Compared to the destruction of corruption, even battling a Rank 7 could be considered child's play.

Markus leaned back in his chair, the shadows from the lamp casting deep lines across his weathered face. 'Three years…' he thought. Three long years since the corruption first appeared in their world. Three years of desperate battles, of containment and sacrifice. And in all that time, despite their strongest efforts, despite deploying their Rank 9 legends… not once had they succeeded in destroying it.

And yet this boy,

Markus's eyes shifted to Leon, limp on Racheal's back, his pale skin faintly glowing with the eerie stillness of unconsciousness.

'This boy was able to do what even Rank 9s could not.'

That single truth pressed against the commander's mind like a weight that threatened to unseat the foundations of the empire itself. It meant the youth before him was no longer just a prodigy, nor an anomaly. He was the most important person in the world, not only to the Arman Empire, but to the other domains as well.

"You did good, Lieutenant," Markus finally said aloud, his tone clipped but sincere.

Lancelot straightened, a flicker of pride slipping through his usual rigid demeanor. Praise from the commander was rarer than gold.

"Luckily, you were able to bring him back without any injuries," Markus continued. His sharp eyes scanned Leon's body, finding no visible wounds. The boy's void-spawned blood had already healed what had been there. To the commander, Leon looked whole and untouched.

But then,

"Yes, Commander," Lancelot said, his voice swelling with self-satisfaction. "This boy is a feisty one. Even the hole in his chest was healed."

Markus's gaze sharpened. One brow lifted slowly, dangerously. "…Hole?"

The signal was clear, yet Lancelot missed it entirely, still buoyed by the commander's earlier words.

"Yes, Commander. I was trying to take him back to base, but he retaliated. I may have… used a little force." He chuckled nervously. "And accidentally made a hole in his chest."

The temperature in the office plummeted. The air itself seemed to hold its breath.

"You… did what?"

The voice was not loud, yet it cracked through the chamber like thunder.

Lancelot's military instincts snapped into place before his brain could. "I made a hole in his chest, sir!"

The words left his mouth, and he regretted them instantly.

The punch came. It was slow, so slow he could see the old man's arm moving. Yet it was paradoxically fast, impossibly so, striking him before the thought of dodging could even form.

The fist collided with his face.

Bone crunched. His body flew. Lancelot was sent crashing through the office wall in a shower of splinters and stone.

Racheal froze, eyes wide, her lips parting but no sound coming out. She could not even shape an expression that matched the scene before her.

Samuel, who had been eavesdropping just beyond the door, felt his entire body lock up. His smirk, his irreverence, all gone. He stood rooted, stunned, as if the commander's aura alone had shackled him.

Markus, however, did not spare Samuel a glance. His gaze was fixed on the broken wall where Lancelot lay in a heap.

"Why…" Markus's voice carried the weight of the empire, cold and heavy. "…did you do something so foolish?"

****

Markus had assumed, even hoped, that Lancelot had only knocked the boy out to bring him back. That would have been acceptable. Even merciful. At least then the actions of the Imperial Guard could be framed as benevolent restraint: a simple incapacitation after the boy had wounded a high-ranking officer. But now…

Now he learned the lieutenant had tried to kill him.

Markus's jaw tightened. The boy who had destroyed corruption, who carried the weight of the future in his hands, had been nearly snuffed out by one of their own. Any chance of forging an alliance with him would now be a thousand times more difficult. Trust, once broken, was not so easily rebuilt.

'I blame myself,' Markus thought bitterly. Lancelot had always been rule-bound, a soldier carved from duty and rigidity. But in a world that demanded adaptability, that same rigidity had become a flaw. A dangerous one. 'I should have trained him better.'

He exhaled slowly, shaking his head before turning toward the other man in the room.

"Samuel. Take him to the infirmary."

The other lieutenant straightened at once, a sharp salute snapping through the air. "Yes, Commander."

He moved to the rubble where Lancelot lay slumped, hauling the unconscious officer up without ceremony. The truth was plain: it hadn't been Markus's punch that rendered him unconscious. That wound in his chest had been eating at him since his return, and only his sheer stubborn will had kept him upright. The commander's strike had only broken his concentration, tipping him into the darkness.

As Samuel carried him off, he muttered under his breath, "I told you not to annoy the commander." His smirk was faint, but his eyes were sharp as he turned toward the infirmary.

Meanwhile, Markus returned to his desk, every movement composed and precise. The great oak creaked softly as he sat, the office walls already knitting themselves back together as if time itself had been reversed. To Racheal, it was astonishing. To Markus, it was ordinary. He'd seen it countless times before.

He folded his hands over the desk, his gaze lifting to meet hers. The presence of authority still pressed from him, though his expression softened into something controlled, almost diplomatic.

"I am sorry I haven't introduced myself," he said, his voice steady and unshaken, as though he had not just sent a Rank 7 powerhouse crashing through a wall. "I am Commander Markus of the Imperial Guard."

His eyes lingered on her, expectant.

Racheal shifted Leon carefully on her back, understanding what was required. "I am Racheal Morningstar."

She hesitated only briefly before inclining her head, her voice steady despite her exhaustion. "And this—" she adjusted the unconscious boy slightly, her tone carrying weight even as she said his name— "is Leon Kael."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.