I flinched at the sound I heard. I suspected the Goblin Queen was after me since I had barely
survived, but my fear turned out to be unfounded.
Kasou: "Do you know what's happening?"
Michael: "A group of humans is under attack, but I don't know the details. If the Goblin Queen is
after us, she might have confronted them too."
Kasou: "I'm sorry, Michael. Even if I can't win, even if I have hatred for humans, no innocent
person deserves to die."
Michael: "Even if I tell you not to go, you'll go, won't you? Ahhh, wasn't proving you're a good
person enough?"
---
After watching for a while, I asked Michael about what I was suspicious of.
Kasou: "Are these the same... Hey, Michael, are these elves?"
Michael: "What else would they look like? Did you hit your head or something? Stop acting
stupid and decide what you're going to do."
Kasou was surprised by Michael's sudden outburst, but Michael was right.
Kasou, no matter how betrayed he had been by humans, couldn't leave people to die.Kasou wasn't an arrogant person, so he thought, "Anyone would do the same," and charged
forward.
Kasou saw an elf about to stab a girl on the ground and moved toward her.
He arrived just in time and saved the girl. He smiled warmly at her frightened and confused
face.
When he looked around, he saw that many elves had surrounded him.
Michael: "Don't whine to me if you get what you deserve and die, got it?"
Kasou: "Don't worry, I won't die until I kill them with your sharp edge."
Michael: "Then get out of here alive, partner."
Elves were weak in sword skills, but their magic was far more advanced than that of humans.
Mark: "You don't have to risk your life, kid. You can run away."
Mark, holding the wound on his stomach, was kneeling on the ground and called out to Kasou.
Geld, who was still standing but constantly under attack, took hits as he approached Kasou.
Geld threw his shield at Kasou.
Geld: "Stay alive, kid."
The team didn't understand Kasou... Kasou didn't want to escape this battlefield...
Kasou: "Take your shield back..."
With a serious expression, he threw the shield back at Geld, then tensed and lunged at the
elves.Kasou moved at great speed, dodging the elves' attacks and starting to kill them one by one.
There were many elves around, and anyone looking from above would think that nothing had
changed even after Kasou killed dozens of them.
While Kasou fought the elves, the team tried to regroup, but the elves wouldn't let them.
The only one unharmed was Mai, but her Manas was almost depleted.
Mai: "If we don't get out of here, my Manas will run out!"
Rossa: "I don't have Manas problems, but Mia's minor healing isn't affecting the wound on my
stomach-..."
Before she could finish, Rossa passed out. Seeing this, the team immediately gathered around
her. Despite Mai using her power, there was no sign of recovery.
The attacks from around them were making it hard for the team protecting Rossa. All they could
do was have Geld take the hits while Mark blocked the fireballs with his magical arrows.
Mark was as tough as Geld, at least they thought so after the spells hit his body.
The team was completely cornered and helpless.
Mai had accepted that they were going to die and closed her eyes.
A scream made her open her eyes. Kasou, running from the side, threw his sword at an elf's
head. After pulling the sword from the elf's head, he called out to the team.
Kasou: "I've got this, you focus on regrouping."
Thanks to Kasou, the team could take a deep breath, but none of the team members had any
tension toward Kasou.
Kasou had taken many wounds since he started fighting, but he kept going. The only difference
between Kasou and the team was that they had been fighting much longer; otherwise, Kasou
wasn't stronger than the team.After buying them some more time, Kasou faced death when an elf resorted to using a sword.
Kasou: "I guess this is it, sorry, Michael."
He couldn't stop the elf swinging its sword at him from behind.
At that moment, an arrow pierced the elf's head, and seeing this, Kasou looked at the team.
All the team members were standing to help in the fight.
Rossa: "I thank you on my behalf. If you can survive until the end of the battle, we'll gladly
accompany you to the kingdom."
Kasou smirked slightly, then continued fighting.
The battle, where spells, swords, and arrows flew through the air, was extremely fierce. Even
though the team started fighting with Kasou, the elves had a numerical advantage.
Kasou, back-to-back with Geld, asked, "Why are there so many elves?"
Geld: "We had detected an elf battalion coming to capture Tria Castle of the Mojaris Kingdom.
We were very surprised when we saw them because the elves hadn't made any moves for a
long time. We wanted to go back and report this, but we were caught."
A white-skinned elf, standing a bit away from the battlefield, had been preparing a spell for a
long time.
As the elf prepared, a large fireball formed in the sky with an air current, and the fireball grew
larger and larger.
The team noticed this and tried to escape the attack, but the elves blocked them.Kasou: "Make way for me, I'll kill that elf!"
They tried to make way for Kasou in sync. Three elves reached Kasou, but Geld intervened,
becoming the focus of the sword strikes.
Geld, blood dripping from his mouth, shouted.
Geld: "Stop him!"
Kasou moved quickly, jumping over rocks to climb up. Moving at great speed, Kasou swiftly cut
down every elf in his path.
Just as he reached the white-skinned elf, he saw a very muscular elf with two swords in his
hands, standing in front of him.
The elf lunged and swung its sword. Kasou blocked it but was sent flying off the rocks by the
sword strike.
Kasou: "Damn, that elf is too strong."
Michael: "My second rank is much stronger than him. If you had already reached the second
rank, you would have won easily. It's your fault for not achieving it. Now stop crying and play!"
Kasou: "You don't have to tell me that."
He used his sword like a staff on the ground and stood up straight, ready to fight. The muscular
elf jumped down, creating a dust cloud upon landing. Kasou took advantage of this and infused
Manas into the dust in the air, making himself completely invisible to the elf, who couldn't sense
his Manas. -He moved without making a sound
Elf: "Face me like a man!"Kasou appeared behind the elf and cut the back of its knee, then disappeared again.
Elf: "Ahh, coward! You're acting like a coward!"
Kasou: "The path to victory in battle isn't just strength."
He made another cut on the elf's body and spoke again.
Kasou: "Intelligence is the answer to your death here."
He suddenly cut off the Manas in the dust cloud. The panicked elf attacked the spot where
Kasou had infused Manas.
Elf: "I got you! Die!"
Despite swinging its sword many times, it didn't touch Kasou; Kasou wasn't even there.
Kasou whispered, "You're the one who's going to die..."
Kasou severed the elf's head from its body.
Michael: "You used Manas to become invisible and then to trick your opponent. That was
clever."
Kasou: "Thanks to your abstract vision ability, this dust cloud was hindering me too, but with
your ability, I could see its Manas."Kasou cleaned the blood off his sword on the ground. His attention was drawn to the growing
spell above, so he quickly ran up.
---
The elf swung its sword horizontally. Rossa dodged by bending over and used a lightning spell
at close range. The elf, with its heart pierced, fell to the ground, but another elf attacked from
behind. Geld killed that elf too.
Mai: "Can we trust that kid? If he fails, we'll all die."
Mark had been thrown back by an elf's punch. As he got up, he shouted at Mai.
Mark: "That kid risked his life without a second thought! Do you realize what you're saying?"
Geld agreed with Mark's words and spoke.
Geld: "If he fails, he'll die too. You need to trust the kid."
---
**Mojaris Kingdom, Tria Castle, Meeting Hall**
Army Commander Peres: "We need to stop this sudden, surprise attack. You can present your
ideas."
The officials sitting around a large round table were discussing what to do about the elf attack.
Among the 16 people in the room were individuals highly experienced in warfare. The first to
speak was Terasoma, a retired adventurer.Terasoma: "I think we should focus on defense rather than offense because we'll be at a
disadvantage in the field."
Commander Peres: "Why?"
Terasoma puffed out his chest and explained the simple reason.
Terasoma: "First, elves can cast high-level spells, and their mastery of magic is undeniable.
Second, if we send our army there, we won't have enough troops left to defend the kingdom,
especially considering the hostile behavior of neighboring kingdoms. It would be a fatal
mistake."
Strategist Yuta countered somewhat.
Strategist Yuta: "But if we defend in the castle, there's a risk of the castle falling. After all, we
don't know the number of enemy elves."
Terasoma: "So what do you suggest?"
Strategist Yuta: "I think we should meet them in the plains ahead and trap them there."
Terasoma: "Wouldn't we still be at a disadvantage? An elf attacking from a distance could easily
destroy the terrain, depending on how long they prepare the spell."
Yuta: "If we send the entire army at once, you're right. In my opinion, we should wage a war of
attrition. Even if we lose in the plains, the elves reaching the castle will be weakened, and we
can easily defeat them."The tension in the room was rising. Different ideas were emerging, but no conclusion was
reached.
Selia, a female warrior known for her victories in battles, interrupted the discussion.
Selia: "We're still not talking about the group captured there. How are we going to save them?"
A brief silence fell in the room. Everyone was now looking at Selia. Commander Peres began to
speak.
Commander Peres: "We have no way to save them, and we're assuming they're already dead."
Strategist Yuta: "They served the kingdom well, but this is as far as they go. May their souls rest
in peace."
Selia slammed her hand on the table and shouted angrily.
Selia: "Assuming they're dead? You're letting them die right before your eyes!"
Terasoma: "Us? Watch your words, young lady. There are far more effective people here than
you."
The tension subsided as Commander Peres raised his hand.
Commander Peres: "Selia, explain your reasoning."
Selia: "A vanguard unit... If we send a vanguard unit, we can easily save them. If you leave it to
me-"Terasoma: "If we leave it to you, you can lead the vanguard unit, right?"
Terasoma spoke with a mocking smile, then answered angrily.
Terasoma: "We understand that you see this as an opportunity to gain more fame, but the future
of a society is at stake. If you continue to disturb us with your nonsense... the door is there!"
After Selia's idea was rejected, Terasoma's idea was agreed upon, and preparations began
under Commander Peres' orders.
---
On the castle's rooftop, Selia watched the sunrise, filled with sorrow. How could they not help
them just because they assumed they were dead... Tears, proving gravity, streamed down her
face.
Fereo: "Crying doesn't suit you, dear Selia."
Fereo was a merchant who had feelings for Selia, but he wasn't an ordinary merchant; he was
the head of the merchants, a minister. He had grown up in the same neighborhood as Selia and
had been friends, but as they grew older, Selia became stronger, and their friendship began to
deteriorate. Fereo wasn't doing nothing about this situation; he was constantly training to
strengthen himself, eating healthily, and training his mind. A few years after this time, a breaking
point occurred between the two.
---
A few years later...
---It was an ordinary day as usual. Fereo, Selia, and the other children were in class at the church
when the principal and a few strangers entered. These people explained their plans to form a
subgroup within the army.
Teacher: "As they said, children, is anyone interested in this? If so, you'll be subjected to a talent
test, and based on the results, you may have a chance to join the army in the future."
Fereo was a good student in class, so this idea didn't appeal to him much. He sat with a frown,
looking around to see if anyone in the class was interested, but what he saw didn't please him.
Selia had raised her hand, showing an excited demeanor.
The officer: "Eh, considering other places, it's not surprising that the number of interested
people is so low." He gave instructions to the recruits and left the classroom, and the recruits
began their assigned tasks.
In the evening, both children were heading home. Selia was happy, while Fereo was filled with
an unknown emotion. Fereo wanted to talk but had no idea what to say. As he stared at the
ground, Selia stopped in front of him, causing them to collide.
Fereo: "Hey, watch out!"
Fereo had shouted, but seeing Selia's happy face, all his anger vanished. Selia extended her
hand, her smile making Fereo's heart race. The setting sun behind Selia gave Fereo a beautiful
view as he looked at her.
Selia: "I'm sorry, I hope you're not hurt?"
Fereo thought deeply, with his soul."This girl is so... so beautiful."
When he came to his senses, he pushed Selia's extended hand away with the back of his hand
and stood up on his own. He turned his back to Selia and began to speak.
Fereo: "Are you... going to that place? Are you sure about this?"
Selia, finding Fereo's question strange, pointed at the sun with her hand.
Selia: "I'm as sure as I am that this sun will set. But why is this a problem for you?"
Selia's curiosity made Fereo even more uncomfortable because he didn't want to show his
feelings and at the same time didn't want Selia to join the army. The reason was that after all
this time spent with Selia, the thought of separating from her saddened him.
Fereo became even angrier compared to when he had fallen. He pushed Selia and started
shouting.
Selia: "W-hat? Did I do something unintentionally? Why did you push me?"
Fereo: "Yes! Do you know what you did? After all this time, you're just going to leave me so
easily, it's so frustrating!"
Selia was starting to get angry too, but she didn't know what Fereo was talking about.
Selia: "Leave you? I'm not leaving you; I'm just going to fulfill my dream, and you don't want me
to fulfill my dream? How selfish is that?"Fereo: "Selfish? What you're doing is selfish..."
Fereo couldn't hold back his feelings and blurted them out.
Selia: "Love... me?"
Fereo was looking at Selia with a bright red face. He felt relieved for saying it but also regretted
it, though he was curious about what would happen now.
Selia lowered her face. Her words, spoken mercilessly, extinguished Fereo's curiosity.
Selia: "I never thought of you in a way that suited me, and I don't think I ever will." She slowly
broke Fereo's heart.
After a while, she turned her back and slowly walked away. Fereo, filled with sadness, collapsed
to the ground and silently cried as he watched Selia's silhouette fade away.
After this day, Fereo studied harder, wanting to become a useful minister for the country. Day by
day, he worked harder and quickly progressed toward his goal. He made connections with
important people and started taking lessons on economics, resulting in many successes.
Fereo's efforts and successes weren't in vain; the kingdom noticed him and made him the
Minister of Commerce (Economy). Ironically, after becoming a minister, he encountered Selia,
who was now one of the army's officials...
---Selia wiped her tears, turned to the man looking at her, and straightened her posture.
Selia: "Ah, so it's you who came?"
Fereo: "After the decision was made not to save them, you thought of your family, didn't you?"
Selia was still sad, her head lowered, holding one arm with the other. Fereo quickly approached
Selia and hugged her. Selia, who seemed emotionless like a monster from the outside, was
actually a very emotional woman inside. Especially losing her family at a young age had
affected her in this way.
Selia wanting to leave Fereo and join the army back then wasn't selfishness; Selia's family was
in the same situation as the team now, and despite Selia's cries for help, no help came to her
family, resulting in Selia not even being able to reach her parents' bodies. After those days,
joining the army became her goal. She trained every day, read books on the secrets of
becoming stronger, and with her potential, she grew stronger quickly and steadily.
After a while, Selia stopped crying and thanked Fereo. Fereo had always been by Selia's side
and would continue to be because Fereo was in love with Selia…
Kasou was quickly climbing up and, upon reaching the top, found no obstacles in front of him.
Without wasting time, he started running, but he wouldn't be able to kill the head sorcerer as
easily as he thought. Kasou, under attack by arrows, sensed the magical arrows thanks to his
abstract vision and narrowly avoided them. Ignoring the arrows, he continued running and saw
the head sorcerer elf in front of him.
Kasou: "You're mine!"
The head sorcerer elf's head was floating in the air, while Kasou watched the fireball above
slowly extinguishing. When the head came between Kasou and the fireball, the fireball
dissipated. Taking a deep breath, Kasou remembered that the battle was still ongoing and
quickly headed toward the team.
Meanwhile, the team was still fighting, and the number of elves they had killed wasn't even a
quarter of the elf battalion. The elves were attacking, but they didn't seem concerned about theirfallen comrades, meaning they didn't care much about this battle. The only thing they cared
about was Tria Castle. If they could capture it, their plan to conquer the world would be set in
motion.
Rossa was still injured, so Geld had to protect her, which meant they couldn't separate. Mai and
Mark, due to the disadvantages of the battle, were using swords, magic, and bows in their areas
of expertise.
Mai: "It seems the kid succeeded."
Rossa: "But did he manage to survive? That's what matters."
Surviving on a battlefield where chaos reigned wasn't easy. Especially for Kasou, who faced the
peak of difficulty, it would be more surprising if he didn't die than if he did. They were all thinking
the same thing, and they were all equally shocked.
""""Whaaat????""""
Kasou, jumping down from above, came between the team and the sun. His glide through the
air was extremely cool, at least according to one person.
Kasou, cutting through the elves' attacks and wounds, stopped in front of the team.
Kasou: "Let's get out of here."
Michael: "Look at them, they thought you couldn't do it. How does it feel to prove those who
doubted you wrong?"Kasou began to move through the team with a sweet smile. What he had thought about,
something he hadn't achieved in both of his lives, was this amazing feeling.
Kasou thought to himself, "This... is amazing."
Geld: "Come on, guys, we need to get out of here as soon as possible. With him, we can
escape now." He pointed at Kasou.
---
**Elf Headquarters, IV Unit, Seraphin's Personal Room**
Seraphin was staring at the burning fireplace in the room for a long time. Memories he disliked
came to life in his mind, like God resurrecting his messenger. His anger was visibly high
because he was near humans.
Seraphin: "Damn it... Damn it... Damn you all!" He slammed the back of his hand against his
glass. The glass rolled quickly toward the door and stopped at the feet of Lolea, the vice
president of level II, who had just entered.
Seraphin quickly calmed his anger and called out to Lolea.
Seraphin: "Any developments?"
The unit commander in front of him knelt and began to speak.
Lolea: "My lord, the only development from the human side is that the humans we captured on
the front lines have escaped."Seraphin reacted as if he hadn't heard anything important and waited for Lolea to continue, but
Lolea just kept staring.
Seraphin: "Is that all? Whether they escape or not isn't that important. After all, we'll slaughter
them all once we reach the castle."
---
From the humans' perspective, elves were cursed beings, but the only thing they knew about
their purpose was that they wanted to commit genocide against humanity. The reason for this
had been unknown for a long time, and since elves lived longer than humans, even if an event
had occurred, humanity had forgotten it.
---
**Mojaris Kingdom, Tria Castle, Main Gate**
"Commander, there are people approaching from ahead!"
After the call that put all the soldiers on alert, the highest-ranking commander present looked
through binoculars and observed the approaching team.
Commander: "They're not elves. These are the scouting team!"
An unprecedented excitement erupted inside the castle, especially among those who knew the
scouting team. They were thanking God. After a while, the team reached the castle gate. When
the gate opened, they took Rossa, who had fainted, and Kasou to the army doctor.---
**Mojaris Kingdom, Tria Castle, Meeting Hall**
After Commander Peres heard about the developments, an emergency meeting was called.
Commander Peres: "...so you killed the head sorcerer elf?"
The seriousness in the room had increased, yet Mark was the one who spoke up bravely.
Mark: "It was actually a tough battle. I don't think I need to mention how outnumbered we were.
But the main factor in our escape was the unconscious boy we brought with us, who had a
sword we'd never seen before."
Strategist Yuta: "Commander Peres, no matter how hard we tried, we couldn't figure out where
the boy is from. We'll have to wait for him to wake up, sir."
With the team killing the head sorcerer elf, the idea of fighting in the plains was back on the
table, and this time the discussion was even more intense.
Strategist Yuta: "I think there's no longer any obstacle to my plan."
Terasoma was inwardly resentful. If things had gone his way, his authority within the army would
have increased. Terasoma wasn't thinking about winning this battle; he was only concerned with
how useful his defense would be once the kingdom was drawn into the war.The discussion slowly led to Yuta's idea being accepted.
Commander Peres: "Then let the preparations begin. Yuta, since you proposed the idea, I'm
leaving the army's management to you. Keep me updated on developments."
---
Kasou: "Ahhhh." He slowly opened his eyes. The sunlight in the room he saw was blinding.
When he turned his head, he saw Michael leaning against the wall.
Kasou slowly sat up from where he was lying and spoke.
Kasou: "Did we win?"
Michael: "Does this place look like heaven to you?"
Kasou: "At least it's clear that this isn't the heaven we imagined. Do you have any idea about
the others? They seemed like good people."
Michael: "What's this? I thought you didn't care about humans. You've shocked me twice now.
Are you saying you've given up on your goal?"
Kasou: "Don't be ridiculous. I'm still moving forward with the same hatred. I'm just putting on a
second personality until the time comes, that's all."
Michael: "A second personality?"Their conversation was interrupted by the door opening. Rossa entered the room. Kasou was
met with an unexpected reaction. Rossa was laughing and crying with joy. Kasou was curious
about why he received such a reaction, but before he could ask Rossa, Geld also arrived.
Geld: "Ohh, so you're awake. See? I told you nothing would happen."
Rossa continued to cry, and Mai called out from behind.
Mai: "Rossa was really worried about you."
-When Kasou blocked the team's connection to the sun, Rossa was the one who found him
cool.
After talking for a while, Kasou and the team went to Commander Peres. The commander
asked Kasou for his name for identification.
Kasou: "I'm Aris Kasou...."
---
The team had been assigned a mission before the elves attacked. How much had Kasou
progressed in strength during this battle? Was fighting the elves an impossible task? Everything
and more will be revealed in future chapters…