Soulbound: Dual Cultivation

Chapter 518: Selecting his team

Lucas did not linger after leaving the princess. The moment he separated from her, the brief exchange was compartmentalized in his mind and set aside, replaced almost immediately by the structure of the mission ahead.

He moved through the encampment with purpose, cutting through familiar routes until he reached the designated tent for his squad. Inside, the atmosphere was quieter, more functional, the kind of space where decisions were made without ceremony.

Damian and Bartho were already present, going over minor equipment checks and discussing when Lucas entered.

Both of them looked up immediately.

"Captain," Damian said first, straightening slightly.

Bartho followed with a small nod, waiting.

Lucas did not waste time with preliminaries. He stepped fully inside and closed the space behind him, his expression calm but focused.

"I’ve been assigned a mission," he said.

That alone made both of them attentive.

Damian frowned slightly. "Another operation so soon."

Lucas nodded once. "It’s not part of the main force."

Bartho exchanged a brief glance with Damian, sensing the shift in tone.

Lucas continued, "It’s a covert extraction mission. Deep infiltration. High risk."

A brief silence followed as the weight of that settled in.

Then he added, "I intend to bring both of you with me."

That changed the atmosphere immediately.

Damian straightened fully now. "Where are we going."

Lucas looked at him directly. "Rus."

Bartho let out a quiet breath, not of disbelief, but of understanding at the implication. "The fallen kingdom."

"Yes," Lucas replied.

Damian crossed his arms slightly, thinking quickly. "Objective."

"Extraction," Lucas said. "You’re aware the emperor is still alive. He is being held in the dungeons of his own capital."

Bartho’s expression tightened slightly. "Inside enemy control."

Lucas nodded. "We go in, retrieve him, and get him out before they realize what has happened."

Damian studied Lucas for a moment. "And resistance."

"Expected," Lucas replied. "But not prolonged. We cannot afford drawn-out engagement."

Bartho leaned back slightly, processing the scale of it. "This is not a raid," he said quietly. "This is penetration into the heart of a enemy’s nest."

"Yes," Lucas said simply.

A short silence followed as both men absorbed the reality of what they had just been told.

Then Damian spoke again. "You are certain we are the ones you want for this."

Lucas did not hesitate. "Yes."

That answer was final.

Bartho exhaled slowly, then nodded once. "Then we are in."

Damian followed shortly after. "If you are leading it, we follow."

Lucas gave a small, acknowledging nod.

"Prepare yourselves," he said. "We will move when the king commands it."

Neither of them asked further questions at that moment.

Lucas stood for a moment after finishing the briefing, his thoughts already moving beyond the immediate agreement of Damian and Bartho. The mission itself was clear, but clarity of objective did not remove the most dangerous variable, the path to it.

Rus was not simply another fallen kingdom.

It was layered, fractured, and unfamiliar territory under usurper control. Even with infiltration skill, moving through its inner regions without knowledge would be a risk he could not afford.

His gaze sharpened slightly as the conclusion formed.

He turned back toward Damian.

"Go," Lucas said.

Damian blinked once. "Go where."

Lucas did not hesitate. "Find Vorde."

Bartho’s brow lifted slightly at the name, while Damian immediately straightened in recognition.

Lucas continued, his tone steady and certain. "Bring him here. Now."

Damian did not question further. If Lucas had made the call so decisively, there was a reason behind it.

"Understood," he said.

He turned immediately and left the tent.

Bartho watched him go, then glanced back at Lucas. "You think he is the key for navigation."

Lucas nodded slightly. "He has moved through multiple kingdoms under different conditions. He understands borders, shifts in control, and how kingdoms fall into unfamiliar hands."

Bartho crossed his arms lightly. "A seasoned cultivator."

"Yes," Lucas said. "And more importantly, adaptable."

Bartho gave a short nod, accepting that logic without resistance.

Inside Lucas’s mind, the structure of the mission began to adjust again.

Rus was no longer just a destination.

It was a layered territory with unknown control points, shifting loyalties, and possible surveillance patterns shaped by the usurpers. Without someone who had actually traversed such environments, even a perfect infiltration plan risked collapse the moment they crossed the outer threshold.

Vorde was not a luxury addition.

He was a stabilizing variable.

A few minutes passed in relative silence before movement outside signaled Damian’s return.

He entered with purpose, and behind him walked a man who carried himself with quiet confidence. Vorde’s presence was not loud, but it filled the space in a different way, the presence of someone who had seen enough worlds, borders, and conflicts to understand when something serious was being asked of him.

His gaze shifted from Damian to Lucas.

"You sent for me," Vorde said calmly.

Lucas met his eyes directly.

"Yes," he replied.

A brief pause followed.

Then Lucas spoke again, his tone precise.

"I have a mission. We are entering Rus to extract the emperor. You will help us navigate it."

Vorde did not react immediately.

He simply studied Lucas for a moment longer, as if measuring the weight of what had been said.

Then he gave a small, knowing exhale.

"Rus," he repeated quietly.

A faint pause.

"I see."

He looked back at Lucas.

"You are asking for guidance," Vorde said. "You are asking for survival inside a collapsing structure."

Lucas did not deny it.

Vorde nodded once.

"Then I will come," he said. And just like that, another piece of the operation locked into place.

"There is more," Lucas said.

All three of them looked at him.

"Two operatives from Blackmare will be joining us," he continued. "They are being sent specifically for this mission."

Bartho raised a slight brow. "Selected by Blackmare itself."

"Yes," Lucas replied.

Vorde’s expression remained calm, though his attention sharpened. "So we are not the only outside element."

Lucas shook his head once. "No. They will integrate with us once they arrive."

Damian leaned slightly forward. "Do we know anything about them."

"Only that they are suited for infiltration work," Lucas said. "Beyond that, I will assess them when they arrive."

A brief silence followed as the implication settled.

Vorde spoke first. "Trust will be the first problem."

Lucas nodded lightly. "It always is."

Bartho crossed his arms. "So we are expanding the team before we even begin the mission."

"Yes," Lucas said. "Because the scope requires it."

He paused briefly, then added with quiet certainty, "Rus is not a place we can enter with limited familiarity and expect clean movement. We will need coordination, coverage, and flexibility across multiple entry points."

Damian nodded slowly, already following the structure forming in Lucas’s mind. "And you intend to brief everyone together once they arrive."

"Yes," Lucas confirmed. "Once all members are present, I will give the full plan. Entry route, division of roles, fallback paths, and extraction contingencies."

Vorde studied him for a moment longer. "You have already mapped it."

Lucas did not deny it.

Bartho let out a small breath. "You think ahead too far for someone your age."

Lucas glanced at him briefly. "Thinking ahead is the only reason missions like this succeed."

That ended the discussion for a moment.

Outside the tent, the encampment continued its usual motion, unaware of how many threads were now quietly converging into a single operation.

Damian finally straightened. "So we wait."

Lucas nodded once. "We wait."

But even as he said it, his mind was already moving past the waiting phase, assembling variables, imagining terrain he had not yet seen, and preparing for the moment when all pieces would finally be placed on the board.