Major Action from Above

"Beep beep—"

Jayce's wristband sounded, and he lowered his head for a glance.

"Alright, recruits. The mission is over. Time to go home."

Everyone straightened up, ready to follow Jayce back to the Viltrumite Empire. In truth, they still wanted more.

Who knew how long later, everyone returned to the Viltrumite Recruit Company.

Jayce did not linger in the dormitory and instead headed for the command center.

He needed to report the details of this mission to his superiors and submit an evaluation report on the recruits' performance.

The first thing Sparta did upon returning to the dormitory was enter the bathroom for a cold shower.

He casually tossed his combat uniform, caked in dried blood, into the trash can.

The Empire supplied combat uniforms without limit. Whether they got dirty or damaged, they could be replaced with a brand-new one anytime, anywhere.

The Empire ruled countless planets and did not care about the loss of a little fabric.

Several dozen minutes later, the bathroom door opened, and Sparta walked out wearing only a pair of white shorts.

He dried his dripping-wet hair in front of the mirror when, with a slap, Luke emerged from the bathroom right after him.

"Doesn't it feel great after a shower, Sparta?"

Sparta was speechless. Wasn't that obvious?

How could a body covered in sticky blood and grime compare to being clean and refreshed? He shook the droplets from his hair, hung the towel on its hook, and left under Luke's gaze.

The direction he left in was the exact opposite of the dormitory.

Luke kindly reminded him, "The dormitory isn't that way. It's in the other direction."

Without slowing down or looking back, Sparta raised a hand and waved at Luke. "I'm not going back to the dormitory. I'm going to train."

Hearing that, Luke threw a punch at the air before him and exclaimed, "As expected of hardworking Sparta! Even after the mission ends, he still insists on completing his daily training!"

"Luke, what the hell are you babbling about?"

Kaden watched Luke talking to himself at the air and wondered whether the Big-Mouthians had knocked his brains loose.

"Sparta went to train as soon as he came out of the bathroom!"

After Luke explained, Kaden let out an amazed cry as well.

"Gah! As expected of hardworking Sparta!"

Jayce entered a room in the command center.

The room was a small office, and the lieutenant colonel who had issued the order earlier was seated inside.

Hearing the door open, the lieutenant colonel looked up and placed the report he had finished reading on one side of the desk with his right hand.

"Reporting, sir! Third Squad of Second Platoon, Recruit Company, has completed its mission."

Jayce stood ramrod straight and raised a hand in salute to the lieutenant colonel.

The lieutenant colonel nodded lightly and gestured for Jayce to sit. "Well done. You've taken another planet for the Empire, bringing us one step closer to the plan of ruling the universe."

Jayce kept his eyes straight ahead and said calmly, "For the Empire. For the Emperor."

The lieutenant colonel's lips curled slightly as his fingers tapped the desk. "Tell me, how did the recruits perform in this operation?"

Without changing expression, Jayce answered, "The recruits performed as expected. They did what they were supposed to do. Every recruit was loyal to the Empire and the Emperor."

He lied without even blinking. The other recruits could indeed be said to have performed as expected, but Sparta's performance had clearly exceeded that.

But so what? Wasn't it entirely up to him how he reported it?

The lieutenant colonel was not surprised by that answer at all.

"Jayce, you've led several batches of recruits. But when have you ever said anything different?"

"I don't understand the situation in your squad, nor do I know whether what you said is true. But I hope you can take responsibility for those words."

Jayce remained as steady in his seat as a meditating old monk and replied without hesitation, "Sir, I will take responsibility for my words."

"Good. Tell me what happened on Big Mouth Star. In detail."

"At the time, I led the recruits into the air above the palace on Big Mouth Star..."

"..."

Half an hour later, Jayce walked out of the lieutenant colonel's office after finishing his report and strode toward the recruit dormitories.

The moment he returned to the dormitory, Jayce noticed that Sparta was not there.

"Where is Sparta?"

Luke lay on his bed with both hands behind his head. "Sir, Sparta went to train."

"Mm."

Jayce did not ask further. He took a new combat uniform from his locker and left the dormitory for the bathroom.

Time passed quickly, and an hour and a half later, evening drew near.

Sparta returned to the dormitory with his muscles swollen and flushed with blood, then dropped onto the edge of his bed in exhaustion.

After letting out a heavy breath, he took a glass bottle filled with pale green liquid from his locker.

He opened it, tipped back his head, and drank it all in one gulp.

A pained expression appeared on Sparta's face. This was the Military Department's specially supplied nutrient solution. One bottle could stave off hunger for an entire day, but it tasted terrible.

A bitterness that shot straight into the brain and soul.

Sparta frowned and smacked his lips. Even a dog would not drink this stuff.

He took a book from the shelf and lay on his bed reading quietly. Life in the Military Department was unbearably dull; only working out and reading could relieve the boredom.

"Captain, when can we go out on another mission? Staying in the Military Department is too boring."

Digger was the one who spoke. Only after going out on a mission could one understand just how dull the Military Department was.

Unlike Sparta, he did not enjoy training or reading. Every day, he had nothing to do but lie on his bed and stare blankly.

As Digger spoke, the others chimed in as well:

"Yeah, sir. Can we take a more difficult mission next time? Then we can stay outside a little longer."

"Only missions let us go out, and we can't sneak out. I'd rather face powerful enemies than stay in the dormitory every day."

"I don't want to stay either. When I was walking around the Military Department today, a female soldier who looked like she was a thousand years old actually licked her lips at me and asked which squad I was in."

Eddie was the one who said it, and everyone present immediately showed expressions of sympathy.

If you were strong enough, it was fine. You only needed to defeat her.

If you were weak... you would be raped.

Jayce opened his eyes as he listened to the recruits complain. "When I reported the mission, the lieutenant colonel told me there would be major action from above soon. When the time comes, I'll try to get our squad involved."

"From what the lieutenant colonel said, it won't be like the minor incidents before. This may be a massive war. You'd better think it through."

At that moment, the recruits could hardly contain their excitement. A massive war!

The Viltrumite Empire's annals recorded several massive wars. Even through mere words, everyone could feel how brutal they had been.

It had been a long time since the last massive war. They had never expected to catch this one.

Even Sparta closed his book, growing interested in the major action to come.

"This is only speculation. Whether it's really a massive war is still uncertain, so don't get too excited."

Jayce glanced at the eager recruits and poured cold water over them.