The Legendary F Rank

"Fine… So be it. Once we have completed our orders, we will have to head back to the ships anyway. I don't see why we can't help out here on the way." Captain Liegan said with a sigh as she looked around and seemed to sympathise with the situation at hand. 

"That's great. Thank you so much." Haru also sighed as he didn't know how she would respond to his request, but he was glad to know that she still had a heart and hadn't turned into a dog of the military just as soon as the war broke out. 

"Don't mention it. But the sooner we get the civilians out of here, the sooner we can come back and help out. So we had better get moving right away." Captain Liegan said as the three Chinese soldiers looked at Haru with confused expressions. 

"Sorry for not being able to do more to help you guys. But once our orders are complete, we will rush back here to help out if the fighting isn't over by then. I hope you guys manage to hold out until then." Haru said as he looked up at the window to where the Lieutenant was standing. 

"You have done more than enough. Thank you for your generosity, sir. If we are still held down here, we will await your arrival. But if we manage to end this fighting, I will personally lead our forces to your aid." The Lieutenant said as he looked over at the other two soldiers who were still standing on the ground beside the Japanese soldiers and called out to them.

"You two. I need you to go back to the outpost and let the rest of our men know what's going on. We need reinforcements as soon as possible. I trust I can leave that task to you, can't I?" The Lieutenant asked as Sergeant Lan stepped forwards.

"Yes, sir!" Sergeant Lan replied as he looked back at Haru and the rest of his squad.

"Are you ready?" Haru asked as he knew that Captain Liegan wouldn't want to wait long. She was the type to rush everything that she did, so it was unwise to keep her waiting.

"Yes, We're both ready when you are." Sergeant Lan said as Haru looked back at Captain Liegan and nodded his head slightly.

"Okay, now let's move out! We're heading for the evacuation point!" Captain Liegan shouted out and began to quickly march forwards while leading the rest of the soldiers behind her, with Jake and Haru following beside her.

"I didn't expect you to show off like that. What if they found out?" Jake whispered quietly as he was the only one who knew Haru's secret.

"It's fine. There's no way that they could tell from something like that. Even if they did think something wasn't right, I was careful to only use abilities that would be possible for a body enhancing mage to use. So I should be fine." Haru replied with a whisper of his own as they both made sure to keep quiet enough to not be overheard.

"That's good. I don't know how they will react if they find out that you are not only capable of using long-range magic but also those cultivation techniques. I think the government would be terrified of you. I don't even know how they would react to learning such a thing." Jake said even quieter than before as he looked up at Haru, who didn't seem bothered in the slightest.

"Yeah, They might even send someone to assassinate me," Haru said with a smile as he knew that the way he died in his previous life wasn't just an accident. But he had eventually found his way back to the military, and thanks to the help of Li Jun and Lao, Haru now had the strength to make sure that no one could stand in his way.

"Hey, don't joke about that kind of thing. I wouldn't put it past some of the higher-ranking officials to do something like that." Jake said a little louder, which gained the attention of other soldiers, so they both cut their conversation short and continued to march forwards while following Captain Liegan's lead.

After an hour of walking, they finally managed to reach the evacuation point, but it was nothing like they were expecting. The sounds of explosions continuously striking the ground sent deafening booms all around them as they watched flashes of light make contact with a strange-looking orb that was around a large group of people who were all cowering in fear.

'Wait… That's a formation. Why is there a cultivator here? Didn't they all decide to stay out of political matters?' Haru thought as he immediately recognised the barrier to be made out of Qi.

But as he spread Qi around the area to see if he knew who had cast the barrier, Haru was surprised to find out it was someone that he knew. And memories came rushing back to his head.

The memory of him standing outside a karaoke bar with the logo of a snake on the wall came to mind as he watched a man drag a black bag into the back of a van. He was standing beside Zen, and it was also the first time he had met Suyin's father and was warned to stay away from the cultivator known as the grim reaper.

'I didn't hear anything else about that man after that day. I wonder where he has been hiding?' Haru thought as he looked at a man holding a metal baseball bat against his shoulder as if it was a sword.

On occasion, a whistling sound emerged from the sky above the barrier, and the man swung the bat towards the sky, causing the mortar shell to fly back to where it had come from, and each time, the man would smile a little more.

"What is that thing!?" Captain Liegan called out as she had never seen a shield that big before. Usually, the shield function of some Lux's was only big enough to contain a couple of people at most, but what she was looking at now easily held hundreds of people within.

"Ma'am, I believe that it's the power of a Chinese cultivator that's holding off the attacks. There was a school trip I went on where we learnt about these people, and they are insanely strong. But I doubt, even with their strength, that one of them will be able to hold off this many attacks. We should hurry and help him out before it's too late." Haru said as he looked into the distance while watching the man hit the mortars back up into the air. 

"You mean like the people from the old legends? I didn't think that they would be living in cities. I wonder what brought him here. But I think you're right. No matter what mystical power someone holds. I don't think there is a person alive that could withstand such a brutal bombing for long." Captain Liegan said as she began to lead soldiers towards the shield. 

But as she did that, Jake looked back up at Haru with questioning eyes.

"You know that man don't you?" Jake asked as he seemed to notice Haru's expression wasn't quite right for someone who was surprised about something. It seemed as though Haru already knew everything about the situation before he even spoke.

"Yeah, I met him once a long time ago when I was still relatively weak. So I doubt he will remember me. But if he does, then I am prepared to silence him before he says anything." Haru said as he wasn't ready to show the Japanese government his power yet. 

Especially since I knew what happened to people who threatened the government, but Jake was shocked by Haru's reply yet didn't say anything since he didn't know much about what Haru had experienced to gain the strength that he had. But he knew that it wasn't something that could be ignored by people in power, and they would do whatever it would take to use it for themselves.

So he remained silent and followed Haru as they caught up to the rest of the unit and marched in towards the formation that was blocking the enemy attacks. 

"Take another step, and I will kill you all!" A voice boomed out through the air as the man with the baseball bat turned his head and looked at the force that had managed to sneak upon him. 

"Stop!" Haru yelled out as he didn't want to have to fight with the cultivator in front of everyone to save their lives. But it seemed as though the voice that shouted out before his managed to stop them in their tracks in the first place.

"What is it? What did he say?" Captain Liegan asked as the job of translation was left to Haru once again.

"He told us to stop since he thought that we were the enemy. I will explain to him what we are doing here." Haru explained as he turned his head to look at the people within the barrier who were all cowering in fear in the back corner. Apart from four people and a dog who were standing up watching the cultivator fight.

Haru stopped for a moment as he recognised them instantly.

'They're safe. Are you watching? I knew your family would be safe. I promise I won't let any harm come to them.' Haru said to himself as he pictured Suyin when he looked over to see both her parents and younger brother standing beside Zen and his dog.

Haru quickly pulled his hood over his head as he didn't want to be spotted by them. He hadn't seen them since before Suyin had died, and he couldn't bear to even look them in the eye after not being able to save her.

"Haru, what's wrong?" Captain Liegan asked as she watched him put his hood up and look down at the ground.

"It's nothing. I just got a little cold, that's all." Haru said as he took a few steps forwards and pushed his way through the soldiers so he could address the cultivator who had told them to stop.