The professors realized that the current Jaiden was useful to the Northeast right now. The only problem was that he was still both young and a student.

No matter how mystical and superhuman he was, a child would still be a child. So it bothered the professors, the rangers, and the knights to ask a child to do things that should only be done by someone in the general army. 

However, those sitting at the top thought differently. It seemed like they wanted to confirm if the person who had come up with the idea had the capability. 

Since he was the one who proposed methods that could be used by child soldiers it meant that he should be fully capable of using those said methods. So those at the top wanted him to prove the effectiveness of the methods by himself. 

At first, they might think that it was a bit too much but if they looked at things closely, this might be an opportunity for him to prove himself and his worth.

Higher risks meant higher rewards. And if all of the 4th year students were able to successfully do this then they would all be rewarded handsomely. Jaiden might even be entitled to a medal once this became a success. 

“Starting today, we will be going out to train and practice hunting large monsters. The only difference is that this practice exercise is just like an actual battle.” 

The professor looked at the children's confused looks when they did not react to his words. 

“Prepare yourself just like you’re fighting with a real large monster.” 

After the professor stepped down, the knights and rangers came forward. 

“Hoo… Originally, it is our custom to only let you practice after we have half-killed the monsters but this time we’re all going directly to the trolls’ habitat. This is an order from above. You have to be more careful since your colleagues may lose their lives in this exercise. Remain vigilant.” 

The ranger who did not usually agree with the knight’s words had given his agreement this time. He even solemnly added some of his own warnings. 

“What you need to put first in this training is your survival, not the execution of the operation. Please keep that in mind.” 

“Yes!” 

All the students answered the ranger loudly. There was a bit of trepidation coloring their faces now. 

“Number 1.” 

“Huh?” 

“Will this really work?” 

Some of the nervous students turned to ask Jaiden on their way to the trolls' habitat with the rangers and the knights.

“It’s possible. And they won’t make us do anything that’s too dangerous anyway.” 

Jaiden answered confidently to comfort his nervous contemporaries. 

In fact, only those who had reached the 3rd Stage could participate and fight against medium to large troll class monsters.

According to scholars, even knight-level figures could still have a risk of losing their lives if they faced trolls. They had evaluated that only those who had reached the 5th Stage would be able to fight comfortably and safely against them. 

Whenever someone heard about trolls, the first and only thing that they would think about was their strong regenerative powers. However, in addition to their monstrous regeneration, they also had an unbelievably thick skin and an unexpectedly good grasp on sorcery. Their grasp on sorcery was the reason why they were able to gain a foothold among the other large monsters like ogres that were good at speculations and cyclops that had good physical abilities. 

“Don’t be scared. Trolls are nothing.” 

Jaiden had seen them several times in his previous life and he knew that their current setup was more than enough to kill them. They did not need to be intimidated at all. After all, no matter how clever and sly they were they would still be monsters in the end. As long as they guided them well in their trap then they would be able to kill them without much effort. 

‘Besides, there’s a reason why we need to kill them.’

Jaiden clenched his fists tightly. 

This happened back when he was writing his answer to the test that the tactics professor had given him.

[Spread your knowledge about the future.]

Pass on your experience so they can deal with the trolls, one of the most threatening monsters to the Northeast, effectively. The bleak and dark future of the Northeast lies on your hands.

― Upon successful completion, you will be rewarded with a new title.

Jaiden’s eyes shook when he saw that he would be able to gain a new title so he immediately filled up his test paper with all of the knowledge and experiences that he had gained in his previous life. 

And this was the result of that.

He did not know what kind of title would come out but since the Northeast Command had asked them to do this he could assume that the title leaned on the positive side. And since the effects of the title could be superimposed, there was no harm in gaining more. After all, the more titles that he got, the more effects would be stacked together, the stronger he would become. 

Whatever the title was, he was sure that it would definitely result in his gain. 

“Everyone, stay focused. From this point forward, we will be in the danger zone.”

The children started to become nervous when they heard the words of the rangers guiding them. His words meant that they had now exited the academy’s safe zone. 

As if to prove the fact that they had entered another zone, living, breathing beings began to emerge from the forest one by one.

The knights immediately responded. They created a huge phalanx that encompassed and covered all sides of the students. It seemed like they were extremely nervous. Even the rangers had rare nervous expressions on their faces. They were veterans so they weren’t scared of the trolls. However, they felt nervous since they did not know what would happen with all of the children here. 

“Halt.”

When the rangers signalled, all of the students stopped their movements and settled down. Their formation naturally formed some sort of defense. It was something that had been long ingrained in their bodies after hundreds of repetitive training sessions. Some of the students even started climbing trees as they pointed their guns forward while some of the students started to pull their shields out. 

“We will begin setting up the traps. Everyone, get to work!”

“Yes!”

“We’ll try to bring as few trolls as possible, but don’t let your guards down. You have to be prepared for whatever happens.”

The rangers all disappeared after leaving a warning. Then, the knights began to order the students to team up and begin setting traps all over the place. Just like what Jaiden had written, dozens of students teamed up with knights as they continued to dig traps here and there. 

“Number 1.” 

“Yes?” 

“Do you think it will work out?” 

“I don’t know. I don’t know if the trolls that will come are the regular ones or not. After all, aren’t the trolls in this area rumored to be clever? They’re probably already thinking of raiding us from the moment that we had stepped foot in this place… Perhaps there’s even a chance of failure.” 

The knight sighed when Jaiden spoke frankly. The knights already thought of this possibility too. 

The knights had also looked at Jaiden’s test paper and they thought that it was generally possible. However, they weren’t sure if it was truly possible in the Northeast.

The monsters residing in the Northeast were far more ferocious than the monsters that resided in other places in the world. The monsters here had fought against humans countless times so they were mostly aware of the tactics that they usually used. 

“Do you know the reason why the Northeast Command went this far?” 

“Well… I guess they’re just that desperate.” 

“…That’s right. There are a lot of people who die in the Northeast. So they are now desperately grabbing at a straw. Even if they have to put their ‘future’ at risk.” 

Jaiden smiled sadly when he saw the bitterness coloring the knight's expression.

This was the face of someone who had lost one too many comrades. But no matter how many they lost in every battle, they would still feel the pain if they lost another of their comrades. The pain was something that could never go away especially in war. 

Jaiden understood his bitterness. He, too, could relate to what he was feeling. He had felt his heart break each time he saw the death of the people that he had considered to be his comrade back in his previous life. 

He had tried to convince himself by shouting in his head that this was not his reality just so he could escape from the pain and agony that those deaths brought to him. However, no matter how much he shouted and convinced himself, his heartbreak over his comrades' deaths did not disappear. Up to this day, he still carried those heavy feelings deep down in his heart. 

The children saw the knights' bitter expressions so they quietly threaded around them. After quite a while, the long awaited signal finally came. 

Ppiiiiiiiii!

“They’re coming.” 

The knight pulled his sword out as he quickly stepped forward.

This was a place where people risked losing their lives. Missing just a fraction of a second meant death in a fight against these monsters so they had to be well and fully prepared. 

The knights quietly and instinctively raised their aura to make sure that they could release it any time. 

Seeing the knights preparing, the children also began to go to their stations as they also prepared for the upcoming fight.

Jaiden also stood in position as he gripped his gun tightly. He was getting ready to keep the trolls in check. 

Baaang!

―Guwoooo!

A huge explosion rang followed by the trolls' crazed roar.

Not long after, the rangers appeared as they ran past Jaiden. 

“There are three trolls. Can you keep them in check?” 

“Three… It should be possible.” 

One of the rangers slowed down and asked Jaiden a question. He then patted him on his shoulder when he saw him nod his head. Then, he disappeared in an instant.

The three trolls that had been aggravated from the rangers’ bombing suddenly appeared chasing after the rangers like crazy. 

“Ready.” 

The students all stood in position when they heard Jaiden’s shout. 

Unlike the other groups, the knight had given the rights to command this group to Jaiden. From what he had heard, this was also a direct order from the Northeast Command. Perhaps, it was because they wanted to make sure that Jaiden could really show his abilities in real life. 

“Don’t go out until I tell you to do so.” 

The knight nodded heavily at Jaiden’s words. 

Then, a ranger somersaulted and grabbed a branch of the tree before passing by their position.

The trolls that were chasing after the ranger were stomping towards them with a frightening aura as they turned their eyes to look for their prey. 

“Now!” 

Jaiden immediately gave his order.

The explosives that they had planted exploded loudly and the area near the vicinity of their dug trap started to collapse.

The trolls panicked after realizing that they couldn't stop their momentum. The only thing that they could do was fall down inside the trap after being shaken and taken by surprise by the explosion around them. 

The groups were in a very urgent situation so the place that they had dug was shallow. The pit was only deep enough to let the trolls fall up to their necks. However, it did not matter at all. 

“Fire! Shoot at their eyes, groins, and armpits!” 

As Jaiden’s voice fell, the children fired their guns in unison. 

A blue trail flew straight towards the trolls’ weaknesses as they continuously fired their blue magic bullets at them. 

“Not yet.” 

Jaiden shook his head when he saw the knight trying to move to assist the students that were firing at the trolls. These guys were clever so they would definitely curl up if the knight appeared right now.

It wouldn't take long for these trolls to realize that there were only children attacking them. By that time, they would have already underestimated them. Only at that time should that knight come out. That was the only time when they would be free of risks while being given the chance to easily defeat their opponents. 

―Gruwooo!

―Gruwooooo!

And finally, that time has come.

The clever trolls looked around while protecting their eyes and armpits. When they saw the people surrounding them, they couldn’t help but grin and reveal their ferocious and vicious teeth. As soon as they confirmed that only small fries were around them and the ranger that they were chasing was nowhere in sight, they threw one of their colleagues as bait while they tried to get out of the trap. 

“Now.” 

The knight ran out as soon as Jaiden spoke while Jaiden immediately assisted the knight with his precise shooting. 

Since trolls belonged to the medium to large sized monsters, they wouldn’t receive any significant damage even if they got hit by a magic bullet on their arms or back. They would only be affected by the magic bullets if they could target their armpits. Their armpits had a thinner skin than the rest of their bodies so the bullet could easily inflict pain on that part. In addition, the bullet could also damage their veins through their skin which could result in a delayed and slow regeneration and recovery. 

However, even if they weren't able to kill them, doing that much was already enough. 

Their resilient body had already been damaged once by the explosion earlier, so if Jaiden’s precise shooting was added on top of that then their regeneration speed would be degraded once more.

By then, they would just be easy meals for the knights. They would be easy to deal with since their greatest weapon, their ridiculous regeneration speed and resiliency, had been sealed.

At the same time, the wounds that they had gained during the chaotic situation earlier would be extremely painful which would make it harder for them to use sorcery, something that required high mental strength and concentration. 

In the end, they would just become similar to a large, thick-skinned and dumb beast.

―Kghhk…

The knight was a veteran knight so he could make quick work of the troll with a simple slash of his mana infused sword. 

Destroying the heart of the troll would be the most efficient way of dealing with trolls. But to make sure that they would not have a chance of regenerating any part of their body, the safest choice was to cut off their neck.

After all, there would be a few indistinguishable variant trolls that could make their way to them. These variant trolls were so fraudulent that they could even regenerate their crushed hearts. So to make sure, they had to cut off the neck while also destroying the heart. 

―Guwoo!

Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

One of the trolls got agitated after seeing its comrade die. However, as soon as it raised its hand to swing its club, its armpits were bombarded by magic bullets.

The knight easily dealt with this agitated troll that ran wild by stabbing its heart. Then, he moved towards the final troll. The mana infused in the veteran knight’s sword erupted violently as it cut the last troll’s final breath away. 

―Kghhk…

“That’s the 4th Stage.” 

“So cool…” 

The children looked at the knight’s sword in a daze. The full-on attack of a 4th Stage master had left them in awe. 

“Get a grip. It’s not over yet.” 

Hearing Jaiden's words, the children woke up from their stupor as they immediately focused. They slowly and nervously approached the fallen troll. 

Since the troll was a highly-regenerative species, it was impossible for anyone to feel safe until they had confirmed that it had truly died. They still needed to pelt them with their bullets to make sure that it wouldn't stand up once again.

The knight also flitted back and forth as he repeatedly stabbed and cut all three trolls, making sure that they were completely and entirely dead.

However, despite the slight exhaustion, the knight continued to be vigilant as he looked around the area. This was a forest that was teeming with monsters. He did not know when and where they would pop out to attack them. 

―Tweet!

“Huh?” 

Jaiden turned around when he heard a familiar sound. Then, he saw the blue Baepsae sitting on a small branch of a tree.

“You… Why are you here…?” 

―Tweet! Tweet, tweet, tweet!

While Baepsae was trying hard to explain something to Jaiden with its small beak, a ranger hurriedly ran towards the knight. 

“Emergency!”

***

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