Medeia had divided the team into three groups: snipers, close-combat fighters, and guardians.
The snipers were positioned in the most unreachable spots, hidden from human sight. They nestled between cliffs, wedged into rocky crevices, or perched high above, ready to strike from the shadows.
Tian led this team, carefully selecting and distributing their weapons, ensuring everyone had the right gear for the job.
Meanwhile, the close-combat fighters stood at the front lines, ready to take on any enemy that dared to approach.
They were stationed right in front of the gate, guarding the base, which was securely shielded by Nico’s barrier.
This team was under Harry’s command.
Then there were the guardians—the last line of defense. They remained inside the base, protecting the most critical areas: the springs, the greenhouse, and the injured soldiers, including those with implanted chips in their heads.
Medeia hoped they wouldn’t have to engage in battle because if the guardians were forced to fight, it meant things had taken a disastrous turn.
Naomi led the guardians, while Sister Jeanne took the children—including Sierra—down into the locked basement, where they would be safe. To ensure the children’s safety, Medeia asked Bear to guard them and bite any strangers who tried to approach to them.
And as for Medeia and Lucian? They positioned themselves on top of the highest canyon walls, overlooking everything below like watchful hawks.
"What if the General can control the chips remotely?" Medeia murmured, adjusting her binoculars as she scanned the area.
She absentmindedly tossed a piece of beef jerky into her mouth, her legs swinging freely over the cliff’s edge. The wind tugged at her hair, but she remained unfazed, her sharp gaze locked onto the battlefield below.
"I’m not so sure about that," Lucian said, his voice thoughtful. "The chip is implanted in the part of the brain that controls emotions. At most, he can manipulate their fear levels, maybe push them to the brink and turn them into monsters for a moment."
To keep those monsters from becoming a problem for the guardians inside the base, Lucian had locked the soldiers in an emergency cage, reinforced with thick iron bars and heavy boulders.
They were still unconscious, but just in case, Medeia had lent Naomi the flute so she could put them back to sleep the moment they stirred.
Lucian sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I feel bad for them. They haven’t eaten in hours."
"They’ll live," Medeia replied nonchalantly, her eyes still fixed on the canyon below. "The villagers even said some of them once went five days without food, and they didn’t die."
She narrowed her eyes, scanning the snowy expanse of the Red Canyon. Flakes drifted from the sky, not nearly as harsh as the earlier blizzard, but enough to dust the ground in white.
Even if the enemy tried to storm the base, it wouldn’t be easy. They had rigged the entire pathway with traps, turning it into a death course. Breaking in undetected would be damn near impossible.
But these weren’t just any enemies. These were soldiers, who were ruthless, well-trained bastards who had been hardened by the harshest conditions.
Foolish bandits would have already fallen for their traps. But these soldiers? They’d be a real pain in the ass.
Medeia tapped her fingers against her thigh, deep in thought. "Are they waiting for the right moment to attack?" she murmured. Her gaze flicked toward the distant horizon. "But it’s already 2 AM, if they were going to break the gates down by force, wouldn’t this be the perfect time?"
"Yeah, but the fog is insanely thick. They’ll have trouble moving through it," Lucian said, absentmindedly brushing Medeia’s knees with his fingers. "I’m guessing there’s no higher-up among them."
If the General himself had come, a bit of fog wouldn’t have slowed him down.
"Well, that’s good," Medeia clicked her tongue. "But also a pain in the ass."
If the higher-ups weren’t showing up today, chances were they’d just keep sending more soldiers, over and over again, until they finally decided to handle things themselves.
"We need to find a way to make sure no more soldiers get sent here," Medeia muttered, frustration creeping into her voice.
But how? No matter how she turned the problem over in her head, she still hadn’t found a solid answer.
As she was deep in thought, the system suddenly chimed in, delivering the delayed rewards for the hidden quest.
[Congratulations! You have completed a Hidden Quest: Discover the reason why Max wants to kill Lucian.!]
[Reward: Jumped from Lv. 29 to Lv. 31.]
[Stat increase: +6,100 MP (Total: 54,500), +1,400 HP (Total: 19,350), Agility: +45 (Total: 300), Intelligence: +45 (Total: 360)]
- Upgraded Skill: Demonic Strength (Grade-SSS+ lvl. 3.5 — Effect: Enhance physical strength by 700%, endurance by 620%, and agility by 580% for 30 minutes.]
- Item Reward: Camouflage Cloak (Grade–S) — Effect: Blends into surroundings, making the user invisible to enemies for 15 minutes after being activated.]
The camouflage cloak was useful for hiding her presence in battle, but since Medeia enjoyed catching her enemies off guard just for the thrill of it, she figured the Iron Vest 1 and Avalanche Boots were enough for her.
"Lucian, want something that can make you disappear?" she asked, tilting her head.
Lucian raised an eyebrow. "Disappear? What are you talking about?"
She explained the new item she had just received from the system. His abilities already worked from a distance, but if he wore the camouflage cloak, the enemies wouldn’t even know where their suffering was coming from for a solid fifteen minutes.
Wouldn’t that be fun? The soldiers would feel like they were fighting a ghost.
Lucian let out a thoughtful hum. "I guess I could give it a try," he said. Then, after a brief pause, his tone turned more serious. "But Medeia ... What will you do if the soldiers turn out to be young men, like Finn and the others? Will you still fight them?"