"???" Shu shot up from his seat, staring at Otto in disbelief.
"What position do I even have?"
Otto: "?"
"Heh..."
Shu's reaction seemed to have amused him. After a dry chuckle, Otto's smile vanished. "Since I am now the supreme leader of Fire Moth, your squad will naturally be dispatched and managed by me, correct?"
Shu nodded. "I've said before that you're the one to call the shots on these things..."
He knew he wasn't capable enough. He'd made countless wrong judgments on their journey. If Otto had been by his side, he wouldn't have suffered so many setbacks.
"Very good. Then I declare—no, I am hereby notifying you..." Otto handed the document to Shu, his tone leaving no room for argument. "You have been kicked out of the First Exploration Team."
"What?!" The expression Otto wanted to see had arrived. With a single sentence, Shu had become a pressure cooker. "What are you doing, Otto!"
"Fire Moth needs more strength. I believe that Kiana and the others have grown enough under your guidance to bear more responsibility. The best place for them to shine is in newly formed squads of their own."
"As it happens, many people have arrived from the City of Sighs. We can use this opportunity to select a few..."
"Otto!" Shu's voice didn't surprise Otto in the slightest. He simply looked up calmly at Shu.
"What's wrong? Didn't you say I was in charge?" Facing Shu's suppressed anger, Otto's eyes darkened. "Are you having regrets? Or do you want to take Fire Moth back from my hands?"
With that, Otto leaned back comfortably in his chair and opened his arms to Shu. "Then go on. Give me a good punch right here, and then take Fire Moth back."
He paused. The next moment, a vicious glint appeared in his eyes. The killing intent that washed over Shu was absolutely not a joke.
"And then, I will leave Fire Moth. Even if Kallen chooses to stay here, I will leave."
"I will take the confidants I have cultivated during this time, break away from Fire Moth, and create another survivor organization."
"Perhaps we will no longer have a savior like you to protect us. But with the aid of the First Sequence, our preliminary research into the Honkai, and now even MANTIS technology, we too have the right to struggle against the Honkai."
"And you... Shu, you'd better deal with me before I start using technology to fight the Honkai in concert with the First Sequence. I think you understand what a desperate struggle it is to advance technology in the face of the Honkai..."
Shu's fists had been clenched since Otto's second sentence. But every word Otto spoke made him grit his teeth and resist the urge to punch him.
He didn't doubt Otto's ability to do it, nor did he think Otto wouldn't. Shu was certain that if he actually punched him as Otto suggested, Otto would absolutely follow through on his words.
"What do you want me to do?" After several deep breaths, Shu finally unclenched his fists, though his expression remained grim.
"Prove to me that they need you, or..."
Otto's emerald-green eyes were like jade, gleaming with a dangerous, jewel-like light.
"...that you need them."
Shu was stunned. Otto stood up, patted Shu on the shoulder, and walked towards the door.
At the doorway, he stopped but didn't turn back.
"You don't even have the thought to punch me. If they were here, perhaps I would have been taught a lesson by now?"
The sound of footsteps faded. Shu looked down at the document Otto had handed him.
Fire Moth Special Squad Reorganization Plan
[In order to respond to potential Herrscher appearances and higher-level crises, we have decided to form a new special squad.
Entry into this squad will be open to all combat personnel of Fire Moth. Anyone with sufficient ability will be eligible.
Application Requirements: Must be an official combat member of Fire Moth.
This selection will be conducted in a completely objective manner. All applicants will be judged based on the Contribution Points earned during the open period.
The top performer will receive three self-selected team members.
Nepotism is forbidden. Anyone attempting to use their popular influence to enter the selection will be immediately disqualified.]
In addition to this, Shu also held a file folder.
[Fire Moth Combat Personnel Recruitment]
Opening the folder, Shu pulled out an application form. Staring at the glaringly obvious words "New Recruit Registration," Shu finally understood what Otto wanted him to do.
Start from the bottom and become the top performer in a short amount of time... Three slots, and no using his fame... Otto had him backed into a corner.
Looking at the small badge Otto had modified with [Mosquito's Breath], Shu felt an unpleasant sensation of being led by the nose.
Had he been played by Otto from the very beginning?
He had no choice. Shu could only hold his nose and go along with it. It wasn't like he could actually punch Otto, could he?
Frustrated, Shu found a pen in the empty office, briefly filled out the required basic information, and then stared at the application form for a long time before pinning the badge to his chest.
When he activated the switch, Shu looked at himself, then around the room, confused.
"Doesn't seem like anything's changed..." he muttered, picking up the form and heading for the door.
The moment he stepped out, Shu still felt a little nervous.
While he trusted Otto to be competent and that his inventions wouldn't malfunction, Otto's recent attitude and unclear motives made him think there was a high chance of deliberate tampering.
But Shu was clueless about mechanics, let alone something he considered next-generation technology.
Shu's destination was the second underground level, which now served as the centralized hub for Fire Moth's various administrative offices.
Report submissions were handled there, as was the City Exploration Team Center, and so on...
If they just changed "Center" to "Guild," the vibe would be complete.
The tenth level was still quiet. Shu stepped into an elevator. When it reached the ninth level, the doors opened, and Shu was startled by the massive crowd waiting outside.
Standing in the corner, he couldn't help but shrink back.
To his relief, no one made any strange moves after seeing him. A few people gave him a second glance, and then the crowd surged in like they were boarding a bus.
The elevator was suddenly packed. Shu did his best to stay in the corner, trying to avoid contact with anyone.
The growing cacophony of voices around him was unusually jarring.
While his life had been getting livelier, it had been a long time since he'd been crammed into a small space with so many people.
Fortunately, no one seemed to recognize him. They were all chatting and joking amongst themselves as if he weren't there.
However, the topic of their conversation made Shu feel a little guilty.
"Did you see? The official Fire Moth website announced it! The First Exploration Team is back from the Mediterranean!"
"You're so behind! They got back yesterday!" someone complained, nudging their companion. "A bunch of people organized a welcome party for them!"
"What?!" the companion let out a pained cry. "A welcome party?! And I missed it?!"
"Heh, serves you right for being out on the edge of ARC City yesterday. Even if we'd told you, you wouldn't have made it back in time," the teaser said with a helpless shrug, giving his friend a sympathetic look.
"No! Does that mean I missed my chance to meet my idol, Shu?!" The wail made Shu flinch. It was loud enough to draw the attention of everyone in the elevator.
But thanks to the person's clear enunciation, everyone understood his "plight."
Instantly, the wave of sympathetic gazes directed at the man made Shu tremble for a third time.
"You did miss it. But if you're talking about missing Senior Shu, then no, you didn't. Senior Shu didn't show up at the welcome party yesterday."
"Why?" For a moment, the wailer didn't know whether to be happy or sad.
Happy, because if Shu hadn't attended, it meant he hadn't missed his chance.
But sad... because if Shu didn't attend this time, it probably meant he wouldn't attend any future public meet-and-greets.
The former was manageable, but the latter was pure tragedy for fans like them.
Hiding in the corner, Shu looked up at the elevator ceiling, feeling a pang of guilt.
The reason he hadn't attended the welcome party... he was still suffering from the side effects of his power and couldn't be seen. If everyone had seen him like that, his career as an idol might have been over...
Wait, he wasn't a professional idol. He just needed to maintain a certain image in everyone's minds for his power to work.
Speaking of which, standing in the crowd, Shu could already feel the effort Otto had put into Fire Moth.
A pure stream of [Hope] was emanating from the people around him. And there were many more people throughout the base. If everyone was like this...
Shu felt that his reserves of [Hope] might return to the level they were at when he first received the power of Vision, or even higher...
But this kind of adulation...
Shu felt a long-dormant social anxiety resurfacing.
The elevator truly was the base's internal bus. People got off and on at every floor. Shu stood in his corner, and every newcomer would glance at him curiously before finding a spot.
Some, however, stared at him for a while, only looking away when they reached their floor to whisper to their companions as they left.
"Is that guy new?"
"Probably. I'd definitely remember someone that handsome."
"Didn't they say Senior Shu and his team brought back a lot of survivors? I heard it was over ten thousand people!"
"Ten thousand?! That's insane! But it's Senior Shu, so I guess it's to be expected."
Shu's toes were curling so hard they could have carved out a medieval castle. When the third person called him handsome, he couldn't help but touch his own face.
What exactly had Otto given him? Why did everyone think he was handsome? Wasn't the point to be low-key, an ordinary person nobody recognized?
What part of this was ordinary? Then what did that make him before? The dog everyone hated...
Shu fell silent. People came and went. By the time the elevator reached his floor, it was still full.
Frowning slightly, Shu prepared to squeeze his way out from the corner. But the moment the doors opened, the crowd rushed out like high schoolers at lunchtime, before Shu could even raise his hands.
Shu: "?"
Is this the last stop? Why is everyone getting off here?
Shu looked back, confused, at the few people remaining in the elevator. They were kitted out in gear, clearly heading out of the base for a mission.
So this wasn't the last stop...
Though bewildered, Shu followed the crowd out, holding his report. He froze again when he saw the sea of people on the second underground level.
"This is..." Shu held the application form in both hands in front of him, at a loss. The winding queue made him wonder if he'd come to the wrong place.
Why were there so many people?
A dense wave of [Hope] washed over him from the crowd, suppressing his urge to flee.
Even if he wanted to give up on applying for now, he had to stay for the sake of this [Hope].
Forcing down his discomfort with strangers, Shu carefully began to search for the registration area.
He still held out a sliver of hope. What if these people were here for something else?
Fighting on the front lines was hard and dangerous. Surely not that many people would sign up...
After a quick search, Shu couldn't find the quiet, deserted counter he'd imagined. He turned back and saw, at the very front of the massive crowd, a sign with several large, bold characters—
[New Recruit Registration]
Shu: "..."
In an unnoticed corner, Shu grimaced, clutched his application form, and timidly joined the very end of the line.
When is this line ever going to end...
Shu sighed and looked down idly at the single, flimsy sheet of paper in his hand.
Hmm... it seemed a little too flimsy.
Shu looked up and glanced at the people queuing up with him.
One person was holding a large folder, so thick you could tell how many documents were inside just by looking at it.
The person on the other side was carrying a briefcase, stuffed to the brim and clearly very heavy.
Shu looked away, back at the single, thin application form in his hand. The urge to turn and walk away surged once more.
I'm not going to get rejected, am I?