A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

“Wait a minute, there’s a strange sound.” Tristey’s ears twitched cutely.

As soon as he finished speaking, a small knife came flying from a corner.

"Ding—" Rolando swiftly drew his longsword, blocking the sneak attack from the dagger.

Little Knife's target is Tristie.

After hearing Tristia say those words, Rolando became cautious.

Rolando was well aware of Tristia's abilities, and that's why he saved her.

"Thank you." Tristy nodded slightly.

Although Guttricity could have dodged it herself, she still had to thank Rolando for his help.

“The number is fifty,” Ellie said, touching the now-lit crystal ball.

“Those guys from the Federation,” Eric grumbled.

While the Empire was figuring out the Federation's intentions, the Federation was also well aware of the Empire's actions.

"Alice, stand behind me."

"I'm entrusting my back to you."

Eric loosened his muscles and whispered to Alice.

"You think you've entrusted your back to me so many times? Let go now." Alice sighed and drew the gun she had been holding.

The small inn was filled with a cold atmosphere, and the walls and floors were covered with ice crystals, freezing almost the entire bodies of the Federation assassins.

The extremely low temperature quickly caused them to lose consciousness completely.

The sudden outbreak of battle caused everyone in the hotel to flee.

"So strong..." Rolando's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

Rumors circulated that the "Eternal Colonel" was even stronger than an A-rank adventurer, but after Rolando witnessed it firsthand, he discovered that Eric's strength was even more terrifying than the rumors suggested.

It's not that the magic is so powerful, but rather—

"Why doesn't Mr. Eric want more powerful magic..." Ellie looked at Eric in confusion.

From the start to the end of the battle, Eric used only minor spells.

“Little girl, if winning is as simple as unleashing a powerful spell with full energy, then this world is far too easy,” Eric said, snapping his fingers.

As soon as Eric finished speaking, all the ice in the small hotel turned into mist and dissipated.

Aside from the water stains all over the ground and the large number of unconscious Federation soldiers, it's hard to imagine that just a moment ago this place was as cold as an icebox.

"Colonel, stop pretending to be so mature." Alice reloaded the empty magazine in her hand and put it back in the holster on her leg.

However, Eric did not respond to Alice's question.

Colonel Eric kept a close eye on the hotel entrance.

“I was wondering why Inlai’s guards hadn’t come over for so long,” Eric said, exhaling a puff of white mist.

“Michelle, I’m curious, why did you come to Inle without my permission?”

Major General Michel of the Empire is a radical who has consistently advocated for war with the Union.

Michelle is probably not even 30 years old, much younger than Eric, who is over 30.

Michelle casually tossed the dead Inle guard in her hand to the ground, maintaining her smile as she looked at Eric.

“‘The Colonel of a Thousand Years,’ I’m here to kill you,” Michelle said with a smile.

“You betrayed the Empire.” Eric tapped his head.

There was no prior notice, and it happened at this time.

More importantly, it was Michelle's speech.

“It’s hard to imagine that a warmonger like you would choose to help the Federation,” Eric said, puzzled.

“Because I saw something interesting.” Michelle’s smile remained on her face.

"That interesting thing is being made, and we can't let you disturb it."

From Michelle's interference when the Empire sent people to search for clues at the beginning, to the lie Michelle told when reporting to Chief of Staff Whiteway, and now to intercepting Eric.

"What a capricious superior," Eric shook his head helplessly.

Then came a snap of fingers.

"Ice Gravel"

Countless sharp ice cones hurtled toward Michelle like bullets.

“That’s decisive,” Michelle said with a smile, completely unfazed by the attack.

"boom!!!!!"

The hotel floor cracked open, and countless streams of quicksand poured out, blocking Michelle's path.

It felt as if the icicles were mercilessly swallowed by the quicksand, without Michelle even touching a hair on his head.

“I’ve always been curious about your abilities, ‘The Everlasting Colonel’,” Michelle laughed heartily.

“Sand burial”

Michelle uttered a single word, and the entire hotel wall collapsed, turning into quicksand that rushed toward Eric.

"Hey, heroes, you can go now." Eric snapped his fingers, and the sand froze instantly.

“That won’t do.” Michelle smiled, but her eyes were as terrifying as still water.

The sand that surged up from the ground rushed towards Rolando and his group, threatening to engulf them in the next breath.

Just as Ellie and the other mages were about to cast spells to resist, a snap of their fingers blocked the sand from being blocked by an ice wall that rose up in an instant.

"Don't cast spells, let's go." Although the hero and his party were not weak, their strength did not match their status as A-rank adventurers.

In other words, Rolando and his group cannot be fully considered A-level.

Even with the entire team of heroes, defeating Michelle wouldn't be difficult; Michelle is at most an A-rank.

But there isn't that much time to wrestle with Michelle right now.

An ominous premonition crept into Eric's heart, as if something was approaching.

"Miss Tristy, please do your best." Alice bowed to Tristy at this moment.

Then he picked up the gun.

"I really don't want to pick up the gun again after just putting it down," Alice complained.

"Hey, Captain, protect me well."

“peng——”

A magical bullet struck the sand that had spread to the ground, and the sand vanished completely in the next second.

“I’ve been protecting you all along, you completely useless Colonel,” Alice scoffed.

"Weakening Magic Elimination" is the spell attached to that bullet.

Although the effect is not very strong, it can still block Michelle's attack if used properly.

“You’re really reliable, Captain.” Eric chuckled dryly and glanced at Michelle.

Michelle crossed her arms, seemingly completely unfazed.

"The hero has left, aren't you going to chase after him?"

“So what if you left? As long as you didn’t actually leave, that’s fine,” Michelle said with a smile.

The fingers snapped, followed by Eric's voice.

"We don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."

The hotel, which had finally managed to warm up, was once again as cold as an icebox.

Even the sand that Michelle manipulated carried an aura of extreme cold, so cold that it made people shiver.

"It's a pity that the air conditioning doesn't have much effect on the sand."

"Sandstorm Serpent"

A sandstorm surged up, dancing in the confined space like several large snakes.

The ice wall rose, but was easily cracked and then turned into a pile of ice.

“‘The Everlasting Colonel,’ your defenses seem to be failing too.” Michelle maintained her smile.

The ice shield blocked the remaining power of the sandstorm, and Eric raised an eyebrow.

"Young people these days seem so arrogant."

"You can stop revealing your age now, Colonel."

"Understood, Captain." Eric's expression hadn't been very serious from the start.

"Who told you I can only use ice?" Marlene is a chimera, and strictly speaking, she can also be considered a mixture of soul and divine source.

Therefore, Marlene was not affected by the divine source, because she herself is the divine source.

Reeve took many protective measures for Marin, making her seem like an ordinary girl.

Even Bray couldn't detect Marlene's unusual behavior.

Marin, who was the source of the divine power, has now disappeared and merged into the entire armor.

This seven-story-high hollow armor seemed to have come to life, brimming with vitality.

You can even hear a very clear pulsating sound coming from under the armor, just like a heartbeat.

The joint was filled with a red glow, making the entire armor appear full and ready to move at any moment.

Marin was inside, becoming one with the armor.

It doesn't even have a physical body; it's merely a divine source attached to the armor.

Divine energy can not only attach itself to living things, but also to inanimate objects.

Reeve was incredibly excited when he saw his discovery.

"Aaaaaaah!!!! It'll be finished soon!!!"

"My grand dream!! My very brain is trembling!"

Reeve's screams stopped a moment later.

"How did you get in... no, where are the Federation's secret guards?" Reeves turned to look at Bray, his face full of confusion.

"Well, I brought her along anyway." Katrina, dressed in a red dress, waved her hand and then hid behind Bray.

"The bodyguards you mentioned were all knocked unconscious by this guy." Katrina pointed bluntly at Bray's forehead.

Katrina was already planning to seize the opportunity to run away. She had obtained some explosive information from Bray, and she felt she had made a profit. She couldn't stay and watch the show any longer.

It seems that if we stay any longer, we'll get caught up in something terrible.

Sass looked around, trying to find Marin.

"Where did you hide Marlene?!" Sass shouted.

Revi then carefully examined Sass.

When he met with Sass before, Reeves didn't pay much attention because in Reeves' eyes, Sass and Bray were dead.

However, things seemed to take an unexpected turn. Bray defeated the countless chimeras and survived with Thass.

"Ah, it really looks just like it!" Levi exclaimed in surprise.

"You and your sister look very alike."

“Sister…” Sass paused for a moment.

"Ah, I see. You're worried about your sister's whereabouts." Levi suddenly clapped his hands.

“What are you talking about…” Sass frowned.

"I'll tell you where your sister is right now." Upon seeing Sass, who had come to him seeking help, Revi was suddenly deeply moved.

"I've already killed your sister and used her to make a chimera."