Report
Dark Clouds Over the North
Iron, who everyone had been eagerly awaiting, finally returned.
Upon hearing the news, the entire mobile field army gathered where the Specter Beast had been. Everyone who wasn’t out on a mission came to welcome Iron.
“They’re giving me a pretty enthusiastic welcome, huh?” Iron asked.
Karl, standing beside him, smiled as if it was to be expected. Despite all the experience the officers had gained through countless battles and training to support their suffering commander, it was once again Iron who had sacrificed himself. Because of that, not only the commanders but the entire army trained fiercely, determined not to let Iron make the same sacrifice in the next battle.
“It seems like I’ve caused everyone some heartache.”
Iron chuckled bitterly as he said this.
Even Karl, standing right next to him, looked noticeably gaunt. Ariel and Kardro, who had rushed over, along with other commanders like Seriden, were in the same condition.
“You’ve been through a lot,” Iron said, patting the shoulders of each commander who had hurried over.
Then, when he saw Ariel, his eyes widened in surprise.
“You…”
Ariel’s condition was disastrous. Her body had been pushed to its limits through harsh training, relentless duels, and mental strain that left her barely holding on. It was a wonder her body was even recovering.
But what surprised Iron wasn’t just her physical state. Despite her battered condition, Ariel emanated a strange aura that even Iron found remarkable.
“Is she at the threshold?” Iron thought.
Ariel had been preparing to break through her limits before they even came to the Great Forest.
After gaining incredible battle experience here and being rewarded, it seemed like she had unknowingly broken through a wall and reached a new threshold.
But from Iron’s perspective, Ariel herself didn’t even seem aware that she had crossed her limits.
“Sigh... It’s not like I can just tell her, ‘Hey, you’re at the master’s threshold now!’”
If Iron were to carelessly say that, it might cause the very wall she had broken to reform. So, pretending not to notice, he encouraged the other commanders, all while hiding his concerns. They made their way to the temporarily established command center amid the cheers celebrating the return of the mobile field army.
“I can see how hard everyone’s been working while I was gone.”
As Iron glanced around on his way to the command center, he quickly grasped the overall level of the army. Though their standards had risen thanks to the rewards from clearing the first stage of the Apocalypse, it was evident that they had trained relentlessly to embody those gains.
There were marks of tough training everywhere, and it was clear the soldiers had been through a lot.
“But... where’s Folden?” Iron asked.
“Right here.”
As if summoned by the mention of his name, Folden entered the command center, placing a massive stack of papers on the desk.
“And... this is?”
“These are the documents you all postponed while training,” Folden replied with a glare, especially directed at Nyx Cole, the captain of the rangers, and kardro, who was in charge of the air force. Both of them broke into cold sweats, avoiding Folden’sgaze.
“You have impeccable timing as always,” Folden grumbled, shoving a thick pile of documents into Iron’s hands.
“These are the current reports on the northern region.”
“Is the situation serious?”
“Very serious,” Folden responded, his expression grave.
Hearing this, Iron quickly skimmed through the reports on the northeastern situation.
“Has the war already begun?” Iron asked, his brow furrowing as he read the detailed information.
“It’s more detailed than I expected.”
“We’ve dispatched the entire Raven unit to the north,” Foldenreplied, his face weary.
“And the west?”
“The western command is handling the situation. However, the situation in the north is so severe that we don’t have enough resources to send our intelligence team to the west.”
“Hm… Based on the northern situation, I assume all our intelligence agents are deployed there?”
“Yes. Even that isn’t enough, so we had to rely on the Ravens. We have permission from their leader.”
Iron tilted his head in thought.
“Speaking of which, where is Kaon?”
“He’s currently in training,” kardro responded on his behalf.
“Alone?”
“Yes, due to his training method, we haven’t been able to disturb him, which is why he couldn’t attend.”
Hearing this, Iron stroked his chin in thought. He knew Kaon’s training method well and nodded.
“So, Kaon still needs more time?”
“...It seems so. His control is still lacking compared to his abilities, so he needs more time to adjust.”
After receiving reports from the other commanders, Iron focused on the key figures; Folden and Karl.
Karl had already begun preparations to move supplies to the north, knowing the danger, while Folden had been compiling vast amounts of intelligence in case the worst happened.
Thanks to their efforts, the mobile field army was ready to move at any moment, only needing a day or two to recover before they could deploy to the north.
“I see the head of the Sword Clan has already moved to the north.”
“Yes... He seems to have left before fully recovering, likely due to the signs of the Frost Giant King awakening.”
While Iron was pondering this, Kaon, having finished his training, entered the command center.
“Apologies for being late.”
Iron waved off the apology and received a brief report on the Raven’s operations. It seemed Folden knew more about the Ravens, likely because he had been in command during Kaon’s training.
“Folden.”
“Yes?”
“How long have you been in charge of the Ravens?”
“Since the end of the Great Forest operation.”
Hearing this, Iron fell into thought.
“Sigh... It seems we need to reorganize.”
At Iron’s words, the commanders tensed up, sensing a sudden change.
“I believe it’s time to place the Ravens under Folden’scommand,” Iron declared.
Though the others were surprised, Kaon accepted it without any change in expression, while the others seemed curious about where Kaon, one of the army’s strongest warriors, would end up.
“Kaon.”
“Yes?”
“You’ll take command of the 21st Corps.”
At Iron’s words, everyone’s eyes widened.
“The 21st Corps will become an elite unit. The remaining personnel will be integrated into the 23rd Corps, while the 22nd Corps won’t see any major changes.”
Since Iron had seen how Kaon nurtured the Ravens, he devised a unit structure that would fit his style. The 21st Corps would be elite, the 22nd would specialize in air and reconnaissance, and the 23rd would handle defense and operate the largest forces.
With the corps’ unique roles clearly defined, Iron also gave the direct units their clear objectives.
“The knights will focus on defense, while the assault units will specialize in extermination. The rangers will handle reconnaissance only, leaving combat to the assault units.”
“Yes, sir!”
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The captains of the direct unit bowed their heads and answered Iron's command.
There was not much to command the magic unit and the spirit unit.
If anything, there were many who had contracts with the spirit beasts and spirits in the Great Forest, so the only change was to significantly increase the size of the spirit unit.
The logistics division was well-handled by Karl, so there was no need to touch that, and the intelligence division had greatly elevated Folden's status since Raven was under his command. However, Folden was already in charge of Raven, so it was just a matter of clarifying his rank.
"Then, Commander Ariel..."
kardro muttered, looking at Ariel.
The other commanders felt the same way.
Despite being in a somewhat awkward position, Ariel waited for Iron's command without any noticeable change in her expression.
Watching her, Iron spoke.
"Ariel will move with me for the time being. Her rank is pending. In the future, I plan to appoint her as the vice-commander to lead the entire army in my absence."
At Iron's words, Ariel's eyes widened in surprise, and her pupils trembled.
After briefly observing her reaction, Iron looked at kardro.
"kardro."
"Yes!"
"Prepare to move to the north first."
"Yes."
After Ckardro's prompt response, Iron nodded and spoke to the other commanders.
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"Kaon and Seriden, move as soon as the reorganization iscomplete."
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
After issuing orders to Kaon and Seriden, Iron turned his gaze to the remaining captains of the direct unit.
"All direct units, except the knight unit, will move to the northeastern headquarters immediately. Leave only a minimal number of personnel at the headquarters and use it as a temporary base."
"I will notify the northeastern headquarters," Folden said.
Iron gave a small nod at Folden's words and then turned to Karl.
"Karl, stay in the southern region and take care of the supplies."
"Understood."
"Once the war begins in earnest, you'll join us."
After giving all his orders, Iron took Ariel and left the command post.
Seeing Ariel's haggard face, noticeably more so than the others, likely due to the effort of surpassing the wall to become a Master, Iron sighed.
Although it was fortunate, she hadn't been frustrated by the wall, her current state, where she was pushing herself beyond her limits.
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‘I’ll have to help her.’
With that thought, Iron led Ariel to a quiet spot in the Great Forest.
Upon arriving at an open area, Iron quietly looked at her and asked, "Ariel."
"Yes."
"How close do you think you are to becoming a Master?"
At Iron's question, Ariel remained silent, pondering.
After a long moment of contemplation, Ariel finally spoke with difficulty.
"I think I’ve reached the wall. However... I still lack the enlightenment needed to break through it."
As she said this, Ariel bit her lip.
She thought she had almost made it.
But the wall of becoming a Master remained unyielding.
When she defeated the Wraith Beast and received her reward, she believed she could reach the rank of Master soon, but it had been a misconception.
"Sigh..."
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Seeing Ariel, Iron sighed and shook his head.
The problem Ariel had was just one thing.
She thought too highly of the Master rank.
Even though she had reached the boundary, her perception was blocking her from realizing it.
On top of that, her sense of indebtedness toward Iron for not being more helpful this time was weighing her down, creating another wall in her mind, even though she had already broken through the first one.
Iron spoke firmly to her.
"I will make you vice-commander before I leave for the north."
Ariel's eyes widened in shock at Iron's words.
"Hold on. Break through it. Then, you will become a Master."
As Iron said this, he released a powerful aura into the surroundings.
But it wasn’t just an aura.
Harnessing the power of nature, he pressed down on Ariel with overwhelming force.
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"Ugh!"
"Did you blame yourself for not being more helpful in the battle of the Great Forest? Is that why you've been training so hard, pushing your body to exhaustion in an attempt to become a Master?"
Despite Iron's question, Ariel couldn't answer.
Iron was pressuring her so much that she couldn’t even open her mouth.
"If you want to be helpful to me, break through this. If you can't, you’ll struggle for years to reach the rank of Master. So... you must break through."
Iron spoke decisively to Ariel.
"Abandon the guilt and all unnecessary thoughts. Focus only on breaking through this pressure. From this moment on, think of nothing but your sword. Even then, it will be difficult to break through."
As Iron said this, he gathered even more of nature’s energy.
A massive storm formed around them in the Great Forest, creating a training ground just for Ariel and Iron.
