Seeing the hundreds of soldiers in front of him, Auren can't help but pause for a moment at the unfamiliar sight before him.
Doing a quick count, Auren concludes that there are well over five hundred armed soldiers gathered in front of him.
That's impressive... more than that, they are all trained and heavily armed. They all look... almost fanatical. I don't see fear in their eyes—I see pride and anticipation.
Most of them are wearing clothes and armor vaguely similar to his own, since they're provided by Neffi's company.
"At ease," Auren says, feeling a hint of embarrassment as he mutters the words out loud.
"Who's in charge?" he asks, looking around.
"You are in charge, Vice-Leader," a heavily armed man says, stepping forward. Auren notices he's tall, bald, middle-aged, with dark skin and scars all over his face and arms.
With just a glance, Auren notices he's a Nen user—a capable one at that, at least judging by his Aura.
He seems rather competent. That's reassuring. Since he is a Commander, I hope he knows how to handle his men.
"Heh, of course... but let me ask, who was in charge before I arrived?" Auren clarifies his question with a smile.
"That would be me," the man says. "I'm Kieran Dandur. Until recently, I was leading a cell in the Minbo Republic. I'm in charge of the military and our combined defense forces... that might change in a few months, though. For now, I remain the commander."
"As long as you are in charge now, that's all that matters," Auren states firmly. "Give me a brief overview. What is our strategy?"
"We are moving in twenty-man squads," Commander Kieran explains. "Each squad, minus a few specialized ones, has at least one Nen user at the front. The vanguard is made up of standard infantry squads armed with rifles. We have specialized squads with rocket launchers and flamethrowers at the back. Apart from that, we have some snipers, medics, and support staff with us. As for our tactic—" He starts, but Auren cuts him off.
"Let me decide the tactic," Auren interjects. "It's best if we stick together. Your lineup looks quite all right to me, but spreading ourselves too thin is dangerous. It's important we stay together until we can identify the threat. I'll be leading the group from the front line, and my comrades will back me up."
"Vice-Leader... the risk is entirely on you then," Commander Kieran points out. "How can we let you shoulder that risk?"
"Well, you are free to join me and protect me as best as you can," Auren says, glancing at the man, "though I doubt you're capable of that."
"I... I'll still do what I can," the commander replies, slightly taken aback.
"When are we set to leave?" Auren asks.
Looking around and briefly glancing towards the morning sun, he pauses for a second before replying. "We are ready as soon as you are. We prefer to start this mission early, as we don't know how long it may take. It would be risky to act in the dark, so the sooner we leave, the better."
"Good," Auren says. "Let me briefly speak to the men and women."
"Really, Auren?" Vanessa asks. "What are you even gonna say?"
"I have to agree with her for once," Neffi adds. "That sounds tough. I would be nervous."
Auren ignores them entirely, looking straight ahead.
It doesn't matter what I say... the important thing is that I'll speak to them, say something. That should be motivating enough. I don't need to feed them empty platitudes. A few simple lines are enough to motivate them... at least I hope so.
Auren walks forward, deciding to jump on a nearby crate of supplies, allowing him to tower over the group.
Immediately, everyone quiets down, looking toward Auren, most of them with reverence in their eyes.
As Auren looks through the different faces, he recognizes many of them. He has healed around a hundred of them personally, and that fact has, without a doubt, spread to the others, much in the same way as it has spread through the entire town.
He takes a deep breath, then speaks, activating Ren and using Gyo to focus his Aura onto his throat, strengthening his voice in the process.
"We've been here for a while now. As you might have noticed, we do things differently here than on the outside. Which is why I won't lie to you or try to deceive you. We are one community, one large family if you so will, so there is no need for deception. The reason why you are here couldn't be simpler. Multiple scouting parties have disappeared, and quite a few of our people have most likely died already. To protect everyone else... and frankly to avenge our fallen comrades, we need to act. There is danger ahead. I can't promise you will be safe. What I can promise you is simple."
He pauses for a few seconds and looks around, staring into the faces of the soldiers in front of him.
"I'll be joining you and fighting with you. Whatever is up, we'll face it together."
Hearing that, everyone looks excited, some relieved, as their lips curl together forming proud smiles.
"What I want from every single one of you is just as simple. Do what you can, and don't overestimate your own ability. I demand that you place your own survival above all. We need every last one of you in the long run. Everyone is important, everyone is treasured. If you are injured, fall back. As long as you are alive, I can heal you. If you die, you'll really trouble me, and we are spread thin as it is. So listen to your squad leaders, act calmly and carefully, and let's deal with whatever is threatening not only us, but also the other settlers—including the elderly and the children back at our settlement."
Auren steps down, and as soon as he does, everyone cheers, raising their arms along with their weapons.
"Not so bad," Vanessa says approvingly.
"It was quite good!" Neffi acknowledges, smiling.
"These girls..." Eren mutters, shaking his head. "How can they be this casual...?"
With Auren and his group in the lead, and Commander Kieran and his own squad of elite soldiers right beside him, the hundreds of men get into position, moving in their individual squads.
With Kieran issuing commands through their internal communication network, he hands Auren a small headset along with a speaker. Auren accepts it without comment.
Kieran then directs the squads to spread out, but not too thin, keeping the formation tight while walking next to Auren, closely followed by his own squad.
The group confidently enters the forest, which is eerily silent, with barely any sign of life.
"Hehe... I'll be ready..." Vanessa mutters, her face flushed with excitement, as she's holding tightly onto her rifle.
"Vanessa, calm down," Auren says. "According to the maps, this might be the closest point to the centre, but it's still a good while away from the actual center of the forest. It could take hours until we get there, and we can't risk running. Move patiently, and stay ready. Your rifle has a scope, so keep an eye out for any sign of danger. If you notice anything, you report to me before you shoot. Is that understood?"
"Yes, little brother," Vanessa says, sticking out her tongue.
"Vice-Leader... should I... do something?" Commander Kieran asks, looking gobsmacked by Vanessa's attitude, unable to believe his eyes.
"You can speak casually like her, Commander," Auren assures him. "Just remember that I'm giving orders. She knows that as well, so don't worry about her."
With Auren and Kieran in the lead, the soldiers make their way through the forest.
Despite each participant's fitness and obvious physical strength, they can't move at a fast pace. The brush, roots, and trees constantly obstruct them, forcing the whole formation to slow down.
Auren holds Eternity in his hand and uses it to clear anything in his way. His recently strengthened blade is so sharp that anything in its path is cut apart cleanly. Within two lightning-fast strokes, the path in front of him is cleared—at least for a few metres.
A few hours pass, and even Auren begins to doubt the information he has received.
Is there really a threat here? Maybe it wasn't something big. Maybe a Forest Worm? Or Bears or Wolves? It could have been just an accident... no... it happened three times in a row, twelve people died. The Elders specifically sent competent people after them. There must be something here. Let's keep going.
Auren notices that the forest is growing darker and darker, as the trees in front of him are so ancient that they almost block all the light coming in from above.
"Activate our flashlights, Vice-Leader?" Kieran asks, his expression growing weary.
"Go ahead," Auren confirms quickly, causing the soldiers to activate the lights on their gear, weapons, or use ones in their pockets.
Auren, despite not using Gyo—since it wastes too much Aura—still focuses the small amount of Aura he has available through Ten into his eyes, sharpening his vision so he can spot threats from far away.
I can see clearly now... good.
Seeing nothing at first, Auren suddenly stops when he hears the voice of one of the soldiers through the headset.
"Commander Kieran, Vice-Leader, this is Jill. I'm picking up movement ahead of us," a cheerful-sounding voice relays.
"Vice-Leader," Kieran notes, his eyes filled with his Aura, "She has a Hatsu that can scan the area in front of us for enemies. She is one of our best scouts, and she is reliable. You can trust her. I think I saw something in the tree tops, I could be wrong though."
"Good job, Jill. All soldiers, halt," Auren orders.
En!
Auren activates En, immediately shifting it into his cloud form, stretching it forward and above him toward the distant treetops.
A few soldiers behind him are amazed by the sight.
"You see this? This En is insane... It's not something a normal human can use."
"It's like a giant cloud."
"I can't even use the basic form, and he can use something like that. I heard he's getting taught by our Leader, the divine Seer herself."
"Shut up!" Kieran yells, glaring at his team members. They immediately fall silent, looking guilty.
Ignoring their squabble, Auren focuses on the trees and, just as the scout said, he spots an Aura near the top.
A large beast, slightly taller than the average human, is in the treetops. It has a thick, almost round body with exactly eight legs.
A spider. Why did I think they had twelve legs for a second? Guess these are real spiders.
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