The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL] - Chapter 696

Chapter 696: Two Balls and a Dream

However, it wasn’t as if the guardian beast was the only one with complaints.

If complaints could cause spontaneous combustion, then Duke Leander would have already been a fire hazard by now.

Because really—how come he got assigned to the sector farthest from the action?!

While the others had managed to travel to their assigned sectors and, in effect, were already able to leave, he was still out there traveling!

It was outrageous.

And it wasn’t like he could just jump ship mid-route.

Well, okay—actually, he could do exactly that, but apparently, abandoning one’s spacecraft was frowned upon by everyone—something about not contributing to “avoidable space debris.”

Worse, D-29’s battlefield stream had made him really antsy to get to Zone Four!

He’d even offered—very nobly—to eject himself manually if it meant getting there faster, but his proposal was rejected on the spot.

“They said everything’s under control,” he muttered to himself, sulking in his chair. “Under control! How can it be under control when my son is probably fighting monsters bigger than our ship?! What if he needs extra meat shields? Or someone to collect rare monster parts from the ground?!”

He slammed his fist dramatically on the armrest, earning a wary glance from the pilot.

Leander’s eye twitched. “Don’t look at me like that. I could help.”

He was going insane.

Though perhaps not as insane as the conversations taking place in the temporary shelter back at Sector One, Zone Four.

Because while the soldiers were supposed to be recuperating and regrouping, most were busy gawking all around them.

“Hey, how much do you think each one costs?”

“You mean the mechas? At this point, my life’s not even worth their scrap metal!”

“Do you think if I sell my soul, I’d be allowed to pilot one?”

“Oi, you’re overvaluing your soul. It might not even cover viewing privileges!”

“Like yours would be worth any more! But seriously, how could there be so many of them?! Even the annual mecha showcase wouldn’t hold a candle to this!”

“Man, I could even stomach selling a testicle for a mecha like that,” said one soldier, eyes practically glued to the patrolling units outside the safety perimeter.

There was a pause. Then another soldier snorted.

“Sorry, man, even if you offer both balls, no one’s buying. If I owned one of those mechas, not even your whole body’s worth it.”

Laughter erupted—until a loud thwack cut through the chatter.

“OW!”

“Hey!”

Another soldier stood towering over them, smacking heads left and right.

“If you want to keep anything you’re selling, I suggest you stop talking and start working!” she barked. “Aren’t you embarrassed?! We were rescued by cadets, and those same cadets built all of this for us!”

The rowdy pair straightened up, rubbing their heads like scolded schoolchildren.

“We know, we know!” one grumbled. “We’re just admiring the mechas! Also, didn’t you spend half an hour crying earlier? Why can’t we spend five minutes appreciating the view?”

“Ahhhh! Shut up!” barked Sam, whose eyes were unfortunately still puffy, couldn’t possibly deny something so obvious.

Because Sam, who had managed to scold Marco to deafness earlier, had absolutely bawled his eyes out when he realized they weren’t going to die today.

But who could blame him?

After all, the sight of those pristine mechas standing by, waiting for orders like celestial knights, could make anyone emotional.

Even now, they loomed in formation, awaiting the next orders.

And while most of the soldiers joked and laughed to stay sane, Captain Nico Kane was still trying to make sense of what had actually happened in the last few hours.

To say that unusual things had happened was really an understatement.

Captain Nico Kane had seen plenty of strange things in his career, but nothing—absolutely nothing—could compare to the last few hours.

Their team was supposed to be the first responders. The heroes who rushed in to save others.

And yet somehow, they had ended up needing to be rescued themselves.

But thankfully, just as he thought maybe he’d just join his loved ones in the afterlife, they were actually saved by extremely unfamiliar mechas. At that point, he couldn’t even think about how they possibly got there. He was just grateful someone had shown up at all.

However, even with those custom mechas, it would’ve been difficult to get everyone out. At one point, he was convinced it would be a retrieval operation.

But then came even more mechas.

All from House Kyros.

The same Kyros who had apparently built this very temporary shelter they were now using for regrouping.

Nico would’ve spoken about protocol if he weren’t so stunned.

Because as he stood there, he watched a gaggle of people who were definitely not military running around fussing over everyone.

“Sir, you’re not going to believe this,” one of his soldiers whispered, pointing out the window.

And Nico didn’t.

Because out there, stomping around with perfect confidence, was a tortoise.

An honest-to-goodness tortoise.

And apparently, according to multiple radio reports, it had single-handedly flung mechas over cliffs to safety.

Then there was a dwarf—yes, a literal dwarf—who had somehow found the most stable high ground to build the shelter.

And as if the universe thought things weren’t absurd enough, there was even a rumor about someone saying that a tiny bug-like mecha had attached to his back and given him wings.

Wings.

Although really, if Nico had listened to more gossip, he would’ve also heard about a blonde who had been screaming “butterfly” everywhere.

At this point, Nico wasn’t even sure which of them were hallucinations, because even he had been confused the entire time.

And that wasn’t even all.

Because apparently, Orcs—yes, the same Orcs who usually hated human guts—had been spotted rescuing soldiers from Outpost Four.

And now they were riding aboard an Imperial battleship. What kind of hijacking incident even led to that point?

He rubbed his temples. His brain hurt.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Because everywhere he turned, there were cadets. It wasn’t like they were an army of cadets, but at times like this, he shouldn’t even be seeing one!

There was even one who was apparently feeding people strange pills that made everyone recover faster, and while everyone had been deeply concerned about it initially, no one dared question the cadet.

How could they question him when he was followed by four elders, three of whom were even triplets who looked like they would bite off anyone who didn’t follow the prescribed treatment?

That was when Nico decided maybe he didn’t need to understand everything today.

Especially after those same pills worked really well.

After that, everyone collectively agreed they no longer had eyes, ears, or mouths that day.

If the food and medicine worked, then it was none of their business.

Truly, it was a bizarre time to be alive.

But it was also a hopeful one.

Because amid the chaos, Nico realized something: maybe, just maybe, they could ask for help finding Sera and Nia.

With these people, there might still be a chance.

He turned toward the ridge, determination creeping into his mind. Hang on, you two. Just hold on a little longer.

Then his head snapped up.

Because, in the distance, glinting under the light of the burning horizon—

He saw movement.

Three mechas were flying toward them in formation.

No—four.

Because behind one of them, clinging like a broken shadow, was another battered mecha he’d know anywhere.

Nico’s eyes widened.

“…No way.”

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