American comics: From Hogwarts to God on Earth

Rune landed from the air, glanced back, and was surprised to find that the soldier who had just thrown his hat was the private who had been the first to step forward.

"Need any help?" The officer opposite him chuckled. He was tall and handsome, but his eyes held a sinister glint, and he always glanced at people sideways, a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth as if he could unleash a mocking smile at any moment. Seeing a boy step forward, he couldn't help but laugh until his stomach hurt.

Yes, he fell from the sky, so what? Could such a little brat really kill him in front of heavily armed troops? If wizards are all that powerful, then how come they're all prisoners?

Everyone present watched him laugh silently, but the feelings on both sides were completely different. The private and the soldiers behind him breathed a sigh of relief; they not only knew Rune's strength but also who he was. However, the soldiers on the other side were somewhat nervous—many of them were fighting a wizard for the first time, especially a junior wizard, so they inevitably felt some pressure.

After the officer finished laughing, he waved his hand, and the soldiers behind him raised their guns, aiming them at their nominal comrades. But the officer looked around and frowned.

"Aim at that little wizard!" the officer shouted. His idea was simple: to establish his authority in front of everyone. Actually, the order from above wasn't to kill him to silence him, but he believed that since these soldiers could surrender once, they could surrender a second time. And since they couldn't be discharged like normal soldiers, the only option was to kill them to silence them.

However, this officer actually admired the private who had first cursed him. He'd seen plenty of people like that—stupid and clueless. A little favor afterwards would make them incredibly grateful, and they might even take a bullet for him. That kind of person was worth keeping.

However, the officer did not expect that his order would cause a stir. The inhumane people were the upper echelons, led by the officer. They distorted each specific life into an abstract number, without realizing that behind each life were one or even several families.

And what about these ordinary soldiers? At home, they might be good sons and grandsons; now, in the most powerful nation, they enjoy the highest standards of living in the world. An ancient Eastern proverb says, "When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know honor and shame." Therefore, in the 1990s, these ordinary soldiers might be among the most morally upright people. Coincidentally, the few who could rival them were precisely the soldiers of that ancient Eastern nation.

So when the officer ordered them to target the runes, they began to question the order, which they had been given to deal with rebels, not children.

Rune nodded.

"Because of your doubts, I will only kill this officer," he said in a low voice, but with the aid of magic, Rune's voice still reached everyone's ears. "You can shoot me now."

A voice came from the other side, and the soldier shouted, "We're equipped with M16A2 automatic rifles, firing 5.56×45mm SS109/M855 caliber rounds, with a muzzle velocity of 945 m/s and a muzzle energy of 1765 joules. Kid, do you know what that means?"

This means that if an M193 round fired from an M16A1 hits a human body at a distance of 30-100 meters, it will cause extremely serious trauma. For example, the cavity effect caused by the high-speed bullet can lead to explosions in the chest or abdominal cavity, tearing of limbs, etc. At the same time, the lead core in the bullet will also disperse, forming multiple fragments that move at high speed in the human body, causing extensive tissue damage.

Simply put, if an ordinary soldier is hit by this gun even once, he will lose his basic combat ability.

"Shoot now! Otherwise, you'll be facing a court-martial!" the officer shouted, his already narrow eyes narrowing even further, his gaze filled with malice, his face contorted with rage. He gritted his teeth, his fists clenched so tightly that veins bulged and knuckles turned white from the force, as if he were about to rush forward and tear Rune to shreds at any moment.

Snapped!

Someone, unable to withstand the pressure from their superior, fired at Rune. The soldiers behind Rune were so frightened that they immediately dropped to the ground. They weren't afraid Rune would be killed by bullets, but rather afraid of being hit by stray bullets.

After the first shot, everyone quickly pulled the trigger. With each shot, brass-colored cartridge cases were ejected, tracing graceful arcs before landing on the ground with a crisp clinking sound. Soon, everyone present had emptied their magazines of thirty rounds, and spent cartridge cases were piled up at their feet.

The smoke from the firing quickly spread, forming a grayish-white cloud. This smoke slowly diffused in the air, obscuring the soldiers' vision. They skillfully reloaded their magazines, but many were reluctant to look ahead, fearing they might see a mangled corpse.

However, a familiar figure quickly emerged from the smoke. The soldiers stood rooted to the spot, their faces filled with shock and disbelief. Their eyes were vacant and blank, their bodies stiff, many still frozen in the position they had just been in after loading their weapons.

Rune opened his palm and threw the thumb-sized bullets onto the ground. The crisp sound woke the officer like an alarm clock.

The officer's previously grim face was instantly filled with complex emotions—anger, fear, and disbelief intertwined. He began to break down, shouting "This can't be!" His hysterical outburst made him appear both ferocious and vulnerable, like a pitiful creature toyed with by fate. He couldn't accept the reality before him.

He knew the level of those wizards; three rifles were more than enough to break through their armor spells and kill them outright. Even with multiple protective spells, they shouldn't have survived the crossfire of dozens of rifles! They certainly shouldn't have had the strength to collect the bullets!

This should never have happened!

"Who exactly are you?" The officer snatched the gun from the soldier beside him and aimed it at Rune. It was clear that he wasn't just someone who held a position without doing any real work and was merely there to gain experience; his aiming posture was quite standard.

"Who am I?" Rune tilted his head. "Who I am isn't important. What's important is who I want to kill, isn't it?"

"No! You're not human, you're not human! You're a demon, a demon!" With his hysterical roar, the rifle swiftly emptied its magazine. This time the smoke was less dense, allowing everyone to clearly see Rune's method of deflecting the bullets—his hands, with an imperceptible speed, caught the bullets fired from the rifle!