Bruce was aware, too, of something else.
Isolde could have cleared the weaker beasts herself. So could Duke. An SSS-tier aura unleashed fully would suppress A-Ranks into submission without effort. So why assign him this role?
Bruce had known from the moment she gave the instruction.
She wanted to see. To measure. To observe the limits of what he could do. A sovereign assessing an asset. A monarch testing a weapon. Or one simply observing an ally
He didn't mind. He had nothing to hide and everything to gain. He had handled the invader, as long as she doesn't get to his bad books then he's okay.
This cooperation wasn't charity. It was mutual leverage. If nothing else, he could always request compensation later. A monarch of Eiskar could spare a hundred million gold coins without destabilizing her treasury.
The thought amused him faintly.
But more than gold, he was harvesting something else.
Experience. Growth.
