Vile Evil Hides Under The Veil

Edinburgh's Army Base.

Inside a large hall was made for gathering army personnel and discussing mission details. There were various spectral maps and details projected on various big and small screens.

This hall was booked by Gilhause Remus to discuss his upcoming mission details with his team. However, unlike standard army protocol, he had only summoned one soldier to the scene. Someone who he wasn't expecting to come at all.

"You…. How did you get here?"

Gilhause Remus asked Eren. He looked at Eren as if he was seeing a ghost. That's because he knew about the line-up the ambush team had against Eren. The fact that Eren was here could only mean that he managed to dodge or get away from the team, which was highly unlikely because of Nico Chains. Or…

"What do you mean, Expert Gilhause? I came as soon as I found out that my exit mission had been assigned to me."

Eren replied to Gilhause naturally. He started grilling him with a new line of questioning that subtly focused on the ambush team. Yet, he couldn't get anything out of Eren, which made him consider a grim possibility.

Eren was standing in a standard military posture while Gilhause Remus was walking around him to size him up. The man was 6 inches shorter than Eren. He was bulkier than Eren, who looked lean.

"You took care of all your "problems" before coming here, didn't you? Do you understand what you have done?"

Gilhause asked in a grim voice. Eren kept his neutral stance before responding with a subtle smile on his face.

"Problems? There were no problems. I see myself as an early bird that got all the worms."

Gilhause was about to say something to Eren with suppressed rage in his voice. However, he saw that other team members listed for the mission had entered the hall. So he controlled himself before speaking in a very hushed tone.

"I don't know what or how you did this. But you won't get away with this."

Eren could hear the footsteps of other army personnel behind him. Gilhause was about to greet them. The smile on his face disappeared as he asked Gilhause another question.

"Expert Gilhause, are you a summoner too?"

Gihause had walked behind Eren at this point. So he couldn't see the smile Eren had plastered on his face. He raised his eyebrows before replying.

"So you are afraid of summoners? Too late to regret it, boy. House Remus is famous for its summoners. I am a golem summoner. And none of the golems will come to help you when we are out on a mission. In fact, hehe…"

Gilhause tried to threaten Eren some more with his voice before meeting up with the army personnel reporting for duty. He wasn't Eren's superior by default. So he had to pull up this facade and generate a joint team operation. He had a few trusted subordinates. And the rest of the army personnel were picked from various teams under the garb of a joint mission. This was how he could assign Eren his exit mission.

'A golem summoner, huh? I am not sure if I would be able to make effective use of them. Still, a bit of variation wouldn't hurt. Plus, earth-elemental attainments would be the cherry on top.

I'll have to thank House Remus once again for providing me with… let's say the right nutrition.'

While Gilhause was planning sabotage for Eren's exit mission, the latter was excited about the prospect of assimilating Gilhause's gains for himself. It was safe to say that the butcher had stopped seeing summoners from House Remus as rankers or people. He only saw them as his superfood.

***

Near Edinburgh's kingdom's northern borders. Badlands.

A layer of snow had started to accumulate in the surroundings. The chilly winds and the lack of sunlight had made the atmosphere even harsher.

A team of army personnel was traversing the winter terrain. It consisted of around 50 rankers. The colts used by these rankers were different from the usual mana beasts. These colts had thick fur, as well as a fire-element affinity to keep them and their riders warm in this bone-chilling weather.

The joint task force had only one mission. Get rid of the cultist base that was reported to be working for the Kingdom of Layos. The kingdoms had started sponsoring cultist activities within and around their enemy kingdoms. Edinburgh and Layos tried to sabotage each other by increasing cultist activities. And they both had to deal with the consequences.

Edinburgh's army was busier than ever with missions like these. It was no wonder that the organization was doing everything it could to retain soldiers. Things would have been much more difficult for Eren if he had joined the army normally and not through LA.

Three colt riders were closely following the joint force. However, anybody could tell that they treated themselves differently than the rest of the force. One of them was Eren. The other two were his comrades in the army that were unfortunate enough to be assigned to this project with him. Lyon Muff Dyke and Arjun.

'These assholes have something nasty planned for us. I can feel it.'

Lyon made his opinion known to Eren and Arjun as they followed the team. The dwarf was especially unhappy with the way their team leader Gilhause had treated them. He could clearly see a bias against the three of them in his behavior.

'Something's definitely not adding up. Why did Expert Gilhause assign us such an easy task when it could be completed by a bunch of Ace rankers? Additionally, he kept our dispatched positions separate from the rest of the rankers.

We won't be contributing anything to the mission because this place is so far from ground zero. Does he know how fishy his deployment has to be for me to question his intentions?'

Arjun said and sighed. The guy always liked to play by the rules while he served in the army. He almost never questioned his superior's decisions. But this time, even he couldn't help himself. He then looked at Eren before asking him.

'Eren, did you like… fuck his daughter or something?'

AN: Gilhause Remus was mentioned in chapter 793.