I turned back and approached the soldier guarding the outpost. 

There was a risk of being detected up close, but I looked at the soldier’s face. 

The soldier who had seemed normal from a distance. 

‘Damn it.’ 

The soldier was not moving or breathing at all. 

I’m not using a metaphor – the soldier was literally not breathing. 

‘What happened here?’ 

There was no sign of life in their eyes. 

It felt like looking at a well-crafted doll. 

‘I need to investigate further.’ 

Maintaining my invisible state, I drew my knife. 

Quietly cutting through the fence where there were no guards, I entered the compound. 

At each outpost, the soldiers were standing guard. 

There were also soldiers waiting near the tanks. 

After carefully inspecting various parts of the Tank Battalion, 

I realized that none of them could be considered ‘alive.’ 

The conclusion was clear. 

“It’s completely different from what I expected.” 

I thought there was no way for the monsters to be capable of artillery fire like that. 

I naturally assumed the surviving soldiers were hostile towards us. 

But that wasn’t the case. 

The soldiers of this tank battalion… 

They are being controlled by some kind of entity. 

“And they’re still functioning as a military unit.” 

If the soldiers under control had just charged at us like zombies, it wouldn’t have been too scary. 

But these soldiers are following orders with meticulous precision, as if an inspection is coming. 

They are perfectly recreating the combat capabilities of a military unit. 

I don’t know what is controlling them, 

but it’s definitely no pushover. 

And soon after, 

I was able to discover the controlling entity. 

As I was looking around the base, hoping to find some useful information, 

it was… 

in a very unexpected location. 

Quite unexpectedly so. 

“Huh?” 

At first, I thought I had just seen it wrong in passing. 

It’s not near any buildings or important facilities, 

but right on a road used by the tank battalion. 

[……] 

There, 

a massive eyeball was floating. 

“What the hell is that?” 

A monstrous entity in the shape of a gigantic eyeball, 

straight out of an old movie. 

It was floating about a meter off the ground. 

I was startled by its grotesque appearance the moment I detected its presence. 

Then out of nowhere the eyeball, which had been staring blankly into space widely opened its eye and blinked. 

It felt like it was making eye contact with me. 

It’s strange to say the eyeball had an expression, but 

it seemed to be looking at me with a suspicious gaze. 

I, too, focused my attention on the entity. 

[Chef’s Eyes activated] 

[Acquired Intermediate Grade Cooking Secret: Enlightenment of Geyser Preparation] 

At that moment, 

[——————!!!!!!!!!] 

The massive eyeball started trembling, as if it had been shocked. 

Its pupil rapidly expanded, 

and it began spinning frantically in the air. 

“Damn.” 

It wasn’t hard to understand the situation. 

Just as Jeong Soo-ah’s spirit companion “Bangul” had noticed that I was observing it, 

this entity had also sensed the activation of my skill. 

From the monstrous creature, which didn’t seem to have a mouth structure capable of making sounds, a bizarre scream reverberated. 

[–!! –!!!!] 

Along with a strange energy surrounding me, I started floating up into the air. 

I wasn’t just going to stand and watch. 

“I’ll eliminate it before it does anything weird!” 

I gripped my [Dokkkogusik] Knife and launched myself towards it. 

Just as I was about to stab the ascending entity, 

Taaang–! 

A gunshot rang out nearby. 

“Ugh.” 

I felt something graze my cheek, and a surge of heat rushed to my face. 

Touching the area, I found a faint trace of blood. 

I could see a soldier from a nearby outpost aiming his rifle at me. 

‘The lack of additional shots means… my stealth is still maintained.’ 

[–!!!! –!!!!!!!] 

After I failed to stab it, 

the glowing eyeball entity rose beyond my reach, soaring over 5 meters into the air. 

Since the knife couldn’t reach it at that height, 

I drew my pistol and took aim at the creature. 

‘I’m glad I’ve been carrying a sidearm as a backup.’ 

My bullets may not be as powerful as the knife, but 

I should still be able to inflict some damage. 

[——–! –!!!!!!!] 

At that moment, 

The energy flowing from that entity began to radiate outwards. 

Some of that energy clung to the hand holding the pistol. 

As a hazy mist-like substance touched my skin, 

I felt a sensation that seemed to reach my nerves. 

Was this just my imagination? 

Tack. 

‘What’s happening?’ 

My fingers began moving independently of my will, 

and I released the pistol, dropping it to the ground. 

I felt a chill run down my spine. 

‘I’ve been possessed!’ 

I quickly sent the magical power within me to my fingertips and pushed it out. 

Then, I swung my knife to dispel the hazy mist approaching me. 

The mist touched by the Queens’s resentment of the knife slowly retreated. 

While I managed to drive away the energy that had reached me, 

the more the entity floated higher, the wider the mist spread. 

“So, its ascent wasn’t just to avoid me.” 

I’m not sure if it’s concentrating its power or what, 

but the higher it goes, the more widely the mist seems to spread. 

Tadadak. 

That’s when the sound of military boots started echoing from the distance. 

It seemed the soldiers affected by the widespread mist were rushing towards this location. 

I glanced up at the position of the eyeball monster. 

Given how high it’s risen, it would be difficult to shoot it down with a pistol. 

Even if my [Environmental Adaptation] is maintained with the approaching soldiers, I’ll eventually be exposed. 

I left the tank battalion, resolving to return another time. 

Upon arriving at the temporary barracks where the unit members were stationed, I deactivated my [Environmental Adaptation]. 

Shssh. 

“Wha- Sergeant Shin!?” 

“Huh? Why are you suddenly calling me Sergeant Shin…Whoa!?” 

The soldiers were startled by my sudden appearance in front of them. 

I don’t have the time to explain in detail, so: 

“Gather the squad leaders. We’re having a meeting.” 

“Y-Yes, sir!” 

One of the soldiers immediately moved to gather the scattered squad leaders. 

“The situation was the complete opposite of what we expected.” 

I quickly shared what had happened at the tank battalion. 

The soldiers weren’t hostile towards us. 

The bizarre eyeball monster was controlling them. 

It was the monster that attacked us. 

“Such a thing…” 

“Not satisfied with vampires, now there’s a monster that controls humans?” 

This was different from zombies mindlessly moving like beasts or vampires changing species. 

The artillery fire directed at us, 

‘It means they can utilize the living knowledge of the humans they control.’ 

If they were regular soldiers, I had planned to assess their motives and try to resolve it peacefully. 

“What will you do?” 

“We’ll take it out.” 

There’s no room for negotiation with that monster. 

“Take it out?” 

“Didn’t that monster briefly control Sergeant Shin’s hand?” 

“A monster capable of controlling even Sergeant Shin of all people.” 

If it were just a regular tank battalion, we wouldn’t be at a huge disadvantage. 

The Awakened are inherently powerful, and their synergy increases when they gather. 

With proper preparation, we could even penetrate the artillery barrage and subdue the tank battalion. 

The problem is that eyeball monster. 

The moment I was touched by its energy, 

even if just my fingers, I was controlled. 

The intimidated soldiers advised retreat. 

But, 

the others are mistaken about something. 

If my guess is correct, 

“It’s actually the opposite.” 

“Huh?” 

“Honestly, taking on the tank battalion would be easier than you think.” 

At those words, the expressions of some soldiers turned puzzled, 

while others grew noticeably brighter. 

“As expected of Sergeant Shin.” 

“You must have a plan, don’t you?” 

I looked at one of the squad leaders participating in the meeting. 

“Su-hyeok.” 

“…? Corporal Seo Su-hyeok.” 

The squad leader of our sharpshooter unit. 

In other words, 

the best ‘marksman’ Awakened, 

and our sniper. 

“You’ll do it.” 

“…Huh?”