The deployment began.
The banner of the White Wolf Knight Order was the first to leave the garrison.
Rohan walked in the center of the formation with the members of the Fourth Squad.
Their destination was Niagara Gorge.
'Three days.'
At their current marching pace, it would take exactly three days to reach Niagara Gorge.
And as for the commander of this operation.
"Vanguard, slow your pace."
A cold voice came from the front.
"You're pulling too far ahead of the rear."
The soldiers at the head of the column immediately slowed.
At a single command, the entire long procession synchronized its movement.
Rohan looked toward the voice.
'Fourth Company Commander Mushurin.'
A woman sat atop a snow-white horse.
Blond hair so pale it was nearly white.
Sharply slanted eyes.
'A soldier to the bone.'
Mushurin's gaze never once left the formation.
Her voice was always even.
She neither became angry nor hurried them.
Whenever she found something wrong, she simply corrected it.
'Coolheaded and principled.'
They had barely interacted, but that was how she was in his memories.
The outcome of this operation would depend on how she commanded the battle.
As he thought that, her gaze turned toward Rohan.
Unlike with the other soldiers, she lingered on him for a moment longer before turning away.
"Open plains ahead. Change formation."
After passing through villages for a day, a vast plain appeared.
The wind was fierce.
The grass beside the road bent low in one direction, then rose again.
Rohan watched it absently.
His gaze stopped in one place.
A small pool in the middle of the plain.
The wind pushed ripples across its surface.
A wave driven from one side struck a rock on the opposite bank.
SPLASH.
The returning wave collided with the first.
Water surged high into the air at that instant.
Rohan's eyes narrowed.
Condensed Explosion came to mind.
'Rotation.'
Condensed Explosion rotated force.
The rotation gathered the force, condensed it into a single point, then detonated it.
'Counter-rotation.'
The word had not left his mind for days.
'Why can't I do it?'
Even water showed that a force flowing in reverse produced a powerful collision when it met a force flowing forward.
He had tried again and again, but the results had been poor.
The instant he reversed its direction, the force weakened sharply and eventually lost its form and dispersed.
'Why?'
Rohan chewed his lip.
Creed spoke beside him then.
"What have you been staring at all this time?"
Rohan turned his head.
After looking at Creed for a moment, Rohan asked.
"Squad Leader."
"What?"
"What happens if you counter-rotate a mana circuit?"
Creed's steps slowed for a moment.
Then he looked at Rohan incredulously.
"Counter-rotation? Does that make any sense? Explain in more detail."
Rohan briefly organized his thoughts.
"Condensed Explosion is a technique that uses the rotational force of mana to condense power into one point and then detonate it."
"I know."
"The problem is that I lack strength. My output falls far short of Kaisen's."
Creed swept his gaze once over Rohan's body as they walked.
No explanation was necessary.
Compared to Kaisen, he fell woefully short.
"So you'll rotate it in reverse?"
"Yes."
Creed's expression stiffened.
"......Rohan. Do you know why a mana circuit is called a circuit? Because once a path is formed, mana only flows in that direction."
Creed continued while looking ahead.
"The direction can differ from person to person. But one person's mana never changes direction midway."
"Why not? I can rotate my mana in reverse."
Creed turned his head.
"What?"
Rohan looked genuinely unable to understand.
"But the moment I rotate it that way, the force scatters."
This time, Creed nearly stopped walking altogether.
"Wait. Do you know what you're saying right now?"
Creed furrowed his brow.
"Reversing mana's rotation isn't like swinging a sword in the opposite direction. It's closer to reversing the direction of your heartbeat at will."
Rohan showed no particular reaction.
Whether Creed believed him did not matter.
Only one thing mattered.
"So what happens when mana flows backward?"
Creed swallowed a hollow laugh.
Then, after seeing Rohan's expression, his face gradually hardened.
Rohan was not a child who would spout nonsense about something like this.
"......You can really do it?"
"Yes."
"But the force scatters?"
"That's right."
Creed began walking again.
He was silent for a while.
Lost in thought, Creed finally spoke.
"I've never heard of anything like it before, though."
After thinking briefly, Creed spoke.
"If those two opposing forces could collide properly, as you say, it might generate tremendous energy."
"It didn't."
Creed narrowed his eyes.
"How did you do it?"
"I rotated it in one direction, then reversed it outright."
The wind blew again then.
The grass beside the road bent in one direction.
A wind rushing down the opposite mountainside collided with the first wind.
WHOOOOOSH—!
The two winds tangled, sending dust surging upward.
Rohan and Creed looked toward it at the same time.
"Rohan. By your account, you reversed a single force. Correct?"
"That's right."
Creed indicated the scattering dust with his chin.
"Can you divide the force in two?"
"Divide it?"
"Yes. Instead of reversing one force, combine two divided forces into one."
Rohan understood Creed immediately.
'Why didn't I think of that?'
His gaze turned toward the dust that had risen.
Where the two forces met, the dust soared without limit.
Rohan pictured his mana circuit.
Another heart within his heart.
That second heart, filled with mana, rotated fiercely as it throbbed.
Rohan opened his eyes.
"I think I can do it."
Creed looked at Rohan and recoiled in alarm.
"That... That look again. Every time you make that face, you cause trouble!"
Shuddering as if he had had enough, Creed walked ahead.
***
The march continued.
Beyond the field lay low mountains.
Beyond the mountains, another inhabited village appeared.
The formation changed whenever the terrain did.
By the time long shadows began clinging to the soldiers' feet.
"Everyone, halt."
The cold voice came from the front of the formation.
The march stopped.
A fairly large village had appeared before them.
Mushurin looked down at the soldiers from atop her horse.
"This is as far as we march today."
She spoke without expression.
"The villagers have agreed to let us use the meeting halls and inn."
Small cheers erupted here and there.
Mushurin's expression did not change in the slightest.
"We will arrive at Niagara Gorge tomorrow. Conserve as much strength as possible today."
She continued.
"The Third Company will use the eastern meeting hall. The Fourth Company will use the central inn. The Fifth Company will use the western meeting hall. Each company commander will control guard duty and the night watch."
Mushurin surveyed the area once.
"That is all."
The formation began to disperse.
Rohan moved with the members of the Fourth Squad.
Villagers were gathering around them.
"Knights!"
"Return safely!"
Children waved their hands.
Wherever they went, the people looked at the White Wolf Knight Order in much the same way.
Rohan's gaze continually moved through the crowd.
As if he were searching for something.
Watching him, Creed frowned.
"What are you looking for so intently?"
Rohan did not answer.
Instead, he carefully studied the people gathered along the road.
And then.
"Found him."
The corners of Rohan's mouth slowly curled upward.
"What?"
Creed followed Rohan's gaze and turned his head.
Amid the crowd stood a man with a gray robe pulled low over his head.
Like the other villagers, he was merely watching the Knight Order.
But Rohan knew his face.
'Barkan.'
Deputy Platoon Leader of the Seventh Reconnaissance Unit in the Noxis army.
A man who had appeared several times in the memories of the Noxis officer he had killed.
Rohan spoke quietly.
"That man is a Noxis scout."
Creed's expression stiffened.
"He's in your memories?"
"Yes."
Rohan did not take his eyes off the man.
He had expected this.
Just as the Knight Order sent scouts to survey the surroundings before moving, he knew Noxis would be no different.
Especially somewhere like Niagara Gorge, where a battle was highly likely, they would certainly investigate beforehand.
Creed muttered a curse.
"Damn it."
His gaze went straight to Mushurin.
She was speaking with the company commanders not far away.
After hesitating briefly, Creed looked back at the man.
The man in the robe was already turning away.
He was slipping through the crowd.
"There's no time to report and explain."
Creed turned around.
"Johanna."
"Yes."
Johanna, who was nearby, immediately approached.
Creed indicated with his eyes the direction in which the man had disappeared.
"Follow him."
Johanna's gaze followed Creed's.
"The man in the gray robe?"
"Yes."
Creed spoke quietly.
"Do not let him notice you. Whatever he does, don't touch him. Just find his base and return."
"Understood."
"Kaisen. Rohan. Prepare for battle. Once Johanna returns after finding his base, we'll infiltrate it."
Johanna turned away at once.
She naturally blended into the crowd.
Rohan watched her in silence.
***
Barkan.
Deputy Platoon Leader of the Seventh Reconnaissance Unit in the Noxis army.
He peered outside through a gap in the window.
The village was quiet.
Now that the sun had completely set, even the streets were deserted.
Barkan slowly turned around.
This was an ordinary home on the outskirts of the village.
"Mmph— Mmmph!"
The married couple who owned the house were tied up side by side in one corner of the room.
Cloth had been stuffed into their mouths.
Their hands and feet were tightly bound with rope.
Both their eyes were filled with terror.
"Be quiet."
Barkan paid them no mind.
Five soldiers sat around the dining table.
All belonged to the Noxis Seventh Reconnaissance Unit.
"Their forces are larger than expected."
One soldier spoke in a low voice.
"Three companies. About five transport wagons."
"How are the escorts deployed?"
"They're thickest in the center. Most of their combat forces are stationed near the wagons too."
Barkan nodded.
"Their commander?"
"A woman with platinum-blond hair."
"Mushurin. She's an excellent strategist, and her skill is no less formidable. We'd better be careful."
Barkan's eyes narrowed.
"They will reach the outskirts of Niagara Gorge tomorrow afternoon."
Barkan sank into thought for a moment.
A battle began before swords ever crossed.
"Good. It's almost the appointed time. Clean up."
The soldiers' gazes gathered on Barkan.
"Understood."
The conversation ended with that brief reply.
The soldiers began gathering their equipment.
One soldier looked toward the corner of the room.
"What should we do with them?"
Where the soldier's chin pointed.
The couple sat bound in the corner.
The owners of this house.
"Kill them."
Barkan answered without hesitation.
There was nothing more foolish than leaving loose ends.
The dead do not speak.
Shing—
A sword was drawn.
The couple's eyes widened at the same time.
The woman shook her head.
The husband crawled on his knees in front of his wife and blocked the soldier's path.
"Mmph! Mmmph!"
The soldier looked down at the couple.
"Stay still."
The man squeezed his eyes shut.
The woman shook her head.
And then.
SWISH—! A sharp sound of wind being sliced apart.
Immediately after.
"Argh!"
A scream erupted.
Barkan stopped moving.
'......?'
Something felt wrong.
'Wasn't his mouth gagged?'
Barkan hurriedly turned his head.
Thud. Something collapsed to the floor.
It was the soldier who had been holding the sword moments ago.
He trembled while clutching his neck.
The silhouette of a person stood behind him.
Blood dripped from his sword.
Barkan's eyes widened in surprise.
'A kid...?'
A young-looking boy stood there.