Tens of stars streaked through the night sky, each of them a person returning from a mission similar to Gaius’ own — to cause some disruption. As expected, the guards to the left and the right of the battlefield were cannon fodder, which meant that this little attack had a zero percent casualty rate. It was a feat that the public could hear about, if not for the fact that the Plenum wanted a bunch of fake lunatics to normalise the Lifespring and his forces to random nightly attacks.

           Most of them were yawning, a testament to how big the gap between them and the foes they faced. The only way to take down true Knights with weaker troops was through the Dynamo, a healthy dose of coordination and a lot of training. Squires with Engines would put up a good fight, and a few of them would be quite the threat to a normal Knight with no Engine.

           But Gaius had never encountered anyone from the Lifespring’s forces with an Engine. It was good news for the East, at least.

           As they closed in on the defence lines, Gaius could make out a few people lounging around in their designated landing zones, making no attempt to hide the fact that they were Paragons. From what Ying Xin had said, she and the other Paragons had handpicked a few highly-capable Knights for tonight’s attack, which meant that most of the Knights here were going to be debriefed separately.

           Twelve other people landed in front of Paragon Ying Xin, who greeted them with a smile. “Good job, ladies and gentlemen. The Plenum has troubled you once again.”

           “Think nothing of it,” said a middle-aged man, who had scales covering the back of his hand. He was probably a beastfolk, but it was rare to see them outside the Southern Continent. “This is our country, after all.”

           “And besides,” said a black-haired woman clad in golden armour, “we get points for this too.”

           She glanced at the people around her, who was wearing their Display artefact somewhere obvious. Her eyes lingered on Gaius, whose duration here was not based on points, but she didn’t comment on his Display’s conspicuous absence.

           “We’ll be doing this to lay out groundwork for Operation Spring Fury, so please continue to cooperate with us,” said Paragon Ying Xin. “Of course, you will be compensated adequately for this, as per our policies. Now, I’ll be conducting individual debriefs for everyone. The rest of you, feel free to socialise and whatever. Zhi Yong, we’ll begin with you first.”

           A bespectacled man followed Paragon Ying Xin into a nearby tent, which was the cue for the others to start speaking. At first glance, it was evident that everyone else know each other, something that Gaius lacked, as he was in his own…unit.

           “How was the hunt today, Jang-Woo?” said the man who had spoken up earlier on.

           “Not bad, Lin Yang,” said another. “The enemies were weaker than I’d expected, and my route was deserted for some reason.”

           “That was probably me,” said the golden-armoured woman. “I think I caused too big of a ruckus during the fight.”

           “Yeah, I can definitely see you doing that, Himeko,” said Jang-Woo.

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           “Are you trying to imply something, you little punk?”

           The man raised his hands. “Just stating some facts, miss. Anyway, I didn’t know Paragon Ying Xin personally invited so many people over to the East.”

           “Personally invited?” Lin Yang narrowed his eyes. “I was here when the defence of Feng-Lang began. Sure as hell wasn’t invited.”

           “She came to find me in Shen-Ling-Dian,” Jang-Woo replied. “Can’t believe she went all the way to Feng-Lang’s capital to get me into the battlefield. I thought the others were like me, so…”

           “I see.” Lin Yang narrowed his eyes slightly. “You weren’t intending to join the battle at first?”

           “Had to settle some things in Feng-Lang,” Jang-Woo replied. “Paragon Ying Xin helped me with the troublesome parts, so in return I became a hired muscle of hers.”

           The man laughed.

           “How about you, kid?” The woman named Himeko turned to Gaius and asked. “You’re that…Pint-Sized Railgun, right?”

           “That’s him?” Jang-Woo looked at Gaius, intrigued.

           Gaius nodded, a small smile on his face.

           “You were here from the very beginning — could you tell us what happened when Eo-Seu fell?” Himeko asked. “We’ve been asking around, but no one knew the final moments of Eo-Seu’s Knights save for a few people.”

           The boy pondered for a moment. It was probably safe to tell them some details now, given that it had been a good few months since Eo-Seu was conquered by the Lifespring.

           “The enemy sent a huge force,” said Gaius. “Over a thousand Knights, I think. Ten times of our number.”

           “A thousand…” Jang-Woo murmured. “That’s a lot. We only have that much in this defence line, but if they could throw out such a force at Eo-Seu, it doesn’t look that good for us, does it?”

           Gaius shrugged.

           “The part about how you cut down their Knights by half was true too?” Himeko asked. “I’m sorry if I sound rude, but your recorded deeds are pretty much legends amongst the rest of us. The others wanted to ask you too, but you were rarely seen in public.”

           “Haven’t you seen those giant explosions?” Gaius asked.

           “Weren’t the Plenum playing it up when they said you were the one behind those attacks?” Himeko said.

           “They weren’t.” Gaius rolled his eyes. “It’s something pretty much exclusive to me. Why did you think this way?”

           “To hide the Plenum’s true secret weapon?” Himeko replied.

           “Alright, kid, don’t waste your time with Himeko here,” said Jang-Woo. “Everything’s a conspiracy to you, right? I bet you were trying to convince the Lifespring’s troops that they actually had free will and they could break out of Conrah’s control.”

           “How did you—”

           “Seriously?” Jang-Woo clapped his hands. “Damn, you’re good. Be careful that the Lifespring doesn’t send a few Lords after you tomorrow.”

           The others stared at the woman, clearly impressed with her bravado. The more they clapped, however, the less confident she was.

           “I…don’t think I should fight tomorrow,” Himeko said, her forehead creased with worry.

           The others laughed at her words, but before they could say anything else, Paragon Ying Xin had reappeared, with the man named Zhi Yong beside her.

           “Alright, Jang-Woo, you’re up next. Come over for a moment…”