Seed of Titan-Chapter 230: Ghost of the Gala

"Oh, her? Yeah, you’re right—I barely even remember her face," Drai said as he tried to recall the small girl from the other freshmen venture party, Swift Squad, whose demeanor resembled Flo’s. "Is she still staying in the academy?"

"Yes. We offered her the option to take private classes or move schools but she refused, likely because most of her friends had also decided to stay."

"Really? Too bad I didn’t meet any of her party members when I visited the academy before. Some of them were surprisingly valiant enough to fight back against the invaders back then despite being way underleveled. Anyway, I understand how your father feels about me, but that still doesn’t explain why he wants to disband the squad altogether."

"That’s understandable. I’ve also been thinking that this is overkill, which was why I decided to ask my father about it. Unfortunately, he refused to elaborate, but I suspect he’s being influenced by others into push for our disbandment."

"...Do you think this is Lieutenant Blaise’s doing?"

Frost shook his head. "Unlikely. As far as I’m aware, he’s not close to my father. But if he’s really the perpetrator, he must have done this through his connections rather than swaying my father directly. But I don’t think we should concern ourselves with this since the motion is already underway."

"Yeah, I know. I was just curious," Drai muttered while recalling Blaise’s smug face earlier.

"By the way," Frost continued, "sorry for keeping this news from you—I didn’t want to make you feel guilty. You’ve probably realized by now, but some of our members are under the impression that you’re to blame for our potential disbandment."

"Well, they’re not completely wrong..."

"Still, it isn’t decided yet, so why are they going so far as alienating you? I did warn them beforehand not to confront you when you were in detention, but I didn’t expect it would end up like this. Forgive me, Drai, this is because I’ve been too lenient with them."

Seeing Frost suddenly bow at him, Drai hurriedly said, "It’s fine, really! I understand how they feel, and I don’t actually hate the lack of chatting since I’ve been able to focus on training because of that. And I don’t think you’ve been lenient at all."

"I have," Frost replied as he straightened up. "In the past, I used to freeze your squadmates for hours as punishment or make them clean public latrines. If we somehow avoid disbandment, I’ll definitely reinstate those punishments."

Drai gulped, instantly regretting his words. He wasn’t one of Frost’s regulars, but should he ever err, he was sure he’d loathe facing either of those punishments.

"Anyway, have you noticed there’s been fewer squads coming to morning PT?" Frost asked.

"Yeah, what happened?"

"The ones that are missing are out on missions. It seems that even with just the smugglers’ leader, we’re making significant progress in uncovering the insurgent group’s operations."

"That’s good to hear. At least we didn’t completely botch our mission," Drai remarked with a wry smile.

"Yes, but unfortunately, we won’t be seeing action any time soon—that’s what my handler told me. Perhaps our disbandment is truly imminent..."

After the brief silence that followed, Drai eventually excused himself since all his questions had been answered. Frost patted his shoulder before he left, telling him not to worry and reassured him that the squad’s predicament wasn’t his fault.

Although Drai appeared to accept these words, he didn’t truly agree with them, as he believed he was at least the impetus for their probable disbandment. Therefore, this heavy thought persisted as he headed back to his room and even when he took a long shower. It was only after he had settled on his cold bed that his preoccupation faded, replaced by musings of what he would be doing if he had rejected Ravi’s offer.

Moments later, the myriad of alternate realities finally lulled him to sleep.

True to Frost’s words, in the following days, the Seventh Squad had nothing to do other than their usual training. Added with the prospect of disbandment, some members’ moods rapidly soured to the point of them grumbling frequently despite knowing Frost might freeze their mouths in response.

Amid his silent treatment, Drai kept up his training and managed to perfect two more techniques: a set of oddly angled kicks and a deft head strike, with the latter being chosen to serve as a contingency in case all his limbs were ever incapacitated during a fight.

Notably, Drai’s worry didn’t come true as Blaise never visited the training room again, at least when he was there. Yet, that one unpleasant experience was enough to make him periodically throw wary glances at the door whenever he was training.

And just like that, a week passed by in a flash.

On this particular afternoon, Drai was sitting in the living room, donning a crisp suit which had been delivered by an unfamiliar officer earlier. He kept glancing at the clock as he waited, making sure he didn’t accidentally miss his designated pick-up time.

Suddenly, the front door opened. Drai was just about to rise when he saw that it was merely his squadmates, Danny, Beachball, and Cubes. Judging by their tired and sweaty looks, Drai figured they must’ve just returned from some kind of training.

All three of them stopped their chatter when they spotted Drai. If it were any other day, they’d probably carry on and head to their rooms, but since Drai was looking very dapper, Danny couldn’t help but exclaim, "What the fuck? Are you going to a fancy ball or something?"

Although Drai was taken aback by the comment, he quickly replied, "Sorta. I’m attending a gala dinner."

"Gala dinner? For what occasion? Who invited you? And why were you even invited there?" Cubes fired rapidly, clearly eager for the details.

Instead of replying, Drai scratched his head awkwardly, as he was unsure if he should reveal his appointment as Alancho’s protege. Drai didn’t doubt that his squadmates would eventually find out about this, perhaps from word of mouth or the news, but he worried that telling them directly would come across as boasting.

As if validating Drai’s concern, Danny said, "It’s obvious, Cubes. Drai must’ve been invited by some high-up, maybe someone who was impressed by what he did that day. Or maybe he’s making excuses and is actually going on a date with Cyclops. Didn’t you hear that they’ve been awfully chummy lately? Rumor has it the Captain’s so sick of dealing with old men that she’s become a cougar."

"Say that again?" a voice cut in from the doorstep.

Danny instantly froze, whereas Cubes and Beachball quietly tiptoed away from him.

"Cat got your tongue, Danny?" Ailem taunted as she entered. Similar to Drai, she was particularly dazzling with her sleek red dress and sparkling earrings, along with a pair of stilettos instead of the usual military boots.

Danny swallowed hard, shifted his expression, and swiftly turned around.

"Why, hello there, Captain Ailem! What a pleasant surprise! Oh wow, you look exceptionally stunning today—I suppose you’re going to the gala dinner too?"

Ailem rolled her eyes in response. Although she was somewhat curious about this fresh piece of gossip about her, she was in a hurry, so she proceeded to ignore the grinning Danny and prompted, "Let’s go, Drai," before stepping out of the door.

As Drai passed by the trio, he gave Danny an amused glance, which earned him a glare. He then slightly nodded to the other two before following Ailem.

"The suit fits you well," Ailem remarked after Drai caught up. "Your updated measurements must be remarkably accurate."

"I didn’t realize our IDs keep our measurements too," Drai voiced. A few days after his latest release, he finally updated his ID, allowing future scanners to identify him precisely until he transformed drastically once more.

"They’re not usually displayed, but the military is among those that can access them. Anyway, did General Alancho brief you?"

"Yes, but it was really short. He only told me to sit next to him and wait for my announcement. After that, I’ll stand up on the spot, and after he’s done introducing me, I’ll have to say a few words to the guests."

Ailem’s lips slightly curved upward as she asked, "Aren’t you nervous?"

"Not really. I’ve simulated the event a lot last night and earlier today. I’m pretty sure I won’t mess up."

"Still, you’ll be facing many important figures."

"I know, but I don’t really care. Those people may seem important to others, but to me, they’re just a bunch of strangers. Maybe I’ll get the jitters after I actually get introduced to them."

Drai’s words made Ailem chuckle. She then stroked Drai’s arm in encouragement before veering to the road where a slick black sedan was waiting.

Ailem waited a bit by the backseat door, but Drai merely stood there while looking at her blankly, so with a disappointed sigh, she opened the door by herself and entered.

Drai was just about to follow in when he suddenly froze. It was only after Ailem called him that he finally entered the car.

"After all that talk, you still end up getting the jitters this early," Ailem remarked in amusement upon sensing Drai’s sudden nervousness.

Drai simply chuckled nervously, not daring to open his mouth lest he be found out. After all, pressed between his legs was an invisible figure who had whispered to him earlier, "Leave me some room, friend. I’m coming with you."