"...The offensives on the major strongholds have been carried out on schedule. So far, none of our forces show any signs of instability or collapse."
Zeke listened to the voice coming from the brooch without any change of emotion. Akasha, standing beside him in the command room, looked the same.
"The skirmishers have begun crossing the mountains through hidden paths, but so far they have not encountered any resistance."
The voice fell silent for a moment.
"That is all for now. Proceed at your own discretion, but please keep us informed of your movements."
"Understood."
With that, the brooch on Zeke's chest fell silent again. He remained quiet for a moment, thinking things over before turning to Akasha beside him. At the moment, the two of them were alone on the command bridge, while the others were busy with their own preparations.
"What do you think?" he asked.
Akasha replied instantly. "We should advance."
Zeke studied her. "The reason?"
"The enemy has to react to many variables right now. Regardless of how effective or ineffective our plan ultimately proves to be, the best opportunity will always be the moment when the enemy is still figuring out their response."
Zeke nodded slowly, the hint of a smile appearing on his face. "Do as you see fit."
Akasha held his gaze for a moment. Before long, however, the image projected across the screens began to change. She had set the ship in motion, leaving the spot where they had been anchored for the past four weeks.
Zeke observed the passing scenery. This anchoring location, the route, as well as their first target, had all been chosen by Akasha. Just like now, he had not interfered at all, not even by sharing his thoughts with her.
It was a test of sorts. More precisely, it could be called an adaptation period. Now that Akasha was about to become the de facto commander of his forces, she had to be able to make decisions without him.
Though she had acted as commander before, the situation now was different. Zeke had always been there, passively acting as a filter for her input. Every idea she proposed had been verified and approved by him before it was implemented.
It was similar to having an experienced mentor constantly checking your work. Now, for the first time, Akasha would have to act without such a presence. She would have to become her own mentor, verify her own choices, and take responsibility on her own.
Zeke had no intention of interfering unless he believed her choices would lead to a catastrophic outcome. So far, however, he agreed with every decision she had made. The longer he watched her work, the more at ease he became.
Akasha was as reliable as they came. Her choices were based solely on logic and grounded in fact. As a commander, she was exactly what any soldier could wish for. A rock that could anchor an entire operation through sheer steadiness.
The Alexandria flew close to the ground, almost scraping along the massive rock formations of the surrounding cliffs on several occasions. Zeke remained calm as he watched. He knew they were in no real danger. The ship was not steered by human hands, after all, but by the Mind Spirit herself.
Zeke had several guesses as to the reason for Akasha's choice to fly so close, though he did not ask her. Most likely, it was a precaution against detection. Whatever arrangements the Legion had made against the Alexandria would likely be focused on the open sky. After all, who would expect a flying fortress of this size to fly at such a suicidal altitude?
Sometimes, the most dangerous place was indeed the safest one to hide.
After no more than half an hour, the steep cliffs and rugged mountain terrain began to change. Following one last turn, a new scene suddenly opened before Zeke. The sheer rock cliffs gave way to a sloping hillside, sparsely covered in vegetation. Further down, the flora grew increasingly abundant.
Zeke lifted his gaze. Before him lay a verdant valley, seemingly without a single hill or mountain. The land stretched out like a perfectly flat surface. On the distant horizon, towering mountains rose once more, roughly the same height as those behind him. Together, they formed a ring like a natural wall surrounding the valley.
This was the inner region.
Zeke's first impression was how unnatural the place seemed. It resembled the mouth of an enormous volcano that had somehow turned into a green paradise. Yet to him, the sight made no sense. The ring formed by the surrounding mountains was too round, too symmetrical, too perfect.
Stolen story; please report.
Nature did not create formations like this.
But he did not have long to ponder the abnormalities of the Inner Regions. His attention was soon drawn to the movement in the valley below.
Unlike the outer regions, where one could travel for an entire day without encountering another soul, the inner regions were busy. People were everywhere, tending to fields, gathering resources, and patrolling the land.
Even the sky was crowded. Formations of flying troops moved through the air, and the occasional airship could be seen drifting in the distance.
Zeke's brows furrowed. Based on the reports he had read, he had not expected the Inner Region to be this active. As far as he knew, the scene before him was even livelier than Rukia had been before the invasion. It stood in stark contrast to the rest of the country, which had practically turned into a ghost town overnight.
There had to be a larger plan at play. Something they had not yet discovered.
However, Zeke kept his thoughts to himself. This, too, was a test for Akasha.
He watched the Spirit beside him. She had naturally noticed the activity below as well. If they were still connected, Zeke would likely feel a pull on his Core right about now, a sign that she was splitting her mind. Instead, he felt nothing. He only saw her pause for a brief moment before returning to normal.
Zeke did not ask what she had decided. He simply watched. A moment later, the ship began to move again, still hugging the ground.
"...I am going to investigate," Akasha said.
Zeke nodded but did not comment on her choice.
Soon, they entered the vicinity of a small town and came to a halt. Zeke's eyes fixed on a team of five figures flying overhead. He nearly held his breath as he watched them approach their position, but they passed by without any change in behavior. They had not noticed anything.
He glanced at Akasha, but the Spirit had seemingly ignored them from the start and was instead focused on the inhabitants of the town. After only a few seconds, however, she lost interest, and the ship retreated the way it had come.
One after another, Akasha approached settlements, farms, and campsites of varying sizes. Each time, the ship stopped just outside before retreating again. Zeke did not know what she was looking for, but he was certain that Akasha had a reason for her actions. Still, the few seconds she spent at each location were not enough for him to determine anything.
Even so, he remained silent as he watched, not wanting to place an additional burden on her. She would explain it on her own once she found what she was looking for.
But Zeke had not expected the process to take several hours before the Spirit was satisfied. Eventually, however, she retreated back toward the cliffs separating the inner and outer regions and allowed the Alexandria to come to a halt.
Only then did she turn to face Zeke.
"Investigation complete," she reported.
Zeke looked at her, waiting for an explanation. However, instead of speaking, Akasha opened a telepathic link between them and transmitted her findings directly. This was a very advanced application of telepathy, far beyond sending images or vague emotions. What she transmitted to Zeke in that moment resembled densely compressed data.
For Zeke, who had communicated with Akasha for years, this method of exchanging information was the most familiar one. It did not take him even an instant to comprehend the full extent of her findings.
As he did, the corners of his lips slowly turned downward.
The part of the information that concerned him most was her discovery regarding the current command structure. Most of the people they had seen throughout the day had been natives. After all, no matter how powerful the Legion was, their numbers still only ranged in the thousands, perhaps tens of thousands. That was nowhere near enough to populate such a vast region.
Fewer than one in a hundred people they had encountered was an actual member of the Legion. Yet unlike the outer regions, there appeared to be no conflict here between the Legion and the natives.
Zeke had noticed that as well and had wondered how the Legion had achieved it.
Akasha had found the answer. All native Mages, from apprentices to Archmages, seemed to have undergone the Legion's reeducation treatment. Their ears bore the telltale signs of mutilation.
That meant... There was no real peace here, only complete submission.
As for the ordinary people who made up the majority of the population, they naturally fell in line. With all their superiors, from small-town mayors to provincial lords, bowing their heads, these common folk had little choice but to do the same. To them, it hardly mattered who ultimately ruled at the very top. What mattered most was simply being able to live a decent life.
This was exactly what worried Zeke.
In the outer regions, they had been received as saviors, standing up for the downtrodden and rescuing the remnants of the resistance.
But what about here...?
From the looks of it, the war was already over. The people here were living in peace. Everyone seemed to have work, shelter, food, and security. To these people, he would not be a savior. He would be the invader.
Worst of all, that might actually be the truth. If even the royal family, including the queen, had submitted to the Legion, then the elves no longer had the right to interfere in this matter. Let alone him, a mere mercenary captain.
It would mean that Rukia, as a country, had officially split from the Alliance and joined the Empire instead.
Zeke's thoughts became complicated.
In theory, nothing had changed. In reality, however, this was a monumental shift. What had begun as a mission to drive out the Legion had suddenly turned into something far more complex.
He wasn't even sure if there was anything left to save...
From his experience with converted prisoners, Zeke already knew that these people were almost impossible to revert. They had surrendered too much of themselves. Their entire moral framework had been altered to the point where they depended on it to justify their past actions.
Zeke's thoughts grew even heavier at the realization.
His gaze returned to the bustling plains of the inner region. The tranquil sight before his eyes had transformed. The people tending the fields and forests were no longer victims suffering under the Legion's rule. He could not allow himself to see them that way.
They were enemies. If not combatants, then at least potential informants. He could not rely on any of them. He could not save them, not when they did not want to be saved.
Zeke sighed heavily.
From now on, he would no longer be the heroic figure rescuing the common people. Quite the opposite. He would become the shadow that darkened their world, the unseen threat these people feared.