"We…we fought such a monster?!"
Instructor Baek, Baek Woojin, frowned at the terrified expression of the ant before him.
'No, it should be like this. He is someone who got this far by latching onto someone else's coattails, so his mentality will naturally be weak.'
Baek Woojin was an instructor who dealt with cadets every day. He already understood how weak these soldiers-to-be were. He was an avid supporter of sending them into war for this exact purpose.
"Your leader must be extremely strong to deal with such a foe. I heard he was able to force the Higher Nox Sebastian to flee with his tail between his legs."
"Really?! Captain is so strong, but I guess the Nox are strong too…it's a shame that Captain couldn't kill him, though."
'Fool, your captain could never be powerful enough to kill such a being.'
"Haha, it is indeed a shame. What's more of a shame, though, is the disappearance of your captain."
"Disappearance?!"
"Right, he seems to be in danger. He completely disappeared from our radar, and even the last known location of his academy emblem is a desolate wasteland now."
"C-can you save the captain?! He must've been extremely injured during the battle or else he'd never get caught. I don't know if you know, but Captain is a God of Space!"
"Oho? Calling him a God is a bit of a stretch, no?"
"Of course, not! Captain can teleport hundreds of kilometers with ease! He's a true god!"
'Hundreds of kilometers? Did I overestimate the strength of that boy?'
Baek Woojin frowned to himself, unsure of how to proceed. Looking at this pure reverence in the cadet's eyes, it was clear he wasn't lying.
'Nevertheless, I should dig deeper. It is still a fact that the child is in possession of a Seed.'
As he decided, he continued to press Tyler about Damien. From the utterly delusional man's words, Damien was a god unlike anything that had been seen by the world before.
Yet, the feats described were only enough to put him on the same level as a slightly above-average Heaven's Army soldier.
'It is undeniable that he possesses immense talent, but his actual power level…what could provoke a higher-up to send someone like him to the war?'
There were only a few things that could justify the extreme speed and efficiency of the Stargazer Squad.
Firstly, they were getting help from an outside force, likely an extremely powerful artifact.
Secondly, the Seed in Damien's possession. If there was a Seed aiding the squad, it wouldn't be surprising if they achieved twice the results they did.
'I cannot underestimate the boy due to my own bias. In the end, regardless of his methods, he was still able to gain the favor of those stubborn geezers and fight off Sebastian.'
Baek Woojin did everything he could to make Damien's strength comprehensible, but every question only led to more questions.
For instance, if Damien was busy fighting Sebastian, who took care of the thousands of Higher Nox that were deployed along with him?
'It doesn't make any sense.'
Looking at Baek Woojin's perplexed expression, Tyler inconspicuously smiled.
'Right, question yourself more.'
Baek Woojin's current state wasn't of his own creation, nor was it due to the information he received. Rather, Tyler's performance forced him to doubt his own senses.
Baek Woojin was smart enough to understand that Damien was strong. Even if he had a bias holding him back, his rationality would've allowed him to understand the truth eventually.
But Tyler acted like a devoted follower of Damien, someone who deified and worshipped him. The words of someone like him would exaggerate their god's strength, not bring them down.
Tyler's existence contradicted everything Baek Woojin assumed he knew, and because Tyler was giving a first-person recount as a key player in the situation, it was impossible for the instructor to ignore his words.
'It'll be annoying if he goes to Ash and Synth to interrogate them. I need to find a way to share the story with them.'
If there was one thing Tyler was sure of, it was that Baek Woojin was hostile.
He didn't need to be a genius to figure it out. The man's natural disposition already showed hostility to the weak, and on top of that, his line of questioning only focused on Damien's power, ignoring any and all else.
'Did the Captain get himself into something troublesome? Or…'
A chill passed through Tyler's body as he fully remembered the situation before he passed out.
'Vice Captain was possessed or something similar. She was also using Nox Mana near the end…'
'The Vice Captain is a good person, and she listens to everything Captain says without hesitation. There's no way she'd betray us.'
If so, then the Vice Captain's situation was extremely complicated, and something nobody could find out about.
'But we know.'
It finally dawned on Tyler. The pieces clicked together in his mind, allowing him to fully grasp the complex situation that was taking place.
'Dammit…that bastard Captain is going to owe us infinite drinks if we can save his ass here.'
Tyler continued his conversation with Baek Woojin, and whenever he could, he used slight behavioral and body cues to lead the instructor's thoughts in the direction he wanted.
What he was doing was a capital crime. Withholding vital information from higher authorities wouldn't just end in death. If he was caught, he'd go through unbearable torture without ever being allowed to die.
But…
'Captain is just too damn charismatic.'
Tyler didn't even know when he began to refer to Damien as "Captain" in his mind. He had thoroughly accepted the man's leadership and was thoroughly convinced by his charisma.
The undying bond of a squad wasn't something that could be formed easily. Tyler, Synth, and Ash took countless years to finally reach a point where they were willing to do anything for each other.
Yet, here he was, risking death for the sake of a leader he'd only known for a few months.
Minutes passed slowly. Eventually, Baek Woojin gave up on getting information out of Tyler.
"Rest well and heal. Your contribution to the army is incredibly important, and we are eagerly awaiting your return to the field."
Those bland words were the last the instructor spoke before leaving the room.
'That child is too far gone.'
Baek Woojin sighed to himself. Instead of gaining anything, he actually ended up more confused than ever before. His mental image of Damien was largely skewed away from rationality, complicating his thought process.
'I want to cross-check his words with the other two from the Stargazer Squad, but those two…'
It was safe to say that they wouldn't be in any condition to speak for a very long time.
'It's a waste of Elixir to treat them all.'
In reality, the expensive Elixir treatment was only offered to the squad member who woke up first, and this happened to be Tyler.
As for the other two…
They were being treated, but not nearly as thoroughly.
They were hanging onto life by a thread, and the medical staff only worked to make sure this thread never snapped.
As for the actual recovery, that would come with time…a very, very considerable amount of time.
'If they die, they die.' Baek Woojin coldly thought as he walked through the medical facility.
'Wasting turn on ants is pointless. I'll cross-check that boy's information with the academy itself.'
Baek Woojin's eyes turned cold.
Regardless of anyone else's opinion, he would eliminate the Seed and anything related to it.
Even if that meant ridding the universe of one of its potential heroes.
