Chapter 249: At a Different Level
Everything had been arranged in order, and all Cillin needed to do was to move his legs. The gathering place was on another planet; an inconspicuous satellite among many other satellites.
“We’re heading out again not long after we arrived? There’s not even time to take a rest.” The gray cat complained. At first it wanted to visit Boa and King Kong, but it didn’t expect to be sent away on a mission before they even found their footing. Didn’t Chang Three and Chang Four say that students should prioritize their studies? So why were the affiliated schools completely different?
Cillin scratched the gray cat’s chin. “It’s not a bad thing; at the very least it’ll give the others some time to prepare. Remember that the imperial star region is the one emperor and three kings’ indisputable territory. If an unavoidable conflict were to break out then you and I won’t be able to escape.”
The gray cat flicked its ears. “Cillin, how on earth are you related to the Gen Family? I’ve checked, and I know that you’re not related by blood. But why do they keep coming back to you?”
“... It’s a long story.” It was the only way Cillin could describe it.
“Alright, if it’s too long then never mind.” The gray cat narrowed its eyes and began to doze off.
The satellite was even smaller than the planet where the preparatory campus was, but it seemed just as important judging from the quality if its buildings and equipment.
The s.p.a.ceplane descended beside a tall, round-shaped building. The building was the gathering place Cillin was supposed to attend.
After Cillin pa.s.sed over the student ID Guan Feng gave him for inspection, the main door opened to admit Cillin and the gray cat. The interior of the building was mostly metallic in color, and somewhat dull-looking. However, Cillin could sense a great amount of firepower behind these walls that would act upon any intruders at first notice.
Every hallway door had a sign on it; a sign that didn’t belong to anyone of the affiliated schools. It was the sign of the Royal Academy of Sciences, which also meant that the owner of this building was a member of the RAS.
*from now on “RAS” is the short form for Royal Academy of Sciences
“An AI controlled building, very powerful equipment and a refined surveillance and security system that can deal with any situation that can arise*. Not bad.” The gray cat a.s.sessed.
*trying something new here. Literally, the text should be: “... a refined scanning system to deal with any potential situations.”
Cillin flicked the restless fellow on his shoulder before taking an elevator to the tenth floor. After waving his student ID in front of a scanner, the meeting room’s door opened to admit his entry.
The first thing that entered his vision was the dozen or so people sitting around a round table. Most of these people were AF1 and AF2 students who had responded positively to the mission invite just like Cillin. Besides that, there were also some people who wore a badge that represented the RAS.
“Oh, you’re here Cillin. Take a seat quickly. We’re just about to begin, so you’re right on time,” A member of the RAS said.
Cillin nodded politely before he sat down on an empty chair. Beside him, the guy who was taking a nap scratched his hair once before he looked up and shot a glance at Cillin.
“Eh? You’ve come as well?!”
The student who just woke up from his nap was none other than his former housemate, Walley.
Walley was here because his teacher, the guy who owed him money and acted all righteous about it had kicked him over to this place in the name of ‘pre-school training’. Walley had been extremely reluctant to comply because he was a lazy man to begin with and his goal was very different from most of the people around here. He didn’t want wealth and fame; all he wanted was a full stomach. He didn’t want outstanding military achievements; all he wanted was stability and peace. He was the kind of guy who would rather listen to old pedants pa.s.sionately talking about seemingly profound things that no one was actually able to understand while leaking spittle all over the place than lead a life of travel, much less exit the school gates to accomplish a mission.
If the old b.a.s.t.a.r.d hadn’t paid him a handsome wage, he wouldn’t have taken a single step out of the door even if he was beaten to death as a result. He had arrived here earlier than most, but it wasn’t like he knew anyone in the meeting room anyway. Most of them were previous term students, and the only thing he heard so far was the students boasting about their glorious past achievements and gossiping about the affiliated school teachers and popular students, and the academicians discussing things that he couldn’t begin to fathom.
In Walley’s opinion, the gossips regarding the teachers and the high level academic topics all fell under the hypnotic category. Since there were quite a number of people who still hadn’t shown up, Walley decided not to partic.i.p.ate in their discussion and to sleep on top of his table immediately. He didn’t expect to run into a familiar face right after he woke up though. This was good news to Walley, because he might’ve slept through the entire mission otherwise.
Cillin was pretty happy to see Walley too. “Yeah, my teacher had sent me on this mission.”
“What luck. We both were sent on a mission before we even found our footing.” Walley rubbed his face and forced himself to awaken.
The meeting officially began after Cillin took his seat. The meeting organizer started off with a briefing of their mission. The mission was neither complicated nor difficult; it was something they already knew before they came.
The organizer had also introduced the students who were invited to partic.i.p.ate in this mission. Guan Feng had already told Cillin about the hidden motives of this mission before he came here.
The mission was issued solely by the RAS, and not the n.o.bles, the emperor, the three kings or the two great armies. Therefore, all the students who were invited to attend today shared a common trait, and that was their future hadn’t yet been confirmed. None of them officially joined any forces, organizations or n.o.bles.
To put it nicely, the RAS valued these students and wanted to avoid arousing suspicion by excluding other forces. To put it not-so-nicely, the mission organizer didn’t need to justify themselves to any particular forces if something were to happen to these students. Since a lot of their teachers were directly tied to the RAS, this entire mission could be considered their internal business. Therefore, any conflicts that arose were to be resolved as such.
A total of ten students were invited to this mission, and they would be led by a couple of academicians and honorary scholars. As for the rest of the escorts, the RAS didn’t employ the imperial army as previously mentioned. Instead, they decided to use their own escorts. Their numbers were small, but they were pretty reliable. After all, many of them were affiliated school graduates.
After the short brief was over, the team leader immediately told them to prepare themselves. It would seem that this mission was rather urgent for the RAS.
The surface of the RAS stars.h.i.+ps were all adorned with huge representative symbols. They also enjoyed the special privilege of private navigation routes and jump points.
As it turned out, the RAS was pretty rich. The configuration and decorations of the stars.h.i.+p’s interior showed.
The ten students were given an entire floor to themselves. Their lounge was also on the same floor.
In the middle of the entertainment lounge of the floor, Cillin and Walley sat in armchairs and enjoyed the fruit juices and snacks served by service robots. Alcohol was forbidden on the s.h.i.+p because there was an incident where some drunk students had gone on a drunken rampage and caused ma.s.sive damage and losses. A student with an unusual alcohol craving who wasn’t the type to go crazy after they had gotten drunk could produce their teacher’s written permission, sign a letter of guarantee, and get the signature of the highest ranking officer. Only then they would be allowed to get their booze.
Although both Cillin and Walley preferred alcoholic drinks over non-alcoholic ones, they found the process more trouble than it was worth. Worse, they would have had to endure the criticisms and educational lectures of those RAS academicians and honorary scholars. “Alcohol can affect the neurotransmitters in the central nervous system in many ways, and it also affects the release factor of acetylcholine, neuropeptide and corticotropin as well, blah blah blah blah blah…”
Walley wanted nothing more but to take off his shoes and stuff them into these academicians and honorary scholars’ mouths for their habitually academic way of thinking. This was one of the common views he shared with his “so-what-if-I-don’t-return-the-debt-I-owe” rascal of a teacher.
Not far away, the gray cat was playing games with a previous term student called York. The gray cat had worked hard to improve its gaming skills after it was looked down upon by Dough in the past, so it managed to beat York two to one in a three round match. York was extremely dissatisfied with the results, so he held up the gray cat and kept challenging it to more rounds. That was how Cillin came to sit around around the corner, chatting with Walley while watching the ensuing battle.
A mellow voice interrupted their chat suddenly.
“Are you Guan Feng’s new student?”
Cillin looked up. The person who interrupted them was a sweet-tempered and pleasant-looking girl named Kenasenza. She was one term ahead of them both, and she was incredibly eye-catching because she was the only one who wore a long skirt among the ten students.
The organizer had introduced everyone’s names during the meeting, but not their mentors’. Still, Cillin wasn’t surprised that Kenasenza had recognized him. After all, many students had heard that he was wielding a PTS K during the tryouts.
Walley winked once at Cillin before he gave up his seat to Kenasenza of his own accord.
Kenasenza stared at Cillin curiously with wide eyes after she thanked Walley and sat down.
Cillin nodded in response towards Kenasenza’s question. “Yes, Guan Feng is my teacher.”
Kenasenza was very happy to hear Cillin’s confirmation. She turned around and shouted at a group of people sitting on the other side of the entertainment lounge. “Eros, Vino, Daduo, he really is Guan Feng’s student!”
The three students sitting there looked towards their direction before walking over from their seat. The big guy of the trio, Eros looked a little embarra.s.sed as he scratched his head in response to Kenasenza’s shout. “Oh. Hehe.”
Meanwhile, Vino and Daduo were staring at Cillin with eyes that were full of doubt and suspicion. A few people sitting on other corners of the entertainment lounge were also staring at them antic.i.p.atorily.
To tell the truth, Cillin had realized that some of the students were full of hostility the moment he entered the meeting room before. It wasn’t jealousy that drove them, but it still wasn’t a kind look. Guan Feng seemed to know that this would happen from the beginning; it was why he had said what he said earlier during the day.
When Walley noticed that the situation wasn’t going the way he expected, he shot a inquiring glance at Cillin: do you want my help?
Cillin shook his head imperceptibly, indicating that he could handle the situation.
“This here is Vino, Daduo, and big guy Eros. As for me, do you know who I am?” Kenasenza smiled at Cillin. Her curved eyes were glinting.
“I know them, and I know you, Kenasenza. We’ve all been introduced during the meeting,” Cillin answered.
Kenasenza wiggled her fingers playfully. “Fate has brought us all together on a mission, so there’s no need to act like a stranger. Just call me Keke like Daduo does.”
Kenasenza and Daduo were the only two females among the ten students. Everyone else had a p.r.i.c.k in their pants. Daduo’s outlook was completely different from Kenasenza’s. She was lively, active, very sociable and principled despite her carefree att.i.tude. These were all qualities Cillin picked up during the short time he came to observe these students.
Vino walked before Cillin and looked down on him from an elevated position. Then, he pulled over a chair, sat down and raised his chin. “I know Teacher Guan. His PTS series is very famous.”
The implied meaning was: I know you only because your teacher is Guan Feng, not because you’re all that impressive.
A lot of people had heard and seen the famous Guan Feng. After all, he had opened some courses before in the affiliated schools. Guan Feng’s courses had a limited quota, and they were used up immediately every time one was opened. The fact that the slots were fought over every time his courses became available in the course selection platform showed just how famous he was.
That was just on the surface though. Cillin neither minded Vino’s statement, nor offered a retort. In fact, he didn’t even say anything.
Seeing that their target hadn’t taken the bait, Vino exchanged a glance with Daduo before he sneered at Cillin. “I heard that Guan Feng’s students were all extremely proficient shooters. I agree with the sentiment myself. Although I haven’t seen your three-plus-one myself, I’ve heard of your feat from my senior brothers. However,” Vino paused for a moment and stared at Cillin as if he had seen through him. “I wonder if a shooter like you is just as good when fighting in melee?”
Vino and Daduo moved at the same time right after he said this.
Daduo was very quick, but Vino was closer and more aggressive than she was. Another prey in the same circ.u.mstances would’ve subconsciously focused more of their attention on him.
Compared to the students who were just done partic.i.p.ating in the tryouts, the two of them were undoubtedly more experienced and skillful. It was also obvious that they had removed some unnecessary movements from their techniques because the attacks were swift and straightforward.
The duo came at him from the front and one side. The other side of his path was blocked by Kenasenza, and his back was blocked by the armchair he was sitting on. A pure shooter would’ve been troubled by a pincer attack like this, but the thing is Cillin wasn’t a pure shooter.
Vino and Daduo’s movements were cut short as quickly as they started. They stood stiffly and did not move a muscle. Vino’s fingers were curled into a claw-shape and aimed at Cillin’s throat. Daduo’s fists were clenched into a fist and aimed at Cillin’s waist. However, the hunter had moved instantly so that their attacks wouldn’t hit the ideal target areas, not that they were planning to continue even if this wasn’t the case.
Everyone was staring at them with dumbstruck expressions except the gray cat and York. It was because the duo were busy trying to best each other.
So, what was the thing that had stopped Vino and Daduo from attacking?
There were two things to be exact: a blade, and a gun. Cillin was pointing a thin, long blade at Vino’s glabella, and pressing the PTS K against Daduo’s head.
The bizarre atmosphere had even affected the engrossed York. This avid gamer had finally noticed that his surroundings were overly quiet and that his and the gray cat’s swears were the only sounds resounding inside the entertainment lounge.
Unfortunately for York, the split second distraction resulted in him being killed by the gray cat in one decisive shot. As York stared angrily at the words that popped up on the screen, he slammed the arcade machine and shouted, “Hey, what the h.e.l.l is wrong with you guys?!”
Then, he was caught off guard when his eyes finally s.h.i.+fted towards Cillin’s direction. He poked the gray cat that was licking its paws happily and pointed at Cillin’s direction.
The gray cat didn’t even bother to look. “Why do you care what’s going on over there? It’s no wonder you lost; your willpower is insufficient!”
“Bulls.h.i.+t! One more round!”
York immediately threw the abnormal reactions around him to the back of his mind and worked his fingers, getting ready for yet another round of battle against the gray cat. The gray cat was very willing to accompany him because a bet was involved. It had won at least three bags worth of fish biscuits after a few rounds of victory. Mm, today’s haul is pretty good. It’s been a while since I run into an idiot like York.
G.o.d knows what York would think if he knew that the gray cat had labeled him an idiot in its mind.
On the surface, it wasn’t exactly clear what Cillin’s retaliation meant. However, Vino and Daduo were the ones who attacked him first, so no one tried to accuse him for his actions. The problem right now was that no one was stepping up to defuse the situation. Had Cillin turned out to be an easy picking, some of them might have stepped up and used their seniority to defuse the situation. However, Cillin was neither an easy picking nor their direct junior brother, not to mention that they weren’t particularly friendly with Vino or Daduo either. No one wanted to get involved in such a mess, which was why nothing had happened after the initial surprise.
Eros scratched his head again and looked at the still seated Kenasenza, motioning for her to defuse the situation. She was a girl after all, and she was undoubtedly the better choice compared to a big guy like him. The situation might take a turn for the worse if he chose to walk right into this awkward situation, not to mention everyone knew that Eros was a bad speaker.
Walley crossed his legs and shook it as he slowly picked up a snack and put it in his mouth. He ignored the pitiable look Kenasenza was shooting his way.
In the end, Kenasenza put down the teacup in her hand and put a smile on her face. “Impressive! Very impressive. You are definitely Teacher Guan’s students. It’s just a small joke, Cillin, Vino and Daduo are just curious about you. Why don’t we stop this here, okay?”
Cillin looked at Kenasenza gave her a smile. She didn’t know what his smile meant, but for some reason she felt his eyes could see right through her.
Cillin’s arms shook once, and his blade and gun suddenly vanished from view. Then, he picked up his fruit juice once more.
Not far away, an onlooker said to his companion, “Is Guan Feng really his teacher? No wonder everyone fights like a maniac to grab a slot everytime Guan Feng starts a lecture.”
His companion nodded in agreement. “His reputation is well deserved alright. Just look at his new student; who would think that he’s this capable? It’s no wonder that he was accepted even considering Guan Feng’s high standards.”
Although they all admired Guan Feng, their admiration had mostly stemmed from his creation, the Purgatory Thunder Snake. Boys generally paid attention to their guns more than the other gender, and the mysterious PTS was obviously one of their main focus. Before Cillin had taught them a lesson today, they all thought that shooters must bad at fighting close range. Who was the one who said that shooters couldn’t fight in melee? Look at Cillin! His movements were so quick that they couldn’t even keep up with their eyes. His opponent, Vino had been held hostage by the blade in the blink of an eye! They doubted that even Daduo could move as fast as him.
Cillin and Walley might not know who Daduo was yet, but not these veteran students. Daduo shared the same teacher as Bie Yao, a somewhat famous speedstar in AF2, which meant that Daduo’s strength also lay in speed. However, not even Daduo was able to gain the upper hand over Cillin.
They didn’t realize that Daduo’s senior brother, Bie Yao had his a.s.s kicked by Cillin once upon a time. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be astonished by his triumph over Daduo.
After Cillin had put away his blade, Vino stared at him for a moment before offering a smile. “You really are amazing. I concede that you’re the better!”
His words improved Cillin’s impression of him a little. It was hard not to when Vino had accepted and admitted his defeat so frankly.
Daduo shook her fingers before she collapsed ungracefully on a nearby recliner and rested a leg at the edge of the table. “I knew I wasn’t good enough; it’s no wonder my teacher told me that I’m still lacking. Sigh, you just joined the school, dammit. I feel so under pressure. I wonder how my senior brother Bie Yao would’ve fared against you.”
The gray cat’s ears twitched once, and it spoke up while still manipulating the game controller with its paws. “Bie Yao? Are you talking about that guy who’s friends with Panther the Black Panther?”
The gray cat’s statement shocked York yet again. His hands wobbled and, f.u.c.k, he lost again!
The gray cat grabbed over the stakes in a practiced manner, counted, and pushed them right under its feet. It was sitting on a pile of cash already.
“Do you know Bie Yao and Panther?!” York jumped in front of the gray cat and asked. Right now the money was the lesser of concerns to him.
The gray cat shot the curious and astonished York a sideway glance. Then, it moved a paw near his face and wriggle it a little.
“f.u.c.k!” York stuffed his hands into his pockets and fished for a little. He pulled out some cash, noticed that the number was a little too high, put it back and fished out a smaller one. Then, he pa.s.sed it over to the gray cat.
The gray cat glanced at the paper note, before moving down towards the pocket where York kept his money. It didn’t accept the paper note or say anything.
Meanwhile, Cillin was drinking his fruit juice so ‘attentively’ that Walley couldn’t stop the corner of his mouth from curling. He knew since their stay at the temporary hostel that both the owner and the pet were bad apples!
“Hey, ever heard of moderation and leniency?” York shook the money a little.
“Hmph!” The gray cat accepted the money and pushed it under its b.u.t.t, saying, “I know Panther the Black Panther, and we know Bie Yao too.”
You told me not to boast stuff, but saying someone’s name isn’t exactly boasting, right? The gray cat curled its paws and said, “We even know the guy with the wings Zanny, the honest-looking big guy Puno, Yenov and uh, what’s that girl who blows the flute called again, right, Vega!”
“...”
This time everyone was stunned and silenced even deeper than before. Bie Yao and Black Panther aside, Cillin and the gray cat even knew Zanny, Puno and Vega. They were all people who were recruited into Wings before they reached graduation and were pretty famous within the affiliated schools. If they could make contact with people at that level, then… They had thought that everyone here was at the same tier; that no one had chosen a side yet. That was why they were surprised to find out that Cillin had made contact with someone at that level.
Walley didn’t normally gossip. He knew Zanny because the latter once appeared during the tryouts, but every other name the gray cat mentioned was unfamiliar to him. Still, he could guess how prominent they were from the people’s reactions. Even better, he noticed that the the gray cat was acting even more offhand than usual when it recited those names, which seemed to imply that it didn’t hold those people in high esteem. If his guess wasn’t wrong then… heh, the owner and the pet sure play their cards very close to their chest!
The gray cat carried its winning with its mouth and brought it to Cillin for safekeeping, including the capital Cillin lent it in the first place. The young man didn’t hold it against the gray cat, however.
Wheeze crouched on top of Cillin’s shoulder and shot a glance at the nearby Eros. It said, “Puno is brawnier than you are.”
The gray cat was just stating a fact; it wasn’t trying to convey disdain towards Eros. Puno was definitely bigger than Eros when it grew bigger.
“Uh, hehe.” Eros scratched his head in embarra.s.sment.
The gray cat: “...”
It was advisable not to hold Eros’ reactions against him because his favorite quotes are: “Uhehe”, “ahaha” and “ohehe”. They were used whenever a certain condition was met.
Vino picked up the conversation of his own accord and talked about Eros in order to clear up the awkwardness that stemmed from the fight. To their surprise, Eros happened to be Ironhead’s dear senior brother. They shared the same teacher.
The revelation was the last thing necessary to clear up the air. Even Walley joined the conversation and networked with everyone for a bit.
Cillin wasn’t a petty man himself. As Guan Feng had mentioned earlier, it was inevitable that there would be friction between students during first contact. A fight should settle most misunderstandings and bring them closer.
When the s.h.i.+ps finally arrived at their target destination, Cillin, Vino, Daduo, York and Eros had become much more familiar with each other. Unfortunately for York though, he was dealt him an even greater blow by the gray cat when he learned that he was inferior to the gray cat in both gaming and fighting. Wheeze’s claw marks could be seen on his face everyday.
During the period of interaction, everyone learned that this fat cat was very familiar with the animals of AF1. Everyone one here could still remember the terrors of the tryouts, so it was only natural that they felt a bit wary towards the gray cat.
After they landed, Cillin discovered that the buildings of this planet were in general quite short. No skysc.r.a.pers could be seen anywhere. However, they were built like fortresses of war, and it was easy to mistake that they were in a battlefield as they walked between the buildings.
The feeling they had wasn’t entirely wrong. A war had supposedly happened in this place before, although it wasn’t a war between humans, but a war between humans and animals. The sea covered three-fifths of this planet, and the land two-fifths. However, almost half of the land were made up of deserts, so there weren’t many inhabitants in these places. Most of the population were concentrated in habitats with better environmental conditions.
Cillin and the students had roughly learned about the situation here before they came: there was a battle between humans and the sea beasts that went on here, and there were some conflicts between humans as well.
The cities on this planet were often attacked by sea beasts. Although the cities had protective s.h.i.+elds, they didn’t always keep them active. There were better ways to spend the energy resources.
Neither side was willing to give up on their territory, so the war that lasted for generations had been ingrained into their habits. The humans kept improving their weapons, and the marine species kept evolving stronger. Maybe temporary peace would finally arrive on this planet when one side had achieved victory. If the humans won, they would be embroiled in greater internal conflicts after a temporary peace had pa.s.sed. If the sea beasts won, the humans who lost might choose to fight to the death in their homes or leave the planet in search for other habitable planets. One thing was certain though: these people would forever be branded as losers who lost their own homes.
The people here were extremely stubborn; it was something they inherited from their ancestors. If they weren’t, they would’ve accepted external reinforcements and won the war against the sea beasts since a long time ago.
It was exactly because the RAS was aware of the stubbornness of these people that prompted them to send a group over to negotiate. If the people here were more open to negotiation, they would’ve settled this through long range communication. It would’ve been unnecessary to travel here all the way from the imperial capital.
A lot of houses here had dried fish meat hung at the entrance. That was why one could smell the same scent everywhere.
For example, the fat cat on Cillin’s shoulder couldn’t close its mouth ever since they arrived on this planet. The only thing that was missing was saliva on its mouth. If Cillin hadn’t forbidden it from running off on its own, it would’ve gone away to look for food the moment they touched down.
“Wow, guys, look at the teeth of that fis.h.!.+” York pointed at a halved fish head hanging at the doorsteps of a house.
It might not be the complete fish head, but it was enough to tell them a lot of things. The fish’s head was two meters long, and it had rows of sharp teeth inside its mouth. Its pharyngeal teeth were pretty sharp too. Any prey that somehow managed to escape the teeth in its mouth would still be ground to bits by its pharyngeal teeth.
York’s bl.u.s.ter made the RAS academicians feel very embarra.s.sed, so they shot him a glare to stop him from testing the sharpness of the fish’s teeth with his own hands. The young man winked once at Vino and fell silent after that.
The RAS had informed the planetary government of their arrival prior to departure, and the latter had sent a group of people to welcome them. The welcome wasn’t particularly warm though. Compared to how the RAS were normally received in other places, these people were practically giving them the cold shoulder.
The faces of two prideful academicians immediately turned ugly at this, but when they recalled the meeting they had before departing, they decided that their business here was more important than their pride and forcefully swallowed their indignation.
Cillin was very acute senses, so he noticed that some people in the surrounding buildings were pointing their guns at them. It wasn’t that they were enemies in their eyes - he couldn’t sense any killing intent from them - but it was a habit they’d nurtured across the years. They were used to examining another person through a scope or with a gun right by their side. Maybe this was the only way they could feel a sense of security, but it also meant that they had no concept how the act might offend an outsider.
Cillin believed that everyone else could sense the same thing, but since they were given no clear orders everyone raised their guards but didn’t do anything else.
“So this is how it feels to walk with every gun pointed at you.” Vino tugged at the corner of his lips.
Eros’ facial muscles twitched, but he didn’t answer. The fact that he hadn’t even used his catchphrase showed just how nervous he was to be at the end of a gun barrel - many gun barrels - and doing nothing about it.
The feeling certainly couldn’t be described as good, but Walley seemed to be extremely used to a situation like this. He wasn’t nearly as tense as Vino, York and the others. Cillin was just the same; the two of them looked like they were just taking a casual walk down a street. Their casualness hadn’t escaped the others’ notice.
Maybe this is the gap between us and them? Daduo thought to herself.
There was one more person who looked as relaxed as Walley and Cillin. It was Kenasenza.
During the time he interacted with the gang, Cillin knew the Kenasenza was born with a precognitive ability just like Tico’s rabbit despite sporting below average individual combat abilities. She was naturally sensitive to all sorts of danger.
That being said, none of them overly relied on Kenasenza’s precognitive ability even though they knew that her relaxed posture probably meant that they were safe for now. After all, there was always a chance that something unexpected might happen, and no one here had two chances in life. That was why they would rather be more alert towards their surroundings and be safe rather than sorry.
Suddenly, Kenasenza came to a pause and frowned down a particular direction. Her movement immediately triggered the squad to go into high alert.
“What’s wrong, Keke?” An academician asked.
Kenasenza shook her head. “We’re fine, for now.”
So, something’s going to happen later?
The academicians were less than confident because the only thing standing between them and danger was the group of students, not the planetary government’s military forces. It was true that the human society of this planet was said to be rather peaceful, but it was another thing to be standing on this planet for real. They were starting to regret their decision against applying for an imperial capital military escort.
The gray cat’s tail swayed. Personally, it hoped that they would land in a bigger conflict very soon. This was the first time they arrived on this planet, so the trip had to be fun and enjoyable to say the least. As for what the others might think, well that was nothing the gray cat cared about. It was a petty creature, and it couldn’t be bothered to be considerate towards so many people.
The planetary government center was very impressive, but just like the rest of the buildings around here it sported a short height. From the moment he saw the building, Cillin’s first impression was that it was a snapping turtle who protected itself with hard sh.e.l.ls and was ready to attack its prey at first notice.
The number of troops garrisoned outside the planetary government center was far bigger than the number of troops sent to receive them.
“Cillin, I sense a big fellow inside this building!” The gray cat stared at a particular section of the building excitedly.
“Is it a sea beast?” Cillin asked.
“Yeah. This poor thing doesn’t seem to be doing too well though. It’s being used for research.” The gray cat was extremely averse towards the words “used for research”.
A lot of alien creatures were captured and used for research in GAL. It was a reason why the gray cat wasn’t able to act as freely as it did when it was at GAL. After it came to Mist Bodhisattva Empire, it discovered that things were a lot better for the animals of this place. At the very least, the alien creatures of this place couldn’t be publicly detained and used for research. For example, the animals of AF1 were given their own rights. Although they often provided blood to the RAS for research, it was all done on a voluntary basis. They were also compensated richly after the blood transfusion. People like Panther were even recruited into Wings.
Although the gray cat didn’t have a high opinion of Panther - he was just another loser to the gray cat - but Panther would no doubt make decisions from the perspective of an ‘alien creature’. He fought to increase and protect the rights of alien species from being devastated by some crazy humans. It was why the gray cat still think favorably of Panther despite beating the latter.
Of course, it was more convincing for the rights of alien creatures to be protected by an alien creature.
“It seems that the conflict between the humans and the sea beasts has reached a pretty serious stage,” Cillin said.
The moment Cillin was finished, a low growl spread far, far away to the distance.
Is it a deep sea species?
Cillin was able to deduce from the sea beast’s voice that it was a species that lived very deep in the sea. It must’ve taken the humans quite the effort to bring a big fellow like this all the way here alive.