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Gilbert gave up on waiting for Angelina and Hans to join him by the fourth day at noon on the uninhabited island. He briefly considered waiting until night, but it was already too late, and there was no more time to waste.

“Alright, I give up.”

Though regrets lingered, he knew better than to dwell on the past.

Gilbert left the shore and climbed the largest tree nearby. After surveying the area, he spotted the biggest tree on the island, about 10 kilometers away.

Descending from the tree, he set his direction toward the large tree he had just seen and started moving quickly.

There was a reason Gilbert was in such a hurry.

The first general assessment in Tactical Combat proceeded without issues for the first three days. During that time, cadets could either fight each other in a survival game-like atmosphere or bond with potential party members.

However, by the fourth day, the game’s atmosphere changed completely. Up until then, cadets who took excessive damage or were deemed unable to continue the assessment were automatically sent back to the academy. But after the fourth day, the forced return magic stopped working properly.

This meant the cadets’ bracelets were malfunctioning, and even the life-saving features stopped working. Cadets began losing their lives, and the situation grew dire. The academy realized this too late and tried to send reinforcements, but a teleportation-blocking magic had already enveloped the island.

As the island became isolated, the masterminds behind the incident appeared, piloting colossal mechs. This mysterious group was the Resistance, harboring grievances against the Empire and the academy. Their goal was to kill the academy cadets, who were the Empire’s core, to showcase their revolutionary ideals.

At this point, the main storyline of the general assessment was for the player to either find hidden colossal mechs or team up with other cadets to use magic weapons to defeat the enemies.

Gilbert, already familiar with the story, had planned to join forces with Angelina and Hans to break through the situation, but things didn’t go as planned. Now, he had to handle everything alone.

As a seasoned gamer, Gilbert knew the locations of all the hidden colossal mechs on the island. The reason he had searched for the largest tree earlier was because there was an entrance to an underground hangar near it.

Since he already knew where the colossal mechs were hidden, all that was left was to secure one before it was too late.

As Gilbert headed toward the underground hangar’s entrance, he recalled the enemies that appeared in the scenario. If his memory served him right, the number of enemy colossal mechs varied depending on the game’s difficulty, but on the highest difficulty, there were five.

Considering the scenario had gone off-script, he estimated there would be no more than seven. Any more than that, and infiltrating the island without being detected would be impossible.

So, he calculated he’d have to face up to seven colossal mechs, but Gilbert was confident.

He had faced worse situations, both in the game and in real wars.

In the end, he had to rely on himself, and finding an escape route was the basic mindset of a seasoned pilot.

In that sense, Gilbert was a veteran in both respects.

With his highly trained physique, covering 10 kilometers wouldn’t take long, but navigating through the forest was a different story. No matter how good one’s sense of direction was, moving straight through a forest to a specific location was nearly impossible.

Even Gilbert, despite his training, had to keep climbing trees to correct his direction as he moved toward the large tree with the hangar entrance. Naturally, his arrival time was delayed, but this was the fastest and most accurate route.

‘Time’s a bit tight…!’

The unidentified rebels’ activities began at random times after noon. On average, it happened within three to four hours, so it wouldn’t be strange if they appeared right now.

Fortunately, he reached the large tree before any signs of trouble appeared. Following his in-game memory, Gilbert searched the surrounding ground and found traces of recently disturbed soil.

Suddenly, a very ominous thought crossed his mind.

Gilbert frowned. Of course, this wasn’t a hidden location only he knew about; other cadets could have found it too. Still, he had thought it would remain quiet for a few more days, but perhaps someone had already discovered the colossal mech hidden here.

He quickly cleared the soil and opened the entrance to the underground hangar.

*Boom!*

As he was about to jump into the underground entrance, a massive shockwave and a dust storm swept through. It seemed like a huge object had fallen to the ground, and the sudden gust of wind swept everything away.

Gilbert was caught in the blast. In an instant, he was flung into the air, and before he knew it, he crashed into a tree. Luckily, he protected himself with mana and wasn’t injured.

Looking around, he found the culprit behind the recent chaos. The massive leg of a colossal mech, as large as a tree, was visible.

“Damn, I almost got squashed.”

Gilbert cursed under his breath.

Seeing the colossal mech near the underground hangar’s entrance, it was a close call. He couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Before it was too late, Gilbert slid down and jumped into the underground hangar. Knowing the height wasn’t too great, it was a bold move. Landing gracefully, he immediately sprinted toward the end of the hangar where the colossal mech was.

The longer he delayed, the more cadets would die at the hands of the colossal mechs. In the game, he hadn’t thought much about it, but now, this was the real world. Though most of the cadets were strangers, he wasn’t the type to stand by and watch people die.

After a full sprint, Gilbert finally reached the hangar with the colossal mech. Now, all he had to do was quickly board the mech and take down the terrorists wreaking havoc outside.

*Clank.*

The passage for the colossal mech to launch from underground opened. It seemed someone had already boarded the mech and was ready for deployment.

The colossal mech launched through the passage and emerged above ground. All Gilbert could do was watch, biting his lip.

“Now what?”

Gilbert’s mind raced. He didn’t know who was piloting the mech that had just launched, but no freshman cadet, whether a companion or protagonist character, could handle the Resistance at their current level.

Gamers who had repeatedly challenged this part had the luxury of multiple attempts to build up their skills. Plus, the lack of real-life stakes allowed them to be bold.

But now, in reality, could those with little experience fully utilize their skills?

Gilbert didn’t think so. Even he, as a veteran, had to face the fear of death at first. It was only after surviving several near-death experiences that he became composed.

Expecting that from inexperienced freshmen was too much. If he had to name someone who might handle it, it would probably only be Princess Seraphina.

After much deliberation, Gilbert decided to leave the area first. He needed to see the situation outside to plan his next move.

He quickly retraced his steps, running back through the corridor toward the hangar entrance. Climbing the ladder, he opened the hatch and emerged outside.

*Boom!*

The sound of two colossal mechs clashing was deafening. The mech that had just launched and what appeared to be a Resistance mech were locked in a fierce battle.

The cadet piloting the launched mech was holding their own against the Resistance mech, moving a step faster despite the limitations of a standard mech.

“One step ahead?”

While analyzing the battle, Gilbert muttered to himself, recognizing the mech’s movements. He had seen this pattern before—during the entrance mock battle.

Reacting faster and more flexibly than the opponent.

Moving one step ahead.

Such movements were impossible without a characteristic skill. Even Gilbert couldn’t replicate those movements. Superior control stats could only narrow the gap, not fully replicate the agility.

The best he could do was predict and mimic the movements.

It was then that Gilbert realized who had launched from the hidden underground hangar.

It was Ian Tigress Line Barrel, the protagonist of Tactical Combat.

***

Ian, having found the colossal mech in the underground hangar, waited for his moment to shine after securing food and water.

The protagonist’s entrance was always grand, and they always stole the show in the finale.

While leisurely biding his time in the underground hangar, Ian heard a sudden explosion outside and knew it was his time to act.

He tossed aside the meat he was eating and boarded the mech. After a quick contract, he launched through the hangar’s exit, making a spectacular entrance. He noticed another cadet had found the underground hangar but didn’t pay much attention, focused on his moment to shine.

“Alright, time to launch.”

As he emerged, his characteristic skill activated, and he smiled, feeling at one with the mech.

Outside, he saw a colossal mech right in front of him. Thinking it might be another cadet’s mech, he drew his iron sword and charged, but something felt off.

The enemy mech looked nothing like the standard academy mechs. Its armament was far beyond the basic iron sword.

[If any cadet is piloting a colossal mech, please respond!]

Just as he found this strange, a communication spell came through the academy’s public magic channel. Realizing the severity of the situation, Ian opened the communication channel.

[Cadet Ian Tigress Line Barrel, responding.]

[Ian! There’s no time to explain. This is a real situation now. We’re lifting the restrictions on formal contracts with artificial spirits. Proceed with the formal contract immediately and take down all unidentified colossal mechs!]

[Orders confirmed!]

Though the sudden order was unexpected, the quick-witted Ian understood the urgency. As the restrictions on formal contracts with artificial spirits were lifted, the communication spell cut out, likely due to the unidentified mech in front of him.

He engaged the oncoming mech while initiating the formal contract with the artificial spirit.

Normally, a formal contract with an artificial spirit took time, but the academy’s standard mechs had the cadets’ mana patterns recorded, so it didn’t take long.

With the formal contract complete, he unleashed the sealed magic weapons and went on a rampage. The enemy mech couldn’t keep up with Ian’s diverse arsenal.

This was the moment his efforts and talent in piloting colossal mechs shone.

In the end, the unidentified mech knelt before Ian’s brilliant piloting skills. It was a perfect victory befitting the protagonist.

Ian Tigress Line Barrel had subdued the unidentified colossal mech during the general assessment.

The picture painted was perfect. He thought there would be no room for Gilbert’s name to appear and fully enjoyed the joy of victory.

But as someone once said, complacency is never an option in war.

*Boom!*

A powerful attack struck Ian from behind as he let his guard down, thinking there was only one enemy mech. Caught off guard, Ian couldn’t react properly and was sent flying.

Inside the shaking cockpit, he tried to regain his composure, but the relentless attacks left him unable to respond. The number of enemy mechs began to increase.

When he realized there were seven of them, Ian was horrified. He had no idea where so many mechs had come from.

This was the moment Ian’s lack of battlefield experience showed.

With limited experience, his field of vision narrowed, leading to fatal mistakes. Tossed around by the continuous attacks, he couldn’t mount a proper counterattack. A powerful strike from an iron sword sent him crashing into the tree where the underground hangar was located.

The massive mech broke the tree, and Ian, having hit his head hard in the cockpit, lost consciousness.

***

Seeing the mech fall nearby, Gilbert mustered all his mana and sprinted toward it. The lack of movement suggested Ian had been knocked out by the barrage of attacks. Fortunately, the Resistance members seemed to be taking their time, likely planning to make an example of Ian’s mech.

Gilbert wasn’t about to waste this golden opportunity. Luckily, he had been hiding nearby and quickly reached the fallen mech’s cockpit.

He forced the cockpit open. As expected, Ian was inside, bleeding from the head and unconscious. Knowing there was no time to waste, Gilbert grabbed him and threw him out.

“Hans!”

Ironically, he handed Ian over to Hans, who had just joined him. Hans, hiding nearby, caught Ian and quickly retreated.

Once Hans was safely away, Gilbert closed the cockpit and activated the mech.

[Conditions for unlocking a characteristic skill have been met.]

[Characteristic skill “Your Mech is Awesome” has been acquired.]

[Characteristic skill “Your Mech is Awesome” has been activated.]

As the mech activated, a notification appeared before his eyes.

Gilbert welcomed this stroke of luck in the midst of this terrible situation.

 

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