The Duke's Worthless Daughter Awakens an SSS+ Guide Core

The simulated city remained entirely shrouded in deep darkness as the regional power outage continued to spread across the digital battlefield. Entire residential and commercial districts vanished beneath the artificial blackout, plunging the urban grid into an ink-black void.

Only the faint emergency lights inside critical infrastructure structures flickered sporadically, illuminating isolated pockets of the ruined metropolis below. On Merianah’s command terminal, the steady blue markers representing her platoon advanced through the underground drainage canal without a single deviation.

Not a single civilian had fallen behind during the frantic transit, and not a single soldier had been lost to the environmental hazards. The extraction convoy maintained its highly disciplined formation, navigating the damp tunnels while utter confusion unfolded on the surface streets directly above them.

Meanwhile, the enemy mechanized battalions scattered throughout the western sector hesitated in place as fragmented command packets failed to reach their intended destinations.

Some patrols continued following outdated patrol orders in endless loops, while other heavy units remained completely stationary, unable to determine where the civilian convoy had vanished. The disabled communication grid had successfully stripped the machines of their tactical synchronization, leaving them isolated and blind.

The advanced artificial intelligence governing the opposing army attempted to recover from the massive systemic shock. A new, high-priority alert flashed across Merianah’s console, its crimson text reflecting in her calm eyes.

[System Update: Enemy Command AI Recalculating Operational Priorities.]

[Attempting Alternative Pursuit Algorithms.]

[Decentralizing Unit Networks.]

Merianah’s expression remained entirely tranquil as she watched the enemy profiles update.

"As expected of an advanced tactical program," she murmured softly to herself, adjusting the scanner parameters.

The academy simulation refused to surrender simply because its initial strategy had failed so spectacularly, and it was engineered to push candidates to their absolute limits. A competent commander always adapted to changing circumstances, and she knew that a competent enemy would do the exact same.

Seconds later, fresh crimson markers began to materialize on the eastern side of the digital battlefield, moving far outside the standard patrol grids. Unlike the heavily armored mechanized divisions that relied on heavy treads, these new units moved considerably faster across the broken terrain.

They were light reconnaissance drones, built for rapid scanning and independent navigation.

"They have completely abandoned centralized coordination to bypass the blackout," she analyzed quietly, watching the red dots scatter. "They are searching independently now, relying on local programming."

The nimble drones spread outward in an expanding geometric pattern, attempting to rediscover the missing civilian convoy through direct visual surveillance instead of shared communication relays.

Inside the elevated command center, several veteran observers leaned forward against the safety glass, their attention locked onto her display.

"The AI switched operational doctrines in response to the power failure," one tactical analyst muttered, quickly typing notes into his tablet.

"It willingly sacrificed overall organization for maximum local flexibility."

Colonel Serena nodded slowly, her eyes tracking the rapid movement of the electronic drones.

"Exactly," she agreed, her voice filled with professional appreciation for the program’s reactivity.

"The enemy commander recognized that rebuilding the central communications hub would take far too long under these conditions."

"So it decentralized its command structure to flood the sectors with independent eyes."

She watched Merianah’s profile carefully, eager to see how the young woman would counter this fluid threat.

"Now let us see how Candidate Twenty-Seven handles an opponent capable of learning from its mistakes," she whispered.

Below on the testing floor, the blue convoy continued moving at a steady pace through the dark drainage canal. Merianah zoomed out from the immediate vicinity of her platoon, expanding her view to encompass the entire battlefield once again.

While most candidates focused only on nearby enemies, she preferred observing the complete operational landscape to predict future movements. Her eyes followed the trajectory of every active reconnaissance drone sweeping the upper grid.

Each machine maintained a fixed distance from its neighbors while systematically sweeping its assigned sector. Their search pattern was highly organized, methodical, and entirely predictable based on basic programming logic.

A faint, knowing smile crossed her lips as she identified the fatal flaw in their automated behavior.

"They are strictly following a pre-calculated grid search," she noted to herself, her mind forming a counter-strategy.

Instead of issuing immediate defensive orders to her infantry, she quietly examined the schematics of the abandoned industrial district once more. Hundreds of inactive maintenance beacons dotted the underground infrastructure layers, completely ignored by the previous candidates.

She opened another complex engineering submenu, overriding the standard military interface to access the city’s old civic controls. Nearby candidates glanced toward her terminal, their faces twisted in deep confusion.

"What is she even doing at this stage of the test?" one noble whispered, looking at her complex menu screens.

"She is still changing civilian infrastructure settings while the drones are closing in on her sector," another applicant remarked, convinced she was wasting time.

"Doesn’t she realize the automated drones are already searching the area?"

Merianah ignored their murmurs completely, her focus entirely consumed by the technical data streaming down her screen. She selected an overlooked maintenance protocol nested deep within the city’s emergency operating system.

[Subsystem: Emergency Beacon Diagnostics.]

[Status: Inactive.]

[Ready for Mass Calibration.]

The interface displayed dozens of inactive emergency transmitters scattered throughout the ruined warehouses and alleyways of the city. Originally, these low-power devices existed to guide rescue workers toward trapped citizens during major industrial disasters.

She activated every single beacon inside the western industrial sector simultaneously, sending a massive surge of false data into the atmosphere. Instantly, the dark city came alive with artificial emergency activity.

Hundreds of old emergency distress signals erupted across the abandoned industrial district, lighting up the radar screens of the enemy forces. Bright, flashing strobe lights illuminated the ruined facades of the empty buildings, creating a chaotic display of visual noise.

The emergency transmitters began broadcasting automated civilian evacuation codes on multiple frequencies, mimicking a massive refugee movement. To the decentralized enemy AI, it appeared as though dozens of survivors had suddenly revealed their locations in a desperate bid for rescue.

Across the changing battlefield, every single reconnaissance drone abruptly changed its direction of travel, pivoting toward the new signals. The organized search formation collapsed completely as the independent programming took the bait.

One after another, the fast-moving drones accelerated toward the false distress signals, completely abandoning their previous search grids. While the machines swarmed the empty industrial park, the real civilian convoy continued moving completely unnoticed beneath their feet.

Inside the quiet command center, a heavy silence filled the observation deck as the analysts processed her maneuver.

"She successfully created a network of phantom decoys," a young instructor whispered, his eyes wide with astonishment.

"No, that is not quite accurate," Serena responded, a rare, genuine smile gracing her lips. "She weaponized the enemy’s own core rescue protocols against their tactical programming."

The tactical analysts rapidly reviewed the simulation logs to verify the validity of her actions within the rules of the academy.

"The emergency beacons were never intended to be used as military tools within this scenario file," one technician reported.

"They are strictly classified as civilian infrastructure, yet she completely repurposed them."

Another senior officer shook his head in absolute disbelief, staring at the pristine status bars on her monitor.

"She managed to completely manipulate the enemy’s movements without firing a single piece of ammunition," he breathed.

On the arena floor, the final extraction marker slowly came into view on Merianah’s primary screen. The narrow drainage canal finally opened into a secluded, heavily forested valley located well beyond the city’s southern perimeter.

Waiting patiently within the clearing was the designated heavy evacuation transport, its engines idling quietly in the virtual morning air. Merianah calmly watched the convoy approach the ramp, her expression remaining perfectly level.

No unnecessary celebration crossed her face as the markers began to transition into the safety zone. She knew that a mission was never truly complete until the final person had safely boarded the vessel.

One after another, the bright green civilian markers entered the transport zone, flashing as they were safely logged into the database. Exactly thirty-two survivors were registered by the system, followed immediately by the extraction of her infantry detachment.

Thirty-eight soldiers entered the craft, leaving the casualty counter sitting at an absolute zero. A brilliant green notification suddenly erupted across her screen, accompanied by a triumphant electronic chime.

[Primary Mission Completed Successfully.]

[All Civilians Successfully Evacuated.]

[Friendly Casualties Registered: 0.]

[Final Mission Evaluation in Progress.]

For several long, tense seconds, the massive simulation remained completely silent as the computer calculated her final score. Then, the entire holographic battlefield dissolved into countless sparkling particles of digital light.

The ruined city vanished from sight, and the complex holographic terrain faded into the metallic floor plates of the room. Merianah stood entirely alone once more inside her designated examination arena, the cool air hitting her face.

All around her, dozens of exhausted candidates stared numbly at the red failure notices still hovering above their respective terminals. Some lowered their heads in deep defeat, their shoulders trembling from the immense psychological strain of the test.

Others remained completely frozen in place, utterly unable to understand how the simulation had defeated their conventional tactics so thoroughly. Merianah quietly exhaled a slow breath, stepping back from the control panel with an air of absolute calm.

She knew that real wars were never won simply by possessing the strongest or most aggressive soldiers on the field. True victories were won by bringing the greatest number of people home alive through intelligence and care.

That fundamental principle, far more than any glorious victory in battle, remained the true responsibility of a commander.