My soldiers are all Fourth Calamities!

25. The tireless pursuers

In the chaos, the magic unit quickly reached a consensus—run, run immediately! At least they had to get the crucial intelligence that they had "encountered the enemy's main force" out.

However, they did not escape as expected.

For some reason, a group of enemy soldiers were approaching at an alarming speed. What was most terrifying was that they seemed to be able to see them—precisely predicting their every move.

"It's alright, everything will be fine once we get deep into the forest," Peter reassured himself.

Watching the mage hunter platoon begin their frantic retreat along the route they had come from, Rochester was frantic with worry. Compared to the high-value targets escaping on horseback, the rewards from this mage hunter platoon were the real prize. He quickly located Anton's position on the minimap, gave a few hasty instructions, and then led the players into pursuit.

He issued a task on short notice and designed an additional briefing to emphasize its importance.

[Important Mission: Pursue the "3rd Magic Hunter Platoon of the Vistula Federation Army"]

[Briefing: The enemy is retreating along their original route. If they successfully withdraw, our troops will be exposed.]

[Reward: Annihilation of the entire enemy force - Medal of Merit [100]]

Rochester's extremely generous rewards completely ignited the players' enthusiasm.

Soon, the mage hunter platoon realized just how much of a force they were facing.

"Hurry up!!" Peter, the adjutant of the hunter platoon, took command. He roared in a low voice, his hands impatiently pushing aside the overgrown branches.

His troops scrambled through the dark bushes and forest like a pack of frightened wild dogs.

Behind them, the troops, like ghosts, remained hovering dozens of meters away, neither too fast nor too slow, relentlessly pursuing them.

They wanted to take a detour or use tactical maneuvers to shake off their pursuers, but the pursuers behind them seemed to know their location perfectly.

If they slow down even slightly, or veer sharply in any direction, someone from the pursuing group will appear like a ghost in front of them, raising their hand to fire a shot.

Then came the "crack" sound of the magical shield on his body shattering.

To be honest, if it weren't for the magical enhancements, they would have been riddled with holes long ago.

"Damn it, how is this so weird? How do they always manage to get ahead of us?!" A soldier panted heavily, looking back in panic, only to see layers upon layers of tree shadows behind him.

Lieutenant Peter spat, trying to appear calm: "What's there to be afraid of? It's just a coincidence! How long can they chase us with such heavy weapons?"

But soon, a chilling "bang" was heard!

Almost reflexively, Peter tried to pin the soldier next to him down, but it was too late.

As one soldier beside him collapsed, another cried out in despair, "Damn it! It wasn't a coincidence! They could see us!"

Peter gritted his teeth, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. "Scatter! Scatter quickly!" This was his final tactical command.

Continuing to stick together will only lead to being wiped out in one fell swoop.

However, players with a minimap are completely unaffected.

The soldiers of the hunter platoon had just split up and rushed into the bushes when they discovered, to their despair, that the pursuers seemed to have completely figured out their movements. One soldier tried to climb over a fallen, rotten tree when he heard the "rat-a-tat-tat" of machine gun fire. Even with the protection of magic, it would be difficult to withstand such firepower.

His once-proud magic proved utterly laughable in close-quarters jungle combat.

Although Peter couldn't see, he could hear the screams of his men. He frantically brandished his saber, cutting through the thorns blocking his path, trying to break out of this place that had begun to terrify him.

No matter how fast he ran, the sound of their footsteps always echoed dozens of meters behind him. Sometimes he thought he had shaken them off, but as soon as he turned around, he would see those faces again.

This kind of psychological torment is more devastating than physical exhaustion.

Rochester was astonished by the physical prowess of everyone present. The players, needless to say, didn't seem to feel tired at all, but how could the enemy run so fast?!

Rochester chased after Peter, the other man's adjutant, with all his might, more than he had ever done during his physical fitness test years ago.

Peter, who was being chased by Rochester, was already on the verge of collapse—sweat had soaked through his heavy military uniform, and it was running down his forehead and into his eyes, stinging painfully, but he had no free hand to wipe it away.

"(Local swear word) Who on earth is chasing us?"

Peter roared in despair in his heart.

They had been running wildly through this damn forest for at least fifteen minutes, during which they had experienced countless sudden stops, changes of direction, and obstacle crossings.

Their lungs were burning, their thigh muscles were spasming from the prolonged burst of power, and their throats were filled with the taste of blood. But they dared not stop, or even slow down.

The forest scenery turned into a blurry green afterimage as we moved at high speed.

Thick tree trunks, thorny bushes, and rotting logs lying across the ground all became deadly obstacles. Peter, relying on instinct, moved among the trees, his saber flashing so fast it cut down every branch in his path.

But he could feel that the distance behind him was gradually decreasing.

ten meters.

five meters.

three meters.

The chill of being targeted by a wild beast shot up my spine and straight to the top of my head.

Peter could even hear the heavy breathing of the person behind him, and the crisp sound of boots snapping dry branches.

"Get out of my way!" Peter roared hysterically, turning around sharply and swinging his knife, trying to force the other man back.

However, Rochester had already anticipated Peter's movements, and Peter's movements were distorted due to tension and fatigue. The moment Peter swung his knife, Rochester suddenly slid to the side, barely avoiding the sharp blade, while at the same time, the butt of his gun slammed hard into the back of Peter's knee.

"Bang!"

A sharp pain shot through him, and Peter staggered, nearly collapsing to his knees.

But he persevered with astonishing willpower and then ran forward like a madman.

"Grass!"

Rochester scrambled to his feet, no longer holding back any energy, one step, two steps!

The distance between the two instantly disappeared.

Peter felt a tremendous impact from behind, and before he could react, a huge force slammed into his back.

"what!"

Peter let out a short cry of surprise, lost his balance, and fell heavily forward.

Before he could even struggle, a knee was already firmly pressed against his lower back—the cold barrel of a gun was pressed against the back of his head.

"Huff... huff..."

Rochester was breathing heavily, sweat dripping from his chin onto Peter's neck.

"Don't move," Rochester gritted his teeth, forcing out the words, "move again and I'll blow your head off."

At that moment, the system's voice sounded.

The 3rd Magic Hunter Platoon of the "Vistula Federation" Army has been completely incapacitated and is considered "annihilated".

Death toll: 11

Number of prisoners: 1

[Bonus Reward: Destroying this force will unlock your personal magic path.]

[Received.]

Reputation gained: [300]