Since Kyle's shift was nearing its end, he told the Chief Area Commanders that he would slowly lower the intensity of the Aura Expander.
The teams slowly scattered and went back to their original posts as Kyle lowered the intensity.
Yet, when Kyle reached the minimum of 10%, he encountered a problem. After all, he couldn't lower it anymore without deactivating it.
The information was forwarded, and the new Commander of Fort U-878 left his post for just a single second to change the setting of the Aura Expander, allowing Kyle to go lower.
Eventually, Kyle lowered the intensity to 1%, and afterward, he completely deactivated it.
The frontlines returned to normal, and Kyle went back to Fort U-878.
After entering the Fort, Kyle paused for a moment before pushing even more Energy into his mind.
BANG!
Kyle felt like a barrier had been shattered, and he once again experienced a feeling of delay.
He had officially become a Major Sage. His mind had become quite a bit more powerful, but the power of his mind grew significantly. The entire world seemed to move more slowly in his perspective.
Then, he calmed his mind to solidify his Momentum. Even though the individual battles hadn't been incredibly tough, fighting for 300 years straight was pretty long. He had relied on Humanity's ability to adapt and help, but if Humanity had been any slower, he would have died. His life had not only been in his hands back then but also in the hands of Humanity.
For just a moment, Kyle thought about his improvements. He had gone through 300 years of fighting Early Sage Demons, and the constant fighting came with improvements.
'My Momentum has reached the peak of the Wisdom Fire Realm, but that's not uncommon in Ayunar. Due to the constant fights, the average Momentum of a Shield would be within the top 1% in the Supreme World, relative to their Realm. Seekers in the Supreme World simply don't fight as much as the Seekers here.'
'However, we are also fighting an army of Divine Beasts! I simply don't have enough presence towards Momentum.'
'As for my other powers, I've gained some insights into the Major Law of Body. I'm not even close to comprehending it, but I can see myself getting there in a couple of centuries. The constant adaptation to raise my power will once again—'
'Using my Domain so much has also given me some insights. Sadly, for the other two Major Aspect Laws, I have to dedicate some direct time.'
'Lastly, the level of my Law of Hammer has increased again. I'm assuming that if I only use my Law of Hammer with them, I could create a Refined Law. my power would increase drastically, but at this point, I'm not sure if that's the right choice.'
Kyle looked at his hammer. 'I'm not done improving the quality of my Law of Hammer. It's not perfect yet, and it's actually getting worse. The better it gets, the more errors I can see.'
'Not sure how this will end. Either all the errors will be solved at some point, or the number of errors becomes so overwhelming that I can't improve it anymore without re-comprehending the entire thing. In either case, this will represent the end of improvement for my Imposing Law.'
But that's future-Kyle's problem. For now, I should keep training. I'm supposed to face the music.
After going over his growth, Kyle went to the new Commander of Fort U-878. The new Commander was a tall man who had huge muscles.
"Black Sin Hammer 37 reporting. My shift has ended," Kyle transmitted.
"Accepted," the Commander transmitted. "My evaluation of your performance has been marked in your Emblem. Because of your large contribution to my Fort, you have been granted 7,200 Military Merits. Your next orders are to return to Major Sovignior. You may stop at Fort S-878 on your way back. Commander Meristo has requested your presence. Dismissed."
Kyle nodded and left without saying anything.
After leaving Fort U-878, Kyle flew towards the west as his brows furrowed. During the last 300 years, Kyle had had enough time to think about what had happened, and he suspected that Commander Meristo had recommended Kyle's next shift to be in Fort U-878 because he suspected that Commander Levian was a spy.
Naturally, this didn't sit right with Kyle.
'I'm sick and tired of being pushed around and manipulated,' he thought. 'If he had just asked me to spy on them, I might've agreed. Yet, he didn't.'
'But I also know that I can't really hold him for that. I'm a normal soldier to him. I'm not supposed to make decisions. I'm a resource. It's not up to me how to use the resources. If resources could decide for themselves, Humanity would've been eradicated long ago.'
Kyle sighed in annoyance. 'It's necessary in the grand picture, but we're also all still individuals. It sucks for the individual, but there's no other way. If you give every individual individuality, the Demons will eradicate the individuals that wanted individuality. They're just doing what they need to do.'
Kyle arrived in Fort S-878 and landed in front of Commander Meristo.
"You wanted to see me?" Kyle asked without any form of respect. He wasn't under any orders, he didn't need to follow military protocol.
Commander Meristo looked at Kyle. "You have been granted 5,000 Military Merits as a reward for your role in uncovering a valuable spy," he transmitted. "I will not elaborate any further. You may return to your duties."
Kyle looked at Commander Meristo for a moment. Even though he didn't explain anything, his message was clear.
Yes, he had planned this from the beginning, but he also wasn't sorry. He had done what he had needed to do, and choice once more, his decision would be the same.
Commander Meristo didn't need to give a reward to Kyle since he hadn't ordered Kyle to go to Fort U-878. He had simply recommended him.
Since Commander Meristo hadn't given him any order, he also couldn't officially reward Kyle. Military Merits couldn't just be handed out to soldiers. There were strict rules, and the number of rewarded Merits followed a precise calculation.
However, these restrictions only applied to official rewards. These official rewards came from a budget of Military Merits that were assigned to each Fort. One could view it as a cost center or company account.
The fact that Kyle had still received 5,000 Military Merits could only mean one thing.
Commander Meristo had given Kyle the Merits from his personal account.
'I don't know if he feels bad or if he simply doesn't want me as a potential enemy in the future,' Kyle thought.
Kyle looked at Commander Meristo and nodded once. 'Accepted,' he transmitted.
Then, he left Fort S-878.
'Let bygones be bygones,' he thought. 'Whether it was a bribe or an apology—I accepted it.'
Kyle looked at his Emblem.
'In the past, I might have refused since it feels a bit insincere. A proper conversation would've felt more valuable.'
Kyle looked forward. 'But I'm no longer fighting for just myself. I'm also fighting for my team and even Ayunar. There's no doubt that these Military Merits can increase my power, and if I don't accept them, I couldn't say that I've tried my best if I fail.'
'So many people are sacrificing themselves for people they have never even seen before. Everyone's trying their best!'
'If I don't do the same, I can't see myself as anything but a rat.'
Kyle narrowed his eyes.
'And I don't want to be a rat! I'm done with that part of my life!'
tg://resolv?domain=StrongestHammerGod
The author's patreon. If he gets more than 1000€ per month, he will increase the number of words in the chapter.