“Nice of you to finally wake up.”

The Puppet Master greeted me with a half smile.

We shook hands on approach as he looked me up and down.

“I see you’ve gotten a bit more powerful. Good. As an Elite, you have some catching up to do.”

“So killing an Authority 5 is a prerequisite for becoming one?”

“It is. Just one is enough to get you on the list. You also earn points for each kill. I tallied you at 7 kills, so when we return, the list will update to reflect that.”

“That’s it?”

Tana suddenly spoke up in confusion.

“I thought he killed 12?”

“He technically did, but not all of them were his sole work. It was difficult to tell and I wasn’t watching the entire time, so after some talks with the other instructors, we settled on 7. In fact, they initially only wanted to credit you with 3, but I convinced them otherwise. After all, I know how your summons work the best.”

“Well, the count doesn’t matter that much. I’m just glad I’m actually an Elite now. Do I get paid?”

“No.”

“Unfortunate.”

I clicked my tongue in playful disappointment, causing the Puppet Master to smirk.

Then, I nodded to the walls.

“I was going to pick off some more stragglers.”

“Mm, go ahead. By the way, you Elites will be heading out soon. There are already several reconnaissance missions lined up to be completed. This recent siege was by no means natural and we want to know why, so it’s a perfect opportunity to put you all to work. Be prepared for that, but at least for the next three days, you all will be free to do whatever you want.”

“Understood.”

We all nodded.

After that, I went up the walls while the others went to retire. They had been working all day while I was asleep, so I couldn’t expect them to accompany me.

Heading up to the central tower, I got a good look at the entire battlefield.

The dirt ground for the surrounding half mile was stained entirely red with blood. So many monsters had died that it had soaked the mud. Not even the walls were spared as the bottom half was covered in thousands of red streaks.

Not only that, but the massive amount of corpses released a deathly rotten fog. The aura was so palpable that I felt suffocated even from the tower.

I promptly took out my air mask, sealing it over the bottom half of my face before communing with a rifle and taking aim.

Near the walls there were squads of soldiers moving corpses into massive piles and burning them. They surely couldn’t just let them rot, and spells made for easy disposal.

But beyond I could spot lots of scavengers and lingering beasts. Some were stalking the soldiers while others were feeding on their dead kin. While there were guards making sure the disposal teams weren’t attacked, they also weren’t proactively attacking themselves.

I was perfect for the job, so I didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger and get to work.

However, this time, I didn’t have Umara with me. So when my gun exploded with power, everyone on base heard it.

*BOOM*

The shockwave rang the ears of the soldiers in the vicinity and startled everyone else. All attention was promptly turned to the tower.

Nobody came to stop me though, so I continued.

Like that, shots rang out for the next hour or so. It was only when the sun set that I had to stop since I couldn’t see anything.

“Hooh…”

I took a deep breath after releasing my weapon, sitting up and propping my back against the wall.

I sat there for a bit, stewing in my thoughts while taking out a cigar and putting away my mask.

Taking a few puffs helped revitalize my body. Staying still for hours on end, especially in the positions that I was in, made my body incredibly sore and stiff. I still felt the remnant aches from the first day of the siege.

And then I had slept for an entire day, not making it much better. It was lucky that my mind felt brand new, giving me some relief.

All alone in the tower, I was able to get some good alone time.

Thinking back, I realized that this was the first time I truly came into contact with the Scourge. I didn’t really have the time to worry about first impressions, but perhaps the aftermath of the battle was better for that anyway.

Just their mere presence was poisonous. In life, they sought nothing but the deaths of everyone at the base. And in death, they infected the landscape and spread their rotten scent. It would take several days of rotting for a normal animal to leave behind the horrid stench they did. But the Scourge did so in a mere day.

Not only that, but I could sense the poisonous aura coming from all of them. Within each of those bodies was toxic Magika stemming from the black crystals, so it was spread in a subtle way that only those attuned to aura could make out. Where an ordinary person would merely want to vomit from the scent, a Magus would feel like their soul was sickened from being near the terrible aura.

They truly were a scourge. They were good for nothing, their only purpose to corrupt the world. At least animals were an integral part of nature, creating an irreplaceable balance.

But this world would be better off without the Scourge.

No, it was more accurate to say that the Scourge would need to be eradicated before this world could truly prosper. They were the nemesis of life itself.

I now understood that fact, something I hadn’t before. And I knew that there was far more to the Scourge than just this.

This siege was a mere glimpse of what they were capable of, nothing more than a tasting.

The Kingdom of Dragon Tongue, backed by the power of several immense magical organizations and the Church, containing multiple Authority 11 Magi, had yet to actually defeat the Scourge.

This meant that there were beasts and enemies that I couldn’t yet fathom. It was likely that the only reason humanity had survived until this point was through their intelligence, something that the vast majority of, if not all, the Scourge beasts lacked.

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But, did the Scourge also contain intelligent individuals? I thought back to the story about Rayla’s late husband, who had been infected and turned into a Scourge entity.

Did he have or retain his intelligence? Although twisted, it was possible that he could still think with the capacity of a standard human.

In that case, the Scourge no doubt contained intelligent beings at the helm. It was the only way they could wage meaningful war against the humans, the only way to prevent the humans from systematically wiping them out.

It went both ways, after all. If humanity could find a way to fight back against the Scourge, then they could find a way to eradicate them. The fact that hadn’t happened yet spoke volumes about the depth of the Scourge.

In that case, what was the Scourge? Was it a virus, like a zombie virus? Was it a special species?

I was more inclined to think that they were like zombies, but it also wasn’t that simple.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized how little I knew about the situation.

I had learned a good amount about the Scourge, but it was all public knowledge.

After all, it was known that the Scourge could infect humans. But there were also no mentions of intelligent Scourge beasts.

Maxwell had spoken of Royals and Unique Beasts when discussing Crowns. I had no idea what those were. Not even the academy spoke of them.

My knowledge was severely limited, which oddly seemed to piss me off.

But it became clear from today that the Scourge was my existential enemy.

For a while now I had been questioning the reason for my appearance in this world. I was brought here with my knowledge and a power that allowed me to summon historical armament from Earth. It seemed perfect for dealing with the Scourge.

I was beginning to think that they were the reason I was brought here. Perhaps I was some sort of saving grace, but then again, I had a hard time believing that I would be able to become powerful enough to bring about any significant change.

How could one man fight against an army? It was simply impossible, made only slightly less impossible through cold steel and explosives.

Well, either way, I would do what I could. In this world, fighting in the war meant you were protecting all of humanity from ruin. There was nothing political about it.

That made it really easy for me to simply accept what I was doing. I felt no remorse in anything I did here, only fulfillment knowing that I was ending a purely evil enemy.

“Heh, I need to get better.”

I chuckled a bit, thinking that I needed to focus more on cultivating my power. Everything went back to that.

Just then though, I heard the sound of footsteps going up the stone stairs toward the tower I was in.

I looked at the doorway while letting out a smoke filled breath, watching as Umara walked through.

We stared at each other for a moment before she spoke softly.

“You didn’t come down.”

“I was brooding.”

“What about?”

“Come sit with me and I’ll tell you about it.”

She smiled at my words, walking over before taking a seat at my side.

We sat shoulder to shoulder as I briefly explained some of my thoughts. And her response was empathetic.

“Yes, the Scourge is indeed mysterious. At least for us. Perhaps that’s to protect us though. I mean, if everyone knew just how terrible their enemy was, how many people would really volunteer to fight? On the contrary, making them seem like mindless beasts that could be easily defended against would inspire the false bravado of everyone who merely wants the glory of the battle without the sacrifice or horror.”

“...That’s a good way of putting it. My, how wise of you.”

I looked at her, slightly impressed. Coming from the perspective of naivety like myself, she displayed a great understanding of the possible unknown.

She smiled a bit.

“Those words come from my mother.”

“Oh.”

“You know her. She’s powerful and naturally well aware of the threat the Scourge poses. The things she tells me about them usually spare the more intense details. She protects me, even though I don’t want that. I’m under the impression that I should be exposed to it now and have time to process it. That way I can stay ahead of the curve.”

“I can see the logic in that.”

I shrugged in understanding, but then I sighed.

“Unfortunately, age is also important. That and experience. Experiencing something traumatic before you’re fit to cope with it can be permanently debilitating. Your mind may not have the ability to process it yet, whether you like it or not. Basically, if you trust your mother’s objective judgment, then don’t rush it.”

“I do trust it. That’s the only reason I no longer force the issue. But that doesn’t mean I like it.”

“But you’re mature enough to understand it.”

“I suppose.”

She sighed with obvious indignation, as if her maturity were a burden.

And I understood her plight, even if not from the same perspective. It was amazing how much a person’s mentality changed as they got older. Just a single year could flip your worldview. A single event could impart life changing experience.

I understood that from my time on Earth. It was the only reason I had entered college. I trusted the judgment of my parents who had more experience than I, along with the advice of other adults around me, several of which had expressed their regret over their own youthful ignorance.

I knew that I was young and didn’t know better, so I followed their directions instead of blazing a trail on my own. Well, I was also fearful of what would happen if I was truly cut off from them, who were my lifeline, but I knew I had enough self awareness to see the truth.

Sure enough, a few years later, my mindset had completely changed. I no longer needed their guidance to see that their advice was true. It was amazing to experience my own evolving way of thought, as if I were spectating my own life.

It seemed Umara was similar.

However, after a few moments of silence between us, I could see her fidget and smile weirdly. She seemed nervous.

My heart thrummed a bit harder, as if I could predict what was happening. In fact, I could sense her Aura get a bit bolder, like she was about to do something big. She could hide little, my senses reading her like a book, only stopping short of being able to hear her exact thoughts.

“So… I was wondering…”

“Mhmm?”

“Well, there really isn’t anything to do here, but there is back at the Capital. Anyway, I didn’t know if you would be open to the thought of, maybe, going to a nice restaurant when we return…”

“...”

I was silent for a few moments while looking over, seeing Umara almost shiver in nervousness.

Of course, the fact that I had just been asked out had me a bit fluttery as well, but not nearly as much as her. It was like her life and death hinged on my answer here.

Seeing her like this was extraordinary, like seeing an extinct species. I never thought she could get this nervous.

All of our interactions prior had been completely cool. She was always rather monotone, almost stoic, except for when she occasionally teased me.

Of course, she wasn’t robotic. She was just really low-key. Unlike Tana who wore her heart on her sleeve, she preferred to keep quiet and watch.

So this was totally new, getting a glimpse of just how… girly she could be. It was unbearably cute.

I couldn’t even think of anything else as I barely stifled laughter. I felt gleeful.

“Oh lord, I’ve never seen you this nervous!”

“Don’t laugh! Please!”

“I’m sorry! I’ve just never been asked out on a date before. It’s kind of magical.”

I chuckled, thinking that I’ve always been the one on the other end. Was this how girls felt?

Seeing how Umara looked like she was going to explode though, I did my best to control myself and ease her mind.

“Ahem. I think a date sounds great.”

“...Are you sure?”

“Look at you, being all shy.”

I laughed as she tried to bury her face in her knees.

After a moment though, I nudged her with my elbow.

“But we'll only be back at the capital in 3 weeks. That's too long.”

“W-What do you mean?”

“I mean that I like you right now and don’t want to wait 3 weeks just to go on a date. Granted, being on a military base does indeed make things difficult, but I’m sure we can figure something out. Who said we can’t take a date to the recreation room?”

“O-Oh…”

She let out a long relieved breath at my words, causing me to laugh again. Just like that, I had started a new relationship.

I could see her smile really wide too. She even rocked back and forth like a kid who just got some candy.

But then, she rubbed her chin.

“I’m not sure about a date to the recreation room…”

“Eh, we’ll figure something out. For now let’s go eat.”

I stood before reaching out and grabbing her hand, pulling her up to her feet and out of the tower.

We headed to the mess hall where they were serving dinner. Very few people were there, so we had some alone time while eating.

During that time Umara seemed to calm herself down, returning to her usual quiet self.

But as I sat across from her, I couldn’t stop smiling, constantly thinking back to how she went about asking me out. I even laughed a few times, causing her to cover her face with her hands.

Ah, how cute.