"We don't have the equipment to take over a settlement!" The first man immediately complained before adding a weak "sir" at the end of his line.
"What do you want me to say?" Lieutenant Pouille sighed. "HQ has seen an opening after our victory, so we must exploit it. We'll have a briefing early in the morning to come up with a plan."
"Do we even know something about this settlement's defenses?" The first woman asked.
"We can't see anything outside the range of the anti-aircraft gun in the settlement," Lieutenant Pouille shook his head. "HQ needs us to go there and inspect the situation."
"Sir," The second girl called in a pleading tone.
"I can't do anything," Lieutenant Pouille explained. "We have already received orders. Nitis guy, don't act on your own next time."
Khan didn't reply. He showed a calm expression even if he felt slightly pissed. The Lieutenant wanted to blame him for the current situation, but he couldn't see how that was his fault. After all, remaining inside the trench against the tank would have led to a bloody defeat. Khan wouldn't regret saving lives.
Lieutenant Pouille left after shaking his head again. The noise caused by the metal door resounded among the silence of the night and created an awkward atmosphere. The four soldiers lowered their heads, sighed, and muttered faint curses, and Khan hesitated a bit before inspecting them.
"It's not your fault," The first woman said as soon as she noticed the hesitation on Khan's face. "I bet that the Lieutenant is as pissed as all of us. He only has a hard time showing it."
"A very hard time," Khan commented while picking the flask that the second man handed him. "How did he even offend the noble families?"
"I have a theory," The first man announced.
"Here he goes again," The second woman chuckled while throwing her cigarette away.
"It fits perfectly," The first man scoffed before clearing his throat. "Lieutenant Pouille was with someone in the noble families, romantically."
"How can a Lieutenant get so close to the noble families?" Khan asked.
"How did you get in the Niqols' princess pant-," The first man began to voice a question, but the first woman interrupted him by punching his shoulder and glaring at him.
"She wasn't a princess," Khan heaved a helpless sigh, "And the Niqols don't use underwear."
"Wait, really?" The second man immediately asked.
"No, I lied," Khan stated, and the two women laughed at the sight of the men's disappointed expressions.
"You shouldn't play with a man's feelings like this," The first man complained. "My dreams shattered before taking form."
"Forgive them," The first woman shook her head. "They are idiots."
"It's fine," Khan smirked as George and Ilman's faces appeared in his mind. "I'm good among idiots."
The soldiers laughed before passing the flask around and lighting more cigarettes. They spent half an hour exchanging jokes and introducing themselves properly, but they eventually went back inside the moving camp to rest and prepare for the next day. Only Khan remained outside to enjoy the cold breeze that filled the night.
'They seem nice,' Khan found himself thinking once silence fell around him.
The first woman, Delia, had short brown hair and dark eyes. She was as tall as Khan, and her figure appeared quite fit. She was a first-level warrior and mage, and the other soldiers seemed to treat her as the leader of that group.
The first man, Ian, was tall and muscular. He had short black hair and dark eyes, and his uniform featured a single star on his right shoulder. He liked to joke around, but Khan could sense the faint maturity hidden by that behavior.
Faith and Milo were siblings, and they shared a few physical features. They had fair skin and golden hair, but Faith liked to keep it a bit long. Their uniforms didn't feature stars, but Khan could sense that they were both close to becoming first-level warriors.
Khan couldn't understand the reason behind their presence on Ecoruta. The short interaction with the four soldiers had only given him a vague idea of their relationship and character.
Delia and Ian were the oldest of the group, and the two siblings had taken them as leaders to follow on the battlefield. The former were aware of that situation, and they had accepted that role, which naturally made them develop some affection toward their younger companions.
Khan had felt familiar feelings during those interactions, but everything had ended now that he was alone again. It wasn't too late, but he didn't know whether he would get the chance to sleep properly even if he went back to his bed. The sole idea of returning to that cramped dormitory made him lose every desire to rest, so he soon closed his eyes and summoned his mana to begin his usual training schedule.
Mana appeared on his hands before he controlled it to move over his body. Khan increased and reduced the amount of energy used during the training until the alarm on his phone rang.
Khan set another alarm before moving to the exercises that involved the manipulation of mana. He joined his hands and summoned his energy as different thoughts and feelings flowed inside it.
The mana changed color and texture depending on what Khan added. Except for a firm sharpness, the effects were faint and unstable. He was improving every day, but he was still far away from Liiza's level. It would take him many months to become able to use the [Blood Vortex] and add power to the [Blood Shield] on his own, but he didn't fret. Being so close was already incredible.
The alarm rang again, and Khan moved to his physical training. He repeated all the techniques he knew and tried to smoothen those that involved both martial arts. He didn't know how long it usually took to reach the advanced proficiency level, but he felt that only constant training could bring him there.
In the end, Khan sat to dive into the exercises for the Wave spell. He didn't forget Liiza's words, but he couldn't attempt something so dangerous when his ability with mana was still lacking. His idea was to succeed through the human methods and study the chaos element for a while before deciding how to proceed, but that moment didn't want to arrive.
His training with the Wave spell didn't involve any physical exercise. His mind had also grown quite resilient after everything he had overcome. His mana was the only variable, but he didn't seem able to run out of it, so his attempts ended up lasting until a siren resounded in the structure behind him.
The morning had arrived, but Khan didn't manage to appreciate the dawn due to his deep concentration. Still, the siren forced him to interrupt his training and approach the entrance of the moving camp.
A series of sleepy soldiers marching through the corridors appeared in his view. The scene told Khan that the men had already taken their shower, but he also noticed how no one seemed to mind yesterday's deaths.
Khan followed his companions while they gathered inside the dining hall. Lieutenant Pouille was already there, and Khan didn't take long to find Felix and the soldiers from the previous night waving at him. The former was with the three women from yesterday, so he joined Delia and the others.
"Let's plan things out before breakfast arrives," Lieutenant Pouille announced as he placed his phone on an opening in the wall behind him to activate a series of holograms.
"I'm sorry, sir," A woman that Khan couldn't see clearly from his position called. "I don't see the reinforcements from the battalion. We lost quite a few soldiers yesterday."
"There won't be any reinforcements," Lieutenant Pouille stated before putting his hands forward to silence the gasps and voices that had resounded after his words. "The Stal are already moving away weapons and provisions from the settlement. It won't take long before another trench appears, so we don't have time to regroup."
Khan saw disappointment spreading among his companions but no sadness. He noticed a few soldiers lowering their heads to hide their dark expressions, but that was it.
It seemed that Ecoruta didn't leave room for grief and similar feelings. The soldiers had probably grown used to losing companions, or they simply didn't establish deep relationships due to the dangerousness of the battlefield.
'Maybe I can notice these differences because I've grown used to the opposite approach,' Khan guessed in his mind as he continued to study his new environment.
Part of Khan felt glad that his new companions had experience in those aspects, but he inevitably felt out of place. He couldn't be like them. He couldn't throw away everything he had learnt on Nitis.
Lieutenant Pouille resumed his explanation while Khan began to accept that he would probably remain alone on Ecoruta. "Our job is to take control of the settlement and salvage all the resources we can find. We won't be able to deploy any tactic since we don't know much about the area. Our attack will be direct and swift."
The holograms on the wall moved until they took the shape of a simple map. Khan could recognize the two trenches from yesterday, a river deeper into the enemy territory, and a black dot that he guessed marked the Stal settlement.
"Can we even take the Stal by surprise?" Khan asked since the map didn't feature any natural barrier.
"They will notice us as soon as we enter the range of the jammed area," Lieutenant Pouille revealed before tinkering with his phone to activate a hologram that depicted a vehicle that resembled a truck. "A small squad will join me inside the ram to attract the Stal's attention and open a path for the others. Do we have volunteers?"
No one answered. Even Khan remained silent in front of that offer. Lieutenant Pouille was basically asking them to jump blindly into enemy territory and fight until the rest of the platoon arrived. That role was almost suicidal.
"I'm not surprised," Lieutenant Pouille announced before tapping on his phone again. "I took the liberty of forming the team on my own."
A list with seven names appeared next to the truck, and Khan cursed in his mind when he saw "Nitis guy" written among them. It seemed that he had already claimed too much attention in the trenches.
"This isn't a punishment," Lieutenant Pouille exclaimed when he saw the dark expressions on the seven mentioned by the list. "This is a chance to prove your value. The Global Army will make sure to note down your names after this mission."
"If we survive," Delia whispered before immersing her hands in her short hair.
"What is HQ even thinking?" Ian cursed while making sure to keep his voice down.
Delia and Ian's names were on the list, and the same went for Clara. Khan could also find the other three soldiers through a quick inspection of everyone's expressions. Lieutenant Pouille had chosen the oldest and strongest assets for the squad.
"Your luck is awful, my friend," Ian sighed.
"It's fine," Khan dismissed those words. "I'm not good with rifles anyway."
"You should learn," Delia whispered while pointing at the golden-haired girl who had killed the Stal riding the tank. "Gloria always manages to be in the backlines thanks to her good aim. I wish I could also handle rifles as well as her."
The tables opened as trays with the breakfast started to arrive. It seemed that the meeting had ended there, but Lieutenant Pouille summoned the seven who would join him in the mission once everyone finished eating.
The Lieutenant didn't give the group the time to introduce themselves. He led everyone in a seemingly empty area of the moving camp before taking out his phone and making the metal wall in front of him slide open to reveal a relatively small hangar.
The area only contained four vehicles. Khan immediately found the truck shown during the meeting, and he felt slightly disappointed to see its actual size. It was nothing more than a small rectangular structure with spiked wheels and a pointy metal front that featured small windows.
The firm material of the windows was dark, so Khan couldn't inspect its insides, but the Lieutenant quickly unlocked the doors at its sides to reveal eight seats. The truck didn't have anything else.
"Take your position," Lieutenant Pouille ordered. "We should arrive near the settlement in a few minutes."
"How fast is the camp?" Khan asked since the soldier's statement conflicted with the map shown just a few minutes ago.
"Oh, right, you can't possibly know it," Lieutenant Pouille said while pointing at the floor. "We have started to move as soon as everyone gathered in the dining hall. You can't feel it because the Guko's technology is incredible."
****
Author's notes: My grandfather died yesterday, and I spent most of today between the funeral and my family. I don't know how many chapters I'll manage to write, but I'll try to push something on a daily basis. I'll let myself be like this until Monday when I'll resume with the normal schedule.. I'm sorry for the countless issues.