Jay had successfully recruited Lilia, the Grand Mage—the most obsessed fan of Maria von Lopez. Through very rough aerial maneuvers, he managed to cross the borders and reach the Foundation, where the angels who had pursued were met with the bullets of snipers waiting for the perfect angle and command. The snipers had shot down approximately ten low-tiered bow-wielding angels, with a few escaping.
Lilia:
Never do that again, Jay. I was very scared.
Jay:
So, Lilia, how's life over there?
Lilia:
I managed to climb the ranks and become the Tower Master, as well as a well-renowned magician, because of Madam Lopez.
Jay:
Hey, give me some credit too—I gave you those papers.
Lilia:
Yes, Jay, thank you as well.
Jay:
You're certainly welcome.
Lilia questioned Jay, as he seemed to be acquainted with Sara, their commander.
Lilia:
So how do you know her?
Jay:
Well, I met her before you, when I was still a wandering adventurer. Hey, look, we're almost there. That's our camp.
Suddenly, Jay's thigh started vibrating. It was the general calling him. Jay asked Lilia to grab the phone from his pocket since he was carrying her. With great difficulty, Lilia managed to grab the phone from his pocket and pulled it toward herself, but it slipped from her hands and fell from the sky.
Lilia:
Jay, your thing—it fell down.
Jay looked down as the phone fell, soon reaching fifty-eight meters and stopping in midair. As it did, Jay couldn't see the phone, but he started sweating. His heartbeat increased, and a slight fear struck deep in his mind. He drastically increased his speed, and like an elastic rubber band, the phone shot itself toward Jay with tremendous speed as a result of rubber banding.
If Jay was flying at X speed, then it was flying at 2X speed. Terror was clearly visible in his eyes as it rebounded and finally struck Jay in the glutes. And Jay screamed. Finally, after the impact, the phone once again fell due to the air pushing it backward.
Lilia:
I'll grab it this time.
Lilia leapt from his arms and finally caught the phone. And Jay caught her as she almost plummeted toward the ground.
Jay:
You both make my heart jump out of my chest.
Lilia jokingly asked him, "Is this a confession?"
Jay:
You have only one true love, and that's not me.
Saying this, they finally reached the camp. And Jay's mission was over—he had succeeded.
---
Meanwhile, in the Spirit Forest—a few hours earlier
The King had ordered all fire users to pull back, and other elemental users infiltrated the Spirit Forest. Roy had forcibly joined his very great-granddaughter, Vania Frost, to root out the Branded Elves from within the forest.
Vania:
You have no need to come. I am fine on my own.
Roy:
I am just here for tactical support.
Vania:
Then leave.
The temperature around her began dropping as she took the heat inside her body. As she moved ahead, her footsteps revealed frozen ground. Her subordinates were standing behind both of them but were too afraid to even call them out. They raised their hands and decided to roll with it even before they entered the forest.
While walking, suddenly Roy stopped, and Vania, who was moving ahead, had her hand held by Roy to stop her.
Roy:
Check the area for traps. We are deep into enemy territory.
Vania contacted the recon team who was surveying and surveilling the forest for some feed of the area.
Vania:
I need satellite footage, as well as a drone deep into the heart of enemy territory.
Vania remembered that for the past weeks after being recruited, she had deliberately forced herself to study combat and tactics full-time under a professor from the institute which Roy had arranged for her, as well as a tech instructor, since she had been estranged from technology since birth. While her mother had some tech with her when she left for the mountains, they were now equivalent to ancient relics. Thus, through the Learner, she could learn everything very quickly, and now she just needed to master them.
And she did, for the greater purpose she couldn't understand. Compared to Jay's phone, there had to be many workarounds made for his phone to be able to connect to the communication grid.
Thus she was finally able to master everything quickly. She saw the satellite feed and the village hidden deep inside the Spirit Forest, covered in darkness. The torches were either extinguished or weren't lit at all. It seemed that they had been prepared for an ambush—or they were planning to ambush themselves.
King:
Vania Frost, your mission is to capture Akaso, the Elder of the Branded. Take caution, as the target will be heavily guarded and might try to commit suicide.
Vania:
Hmm.
Vania:
You, turn on heat map and find heat signatures belonging to elves—specifically, 36 degrees.
The soldiers did as they were told, and lo and behold, they found elves hiding within the trees' shadows, waiting with their bows pointed toward them. But this time, they weren't using light arrows, as they glow when used. Thus they were either using elemental arrows or normal arrows. She raised her hand and stopped them from advancing. She touched the tree where one of the elves was waiting with an arrow directly aimed at her head. In the next moment, the Branded screamed and fell down the tree as his leg was covered with intense frostbite and he lost his balance. The leg would have to be entirely amputated unless treated quickly. But despite the pain in his leg, he punched at Vania, and Vania handled him by grabbing his head and freezing it until he died due to hypothermia. Vania looked back and saw Roy had almost gripped his sword. He was now holding it like nothing had happened. But Vania caught on to the clue that if she was in danger, he would have reacted immediately.
Still saying nothing, they ventured deep into the forest. A soldier spoke up.
Soldier:
Captain, twelve o'clock, fifty meters ahead—two elves waiting in ambush.
Vania:
Snipe those two down. Aim precisely at their feet. We need them alive.
Thus the snipers took their positions, preparing to snipe their targets through the trees. With her direction, they took their shot. But even though the newbies had AI on their side and a very powerful system that could aim for them, AI cannot solve inexperience in that moment. Despite the perfect shot, firing conditions, and low chance of missing, it missed the leg, and due to the recoil, the gun was tilted slightly upward and hit his chest. While the second newbie was successful in piercing his leg.
Vania:
Secure them.
The soldier looked at Vania as though she was going to reprimand him, but instead she told him to secure them. It meant she might have been expecting the outcome.
A soldier looked backward with heat vision and noticed that they had been surrounded by enemies, still lying in shadows.
Soldier:
We have been surrounded on all sides.
In one moment, there were at least six heat signatures, but in the next moment, there were none.
Soldier:
All of the heat signatures have been slaughtered. Their temperature is decreasing.
Vania:
Mind your words. The temperature from dead bodies is obviously going to decrease. Isn't that right, the great Azure Striker Blackbolt?
When she took his title instead of "great-grandfather" or simply "Roy," he felt a bit lonely. Using his incredible speed, he laid waste to the enemies surrounding them, leaving none alive. Vania decided to leave the dirty interrogation to her squad and headed deep into the territory.
As she and her grandfather walked, she saw something glowing in the corner of her eye. Quickly, without realizing, she tried to attack it by manifesting an ice spear. Before she could throw it, Roy held her hand. In surprise, Vania looked at her grandfather. He said nothing and just pointed at what she was throwing at. It turned out to be a spirit who had taken the form of a rabbit very poorly. The rabbit ran away in fear, and Vania didn't even regret her action—just made a mental note to look before doing anything.
Finally, they were at the periphery of the village. But oddly, the village seemed empty. No elves or spirits in sight, and no heat signatures. Vania and her group moved in and quickly turned the place upside down, confirming that the village had been abandoned.
Vania:
This is Vania. There is no sign of the Branded. I repeat—no Branded.
As always, she only said what was required, and the moment she finished, she cut her transmission.
Meanwhile, the King on the other side was watching a holographic map of the region, awaiting Jay's response, as it had been silent for almost an hour. He was pondering whether to send a team or not. That's when he was contacted by Vania. The King listened and asked her to evacuate the forest and her unit to complete their surveillance. She heeded the orders without a single question.
Vania:
Everyone, sweep the forest for intruders. First, secure hostages, and then kill the remaining. Send me updates for any situation.
Vania had a habit of never repeating her orders, so the soldiers listened very keenly, imagining the consequences of being frozen and displayed in a museum for generations to come. Thus, the soldiers, in groups, took their route toward the eight cardinal directions.
The King contacted them again to relay new instructions.
King:
You and Roy head to the elf village on the outskirts. They might have gone there. Find them.
Roy asked Vania to climb onto his shoulders. At first, Vania declined, but thought it to be the easier way. Thus, reluctantly, she agreed to Roy's words. And once again, with the speed of lightning, they departed toward the elf village.
---
Meanwhile, the King
He had finally received footage of the enemy camp—it was in flames, meaning that Jay had completed his mission.
King:
Sword Saint Isshin, I have a mission for you.
Isshin:
Yes, my Lord—anything for you.
King:
Within half an hour, I want you to retrieve Jay Garrick from enemy territory.
Isshin:
Your wish is my command.
Isshin had just left for enemy territory when he was again called by the King, who informed him that his mission was canceled—Jay had completed his mission successfully and was returning. Thus Isshin, who had been pumped up to go to enemy territory, let out a deep sigh of relief. But his excitement couldn't die down.
And thus Jay returned with a new member, and Isshin had his mission canceled.