"Both of you, don't co out unless I say so." General Zhang warned us. He extended his left arm, and an extrely thin net made of water was ford in the cave's entrance. Faint sparks of electricity could occasionally be seen across the water net.
"Alright." I gave a short reply.
I had to be able to protect myself and Jeanne just in case sothing were to happen to general Zhang. However, it didn't seem possible in this situation.
"Damn it... Isn't there sothing I could do..." I cursed our circumstances.
"Calm down, Chaerin. We just need to hold on until Owen's squad arrives," Jeanne tapped my shoulder assuringly, "don't be afraid. Your general is here." She smiled.
"...You're right. Thank you, Jeanne." A calming sensation suddenly washed over . Jeanne was amazing, to be able to calm people down with only a few sentences.
Even so, I didn't plan to just sit back and leave everything to them.
[Ding!]
I turned around and quietly opened my inventory window, making sure it was out of Jeanne's sight.
I skimd at my mostly-empty inventory window, looking for a specific item. This item would be my lifesaver if used correctly.
[Would you like to use the item 'Grade-D skill book'?]
"Yes, please."
A long list of skills appeared in a new window before . I looked at each of them carefully and tried to guess their functions by their nas.
Most of them seed to be attacking skills. They would certainly be useful soday, but they were not exactly what I was looking for right now.
"C'mon, there must be sothing..." I hastily scrolled down, hoping to find sothing that might help.
Oh wait, this one seed useful. It was 'The ntalist'. From the sound of it, maybe it would give the ability to read people? Or to control people?
Excited by the prospects, I clicked on that skill. Did I just accidentally found a gold mine?
[Acquired skill: The ntalist (active)]
[Effect: Enables you to send a ssage to soone's head discreetly, but you can't get a ssage back (effective range: 1 km)]
Noooo! I ca looking for copper, and I thought I'd find gold, but it turned out to be dirt!
My shoulders slumped down, disappointed with the skill I just chose. It might be useful for long-range communication, but how could it help survive this situation?
'BOOM!'
As if on cue, the cave's entrance exploded and the ground beneath us shook from the impact. Rubbles started to rain down on us.
"Get down, Jeanne!" I whispered to her and grabbed her to lay flat on the ground, with my body on top of her. I made sure to cover her head with my hands.
"I think the monster's here. Sorry for being rough, but we have to keep quiet so it won't notice us." I whispered softly to her.
She nodded at my words, but her hand was already gripping her sword, ready for any surprise attacks.
"My, my... What do we have here~" General Zhang playfully humd.
I peeked over the huge boulder in front of us, and saw the smoke slowly dissipate as a figure erged from the cave's entrance.
It wasn't a monster that ca by.
It was a tall, muscular man with hair as dark as the gloomy night sky, standing perfectly straight even though he had a huge sword strapped on his back. His blood-red eyes pierced our soul, and yet, they looked empty.
"We've been expecting you, Elias~" General Zhang greeted him.
Without sparing even one second for idle chat, general Zhang imdiately bombarded his enemy with lightning strikes until everything seed to turn white for a while.
"Elias? Is it really you?" I murmured under my breath, still unable to believe my ears. I wanted to approach him right then and there, but my legs couldn't move.
Suddenly, the man leapt forward and charged towards general Zhang, totally unscathed. He used his bare hand to grab general Zhang's head and bashed him to the ground.
I wanted to shout, but I couldn't reveal our position. Instead, I grabbed one of Jeanne's available weapons, just in case general Zhang was defeated.
"I'm not looking for trouble, but if you insist~" General Zhang's body split into a few water bodies and escaped his grip skillfully.
He quickly reford into his original body behind Elias, and went for his throat without hesitation.
However, Elias dodged his attack and swooped down to kick general Zhang's leg.
The white-haired man stumbled for a fraction of a second, before turning into water again, and electrocuting Elias.
While they were busy at each other's throats, I tried to contact anyone within 1 kiloter. Unfortunately, the only people I detected were just us. Owen's squad wasn't here yet.
...Wait, so in a way, this skill could be used as a detection skill? I've struck gold!
"Chaerin, you can still run, right?" Jeanne suddenly asked .
"Yes, I can, why do you ask?" I whispered back to her.
"Since general Zhang is fighting seriously, and especially since his opponent is that person, there's no guarantee that this cave will hold on," she explained to , "if things turned out for the worse, I will need you to run and call for backup."
"What? No, Jeanne--"
"Chaerin, you can't fool . I know you're smart, and you're no stranger to the battlefield. I'm sure you also know that this is the best option for us to secure the serpent's soul." She looked at straight in the eyes.
"I... I know, but..." I clenched my fist. She was right. The best option was to retreat and wait for backup. If we couldn't retreat, then we should create a distraction while one person goes to get help.
"You're right. I'm no stranger to the battlefield," I looked back into her eyes, "and that's precisely why I will not abandon all of you here."
"Chaerin, don't be foolish! If we all die here, our raid would have been for nothing! Go get help, so our soldier's sacrifices won't go to waste!" Her eyes looked determined, but I could see fear beneath that confident facade.
"I've abandoned my friends for the sake of missions, and to this day, I still regret it. Is the mission really more important than my friends' life?" I looked down and bit my lips.
"To a stranger, the death of a soldier may amount to nothing, especially because lots of soldiers die every day. So, it makes sense to prioritize the mission that could save many people," I continued.
"But to the family of the deceased soldier, their whole world may have just burned down. Who am I to judge whose needs are more important? Is the greater good always the better choice? Whichever path I chose, I'd be responsible for soone's pain." I clenched my fist and a frown ford on my face. My voice cracked as I expressed my thoughts.
I knew that the deceased's family would be even more devastated if our mission failed, but was it really better to give up on a living person for the sake of a mission? I genuinely had no idea, and I might be making a bad choice right now.
Jeanne froze upon hearing my words. Her frown disappeared, and a sad look filled her eyes instead. She looked down and put her hand on top of mine, slowly grasping my hand.
"Nevertheless, I will try my best to not let their sacrifices go to waste." I tried my best to muster up a smile, even though I was pretty sure my smile looked crooked.
'BOOM!'
"Hand the serpent's soul." A voice echoed throughout the cave, filling my ears. It was the voice I've heard almost every day for years, except much lower and... Lonelier? It was hard to put a finger on it, but his usual gentle tone wasn't there. Instead, he sounded full of rage and hatred.
"Never." General Zhang replied while grinning, even though blood was dripping from all over his body.
Elias choked general Zhang down on the ground with his bare hands. He paused for a mont, as if sensing sothing, before opening his lips again.
"I can't sense the soul on you. Where is it?" He asked with a scowl.
"It's cute that you think I'll tell you." General Zhang struggled to reply while getting choked. He imdiately jabbed Elias' epigastrium, causing the latter's grip to loosen a bit.
He shifted into his water form and tried to escape, but was imdiately caught by Elias.
"Damn, how'd you negate my magic?" General Zhang grinned at him.
"Stay here."
'Zing!'
General Zhang suddenly fell down and stopped moving, even though he was still fully conscious.
"You... I've always hated how you're able to seal my movents." General Zhang's eyes were still following Elias.
The dark-haired man said nothing and observed his surroundings.
Suddenly, our eyes t.
There he was, the sa dark hair I used to ruffle when I teased him. The sa eyes that looked at with such care. The sa mouth that had filled my days with his stories. The sa shoulders I used to place my head on. The sa hands that used to hold mine.
Then, a particular mory resurfaced.
--------
"You know, I think I'd freeze on the spot if we really et soday. Haha!" I laughed while I sat next to him. Today, nothing major happened, so we just idly chatted like usual, easing each other's minds from our problems.
"You should run to my arms like they do in the movies you told about." He poked my cheek playfully while grinning.
"That was a movie about a dog getting reunited with its owner..." I grabbed his wrist, hard.
"Hey, when we et soday, let's have a secret code so we know it's real and not a doppelganger." He shifted his seating position so he was facing now.
"Doppelganger? What, do you still believe in Santa, too?" I teased him and ruffled his hair.
"In my world, you never know what would appear." He grinned at .
"Hmm... Makes sense. What should our code be?" I put my finger on my mouth as I try to think of sothing.
"What about this?" He put his hand together to make a bird shape.
"A bird?" I tilted my head.
"Yes. A bird." He smiled and took my hands, forming them into the sa bird shape.
"Sure, haha! But why a bird?" I laughed.
"Hmm, maybe I'll tell you soday. For now, you just have to wonder." He flicked my forehead lightly and smiled.
--------
The man walked closer towards , without words. His eyes glared angrily at .
"...Eli? That's you, right, Eli?" I took a step back, fists clenching.
The man in question said nothing and kept walking closer.
"Eli, don't you rember ?" My voice rose as my hands trembled. Why was he acting like this?
"Hand over the soul." He said to with the sa emotionless voice he used with general Zhang.
"You really don't rember ?" My lips quivered.
I held out my hand in a bird shape.
"...Do you rember now?"
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