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Day 21. The sky was overcast. Sleet fell faintly. The temperature pierced to the bone. We began the evacuation before dawn, when silence still held the valley in its cold embrace. Five carts full of civilians moved slowly from the fortress, each guarded by two lightly armed soldiers and one support magic user. The Southern Path was our last hope. I led from the front. My body was still tired, but my mind was sharp. Lugen led from the rear, coordinating the protective squad. Aurelia, though forbidden, clung to my side like a shadow.
"You said you wouldn't die, didn't you?" she whispered. "Still haven't changed my mind," I replied. And we marched on.
...
The first attack came four hours after departure. Twenty Class D and C monsters emerged from behind the trees. Not large. But enough to disrupt concentration. I ordered a circular defensive formation and used minor fire magic to lure them away. They were deceived—and we escaped.
But that was just the opening act. As dusk fell, a booming sound echoed from the west. A Ghorak—a Class B monster—appeared. Its body was like a stone lion, horned, and capable of spewing debilitating ice waves. We couldn't run. I ordered all civilians to retreat as far as possible, then stood in the middle of the snowy field.
With me: five mages. Two magic arrow shooters. And Aurelia. "We can't escape," I said, "we can only hold them off."
We fought.
My first spell: a wind binding to slow its movement. Aurelia attacked its left side with lightning magic—something new I had just learned she secretly studied. Magic arrows rained down on a weak point in its belly. The monster roared and retaliated. An ice wave surged. One mage was thrown. Two others fell back. I stayed in place. Drawing combined magic from three elements. "I need ten seconds!" I yelled. Aurelia charged forward. Becoming a shield. A thrust pierced her thigh, but she didn't stop. "FIVE!" I roared. I formed a harmonic magic circuit—similar to what I used in the test, but larger this time. "THREE!" Aurelia was pulled back by another soldier. Her blood spilled onto the snow. "ONE!"
I unleashed the magic. A silvery-blue light exploded. Fire, wind, and water formed a vortex. But this time, I added a layer of illusion. The Ghorak... saw itself—weak, dying, torn apart. It faltered. And at that moment, I unleashed the finishing blow: a pure magic slash that cut off its horn, then aimed for the core in its chest. The monster collapsed. Silent. The surrounding troops stared with open mouths. I fell to my knees. Then stood up again.
"We still have one day of travel. We're not done yet." And they followed me.
My body felt heavy, the lack of mana greatly affected how the human body worked, just like water. All my muscles were tense and every step I took took a lot of energy to use. My sister tried to help me, but I assured her that I was fine.
At this moment, there is only one goal in my sight. Survive. Protect those you must protect, don't let them think that you are a bad leader.
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With the lack of facilities we currently have for inter-regional transportation, the traveled that usually takes 1 day, cannot be completed. Considerations that I need to pay attention to, such as the physical condition of the soldiers, the human conditions that need to eat and sleep and defecate, all need to be taken into account in the traveled.
And yes...
We reached the refugee village two days later. Out of 182 civilians, 171 survived. Out of 126 soldiers, 102 returned intact. It wasn't a perfect victory. But it was a victory.
At the palace, father welcomed us in a private ceremony. "Alex Argwager," he said before the generals and nobles, "you not only passed your test. You have led the first war in your life. And won." There was no resounding applause. But everyone bowed in silence. Respect. I just looked at them. Then said: "I don't deserve all of that yet. There is still much I need to learn. But I promise... this is not my last victory."
And in my heart, I knew: My first step as a leader... had begun.