The Leventis Private Jet soon landed on the runway of the Central Government. Peeking through the window, Thirteen noticed that only a few people waited for their arrival. The escort group might be small, but two of them were the highest-ranking officers in the military, Lawrence and Tristan. There was also Shana, the famed Saintess of the Hero Party. Cristopher and Colbert were also with them, waiting for their Young Master to disembark from the plane. The first to come out was none other than Arthur, the Patriarch of the Leventis Family and a steadfast ally of the Central Government. Considering his status, Thirteen asked his grandfather to show his face first. As soon as Arthur reached the ground, Lawrence and Tristan approached him and shook his hands. The courtesy was fitting, for the three of them had been discussing important and confidential matters as of late. Confidential matters that, if heard by the Monarch Clans and the other Prestigious Families, might cause conflict out of clash in beliefs and interests. When Thirteen descended the plane, he glanced briefly at Shana. Walking behind him, Erica teased him in a volume only he could hear. "Now give her a flying kiss," Erica urged. "Yeah, no," Thirteen replied. "Stop causing trouble. There are other people around." Erica shook her head helplessly before shifting her gaze to the Saintess. The love and affection in Shana’s eyes were very obvious to her. If there were no people around, the Saintess might have already run and hugged the living sh*t out of Zion before giving him a sweet and passionate kiss on the lips. "Zion Leventis reporting for duty, Sir," Thirteen saluted the Grand and Field Marshal, who saluted him back. Erica was also technically part of the Central Government, so she also saluted, which was also acknowledged by the two older men. "Zion, let’s have dinner tonight in our house," Tristan said. "My wife wants to hold a feast for you before your group leaves for the Cygni Continent." "It will be my honor, Sir," Thirteen replied. "I plan to stay here for five days before leaving for the Cygni Continent with my men." "Understood," Tristan nodded. "Then I’ll see you later. Shana, take care of the Commander in our stead." "Yes, Sir," Shana replied. Lawrence and Tristan smiled as they watched the young lady walk toward Zion, looking calm and poised. Shana had not forgotten her identity, so she made sure to act the same in public, making sure that no one would learn her true relationship with Zion. Arthur rode a Humvee with the two big shots of the military, leaving his no-good grandson behind. "Sir, welcome back," Cristopher said with a smile. "Would you like to see our new recruits?" "Of course," Thirteen replied. "Let’s go to our barracks." Cristopher then led his Young Master, his lovers, and Hans to another Humvee, which would take them to their personal training grounds inside the Main Headquarters of the Central Government. Each battalion had its own barracks to ensure they would not interfere with each other’s training. This also lowered the possibility of tension between different factions, who treated each other as rivals and competitors. When he arrived at the barracks, rows of soldiers stood stiff and silent, as if they had been waiting for him. The 69th Battalion currently had nearly four hundred members. Half of them were in the barracks. As for the other half, they were fighting in the Cygni Continent, usually with either Cristopher or Colbert at the scene to guide them. But since both of them knew Thirteen would be leading the rest of his soldiers to the battle personally, Colbert decided to not leave the barracks and waited for him. Every six months, those sent to the Cygni Continent would swap with those who were training at the base. This system gave them a much-needed break from the front lines while allowing them time to reflect on their battlefield experiences. With their own Naval Cruiser, the 69th Battalion also helped in evacuation efforts, escorting civilians to the Sirius Continent during their return trips. "Who is currently in command of the soldiers in the Cygni Continent?" Thirteen asked Cristopher. "Alcapone," Cristopher smirked. Thirteen smiled faintly, fully aware of why Cristopher had appointed the leader of the E4 Mafia, Alcapone, as the temporary commander of their small army fighting against the Jinns. The 69th Battalion’s chain of command was straightforward. Thirteen was the commander, with Cristopher as his second-in-command. Colbert was just below him. When all three were absent, Alcapone took charge as the fourth in line. Not wanting the oldest and most experienced soldier in the battalion to slack off, Thirteen ensured Alcapone had a leadership role. Cristopher knew that if Alcapone couldn’t laze around, he’d drag the rest of his entourage into his misery, making sure no one else could slack off either. However, Thirteen had a different opinion. The E4 Mafias were all specialists. As experts in shamming and skating, they knew where to hide in any workplace while eating donuts and chugging on energy drinks. They would also act as if they were doing something important by walking around the military base, carrying some kind of paperwork. But Thirteen knew that these bastards were only going around the other barracks of the other Battalions to eye the ladies, whose hips would make them bow their heads in submission. However, since he didn’t want Cristopher to think that he made the wrong decision of leaving his men to Alcapone, he just nodded his head and praised his right-hand man for doing a good job. Cristopher, who was very happy to receive his Young Master’s face, couldn’t hide the pride in his face, which made Colbert chuckle internally. Just like Thirteen, the sly and cunning young man understood that their Young Master was just being empathetic to the other. "Well, then. Where are our new recruits?" Thirteen asked as he stood in front of the soldiers, who all stood in attention. "Make yourselves known and move to the right." Thirteen pointed at the side, and soon, twenty people occupied that spot. Eighteen of them were young men, while the two of them were ladies. All of them were looking at Thirteen as if he was their idol, which the young man noticed with a single glance. "Have they already been interviewed?" Thirteen asked. "No, Sir," Cristopher replied. "I thought it would be best if you interviewed them personally." "Okay." Thirteen nodded. "We will start with the interview. All of you, follow me. The rest, return to your training." The young man then led his entourage to his office and had the new recruits wait outside to be called one by one. Erica, Sherry, Shana, and Hans, who were curious about how the teenage boy conducted his interviews, followed him inside the office. Since they didn’t want to get in his way, they stood beside the wall and waited for the first recruit to be called in. Cristopher and Colbert stood beside the door as if making sure that the recruit wouldn’t be going anywhere. "So your name is Al Koholic," Thirteen said as he reviewed the resume of the recruit that was standing in front of him. "Do you like drinking beer or wine?" "No, sir," Al replied. "No?" Thirteen arched an eyebrow. "You don’t touch rum, tequila, brandy, gin and vodka?" "No, sir," Al answered. "I hate alcohol." Thirteen nodded in understanding. "Well, color me surprised. I didn’t expect you wouldn’t drink any alcohol." "I get that a lot, Sir," Al admitted. Thirteen glanced at the documents in his hands one more time before shifting his gaze back to the soldier who looked a little more confident after answering his superior’s questions. "The information about you is pretty solid," Thirteen stated as he put down the document in his hands. "But what is it that you fear the most?" Al hesitated for a bit before giving an honest answer. "I have an extreme fear of heights, Sir." "Perfect!" Thirteen stated. "Cristopher, please schedule Al for some skydiving session before we leave. Make sure he does it at least three times before we go to the Cygni Continent." The young man’s body shuddered uncontrollably. The mere thought of jumping off from a plane that was thousands of meters high in the air was enough for him to see his life flash across his eyes. Cristopher and Colbert exchanged a glance of pity as they looked at the young man, knowing he was about to face the infamous initiation that made the 69th Battalion notorious for accepting so few recruits each year. Thirteen’s motto was simple—overcome any and all fear that stood in a soldier’s way. Of course, participation wasn’t mandatory. Anyone could refuse. But in the 69th Battalion, Thirteen only prioritized those willing to take that extra step toward becoming extraordinary. After a few more questions, the interview was over. The young man left the office looking very pale as if he had just been mindf*cked, making the recruits awaiting their turn suddenly feel anxious.