Bomic yelps in pain. “It was meant as a joke,” he manages to say before the pain interrupts. “AH! You mother—”

Carl understands the confusion and tries to diffuse the situation, but Tetsu acts a while longer hoping to pull out the archer. This opportune moment also prompted Tetsu to use [Info] without raising too much suspicion. He glances at each person, blinks twice, and releases them. Judging by their reactions, none of them detected the probing.

‘Acolyte,’ Tetsu murmurs, his interest piqued.

“That’s one of his skills,” Carl clarifies.

“Pretty foolish of him to push me towards annihilating all of you,” Tetsu scrutinizes Carl.

{Tank, Level: 04. Human: Carl. Attributes: Bulk, defense, shield, water, coral, and stamina. Weaknesses: flash, flex, and traps}

“And why is it always me?” Alcer questions.

“Because you’re our strongest warrior,” Bomic retorts.

“So you want him dead?” Marvin pulls out the dagger with force and wraps a bandage even tighter.

“Ahhhh! Are you trying to kill me?”

“No, that would be your stupidity.” Marvin tightens the last knot with all his might. “Apologies for his behavior,” he bows to Tetsu.

Marvin, with his Asian heritage, carried himself in a manner reminiscent of his grandfather’s generation. His English bore traces of effort, hinting at either recent immigration or upbringing in Asia.

{Mage, Level: 03. Human: Marvin. Attributes: Mist, Vapor, Illusion, and Mind. Weaknesses: Fire, Willpower, Perspective, and Raw Strength.}

“Fuck you,” Bomic howls.

Alcer draws his sword and perches atop Bomic. Among the group, Bomic appeared the most slender, with short brown curly hair, pale skin, blue eyes, and a persona reminiscent of TikTokers—those who sometimes take pranks too far.

With the sword’s tip against Bomic’s neck, Alcer leans over. “I am sleepy,” he yawns, the swing getting closer with each yawn.

“Okay, okay... I understand. I am sorry,” Bomic’s robes flutter as several smile prints vanish from within. He erupts into a mixture of laughter and pain as two huge frowning faces superimpose themselves onto Marvin and Alcer.

“He is peculiar,” Carl sighs from behind.

“Weird,” Tetsu corrects.

“Weird,” Carl agrees.

‘The weirdest in this trail,’ Tetsu adds a note to himself.

{Mage, Level: 04. Human: Bomic. Attributes: Taunt, Flutter, Fluctuate, Hypno, Illusion, and Glass. Weaknesses: Raw Strength and Mental Fortitude}

“He’s a good lad though,” said Carl. “One of our best. I had hoped to take the lead and ensure everyone’s safety, but it seems I keep having to rely on you youngsters.” He pulls the shield from his back, this one much less bulky than the last, and leans on it like a walking stick before continuing. “I suppose old minds have no place in the new world that’s emerging.” He smiles with a hint of defeat. “Please don’t take his actions to heart. I’ll speak to Alcer and ask him to keep a tighter grip on him.”

Tetsu turns to Alcer. ‘Looks are deceiving,’ he sighs.

It turns out Alcer was caught in a gap where he was losing touch with the older generation while still being too old to relate to our youngsters. Yet amongst the humans, Tetsu met so far, he was by far the strongest warrior.

{Fighter, Level: 04. Human: Alcer. Attributes: Sword, Flash, Cut, Zap, Flex, and Willpower. Weakness:???}

‘Guess I can’t outmaneuver or overpower them,’ Tetsu muses, checking the archer’s position and their lower members’ status.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Never sell yourself short,” Tetsu reassures Carl, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I’ve known people older than you who adapt faster than me.”

Tetsu’s implication of Razz is more than unfair, but nonetheless true. He wanted to uplift Carl, but his blank expression offered no indication of its effect.

“You suck at motivation.”

“Ha-ah!” Tetsu scratches his head, chuckling, and walks away, completely ignoring the statement.

“We good here?” Tetsu extends a hand to Bomic, who smiles and accepts the gesture.

Tetsu raises him and delivers a swift kick to his groin. “Now we’re good here,” he says with a smile, embracing Bomic and patting him on the back, while his inner Razz whispers one last ominous warning. “Any further friendly fire will be considered an attack on my life, and I will act in kind, no matter who’s around or where we are at,” Tetsu speaks loud enough for everyone to hear.

The group takes it as a prank, while Alcer nods with newfound appreciation, recognizing Tetsu’s tactic of addressing the issue before it escalates in the future. He tolerates Bomic’s antics because of his contributions to their leader and ranks among the top five. With this lighthearted warning, Tetsu removes the target from his back and establishes a boundary, preventing Bomic from exploiting their friendship as an excuse for misbehavior.

Carl interpreted the dialogue through a different lens than the youngsters. His wealth of wisdom and years of people skills enabled him to glean everything about Tetsu from that single line. When he believed no one was paying attention, Carl discreetly signaled the main archer, Neo, causing him to halt the archer’s approach.

“Wise.” Tetsu acknowledges, his third eye witnessing the exchange.

{Fighter, Level: 04. Human: Neo. Attributes: Bow, Shadow, Flash, Flex, Fortitude, Cut, Range, Tracking, and Willpower. Weakness:????}

“One wrong move and all hell will break loose,” Tetsu couldn’t help but snicker.

Tetsu observed every one of Carl’s attempts to lag behind, signal the archers, and manipulate the squad’s positioning to ensnare him. Meanwhile, the trio remained close to Tetsu without Carl ever engaging with them, leading Tetsu to speculate that Carl either trusts them to react swiftly or doubts Bomic’s ability to maintain secrecy.

Tetsu witnessed every one of Carl’s attempts to lag behind, signal the archers, and manipulate the squad’s positioning to ensnare him. Meanwhile, the trio remained close to Tetsu without Carl ever engaging with them, leading Tetsu to speculate that Carl either trusts them to react swiftly or doubts Bomic’s ability to maintain secrecy.

Whenever Tetsu felt like the formation became too close, he adjusted the group’s heading by either prodding Carl with suspicious questions or altering his own direction through subconscious cues.

A subtle shift to the right, mirrored by two steps from Carl, revealed his desire to anticipate Tetsu’s actions, compelling him to react to Tetsu’s every move. This dynamic also allowed Tetsu to subtly influence Carl’s movements through suggestive cues.

Humans, being highly impressionable beings, tend to imitate those they admire. This inclination extends beyond positive feelings; even those we dislike can wield influence. This inherent tendency, while not inherently negative, takes on a different dimension when encountering someone capable of diverting us from our goals for their own amusement.

Much like how Kile manipulated Tetsu, now Tetsu subtly directed Carl, who believed he was trapping his target but unwittingly delving deeper into Tetsu’s domain.

Carl surmised Tetsu had either detected the ambush or intended to separate from the group. With no other recourse to prevent his departure, Carl altered their approach, leading them to the base where they would have the advantage of greater numbers.

When Tetsu noticed the absence of the archer after blinking, he deceived the group into running, asserting that they were like beasts capable of sensing larger groups and that it was prudent to run before nightfall if the base was distant.

Attempting to thwart that idea, Carl argued the group was too fatigued. Tetsu, foreseeing this response, baited Bomic into a foot race. As both of them sprinted away, the rest of the group was compelled to run as well, disrupting Carl’s apparent strategy of dispatching an archer ahead to inform their leader.

“Checkmate, old man.” Tetsu emerges from the circle of trees, spotting the distant mountain, standing right beside the lead archer, Neo.

“Hey!” Bomic shouts. “He’s a friend!” He waves frantically.

Ignoring Bomic’s plea, Neo readies his bow. A skill activates but fizzles out of energy before reaching its full charge.

‘Neat move,’ Tetsu smiles at Bomic.

Before Neo can reactivate the skill, Alcer intervenes, stepping in between them with a gust of wind.

“Faster than before,” Tetsu notes with a frown. “Faster than me.”

“Move!” Neo demands.

“Friend,” Alcer declares, spreading his arms wide to block Neo’s shot.

Neo clenches his teeth and lowers the bow. Tetsu pays Neo no mind, instead focusing on anticipating Carl’s next move. He admires Carl’s ability to set such a trap in such a short time and is keen to assess what other cards Carl might be holding.

Gauging the shrunken shield in Carl’s hand, which somehow seemed smaller than usual, Tetsu notices a nearby cadet urging him to throw it.

‘If that thing can change size mid-flight!’ Tetsu envisions a spinning shield of spikes expanding ten times its size before ramming into him. ‘An expanding shield would have caught me off guard,’ he grimaces at the thought.

‘Escape might not be that easy.’ Tetsu smiles, restraining his fangs. ‘Hold on! You’re my trump card to shock them; don’t be so hasty.’

Crimsonfea's fangs consented to his assessment before receding into slumber. They didn’t require words to communicate; Tetsu knew a simple command would suffice to awaken them for battle. “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” he murmurs to himself.

“What?” Alcer turns to face Tetsu.

“Friend?” Tetsu feigns displeasure at Neo’s actions.

“Sorry! And yes. Hope you can understand our predicament.”

“That you attack anyone without good reason?” Tetsu taunts.

“Well, hahah...” Alcer trails off, a bit embarrassed. He apologizes once more as the rest catch up.

Tetsu assumed the role of the paranoid skeptic, questioning why their archers were absent or neglecting to guard their flanks. Bomic chimed in, amplifying Tetsu’s doubts with additional inquiries of his own.

Carl and Neo countered with exaggerated falsehoods in defense.

Alcer and Marvin grasped the situation, redirecting the conversation, but Bomic remained resolute, even more so than Tetsu, in his insistence on obtaining answers.

‘Perhaps next time, choose a different sacrificial lamb for your warning,’ Tetsu controlled his laughter, giving his undying support to Bomic on the outside as he savored the humorous scenario.

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