Chapter 85: Long Time No See

"Yes," Vance replied from the front seat, checking his digital watch without turning around. "Command Headquarters. General staff, naval liaison, and the Supreme Commander’s executive office are all located inside."

The SUV slowed to an idle as they reached the innermost security cordon. Concrete jersey barriers forced the vehicle through an S-curve lane, where hydraulic steel bollards rested flush with the asphalt. Two Marines in combat rigs and Kevlar checked the vehicle’s license plate and Vance’s credentials before signaling the gatehouse. The heavy steel barrier swung open, allowing the convoy to glide onto the clean, manicured driveway fronting the main structure.

The building itself was a brutalist block of poured, reinforced concrete, three stories tall, lined with tinted, blast-resistant glass windows. Unlike the temporary prefabs along the pier, this structure was built to withstand artillery strikes and aerial bombardment.

The vehicle came to a complete stop before the broad glass double doors of the main entrance. Two armed soldiers stood at parade rest on either side of the entryway, carbines held cleanly across their chests.

"End of the line," Vance said, unbuckling his belt and opening his door. "Leave any personal effects in the vehicle. Security protocol is non-negotiable from this point forward."

Ayanokoji stepped out first, feeling the solid pavement under his boots. Miyuki followed closely, her eyes nervously tracking the security cameras mounted along the concrete lintel. Daniel stepped out last, hesitating as his boots met the asphalt. The imperial captain clutched his bandaged ribs, his eyes darting between the armed guards and the towering flagpole where the stars and stripes snapped crisply in the coastal wind.

"Keep up, Captain," Ayanokoji murmured in Solarian. "Don’t touch anything."

Daniel offered no snide retort. The sheer scale and cold precision of the surroundings seemed to have drained whatever bluster he had left. He simply gave a grim nod and kept his gaze fixed straight ahead.

They were led through a glass entryway into an air-conditioned lobby. The transition was sharp—the cool, filtered air smelled faintly of floor polish, paper, and ozone. A stainless steel metal detector and baggage scanner sat just beyond the threshold, manned by two Military Police officers wearing white duty belts and sidearms.

"Walk through one at a time," Vance instructed.

Ayanokoji passed through first without triggering a sound. Miyuki followed, her expression tight with anxiety. Daniel froze at the threshold, eyeing the gray rectangular arch with deep suspicion.

"Walk through it," Ayanokoji repeated in Solarian. "It’s a detection rune for metal and concealed weapons. Step straight through."

Daniel gritted his teeth, braced himself as if stepping onto an executioner’s block, and walked through. The machine remained silent. The MP behind the desk gave a curt nod and tapped a button to unlock the magnetic turnstile.

"Elevator is this way," Vance said, guiding them past long corridors lined with numbered administrative doors. Clerks in khaki uniforms and officers with clipboards moved purposefully down the halls, occasionally glancing at the unusual trio before quickly returning to their duties.

They reached an elevator bay clad in brushed stainless steel. Vance pressed the call button, and within moments, the doors slid open with a soft chime.

Daniel recoiled, his hand instinctively reaching for a sword that was no longer at his hip. "A sliding iron box... By Viona, what sorcery is this?"

"It’s an elevator, Captain. It lifts you between floors via mechanical cables," Ayanokoji explained, stepping inside without hesitation. "Get in."

Daniel swallowed hard, stepping into the small enclosure as if walking onto thin ice. Miyuki took a spot beside Ayanokoji, her fingers lightly gripping the hem of her sleeve as the mirrored steel doors sealed shut. When the lift ascended with a gentle lurch, Daniel’s knees buckled slightly, his knuckles turning white as he braced against the handrail.

"Third floor," Vance announced as the chime rang again and the doors parted. "Executive suite."

The top floor was noticeably quieter than the bustling levels below. The polished linoleum gave way to dark navy carpet that muffled their footsteps. The walls were lined with framed nautical charts, tactical sector maps, and official presidential portraits of figures Daniel had never seen.

At the end of the wide hallway stood a set of double oak doors flanked by two fully geared Marines wearing sidearms, tactical headsets, and dress lanyards.

As Vance approached, one of the guards tapped a console on the wall. "Captain Vance with the envoys from Carrier Strike Group Twelve."

"Clear to enter," a voice responded through the speaker.

The guard pressed a release latch, and the heavy oak doors swung inward.

"Go ahead," Vance said, stepping aside and holding the door open. "They’re expecting you."

Ayanokoji walked in first, followed by Miyuki and a visibly trembling Daniel.

The room was vast and well-lit by floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the sprawling naval anchorage below. In the far corner sat a bank of secure communication consoles and tactical screens, while the center was dominated by a large mahogany desk cluttered with manila folders, classified operational briefs, and a half-empty mug of black coffee.

Standing beside the tall windows, looking over a clip-bound dossier, was a woman who immediately arrested their attention.

She possessed ethereal, flawless features, framed by cascading silver hair that fell neatly past her shoulders. Her long, pointed ears marked her unmistakably as elven nobility, but she bore no silken robes or enchanted jewelry. Instead, she was dressed in a charcoal-gray blazer, a crisp white button-down shirt, and dark slacks that accentuated her tall, poised silhouette. Her sharp, striking amethyst eyes shifted toward the door the moment they entered, carrying a look of cool, professional calculation.

Daniel stopped dead in his tracks, his breath hitching in his throat. "A... an Elf...? Wearing the garments of these iron barbarians...?"

The elf didn’t acknowledge him. She simply turned her gaze toward the center of the room.

Behind the mahogany desk, a high-backed leather swivel chair sat with its back entirely turned toward the doorway, facing the wide glass pane overlooking the bay and the carrier docked in the distance.

A hand rested lightly on the armrest, fingers rhythmically tapping against the leather.

The leather chair smoothly rotated around, revealing the figure seated behind the wide mahogany desk.

Sitting in the executive seat was an eighteen-year-old young man with short, neat blonde hair. He wore a simple olive-drab field shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, devoid of rank insignia or military medals, and a dark tactical watch strapped to his left wrist. His posture was completely relaxed, his blue eyes settling directly on the two Japanese students standing before him. A faint, knowing smirk touched his lips.

Miyuki’s hands flew to her mouth, her breath catching in her throat as her eyes went wide with pure disbelief.

"J-John...?! John Smith?!"

Standing beside her, Captain Daniel looked between the young man and the silver-haired high elf in complete, uncomprehending bewilderment. He had expected an ancient warlord, a towering iron clad tyrant...but it was just an E-rank hero that Goddess Viona mistakenly summoned.

Even Ayanokoji’s dull, impassive eyes widened by a fraction.

"Good thing that you all still remember me."