4. The First Mission

Nathanial froze mid-step after reading that sentence with a slight tremble. His gaze landed on Fredrick, who had already dived into the soft embrace of the blanket covering his bed. There were still many things he hadn’t figured out yet. One being whether this system could fully be trusted. He was a skeptical person by nature and knew that the golden screen before him had its own hidden agenda.

Its own ulterior motives.

So why did it want to involve Fredrick? Why was it saying that his friend wouldn’t be long for this world?

[ Hesitation is like stagnant water, rotting the core of decisions. ]

[ The decision to change the fate of your friend resides within your grasp. ]

Nathanial clenched his fists at the messenger’s words. He knew what it wanted, but Fredrick was never the type of person to want to train unless he had no other choice. Like him, he was also a one-star aura user. An embarrassment to his family, with every opportunity slipping through their fingertips.

“Are you saying that Fredrick should take part in my training even though he doesn’t have your help?” Nathanial quietly muttered.

[ That is for you to decide. ]

The thought of Fredrick dying didn’t sit well with him. Nathanial walked toward Fredrick, watching as his friend drifted off into a deep slumber before grabbing the collar of his white shirt.

“Get up,” he said. “Now isn’t the time for you to be sleeping.”

Nathanial shook Fredrick’s body, but somehow his friend had already passed out the minute he hit his bed. With no other choice, he raised his hand and landed a crisp slap across Fredrick’s face.

“W-what?!” Fredrick’s eyes jolted open. “Who dares!”

Fredrick raised his fists in defense but soon paused once he saw Nathanial looming over him. His frown deepened as he narrowed his eyes at his friend. “Really? You couldn’t have woken me normally?”

“I tried, but you were still asleep. Honestly, I’ve never seen someone in such a deep sleep before.”

Fredrick sighed and threw the blanket he was snuggling with aside. “Alright, what the hell do you want, and it better be important for you to decide to wake me up.”

“I wanted you to train with me.” Nathanial stared at Fredrick’s deadpan expression, watching him slowly reach for the blanket before grabbing his wrist to stop him. “I’m being serious. It’ll do you some good as well, and maybe we’ll both make it through this war.”

“You can’t be serious. Do I need to remind you that we’re just one-star aura users?” Fredrick shook off Nathanial’s hand. “The moment we joined this war as militiamen, or foot soldiers. Hell, whatever you want to call it—our fates were already sealed and you know that.”

“But what if we can change that? What if we could take fate into our own hands and finally do something for ourselves?”

Fredrick sat upright and stared at his friend’s concerned expression. The face twisted in grief was unlike anything he had ever seen before. “This isn’t like you Nathanial, you aren’t one to hold on to a belief like that.”

“I know, but this is different,” he pleaded.

“Different how?!” Fredrick’s voice cracked through the tent, louder than he had intended. After a moment of silence that drowned out their words. The faint crackle of embers from the nearby torches was all that remained. He slowly breathed in before exhaling to settle his beating heart.

“Look… I get that you volunteered to come here. You came here to save your brothers. I respect that, and it takes a lot of guts and courage to do so.” His jaw tightened. “But that’s not me; my family threw me here without even a goodbye.”

He motioned toward the empty beds. “The same goes for them, and I’m just tired, and I just want to rest.”

Nathanial stared at his friend and understood why Fredrick was like this. Their situations were different; even if he made it back to his family, how would Fredrick be able to look them in the eyes after what he had been through? While Nathanial had closure and knew that his brothers were willing to give their lives so he could live, it was the opposite for Fredrick.

He had no anchor, because when the summons came, Fredrick was sent without a word. No one came to his aid. No one cared enough to stop it. He just left with the belief that he was serving a role that no one could.

And despite his friend saying he was alright, it was as clear as day that it was a lie.

Nathanial’s gaze fell upon the single golden screen that remained. The words “that is for you to decide” painting a new portrait of his life that he had yet to understand. If he walked away from Fredrick, if he let his friend have one more day of rest… would that be something he would regret in the future?

He just needed to survive. That was Nathanial’s goal, what he strived for—but was it enough?

Was it enough for just him to make it out of this godforsaken war, or was there something more he could do?

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Nathanial stared at Fredrick before grabbing the iron sword that was propped against the wooden frame. “I’ll say it again, we’re going to train.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes, because I can’t in good conscience just let you rot here.” Nathanial pushed the sword that was still in its black scabbard against Fredrick’s chest. “We almost died today. Not just you or me, but both of us. I get that you’re feeling like shit, alright? I do, and no matter how much a part of me wants to just let you rest—I can’t.”

He then grabbed hold of his sheathed blade and raised it from the straps of his belt. “I don’t want to see you die, and you’re the only one I can trust with every fiber of my being to have my back.”

“Nathanial, our attacks can’t pierce through aura. Even if we trained for a few more days, what difference would it make when years of our lives couldn’t manifest our second stars?”

“That’s what we’re about to find out.” Nathanial held out one hand.

“Ah… you bastard, I can’t believe I’m letting you talk me into this.” Fredrick grabbed hold of the outstretched hand and let Nathanial pull him out of his resting spot. “I swear if I go through all this suffering, all this misery, and find myself standing before some pearly gates in the afterlife. I’m going to haunt you.”

Nathanial smiled. “I’m flattered you would reject an eternity of peace to cause me grief.”

“Yeah, well, you won’t be smiling once I start opening windows and breaking plates.” Fredrick walked alongside Nathanial before holding the linen cloth of the tent. “Ladies first.”

“Wow, you’re so kind. Hard to believe that after all these years, you’re still single.”

“It’s by choice!”

Together, they made their way out of the tent and toward the training area where many other soldiers had gathered. Nathanial scanned the surroundings. The first thing that came into sight were the rows of tents. Each one, carefully organized in a structure that easily allowed for carriages, wagons, and mounted infantry to pass, came into view. Then came the facilities used to maintain equipment, feed the livestock, and maintain hygiene.