The Separated Pair

A week passed in the blink of an eye. Before they knew it, Rhodes Island had reached the border between Kazdel and Rim Billiton. According to the plan, the landship would next enter Rim Billiton and proceed along the border before... turning north.

However, their enemies clearly had no intention of letting the landship leave Kazdel so easily. An encounter battle had already broken out just a few kilometers from Rim Billiton territory.

Near Rhodes Island's landing bay, the mercenaries had already clashed with the rebels. Though the mercenaries vastly outnumbered those people, they had failed to gain the upper hand. Against specially trained troops, the weapons and combat skills the mercenaries prided themselves on had lost their effectiveness. Especially after the enemy received the Confessors' support, the gap between them widened rapidly.

"If you can wake up, then please wake up soon."

"Ugh..."

"My head hurts!"

Amid waves of pain and a faint voice calling to her, Ines awoke. The moment she opened her eyes, she saw W's face, along with those familiar words and her merciless tone.

"What... is going on?"

As she glanced around, Ines asked the question. Perhaps her head had taken a violent blow, because her mind was still a mess. For now, the only way she could learn about their situation was through the rookie mercenary before her, the one who had inherited the name "W."

"Nothing much. But in case that fall made you lose your memory, I should remind you what happened..." W pressed the detonator in her hand. Then she tossed the spent device aside and continued, "We were ambushed an hour ago. The enemy moved fast. The casters didn't have time to set up Arts defenses before the formation was scattered. There are only the two of us in this area."

A violent explosion erupted alongside W's words. At that moment, W extended a hand to Ines.

Without hesitation, Ines took W's hand and used her strength to rise to her feet. Then she picked up the weapon that had fallen nearby.

W had no reason to lie to her about something like this. That was precisely why their situation was so dangerous. If they did not want to die, they had to reunite with the others quickly. At the very least... they had to find their own people.

After all, the attackers this time were not enemies the two of them could defeat alone.

"..." After a brief silence, Ines asked, "What about communications?"

"Jammed. No idea what method they used. They're professionals—more professional than any target we've faced before."

"But the good news is that they haven't advanced on the escort target yet. Looks like they only got hold of a little rumor and know nothing about the real situation."

W wore a faintly forced smile.

For mercenaries, that was good news. As long as their employer was unharmed, as long as the escort target had not been taken down, their mission had not failed, and their mercenary group would still receive payment for the job.

But the two of them were not so fortunate. Having lost all means of communication, they were like blind women. Now, all they could do was rely on luck in this land. Either they would break through the encirclement and reunite with the others, or they would fall on this land at the border of their homeland.

"..."

"..."

Their eyes met. At that moment, both understood what the other was thinking. Both knew what choice the other would make.

They might be facing a desperate situation, but neither of them would simply give up. For them, the real challenge had only just begun!

"Keep moving. Find a way to rendezvous with the others."

"Oh my, I thought you'd at least suspect me of leaving you behind as live bait."

"If I fought you right now, who do you think would survive?"

Listening to W, Ines asked this while gripping her blade.

W naturally knew the answer. In close combat, even if there were two more of her, they would not be a match for this woman. Her last Originium explosive had already been detonated, leaving her with almost all of her combat ability gone. Besides, W was not uninjured herself.

W understood that if they truly fought, she would indeed be no match for this woman.

"Of course..." Before she could finish, W fell into a brief silence.

Yet the silence did not last long. Almost in the next instant, W smiled and replied:

"Tch... you're really nasty. You figured out my injuries at a glance?"

"So you're the one in pain. For a moment, I thought you could even disguise your emotions perfectly, and I worried a little. Seems I was overthinking it."

"The first thing you did after waking up was use your Originium Arts to observe your teammate? That's quite trusting of you, Captain."

"Just a habit."

Their conversation did not last long, ending after only a few minutes. Yet those few minutes placed them in danger—or rather, placed W in danger.

Just as they were preparing to leave, a Sarkaz mercenary entered their field of vision. Ines vanished almost instantly, leaving only W behind.

"One mercenary located. Confirming the target's codename... W."

"...That fast?"

Looking at him, W asked in a somewhat surprised tone.

Still, his reaction did not truly surprise her. She had been a mercenary for less than a year, but the name W had long resounded throughout Kazdel. Not only because of its previous bearer, but because of her as well. Though she had been a mercenary for just over half a year, she had done quite a lot.

Besides, there was no second person in all of Kazdel with her distinctive traits. It was no surprise that he could identify her so quickly. More likely, he had been following the two of them all along. Under those circumstances, it would have been strange if he could not identify her.

"With the skills you people have, letting one or two escape is of no consequence. I intended to monitor you until you led me to the main force, but I never expected you to abandon your companion..."

The Sarkaz warrior paused slightly. He raised his greatsword and pointed it at W, then continued:

"Tell me everything you know about that unit, and I'll let you die quickly."