1 year later…

Midnight woke up in a daze. The first thing she saw before she even opened her eyes was her interface. Nothing out of the usual.

——

Abyssal Project Zero

Level: 1

——

It had been a few days since she had gained an interface. She assumed her birthday had just happened while she slept. She was the last one to awaken her interface in her group.

She opened her eyes, and found herself alone in the back of the truck. It seemed like the others had not woken her up when they arrived.

She stepped out of the car, into the freezing snow. Despite not being dressed for the weather, she didn't seem to mind it at all.

Before her, there was a huge camouflaged tent. If it wasn't for the barrier, this thing would have been easily spotted a long time ago. She walked into the tent, her face devoid of any emotions. Inside, she found the other 3 members of her squad.

"If it isn't our squad leader. We have been waiting for a long time." A boy around her age stepped forward, mocking her. He was dressed in thick clothing, which protected him from the cold. At the obvious challenge in his voice, Midnight ignored him. Looking around, she spotted her other two squad mates. They were standing near the back, trying to stay out of sight from everyone. Midnight sighed in relief, glad they were safe.

After all, in the army, bad things could happen to external soldiers.

"Project Zero. You're late." A voice broke her out of her thoughts. She looked up at the head of the table, and found the commander staring at her. She knew she had to answer.

"I was not notified of a meeting this early after arriving. According to my information, the first meeting was to be held two hours from now." Her voice was level, and she had a smile on her face. "However, as I was late, I will accept the punishment you have planned."

The commander was slightly perplexed at her lack of resistance. He had planned to give her a heavy punishment for refusing to comply with military leadership, but now it seemed impossible. And her expression, she looked like she had the situation firmly grasped in the palm of her hand.

"Remember the rules of the military. External Squads, you are dismissed." Midnight motioned to the other two members of her squad, intentionally neglecting the only male member, and left the tent with them. He followed behind them grudgingly, a dark look in his eyes.

After they re-entered the truck, they began to organise their gear. Midnight was instructing her two juniors regarding the upcoming mission in the process. She didn't worry about the boy, as he just had to provide information from the back, and he had never slipped up before.

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Soon, they were all equipped. After wearing an enchanted cloak to protect them from the cold, they left the truck. Just in time too, as they were called back to the tent.

Exactly two hours. Nice.

Midnight noticed their scout was looking around nervously. Not a good sign. Activating her comms, she connected to her through a direct channel.

-Tina, what's up?

-Something's wrong. They're looking at us strangely.

-Just us?

-Yes.

-…Got it. Tell Tessa and Two to get ready to run. I'll cover you.

-W-with all due respect, can we leave Two behind? He's also giving me a bad feeling.

Midnight looked sideways at him. He seemed to be looking around suspiciously, trying to act normal. Huh.

-Alright, just tell Tessa then.

With that, Midnight broke the connection. If her thoughts were correct, the army was not safe for them. Not anymore. Midnight then activated the squad connection.

-Hand me your weapons. I'll put them away in the ring for safekeeping.

Tessa and Tina nodded, handing their weapons to Midnight, who stored them away. Two acted as though he had not heard and continued walking. Midnight stopped paying attention to him.

As they arrived at the entrance to the tent, they were stopped by a soldier at the entrance. "The commander has said everyone should leave their weapons here. You can get them on your way out." Two moved to leave his sword, and Midnight left her own sword too.

"Leave your storage artifacts too. We can't be sure if you have hidden weapons in there too." Midnight stared at the soldier, and he flinched a bit. Two looked nervous. After a short moment, Midnight removed the storage ring artifact and placed it on her sword.

As she walked into the tent, with Tessa and Ten behind her, Two lagged behind a little. The three of them reached their designated positions, then sat down in the chairs provided. The commander glanced at them, then proceeded with the meeting.

So then, how did the meeting turn into us being charged for selling out information to our enemies and being surrounded by armed guards? Midnight pondered with a smile. Her friends were not as calm, but they looked resolute. Behind all the soldiers, she could see the commander and Two standing together, Two smirking victoriously. He had every reason to believe he had won though. They were surrounded, and had been imprisoned by a magic circle too, preventing them from moving.

Midnight disconnected Two from the comms network, causing him to frown.

-Tessa, Tina, on my mark, head for the back of the tent.

-O-Okay.

-Understood.

As soon as she did this, the soldiers began to move to block their exit. Clearly, their comms had been hacked into, but Midnight wasn't worried, as she had expected this.

Midnight stepped forward, to the shock of the mage in the room. "She's just a level 1… how could she not be affected by my barrier!" She increased the amount of mana she was using, but nothing changed. Then, Midnight gave the signal.

-Now!

The barrier shattered, causing the mage to briefly lose consciousness. In that moment, the guards rushed to the south of the tent, and against their expectations, Midnight and her team ran in the other direction. Tessa cast a buff on them, causing Tessa and Tina to have their speed drastically increased. As they left the tent, they passed by the place where their weapons were stored.

"Keep moving." Midnight's voice came from behind them, and they continued forward without doubting her. They entered a nearby truck, and drove off. Meanwhile, Midnight punctured the front wheels of the vehicles behind them. After just disabling three trucks, she had to run because the soldiers were fast approaching. She ran forward and easily caught up with the truck, then boarded from the back.