Ryo stood atop a wooden platform. In front of him stood almost sixty-nine thousand soldiers. Their faces did not look even a bit confident. As though they would bite the hand that fed them, if given the chance, just to save themselves. He stared for a single moment and had deduced as much.

Ryo stared at them for a while before turning to the strategists with a look of extreme disappointment. "Can I ask you all 'strategists' a question?"

Ryo's voice dripped with sarcasm as he asked the question. This made the strategists confused. It also fueled their anger toward him. However, due to the special gift Ryo had received, they could not do a thing to him.

['Absolute Authority' is active!]

'This gift really does do wonders, huh. This makes me curious—did anyone other than me receive this thing?'

"Lord Lux, what did you want to ask?" a strategist spoke, interrupting Ryo's thoughts.

"I had previously ordered you to assign eight of our High Grade soldiers and eight thousand Low Grade soldiers to a squad. Where are they?" he asked.

The strategists stared at each other with a look of nervousness. After a few seconds, one of them stepped forward and got closer to Ryo. "Lord Lux, we—we'd like for you to choose them. We have set aside the Low Grade soldiers already, but we want you to pick out the High Grade soldiers."

"And why is that?" Ryo questioned further.

The strategist said in a cold sweat, "We—well, the High Grade soldiers are too difficult for us to order around, you see. A—and it'd be better if you picked them, according to their Genesis, or Impulse! Since we do not know what you are planning."

The last sentence they spoke made Ryo realize that he too should be held responsible for this. It was because he did not explain his plans to the rest that now he had to hurriedly select eight soldiers.

'It was my fault. I should've explained. Regardless, I should begin selecting.'

Ryo stood still for a second, thinking about what he should do next. He moved toward the stairs on the side and then proceeded to go down, meeting eye to eye with all the soldiers.

Seeing this sight, the strategists were stunned. Why?

Because it meant that the great Lux had acknowledged the fact that it was his fault, even though he had not said a word. The silence spoke all that needed to be said.

He slowly walked down the rows, observing all the High Grade soldiers. There were a few things he noticed.

Some of the High Grade soldiers were playful. As Ryo walked past them, he could hear whispers behind him. They weren't making fun of him—the people who whispered did not mention anything about Lux at all. Rather, they seemed to be having conversations that a brotherhood, rather than a group of soldiers who did not know anything about each other, would have.

Noticing this, Ryo was met with a dilemma. What would be an ideal squad? An ideal team, not just for the situation at hand, but for any scenario.

Would it be one where there exists 'brotherhood,' or one where all soldiers possess a hunger for victory, glory, and nothing else?

In confusion, Ryo let out a sigh. 'Why would I even have this thought right now. Anyways.'

Ryo was almost at the end of the line and had almost seen every High Grade soldier. After reaching the end, he walked back to the platform and asked the strategists, "Do you have a list? A list of their Genesis abilities. Alongside their Impulse?"

Almost instantly, a list was in his hands.

'There's quite the variety of abilities here,' he deduced.

'I see a few speed Genesis abilities. I can use a few of these, even in this squad I'm forming. That's not all I need though. I'd need someone to use large-range attacks—hmm? An Ice Genesis seems perfect for such a situation.'

After a few minutes, Ryo lifted his eyes off the list in his hands and began calling out names.

And now, Ryo's squad was completely formed, consisting of around eight High Grade soldiers and around eight thousand Low Grade soldiers. It was now time for him to announce his plan.

"Now, you might be wondering why you people were separated from the main army, yes?" Ryo began by posing a question to the squad that had been formed. They stood separate from the main army.

On hearing this question, many put on a look of confusion, amusement, and intrigue.

"Well," he began answering the question he had asked.

"It's because you all will be playing a very crucial role in our plan. You all will be acting as our Decoy Squad." As he finished his sentence, the looks on their faces intensified even more, and they were left with more questions.

"Now! You all might have seen that we destroyed our escape route. That's because we want our enemy to think we fell into their trap. That we're trapped behind that debris. And you, the Decoy Squad, will be placed behind the debris."

"Ah." A sound came from almost everyone present there as they realized what Ryo had planned.

Seeing this, Ryo smirked slightly. "That's right. Once the enemies stand in front of the debris and break through it, we'll attack from the back. They'll think that they have surrounded us, but in truth, we'll be the ones who surround them."

"Understood?!" Ryo let out a shout.

"Yes, Lord Lux." The reply wasn't what he had expected—it did not have the energy he wished for them to have. He saw that they were still unsure, scared. Because no matter what 'plans' Ryo told them, no matter how brilliant they were, the fact that they were heavily outnumbered by enemy forces was ingrained into their minds.

'Oh, no. This is all because of—' Ryo was interrupted by Ashen, who had been watching from the sides.

He pulled Ryo aside and asked, "Do you know what the most essential pieces required for winning a war are?"

'Essential pieces? I'd assume tactics, manipulation, fear, what else is there?'

"Tactics, manipulation, fear. Are these the only ones that come to your mind?" he asked. It was as though he had read Ryo's mind. Hearing this sentence left Ryo puzzled, wondering what it could be.

"Hope," Ashen spoke, staring into Ryo's eyes. "Now, there are a few idiots in this world who say 'hope' is all you need to win a war. You and I both know that's not true. However, you do need it."

"You do need it to win a war. And right now, what these people—these soldiers—lack is hope." He pointed at the soldiers.

"W-what do you want me to do then?" Ryo asked.

An answer instantly came. "It's easy. Give them hope. Make them have faith in you."

"I—"

'This idiot will never truly understand, will he?' Ashen said calmly, "If you are able to do this successfully, I'll help you." It was a lure, a bribe for Lux—for Ryo—to accept.

"F-Fine." He still stuttered.

Ryo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 'Let's give this a try, whatever this hope and giving-them-faith thing is.' He went right in front of the soldiers.

"L-Listen. I need you all to trust in me. In my plans," he said. His voice carried neither power nor feeling. It was an empty message—a shallow sentence. The soldiers were still scared. His sentence did not affect them even a little. Ryo too began growing nervous.

'I need Ashen to help me. That's the only way I can win—whatever this test is.' He turned to look at Ashen, forming an expression that begged for help. However, Ashen did not pay attention to it at all.

It was then that he realized: Ashen trusted Lux. Even if they had differences—even if they were at odds despite being father and son.

Ryo took another deep breath. 'Calm, calm...'

He said, with a slow and steady voice, "To be honest, I do not know if we'll win."

Everyone raised their heads, with a look of surprise.

"Do I trust in my plans?" he continued. "I do trust in my plans. Then why am I unsure if we'll win? Surely I, the great Lux, can trust in myself. Then why do I doubt? Is it because I do not trust any of you?" The question he had improvised at the end left all the soldiers in shock. In an instant, an uproar began.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T TRUST US?!"

"WHY DO YOU THINK WE'RE STILL HERE?!" A thousand other screams were heard. They all wanted Ryo to take back what he said.

Seeing this, Ryo deduced that he was indeed on the right track. "Well, if you want me to trust you—have faith in you all—then I want your faith too. I want you all to trust me, and my plan." Everyone fell silent.

The corners of Ryo's mouth lifted up as he let out a shout, full of vigor. "DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

"YES, GENERAL LUX!" they all shouted.

Seeing this, Ryo turned around once again to look at Ashen. This time, Ashen stared into Ryo's eyes from afar and let out a smile.

---

clink.

A sharp clink echoed as the plate met the glass table.

clang!

Two more plates were placed atop the glass table.

"Are you coming down already, kids?!" The voice of a female echoed through the small room.

"Yes, Mom!" two high-pitched, energetic voices replied.

"Honey, come here, lunch is ready!" she shouted once again.

The man who was sitting atop a pure white, puffed-up sofa stood up. He moved to where the dinner table was.

A small room, around four meters in length and five meters in width. Walls thin. Floor made out of wooden boards. On the right side of the room lay the dinner table, a three-meter-long table with, on its left and right sides, two chairs tucked in. Atop the table were four empty plates. Beside them were three pots with closed lids. In the very center was a closed bottle of what seemed to be wine.

On the left side of the room was a grey door. It was open, revealing the kitchen.

"I'm here. What's for lunch today?" he asked curiously, pulling a chair out and sitting down.

She sauntered over and came to a stop right next to the man. She pulled the chair in front of her and sat. "Well, since you came back after suuuch~ a long time, I decided to make your favorite."

The lids covering the pots began to be removed, one by one.

Inside the first pot were marinated olives, nestled in between slices of lemon and green herbs. As the lid was lifted, a tangy aroma burst free, seemingly overpowering all other smells with its presence.

"Ooh. This loo—" Before he could finish speaking, something caught his eye—a swift-moving object heading straight toward him.

"AA—"

shiik.

A blade swiftly moved.

thud.

And a head fell down, rubbing the sand. Separated from the body.

The man who sliced off the head looked down with slight pity. "You should not be lost in thought when you're on the battlefield, fighting a war."

"Knox." A voice from behind him came.

Knox turned around instantly. "What is it, Charles? Are the enemy commanders giving us trouble?"

"Not yet. They're still fending off the Low-Grade soldiers. From the looks of it, they are most likely going to have some freedom in around ten minutes."

'Ten minutes? We don't have enough time. The debris hiding us came crumbling almost instantly after our forces drew blood first, killing off a normal soldier. I didn't want this, damn it. We weren't prepared for the debris to crumble down just like that.'

"Where are Commander Ashen and General Lux?"

"Nowhere in sight for now. They're most likely observing from the far left. What do you think we should do right now?" The question Charles had added at the end put Knox in deep thought. However, he did not stop moving. He moved swiftly and trimmed off the heads of the enemies, one by one. In a matter of a few seconds, he had almost killed thirty-four enemies.

"Charles! I'm going ahead for now. I need you to ask Amir to use his fucking Genesis already!" In a span of another few seconds, a few more fell, and Knox had disappeared from sight.

'Aaand, he's gone.'

Charles let out a sigh and moved toward a different direction than Knox.

clang.

Ryo stood far away from where the battle took place. Alongside him stood Ashen, observing the battlefield, much like Ryo was.

'We seem to be doing good enough for now. Although, once the commanders begin using Genesis, then we'll be in trouble. If I recall, Caesar had a Lineage power— even that can get us into some really bad trouble.'

Letting out a sigh, Ryo spoke nervously. "As—Dad, can I have an artifact? For combat. O-oh, that is, if you have it, of course."

'An artifact? What does he need that for? He can just use his Line—ah, forget it. If something happens, I'll just jump in.' Ashen moved back a little and began rummaging through the pockets of his large military coat.

As he did so, Ryo continued to observe.

Suddenly, a layer of ice spread out at the center of the battlefield. It was about four meters long, and anyone who seemed to be entering into the layer was either frozen entirely or suffered from frostbite.

'That must be Absolute Zero, Amir's Genesis.

sigh.

I suppose the name he gave it is quite fitting.'

"Here." Ashen tossed a glove—a glove made as though it was meant for Ryo's hands. The thin fabric rubbed on his hands, giving him a comforting feeling as he wore it. "That is a Grade Six artifact. You'll be able to use it without your Impulse or Lineage."

'A Grade Six? It's not enough. I'd need at least a Grade Eight artifact to fend off commanders. This artifact will put me around the level of a Mid-Ranking soldier.'

'But I suppose I'll make do with this. Somehow.' Ryo took a deep breath. He was scared. Nervous. His heart was beating loudly, however, his hands were steady. His eyes did not shake. He was ready.

He turned around one last time and looked at Ashen. "Thank you," he said, before he jumped off and charged into the battlefield. 

'Thank you, eh. That's something new I heard.'