There was a tent right outside the city. Seven people were sitting inside the tent, with a brown-haired woman sitting at the edge. She had a gentle expression, but her gaze seemed to be able to see through anything.
She sat down with a smile on her face, watching the other six people.
"Captain. We heard there would be a new team member. Is that true?" A guy raised his hand, asking with a concerned expression.
"Aren't they the newbies from the headquarters? Why do they send them to this squad even though there are many other squads? Are they qualified to even become a member of this squad?" Another person let out a long sigh as if she didn't want to take care of the mess.
"Shut up, Stella. You might not know about this, but one of them is called Noel Ardagan." Another person glared at her to stop her rumbling.
"Ardagan?" Stella widened her eyes in shock.
"Yes. One of them is the son of your idol, Luke Ardagan. You come here to the Demon Relief Squad because you admire him, right? If I'm not wrong, your village once got destroyed by demons, and he was the one helping your village. That was why you also wanted to help people now, which became the reason you joined this squad."
"Well, Count Luke's reputation is like thunder reverberating in one's ears. I doubt anyone here hasn't heard anything about him. The wealthiest man in the kingdom as well as the most generous one. He has relieved one place to another."
"However, what about his son? I heard his reputation is not as good as his father's. He was a lazy young master, and no one had ever seen him doing anything. I mean, he didn't do anything bad, but he didn't do anything good either…"
The Captain, Clara, shook her head and explained their identities. "They should be arriving today. I'll brief you about their achievement ever since coming to the Demon Banner Army.
"According to Shale, Noel Ardagan might not know a lot of knowledge, but he was extremely smart. He learned many things easily. Also, his talent was peerless. He claimed he told the ignorant Noel about Spirit, and in just a few minutes, he managed to awaken his spirits."
"What?" The group widened their eyes, not believing what they had just heard. Awakening their spirits might be their hardest task before graduation. Even then, only half of them usually managed to awaken their spirits within one year.
Yet, Noel actually managed to awaken his spirit within a few minutes, and he never knew anything about spirits before that. They simply couldn't believe it.
"On the other hand, Anna Stargaze comes to the Demon Banner Army with a solid reputation, strength, and background. They weren't that sure about her initial strength, but she is currently a Spirit Wielder. After the last reward, she should be near the high level of Spirit Wielder."
"A high-level Spirit Wielder right after graduation? Is this a new record?" The people were even more shocked by this strength.
"But she came to this army with solid strength. So, we couldn't really call this an achievement. We have to know her initial strength first, and awakening the spirit usually takes the longest."
"I haven't finished here." Clara glared at them, making their bodies tremble and their mouth stop moving. After regaining their peace, Clara continued, "Of course, Noel Ardagan isn't that far from her either. He has become a Spirit Wielder and received another reward from the commander to solidify his rank as a Spirit Wielder."
"Are you serious?" Stella gasped, never expecting the son of her idol was this talented.
"There are numerous praises about them, but I can see that the people they help are more grateful to Noel. There is even praise from the Moon Temple's Saintess, saying Anna might be a hero, but Noel is certainly the savior."
"The Moon Temple's Saintess?" Stella furrowed her eyebrows. The Moon Temple's mission was similar to their Demon Relief Squad, except for the fact Moon Temple developed inside the kingdom while they were helping the people near the border. Still, they often worked together, so they certainly had a high opinion of the Saintess.
Hearing such high praise from the Saintess wasn't that easy, meaning Noel truly had done something extraordinary.
"But don't you think Noel is the one setting up the record right now? He completely breaks Septa's record, considering he came to the Demon Banner Army without any solid knowledge or strength. Yet, he became a Spirit Wielder and graduated early.
"Even though Septa graduated around this time, he was one step away from Spirit Wielder, and he had some solid strength for his foundation. So, I think Noel has become the current record holder?"
The people agreed while Stella, who had been grumbling until now, suddenly looked down and fell into deep thought.
Before long, Stella raised her hand and said, "Captain. Can you leave Noel to me?"
"Stella? Don't steal people just like that!" Another guy stopped her while gritting his teeth.
Although they didn't admit it, they had already accepted Noel and Anna in the group. If the record was true, Noel and Anna had the potential. So, it was their turn to give them enough experience to become true members of their squad.
"That's right. Do you think you can use your idol card to snatch a person from us?"
"Yes, yes. If you are the one taking care of your idol's son, you will end up spoiling him, which will limit his future. You're not suited to do it."
They started arguing to see who would become Noel and Anna's mentors. The argument got pretty heated to the point it annoyed Clara.
Clara slammed the table.
"!!!" The people instinctively stopped and looked at her.
Clara took a deep breath and finally assigned them properly. "These two have enough talents but lack experience. So, I'll divide all of you into two groups. Stella, Zion, and Jonathan will be in group A. You three will take care of Noel at the same time.
"Paul, Ben, and Rose will be in group B and handle Anna. They've been informed they won't be treated as noble, so make sure they know they're a part of the Demon Relief Squad. In two weeks, all of you are to go to Lawrence Fort to handle their problem. They're investigating it right now, but we might expect there are two Peak Level Demons causing the unrest."
"Understood!" The six of them stood up and placed their hands on their chest, receiving the order.