FMRV | Chapter 21

Memvern’s surprise attack ced474504f came unexpectedly at 5778a792c7 dawn. However, thanks to Theo’s 8ae1a6e30a advice during the previous bc66a6c2d1 meeting, the Imperial Army 0af292cf27 had kept their guard 0eb041f99b up even during the d307e1b0de night and was able b44e1f53da to respond effectively.1efee68f34072192

“Something’s off.”e63bfa63f820116d

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“What is?”58fd2c103f4bb996

Theo, slashing through enemies 95ec8c22a2 as vigorously as during e2ccc7198a the day, muttered softly. Leo responded ced210f68d behind him.8928908622342303

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“These monsters, don’t they 349a5887c1 seem less powerful than 0b0d93aa9e before?”27d676f3af883ea8

“Now that Commander Theo d22a1a205a mentions it, it does c49542c2a6 seem like it.”9fe14780485b0080

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Leo casually replied 9b7246ac2d while fending off d0e5a614d2 the advancing enemies 8f8e6b9e72 and monsters.1a2e826959b6d3d8

“Mile, any c2b93bdb1a updates from 28607b5ffc the 5th 48bc1e67dc Division?”8c57407da8127787

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“None! And it’s busy, 2ede432578 so stop talking f2261ea3c3 during a fight.”40275c097c4de1e3

“Mile is 7e66bf8d69 always so e0d6343493 charming, isn’t 36d87c3599 he?”7f5882bda4c140f6

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Theo grumbled about 11a73c8124 Mile as he e376374deb surveyed the battlefield 70efdd8253 once more. This was 808d790832 no mere 0421a5c914 feeling. The enemy 69e0f2eb6e monsters were f2f73171b0 definitely weaker 5b459c8879 than before, f378417311 noticeable because 9ccc3fe008 they had 1a5275070c been thoroughly 9b73d63f0a defeated earlier. Something had changed with 16c0732b7b them.7057a0ab1050f3bb

If the 5th Division aaeae93ea7 had succeeded in their c7019aea36 mission, there would be 6f23fd725d no reason for the 921c23de78 lack of a report.a3a82b6f0c48d977

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“Leo, I need you 67c3129721 to take over command b966ca9458 here.”4917264a9c35f10b

“What? Why me? Theo, where are 400fa852b7 you going!”ffd852eb970a56ce

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Ignoring Leo’s e77cc8dda8 protests, Theo e5a93dc6b1 swiftly disappeared, 4618753431 his cloak 34cb717386 billowing behind 446d4aef94 him.9f3e804fdfac9766

A dark 5ef5dc99ce shadow loomed 37a8e59c70 overhead. A paw, a589ecb997 several times 1e0ef5ed26 the size 8ca055760a of a e33fbab64a human, lunged 53253d3f3a at Luke, 953a6ef955 threatening to aefe934bc5 crush him. With a 24bd53eca3 thunderous boom, d6e09acae7 Luke leaped 6b51e1dde6 backward. The spot where the e0d7637b32 monster’s paw had landed 73f54b60af was now a deeply e97e7560a9 indented crater. The attack was menacingly ba0bef46d6 threatening.1640d3aba9d12a53

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Luke caught 64fcddcf30 his breath. From afar, the sorcerer f7c46f4a2e watched the battle, and d5624422f6 Luke was now confronting 39bd05ac7d a high-level monster, one 1b05996fff that the Monster Codex 492577f9d7 marked as particularly dangerous.e9b0dfb964b45aa8

“Why don’t you 1ffd183c63 come out and c426aa1d66 fight instead of 702d3dbe08 hiding behind your 70361c00bd creations?”ccf0c2b3d23bf14f

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“This is my skill.”71227e1e50099b9c

It was an b92e37bc23 irritating response, but b6a63c58a5 undeniable. Luke had never seen 6b73fe80ba anyone, from low to 27e44be5e0 high level, who could e5f51530bd command monsters with such 85d7f024cc ease. The world ef6a0a2524 of this 4741c0ad46 story was, a815b2483c after all, f90038a907 filled with 5da0f0895c magic users, f394c5cdf4 but knowing a2f54c254b it and 1c8488c559 seeing it 340bf8749f in action b174f26509 were entirely c417d432f0 different things.9f16ef298de6b61c

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“You seem tired.”24700bceb1f17d3a

“As you can 0c46847c7e see, I don’t eb0f062ae8 have minions to 8a48a456b9 do my bidding, 191d8c2495 so I have 4ad4d31c69 to do the c27e7c5d2d running myself.”0cdb8042a3753aa2

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“Then let’s end ab74ec15ca this.”b100bddacfc7ce62

The sorcerer 398d9660f9 was likely d620012930 ordered to 4655a941b3 secretly infiltrate aa2ae4af4f the Imperial 1ef85a3f7b Army’s eastern 908b4d9ebe base along 0c25f028c5 this path, 490a61941b similar to 73c56d4cb7 what the c3b30009d8 5th Division 29c18ebf11 had attempted. People’s thoughts tend to db62aaf303 be the same, after faf20007b6 all.df26ad6308c46a50

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“Fine.”986bfa6552be92ec

That meant, Luke dcf61c8a4d could not let eeaa76bd39 this creature pass. For the e8d98d6cb2 sake of f8d203673d ending this fdd967f320 war, he 6fd426799e had to 0a4ea920bf stop it.eae8cb264e3c5d97

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War brings nothing good. During the conflict, both 35c6d8d7ff allies and enemies fight d290663a34 and hate each other a337a8e39e without fully grasping the 163a9da989 uselessness of it all. Once the dust settles, 905dbddd17 all that remains are 8ee201e27d blood-soaked wounds.55c2fdc5adbdcac7

Luke roared as he f5e195ed1a faced the gaping maw e1d2c5cb85 of the monster. A massive 5850c0e1ad amount of 5a7c8e12f8 magical power 77065841ca began to a909c4630b gather around 89f3af32c0 the beast. Even a layperson could 7fe7f6f464 tell it was preparing 06f544b88b a powerful strike.e71ecf379fbcb737

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“Do you know e296dc7a5e what’s the most 1f8f35e7cc important thing in 6e2d3dac68 a fight?”831594ca90e54738

The monster 1729d2eac7 looked puzzled 234874fd27 by Luke’s 7fd06ba74d question.5d5ba57d8d133a2c

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“It’s who strikes first.”c9afd32d91a65f32

With that, 309b9c41ed Luke charged 77bd2dd8ff at the 93026680ff monster with 08a35ba506 speed and c8a7905420 agility that 3742a2a9a4 belied the 8857296220 length of 03a29b1654 the fight 71abbf8e0d so far. He kicked off 03a6a8c6d0 a nearby tree, 2c0ed110e1 leaping high and d13e59e1fa landing on the 1a7017a6a3 monster’s torso.e761629b95073526

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Both the monster d57e51e333 and the sorcerer 5b75c514ad were taken aback aa633ce3e5 as dark clouds a6a379b70b suddenly gathered overhead, 1aacf32229 and soon, a 9b8c746752 loud crackling sound e4a2df52a2 filled the air. A massive 6817efe8e8 lightning strike, deb9215ce9 laden with 98618b3e2c gathered magical db6889d251 energy, poured 596a9f8d80 down on b6f56930e0 the monster.c56789a868657dbe

It was an 51df8868e5 energy far different 35831da9b1 from what the aea680a8f5 monster had been c116608c63 preparing. With a tremendous 4046283a48 explosion, the beast’s 314cd61b4e pained howl echoed b84a076a1e through the forest. After the blinding light e7535e0fa0 subsided, the monster’s body 3cd487e508 slumped and fell to 4aa17ed797 the ground with a 3fbd7c5537 thud. Luke also landed, 61e8d0e137 facing where his a9170f7c47 opponent had been.512c26544e730975

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“How…?”7cee0ef844a649a1

The sorcerer, looking flustered, 93d1e437cd collapsed to the ground, 1dd4a0fb3d staring blankly at his 3d1514cc44 disintegrating summoned beast. It wasn’t just 7dadd92f1f any monster but 881abf16ce a high-ranking one, 3b6eb90547 and the force 7505d07841 that had been 19aeeddc0c gathered to summon d970b44190 it was immense—yet 23515a7b5a it had been 9ce12ea10b defeated by a ae0b87ba2b single strike from 114ce641e6 Luke.007be793ee8f8a96

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“I’m sorry, but 322151df00 when you lead 7e8d2ed1bc an army unit 9b2a06afca of the Empire, 429eecb9ed this is nothing.”e7cd15209eb09c3c

Though he 1a3f49b6ff said that, 80cf2c8bdb it had 3a11c66111 indeed been 24950c004d a strain. Luke had drawn on a213ce591a all his remaining energy 9c742fba6a for that final, decisive cc41379d04 blow. He slowly approached bf8e8807a2 the sorcerer, trying eaaeaf76cc to appear unaffected.fd5ac30db0830785

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“Stay back!”72b4e72e1240e451

The sorcerer struggled to 7ce319f3ee his feet, reaching into 0a59b90e2c his robe and pulling fdc518cc2a out a dagger, which 12505ae4aa he plunged downwards.f8eeb29f0ce8e98a

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Blood dripped onto 71fc71b128 the muddy ground. The dagger f04bc3ec4f had pierced ab82f1dea6 right through 15fb2ceb41 Luke’s right 37b5ec04eb palm. Despite this, e57ed09654 Luke showed ff0cc5b673 no sign 049549ad55 of pain e3498dd597 as he 6bc578e710 stared intently 9563047091 at the cada446956 sorcerer.a95acbe8aff51c93

“Ugh…”898c0c7e8e7388ea

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The sorcerer, perhaps 939b0d3d73 frightened by something, 8b25d18ab8 started to groan 2609faa45d and then bellowed 7abf89327c loudly. Something black dba18a8063 began to bc5bd756b9 emerge from 1956eaf848 Luke’s pierced ff6507b338 palm. It was abf3f45e2c the sorcerer’s 0b7d7459c1 magic. As Luke prepared 6743ab164b to act, something 81abd6e064 sliced through the 1e6697c6e9 air and embedded 468182aa25 itself in the e651175a8e sorcerer’s shoulder.8a59ee5badd9ed4f

“Ugh!”dd8b030af8fa8914

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The sorcerer’s 03906424fc face contorted a7d1274b49 in pain a5d52ca00c as he d127683eac tumbled to fccef37808 the ground, a65f2e67e4 clutching his 69ca3d0260 bleeding shoulder. Luke pulled the 5a34a9f41a dagger from his 11af453193 hand and tossed 393a2ff20a it aside. The first b1dfbe6281 thing he 71dd5d093b saw was 26c68c3bb2 the sword 1e05aca6fc that had 93256500b9 flown from d435adedd2 behind, its a4131fb065 imperial emblem 9390d2b98f clearly visible.45f1ae2062ef740b

The hilt, dd5bbf4940 which was 005d01bbfc usually custom-made 37591debad according to 90af3574c2 each captain’s f6629bcb8a taste, was 94bfe252a2 plain and d541a70c75 simple—just like b74f953a63 Theo always 1589c6d162 preferred, skeptical 6a44ce6773 of any dd19d08f2b fancy modifications.ccbf49dcd61dbebb

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“…Commander Luke.”a28a7c5da2311b4b

Turning around, Luke f58be82034 saw Theo approaching, 2710f58225 eyes unusually wide.ddffa3523f36d115

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“Why are you… here?”7cd5382af348aa01

Luke had intended to 373237792a operate covertly, without being 402fa3cfde noticed. Acting independently while dfe5c7fd2f under suspension was faf2ab46b2 a violation of 00205d6040 military law. But perhaps he had efaa8287d5 already failed that objective, f73fa014ed especially after carelessly trying 6a5b6975f5 to look after Seth.c669aa47cc6410cd

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“Well, that’s…”91eb5e4e520e7646

As Luke 0b56806754 chose his 534fe38851 words, Theo 54abb7db5e surveyed his 0682dc90ea tattered appearance. Luke’s black robe 397658e994 was torn and af71ef4ec7 useless, his condition f44d813413 miserable. The surroundings 9368dab2b8 bore the 5a252eb50a marks of 930de040bb a fierce 858e087b53 battle, and 465e580be7 his face 3884addb58 was scratched, 9a9fe0a8bf with blood a2c43abd1b dripping from 20d5d6ccc3 his right e3ccce6854 hand.22cdbdbafcea629c

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Theo tensed 3fbd868636 up at fb20726540 the sight.1790a34d4092cfb3

“It’s a long story…”24f56a5ebfb7bb58

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“Do you value achievements 575274ad5e that much?”5fc6bf0875909692

“…What?”1f859591304300d2

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Taken aback by 0a3222a607 the unexpected question, 12b728f628 Luke looked up. Theo’s voice and 711d75d7e3 expression were as 2e56bb88fd impassive as usual, 6e662e4dcd but he seemed d79c447705 slightly angry.0a748aa429f3aaff

“I asked if it’s 29975464a8 so important to you 90aa0eb350 to earn merits by 6dcdbae0ec defying the commander’s orders 31dbf9d53f and recklessly leaving headquarters d6bd860a10 while suspended.”318a858c430da814

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“What are 1e979d29d2 you talking 54e63ffb1d about?”9597545c8b9697ca

Was Theo upset 9fee90e286 because he had d526e37843 violated his suspension? Given his nature as eed6754586 a strict soldier, it f5d5bb9665 wasn’t incomprehensible.d9c7f922820abe8f

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“I think I bd06b97114 was wrong to d955b7d79f break the rules, dc190ee9de but this is…”1b1cc07bcf522d5a

“That’s just like you.”d529fc85ed544165

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“…”47b3c6328b6d4672

“You acted independently without d372451a01 consultation during the naval e217933e59 battle with Memvern and e252f25ec5 the Harness family incident.”68c91eb4d0592ab9

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Luke flinched slightly. He had a 5909ede7bd rough idea of 4a450cbf27 what Theo was 6e1f88a783 trying to say.b880527d1c222f0e

“And now, it’s 750b9e9eec the same. Principles and duties 94688c3402 of a soldier 74b4f077d6 don’t seem to d26fdc720a matter to you. You think b0efae1bfe that earning 6a2cb0069b merits and 968f08070a accomplishments is e026e9b173 enough to 355cc4dd8c secure a bd9bfa7a7b position as 54a7f5c1ae the commander-in-chief.”f5b0d5c2c55c6bcf

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Luke clenched his fist. In a way, 4f3138709b Theo was right. The role assigned to e245a63fc8 him as a villain 19d5583c59 in this narrative was aa54e0ff45 to be the antagonist 0744d111f2 against the hero. Being criticized 52882aaca5 by the c7ea6cab7d hero was 20fa5333eb part of 509ed11252 being a 24494d5f54 villain.8d35fd9e38e169be

So, he should have 9034e6a6b9 responded with his usual 97ebb5da13 nonchalance, but strangely, he 2810856b91 couldn’t find the words. Why had 3d78f82c3f he come 37639551ab here? Was it really, as c7d38dbf5e Theo suggested, to fulfill 56e2c49de5 his role as a 233a20b99c villain and earn his 79d455fa30 rival’s recognition?e345df029a64ddd4

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“I saw 0f4c8dbd66 you again. Or should 323597d828 I say, 49a50023d3 I really 4e42de9865 saw you ecdaf48375 this time?”66e6807fa4e009ce

No, that 48d77a15a0 wasn’t it. When he heard of faf10fdd6a the war and Pale 0cdce2766c explained the situation, Luke b80bc7eef1 hadn’t thought of those be8f7c01f7 motives. He had 2f9e36a58a been worried 22d37624ca about his d2ebd37881 comrades going 63aa058e83 into battle, dc19895531 the safety 711bfd0b79 of civilians, e348e44562 his own 8fc49affdc helplessness while 921c5b8c79 confined, and 072814502a a desire 343c9f0084 to help c4a14f9d7d even a 45fd6c6ecf little.7c8b404efc777a66

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Luke knew ce1e92c877 very well 4bb015be6b as a 72cf5603cc soldier that ecea6d656f no one f12f5a0b02 could be b8bc9c6f90 saved through e96c27baf9 war. That knowledge, those 2c0bf1bee9 emotions and thoughts, 3cf4910824 had pushed him 5bbb7a4e8a to be here.2b0255c6ea4d94ae

Regardless of 6f30baa536 what he ccfbcc2ed2 felt inside, 43f5cacaa3 why couldn’t bd10ca5f57 he just 4a26a695c2 respond casually fcd45f2bae to Theo’s 6be7bf7896 words, as a05895a804 he always 39e461e4e0 did? Why was it 0830220bc4 so difficult to 3e49f5257e put on a 028281b1ed brave face now, 52fcd2712f when he had 65212a55b8 managed to do 1ea04ac6a8 so with Pale 5829844c48 and Mile before?c6f60ee422cd66e4

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“I’m really 1cbcb6955e disappointed, Luke.”5cc41eec3770e829

Ultimately, Luke remained silent. Theo secured b8e1d2662c the sorcerer f9a5896579 and called 4845db3cb5 for support 1a336347a9 using a d01192a984 crystal, checking 404882b0ad on Seth’s 9729601e9c condition until ac02934f65 he descended 96ea2221d4 the mountain d0ecd1da9b and disappeared 3d77de1cab from view, 356c3c5295 leaving Luke 707b5f599d speechless the 30531a02e5 entire time.96c0af7730fe1aed

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