After realizing how difficult it would be to betray the trust the members of the 14th Squad had placed in him, John carefully considered the matter for an entire morning before deciding to overturn his original plan of feigning defeat. He would win this Bahamut Town governance mission. Only then, combined with his previous accumulated merits, could he enter Emperor William's sight as an "all-rounder" and gain the chance to be entrusted with greater responsibility.
And qualify to command a regiment-level unit.
Once the Western Front had completely concluded and Emperor William withstood the Cabinet's pressure to formally reward the Seventh Legion—
John could then naturally incorporate the members of the 14th Squad into his new unit, ensuring that those who followed him would not become cannon fodder in the future battle known as the "Valkyrie" meat grinder.
As for how this would affect his retirement plans, John had also taken that into account during his recent deliberations.
Given the current changes, his original plan to issue reform legislation in Dormammu's name and use his influence to launch reforms would likely have to be put on hold for a while.
At the very least, not until Emperor William used the victory at the Battle of Walden to suppress the Cabinet, formally incorporated the Seventh Legion—previously unrecognized as an emperor-direct unit—into the Empire's official military structure, and promoted Dormammu as the Third Marshal of the Imperial Air Force, truly granting him command over one-third of the Empire's air forces.
If John wanted to transfer his old subordinates in the 14th Squad from ordinary Mage Soldiers into guards for government officials, he absolutely could not unveil that reform bill yet.
Besides, compared with handing Dormammu a blade to cut down nobles while he was riding high after a great victory—
John felt