The atmosphere in the camp became increasingly tense.
On one hand, life was truly suffocating. Since the military marketplace had been forcibly closed, soldiers and knights had lost their only place for recreation. They could only stay in their tents all day or be sent out to the battlefield, combating machines that knew neither pain nor the value of life and death.
On the other hand, there were rumors spreading like wildfire. It was said that a knight had been killed by an infiltrating synthetic assassin who then stole his face, and, disguised as the knight, the assassin had killed thirteen comrades before being discovered.
This rumor swiftly sowed panic within the ranks. Although the higher-ranking knights reiterated that it was just a rumor, the Blade Warriors, who were intensely checking everyone at the checkpoints, hinted at a genuine infiltration.
Who could be certain that the comrade they were living with hadn't been silently replaced by a steel monstrosity?
