Chapter 234: Iron and Blood (Part 2)
Shino glared furiously at the younger boys and shouted, "What are you brats doing? Slacking off again? Don't you want to eat?"
He swung his baton and struck the nearest boy, Takaki, square across the face. "You little punk, if you slack off again, I'll make sure you go hungry for days!"
The blow stunned Takaki; he collapsed to the ground, pain wracking his small frame, unable to stand back up.
Shino then turned to Todo Mirconen, who was in charge of supervising the younger group, and barked, "Todo! What the hell are you doing? Disciplining these brats is your job!
Huh?! How could you just stand there and let them all slack off like this?"
Todo smiled obsequiously as he took the scolding, then immediately switched to a fierce expression, putting on an act as he shouted at the nearby boys,
"Hey! You there—and you! Get back to work, now! No slacking off!"
Shino looked out at the mobile workers on the field, scowling. "Tch, damn it. What are these space rats getting all excited for?
If it weren't for that Spark Group chairman putting in a word for you, you wouldn't be eating this well. Otherwise, I'd have starved you brats for days already."
Takaki slowly managed to get up, and the other boys hurried over to help him, asking if he was alright.
But Takaki, biting back the pain, didn't dare say a word in front of Shino. He simply grabbed a shovel and went right back to work.
On the training field, dust swirled in the air as the mobile workers clashed back and forth.
Mikazuki and Eugene were locked in a mock battle, using paint rounds to mark their hits.
After only a few exchanges, Eugene was defeated—his mobile worker covered in splotches of paint.
Next, Akihiro and Norba Shino took their turns, joining the fray to challenge Mikazuki.
They fought intensely, evenly matched for a while, but in the end, Mikazuki still came out on top.
When training ended, during lunch, Orga and Biscuit found the group. Orga addressed Mikazuki, Eugene, Norba, and Akihiro:
"The boss just gave us a new mission. We're to escort the Bernstein family's young lady safely to Earth."
Eugene blinked in disbelief. "Huh? We're gonna be the lady's bodyguards?"
Norba gulped down his food with a lewd grin. "Heh, a lady, huh? I bet she smells really nice."
Then, glancing toward Mikazuki, he said, "Right, Mikazuki? I bet she smells amazing."
Mikazuki, as expressionless as ever, replied, "A lady's still just a person. She eats and goes to the bathroom too. Probably nothing special."
Akihiro flicked Mikazuki on the forehead. "Don't say stuff like that while we're eating. It ruins everyone's appetite."
Eugene chimed in teasingly, "See? Mikazuki doesn't care about girls. Asking him that's a waste of time. He'll never understand a woman's charm."
Norba nodded with mock seriousness. "Yeah, yeah, Mikazuki just doesn't get it. Guess it's our little secret."
Watching through his hidden monitor, Tolle couldn't help but sneer. Please. Mikazuki's got you all beat. He's got Atra Mixta wrapped around his finger—and in the original timeline, even Kudelia ended up falling for him.
Of course, Tolle mused, that only happened thanks to Atra's perfect assist. Without her, that wooden block Mikazuki would never have scored a double win.
Just then, Takaki came over with a few cups of water, eyes full of admiration. "Mikazuki, would you like some water?"
"Oh, thanks, Takaki." As Mikazuki accepted the cup, he noticed the bruise on Takaki's face. "Hey, what happened to your face?"
Takaki forced a smile, pretending nothing was wrong. "Ha… it's nothing. I'm used to it."
Eugene spoke up again, animated as ever. "Anyway, this mission could be a big break for us.
Compared to those loudmouthed regular soldiers, at least the boss recognizes our skills now, right?
We've gotta make the most of this and show them Third Unit's the best squad out there."
Orga tapped his spoon against his bowl and countered flatly, "Even if the boss has gone senile, he'd never truly acknowledge us. To him, we're just disposable pawns."
Eugene shot him an indignant look. "Hey, maybe that's because our great Third Unit leader's always so damn laid-back! That's why we're treated like trash!"
Listening nearby, Takaki shrank back nervously, afraid of what might come next.
Biscuit tried to intervene, "Eugene, don't start. Actually—"
But before he could finish, Eugene snapped, "Shut it, Biscuit! Spare me your lectures. I'm saying this for—"
Mikazuki had had enough. He reached over, grabbed Eugene by the ear, and pulled him close, his cold eyes locking onto him.
"Eugene, you trying to start a fight? You know I hate fighting."
His grip tightened, and Eugene yelped in pain. "Ow—ow! Stop! My ear's gonna tear off!"
Orga sighed, shaking his head. "Come on, Eugene. This doesn't count as a fight, right?"
Eugene immediately caved, "Yeah, yeah, Orga, of course! Definitely not a fight!"
Then he turned to Mikazuki, pleading, "So, you can let go now, Mikazuki. I swear, I wasn't fighting!"
Mikazuki looked over at Orga and asked seriously, "Orga, is he telling the truth? I'm not sure I believe him."
Eugene was nearly in tears. "I swear, Mikazuki! I'm not lying! I wasn't fighting! Please—stop! It's gonna rip! My ear's gonna rip off!"
Meanwhile, Akihiro stood up, done with his meal and uninterested in the chaos. "Same as always," he muttered as he headed for the door.
Orga called after him apologetically, "Sorry, Akihiro. They're always loud like this—don't take it personally."
Akihiro waved it off. "They're always like this. What's there to take personally? Anyway, I'm done eating. I'll go walk it off."