Chapter 394: Putting One in Their Place!

"....?!"

"Six months?!"

The others shouted at the same time while Ray remained silent.

His head spun in shock.

Six months had passed?

Though he knew about the difference in the flow of time between a gate world and reality, how the hell had six months passed in the blink of an eye?

They hadn’t spent more than six weeks in the red world.

’Six weeks.... Six months... damn it! Damn it. Six months has passed? Who knows what must have happened during these past six months?’

Berg stopped just a metre away from the group.

His arms folded across his chest as he shot Ray a death glare.

The Tribrid didn’t even bother acknowledging him as he kept looking at his friends, wondering how they must have felt about this sudden change.

They were all supposed to spend a year in the Aspirant Corps before choosing their different paths in life.

So far, they had spent six months in the Corps and, apparently, the remaining six months inside the red gate world.

"Wait, what about—?!"

Before Ray could ask the question, Lincoln shook his head.

"You are lucky you all came back in time—and alive at that. You were all supposed to be dead. In fact, your information, along with all of you, was officially marked as ’dead.’"

Kai frowned.

None of them looked particularly shocked. They understood why the Corps must have done that.

If they hadn’t experienced the horrors of the red gate world themselves, they would have thought the Corps was simply exaggerating.

If it had just been another ordinary group of Aspirants that got sucked into the gate, they would have all been dead within two... no, one day.

But this group was a bunch of monsters.

To enter together, return together without losing a single member, and even rescue survivors who had already become victims...

The feat was unbelievable.

It was something that could shake the entire world once word got out.

Lincoln had a lot of questions to ask.

So many things needed sorting out— information to gather from the teenagers and so little time to do it all.

Ray, however, remained uninterested in everything else.

Whether the world had changed or even if the Aberrants had overrun it, he didn’t care.

The only thing on his mind was,

"Graduation? Are we still eligible?" Ray questioned with a worried look in his eyes.

"Oi! Graduation? Who the hell do you think you are?" Berg cut in with a furious frown.

"... The rules were that we should spend a year in the Corps doing our missions and earning merits before we graduate. You just spent six mo—"

"— Was I talking to you, weakling?" Ray asked while slowly turning his head in Berg’s direction.

"...."

Berg’s words caught in his throat for a moment as he stared into Ray’s grey eyes.

But the moment he processed the words that had come out of Ray’s mouth, his hands curled into fists with flames dancing between them.

"Weakling? You dare call me a weakling?! What gives you the—"

"I think that’s enough." Lincoln shut the argument down with a hardened glare.

Then he turned to face Ray with a sigh.

"When I said you all were lucky, I meant that the graduation ceremony is in a week. You came back just in time."

The Sergeant paused for a moment in deep thought, his eyes scanning the area as the survivors were being gathered together.

Another hellicarrier had already been requested for them, as the rescued survivors would be taken to a temporary shelter before efforts began to locate the planets they originally came from and return them safely.

Looking back at the spot where the gate had stood only moments ago, then at the cohort, and finally at Ray, the man let out a deep sigh.

"... I seriously don’t know what will happen with you people. You see, only the General has the right to decide whether you all will be allowed to graduate or restart the whole process again."

Ray’s teeth gnashed tightly as a flash of fury crossed his eyes.

’So... there’s a possibility I won’t be able to join the Vanguard Order this year?’

"But if both Captain Jake and I put in a good word for you, and considering everything you all have done—especially rescuing those survivors—he should grant you special permission... I think."

Turning back to the cohort, Lincoln’s gaze lingered on Caster.

"Sigh... it took a lot to calm your family over these past six months. We came dangerously close to a civil war because of how furious they were with the Corps."

Caster swallowed silently.

’I knew it. But hang on...’

He glanced at Kai with a slight frown.

’...Why didn’t the Sergeant mention his family? Didn’t the Larssons react to his disappearance? Honestly, I fear what they would do even more than what my own family would do.’

"But anyway, we’re grateful the Commander stepped in before things got worse. I’m relieved you all made it back alive."

Right at that moment, the rescue helicarrier descended from the sky.

Its massive rotors churned the air violently, sending gusts of wind sweeping across the street as it settled onto the ground.

"Come on. Let’s head back to the Corps so we can get you all sorted out," Lincoln said.

Without waiting for a response, he turned and hurried toward the rescued survivors, helping organize them for evacuation.

Ray remained rooted to the spot, his hands balled into tight fists.

His mind wasn’t on the survivors.

It wasn’t even on the six months they had lost.

All he could think about was the possibility of being denied graduation.

The Vanguard Order was his only path toward revenge.

His only chance to slaughter the Aberrants.

No matter what happened...

...he would get in.

"One warning."

Berg’s voice sliced through the air.

The Legacy stood a few metres away, glaring daggers at the cohort.

".... Six months is a long time. You all might have survived the Red Gate through sheer luck, but a lot has changed while you were gone."

As he spoke, Berg slowly raised his wrist, making sure everyone saw the glowing number displayed on his watch.

**7.8**

Ray studied the number for a brief moment.

Then, without a hint of emotion crossing his face, he simply turned around.

"Let’s go."

Without questioning him, the cohort instinctively followed.

It was as though Ray had naturally become the one they looked to.

"....!!!"

A vein bulged along Berg’s forehead.

The simple act of being ignored ignited every ounce of rage inside him.

"How dare you turn your back on me?!"

BANG!

The ground exploded beneath Berg’s feet as flames erupted around his legs.

He shot forward like a blazing missile, crossing the distance between them in the blink of an eye.

’I will kill you! I’ll kill you, you filthy weakling!’

His hand reached out and clamped onto Ray’s shoulder.

The instant he prepared to strike—

Ray stopped walking.

Without saying a single word, he dipped into a low crouch.

Berg’s hand slid harmlessly over his shoulder.

Flames burst beneath the Legacy’s feet, propelling his knee toward Ray’s lowered position.

But before the attack could connect—

Ray spun.

In one impossibly fluid motion, he twisted around, sprang back to his feet, and seized Berg by both shoulders.

Berg’s eyes widened.

Before flames could gather around his body...

Before his brain could even process what had happened...

Ray moved.

BANG!

BOOOOM!!

With monstrous force, Ray slammed Berg headfirst into the ground.

The earth caved inward beneath the impact.

Cracks raced across the street like lightning while chunks of concrete and a massive cloud of dust erupted into the air.

The deafening shockwave swept across the surroundings, causing several nearby spectators to stumble backward.

Kai folded his arms across his chest, a smug grin spreading across his face as he admired the scene before him.