Chapter 440: Chapter 440: Reporting

「The next morning.」

Long Ming lay on his bed, scrolling through the Civilization forums of the Starlight Sea.

The situation with the Second Expeditionary Army wasn’t exactly peaceful, as the Insect Race’s forces were continuously assaulting the front lines.

However, the Second Legion had come down hard, aggressively dispatching numerous fleets to the front right as the war began. Consequently, their situation was much better than that of the Third Expeditionary Army.

BUZZ—

Just then, Long Ming’s wristband vibrated.

"I’m waiting for you at the Star Alliance Military Department administration hall in District A8. Get over here now!"

After reading the message that popped up, Long Ming got up and left his room.

...

「Half an hour later.」

Long Ming arrived at the administration hall via a moving platform.

The massive hall spanned more than a hundred thousand square meters, its periphery lined with a series of open-plan service windows.

The place was bustling with officers and soldiers attending to business, creating a lively atmosphere.

"Who’s that? He’s not wearing a uniform, just running around in his gear."

"No idea."

...

At that moment, the gazes of many officers and soldiers were drawn to Long Ming.

"Over here!"

A gruff voice called out.

Long Ming turned his head toward the sound.

He saw Colonel Hopka, Fakadon, Antilo, and the others standing nearby and walked over to them.

"Let’s go. Meritorious service claims are on the second floor."

Hopka led Long Ming toward the stairs.

"Right," Long Ming grunted in acknowledgment.

Soon, they arrived at the second-floor hall.

There were many people waiting here as well, and numerous non-commissioned officers were excitedly discussing among themselves.

"How many merit points are you getting this time?"

"Not many, just twenty!"

"That’s great!"

"It’s so-so. I had to put my life on the line for them, after all."

...

Long Ming’s gaze swept over the NCOs around them.

These NCOs filing claims weren’t just from the Second Legion; there were several from other legions as well.

It was easy to tell people from different legions apart when they were gathered together.

"Officer!"

Along the way, officer after officer saw Hopka and respectfully made way for him.

Hopka gave them a slight nod.

"I didn’t expect you to be so well-respected," Long Ming remarked to Hopka with interest.

"Hmph. If you hadn’t messed things up for me, you little brat, I’d be making my push for Major General by now," Hopka retorted irritably.

"Heh."

Long Ming couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

Hopka snorted and continued to lead them forward.

At the very front of the hall was an auditing office.

Two soldiers in exoskeletal armor stood guard at the entrance to the office.

A long line of NCOs snaked out from the entrance as they waited to submit their claim documents.

"With so many people, how long are we going to have to wait?" Antilo asked, his brow furrowed.

"Hmph. Who says we’re waiting in line?"

Hopka led Long Ming and the others straight past the line to the entrance of the auditing office.

The soldiers on guard saluted Hopka.

"Officer Hopka!"

Hopka nodded and led Long Ming’s group straight into the auditing office.

The inside of the office was spacious, filled with auditing stations.

Personnel in blue-striped work uniforms were busy auditing documents.

The Star Alliance’s system for meritorious service was extremely strict. All claims also had to be verified by the Civilization Paradise system, so the submitted documents had to be meticulously checked. If a claim was rejected, resubmitting it would be a major hassle.

Hopka handed out the prepared claim forms to Long Ming and the others.

"Take your merit reports. Each of you find an auditor and cut in line to get it processed!"

"Right."

Long Ming and the others took the forms.

They immediately split up and headed for different stations.

Long Ming walked up to a bald, middle-aged man with deep-set eyes, handed over his claim form, and said...

"Claim."

"Alright!"

A slightly surprised expression appeared on Zhou Xiaokang’s face, but he reached out and took the form nonetheless.

Anyone who could just walk into the auditing office was usually someone of importance.

However, after looking at the claim form, Zhou Xiaokang opened Long Ming’s file. An astonished look immediately crossed his face. He kept looking up at Long Ming, then back down at the form and the file.

"Is there a problem?" Long Ming asked, looking at Zhou Xiaokang with some confusion.

"Sir, why is all your personal information on here blank? There’s only a name, and the photo just shows you in your gear. How did you even manage to get through your enlistment procedures?"

Zhou Xiaokang was completely bewildered.

"Just like that. Is there a problem?" Long Ming asked calmly, looking at Zhou Xiaokang.

"No problem at all."

’Okay, I get it,’ Zhou Xiaokang thought. ’This guy must have serious connections. Who else would dare to do things this way?’

Zhou Xiaokang’s demeanor immediately became enthusiastic as he addressed Long Ming.

"Red Ghost Officer, please have a seat. I’ll process this for you right away."

"Mm. How many merit points can I claim this time?"

"This time, your merit points total a full 800!"

"Is 800 a lot or a little?"

"A huge amount! I’ve been an auditor here for many years and have rarely seen a claim this high. With this, your rank can jump straight to Captain!"

"Oh."

Hearing this, a look of surprise appeared on Long Ming’s face as well.

A little over ten minutes later, Zhou Xiaokang had finished all the procedures for Long Ming. He said with a beaming smile...

"Red Ghost Officer, all the paperwork is done. You should receive notification of your merit points and rank change within seven days."

"Good."

Long Ming then turned and left the auditing office.

He saw Colonel Hopka and the others waiting outside and walked over.

"All done?" Hopka asked, glancing at Long Ming.

"All done. I’m a little curious, though. How many merit points did you guys claim?"

"Why are you asking about that?" Hopka replied with an impatient look.

"I’m curious too. I claimed 200 merit points. How many did you get?" Antilo chimed in, his interest piqued.

"Eight hundred! Hopka, did you give the main credit to me?"

Hearing Antilo’s number, Long Ming became even more certain that Hopka had given him the main credit.

’He and I might not see eye to eye,’ Long Ming thought, ’but I have to admit, his character is solid. He handles things with fairness and impartiality.’

’He was the leader of this mission, after all; he could have written the report any way he wanted.’

"What of it? Your contribution was the greatest this time. I was just handling it impartially. But this doesn’t mean I’ve forgiven you. This business with you making me clean the toilets isn’t over!" Hopka snapped at Long Ming.

"Understood."

Long Ming didn’t say anything more.

"Hmph. We’re leaving!"

Not wanting to waste any more words on Long Ming, Colonel Hopka left with Fakadon and the others.

Antilo gave a small laugh before turning to leave as well.

Long Ming stood there for a moment, lost in thought, before heading for the stairs.

As he descended from the second floor to the first, he saw a crowd gathered up ahead. The sight made him pause, his expression freezing for a moment.

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