Should I have brought him along?
Hugo, who had briefly met eyes with Leonardo just before the latter turned away pretending not to notice, tried to refocus on the meeting. But ever since their gazes had met, he found himself distracted by where Leonardo was sitting.
He hadn’t called Leonardo to the meeting today because he figured the other commanders might not look kindly on him after the early morning disturbance. Still, seeing him sitting alone, uncharacteristically subdued, Hugo couldn’t get that expression out of his mind.
Of course, the notion that he looked sullen was only Hugo’s assumption. Even when his tension dropped, Leonardo’s eyes usually remained sharp, or he would wear that laid-back smile of his. But today was neither.
It was absurd, and yet... it looked like he was being pitiful on purpose.
"Commander, what do you think is best?"
Pulled from his thoughts by the company commander's voice, Hugo looked up abruptly.
All the commanders were staring at him, waiting for his answer. Hugo remained silent for a moment, then admitted the lapse with a slight sigh.
“...Sorry. My mind wandered for a moment. What were we discussing?”
The commanders blinked, visibly surprised. Hugo, of all people, was the last person they’d expect to zone out during a meeting—especially since he was usually the first to criticize such behavior.
But since the only person here who could reprimand Hugo was at most Meterion, the company commander who had posed the question quickly replied instead.
“Ah—yes, currently, at coordinates 1402, 109, 2675 in the eastern zone of Elder Millie, under the Southern Branch’s jurisdiction, ruins have been discovered. The geological investigators performed a preliminary check and determined that they’re ancient ruins, estimated to be at least 700 years old. Thanks to volcanic ash, they appear well-preserved, which means they may hold significant historical value.”
“Ancient ruins?”
Hugo furrowed his brows, already feeling a headache coming on. With the tight timeline for monster subjugation, the sudden appearance of historically valuable ruins was unwelcome news. It simply meant one more complication to deal with.
Sensing the Commander’s growing displeasure, the company commander trailed off. This time, the liaison officer from the Southern Branch spoke up, rolling his eyes as if trying to smooth things over.
“Yes, and... we’ve detained a group of grave robbers and archaeologists who hired mercenaries and snuck into the area. They were trying to leave quietly, but couldn’t because our battalions were blocking all escape routes.”
The story was becoming increasingly convoluted, and Hugo’s frown deepened. Eventually, he shut his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, and said,
“...Transfer the detainees to the temporary headquarters near the Fidele Territory gate. As for the ruins...”
He trailed off again, visibly irritated, then let out a short sigh before continuing.
“Mark the ruins clearly as soon as they're located. Only confirm whether there are any intruders or monsters inside—don’t go deeper. Once that’s done, make sure the coordinates are continuously relayed and updated through the liaison officers. But our top priority remains monster subjugation.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Is there anything else that needs to be addressed?”
He looked toward the Southern Branch liaison officers.
“No, nothing further.”
“Then the Southern Branch liaison officers may return to their positions. Central Branch commanders, remain for a moment.”
At Hugo’s order, the liaison officers saluted and left promptly. Only the Central Branch commanders remained, turning their attention back to him.
“Last night, Dermocas appeared near the base camp. And the path we’re taking today falls within their activity zone. With more personnel, the risk of attack decreases—but we’ll be more exposed and slower. So we’ll push hard to reach the second objective point as fast as possible, then split into company-scale units and proceed from there.”
“Yes, understood!”
“Hold on a second.”
As the responses echoed in unison, Meterion cut in. Hugo raised an eyebrow, clearly asking what it was this time.
With all eyes now on him, Meterion continued,
“Shouldn’t you explain the cause of the disturbance this morning?”
It was a pointed question—clearly designed to force Hugo to admit Leonardo’s mistake himself. Hugo stared at him, eyes darkening. But even though no one spoke up in agreement, the other commanders were plainly curious.
With all those eyes on him, Hugo had no choice but to respond.
“The landslide this morning was caused by Leonardo Blaine. He experienced instability in his mana control while attacking the Dermocas on the opposite peak.”
At this, one of the company commanders—who had clearly been waiting for this—spoke carefully after watching the others’ reactions.
“Then... shouldn’t the handcuffs be put back on?”
The table fell silent.
Without saying anything, it was obvious that nearly half of the commanders were in agreement. Hugo didn’t reply right away.
Another company commander added,
“And leaving him in charge of the rear guard doesn’t seem wise, either.”
All the voices raising objections belonged to company commanders under the 3rd Battalion—under Meterion Clinder. As they nudged the mood toward restraining Leonardo again, Delua, who had been her usual cheerful self until now, suddenly spoke up with seriousness.
“It was Leonardo Blaine who single-handedly handled the Drocs and Sigals when they attacked the rear of the Central Branch. He’s fulfilling the role of rear escort more reliably than anyone else. The members of the 6th Battalion were protected thanks to him. So there’s no reason to put the cuffs back on.”
Delua’s resolute voice brought silence again. Hugo looked at her quietly, then nodded in support.
“Battalion Commander Rivera is right. While his mana control has shown instability, his contributions to the safety and speed of the march have been undeniable. Restraining him now would only make things worse. We’ll keep monitoring the situation, but for today, there will be no change in his treatment.”
Hugo quickly concluded the matter, using Delua’s firsthand testimony as justification. Normally, such decisions would follow the majority view—but he firmly believed that reapplying restraints would do more harm than good.
As the Commander finalized the decision, none of the others voiced dissent. The meeting ended, and the commanders were dismissed to prepare for departure.
Before Delua could return to her position at the rear, Hugo stopped her quietly.
“Delua. Keep a close eye on Leonardo’s mana control. If anything seems off, report to me immediately.”
Delua answered with her usual bright smile, full of confidence.
“Yes, understood!”
****
As soon as the base camp was reorganized, the march resumed swiftly.
Along the way to the target zone, the procession encountered three groups of monsters. The Dermocas they had seen earlier that morning didn’t show up again—likely driven off by Leonardo’s earlier attack—but during the last encounter, the monster numbers were so large that more than half the procession had to engage in combat.
While defending the rear, Leonardo stuck to close-range attacks as much as possible. He wasn’t confident in the results of using long-range spells—still wary of the output and his unstable control.
Just like how hands feel awkward and shaky after releasing a heavy load held for too long, that lingering instability hadn’t gone away.
Because of this, Leonardo’s mood remained grim all day. Delua, keeping a close watch on him, continued to praise him exaggeratedly, saying she couldn’t produce that level of mana even if she tried.
Realizing she was trying to comfort him, Leonardo smiled faintly, doing his best not to show his gloom.
After fending off the threats, the procession passed by two more bone graveyards. As they did, Leonardo could feel the tension among the members spike again.
He paused, picked up a fragment of bone, and examined it carefully. Yesterday, after dealing with the Sigals, he had only caught a brief glimpse of the area while hurrying to catch up. But now that he could see it up close, he noticed something.
The surface of the bone fragments was coated with a dried substance, and deep scratches covered them—not slashes from blades, but markings like something sharp had repeatedly scraped them.
And it wasn’t just one or two bones—every fragment was the same. As if they had been ripped apart and gnawed on.
Putting the fragment back down, he rejoined the rear. From that point on, the sunken trail near the graveyard turned steep—as though they were climbing a mountain.
The terrain was now physically demanding, and the pace slowed dramatically. Worse still, the path had turned soft and muddy. The cave interior was becoming humid as the ground soaked in moisture. Leonardo found it hard to breathe.
Even so, he continued walking in silence—until something made him turn around.
There was nothing on the dark trail behind them, but narrowing his eyes, Leonardo stopped and stared.
He had felt something. A faint sense of unease.
He turned his head and called out to Delua, who was slightly ahead.
“Battalion Commander Rivera.”
“Huh? Did you just call me?”
It seemed to be the first time she’d heard him address her properly—with her title, no less. Delua turned toward him with a surprised smile. Leonardo jerked his chin toward the path behind him.
“Someone’s tailing us.”
Delua glanced back into the dark part of the cave and gave a small nod.
“I felt it too.”
When Leonardo gave her a look, clearly asking why she hadn’t acted, Delua added with a bright smile,
“The ground ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) here is far weaker than before. If a battle breaks out now, the terrain might collapse. Unless something forces our hand, it’s better to leave it alone.”
As someone who manipulated inanimate materials, she likely had an acute sense for soil quality. Leonardo also sensed that the ground was too soft and unstable, so he silently agreed with her judgment.
Just then, static crackled from Delua’s radio—and Hugo’s voice came through.
—Battalion Commander Rivera, Deputy Commander Diaz to the front.
Delua replied quickly.
“Yes, understood.”
Then she turned to Leonardo and said with a smile,
“I’ll be back soon.”
Leonardo gave a small nod in response. As Delua headed to the front with Marlen, Leonardo watched their backs, then folded his arms and turned his gaze back to the rear of the cave.
