Gerolt and Malt, who had still been at each other's throats, froze on the spot.
"A-grade?"
They mumbled these words together, the fear in their eyes evident. At the same time, they felt quite lucky that they had managed to return to the harbor.
At that moment, the six Captains rushed out from their ships while the seventh, Captain Zhang, left his tent. Each began barking out orders, but it became very obvious, very quickly, that there simply wasn't much time to prepare.
"Come on, we're under Captain Sela's charge." Malt finally began acting like a Squad Leader again.
Leonel frowned. "Not Captain Zhang?"
"No. The Scouting Unit has always been separated between the ships not much unlike the Research and Technology Unit. Our squad is under Captain Sela."
Though Malt said this and they even joined up with the burly captain's group, they were pretty much no different than background characters. Malt might have been disparaging the Ground Combat Unit earlier, but they were the ones who took charge this time around.
"Hoho, is that Bear Mace Gerolt I see? Come back to seek our protection?"
A man no smaller than Gerolt seemed to have locked onto their group as they passed by. Their movements were simply too conspicuous. After all, they were rushing from the front of the harbor to the backline since they had just returned. Many eyes had been on them from the beginning. But, realizing that they were just a scouting squad, many directly ignored them.
Gerolt cast this man a glance but said nothing else. It was quite a surprise for Leonel who had just watched this man argue with Malt for the last half month. He hadn't known that this large man had the ability to not respond.
Unfortunately, the man who spoke didn't seem to take this very seriously as his hearty laughter only grew.
"Don't worry, Bear Mace. We'll take the front line for you. Wouldn't want another squad wipeout on our hands, it's best that you observe from a safe distance."
Gerolt's steps paused for a moment, his eyes narrowing. But once again, he said nothing.
The man's laughter was chorused by his squad around them, but no one else said anything. The moment was too tense. Honestly speaking, they took this as a reprieve from the looming danger. Even Captain Sela, who was present for the entire matter, didn't say anything.
Leonel frowned.
"There's a battle that's going to be happening here soon. I think it's better you focus on that rather than getting some meaningless jabs in."
For Captain Sela's troop, hearing Leonel's voice was probably the last thing they expected at this point. Many eyes couldn't help but turn toward him. However, what they saw left them furrowing their eyebrows.
He was too young. He looked too fragile. No matter how they looked at it, he was just a rookie who was getting involved in something he shouldn't have. But, at the same time, they found it hard to directly refute his words.
"… Ha, I didn't know Bear Mace had fallen so low that he needed a kid to protect him now. Boy, you should stay away from this one. He's a blight wherever he goes. There's a reason we call him —"
"I get it. Haha, very funny. Bear Mace is quite a clever nickname. Since you're clever enough to think of it, you should be clever enough to know when you should and shouldn't be saying certain things. You're a grown man, why are you acting like a petulant child?"
"Leonel."
The sudden voice of interjection made Leonel frown. All this time, Captain Sela hadn't said a word, but she was suddenly speaking now?
To the man who was the target of Leonel's barrage of words, though, she was like his saving grace. If it wasn't for the possibility of him losing too much face, he would probably bow his head and thank her at this very moment.
Leonel's gaze met hers but he didn't respond.
"That's enough." Captain Sela continued with furrowed brows.
Leonel's expression didn't have much of a change, but he was inwardly disappointed.
"I see." He said plainly. "Let's go, then."
The second part of his words were aimed toward his squad. There really wasn't much time left, they didn't have the luxury of lurking around here any longer. He had had a good impression of Captain Sela, but he didn't think that she'd be this kind of person.
He had an idea of why she had done it. To the coming battle, the ground units were too important and their mental states were even more important. Though the man's words were cruel, it also had the effect of alleviating the tension of the troops. But, after Leonel berated him, they had become high strung once more.
If Captain Sela didn't step out to protect the leader of her vanguard and show them that she was on their side, it would be difficult to calm them down again. Plus, wasn't it a small price to pay?
The man was known as Aitken was the leader of her strongest ground combat squad. As for Leonel, he was just a scout who had made a small name for himself in recent days. Who she would pick was obvious. If she could trade a tense relationship with Leonel for a stronger vanguard, why would she hesitate?
Leonel was intelligent enough to understand this. He seemed like an immature kid, but he had been leading his peers all his life. He understood the importance of mental state.
However, what he had never done was allow the disparagement of one of his own just for some cheap points. That was the sign of a terrible leader. If the upper echelon of the Slayer Legion was all like this, they were doomed from the very beginning.
"Hold on." Captain Sela's frown deepened. "I heard from Squad Leader Zhang that —"
"I don't know a Squad Leader Zhang." Leonel responded. "Could it be that you're referring to Captain Zhang?"
Captain Sela's expression grew dark.
"Kid, you should watch your mouth." Aitken growled.
"Did I say something wrong?" Leonel put on a confused expression. If it wasn't for the fact he was clearly at odds with Captain Sela now, others would really believe that he had no idea what he was saying.
"… I've heard from Captain Zhang that your scouting ability is the best we have." Captain Sela stopped Aitken from speaking anymore. "The greatest danger we face now isn't just the A-grade Invalid, but the other Invalids that might be attracted by the battle. I will need you to stay here with me to point out approaching dangers."
"Captain Sela…!"
Gerolt finally couldn't take it anymore. Leonel had stepped out for him in the first place and he had already wanted to say something earlier. But now Captain Sela wanted Leonel, who was just a little scout, to stay with the vanguard? Wasn't that just forcing him to his death?
Leonel's gaze narrowed as well.
"Are you disobeying a direct order from a Captain?" Captain Sela didn't seem to hear Gerolt at all and only continued to look toward Leonel.
"No, where would a little scout like me get such guts? I'll be counting on Captain to protect me well." Leonel said with a smile.
"Ignorance is bliss." Aitken said with a sneer.
Captain Sela gave Leonel a profound look, but said no more.
"I won't stand for this!"
Just when they all thought it was over, Gerolt swung his mace out from his back and slammed it down, causing a loud boom that finally caught the attention of the other Captains and their squads.
"Gerolt." Leonel patted him on the shoulder. "It's fine."
Others might think that Captain Sela was just targeting him, but Leonel could see through the logical flow of how things had gotten here. Maybe had he not corrected her about Captain Zhang's title, she wouldn't have reacted this way.
But, regardless, it didn't matter much to him.
An A-grade Invalid? He had killed seven even before forming a single Force Node. Plus, there wasn't any time left to argue about it.
"I'll be fine, Captain Sela will protect me. Get to the back quickly."
In the distance, the Invalid was already approaching. But, what Leonel saw made him frown slightly.
'That's not an Invalid…'
A gorilla-like creature which was two meters tall even when walking on its fists slowly approached.