Mikael raised an eyebrow, looking at Arion with a questioning gaze. “What do you mean?”“Mikael, that’s … a salute!” Arion said through gritted teeth, his voice subdued but firm.Mikael froze for a split second. His brow furrowed slightly.Before Mikael could do anything, he heard Leon Verdict speak, “You … won’t salute Deputy General Henley, Cadet?”The atmosphere around them instantly grew tense. Several other soldiers standing nearby began watching quietly.Arion swallowed hard. He knew this wasn’t going to end well.Mikael remained standing where he was, looking calm, unaffected and unflustered even though a senior soldier had already reprimanded him.Goodness! He hadn’t realized there was someone as fearless as Mikael.Arion watched as Mikael’s gaze shifted to Leon, then toward Sean, as if assessing the situation rather than being part of it.Leon narrowed his eyes. “You stand before the Deputy General of the Arans Royal Army and refuse to salute? How dare you!”Leon smiled irrit

None of the recruits could take their eyes off the massive monitor displaying the results of the warm-up round."That's impossible.""Yeah, no way.""The device must be broken."One of the recruits glared at Mikael with open hostility."There's no way a normal person could do that. The best any of us managed was eight laps in thirty minutes. How could he possibly complete fourteen? It doesn't make any sense!""He ... must have taken performance-enhancing drugs," another recruit chimed in.Hearing the heated discussion, Fourth Kinsly immediately stepped in before the situation could escalate further.Leon turned toward Mikael, who had just removed the wrist device."You ... come with me for an examination," Leon said flatly.Mikael steadied his breathing before standing up. Despite having just finished the run, he did not look out of breath in the slightest.Fourth frowned and eyed him suspiciously.As Leon escorted Mikael away for a medical examination, the other recruits looked delig

Arion Vendenz looked at Mikael suspiciously once again.But Mikael was quick on his feet and immediately realized that Arion had begun to suspect him.The War General, now inhabiting the body of a man named Mikael Summer, calmly said, "I've met him before.""Huh? You ... met him when you visited the palace, Mike?" Arion asked. His expression still held some suspicion, but it had diminished by half.Mikael smiled. "No. Of course not. First-Class soldiers rarely wander around when civilians are visiting the palace, Arion.""Then where did you meet him?""I met him during General Avery's funeral," Mikael answered casually.Arion's eyes widened instantly."You attended General Avery's funeral?""Yeah. One of my friends happened to be a huge admirer of General Avery, so ... he invited me to attend the funeral. At the time, I waited at a café while my friend went to meet up with his own friends."Arion nodded repeatedly, now looking eager to hear the rest of the story.Mikael continued in a

However, just two seconds later, the recruits who had mocked Mikael's explanation were completely silenced.Celva Grin spoke, "The first session, which will last for two hours, is a written examination."He paused for a moment, as if making sure every recruit was paying attention.Once he had everyone's focus, Celva continued, "This written test may cover anything related to the royal palace, the history of the Kingdom of Arans, or perhaps various aspects of the military."Arion immediately glanced at Mikael, who still wore his usual expressionless face.A slow smile spread across the young man's face as he said, "Mike, you're incredible. Your prediction was spot on."Mikael merely gave a slight nod.Arion then turned toward the recruits who had mocked them earlier and said, "Well, whose prediction turned out to be right? Even a convenience store employee could predict what kind of test we'd be taking. And you people, who bragged about how capable you are, ended up losing to a conveni

Sean Henley gripped the examination paper bearing the name Mikael Summer, the recruit who had piqued his curiosity from their very first encounter, a little tighter.Without turning to Leon, the Vice General of War said, "If I told you the answer is yes, and that it concerns a recruit whose first name happens to be the same as General Avery's, would you be willing to hear what I'm thinking, Leon?"Leon frowned, clearly surprised by Sean's response.Still, he replied in a serious tone, "Vice General Henley, why are you so interested in that man? He ... just happens to share the same first name ....""No." Sean shook his head. "If it were only his first name that matched General Avery's, I wouldn't pay him this much attention. The problem is ... he's capable of things that an ordinary soldier shouldn't be able to do."Leon raised an eyebrow with a faint smirk."You mean ... the fourteen laps he completed during the running test?"Sean shook his head again before handing Mikael Summer's