Shattered Stakes
“You'll have to put up with the jostling. Just hang in there a bit longer.”
There was no reply on the way back—her condition must have been dire.
Damn, let's hurry.
His gut screamed that there was no time to waste, so he poured every ounce of strength into a desperate sprint.
“Kririk!”
“Get out of the way!”
Goblins popped up here and there along the path, but thankfully, not in great numbers.
Pfsh!
No time to kill them outright—he just inflicted wounds severe enough to keep them from following, then kept running.
Fortunately, a familiar voice rang out before long.
“They're swarming now—fall back and engage from behind!”
“Our goal is to buy time, so don't push too hard!”
Lt. Colonel Garen's booming voice.
It looked like their circling path had looped right back to his position.
Actually, perfect.
With treatment and rest needed, nowhere was safer than the main unit.
“Lt. Colonel Garen! Target destroyed!”
“What the—?”
He spotted me joining them, Orpia Lt. Colonel on my back, and his eyes widened in surprise.
“Fall back for now!”
“Retreat! Retreat!”
The Special Forces pulled back the instant the order dropped—they'd clearly been struggling to hold.
Not critical injuries, but plenty of wounded among them.
“We need to move fast, so I'll take the lieutenant colonel on my back.”
“Understood.”
I was exhausted from carrying her this far, so I handed her over without hesitation.
“Pardon the intrusion.”
“Yes...”
She climbed weakly onto his back, and damn, his broad frame made it look effortless compared to me. The stability was on another level.
“Just a bit more—keep pushing!”
“Yes, sir!”
Trailing behind Lt. Colonel Garen, they quickly widened the gap from the goblins.
But seriously, how does he run that fast even carrying someone?
Even in a straight 100-meter dash, he'd probably smoke me.
“Battalion commander, looks like the last pursuing goblins have fallen off.”
“Then let's rest here a moment. Recon team, scout the perimeter.”
“Yes, sir!”
He issued the orders, then gently set Orpia Lt. Colonel down.
“No visible external injuries—what happened?”
Lt. Colonel Garen eyed me briefly.
“Uh...”
I couldn't breathe a word about her eye, so I froze up.
How the hell do I explain this?
As he said, she looked fine on the outside.
But with Orpia Lt. Colonel unconscious right now...
I had to spin some lie, and it wasn't easy.
Best to say nothing.
Sometimes silence beats a hundred words.
“She just collapsed mid-fight out of nowhere. I don't know the details either.”
“Hmm. Poison, maybe? That'd be the worst-case scenario.”
Lt. Colonel Garen shot her a worried look that felt heavy on me.
Thankfully, Orpia Lt. Colonel stirred back to consciousness before he could act.
“I-I'm... fine. Just overdid it. Captain, water?”
“Yes, ma'am! Here.”
I handed over the canteen, feeling a decade older.
“Ahh.”
Water really was a miracle cure.
Color started returning to her deathly-pale face.
“We'll call it here for today.”
Everyone nodded at Lt. Colonel Garen's words.
“Sorry to drag you all down.”
“No issue. We've got minor wounds too—rest is best.”
Sure enough, the Special Forces looked like they needed a break.
“I'll escort you out of the mountains. Hop on.”
Lt. Colonel Garen knelt, offering his back to Orpia Lt. Colonel.
“I'm so sorry.”
“Light as a feather—it's fine.”
Huh? Since when is he such a smooth talker?
Hard to believe that line came from him.
That's not him at all.
For a second, I wondered if he'd been hit by some mind-attack magic tool.
“Then... excuse me.”
Orpia Lt. Colonel ducked her head shyly and climbed on.
And so the first day ended with one magic stake destroyed.
“If you don't want to get caught and killed, move your asses!”
Major Bocad bellowed at the penal unit soldiers pulling the cart with the magic stake Stake.
“Operations chief, the convicts are at their limit. They need a break, even a short one.”
“Rest here at the entrance? You want the enemy to spot us?”
Captain Ricardo suggested a pause, but it fell on deaf ears with Major Bocad's urgency.
“No breaks. Whip 'em faster if you have to—or pull it yourselves!”
“U-understood.”
No one could imagine actually pulling the cart, so Captain Ricardo and the recon command soldiers drew their whips.
“You worthless scum! Move it!”
“If we get spotted because of you, it's on your heads!”
Crack! Crack!
“Argh! I'll walk—just stop! Stop!”
The pain of the lashes wrung every last drop of strength from the eight penal troops, speeding them up.
And among them was Lieutenant Robin, his once-bright blond hair now dulled, hauling the cart.
That bastard—I'd rip him apart. Just months ago, he wouldn't even look my way.
Especially Captain Ricardo.
He and Robin had entered recon command in the same class.
“What're you staring at?!”
Spotting the glare, Captain Ricardo lashed out at Robin without hesitation.
Crack!
Not to hurry him, but to inflict pain—a brutal strike that screamed through Robin's brain, too much for any human to endure silently.
But Robin didn't make a sound.
“F-fucking orphan with a big ego.”
Captain Ricardo shuddered at the monstrous sight but hit Robin's sorest spot.
“What did you say?”
“Orphan. What, did I lie?!”
Defiance rose in Captain Ricardo's voice amid the killing intent that felt like it could sever his head any second.
Unfortunately, Robin was powerless against him.
“Hah.”
The helpless sight filled Captain Ricardo with an indescribable conquest and thrill.
“Convicts should know their—”
“Captain Ricardo! Where are you?”
Major Bocad called just as he reared back for another lash.
“Damn, you're lucky.”
Captain Ricardo grimaced in disappointment and hurried over.
“What is it, sir?”
“Take a look at this.”
What Major Bocad pointed to was none other than a Stake installed three months prior.
“What's the prob— what the hell?”
A long sword mark slashed across the circuit.
Obviously, a damaged circuit turned the magic stake Stake into a useless rock.
“They went right for destruction, no subtlety.”
Major Bocad clicked his tongue after close inspection.
“Monsters?”
“Does this look like monster work to you, Captain? Tsk, your eyes must be off.”
He scoffed in disdain.
“Sorry, sir. Then... the Lycans?”
“Has to be. Heard they caught on, but finding it? Must've thrown everything at it. Still impossible, though.”
Word had spread that the Lycan Empire learned of the Stake's nature thanks to the ogre wildcard.
But no one in recon command worried much.
Camouflaged well as ordinary rocks, and the Gork Mountains were vast.
“No map leak possible, so they just got lucky finding it.”
Incredibly complacent, but no other explanation fit.
“Even one costs a fortune. Tsk, more'll break.”
Major Bocad's face soured at the foreseeable future.
“Just in case, send recon to check the nearest Stake. Let the penal unit rest meanwhile.”
“Yes, sir.”
The recon was sent purely as precaution.
But their report was shocking.
“S-sir, operations chief.”
“What?”
Captain Ricardo's voice trembled as he called Major Bocad after the recon's debrief.
“The Stake... has the exact same sword mark.”
“What?!”
“Recon says the tracks aren't old. No idea how, but they've figured out the locations and are smashing them.”
“Shit! Those goddamn bastards.”
A Stake was worth more than a soldier's lifetime earnings.
One destroyed meant paperwork hell; two, and discipline boards loomed.
For Major Bocad, in charge of installation and maintenance, panic set in naturally.
“Scatter every recon team—find the Lycans! Shit, stop them by any means!”
“Y-yes, sir!”
At Major Bocad's order, the operations team began pursuit based on the lingering tracks.
“Whoa, it's been ages since I saw Belling grass this big. Gotta be the Gork Mountains.”
Lt. Colonel Garen suddenly squatted mid-path and plucked a clump of weeds.
“What's Belling grass?”
“You're from a merchant house, male too, and you don't know Belling grass?”
He said it like it was unthinkable. I really didn't.
“Never got into the trading side much—knowledge gap there.”
“Fair. Military life's your thing; trading wouldn't suit.”
No. It suits me perfectly.
If I could just escape this damn army, I'd build a second Amazon. What was he on about?
“Ha... haha.”
“Belling grass boosts vitality. Army used it first, but it overdid it down there—canceled after a year from backlash.”
“Down there?”
“Man's vitality. Where else?”
Lt. Colonel Garen's words clicked instantly.
“Now it's traded high for that purpose. This much... at least 30 gold.”
“30 gold...?”
The roadside weed matched my monthly pay.
“Why so shocked? Everyone knows old nobles throw coin sacks at anything for virility.”
“Right.”
Same old world for men, Korea or here.
No wonder the herb hunters risk their necks.
High risk, high return—perfect fit.