A battle squad was currently moving through the desert. They moved from the western side of Athrimir and entered the desert some while ago. There was no military presence at the border as per Eirikr’s previous order; the main force was stationed in Athrimir’s capital itself.

The battle squad was dispatched by the Ito Clan leader on a reconnaissance mission. They comprised twelve Errant Knights, equipped with artifacts and enchanted tools that had been aiding them so far. They were elite, and they were a squad usually used to deal with foreign threats, at least of a rank they could handle. The battle squad cost an enormous amount of money; their enchanted gear felt like pulling teeth for the Ito Clan Leader, but he invested and had reaped its benefits many times over.

Their primary mission was to get information about the happenings in Akatsuki and, if needed, provide assistance to WaterLord Freya.

With their tools, they easily blended with the desert sands, appearing like brown mirages as they marched forward in orderly fashion, not leaving a single step behind.

At the very front was the captain of this battle squad. He wore an element that covered half of his left face, including the eye, leaving the other part exposed. His helmet flickered with different enchantment words, each one passing information into his head.

With the helmet, he could get real-time information from the decoy animals they had scattered around. They included scorpions, desert spiders, and such.

"This is really strange. We’ve not seen any storm devils, but we’ve been meeting different types of beasts," the captain muttered to himself.

The Akatsuki were known for their tight control of beast migration. They transferred them in an orderly manner, but everything seemed a mess now; different types of beasts were walking around, fighting, and hunting.

"The storm devils always patrol, and even with all our enchantments, we constantly have to hide from them because we still always find a way to trigger Eirikr’s alarm. But now... not a single one of the patrols?" The captain’s mood had long darkened. As a reconnaissance squad, what he hated most was going somewhere blind, even though his mission was to get information in the first place.

"But there shouldn’t be much worry. Inasmuch as the Master Knights of Akatsuki don’t leave their station in Athrimir, then things cannot be that bad. Worst case, the WaterLord and Eirikr are stuck in negotiations and neither side is willing to compromise, or... Eirikr has imprisoned the WaterLord. He can’t be stupid enough to—!!"

Suddenly, the captain stopped talking as his helmet flashed! One of the decoy animals had spotted something, transferring the information directly to him without delay.

The captain stopped walking, and the squad came to an immediate halt. They crouched down, their camouflage becoming even more tangible as they became one with the sands.

What the captain saw was a ship. A flying ship, but what puzzled him was that he did not recognize them as storm devils. They wore armor of dull brown, but they carried none of the storms of the storm devils.

Worse, the ship was speeding directly their way. All the decoy animals began to send alarms, and the captain felt a chill run down his spine... because why did it seem as if they knew they were there and were just coming to finish them off?

’...but of course that’s not possible, right? How can they know....’

The flying ship had now come into view, flying low enough that it was blowing sand everywhere. A translucent shield covered the ship, and at the very front was a woman standing with her eyes narrowed, her hand on her sword and... she was looking directly at the captain!

The captain froze, and his eyes went wide with fear. How many missions had he carried out? How many reconnaissance operations had he done? He walked into dangerous situations, secure in the knowledge that he could remain unseen with his armor. Their Clan Leader had really spent a lot on them.

But now, an enemy was looking directly at him! Worse, he could feel the presence of at least four dozen Errant Knights on that ship!

What the fuck!

Without hesitation, the captain stood, and his members, experienced and trained on what to do, immediately scattered. If one of them made it back, then it would be ideal indeed!

But they didn’t get far.

Large walls of some black material rose up and boxed them in, cutting them off and leaving only one path before them.

A path that led directly to the ship!

The captain’s face was grim as he instantly relayed back information, all he’d gathered so far, and information about his latest opponent because he knew he wouldn’t be leaving alive.

And he was right.

The bind warriors instantly fell on them, tearing through them with swords that spat silver light. Each of them wielding those swords had power above the average Errant Knight. The twelve-man battle squad stood no chance.

Later, after all of them were killed and their weapons recovered, Astra, second-in-command and deputy captain of the bind warriors, turned to Slya.

"Captain, this squad is different from the others. They are elite for sure. Their equipment must have cost a lot; they are not ordinary.

"I suspect they are a reconnaissance unit specialized in forceful extraction of information and espionage. Their weapons suggest they are involved in assassination as well."

Astra’s eyes flickered to the side. "If not for Sir Tong, we couldn’t have discovered them. I think they are from the Ito Clan."

Slya nodded, her hand still on her sword, her eyes hard and dark, just like her mood. She and Tiber took the worst of the imprisonment by far, and it affected them the most with the torture.

Worse, their faith in their master, Vale Athrimir, was shaken. None of this had been easy on them.

Her voice was cold. "I see. Send a report to the High Command about this. And attach a request. I want to form a specialized squad like this within my warriors. If there’s no problem, I want their gear."

The High Command she was talking about was naturally Vale.

Astra grimaced. "Of course, Captain... but do we really need a squad like this? We are a strike team, not a reconnaissance force or such."

Slya shrugged. "I’ll take any power I can get."

Astra paused, then nodded.

The ship rose into the air and continued its patrol.

Immediately after the battle a week ago, Slya took what remained of her team and began to patrol the desert after a day of rest. She had killed and captured many trying to leave or enter Akatsuki.

Akatsuki was on lockdown.

By the Lord’s command, Vale Athrimir.

Vale was so wounded that they had to call in a team of healers for him. It was horrible; almost all his bones were shattered, his soul wounded, and his flesh twisted.

Slya couldn’t bear to stay. The person she thought had forsaken her came to save them and got so wounded in the process. As such, all she could do was this: patrol and keep order as best she could.

Tong moved closer to her. "Lady Slya. You should not be obsessed with power too much. It is in the nature of all beings to crave power, but obsession will only lead to ruin."

Slya looked at him. "Easy for you to say. You saved him. You are actually useful."

Tong raised his brows. "You think you’re not useful?"

"Am I?"

Tong sighed. "Look at Vale. Do you think he’ll keep people who are not useful by his side?"

Slya froze, then her expression hardened. "He’s only keeping us around because we’ve been with him for so long."

Tong chuckled. "That might be true."

She gave him a flat look.

"Think about it. Lord Vale is ambitious, and the higher he climbs, the more he’ll need you guys. See, things have changed now. He’s going to need people he can talk to, people who won’t slide a knife between his ribs.

"People he can entrust things to. What do you think? Power comes in many forms. Which one do you intend to take? And you can feel it, don’t you... the stronger he is... the more you’ll gain."

Slya didn’t reply.

Indeed, when she was finally free from restriction, she realized that she had grown stronger. Her constructs had grown more powerful, and that had trickled down to her. Even more, she gained more techniques.

She did not reply, and Tong did not press. They all had their roles to play. And unfortunately, Tong’s role was growing dim at the moment. Even though Vale could call and hold him in the world, it was only for a while, and now, little by little, he was getting pulled away. Already, what had made him stay this long was the boost in Vale’s power.

Astra soon returned and saluted. "Captain, we have received a direct order from Lord Athrimir. We are to return and drop you at the capital immediately."

"Eh? And you guys?"

"I was ordered to take temporary command."

"Very well."