Solflare: The Painter's Secret

Chapter 276: The World is Waiting

As the morning light stretched across the skies of Agatha and pushed away the darkness, green stalks spun through the air like descending spirits.

Corn tassels danced as insects flew around them, their long blades moving sideways while the canes rattled against each other.

A loud crunch followed as the blood-dripping Hi-no-Kami fell from Leon’s numb palms. The blade bounced off the silks and ears of the corn before finally resting on a dead blade on the ground.

The rays of the sun flashed on Leon, and tiny dust particles splashed in the air as he dropped straight onto his knees. "So, Vaelith did all that just to die under my hand. But why?"

A tiny blue glow sparked and vanished as he shifted his gaze to the blade stained with the dead man’s blood.

Birds chirped in the distance, followed by the rustle of dancing foliage as a flock of crows landed on the top branches of a nearby oak tree.

...

"Are you guys going to accept it when you are posted here on the next transition?" Eun-woo asked, leaning his back against the black titanium door of the border wall.

"Why do you always behave as if you’re more precious than other soldiers?" Kim asked, sitting on the trunk of an Agatha Special Forces cargo truck. A sharp metallic click rang out as she placed her katana on the truck bed and picked up her rifle.

"I should feel more precious than them. I am now a...."

"Shh!" Kim cut Eun-woo off, her eyes locking onto a figure walking through the distant cornfield. ’How is that possible?’

She zoomed in with her visor, yet she was not able to see the figure fully. ’No human has ever crossed this border unnoticed. Or did it erupt from the depths of Hell Land like the others?’

"Why did you silence me?" Eun-woo asked in a confused, angry voice, folding his arms across his chest.

"Keep quiet and get in," Kim hissed at him, jumping down from the truck bed.

Kim swung the vehicle door open, and the sudden rays of morning light caused Seo-jun’s sleeping face to crumple. "What is it this time, Kim?"

Kim stood there, her face a mix of shock and intense intrigue. "Sir, I think something has crossed all the monster-blasting mechanisms and is drawing near to our position."

Seo-jun’s braided hair flapped in the air as he jolted up abruptly and stepped out of the vehicle. "Where is it coming from?"

He walked past Kim and stopped by the titanium gate. The fleeing birds and agitated insects caught his eyes first. ’What is that coming? Don’t let it be who I’m thinking of.’

Eun-woo pushed himself off the border wall’s gate and began shifting his weight, glancing between Seo-jun and the empty cornfield ahead. "Sir, why are you...?"

Seo-jun’s pupils widened the moment he recognized the face of the person nearing the border wall. "What are you standing there for? OPEN THE DOOR NOW!"

Tiny pieces of stalks sprayed into the air as the black cargo vehicle dashed out of the twelve-foot green titanium gate.

Grasshoppers leaped off their stalks, watching the massive tires of the giant metal vehicle roar past them.

...

The red-gold cloth tapped against Leon’s chest twice as he stopped and squinted at the vehicle nearing him.

The golden armor diluted and began darkening, fading away by the time the vehicle screeched to a halt a few meters away from him.

His dark-brown pupils thinned and widened as he saw Eun-woo and Kim sitting in the front of the vehicle. ’Did they come for me?’

Inside the cabin, Eun-woo’s face paled when he saw Leon’s messy hair, the blood dressing him like water, and the strange cloth he had never seen before.

"Is that Leon?" his voice shook as he shifted his gaze slowly from the road ahead to Kim. But Kim was already gone from behind the wheel.

Gravel crunched loudly as Kim ran forward, slamming her boots on the ground as if welcoming heaven into her home. "LEON!"

She threw her arms around Leon before he could even utter a word. A dull metallic groan came from his armor as Kim increased her grip on him. "We thought you would never make it out of Tartarus."

Behind her, more gravel shifted as Eun-woo swung his door open and stepped down onto the rough road.

"Damn, mate." He spread his arms wide and walked over with a warm smile on his face. "What are you eating out there? You’ve grown so thin."

Kim’s brow furrowed for a second, loosening her embrace to glare at Eun-woo’s lack of tact.

Eun-woo’s head snapped back in confusion, his gaze shifting back to Leon.

"What?" He giggled, placing a friendly hand on Leon’s shoulder. "Are you the only one who knows a hero like Leon?"

Eun-woo locked eyes with Leon, then gave a firm nod. "Welcome back, Leon Storm."

He leaned in close to Leon’s left ear and whispered under his breath. "The world is waiting for you."

Behind Eun-woo, a sharp metallic scrape echoed as Seo-jun’s crossed blades screeched against each other while he stepped out.

Kim and Eun-woo instantly stepped aside, moving as if blocking his path would lead them to their deaths.

A sharp exhale escaped Seo-jun as he stopped before Leon and folded his arms across his chest. He locked eyes with Leon, standing there as if seeing the young warrior was the heaviest thing to happen to him in over a month.

A sudden bird’s cry shot through the morning air, drawing both their eyes up toward a white crow and a black crow fighting viciously in the sky.

Seo-jun shifted his gaze back to Leon, stretching his hand forward for a formal handshake. "It’s nice to be back with the living, Leon Storm."

Leon slowly dragged his gaze away from the fighting crows. He glanced at Seo-jun’s still hand before bringing his own forward to meet it.

"Come here," Seo-jun said, pulling Leon completely off his feet and locking him in a tight, heavy hug.

Laughter and genuine smiles rained on the dead corn tassels as the military cargo truck turned around and entered back through the titanium gate.

Countless soldiers rushed out from their tents and huts the moment the sound of the returning vehicle reached the center of the border camp.

Excited murmurs stirred through the crowd when the junior soldiers, who had only heard legends of Leon Storm and never seen him in person, caught sight of him sitting inside the Ghost Squad’s cargo truck.

"Why are you all pretending as if he’s so important?" a blue-haired Kang clan lady asked, her gaze twisted in pure disgust.

The surrounding junior soldiers quickly scrambled aside when they saw a high-ranking member of the Black Ops group approaching with a clenched fist.

From behind the blue-haired soldier, Samir materialized and placed a heavy, unyielding hand on her shoulder.

An instant chill ran straight down Jane Kang’s spine the moment she recognized Samir’s presence.

Samir pointed a finger directly at the lady’s face, then shifted it slightly toward the moving cargo truck. "Leon Storm is not someone you would want to mess with. So, choose your words very carefully!"