Chapter 157: Mobilization Training -Discharge Ceremony-
Chapter 157: Mobilization Training -Discharge Ceremony-
I hadn't been unconscious for long.
Just like the moment before I blacked out, A-bin was still right in front of me, and I could feel Baek Si-hyun catching me as I collapsed.
Because of that, I could think of a mountain of excuses for my defeat.
If this had been a real battle, everyone except Baek Si-hyun would be dead, so it’s basically my win.
This blackout only lasted a moment, so it wasn't a significant blow.
What meaning is there in a strategy built on the premise of sacrifice from the start?
If I had released my Limiter, I could have blocked that last attack.
Can an attack where one throws away their own body even be considered a proper technique?
And so on.
Excuses like those continued to swirl in my head even now.
It was likely because the result of the sparring match was a shock to me as well.
The attacks of my disciples, which I thought would never reach me no matter what they tried...
Had touched my body and landed a clean hit for the first time.
Whether it was a coincidence or because of the restrictions I placed on myself.
My disciples had proven their growth to me.
They had made it this far in a relatively short amount of time.
Using every card in their hands, they had reached this point.
And so, I had added another defeat to my record.
This isn't good.
Pfft.
A breath escaped my lips involuntarily.
For some reason, I felt like I’d been losing an unusual amount lately.
First Oxymoron, then that mysterious monster at Nanjido. And now, I’d even handed a victory to my disciples.
That Old Man, the Heavenly Demon Sword God, used to say that losing becomes a habit. I’m starting to get scared that he might be right.
Well, I suppose I should clean up this mess.
"Let go."
Having sorted through my thoughts, I shook myself off and detached Baek Si-hyun, who was clinging to me.
"Uh...? Master. Didn't you just collapse...?"
"Yeah, I blacked out for a second. It’s no big deal."
When I fought the Thunder God, this kind of thing happened every few seconds. Once is nothing.
I said it to reassure my disciples, but for some reason...
"No big deal?"
Han A-bin’s voice went shrill.
"Yeah, no big deal. It’s not like I was out for thirty minutes. Blacking out for a second or two during combat happens all the time..."
Even the Heavenly Sword used to get hit in the head with my wooden hammer and pass out dozens of times a day.
...Now that I think about it, is that why he got so stupid?
I tossed the words out casually, my mind wandering to such idle thoughts without deeply considering the fury in Han A-bin’s voice.
"Senior? Why don't you sit down for a moment?"
The price for that was severe.
"What?"
"Hurry up!"
"No, I'm fine—"
"Now!"
Han A-bin thrust her face toward mine as if she were a different person.
"Alright, alright."
Unable to withstand her intensity, I sat down on the dirt ground.
"Senior. How many fingers am I holding up?"
Standing before me, Han A-bin asked while waving her fingers.
"Three."
"Do you remember where we are right now?"
"Mobilization Training, the training grounds."
"What were you doing until just a moment ago?"
"Sparring."
"Then give me your hand."
"Here."
"Make a fist."
...What is she even doing?
I might as well just follow along.
"Now open it."
I opened it.
"I'm going to take off your boots for a second."
Why that all of a sudden?
I wanted to ask, but before I could get the words out, my boots were stripped off, overwhelmed by Han A-bin’s strange pressure.
"Wiggle your toes."
Wiggle, wiggle.
It’s not like they’d make a sound, but I moved them as diligently as possible.
All to calm down Han A-bin, who seemed to be in some sort of strange state.
Despite my efforts...
"Bend your knees."
Han A-bin slid her hands behind my knees and onto my thighs.
"What are you doing?"
"Bend your knees."
"..."
Sigh.
I bent my knees as told, but Han A-bin’s serious expression didn't soften.
After making me do pointless things like elbow exercises, breathing exercises, and wrist rotations, she finally pulled out a stethoscope from God-knows-where and started checking my heartbeat.
"No arrhythmia. You really do seem fine."
"...I told you it wasn't necessary."
I have no idea why she made such a fuss.
"Not necessary? Do you have any idea how dangerous losing consciousness is? Even if you look fine now, if there's an invisible problem somewhere, you could suddenly collapse."
Hmm. Doesn't that not apply to me?
I let Han A-bin’s long-winded nagging go in one ear and out the other, but the lecture continued.
"...And letting Baek Si-hyun’s attack hit you—no doubt you were worried Si-hyun would get hurt, or you thought you could handle the hit, right? That’s all well and good. But you have to think about your own safety too. This was just a simple spar; what were you doing pushing yourself to the point of blacking out...?"
Wow. She’s still going.
"...You said you were congratulating us on our victory, but you have to understand how we felt hearing that. How do you think we’d feel if you suddenly collapsed in front of us? If you considered that, you shouldn't have done this in the first place..."
When is this going to end?
If I let her keep going, she’ll be at it all day. Isn't there a good way out of this?
As I turned my head with that thought, the perfect solution entered my field of vision.
"Are you ignoring me right now? Don't turn your head; look at me and listen to what I'm—"
Her nagging about the spar was starting to chain into a lecture about my attitude, but I cut her off with a single sentence.
"A-bin. You said blacking out is dangerous, right?"
"Yes! Even a short blackout, if the cause isn't clearly identified, can develop into a chronic condition or—"
"Then are those guys okay?"
I said this while pointing my finger somewhere.
"Who are you talking about?"
Han A-bin’s gaze followed my finger.
Toward the people lying unconscious at the end of my fingertip.
Specifically, toward Chris, who had collapsed face-first into the dirt from mana exhaustion, and the martial artists who were literally foaming at the mouth.
"...Chris! Mr. Li! Please, wake up!"
Did seeing that pile of bodies finally snap her out of it? A-bin let out a scream and finally shifted her attention away from me, sprinting toward them.
Finally, some peace and quiet.
With that thought, I turned my head to the last person remaining by my side.
"Aren't you worried about me?"
"Are you hurting, Master?"
"No."
"Then you'll be fine! Because Master is invincible!"
This is painful in its own way.
Especially since I just lost a moment ago.
I thought that to myself as I listened to Baek Si-hyun’s airheaded comment.
* * *
There were a few more sparring sessions after that, but the disciples never managed to seize victory from me again.
Once I’d experienced Baek Si-hyun and Han A-bin’s combination technique, it was just another card I already knew, and their coordination with the martial artists or Chris was as full of holes as a sieve.
Even so, that didn't mean they weren't improving.
Chris’s animals moved away from their initial free-spirited fighting style and learned how to fight more efficiently.
The martial artists stopped blacking out from the sheer pressure of my Qi and learned how to deflect overwhelming force.
Li Shuguang even showed me that he could copy and use my Fa Jin.
In a way, they might have learned more than my own disciples.
Well, other than that, the Mobilization Training remained quiet.
Unlike other places I went, no major incidents or accidents occurred; it flowed by normally.
Baek Si-hyun and Han A-bin, unlike me, seemed to have good social skills; they became friendly with the female soldiers they patrolled with and chatted often. I, on the other hand, spent most of my time in the barracks watching television.
"Hey. You, Bear Mascot."
"..."
"You mentioned something about The Queen. Can you tell me that again?"
"...Bear doesn't know that, bear. Bear can't say, bear."
Hmm.
In the barracks where it was just the two of us, I asked this damn bear doll about that night several times, but it never said anything clear after that.
It stopped showing that serious side and went back to acting like a simple, cute bear doll.
Was what happened that night actually real?
Could it have been a dream or a hallucination?
Whenever those thoughts tried to dominate my mind, something else would take over.
‘It’s reality. A clear reality.’
A whisper that felt like it was being spoken directly into my mind—me talking to myself.
The reality that I could never deny was right there.
Maybe I should change the subject.
"Is Chris’s power... a form of compulsion based on necromancy?"
If I thought of it that way, it made sense.
Even so, necromancy and soul-related powers were so niche that I’d hardly seen them, except for someone like Calavera.
"That is a secondary means, bear. Those souls are ethereal lifeforms with free will who follow Chris because she saved them, bear. Isn't it a wonderful story, bear?"
Oh, is that so?
In the end, it still means their physical bodies were destroyed.
Still, seeing as it was blabbering away excitedly, it seemed like I could get more information out of it now.
"So, how do I get there?"
"...Bear doesn't know that, bear."
Sigh.
And so, without any real gains, the Mobilization Training headed toward its final day.
* * *
"I sincerely thank you for following the Mobilization Training and trusting us without any incidents."
The gloomy voice of the man on the podium echoed through the auditorium.
Of course, I was watching with a bored expression, just as I had during the entrance ceremony.
Why do high-ranking people love standing in front of others so much?
How can they even think of speaking like that in this kind of atmosphere?
With those thoughts, I shook off my drowsiness and looked around.
Unlike the entrance ceremony, the Heroes now looked completely drained.
They had been somewhat tense at the start of the training, but perhaps the thought of going home had filled their heads, or perhaps the string of tension had simply become mundane after several weeks.
The commander had only just uttered his first sentence, yet already half the room was staring blankly at dust motes floating in the air or dozing off with their heads down.
"Zzzzz... snore."
The disciple sitting next to me was even snoring.
"..."
This time, even Han A-bin didn't seem inclined to stop her.
In such a chaotic situation, you’d have to be incredibly thick-skinned to stand on that podium.
I don't think I could do it even if I were ordered to.
Maybe that’s why I’ll never be a high-ranking official.
"...The observation rate of hostile targets in this surrounding area has shown a downward trend thanks to the passionate efforts of you Heroes..."
Regardless of the situation around him, the commander on the podium continued his speech without a hint of fluster.
I'm getting sleepy.
Nod.
"...Through this, I trust that you Heroes have once again realized the importance of Mobilization Training..."
Nod.
As soon as I thought about how sleepy I was, my head began to bob.
"...Finally, I would like to speak regarding the Hokkaido Incident."
But at that one phrase from the commander’s mouth, my eyes snapped open.
What did he just say?
"Though I may look like this, I am also someone who participated in the battles during humanity’s survival era. I was just a soldier back then, though."
Strength began to infuse the commander’s voice.
The soft, sleepy tone vanished, and the voice of a true leader of soldiers boomed through the speakers.
"The current situation, with the Hokkaido Great Barrier having collapsed, reminds me of those times. An era when we staked everything for the survival of humanity."
Even though it was a speech no one was listening to, he emitted a sharp light from his eyes and lifted his head high.
"Many of the Heroes here likely don't remember those days. Nor do you know how the current peace was achieved, or upon what sacrifices it was built."
"..."
"Of course, I am not forcing those same sacrifices upon you. However, I will ask only one thing of you."
Whirrr.
For some reason, the speakers that had been fine until a moment ago began to howl with feedback.
However, the man’s words on the podium were powerful enough to drown it out.
"Please, become strong. Not for anyone else, but for yourselves. For your families. For your friends. For humanity. Please, become strong enough to protect them."
How many people actually heard that plea in its entirety?
Most likely let it slip right through their ears.
"With that, I conclude the 1st Generation Mobilization Training."
Even as the commander stepped down from the podium, no one paid him any attention.
It was only when a soldier took his place to give out final instructions that the sounds of people stretching or phones ringing began to echo.
No one cared.
In the midst of that indifference...
I quietly lowered my head.
So that no one could see.
So that no one could understand my expression.
A sprout... had begun to bud.