Chapter 141

After Hugo first skimmed through the records, the senior investigator, who had barely regained his senses, expounded on the contents written on the stele and additional interpretations in front of the commanders. The meeting site quickly became a place of heated discussion, and among them, the opinion that they should re-establish the direction of the subjugation to prioritize attacking the mother body was predominant.

"If the mother body has the power to control the creatures, shouldn't we gather all our forces here instead of going south like this?"

"Then, it would be best to move the gate defense personnel inside."

"But what if we pull the troops like that and the border zone defense becomes lax, allowing monsters to escape outside?"

"But if only some units enter first and the creature turns out to be more powerful than expected, and we can't stop it, are you saying the vanguard units should gamble with their lives?"

"I think the responsibility of the rear units to maintain a flawless defense system is no less important—."

As the atmosphere became overheated, Bruno, who had been watching him, seemed to have had enough and lightly tapped the table with his command baton, focusing attention.

"Everyone seems agitated, so please calm down first. We gathered here to discuss the future direction of the operation, not to argue."

At his more solemn voice than usual, the commanders quickly fell silent. Eventually, Bruno glanced at Hugo and waited for him to speak.

After the senior investigator finished the briefing, the records had returned to Hugo's hands, and he couldn't take his eyes off the papers spread out on the table. The contents clearly proved the existence of the mother body, the leader. Moreover, the one who sealed that mother body was…

'Theodore. The first emperor.'

Hugo made a subtle expression and brushed that name with his hand. Most records related to the first emperor were known to the public as lost and untraceable, so he never thought he would see them here.

On top of being tired, with something huge suddenly pouring out, Hugo was just as confused about how to proceed.

Moreover, what was even more troubling was that if they immediately flowed in the direction of attacking the mother body, as the Commander, he would have to personally lead the troops here, so he wouldn't be able to spend time searching for the missing persons.

As he fell silent for a moment, rubbing his brow with his mind in turmoil, one of the company commanders of the 7th Battalion of the Southern Branch, who had been engaged in a heated debate earlier, spoke up again.

"In my opinion, I think some of the troops should be deployed as rear units in the northern plains and border zones."

At that, Bruno, who had been watching Hugo, turned his eyes.

"The reason?"

"Even though the existence of the mother body, the leader, is recorded on the stele, isn't it unreasonable to be certain that it still remains after such a long time has passed? In this situation, concentrating all our forces in one place could end up being a waste of effort."

Listening, Bruno seemed to think there was a point and nodded.

"Then, it would be best to first gather only some nearby units to search the estimated location of the mother body, gather a bit more information, and then discuss the deployment of troops. What do you think?"

His question was essentially asking for Hugo's opinion.

In any case, he needed more time to find Leonardo and Kenis before attacking the mother body. Agreeing with the opinions of the company commander and Bruno, Hugo spoke, hoping to buy some time, even if only for a moment.

"Let's do that for now. Are there any units on standby within about 20 miles of the current location?"

"The 12th and 13th Companies of the 9th Battalion of the Southern Branch."

"The 6th, 9th, and 10th Companies of the 7th Battalion of the Southern Branch."

"The 3rd and 4th Companies of the 6th Battalion of the Central Branch."

The battalion commanders answered one by one to his question, and Hugo's final gaze turned to Meterion.

Meterion, who had been looking quite displeased, placed his gaze in the air for a moment, then reluctantly unfolded his arms.

"Central Branch 3rd Battalion. 4th, 5th, and 6th Companies."

Hugo also didn't seem to want to keep his gaze on him for long, so as soon as he heard the answer, he turned his eyes to the other commanders and asked,

"...Then, the 6 companies of the 7th Battalion of the Southern Branch and the 3rd Battalion of the Central Branch will gather here immediately, and the 2 companies of the 9th Battalion of the Southern Branch... are they currently with the exploration team?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"The 9th Battalion will continue to escort the exploration team as is, and the 2 companies of the 6th Battalion of the Central Branch will establish a line of demarcation in the northern plains and stand by in case of any unforeseen circumstances."

"Yes, understood."

"The commanders of each unit that needs to move should lead their troops and return here by midnight today. Also, for future troop deployment, other companies will also stop their advance for now, and when the commanders of the 12th Battalion of the Southern Branch arrive, we will resume the meeting limited to battalion commanders and unit leaders..."

Hugo's expression gradually hardened as he gave instructions. Soon, his face that had stopped speaking turned cold.

"..."

It was because he felt a subtle sensation flowing through his fingertips, spine, and skin.

At the sight of the Commander suddenly stopping mid-sentence and examining the surroundings with fierce eyes, the commanders looked at him with puzzled faces and held their breath along with him. The sharp blue eyes raised their head towards the sky and suddenly began to roll, searching for something.

Bruno, who had been moving the model pieces on the table while listening to Hugo's words, also seemed to sense something strange and raised his head. Then, he carefully called out to him, who had a serious expression.

"...Commander?"

However, Hugo didn't give any answer and focused solely on the energy that had brushed past for a moment.

'This is definitely…'

It was definitely "him."

He wasn't far away, and he had briefly released mana from somewhere to the southwest before vanishing in an instant. And the moment he felt it, Hugo could confirm two things he had been thinking about all along.

The fact that he had been moving stealthily without using mana on purpose to avoid being detected, and on the other hand, commendably, he hadn't run away outside yet.

It was the moment when Hugo's gaze, having immediately grasped his location, turned towards the southwest.

Boom—!

A very loud and powerful sound and resonance burst out from the huge mountain range spread out to the south.

As a strong vibration spread, enough to be felt through the legs as the ground shook, all the participants of the meeting turned their heads in that direction with surprised eyes.

Immediately after everything shook from the huge resonance, a fierce gust of wind blowing from the mountain range stirred up dirt, quickly spreading and engulfing the base camp area in an instant.

As a whirlwind raged and the trees shook violently, things flying in the wind rushed in threateningly like sharp weapons. The commanders hurriedly faced the towering mountain peak and cast layered barriers in front of the gust.

However, the impact was so great that all the heavy model pieces on the table fell to the side, and the map and magic circle set up on the support stand swayed, requiring nearby members to grab and hold onto them.

"Wh-what is happening?"

The fierce gust of wind that swept through the commotion contained an unknown fishy smell. The 8th Platoon Leader, who brushed her hair out of her eyes as it fluttered and obscured her vision, could feel the energy of some powerful existence in that wind, enough to make her skin crawl.

Unconsciously rubbing her arm with her hand, her gaze turned to the exact center of the magic circle drawn on the paper. And Delua, who caught sight of that, also stared at the same spot, following the gaze of the 8th Platoon Leader.

Eventually, sensing something that existed in the very center, Delua inhaled a small breath. As she looked up at the southern mountain peak again, she muttered,

"Could it be..."

The birds in the forest all flew up, and their flapping wings and cries continued for a while.

Hugo, who had likewise been looking up at the mountain range with vigilance, turned his head back to the southwest. If he kept paying attention to this tremor and gust, it felt like he would lose the presence he had sensed in a flash forever.

Eventually, as if having made up his mind, he clenched his fist tightly and concentrated mana in his right hand, creating a greatsword that was even more solid and rippling with cold energy than usual. Then, lightly tapping the chaotic table three times with the back of his hand, he focused the attention of the commanders who were in confusion in front of him.

"Everyone, focus. I'll say it one more time."

At the Commander's voice, the commanders turned their heads and stared at him. After scanning the commanders to see if all their gazes were on him, Hugo opened his mouth.

"The commanders of the units that have been designated to gather should lead their troops and return here by midnight today as much as possible. We'll discuss the tactical system and troop deployment later. And Deputy Commander Amos."

"Yes. Commander."

"When a large-scale dermocas herd appeared in the plains a few days ago, there were also such premonitory symptoms. I'll entrust you with full command authority until I return, so I ask you to analyze the cause of the wave just now and keep watch of the surroundings."

"Pardon?"

Hearing his words, Bruno asked back urgently.

"Ah, no, Commander, where are you going?"

Bruno asked with a confused face, as if Hugo was trying to disappear somewhere again, leaving him with full authority. Then, Hugo tapped Bruno's shoulder a couple of times and said,

"I'll go to the southwest, so even if you hear a large unidentified sound from that direction later, absolutely no one should follow. I'll handle that side. I leave the rest to you."

Having finished speaking, he immediately signaled to the 8th Platoon Leader behind him, as if he had no time to waste, and disappeared from the spot in an instant with a dazzling light.

Afterwards, the remaining 1st Battalion members exchanged glances and also vanished from the scene, and the gazes of the commanders all turned to Bruno.

At the sudden situation and the gazes directed at him, Bruno held his head with both hands.