Mercenary System: I can increase innate potential !-Chapter 178: Let’s go!

"Yes, Major, he said: ’Wait in the warmth of your fortress, it’ll soon be your turn’."

Tension immediately mounted in the command room.

A heavy silence had settled in, broken only by the hum of machines and the frightened murmurs of a few soldiers.

Maxime, standing back near the entrance, observed the scene.

He could almost feel the collective fear crawling under the apparent discipline of the soldiers present.

But the silence didn’t last long, being broken by the Major, who remained calm throughout.

"Lieutenant Brenson, any estimate of reinforcements? Can the 8ᵉ regiment reach their position before the Dravaks break through our lines?"

Brenson, a man with a face scarred by years of war, quickly replied: Your journey continues at novelbuddy

"If all goes to plan, they should arrive in less than fifteen minutes, but..."

He hesitated for a moment, as his news was negative and they really didn’t want to go wrong by talking.

"...The Dravaks already seem to have a head start. With their physical capabilities, they are likely to surround the rest of the 2ᵉ regiment before the 8ᵉ regiment can intervene."

A wave of concern swept through the room.

The major pounded his fist on the table.

"And we can’t send anything from here?"

A logistics operations officer replied in a strained voice:

"No, Major. The ninth regiment has already moved west to support the first regiment, while we can’t move the sixth and seventh regiments east at the risk of being flanked."

"And what about the third, fourth and fifth regiments that came to support the second regiment?"

"They’re being held back by three Dravak regiments, in the knowledge that the second regiment has begun to be surrounded by a Dravak regiment as well as the rest of the Dravaks who fought the Shibuya and Sabertooth Tigers."

The major gritted his teeth, clearly torn between frustration and the need to keep a cool head. It was then that Maxime decided to intervene.

"Excuse me, Major, but I think you might have another option."

All eyes turned to him.

"Who are you?" asked the Major, frowning.

"Maxime Valdreuve, captain of the Saber-Toothed Tigers."

All eyes in the command room, occupied by a dozen high-ranking officers and some thirty military personnel, were immediately drawn to Maxime.

Some seemed surprised to see him there, others intrigued, waiting to see what he had to say.

"Isn’t he in intensive care?"

"I heard he was probably going to die, although I wouldn’t wish him ill, but how come he’s standing in front of us looking so good?"

"If he didn’t have a burn mark on his face, I wouldn’t even believe it was him."

The Major, still standing, crossed his arms.

But in his eyes, everyone could discern the respect he had for this young man.

"And what would that option be, Captain Valdreuve? As far as I know, you’re in no condition to fight."

Maxime ignored the reference to his condition and took a few steps forward.

"Since the Dravaks who surrounded my men are still on the battlefield, I intend to settle my affairs with them."

"A few of my men and I are still in fighting condition."

"Give us fast transportation, and we could rejoin the 2ᵉ regiment before it’s too late."

A murmur ran through the room. Several officers exchanged skeptical glances. A lieutenant stepped forward.

"With all due respect, Captain Valdreuve, your men are convalescing. You risk sending them to certain death."

Maxime looked him straight in the eye.

"Certain death? We’re already there, Lieutenant. If the 2ᵉ regiment falls, the Dravaks will gain an immense advantage on the battlefield and all our regiments outside will immediately be in danger."

"This will create a snowball effect until they arrive at the gates of our fortresses in overwhelming numbers."

"For my part, I’d rather die trying to stop them than wait here for them to come and slaughter us."

Silence fell again, but this time it was charged with a different energy. The Major stared at him for a long moment, gauging the determination in his eyes.

Everyone looked at Maxime with renewed respect.

If before they’d thought the rumors might be exaggerated - that he’d killed an awakened Dravak on his own, for example, or that his men had slaughtered thousands of Dravaks when there were only a hundred of them - they all believed them now.

"Very well, Captain. I’ll authorize your deployment. But know that if you fail, we’ll have no way of holding back the Dravaks. Mobilize your men immediately."

"By the way, I’m going to charter two helicopters with two pilots for you. Take good care of them, especially our pilots. They’re rare and valuable talents in the army."

Maxime nodded, a determined smile on his lips.

"Thank you, Major. You won’t be disappointed."

He turned and strode out of the room.

He passed through the now almost deserted central field again, then arrived in the medical wing.

Asking for directions, he quickly found the room where his men were resting.

It was in fact a huge barracks-like rest room where everyone slept in the same room.

Maxime arrived inside, and had no time to worry about the wounded.

He shouted directly:

"Saber-toothed Tigers, those who can return to the battlefield, gather round!"

In the huge room where over a hundred people were resting, some twenty figures reacted immediately and gathered in front of Maxime.

The wounded soldiers of the first regiment and a few Shibuya watched the scene with surprise and attention.

Murmurs rose quickly in the huge room.

Yet none of them expressed anger or annoyance at Maxime’s sudden cries, waking up many people.

At first, some of the soldiers were irritated, but when they heard the urgency in the speaker’s voice, they all guessed that something very important was going on.

Of course, Maxime’s identity and reputation played an important part in this, as there were many soldiers with bad tempers in the room.

One of the soldiers, lying with one arm in a sling, whispered to his neighbor:

"That’s him, isn’t it? The one the whole fortress is talking about?"

His comrade nodded, his eyes fixed on Maxime.

"Yeah. The captain of the Sabertooth Tigers. The one who managed to kill an awakened Dravak."

Another, sitting on the edge of his bed, interjected:

"That’s not the scariest part, it’s said that his men, who are all from Eternity, held out against thousands of Dravaks to save the Shibuya. A hundred mercenaries against an entire regiment."

"And what’s worse, they actually slaughtered most of the Dravaks and only about 20 mercenaries survived that legendary battle."

"Those 20 mercenaries are the ones standing in front of him."

Others responded immediately.

"I had a chat with the red-haired kid, he’s quite nice but I thought he was just a recruit from the first regiment. I didn’t expect him to come from Eternity and have the strength to survive such a legendary battle."

"Same, I chatted with the blue-haired one, super nice that too! Looking at them like that, you’d never know they could be so fierce!"

...

Despite their wounds, the soldiers showed nothing but respect and curiosity. They knew how to recognize a hero on the battlefield, someone capable of changing the tide of victory or defeat.

And Maxime had the makings.

He nodded to his men, now standing before him in patient white tunics.

"How are you guys doing?"

"Much better than you, Chief," Rodrigo replied, looking at the burn on Maxime’s face.

But Maxime was surprised when he saw Rodrigo say this.

"You’re missing an arm, at what point do you feel you’re in better shape than me?"

The other mercenaries looked at Rodrigo strangely, as if they were looking at an idiot.

"Anyway, we’ve got to get to the second regiment urgently. Put on the military outfits provided immediately, then we’ll go to the armor."

"Yes, sir!" replied the Sabertooth Tigers in unison.

Seeing how spirited these men were, many soldiers were shocked.

"Wait...did I hear that right? They’re going back to the battlefield in this state?"

"I heard the same thing..."

"It’s crazy to go back to fight when most of them are still wounded."

...

But no matter what the nearby soldiers said, Maxime ignored them.

Moments later, Maxime led his men to the armory.

There, they found Karad, the chief engineer, busy checking the condition of weapons and equipment.

Seeing Maxime and his soldiers enter, Karad raised an eyebrow.

"Maxime? I thought you were still in the treatment room..."

Maxime, in a firm but friendly tone, replied:

"No time for formalities, Karad. Could you arm my men as quickly as possible?"

Karad, though a little surprised, nodded. He knew that with Maxime’s current reputation, refusing was not an option.

Or rather, his reputation proved his strength and deserved that his all-powerful men be well equipped.

"Very well, then. Take what you need, but be careful. These weapons are our last reserves of quality."

Within minutes, the Saber-Toothed Tigers were equipped. Some took assault rifles, others heavier weapons. A few even checked for extra grenades and ammunition.

They had heard about them from the other soldiers in the medical wing, and some of them, such as Kaite, Andrew and Charles, who were not seriously wounded, even had a chance to practice a little.

Maxime, meanwhile, took up a laser sword.

He had left his last sword on the battlefield.

Above all, he realized that he didn’t need anything else - an assault rifle couldn’t properly exert its force in his hands, and resources being scarce, it was better not to take one.

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When they were ready, they left the armory and headed for the central field.

There, two helicopters were waiting for them, engines on and blades turning slowly. The pilots, already seated, signaled to them to hurry up.