"Where are these things coming from?" Theorn muttered, his brows furrowed in frustration as Wanni treated the wound on his back. It wasn't deep, but healing it ensured he could keep fighting without trouble.
He and Team 22 had been battling since morning. After swiftly dealing with the first group of wild rats in just a few minutes, they reached their assigned area—only to be met by another wave of the creatures. And then another.
All of them had been looking forward to the battles, but now that they were actually in the thick of it, the excitement had faded. They had imagined fighting powerful monsters like in the early days, yet here they were, clearing out creatures barely worthy of a one-star ranking.
But it wasn't their weakness that was frustrating—it was the sheer number of them. Even weak monsters became dangerous when they swarmed .
After taking down yet another group—this one numbering over a hundred of the filthy, grey-furred creatures—they finally had a brief moment to catch their breath before more arrived.
"I think they're coming from underground," Althea said, panting, her face smeared with sweat, dirt, and blood like the rest of the team. "The people at the third defensive line wouldn't let this many slip past them. And even if they did, it wouldn't be just these rats—there'd be other monsters mixed in."
Only Cassian and Wanni seemed unaffected. Cassian, as a Circle Warrior, hadn't exerted himself much, while Wanni, as a healing mage, had only been tending to the horses during battle and patching up the fighters afterward.
Cassian watched Theorn complain about the endless fighting, amusement flickering in his eyes. If he wanted to, he could wipe out all these rats in a minute, but he chose not to. Let the eager team members—so excited to fight monsters all day—experience what it really felt like.
He didn't blame them for looking forward to battle. He would have, too—if he hadn't been through the training camp. Trapped in a place filled with things that looked like his comrades, forced to fight them for weeks, he knew what true exhaustion and despair felt like.
It had been a hopeless scenario. If he hadn't broken out, he would've either died at the hands of his clones or lost his mind entirely. Compared to that, his team had it easy.
Though he remained calm, even Cassian was puzzled by the sheer number of these furry rats. Even if they lived nearby, there shouldn't be this many in one place—and why were there no other monsters around?
Hearing Althea mention underground tunnels, which were common travel routes for creatures like these, he asked, "Does everyone agree with Althea's theory? Where are they coming from?"
The group fell silent, each considering another possible explanation. Wanni was the first to speak. "I think she's right. There's no other reason besides a massive den hidden somewhere nearby, which would still fit with her theory."
"Yeah," Robert added, "unless the people ahead are actually letting them pass on purpose. I don't know why they'd do that, but if they are, I hate them for making me fight these filthy, stinking things."
The other three nodded in agreement as Cassian said, "Then let's search for it and also check if the other units in this area are facing the same problem."
The terrain they were assigned to was somewhat mountainous, covered in dense, lush greenery with scattered rocky formations. Open spaces were few, and small water bodies dotted the landscape, making it difficult to locate an underground cavity or tunnel-like structure without thoroughly scouting the entire area.
However, thanks to these filthy creatures leaving their feces everywhere, finding their den wouldn't be too difficult—if one existed nearby.
But before they could begin their search, another swarm of rat monsters was already on its way.
Cassian sighed, rubbing his forehead in frustration. "Just take a break. I'll handle them."
He wasn't in the mood to drag this out any longer. Like Robert, he despised these filthy, disease-ridden creatures. The sooner he wiped them out, the sooner they could move on to the real problem—the source of these endless waves.
It would have been better for the unit to fight, giving them valuable combat experience—which was Cassian's original intention. However, there wasn't much to gain from battling these creatures, aside from learning how to conserve energy in prolonged fights. That lesson would have been useful if their opponents were stronger—but these dog-sized rats hardly posed a real challenge.
Without waiting for objections, Cassian stepped forward, his aura shifting as mana surged through his body, the red domain covering his body.
The rats, screeching and snapping their yellowed teeth, lunged toward him. Cassian moved.
To an outsider, it might have looked like he vanished. But in reality, he had simply accelerated, his movements so fast that the human eye struggled to follow. His sword appeared in his hand, flashing through the air in a wide arc—one clean stroke.
Then—bodies split apart mid-air, blood spraying in arcs before the rats even realized they were dead. The entire swarm collapsed, torn to shreds in an instant.
But it wasn't just the rats. Along the path of Cassian's wide strike, several trees were cleaved clean through, their trunks sliding apart before crashing to the ground. Even some nearby rocks were split in half or completely obliterated, leaving jagged remains behind.
His unit stood frozen, staring in disbelief. It was the first time they had witnessed his true power—the strength of a genuine Circle Warrior. Even though he was only a First Circle, the sheer force of his attack was beyond anything they had imagined.
For them—mere normal humans who had never seen Circle Warriors battle—it was nothing short of overwhelming.
Cassian exhaled, shaking the blood from his blade before sheathing it. "Alright. Now, let's find that damn tunnel."
"Bastard! Why the hell didn't you do that from the start? Why make us kill these filthy creatures ourselves and get drenched in their disgusting blood?!" Robert yelled, grinning wide despite his angry tone.
The others chuckled, nodding in agreement. After hours of exhausting rat fights, seeing Cassian wipe out an entire swarm in a single strike felt almost insulting.
Cassian smirked, sliding his sword back into its sheath. "Because I wanted you all to get some real battle experience."
He walked over to his horse and added, "And I could only do that because it was my all-out strike..."
It was true—he had pushed his domain to its fullest with that attack. But he could have ended things even faster if he used that red blade and the war armor. Of course, he wouldn't use them unless absolutely necessary—if his life or one of his friends' was in danger.
And it was better they didn't know about it. Only Cassandra and the one who had given it to him knew—and he intended to keep it that way.