Bastard Homunculus: Reborn in the Corpse Pit

"That concludes my report, sis-...I mean, Commander. That's everything that transpired in Garnet City last night," Remarked Rione, as he finished relaying the events that had occurred the previous night.

"I see...how unfortunate. With this, the Third Squad has now lost their Captain and three of their First-Class Knights at the hands of The Irregulars. Their Vice-Captain will have to lead them in the interim while we look for a suitable replacement for the Captain position...but that's much easier said than done, at present we simply don't have any other Knights who are strong enough to qualify. And with how easily Captain Plore was killed, I refuse to allow another under-qualified individual to head the Third Squad, no matter how much the Nobility breathes down my neck," Responded Jules with a grimace.

"I strongly agree with that sentiment, but you know it isn't realistic...if another high ranked Noble managed to convince father to pressure you, like what Count Ernet Plore did to secure high ranks in the Order for the members of his family, your hands will be tied," Pointed out Rione, letting out a sigh.

"Tch, don't remind me...I have full control over my Commander Squad, and thanks to your cooperation, the First Squad has been free of any external interference and influence as well. The Second Squad is about halfway there, but I have hardly any control over the Third Squad...the vast majority of the members of that squad come from Noble Houses who are opposed to my way of doing things, they foolishly believe that only those with Noble and Royal blood should be allowed to join the Knight Order.

As such, they refuse to accept my more merit-based recruitment policies...if I had my way, there'd be a lot more Commoners in the Order, but they just keep getting in my way whenever we come across any talented Commoners. The fact that I've been able to recruit as many Commoners as I have is nothing short of a miracle, why don't they understand that this is the best move to ensure that our Kingdom is as well-protected as-...excuse me, I got a bit too heated there," Remarked Jules as she composed herself, taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling.

"No, I get it...like I said, I share your sentiments, Commander. While I fought those two Irregulars, I couldn't help but think what a waste it was that men of their talents and skill are our enemies. They would be invaluable assets if they were on our side. But there's not much we can do about it, what with the church's policy of executing any Commoners who possess Irregular Magic," Replied Rione in agreement.

"If only we could change that, it's the height of foolishness to enforce policies that make enemies of our own people. I wonder, just how many talented Commoners make no effort to unearth their latent potential because they know that their odds of getting into the Knight Order are so slim? What a waste. Ahem, excuse me, I've gotten off-topic here, let's get back to the matter at hand, there's no point in discussing and dwelling on what-ifs...besides the Third Squad's top Knights, the Cardinal in charge of the Garnet City church was also killed...we had recently discovered evidence that he was working with his sister, the Viscountess Stagra Garnet, to make life harder for the Commoners in the city. That's likely why The Irregulars targeted him.

One thing has become abundantly clear to me about them at this point...there's no doubt about it, The Irregulars only target individuals who discriminate against and oppress Commoners. When I and the members of my squad fought them outside the Quartz Ruins, they were clearly not trying to kill any of us, it seemed more like they were testing their skills against us. And now, they've done the same exact thing against you and the members of your squad, they made a clear effort to avoid killing any of you. They aren't killing indiscriminately, they only target those who they've deemed to be deserving of it. And I believe we can use that against them," Surmised Jules thoughtfully.

"Yes, I agree. We can at least narrow down the areas they're most likely to target...I would imagine that they'll target places under the Third Squad's jurisdiction, or places where the churches are being led by corrupt heads. Plus, the fact that they won't kill Knights like us, who don't abuse our power and oppress Commoners, it gives us the opportunity to defeat them more easily than we'd otherwise be able to.

They may be strong, dangerous opponents, and based on their accomplishments, they're all probably at least at the level of First-Class Knights...but if they're actively trying to avoid killing us, they're much less significant threats against us. But the same can't be said of the Knights who are their targets, the Third Squad in particular is in real danger of being wiped out entirely at this rate.

And The Irregulars wouldn't even need to kill all of their members to dismantle the squad, they'll just need to kill one particular member...if the Third Squad were to lose their Vice-Captain too, they'll be left without a single Knight at or above the rank of First-Class, and they'll be pretty much useless if that happens," Pointed out Rione.

"I probably shouldn't say this out loud, it might be considered borderline treason, but...the Third Squad falling apart wouldn't be the worst thing to happen, I'd be lying if I said I'm particularly torn up about their high ranked Knights being killed. If the Third Squad does end up falling apart, that would help support my argument that we should only recruit Knights based on merit. But at the same time, an entire squad collapsing in such a manner would reflect poorly on my authority and command...what an annoying conundrum this is turning out to be," Jules thought to herself with a sense of exasperation, before responding, "Well, at any rate, we need to make preparations to counter The Irregulars when they make their next move...we have no idea how much time we have before their next attack, and we need to make sure we're fully ready and prepared for that eventuality when it arises..."

Meanwhile, at the peak of the Pearl Mountains...

"I-it's so cold up here," Shivered Celia, rubbing the sides of her arms.

"I know, right? This is nice, it feels like there are tiny needles all over my skin," Grinned Colt, basking in the cold as his body trembled.

"I feel like my lungs are freezing, and the air is so thin," Muttered Lexia, mist flowing out of her mouth as she let out a sigh.

"I know the conditions up here are tough, but speaking from experience, it'll definitely be effective," Responded Aster with a wry smile.

"Uh...what're you doing?" Inquired Raven in bemusement, as Celia walked over towards him and latched onto his arm.

"You're nice and warm since your body adapts to the cold...ahh, I'm feeling warmer already," She replied with a grin.

"Sh-she's too close...," Raven thought to himself as he began to get flustered, keenly aware of the sensation of her chest pressing against his elbow.

"Can we leave already? I hate this place," Frowned Tacitus, as he glanced at Aster impatiently.

"Hold on, we'll leave in a bit. Alright, we made sure that you four stocked up on food and water in your Storage Rings, along with camping supplies...I advise using that cave over there when you want to sleep, the Monsters up here are most active at night, so you should avoid them until your bodies get used to the conditions up here.

Tacitus and I will drop by every few days to bring you a fresh supply of necessities, but in case of an emergency, you all have Teleport Spells, use them only as a last resort. I'll make one thing clear; this is going to be a fairly long-term thing, the four of you will spend the foreseeable future up here training...as it stands now, we're just not strong enough to be able to deal with the high ranked Knights who aren't our targets, we need to get strong enough to defeat them without killing or permanently injuring them. So, any questions?" Aster prompted them as he concluded his explanation.

"Uh, yeah...for starters, it's going to seriously suck when we need to use the bathroom, you can't really expect us to go behind rocks or whatever for the foreseeable future, do you?" Frowned Lexia apprehensively.

"Yeah, I was wondering about that too. We haven't had access to proper toilets since our old hideout burned down, I'd really prefer not to have to keep living like this," Sighed Raven in agreement.

"Same here," Added Celia with a nod.

"Me too...we really took the plumbing in our old hideout for granted, didn't we?" Sighed Colt wistfully.

"That's fair, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't struggling with that too. But for now, we're just going to have to deal with it...while you guys train up here, Tacitus and I will get to work on upgrading our new hideout, and the first priority will be installing plumbing and proper toilets. It'll take a while though...now that Tacitus is also on the wanted posters, gathering supplies for that, and in general, will be a lot more difficult, and we don't want to draw any attention right now. Once it's all set up and ready, we can do something like teleport you guys to the hideout for about an hour or day or something," Suggested Aster after mulling it over.

"Well, I guess that's something to look forward to, at least...complaining about it isn't going to help matter, so we'll just have to suck it up and put up with it for now," Relented Lexia with a huff.

"We're really counting on you, man," Raven said to Tacitus with a wry smile.

"Ugh, this is going to be a lot of work, I'm already dreading it...but I want a proper bathroom as much as the rest of you do, so I'll do what I can to get it done as soon as possible."