they went in, the more corpses they found. A minimum of half of
the first years would most likely be dead. The young first years couldn’t even put up a
proper resistance before falling to their death.

“Remain calm. The enemy is still inside.”

Han said to his squad members. His eyes reflected a shockingly cold gaze. He fully
examined the state of this place with chilling cold eyes.

It smelled of foul blood and rotten flesh. Slaughter. Dead children.

Han didn’t fuel his anger, but blocked off his emotions.

‘I won’t make the same mistake twice.’

Han had become blind due to his own fervent emotions the last time, which caused
Squad Whiskey to fall into a very dangerous situation. He felt the price of his
negligence to the bone.

“The first years retreated. The enemy should be deeper inside this defense shelter.”

“How did they find out about this defense shelter? We didn’t mark this place in the
map of our data bracelets.”

“I’m not sure.”

Squad Zero continued to creep deeper into the shelter. They carefully moved forward.
They were short on time, but they didn’t dare rush.

They had already discovered two death traps. The enemy laid an invisible thread at
the level of their knee, if they were to trip it, a grenade pin would be pulled. The
slightest mistake would mean the end of the whole squad.

‘I should have brought Kuro.’

Han belately regretted. Without Kuro’s immediate foresight, his area of activity was
drastically reduced. Although Kuro had poor attack strength, he could help to carry a
heavy burden to influence a battle.

“AAAH!”

They heard screaming. It belonged to a child’s who have yet gone through puberty.
Han unknowingly quickened his steps.

“Welcome, MONSTERS!”

The moment he turned a corner, a soldier waited to ambush them with a grenade
launcher.

Ping!

The grenade launcher made a light tink as the grenade was shot. The power of the
explosion would be more than enough to kill everyone here.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Han could hear the sound of his own heart. He strengthened his focus to his maximum
limit. He was now, at death’s door. He could see the grenade flying this way.

Can I do this-? That wasn’t the problem right now. He must do this-!

KKa du du duk! (t/n: hand muscle sound.)

Han spread out the palm of his hand. Han imaged himself catching the flying grenade
with his telekinesis. Han briefly caught the grenade to change its flight direction.

Han’s telekinesis control had an exceptional degree of focus, and this had only been
possible because it had been Han.

BOOOM!
The grenade that had tangented off a different direction hit the opposite side of the
room. Han’s ears muffled, every breath in his body was sucked out.

“What happened just now?”

“Did he misfire?” The squad members mumbled.

Simon, who stood the closest to Han, witnessed every moment.

‘He deflected the grenade away with his telekinesis.’

Simon was also capable of doing this… on the premise that he is made aware ahead of
time.

However, Han had reacted the moment he turned the corner as soon as he saw the
grenade launcher being shot. He himself, had no confidence to be able to react with
such speed.

“M-monsters…”

The soldier who launched the grenade, ended up receiving all the damage. His left arm
and lower body was burned black. He took a few painful breaths before he closed his
eyes.

Keeee!

Han’s ears started to ring. Simon supported him to stand.

“Let’s go.”

Han lead his squad forward once again. Fatigue ate his whole body. Han moved
forward on sheer sense of duty alone.

Tu du du du du!

Soldiers were stationed on the last door of the defense shelter. This was a narrow
space so they didn’t use bombs, instead they used welding machines to melt the door.
They vigilantly guarded against Squad Zero so that they could not approach this place.

‘What do I do now?’
Han endured his aching head and continued to think. Squad Zero gravely lacked battle
gear.

If he were to charge forward this straight passageway, everyone in the squad would
become a beehive. There were not enough materials to use as a shield, and Simon
didn’t have enough energy to do it again.

‘Han, think of something.’

Han mentally hissed to himself. The enemies were currently trying to weld through
the door. The first years has already been greatly harmed. Further harm to them must
be prevented.

‘An air vent?’

The air vent was the only detour that allowed passage to the first years. There was
enough room for him to crawl through. However, it would be impossible to prevent
the sound from bleeding out. If he were to crawl through this air vent, it was inviting
the enemy to freely shoot him.

‘But the enemy will not be able to aim properly if I am in the air vent. A bullet which
had pierced through a steel frame would also be greatly weakened. It might be
possible as long as I protect my head.’

A second year’s body was built stronger than a normal human’s. Han made his
decision and looked toward his squad members.

“I’m going to crawl through the air vent and attack them from the back. They will focus
their shots at the air vent, take that moment to oppress them. Everyone, save your
psychic powers.”

“Are you sane? Han? Do you want to die?”

Simon said while shooting his gun from the corner. The steel frames which encased
the air vent were not made strong enough to stop bullets.

Even if he successfully made it to the back, it was highly likely that he would die.
However, this was a sacrifice he needed to risk for victory.

“There’s no other way. We don’t have enough time.”

Step, step.

Footsteps sounded from behind Squad Zero. Han leered to the side and aimed his gun.
Canute stood at the place Han aimed.

“Canute?”

Canute, who had suffered many gunshot wounds was walking, like he was perfectly
fine. Canute reaffirmed the current situation.

“I know it’s kind of awkward to say this now, but I think I just obtained my unique
skill.”

Canute pointed to his leg. All his gunshot wounds were gone.

“Healing factor. What a fitting unique skill for you.”

Simon mumbled. Canute was famous for frequenting the hospital the most amongst
the second years.

Canute’s unique skill, healing factor, had inhumanely fast regeneration abilities and
had already been classed. The regeneration speed varied, but penetrating wounds
healed almost instantaneously.

“If my judgement is correct, you guys need me right now.”

Canute said. He was going to take Han’s place and crawl through the air vent. He had
a healing skill, and something like a gunshot wound was nothing to fear. He would feel
the pain just the same, but he could endure that much. Anyway, this method would be
better than seeing Han die.

“I’ll leave it to you, Canute.”

Canute quickly reconfirmed the battle plan and opened the air vent cover. He placed
his foot into the vent, ducked down, and crawled. The gun on his hips shook and
clattered.

‘I wonder if I obtained this unique skill because I wished for it so earnestly.’

Canute thought while crawling through the stuffy air vent. When he was left behind
due to his injuries, he wished to rejoint them.

He had always been injured the quickest before the end of the battle. He didn’t wish to
be left behind any longer.

He didn’t care about how many injuries he would suffer, he just needed a skill which
would give him the power to go on. His psychic powers seemed to have listened to his
desire and evolved.

‘On the other hand, my telekinesis skills became drastically weaker.’

When unique skills awaken, it’s common to lose control of any existing telekinetic
skills. It seems the psychic energy circuit becomes split into two. If one’s telekinesis
was at one hundred percent power, then after awakening one’s unique skills, their
telekinesis would fall to around 70-80%.

Kuro’s psychic power level is so great that even if his telekinesis strength fell to 80%,
he could still easily overpower others. Canute, on the other hand, didn’t have a
particularly outstanding level of psychic power.

Bam!

The air vent shook. The soldiers who noticed the sound perked up their ears. They
shot their guns toward the air vent that made noise.

Da-Da-Da!

The air vent became riddled with bullet holes. Canute muffled his mouth with his
hand. A bullet shot through his side. He felt the stinging pain, at the same time, his
healing factor reacted immediately. His eyes glowed green light. This was proof that
his body was undergoing rapid regeneration.

“Hey, stop shooting in weird places and shoot at those other guys!”

“They don’t want to jump out from their hiding spot.”

“Then buy us some time. We’ll be able to open the door soon. They’ll come out once
we kill all the children!”

The soldiers chatted amongst themselves. The soldier with the welding machine
hastened to open the door upon his superior’s command.

“Huu.”

Canute continued forward. The air vent shook more noticeably as he crawled forward.
The soldiers all peered over to the shaking air vent.

“They’re in the air vent! He’s trying to reach the other side!”

Squad Zero did their best to keep the guards at the security door occupied to distract
them from Canute. They shot their gun until they used all their bullets.

“Run! Canute!

Han radioed. Canute straightened his bent knee and increased his speed. The air vent
moved in huge waves.

“Blow it up!”

One of the soldiers readied his automatic shotgun. The shotgun shot to break apart
the air vent.

The shotgun blasted in succession causing the air vent to sink lower. Canute faltered
forward at a place where the enemies immediately noticed.

“Die, monster!”

Canute’s eyes grew wide. All the guns were pointed at himself. It seemed like fireworks
in his eyes. Dozens of bullets pierced through his body. The bullets ripped his body’s
flesh and muscles that the bones inside his body protruded out. His blood pooled on
the floor.

“Canute-!!”

Han peered outside and shouted. Simon grabbed Han’s neck and pulled him back. A
bullet flew past his nose.

Clack!

The last door opened. The enemy soldiers continued shooting toward Squad Zero as
they backed into the room.

Twitch.

Canute, whose body was shredded and horrid, struggled to move his fingers. It was
gradual, but the flesh of his fingers started to regenerate. His eyes glowed as it
reconstructed itself. Canute lifted his arm like a zombie and twitched his mouth with
what muscles he could move. He could only mutter hoarsely in this incomplete state.

“Where are you going? Trash.”

Tududududu!

Canute blindly fired with one hand. They were nearby that he could easily shoot his
enemies by wildly firing his gun. Canute emptied his magazine, and reloaded another
from his belt. Blood spurted from his mouth, but he didn’t stop shooting.

“M-Monster! He’s a real monster!”

A soldier shouted fearfully while randomly shooting his gun at Canute. No matter how
many bullets hit Canute’s body, he could not be stopped. Psychic light beamed from
his eyes.

“Haaa, this is great.”

Canute said trying to shake off the pain from his body.

This wasn’t the exact order of the battle plan, but at the same time it was. Canute
opened fire with the enemy forces to distract them.

Han didn’t let this chance escape and signaled to his team. Squad Zero ran forward
through the passage while using their psychic skills and shooting their guns.

A squad member was hit and faltered. It was unknown whether he died or lived. The
remaining squad members continued to engage the enemy and dashed forward.

“You trash b$#%$#!”

The enemy soldier holding the automatic shotgun aimed. Simon was now close
enough to use his telekinetic powers against them.
He used his telekinetic powers to push their gun barrels into another direction to mess
up their aim.

“Die!”

Simon shouted murderously. The anger Squad Zero had endured exploded out at once.
They had seen the never ending corpses of the first years as they reached this place.

The enemies mercilessly killed the first years who could not even put up a proper
defense. Squad Zero no longer viewed these soldiers as humans. The two forces saw
one another as nothing but monsters.

“Humans will never submit to you…” The enemy commander mumbled.

“Shut up!”

The squad had forgotten that the enemy commanders were to be detained alive. The
squad members checked to make sure that the enemy soldiers were all dead. Han
could not stop his squad member’s anger.

The priority at this moment, was to check Canute’s condition. The squad members
who managed to calm down helped to support the injured.

“Canute, wake up. How many fingers am I holding up?”

Han held three fingers up for Canute. Parts of Canute’s body were hollow here and
there, but most of his muscles and flesh had managed to regenerate.

“Three.”

“What is my name?”

“Han Lee, why are you asking these stupid questions? I’m okay. Go check the other
guys first.”

Only one person died in Squad Zero, while three people were seriously injured. The
first years peered through the door with fearful eyes.

Han helped to support Canute up onto his feet. All this while, Han couldn’t help but
feel a bit uncomfortable and repulsed.
‘Fighting against minions is much easier- no matter what their number. Humans… on
the other hand… ’

This was Han’s first time personally killing another human. It felt as though something
inside of him had disappeared.

The act of killing others, also results in a sort of death. Murder is an act of killing
oneself. Han is not a psychopath who could remain emotionally disconnected.
Controlling his emotions, and disconnecting one’s emotions were entirely different.

‘Humans must not become used to the act of killing other humans.’ Han abruptly
reminded himself. He didn’t need any reason to follow this way of thinking. Anyone
with a bit of morality would believe so.

Once a human becomes undisturbed to killing, that is when one would truly becomes
a monster.

At the fourth mock battle ground, Kuro fiddled with his gun nervously. Han made a
temporary team to rescue the first years. This was the first time he’s been left out of
Han’s battle plans.

‘He must not trust my skills and left me here.’

Kuro understood Han’s standard when he selected squad members for his team. Kuro
felt pathetic.

‘If only I could fight without hesitation like the others… ’

Kuro’s basic personality went against anything related to battle. This was especially
the case against other humans.

Ark clearly knew the flaws of Kuro’s personality for battle, but they didn’t rush to force
Kuro to change his personality.

Ark’s researchers explained, the root of Kuro’s excellent psychic strength is probably
due to his personality.

“Kuro, the inspectors are watching us.”

Jose said to Kuro. Jose helped to command along side with Dimitri. Jose didn’t
particularly stand out in any one subject, but at the same time had fairly good passing
marks for all subjects and skills.

He especially had great leadership skills. It didn’t matter what situation or what role,
he could fulfill the role without much struggle.

He also had a flexible easy going personality, so he could be paired with any type of
person in the squad.

“Do you think Han will be okay?”

Kuro mumbled. Dimitri, who finished his break, stood up.

“He would probably be worrying for us. I got a report that the enemy soldiers are
heading our way. Get ready.”

Dimitri signaled the youths. They each hid behind the cover shelters and waited for
the enemy. They dragged all rocks and logs within the vicinity of the fourth, mock
battle ground.

‘We just need to endure through to the end to win.’

The artificial island, Ark, is a giant fortress. The higher-ups, soldiers, and drill
instructors are the elite upon elite amongst the veteran military officers of the
countries around the world.

Some of the soldiers of Ark that were fighting against enemies at the front lines were
coming this way. The side who was racing against time was the enemy.

“They’re here.”

The battle began. The enemy soldiers who appeared in the fourth mock battle grounds
ruthlessly shot their guns at the youths.

The youths who hid behind the covers were not easy targets. Dimitri calmly
commanded for the youths to shoot in rotation.

It wasn’t their goal to exterminate the enemy, but block them. So, this much should be
more than enough for the time being. Stray bullets and heavy artillery were cleared
with psychic skills.
KWAANG!

A grenade tangented off into a different direction and exploded up in the air. No
amount of firepower was getting through to the other side at all. The enemy soldiers
were growing more frustrated by the minute.

“It’s not possible to oppress these guys with the current amount of fire power.”

An adjutant said. The commander furrowed his brows.

“We’re fully armed, and they only have a single gun at hand. What are you doing out
there?”

“Even so, we’re not able to get through to them.”

The psychic youths were educated and trained on basic modern warfare. They were
the soldiers dedicated to stop the extinction of the human race, a class of super
soldiers.

The youths only focused on defending and it wasn’t easy to get through their defense.
The commander paced back and forth for awhile then shouted into his communication
device.

“Damn! We need aerial backup. Bomb them!”

“What? It’s not possible for the bombers to pass Ark’s initial defense walls.” the
adjutant said.

The surprise attack had been long ago, and all the aerial defense system of Ark were
on full alert. Even the slightest suspicious sign alerted the anti-aircraft guns. It was not
possible to request for additional aid.

“This is an order!”

“…Yes sir.”

The adjutant didn’t think it was possible, but requested for additional back up. They
got a surprising response.

-Understood. Take care of the laser homing gun.

A plane flew overhead of Ark and opened its hanger. An automated combat drone
dropped down. The enemy pilot put his life on the line to lure the anti aircraft gun onto
himself for the sake of sending off the automated combat drone.

-… GOD IS GREAT!

The plane immediately exploded and tipped over, nose diving into the ground. The
enemy plane’s altitude was too low for it to be stopped by additional attacks by the
anti aircraft gun.

The True Group members consisted of many different nations. Each fighter’s motive
and goals drastically differed. His own life did not matter in the face of God’s mission.

Weeeng!

The automated combat drone flew to the designated bombing point. The belly of the
automated aircraft opened to reveal its true form of a guided missile.

“Something is coming.”

Kuro felt a chill run down his spine. Kuro’s immediate foresight was a useful tactical
battle weapon. The reason Kuro remained next to the squad commander and leaders
were to maintain the fastest response against any attacks.

“Kuro?” Jose looked to Kuro and spoke.

Kuro was looking sporadically in every which direction. There were no particular
dangers right now. The two sides continued to prolong the deadlock.

However, Kuro had felt some kind of danger looming over them at this moment. Kuro
had never been wrong.

UUOOOOO!

Kuro’s eyes shined with blue light. His eyes shone so brightly that people could not
properly see his eyes. If his eyes were not reflecting the present, it meant the visions
belonged to the immediate future.

An empty plane without a pilot, a missile was attached below it. The missile was
programmed to bomb the center of the fourth mock battle grounds.
‘Everyone will die.’

Kuro’s face paled. This would happen a few seconds from now. There was no way for
them to escape outside of the missile’s range. A few seconds from now, all the youths
in front of his eyes would be burnt into a pile of ash.

“Kuro?”

Kuro did not answer. Nothing would come of answering.

‘It’s good that Han is not here. Han shouldn’t die in a place like this.’

The youths of Ark saw an automated combat drone jetting toward them. Everyone’s
eyes grew wide when it dropped a huge missile in front of their very eyes. The end of
the missile burst like fireworks.

“We’re done for.”

Someone said. Kuro stared at the missile flying toward them. It was getting closer. The
few seconds seemed to play in slow motion.

He lived a short life, but many things had happened and all the moments flashed
before his eyes. His life in Japan had not been a happy one. Everyone bullied him for
his black skin. He was introverted and couldn’t muster enough courage to befriend
anyone.

Although life was hard in Ark, he was happy in this place. He made friends. He had
peers to depend on. His peers treated Kuro as an equal, like another human being.

‘Han… would not give up easily.’

Han was Kuro’s role model. Kuro always hoped to be as strong as Han.

‘I’m not smart like Han. I’m not able to be decisive like Simon. I don’t have courage like
Canute. What I have always been able to do, was not kill the enemy, but protect my
friends.’

OOUUUUU!

Kuro raised his hands into the air. His entire body overflowed with psychic energy. The
ground shook and the dust and dirt around him began to spin with the wind.

“I won’t let them die. Not Jose, not any of the guys here…”

Kuro’s voice rumbled very low. Kuro gripped his hands into tight fists.

BOOOOOOM!

A deafening roar sounded. Kuro used his telekinesis to compress the air of this place
and gripped the missile. The missile stopped in midair.

Drip drip drip…

Blood burst out from Kuro’s nose. The veins all around his face violently pumped.

“EXPLODE—!”

Kuro roared. The missile’s nose shattered and crumpled. Kuro gripped his hands into
tight fists that his nails dug into his flesh.

BOOOOM!

The missile exploded in midair. It exploded like fireworks and was a sight to behold.

The falling blaze set the fourth mock battlegrounds aflame. The lush forest terrain was
now a land of fire.

“There’s more!”

The automated combat drone dropped its remaining two missiles at once. Kuro
already predicted this with his immediate foresight.

He spread his arms out and squeezed as much of his own life energy as possible. A
psychic aura manifested all around his body.

It wasn’t only his eyes that glowed, but his whole body shined a blinding blue aura.
The aura seemed to burn like a flame and swayed, it seemed like a living spark.

“S Rank!”
The squad members all looked to Kuro and exclaimed. Psychics were further divided
numerically amongst A ranked psychics. S ranked psykers were named so, for their
abnormally absurd level of psychic powers they could control.

At this level, the psychic energy would manifest to the point people could see with
their naked eyes.

Wwwwuuuoong!

Psychic energy manifested into a giant hand and grabbed the missiles. The psychic
energy followed the same action of his own hands.

His high psychic rank and imagery skill made such telekinesis possible.

“GET– LOST–!”

Kuro made a huge swinging motion. The psychic hand imitated Kuro’s motion.

The missile Kuro threw hit the automated combat drone. The drone exploded and
dissolved to tiny pieces of debris.

“Jesus… my God…”

The enemy soldiers, and drill instructors stood up to stare in awe.

The form was like God’s hand itself. It was as if God personally took it to his own hand
to strike down divine punishment on Earth.l

“Ah, AAAAH–!”

Kuro reached the limit of his psychic powers. The psychic light of his eyes flickered.
The psychic hand in the air grew faint then formed once again. The missile trapped in
the hand began to inch forward once again.

‘I can’t let this slip out!’

Kuro opened his eyes as wide as he could and swung his arm in a huge arc. The missile
flew in circles and spun off into a different direction. The missile flew back toward the
enemy forces.
“This must be divine punishment. This isn’t a power humans are able to manifest.”

The True Group’s commander that ordered the bombing mumbled. He appeared to be
in total defeat. He gazed toward the missile flying his way. His subordinates were
shouting something. He couldn’t hear anything.

KWAANG

A huge explosion resonated. Everyone caught in the explosion lost consciousness at

once. All that was left were the burnt corpses. They were now soulless piles of meat
now.

“GAAH!”

Kuro’s hands and arms shook violently as he fell to the ground. He continuously threw
up blood. Blood gushed from his eyes, nose, and ears.

“Anyone with medical supplies! Hurry!”

Jose shouted as if screaming. He supported Kuro in a tight embrace. Kuro had

expended more psychic powers than he could withstand. Kuro was at death’s door.
Kuro’s body convulsed and spasmed.

“No. Don’t die, Kuro. Wake up!”

Jose was trying very hard not to cry. In his stead, Dimitri took out the emergency
medical kit to take out the pain killer.

“Move over, Jose.”

Dimitri pushed Jose aside and calmly followed the emergency medical procedure.
There was nothing much they could do for someone who expended all their psychic
powers past the limit.

He needed to be moved into the medical ward for treatment. The best they could do
for Kuro at the moment was to administer drugs to reduce his pain.

“Jose! Continue talking to Kuro, so that he will not lose consciousness,” Dimitri said.

Jose held onto Kuro’s hand and continued to speak something. Jose didn’t know what
he was speaking himself, he just said whatever that he could think of.

The inspectors around the area could not shut their gaped mouths. They couldn’t
shake off the fear they just experienced.

What kind of adults would these youths grow into as they mature?

They could easily relate to the True Group. The difference was too great between the
first and second generation psykers. Controlling the second generation psyker super
humans would be impossible,

“They are monsters. They should have all died here.”

‘They will only think to dominate over humans with such powers. We, the True Group
are in the right. We must kill all psykers.’

One person amongst the inspectors mumbled. His eyes darkened ominously. He
looked like he lost touch with his sanity. He couldn’t shake off the fear after witnessing
Kuro’s psychic powers. He felt a strong sense of duty to kill all the psykers here. He
moved between people toward Kuro’s direction.

‘A handgun?’

Inspector Rue, who stood between a crowd of people, discovered a person with a
handgun and attacked him.

he two caused a ruckus as they tangled in a fight. A bullet shot through Inspector Rue’s
flank. Inspector Rue, was originally a soldier. Instead of screaming in pain, he gripped
his hand into a fist and punched the other’s face.

“Stop!”

The youths ran to separate Inspector Rue and the man. They took away the man’s gun
and tied down his hands and feet. Inspector Rue pressed his side and sat down on the
ground.

“Damn it, so there really was a traitor amongst us.”

Inspector Rue clicked his tongue. In the future, the structure of Ark’s overall governing
committee would change.
Ark had suffered greatly due to the inspectors. For the time being, the committee
would have a difficult time shooting any complaints. They wouldn’t be able to reject
requests for more support funds neither.

Guuuoo!

Smoke and sparks flew above Ark. There were reports between various squads being
exchanged after the situation had settled.

They had driven the True Group out. However, these enemy forces had deeply
ingrained themselves into the minds of the youths. This institution was built to protect
humanity.

They had received a huge shock from an attack, not from minions, but humans like
themselves. This pain that the True Group inflicted on the youths would be what will
incite the prejudice and discrimination between the two groups in the far future.

All of the first and second years of ark received psychiatric consultation and treatments.
A majority of the first years died, and more than half of the remaining first year
survivors were to be retired. Amongst the second years, seven died.

After Ark had been established, they suffered the worst two catastrophes consecutively.
Ark’s governing committee could see the seriousness of this situation and prepared a
grand large scale check to fund the necessary repairs for the future.

One wrong move at this moment could completely destroy the Ark Project all-together.

“Han, how are you?” A young psychiatrist asked.

Han blinked back at her.

“I feel okay now.”

Han could not sleep for the first few days without sedatives. The adrenaline from
battle pumped too intensely and he couldn’t calm himself down.

The other youths were doing far worse. One moment, they would be standing still and
the next moment they would be breaking all the items and windows.

The youths continued to receive psychotherapy and drugs to gradually return to their
daily lives.

“I’ve prescribed three days worth of prescriptions for you. If you feel severe anxiety or
harsh heart palpitations, you should take a dose.”

Han nodded. He headed to the main medical treatment room of the second hospital
ward facilities.

‘Kuro.’

The best doctors of Ark were working around the clock to help Kuro at the second
hospital ward facility. They’ve managed to stabilize his pulse, but at least one more
month of treatment was required.

After the disaster, Kuro was officially registered as an S-Rank Psyker. Not only that, but
he was the youth who saved countless others of Ark.

You did well, Kuro.” Han mumbled to himself.

He blankly looked toward the window.

There would be no training or lectures for the time being. They were ordered to focus
on resting for the time being. The high officials of Ark feared the second years wouldn’t
be able to recover from this.

They would be able to supplement for the shortage of first years, but they couldn’t
afford to lose additional second years for the Ark Project to continue.

“Squad leader Han.”

Inspector James Rue walked over while limping. Yesterday, he was hospitalized, but it
seemed today he would be leaving with his entourage.

“Inspector Rue.” Han said with a short salute. He heard that it was this inspector that
saved Kuro’s life.

“You’re superb. I was amazed at your judgements and commands while in battle.”
Inspector Rue said seriously. He literally meant every word honestly.

“Thank you.”
“That is also probably why you will hate us even more. You will probably feel we are
nothing but greedy adults who are too busy trying to fill our own pockets.”

“…that is not so.”

“I didn’t come here to hear frosted words. I hope you understand just one thing. I’m
also doing my job to the best of my ability for our world’s future. I’m sure it will be
hard for you to immediately understand. Losing against the dragons will mean the
ultimate end for us, and it will seem like what we are doing is completely useless…
However, history has already proved that humans are not the most logical or wise
creatures. They understand deep in their bones, and yet continue to make mistakes. A
little step back will prevent co-destruction, but it seems our pride prevents this.
However, if dragons do not invade, what do you think humanity would end up doing
with all the leftover nuclear bombs? They will be used on each other.”

Han’s eyebrows twitched. Inspector Rue turned his back and walked away. He spoke
to Han without turning.

“That is why you are superb. Youths your age do not think like you do. When adults
speak difficult words, kids usually lightly gloss over the fact. As you’ve seen Kuro do.
Ugh, speaking too much is making my side hurt.”

Inspector Rue held his side and slowly limped away. Han continued to watch him walk
away for a long while.

Han did not wish to understand Inspector Rue’s words. He simply hoped to protect his
younger siblings and peers. Great effort was required if he wanted to see this hope
through. He must save humanity from extinction.

Han had caught a glimpse of the dragon at the dimensional crack zone. The dragon’s
invasion would become reality.
“Squad leader Han’s psychic power evolved to a C+ rank.”

The agenda of today’s conference moved onto Han. The executives and drill instructors
looked glum and their expressions were dark.

The True Group’s attack killed many students of Ark. Nobody was allowed a day of
grievance and was expected to swiftly return to work because they couldn’t waste a
second longer. It wouldn’t be too late to pay tribute to the deceased after the end of
the war.

“It wouldn’t be an overstatement to consider him a B rank due to the amount of

telekinetic control he has. He just barely makes the minimum required rank to pilot
psychoframes. At the same time, he has not awakened any unique psychic skills yet.”

“Still, I think we should transfer him up into the third year. There’s nothing that Han
would gain remaining in second year. He would just pointlessly win squad mock
battles. What this youth needs is real life experience.”

“Third year is a place for psykers to train! Han does not meet the basic psychic
requirements. He should remain in second year a little longer…”

The two sides would not come into agreement.

“The results and data Han has accumulated is enough to justify his transfer into third
year. Currently, there are no youths in the second year with a better resume than Han.
We don’t need just raw data and statistics, we need someone who can produce results.”

The group who wanted Han to transfer up continued to strongly pressure the other
side without signs of wavering.

“It’s better to transfer him up if you can’t choose a side. We can’t afford to let anyone
with potential slip from our hands.”
This was the deciding hand for Han’s transfer, and was made official.

The second year drill instructors summoned Han. They handed him a pile of
documents and spoke.

“Congratulations on your transfer into third year.”

Han’s eyes momentarily shook. This came sooner than he thought. The decision was
passed during the scheduled conferences that Ark held. Han nodded and received the
documents.

Han also agreed that he no longer had anything to gain in second year. All he could do
now was listen to the same lectures and continue to participate in the same sort of
mind numbing squad battles.

They’ve also placed Simon and Kuro into third year, but the two were still in the
recovery ward. So, they would remain in second year for a short while longer and
transfer after they’ve made a full recovery.

It was highly probable that the two would be transferred with the next batch of
transfer students.

“Only me?”

“Yes. Do you need some time to settle things in second year? We won’t rush you. It
would be fine to remain in second year for about a week longer.”

The transfer process of second years was drastically different to when he used to be a
first year. The drill instructors considered Han’s circumstances a great deal more.

‘Is this my graduation?’

Han understood the title of third year was more symbolic than anything. With this
transfer, he would become a reserve soldier. This was the real role of third year
students. The endless qualifying examinations were over.

“One day will be enough.” Han said and returned to his dorms.

Squad 13 was gathered together, playing cards.

Most of the squad members sat around with gauze wrapped around random parts of
their bodies due to their injuries from battle.

“Jose and Canute. Come with me for a moment.”

Jose and Canute followed Han, pausing their game of cards. The two were already
aware that the drill instructors summed Han. Jose already guessed what this would be
about and spoke first.

“You’ve been transferred, right?”

Han nodded while Canute’s eyes widened.

“When will you leave?”

“Tomorrow.”

Han sat down and opened various programs on his data bracelet. He passed the files
he had compiled all this time during his second year to them. All of Han’s observations
were recorded in this file. This file included all the battle tactics he had been keeping
a secret. The data in these files would be useful for their future mock squad battles.

‘He made this all by himself?’ Canute’s eyes widened. Han always kept himself busy.
He didn’t let himself rest in his own room and forced himself to work on other tasks.
He slept later than everyone, and woke up earlier than everyone.

“The next Squad 13 leader should be one of you guys. This is also my present to you
before I go. Whether you decide this by rock, paper, scissors, or whatever, squad leader
and second in command position is up to you two to decide.”

“You can do it, Jose.” Canute lightly punched Jose’s chest. Canute didn’t have much
interest in being the squad leader.

Squad leaders needed to maintain a bird’s eye view of the battle. Canute enjoyed his
role as the vanguard, so trying to calculate the ins and outs of battle would be too
troublesome. Han understood that it would be a long while before he would be able to
meet the two again.

Many people he had come to know since the first year of Ark were now gone. The
higher he climbed up the pyramid, the less room there were for others.
‘I will become the best in Ark.’

Han thought that his own words were quite daring. He didn’t know a single thing
about Ark when he had said those words.

The only thing Han had going for him at the time was his malicious tenacity. He literally
had nowhere left to go.

“Haa.”

Han woke up early the next day and opened his window. The cold morning air blew in
thickly. He was now used to Ark’s weather.

All he had to pack was his writing utensils, notebook, and photo. Everything else
would be provided for him in the new dorms.

Han walked out of the dorms. He saw heavy equipment being moved all over Ark. Ark
was undergoing reconstruction at full speed.

Han walked in the direction that his data bracelet pointed to find the third year zone.
He had visited the place before when Team Whiskey was formed.

“So you’re the new transfer. You’ve come very early.” The guard in charge of security
said while yawning. He checked Han’s identity and guided him inside.

“The new rookie is Asian? How rare.” A person passing by remarked.

There were a lot of reserve soldiers in the third year zone. Drill instructors did not
control this place.

Everyone looked relaxed and at ease. Everyone was on standby until the next military
operation. There were some people brushing their teeth and shaving outside.

“Isn’t he that kid from before? So he managed to be transferred up after all. What a
cute brat”

There were many third years and reserve soldiers, and the majority of them
recognized Han.

He was led to the very last building of this place. The building was labeled, A8. The
inside seemed quiet; each door were labeled with a soldier’s name and rank. Second
generation psykers and first generation psykers didn’t have a specific rank, and were
instead addressed as ‘PF’s (Psychic Forces).

“It seems everyone is still asleep. You will be guided by Silence, your predecessor.
Conversing with him may be a bit of a pain, but in the future, if you have any questions
about this place, you should go ask him.”

“Silence?”

“Do you know him? The higher ups usually assign the predecessors to be someone you
are familiar with.”

Any first and second years who cannot adjust are weeded out. The third years are
those who have graduated from this system.

They prioritize deploying the reserve soldiers to get them accustomed to real battle
as soon as possible. Han couldn’t get used to the polite way they spoke to him.

“Then I’ll see you later. Good luck, rookie.”

Han was left all alone in the room. He watched the door shut.

He looked around the room. The room layout of this building was similar to the second
year dorms. However, this place was much more spacious, and each dorm room had a
personal bathroom. They even included a space where one could store any personal
items in the far corner.

“So this will be my room.”

Han had never been able to use such a huge room all by himself. He could move his
body in all directions without bumping into something.

“There should be about fifty reserves. The last time he visited, he noticed there had
been about ten to twenty residential buildings. If each building had about two or three
third year students, then there should be about fifty reserve soldiers in total.

“Only fifty?”

Project Ark had been founded for over six years now. The total amount of psykers that
they managed to train was only about fifty.

I originally thought that there were only a small number of third years present the last
time I visited, but I never knew that the actual number would be so little.

“And amongst the few chosen, I was selected.”

Han realized that the higher ups transferred him with all seriousness. Han understood
his own strength the best.

‘They’ve transferred me up although my psychic skills were lacking, this means they
are betting on the potential of all my other strengths.’

Han understood what he needed to do now was produce results for Ark. He had been
collecting small clues since the beginning to try and understand this place better.

His observation skills didn’t miss the smallest details and processed them to focus on
the most important aspects. There were many different types of geniuses, and Han
was considered one of them.

He had no unique skills, and was a mere C+ Rank. If he was lucky, they would have
given him a B- Rank. There had never been a youth of Ark that was transferred up into
third year with such low psychic ranking. Han was the first.

‘I must prove myself here, once again.’

He had a flexible, unique way of thinking. It was important to gather as much data and
information in new and unfamiliar places. If he didn’t do so, he wouldn’t have been
able to survive all this time.

Ttssssk.

The automatic door to Han’s dorm room opened. A familiar skull masked fellow stood
at the door. Silence stood while dressed in a completely black casual training uniform.
He took out an electronic note from his back pocket.

-Hello, rookie.

Han laughed for the first time since he transferred up into third year. He looked toward
Silence.
“Long time no see, Silence.”

-Follow me, breakfast.

Silence communicated with short phrases.

The morning alarm rang all over Ark. People exited their dorm rooms one by one. The
residents of this place didn’t bother assembling or lining up, but instead walked
around casually. Second years always moved as one, in squads. It was rare that anyone
would move around by themselves.

“Hey Silence! Good morning.”

“Is that the new transfer?”

“I bet you didn’t know because you’ve been dispatched all this time, huh? That asian
boy is the new super rookie.”

“That so?”

The third years who discovered Silence and Han, said. Silence only returned short
responses.

It was not possible for Silence to answer each and every one of their greetings with
his electronic notebook.

The new transfer student was the object of focus wherever they went. Everyone they
passed said a thing or two.

– Just take as you please for breakfast.

Han was surprised at the splendor of the breakfast buffet. The table was ten meters
long with all sorts of dishes.

There were many dishes that he never saw in his life. The menu here was vastly
different compared to the second years who were kept on a very strict diet.

-Ark has a global population. The menu was created with everyone’s personal taste in
mind. Are you Chinese? We have Chinese food as well.
“No, I’m Korean.”

-I see, I thought you were Chinese or Japanese. I’m not too good at differentiating
orientals. I’m not sure if we have Korean food. Don’t you all eat rice anyway?

Silence ate with one hand and wrote with the other.

Different to his image, he plated only sweets for breakfast. He spread honey butter
onto a freshly toasted slice of bread.

He enjoyed a highly concentrated cocoa drink with a slice of cake for breakfast.

“I don’t particularly miss Korean food. I rarely had a chance to enjoy the food at all.
Aren’t you eating too many sweets?”

Upon Han’s words, Silence flinched and quickly moved his hands to fill his plate.

-Psykers need to maintain high levels of blood sugar since we easily overuse our brain
power! We require more energy.

“…Does that have any sort of actual numerical proof?”

This was the first time Han had heard of such a thing. If this was true, there was no
way the drill instructors would be so stringent on the consumption of sugary snacks.

-Probably…

Silence wrote without confidence.

“…Yeah.”

Han didn’t continue to pester him and stood up. He chose some food from the buffet
table. There was rice and various other side dishes. After eating flour-based foods for
so long, eating rice felt like a breath of fresh air. He got himself a pair of chopsticks
from the corner and prepared himself an east asian breakfast.

-You know how to use chopsticks.

”Huh? Well, yeah.”

-Chopsticks are mysteries of the east. I heard they could even catch a fly with it.

“What?”

Han was taken aback more than a few times by Silence.

-There was a scene in the movie, Yongmoon, where they would catch a fly with their
chopsticks. I saw the movie more than ten times.

‘What the hell is that supposed to mean?’

Han felt like there was something amiss with Silence’s common sense. Han had only
watched a handful of weekend movies on TV from his time at the orphanage. However,
he had enough sense to realize that movies and actual life were vastly different.

‘It could be… that Silence goes around with a mask just for looks.’

Upon the thought, he felt a sudden chill. The food he swallowed got stuck in his throat
and almost choked him. If there wasn’t any actual deep reasoning for his mask and
everything was simply aesthetics then… he suddenly remembered Sergeant Red’s
words.

‘Fake Ninja.’

Han couldn’t work up the courage to ask. Silence observed Han’s chopstick skill with
awe.

Silence decided to try and use chopsticks as well, but he kept dropping his food.

-Maybe you need asian genes to be able to use chopsticks.

“That’s impossible.”

Han suddenly became angry and adamantly replied.

Han let Silence guide him around the training halls. It seems if one doesn’t make a
reservation, it would be impossible to use the most up-to-date training halls with the
latest technology.

The training schedule was relatively simple compared to his days in second year. Third
years could freely schedule their training schedules as long as the daily stamina and
the necessary required curriculums were completed.

Normal youths their age would prefer to spend their break playing or resting, but the
third years of Ark were different. If they didn’t have the self drive for continuous self
growth, it would not be possible to graduate into the third year.

-You’re lucky to be able to transfer up into third year with such meager psychic skills.

Silence held up his electronic note. Han shrugged his shoulders and trained his
telekinesis in the training hall.

Wwuung!

Han retrieved the training dagger with his telekinesis. The two daggers moved in
rotation.

‘As if my telekinesis is an extension of my hand, drag it back and throw.’

Tah!

Han could maintain incredibly focused telekinetic powers. He wasn’t simply moving
around the objects with his telekinesis, he used inertia to boost the overall damage as
he threw the dagger.

With this, it would be possible to throw just as far while using minimal psychic power.
This was one of the few unique skills he created.

PaPah!

The daggers struck the wall. Han retrieved the daggers stuck on the wall by hand.

-Your control is as amazing as always.

If he had a lot of psychic power like Kuro, he would not need to use inertia to throw
his daggers. He would just need to manifest more psychic powers to throw harder.

“There is a proverb that says to chew with your gums if you don’t have teeth. This is
the perfect proverb for me.”
Silence guided him through the rest of the training halls in an orderly fashion. He
looked down onto his watch and quickened his pace.

“What’s wrong?”

-Just follow.

Silence led him into the psychoframe training hall. This place was as big as the
gymnasium.

One corner had all the gear. There was a hangar just next to it. Han looked all around
the space.

– Team 3, chief engineer, Siegfried Schumacher, dubbed ‘Octo’ for octopus.

Silence pointed to the man standing at the equipment storage center. The man had a
pot belly and drenched in sweat.

He looked to be in his mid thirties, and was a bald fellow. His sweaty bald head seemed
glaring, even from far away. The glare from his head made one’s eyes hurt.

“Is that why his nickname is Octo?”

– He claims it’s because he can get work done so fast it’s like he has eight hands.

Octo discovered Han and Silence. He strutted towards the two and used his greasy,
dirty hand to shake hands with Han.

“Yaaa, so you’re that new transfer. The super rookie that has been the hot topic
amongst everyone here. I’m Siegfried Schumacher, chief engineer. Everyone calls me
Octo.”

“I’m Han Lee.”

“I already got your physical measurement data file. I’ve been setting everything up
since yesterday. You’re already aware of the psychoframes, right?”

“I heard this was our decisive weapon against the dragons. I’ve only seen it in person
one time.”
“I see, I see. Follow me.”

Octo snapped his overalls and strutted past. He had all sorts of tools and cheap snacks
hanging on his belt.

If you observed him for awhile, you’d see that he was always eating something. He
continued to stuff chocolates or potato chips into his mouth while walking.

-His skills are the real thing.

Silence wrote the message trying to help reduce Han’s worry. Octo walked over to the
hangar and shouted proudly.

“Watch closely, rookie. This is the warrior that turned everything around for humanity
in our past battles.”

Gggeeeeeee!

Octo opened the hangar. Light flickered on inside the dark hangar. He revealed a
skeleton of a psychoframe which was covered with a light exterior framing. The aged
psychoframe was covered in wear and tear all over.

“This is a psychoframe?”

Han was taken aback by how different the reality of psychoframe was from his original
thoughts. The psychoframes he had previously seen didn’t have a single flaw on its
exterior like their full body armors.

“We turned the first generation psychoframe into a training bot! This is ‘Old Man-3.’
We fit the skeleton and basic gear according to your physique. This will be for your
personal use, temporarily.”

This psychoframe had the same feel as Sergeant Red’s, but ‘Oldman’ looked like an
assistant walker.

Only five models of Oldman were available in all of Ark.

Whenever the pilot of the gear changed, the engineer made necessary adjustments to
it. They excluded any complicated outer shell since it would be too tedious to adjust
every time the pilot changed.
Thump, thump.

Han’s heart pounded. He didn’t know that he would get to pilot a psychoframe so
quickly. He listened to Octo’s explanations as he fully equipped Oldman. He had to
equip and secure each body part one by one.

“This is not possible to equip alone.”

Han listened to all the steel parts clasp.

“Yes, you need an engineer and mechanic’s assistance. Don’t move unless you want a
hole in your shoulder.”

Geeeee!

Octo gripped a heavy drill. He drilled all the loose screws to secure the frame. Han
suddenly became curious of one thing.

“Um, what if… in the middle… uh…”

Han hesitated to speak. Octo instantly understood and answered.

“Such situations will probably never occur during training, but out in real battle you
can just piss in your pants. Your life is on the line, why would crapping your pants be
so important? There’s no reason we should be adding additional parts for such small
matters. It’s complicated enough to build the hip joint of this piece. If we were to build
a frame which pops open for excretion, the part becomes a weak point of defense as
well. What if it accidentally pops open in error during battle?”

“…I see.”

Han’s psychoframe fantasies shattered at once. While Octo helped secure the upper
parts, the engineer secured the lower gears.

“When you turn on the psychoframe, the cylindrical skeletal frame here will connect
with the dragon material. The psychoframe will consume your psychic energy to
move. You’ve used weapons made of dragon bone, right? You will experience the same
feeling throughout your entire body.”

Octo continued to repeat various warnings. His comedic face all of a sudden felt so
serious. Han firmed his heart and nodded.

“I’m ready.”

“Today’s goal is to find out your maximum piloting time while getting used to your
psychoframe.”

Octo took a few steps back to give Han room to move.

Weeeng.

The helmet attached to the back of the psychoframe clasped down. It projected
various data similar to the battle helmet.

[Open]

Guuuooo!

Something jolted all across Han’s body. It felt like his psychic energy was getting
absorbed. The parts made with dragon glowed with blue light. The various parts
continued to absorb Han’s psychic energy.

Ggiiik.

Han began by moving his fingers. The artificial muscles made of dragon leather
reacted.

“Now then, begin by holding onto this.”

Octo threw a squishy rubber ball. Han clumsily moved his arm to catch the rubber ball.

Octo requested for Han to try and move in various ways. Han repeatedly tightened and
loosened his grip on the rubber ball.

“I’m measuring your strongest and lightest grip strength. That’s not a simple rubber
ball, because it’s made up of very expensive pressure sensors. Even if two different
people use the same psychoframe with the same specifications, the energy output will
vastly differ. The variable is the dragon material.”

Octo observed his computer monitor closely. It wasn’t possible to comprehend all the
complicated data which the psychoframe output with a simple data bracelet.

‘This equipment isn’t as simple as putting it on and taking it off like other gear.’

Han was shocked by the detailed necessary steps it took to pilot a psychoframe. His
original predictions were laughable and this gear was equipped with the latest,
cutting-edge technology. It wasn’t a simple outer shell.

‘The maximum power output was as I predicted. It’s the worst possible result. His
basic psychic power is low so he could only manifest the same amount.’

Octo didn’t say this out loud. Although he was an engineer, he understood that a
majority of the psychic power depended strongly on personal mental strength.

‘Though… his maximum strength is a record low, there is some hope. There is a huge
margin between his lowest and maximum strength which means he has superior
control of his psychic energy. If others could only fine control their psychoframe to a
stage ten, this brat can fine control up to stage twenty. Taking into account that this is
his first time piloting a psychoframe, his fine control ability is probably much higher.’

Octo watched the moving graph on the monitor while locked in his own thoughts. He
requested for Han to run and jump. The movements became harsher as time went on.

‘This brat’s very good at balancing his psychic stamina for long term use.’

Psychic stamina was an engineer’s worst enemy. He is manifesting the maximum

output with the minimum required psychic strength.

‘He easily passed the predicted pilot time. Usual amateur pilots would only be able to
pilot for a maximum of ten minutes, but he’s been piloting it for almost twenty minutes
now.’

A huge smile spread upon Octo’s greasy face. He let Han freely pilot the psychoframe
for the remaining period of time. Han freely piloted his psychoframe. He wasn’t yet
accustomed to it, and clumsily tumbled around many times.

“Twenty two minutes and seven seconds. Not bad.”

Octo opened a bag of marshmallows and poured it into his mouth.

“Haaa, haa.”

Han looked pale from exhaustion. The psychoframe no longer responded to his
commands. Han had completely spent his psychic energy.

‘This is the first time I’ve felt like this.’

Han had completely spent all of the psychic energy he could manifest. He didn’t have
superior psychic skills at all, so he needed to continuously and objectively calculate as
he battled.

Psychic strength strongly correlated to mental strength. The mind would blank out
and cease to function as well without enough psychic energy. It was his first time
intentionally wringing out all the psychic energy from his body. He felt that his psychic
level was dropping dangerously low after the ten minute mark.

Silence brought up a water bottle to Han’s lips. Han chugged the water down.

Cough, cough.

Han cleared his throat loudly. Octo and the engineers at their computer looked to Han.

“Oh oops, sorry. We’ll get the gears off quickly. The data you’ve given us was too
intriguing.”

Octo chuckled as he got out his tools. Octo and the engineers expertly removed the
securing devices and unscrewed the various parts.

Han difficultly removed the psychoframe with the help of others.

“This is quite tiring.”

Han faltered so Octo helped to support him. All the muscles of his body were
screaming. It had been a mere twenty minutes, but Han’s mind and physical body had
been overworked.

“You’re going through the adjustment period. You’ve used a lot of muscles you’re not
used to using. The second generation psychoframes are much easier to pilot. We’ve
built this in case of extended military operations as well.”
Han sat down on a chair while listening to Octo. There were about fifty psykers in third
year while there was a limited supply of dragon material and psychoframes. Han
leaned his head back and spoke.

“So there is a limit to how many people can use psychoframes at any one time.”

“The current number of second generation psychoframes is eighty in total. This used
to be top secret, but now everyone is aware of this fact.”

Han wiped his sweat to cool down his overheated body. He slowly and carefully
contemplated all the details. His rusted and tired mind gradually returned to normal
like it was well oiled.

“Psychoframe pilots are selected amongst third years…”

“Well, that’s very close.”

Octo said flatly and returned Oldman into the hangar. He belonged to the technical
department and didn’t care much about the institution side of Ark.

“I’ll be on my way then,” Han said after resting for a period of time.

“Return again soon. We haven’t collected enough data from you yet.”

Octo hollered to Han who was already on his way. His greasy bald head seemed to
shine.

Han was able to visit most of the third year departments with the help of Silence’s
guidance within two days. Silence was dispatched on the third day, and so Han was
left alone. He continued his second year training drills.

“Are you the kiddo who sent Sergeant Red’s leg flying?”

An unfamiliar man approached Han at the stamina training center. He was a tan man
from Southeast Asia.

He had incredibly high cheekbones and sported a five o’clock shadow, which gave him
a sharp look. He was on the shorter side, but had a sturdy physical build. He had a
boxer’s physique.
“If I had been the one to personally send it flying, I would be more at ease,” upon Han’s
words the man roared with laughter.

“I thought a cute stray cat had arrived, but you are just a baby tiger.”

Han had become accustomed to the third year’s speech patterns the last few days. The
soldiers who resided in the same dorm as he did, referred to him as a rookie as well.

He tried alcohol for the first time in his life in this place. The soldiers of Ark are
constantly dispatched out together with the first generation veteran soldiers. Many
people who resided in this place had taken part in the first wave of aggression. No one
in this place held prejudice against psykers.

“I’m Han Lee.”

“I’m Laocha. Welcome to third year, kiddo.”

Han felt strange. Laocha’s height didn’t reach 170 cm. Han had met an adult shorter
than himself for the first time. He suddenly felt how huge his own body had become.

“Corporal Laocha ?” Han called wondering if he got the other party’s name correct.
Laocha eyes widened slightly.

“How did you know?”

“I read your name on your jacket when you were hanging it up over there.”

“As the rumors say, you’ve got good eyes.” Laocha already read over Han’s profile. He’s
a long time military veteran with many experiences under his belt.

He was dispatched during the first wave of aggression. The psykers were not the only
heroes of war during those days. There were many regular foot soldiers fighting
against the minions as well.

“Do you have any business with me? Corporal Laocha.”

Laocha was only dubbed a corporal, but he was different from any common corporal
that could be found in Ark. The titles given to the soldiers of Ark were merely for
formality and convenience’s sake.
They were all the elite amongst the elite, and were the heroes of their own countries.
They were all the protagonists of their own movies.

“I heard you fight well. I heard your constitution and weapon handling skills are
amazing.”

Laocha’s enthusiasm seemed to burn fervently. One could feel the aura of the strong
from the man. There was a difference between those who were self-proclaimed strong
and those who were actually strong.

Instructor Wei, Silence, Dimitri… they’re prideful warriors who do not dwell on failure.

‘Does he want to fight me?’

Han looked toward Laocha. Laocha’s body was densely packed with mostly muscles.
He was like the smelted blade of a knife.

“My grades were good.”

“Let’s see your skills, kiddo.”

Laocha who was shorter, continued to refer to Han as kid. Nonetheless, he was a
seasoned soldier and he didn’t make the atmosphere awkward at all.

“I have no reason to fight against Corporal Laocha.”

“Are you scared? Or maybe you’re a dunce head that can’t fight without psychic
powers.” Laocha sneered. The other soldiers training in the physical fitness center
laughed. The third years pushed Han into agreeing to spar.

“I don’t care if you get hurt, Corporal Laocha.” Han said while taking off his shirt. Han
wasn’t the type to depend on psychic powers to fight in battle. He continued to train
his physical body every single day without a day of break.

He always ranked high for close combat during all of first and second year. He was
always known as a squad leader so this fact had been forgotten, but Han was very
strong even based on battle skills alone.

“Ooh, I’m scared.”

Laocha raised his arms and pretended to tremble in fear. Han was confident in his own
skills. Not to mention, his bone density and muscle fibers were stronger than your
average human.

“OOOH, a fight!”

“That asian is the new transfer, good luck!”

The soldiers cheered for Han. Han suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

‘They’re cheering for me, instead of Laocha. Usually, people would cheer for the one
who would most likely lose. Are they implying that I will lose?’

Han temporarily became lost in his own thoughts. In that moment, Laocha’s fist came
flying.

Hwiik!

Laocha’s fist skimmed past his ears. His punch was shockingly fast. He was like a boxer.

‘He didn’t hit me on purpose.’

Han could tell Laocha went easy on him. Laocha noticed since long ago that Han had
something on his mind.

“Bring it, kiddo.”

Laocha sneered and beckoned him with his finger. Han opened his attack with a
standard attack combination of a one-two punch and a kick. It was simple, but a strong
and effective attack. With the additional power of his artificially strengthened body,
this attack wasn’t to be looked down upon.

Kwajik!

Laocha took a step back. The one-two punch swooshed and just missed his chin. Then,
he swiftly raised his knee to block the kick.

‘Heavy punch. His bone density is tougher so it feels like he attacked me with a
hammer. This is proof that he has been consistently training his physical body.’
Laocha felt relaxed. He was a master of martial arts. Before he was a soldier, he was
already trained in Muay Thai.

Just like the youths of Ark, he was separated from his parents at 10 to master the art
of Muay Thai. This was a common path in his home country.

‘An artificially strengthened body becomes a critical weakness.’

Laocha laughed and threw a punch. The straight punch was like a flashing light as it
attacked Han straight in the face.

Kwa-jik!

A rough sound resounded in the physical training center. Han blinked his eyes. He was
having a hard time believing this moment was not a dream. His nose just broke. Before
he had a moment to breathe, Laocha kicked Han’s flank.

Bbu-duk!

A crack formed in his ribs. Han gritted his teeth and grabbed onto Laocha’s arm.

‘I can’t win against him with simple attacks. I have to get a hold of him to defeat him.’

Han’s quick wit shined a light of hope. He pushed forward with this plan.

“Good decision!” Laocha said as he was getting pushed back by Han. He let himself get
pushed back until they were just before some exercise equipments, and lowered his
body.

Han couldn’t land his attack and crashed into the exercise equipment. Heavy metal
rods and dumbbells poured down onto him like rain.

He would have had many broken bones and would have been knocked out with critical
injuries, if not for his artificially strengthened body.

Wooong!

Han’s eyes momentarily glowed with light.

“Stop! We’ll end our spar here,” Laocha shouted. Han suddenly realized he was going
to use his telekinetic powers. He almost sent the steel bars and dumbells flying in the
air.

He had been training himself to react instinctively without having to process every
single detail of battle. He felt that his life was in danger, and forgot this was to be a
bare-handed spar.

Laocha was just that strong.

‘I almost seriously injured Corporal Laocha.’

Corporal Laocha was just a normal human. Steel bars and dumbells would kill him.

“Apologies.”

“No, any man should have that much aggression and spirit. It’s better than hiding your
tail like a rat.”

Han cooled his body off with an ice pack. He was black and blue all over. He used some
bandages to patch up his broken nose. Han reviewed the short battle like a
professional go player would, after the fact.

‘The speed of his legs and hands are no joke. It’s the first time I’ve seen someone move
so fast. His center of balance is also kept in perfect position. I was thrown by my own
strength and caused my own downfall.’

Han recognized he had fought blindly without any sort of plan or technique. Han’s
battle style was geared more towards intelligence, but in the face of Laocha’s skills, all
was for naught.

“There is a weakness to your artificially strengthened body. You were probably

unaware as you battled amongst yourselves, but this disadvantage could be well made
up for by those who specialize in martial arts.” Laocha said. Something lit up in Han’s
mind.

“…Limbs become many times heavier for those with artificially strengthened bodies.
Our muscles are many times stronger, but our bones are also that much heavier…”

“The muscle fiber and bone density is increased by many folds, and as a result, the
body becomes that much heavier. You’re able to physically withstand the worst
attacks, but on the flip side there is a huge weakness. Though your muscles have
bulked up, you must also use twice as much energy to attack your opponent. A strong
physique like yours is a requirement for piloting psychoframes. You shouldn’t have
blindly attacked me if you correctly observed my physique. I’ve trained myself to
effectively evade most attacks.”

Han felt a fog of his mind clear. All his thoughts became well organized upon Laocha’s
words. Artificially strengthened bodies excel in all aspects versus the normal
counterparts. However, there is a limit to mastering a certain martial arts to its best
form.

“I see.”

“I’ve heard that you have good judgement. However, matters such as this can only be
learned through personal experience. That is why you’re still a student. Kiddo. You
still have a mountain of things to learn and master.”

Laocha lent Han a hand and helped him up. Han felt that Laocha’s hands were rock
hard with calluses.

“Did you pick a fight with me to teach me this?”

Laocha scratched his chin.

“I’m not one to enjoy the art of lecturing. If that was the case, I would have become an
instructor.”

Han observed Laocha’s eyes and behavior. He mentally thought back from the
beginning of the first day, to when he met Laocha just now.

“I see that Sergeant Red especially requested you to help me. Maybe it was Instructor
Wei?”

Laocha flinched. He stared into Han’s eyes.

‘You’re really quick to catch on.’

Laocha was a longtime close friend of Sergeant Red. It was decided that he would be
the one to temporarily train Han until Sergeant Red made a full recovery.
-We have to continue to train him to become the best striker that we can get. It’s not
possible for him to become a pilot candidate for psychoframes based on strong
leadership alone.

These were the words that Sergeant Red relayed to Laocha. Laocha confirmed Han’s
observations with silence.

“Come out here again at this time tomorrow. If you don’t feel that it’s necessary for me
to help you, then it’s fine not to come here. We don’t force any sort of training on
anyone here. You should judge what you think is best for yourself.”

Han believed he still had a lot to learn from Laocha. Han already realized how
important ‘actual’ battle experience was during his past fights.

The news of Han’s disgraceful fight against Laocha spread like wildfire and everyone
gathered together to tease him. To them, Han was the rookie and the youngest of their
group.

Most of Ark’s combat personnel were in their early to late thirties and already had a
lot of experience under their belts. They were the ones who survived through the war
against dragons since their youth.

“Laocha was once stuck in the jungle alone, but he was able to single-handedly tie up
all of a grunt’s squad. A movie about the time was produced in his home country, titled
‘Jungle Warrior: Laocha’.” A soldier said. Han listened while holding an ice pack onto
his bruised body. His entire body felt sore from the bruises.

“Jungle warrior?” Han asked.

“He was able to cleverly use the geological advantages of the jungle to successfully
battle against the grunt squad. A grunt’s intelligence is about the same as an animal
but are stupidly strong, so it’s not easy for anyone to single-handedly take down
twenty grunts with a single knife.”

Grunts squealed like pigs and showed off green skin. They were usually stationed on
the front lines, like shock troops amongst the minions.

They appeared to be a pig-like turtle monster with low intelligence and simple attack
patterns. Without an Elu to command them, they would just blindly throw frontal
attacks.
“Would you like to see it?” A soldier asked, and Han nodded. He wasn’t so interested
in Laocha’s remarkable activities of the jungle, but interested in seeing an actual
movie.

“Hey, bring over the USB. Oh, don’t forget the projector.” A soldier called out to his
peers. They brought over a beat up looking projector. It was a simple gadget. You just
needed to insert the USB into the projector and point it at a wall, then press play.

Du-dududuuu!

Childish, cheesy sound effects resounded. A devilishly good-looking youth, who was
probably Laocha, was standing in the jungle.

“He’s handsome. Very tall as well,” Han said honestly.

“He’s the top movie actor of Thailand. His pale skin is just like Laocha.”

The soldiers sniggered as they looked to Laocha. Han watched through half of “Jungle
Warrior,” before returning to his room to sleep.

Han met with Laocha at the scheduled time and location to receive training. The place
seemed a bit more quiet than the day before. Laocha was currently punching a
sandbag hanging from the ceiling. He spotted Han and smiled.

“Do you see that guy over there?” Laocha pointed to a muscular looking youth. Han
had seen the youth a few times already.

“He must be a first generation psyker.”

The muscular youth’s name was embroidered as P.F. on his uniform. He had a shaggy
beard for a third year, so he could easily deduce that it was a first generation psyker.

“His name is Johnny Schwartz. A first generation psyker. He’s been artificially
strengthened for close combat. He mastered a wide range of martial arts from
wrestling to Judo. He could easily beat werewolves bearhanded. He’s been a part of
the dragon extermination squads twice.”

“I’ve heard his name before.” Laocha easily ran through Johnny’s profile from memory.
He patted Han’s back.
“Go and beat Johnny up, kiddo.”

Han stared blankly to Laocha. Laocha wasn’t kidding. He simply smiled and pushed
Han forward.

“Me?”

“Why? Are you scared?”

Han let out a sigh. He decided to put some faith in an expert combat specialist like
Laocha.

‘If his purpose is to make fun of me, I’ll be sure to repay him by many folds.’

Han had never behaved timidly in the face of adults. He had always been battling
against adults to survive. He was vastly different to children who quietly complied to
an adult’s words.

“P.F. Schwartz,” Han said to Schwartz. Schwartz looked back in surprise.

“Aren’t you the rookie? Is your name, I think your name’s Chan, right?”

“Han.”

“What’s up?”

Han hesitated for a moment because it would be awkward to randomly ask a stranger
for a fight.

“Would it be alright to spar together?”

Schwarz scratched his head and nodded.

“Follow me to the ring. Is using psychic skills allowed?”

“Let’s not allow the use of psychic skills,” Han said. He still lacked very much in psychic
energy manipulation during battle. His opponent was only a first generation psyker,
but the other party had also received artificial body strengthening which buffed his
strength and physical resistance exponentially.
“Now, let’s start. Chan.”

“It’s Han.”

“There is no difference. Let’s go, Chan!”

Schwartz dashed towards him. He posed a different type of threat to Laocha. It felt like
a bear was pouncing on him. Han threw a punch to parry the attack. Schwartz easily
caught Han’s arm and then threw him down, causing the whole ring to tremble. Han
blankly stared up into the ceiling

He couldn’t even process what just happened. He grabbed his arm, and then he was
up in the air. All the bones in his body hurt. Han would have been gravely hurt if it
wasn’t for the sparring ring.

“One more time,” Laocha who was watching just outside the ring said. Schwartz looked
to Laocha, confused.

“This kid can’t hold a candle to me, Laocha.”

“I know. Beat the kid until he can thoroughly understand it to his bones.”

Han had yet to accept his loss. He stood in attack position once again.

Schwartz looked to Han with a bored expression. The end result was the same no
matter how many times they repeated the spar. Han tripped every time to Schwartz’s
techniques.

“You’re done, right?”

Schwartz looked a little tired. He hoped Han would stop getting up.

“One more time, please.”

Han held onto the ring rope to get up. He contemplated new ideas every time he fell.
How could he possibly win against Schwartz?

The ring had limited space. He didn’t have any weapons he could use. All he had was
his body. He purposely took his time to get up so he could give himself time to think.
Then, he would try and attack according to his plans. He was always beat up in one hit,
but Schwartz was greatly surprised at the dynamic attack patterns Han had attempted
all this time.

“Stop, come down kiddo.”

Han hoped to try out a different attack pattern he just thought of.

‘If I open my attack with a low kick, he will try and interfere with my center of balance
with a forward tackle. I can immediately counter by kneeing him in the face.’

However, Laocha didn’t give Han another chance. He pulled Han’s leg.

“It was fun, Chan.” Schwartz said honestly.

It was interesting to receive all of Han’s dynamic attack patterns. This was proof that
he didn’t simply blindly spar with sheer power.

‘This kid will grow strong very fast.’

Laocha threw a drink to Han. Han looked to Laocha like he still wished to continue
sparring.

“Aigoo, look at your scary eyes. Do you feel frustrated, kiddo?” Laocha snickered. Han
closed his eyes and repressed his emotions. He calmly responded.

“No. I would have lost even if I fought another round.”

“Of course. You’re strong in close combat, however your ultimate strength is with
weapon handling. You probably never had a chance to spar bare handed. Honestly, this
sort of combat style will not help you much. How would you ever trip a dragon? That
will be an interesting sight to see.”

Han chuckled.

“That’s correct. Fighting bare handed will not be useful in battle. Even so, why are you
asking me to do this?”

His words had thorns to them. Laocha thought it was very troublesome mentoring
someone like Han.
This kid was seriously too smart for his own good. Though the kid had received
education from Ark, his mental age was far more mature than the average kids his age,
and his sense of caution was very high.

“Reaching Schwartz’s level is like reaching for the stars. He’s a very difficult opponent
for you. What will you do next time I ask you to knock Johnny out?”

“…I will propose to spar with weapons instead.”

Laocha nodded and smiled.

“That’s it. There is no need to fight a battle you can’t win. We’re not sports athletes.
It’s necessary to throw away our pride and honor from time to time. It’s important to
accept that an enemy is stronger than you. It’s not necessary for you to become the
strongest in any one skill. What you must do, is make the situation the most
advantageous for yourself, and battle your opponent with your strongest weapon.
This lesson applies to every battle. From time to time, you must give up in order to see
the correct road forward. We will stop for today.”

Laocha carefully read through Han’s profile. Han wasn’t a warrior who excelled at
everything. He was a hunter who battled with tactics and technical skills. Han had
been instinctually fighting against others like a hunter.

He must thoroughly understand himself.

‘It’s good that he doesn’t easily give up, but it’s also a weakness to not know how.
Though this is a contradiction, it’s a skill the kiddo must learn.’

Laocha was famous amongst Ark’s soldiers for his expansive thought process. He was
a survival master who could memorize the most tediously small detailed observations
and tie them into future battle plans.

He only needed a single knife to take out a whole army in the jungle.

Three days later, Han proposed another sparring match, but with weapons this time.
Schwartz showed off his broad shoulders and gladly accepted. They each selected a
weapon they wished to wield. Han armed a spear, and Schwartz chose a heavy sword.

Tak!
Han stabbed his spear forward aiming for Schwartz’s neck. It was a blunt spear, but it
would hurt nonetheless. Schwartz dodged bending over backwards.

‘Next the legs.’

His spear rotated around and aimed for Schwartz’s shank. His opponent flinched and
lost his center of balance.

‘Another rotation around to the head.’

Schwartz took a clean hit to his blind spot and couldn’t recover. It was hard to believe
that a rookie third year would be this good at weapon handling. He felt dizzy trying to
make sense of the chaotic spear movements. The attack and defense movements were
in perfect balance with each other and it was difficult to predict his next move.

“Punk!”

Schwartz took a blow to gain a hold of Han’s spear. It sounded like the bone of his
finger broke just now. Schwartz didn’t mind it at all as his sword’s attack seemed to
roar.

Han spun his body around to dodge the attack. His opponent made a large pulling
movement to bend the spear. The muscle fibers of Schwarz fingers snapped from over
exertion.

‘This is a newly transferred third year?’

Schwartz underestimated Han’s weapon handling skills. Han’s application and

reflexive skills were above average of most experts. Han wielded his spear like it was
an extension of his own body. Spear handling came easy to Han who had excellent
reflexes and dexterity.

Additionally, his body was artificially strengthened a great deal. Put plainly, Han was
a genius spear wielder.

‘I can easily predict his next move,’ Han could read all of Schwartz’s movements. Han
took his time to study about Laocha, Johnny, and Schwartz the past three days.

He thoughtfully kept track of all of Schwartz’s attack patterns and small habits. He
watched Schwartz’s battle clips and memorized his attack speed and patterns.
‘This should be what it means to make the situation more advantageous for oneself.’

Han had been doing this since long ago. He would try to understand his opponent’s
weaknesses to defeat them. Laocha helped to finesse Han’s battle methods.

‘This should be enough. I will win.’

Han purposely held back from dealing the deciding blow. He purposely acted like he
was being pushed back by Schwartzs’ counters. In the end, Schwartz sent Han’s spear
flying. Schwartz’ knife stopped just before Han’s neck.

“Haa, haa.”

Han and Schwartz tried to regain their breath. Schwartz thought something felt amiss,
but he was too tired to realize his grave mistake.

‘There is no need to go so far as to ruin the close ties you have with comrades just to
prove your strength.’

This was something that Laocha said to Han. Schwartz was a veteran first generation
psyker. Han was a new transfer third year.

No matter how talented Han was at the spear, Schwartz would greatly lose face if he
were to lose against a rookie third year.

Schwartz wouldn’t outwardly display these feelings, but he would most likely distance
himself from the other.

‘If we become awkward due to this one spar battle, it will become difficult to ask him
for more favors to continue my training in the future.’

Laocha watched Han and laughed. Being the strongest isn’t always the best choice.

There are times when it’s necessary to show one’s weaknesses. In the wild, there are
times strong animals will pretend to be weak, and there are times when weak animals
will bluff that they are stronger.

“You’re strong. Fairly talented. Chan.” Schwartz said. He was barely able to make a
comeback in the battle and was feeling good.
“It’s Han,” he said while wiping his sweat. It didn’t seem like Schwartz would correct
himself any time soon.

“Well, who cares? Let’s go Chan. Let’s eat lunch together. I’ll introduce you to some of
my friends.” Han looked to Laocha who was observing from a distance. Laocha was
leaned against a wall and gave a nod.

Han was able to form a closer bond to Schwartz. Schwartz endlessly bragged about
Han’s excellent spear handling skills.

Silence had returned to Ark a few days ago. He hid together with the team he was
dispatched with in the wilderness of the Amazon to take care of all the grunts.

The military operations that squads are deployed to are often times these sort of
simple missions. The third years and P.F. veterans would go out together for the sake
of acquiring battle experience. Real life battle experience was more important than
any amount of institutional training.

-How did you manage to become friends with Johnny Schwartz?

Silence asked Han upon his return. He witnessed the two converse without any
honorifics or minding their ranks.

“It just somehow turned out that way.”

Han felt it would be too difficult to explain everything and answered in a roundabout
way. Silence wasn’t satisfied with this answer.

He’d spent quite a bit of time with Silence, and was able to read small body movements
to observe the other’s mood.

Han had excellent observation skills.

– It is good to befriend others.

“How did your deployment go?”

-It was so hot and annoying.

“…I’m sure.”
Han thought of Silence’s battle helmet and said. He suddenly felt Silence behaved
younger than he appeared to be.

The more he got to know the other, his once powerful and charismatic image slowly
disappeared. It could be possible that if he could speak, he would be a chatterbox.

‘Silence is the same age as me, so.’

Han spent most of his time training with Laocha, or practicing to pilot the psychofram
with Octo.

Gradually, he got to befriend more people and became accustomed to daily life on the
Ark. Second year felt like such a long time ago, and every day he missed his friends. He
thought of the days he played card games with his friends late into the night.

After a month since Han was transferred to third year, he received a message on his
data bracelet. Han stared into his data bracelet rubbing his eyes to see if he was seeing
things.

-Mission deployment for Johnny Schwartz and squad. Briefing will be held at 1030
hours.

Han received his first official mission. He washed his face with cold water in the
bathroom. All the drowsiness disappeared at once.
Voosh.

A plane took off. Han looked at his other squad members, Johnny Schwartz and two
other regular soldiers. Herald was a Private First Class from America, and Zhai was a
Corporal from China. They were joking around with one another and seemed familiar
with each other.

“Squad Victor will go to the Southern Qinghai Palace. There will be a psychic research
center there. It will be found in the secret third basement; currently an Elu has taken
control of the center. The special forces sent in before are still unaccounted for. China
has submitted a formal request for Ark to dispatch troops.”

Schwartz expertly briefed the squad.

“What are the enemy numbers?” asked Private Herald. Schwartz looked to each squad
member and then answered.

“According to the Chinese authorities, there is only one Elu. However, it seems to have
higher battle prowess than normal. We speculate that the two special forces trained
by Damien have been annihilated. “

“Don’t we need more support troops? It sounds like this will be more dangerous than
we originally thought,” mumbled Corporal Zhai as he munched on peanuts.

“Our enemy can probably maintain a psychic shield; this is the most probable reason
the special forces were annihilated. If the enemy maintains a psychic shield in a
narrow research center hallway, there is no way for them to survive. However, we’re
different. Don’t you think so? Chan.”

“It’s Han,” Han always corrected. However, Schwartz only laughed in amusement. Han
equipped the dragon gears. The spear which was wrapped in a special leather material
could deal a blow against the enemy’s psychic shield.
“This shouldn’t be your first time in real battle, but this should be your first official
assignment in third year, right?” Private Herald said.

“That is so,” Han nodded.

“You don’t look nervous at all. How boring. Let’s take care of this quickly and return.”
Most of Ark’s military operations were not difficult. Normal squad soldiers would not
be able to inflict even the smallest scratch, but Ark’s psykers and soldiers can easily
take care of them.

When other nations request for support from Ark, it is because they’re too lazy to
figure out how to deal with it themselves, or the Elus can manifest psychic shields.

“Chan, think of this as a job shadow and let us do the work. There won’t be a need for
you to deal with this firsthand. If something were to happen to us, your survival is our
first priority.” Schwartz patted Han’s shoulder and said.

Han nodded. Upon hearing these words, a memory he did not want to remember
flashed through his mind. It had been his fault that Sergeant Red was missing a leg.

“It will be good for you to get some sleep, though it might be hard.” Corporal Zhai said.
The squad leaned against the wall and closed their eyes. Han wanted to get some sleep
as well, but sleep wouldn’t come as easily as it did just a moment ago. Schwartz peered
toward Han.

“Chan, do you know why Ark sends you out in dangerous missions?”

“I heard it was for us to gain experience.”

“Yes, that’s right. But the most important thing you should learn is how not to die out
there. Whatever that may happen, you guys must not die- ever. Even if it means that
your peers will all die, you must not attack in the heat of revenge. You must retreat
and then promise to return.”

“I know.”

“When the next wave of aggression begins, we don’t have any soldiers who can take
your place. Nobody will be able to pilot your psychoframes either. Psychoframes and
second generation psychic soldiers– we can’t do without a single one.”
“Put simply, if we plan to die such a pitiful death, it will be better to die early on,” Han
bitterly chuckled.

“You understand quickly.”

Schwartz raised his thumb and laughed. Han couldn’t sleep, but he kept his eyes
closed. He would be able to rest somewhat by just keeping his eyes closed. All sorts of
thoughts and memories flashed past his mind.

Han suddenly remembered the dragon energy he felt at the dimensional crack. Just
the thought of the time made his body tremble in fear. It felt as if he had met his natural
enemy.

‘Such hatred against humans… ’

Dragons killed humans. Minions were the tribes that had been subjugated by dragons.

Humans did not fall under the wide umbrella of Minions. The dragons didn’t even
consider enslaving humanity for a second. However, it seemed that humans were a
special existence to dragons.

‘Why do dragons want to kill humans? Invasion and conquest?’

Ark did not teach this one aspect. To be more precise, it’s highly likely that Ark
themselves were unaware of the exact reason. Dragons were an existence hidden
behind a veil.

‘So far, seven dragons have appeared. Humanity was nearly exterminated with just
these numbers. Nuclear bombs didn’t affect them at all either.’

Han opened his eyes from his half asleep state. His other squad members stretched
and yawned and began to equip all their gears. The plane would land soon. The pilot
was busy communicating with the stealth tower. Corporal Zhai walked over to the
pilot. He said some things to the control tower, and both parties became quiet.

“Is that the psychic research center? It just looks like flat land on the outside.”

“Lots of confidential information is kept in the psychic research center. Every nation
around the world has their own active psychic research center. They are always in
danger of being attacked by the True Group.”
“The True Group…”

Han frowned at the name. Many people had died. The day of madness still frightened
him to this day.

Humans easily killed one another without hesitation. His peers which he shared meals
with died one after another, and the youths gradually turned into murderers
themselves. There wasn’t a shred of noble justice or any form of morality.

“Don’t worry. Those are the adults’ problems. Nothing can be done about what
happened to Ark. There is no other way to go about it. Originally, we do not command
you guys to kill humans. You must not become used to killing humans.” Schwartz put
his hand on Han’s shoulder and said.

The youths of Ark must not become used to killing humans. This treatment was not
for the sole sake of the youths alone. The ethics instilled during childhood would last
through their adulthood. Adults who have strong mental strength and personal ethics
are not easily swayed by madness even with military training.

‘If these youths were to kill other humans like they were chopping down trees, then
humanity must face another kind of enemy all together.’

The current Ark had been formed after much failure. When Ark had been founded,
they made many mistakes, and even produced psykers who had been dubbed
monsters.

At the start, Ark only trained the elite of the elites in their institutions, so the overall
cost was not much compared to now. However, Ark decided to recruit all the psychic
children of the world for a grand selection.

Children quickly adapt and improve. They were different to adults who had already
matured. The most talented child may become a monster, and the least talented child
may become the strongest soldier of the army.

‘Everything depends on potential. Children have infinite potential.’ Schwartz peered

to Han. It seems he won’t need to wait too long. The longest would probably be two or
three years. At that point, Han would already become a superhuman soldier that
surpasses Schwartz.

He had already surpassed Silence, a first generation psyker. With outstanding battle
skills and his blink ability, Silence is almost invincible in the mock battles.

“The person in charge is coming over there. Wait here, Chan.”

Chinese soldiers marched toward them from far away. Schwartz went to meet them
first. He seemed to pressure the other side’s highest in command.

Schwartz scratched his head as if he was feeling troubled by something. At that point,
Corporal Zhai decided to intervene.

“Attention! Salute!”

The Chinese soldiers lined up in perfect order and saluted the corporal. The officer in
charge who looked down on Schwartz, regarded the corporal with nothing but
respect.

“Corporal Zhai is a Chinese war hero. Their hero is a mere squad member, and a
strange foreigner is the squad leader, so the other side was displaying their
dissatisfaction. People of China regard pride very highly.”

Once Corporal zhai took control of the situation, the Chinese soldiers began to
cooperate. The soldiers of Ark were all regarded as heroes in their own countries.

The war, which lasted three years, birthed many heroes. They gave up all possibilities
of wealth and honor offered by their home country, and went to Ark to be the
defenders of humanity.

The Chinese researchers dressed in white appeared from behind the Chinese soldiers.
It seemed the soldiers had been forced to come here by the researchers.

The Chinese soldiers and researchers didn’t look like they were getting along too well.
From the short exchange of words, it seemed the researchers hadn’t explained what
happened in the research center with clarity. The Chinese commissioned officer
thought that his men died a meaningless death because of the other party.

Now it was time for adults to commence psychological warfare to extract as much
information from one another while pretending to smile. Han sat by himself and
waited for the command by the squad leader.

“So you’re one of Ark’s youths.” A researcher gowned in a white lab coat approached
him.

“Yes.”

“Is the weapon on your back one of the weapons made of dragon bone powder?” The
researcher approached Han and attempted to touch the spear he wore on his back.
The researcher’s hand lightly patted his shoulder. Han swiftly blocked the researcher’s
hand.

“It’s not a good idea to touch it.” Han said coldly.

“So fussy.” The researcher complained while walking away. A few other researchers
who stood far away were also staring at Han. They looked at him like they were
observing an animal in the zoo. Their stares irritated Han. He purposely avoided
meeting their eyes.

“Did you wait long, Chan?”

“You’re calling me like that on purpose, right?”

Schwartz ignored Han’s words and gathered the squad. He got a rundown of what
basically happened here from the Chinese soldiers and researchers.

“There is one enemy Elu. It’s been confirmed that it can manifest a psychic shield. Our
objective is to confirm the researcher’s data and search for possible survivors. It’s
highly likely there are some stragglers among the researchers and staff that had not
been able to escape the place. We will deploy in 20 minutes.”

“Do we need to kill the enemy?”

“It will be fine to ignore it if we don’t encounter it. If we confirm that there are no more
survivors, we will leave and bomb the building.”

Schwartz displayed a map of the research center. Han saved the overall map into his
mind. He drew the fastest route in his mind. His squad members were also doing the
same and contemplating the best route through the building.

After finishing the final preparation, Squad Victor took the elevator to reach the lower
floors. The lower they dropped, the more suffocating the air became.
“I’ll leave first.”

Schwarts took the initiative to lead the squad. Everyone left the elevator in order as
they surveyed the surroundings.

The squad members who had just been joking around, looked serious. The squad
swiftly checked the area, and confirmed a ‘Clear!’

Weeeng!

The basement ventilator spun. Han confirmed everyone’s observation and nodded.

‘Something is strange.’

Since a while ago, Han felt that something felt off. His other squad members also felt
the same way. It was as if a single piece of the puzzle was missing.

“Let’s go down to the lower second level.”

The squad descended down through the emergency stairs. They silently walked down.
As long as they weren’t seen, they could walk behind someone unnoticed.

“It smells.” Han mumbled. The other squad members noticed it as well. Everyone knew
what this smell signified in an instant.

‘The stink of blood.’

Schwartz grasped the door handle and slowly opened it. The moment the door
opened, he pointed his gun forward. The squad’s bodies were ever so slightly tensed
and shaking from nerves. Many corpses hung on the ceiling of the level two corridor.

The corpses were skinned and the blood was drizzling down from the ceiling like rain.
The place resembled a pig slaughterhouse. There were pools of blood all over the floor,
and the blood dripped down in regular intervals from the ceiling.

“This, this, is terrible.”

Private Herald mumbled. The squad didn’t become overly agitated from the sight.
Rather, they looked to Han with worry.
“I’m fine.”

It was the first time Han felt this way. Han was always the one to calm his peers’
panicked state. Han had always been the pillar of support when people fell into panic
during his second year. The second years never thought that Han, himself, would ever
succumb to panic.

‘The Elu is a sadist.’ Han looked to Schwartz.

“It’s highly likely to be an Elu hunter.”

Schwartz agreed with Han. Elu hunters were one of the most cruel amongst all the Elu
types. They enjoyed hunting, and kept trophies of their kills.

A majority of them would wear the body parts as accessories.

“There has never been a case of an Elu hunter with a psychic shield ability… but we
should consider this as well.”

Schwarts peered to Han’s direction. The other party was too calm to be a newly
transferred third year.

When Schwartz was assigned a new squad, he organized Han’s profile files and read
through them. There was a reason that he was transferred up into the third year at
record speed, even with such a low psychic ability.

“They’ve been killed brutally.” Corporal Zhai tsked his tongue. He didn’t look to be in
the best mood.

“Let’s continue our search.”

Squad Victor continued to search the next level down using the same method as the
first. Corpses were displayed in all sorts of dynamic ways throughout the floor.

They were frequently hung on the ceiling, other times they were de-limbed and nailed
on the wall. The bodies’ inner organs swung to and fro while wafting a horrible stench.

“Ugh.” Han couldn’t stop the sudden nausea that swept his body. This wasn’t
something strong mentality could block, it was natural aversion that every person was
reflexively born with. He didn’t have tolerance to this level of atrocities.
“Tsk, I knew it would be like this. You’ve done well up until now. It’s rare for us to see
this level of brutality as well. Herald, stay with Han until his condition recovers. Zhai
and I will continue the rest of the search alone.”

“Understood.”

Private Herald supported Han and nodded. Schwartz and Corporal Zhai went ahead
first.

“I’m sorry.” Han said while covering his face. He couldn’t bear to endure the sight of a
human body chopped into two while its organs looked like they were oozing out
swinging back and forth. Even snuff films couldn’t hold a candle to this scene.

“Drink this. You will feel better. Do you want some sedatives?”

“No, I’m okay. My mind will be slow if I take meds.” Han drank some water and took
deep breaths. He could see the scene from just now even when he closed his eyes.

‘It seems I won’t be able to sleep well for a while.’

Private Herald was very friendly. He patted Han’s back and helped to calm him down.

“I have a younger brother back home. Our family only has three males. My youngest
brother would probably be your age.”

“…I also have many younger siblings.”

“That’s nice. All my siblings died. Minions invaded our hometown. My parents and
siblings all died, my girlfriend also… left this world. I heard this news while I was in
battle. The next day, I faced the minions putting my life on the line. I really thought to
die back then. But, at the end of the battle I became a war hero. I just wanted to die,
but I was praised for my courageous bravery.” Herald said lightly.

More than ten years have passed since then. All wounds, no matter how deep, will
eventually close up. If past wounds do not close, it becomes incredibly difficult to live
on in life.

Han leaned against the wall and rested. He didn’t bother to strain himself to catch up
with his squad. If he were to follow them with such a heavy heart and body, he would
only become a burden on his squad.
Thump, thump.

Herald glared toward the source of the sudden noise and aimed his gun forward.

“Ah, uh. Aah.”

A man letting out terrible groans appeared while crawling to them. He wore a white
gown and appeared to be one of the researchers of this place. Herald remained
composed and maintained his gun position.

“Identify yourself.”

The researcher was crying. His jaw was dislocated and he couldn’t talk properly.

“Es… ca… pe.”

The next moment, something passed the researcher’s neck.

Roll.

The researcher’s head and body laid separately on the floor. Herald ran forward and
chased after the enemy who opened an attack. The enemy disappeared within the
darkness.

“Kekeke.” A sinister laugh echoed through the room. Schwartz and Zhai came running
back after hearing the disturbance. The two’s expressions crumpled upon seeing the
researcher’s corpse.

“It seems to be playing around with us.”

“The enemy plays around with his prey before going for the kill. There should be many
survivors around the building. Herald, did you see it?”

“No, it escaped. It’s very fast.” Private Herald said.

The squad treaded into the direction the enemy escaped, but they couldn’t find a single
trace of it remaining.

“Why don’t we try going this direction?” Han advised.

The squad focused toward where Han pointed. After some time, Han was able to get a
hold of himself and looked to the corpse with a matter of factly expression. He pointed
to a passage which directly connects the second lower level and ground floor.

“It’s a dead end there. The researchers broke the walls here as they escaped. We only
have the elevator on the first floor to leave this place.

“I have something I wish to confirm. Something is strange… in this place…”

He wanted to decipher the real truth of this place. Even if they were to find the missing
piece of the puzzle, they would not be able to see the big picture. They required more
data.

“Explain on the way. Squad, move out.”

Han couldn’t help but feel that this place was strange. He couldn’t exactly pinpoint the
reason why, but as he rested while staring at the numerous corpses in this area, he
began to understand why he thought so.

‘This was a surprise attack from an outside force?’

If the Elu had attacked from the outside in, then it must have gone through the first
level. However, the first level of the building was perfectly clean without a single
corpse.

The only remnants of the place was of the chaos the researchers caused while escaping
the building. The remnants of murder could only be found starting from the second
level.

‘If it had indeed been a surprise attack from outside, it would have invaded from the
entrance connecting the ground floor directly down to the second lower floor.’

Squad Victor arrived to the doorway of the underground second level. The entrance
had collapsed and made it impossible for anyone to pass through.

It would take at least a month to clear all the rubble to escape through this path. The
entrance was crumbled, but it was still too clean for it to be considered the initial
surprise attack location.

There was not a single evidence of battle here. He couldn’t find a single drop of blood
or bullet shell.

“Had it truly been a surprise attack from outside?” Han asked. Schwartz furrowed his
brows.

“I understand. Chan.” Schwartz and the squad could finally figure out the oddness of
the situation here. The researchers had lied to them. This wasn’t a surprise attack from
the outside, something from the inside was trying to escape.

‘Why was it that only the third level didn’t directly connect to the ground floor? The
third level must have been a restricted zone.’ Schwartz decided they must turn back.
There were inconsistencies in their military operation. The researchers had purposely
given them incorrect data.

There was no reason for Ark to continue this military operation any longer. Rather,
they will be interrogating them.

“We’re leaving,” as soon as Schwartz spoke, all the lights of the research center’s
building turned off one by one. The fan attached to the air vent stopped spinning.

“…How did it know? We have our communication devices turned off.”

It seemed to have heard their conversation and cut off all the electricity. Han suddenly
noticed something and took off his upper gear.

He found a miniature wiretap device on his shirt. The researchers had attached it
when they patted his shoulder. The researchers approached Han for this single
purpose.

“Transfer the communication system to the satellite instead. Herald.” Schwartz said.
Herald took out his communication device and attempted to connect to the outside,
but only static could be heard.

They’ve even blocked out communication from the outside. Herald shook his head.
Schwartz calmly took out a flashlight and looked at their map once again.

“Should we descend down to level three?”

Now that all source of electricity and communication was cut off, the only path
forward out of this place was to go down to the emergency power room down in level
3.

“Kukuku!”

The squad began shooting in all directions. They took turns to light the way with the
flash light. The sound of laughter drew further and further away.

“It’s watching us. It’s not a normal Elu.” It was also Schwartz’s first time fighting
against such an Elu. However, it was definitely an Elu due to its signature laughter.

‘Mages don’t take these types of risks. It must be a hunter or warrior type. Otherwise…
it could also be a knight?’ Ark put Elus into four categories. Each Elu differed quite
vastly from one another, however they could usually fit into one of four categories.

Squad Victor took caution as they continued forward.

From time to time, it would let its laughter echo across the corridor. A space which has
been blockaded, an enemy who remained hidden, and the thick smell of rotting human
blood. Usual soldiers would become mentally broken by this time, but the eyes of the
squad held clarity and strength.

“It’s been closed off.”

The steel door which led to the lower third level was tightly locked shut. This was
made to be an automatic door, but they had to open it manually.

Wooong!

Schwartz’s eyes glowed with blue light. He forced the small crack of the door to split
open, his muscles bulked to the point that his battle gear became rigid. He gritted his
teeth as he forced the door to open.

Badududuk!

The steel door bent and soon, there was an opening large enough for an adult to easily
pass through. Schwartz unique skill was physical strength reinforcement. Once his
skill is activated, his normal strength will exponentially grow inhumanly strong.

Guuooo!
At the end of the third floor corridor, a set of red eyes glowed through the darkness.
Han aimed his flashlight toward the red light.

“Ke, keke.”

A lone Elu stood while crazily laughing without stop. Its skinny body resembled one
of a hunter Elu. However, it fully geared itself like a human. It even armed itself with a
gun.

“Take cover!” Schwartz shouted.

The squad scattered left and right and took cover in the corners of the room. The
bullets shot past their original positions. Once the Elu emptied its magazine, it
disappeared and escaped off to somewhere.

“It used a gun!” Private Herald shouted.

There had never been a case of Elus using guns. They never used the gears which
belonged to humans. It seemed to have been a taboo of their species. But the Elu here
broke the taboo and used guns while fully equipped with human-made equipment.

“A funny guy. Is it trying to imitate humans?” Schwartz’s eyes glinted with light while
he continued forward. He took a single leap which flung him forward ten meters. He
was now buffed with extra strength and was capable of chasing down the Elu.

BOO-OOM!

There was an explosion. Schwartz was thrown back by the force of the explosion. He
threw off his battle gear which was burnt into black charcoal. Thanks to his physical
strength reinforcement skill, he didn’t suffer critical injuries.

“Damn, he uses grenades as well.”

“It’s fighting like a human would.” Han mumbled.

The enemy was calculative and provocative. It attacked from the front, but it
understood it was fighting a disadvantaged battle, so it always maintained a safe
distance.

Han had not fought many battles against Elus, but even he could see this Elu vastly
differed in all aspects of a typical Elu.

“Leader Schwartz, it just attempted luring one alone so that it can kill you solo. It must
have been trying to change this battle of 4v1 to that of a 3v1 battle, but failed. It must
not have taken into account your physical strength reinforcement unique skill. We’re
not the only one in shock. It must be just as surprised as us. It would probably refrain
from attacking for a short moment.” Han logically broke down the current situation. It
was important to quickly calculate the situation of your allies and enemies to create
an advantageous situation for the battle.

“Continue, Chan.” Schwartz said while patting off some of the black ash.

“It appeared as soon as we opened the level three door. Just before, it was with us in
the second level. We can conclude that it’s traveling in a route that we are unaware of.
At first I thought maybe it traveled through the air vent, however its arms and legs are
too long for it to fit in the small vents here. We would also easily hear it move around
in such a quiet place.”

Han didn’t miss a single hint. Anyone would be able to deduce these facts. It was just
a matter of speed.

The ability to quickly catch all hints and correlate it in a logical way, not just anyone is
capable of this. His harsh life in poverty which required speedy observations and
decision-making skills helped groom his senses to this degree.

“His ability to aim is extremely poor. He has trouble aiming and it takes quite a bit of
time for him to begin shooting. It’s using human weapons, but it’s not fully accustomed
to it yet. It doesn’t have the ability to set up grenade booby traps neither. If it had such
ability, we would have all died the moment we blindly opened the door. Unless it gets
a lucky shot, it will have a difficult time to headshot us.”

The squad simultaneously fully geared their under armor and helmets. The place was
narrow and there was only a limited amount of places the bullet may hit.

As Han stated, it had a horrible aim, and it was very unlikely that any of them would
be hit. The fog of mystery which shrouded the enemy slowly cleared bit by bit.

“As long as we continue to move with all four members, it shouldn’t make sudden
attacks. The moment it appeared was when Private Herald and I were alone, and just
a moment ago when we got the door open. It fears us. The corpse it displayed on the
second level was to set fear into our minds, this goes for that horrible laugh as well…
it’s trying to confuse us and weaken our formation. The weaker they are the stronger
the bluff will be.”

Han learned many things from Laocha over the past month. His senses had become
much sharper.

He learned to find the bigger picture from small hints. Laocha would simulate a
circumstance, and Han would have to deduce the situation through only a few hints.

All the examples had been from real battle. Though indirect, he did his best to let Han
experience the facts of real battle.

“You would receive a standing ovation if you were in the classroom.” Schwartz stood
up and said. The situation seemed better after hearing Han’s explanation. They were
able to figure out many things about their opponent through only a few clues.

There was nothing more important than understanding the enemy’s powers and skills
in battle. As long as they fully understood their enemy, they wouldn’t meet failure.

Han didn’t try to be modest or show off. He simply stood there. It was unbelievable
this youth had been throwing up after seeing the remains of the researcher’s corpses.

“There is a research room just ahead of the emergency power room. We should stop
by there on the way. We must collect the data of what happened in this place.” Corporal
Zhai said.

Everyone agreed. They continued to walk through the dark corridor.

They could hear the Elu’s laughter from a distance. Just as Han had pointed out, the
Elu let out a horrifying laugh like it was fighting against weaklings.

“Blood…”

Han covered his mouth while he continued to walk forward. The entrance of the
research room was gruesome. People were strewn all around the room like they were
drowning in their own blood.

The stench of rotting organs filled the room. Han was having a hard time trying to bear
with the smell and sight.
‘This is concerning. This isn’t a good place for us.’ Schwartz looked to Han. Han’s
mental state wasn’t good for everyone right now. He’s withstanding with the squad
well right now, but after everything was over this place would probably become a very
traumatic memory.

It could very well develop into PTSD(Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). This was one of
the core aspects Ark tried the best to prevent. This was one of the most frequent
causes of the youths of Ark becoming unable to battle.

“Huu… huu…”

Han took deep breaths. He focused his racing heartbeat to slow down.

“Herald and Zhai continue to keep watch. I’m going to search for the data here. Chan,
help me.” Schwartz commanded as he stepped into the research room. Han dripped in
cold sweat as he helped Schwartz. He wanted to throw up every second and his
thoughts were chaotic.

‘I must endure.’

Han took a drink of water and wiped his mouth. His eyes looked shaken.

KwaJik!

Schwartz broke the computer and took out the harddrive. He connected the hard drive
to his data bracelet and copied its contents. He repeated this process many times.

“Zhai, everything is written in Chinese. Come help to look through some of the data
here.”

Corporal Zhai nodded and stood next to Schwartz. They filtered out everything so that
only video clips would appear on the screen. Zhai raised his hand to stop the search
for a moment.

“Play that one.”

Corporal Zhai pointed to a single file. Schwartz projected the clip with his data
bracelet.

It projected complete darkness. Soon, the lights flipped on showing a single Elu. There
were many electrodes hooked all over the Elu’s body. The researchers watched the Elu
behind a glass window.

“As expected…”

They were experimenting on the Elu here. The researchers were examining the Elu
like a monkey for its skills and intelligence. It seems the researchers operated on the
Elu many times as scars of past stitches and fresh stitches could be seen on the Elu’s
skull.

“This research had not been reported to Ark at all. They never reported that they had
even captured a live Elu either.”

Originally, all research and data related to psychic energy or minions must be reported
and shared with the Ark institution. However, this clause was only spoken. The nations
who allied with the Ark all held their own secret psychic research centers. It’s just that
it had never been found yet.

“It seems they were trying to train it to be used like a military weapon.”

The Elu lived every day with experiments and various types of surgeries. Its eyes
eventually became red, and gradually its temper skewed worse and worse. At the same
time, its psychic skills proportionally grew stronger.

The last portion of the clip didn’t play, but Squad Victor already understood the
situation here.

“The Elu grew so strong that the researchers could not handle it, and this happened.”

“They probably wanted to borrow Ark’s strength then obtain the data before anyone
could find out. Anyway, they wouldn’t let us leave quietly either way.”

China would probably gladly obtain some of Ark’s enmity and kill all of Squad Victor
to bury all of this. China was one of the main powerhouses of the world. Ark heavily
depended on their monetary aid.

‘And again… humans are creating another war with themselves.’

Han felt sick to his stomach. Humans were all preparing in their own ways before the
beginning of the great war. However, internally they still had trouble believing in each
other.

The powerhouses all maintained their strongholds separately. Inspector Rue said this
was the nature of humans. No matter how much history is studied and no matter how
much humans try to fix themselves onto the proper path, they will always stray. They
cannot believe in one another and continue to feel jealousy.

“Horrible scum.” Corporal Zhai cursed. As a Chinese himself, he felt even more bitter
to see this occurring. Fury burned from his eyes.

“We need to get the generator running again. Calm down, Zhai.” Schwartz commanded
with calmness. He was also a very emotional person, but as long as he was the squad
leader, he had to carry himself with rationality and reason.

Most importantly, one of his squad members was a new third year youth. Protecting
Han was amongst one of his most important tasks assigned to him on top of this
mission.

Han’s condition looked many degrees better now. He held his gun and followed after
his squad. The squad moved to the emergency power room with great haste. By now,
the sound of the Elu’s laughter couldn’t even be heard in the distance.

‘There are no signs of the Elu since the research room. Even its laughing stopped.’

Han whispered to Schwartz.

“I think the Elu will open an attack soon.”

“It’s oddly quiet…” Schwartz slowed down the squad’s pace and made everyone
increase their guard.

Duruk.

The squad’s steps stopped at the corridor intersection. Everyone’s breath stopped.
They stood with their backs to one another and watched across a corridor each.

“It’s at the 6 o’clock direction.” Corporal Zhai said. A set of red eyes glowed from their
6’o clock direction. Herald and Zhai simultaneously shot their guns.

Tik! Tik!
It was the sound of the bullet bouncing off.

‘It’s using a psychic shield.’

As predicted, the Elu could manifest a psychic shield. It didn’t completely surround
itself with the shield, but only the front. It was enough for a narrow corridor such as
this. This was the main reason the special forces utterly failed to kill it.

“I’m going. Bring it on. It seems you don’t intend to escape this time.” Schwartz
unsheathed his dragon bone sword. He stretched his shoulders to warm up his arm.

KAaaaa!

The sword scratched the wall and seemed to scream. The sword which absorbed
psychic energy glowed with blue light. Psychic shields could only be nullified by a
psychic sword. This was the main tactic to break through a psychic shield without
completely depleting one’s psychic energy dry.

This was the same method they used to exterminate dragons. Before psykers were
supplied with dragon bone swords, they battled dragons by implementing suicide
attacks where psykers would make their own psychic energy source explode.

“I’ll let you die a painful death.” Schwartz let go of his rationality and freed his true
spirit. His sword gleamed with murderous intent behind every attack.

Han took his spear and stepped forward to join the battle, but Corporal Zhai blocked
his path.

“Schwartz is enough.”

Han took a step back and watched with great focus.

“KKYAAAA-!!”

“OOOH! WAAARARA!”

The Elu screamed as it ran to Schwartz. Schwartz held his sword in front of him as he
ran forward. Everyone watched the battle unwravel.

Weeng.
A soft sound of psychic energy resonated. The running Elu suddenly disappeared. It
only left an after image with its psychic energy.

‘Blink?’

“KUUaH!”

Herald screamed behind Han. A knife struck through his neck. The sword slashed
through and blood sprayed out. An Elu stood behind Herald. The glowing red eyes
menacingly smiled.

Swaaa!

It struck through half of Heralds neck. Corporal Zhai shot his gun in wrath.

“Bastard!”

The Elu used Herald’s body as a meat shield and gradually retreated. Herald croaked
in a low mumble. He spoke by moving his mouth.

“Shoot……”

There was no hope for Herald now. Corporal Zhai gritted his teeth and pulled the
trigger without mercy. He shot Herald and the Elu simultaneously.

“KEEEEEE!” The Elu screamed and hurried to escape. Bullets pinned the Elu’s body
and left a trail of blood on the floor.

The Elu hurried across the corridor for a long while until it disappeared. It used blink
again to hide itself. It blinked to an unknown direction.

“Zhai, how’s Herald?”

Corporal Zhai shook his head. Herald was long dead.

‘If Private Herald was never short, could Herald have been saved…?’

Han thought of the choices of that moment. Corporal Zhai mercilessly shot Herald. Han
understood that was the correct choice.
Herald would have died either way. They didn’t have the leisure to let any chances go.
Zhai and Herald experienced numerous battles together and understood instinctively.

‘I probably wouldn’t have been able to shoot. If it had been Kuro or Jose… I would have
tried to save them until the end.’

Schwartz watched Han’s empty looking eyes.

“Chan! Get a hold of yourself.”

“It’s… Han.”

Han mumbled and reflexively looked up at him. A bit of strength returned to his lifeless
eyes.

“What did you deduce from the situation just now?”

Han didn’t want to think, but he forced himself to put together the pieces of the puzzle.
This was the result of his long training and habits.

“It cannot use blink consecutively. It cannot manifest a psychic shield and blink at the
same time. This attack had also been a gamble for the enemy. And it was a success.”

“However, it suffered an attack as a result.”

Han looked to Herald. He was a friendly soldier. He was also brave.

“If I was in your place, Squad leader Schwartz, as a squad leader… I would immediately
chase our enemy. I will also exterminate it.”

“Are you planning on revenge? Chan?”

Han hesitated for a moment and then shook his head.

“No. This is the best time to attack. It is injured now, and depleted much of its psychic
energy. We should split to increase our search area. If we surround it, it shouldn’t be
able to escape via blink.”

Schwartz expressed a crooked smile. The youth’s eyes were burning with fury.
“I agree. Let us start this hunt.”

Squad Victor moved forward. The situation has reversed. Now, they were the hunter.

The Elu was tired. It had been such a long time since it had been captured to this
underground facility that it couldn’t remember its life outside of this place. It mourned
and lamented every moment from pain and suffering.

Humans dissected and experimented on its body. They didn’t have any mercy or ethics
while commencing these experiments. At one point, it felt itself gain enough strength
to escape, and planned its revenge.

It used its own memories of pain to reward the humans with the same pains and
suffering.

“Keke.”

The Elu snickered as it thought of all the ways it killed these humans. It let its
murderous greed completely free. It mercilessly massacred the humans and tore them
apart from the inside out.

“Kak.”

The Elu who had been laughing, groaned from the pain coming from its stomach.
Blood flowed from the gunshot wound. The humans that come here were different.
There were psykers amongst them, and their response and actions were not ordinary.
The hunt wasn’t going as smoothly as it thought. Instead, it was now the one in grave
trouble.

Tadak, Tadak.

It heard footsteps from a distance. The Elu was getting chased. It looked all around in
every direction. It found a place to hide. ‘I will ambush them from the hiding place.’
This was an Elu hunter’s main tactics. It breathed slowly, and let its presence
disappear.

“Huuu.”

Han took a deep breath and aimed his gun forward. He went forward while postured
so that he could shoot his gun at a moment’s notice. The squad split when the route
split. They each took a different direction.

It would be an easy job to take care of an Elu whose psychic energy is near depleted.

‘There might not be another chance if we let it slip.’ Han fretted on whether he made
the right choice.

‘Was my decision completely rational when I decided it was best to chase the Elu? Was
my decision affected due to my emotional greed for revenge?’

Han felt it was hard to separate his emotions and judgement. It could be he wanted
revenge for Herald and made up a sound excuse to carry out his greed.

“The reason doesn’t matter. We’ve made the decision to do so.”

His eyes hazed with blue light. Strong hatred and anger boiled from within Han’s
heart.

He had stamped Herald’s death deeply into his eyes. A single error in battle would
result in a loss of a life.

‘I’ve merely been lucky all this time.’

If Han had been the one trailing furthest behind, Han would have been the one to die
instead of Herald.

Nobody thought that the Elu would be able to use the blink ability. If they figured out
that it could use blink, then Herald wouldn’t have suffered such an empty death.

‘If only I figured it out faster… How come I couldn’t see that the Elu could use blink to
move around?’

Han grit his teeth and paused at the next corner. The silence was so heavy that it
seemed to consume even one’s breath. Han paused his breath from nerves.

The squad members divided into different routes to surround the place the Elu
occupied. No matter how agile the Elu may be, it wouldn’t be able to escape all three
of them. Its bound to meet at least one of the three.

‘Come.’
Han surveyed his environment as he walked forward. He paused at the break room.

Tap.

Han walked while making sounds with his footstep. He then silently took several steps
backwards.

Kiiii.

He used minimal psychic energy to telekinetically crack open the door. As soon as the
door opened, the Elu’s blade struck out.

Han was not standing at that place. Han had purposely made sounds like he was
approaching the door, then silently backed tracked his steps before opening the door.
Any Elu would be tricked with this degree of attention to detail.

Click.

Han pulled the trigger without a single word. The end of his gun flamed. The two were
in such close proximity that he could easily shoot the other without aiming. A single
bullet dug through the Elu. An ear splitting scream filled the corridor.

‘It’s not dead yet.’

The Elu flopped onto the ground. However, Han didn’t approach it. He pressed the
body of the gun to empty out the magazine and insert a new one. The moment Han
took out a new magazine from his hip pocket, the Elu abruptly stood and moved.

Pak!

Han struck the Elu’s head with the butt of his rifle like he had been waiting. He held
the rifle with two hands and deeply struck down at the Elu’s head.

His exaggerated motions was like a professional baseball batter.

Kwajik!

The gun broke apart from the impact. The Elu’s head was split open as it gritted its
teeth. It swung its arms with murderous eyes.
The knife skimmed past Han’s chest. Thanks to his under armor, only his battle gear
got ripped. Han pushed the Elu back with a kick and took out the spear he had on his
back. He threw the leather cover on the floor and held his spear. Blue light glowed
from his eyes.

Puuh!

Han swung his spear aiming at the Elu’s head. The Elu’s skull made a cracking noise.
Han stepped toward the Elu who was staggering in place.

“KAAAAAA!” the Elu screamed while convulsing.

“Shut it.”

Han leaped into the air and swung his spear with his left arm. The Elu jumped to the
left and dodged. At this moment, Han swung the spear around his body and held the
spear with his right hand.

The spear pierced into the Elu’s stomach, splattering blood onto Han’s face. The Elu
staggered backwards. It put pressure on its stomach wound and attempted to escape.
It ran away like a wild animal.

Woong!

The Elu gathered all its strength and attempted one last blink. It wanted to use all its
remaining psychic energy to escape to the opposite passageway.

‘Blink. It still had some energy remaining?’

Han ran to chase after the Elu. The Elu’s body glimmered. Its appearance grew faint,
then solid, then faint again. This was evidence that it was attempting to use blink even
though it was at its utter limit. The Elu mumbled something.

Keeeng!

Han’s eyes glowed from psychic energy. In the end, it couldn’t muster enough psychic
energy and failed to blink. Han struck his spear through the Elu’s mouth and past its
larynx. The Elu looked aghast and died.

“Haa, haa.”
Han was able to stop the Elu after much struggle and sat down on the floor. He still
had the Elu’s blood splattered on his face. Its blood looked red like a human’s.
However, it was not human, but a monster.

Baduk.

Han shook the spear that was stuck on its head. He pressed its head down with his
feet and pulled his spear out. He swung the blood off the spear and returned it back to
its leather casing.

Step, step.

Han dragged his heavy feet to the break room. He found a vending machine there. He
shattered the glass of the vending machine and took out a soft drink with some
chinese words on it.

“So tired.”

Han mumbled and drank while seated. He endured the sting of the carbonation and
emptied the can. The blood splattered around Han’s mouth washed down with the
drink. The carbonation prickled his neck as he chugged down its contents.

In a short moment, Corporal Zhai and squad leader Schwartz arrived. They confirmed
the Elu’s death and nodded. The research center’s main danger was eliminated.

Weeeng.

Squad Victor started the electric generator. The dark corridors were brightly lit. They
officially looked through the place for survivors.

They found a few soldiers tied up on a chair and locked up in a storage room. They
were alive, but not.

Their eyes were gouged out, while their nose and mouth were cut away. It had also
hung some humans and left them to slowly die a painful death.

“Han, stay outside.”

Corporal Zhai said.

Corporal Zhai held each soldier’s hand and prayed upon their last breaths. Soldiers
were consumable products. Just as weapons and supplies increase, as time pass they
would decrease.

However, when a soldier dies in war, it’s not just the number that decreases. That
person’s future is also ended. This would affect everyone that had relations to the
deceased soldier.

Zzzing.

Schwartz collected Herald’s body. He was placed into a giant bag.

“They shouldn’t have died.” Han said.

If China had come clean with the honest truth when they asked for help, nothing like
today would have happened. Ark would have selected only veteran psyker soldiers to
be deployed.

“If the higher-ups would have been a little bit more sensible in handling this crisis,
then you’re right. However, they don’t care that a few soldiers die. They do not
understand the weight of a person’s life. They’re able to move thousands of people
with a click of a button. If they become obsessed over every single person’s life, they
cannot do the job that they do. Eventually, their senses dull. The numbers and data
written on paper start to feel like a game. It’s easy to get used to it…” Schwartz said in
a low voice.

He stuck a cigarette in his mouth and inhaled the smoke. They were taking a short
break. The Chinese soldiers would be waiting for them in the upper levels.

“Get used to it?” Han asked, and Schwartz laughed.

“It’s sad, but humans adapt very fast. You should feel it too. As you face different
situations during battle, the shock factor gradually decreases with time. If not, your
mental health would probably be unable to handle the stress. In the future, if your
heart becomes dull and numb, you must at least remember this with your mind.
Everyone has only one life, and that is why it’s important.”

Schwartz scratched his head. Is a human’s life the only important thing? Cows and pigs
have a life, and their enemy dragons and Elu’s also have a life.
However, this type of discussion is for the philosophers. Humans were already
struggling enough to protect themselves, they didn’t have the luxury to look after
others as well. To humans, only humans have dignity. Humans had to choose the lesser
of the two evils.

“I’ve never forgotten someone who died while under my care, and I will continue to
do so in the future.”

Han realized what the dread he was feeling was when the True Group invaded.

He dreaded how accustomed he was becoming to killing other humans, and so he

repeatedly mumbled to himself to not get used to it.

“Initially, Project Ark didn’t include any moral and ethics lessons while training
psychic fighters. They selected only a minority of the children and cared only to raise
their psychic skills. They were brought in at a much younger age- six and seven. The
initial stages of Project Ark failed miserably. They grew up to be wild monsters. The
commander was replaced, and the structure of the institution was revamped. The
commanders’ vision was that a human weapon must be a human before a weapon.”

Ark recruits many backup candidates compared to how many candidates are actually
promoted to become official soldiers of Ark. Ark had become very particular with the
requirements of the basic soldier.

Any child, as long as they have a trace amount of psychic power in them, is invited to
Ark. Just as Han had been fully promoted from a D-rank, children have a limitless
possibility to their future.

“It’s over.” Corporal Zhai said as he exited the room. Han and Schwartz paused their
conversation and stood up. They all carried Herald’s body bag as they stepped into the
elevator.

Weeeng.

It only took a brief moment for the elevator to reach the ground floor. Squad Victor
stepped out.

“As expected.” Schwartz mumbled and used an iron plate he brought from the research
room as a shield. The Chinese soldiers stood with their guns aimed toward them. The
researchers behind them were shouting something.
“I doubt they’ll be able to use explosives against us since we collected all the data.”
Corporal Zhai narrowed his eyes. He observed the Chinese soldiers. The standstill
continued for a long minute. Squad Victor attempted to communicate to Ark’s
headquarters, but the other side jammed all transmitters in the immediate area.

“We’ll have to force our way through like we predicted.” Schwartz banged the steel
plate he held. Han shook his head.

“If we attempted to escape, they will use heavy artillery against us while risking the
loss of data. If they’re lucky they would be able to retrieve everything.”

“Hmmn, that’s probably the case.” Schwartz scratched his chin and said. Squad Victor
had the power to force their way through the encirclement. However, they would need
to sacrifice somebody.

“I will go to negotiate with them.” Corporal Zhai who was observing the other front
line soldiers spoke.

“Will you be okay?”

“There are so many soldiers to witness today’s event, they won’t dare to kill me when
I’m unarmed.” Corporal Zhai was idolized by the people of China. He was known for
his countless contributions he made for the country and his deeds were widespread
throughout the country through propaganda advertisements.

He helped to plant the belief of victory in the hearts of the citizens and helped to
persuade youths to volunteer their lives to the military. At the end of the last war of
aggression, he enlisted into the Ark institution, and had been threatened to backtrack
his decision. Everyone in his family died during the war, and so he left to enlist without
fear.

When Corporal Zhai stepped forward, the researchers commanded the soldiers to
open fire. The Chinese commission officer questioned his commands and asked for
clarification. They couldn’t dare to kill the other who approached them completely
unarmed for the sake of negotiation.

Most of all, though they have been commanded to be here, the soldiers hearts were
not satisfied with the current situation at all. It was a dirty plot no matter which angle
you looked at this situation.
Corporal Zhai cautiously observed the situation. There was friction with the
researchers and soldiers. The soldiers and commission officer looked upset. The
soldier’s guns seemed to tremble. Corporal Zhai took a deep breath. He roared out in
Chinese.

“Gentlemen, real allegiance is not obedience.”

The researchers’ unrest grew more violent. They felt they had to go as far as to steal
the soldiers’ guns to kill Corporal Zhai with their own hands. The commission officer
couldn’t stand the researchers any longer and pushed them down.

“This is the site of the nation’s most important project! Our people’s lives depend on
this!”

“Shut up! Corporal Zhai is speaking!”

Corporal Zhai took note of everyone’s unrest and confusion.

“The soldiers are not a nation’s slaves. They do not unconditionally obey as slaves do.
Are they slaves or soldiers? They volunteered to hold a gun for the sake of this nation
and its citizens! To us Chinese men, loyalty means putting our lives on the line to
advise our lord of his wrongdoings. If our country is straying from the right path,
shouldn’t someone lead the way to the better path? Are there only men who live in the
security as slaves here?”

The soldiers noisily murmured. Corporal Zhai gradually approached closer to the
soldiers.

“Soldiers are but a nation’s type of power. Therefore, one must protest against illogical
and wrong commands.”

There were many soldiers who volunteered due to Corporal Zhai’s influences. They
could not bear to shoot Corporal Zhai. Rather, many felt inspired by him. To start with,
the command had been unreasonable from the start.

It didn’t make sense why they had to shoot the soldiers of Ark that had just come out
from the research center.

“If you do not kill them now, then we will eliminate all your family and…”
BA-NG!

The researcher yelling commands was headshot. The researcher was shot, and there
was nothing that could be done now.

The soldiers oppressed all the researchers. After the soldiers completely suppressed
the researchers, they lined up to salute toward Corporal Zhai and expressed their
respect.

“Finally it’s working. Respond, headquarters. Squad Victor here.”

Schwartz attempted to communicate with the main headquarter. The soldiers turned
off their jamming device. Han’s nerves relaxed at once, and he fell to the floor. It
seemed like they were going to shoot Corporal Zhai during the confrontation. The
transport plane arrived shortly, and Han fell asleep very quickly this time.

The Elu discovered in the Chinese research center was categorized as: predator. It had
become a case study of an Elu’s drastic change after extreme torture from inhumane
human scientific researches to its body. Now, there was physical proof that the mental
health and thought processes drastically influence psychic powers.

“The Northeastern Asian Alliance was alerted, however Japan helped to mediate the
situation and China surrendered themselves. So, everything was quietly concluded.
China had lost their voting power in the future committee meetings. Of course they
cannot stop their sponsorship either. That’s unless they want to be bullied by everyone
in the world.” Schwartz who was suited in a military uniform said to Han.

Herald’s funeral was brisk. A majority of his acquaintances and friends attended.
Herald’s ashes were enshrined at Ark’s mortuary.

There was a gravestone at the entrance of Ark’s mortuary with all the names of the
deceased soldiers of Ark.

“What happened to that one soldier?” Han worried for the Chinese soldier who
protected them. Schwartz laughed.

“We recorded the moment when Zhai confronted all the soldiers. They had not been
officially commanded by the government, but through unofficial means by the
researchers, so they won’t be able to punish the soldier. Though, any chance of
promotion is lost for him.”
Schwartz was generous with his praise toward Han in his report. His professionalism
made it hard to believe that it was Han’s first official military operation deployment.
If you were to consider his actual age and experience, his expertise was shocking.
Schwartz ended his report praising Han.

‘I look forward to his growth in the future.’

Han was in his room reviewing video clips of the second year mock squad battles.
Squad 13 was battling against Squad 3. Simon was in the third squad.

There were rumors that there would be many new third year transfers. The higher-
ups also observed the youths with a positive outlook. A couple were judged to have
problems with teamwork and character, but this flaw was drastically reduced after
many mock battles and actual battle experience accrued.

“Simon should know that he can’t fight a battle alone by now,” Han mumbled. Simon
behaved differently from when Han first met him. He moved in sync with Squad 3 and
followed the battle plans.

Between the current second year squads, Squad 3 had the most wins under their belt.
They had seven consecutive wins. Han held the record for 8 consecutive wins, but 7
consecutive wins was not anything to look down upon.

“The difference in their military strength is too great.” Han mumbled while watching.
Jose and Canute fought courageously, but it was impossible to stop Simon. Simon far
surpassed any second year youth’s levels.

‘Is Kuro still in the medical ward?’

He couldn’t see a speck of Kuro anywhere in Squad 13. Squad 13 put up a good fight,
but they could not hold out against Squad 3. Han carefully took note of every
occurance in the battles.

“They shouldn’t have made a frontal attack against Simon. Jose, you should have used
any means necessary to avoid a frontal battle- even if it means being petty.”

Han continued to talk to himself while watching the video clips. Simon’s strength was
on another level. If so, there is no need to fight fair and square. They should look for a
method that can increase their chance to win. Fighting head on against a stronger
opponent was the same as agreeing to lose.
Di-ring.

Han checked his data bracelet alarm

-You’ve been summoned.

A map appeared with a point of destination. Han wondered if there was anything he
would be needed for these days.

‘I can’t think of much.’

Han followed the map’s direction. It was the buildings designated for the executives.
The map zoomed in and marked a room inside of a building. He’d never seen any of
the people in this place.

‘These should be the so-called higher-ups of Ark.’

Han was summoned to the guest receiving room. The floor was covered with luxurious
carpets and rugs; a cup of hot, steaming black tea was already prepared on the table.
After a brief moment, a man walked into the room. Han observed the military insignia
and reflexively saluted.

“So you’re Han. You used to be Squad 13’s leader, but now you’re one of the reserve
troops of third year. I’ve heard your name more than once. My name is Alexander
Lekor. I’m Ark’s Chief of Staff.”

Han flinched. The Chief of Staff should be a rank just lower than Commander. He must
be one of the few authority figures of Ark.

Alexander sported a savage-looking beard. Yet, he wore a refined set of glasses which
helped tame his wild appearance. His giant hand which held a pen showed scars from
past battle wounds. Han continued to silently observe Alexander.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Han.”

Alexander stuck out his hand for a handshake. Alexander carried a wild atmosphere
which greatly contrasted his actual position.

“Do you like black tea?” Alexander poured a cup for Han.
“This is my first time trying it.” Han took a sip and immediately frowned.

‘Instructor Wei and the Chief of Staff… they really enjoy bitterness.’

This was fairly palatable compared to oolong tea, but he really had a difficult time
swallowing this sort of drink. Han could only manage a few sips before returning it
onto the table. On the other hand, the cookies which accompanied the tea were fairly
delicious.

“Do you know why you’ve been summoned here by me?”

“I do not know.”

“I must make an important decision at the moment.” Alexander said while observing
Han. Han remained quiet and waited for his words.

“…Kuro. I’m sure you’re somewhat aware. This child lost all will to battle and fight. He
can’t seem to forgive himself for murdering another soldier. He can’t even sleep
properly because of the nightmares.”

“As I thought…” Han softly muttered. It would be something Kuro would have a hard
time bearing.

“Please try and convince him otherwise. S-ranked psykers are an important asset to
our overall military strength. I cannot let a child with limitless potential go to waste.
If I look through his progress in Ark, I could see that this could be only achieved by
you.”

“Please let me think about it for a moment.”

Han looked down. The once steaming hot black tea was now cold. What would truly
be best for Kuro?

Han gave a nod. He let another executive lead him to Kuro. In the end, he found himself
in a room separated by a double mirror. The Chief of Staff and Executive were
observing on the other side of the mirror.

Han opened the door and privately conversed with Kuro. Kuro was wearing a white
hospital gown.
“Hi, Kuro.” Han said. Kuro looked at Han with eyes set in horrible looking dark circles.

“It’s been awhile, have you been well?” Kuro forced himself to sound cheerful. Kuro
was shy but was one to laugh frequently. Han noticed that the other’s laugh was forced
and unnatural immediately.

“It’s been a month. I’ve been well, but you don’t look well.”

Kuro’s fatigued face was a depressing sight.

“I can’t be strong minded like you. I can’t help but remember those people when I go
to sleep. They said it’s my fault that they’re dying, they keep whispering things.”

“It wasn’t intentional. You weren’t thinking to kill them. It just so happened that the
missile went in their direction.”

“You sound like you were there. It could be the case. However, it could also mean that
I really wished to kill them with the missile as well. It probably was the case. I could
have made a different choice at the last moment. They were caught into my
viciousness.”

Han opened his eyes and looked to nowhere in particular. Kuro fidgeted with his
fingers to cope with his anxiety.

“So? Do you think that is bad? They were trying to kill you. You fought to protect your
friends. Nobody will blame you for it.”

“I know, everyone says that to me. I’m sorry. I can’t do this anymore. This is the furthest
I can go.”

Han couldn’t understand Kuro’s despair. It seems Kuro’s heart was already shut. Han
couldn’t understand Kuro’s pure and gentle heart. Pity against Han’s enemies was
unnecessary luxury.

“Kuro, I saw one of my associate die in the last military operation I took part in. He
always talked with a gentle tone. In my case, if I could save that person, even if I have
to kill another human being, I will do so without a moment of hesitation. The people
who remain next to me are much more important that the people whose names I don’t
know!” Han said as his voice strengthened in volume.
“But…”

“But what? If you fall in danger amongst many people, I will protect you even if it
means killing everyone. But I guess it won’t be the case if I fall in danger in front of
you? Then there is no reason for you to stand next to me anymore. If you can’t fight,
then forget everything and quit right now. You’ll be able to find a use for your skill even
if you don’t fight.”

Han grilled Kuro in frustration. Han muttered many times silently to himself.

‘Just quit everything, Kuro.’

Han decided to quit trying to convince Kuro to continue any longer. He rather hoped
Kuro would stop everything. Han had a deep realization when Herald died. Witnessing
an associate’s death was horrifying. Witnessing a friend’s death would be even more
horrifying than just despair. Han hated to experience the despair of losing friends and
family.

‘It’s okay to quit now.’

Kuro had endured all this time with the determination to not to fall behind Han. He
was different than the other youths of Ark, he had no self determination. If he were to
take his only source of resolve away, then Kuro would have to quit.

Bam! Bam!

People began to bang on the door. The executives seemed to notice something was
wrong when Han’s tone took a different direction.

Gggeeeee!

Han used his psychic power to block the door with the room’s chair. The people
observing the room outside stood in shock.

“Open the door! Han!”

The executives shouted outside. Han spoke as his eyes brightly glowed.

“Shut up! We’re in the middle of a conversation!”

His voice had a chilling intensity that settled down to a person’s bones.

“Han…?”

Kuro watched with large round eyes.

“I was wrong. You’re not fit to fight. If you continue this route, even if you survive the
war, you’ll end up living the rest of your life in pain.”

Kuro was different from the other youths of Ark. His sensitivity didn’t match this war
scene. Han only came to realize after repeatedly experiencing real battle. It was a
brutal path that Kuro wouldn’t be able to endure.

“You will be punished for your actions.”

“What can they do to me? They’ll just admonish me. I’m a psychic soldier who is
capable of participating in actual battle. They won’t let me sit and laze for
punishment.”

As Han predicted, his actual punishment would be food limitations or solitary

confinement.

“You’re smart, so you only make calculated moves.”

Han tightly sealed the door with his psychic powers. He wouldn’t be able to hold out
much longer. The soldiers outside began to shoot their guns into the door.

“If I convinced you with idealistic words to follow me…, then you’ll probably force
yourself to get transferred into the third year. You won’t be able to endure the third
year with that kind of resolve. You’ll get broken into pieces. Do you remember Kato?
The squad leader who attempted suicide. When I went to visit him, he looked at me
with the exact same kind of eyes as you.”

The door Han held down burst open. The executives suppressed Han as soon as they
entered the room. Han obediently laid face down on the floor. They locked handcuffs
onto Han’s arms. They didn’t need to resort to violence.

“Stop it!”

Kuro shouted hysterically. All the items in the room floated into the air. Psychic energy
spilled from his irises. It was becoming extremely difficult to suppress his powers after
gaining S rank powers. The tiniest emotional shift set a flood of psychic energy to
manifest.

Flinch.

The executives who arrested Han observed toward Kuro. They understood Kuro’s
strength. His psychic strength could easily bat away a flying missile. If he wished, he
could easily kill all the people in this room in a bat of an eye. He was a super psyker
that would appear in only movies.

“…Han convinced me. I will continue to receive treatment and training. When my
condition recovers, I will transfer into third year. So please release those handcuffs.”

Kuro felt his blood surge with anger when the soldiers suppressed Han. Even if he
must use his strength to kill others, he will save Han. He was shocked he had such
anger and courage inside of him. If he thought about it carefully, he could only manage
to block the missile because he was next to his friends.

If Kuro was alone, he would have fallen apart from pure fear.

Han who always stood strong had weaknesses as well. Kuro now had great strength to
support him.

‘I have the strength to help Han. I’ve always needed his protection but…, it’s different
now. I will become his friend who can look at him eye to eye.’

Han let off a bitter smile while watching Kuro. Happiness and sadness welled up at
once. He shook off the hands which held his hand and walked out.

Chief of Staff, Alexander, stood at the corridor outside.

“Were you acting? Or is that your honest feelings?”

Alexander almost had a heart attack from Han’s sudden outburst. The youth he sent
to support Kuro was trying to do the opposite. Han was a youth who acted logically
and sensibly. Therefore, he didn’t think that Han would act in this way at all. This youth
had never disappointed the instructors and sergeants, he was truly a model youth of
Ark.
“Of course I was acting.” Han said matter of factly.

Alexander looked to Han with confused eyes.

“You can’t tell me ahead of time?”

“It won’t be believable that way. The shocked expression of everyone was amazing.
I’ve completed my task, I’ll be on my way. I haven’t had my lunch yet.”

Han walked away. Alexander watched Han’s back figure satisfied and a little fearful.
Han already brought many youths of Ark into his side with his charisma. Whether it
has been his honest feelings or acting, Kuro obtained courage once again thanks to
Han’s words.

‘That’s a very dangerous charisma.’

Alexander deeply ingrained Han’s name into his mind.

Han had great strength in gathering people. He was like a bonfire on a cold winter
night. People gathered around warmth, but at the same time he was burning himself
to ash as well. At a glance, Han looked level-headed and logical, but he hid an explosive
flame inside himself. He was prepared to burn himself at a moment’s notice.

“Try to split your legs a bit more.”

Laocha said while hitting Han’s legs in the gym. Han stretched his legs the closest he
could to 180 degrees. It hurt so much that it felt like it would tear apart.

“It, it hurts.”

Han furrowed his brows. Laocha observed Silence who watched both of them from far
away.

“You’re a man, stop whining. Silence, help him for a moment.”

Laocha called Silence. Silence nodded and walked closer. His steps seemed cheerful.

-It hurts only a moment. It was the same for me. 🙂

Silence displayed his electric note. Silence wrote out a happy face emoticon. This was
plain mockery. Silence hit Han’s legs and increased the degree of Han’s split. Han’s face
burned red.

“Must I master this to learn it?”

Han wanted to delay this lesson as much as possible as long as it wasn’t necessary.

“It’s advantageous in many ways to have a flexible hip joint. Silence, show him an
example.”

Silence slowly raised one of his legs into the air. His raised right leg made a perfect
vertical line with his left leg. Silence took a deep breath and spread his arms out. He
turned back his hips just a bit to position himself.

Hwi-rik!

Silence jumped in place and kicked his legs like a windmill. His reflexes and flexibility
were in perfect balance. He returned onto the ground with a perfect landing, and
elegantly bowed like he was thanking his audiences.

‘I shouldn’t have asked to learn this.’

Han mumbled as his expression crumpled. He said he wanted to learn Muay Thai from
Laocha. In addition, he planned to learn judo and wrestling from Schwartz.

The pain of mastering the splits made Schwartz’s hard training like a piece of cake.

“Let’s stop here, Han.”

Laocha smiled and said cheerfully. He patted Han’s back and left the gym.

‘It’s not an easy thing to see such a troubled expression from such a serious and boring
kid.’

Laocha and Silence greatly enjoyed training sessions. It was pure joy to witness Han
who is originally absent of emotion, display such weakness. There wasn’t a real reason
to rush trying to master the splits, but they were focusing on this for amusement.

“I can’t walk.”
Han fumbled up. His knotted muscles felt tired. Silence’s shoulders shook as he
laughed writing something on his electric note.

-Do you want me to carry you on my back?

“It’s fine. Get me some water instead.”

Silence used his telekinesis to bring some water. Han chugged down some water and
then poured the remaining water on his head. The water spilled down his face and
made the hair stick onto his forehead.

-Why do you want to go out of your way to learn martial arts? I don’t think it will be
very useful.

Silence asked. Ark didn’t push their youths to learn martial arts as much. Ark trained
their youths for the sole purpose of battling against minions and dragons. Martial arts
were one of the least important on their list of priorities.

“I want to prepare ahead of time so that I can always win. I might really need these
skills in the future. Laocha told me that victory comes to those who prepare ahead of
time.”

-Laocha does have that side to him. He knows all sorts of skills and facts. But I don’t
want to learn how to filter my urine to make drinkable water. If I fall into a situation
where I have to make my urine into drinkable water, I will prepare a rope to die.

“Whatever you want.”

Han said boredly and massaged his legs.

Han spent the rest of his night in his room. He watched the squad mock battles, or
checked the photos from the major. A year had passed since Han came to Ark. Thanks
to all the hearty meals sponsored to his younger siblings, they grew and matured
much faster.

‘Though it’s impossible for them to grow as much as me.’

Han couldn’t work up the courage to send his own photos to his younger siblings. He
looked across to the mirror on his wall. He had become very different from his old self.
He still had a childish appearance to his face, but his body was burly and strong. After
all this time, he accrued many wounds to his face, and he appeared like a real soldier
now.

“Huuu.”

Han sat on his bed and replayed the second year squad mock battles. The second year
youths were reduced to half its original size, so in only a few days they were selected
to battle against Squad 3 once again. Han’s eyes grew wide as he watched the clip.

“That’s unexpected.”

Han muttered while watching squad 13’s next mock battle. Jung Kijo made a total
recovery and returned to Squad 13. Surprisingly, Kijo was dubbed the temporary
squad leader and led all the members. He wondered how Jose and Canute gave up
their positions.

‘Kijo is smart. It’s just his personality that’s a bit of a problem.’

It seems there was an unknown agreement for the squad leader this time around.
When Han was the squad leader, Han remained as the center strength of the squad
through and through. The squad at this time, without Han, was going through an
organic reorganization process.

Swish.

Squad 13 worked together to isolate Simon. They didn’t take the bait to fight head on,
and continued to escape. They used the columns to escape to work up Simon’s anger
before Squad 3 commenced their attack.

Simon, this time around, arrogantly moved like a self asserted general and lost any
sort of teamwork with his squad members. It seems he quickly forgot the importance
of teamwork.

‘No, Squad 13’s tactics are too underhanded which perfectly rubs Simon’s temper the
wrong way. They didn’t stop badgering Simon until he lost his temper. It will be hard
for Simon to remain calm any more than this. Simon can easily knock them out with
one punch, but they keep attacking from a safe distance… ’

Han observed Squad 13’s tactic.

“That’s a very great underhanded tactic.”

Han could tell this was a tactic created by Kijo. Jose and Canute won’t turn to use these
sort of cheap tactics. Amongst everyone in Squad 13, only Kijo, would turn to these
cheap and cunning tactics so shamelessly.

Just as planned, Simon was isolated. They were perfectly done in by Squad 13’s perfect
teamwork. Kijo yelped in delight. Squad 13 used this momentum to push Squad 3
back.

“Ah… he’s done it now.”

Han mumbled. He caught a short scene of Simon gripping Kijo’s neck after the end of
the squad mock battle. The recording stopped there. Kijo probably showed off a
crooked smile and scorned Simon. He didn’t need to see it for himself to visualize the
scene.

“They’re doing well even without me.”

Han scratched his head and laid down in bed. Minus Kuro from Squad 13, it was very
likely for Canute to get transferred into third year. They could send him out to all sorts
of missions without burden thanks to his healing factor which takes out all risk of
death. He already mastered the battle skills, and he had a strong sense of self.

“Hmm… it probably won’t be too long until they’re transferred.”

Han was currently very lonely, surprisingly. Third years are all busy with their own
work so it’s hard to build any sort of deep friendship in this place. The only real friend
in third year that Han had was with Silence. When Silence was deployed out into
military operations, he had to spend time with soldiers who smelled of alcohol and
cigarettes. The experienced and seasoned soldiers enjoyed teasing Han. They
badgered him with topics on women and lewd subjects of every level, which broke
down Han’s mental sanity.

‘I never knew there were so many different ways one could refer to women.’

The soldiers referred to women in all sorts of ways. Han began to imagine various
things by himself and he would feel his face grow red, then he could only look down
in shame.
“Bastards, I’ve returned.”

Clack, clack. Sergeant Red used his well made prosthetic leg to kick the door open. The
sound of metal clacked with every step he took. After Sergeant Red recovered enough
to take care of daily tasks, he was seen spotted all over Ark.

“Your shoes are amazing.”

Han looked to Sergeant Red’s prosthetic leg. His walking wasn’t awkward in anyway
at all. The current technology has advanced to the point that it was easy to make a
perfect prosthetic leg for any individual.

“I heard you succeeded your first military operation. Your proud shoulders will
probably fly off past your head.” Sergeant Red said.

Han matter of factly replied, “That’s not so.”

Sergeant Red observed Han’s stiff expression. He heard of Herald’s death, but didn’t
mention it.

“I wish I also lost my arm. I can’t retire with a lost leg.”

It wasn’t possible to make such an intricately moving hand prosthetic as of yet. Ark
kept Sergeant Red on a tight leash.

“Will you be deployed again in military operations?”

“I will temporarily return as a first year instructor. The institution side is short on
hands these days, and I haven’t recovered enough to be fighting in actual battle.”

Sergeant Red used his knife to cut off one end of his cigar. He lit a flame to the tip of
his finger and lit his cigar. Thick smoke suffocated the air.

“It’s a no smoking zone here,” Han said.

“Is there a place where people are allowed to smoke in Ark? Shit.”

Sergeant Red complained. Most of Ark was dubbed a no smoking zone and many of
Ark’s soldiers complained.
“If you will be the first year’s instructor, then I won’t be seeing you for a long while.”

“Do you remember the Elu mage we captured alive last time?”

“Of course. Nobody has questioned me about it.”

Sergeant Red quickly scanned his surroundings.

“We might have made a mistake. Dragons might not appear in three years.”

Han’s expression stiffened.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s possible they might arrive earlier than expected. It doesn’t match the oracle’s
prophecy, but it will match if you think of it a different way. The main force will arrive
in three years, but their vanguards might arrive much earlier.”

Han wasn’t aware of many things, but he could tell this was one of the top secretive
information. Sergeant Red had just shared that with Han. He trusted Han would not
easily go around spreading this fact.

“…Then what will happen to us?”

“It’s our important task to defend. We’ve already defended against them once.”

Han felt a chill run down his spine. Han’s past judgement had been correct. If he
couldn’t stop them that one time, the dragons would have appeared in a mere ten year
gap.

“How many people already know?”

“Only the top higher-ups know. Even if nobody states it explicitly, they will realize how
organized the minions are moving. I thought that you should have the right to know
since you helped to capture it alive.”

Sergeant Red said a few more words. He shared some more things about future tactics
and training drills. Then the topic of Silence came up.

“Silence?”
“I heard that you’ve become quite acquainted with the fellow. It’s hard to befriend
Silence.”

“All you need to do is be a little patient.”

Han patiently waited for Silence to finish writing out his thoughts. Silence usually
replied to people’s questions very shortly, and expressed his intentions through
gestures. It was rare for him to ever convey a long paragraph.

“It’s easier said than done, in reality it’s very hard to be patient. Only three people in
Ark can endure a long conversation with him. Everyone is busy here.”

Han was a considerate person. It was a rare character for someone his age.

“I’ve come to know a lot about Silence. He’s more tenderhearted than he appears.”

“That’s correct. Silence has trouble developing human relationships. He came to Ark
before the age one develops a sense of self, and was injured due to an accident. He
communicates through written words, so it’s become a habit to reply very shortly. The
only people who maintain long conversations with him are the therapists and a few
soldiers.”

“But everyone approaches him first for a chat.”

The soldiers were all kind toward Silence. Han realized that Silence wasn’t very
isolated at all.

“Even if people try to pretend, it’s unavoidable to appear a little annoyed and irritated.
Silence isn’t so stupid not to notice. He gets more frustrated when people force
themselves for his sake. That sort of obligatory consideration inflicts more pain than
good. Do you like it when people see you in a bad light, but come to converse with
you?”

Han shook his head. Han paused for a moment and spoke once again.

“Why does Silence wear a mask?”

“Are you asking because you don’t know?”

Sergeant Red looked to Han with a loss for words. Han nodded.
“I don’t know at all. It’s not for a practical reason at least.”

“That’s right. It’s all for the sake of appearance.”

Sergeant Red said firmly and laughed in a meaningful way.

Bam!

The sandbag shook upon Han’s kick. The impact caused the gym to shake. Han took a
different position while in his training uniform. His hair had grown considerably
longer and swayed with his movements. His eyes only focused on the sandbag

“That’s a heavy kick, kid. You know how to use your body. You had to make up for the
lack of power with your body weight as a child, right? I’ve noticed last time as well,
but you have a tendency to gather all your strength to one side of your body.”

Laocha commented while watching Han’s kick posture. Han’s eyes grew wide in
surprise.

“Now that I think about it, you’re right. How did you know?”

When Han was a young orphan, he had to fight against adults very frequently. A child
cannot go against an adult with normal means. The most he could do back then was
offset their balance or throw rocks to buy time. A child’s strength would not be able to
do much to adults with a normal attack, so he used his whole body to maximize the
power of his attacks. All through first and second year, other than against Dimitri, he
had always won in sparring matches.

“Even if you don’t mentally think about habits like this, your body remembers them.
You habitually add more power by off-setting the balance point of your body. The
overall strength becomes greater due to inertia, however your aim and dexterity falls
a great deal. When your attack reaches your opponent, the power will end up
dispersed instead of focused. Your finishing attacks against your opponents must
always remain sharp.”

Laocha showed him an example. Han drank some water and watched. Now that he
decided to learn formally, he had no mind to lazily master it half heartedly.

Bam!
Laocha powerfully attacked the sandbag. The sandbag started to swing around.

“I imitated your kick just now.”

Laocha kicked the sandbag once again. The kick had a cleaner flow. His kick dug
deeper into the sandbag. There was a slight difference. Han was watching with focus,
but he couldn’t easily spot the difference.

“Honestly, I don’t know the difference.”

Upon Han’s words, Laocha kicked his leg slower than before. As he kicked his leg, his
balance had a strong foundation to support the attack. Even if he kicked up onto the
shoulders, his balance would not easily falter.

“You will always find an optimum striking point against all opponents. You need to use
your knees to attack, but instead of your leg, you’re using your hips. Well, it will be
hard to understand with just an explanation. You should learn by practicing it with
your body. Your muscles are more than strong enough now. Even if you stop your old
habits, your attacks will be more than strong enough. Rather than blindly attacking
with the most strength you can muster, it’s more important to focus your attack into a
single point.”

Han followed Laocha’s coaching and made minor changes to his posture. He couldn’t
easily take away all his bad habits and was cursed out repeatedly by Laocha. Han
focused his attacks, but it wasn’t easy to change his attack style. Laocha’s gentle tone
gradually became fierce and violent.

“How many times do I have to tell you to fix your shitty posture? How did you ever
receive an A grade for weapon handling with such poor foundational skills? I guess
Instructor Wei wasn’t so great to begin with.”

Han quietly accepted all the cursing. He didn’t flinch from any of Laocha’s words. He’s
now used to the harsh tone of soldiers. Soldiers tried to be careful with their language
in front of the third years, but their patience was very thin and would immediately
revert to their old speech habits. Laocha realized he went too far and let out a heavy
sigh and began to chug down some cold water.

While Han and Laocha bickered, a few of the people’s data bracelets in the gym blinked
in alarm. Squad leaders and housing officers were called to the command control
posts. The message spread quickly.
-Team Delta and Echo, annihilated. There are ominous signs at the dimensional crack
located at Tirania in the former Republic of Albania. A mass of organized minions are
on the move.

It had evolved to a fire stage two zone. Every personnel of Ark should be on standby
fully geared.

A dimensional crack opened in Tirania, the capital of the state of Albania, located
within the Balkan States. It had been the second dimensional crack to open on Earth,
and where the second wave of the dragon army appeared. At that time, humanity had
yet to stop the first wave of aggression and so the second wave of aggression was to
be handled later by the Allied forces. The invasion which started in Albania spread all
over the Balkan States and caused total destruction to the land and even Greece was
swept up to be no more. The southeastern European States still suffer post war and
have yet to fully recover. Following this catastrophe, the Balkan Alliance was formed,
which is a military stronghold located in the EU with autonomy.

“Everyone who can pilot a psychoframe has been deployed. A majority of the first
generation psykers have also left.” the housing officer said. The underlying meaning
was simple, and everyone’s expressions stiffened.

‘A dragon might appear.’

All the psychoframes of Ark were on standby and would immediately be deployed
upon the appearance of a dragon. The situation was that critical.

‘The events are unfolding much faster than Sergeant Red’s predictions.’

Han wiped his clammy hands on his pants. He fully geared for ground warfare and
stood at the ready.

– This is the first time I’ve seen something like this happen as well.

Silence who sat next to him conveyed with his electric note. Squad Delta and Echo
were annihilated. 8 dead. Amongst this group were first generation psykers and third
years as well. The situation was so grave that even the third years could not be saved.

“The first generation psykers have been deployed so we’re short of squad leaders. The
higher-ups have conveyed an order to choose two appropriate third years to take on
the role as Squad leader. One of the two squad leaders will be you, Han. The higher-
ups came to this decision after looking through your record.”

Han’s eyes grew wide. It was rare for a third year to be dubbed a squad leader. The
only times a third year would be made a squad leader was for formal diplomatic events
and only the experienced third years would be deployed. It was an unprecedented
event for a new transfer like Han to become a squad leader. It conveyed how urgent
the situation was.

“Do I need to choose my squad members?” The housing officer shook his head in
response.

“Your squad members have already been selected. Silence, Corporal Zhai, and Simon.
You will wait on standby at the second take off hanger.

Simon was a second year, but was already confirmed to be transferred up as a third
year. Han and Simon had worked together in the same Squad once before, and so was
put together. Han’s squad consisted of people with whom he was familiar.

“Understood.”

Han said and looked to Silence. Silence nodded.

“Your Squad code is ‘E’. Echo or Easy. Take your pick. Well, there is no need to choose.”

It would be unlucky to take on the name Echo, when the team that had been eliminated
was dubbed Echo. They would be jinxed. It would only be used once again after some
time had passed and the event forgotten.

“We will go with, Easy.”

“Easy Team, assemble within twenty minutes at the second hanger. Afterwards, you
are to move according to the command sent to you through your data bracelet.”

The housing officer shouted commands to the soldiers. The soldiers moved to fulfil
their individual duties. Support assist teams moved around busily helping to gear all
the troops. The patrol planes deployed out first.

‘Psychoframe… ’

Han stared across to the high altitude stealth plane, Black Crow. The engineers were
loading the psychoframes into the plane. Just behind the team were the first
generation psykers gearing up. Four Black Crows would be simultaneously deployed
for this military operation. The reserve soldiers out on other long distance military
operation were commanded to evacuate their current missions for an urgent
emergency.

“You’re already a squad leader. That’s a very quick promotion. Is your father a military
commander?” Corporal Zhai joked while laughing.

“Everything is temporary,” Han said. Han predicted he would need a lot of support
from Corporal Zhai this time around. Amongst all the squad members, the member
with the most varied experience is Corporal Zhai.

“Well, well, this is a pleasant surprise,” Simon appeared saying, already fully geared.
The British youth arrogantly raised his eyebrows. He’d been urgently recruited
without prior notice, but he still didn’t look the slightest bit nervous.

“So you’re Simon Dell, the last genius of England. I’m Zhai Zun.” Corporal Zhai offered
a handshake to Simon. Simon nodded. Simon didn’t speak high handedly like he had
done during their initial years in Ark. After all the training and drills, his personality
had become very prudent. Racial discrimination had no place in a multination military
organization. Even if one had such thoughts in their heart, nobody would dare to utter
their true feelings out loud.

Squad Easy greeted one another. Corporal Zhai was familiar with everyone except for
Simon.

‘The higher-ups most likely intentionally set up the squad like this. I’m familiar with
everyone in this squad, and I can’t find a single flaw for this match of people for the
squad. Silence is one of the most exceptional amongst the psykers, Simon has vast
psychic skills which adds flexibility to military operations, and lastly Corporal Zhai has
a lot of experience in actual battle so he can make up for my shortcomings.’

Han burned his squad members’ specialties and abilities into his mind. He worked
with them once before so he didn’t feel especially burdened. Han used his data
bracelet to share the present condition with the rest of his squad members. The squad
members projected a hologram map.

“8 squads will be deployed to Tirania, the capital of Albania. Currently, additional

squads have not been confirmed for the mission. The Balkan Alliance currently
occupies the Tirania dimensional crack, but they requested for Ark’s support after the
minion’s surprise attack. Team Delta and Echo worked together with the Balkan
Alliance to kill the minions, but failed and everyone has been annihilated… The Balkan
Alliance also failed to shoot down the minions, they’re currently moving their military
base. Our goal is to reclaim the dimensional crack zone and block further opening of
the crack.”

Simon furrowed his brows while listening.

“Is it a similar situation as last time? They’re doing something strange at the
dimensional crack zone again.”

“Yes. The minions, more specifically the Elu mages are currently trying to reopen the
dimensional gate. We stopped the opening last time, but they seemed to have prepared
beforehand and they’re dead set on opening the gate again. This means that we don’t
have much time left. The minion numbers are rising every day.”

Though Han said this, it was a mystery whether the minion numbers were indeed
rising or not.

“There are that many minions remaining in that neighborhood?”

Simon couldn’t understand the situation. Corporal Zhai who was listening quietly all
this time, explained.

“Some Elu mages are able to distort space and summon warp tunnels. Two Elu mages
must work together or else it isn’t possible. The two Elus must have a close
relationship like lovers to manifest it. This is one of the main reasons minions are able
to move in an organized fashion without any particular transportation skills. Get
familiar with the other additional data on our way there, kid.”

Corporal Zhai smoothly laughed. Han nodded and lead his squad. They sat in their
designated seats on the Black Crow. Other squads were also traveling on the same
plane.

The Major sat on the front seat. The Major reviewed the outline of their tactic once
again and stressed the important aspects.

“There are only seven psychoframe pilots to assist you gentlemen. However, only three
can assist at one time. No more than three psychoframe pilots may be deployed at one
time. We need to reserve a batch of psychoframe pilots in case the military operation
fails and dragons appear from the dimensional gate. I stress again, we have 7
psychoframes, but only 3 will be used to support the ground troops.”

Psychoframes could only be piloted for a limited time. It’s the end once the psyker’s
psychic energy level depletes. It’s impossible to switch out the pilots as well because
there are so many specific gears and adjustments to be made. First generation psykers
could pilot a psychoframe for a maximum of one hour. Even with all these flaws,
psychoframes were essential to take down dragons. They were the ultimate weapons
of mass destruction.

Han listened to the Major and got lost in his own thoughts. This will be another large
scale battle. However, his heart didn’t feel as heavy as the time before. He slowly
opened his eyes and tightly gripped his trembling hands. He suppressed the upsurging
tension. Fear and anxiety… these were emotions which Han didn’t need.

‘The minions are the enemy.’

Han sat down and buckled his seat belt. The enemy was clear cut this time. They were
not fighting against humans, but the public enemy of humanity, the minions. Han had
been training all this time for the sake of exterminating them. He was ready to kill.

Three Black Crows landed twenty kilometers away from the dimensional crack. This
place was originally a university, but now only old ruins remain. The country of
Albania has been decimated, and is governed by the Balkan Alliance. Though in reality,
it’s only governed in name and now has become the slums for runaway criminals.

The soldiers on the Black Crows hopped off one by one. They set up their tents and
geared up. The field logistics center was completely set up within 30 minutes. The
remaining two Black Crows shortly landed not too long afterwards.

“We’re part of the Balkan Alliance.” A high ranking Greece military executive
approached and said. They ran through the finer complicated aspects of today’s
military operation. It seems their opinions clashed as each party’s voices grew
progressively louder and aggressive.

‘Are they fighting again?’

Han frowned. Corporal Zhai immediately noticed and spoke.

“They always start talks with a power struggle. They’re trying to fight for the higher
right to command. This would be a large grand scale war and so, if there is no one in
the center command position, it only spells trouble and chaos. I’m assuming that the
Balkan Alliance will give way to us for the main command position, but they won’t
make the process easy for us.”

“I thought you said we were on a tight time constraint? This isn’t funny.”

“Saving face is an important aspect of adult life.”

Corporal Zhai was well aware of the responsibilities which comes along with the
positions of higher power. Ark had always carried out these types of diplomatic
conflicts for most joint military operations.

Once the leading members of the government transfer command rights to the field
commander, the squad leaders would come to participate in the conference. Han was
one of the members amongst the squad leaders. The Balkan Alliance advisor took out
a photo and spoke.

“This is a satellite picture. The majority of the Elu mages are scattered within the
psychic shield zone and in the progress of an awakening ritual. We don’t know which
is the real Elu mage, at this point even nuclear missiles are useless against the psychic
shields. Other Elus and grunts are surveilling around the Elu mage. Ogres have also
been spotted, many species of minions are on standby in their immediate
surroundings. There are many grunts who are excellent pigsty diggers. This is a city
landscape and so air bombing forces won’t be able to provide as much assistance. This
comes from first hand experience.”

The advisor said trying to add some light laughs, but not a single person laughed. The
advisor coughed awkwardly and moved onto the next topic. The Balkan Alliance
would handle the minions at the perimeter while Ark’s special forces would
breakthrough into the dimensional crack zone. After the squadron arrives to the
center point of the dimensional crack zone, each squad will scatter to eliminate each
Elu mage.

Han’s eyes moved across the map quickly.

Once the military operation conference concluded, Han reiterated the same
information once again for his squad members.
“That’s reassuring. If we ever fall into a pinch, a psychoframe will fall from the sky to
help us out.” Simon said while pointing to the sky. Silence lightly hit Simon’s back.

-That’s our last resort.

Corporal Zhai agreed with Silence.

“Their tactic is to lure us to use our psychoframes as fast as possible to deplete our
military resources and strength. This is how the dragon military forces usually battles.
After they took note of our psychoframes, they have always used this tactic. This is a
test of endurance. The side with stronger perseverance will be the winner. Though
there will always be sacrifices.”

“Well, if that’s the case…” Simon became frustrated for looking so foolish after saying
such words. Han brooded over Corporal Zhai’s words.

‘The side with stronger perseverance will be the winner.’

In Sinuiju Dimensional Crack Zone, Han had used such tactics of preserving the most
of their military strength until the end to exterminate the Elu hunters. The side with
superior military strength will always be the winner. They will be pulling out every
trick and strategy possible; the commander to make the right choices will be the
winner.

‘The right choices. I’m the squad leader once again.’

Han felt the weight on his shoulders. His eyes gleamed with a chilling aura. The more
responsibilities he carried, the stronger he became. It helped to strengthen his
mentality. His every decision held the lives of his associates and peers. Han had
realized this to his bones long before.

A part of his heart felt light during their military operation at the chinese psychic
research center. It had been the same when he left on his first military operation with
Sergeant Red. He had another squad leader to depend on for the choices of battle.

‘This time, I will be the one to carry the full weight.’

It felt as if a shock ran down his spine. Han had always been the strongest when he
carried the responsibilities of others. He currently carried his squad’s life on his
shoulder. So, Han could not afford failure.
“Let’s go.”

Han commanded in a low voice. Silence and Simon nodded. Corporal Zhai hesitated
for a moment and observed Han’s eyes.

‘Is he the same youth that I know?’

Corporal Zhai could remember the youth that he had been with during the mission at
the Chinese Psychic Research Center. His decision and command skills were excellent,
and his rationale always remained objective. He was an excellent soldier. However, at
the time, Han didn’t seem like he carried much weight to his decisions.

‘Han carries himself heavily.’

He looked like no matter what sorts of hardships came his way, he would not falter. It
was hard to find someone who carries themselves in such a way even amongst the
long time war veterans. Even if this youth was but a young child…

‘The position makes the person.’

Corporal Zhai mumbled and took his position as the rear guard. Squad Easy looked
like ants amongst the grand military. The war would start soon.

Grunts were green skinned ground walking monsters that appeared to resemble a
mixture of a mole and turtle. They were two to three meters tall, and enjoyed the use
of any heavy and strong weapons. They could crush a human with their bare hands
and their jaws were strong enough to easily mash a sword. As grunts grow in age, their
skin would become further keratinized. These keratinized portions of their skin are
tough enough to easily fend off bullets.

“Waruwa! Jak! Ajak Ajak!” 1)

The grunts formed into a group and charged into the squads of human soldiers. The
grunt hoard charged from the front and were baptized in bullets. Grunts never moved
in groups or tactically without an Elu’s command. This raw simplicity is also one of
the grunt’s most feared qualities.

KKANG!

The grunt pulled out a telephone pole and smashed a tank. Even after around forty
grunts died taking down a single tank, they didn’t show an ounce of fear. These
minions would have easily taken over this world if they were gifted with a higher
reproductive ability.

“So these are grunts. They are just lunatics.” Simon said watching the grunts. It was
his first time to see them in person. Simon used his telekinesis to move the iron mace
the grunt carried.

KWAJIK!

The iron mace critically hit the grunt’s head.

“AJAK AJAK!”

The grunts let out a strange sounds as they grind their teeth. It sounded like hard
stones were being grinded. The sound resonated to the other grunts which worked to
buff their mental suppression.

“WAJAK!”

Han peppered the charging grunt with shots from his gun. Once the grunt
momentarily paused, Silence swung his sword.

DdengGang-

His sword flew and passed through like butter as the enemy’s head rolled. The grunt
continued to grind its teeth even after it was decapitated.

“They’re not too scary as long as we remain cool headed.” Han said.

The main aspect to be feared from grunts was their sheer power of madness as a
group. Individually, they’re nothing to be feared. However, modern close combat
weapons are not effective against them.

‘Squad Alpha will take the lead. We’re currently in the middle of most of the squads. I
see that they positioned the third years as closely to the center as possible. They’re
doing their best to protect the third years in such a situation as well.’

The soldiers of Ark understood very well that the third years were the last remaining
hope for the existence of humanity in the future. Even if today’s military operation
were to fail, they must have the third years return to Ark alive.

-Alpha-1 here- Ogre located at the front.

An ogre appeared wielding a car on each hand. Ogres were built with muscles as
strong as trains. A majority of the ogres were over five meters tall. The most difficult
aspect of fighting against an ogre was the strong resistance against any sort of fire-
based attack.

Schl-kak!

A few soldiers from Ark shot their grenade launchers. The ogres were completely
covered in flames, slowing them down. In that instant, a psyker with a blink ability
instantly closed onto them. He used his shotgun to its head. They looked at ease and
experienced.

“That person also has blink ability.”

Upon Han’s words, Silence quickly wrote out a message.

-Nobody has better blink control than me. I’m the best.

The special force squads gradually neared to the inner city. The roads became more
complicated and the number of alleyways increased. They could see through to the
dimensional crack in between the buildings.

-TssZzt, we’re splitting here. Best of luck.

The special force squads split in different directions. They were now quite far away
from the Allied Military Forces and minion battle zone. As planned, the Allied Military
Forces kept the minions busy.

‘I didn’t see any organized minion forces that had an Elu leading them. It was just a
hoard of minions.’

There was no way that the Elus were short in hand. After the end of the war, minions
had never gathered in one place in such high numbers.

“Wait.”
Corporal Zhai suddenly halted. He touched the iron reinforcement bars which
protruded out from the concrete ground. There was black fur attached to the end of
the iron rods.

“That’s werewolf fur.” Han said from behind Corporal Zhai.

“This is troublesome. If there are werewolves in the immediate vicinity, it will be hard
to outrun them.”

Corporal Zhai mumbled. Team Delta and Echo had been surrounded and died. It is
very difficult to escape from a group of werewolves who are led by Elu hunters. It will
be difficult to go against such a high number of enemies no matter how skilled the
squad.

BANG!

The sound of bombs reverberated from a distance. Long distance missiles and bombs
fell from the sky and the minions began to scatter. Gradually, the Elu mages that were
hiding amongst the minions began to appear. The Elus casted a psychic shield and
blocked the missiles. The reason the primitive minion army could fight on equal
footing against the modern military forces was due to the Elus.

‘How many more people will die?’ Han slowly closed and opened his eyes. There was
no way to keep count of all the casualties on this battlefield. Han didn’t have the power
to defend everyone here.

‘At least I should have the power to protect those next to me… ’

Han looked to his squad members and started to speak. When he ordered commands,
he didn’t bother with any sort of honorifics even with Corporal Zhai in their squad.

“We can’t afford to stop here even if we are worried about such things. We are
responsible for two ceremonial points. We must hurry to take care of our task, then
rejoin with the other squads.”

Han positioned Corporal Zhai into the vanguard position. Corporal Zhai had the most
experience fighting in a city zone. Zhai was the most knowledgeable about the places
they should be careful and where they should move with extra silent steps. Han
carefully watched over Corporal Zhai’s every move. There was no way to learn about
these things through words. This was a skill that could only be obtained through real
life experience. Squad Easy moved through the city ruins following Corporal Zhai’s
lead.

“Hmm.” Corporal Zhai murmured to himself. His expression crumpled upon turning
into an alley corner. Several corpses were sprawled in this alleyway. They looked like
they were a group of homeless people. They wore ripped up coats and had wrapped
their neck tightly with a scarf. Their fingers looked dirty and black.

‘These must be refugees that are not protected from any country. Maybe run away
criminals.’

Han followed Corporal Zhai and looked over the corpses. Han mindlessly tried to
nudge a corpse with a light kick. The blood which pooled on his forehead dripped
down. The blood which dripped wasn’t black but red, signalling that the blood was
fresh.

Ddak, Ddak.

Han tapped his helmet twice and the squad stopped. He swiped a bit of fresh blood
from the dead vagrant’s forehead and showed his squad members. Red blood. Not
much time has passed since these vagrants died.

Nod.

The squad nodded their head. They hid their presence while they moved forward and
remained alert for any signs of noise. Amongst the chaotic sounds of battle from far
away, they noticed the sound of footsteps.

Sssk.

The squad stuck close to the alleyway wall. Han threw a rock to the opposite alleyway.

Twitch.

The sound of footsteps grew louder. This wasn’t the sound that could be made by a
soldier’s shoes. The ground slightly shook with every step.

“Kgrrrrr.”

A low growl could be heard. If they approached the monster any closer, then they
would surely be discovered through smell. The squad members looked to one another.
Han lifted his high flash-bang granade and made eye contact with Silence. Silence
wrote out an okay on his helmet shield.

‘One, two.’

Han pulled out the pin and counted. He threw the flash-bang grenade and closed his
eyes.

BOOM!

A deafening explosion shook the area. Silence dashed out and confirmed the
opponent’s location. There were two werewolves. The werewolves had their eyes
closed as they howled.

‘Simon! Right!”

Han left the werewolf to the right to Simon. He dashed out with a knife at hand. Knives
were the most useful weapons against werewolves in most cases. As long as they cut
their throats, they would die.

CHLKAK.

Han and Corporal Zhai helped to provide cover fire against those who attacked the
squad members. Amidst the chaos, Simon and Silence took their positions behind the
werewolves and aimed at their opponent’s necks.

“Get down!” Corporal Zhai shouted as he aimed his gun. They couldn’t afford to be at
ease just yet.

Pah!

An arrow made of psychic energy hit the ground. An Elu hunter was up on the building
roof shooting arrows. Whenever they stood in place, a psychic arrow came flying in
their direction.

“Silence! Save your strength.”

Silence was going to use his blink ability to kill the Elu hunter. Han shouted to stop
Silence. Silence quickly hid behind a wall.
‘I can’t afford to have Silence waste his psychic energy here. There will be a moment
when his strength will be necessary later.’

Once Silence’s blink ability is depleted his overall battle strength would be reduced by
more than half. His battle power depends on his blink ability. Blinking depletes a vast
amount of psychic energy. This battle skill must be used sparingly.

‘The distance between us is very far. About 40 meters. If we take the height into
consideration, he will need to deplete more psychic energy than usual. We can only
reach the Elu with a grenade launcher.’

Squad Easy didn’t bring a grenade launcher with them. Han calmed his breath and
took out a grenade. Psychic energy flowed from his eyes.

Han threw his grenade high into the air. Originally, the grenade would slowly lose its
momentum, but the further the grenade flew, the faster it bulleted in the air. He wasn’t
using his telekinesis to control the grenade, but he was using his telekinesis to fling it
consecutively in the air. Han used his telekinesis to fling the grenade one last time at
the maximum distance his psychic powers would reach, the grenade flew exactly to
the Elu hunter’s location.

BAA-AANG!

The Elu hunter’s body was shredded to pieces.

“That just now…”

Simon stared at Han. Silence was equally shocked. Only Corporal Zhai who wasn’t a
psyker didn’t understand the complexity of Han’s maneuver just now.

It was impossible to boost the speed of a moving object with psychic energy with
normal psychic control ability. Han’s grenade was flung three times consecutively in
the air, and was able to preserve a huge amount of psychic energy. The last time Han
flung the grenade, he was able to accurately aim at the Elu. The grenade flew with the
power of inertia at the Elu like it was being shot out of a grenade launcher.

‘This reaction… ’ Corporal Zhai stood confused.

It was impossible for a normal soldier to understand the difficulty of the move just
now. Telekinesis was a psyker’s third hand.
“If I were to try and explain it with a figure of speech, it’s similar to trying to juggle
with four balls.” Simon mumbled. Amidst the chaos of battle, without a bit of foresight,
Han had just displayed circus acrobatics. Simon had superior overall telekinetic
power, but even when he was dubbed a genius, he could not pull off such fine control.

If Simon using telekinesis was equivalent to a fighter who has been training for a long
time, Han would be an acrobat who could use telekinesis to the utter limit.

“That was a huge disturbance. More minions should appear soon. No, they will.
Corporal Zhai, please set up a tripwire at the roadside of this location.

Han ordered Simon and Silence to survey the area. Han went to the alleyway and
dragged a vagrant’s corpse.

‘Apologies.’

Han apologized in his heart. He would not know the identity of this vagrant his entire
life. However, he was sure of one thing. The living were more important than the dead.

“Han…”

Corporal Zhai set up the tripwire. He observed Han’s behavior with a strange
expression. Han set up the corpse behind a cover wall.

‘If they attack us in the same pattern as they have up until now, the werewolves will
be the first to arrive.’

Han mumbled this silently to himself as he took off the vagrant’s clothes. Han placed
his own battle shirt over the vagrant.

“Corporal Zhai. Do you have any remaining grenades? Three or four more would do.”

Han used the vagrant’s corpse to set up a booby-trap. He made it so that when the
shirt is pulled or moved in some way, the grenade pin would pull off. He also tied a trip
wire around the corpse’s finger and placed a gun trigger in position. When the trip
wire activates, the gun will immediately fire. If a werewolf or minion were to approach
the corpse and touch it, the grenade will explode. An Elu would not be easily tricked,
but minions with lower intelligence will be easily baited.

Puh! Puh!
Han stabbed the vagrant’s waist with his knife. The thick smell of fresh blood
permeated the air. He calculated that even if the minions avoided the tripwire, they
would not be able to withstand the smell of blood.

‘Is he making a booby-trap with a human corpse? He’s only ten years old… ’

Corporal Zhai felt a chill watching Han. He’s using a human corpse like a tool. These
were tactics only expert and veteran soldiers used. The moment Corporal Zhai thought
about whether he should set up booby traps using the corpses, Han already finished
setting one up. Corporal Zhai didn’t think Han’s decision was wrong. He was thinking
of the same way. However, he felt pity for Han in his heart.

‘Han is becoming a soldier faster than anyone. Though, this is how it should be… ’ The
right decision doesn’t always mean that you agree emotionally as well.

Squad Easy moved to their marked position on the map. From time to time, they ran
across Elu hunters and ambushed them before passing by. Minions were marching
without fear in the bigger roads. Squad Easy hid themselves and waited for the minion
army to pass.

‘Just how many minions are in this place?’

It seemed like all the minions that could be summoned on earth were teleported here.
The Elu mages that were in hiding just used their last card to declare an all-out war.
The Allied Forces and Ark quickly requested for more back up. An all-out war from the
dragon army and humanity had begun.

“This is dangerous.”

Corporal Zhai mumbled. There were more minions than they originally predicted. The
most idealistic approach was to wait for the Allied forces to push through to the main
dimensional crack zone and sneak through the weak points. However, the minions
prioritized buying as much time before the main battle.

Peeeeng!

The Black Crow flying in the sky flashed. The Black Crow avoided the Elu mage’s
attacks and flew across the main road. An assault pod dropped out from the Black
Crow.
‘Another team has requested for the psychoframe support. They must have gotten
themselves surrounded.’

Calling for support from Ark’s psychoframe should be everyone’s last resort.
Psychoframe soldiers were the strongest weapons they had in this battle for the worst
situations that might befall them. If they were to fail to stop the dragons from
appearing here, the second calamity of the past would repeat.

Wwwuuoong!

The minions howled and cried out and moved to the psychoframe’s direction.

-Bravo-1 here, we will be retreating with the psychoframe.

Squad Bravo only managed to stop one ceremonial site. They all retreated with the
psychoframe’s aide while getting chased by a horde of minions. The remaining squads
on the battlefield now held a heavier load than before.

“Five additional Squads have been deployed by Ark.”

Han looked to his data bracelet and said. Only psykers could stop the ceremonies. The
only people who could quickly deal with the Elus’ psychic shields to stop the
ceremonies were the psykers. Ark headquarters quickly picked up the withdrawing
squad, and reorganized a set of new troops to help aid the continuing battle.

‘This battle will be longer than previously thought.’

Han bit into an energy bar which tasted like a protein drink in solid form. He took a
sip of water. The rest of the squad took this moment to quickly recharge themselves
with a simple meal.

“There is a ceremony one kilometer from here. This military operation should be
concluded within five minutes. We will stop their ceremony and quickly retreat. We
will be surrounded if we are any slower.

Han narrowed his eyes and looked across the land of ruins. The faint light of the
dimensional crack was visible from this location.

“Silence, we’ll be depending on you.” Han looked to Silence and said. Their core
strength for this tactic was Silence. He was the fastest and most efficient killer. Han
had reserved Silence’s blink skill to this point.

-No problem.

Silence’s psychic levels were not even the slightest bit depleted. Squad Easy moved
out only after the minion army passed by them.

Wuuoong!

Han wrinkled his brows from the blinding light of the dimensional crack. He felt a bit
dizzy. He observed his squad members’ faces one by one. They decided on a hand
signal for the number of cover locations. The squad members will be providing cover
fire while Silence focuses on assassinating the Elu mage.

‘It’s my turn.’

Silence thought to himself and took a deep breath. His shoulder rose slightly and sunk
again.

Sssuu.

He tightly held the dragon bone twin swords. The sharp edge followed the nimble
swing of the arm. His swords were a palm’s width longer than the average sword. The
only person who could expertly wield these swords was Silence due to his inhumanly
athletic body. His five senses far surpassed the average human limit.

‘I’m air.’

Silence imagined in his mind. Mental image was important when manifesting psychic
powers. The more solid one is able to paint a mental picture, the stronger it would
manifest. The psykers who use body strengthening skills will imagine strong boulders
and steel, while regenerative skill users will imagine their limbs and body parts
growing like a lizard’s tail. Silence imagined himself turning into air.

‘When I inhale, my body will disappear. When I exhale, I will appear again.’

Psychic energy flowed out from Silence’s helmet.

Wee-eng.
Silence’s body disappeared. He appeared just before the wide psychic shield.

SWAAA!

Silence swung his swords down in an X-pattern to tear apart the shield. The shield
dissipated like a broken fish net.

Tudududu!

The squad members in hiding behind the cover obstacles appeared. They killed the
grunts and Elus while continuing the dash forward. They killed all the minions that
surrounded Silence. Silence used his blink ability a second time to move forward.

‘One more time.’

Silence consecutively used his blink. His condition was the best because he didn’t use
any of his powers all this time. He easily moved across the space.

“KEEEEE!”

The Elu mage lit up as it glared in Silence’s direction. Silence lifted and swished his
pinky finger. This was a macro he had set up beforehand.

-Kill The Monster. No Mercy.

Silence’s helmet blinked and a text appeared. This was the last thing the Elu mage saw
before it died. CHWAK! Silence decapitated the Elu mage’s head with his dragon bone
twin swords. Blood dripped from where the blades passed.

“WAAGUAAA!”

Two grunts attacked Silence in unison. Silence didn’t even look at them and swung his
arm. The long sword blade easily cut the grunt’s neck, as they gurgled blood and fell.

SWAA!

Silence spun in place to splatter the blood off his swords. Blood would only reduce the
cutting force of the blade. If he didn’t clean off his blade regularly, then his blade would
not be able to easily slice through bone and muscle.
“RETREAT! SIMON, TAKE THE REAR!”

Han shouted. Squad Easy shred the psychic shield and decapitated the Elu mage
within 10 seconds. They sprayed their bullets as they shook off their foes. Squad Easy
ran into the maze-like alleys and hid their presence.

“Squad Easy here, Point 9 has been taken down.”

Han sent a message through his data bracelet. A static filled message arrived not too
long after.

-Alpha-1 here, do you hear me? Easy-1.

Squad Alpha had also completely stopped all the ceremonial sites they’ve been
assigned. They were the fastest squad amongst the deployed. The squad closest to
Alpha was squad Easy.

-Alpha team will join forces with Easy team. The next will be point 8, correct?

The remaining squads quickly messaged to join forces with the squads in their
proximity.

‘So fast.’

These were the seasoned teams of Ark. They were able to finish their objective with
only four psykers and a mix of military servicemen squads. They completed their
objective faster than Han thought possible.

Wwooouung!

Werewolves trailed behind Squad Easy. The werewolves smashed the city buildings as
they dashed with their four limbs. The werewolves climbed walls and jumped over
roofs and easily caught up to Squad Easy.

“Tsk.”

Simon used his telekinesis to throw a motorcycle on the road at the werewolves.

KWAJIK!
The werewolves shook their head and snickered like it only tickled.

“We’re going to the alleyway at our 9 o’clock direction.

Han commanded. Squad Easy continued to shoot their guns to fend off the werewolves
as they ran. Eight werewolves followed them into the narrow alleyway.

-I will deal with them. Fall back.

Silence sent a message. Han didn’t know the exact details, but he left everything to
him. Silence ran up the wall as he lured the werewolves to himself. The werewolves’
claws just barely missed Silence. Squad Easy quickly retreated out of the alleyway in
that time.

Dalkak.

Silence climbed the wall, dropped the grenades on his belt pocket. He pulled the pin
to his last grenade, and dropped it below to the hoard of werewolves.

Wee-eeng.

Silence used his blink skill twice to escape the explosion zone. The alleyway repeatedly
exploded. The alleyway crumbled from the force and the werewolves howled in pain.

“Good work.”

Han said to Silence who just returned. Silence calmly nodded.

‘Silence should gradually be getting tired by now. He should be able to use his blink
skill only once or twice more.’

Squad Easy’s main weapon is Silence. Han constantly observed his squad’s battle
strength.

Squad Easy will join with Squad Alpha in the next four minutes.

“Easy-1, you’re doing well.” Squad Alpha said.

They were the first generation psykers. They were the first generations, but they
didn’t have a psychoframe, so they joined the battle as squad leaders. As veterans
should, they looked to be at ease even in such harsh battle conditions. They had
prevented the two ceremonial sites the fastest.

KOOONG!

They didn’t have time to leisurely greet Squad Alpha. Earthquake-like tremors shook
the whole city. This was due to the widening dimensional crack. There were too many
Elu mages holding ceremonies to open the dimensional gate that the speed at which
the crack opened exponentially quickened.

“We don’t have time to quickly run down what happened up to this point. Assist Alpha,
Easy-1”

The squad leader of Alpha team said while looking at Han. Han nodded and
commanded his squad members. Han quickly looked across Squad Alpha. There were
two psykers and two soldiers. Han quickly ran through Squad Alpha’s skills with his
data bracelet.

‘Alpha-1, squad leader has a unique electric shock skill. Alpha-2 has a self-
reinforcement ability.’

It would be best if he could read through their whole profile, but he didn’t have time.
Alpha and Squad Easy arrived to the next ceremonial point. There were exponentially
more minions gathered around this ceremonial site than the previous locations. It
seemed that news of the attack against Elu mage ceremonial sites had spread.

“Simon and I will eliminate the Elu mage. The rest of Squad Alpha should provide
cover fire.”

Han commanded the squad members. Han understood Simon the best. He understood
the other’s temper, skill, and behavioral pattern like the back of his hand. They had
already worked together twice in real battle as well. In day to day life, they didn’t
communicate or interact at all. Their personalities clashed quite a bit. However, in
battle, they were very suitable teammates. If Canute and Jose were his friends that had
his back, Simon was a comrade he had total faith in.

“Let’s go, Simon.”

Han’s eyes glowed. Simon followed behind him. The minions swarmed immediately.
Han acted as the vanguard as Squad Alpha came charging out. Squad Alpha took care
of the grunts, and the Elus quickly blocked the view.

“Huu.”

Han listened to the sound of his breath and heart beating. He could see a psychic shield
up ahead. Han wielded his spear and swung.

Swaaa!

The psychic shield ripped. Han and Simon entered into the ceremonial zone. They
spotted the Elu mage in the midst of the ceremony. The Elu warriors guarding the
mage charged at Han. Han dashed forward shooting his gun. The Elu warriors held
their shields.

“Simon!”

GUUUOOOO!

Simon mustered his telekinesis to maximum strength. He pulled off the Elu warriors’
shields. He couldn’t pull off the shield from their grasp, but he moved the shield just
enough to provide an opening to shoot the Elu.

PUUH!

Han lowered his stance and stabbed the Elu with a magnificent stance. The Elu’s blood
flowed on the ground.

“Forward! Catch the Mage!”

Simon shouted. Han delayed dealing the finishing blow to the Elu warrior and rolled
forward. He had total faith in Simon’s words and ignored the Elu who was still
breathing.

KOONG!

Simon used his telekinesis to take the shield off a fallen Elu warrior and threw it to the
remaining warrior. The Elu warrior flinched at the impact and in a matter of moments,
Simon’s blade was just before the Elu’s neck. Simon used his remaining telekinesis to
lift all the rocks and wreckage from their immediate surroundings.
Hudududuk!

Simon spread the palm of his hand to make the Elu mage into a pin cushion of rocks.
To protect itself, the Elu mage wrapped itself with a psychic shield.

‘However-’

Han held the end of his spear. His spear punctured the psychic shield.

-Dragon bone nullifies psychic shields.

KWAJIK!

Han’s spear pierced through the Elu mage’s chest. The Elu mage’s body spasmed. Han
roared and attacked another time to completely end the mage’s life. The light from the
Elu mage’s ceremonial site completely dissipated. The tremors in the vicinity of the
dimensional crack zones settled a degree.

“It’s not over yet.”

Han dislodged his spear from the mage’s corpse. The number of minions hoarding
around the area was increasing by the second. It would be harder to retreat now. Han
felt exhausted, but he forced himself to run to the rear.

The grunts jumped out from between the buildings. There were more than several
dozens of them. It would be impossible to deal with all of them with a simple rifle. The
grunts completely disregarded the rifle shots and charged at them. They were wild
creatures geared with a simple blunt weapon, but were menacing in such large
numbers.

“WauJAK!” 2)

The grunts grinded their teeth as they charged. Han and Simon, who forced entry into
the deepest part of the ceremonial site, were in the most danger.

“Don’t look back and run!” Corporal Zhai appeared from the front and provided cover
fire for them. He shot the enemies until his magazine was empty, but the grunts could
not be stopped.

“Piss off!”
Simon used his telekinesis to push back the grunts. This was only a temporary
measure. There was great resistance when it came to using telekinesis on living
creatures that had flowing blood. People could easily lift a 100 kilogram item with
their telekinesis, however many couldn’t use their telekinesis to lift even a single
human. The grunts were only slightly pushed back.

“Damn it, I’m so tired!”

Simon’s face appeared to be completely flushed red as he ran. They could only manage
to catch their breaths after rejoining with their squad while shaking their rifles.

Bang! Bang!

Squad Alpha had a grenade launcher with them. They shot their grenades toward the
hoard of minions in the distance. The explosion shook the area as the minions
screamed.

“How many more of these guys are there?”

The squad members of Alpha Team complained. Alpha and Easy squad members each
took positions on the left and right as they retreated. If they dropped their guard, they
could easily get surrounded by the hoard of minions.

‘One psychoframe has already been used. There are only two left.’

They would need to call for a psychoframe pilot’s support if they can’t retreat from
this place. That also means that the chances for other squads to call for support
decreases. Ark must maintain at least four psychoframe pilots on standby in the case
that dragons are actually summoned here. Amongst the seven psychoframe pilots,
only three can offer ground support. Ark has already notified the troops before they
were deployed.

‘We must escape with our own efforts.’

Han observed the rallying minions. He momentarily paused shooting his gun and
slipped between his squad members. He pulled out the Tirania city map from his data
bracelet. His eyes scanned the map quickly. He zoomed into his current location and
confirmed everything available to him in the surroundings.

‘Think.’
During his second year in Ark, he took several days to read through his opponents’
profiles and battle terrain to set up a battle plan. However, in actual battle, military
tactics must be thought up impromptu a majority of the time. Han’s fast calculations
and observation skills shined the most in actual battle. It seemed like a flash of light
passed his thoughts. Han grasped the sliver of hope and opened his eyes from the
darkness.

‘A swimming pool.’

There was a giant community swimming pool not so far away. Even if the city was in
ruins, the swimming pool should still be full to some extent from the rain water.

‘If there is water in the pool… squad leader of Alpha team can use his electric shock
ability.’

Han felt conflicted. This could end up to be a futile effort. However, one can never be
100 percent sure in battle. They can only work to raise the chance of victory to the
best of their ability. Han sent a message to the Alpha team squad leader who was about
20 meters away.

“Alpha-1, we will lead the way.”

Alpha squad leader looked to Han and nodded. Han looked at his map and chose the
fastest route. They arrived at the location in a short moment.

“This should be the place.”

When the Alpha squad leader saw the swimming pool facility, he instantly understood
Han’s intentions. They walked in. This place was originally constructed to be a water
amusement park, but now it’s just a place of rusted ruins. There were stains of old
blood here and there.

“It’s dried.”

Han’s lips trembled. He could see the dried floor bottom of the pool which has become
warped and distorted through time. The swimming pool floor had a crack that let all
the water leak out.

Thump, thump.
Han’s heart raced. Alpha and Easy team had come to this place due to his own
command. Everything was for naught. Heavy guilt sat on his heart. It felt like he’d been
dropped down into despair.

“Calm down, Han! It’s okay. Nobody is dead.” Corporal Zhai said. Han listened to
Corporal Zhai’s words and snapped back to his senses.

OOOWWuuu!

The werewolves thumping steps could be heard. Elus and grunts screamed as they
trailed just behind the werewolves.

“Alert for Psychoframe support. We need to call them before it’s too late.”

Corporal Zhai said to the Alpha team squad leader. The Alpha team squad leader
agreed and nodded. They needed to call for a psychoframe before they were
completely surrounded.

“Wait, for a moment.”

Han scanned his surroundings. Something caught his eye. There was a cistern water
tank which was a bit sunken down due to the passage of time. It was covered in tree
vines and thickets. If it wasn’t for Han’s habitual behavior of observing everything in
his surrounding, nobody would have discovered it.

The water tank was about three floors tall. Han observed the direction the minions
were charging from and the angle of the water tank’s legs. He roughly estimated
various calculations in his mind. The whole battle operation was calculated in a matter
of seconds. The entire plan cemented into his mind. Han called out commands quickly.

“Silence, carve out the top portion of the water tank, then confirm that there is still
water inside. It’s enough for it to be filled two-thirds of the way. Psykers, come help
me. The rest of you should build a blockade line. Hurry.” Han said quickly.

Silence only discovered the water tank after hearing Han’s command.

‘I can’t despair over failure.’

Han mumbled silently to himself. Silence followed Han’s command and blinked to the
top of the water tank. He used his twin swords to slice off a portion of the top. Water
splashed out from the impact. The water had been kept inside for a long time and let
off putrid rancid fumes.

Fwip!

Silence signed a thumbs up for Han.

“They’re coming!”

The soldiers who built a blockade line shouted while shooting their guns. They won’t
be able to hold up for very long. Han and the remaining psykers combined their
strength to break the cistern water tank tower legs.

“Not yet, stand by!”

The psykers used their telekinesis to hold the water tank. The minions drew closer
every second. Han patiently waited for the right moment without rushing.

“Let go!”

The psykers let go of their telekinesis. The water tank tilted to the side and fell on top
of the minions. The water completely drenched the minions who were charging
forward, and the water pooled on the floor.

“Electric barbeque sounds good for dinner tonight!”

The Alpha team squad leader placed his hand on the water. His eyes lit up into a
blinding yellow. It seemed as if lightning was shooting out his eyes. His unique skill
was lightning. He could control lightning.

PaJik!

Sparks flew. Electric currents flowed through his fingertips like he was starting a car
engine. The squad leader took a deep breath and roared out to the top of his lungs.

Pajijiji-jik!

The electricity shot through the water to the minions. The drenched minions were
shocked almost simultaneously. There was no way for the minions to escape because
the entire floor of the area was covered like a swamp. Smoke rose from the electric
shock charging through all the minions. Even the werewolves who had a high
regeneration ability couldn’t put a fight against the shock that attacked their bodies.

Pajik, pajik.

Sparks exploded everywhere. The minions convulsed and fell to the floor. The minions
who managed to avoid the water had bullets shot through their heads.

“Haa.”

Alpha team squad leader faltered backwards. He roughly wiped the blood from his
nose and grabbed his gun. He depleted all his psychic energy so that he wouldn’t miss
this huge chance to deal a blow. He felt dizzy and exhausted.

“We must keep moving.”

Han supported the Alpha team squad leader and said. His tone of voice didn’t have a
shred of joy or emotion. Even with this sweeping success, Han didn’t display a bit of
joy. The military operation had not concluded yet. They simply managed to escape the
worst situation, and there was no time to feel relieved.

Squad leader of Alpha team observed Han’s expression.

‘So this is why he was selected as a squad leader. I was wondering why they gave a
rookie a squad leader position in this time of crisis… ’

Han had all the qualities to become a field commander. This was an advantageous skill
that could be used in all battles. Most importantly, he had the ability to quickly calm
down. People’s judgements become greatly dulled due to emotions. Whether it was
happiness or sadness, any emotion to the extreme will narrow one’s field of view and
dull the judgment ability.

“We will entrust the next operation location to Easy-1.”

The Alpha team squad leader said. The Alpha squad members nodded. The squad
leader of Alpha team had depleted his psychic energy and so his judgment had dulled
a huge degree. There was a perfect substitute squad leader here, there was no reason
for him to continue to push himself.

Han left the swimming pool area and attempted to communicate with the other
squads. The majority of the squads managed to stop most of the ceremonial sites.

“You’re doing well, Han.” Corporal Zhai said. At this point, he felt even if he was not
present, Han would do fine as a squad leader here.

‘Honestly, he exceeded my expectations. He’s the type to do well under high pressure.’

Squad Easy gradually joined forces with the rest of the squads. A good portion of the
men were now psykers after three to four squads joined. Now the minions were the
ones to become greatly pressured. Rather than hunting, the minions were busy trying
to escape.

“The enemy is starting to gather in the same place.”

“It’s the last remaining point.”

Another squad leader said. The minions stopped attacking them. The minions
changed tactics to a passive defense. They just got the news that the Balkan Alliance
were near victory.

‘They are trying to summon a dragon even after suffering such large casualties.’

Han shivered upon the minion military force’s persistence.

Dragons had the power to change the tide of this battle. All of the modern weapons
would become useless. Only psykers are able to kill dragons, and amongst psykers,
only psychoframe pilots can achieve a chance of victory. Without a psychoframe, even
if all the psykers in this place combined forces, it would be hard to inflict the smallest
wound to the dragon. Even if they were able to win, there would be heavy casualties
from both sides.

“Do you have extra magazines?”

“Check with Squad Fox.”

“We have a few grenades we can spare. You can take some if you need them.”

The squads took an inventory of their gears before their last battle. They allocated the
needed magazines, grenades, and necessary equipment. Squad Easy had used up a
large portion of their grenades and restocked their supplies by receiving extras from
the other squads.

“We’ll take a break for five minutes.”

The additional squads that Ark sent were infiltrating from the opposite side. They
would join forces at the battle field. Before this time, they had a bit of time to catch
their breath. The squads took turns keeping watch. The soldiers sat down exhausted.

“Simon, how’s your condition?” Han asked. Simon used a majority of his psychic
powers during battle.

“I can recover a fair amount after resting. I won’t drag you down so you should stop
concerning yourself with me.” Simon said bluntly.

Han nodded and walked over to Silence. Even though it was time for a break, Han went
around to check his squad’s condition.

-I didn’t push myself too hard so I’m okay. You should rest a bit.

Silence wrote out in his data bracelet. Han nodded and exchanged a look with Corporal
Zhai. Even without Han’s assistance, Corporal Zhai could perfectly take care of himself.

‘It should be the end soon.’

Han took off his helmet and shook his hair. His hair was drenched in his own sweat
and stuck to his forehead. Every muscle of his body cramped. The fatigue of battle was
starting to weigh his body down.

Silence peered to Han. Han couldn’t see Silence’s eyes, but he could feel the other’s
stare.

“What?”

-Don’t die.

“I don’t have a reason to.”

Silence felt a bit fearful and terrified of Han’s coldness during battle. Han looked like
a person without the capability of feeling emotion. He didn’t appear to be courageous,
but because the other didn’t have emotions, he could carry out battle tactics in the
most ideal ways. Even if Han had to die, if this was the best method to carry out the
plan, it seemed as if Han will select this route without batting an eye.

-Courage is not the absence of fear; overcoming fear is courage.

“Where did you see that?”

Han could easily conclude that these were borrowed words from somewhere. Silence
often times took words from the movies he watched.

– A movie called, The Samurai Who Cut the Moon. I’ll let you borrow it when we return
to Ark.

Once their break ended, the squad leaders all stood. They opened a communication
channel for all the squads here. Now, the last battle would begin.

The Elu mage spread out its psychic shield over a wide area. The radius of the area
was about 30 meters. All around the shield were the piles of useless and broken
modern weapons. All different sorts of minions circled the outside of the psychic
shield. The soldier who was in charge of observing let out a bitter chuckle.

“It’s a basilisk. I never knew I would be seeing it again in my life.”

A basilisk loomed in between the hoard of minions. These were minions categorized
as monsters. They will not budge against simple attacks. The minions categorized as
monsters cannot be taken down by regular infantry soldiers or by normal means.

“Kuurrrk.”

The basilisk’s face looked like a mix between an alligator and a rhinoceros, while its
skin was as hard as a rock. Many large thorns were adorned down his spine. They
didn’t have petrification skills like in the fantasy books, however, their jaws could
easily tear through steel. A simple flick of their tail will send all the inner organs
spewing out. The basilisk was the emperor of land-walking monsters which made
even trains look like plastic toys.

-Understood. We will send one psychoframe pilot to assist.

Black Crow communicated. The current squads would not be able to take down the
basilisk. So, the squads called for a psychoframe. Currently, there were 5 psychoframe
pilots flying upon the Black Crow. Out of the 7, one was deployed to help a squad so
that they could retreat, and another was called by the Allied Forces.

“Easy Squad will support Fox Squad. Fox Squad will be the ones to take down the Elu
mage. Our role is to take down the foes who obstruct Fox Squad.”

Han commanded his squad members. He tightly secured the end of his battle helmet.
Anxiety flowed amongst all the soldiers.

-3, 2, 1, 0.

Something fell from the sky. An assault pod with a psychoframe that dropped from the
Black Crow. The assault pod broke in mid air. A psychoframe which let off a blue light
appeared from within.

Booom!

The psychoframe pilot landed with a slightly bent knee. The ground cracked in two
from the impact which caused the minions in the area to trip and falter on top of one
another. The reinforcement troop’s size didn’t lose against the 2 meter tall
werewolves. The psychoframe’s exoskeleton is made of dragon material and the high
degree of durability and flexibility could not be explained through science. They were
the black box weapon of choice for psychic soldiers to fight against the odds.

The reinforcement psyker swung their arms amongst the hoard of minions. They
wielded a giant sword about the size of a person, so only the slightest effort was
needed to chop the minions into two. They could easily jump up ten meters in the air
with a short leap.

-Go, Fox Team!

As soon as the reinforcement psyker took on the basilisk, the remaining squads moved
out. Shouts of all languages could be heard from every direction.

“Tail after Fox.” Han commanded.

Easy Squad followed running behind Fox Squad. Easy Squad took care of the grunts
who came attacking.

Fox Squad roughly ran through the battle ground. Fox Squad’s specialty was
reinforcing their muscles with psychic power, they buffed themselves to run
inhumanly fast. They ran 100 meters within 4 seconds, and pushed the minions away
with their shoulders. They used their dragon bone weapons to shred the psychic
shield and infiltrate inside.

-Support Fox-3

The minions increased in the surrounding area to stop Fox Squad. The nimble Elu
hunters began to shoot their arrows. Fox Squad dodged and reduced their running
speed.

Han scanned the area making sure to not miss the smallest detail.

“Silence, on top of the hatch.”

Han pushed Silence’s back. Pa-aah! Silence used his blink to arrive at the Elu hunter’s
location. He wielded his twin blades like he was dancing. The Elu hunter’s head
tumbled down and rolled on the ground.

“End it, Fox.”

Fox Squad was free of the Elu hunter’s attacks and was just ahead of the Elu mage’s
location. The Elu mage glared and flared his psychic energy. Fox Squad tumbled
backwards from the sudden impact, but they held their ground and stood up again.

A squad member of fox team took position and aimed. He used the chance when the
Elu mage didn’t use a psychic shield to shoot his gun.

Bang!

The Elu mage’s head shook. The bullet just barely scratched his head. A portion of its
hair and scalp where the bullet grazed was dug out. The Elu mage pressed on its head
injury. Blood seeped and dripped out from the wound.

“KAK!”

The Elu mage cast a psychic shield around its body. Fox Squad took out their dragon
bone weapons. They simultaneously attacked the Elu mage. Elu mages fared the worst
in close combat.
“Decapitate it!”

A faint light of psychic energy flowed from the Elu mage’s eyes. Fox Squad stomped on
the mage’s body and swung their weapons a second time to completely put it out of
its misery.

Paah!

Upon the Elu mage’s death, the psychic energy surrounding the altar dissipated. The
blinding light from the dimensional crack also dimmed a great deal.

“OOOOOUUU!”

The Elus looked to be in shock. The minions fell into chaos upon the death of the
commanding Elu, and the foe’s movements were disorderly and messy.

‘Is it the end?’

Han swung the blood on his spear off and looked across the area. The landscape
suddenly sunk and tilted to one side.

BOOM—!

The dimensional crack which sunk suddenly jolted. There was a single shake. A hand
appeared from the opening of the dimensional crack. The altar set up by the Elu mage
was weighed down and crushed. A black reptilian like skinned foot appeared.

GGUUUUOOO–!!

A strong current of psychic energy flew in the air. Nobody could properly keep their
eyes open.

“No.”

Somebody said. They only saw a sharp claw from a foot. A foot which belonged to a
black-colored reptile. That was enough to understand. Everyone in this place
immediately knew what it was.

“WAJARU! DRAGU!” 3)
The grunts shouted and kowtowed their heads onto the ground. They turned their
backs to the soldiers of ark. They bowed to the dimensional crack, perfectly fine that
they could be shot dead by the soldiers at any time. They looked almost pious. They
appeared like they didn’t mind death if it was for the sake of their master……

“Kaarururu…”

A low growl flowed from the dimensional crack. None of the soldiers of Ark could
move a muscle. Their hands and legs were stiff in fear. A portion of them lost all
strength and fell to the floor. Even Silence couldn’t endure and lost the grip on his
swords and fell on his butt.

Dragon Fear, the dragon’s breath and odor carries psychic energies. Every aspect of
dragons overflowed with psychic energy! Just its presence was enough to freeze
humans in fear. Humans will be unable to move at all, as if they were facing off against
a natural enemy. Faint hearted humans might even die just being in the presence of
dragons.

“Kaa—oooooo–uuuu—!”

The dragon stuck its neck out of the dimensional crack and roared. It managed to take
a single step out and poke out its head.

“Wh, what is that?”

One of the third years mumbled. They managed to just barely utter out.

The thing which appeared from the dimensional crack was a black dragon. However,
it appeared to look different than everything they learned.

The dragons which appeared all this time were forty to fifty meters tall and weighed
more than 150 tons.

‘Its head alone is over 10 meters.’

The black dragon in a single glance could be easily measured to be twice the size of a
normal dragon. It used its yellow eyes to scan its surroundings. It looked to be looking
for food and stared across to the humans.

“Drago! Drago!” 4)
The minions worshipped the dragon. They believed it would save them all. The black
dragon opened its jaws and chomped down on all the minions it could reach.

Crunch! Crunch!

It was a shocking scene. The dragon chowed down on the minions. Blood dripped from
between its teeth. The dragon laughed as if satisfied. The dragon sent a bloody glare
to the humans. Its yellow eyes suddenly turned red. Madness and psychic energy
spilled out from the dragon. Even when the comrades of the minions died, they all
continued to worship the dragon.

Tremble, tremble.

Han’s legs shook. The sheer terror which attacked the mind wasn’t something which
could be easily shaken off with normal means. This was a physiological phenomenon.
They were just a push away from sanity. The psykers could feel the dragons sinister
energies. No, even normal humans would be able to clearly feel the dark energies.

‘It despises us.’

They were the worst enemy of humans. They wish to push the existence of humans to
extinction. No epidemic, disease or wars, had killed off more humans than what the
dragons have done all this time.

Dragons held pure malice and hostility against humans. There was no reason behind
their malice against humans. They just simply hated and detested humans.

‘A creature of pure evil against humanity.’

Han didn’t need any further explanation why dragons and humans could not coexist.
Coexistence was impossible. There would be no form of peace as long as the other
existed. There was no need for cause of belief. They simply fought against one another
to continue existing in this world.

Han just barely managed to get a hold of himself. Even the first generation psykers
who had fought against dragons before could only manage to utter simple words.
Normal soldiers couldn’t fight off the dragon fear which completely immobilized them.

‘Its stuck. It forced the gate open and squeezed itself through the small opening.’
The black dragon couldn’t squeeze itself out of the dimensional crack. It was trying to
forcefully push itself out. Han stared into the black dragon’s eyes. He felt like he would
go crazy from a simple glance. His mind felt empty.

‘Endure it, such a thing like fear.’

Only Han looked square in the eyes against the dragon. The dragon was looking at the
sky. It looked to the psychoframes flying it the sky as if already very familiar with
them… The Black Crow flew in the stratosphere where it could avoid the psychic
waves.

The soldiers were frozen in fear waiting for backup reinforcements of the
psychoframe pilots. The psychoframe on the ground had already depleted their
psychic energy and stood in place exhausted.

‘I can’t just stupidly sit here and wait.’

Why isn’t the black dragon immediately attacking the soldiers? Does it enjoy watching
humans feel fear…? Han felt doubtful that would be the case. He felt a bad premonition.
There was a minute left before the assault pod would drop down to the ground.

JUUK!

The black dragon opened its mouth while looking at the sky. It seemed like the psychic
energy in the air was gathering inside its maws.

“I need to go.”

Han took a single step forward. The second generation psykers adjusted to the dragon
fear much faster than the first generation psykers. Amongst the second years, Han was
the fastest. Even Silence who was dubbed to be the strongest was on the ground,
frozen.

Han thought carefully. He could never just wait for others to help him. After the
orphanage fell to ruin, he led the children out. He didn’t try to rationalize that
eventually, someone would save the children of the orphanage. If someone must do
it…

‘If I don’t do something, everyone will die.’

Tah.

Han’s eyes grew wide. The Elu hunter’s body in the mound of corpses moved. The
bloody Elu hunter slowly drew its arrow. The psychic arrow was so faint that it looked
like it would disappear at any moment.

‘Can I avoid it?’

His body felt heavy. He couldn’t feel his legs. He could just barely manage to run
forward. The Elu hunter’s psychic arrow looked gigantic.

‘Just avoid a headshot and block it with my body, then continue forward.’

Han thought it would be impossible to avoid the arrow.

PAH!

The psychic arrow flew. Han grit his teeth shut. He crossed his arms into an X and
covered his face.

Puk!

He heard the psychic arrow hit something. Han didn’t feel any pain.

‘A grunt?’

A grunt corpse far away blocked the psychic arrow.

“RUN!”

Simon shouted from behind Han’s back. Simon overcame dragon fear and used
telekinesis. He moved the grunt’s corpse to protect Han. He spread the palm of his
hand, and controlled the grunt corpse as if he was moving a puppet.

‘That bastard is moving, there’s no reason I can’t.’

Simon was the one to teach how to manifest psychic energy to Han. He looked down
on Han back then. He thought the poor asian fool would quickly drop out. He had
taught Han for just a few snacks.
‘The brat who used to be like that is moving faster than everyone.’

It was as if Simon’s pride was stomped upon and he felt stupid, he couldn’t allow this
to continue. Simon snapped back to his senses due to the problem of his own pride.

Weeeng-!

The psychic energy started taking form inside the dragon’s maw. Blue energy lights
swirled and glowed.

“Ah, AAAAAH-!!”

Han shouted and grasped his spear. His hands trembled. The closer he drew in, the
more his body stiffened.

‘I will… ’

Han grasped his spear higher up. He stomped on the ground and ran. The dragon’s
head was just inches away.

‘…will kill you.”

All the senses of his body were numb, as he could only feel the sensation which
gripped his hand. He pierced through the mushy shell of the eyes and stabbed harder.

Puuk!

The spear stuck into the dragon’s eyes. The dragon roared as it wildly shook its head.
Han’s eardrums exploded and blood burst out from his ears.

Pe-eew!

The psychic energy spewed out from the dragon’s jaws. The psychic beam of light shot
high up into the sky and dissipated to nothing. The energy shot far past out into the
stratosphere. It exploded out in the air and caused a storm-like wave to spread all
around.

KWAANG!

Han got caught up in a gust of wind and went tumbling. He fell down onto a boulder
and he could hear the sound of his bones breaking. At the same time, blood spewed
from his mouth.

The psychic beam shot out for more than three seconds. It destroyed everything it
touched. The black dragon was stronger than any dragon that had appeared in the
history of Earth. Its size and strength was on another level.

“The Black Crow…!”

The Black Crow was shot down. The remnant wreckage shined in the sky. How far had
the assault pod flown? Were the backup reinforcements caught up in the explosion? If
the psychoframe reinforcements were caught in the explosion, their situation was
hopeless.

“Kgrr.”

The Black Dragon used its claws to scratch out its ruined eyes. It glared at Han with its
only eye. The dragon put Han into its mind as a special human. He was the enemy that
left a deep scar on its body.

‘I shall tear you to pieces with all the hatred in my bones-! The Black Dragon pointed
its claw. The sharp claw was just moments away from tearing Han’s body to pieces.

Piiing-!

A tiny dot shot down from the sky at a high speed. It wasn’t an assault pod, but a
psychoframe. The psychoframe’s shell was glowing red from overheat. It was caught
up in the explosion, but somehow managed to escape.

‘I was the only one to survive.’

The reinforcement mumbled and looked down. He will soon hit the ground. He used
his unique skill. No matter how strong the psychoframe, without an assault pod’s
assistance, the pilot would die due to the impact.

‘However, if it’s me… ’

The reinforcement psyker used his unique skill. He spread psychic energy to buff his
entire body to the max.
BBOOOM!

The psychoframe reinforcement landed on the ground. The ground sunk from the
impact. A portion of the outer shell fell off, leaving only the skeleton of the
psychoframe.

‘My toes are broken. My ankles are also broken, and the bone at my buttocks cracked.’

However, he needed to keep moving. The reinforcements of Black crow were

administered battle stimulant. The drug worked to dull the pain. He looked at the
Black Dragon. It was much bigger than the dragons which appeared 10 years ago.

‘It doesn’t have an eye. Who did it?’

The reinforcement saw Han fainted just near the dragon’s location.

‘Could it be Chan?’

There was only one person who called Han, Chan. Johnny Schwartz. Three
reinforcements oxidized into nothing along with Black Crow. The only survivor was
Schwartz who gave up the assault pod.

“MOVE YOUR FEET!”

Schwartz ran to the dragon. All the battle gear broke off when he reinforced his own
body earlier. He only had his bare hands now. He gave up his chance to live and burned
even his life as he poured all the psychic energy to his fist.

KWAJIK!

Schwartz uppercut the dragon’s lower jaw. It was a tiny fist compared to the dragon,
but the strength was enough to shake the dragon. The fist reinforced with psychic
energy was effective against the dragon.

Schwartz was an annoying existence to the Black dragon. It wished to attack the
fainted Han rather than bother with this person. Han didn’t die because Schwartz had
interrupted it.

“Gkrr.”
The Black Dragon glared at Schwartz. Schwartz flinched from dragon fear, but quickly
moved again. He was able to quickly fend off the dragon fear with his psychoframe and
battle stimulant.

Badudududk

The dimensional gate did not fully open. It was too small for the dragon to move
through. The crack began to narrow and choke the dragon. It had forced itself through
the dimensional crack and used most of its strength trying to force the gate open wider
to move through, so its strength was not at its original level. The Black dragon decided
it was time to return. However, it wished to kill Han who injured its eye before it left.

‘It’s aiming for Chan.’

The Black Dragon’s body sunk deeper into the dimensional crack. Schwartz ran to
Han’s direction. Han managed to barely open his eyes and look at Schwartz.

“It will hurt but endure it!”

Schwartz grabbed the back of Han’s neck and threw him. Han’s senses snapped awake
from the other’s voice.

“Schwartz?”

There was no answer. Han dropped down to an area far away from the dragon. The
broken bones in his body stabbed him in every way possible.

“KUUOOO!”

The dragon roared. Han was out of reach. Schwartz had ruffled the dragon the wrong
way for awhile now. The accumulated punches started to twang with pain.

[Instead of him, it will be you.]

Schwartz’s eyes widened in shock. A voice filled his mind as if a claw scratched down
a steel plate. This was the dragon’s voice.

‘This dragon is different from the other dragons!’

Schwartz attempted to retreat. He realized the Black Dragon was sinking back into the
dimensional crack.

KWAK!

The dragon grasped onto Schwartz with its claw as it sunk in deeper. Schwartz had
already depleted his psychic energy. He could only manage to move his psychoframe
at this point. He didn’t have the strength to fend off the dragon.

GUUOOO!

The dragon and Schwartz sank into the dimensional crack together. The dimensional
crack closed shut.

[Next will be you.]

Han heard the voice clearly. The dragon’s voice pierced through his mind. Han’s neck
felt constrained and couldn’t speak. The dimensional crack was shut, but the dragon
fear still hung in the air.

Schwartz had disappeared together with the dragon. Nobody knows where they went.
Han moved the end of his finger. He looked across with chilling eyes. Schwartz had
been dragged in to be killed in Han’s place. Han knew.

Han gritted his teeth. Blood surged from his mouth. His body belatedly started to hurt.
If he didn’t have an artificially strengthened body, he would have died more than ten
times by now. Rather than groaning in pain, he slowly uttered several words.

“Yes… let us meet again. I will be sure to end your life.”

The eighth dragon which appeared in the Tirana dimensional crack was bigger and
stronger than any of its predecessors. Ark attached the code name, Bahamut, to the
dragon.

Johnny Schwartz was dubbed missing instead of dead.