Ex-Rank Awakening: My Attacks Make Me Stronger

After parting ways with the governor in the command center, Leon and Elizabeth made their way toward the accommodations. The day had been long, but preparations for their second summoning to the trial world couldn’t wait.

They were halfway there when a soldier stepped into Leon’s path, stiff as a board.

Leon slowed down, his brow furrowing. "What is it?"

The man’s eyes lit up, not the professional gleam of a trained soldier, but something almost feverish. It took visible effort for him not to drop to his knees and kiss the very ground Leon had walked on. As his posture trembled with restraint.

"Well?" Leon pressed.

The soldier seemed to snap out of a trance, straightening before saluting sharply. "Colonel, your presence is required in the clinic bay."

Leon tilted his head, confused. "Why?"

The soldier hesitated a beat, then continued, "Your squadmates, Cadet Eden and Cadet Adrian have regained consciousness."

Leon’s expression shifted in realization. Elizabeth beside him had already caught on.

"When did they wake up?" he asked.

"Cadet Eden has been awake for an hour, sir, but you were... unavailable. Cadet Adrian just woke up now."

Leon exhaled slowly. He had been with the governor during that time, which explained why the news hadn’t reached him sooner. "You can go now"

"Yes, my lo—" The soldier froze mid-word, cutting himself off awkwardly. "Colonel." He saluted again, perhaps a bit too quickly, then turned and strode away faster than protocol required, as if fleeing before Leon could question him further.

Leon’s eyes narrowed slightly. "What was that about?"

Elizabeth didn’t break stride. "He must belong to your cult."

"My... what?" Leon asked, his voice caught somewhere between confusion and disbelief.

Elizabeth didn’t answer. She just kept walking, her cloak shifting behind her as she headed for the clinic bay.

Still bewildered, Leon followed. The word cult rattled around in his mind like a loose shell casing.

****

The clinic bay was quiet enough to hear the faint hum of the air filters.

Three pairs of eyes locked on Leon and Elizabeth the moment they stepped in.

’Great... this feels awkward already.’

He hadn’t been here once since dropping them off. Not because he didn’t care, just that too much had been thrown at him in too little time. Still, the silence had weight to it, and every second it dragged felt heavier.

Sandra, Eden’s mother and Luke’s second wife, rose from her chair, breaking the silence.

"Colonel Leon, I didn’t have the chance to thank you for saving my son... and also to apologize for my mistake. If not for me, he wouldn’t have ended up like this. He wouldn’t be... decommissioned."

Leon’s gaze shifted to Eden. The young man sat up in bed, his expression tightening. The way he looked at his mother, Leon didn’t need mind-reading to know the kid hated hearing her take the blame.

’He feels like trash...’ Leon realized, reading the subtle guilt in Eden’s eyes.

Eden had falsified his trial results. He had betrayed his squad, yes, under someone else’s influence, but the crime didn’t vanish because of that. The Federation’s system had plenty of cracks, many thanks to Governor Akira’s past negligence, but rules were rules. Eden would pay for what he’d done.

The only reason he wasn’t in a cell already was because they were letting him recover first... and to give Lord Luke some face.

Leon stayed quiet, weighing it all. He already knew about Sandra’s mind alteration that had made Eden easier prey for demonic possession, Nikko had filled him in. But the decommissioning part? That was new.

A flicker of realization crossed his face.

’Oh... there’s a law like that?’

He exhaled slowly, almost amused.

’I wonder what that old man was thinking when he came up with it.’

Leon broke the silence

"You don’t have to worry about it."

Sandra froze, her lips parting slightly. She was holding herself together, barely, but dignity was keeping the tears in check.

"...What?"

"I said," Leon repeated, his tone even, "you don’t have to worry about it. That’s not a major problem." His eyes shifted to Eden. "What you should be worried about is how to prepare for your next summoning."

Both of them stared at him. Sandra’s brows furrowed in disbelief. Eden blinked slowly, as if trying to process the words.

’He doesn’t joke about things like this... could he actually be serious?’ Eden thought, heart beating faster.

Sandra’s mind went elsewhere. ’If it was before, I’d believe him, his connection to the Supreme Heir could’ve helped us. But after a confirmed guilty verdict? With evidence of falsifying a trial result? Only the governor could undo that... and that’s impossible.’

Leon slipped a phone from his pocket, thumbing the screen.

Sandra and Eden just watched, stunned, as he finished and pressed send. A soft ding from his device echoed in the quiet room.

"Done," Leon said simply, sliding the phone back into his pocket.

Seconds later, Eden’s phone lit up with a notification. Sandra, sitting closest, grabbed it from the side desk, her eyes widened until they looked ready to pop.

"How—!?" she blurted, voice breaking.

Eden took the phone from her trembling hands. The message was short,

Federation Crimes Commission: You have been absolved of your crime.

He read it once. Then again. And again. The words didn’t change, but they didn’t feel real. Slowly, his gaze lifted to Leon. Somewhere inside the shock, a new feeling began to take root, quiet, undeniable appreciation.

****

Leon exhaled slowly, letting the weight of Eden’s ordeal drift away like dust in the wind. He shifted his gaze to Adrian, who stood a few steps off, posture tight but eyes watchful.

"How are you holding up?" Leon asked, his tone steady.

Adrian gave a short nod. "Good."

In truth, he was still trying to process how effortlessly Leon had dismantled Eden’s problem. But this wasn’t the first time Leon had left him stunned, and by now, Adrian had learned to accept it as just... normal for him.

"That’s good to hear," Leon replied, a faint curve touching his lips.

His attention shifted to the side, where Eden was still wrapped in his mother’s arms, the two of them clinging as if the moment itself might vanish. Their eyes were red, faces streaked with tears and pure relief.

Leon turned back to Adrian, his expression sharpening.

"After you’ve been discharged, get ready. Unit 1 will be heading into the trial world at the break of dawn tomorrow."

Adrian’s brow lifted slightly. Across the room, Eden froze mid-embrace, his mother’s arms still tight around him.

Both of them had heard it. They’d heard when Sandra called Leon "Colonel." They’d heard when Leon had told Eden to prepare for the trial world.

And now it all clicked.

Thirty days had passed since they’d last emerged from that place. The countdown was over, they could dive back in.

Only this time, they wouldn’t be stepping in blind.

This time, they’d be going with a captain as powerful as Leon.