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That was a question Dianal once asked me in the past.

I couldn’t answer him.

Because the future seemed as uncertain as his anxiety.

If I had to give an answer…

―Maybe it’ll end if we surrender?

―They say when the Kingdom of Meladion surrendered, the royal family was killed, and the people were turned into slaves.

―The higher-ups will never surrender, then.

The war hadn’t ended.

But even amidst all that, Dianal always took care of his subordinates and fought at the front lines.

―Damian.

―Why do you keep calling me today?

―Don’t die before me.

―Did you eat something bad? Why are you talking nonsense today?

―Heh, I’m just telling you not to die.

In a way, I kept that promise.

I lived longer than him.

―…You bastard.

I told you so many times to stop being reckless and just survive somehow.

But I did avenge you.

I took the head of the enemy commander who pierced your heart. So… rest in peace.

Swoosh!

Suddenly, the darkness cleared, and Damian opened his eyes.

It was late at night.

Even the training ground on the other side was barely visible through the fog.

As he got up, Damian clicked his tongue, recalling old memories.

‘Damn memories.’

It would’ve been nice if something pleasant had come to mind instead.

Damian shook off his thoughts and got up from his place.

It was best to avoid being seen while practicing magic techniques.

Swish.

Damian carefully slipped out of the barracks.

He had already scouted out a good place for practicing magic techniques.

Of course, no one would say anything even if he wandered around at night.

There were guys who sneaked out to the red-light district to be with women, after all.

‘This much is nothing.’

He could easily claim he was just taking a walk because he couldn’t sleep.

Damian started walking toward the place he had scouted. But then…

Whoosh! Swish!

A familiar sound came from beyond the fog.

Damian stopped in his tracks.

‘At this hour?’

He carefully moved closer.

And beyond the fog, he saw someone swinging a sword.

It was Dianal.

He was wielding a fairly thick, rugged sword.

A heavier sword meant for fighting larger monsters.

‘…So it started from this time.’

It wasn’t surprising that Dianal was secretly practicing.

That was just the kind of person he was.

In the past, even after regular training was over, Dianal would often do extra training. He was a training maniac.

No, it would be more accurate to say that he was desperate.

That’s how Damian and he became close.

But there was one thing that bothered him.

The heavy sword Dianal was using didn’t suit him at all.

‘I understand why he’s using it, but…’

Dianal was originally from the Neokalitz unit.

He was later transferred to a frontline unit during the war.

In any case, Dianal was more used to fighting monsters than people.

So he chose a weapon that could deliver stronger blows to kill monsters.

‘Many of the guys in the Neokalitz unit use swords like that.’

If not, they use cleavers.

But Dianal was the type who should be using a lighter sword, relying on speed rather than strength.

In his past life, after getting thoroughly beaten by Damian, he switched weapons and became stronger.

“Hmmm…”

Damian’s mouth itched to say something.

He wanted to tell him that this wasn’t right.

‘If I say something now, I’ll probably get beaten up.’

There was no need to ruin the good impression he’d built.

The right time to say something would come.

With a satisfied smile, Damian turned away.

* * *

“Wake uuuup!”

The first morning at the Neokalitz unit dawned.

Unlike other units, the Neokalitz unit had a very relaxed atmosphere.

During personal time, no one cared much about what you did or where you went.

Even the training, though it existed, was more of a formality.

“Man, this is boring.”

“Hey, isn’t there anything fun to do?”

“Should we place a bet? What’s today’s training?”

“Physical training.”

Hearing someone’s answer, the soldier who suggested the bet chuckled.

“Heh, how about we bet on whether the newbies will last through the training?”

“That sounds fun.”

A few others chimed in, excited.

“I’ll bet 10 silvers that they won’t make it through the morning training!”

“I’ll bet 20 silvers they pass out after the morning session!”

“I’m betting they won’t last through the morning either!”

The atmosphere became lively.

Damian watched them quietly.

Swish.

No one was stopping them.

They were all too used to this kind of atmosphere.

“…”

It felt just like the disciplinary unit from back in the day.

Damian turned his gaze to Dianal.

Dianal looked at the seniors who were organizing the betting pool with a disapproving expression.

But as the youngest, there was nothing he could do, so he silently continued to maintain his equipment and tie his bootlaces.

“What’s this? Are they betting on us?”

Kyle frowned as he listened from the side.

“How much do they have to look down on us… Huh? Damian, where are you going?”

Kyle asked as he watched Damian suddenly get up.

Damian walked over to the seniors who were collecting the bets and pulled out a gold coin.

“Mind if I join in?”

“Whoa! You scared me. What, are you placing a bet on yourself?”

“Oh… This guy must have money. That’s 1 gold.”

“Do you even know what the bet is?”

One of the seniors asked Damian.

Damian replied.

“Of course. But I’d like to change the bet a little.”

“To what?”

The senior who was organizing the bet asked.

Damian answered.

“I’m betting 1 gold that I’ll beat everyone here in today’s training.”

Damian grinned as he spoke.

At the same time, Dianal’s expression hardened.

“…He’s nuts, that guy.”

Damian’s words instantly chilled the atmosphere. But…

“Oh, really?”

“The new recruit’s got some guts, huh?”

The seniors’ eyes gleamed.

It had been a while since they had seen such a spirited newbie.

And their faces were filled with confidence.

They had seen newbies like this before.

Of course, none of them had ever joined in on the betting, but there had been plenty of recruits who showed confidence in their training.

They thought Damian was just another one of those recruits.

The senior who was organizing the bet grinned broadly as he spoke.

“Alright, I’ll accept. But let’s change it up a bit. If you win, I’ll give you all this money. But if you lose, you’ll do our laundry for a month.”

“Ooh, sounds good to me!”

“Heh heh heh, rookie. If you’re not confident, you can still back out now.”

The senior, whose nose was red, laughed mockingly.

However…

“Sounds good,” Damian replied.

“Seems like you’re confident in your stamina?”

“Hoho, you’ll regret being so prideful. This isn’t basic training.”

Damian shook his head.

“Even if I lose, I’ll gladly do the seniors’ laundry. That way, the bet will be more enjoyable, don’t you think?”

“Kekeke, you seem to understand something.”

The senior soldier who was organizing the bet spoke up.

“But I’d like to add one more condition. Since I’ll be doing the laundry if I lose anyway.”

“Hmph, now you want to add more?”

“Let’s hear it first.”

The seniors seemed to be enjoying the situation as if it were a fun game.

Damian answered, “If I win, please give me free time during training for a month.”

“What did you say?”

“Shouldn’t the terms of the bet be fair? I’ll have to do the laundry for over a dozen of you every day for just 1 gold coin.”

“That’s…”

The senior soldier looked troubled. He didn’t have the authority to grant that.

But at that moment…

“Alright, let’s do it.”

“Captain?”

Everyone’s eyes widened as Tarion, who had suddenly appeared, answered.

Tarion looked at Dianal.

“Dianal, you join this bet too.”

“Huh? Me too?”

“What, are you afraid you’ll lose to a rookie?”

Dianal’s expression hardened at Tarion’s words.

“Of course not. But I don’t have any money.”

“Here, 10 silver. I’ll cover your bet.”

The atmosphere quickly heated up.

Tarion spoke, “If you do better in training than the seniors, I’ll give you a month of freedom during training. Whether you train or not is up to you.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Save your thanks for when you win.”

Tarion glanced at the seniors who had joined the bet.

“And those of you who lose… I’ll be assigning extra training starting tomorrow. Keep that in mind.”

“C-Captain?!”

“Captain! Isn’t that a bit too harsh?”

“Doesn’t seem like it’s too much for someone who loses to a rookie who just arrived yesterday.”

“…”

The atmosphere changed instantly.

The seniors’ expressions shifted as they realized Tarion was serious.

And then…

“This is going to be fun.”

“It’ll be worth watching, heh heh heh.”

The seniors who hadn’t joined the bet laughed gleefully.

As for the seniors who had joined…

“…This cocky rookie.”

“You’re dead today.”

“We need to show him his place.”

They gritted their teeth and were burning with determination.

Damian smirked at the sight.

Everything was going according to plan.

The reason Damian had joined this bet, despite being called cocky, wasn’t to win free time as the bet condition suggested.

Free time would be nice, but he had no intention of skipping training.

He aimed to change the rotten atmosphere of the Neokalitz unit.

‘Of course, this alone won’t completely change things…’

But this could be the start of a small change.

A unit like Neokalitz had a specific characteristic.

Because of the constant anxiety about dying, they didn’t hold out much hope for the future.

The seniors who had set up this bet…

No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t beat Damian in their current state.

The reason was simple.

They had been half-heartedly training.

Guys soaked in alcohol.

Guys with a bit of a belly.

You didn’t need to see them to know what they were like.

They were just living day by day without hope.

‘Although…’

The other guys seemed a bit better, but if this atmosphere continued, it was hard to guarantee they wouldn’t be affected too.

Once everything was settled, Tarion spoke up.

“Everyone get ready and gather at the entrance to the rocky hill behind the barracks.”

* * *

Behind the Neokalitz unit, there was a small rocky hill.

It was more like a hill than a mountain.

In a straight line, the distance was just over 200 meters, and the first training task was to run up that incline.

“Heh heh, I knew my eyes weren’t deceiving me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“That you’re a madman.”

Kyle, who stood at the entrance of the rocky hill, laughed as he looked at Damian.

He hadn’t expected Damian to actually do something like this.

Damian just smiled faintly in response.

Soon, Damian slowly began to move the mana in his mana hole.

As the mana surged, his body was strengthened, and he felt energy coursing through him.

Moreover…

‘For this kind of training… the invisibility ring will be a big advantage.’

Damian, who had received an invisibility ring from the training center, felt lighter than usual.

Of course, even without that, the others wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

He wasn’t afraid of ‘losing.’

Tarion spoke.

“Everyone, line up. And bring that.”

‘That?’

Damian tilted his head in confusion. But then…

“Wow.”

Kyle, who was beside him, let out a small exclamation.

What had been prepared along with the training…

“A 30kg log. You’ll be carrying this while you run.”

At Tarion’s words, the soldiers’ faces twisted in dismay.

“Ugh! Captain, we don’t usually do this!”

“This is too much for us too!”

The soldiers started to complain.

The intensity of the training was much higher than usual.

But…

“Quiet.”

Tarion’s expression hardened.

Seeing his serious eyes, the soldiers who had been complaining clamped their mouths shut.

It had been a long time since they’d seen the captain with such a serious expression.

Swoosh.

Tarion looked at Damian.

The rookie who had slyly looked at him while slipping in the free time condition.

That rookie must have had some intention in involving him in the bet.

‘I don’t know what you’re thinking, but…’

I’ll keep an eye on you.

The training began.

—