Chapter 51: El Maestre (6)

Chapter 51: El Maestre (6)

Smoke rose from the infirmary, the lingering scent of gunpowder. I slung the large-caliber sniper rifle, now empty of rounds, behind my back.

In the recent firefight, I, a sniper, had taken down three times the enemy for the ammunition expended. This was not a fanciful story of piercing three enemies with each shot. Even bullets that missed were enough to suppress the enemy’s movements, allowing the Knight Commander, who had entered during this time, to finish off the exposed British soldiers one by one. War was not a solitary battle.

The black knight who received my help stopped and looked in my direction at the place filled with grim deaths. Who could be helping me? The anxious confusion could be felt in the search. However, without clairvoyance, they couldn’t possibly discover me. There were too many obstacles blocking their line of sight between them and me.

Unlike the leader, whose post-combat aftereffects were merely shallow breathing, the subordinates who leaned on their own swords, shields, and guns were panting heavily. They moved again and plundered the weapons, ammunition, food, and water from the dead British soldiers. While the British soldiers’ rations were no more than cereal bars and tea bags at best, it was a source of calories that the heavily taxed cartel knights were desperate for. The leader poured drink powder into the water bottle that his subordinates handed him, shook it roughly, and poured it down his throat without taking a sip. It was a remarkable talent to pour it into the esophagus without a single gulp. He gobbled down three cereal bars without a break. Then, he poured a whole bottle of water again. It was amazing that he didn’t suffer from esophageal spasms. (+)[1]TLN: Esophageal: Your esophagus — or the food pipe — is the part of the digestive system that helps food travel from your mouth to your stomach.N0v3lRealm was the platform where this chapter was initially revealed on N0v3l.B1n.

The number of survivors from the Knight was greater than what I had seen in the video. However, originally, there would have been many more than this. That is, the current nine, excluding the leader, could be considered the last elite of the Knights Templar Cartel.

The leader tied the heaviest firearm given by his subordinates inside the shield and then inserted the magazines into the chest rig on the armor. Surprisingly, the bulletproof vests, with magazines densely attached, matched the chest rigs of the medieval-looking armor, a fact that was unexpected.

‘The fact that it happened to be a British chest rig is quite amusing.’

As befitting wealthy cartel members, the weapons carried by these knights were all made of titanium alloy. Half of their overwhelming close combat capabilities seemed to stem from the hardness and lightness of the weapons they wielded as knights. Thick and sloping armor alone would provide enough defense to chew up most infantry firepower on a short-range battlefield. What if you added a shield to that? In close-range battles, it became the surrogate of death for the infantry, brandishing a sword.

The Cartel Knight Commander drew a cross in my direction and urged his subordinates to resume their escape.

Meanwhile, the Holy Name.

I couldn’t stand it even after enduring the British chest rig. When I let out a chuckle, Kyung-tae looked at me with a worried expression.

“Hyungnim, are you alright?”

He was concerned about the side effects of the awakening/stimulant agent. It wasn’t objectively a time to laugh, and I had taken more than the recommended dose considering the accumulated fatigue, and the side effects included rapid and unstable emotional fluctuations. But who cares about side effects? I felt good right now, and I wanted to use this feeling to kill more British soldiers. Anyway, it was better than endlessly sinking into depression.

Then, the British reinforcements were approaching.

“Let’s let them pass this time.”

Following my command to resist the impulse, my subordinates adjusted their positions to strengthen their concealment.

Not moving didn’t mean being inactive. With a sharpened consciousness that had become sharper after enduring a tumultuous awakening, I stimulated all the animals within the magical field with ignition and telekinesis techniques. I had been doing this even during our movement.

In such a dense forest, infrared surveillance from high altitudes could not easily distinguish between the heat of animals and humans. Moreover, the ground itself was high, and the clouds hung low. Therefore, by just harassing the wild animals, I could disrupt the heat tracking of us and slow down the speed of the British troops chasing the Knights. Sometimes, it was also good to use ignition spells or deploy a thin water barrier.

As the distance with the British troops narrowed, I had to shrink my magical field, so it was impossible to save time, but still, this should give the Knight Commander, who had regained his strength due to me, an advantage over the weakened British forces.

Step, step.

The heavy footsteps on the grass grew closer. The patriotic volunteers who advanced in pairs with nervousness, removed the identification tags of their fallen comrades and closed their eyes, passing by our ambush site just 20 meters away. Kyung-tae, who had maintained his aim until the end, relaxed with a sigh.

There was a helicopter flying in the distant sky, but I couldn’t dare to enter the combat airspace. Sending a helicopter into the forest, where awakened individuals were armed with all sorts of anti-aircraft weapons, was nothing less than a request to kill the passengers.

I said,

“The night is still young. Let’s replenish our calories now.”

The two half-days we waited at the hotel were times to eat whenever there was an opportunity, but the nearly two hours of maximum efficiency displayed by the strengthened body rapidly consumed stored energy. It was better to replenish calories ahead of time before the consumption got worse.

Our emergency food was simple. A powder mixture of salt, vitamins, and glucose. I put the powder in my mouth, dissolved it with water, and swallowed it. It was an advantage that it was quick to eat and quick to absorb.

After a short rest of about 1 minute and 30 seconds, we started moving again. Even during this short rest, we could hear several instances of gunfire exchanges in the direction the Knights had gone ahead.

“Hyungnim, Suyeon is asking how we can secure the escape route in this direction.”

In the current communication restrictions, Kyung-tae’s communications specialist had permission to directly connect to the field headquarters at the harbor. It was difficult enough to communicate from our side.

“I’ll inform them of the meeting point and time.”

“Okay.”

“What about the other direction?”

“They are already falling back. They said they will replenish their reserves.”

“Good, they’re acting quickly. Show me the map.”

At my gesture, Kyung-tae instructed his subordinates to unfold the map. I gathered the officers to explain the operation, distributing appropriate roles and routes to each team. My subordinates listened to the briefing with night vision goggles on, relying on faint infrared tactical lights.

“No objections?”

“Yes.”

Short, simultaneous nods. All the middle-ranking officers agreed to the operation. However, I decided to confirm one more time.

“Kyung-tae, what do you think?”

“I see no issues. After all, when it comes to fighting, nothing beats watching a good fire from the other side of the river.”

It was a verification in case my judgment had dulled. This guy was one of the few subordinates who wouldn’t be overwhelmed by my authority and would objectively review things.

“Alright. Inform headquarters of the decisions we just made. We’ll maintain the current level of wireless restrictions until we get into Puerto Vallarta. Change your night vision goggle batteries in advance. It might sound like nagging, but when the escape route team arrives, be alert to our allies on the other side of the river. Set individual arrival times to be ten minutes from now. Are you ready? Three, two, one...”

Click. The high-pressure button of a reliable military waterproof watch made a small sound. Almost simultaneously, almost coincidentally, a sudden fire erupted from the outskirts of the impoverished village on the other side of the road, starting to consume the darkness. It was likely the work of the cartel’s awakened knights, bringing disaster with them.

A fire in the harsh terrain of a dark forest was difficult to control and even harder to escape. It could easily trap those who lit it first, blocking their path to death. If you were engaged in combat, it was even more so.

Moreover, the distribution of large Awakening Trees in the area was also a formidable variable. The magical phenomena that those rooted in one place would desperately trigger made any predictions meaningless.

However, human dwellings with clear paths and divided compartments were a different story. Even if the fire got out of control, as long as there was no one blocking the way out, anyone could escape. With distance from the British troops, there was even room for actions other than fleeing. How to use this short opportunity effectively?

Arson was one of the most effective means to obstruct aerial observation.

If this wasn’t something done impulsively but rather the actions of someone capable of making the best judgments based on changing circumstances, even when their body and mind were pushed to their limits...

He would have been a truly remarkable talent, if not for being a drug dealer obsessed with Jesus.

If he hadn’t been that, I would have considered ways to recruit him.

1. TLN: Esophageal: Your esophagus — or the food pipe — is the part of the digestive system that helps food travel from your mouth to your stomach. Author's Thoughts

Disclaimer:

This novel is a work of fiction! While it may incorporate elements inspired by our "real" historical world, including historical events, settings, and cultures, it is important to note that the story and characters are entirely products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, living or deceased, or actual events is purely coincidental. This work should be enjoyed and interpreted as a work of fiction and not as a representation of historical facts or reality.

Also, if you find some error in translation please do let me know by tagging me (@_dawn24) in our Discord server. Since this series is kinda hard to translate. But I'll try my best to make it at least readable :)

Enjoy reading~!