?715 Giant
Nothing about the news made sense. Both Khan and Monica couldn't wrap their minds around it and reread it, hoping to clear their doubts. However, their confusion only intensified.
The order had come directly from the embassy's political offices, meaning Mister Cirvags had approved it. The message wasn't even an offer. It was a summon into a mandatory mission.
In a normal situation, Khan would have been ecstatic about the news. He not only liked the mission's contents but had also agreed to replace Ambassador Abores for that exact reason. He would be gaining access to proper political and interspecies jobs, which were the next step in his career.
Yet, the timing made no sense. Until now, Khan had been sure the Global Army wanted him in the Harbor. His superiors even covered him in the Empire-related duties that required his presence. The Solodrey family was also okay with Monica ignoring Neuria's businesses, but the message told a different story.
The lessons were another issue. Khan had spent little more than three months with the scientists, which wasn't nearly enough to teach them everything. That worked in Khan's favor, but the Global Army had to know that.
The Global Army would never deploy Khan if they valued his knowledge, and everything in the last period had proven that. Still, the higher-ups were going in the opposite direction now, shattering the certainties Khan had started to trust.
Everything made so little sense that the couple could only focus on the message's contents. The mission was intriguing, and its specifics explained why Khan was necessary. He would hold a key role in the political team, something that was far higher than the scout position.
The mission's target was Baoway, a recently discovered planet in a system between the Global Army's and Empire's domains. Because it was both close to and distant from the two species' areas of influence, they ultimately decided to share it.
The message didn't describe how the two species had reached that agreement but contained far more compelling information. Even if the system were shared between humans and Thilku, the Global Army would have priority in its exploration. Actually, it turned out a few teams had already made trips to Baoway.
Khan could guess the reasons behind that priority. The Empire was always short of manpower, and Cegnore's liberation had worsened that problem. The Thilku probably didn't have anyone to send to Baoway, so they left the dirty work to the Global Army.
The Global Army had its reasons, too, but the message didn't specify them. Doing the Empire a favor to earn its goodwill was a possibility, but Khan could only guess.
Nevertheless, the message did explain something. Lord Exr and Lord Rsi had vouched for Khan, turning him into their trusted man on the field. He wouldn't join the political envoy only as a human. He would go for the Thilku, too.
That was obviously incredible. Khan's mere presence had given humankind priority over an entire planet. If the news got out, his fame would skyrocket once more. It was the equivalent of owning a red cape but for the human side, and that wasn't even the end of the good surprises.
The Thilku's trust was one significant aspect of Khan's role. However, the message added something equally important. That additional value had nothing to do with interspecies politics either. It merely valued Khan's skills.
Baoway was inhabited by a primitive but intelligent species the Global Army called Scalqa. Those aliens were still in the Stone Age in terms of technology, owning nothing more than wooden spears and slings as weapons. However, they were born with mana and seemed to have a rudimentary use for it.
Of course, those bits of information could be inaccurate since they came from the few short trips to Baoway. The scouting teams even avoided kidnapping specimens to preserve the possible relationships with the Scalqa. They had relied on powerful scanners to learn as much as possible, but that was far from all.
That was the reason behind Khan's presence. His ability to befriend aliens was unmatched, and the Global Army wanted him on the frontlines this time around. He wouldn't only have to learn the Scalqa's customs and abilities. He would also have to help decipher and translate their language.
The more Khan read, the more that job description matched the Ambassador's role. The Global Army wasn't using that world, but his duties were undeniable. He would have to establish the first contact with the Scalqa, which would set the foundation for all future relationships with humankind.
Although the responsibility was immense, Khan felt no pressure. The mission's description actually tickled his curiosity and desire to discover more about the universe. He looked forward to the trip, but greater worries afflicted his mind.
As excited as Khan was, he didn't forget the period's uniqueness. The conflicting timing was too odd to be a coincidence. Keeping the scientists away from their posts for three months was a lot, but it didn't make sense for Khan to be summoned so suddenly.
Khan peeked at Monica and saw the same worries depicted on her face. Any trace of her sleepiness had disappeared from her expression, leaving only seriousness. The gravity of the situation was more than clear to her, but she was powerless to do anything about it.
"It's going to be fine," Khan couldn't help but say.
Monica glanced at Khan but didn't say anything. She felt like scolding him, but more pressing matters were at hand. Her eyes returned to the holograms, and she leaned forward to open one of the message's folders.
A different hologram stretched from the message, giving birth to a picture. A muscular, humanoid creature appeared above the interactive desk, and the stats surrounding it shocked the couple.
A scanner had taken the picture, so it contained all kinds of measurements. The creature in the photo was an adult Scalqa, and its size made it nothing short of a giant.
The Scalqa was three meters tall, with shoulders broader than a horizontal human. The alien in the picture was shirtless, showing its giant bulging muscles. One of its arms was the same size as Khan's waist, and its four-fingered hands were equally huge.
The two big eyes, the Scalqa's dark-brownish skin, and its thick curly hair didn't matter much compared to the following detail. According to the scanner, the alien's muscles had an incredible concentration of mana. They were no different from a warrior's enhanced tissues, but the Global Army believed there was more to the matter.
Khan read all the stats before inspecting the Scalqa as a whole. It wouldn't be his first time facing huge aliens. The Thilku and the Stal had almost prepared him for that mission. Still, it was impossible to understand the Scalqa's actual strength from pictures alone.
The alien's physique hinted at a brutish fighting style that mostly relied on pure strength, but mana complicated everything. The Scalqa might not have proper spells, but that concentration of mana inside the muscles felt odd. It could be an inborn gift, but no one could tell how much that species had pushed it.
Of course, Khan didn't believe even for a second that those aliens could be stronger than him. No one was. His curiosity and knowledge simply made him consider every possibility. Funny enough, if someone could hear the insides of his mind, he would be praised for his scientific thinking.
"It's odd," Monica eventually commented.
"I've seen worse," Khan exclaimed. "Still, that concentration of mana is interesting. I wonder how the fauna is."
"I was talking about the mission," Monica scoffed. "Don't start with this already."
"This what?" Khan asked.
"You getting all curious and disappearing for an entire month with another species," Monica explained, "Only to see you return with a witch."
"The bulky ones aren't my type," Khan chuckled.
"No sleeping naked with aliens this time," Monica ordered before heaving a helpless sigh. "What am I saying? This mission is all wrong."
"Hey," Khan called, wrapping an arm around Monica's waist to pull her closer to his chest. "It will be fine. It looks like a proper mission."
"It makes no sense," Monica said, crossing her arms and refusing to look Khan in the eyes. "You still have scheduled lessons, and Abraham didn't warn us about any departure. It's too sudden."
"That it is," Khan admitted, "But what would anyone plan to do? Taking me out on a planet shared with the Empire?"
"It would be easy to make you disappear there," Monica pointed out.
"But why?" Khan wondered.
"Khan, you have enemies," Monica sighed. "You know that."
Khan knew Monica was right. He had actually waited for something similar to arrive. Except for the timing, the mission was almost too perfect for Khan, which increased the likelihood of it being a trap.
As for why, Khan couldn't know. He wasn't even sure of what would happen on the planet. The nature of the potential trap was also unknown, leaving him lost.
"I'll be careful," Khan reassured.
"You are never careful," Monica stated. "You'll make a mess. You always do."
Monica was holding back. She would usually whine, shout, and scold Khan more, but this time, the potential danger was too high. She was terrified, and the political nature of the mission made her powerless.
"Monica," Khan called, perfectly understanding what was happening in his fiancée's mind. Monica didn't turn, so he reached for her legs and pulled them to him.
Monica's glare became visible when Khan turned her toward him, and a loving smile inevitably appeared on his face. Her expression couldn't distract him from her mana. There was only worry fueled by deep love inside her.
"I'll think about you every night," Khan promised, leaning forward so that his nose touched Monica's.
"And morning and afternoon," Monica complained. "And don't you dare die. I'd rather deal with the aftermath of you blowing the planet up."
"I won't, I won't," Khan reassured.
"And if your opponent turns out to be a noble," Monica continued, but a blue glow shone on her face and interrupted her line.
"Nothing and no one will stop me from getting back to you," Khan declared, his voice carrying a chilling vibe that could make ordinary soldiers faint in fear. Yet, few things in the world were more reassuring and arousing than that for Monica. She didn't even realize when her lips met his.
