The Alchemist's Gambit
The alchemist. The herbs secretly harvested from the forest beyond the ramparts gave off a thick, earthy scent from inside Tae-oh’s coat. He looked at Rolls and asked, “You sober now?”
Rolls, still wearing a slightly dazed expression, let out a sloppy grin. “Heh heh, yeah. I’m awake now.”
“...You’re still completely fucked up, you lunatic.”
“What does it matter if I’m not? My mind’s sharper than it’s ever been. Hehehehe!”
He looked like he couldn’t fully shake off the drugs Tae-oh had made, yet his movements were surprisingly nimble and flawless.
“It’s time. Heh heh, let’s head back, Tae-oh.”
The return path felt noticeably less guarded than the way out. It was the hour when the soldiers who had stood watch through the night began to lose their edge.
“Heh heh, you’re something else, Alchemist.”
“If you know that, transfer to our unit first thing this morning.”
“Obviously. After you gave me such good stuff, I’ve gotta do whatever you want. Hehehehe.”
Rolls and Tae-oh once again slipped behind the gloomy supply depot in a secluded corner. There, Tae-oh laid out his treasures on the ground. From the Mist Evening Primrose that glowed with a soft purple light to the root of the Viper Grass, which stung the fingertips at the slightest touch.
To Tae-oh, a veteran player of Imperial Conquest, these were the raw materials for tactical weapons that could flip the entire battlefield.
“Whew. Now the real work begins.”
Tae-oh murmured quietly, glancing at Rolls. Rolls was smoking the Meditation Herb cigarette Tae-oh had given him, watching the process with dreamy eyes.
“Hey, Rolls. Stop spacing out and keep watch at the entrance. Signal me the second anyone comes in.”
“Heh heh, don’t worry. Right now I can see every single ant crawling. But what the hell are you planning to do with those weeds?”
Tae-oh answered shortly. “Desperately struggling so I don’t die.”
Leaving the lookout to Rolls, Tae-oh dove straight into compounding. He had neither a dedicated alchemist’s workshop nor precise flasks, but he possessed the knowledge granted by the game system and the improvisational skills drilled into him by the army.
The first thing he worked on was the smoke bomb. Mixing the Mist Evening Primrose with the proper ingredients produced a surprisingly usable smoke charge. In the game it had been one of the most valuable tools for escaping powerful enemies. Even in modern warfare, smoke grenades held absolute importance as equipment. By blocking vision they neutralized enemy ranged attacks, concealed friendly positions, and triggered psychological panic. Tae-oh understood exactly how massive a variable this crude homemade smoke bomb could create in the chaos of melee combat.
The second was the tear gas. He crushed the root of the Viper Grass to extract its juice, then soaked it into thoroughly dried powder. If I mess this up I’ll be the first one to go down. When the powder touched the eyes or mucous membranes it caused a burning sensation like fire. Of course it couldn’t force a wide area of enemies to weep and snort like modern chemical tear gas. But simply preventing them from opening their eyes for a split second and making their breathing ragged was more than enough to seize a decisive advantage in close-quarters fighting.
Last, the one Tae-oh poured his greatest effort into was the Potion of Swiftness.
“This is the core.”
This potion, made primarily from Meditation Herb, was considered an essential doping item in the game. It raised both attack speed and movement speed. Had he possessed a professional workshop he could have produced a high-grade version, but for now he had to settle for a low-grade one that offered roughly a ten-percent increase.
Tae-oh carefully took a sip of the finished Potion of Swiftness. A tingling sensation slid down his throat, and his mind suddenly felt as clear as if it had been struck by lightning. In the game interface it had simply appeared as a blinking icon, but the sensation of it running through an actual body was entirely different. His heartbeat quickened, every nerve in his body stood on edge, and the surrounding noises rang out with unusual clarity. It felt less like a simple increase in speed and more like the world itself had begun to flow a little slower.
A faint smile rose to Tae-oh’s lips. “Good. With this, it’s worth trying.”
The morning on the battlefield dawned as brutally as ever. The silver waves beyond the horizon for the third time. Every time the thunder of the Imperial cavalry’s hooves shook the earth, the platoon members’ faces turned deathly pale. But this iteration of Tae-oh was different. Standing firmly at his side was his reliable ally, Rolls.
“Hey, didn’t you say you were going to survive? Is that the face of a man who plans to live?” Rolls asked, readjusting his grip on the long spear. The usual hazy look in his eyes had vanished, replaced by a sharp, murderous glint that felt almost alien.
“I can’t help being nervous.”
“Heh heh, that’s exactly when the drugs shine.”
“You take plenty yourself.”
And so the battle began.
“Waaaaah!! Kill them all!!”
“Guh—!”
“Out of the way, you stupid bastard!! Stop standing there like an idiot!!”
A stray spear whistled past Tae-oh’s eyes. Fuck. I almost died.
He had nearly been killed before even encountering the heart soldier. Without Rolls the odds would have been far worse.
Rolls fought much better than Tae-oh had expected. His movements were polished, without a single wasted motion. It seemed he had undergone elite training somewhere in the past. The kind of man whose history made you curious.
“Thanks!! But worry about yourself! Looks like your high is wearing off!”
“Kekeke, if my precious alchemist dies, who’s going to make my drugs? The only one I’m protecting is you, bastard.”
Thanks to Rolls’s addition, the platoon’s formation was incomparably more stable than in previous rounds. He covered Tae-oh’s back perfectly, cutting down every approaching enemy without mercy.
Perhaps because Rolls had joined them, it felt as if more enemy soldiers were converging on their unit. It was almost like someone was saying, Since you gained a good helper, I’ll raise the difficulty for you.
This won’t do. I need to flip the momentum right now.
Tae-oh instinctively knew the moment had come to deploy the weapons he had prepared.
He hurled the first smoke bomb.
Bang!
Hisssss—!
Purple smoke erupted instantly, swallowing Tae-oh’s unit whole. Inside the thick fog where nothing could be seen, the Imperial soldiers froze in confusion.
“Wh-what the hell is this!!”
“H-hold your breath!! It might be poison gas!!”
To ordinary soldiers a smoke bomb belonged to the realm of unknown magic. From within the cloud, Tae-oh’s voice rang out.
“Do not separate from the man beside you! Everyone except our group is the enemy! Kill them!”
Perfect vision denial—even two steps away was invisible. But for Tae-oh’s unit, who had stayed tightly packed from the beginning, it posed no problem. Enemies shoved into the fog were helplessly skewered by spear tips that shot out from nowhere.
“Guh!!”
Good. It’s working.
It was proceeding far more smoothly than the previous round. If things continued like this…
Hope began to shine in Tae-oh’s eyes.
The battle had entered its latter stage and the unit members were growing exhausted.
“Huff… huff. Fuck… why isn’t he showing up.”
In the previous round the heart soldier should have appeared long ago, yet Tae-oh still saw no sign of any heart.
That was when it happened. A vivid heart emblem visible in the left enemy formation! Beyond the horizon, a figure in a fluttering red cloak was slaughtering allies. A bright red heart floated clearly above his head.
Tae-oh’s heart began pounding violently. There he is. I have to get that heart.
There was no reason to hesitate. Without pause Tae-oh pulled the remaining Potion of Swiftness from his coat and drank it in one gulp. Burning energy surged through his entire body. His vision expanded, and the enemies’ movements appeared slower than usual in a state of hyper-awareness.
Tae-oh gripped his spear tightly and shouted, “Rolls! I’ll be right back!!”
“What? Are you insane? You’re charging in there alone?”
“What’s the point of surviving if I don’t achieve anything!! Otherwise I’ll just die a dog’s death again!!”
Rolls yelled in panic, but Tae-oh had already broken formation and was sprinting forward.
“Tsk!! You crazy son of a bitch!!!”
Rolls chased after him. To him, the other unit members held no meaning whatsoever.
But something was strange. Why is that bastard so fast!?
Tae-oh’s steps had already surpassed those of an exhausted soldier. His movements were light, as if the battle had only just begun. That kind of speed should have been impossible even for Rolls.
Is he some kind of stamina freak!? Ah! He just drank something, that guy!
Rolls gave a crooked smile. Then there was a chance. Tae-oh’s words had been correct. To survive on the battlefield one had to earn merit. If you didn’t want to become a meat shield, you had to prove your usefulness to raise your survival odds.
Interesting bastard, isn’t he?
Rolls summoned his strength and stuck close behind Tae-oh.
While running, Tae-oh pulled out the single tear gas bomb he possessed. That soldier was clearly strong. Moreover, he carried a heart. It was obvious at a glance that Tae-oh could not win against him in a direct fight.
Only one chance!
The moment the man could not open his eyes from the tear gas, he would drive the spear into his throat!
The heart soldier, sensing Tae-oh’s fierce momentum, turned to look at him.
“Hmph, you dare target me!!”
Despite the long battle, his speed was still impressive.
“I am a squad leader of the Empire! You chose the wrong opponent!!”
It was the instant the Imperial squad leader shouted and raised his sword high.
Boom—!
With an explosive sound, yellow smoke began spreading everywhere.
“Wh-what is this!!”
The Imperial soldiers covered in the yellow cloud, along with allies, immediately began coughing violently, tears and snot pouring down their faces.
“Cough, cough!! Kehek!! Uweeeek!!”
Men started vomiting and collapsing to the ground. The wind direction was helping as well.
Tae-oh paused his charge for a moment, waiting for the right timing. The squad leader was still enduring, refusing to close his eyes. But he was only human.
“Krrgh!! Uweeek!!”
The moment he vomited along with his tears, Tae-oh shot forward like lightning.
“Die!!!”
But. The squad leader widened his bloodshot eyes and roared.
“You fell for it, you cowardly bastard!”
He had only pretended to be flustered, deliberately drawing Tae-oh deep into his range.
Shit! This is bad!
No matter how he looked at it, the squad leader’s sword was one step faster than his own spear. Time seemed to slow as a flurry of memories flashed through his mind.
Am I going to die like this?
Right as that thought crossed his mind—
Clang—!
A fierce metallic clash rang in Tae-oh’s ears.
“What the hell are you standing around for, you idiot!! Kill him already!!”