Chapter 14: Morning Sun (IV)

Boom!

Clang!!

You can feel those enemies scattering as you hear those bursts now and then.

It aint just cause they aint trained well. Its more like a sure thing, especially among top-notch forces.

When ambushed, a good officer figures out the enemys numbers by how often they attack.

By checking the gaps between gunshots, its pretty clear the enemys only a small group.

All that makes sense up to this point. But the issue is, those gunshots aint coming from just one direction in this forest.

Bang from the east. Shift the troops over there and suddenly, there are only a few scattered bodies in that spot.

When the troops scatter in the confusion, bam, again from the west.

By now, its clear what the commanding officers up to. Theyre sending out a few troops to push us in.

A smart assessment, unless the opponent is just a small units commander.

*Click.*

Feeling the tension and rage in the forest air, slowly raising the pistol. Up ahead, three soldiers with torches scanning around.

Its a gesture that could be fear or anger, cant tell from this far.

Ivan breathed out slowly, half-held his breath, firmly squeezed the trigger, aimed at the enemy, calculated the distance, raised it a few notches up.

Smooth like water, almost like an instinctive move.

All that took just 0.3 seconds.

His wide, bright blue eyes rapidly scanned the surroundings. Gaps between the soldiers, their heights, and the distance from him were all calculated.

After calculating, he focused on the one farthest away.

Bang!

At the gunshot, the gun drops, and he grabs the axe. No need to confirm the kills, theyre telling you themselves.

Damn! Inoff got hit!

Where are they? Show yourself, damn it!!

Swiftly leaping over the trees, the torches theyre holding make it easy to spot them.

Starting a fire in the woods is too revealing. Even without those torches, the forest would be too dark to see anything, but whose fault is that?

They shouldnt have picked this day.

Ambushing at night is seriously hard. It needs a top-notch commander and perfectly trained troops.

Even those types would hesitate in a surprise ambush in a foreign forest at night. Maybe about one-third would bail after the operation started.

Looks like the enemys got about 50 in total.

Judging from how the enemys spread out and the units size, Ivan guessed while gripping the axe, still embedded from the soldier he hit.

Kaaah!!*

Ah! Ahhh!!

Scared guy. But the one hit by the axe didnt even get to scream.

Seems like he had good training. Raising the gun as soon as Ivan showed up proves that.

Ivan bent down, the guys trembling finger creeping on the trigger.

No need to aim at this range, and the mans too rattled for it. Hes about to shoot in a panic.

But that aint gonna happen.

Damn it! Die!!

The guy tensed his thigh, veins popping on his palm.

But in that moment, Ivan, already so close, swung the axe.

Right shoulder and neck shattered in a single blow. Literally shattered.

A forceful strike, quickly turning for another blow, and another.

Three axe hits in a blink. No one here could talk anymore.

Phew.

Ivan relaxed his shoulders, pushed the axe back in.

He aimed the gun held by the nameless soldier to the sky, hung a thin thread on the trigger, and hooked it on a nearby tree.

If the guns snug in the dead guys arms and fixed, the job heres done.

Someone will come to check upon hearing the shots.

When they touch the body, the loaded gun will fire, and the command will likely screw up Ivans position in the chaos.

The delay in getting info to command, the limited sight in this dark forest, the fear of this strange place, the messed-up info, and our own forces slowly dwindling.

Even the smart enemies are easy to fool.

Ivan thought while quickly moving through the trees.

So, somethings off.

The enemys way too good for this to be some kind of tutorial round.

Diane August was an NPC assisting Isabelles tutorial and then disappearing.

Ivan squinted.

In this mess, if it wasnt him, could Isabelle alone survive and escape this forest?

Considering their strong weapons, well-trained troops, and a good command on the enemys side.

Thats a level of risk a kid just turning twenty couldnt handle.

Why? Isnt wiping out the enemy a tutorial condition?

Sometimes it is. A game where you learn the controls while dodging a powerful enemy.

But how? And where?

Thinking about the remaining way to Frechenkaya, the chances of an inexperienced kid, not even knowing where to go, getting out of the forest safe would be close to 0%.

Even in all this chaos, Ivan kept moving.

No harm in thinking about the situation once the chaos ends.

Captain, it happened again. This time, all three were axed.

Hmm. Whats this.

The man scratched his chin and grunted.

Feels like dealing with a tiger.

In a methodical way, starting with the weak, squeezing the groups neck is the hunting strategy.

The response was simple: group the troops.

But, he cant do that. His target was the Heros Daughter.

Shouldnt we gather the boys now?

Nah. Thats exactly what the enemy wants.

The enemys a minority. Its obvious.

They wouldnt go through all this trouble if they were more than us.

Lets suppose an elite, highly specialized, small strike force is scattered throughout the forest.

Bang!

Gunshots again. This time from the west.

And then.

Bang!

This time from up north.

The shots were getting closer to where they were.

They know our position already.

They do?

They know this is our base! You fool! Cant you see?

Oh, right. Yeah, I see, I see, but why dont they attack us directly after hitting the base? Wouldnt it be easier to pick off the confused troops one by one?

Why are these enemies making it so complicated?

Thats because

Bang!

Bang!

After two gunshots from different directions, a realization hit the man.

Give me your gun.

Huh? Oh, okay!

He grabbed the mans gun and fired into the air. Bang!

The man froze for a moment and then spoke out.

Its just one person.

But Captain, the direction of the shots!

Damn it, its a trickery!!

Clatter!

The man slammed the gun in his hand.

That was our gunfire! That guy killed our guys and played with the timing! Its a simple trap even a kid could pull off, and we fell for it!

He threw the remains of the gun and drew a knife.

After the first shot, that guy probably watched our response. Did he have a way to see where wed come from?! We reacted too fast. Damn it!

Regular soldiers usually seek cover when they hear gunfire.

But this wasnt a regular spot. Their captain had a way to spot gunfire.

As soon as they heard the shots, they estimated the direction and sent a team. That was the mistake.

Why not just attack us head-on?! Are they not confident or stalling for time in a tough spot? Why would someone trained like that entertain such thoughts, huh?

Uh, maybe theyre alone?

Yeah! Damn it. The gunshots were a lure from the start! Gather the crew! Damn it, I didnt want to face the Heros Daughter directly

The scars on the mans face twisted.

The Heros Daughter: Even if shes only a partially trained warrior, a tigers cub remains a tiger.

He remembers the hero. That unbelievably powerful figure.

No matter how young, never underestimate. The Hero was just a lad in his thirties back then.

The man sighed and stepped forward.

Ill face that woman myself. Get the boys and handle the nuisance in the forest.

Yes, Captain!

***

Are you the Heros Daughter?

Isabelle stood under the moon, facing a man emerging from the woods.

Behind her, people gathered in fear.

Around a campfire, people shivered in the cold, looking at her.

Isabelle shook her head, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, turned the heavy sheathed sword, and held it firmly.

No.

She opened her eyes. Moonlight made the mans silhouette clearer.

Fighting for ones life, let alone carrying another life into battle, was a first.

But it was fine. It was just the right thing to do.

Maximilian and Maries daughter.

Not the Heros daughter, but someones daughter.

With that meaning.

The man before her laughed heartily.

The horns above his head reached for the sky.

A demon. Isabelle swallowed hard. It was her first time facing a demon too.

Great.

The man nodded and gripped the sword.

Im Icarus. Former commander of the 6th Imperial Guards. Leader of this operation.

Im Isabelle, affiliated with Tylesse. A knight.

The night wind howled. The forest shook. Bang, gunshots echoed far off.

The two charged towards each other.