Chapter 85: CLASS ONE TEAM UNITY

VIVIAN

Vivian leaned back in her chair. "Okay."

She was about to say something else when the classroom door opened.

Instructor Vincent walked in.

A young recruit followed behind him.

The entire class immediately stood. "Salute!"

Everyone raised their hands in salute.

Vincent walked to the front and looked over the recruits with his usual cold expression.

"Sit."

Everyone sat. Vincent placed his hands behind his back. "Welcome to the most difficult period of your lives as a Soldier."

The classroom became quiet. "In this place, you will make a choice."

His eyes swept across the room. "You can stay here and become blood and tears Haxia soldiers..."

He paused. "Or you can return home to your parents, your family, or your spouse."

Nobody spoke.

Vincent continued. "Ten recruits from our Individual Soldier Team are dead."

The atmosphere instantly became heavier.

"Do you know why?"

The hall was silent. Vincent waited. Nobody dared to answer.

After several seconds, Vivian slowly raised her hand.

Vincent looked at her.

"You."

Vivian stood. "Because we weren’t properly prepared for the type of beasts we were going to encounter."

Vincent’s eyes narrowed.

Vivian continued carefully.

"We were trained to fight, but knowing how to fight isn’t the same as knowing what you’re fighting. If recruits don’t understand a beast’s habits, weaknesses, attack patterns, or abilities, even a strong soldier can make the wrong decision at the wrong moment."

She paused. "And one wrong decision on the battlefield can cost an entire team their lives."

The room became quiet. Vincent stared at her. Then he said,

"Shut up and sit down."

Vivian’s mouth twitched.

I was making a serious point.

She slowly sat.

Before Vincent could continue, Herbert suddenly stood.

"Maybe it’s because new recruits aren’t fed properly."

The class burst into laughter.

Vivian turned toward him.

What?

Herbert continued confidently. "I heard the old recruits get real food."

Vincent stared at him. "Push-ups."

Herbert’s smile disappeared.

"What?"

He pointed "At the front of the class."

Herbert reluctantly walked forward.

"Start."

Herbert dropped to the ground.

"One!"

The class laughed. Herbert gritted his teeth. "I just think it’s unfair!"

"Two!"

"Why should I drink Nutrient Solution while they get real food?"

"Three."

"I’m still growing muscles!"

"Four."

Vincent suddenly disappeared. Before Herbert could react, Vincent appeared directly in front of him.

He grabbed Herbert by the neck and lifted him slightly from the floor.

The laughter instantly stopped.

Vincent’s eyes were cold. "You want to complain about food?"

Herbert swallowed. "No, Instructor..."

Vincent released him. "Keep going."

Herbert dropped to the floor again.

But this time, his body moved without his permission.

"Five!"

His arms bent.

"Six!"

He pushed himself up.

"Seven!"

His face twisted in horror.

"Instructor!! Why can’t I stop?"

Vincent turned away. "Because you are being controlled."

The class stared. Vincent walked slowly across the front of the classroom. "You want to know why we lost those recruits?"

He raised his hand.

A holographic screen appeared. The image showed a battlefield deep inside a forest.

Several recruits were surrounded by a group of Moss beasts.

Two soldiers were fighting desperately.

The others stood behind them.

Vincent pointed at the screen. "Look carefully."

The footage continued.

The two soldiers at the front were overwhelming the battlefield. One released powerful flames. The other controlled a sharp wind blade.

Behind them, two B-Class recruits stood frozen. They barely attacked.

Vincent paused the footage."These two were B-Class."

The hologram zoomed in on them. "The two fighting at the front were S-Class."

Vincent looked at the students.

"The S-Class soldiers believed the B-Class recruits were nothing but baggage."

A few students lowered their heads. "They fought as if they didn’t need anyone else’s support ; they gave no space to others.."

He changed the image.

A number appeared.

35%.

"Both B-Class recruits possessed Ice abilities."

Another number appeared.

35%.

"Individually, their abilities were limited."

Vincent combined the two figures.

70%.

"But if they had combined their abilities and fought together...."

The hologram showed the two recruits standing together. Their ice energy merged into a massive frozen barrier.

"...their combined Ice power could have reached seventy percent."

The battlefield on the screen changed. The two B-Class recruits joined the fight.

The entire situation shifted. Vincent shut off the hologram. "The problem wasn’t their ranks."

He looked around the classroom.

"The problem was their teamwork."

Herbert was still doing push-ups. "Thirty-seven!"

His arms were trembling. Vincent ignored him.

"Everyone wanted to prove they were stronger than the person beside them."

He walked between the desks. "They wanted the glory."

He stopped. "But war doesn’t care about your glory."

His voice became colder. "Your enemy is the beast in front of you."

He pointed toward the hologram. "Not the soldier standing beside you."

The classroom was silent. Vincent looked at Vivian. "Vivian."

Vivian immediately became alert.

"What is your take on this?"

He paused. "As the only F-Class soldier here who hasn’t awakened any spiritual ability."

Vivian’s face twitched.

Why does he have to announce that part?

She slowly stood.

Doesn’t he know I need a face?

She swallowed. Everyone was watching her. "Everyone already knows I’m not an awakened Female beast."

She glanced around.

"And yes, I don’t have spiritual power."

She clenched her fist. "But all of my strength comes from my physical body ability."

Her eyes narrowed. So while other people depend on spiritual abilities, I depend on my body strength.."

She paused.

"My physical strength can shake this entire building."

The classroom went silent for a second.

Then...."Hahaha!"

Several students burst out laughing.

"She said she can shake the whole building!"

"An F-Class?"

"What a joke!"

Only the few recruits who had witnessed Vivian during the recruitment assignment remained silent.

They knew she wasn’t completely joking.

Vincent raised his hand. The laughter gradually stopped. "So what are you trying to say?"

Vivian looked at them. "Don’t judge people by their rank."

Her voice became firm. "Even a Zero-Class or F-Class soldier can have a good strategy."

She looked around the classroom. "A strategist doesn’t have to be the strongest person on the battlefield."

She pointed toward the hologram. "There are many strategists in the Military who aren’t S-Class or SS-Class. Some are only C-Class or B-Class."

She paused. "What matters is whether they know how to use the people around them."

Vincent stared at her for a moment.

Then he nodded. "Exactly."

He turned toward the rest of the class. "Did you all understand?"

"Yes, Instructor!"

Vincent’s voice became louder. "Your enemy is the beast!"

He pointed toward the door. "Your teammate is not your competition."

He clenched his fist. "You combine your strengths. You cover each other’s weaknesses. You trust the person beside you. That is why you are individual Soldiers. In Individual soldiers we have the Combat soldier on the team and strategist soldier ... .We may not be the best soldiers in the Haxia Military now. You may feel we have only brute force. But in our Military History, we have always been the Number one to show up at the war front.. All high ranked officers all came out of this Individual solder team. I was also part of this team."

The hologram displayed several soldiers fighting together. All past soldiers that lost their lives and others holding a high rank were displayed on the Hologram.

"You see that? That’s how you turn individual abilities into one force."

His eyes sharpened. "That..."

He paused. "...is the magic of war. The Love and unity of an Individual soldiers. We don’t have the mighty weapons of the Mecha team. Just Unity carries the team."

The recruits listened carefully. Even Herbert had stopped complaining.

Well...He was still doing push-ups.

"Forty-eight!"

His face was covered in sweat. Vincent glanced at him. "Keep counting."

Herbert’s face fell.

"Yes, Sir."

A few students secretly laughed. Vincent returned to the lesson. "Now that you’ve learned what teamwork means..."

He looked around. "We have a mission."

The classroom immediately became alert. "We will be conducting a night operation."

Vivian’s eyes narrowed. "A night operation?"

Vincent nodded. "There are reports of Orcs causing trouble in several areas."

The hologram displayed several locations. "They have been attacking and exploiting low-ranked Beast Humans."

A few recruits frowned. Vincent continued. "These Orcs aren’t acting alone."

The image changed. A symbol appeared. "They belong to an organization."

The room became tense. "And their leader..."

Vincent paused. "...is an SS-Ranked Orc."

Several students gasped. "SS-Class?"

Vincent nodded. "We cannot allow an organization like that to continue operating."

He turned off the hologram. "So tonight, we will wipe them out."

The classroom erupted into whispers. Vivian’s expression became serious.

An SS-Class Orc. That didn’t sound like an ordinary mission.

Before Vincent could say anything else...

BANG!

The classroom door suddenly flew open.

Three high ranking Military officers walked in. The entire class turned.

The officers ignored everyone else. They walked straight toward Vivian.

The officer in front stopped before her.

His expression was stern. "Are you Vivian Valen?"

Vivian slowly stood. "Yes."

The officer stared directly into her eyes. "Are you the Vivian Valen who recently had a fight with Ina Federick?"

The classroom instantly fell silent. Every eye turned toward Vivian.