Kingsman Return

The Aeth

The expression on the faces of Stock and the rest of his companions were a sight to be seen and Arran had to admit that he enjoyed the feeling he got from seeing them embrassed. He could almost hear a resounding slap that seemed to echo across the room.

Stock's face was unsightly to look at and as he looked at Brendell who was passed out on the ring, he started to wonder as to who was the smart guy that came up with this idea in the first place. He had not only lost face in front of Rommel and his peers but had also done so in front of the mortal.

At the time it seemed like a brilliant idea but now... not so much.

It was at this moment Rommel spoke up. As much as he did not get along well with Stock, he had to at least spare him some face in front of outsiders.

"You did well."

Arran nodded before asking again, "if it's possible, may I ask what purpose this test served to achieve?"

Stomped for a moment, the faces of everyone changed once more.

That's right?

What purpose did they conduct this test for?

They couldn't as well say that it was only a bet between themselves to see if Arran had what it took to catch up to the progress of his peers, right?

That would be awkward in every way possible. It would make them seem like children who had nothing better to do.

Being put on the spot, they had no way to respond and instead looked towards Rommel, waiting for him to come up with a solution.

Seeing them hesitate to answer, Arran was able to confirm his guess. He had guessed that this was likely something that they came up with on their own on the spur of the moment for whatever purpose they had. Looking at the person who had the worst expression here, who turned out to be none other than Stock, Arran could further guess that it was likely to humiliate him.

To be honest Arran was quite helpless about this situation since there was nothing that he could do about it.

That's just the way things worked. The strong had the right to tramble upon the weak.

It was a universal fact.

Just when the atmosphere was becoming awkward, the door to the room slid open and a melodious voice said, "the purpose of this test is to see if you have what it takes to adapt to our way of doing things."

Hearing this voice which belonged to Commander Margo, the awkwardness in the room instantly cleared and Stock and the rest silently let out the breath that they had unconsciously held. They were feeling relieved knowing that commander Margo had come to their rescue. But when they turned to see the look in her eyes, they knew that this was definitely not the end of this matter.

After Commander Margo gave them a death glare, she ignored them and continued saying.

"Our society is very different from that of the one in which you grew up in.

Yours was a place where the people deluded themselves into thinking that they had a say in the way they led their lives and willingly gave up their freedom for others to decide their fates.

That's not how it is with us.

With us, everything is based on personal strength. Here the strong rule and the weak have no choice but to succumb. Do you understand what I am saying?"

Arran listened attentively to what she had to say. In fact, Arran knew all this.

All his life he had been living with these principles as that was how he was brought up. That was why Arran felt that he was helpless earlier even though he knew that they were making fun of him earlier. It was because he knew that he was not strong enough to do anything about it. This was why he knew that only with strength would his voice be heard.

Seeing that Arran understood, Margo nodded her head and her eyes softened in satisfaction.

She continued to say, "pack up and get ready. We'll be going off base and be heading to where you will be staying from now onwards until you can prove that you possess the strength to be of use to us."

Turning to Rommel and his group, Margo's face immediately turned frigid as she said, "As for you all, since you have the time and energy to be fooling around, you'll be coming with us and I'll put your excess energy to good use and work you all to the bone."

Arran, seeing the blank looks on all their faces, felt somehow comforted. He had this strange feeling that the female commander was taking justice for him but he dismissed that thought as it was absurd.

Arran did not have anything that he needed to pack. Just his backpack that was brought along with him since the box was already given to them long ago. And so without further ado, Arran and everyone made their way towards the hanger at the bottom of the base.

It was at this time that Commander Margo turned back to him and said, "I don't think I have introduced myself before. I am Commander Margo, a Kingsman under the command of the royal council of the Aeth race. You'll be seeing a lot of me since I'll be your personal handler and I will be responsible for your training while you're with us."

Rommel and his group were shocked and could not stop their faces from displaying it.

As Arran saw their expressions, he knew that this commander was most likely a bigshot among bigshots who usually held a very important position. It could be said that his first steps into their society were very likely a smooth one.

Realizing this, he quickly said sincerely, "Then I'll have to thank you for your guidance and also apologize for all the trouble that I've caused you."

Margo nodded, pleased.

Seeing this Arran continued on to ask, "if I may ask, where are we going to?"

Margo, who was in a good mood, lightly smiled and answered.

"We are making our way to Ether city, the center of our race's civilization that is located on our homeworld, the Etherium."

Pausing slightly, she continued, "you'll be attending the main military academy of our race where the best talents are groomed."

Arran looked towards Rommel's group whose faces had changed once more.

By now Arran had gotten used to using the changes in the faces of Rommel's group to gauge the importance of any piece of information he gets. Seeing their change in expression, Arran had an idea of the type of place the academy was and he was glad.

Ever since Arran arrived here, this was the first time that he found out about the places other than the outpost he was in.

He knew that this outpost was located at the border between the lower and middle realms and one of the various outpost that was stationed to guard such places. That was to say that his current location was on the fringes of the territory of the Aeth.

Even if he did not understand the concept of the lower and upper realms, Arran had enough common sense to know that he was likely in a place that was devoid of abundant resources.

The Aeth, this was the name of the race that he was in the custody of and they were one of the top races in the universe.

With the whole universe as a scale to be used to judge, the Aeth race were considered a very powerful race and could be considered as the peak in both technological and military strength.

The Aeth race were in control of a vast expanse of territory that spans countless realms, with their central realm being the Ether, the realm of their birth. From what little amount of information he was able to find out, Arran knew that they were a race that had little to no natural enemies in the entire universe.

So it was to his benefit that he was able to further develop in a place like this, only that the competition would be very fierce. But what was life worth without any competition.

As they were talking they had already made their way to the landing bay of the outpost and before Arran's eyes was a sight that he would not forget anytime soon.

In front of him was an enormous beast of metal and steel. The hull of the spaceship before him was shining with a metallic luster and its surface was very slick and smooth. Arran was dwarfed in front of this machine.

Apart from this, there were also others that were also scattered around the whole dock.

Seeing the amazement in his eyes, Commander Margo chuckled and said to him, "come on. You'll get the chance to see a lot more amazing things. In fact, this will be the first of many extraordinary things that you are about to come in contact with. I advise that you cherish this opportunity that has been given to you."

Arran nodded because he knew that from this moment onwards, his life was about to change.

He was looking forward to it.