Night fell once again.
The security lights around the perimeter of the camp slowly came on.
The wind passed through the forest, carrying a damp chill.
After several consecutive days of attacks, everyone's nerves were beginning to wear down.
No one knew when the next attack would come.
And no one knew how many people were hiding in the forest.
In the maintenance area, several members of the escort unit were crouched beside a damaged vehicle.
Large sections of the door's outer shell had been corroded away.
The edges of the metal were even showing signs of softening.
The mechanic frowned.
"That's the third one."
The person beside him spoke grimly.
"We're almost out of spare armor."
No one replied.
Because it was the truth.
Cobra's attacks had never been about destroying them all at once.
They were simply weakening them.
Wearing them down.
Making it impossible for them to rest.
Not far away, the medical area was also lit up.
Several wounded soldiers were having their bandages replaced.
One of them leaned against a stretcher, his eyes bloodshot.
He hadn't truly slept for two days.
Because every time he closed his eyes, the alarm would sound.
Every time he relaxed, another attack would emerge from the forest.
It felt like being watched by a venomous snake.
There was never a moment when they could truly feel safe.
Outside the tents, Dawolf stood silently.
He gazed at the camp.
Over the past few days, he had gradually come to understand something.
Why so many organizations in the past had been dragged down by Cobra.
It wasn't because they couldn't win a direct confrontation.
It was because their minds would break first.
Constant vigilance.
Constant exhaustion.
Never knowing when the enemy would appear.
That pressure slowly consumed people.
Just then, footsteps came from behind.
Bear walked over.
"The young master wants to see you."
Dawolf nodded.
He then entered the central tent.
Inside, the map had already been spread out again.
It was covered with dense red markings.
Every attack location over the past five days.
Every direction of retreat.
Every position used for rear-guard actions.
All of them had been recorded.
Lucian sat at the table, lightly tapping the map with his finger.
He didn't look up.
"What did you find?"
Dawolf stepped closer.
He looked at the map.
Several seconds later, his expression subtly changed.
Because those routes were forming some kind of structure.
They weren't random attacks.
Nor were the retreats arbitrary.
Every route was ultimately drawing closer to the same direction.
Like a net that was slowly tightening.
Lucian spoke calmly.
"They're guiding us."
Several commanders beside him looked up at the same time.
"Guiding us?"
Lucian nodded.
"The attack points are becoming increasingly concentrated."
"That means they're no longer planning to wear us down over the long term."
"They're forcing us toward a fixed area."
Dawolf fell silent.
Then he slowly spoke.
"An encirclement."
"That's right."
Lucian's gaze remained calm.
"Viper wants to drag us into his rhythm."
The tent fell silent.
A few seconds later, Bear frowned.
"Then why don't we just retreat?"
Lucian looked at the map.
"Because he's starting to get desperate too."
The moment those words were spoken, everyone's expression changed.
Dawolf was the first to react.
"Young master, you mean..."
"Their core combat strength is beginning to run low."
Lucian spoke calmly.
"Otherwise, there would be no need for such frequent attacks."
"Nor would they need to repeatedly use the same group of teenagers as rear guards."
The tent fell silent again.
Only now did everyone realize it.
Over the past few days, Cobra had seemingly maintained the initiative.
But in reality, they were also being worn down.
Especially their core group.
Every spray.
Every corrosive weapon.
All of it depended on the special equipment created through Viper's ability.
And those things clearly couldn't be supplied indefinitely.
Dawolf slowly frowned.
"So they're gambling."
"Betting that we'll break first."
"That's right."
Lucian slowly stood up.
His gaze fell on the center of the map.
"But now..."
"It's our turn."
The next day.
The convoy continued moving forward.
However, unlike the previous few days, the outer security perimeter was noticeably reduced this time.
The scouts pulled back.
The vehicle formation also began to change.
Many people even deliberately appeared exhausted.
Some leaned against vehicles and slept.
Others relaxed their guard.
Even the patrol frequency began to decrease.
Dawolf watched the scene.
He quickly understood.
Bait.
Lucian was deliberately making the enemy believe that they were nearly at their limit.
And in truth, there wasn't much pretending involved.
By evening, another attack appeared.
Deep within the forest, dozens of streams of green liquid suddenly shot out.
A large amount of corrosive fluid covered the road.
Several transport vehicles were immediately hit.
The alarms went off at once.
"Enemy attack!"
"Left-side forest!"
"Establish a defensive line!"
Just like before, the members wearing protective suits began retreating immediately after finishing their attack.
Their movements were extremely fast.
The escort unit, meanwhile, launched a pursuit just as they had countless times before.
Everything seemed unchanged.
Deep within the forest, the members in protective suits were retreating at high speed.
Footsteps continued to sound behind them.
The teenage rear guard unit quickly appeared.
They were still carrying weapons.
Their faces were pale.
Some were even trembling.
Yet they still stood in the middle of the path.
One of the teenagers shouted.
"Stop!"
"Don't come any closer!"
But the next second—
Everyone suddenly froze.
Because the pursuing force had stopped.
There was no charge.
No further advance.
They simply stood where they were.
The teenagers were visibly stunned.
They had already prepared themselves to fight to the death.
They never expected the enemy to suddenly stop pursuing them.
And at the exact moment they hesitated—
Deep within the distant forest, an azure light suddenly appeared.
Boom!
The air exploded.
A blast of pressure instantly tore through the ground.
A blur shot through the forest at incredible speed.
It was so fast that it was almost impossible to see.
Farther ahead, the Cobra core group responsible for the retreat hadn't even reacted.
The trees in front of them suddenly exploded.
Boom!
Wood splinters scattered in every direction.
A figure appeared directly in the middle of their escape route.
Lucian.
Every member in a protective suit stopped simultaneously.
The next second, they immediately turned their sprayers.
Green venom sprayed out at the same time, covering a large area.
However—
Azure light suddenly illuminated beneath Lucian's feet.
Boom!
The ground instantly cracked apart.
His figure vanished.
All the venom missed.
Then—
An azure blur suddenly cut in from the side at high speed.
Bang!
The foremost member in a protective suit was kicked away.
His body smashed through a tree.
The expressions of everyone behind him changed drastically.
"Spread out!"
But it was already too late.
Lucian gave them no chance to reorganize.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
A continuous series of explosions rang out.
His figure moved at incredible speed.
Every time he appeared, one person was instantly knocked down.
No hesitation.
No pause.
His speed was like that of a true flash of light.
The forest instantly descended into chaos.
At the same time—
On the other side, Bear suddenly led the main force around from the perimeter.
A large number of escort unit members broke in simultaneously.
They sealed off the retreat routes.
Only then did Cobra's core group finally realize—
They had been counter-tracked.
Farther away, the teenagers responsible for the rear guard finally reacted as well.
Some turned around and tried to provide support.
But the escort unit stopped them.
No one fired.
They simply blocked the route.
Because everyone knew that they were not the real targets.
The target was the core combat force.
Deep within the forest, one of the members in a protective suit suddenly roared.
"Keep retreating!"
"Don't worry about us!"
The next second, several corrosive grenades were thrown simultaneously.
Green liquid exploded outward.
Large numbers of trees began smoking and corroding.
The battlefield instantly disappeared into chaos.
And at the exact moment the venom spread—
An azure light suddenly pierced through the smoke.
Boom!
One of the core members attempting to retreat was struck down on the spot.
The sprayer in his hand was shattered.
The remaining members finally panicked completely.
Because they discovered something terrifying.
They couldn't shake that young man off.
No matter which direction they retreated in—
Lucian was always faster.
It was as if he already knew every route they would take.
At the same time, behind the camp—
Dawolf stared at the map.
He finally let out a slow breath.
For the past few days, they had constantly been dragged along by Cobra's rhythm.
And now—
The situation had finally reversed.
The positions of hunter and prey were beginning to switch.
On the other side of the forest, the last few core members finally broke through the encirclement.
One of them shouted.
"Contact Viper!"
But the moment he pulled out his communicator—
An azure light instantly pierced through the air.
Boom!
The communicator exploded on the spot.
The man was also thrown backward by the impact.
The next second—
Lucian slowly landed.
Azure light slowly spread beneath his feet.
His eyes were cold.
The surviving Cobra members around him finally began backing away.
For the first time—
They showed genuine fear.
Because they had always been the ones pursuing others and wearing them down.
And now—
Someone was pursuing them with an even more terrifying speed.
The wind passed through the forest.
The leaves continued to sway.
In the distance, Bear and the main force had completely finished surrounding the area.
The escape routes were steadily shrinking.
And in a certain direction—
A gaze that had remained hidden all this time finally showed its first trace of disturbance.
Several kilometers away, inside a temporary concealed outpost—
Viper slowly lowered his binoculars.
For the first time, his expression turned truly grim.
He knew.
Lucian had found him.