The meeting with Onp barely lasted a minute, so Khan returned to his team's corridor before the army could even approach the building's main gate.
That privacy allowed Khan to take care of immediate problems. He was slightly injured, but that wasn't an issue. Instead, his dirty state was terrible, and the habits he developed with his girlfriends forced him to take a bath.
The Thilku habitations didn't waste space, and the same went for their bathrooms. However, they were made for beings far bigger than Khan, so the small shower felt spacious rather than cramped.
Thoughts swirled in Khan's mind as blood and gore flowed down his body, spreading a red puddle around his feet. The Thilku used a cold, cloudy liquid to wash themselves up, but Khan barely felt anything due to the warmth inside his brain.
The battle had gone well, too well even. Khan didn't only dispose of the mutated Thilku. He had also handled the intelligent wolves, basically putting himself on the top of Cegnore's food chain.
However, that wasn't enough. The natives had yet to come out, and the Thilku army didn't advance much when Cegnore's size became part of the equation. There was still much to do, especially regarding the planet's underground world.
An ordinary human or intelligent being would feel a sense of defeat before the immensity of a planet, but Khan was different. The bigger the battlefield, the more enemies he would meet, increasing his chances of getting answers.
Khan threw the dirty uniform into the laundry spot before hurrying into his room. He only needed to bring his knife with him since the building would handle the rest. He would probably run out of clothes if he kept breaking them, but the issue never crossed his mind.
The brainstorming during the shower highlighted one flaw Khan could still fix. Unlocking the full power of the Niqols arts had greatly boosted his battle prowess, and he could still improve on it. The same went for the fusion with the Nele arts.
However, an aspect of Khan's skillset had yet to show its real use. His knowledge and the latest busy period were to blame for that lack of growth, but he still wanted to work on it. The Thilku runes could hold real power, and his greed demanded it.
'These are next,' Khan thought, using his phone to release holograms he had prepared beforehand.
Books, reports, and notes about the Thilku runes unfolded in Khan's vision. He had been able to study the whole time, but his focus on the Niqols arts had distracted him in the recent period. However, his mana wanted more now, and he agreed.
Exhaustion had yet to arrive, so Khan spent a long time alternating between his studies and meditative session. His new state made him focus on the runes due to the hungry urges it conveyed, but he didn't forget to work on his foundation. He couldn't rely on the [Blood Vortex], but his attunement level had to increase anyway.
Due to Khan's performance on the battlefield, no one bothered him. He could probably request special benefits, too, but his studies made him ignore the matter altogether.
Khan planned to sleep to prepare for the following night, but a call suddenly reached his room, warning him that the afternoon was almost over. He had missed his chance to rest properly and felt no surprise about it. He actually smiled, glad that part of him didn't change.
Scenes that had become the norm for Khan unfolded as usual. Various teams left their habitations and gathered in the main hall, only for Khan and Naoo to cross them to leave the building first.
Most of the army was already on the plain, but more teams were coming from the passages connected to the trench. Vehicles were also on the move, carrying metal tiles or similar equipment toward the new frontline.
The faint disrespect from the previous night never appeared. Each soldier moved away or directly stopped walking when Khan was nearby, and fervent or curious gazes always followed him along. He was a celebrity, although for slightly different reasons there.
The general atmosphere altered the symphony and conveyed meanings Khan could hear. He knew what the troops were thinking. He could understand what that species saw him as. For some, Khan was a monster. For others, Khan was someone to follow and, eventually, surpass.
While not everyone had positive feelings for Khan, he still appreciated that atmosphere. The Thilku were as complicated as humans in certain social fields but lacked the inclination for ploys, which was unbelievably relaxing.
That relaxation vanished once the army was ready for Khan's call. The massive group had crossed both gorges and the new channel dug by the spherical machines, getting further than they had ever done on the plain. Still, the time to claim that place as theirs had arrived now.
The call led to another massive battle in which Khan showcased his stark superiority once again. Cegnore sent forward thousands of monsters, multiple teams of humanoid wolves, and two mutated Thilku, but nothing could stop Khan.
That scene repeated itself on the following nights. The army occupied the frontline, and Khan unleashed his voice, starting a massive battle.
Each battle ended in a win, and Khan's impressive performance always limited the casualties on the Thilku's side. The army also advanced every time, straying further away from the building.
The growing distance from the building created security issues, but that wasn't Khan's problem. He only focused on fighting and moving the frontline forward. Everything else didn't matter.
After a whole week spent achieving the impossible on the battlefield, Khan had become a legend among the Thilku. He was never tired. He never suffered heavy injuries. He never complained, and he never lost. Khan had become the embodiment of victory, and the Thilku grew used to trusting him.
However, another big change arrived before that positive trend could stretch past the first week of battles. As usual, Khan and the army went into the frontline at night, but the calls didn't produce any results.
Khan obviously tried to call the monsters more times, but Cegnore didn't answer, and that silence spread until morning arrived. The army felt forced to retreat at that point, but the problems weren't over.
One night off was fine. It would actually make sense after the continuous massive battles the army faced every night. After all, Cegnore had already proven that one deployment a day was its limit.
Still, that break didn't stop at one night. It stretched to the next day and the one after that. In the end, a full week went by without a single battle, and no matter how much Khan called, the monsters didn't show up.
Everyone knew that trend couldn't be random, but the actual cause remained a mystery. Khan was obviously to blame, but his calls were just a tool. The Thilku wanted to understand Cegnore's reasons, but they were unclear.
After the seventh day in a row without any response to Khan's calls, Onp called an emergency meeting with all the team leaders. The event happened early in the morning and involved Khan, even if he was forced to wait outside.
Onp and the team leaders gathered around the interactive table, silently staring at the holograms of Cegnore floating among them. They all shared the same confusion, and looking at those pictures didn't clear it.
"[Talk]," Onp ordered. "[What's going on out there]?"
"[We don't know]," One of the team leaders scoffed. "[The shaman is doing his thing, but the beasts don't arrive]."
"[Maybe they got scared]," Another team leader suggested.
"[They aren't normal beasts]," A third team leader snorted. "[They have goals and intelligence. It might be a trap]."
Onp didn't make the army advance during the peaceful break. It was too reckless to send his soldiers forward without knowing what the monsters were up to.
Nevertheless, one week with no progress was simply too long. The Empire had sent reinforcements for the offensive, and Onp couldn't just waste them guarding empty ground.
"[Are we really scared of traps from mere beasts]?" The second team leader asked. "[We should walk right into them and defeat those creatures anyway]!"
"[We wouldn't be able to assist the injured on time]," The third team leader pointed out. "[We'd have massive number of mutations every time]."
"[Let the human face them then]," The second team leader shouted. "[He wants to serve the Empire? Let him pay the price]!"
"[Half of your team would be dead without that human]," Onp coldly stated. "[He isn't one of us, but his strength is very real]."
"[He can handle himself then]," The second team leader pressed on. "[I don't see the issue. We have the perfect bait]."
"[That's true]," The third team leader agreed. "[We are already using the shaman. There's no point in holding back now]."
Onp ran his gaze across the meeting room and only found approving gazes. Truth be told, he didn't want to leave all the important roles to Khan. Still, he was more expendable than his troops.
"[Ah]!" Onp cried. "[Let him in]."
Vaasa didn't have a place at the table but was still inside the room. She stood near the door, which she didn't hesitate to open once the order arrived.
The door opened too quickly to give anyone the time to react. Yet, Khan was already standing before it as if he knew that moment would have arrived. That stance slightly destabilized the team leaders' confidence, but Onp made sure to seize the initiative.
"[Hurry inside]," Onp ordered, and Khan complied. He entered the room while letting the door close behind him.
"[You have shaman arts, right]?" Onp questioned as if he didn't know the answer already.
"[If that's what you want to call them]," Khan calmly replied, unaffected by the pressure radiated by Onp and the other leaders.
"[What's your opinion on the recent peace]?" Onp promptly continued to cover for the lack of leadership he experienced in that situation. "[Did the planet run out of beasts]?"
"[Why are you asking me]?" Khan snickered, nodding at the holograms. "[You know the answer already. You know where to find more monsters]."
"[Speak clearly, shaman]!" The second team leader shouted. A few glares flew in his direction, but the audience favored his request.
"[The beasts will come if they hear my calls]," Khan sighed, "[But my voice can't pierce the ground. If you want more battles, stop playing on the surface and fight the real war underground]."
