A Hollow Victory

"Clukay? How are you..." Amiya asked with a surprised expression.

"Rimuru has very powerful healing arts. It managed to fix my broken bones," I replied as I looked at the battle between the LGD and Reunion in the pit of the quarry. It was the final assault on Reunion before our contract with the LGD was officially completed. I doubt Ch'en would agree to sign another contract with us, but Amiya's Rhodes Island might be willing.

"Dokutah, I'll trust you to command me from any explosions," I jokingly told the hooded man as I slid downhill into the brunt of the battlefield with the other groupchat members. Although I felt pity for Reunion after I researched the source of their will to fight, their methods were. I would be lying if I said Reunion didn't have major faults in their idealogy.

"Clukay and Jinwoo, provide fire support to the LGD rear-guard at 9 o'clock," The Dokutah's voice sounded in my ears.

Following the Dokutah's orders, I cautiously manoeuvred the battlefield whilst occasionally providing fire support. There were only normal Reunion foot soldiers, so it wasn't too difficult to deal with them.

"Merciless and efficient, I guess they follow the examples of their chief," I muttered as I watched the LGD slowly kill off any resisting Reunion soldiers in the distance. Although I felt some qualms about it, I still agreed with their methods. Better dead than alive and out for revenge.

Rimuru and Jinwoo, who were behind me, had the opposite reaction as me. They weren't very open to the LGDs' methods.

"Don't dawn on it too much. They are out for our lives as well," I commented as I continued deeper into the quarry to provide fire support. The two were quiet to my remark and followed along as well.

"If only I could interfere by myself," Rimuru sighed. We were restricted by the need to hide the fact that Rimuru and others were from another world, along with the jurisdiction of the LGD. From what I've seen, Rimuru and Zhongli were holding back quite a bit.

"You can't save everyone. Let's get a move on now. Try to spot a white-haired girl with bear features," I told Rimuru as I shot some Reunion casters that were planning to ambush us. I didn't know why I only just learned about the mission objective yesterday, which was to rescue an Ursus girl.

"Mhm, Misha was it?" Rimuru asked as he used his ability to capture another group of Reunion footmen. He said that he planned to let them live in his village after this ordeal was over, which made me curious about its results.

*BOOM*

A massive explosion in the distance interrupted our conversation. I hastily turned around and pulled out my binoculars to look at the surprising source of the boom.

"Rimuru-" I muttered.

"That's not Skullshatterer," Rimuru quickly explained, "That's his sister, probably wearing his spare garments."

With Rimuru's explanation, I finally understood the situation. According to Rimuru, Skullshatterer's sister was Misha. I didn't know how he knew that, but I trusted it was one of his powers.

Skullshatterer 2.0 was here for vengeance.

"A brother without his sister. Skullshatterer 1.0 wouldn't trust me if I don't bring her along as well. Cover me!" Rimuru said as he rushed towards Skullshatterer's location.

"Alright!" I replied as I readied my rifle, and Jinwoo, his pistol. Another explosion roared as a group of LGD soldiers were flung into the air. That must be painful, speaking from first-hand experience.

With a hole opened in the LGDs' formation, Reunion soldiers quickly rushed to exploit it by charging in with fiery. Their fighting spirit was admirable; I could sense that they were fighting for the chance to go home.

"Hey, look!" Jinwoo tapped on my shoulder and pointed at a flare that flew from the core of Reunions' stronghold.

"That must be a sign for retreat… Yet, they are still pushing us back," I muttered in confusion when I looked at the situation. As I turned my attention to the new Skullshatterer in search of Rimuru, I saw someone unexpected.

"Amiya? What is she doing there?!" I shouted in shock. A leader is supposed to command the battlefield. Without their commander, disarray was inevitable in any force, especially with the death of a reckless leader.

"Rimuru! Are you near Skullshatterer?" I asked through my earpiece as I rushed towards the hill Skullshatterer stood on.

"I'm almost there. Some Reunion soldiers delayed me for a little. What's up?" Rimuru replied with the sound of fighting echoing in the background.

"Amiya is next to Skullshatterer. If we lose her, Rhodes Island might go into disarray, and the operation will be a bust. Try to keep her alive," I said as I panicked my way towards Amiya. From what I know about Amiya in the past few days, she was moral and stubborn. It would be hard to convince her to run away.

"Amiya!" I could hear Ch'en shout echo the quarry. I quickly looked up to see Amiya and Skullshatterer at a standoff. Before neither could shoot, however, Skullshatterer was enveloped by a familiar blue blob.

"Rimuru arrived just in time..." I sighed with relief.

"M-Misha! Misha!" Amiya screamed in the distance as she rushed towards Rimuru and shook his shoulder.

"Misha…" Amiya unknowingly whispers through the earpiece as she lets go of Rimuru and collapses into his embrace.

"I told you before! DON'T HESITATE!" Ch'en scolded with a harsh tone as she approached Amiya and Rimuru. I could feel Ch'en's anger radiate from her voice.

"Do you not understand the weight of the responsibility you carry?!" Ch'en shouted as Amiya looked at the ground Skullshatterer 2.0 once stood on. Rimuru also had a guilty expression; I could see him resisting the temptation to reveal the truth to Amiya.

"Rimuru, thank you for your quick decision-making. If it wasn't for you, who knows what could've happened," Ch'en sighed.

I suppose this was one of the downsides of a compassionate young leader, especially on the battlefield. That reminds me, why is a pharmaceutical company on the battlefield in the first place?

Shrugging off my thoughts, I finally arrived at the scene of Amiya kneeling on the ground with Rimuru behind her. Ch'en and the Dokutah also watched from a distance. The atmosphere was very awkward.

"Amiya, are you going to keep mourning?" Ch'en asked with a look of disappointment on her face. I had to admit, Amiya was too innocent and idealistic for this world.

"If you continue like this, you'll live the rest of your life in mourning. The LGD and I draw our swords without hesitation when we need to, but that's not the Rhode Island doctrine, is it?" Ch'en commented.

"To welcome the infected with open arms and save them, that's not something we can do. You are yourself, and your path is for you to choose, little leader of Rhode Island," Ch'en said with a heavy tone before she turned around and walked away from the mourning Amiya.

"I guess she does have a soft side…" I muttered as I looked at the back of Ch'en, who was leaving the area with the other LGD officers. Despite her harsh scolding, she still comforted Amiya.

"Clukay, Doctor Kal'tsit has invited you and your group to Rhodes Island tomorrow," The Dokutah said beside me before he left to comfort Amiya and relieve Rimuru of his uncomfortable position.

"Well, that's our job done here. Let's head back, I'm tired from running so much," I said to the other groupchat members. They also nodded in agreement, leaving only Rhodes Island personnel on the battlefield, along with LGD cleanup officers.

"Say, do you guys prefer chocolate or vanilla ice cream?" I asked as the thought suddenly popped up in my mind.

The trip back was a chaotic debate.