After returning from the General's office, Blaine returned to his assigned quarters.
While most soldiers shared crowded barracks with several others, people who reached 1-Star or higher received their separate living quarters, with 2-Stars receiving even better treatment.
Given the qualitative difference between a normal mundane human and a 1-Star, one 1-Star human was worth at least ten people.
The difference between a 2-Star human and a 1-Star was even more vast, with 1 2-Star human being worth at least twenty 1-Stars.
But the difficulty of becoming a 2-Star was so high that it wasn't even worth it for most 1-Stars to attempt.
As for 3-Stars?
Most countries that boast populations of hundreds of millions to billions of people could not have more than two or three of them.
In fact, the Varene Kingdom itself was on the higher end of this, as it had three such people faithfully protecting it.
At least… That's what the public knew.
As a 1-Star himself, Blaine was granted the luxury of a room all to himself.
Due to his unique circumstances, he was given the option of a better living quarters befitting a 2-Star, but Blaine turned it down.
As long as the room served its purpose of giving him a place to sleep, he didn't particularly care about most additional luxuries.
The only two things he had in his room were a fridge and a small portable stove, both of which were powered by mana.
Changing out of his uniform, Blaine wore more casual clothes before crashing on his bed.
Having not slept well the night prior, Blaine was mentally exhausted.
It didn't help that he was sent into battle early in the morning, either.
Just as Blaine was enjoying the soft embrace of his cushioned bed, he heard his smartphone vibrate on the bedside.
Pulling himself over, he grabbed the phone and proceeded to unlock it before checking the notification history.
[ONE NEW MESSAGE FROM 'Captain Alford']
Tapping on the notification, he opened his text app and proceeded to read his father's message.
[The Princess will be participating in a special operation beyond our southern borders, directly entering the territory of the Kelon Coalition. Due to the potential for information leaks, her escort team will not be any larger than one squad. As her bodyguard, your responsibility will be to protect her and ensure she returns unharmed.]
Blaine skimmed over the message before reflexively nodding his head.
After reading through the file earlier, he noticed that some of its contents felt a bit off.
The General told Blaine to 'take it with a grain of salt.'
On the file, the princess was coming for a routine inspection of the city to make sure that the various facilities were in working order.
But having known the princess beforehand, she would not have come all the way here for something like that.
She was far too busy.
However, just as he read the message, another text message appeared right after it.
[She should be arriving at the military compound soon, disguised as a member of the Royal Magitech Division.]
Blaine let out a small sigh before getting off his bed and once more changing his clothes. This time, he put on a fresh, clean set of his white, blue, and gold uniform.
It was surprising that he was given such short notice of the princess's arrival, as the file claimed that she would arrive an entire week later, but he didn't feel any desire to complain.
Sometimes, orders would come completely sporadically and unexpectedly.
But that was just how things were in government jobs.
It seems that his temporary vacation was already cut short…
***
"Okay, everyone, unload the equipment carefully! The contents inside are extremely delicate and quite fragile, so even the slightest slip up will damage them."
A young, bespectacled girl with jet black hair ordered as a group of soldiers began unloading several metal containers from a series of white trucks.
The girl was holding a smart tablet in her hand as she frantically tapped the screen.
"Truck one should be fully unloaded now, Ma'am," one of the nearby soldiers reported.
The bespectacled girl nodded her head as she tapped the tablet's screen a few more times.
Then she turned around and looked at a girl with sky-blue hair behind her.
The girl with blue hair was wearing thick glasses, and most of her face was hidden behind messy, unkempt hair.
Seeing the blue-haired girl's appearance, the black-haired girl chuckled lightly.
"How're you holding up so far?"
The blue-haired girl sighed as she fought back an impulse to straighten her hair.
"It feels like an itch I just can't scratch."
"You're normally like this in the lab all the time, so what's the problem?"
"I don't usually pay attention to things like this when I'm busy. Also, when we're in the lab, it's just you and me, Mavis, but being outside like this… It makes me feel slobby and dirty."
Mavis felt a tinge of empathy for the blue-haired girl's words.
As a girl herself, she could understand her friend's desire to look pretty, or at least presentable, when around other people.
Mavis sighed.
Looking around to make sure none of the nearby soldiers were in earshot, she quietly whispered, "Just hold on for a bit longer. You can change your hair colour, but your face is still quite recognizable. Once you're on your mission, you can look as presentable as possible."
The blue-haired girl smirked, whispering, "You mean when I'm treading through a literal jungle covered in dirt and grime? Yeah, sure, maybe all the insects there will be attracted to me."
Mavis threw the blue-haired girl a look of pity.
"I'll pray for you…"
The blue-haired girl sighed.
"I wish I could be like you, Mavis… A simple scientist. Compared to all my other duties, I actually enjoy this one… And can actually perform too."
Mavis frowned at the blue-haired girl's words.
"Well, excuse me, princes!" Mavis whispered, "I didn't know I was only a 'simple scientist to you."
The blue-haired girl's face paled as she quickly looked around to make sure no one overheard Mavis's words.
However, most of them were too busy moving the multitude of metal crates to pay attention to their little back-and-forth.
The blue-haired girl gave a short sigh of relief.
Although Mavis's following words made her flinch.
"If you think that I'm stupid enough to say that when people can hear, you must really look down on me…"
The blue-haired girl hastily apologized.
"No, no, that's not it, I'm just… A little on edge. Also, you know very well that you're not just a simple scientist to me, so is there any need for you to tease me?"
Mavis smiled mischievously.
"It's because you're acting like a scared cat. You give the funniest reactions when you're like this."
"You do realize who you're teasing, right?" the blue girl asked, visibly irked.
"Hmm? Are you not my newly hired assistant? What's wrong with a boss harassing her employees from time to time?"
The blue-haired girl felt a vein bulge in her forehead, but before she could say anything, one of the nearby scientists walked up to the two, carrying a sleek black briefcase.
"Professor, we managed to unload the experimental prototypes. We can begin the showcase at any time."
Shifting her attention away from the annoyed blue-haired girl, Mavis threw a nod to the scientist and took the suitcase from his hands.
"Continue unloading the remaining equipment. The two of us will go to the war room to handle the presentation."
Turning her head to the blue-haired girl, Mavis gave her a smile.
"It's time. Let's go blow their minds!"