Side Character Who Became the Pseudo-Protagonist

Chapter 55: Sting Operation (1)

I managed to evade Ophelia’s questions by giving vague statements about how I was a Midgard and knew things here and there.

Even if she didn’t seem to buy much of it, her sheer intrigue was enough to let me off the hook... for now.

And just like that, two and a half weeks had gone by in the blink of an eye.

Most of my time was spent following the same routine as before, though I felt like I had gone a long way from where I had started.

Running twenty laps around the perimeter wasn’t exactly light work, but I felt like I could complete them confidently.

I also felt more confident in my hand-to-hand martial arts, even managing to beat a few of the seniors who’ve been at the base longer than I had.

But most important of all...I had a few new Spells in my arsenal.

With the help of some of Spell Driver Engineers stationed at the base, my Spell Driver had been tuned to accommodate their Sequences.

Of course, that wasn’t all there was to it.

I’d also spent a considerable amount of time actually remembering said Sequences and ingraining them inside my Logos Cortex.

It was similar to trying to remember a long string of inputs in a fighting game—except I had to execute it perfectly in life-or-death scenarios.

Maybe the reason I hadn’t needed to do the same for [Firebolt], [Push], and [Boost] were because they had already been muscle memory.

Lieutenant Reese had advised me to learn Spells that complemented my ability to switch between close- and medium-range combat.

The first one I learned was naturally [Pull], a Tier 1 Kinetic Manipulation Type Spell. With both the kinetic forces in my arsenal, the spell could be my utility sequence as well as a way to surprise attack someone.

The second Spell was one that I realized I needed. After the accident in the café, I realized having a spontaneous stepping point, like one created by Colette’s [Edel Veld], could allow me to swing fights in my favor.

And for that, [Foothold] was my Spell of choice. It was a Tier 2 Anchored Structure Type Spell that could instantly compress the Logos particles in the surrounding air, creating a solid platform that lasted a single second.

Just long enough to step on.

Needless to say, I’d spent plenty of time learning its applications—and figuring out how to use the damn thing without falling flat on my face.

But now, I’d say I was confident enough to use it in an actual battle. And by the looks of it, I was going to have to use it sooner than expected.

For some reason, Lieutenant Reese had formally called up the entire platoon. I turned over to James, but his expression told me he had no idea what was going on either.

’Better to go with the flow, I guess.’

We found out soon enough.

Lieutenant Reese entered the cramped warehouse-turned-auditorium, with General Solaris followed closely behind him.

"Everyone! This might be sudden, but we’re going to conduct a sting operation tonight."

"Yes, sir!" the soldiers answered in unison.

’A sting operation? What could possibly be the reason? Am I going to be included in this too? But if General Solaris is involved, it’s probably serious...’

"Listen up! Here are the details," the General finally stepped forward. "We’ve received word that foreign ships have been entering the coastal city of Gondu through a concealed route beyond our coast guard’s surveillance."

’Gondu? If I remember correctly, it should be in Muspel. Is this a coincidence...? Or had Ophelia already found something?’

Solaris continued. "We’ve got an anonymous tip saying that most, if not all, of the cargo is monster material and waste material. Smuggling either into our country is unforgivable and a serious threat to national security."

’An anonymous tip...was that her way of telling me? Only Ophelia would do something like this in such a roundabout way...’

Lieutenant Reese took over. "That’s why we’ll be splitting into teams and raiding each suspected location simultaneously. Our objective is to confiscate the cargo, apprehend everyone involved, and ensure none of those materials leave Gondu."

"Now scatter, and prepare!"

We were quickly handed out combat suits, relatively lightweight yet woven from materials capable of reducing the penetration of small-arms fire.

Though while slipping the uniform on, it would be a lie to say that I wasn’t scared.

I might’ve stopped the Red Smoke Incident, but only because I’d known parts of it beforehand. Even then, I’d needed the help of people I trusted.

But this time...

I was going in blind.

Apparently, General Solaris managed to read the hesitation on my face. He approached me while the others continued preparing.

"Nolan."

I looked up from the straps of my combat suit.

"I know you’ve trained hard during your time here," he said. "But you’re still an academy cadet—not a soldier. More importantly, you don’t have any experience participating in an operation like this."

His expression softened. "You’ve already done more than anyone could reasonably ask of you. So I won’t force you to go."

"Besides," the old man frowned. "I know someone who would literally kill me if something happened to his only son..."

Saying that offer wasn’t tempting was another lie, and it’s not like I wanted to go. But all the context—Muspel, the anonymous tip, monster materials showing up again...

I wouldn’t want to squander the only lead that I had worked so hard for, and I might lose trust with Ophelia if she saw me do nothing with what she provided.

With not-so-great acting, I responded. "If I keep avoiding danger because I’m inexperienced, I’m never going to become experienced."

Admittedly, it sounded more inspiring in my head. But it seemed like the General bought my resolve.

I couldn’t tell if I was the greatest actor in the world, or that the people around me were easily fooled. Hopefully, not the latter...

"Alright," Solaris nodded before reaching into his pocket. "I heard that you haven’t had any luck with [Overload], so you might want this back."

The General’s hands were so large that Huginn looked almost comically small between his thumb and forefinger as he gingerly passed it over to me.

Still, I was relieved to have Huginn back—even if I had to put my training with [Overload] on hold for now.

And after a few more moments, various military cars and vehicles arrived. We stood in our assigned groups and entered the vehicle.

Luckily, I was assigned in the same group as James, or I would’ve been hyperventilating right now. The inside was only lit with a blue light and I could barely see anything.

And from the faces of everyone else in my group and how they clutched at the small dog-tag on their neck...

It seemed like they had expected the worst.

James noticed that I didn’t have one. After a moment’s hesitation, he unclasped his own dog tag and handed it to me. "I think you should have one as well, you know...just in case."

’That wasn’t comforting at all. Thanks, James.’

Still, I curled my fingers around the tag. "What about you? Don’t you want a message to your family or lover?"

"Ahh..." James grinned softly. "I don’t have anything like that, so don’t worry about me."

Staring at him, I couldn’t decide whether he was telling the truth or not. But before I could ask, the car started moving.

Commands were given outside, and the door of our truck was closed from behind.

I didn’t know how to feel at the moment. But all I could do now—

Was hope nothing bad happened.