The Hero In The Military academy Suit

Chapter 16

(Part 09)A Noble Flower in My Clumsy Writing

It’s the 4th day of my time at the Combat Training Camp.

I yawned widely and then chewed the jerky I’d been given for lunch like a cigarette, sprawled out in the shade.

The side effects of waking up at the crack of dawn and pushing myself through intense training.

“You’re either diligent or lazy. I can’t tell, Russell.”

“Wake me up when the afternoon training starts.”

I answered shortly and then, as if to show off, I started snoring.

It wasn’t directly obvious in the system, but my body’s ‘lazy’ traits were quite well implemented.

Unlike the typical main characters in web novels who don’t sleep and push themselves to the brink, I’m the kind who refuses to go that far.

‘If I keep going like this, I’m gonna burn out.’

Right now, there are two main goals I’m dealing with:

One is to graduate from the Combat Training Camp with a good ranking and enter the Academy with some ‘special privileges.’

The second is to push my body to its limit and prepare for the first major event that happens when the training camp finishes.

It’s a brief but crucial ‘event’ where I’ll have to go through a rough time and brace for the ‘incident’ ahead.

The issue is how fast and efficiently I can get stronger.

So, I woke up early to work on my body before the rooster crowed, but…

‘What’s the point if I don’t let myself rest after all that training?’

Fatigue and exhaustion would hit me whenever I had a moment, and I had no choice but to take special measures.

Enter: ‘The “Good Guy” Who Takes Short Naps.’

I became like the kid in school who always sat at the back and slept through class, lying down wherever I could catch some shut-eye.

I started training earlier than anyone and finished earlier too, but once the training was over, I’d wash up, eat, and sleep.

It’s a sad reality when you think about it, imagining the protagonist of some harem life anime building relationships with heroines in small events… while I’m over here stuck in a survival story full of tears and poop.

Life…

“Russell, wake up. It’s time for the afternoon training.”

“Huh? Already?”

This is why my body is always tired every day.

Even when I sleep, I don’t feel rested.

It felt like I had slept for an hour, but the reality was I had just closed my eyes and opened them again.

‘What kind of penalty is this?’

Honestly, if there was a web novel or webtoon with me as the protagonist, it would be a failure.

Lazy characters like me are usually sidekicks or companions, not the lead.

You know the type, right?

The ones who wander around with their blanket, lying down while others are fighting, then suddenly spring into action and pull out a sword, saving the day.

Yeah, that’s me.

I gathered at the training ground in a half-asleep state.

The camp’s curriculum combined group and team training in a pretty balanced way.

The daily schedule was 8 hours in total.

The first 4 hours in the morning were for group activities: posture training, formation drills, and group combat training.

The afternoon 4 hours were split into team training for individual weapon techniques and group formations.

Afterwards, at 6 PM, was free time.

Well, technically it was self-guided training time, but honestly, hardly anyone stayed behind to train.

‘Guess that’s normal.’

Most of the trainees here are just conscripted soldiers, and the hero candidates think of the camp as a warm-up, like some kids’ playtime.

Except for me, the one carrying the weight of the Covenant’s power.

The other trainees are all top-tier candidates from various regions or families, filled with confidence and arrogance.

They’ll start breaking down once the first major event happens—the ‘Island Assault Disaster.’

In that event, they’ll experience their first loss, and the reality of their weaknesses will hit them.

Some of the main characters will even awaken to their potential.

But for now, this is the first 2-3 episodes of a fanfic.

Ice-breaking? In other words, it’s the part where all the hero kids are getting to know each other and bonding.

Of course, at the end of week 3, we’ll have our first big evaluation.

“Squad 3, trainee 9. Formation check. Everyone take your positions.”

“Position!”

As I swung my sword absent-mindedly, a drill instructor approached to supervise our group.

It was time for a mock battle, where our group of four and the instructor would fight it out, testing the results of our training.

It wasn’t a competition where anyone would get kicked out, but injuries sometimes happened, and the results would be reflected in our final score.

Combat Power: 518

I sneaked a peek at the instructor’s status window.

Combat power in the 500 range.

It was slightly different, but that was the average for the training camp instructors.

‘This is probably about the level you’d get after graduating from the Academy normally.’

There might be some differences in physical abilities or skill with mechanical parts, but overall, this wasn’t particularly impressive for someone with this much experience.

Which is probably why he’s stuck being an instructor here.

“I’m Instructor Gu Yeong for the large-scale battle training. Are you all ready for the combat exercise?”

“Yes!”

We took our positions according to the formation we had been practising for the past few days.

Usherus was at the front with a massive shield.

I was in the middle.

And Corey, the one with an eye on his forehead, was at the rear.

The little kid, King of Chairs, was way off in the distance, tossing a sceptre around like it was some sort of game.

“That’s an interesting formation. Can you explain it?”

I bit my tongue, wanting to snap at how that kid never listens, but I managed to hold it back.

The trainees probably didn’t realize it, but teamwork was a key evaluation point in this exercise.

“It’s the Hitman tactic.”

“Oh? Please explain.”

“I can’t just give away our tactics to the enemy. You’ll see it for yourself,”

I said, brushing him off with a vague excuse.

“You’ll have to win, huh?”

At those words, the instructor’s eyes lit up with curiosity.

“Does that mean you’re planning to defeat me in this exercise?”

“Well, there’s also the chance for extra points,” I replied casually.

“That’s some confidence, but it feels a bit insulting,” he chuckled, a bit amused.

And honestly, he had a point.

Beating an instructor in a mock battle? That was practically impossible.

If an instructor got defeated, it would be such a disgrace, they’d never hear the end of it from the other instructors.

But honestly, that kind of humiliation was pretty common for this batch.

Maybe twenty incidents by the end of the last week?

The protagonist’s generation is full of monsters like that.

‘They probably don’t stand a chance against me, though.’

I glanced at Usherus, the meat shield, and Corey with the weird eye again, letting out a small sigh.

What the hell am I supposed to do with these losers?

“You might’ve heard about the bonus points somewhere, but you’d better stop getting too cocky,” the instructor said, dropping all formalities and burning with fighting spirit toward us.

“Hey, what’s with you?” Corey asked, looking frustrated.

But it was too late.

The milk had been spilt, the bus had left, the window was already broken, and the queue was set.

‘It’s too late to regret now.’

‘I need to get more serious about this.’

Even to overcome the useless penalties my body has, I need more focused training.

“Everyone, bite down hard.”

“What are you talking about?”

Corey whispered, and I lowered my voice in response.

“Usherus, just hold that shield in the centre, no matter what. If you’re about to get pushed back, plant it in the ground and hold your ground. Don’t worry about the enemy’s movements. Don’t flinch or look at their eyes or weapons—just hold your position.”

“…Got it,” Usherus nodded.

“Corey, don’t shoot. Just keep tracking your target. Pretend you’re ready to pull the trigger at any moment, but don’t shoot. Just follow them the whole time.”

“W-wait, what does that even mean…?”

“You can’t hit anything anyway, you idiot. Just be annoying to them.”

“…You’re the worst.”

“You’ll probably get one shot. If you miss, just go die.”

After explaining this half-baked strategy to my team, I raised my hand to signal that I was ready.

The instructor’s eyes scanned over everyone in our group.

He probably thought there was some hidden strategy behind my confident attitude.

The enemy had three people, while we had one extra.

Even at a glance, the small kid who was standing far off was the core of our team.

He was somewhat famous among the training camp staff.

The instructor made his judgment and then dashed straight at Ludwig, the ace of the team.

His plan seemed to be to take down the ace first and then deal with the others slowly.

I started to quietly raise my fighting spirit.

As I focused, the [Hunting Time] countdown activated.

“Keep the formation. Just change the direction.”

I gave the order for everyone to maintain the basic formation but follow the instructor’s movements.

There would be no support or joint attack for the little kid.

“You all need to learn about teamwork.”

“Oh, instructor, what are you saying? This is all part of the plan, you know? A plan.”

The instructor ignored me, but instead of drawing his weapon, he went straight for Ludwig with a punch.

He swung.

‘He’s not wearing any combat armour other than training gear, and there’s no main weapon.

Is he a hand-to-hand combat specialist?’

The fact that the instructor was missing more than half of his combat equipment and didn’t have his main weapon on was likely a deliberate choice to keep the trainees safe in a close-to-real battle scenario.

But for us, that gap was our only hope.

‘Let’s see what you’ve got, kid.’

As the successor of the Last Night Tribe, the 7th generation heir, Ludwig, looked at the approaching instructor with a bored expression, muttering something as if it was a hassle.

Immediately, the air around him shimmered with a dark brown hue.

In an instant, it was as if night fell only around him.

The vision flickered to black before brightening again.

[Moonlight Strike]

Flash!

A dark pillar of shadow formed out of thin air and slammed into the charging instructor.

The instructor froze momentarily, and dust rose into the air.

Ludwig waved his hand again.

[Starlight Strike]

This time, a pale purple shadow flashed.

Ludwig’s signature double power strike.

The spot where the instructor had been standing was now a small crater.

“So, a mage-class trainee, huh? Already using two powers… cough, I knew there was something off about this kid.”

It wasn’t just two powers, though, instructor. There were five.

But Gu Yeong still looked fine.

Seeing his double strike blocked without much trouble, Ludwig’s face finally showed a hint of embarrassment.

“Tch. I should’ve stayed in the rear, taken the protection, and dragged this out into a long fight.”

Whoooosh—!

With a booming sound, the instructor’s punch flew through the air but stopped mid-flight.

…What?

It was like hitting a mattress.

Only then did the instructor notice the mysterious aura surrounding Ludwig.

It was the physical damage immunity effect attached to the [Moonlight Strike] power.

Those two abilities weren’t exactly high in offensive power.

It was just…

‘Instead of raw killing power, those abilities are stacked with all sorts of useful support functions.’

Thud-thud-thud!

At point-blank range, [Starlight Strike] blazed once more.

A clear look of confusion appeared on the instructor’s face.

With the attack came a defensive effect.

In other words, that kid was both a tank and a damage dealer, all while being a ranged fighter.

‘This is such bullshit…’