Tatiana Belov flinched instinctively at the monstrous cry.
To recoil before a monster—unthinkable for the commanding officer of the Special Mobile Strike Force—but the creature before her defied all rules.
"Ugh..."
"...Commander, this is..."
The soldiers trembled as well.
Whatever it was about this Turncoat Pawn's howl, it stirred a primal terror that even trained soldiers could not suppress.
Like encountering a true lord of the region, an apex predator beyond human understanding.
'Turncoat Pawn…'
When new Turncoats appeared, Tatiana, like most, barely paid attention.
After all, Turncoats usually roamed beyond Ark's borders, rarely a concern for her.
But that changed.
Turncoats had invaded Ark itself, breached the Navy Line, and now stood at the gates of the Belov estate.
'We have to stop them.'
The Navy Line had already suffered devastating losses.
Fortunately, casualties seemed minimal, but if the destroyed walls and shattered defenses weren't repaired before the next Wave, disaster was inevitable.
Failure to stop the Turncoats now could mean the Navy Line's end.
"...All units."
Tatiana spoke quietly.
"Eliminate the Turncoats."
The moment the order was given, the trembling soldiers sprang into motion.
No matter how fearsome the foe, they were the Navy Line's blade.
They trembled—but they advanced.
Bzzzzzzzt—
Plasma blades ignited from the R-1 Plasma Swords clutched in every hand.
From what had been observed, Turncoats could shrug off most firearms, but plasma blades—those they feared.
Thus, plasma swords were the key.
"Encircle them!"
At Tatiana's command, the Special Mobile Strike Force began their maneuver.
As the Turncoat Pawn was surrounded, bone tendrils erupted from its body like a porcupine bristling for war.
"Don't dodge—cut them down!"
Tatiana's voice rang out, and her soldiers sliced the bone spikes apart with precision.
Had they hesitated, casualties would have mounted.
But with discipline, they stood their ground, carving through the incoming barrage.
"Attack!"
Led by Tatiana, the Strike Force tightened the encirclement, plasma swords flashing toward the monsters.
As the net closed, the Turncoats grew cautious.
Their bone spikes were no match for the plasma blades.
"Keep closing in!"
Under Tatiana's command, the Turncoats appeared increasingly cornered.
Or so it seemed.
Shluk—
Suddenly, a plasma blade failed to cut through.
Not just deflected—but stopped cold.
'What... is that?'
A spear of absolute blackness, clutched in both hands by Turncoat Pawn.
Wherever that dark spear swept, the encirclement tore apart.
'It's resisting plasma swords?'
She had guessed the Turncoat's weapon wasn't ordinary—but to withstand plasma strikes?
Fortunately, it didn't seem like the Turncoat could mass-produce such weapons, or this battle would have ended the moment it began.
KA-BOOM!
The black spear unleashed a violent blast, shattering the encirclement.
The Special Mobile Strike Force could no longer contain them.
Whenever they tried, the black spear ripped through their formations like paper.
"Guh!"
One small mercy—the Turncoats weren't fighting with lethal intent.
Several times, soldiers nearly died—yet the final blow never came.
'No... it's not reluctance.'
Tatiana sensed it.
The Turncoats weren't trying to kill them.
'Do they have another purpose?'
Turncoats invading the Navy Line for reasons beyond simple destruction?
Impossible—or so she wanted to believe.
Yet the strange restraint in their actions nagged at her.
"Commander!"
Her soldiers cried out, forcing her back to the present.
Tatiana swung her plasma sword fiercely.
'We won't last.'
The Turncoats were overwhelmingly strong.
Even with superior numbers and equipment, they couldn't so much as scratch them.
Flick—
Plasma blades flickered and died one by one, their batteries exhausted from prolonged combat.
'Is this it…?'
The soldiers switched to firearms—but guns were almost useless against Turncoats.
FWWWWWIP—
As the black spear surged toward her—
'Huh?'
Turncoat Pawn suddenly halted.
Instead of finishing them off, it simply turned away.
Tatiana stared, stunned.
'They're retreating?'
No.
More like… withdrawing.
While monsters sometimes fled when wounded, the Turncoats had shown no real signs of injury.
Yet they pulled back as if it were part of their plan.
"...Commander?"
"Hold your positions. No pursuit."
Tatiana watched the Turncoats disappear into the distance.
Only when they fully vanished did she allow herself to breathe again.
"..."
And then, finally, Tatiana understood.
'They didn't run. They let us go.'
The battlefield belonged to the Turncoats.
The Navy Line's elite had fought with everything they had—backed by the Belov family's might—yet failed to land a decisive blow.
'Turncoat Pawn isn't some new weakling.'
In Ark, Turncoats were ranked by seniority.
Older Turncoats were typically stronger.
Turncoat King, the first, was the most powerful—that was common knowledge.
Turncoat Pawn, being new, should have been weak.
But in reality, Pawn exceeded even Turncoat Knight and Turncoat Rook.
'And now, Turncoats are coordinating... Something big is happening.'
Sadly, Tatiana's thoughts were interrupted.
Ivan Belov, leading reinforcements, arrived on the scene.
"Tatiana!"
"Ivan."
"What happened?!"
"...They escaped."
"Escaped? How could you let them?!"
Ivan roared, and Tatiana flinched.
Despite everything, Ivan had always been a kind brother to her.
"...Sorry, I shouldn't have yelled."
"No, it's my fault. I wasn't strong enough."
"...I need to check inside. What about you?"
"I'll... keep pursuing the Turncoats."
Logically, Ivan should have returned to the front lines, not the estate.
But Tatiana held her tongue.
She sensed saying it aloud would only make things worse.
"Alright."
Ivan disappeared into the estate.
Tatiana set off toward where the Turncoats had gone.
Every step felt heavier than the last.
* * *
After the battle.
Escaping the Navy Line wasn't difficult.
I had the Wing of Ankelenth, and the Turncoat Knight could fly too.
'That should wrap it up.'
Tatiana wouldn't realize it, but everything worked out.
From the outside, it looked like the Special Mobile Strike Force drove us back.
Ivan Belov's failure was complete.
"Good work. Go home."
["Unders... tood."]
We parted ways.
The Turncoat Knight probably felt like he deserved a better reward after all that—but that was his problem.
'My mission's complete.'
Ivan Belov would be stripped of command.
Tatiana would rise.
Anton Belov might have his own ideas, but I doubted it.
'Before, I had to kill Ivan because there was no alternative. Now, there is.'
I knew Anton Belov well enough.
He wouldn't let sentiment cloud his judgment.
Tatiana would take Ivan's place.
'And with someone I'm connected to at the helm, that benefits me too.'
Tatiana would likely hold a deep grudge against Turncoat Pawn.
But as long as I stayed hidden, that didn't matter.
'Now then... time to pay the Shadow Order a visit.'
Everything here was done.
Time to move to the next phase.
I set off, my steps unhurried.