Chapter 08 Embracing a Darker Path

Arthur couldn't recall who had once said, "The perfect infiltration is to eliminate everyone who sees you."

Well, the exact words might not be the same, but that was inconsequential. What mattered was that Arthur felt like he was moving in that direction.

Bodies lay on the ground, and Arthur sat amidst them. The unshut eyes of the deceased stared fixedly at him.

For a moment, Arthur felt a bit disoriented. Previously, his killings were all done from a distance with a gun. This time, however, he had used his bare hands to suffocate his target… with just one hand, if he remembered correctly.

Yet, this was not the crucial point. What surprised Arthur more was the lack of overwhelming fear within him.

"Could it be that somewhere in my genetic makeup, there lies the potential for a cold-blooded killer?"

Shaking his head, Arthur scrutinized the military uniform of his fallen adversary and then looked at his own attire.

After a brief contemplation, he got up and began stripping off the uniform. While Arthur didn't have much knowledge about the insignias of Hitler's Brigade, it was evident that the fallen soldier held a higher rank than himself, judging by the uniform. The reason? Well, the guy's uniform was just fancier!

Not only was it fancy, but it also bore numerous badges. A higher rank would undoubtedly bring benefits to Arthur. With a different set of clothes, he could effortlessly navigate places that were off-limits to him… provided, of course, that no one recognized him.

Arthur wasn't sure of the fallen soldier's identity, but he had a gut feeling that as long as the person wasn't his target, not everyone in the military camp would recognize him.

And this presented an opportunity!

When Arthur had examined the deployment map earlier, there was one place that had captured his desire.

However, it was evidently inaccessible before. Now, with the fallen soldier's uniform on him…

Stripping off his own attire and donning the fallen soldier's uniform, Arthur mentally commanded, "Disassemble!"

He intended to disassemble the previous set of military clothing he wore. Why military clothing could be disassembled was a mystery, but if something could be disassembled, it should be valuable, right?

The sound of gears rubbing against each other echoed as Arthur waited. Meanwhile, he took out the only remaining two books of Intermediate Rifle Shooting Experience and started to leaf through them.

A plethora of knowledge about rifle usage filled Arthur's mind. Suddenly, his eyes subtly changed. "Is this for real?" he wondered.

Simultaneously, the disassembling machine emitted a deflating sound, and immediately afterward, a prompt appeared before him.

Arthur quickly rubbed his eyes, fearing that something like "Linen Cloth *3" might pop out suddenly.

[Announcement!]

[Equipment Disassembled Successfully!]

[Beginner Military Combat Technique *5]

[Faint and Tattered Battle Soul]

[Disassemble Experience +1]

[Disassembly Complete, Would you like to extract at once?]

The results of the disassembly greatly exceeded Arthur's expectations.

Firstly, he hadn't anticipated that a set of clothing could disassemble into a Fighting Technique.

What kind of logic was this?

Secondly, the unexpected find was the Battle Soul… not just a tattered one this time, but a faint and tattered Battle Soul!

Why does it feel even worse than when I disassembled those rifles before?

Without hesitation, Arthur extracted the items and clapped his hands one by one!

Instantly, some Military Combat Technique skills appeared in Arthur's mind, seamlessly integrating in an instant.

For this, even the well-traveled Arthur couldn't help but exclaim. Although the action of clapping was a bit silly, the effect was indeed immediate and convenient. How convenient!

As for the faint and tattered Battle Soul, after clapping, it was evident that it was not as powerful as the previous enhanced Battle Soul.

But it was better than nothing.

"If every set of military clothing can yield a Battle Soul after disassembly…"

Upon careful consideration, it was truly a terrifying thought! It would mean boundless enhancement possibilities.

"I wonder if there is an endpoint to Battle Soul enhancement?"

This thought was temporarily set aside as Arthur reached for his waist, retrieving a handgun— the one that became the reason why he had to suffocate his previous victim.

[Would you like to Disassemble the 'Walther P38 Pistol'?]

"Yes!"

The sound of gears rubbing against each other resonated again. Simultaneously, footsteps from outside reached Arthur's ears.

Arthur's heart immediately tensed, and without a word, he hid directly at the entrance of the tent. The footsteps drew nearer, and his enhanced hearing easily identified that there was only one person, and their destination seemed to be the tent where Arthur was!

Confirming that it was a single person relieved Arthur, and a hint of killing intent flashed in his slightly reddened eyes! Holding his breath, the footsteps were now right outside the tent.

As soon as the person lifted the tent curtain and before they could see the inside clearly, Arthur grabbed the person's hand, pulled them forward, changed positions behind them, and with his right hand, seized their neck.

"Snap!"

A crisp sound and the recently acquired Beginner Combat Technique was put to use.

Before the person could even comprehend what was happening, their body had already gone limp. A pile of documents in their hands scattered on the ground!

"War makes people cruel. I'm becoming less and less kind."

Arthur paid no attention to the documents, unsure of their purpose, and just reminisced about his lost youth.

After placing the body on the ground, he proceeded to strip the clothing.

Since clothing could be disassembled, why waste it?

[Announcement!]

[Equipment Disassembled Successfully!]

[Beginner Pistol Shooting Experience *6]

[Faintly Glowing Battle Soul]

[Disassemble Experience +1]

[Disassembly Complete, Would you like to extract at once?]

As Arthur began stripping, the previously disassembled P38 pistol had already completed the process. However, what he obtained once again left Arthur slightly stunned— a faintly glowing Battle Soul?

What logic was this based on?

Examining it, a regular Battle Soul emitted a faint white light, while the faintly glowing Battle Soul was almost transparent, yet noticeably brighter than the tattered Battle Soul.

After pondering for a while, unable to grasp any peculiarities, Arthur simply gave it a pat. Instantly, he felt comfortable all over.

"Indeed, this faintly glowing Battle Soul seems to be of a slightly higher level. And… it seems that the Battle Soul of a weapon is considerably higher than that of clothing."

After a brief thought, without further consideration, he continued with his current tasks…

Once this set of clothing was stripped down and disassembled, Arthur obtained six Beginner Military Combat Techniques and a faintly glowing and tattered Battle Soul.

However, the weapon he stripped down did not undergo disassembly; it was the P38 pistol, which he directly holstered at his waist.

Without wasting any more time, coming to this tent was meant for a brief rest, but it turned into two consecutive killings.

Hiding the two bodies under the bed, Arthur suddenly had a thought.

"What would happen if I set a fire…?"

The thought arose, and he already had a fire burning in his heart. It seemed like a good idea.

However, considering the potential adverse consequences, he forcibly suppressed the idea.

Then, he realized he was contemplating both killing and setting fire. Indeed, he had been changed by this war, becoming less kind and pure!

Walking out of the tent full of sorrow and resentment, the entire camp remained quiet.

Apparently, his companions hadn't found any traces of the target, and no one had discovered them.

This was good news!

As time ticked away, Arthur headed toward his most anticipated destination.

(End of this chapter)