Chapter 793: The Gifted Boy

Once the agreement is settled, Akta's squad returns safely to Peace Haven.

They do not stop in the Southern District. Under escort from the Military Intelligence Office's Wind Raider Battalion, they head straight for Peace Haven's Central District.

Miller then turns the Wind Raider Battalion south into Ogiro's new territory.

His unit will support Ogiro and gather intelligence on the calamity creatures in the area.

They need to understand how the creatures emerging from Ogiro's Misty Forest Expanse will interact with those from Lumir's subterranean waterways.

Will the calamity creatures from the two regions join forces?

If they meet, will they fight separately or turn on one another?

Or, in the worst case, will they cooperate?

Each possibility could transform the war.

Each one demands a different strategic response.

If the two groups cannot merge and simply fight their own battles, Peace Haven can continue with its existing strategy.

If they are hostile, however, that opens the door to many new tactics.

An alliance would be the worst outcome. Peace Haven would have to station a large force between the two regions to keep them apart.

This is Miller's current assignment, one Henwell gave him before entering seclusion.

After parting ways with the Wind Raider Battalion, Akta's squad is escorted to Blood Hill Manor by a reinforced company of Lord Iron Guards.

Peace Haven's senior officials are waiting for them, and Melissa personally presents medals to every member of Akta's squad.

Rawkins then gives them a new assignment.

They are to report to the Technical Research Institute, leave the Eighth Legion, and join a newly established department.

Everyone wants to understand how the squad managed to trigger the Civilization Aura's enhancement.

Apart from Henwell, only Rawkins and a handful of Peace Haven's senior officials can evoke even a fraction of it.

Even they must command a large army, and the Light of Civilization that descends is extremely faint.

At legion scale, only the First Cavalry Legion can evoke it. The newly formed Iron Guard Legion remains inconsistent.

At warband scale, only the Lord Iron Guards can trigger the Civilization Aura.

No formation below that level has ever managed it.

At squad scale, Henwell is the only person who has ever evoked the Civilization Aura.

Akta's squad is an exceptionally rare case, and the Technical Research Institute has personally requested its transfer.

As Peace Haven's chief military officer, Rawkins knows exactly how important this is.

If the researchers uncover the mechanism, Peace Haven's strength will leap forward.

The effects are equivalent to several Second-Circle enhancement spells. They could place Peace Haven's army firmly among the strongest on the continent.

Rawkins notices Akta's hesitation. "Don't worry."

"A position in the Technical Research Institute's Extraordinary Analysis Department outranks that of a battalion commander!"

"You'll have plenty of resources there. Enhancement potions and extraordinary equipment will be issued to you first."

"Once the assignment is over, I'll promote you again, provided you pass your military command studies!"

Akta gives an awkward smile. "Grand Marshal, that isn't what I meant."

"I'll obey the order. I only want to know what will happen to Ronan."

Rawkins pauses. "All right. You've probably guessed part of the truth already. The boy is special."

"Our initial tests show that he's a natural psychic."

"According to your report, when your squad came under psychic assault, he was affecting your mind from afar."

"That was how you woke from the illusion and resisted the water demon's psychic charm."

"The boy's extraordinary spiritual power is also why the water demon valued him so highly."

"We don't know what it planned to use him for, but it must've been important."

"When the water demon realized it couldn't escape, it used a soul-transfer spell. Its soul is inside the boy now."

Akta grows anxious. "Grand Marshal, please save Ronan!"

Rawkins shakes his head. "I can't. Even Dean Gallagher of the Academy of Spellcasters can't break the spell."

"Rest assured, the boy is far more important to us than you realize."

"We won't act until we're certain. He'll be well cared for, but he must also remain under strict supervision."

Akta asks, "If the water demon is inside him, can it hurt him?"

Rawkins replies, "Don't worry. We've prepared an extremely secure place for him. The water demon won't get a chance to harm him."

Rawkins does not say where.

The next day, Gallagher of the Academy of Spellcasters escorts Ronan to the designated location with a team of spellcasters.

Gallagher's deputy asks, "Will this really work? The boy is far too valuable. Knights can't protect him."

"Only our presence is keeping the water demon inside him quiet."

"The moment he leaves the Academy's spell array, it may devour his soul."

Gallagher smiles. "If this place can't protect him, no one can."

As he speaks, a unit of Lord Iron Guards approaches. After a brief handover, they take Ronan away.

Watching them leave, Gallagher's deputy asks, "We aren't even allowed to go closer and see how they plan to protect him?"

"You know how gifted he is, Dean. He could raise the standing of our spellcaster faction in Peace Haven!"

Gallagher points to the distant structure. "Don't you know what that place is?"

"Besides, getting too close isn't necessarily a good thing, especially for spellcasters like us."

The deputy tries to ask another question, but Gallagher stops him.

Ronan is not nearly as frightened anymore. After being rescued, he remained unconscious for ten full days.

If Akta and the others had not poured high-energy nutrient solution down his throat, he might never have awakened.

By the time he regained consciousness, he was already being held in Stillwater City.

He felt as if he had lived through a long dream, and his memories blurred together.

Even after waking, he remained abnormally drowsy and slept for more than fifteen hours each day.

His condition improved only after Selaser concluded the negotiations and began the journey home.

Whenever Ronan thought of his murdered family, grief overwhelmed him. At night, he hid beneath his blanket and cried in secret.

The force of his spiritual power even affected Akta's squad, filling everyone with sorrow.

Only after they entered Peace Haven was the spiritual power leaking from Ronan finally suppressed.

Under the Wind Raider Battalion's escort, the fluctuations stayed within a radius of one or two meters around him.

When the Lord Iron Guards took over, they forced his spiritual power completely back into his body.

At Blood Hill Manor, Ronan finally slept through the night without the clamoring voices in his mind.

His grief has eased considerably. After all, he is only a child.

The wonder of everything he has seen in Peace Haven begins to dull the pain of losing his family.

Now, as he stares at the enormous pyramid in the distance, he freezes in astonishment.