When Benjamin, Viola, and the support wizard squads that arrived afterward returned together to the steel camp standing upon the scorched earth of the borderland, a feeling of having lived through another lifetime rose within them.
The air no longer carried the sulfurous stench of lava and the bloody smell of battle, but the coldness of metal, the steady hum of rune energy, and an orderly sense of discipline.
It was as though he had returned from a savage, bloody primordial hunt to a citadel of civilization governed by strict discipline.
The first thing Benjamin did after returning to camp was rest and take stock of his gains.
Benjamin first went to the legion's logistics exchange, where he disposed of all the various materials he had obtained along the way.
Although the earlier battles had been thrilling and perilous, Benjamin had not actually gained much from them. Most of his harvest had come from the previous small outposts.
The energy core of a Level 2 Lava Giant, energy crystals containing the power of fire elements, strange plant specimens capable of surviving high temperatures...
These rare materials, valuable enough in the outside world, were appraised one by one here and swiftly exchanged for Military Merit points representing contributions and resources.
Naturally, the "Level 2 Incubation Pool," enough to make any faction covet it, was deeply hidden in the innermost depths of his Space Expansion Bag, without a trace of its existence being revealed.
Afterward, he went to the communications department and applied for a new Magic Network Terminal.
The new terminal felt cool in his hand. As he injected it with spiritual power, a familiar sensation once more connected him to the vast regional network of the entire Wizard Camp.
Mission lists, supply exchanges, intelligence channels, and other modules reappeared in