Chapter 41: Night Raid

“Major Falken,” Misia’s voice suddenly rang out, as if she had sensed the strange gaze beside her.

“Huh? Yes,” Major Falken awkwardly withdrew his gaze, which had been lingering on Misia’s chest.

“The area you’re monitoring now, how large is its range?” Misia asked again in a soft voice, casting Major Falken a half-smiling glance.

“Oh… Well! As you can see, every inch of land from Town One to Town Thirty-Nine, the green safety zone, is under our surveillance.”

“Oh? So your monitoring area is only the green safety zone?”

“Of course not! Actually, the yellow adventure zone ten kilometers north of Dream River is also within our surveillance. I think, those teachers participating in the survival competition wouldn’t dare to venture ten kilometers deep into the yellow adventure zone, right? Even if there are one or two reckless groups who really dare to run into the yellow danger zone, we can track them individually through the badge system. Miss Misia, I can assure you that our surveillance system this time is absolutely foolproof. No matter how much those people run around, they won’t escape from your sight.” As Misia’s question struck just the right chord with Major Falken, the major immediately became proud and started showing off to the governor’s beautiful secretary.

“Oh? If that’s really the case, Major Falken, I will certainly report your merits truthfully to the governor,” Misia smiled slightly, effortlessly dodging Falken’s wandering hand as she gracefully ascended the stairs leading to the second floor of the hotel.

“Tsk!” Falken, finding his hand had reached nothing, sullenly withdrew his right hand, but his gaze still lustfully lingered on Misia’s retreating figure.

“Major, you should be careful. I heard that woman has a rather special relationship with Governor Temiso,” at that moment, another officer wearing the insignia of a junior officer happened to walk up and reminded Falken with a smile.

“Pah! What’s there to fear? No matter how high Governor Temiso’s rank is, he’s just a civil official who has no authority over us, the mine garrison,” Falken scoffed, then turned his head to ask his subordinate, “Aren’t you supposed to be doing intelligence analysis in the basement? What are you doing coming to the hall?”

“Oh, I came to remind you as you instructed. The sun will set in another thirty minutes, sir,” the captain quickly saluted, standing straight and reporting to Major Falken with utmost seriousness, “Additionally, we’ve just received a message from the garrison headquarters. They mentioned that there seems to be some unusual activity among the beasts near our area, and they told us to be vigilant.”

“Hmph! A bunch of busybodies,” Major Falken snorted in displeasure, waving his hand dismissively, “What activity? It’s just the beasts’ normal alertness. Thirteen academies, over a hundred people suddenly pouring into such a small area, of course the nearby monsters would feel uneasy. Besides, it’s just the green safety zone. Even if those beasts do act strangely, with our Third Squad of the mine garrison here, what trouble could they possibly cause? Tsk! I think those guys at headquarters are just envious of others having an easy time and trying to create some trouble for us. Ignore them.”

“Yes, sir,” the young captain immediately saluted Major Falken without hesitation before turning to leave.

Of course, deep down, the young captain didn’t entirely agree with Major Falken’s judgment. However, as a soldier born and raised in Casares, the young captain had unparalleled confidence in the Casares military, which they were most proud of. Just as the major had said, even if the beasts did show some unusual behavior, with the squad stationed outside Weiyin Town, there was nothing to worry about.

“Hehe. The soldiers of Casares do indeed have a lot of confidence. If their strength were just a bit stronger, they would almost have the air of those elite units from the imperial capital, the ‘Imperial Wings,'” in a private room on the top floor of the Basaya Hotel, Reimiu comfortably leaned back on the sofa, smiling at his female aide, Isaya, who had just entered the room.

“There are thirty minutes left before sunset,” Isaya didn’t respond to Reimiu’s musings. She maintained her usual serious expression, placing the teacup in her left hand in front of Reimiu as she spoke.

“Isaya, your tea brewing skills are getting better and better!” Reimiu sniffed the fragrant aroma rising from the cup, praising the serious-faced female aide with satisfaction.

“It is my duty to satisfy you, my lord,” the beautiful female aide said with her mouth, but her face clearly showed her dissatisfaction with her superior.

“Again? Isaya, being serious all the time isn’t good for a girl’s beauty,” Reimiu put down his teacup and lightly teased his female aide with a smile.

“Oh? You wait a minute!” As Isaya was about to say something else, Reimiu suddenly raised his hand to stop her. His gaze passed over Isaya and became interested in the wall opposite.

A hemispherical psychokinetic device in the center of that wall projected a large screen. On the left side of the screen was a map of the area where the survival competition was taking place. There were many rapidly moving bright spots on the map, undoubtedly representing each badge.

The area where Reimiu’s gaze was fixed, that is, the central-northern part of the map, a large cluster of bright spots was quickly moving towards the northern yellow adventure zone at high speed. Behind that cluster of bright red spots, another, even larger cluster of bright spots was chasing it.

“Captain, is it okay to just let those amateurs run around like this?” Isaya frowned, “We don’t know the target of the Society, nor do we know their location. If the Society takes action outside the safety zone, we might have difficulty responding in time.”

“Hehe, exactly. If they just stay in the safety zone, this mission would be too boring…” Reimiu said lightly, suddenly turning his head with renewed interest, “Oh, by the way, how’s the investigation on those people I asked you about going?”

“I’ve basically cleared it up. The man named Zhang Wen, whose original name is Gille Bernard, is a local from Casares. He studied at Moore Academy’s physical arts department for two years. However, this identity is likely just a borrowed cover. His real identity is probably Andrei Stein, the former head of the Ruby faction, who was wiped out by the Society in the Berkeley planetary incident a year ago. He was also a former Mithril Hunter. The assassination attempt on Governor Temiso several months ago was likely his plan. Although he gained Temiso’s trust through that incident, he lost his most capable and last subordinate—Van Krassu.”

“Oh? Krassu actually died…” Upon hearing Van Krassu’s name, Reimiu’s face finally showed a flicker of emotion.

“That’s right. The one who acted at the time was Casares’ top expert, Iron Mask, ranked seventh among the Kaymer Legendary Fighters. Multiple members of the governor’s guard team can confirm Krassu’s death.”

“Is that so?” Reimiu gently swirled the tea in his cup, “Even the ‘Southern Border Overlord’ couldn’t handle the Society alone. However… such a mighty hero dying quietly in a small place like Casares, the end of a hero is indeed pitiful.”

“The end of a hero…” Isaya paused, perhaps sensing the slight melancholy in Reimiu’s words, and looked at the ever-smiling Eagle Guard Captain with complex emotions. She was thinking about what he had just said.

Indeed, even a peerless expert like the “Southern Border Overlord” would be powerless against the Society. But then, how could this always-smiling guy manage to fight against the Society for three whole years with just a small squad of the Imperial Eagle Guards? Reimiu, Captain, who exactly are you?

The room was silent for a moment before Reimiu finally lifted his ever-present smile and continued, “Alright, let’s not talk about that unfortunate fellow anymore. His death might actually make our work easier from now on. Let’s talk about the others.”

“Yes, Captain. The woman named Linoah has an identity far more complicated than Zhang Wen’s. First of all, she has a very close relationship with the mysterious singer Mary Snow, who was extremely popular in the Federation and the Commercial Alliance five years ago. According to one of our agents, a friend of his saw this woman entering and exiting Mary Snow’s residence in the Federation on more than one occasion.”

“Oh? Was she still in the Federation five years ago?”

“Yes. She came to Casares about a year ago and entered Almishus Academy under the name Linojah, becoming a teacher in the psychokinetic arts department. I investigated the channels through which she obtained her false identity and got these documents.” Isaya spoke with her usual meticulousness, placing several files in front of Reimiu.

“The interim head of Mithril’s new intelligence department… Hehe, it seems that after Ruby’s destruction, Mithril’s intelligence department has encountered some talent-related difficulties,” Reimiu said with a chuckle.

“As you said, Your Lordship. Just before Ruby’s destruction, Andrei used his authority to mobilize over ninety percent of Mithril’s intelligence department’s forces. The result was that Mithril’s intelligence system was dealt a devastating blow alongside Ruby. Otherwise, the leadership of Mithril would never have allowed such an inexperienced woman to take on such an important position.”

“A combination of a tiger without claws and a female leopard whose claws haven’t fully grown yet… Although it’s a bit different from what I imagined, it’s still somewhat interesting,” Reimiu smiled, sipped his tea, stood up, and looked out the window, “Let’s go!” He suddenly blurted out, then without looking back, started walking out.

“Huh? Go? Where to?” Reimiu’s sudden action left Isaya momentarily unable to keep up. By the time Reimiu was almost at the front door, Isaya hastily put down her teacup.

“Where else? Hehe! Isaya, can’t you smell it?” Reimiu laughed, pointing to the tip of his nose, “Even the air in this little town is filled with the scent of danger. If we keep dawdling, we’ll miss the opening act.”

“Huh?” Isaya blankly took a breath, naturally finding nothing. However, she keenly noticed that although the Eagle Guard Captain’s tone and expression were as usual, his eyes couldn’t help but reveal a strange excitement…

As Reimiu and Isaya left the Basaya Hotel, the sun of Casares was gradually setting in the west, and night completely enveloped the Sandra Forest.

Every person from Casares knew that the fierce beasts in Sandra Forest were much more active at night than during the day. Once it got dark, even the green safety zone would no longer be safe, except for the area within the town walls.

A few years ago, there had been an incident where a team of contestants tried to launch a night raid on another team but accidentally drew the attention of the beasts, resulting in two teachers being seriously injured, four students injured, and one student killed. Since then, for most of the teachers and students participating in the survival competition, the arrival of night meant the end of the day’s battles. Except for a few exceptionally daring individuals, almost no one was willing to be active at night during the survival competition.

Especially on a night like tonight.

After the sun set, the sky was quickly covered by thick clouds, and not a bit of moonlight or starlight could penetrate. The forest was pitch black, and occasionally a small creature with a glowing belly would run by, only vaguely illuminating the large, ghost-like trees. Combined with the sickly green glow, the pitch-black night seemed even more eerie.

However, this year’s survival competition looked quite different from previous years. Even on a night as ominous as this, many people were still moving forward, risking attacks from the beasts.

For example, Zhang Wen and the five beautiful women around him were swiftly advancing through the pitch-black forest. Leading this group of six was naturally Linoah, a three-star psychokinetic arts instructor. While moving at high speed, detecting the location of the opponents’ badges was something only Linoah could accomplish within this group. Following closely behind Linoah were the four female students in the group. And Zhang Wen was right at the back of the formation.

To prevent attracting the attention of the beasts with sound, no one in the team spoke while moving. In the pitch-black forest, everyone could not see the surroundings and could only rely on the sound of the person in front to determine the direction of movement.

Of course, for the students of Almishus Academy, moving forward by sound should not be a difficult task. Even the weakest among them, Amelie, could easily keep up with the group’s speed. However, no one would have thought that the accident would happen to Carol.

In fact, although Carrie originally had a slight fear of the dark, it wasn’t bad enough for her to show it when she was surrounded by many companions. The problem, however, was that not long ago, she had spent a night with Zhang Wen inside the isolation room, and that memory still lingered deeply in Carrie’s mind. Now, faced with a situation nearly identical to that pitch-black night—so dark that you couldn’t even see your fingers in front of your face—Carrie couldn’t help but recall vividly all those ghost stories Zhang Wen had whispered into her mind with his eerie voice.

That’s just how effective ghost stories are at scaring people. If you don’t think about them, nothing happens. But once they take root in your mind, it’s like sinking into a swamp—no matter how hard you struggle, you only sink deeper, and the harder you fight, the faster you fall!

Carrie’s current state was exactly like that. Though she desperately told herself that it was all fake, just Zhang Wen trying to scare her, the rustling of leaves in the breeze, the eerie “woos” of wild beasts in the forest—all of it poured into Carrie’s ears. Even the footsteps of her companions now sounded strangely terrifying to her, as if they were the ghosts Zhang Wen had described, chasing her with the intent to steal her body and possess her soul.

And what made the young beauty suffer the most was that, although she was practically dying of fear inside, she couldn’t even voice it! If others found out that the student council president of Almace Academy was afraid of the dark, where would that leave her pride?

This fear was like a seed planted in her heart—it took root immediately, sprouted, and soon grew lush branches and leaves. Soon, the young beauty’s cute face had turned deathly pale from her own imagination, and her heart felt like it might leap out of her chest at any moment.

Whoosh! Suddenly, a strange bird startled from the forest shot past right in front of her. This was the final blow to Carrie, whose nerves were already stretched to the breaking point. If there had been any light, one would have seen the young beauty’s face instantly drain of all color. Her body stiffened from sheer terror, her steps completely thrown into disarray. After stumbling forward a few steps, her heart practically jumping out of her throat, Carrie finally tripped and fell to the ground.

From start to finish, the young beauty didn’t let out a single sound. However, this wasn’t because she had the self-control not to scream—it was because she was too terrified to even scream.

“What’s going on?” Naturally, Zhang Wen, who was walking at the back of the group, quickly noticed Carrie’s fall. He rushed forward immediately and helped her up from the ground.

“Zhang… Zhang Teacher,” Carrie’s voice trembled in the darkness, like a frightened little rabbit.

“What’s wrong?” The tone of Carrie’s voice, filled with suppressed tears, left Zhang Wen completely puzzled.

“I… I…” For the sake of her pride, Carrie endured for a long while, managing not to say those two words—”I’m scared.”

“If there’s nothing wrong, then get up. We don’t have much time,” Zhang Wen said, giving Carrie a strange look.

“Okay,” Carrie replied softly. She stood up, summoning her courage to continue forward. But as soon as she looked toward the pitch-black path ahead, a wave of nervousness welled up inside her, and all the courage she had just gathered vanished into thin air.

Even now, Carrie’s heart was still pounding rapidly like a drum. She felt that if something like that happened again, she really might die of fear. Then she would become the first student council president in Almace Academy’s history to die from being scared to death! How embarrassing would that be? No way, she couldn’t let that happen!

Carrie bit her lip hard, racking her brain for ideas. Suddenly, a spark of inspiration flashed before her eyes.

“Ouch… my… my ankle!” Just as she had risen halfway, Carrie suddenly cried out in pain and fell back down, her face contorted with apparent agony.

“Sprained ankle?” Zhang Wen frowned as he looked at Carrie, sitting on the ground and unable to stand. In the pitch-black jungle, even Zhang Wen’s vision, enhanced by the Spring Water Technique, was severely limited. He couldn’t tell exactly how serious Carrie’s injury was. But judging from the way she had cried out in pain just now, it sounded pretty bad.

During the brief exchange between the two, Linoah and the other students had already gathered around. “What’s going on?” Linoah’s voice soon came from not far away.

“Carrie tripped over something and got hurt,” Zhang Wen quickly explained.

“What do we do now?” Linoah asked anxiously.

“It’s fine. I’ll carry her. Let’s go!” Zhang Wen gritted his teeth and, without waiting for further discussion, lifted Carrie onto his back.

“Eh?!” Feeling her body press against Zhang Wen’s back, Carrie’s eyes instantly widened.

In Carrie’s imagination, saying she had sprained her ankle would probably just result in someone helping her walk along. That way, she would have company and naturally wouldn’t be scared of the dark anymore. But who could have predicted this outcome? Unfortunately, no one could see Carrie at the moment. Otherwise, the sight of the pure, beautiful girl looking so flustered and embarrassed would have charmed countless people.

“I can walk by myself,” Carrie felt she should probably say that. But before the young beauty could even open her mouth, Zhang Wen happened to give her butt a gentle support.

“Ahh!” The words at the tip of Carrie’s tongue turned into a startled cry.

“Did I touch the injured spot?”

“N-no,” Carrie blushed furiously as she wrapped her arms around Zhang Wen’s neck. At this point, she actually couldn’t bring herself to tell Zhang Wen that she could walk just fine. Otherwise, it would seem like she had faked the injury just to get him to carry her!

I didn’t want him to carry me! Even though I did fake the injury… Carrie thought dazedly. Meanwhile, Zhang Wen’s hands, which held her thighs and occasionally gave her soft butt a little squeeze, only made the young beauty’s cheeks grow hotter and hotter.

However, Zhang Wen wasn’t really paying attention to the flustered young beauty clinging to him. Ever since nightfall, a sense of unease had been growing in Zhang Wen’s heart. What was even more puzzling was that this feeling of danger was completely different from the instinctive warnings he had experienced in the past when real danger approached. It wasn’t just a gut feeling—it felt like a real, tangible sensation, as vivid as the electric current felt during a kiss.

Hmm! It seems like tonight might not stay as peaceful as it is now, Zhang Wen thought silently. With that, the Qi of the Spring Water Technique began circulating rapidly through his body, and his alertness had unconsciously reached its peak.

Just as Zhang Wen was silently on guard, another pair just a few miles away had truly fallen into trouble.

“Captain?” Iseya frowned deeply as she watched the large group of people slowly surrounding them.

“Yeah… this really is a tricky situation,” Reimou said, his ever-present eerie smile still plastered on his face as he looked toward a certain point within the crowd.

“Hehe! So we were discovered after all. The Empire’s Fang truly lives up to its reputation!” A cloaked man hiding within the crowd cackled unpleasantly.

“Flattered to hear it.”