The emotions of a commander have an overwhelming influence on all soldiers. As commanders shouted boldly across the field, the once-fearful soldiers responded with roars of their own. "For the Eternity of Hiaka!!" Thus, they shook off their fear and began to focus on their duties.

Eymon: Artillery Unit 3! Conserve your shots!

Eymon: Warrior Unit 2, shift into tight formation! Guard the clerics more densely! Tighter, I said!

Eymon: Magic Corps, initiate Plan B!

With Eymon’s precise commands falling into place, the siege engines lost some of their momentum.

Gradually, they began overcoming the differences in quality and scale, and the tide started to shift.

We can win...!

It was still only the beginning of the battle, but one commander was already feeling his courage swell.

Up until now, not even a scratch had been made on the outer gate.

Not just the gate itself—

Eight layers of protective magic were cast over it, and within those defenses, a shield battalion—one hundred warriors and fifty mages—was holding the line. They were still perfectly intact.

Besides, that unit under Professor Dante’s direct command... At first, I wondered why he was using outsiders...

Earlier, Professor Dante had implemented a baffling formation. He had deployed the assassins he brought with him into the sniper corps (Balmung), disruption squad (Gray), and mobile assault team (Hero, Kendreik).

So among the commanders, there were whispers—was this just a parachute drop? Were they trying to boost their market value at the cost of our blood?

...No. They’re complete monsters!

They were dominating the battlefield.

Bwoooooom—

Every time allied forces found themselves at risk, Gray’s illusion magic burst forth, spectacularly pulling the siege engines’ attention.

BOOM BOOM BOOOM!!

In that moment, the mobile assault team—Hero and Kendreik—rushed in like lightning and cracked open the stalemated front line.

Click—

Whenever there seemed to be a push from the enemy side, black lightning struck unerringly. Balmung’s bullet would precisely take out the target. The enemy’s advance came to a halt.

At times, they even destroyed the legs of siege engines preparing for massive leaps, rendering them powerless.

They were defending allies with surgical precision.

And exploiting the enemy’s weaknesses with merciless accuracy.

The unit under direct command of Professor Dante Hiakapo was pulling off feats that bordered on the miraculous.

We can do this...!

We... We really can win...!!

Just as morale among the commanders reached its peak—

Eymon: FRONTLINE SHIELD BATTALION!!

A ripping scream burst through the comms.

Eymon: FALL BACK!!

It was Eymon’s voice again—shredded and cracking with urgency.

The commander of the Shield Battalion blinked in confusion.

Fall back?

Our role is to hold the line, isn’t it?

Still, the commander’s orders were absolute.

“F-Fall back! Fall back, now!!”

He hurriedly ordered the defense mages and shield warriors to retreat—and soon after, they understood why.

Bomiteka moved.

That long-slit jaw clamped shut, the lower half rising like the dentures of an old man folding over the nose. Then its head slowly tilted upward. Someone realized it.

This was the movement Professor Dante had described—“the posture of vomiting something huge.” At the same time, Bomiteka’s left eye sank deeply into its socket and vanished.

Bomiteka, mouth twitching, finally vomited the eye.

━━━━ .

Like a massive cannonball, no—a missile, it streaked across the sky and hurtled toward the outer wall. Ripping through the atmosphere, it created a sonic boom! In that instant, many commanders gasped at the sheer speed that defied reality.

Oh my god.......

There was no stopping it.

Everyone knew that instinctively.

***

There was a filthy dog flailing in the swamp.

That dog was Bomiteka.

Frustrated with the drawn-out stalemate on the battlefield I had constructed, Bomiteka moved just as I anticipated. It chose to eject its left eye.

That eye had a dual function—its outer layer packed explosive force, while its inner layer connected to optic nerves ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ through magic. It would shatter the battlefield and obliterate the outer gate, then scan the internal structure in detail. To vent its frustration.

I had been waiting for this.

Here.

There stood a single old man.

He had repeatedly shown signs of feeling like a burden, of dragging everyone down. But we knew. There’s no one stronger than an old man who feels ashamed of himself.

Humans, as they age, tend to be trapped in their own patterns. But this martial artist, who doubted and sharpened himself for 130 years, had decided to step forward.

A former senior elder, the symbol of the Warrior Department, the founder of the grappling school, a quasi-Challenger... There were countless titles to describe him, but the old man felt embarrassed by all those names.

Only one thing, he never hid:

—I am... Let’s see... Commissioned in the year 411, former senior professor of grappling arts in the Warrior Department... Though now I’m just an old man from a rural town...

He was the founder of the martial art school 『Taeguk』.

A genius of unarmed combat who dueled swordmasters without a blade.

The Fist King, Moong Hyul.

“Elize.”

Elize: Yes! Confirmed!!

It was time to reveal the card I had been hiding.

***

Ten minutes earlier.

If she’d had a tail, it would have drooped.

Elize didn’t understand complicated things, but she had a knack for sensing people’s moods. So from the very start of the battle, she realized Moong was struggling internally.

They’d been waiting in formation with the Shield Battalion for dozens of minutes now.

The siege beasts—those one-horned demons—and the warriors and mages were locked in a stagnant power struggle. Plenty of soldiers had died and been replaced.

“Frontline! Hold the breach!”

“W-Wounded! Make way for the stretcher!”

Yet even with battle raging just ten meters ahead, Moong couldn’t see well enough to engage, and Elize had to remain behind to guard him.

“AAARGH!”

“Ghhk, gahk—!”

The screams of allies rang out.

And yet, the martial artist remained still.

“......”

Moong sat in silence, burdened by his helplessness.

A mage had been eyeing them from time to time—when his own comrade was carried out badly injured, he finally snapped.

“Hey!”

He suddenly broke formation and shouted at Elize.

“You two! What the hell are you doing here?!”

“Ah, I—”

“Why the hell did they bring an old geezer and a girl here?! Don’t you see the soldiers fighting?! If you’re just going to get in the way, fall back!”

Elize flinched from the scolding.

...That bastard?

Moong, already ashamed, looked even more distressed. Elize, overcome with anger, stepped forward.

“Excuse me—”

At that moment, her wrist was gently pulled—Moong had tugged on the tether between them.

“It’s alright, child.”

“Grandpa...!”

“It’s alright. Stay here with me.”

“We can fight too. We don’t need to worry about what they think.”

“Don’t say that. War is a chessboard of commanders. Pawns shouldn’t move on their own.”

“But...”

“It’s alright. The right moment has been set aside for us. You know it too, don’t you? Our junior placed his faith in me.”

“......”

Moong said calmly.

“...I must live up to that trust.”

Then he closed his eyes again and sat cross-legged.

Elize was fuming with frustration but crouched beside him, waiting for the signal.

And then, as this moment unfolded, Bomiteka’s mouth began to twitch.

“Evade! Evasive maneuvers!”

“Retreat! Retreat!!”

Right after the shield battalion’s warriors and mages began fleeing in panic—

Dante: Elize.

The signal came.

“Hey, girl! What are you doing?! Get the hell out of there!!”

That same mage grabbed Elize’s arm again, but she kicked him.

THWACK—

He flew several meters and crashed into the ground.

“Ghhk! What the hell—!”

While he reeled, Elize helped Moong to his feet.

“Grandpa. It’s time.”

As the retreating soldiers fled—

Moong slowly stood.

He said softly,

“Would you take me to the center of the gate?”

Elize guided him to the center of the gate’s front line, estimating where the projectile would land.

“How’s the direction and distance?”

“Over there. About 2,200 meters.”

She moved his wrist so he’d be perfectly aligned with the enemy trajectory.

Moong pointed to the sky with his skinny, aged arm, extending his palm and visualizing it.

The spherical object—thirty meters wide—would sit just between his index and middle fingers.

At 2,200 meters, the visual angle would be 0.86 degrees. Barely a centimeter wide from here.

“...Thank you, Elize.”

Elize cut the tether on his wrist. Then drew the dagger at her waist, 「Formless Blade○」.

Srrrk—

The old man spoke.

“Now, please go.”

“Huh? Me? ...Why? I should join the fight and protect you—”

Suddenly, something gently pushed her back.

Thunk—

Even as an elite combat assassin, Elize couldn’t resist the force. She was flung dozens of meters away and landed butt-first on top of the wall.

She scrambled to her feet and looked down from the rampart— but by then, Bomiteka had already raised its head.

“W-What the hell! Why’s that old guy standing there?!”

The soldiers panicked and pointed.

“Shit! Why didn’t anyone get him out of there?! Jackson! Go get him!”

“Are you nuts?! Not now!!”

The soldiers were freaking out.

“Hey! Old man! Get outta there―!!”

The same mage from before shouted again.

“Stay there and you’re dead!!”

Then it came.

The massive sphere launched.

A surreal, massive, fast-moving object split the skies, pierced the air, and tore through the outer gate’s magical barrier with a sonic boom.

Flying directly at the old man with his palms pressed together—

“...Hold firm, my body.”

In that instant, a Taeguk blossomed from Moong’s body.

『 Taeguk 太極 – Realm – When Things Reach Their Limit, They Reverse 物極必反 』

The spherical Taeguk spread out, magic spinning through the entire space, curling around in all directions. In the eye of the storm, Moong pulled back his outstretched hand and pressed his palms together.

From the energy surrounding him, a second hand emerged.

A ‘giant hand’ gently intercepted the projectile.

―― .

Every soldier on the fortress walls was in shock.

The absurdly fast, powerful projectile—it stopped in front of Moong’s ‘giant hand.’

Or rather, a struggle had begun.

Moong’s body, palms pressed in prayer, began to rupture. His flesh. His bones. His snowy white beard and eyebrows shredded in the blast.

More than anything—his right hand, from fingers to wrist, burst open!

And yet, the old man did not retreat—

He repelled Bomiteka’s eye.

THUNK ━━━━.

The eye was knocked back with the same surreal speed—dlammed back into Bomiteka.

It struck the right eye of its massive skull. BOOOM!!

A massive explosion from 2,200 meters away. A portion of Bomiteka’s head blew clean off.

“WHOOOOOAAA!!”

“HE TOOK IT DOWN!!”

“YEEEEAAAAHHHH!!”

The soldiers screamed in sheer, ecstatic disbelief.

Moong, who had collapsed, realized—he had done it.

And at the same time, he felt a thrill.

Even as he lost his vision, the excitement of battle surged through his ancient body like a shiver.

...I was a warrior once.

But there was no time to celebrate. The cheers were starting to shift.

“W-Wait, nooo—!!”

“What?! D-Danger! Get outta there, old man!!”

Moong had already anticipated this.

His role was to deflect the projectile.

—Senior, you must stop it. That ‘eyeball’ is one of the two weapons Bomiteka can use to destroy both the outer and inner gates in one strike.

But because all the soldiers had retreated when the projectile launched, he alone was left kneeling at the front.

To the siege demons, this was the perfect opportunity. Even if they couldn’t take the whole fortress—at least the outer gate.

“The monsters are charging!!”

“R-Restore formation! Hurry!!”

Moong’s prediction was correct.

But with their master critically wounded, the siege creatures were now in a frenzy—and the soldiers were hesitating to return. The demons, to put it crudely, were berserk.

“Hey! You goddamn warriors!! What are you doing—?!”

The mage who insulted Moong earlier was now trembling at the old man’s display. Ashamed beyond belief, he saw the frozen warriors failing to act and exploded with rage.

“Get in there!! Goddamn bastards!!”

When they didn’t move, he tried to leap down from the wall in desperation—but was held back by the warriors.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“Is now really the time to hold me back?! Get in there, goddammit!!”

“Stay put! We don’t have orders! It’s impossible anyway!”

Elsewhere, a similar scene was unfolding.

This time, it was Elize.

Just as she was about to rush forward in panic—someone grabbed her wrist.

‘......!’

Her pink eyes turned sharply.

“Don’t go.”

Elize’s hand trembled.

The siege creatures surged forward in an instant.

Moong coughed up blood.

The battalions fired artillery and spells to intercept.

“Save that old man―!!”

The mage screamed.

In the midst of this surreal battlefield—

The old man felt at peace.

“...One’s lifespan is in the hands of heaven.”

He had long awaited death. He once thought that dying in his sleep would be best.

But now—if he could die saving these children on the battlefield, what a wonderful end that would be?

Moong awaited his death. This was a beautiful conclusion, he thought.

“Not today.”

A voice rang out.

Step—

Footsteps followed.

Someone stepped in front of Moong.

“You still have work to do for Hiaka, Senior.”

The junior had arrived.

“......”

Moong smiled.

What came to mind was being summoned to the palace. Being detained by the former king, forced out of retirement, and dragged into war for fifty more years.

......This feels like getting roped into something all over again.

“Wha—!?”

The flames and smoke from magic and bombardment cleared—

And there stood a man in a black assassin's uniform.

The soldiers stared in horror.

As the monsters—blinded by the loss of their master’s eye—charged madly forward, one man stood in front of the old man.

His name was—

“P-Professor Dante―!”

“What are you doing?! Get out of there!!”

“All units! Go protect him, NOW!!”

The commanders, who had even accepted Moong’s death, were now shrieking in panic. He was their final commander. He must not die.

But Dante did not retreat.

Before the eyes of hundreds of soldiers—аs dozens of warriors leapt down from the wall to protect him—

“You, if you resist, I’ll break you. I don’t need tools that don’t obey.”

Muttering nonsense, Dante drew his sword from the sheath.

He pointed the blade vertically at the approaching horde.

Behind him, the warriors sprinted forward.

Before him, hundreds of demons came charging.

His mana surged.

Dante Hiakapo recited the activation chant for his weapon.

“Raise your blade. Giant Soldier—”