"Sir Oliver." Michael saluted when he saw the man. Since Oliver was second in command, below only Victoria, he couldn't afford to disrespect him.
'Even if Ava is able to curse at him and get away with only a slap on the wrist, the same couldn't be said about me. I am still a simple cadet after all.'
"Cadet Michael." Oliver spoke coldly. It was obvious that there was a hidden ill intent in his gaze. For reasons that eluded Michael.
"By Bryce's orders all personnel in Base #85 are to gather and welcome the reinforcements."
'The second in command came personally to make sure I came? Is there something that I am missing?' Michael had many questions. However, he didn't ask them, since he had enough experience to know that a recklessly asked question could set off a higher-up, making his life unnecessarily harder.
"Reinforcements?" This was the only question Michael judged wouldn't set off Oliver.
"Yes, if we continue to seal portals at that speed, after six days there will still be several remaining. And we have recently received confirmation that there is a fleet of alien spaceships slowly approaching Triton. The reinforcements are to make sure the bases are secure before anything else."
Michael nodded silently. Following the order, he went towards the gathering spot.
Oliver watched his back disappearing, his thoughts and intentions unknown.
Just like when code black had been announced, there were tens of thousands of personnel. The difference between now and before was the total lack of chaos.
"Did you hear that an alien fleet has been spotted slowly approaching?"
"Yes, since we managed to spot them early on, all factions in the solar system are coming with the intent to help and attain glory."
"If that is the case, there is nothing to worry about, is there?"
"But aren't we underestimating the aliens? The ones using spaceships rather than coming here from portals would have intellect at least equal to ours. If they realized that their sneak attack had failed, they might change their approach."
"It sounds more like you underestimate the factions. Believe me, if they band together over a common enemy, nothing could stand in their way!"
Hearing that his warning had been taken seriously, Michael let out a sigh of relief. The end result was better than he could have expected. He had mentally prepared himself to be ignored. Most likely the reason his message was looked up by the higher-ups was because he had sent the warning towards Victoria.
Whatever the case, Michael was glad. He had confidence in his strength, but he wasn't delusional enough to think that he could protect the whole moon by himself. The more people he could count on, the better.
'This should at least prevent Triton's complete defeat I experienced in my past life.' He thought.
"Good morning!" Ava's voice sounded behind him, as cheerful as ever.
"I wonder who will come to our aid?" Leo came a few minutes later.
Michael searched for Victoria but wasn't able to find her. If he had to guess, she had gone to seal more portals.
"SALUTE!" Oliver's powerful shout silenced all chatter in the area.
Every single person, regardless of rank, saluted in absolute respect. Bryce, who was acting as a temporary general, was no exception.
Swoosh!
A large spaceship began entering the stratosphere and began to descend. Docking at the landing zone, the heavy doors moved to the side, allowing the passengers to come into full view.
Once the gathered soldiers felt the heavy aura of the newcomers, they felt their hearts stop.
"Gods! What pressure!"
"All of them are equal to a general! They have reached, at the very least, the Peak Expert realm! Maybe even Master!"
Michael was instantly able to recognize what faction these people belonged to: Immortal Legion, the same faction as Oliver. Perhaps he wasn't surprised by their presence since one of their members was already here.
He had initially suspected that if there were going to be reinforcements, they would come from Victoria's faction, Golden Vanguard, the strongest faction second only to the Emperor. It was strange that they didn't send a representative considering that there was a member of their faction already here.
'Maybe they don't care much for Victoria? Or maybe they are testing her?'
While Michael was busy, lost deep in thought, Oliver went to personally welcome the Immortal Legion.
"Oliver!" A man with an unfathomable aura was the first to acknowledge his existence. "I hope that the matter with Victoria is going well? There are a lot of things riding on this relationship."
Oliver smiled awkwardly. "O—Of course, Grandmaster Isaac, it's only a matter of time until she submits to me!"
"Good! That is how it's meant to be!" Grandmaster Isaac's laughter boomed across the whole area.
Michael wasn't able to hear the private discussion that Oliver was having with the members of his faction. He had Perfect Vision, not Perfect Hearing.
'To be honest, I don't care who comes. As long as they help us in the fight against the aliens, then they are welcomed in my book.' Since he had fulfilled his order and welcomed the faction that had come to support them. He could distance himself from the gathering site.
He began to think about his next steps.
"With the additional help we should be able to get rid of the portals without any trouble. If that is the case, we could go back to the geyser where we fought the Elite alien. The spiritual energy there was so concentrated that it's a shame if we don't cultivate a little."
He turned towards Ava and Leo for their response.
"Sure, I won't miss the chance to strengthen my soul a little." Ava shrugged.
"I hope that the corpse of the Elite alien is still there. I wonder what it looks like." Leo was also on board.
Not wanting to waste valuable time, they began to head towards the transporting vehicle. Only for Michael to be stopped by a window that appeared before them.
"Huh?!" He exclaimed out loud.
[Quest: Protect Triton Updated!]
[Difficulty: Insane → Impossible]