Last Gun Alchemist-Chapter 102: Fifth Trial—Tower Defense Part Twenty-Six

Ezra handed the layout to Bale.

The moment Bale and his executives took the sheets into their hands and began going through them one after another, their expressions slowly changed.

At first, focus, then surprise, then shock.

Some of them widened their eyes slightly, their fingers pausing mid-air as they traced the lines drawn across the sheets, following the structure of the castle, the surrounding terrain, and the carefully marked trap placements.

A blindfolded guy... Did this?

A few of them whispered quietly among themselves, their voices low, but their disbelief obvious.

They didn’t stay frozen for long.

The moment they understood what they were looking at, they moved immediately.

Orders were given, people split into groups.

Some carried materials they could use for the traps and went to cut down trees crafting them into wooden stakes, others began marking positions.

The work started without delay to fully complete everything before three days passed at the very least.

Veda decided to stay, at least for the day.

He and Ezra remained behind, along with the medic girl, watching how Bale’s group handled the setup, while also providing guidance when needed.

They helped them, Veda distributed equipment he had, that they could make use of for the trap setup while Ezra explained how to craft the pulley system with the woods and other stuff they found hard to set up. With their help the work began to flow properly.

Around that time, Ezra could already open his eyes without feeling pain, but he didn’t since Bobby had told him clearly.

The treatment would go on for only four days, after that he could open his eyes until then he shouldn’t open them for any reason.

So, he obeyed.

The bandages remained, but his arms, however, had already healed enough, and the wrappings there were removed, his Cognis also recovered fully and like that he was almost back to his full percent.

The day passed and Bale’s group made steady progress, faster than expected with the setting up of traps.

When it was time for the three to leave...Veda, the medic girl, and Ezra stood near the forest at the right side of the castle.

Ezra had finally removed the bandage from his eyes.

His gaze was clear and sharper than before.

In front of them, Bale and most of his group stood to see them off.

"You guys are heading back now?"

Bale asked, a bright smile on his face, very different from the one he had before.

"Yeah."

Veda nodded.

"I’m pretty sure a certain right-hand man is already fuming that I’m not back yet."

He scratched the back of his head, looking slightly guilty.

"We’ve also entered the fourth day of the third week..."

He exhaled.

"So, we need to prepare for our own castle defense."

Bale nodded, then looked at Ezra.

His expression turned serious.

"So... you really think the third wave might start around the fourth week?"

Behind him, his group also grew quiet, waiting for his answer.

"Well... I’m actually expecting it to start earlier than how the second wave began."

Ezra replied calmly, his voice steady as he stood facing Bale, his posture relaxed but his tone carrying weight.

"So, from now on, you guys should stay alert. Anything can happen."

He lifted his hand slightly, pointing toward Bale.

"And I don’t know what kind of monsters will appear in the third wave... but just know this..."

He paused for a brief moment.

"They will be more dangerous than the Ground Apes."

The words settled into the air with a heavy feeling.

"Don’t worry!"

The girl who had a heat stroke, Ezra, had met in the marketplace stepped forward, tightening her fist as she spoke, her expression firm.

"With your traps and the weapons, we got from Lady Vera, we have now... we’re ready." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Her voice carried confidence.

The rest of the candidates reacted almost immediately, some nodding, others clenching their fists, a few exchanging determined looks with each other.

The air had changed, what had once been tense, now felt sharper and more alive.

Veda smiled; the medic girl smiled as well while Ezra simply looked at them quietly.

"I wish you guys’ luck."

The medic girl said as she raised her hand and waved.

The medical team of Bale’s group waved back at her, their faces bright, their expressions lighter than before.

"Good luck to you too!"

They shouted together, their voices overlapping.

Veda turned his gaze toward Bale.

He watched him carefully, the way he stood, the way he spoke, the way he held himself now...It was different.

Stronger, more stable.

He remembered... this wasn’t the first time Bale had broken down like that.

After the first trial, he had cried even worse and that time it was Vera who had stood beside him.

Veda exhaled slowly; his smile remained.

A quiet one with a satisfied look on his face.

"Let’s go."

He said as he turned toward the forest, lifting his hand slightly in a casual wave.

The medic girl continued waving energetically, her arm moving back and forth with excitement, while Ezra lifted his hand in a small, almost lazy gesture.

Bale’s group waved back, smiling. Voices calling out, wishing them a safe journey.

"Ahhh..."

The medic girl stretched her arms behind her back as they began walking away, her shoulders loosening.

"I can’t wait to see the others." She said excitedly.

"Yeah."

Veda replied simply.

Then...

Without another word, the three ran through the forest.

The medic girl pushed herself forward, channeling a bit of Cognis into her legs, her speed increasing as she weaved through the trees.

Ezra and Veda followed purposely matching her pace effortlessly even without using Cognis their movements were smooth and controlled.

They slipped past tree trunks, lowered their bodies to pass beneath stretched branches, stepped over uneven roots and leaped across flowing streams, their feet barely touching the surface before pushing forward again.

From above...Light filtered through the leaves, breaking into scattered rays that flickered across their moving figures, they looked like shadows flickering, disappearing and reappearing as they moved.

Time passed as it always did and soon, they reached their castle.

The atmosphere there was calm and quiet, the work that needed to be done had already been completed, only those assigned to watch duty remained active, standing at their posts, scanning the surroundings.

"Sir Veda is back!"

One of them shouted the moment she spotted the three figures emerging from the forest.

Her voice carried across the area, the gate opened immediately without delay and then Nickolas appeared bursting out with speed enhanced with Cognis, his movements sharp as he dashed forward.

"VEDAAAA! You fucking bastard!"

He shouted as he ran straight toward him at full speed.

Veda stared at him, blinking twice. Awkward.

Both Ezra and the medic girl turned their heads slightly toward Veda.

"We’ll take our leave."

They spoke almost at the same time as they stepped forward, increasing their pace, clearly choosing not to get involved.

"Wait..."

Veda reached out his hand trying to stop them, but it was too late, Nickolas crashed into him like a spear, driving him straight to the ground.

The impact was heavy, a dull thud echoed as Veda’s back hit the earth and yet, Veda just smiled even as he fell. It was clear he had let it happen on purpose.

"Argh... Nickolas...cough...I see you are doing well... cough, cough..."

Veda struggled as he spoke, lying flat on the ground for a moment after the impact, his chest rising unevenly as he forced out the words between short coughs.

Nickolas didn’t respond immediately, he stood up, brushed off the dust from his clothes with sharp, irritated movements, his expression still tight as he looked down at Veda.

"Why the hell did you spend three whole days there?"

His voice came out heavy, not just anger, but frustration.

"Hahaha..."

Veda pushed himself up slowly, then sat cross-legged on the ground, folding his arms as if nothing serious had happened, a playful smile spreading across his face.

"Well... there was just a lot to help them with, and before I knew it, time had already passed."

He laughed lightly.

"And two days somehow became three days."

Nickolas narrowed his eyes, staring at him.

"Stop nagging like a wife."

Veda added, a mischievous smirk forming on his face.

"Huh?!"

Nickolas took a step back as if struck by arrows, his eyes widening as he placed a hand dramatically over his chest.

"Me? Nagging like a wife?!" His face twisted into disbelief. "You...!"

A vein bulged slightly at the side of his head as his expression hardened again.

"What if the third wave suddenly started and our dear, strongest, and brave leader was nowhere to be found?!"

He pointed directly at Veda, his finger steady, his voice rising with each word.

Veda looked at him quietly watching and enjoying his reaction, but only for a moment because he knew Nickolas wasn’t wrong.

"...I’m sorry."

Veda suddenly pressed his palms together, the movement quick and direct.

Nickolas froze, the anger on his face paused.

He stared at him silent for a few seconds, he wanted to stay angry, but he also knew Veda.

This kind of thing was normal for him. If someone needed help especially if the person was a close family member he wouldn’t leave until he was satisfied helping him or her or them.

Nickolas exhaled long.

"I’ve told you many times..."

His voice lowered now.

"A leader like you doesn’t need to apologize to his subordinate."

"No."

Veda shook his head immediately.

"I will always apologize whenever I’m wrong... especially when I worry, someone who actually cares about me."

Nickolas looked away, his face slightly stiff and flustered, as always...He didn’t know how to deal with that side of Veda.

"...Well."

He cleared his throat.

"You might have to apologize to Linda more than you did with me."

He pointed upward, toward the castle top floor, Veda followed his finger and there she was.

Linda standing there, staring down. Her gaze, sharp like blades.

Tracy stood beside her trying to calm her down.

Veda smiled, but under that gaze, he swallowed. A small gulp of spit slipping down his throat.

"...Let’s go inside first." He said as he stood up quickly.

The two of them walked back toward the castle.

Veda’s expression remained calm on the outside, but inside he was already preparing himself for what was coming.

A hard scolding from Linda and probably a long one still as he stepped inside his eyes moved taking in the surroundings, the injured members he had seen before were no longer in the recovery tent.

They were moving, welcoming him back. They were all now fully healed and ready for action.

"...Yeah." Veda muttered quietly under his breath. "I’m back."

Meanwhile, Ezra entered the castle without stopping and he moved straight toward the back.

The five candidates there spotted him almost immediately they ran toward him.

"Ezra! You’re back!"

Ann called out.

"And the bandage on your eyes is gone!"

the second girl said, her voice bright with relief.

"Yeah, yeah."

Ezra replied simply as he walked past them without slowing down.

"How were things while I was gone?"

He asked, his eyes scanning the area, a GPMG had been set up with two additional catapults standing a bit far at its side, ten boulders arranged neatly in a stack.

"Nothing much to mention." the first boy replied. "We just continued our routine as usual."

"Although..."

the second boy added.

"We were a bit worried when you didn’t come back for three days."

"Sorry." Ezra replied shortly, then he entered his tent, dropped his space bag beside his camp bed and lay down flat, his hands resting behind his head as he stared upward.

"My sight really did get sharper... just like Bobby said."

He muttered quietly to himself.

"Hmmm, should I strain it more?"

He paused, then let out a short laugh.

"...That sounds stupid."

He sat up again, his gaze moving around the inside of the tent, then he reached for his bag.

Opened it and pulled out the Barrett M107 sniper rifle.

The weapon rested in his hands, worn, small cracks had formed along the muzzle barely visible, but there.

Ezra frowned slightly.

"If I use this again... it will definitely break."

He said under his breath.

His fingers brushed lightly across the surface of the gun feeling the damage.

Should I draw an alchemy circle for joint alchemy to run a maintenance on it?

He stared at it hesitating, he didn’t want to reveal it, not to anyone and after the second wave, he could already feel eyes lingering around him, now watching.

If he brought this out, questions would come and not just from the people around him, but from above.

The ones watching everything.

With how he had taken down the Ground Apes, there was no way he hadn’t drawn attention.

The only thing saving him right now, was that no one knew it was him and the weapon hadn’t been identified, they probably assumed it was just another sniper rifle something linked to the Springfield M1903A4 and one of Veda’s prepared trump cards.

Ezra exhaled slowly, still holding the Barrett M107 thinking carefully on what to do.