The Epic Tale of Chaos vs Order

85 We are soldiers

Cain analyzed the woman and was sure she was at Wave Champion rank, and the physical strength she projected hinted that she followed the Astral Rebirth Path of Power. What drew his curiosity were the two small swords around her waist.

No rule said that an Astral Wave Cultivator could not use melee Wave Artifacts, but unless they could extend their Wave Cloak into the weapon flawlessly, it would be more practical to just rely on their arms and legs to fight.

‘Since she already entered the Ego Eternal Path of Power’s First Realm, her Ego Wave should be able to allow her a domain over Direct Flow as great as that of an Essence Wave Warrior.’

Cain could analyze all that since no matter how much pressure the woman unleashed, it did nothing to him.

Finally, the golden light in the woman’s eyes vanished, and she showed a smile.

“So you are the divine genius. Interesting.” The woman’s voice was calm, but it made everybody in the tent focus on Cain.

Lurin and the other cadets were confused. Although Cain’s talent in the Astral Rebirth Path of Power was not low, it by no means gave him the right to have the title of divine genius. Only Levi and Beelze understood that the woman referred to the Ego Eternal Path of Power.

Cain did not care about those gazes and simply clasped his hands and bowed.

“Cadet Cain Laurifer, presenting himself for duty.”

.....

Levi, Beelze, Lurin, and the other cadets did the same. They all looked at the woman with cautious eyes since she was not only very powerful but also somewhat frivolous.

The woman seemed to have lost interest again and only nodded before turning toward the Razmun.

“Vice-Captain Razmun. You are familiar with these brats. Give them a task according to their abilities.”

“Yes, Major,” Razmun bowed to the woman before turning to the cadets. “Follow me.”

Cain followed the dwarf out of the tent but not without giving the woman one last glance.

Just when they left, the soldier at the right of the woman spoke.

“Major Luma. If that brat is a divine genius, should we allow him to enter the battlefield without protection?”

Although the man did not know why Luma used the term divine genius with Cain, in his mind, anyone with such high appraisal should be protected as they would rise to be a great asset to the empire.

Luma saw that the rest of the soldiers in the tent also shared that idea, but she immediately shook her head.

“His path differs from the rest of the Astral Rebirth or Essence Evolution geniuses. If we protect him against danger, we would actually be harming him. And if that happens, that man will kill all of us.”

Shock appeared in the gazes of the soldiers when they heard that. They saw the dread in their fearless commander’s eyes and immediately changed the subject. As for the name of that man, none dare to ask it.

Razmun guided Cain and the others out of the main tent and headed to a desolated part of the camp. He stared at them for a moment before waving his hand and making a metal ball appear.

From the metal ball, a virtual image emerged, showing the current Korin City. The cadets immediately noticed that beneath the broken city, there was a set of tunnels.

“We moved all the civilians to the underground tunnels. Initially, the task of cadets like you would be to establish order, but we are currently in need of manpower here, and you are strong enough to fulfill those tasks.”

Cain and the others nodded as they heard that. Although there were many soldiers in the camp besides Major Lumu and the ones in the main tent, none had impressive strength. Those with true power were hunting down the Dark Races’ powerhouses.

Razmun smiled when he saw that none of the cadets complained and accepted the change of mission.

“Before I assign the mission, are you capable of killing Level 4 Wave Beast and facing those at Level 5?”

That question confused the cadets. Some thought that Razmun would ask them to hunt Wave Beasts, which made no sense considering they were in an active state of war.

However, Cain’s eyes narrowed when he heard that question. The reason why there was so much Wave Beasts’ blood became clearer.

Although they were confused, Levi, Beelze, and Lurin turned toward Cain to answer that question. Cain had already proved his military skills and had a proper assessment of their battle strength as a group, so if someone could evaluate their chances, it would be him.

Cain closed his eyes as he used the [A.I. Chip Module] to simulate several battles against Level 4 and Level 5 Wave Beasts he had scanned in the past.

“Against Level 4 Wave Beast, our chances of survival are 99%, forcing it to escape are 86%, and killing it is 45%. If the enemy is at Level 5, the percentages change to 82%, 43%, and 7%, respectively. I cannot estimate what will happen if we face Wave Beasts with long-range skills.”

Razmun was honestly surprised by Cain’s analysis. Although there was a chance the cadet could be lying, he did not believe so.

That information satisfied the Vice-Captain. Razmun was about to give their command when he saw Cain raise his hand.

“?Yes?”

“Are the Wave Beasts’ stampedes occurring at a specific moment of the day?”

Razmun’s eyes widened when he heard that. Cain’s words contained a question but also made it clear this one already knew there was a problem with Wave Beasts’ stampedes.

“Elaborate.” Razmun’s voice was solemn.

“Yes, Sir. I detected several scents of blood inside the city. One belonged to humans, a weaker one to members of the Infernus Daemon Race, and the third to Wave Beasts. This last one is fresher, meaning the stampedes are still happening.

Those beasts would not attack a broken city where they would die unless someone higher in the food chain commanded them. Wave Beasts with that power are wise and would not attack blindly.”

Cain’s words surprised not only Razmun but also the cadets that came with him. One of them, a young girl, could not contain her curiosity.

“Why would strong Wave Beasts send their minions to attack?”

As soon as she opened her mouth, her body trembled due to Razmun’s sharp gaze focusing on her. They were not in a classroom but in a military camp, and a soldier should only speak when allowed.

Although it might seem exaggerated for Razmun to react so fiercely to something so trivial as a cadet speaking out of turn, it made perfect sense. How could you be expected to obey the important rules if you don’t obey the small rules?

Luckily for the young girl, Cain took a step between her and Razmun before bowing.

“I am sorry about that, Sir.”

Razmun was not so petty as to push things out of proportion for a small mistake as long as it would not happen again. He gave a slight nod before signaling Cain to raise.

A small smile appeared on the dwarf face as he stared at Cain. A leader, even a de-facto one, must bear the responsibility of the ones following him.

“The attacks happen at night. The bulk of the stampede comes from the northeast position. You will head to the southwest position where things are calmer, and take command of the one hundred soldiers there. Most are Level 1 and 2, with a few at Level 3. Their previous commander perished two days ago.” Razmun took out a crystal card with the assignment and handed it over to Cain before returning to the main military tent.

Cain did not waste time and immediately headed toward the southwest position with the others. As they walked, he felt the gaze of the young girl that had awe, but there was also curiosity.

“It doesn’t matter why.” Cain did not look back, but it was clear to whom he spoke.

The young girl was surprised by those words, and the curiosity in her eyes did not decrease at all.

“But...”

“Although our current position is cadets, we are currently taking the role of soldiers. Our task is to defend the city and kill any Wave Beasts coming our way, as simple as that. There is definitely a reason behind the Wave Beasts’ stampedes, and I already have a hypothesis, but it doesn’t matter.” Cain stopped walking for a moment and turned to the young girl. The red light in his eyes generated an invisible pressure on everybody.

“Unless the command given to us is something we can not bear to follow under any circumstances, we will carry our orders without question or hesitation.”

Cain saw that the girl understood his words and nodded before focusing on Lurin, startling this one.

“Yes?” Lurin did not know what was happening. Before he could say anything else, Cain handed him Razmun’s crystal card.

“You will take the lead. Handle things with the soldiers.” After that, Cain walked to the back of the group, and everybody saw blood leaking from his nose, eyes, and ears.

He had already reached the limit his brain could endure by forcefully triggering his Ego Wave. Without it, while he would not fall into a mad frenzy, he would have a hard time focusing his mind, so he handed the lead to Lurin.

Although Levi and Beelze were stronger, the duo was not precisely known for the people’s skill, so Lurin was the best choice.

Lurin was happy to take the lead, but he found it odd. However, Cain lowered his head after reaching the back of the group and did not explain that strange behavior.