Shen was done with the forest too soon. He became bold enough to also scout the plains.

He didn't risk the mountains, though. The terrain was too different from anything he was used to, and he didn't want to alert the enemy yet.

Even as slow as he was, he still finished scouting both forest and plains in fifteen minutes. Fortunately, he only had to wait another five minutes for his squad to arrive, not the half-hour limit he had been informed of.

He quickly shared the information he had gotten with them and asked for more information about the races he had found: thunderlords, swamp trolls, fire wisps, and earthworms. The latter was how he had called the buried enemies he didn't see and knew nothing about. His squad knew about every race except earthworms; his description wasn't enough.

"Scouts, check the mountains," he ordered after they were done. "The enemy numbers and composition might change after we kill their allies, but an initial estimate is better than meeting them completely blind later."

Shen didn't have to explain his reasoning to them, but doing so would help keep them on the same page. Also, if his orders killed one of them, everyone would know the thought process that led to it. They might still resent him, but they would know he wasn't sending them on their deaths for no reason. Lastly, if he died, they would be better prepared to take over from there.

The two scout mages left quickly and returned soon with news on the mountains. A single race, windriders, was protecting the three circles there. Lighty created an illusion of them, who looked like harpies with a small typhoon in place of their feet.

"We'll start with the plains," the cultivator said after getting information on the new enemy. "It'll help us acclimate to each other without obstacles that might get in our way. No environmental place to hide behind will also force us to rely on techniques and help us understand each other better.

"Then, we'll head to the mountains. It has obstacles, but they don't obstruct vision like the trees and bushes. It'll also help us get used to tactics against aerial enemies, and you'll have the chance to see me fight and make decisions in a setting I'm not used to. That said, I mastered Concepts that give me an edge, so don't expect a complete newbie or worry to much about me.

"The forest will be last because I'm more used to it. Because it's last, it'll probably have the greatest resistance when the enemy reacts to us, and I'll be able to lead you better and react more effectively to unexpected circumstances."

They barely changed their postures in a specific manner that meant "understood" and followed him into the plains.

Battle-wise, the squad was divided into four parts.

There was the attack force, he and Soundy. It wasn't adequate for his offensive partner to also be the team manager—aka the second-in-command—but she was the better candidate.

The defensive force was made of Icy and Halby—and Shen changed the latter's designation to Shieldy. The man's weapon wasn't as relevant as the shield, which better suited his battle position.

The reserve force was made of a single man, Swordy. His sword, shield, and earlier-stated scores made him as good at attacking as defending. He also was actually a hybrid physical fighter and mage. Shen would be sure to use him well.

Lastly, in battle, the scouts Lighty and Fiery became a wildcard, free to do as they saw fit, which Shen was against. As the leader and the most experienced man on the ground, he should have control over everyone's positions during an engagement. Unfortunately, the squad's formation had been decided by a C-rank. He couldn't change it.

In fact, he theoretically couldn't even change someone's call sign, but all he had to do was call Halby by Shieldy and make sure everyone knew who he was talking to or about. Even if they didn't use the designation he decided upon, he would also understand what they meant.

Both the attack and defense forces had a mage and a physical fighter each; at least one thing he greatly approved of.

Attack, defense, reserve, and wildcards.

Shen felt this mission was as much a test for him—due to the wildcards— as training for the others.

"Everyone, float without affecting the ground," he commanded as they headed into the earthworms' territory. "Defenders, hide us. We'll move stealthily. No one makes a sound or anything that might reveal our position. Our mission isn't to kill everyone on our way to the teleportation circles. It's also not to expand the drow territory on this planet. We are here to capture each circle and leave for the next, and we'll do exactly that, nothing more, nothing less. It isn't up to us to try to improve on the orders given by our superiors. We'll strike it fast and depart as soon as we can."

As far as Shen knew, that rigid obedience wasn't always optimal. However, the Concept of War also told him it was crucial for small strike teams. As importantly, the drow military fully believed in that doctrine. Unless he was explicitly told he had room to adapt to the field's variables, he was forbidden from doing so.

It only took them to obey the simple order to float for Shen to comprehend another reason he was here: context.

The elite training he had received set him miles apart from the regular troops.

The mage drow defender erected an invisibility bubble around them, and it was atrocious. Shen himself couldn't use mana, so he couldn't do better, but he had learned to detect and counter the Maiden's invisibility bubbles. The one currently around him created so many ripples on the ambient mana that it felt to his trained senses like it was screaming their position to every earthworm within range and their mothers.

If he was the earthworm, coming running and roaring against him might let him notice the enemy later than if they were using that spell.

Their floating magic was just as lousy. Shen himself used precise aura control to have Zephyr make him float while also quelling the soft wind before it could touch the dried grass on the ground. The drow used a trick called "mana inversion" to hide their mana from a distracted sentry, which the Maiden had called a waste of effort. It was easily detected by anyone with the right knowledge.

Then again, that was the reality when it came to most techniques, wasn't it? He had been trained to be as good a D-rank as possible. They hadn't—and probably, they couldn't.

The fine aura control Shen used? It required an aura, which none had.

On the energy against energy front—mana vs. qi—things became worse. The fine qi control he had? It was mostly his great natural affinity with qi and his first-class talent than his merit.

And personal training under a peak C-rank? There weren't C-ranks enough for that.

The realization made him ashamed of when he had tried not to give the drow the single drop of blood they had asked of him, not until he had had the chance of getting even better stuff during the Summit.

"Fuck, I'm a greedy egoistical motherfucker," he said in English, mimicking Alice's accent and choice of words.

He felt as entitled and dirty as her aunt and uncle, who had stolen everything from her.

It wasn't a matter of fair trade as he had initially seen it. The Maiden had talked about SC with him to give him context, but what was really the price of the protection for him and humankind he was receiving by having the drow take the antidron? And while she had quoted prices first, even if the training he had received had been given a fair SC evaluation by her, it didn't mean he would find a seller. She had said the drow didn't train outsiders, but others did. Yet, what strings were attached to that training?

"What was that?" Soundy asked.

"Disregard that," he replied.

Paradoxically, that continuous line of thought made Shen understand these drow were actually elites. They had received plenty of 9s on their scores; they merely weren't peak elites like him. The techniques they used were undoubtedly good in the multiverse, just not as impressive as many he knew about.

Shen subtly changed his outlook and plans for how to use them. He also decided to call them by their call signs instead of their functions. They deserved better.

They kept moving and soon reached the teleportation circle without issue.

No earthworms were visible there, but Shen had felt enough tremors when he scouted the area that there should be a couple dozen. It wasn't a lot, but the earthworms were spread around the entire zone instead of concentrated around the circle, like most other races.

"We'll start by clearing the circle's surroundings of hostiles," Shen informed. "Soundy and Icy, float ten yards higher with me.

"On the count of three:

"Shieldy and Swordy, get to the ground and protect us from attacks from below.

"Soundy, start killing the earthworms. Priority them based on their proximity to the shield.

"Icy, keep the invisibility bubble going for those who won't land.

"Lighty and Fiery, keep us updated on incoming enemies.

"I'll only watch it for now and interfere if needed. Questions?"

"Why should I keep us invisible instead of focusing on defense?" Icy asked while floating higher as he had commanded. "My defense score is better than Halby's."

"Keeping the bubble up will give us an edge on the information war front. If the enemy can't do anything against it, our numbers and position will remain unconfirmed to them. If they destroy the bubble, we'll analyze how they do so and gain information. If they directly attack any of us without getting rid of the bubble first, we'll know they can bypass the invisibility spell with you none the wiser. Anything else?"

This time, Soundy was the one to ask, "Why won't you attack with me from the start?"

"Five reasons. One, I have a good idea of what everyone's scores mean based on my own numbers, but I need to see to be sure. Two, focusing on seeing you all act will let me better command you later. Three, as our strongest warrior, I want to be fresh to deal with any surprises. Four, I want the enemy to underestimate our strength based on our opening attack. Five, I might not be good enough to fight this unknown enemy and effectively command you simultaneously, so I want to confirm their power first."

His words had no arrogance or humbleness; he only stated facts without embellishments.

He asked if there was anything else, and no one had any questions. So, he started the operation.

"Three. Two. One. Now."

Shieldy and Swordy dropped out of the invisibility bubble, mana empowering their bodies. Both used the same technique, completely letting go of their shields and landing on top of them while magically making them sturdier and defending the surrounding area with an invisible magic layer. Their mana perfectly intertwined, creating two seamless layers on the ground.

Soundy's mana also had no trouble going through the magic layers. Her attacks were invisible, tightly packed balls of mana that pierced the ground unhindered and without affecting it at all, moving straight at the earthworms below.

The earthworms had their own stealth technique. When touching the ground, Shen could feel their tremors. He couldn't feel their mana, though.

Yet, just as he felt the locations of his drow squad thanks to his armor's mental interface, he also felt the precise location of the twenty-seven buried enemies. His scouts clearly had techniques to pierce the enemy's stealth and could add such data to the network.

Soundy released exactly twenty-seven balls of mana at once. The mana inversion technique took a lot of focus, so any magic consequently became weaker. She still used it on all her attacks, valuing a more assured hit than she did its initial strength.

It worked wonders. Shen felt the magic balls disappear exactly where he felt the enemies were, meaning they had struck either the enemy or their defenses. Another was already midway to each earthworm when that happened.

The foes reacted quickly, but they had been stationary, and inertia made them get hit again.

Half of them disappeared from his mental interface, while four others became a kind of mental question mark; the scouts didn't know if they were dead or had disappeared.

Thirteen dead, four MIA, and ten very much alive.

Soundy changed her attacks to stronger, non-stealthy ones. The earthworms tried to dodge, but the scout's quickly updated their positions, and her attacks followed.

They hit all eight living earthworms, who died just like that. Moments later, the seven with unknown statuses definitely disappeared from his mind, meaning they were confirmed dead.

That simple, quick engagement revealed four crucial things.

First, his squad was indeed a powerful unit.

He hadn't seen much but recognized their techniques and the mana behind them. If he lowered the expectations and standards he had gotten from the Maiden, he could consider them relatively very strong. Any one of those drow could do whatever they wanted on Earth.

Second, the earthworms had only left a token force on their teleportation circle.

The now-dead beings hadn't been prepared to protect the place against a strike force like his. However, they still had been useful as sacrificial alarms. He doubted their deaths would go unnoticed even if they had somehow failed to warn their own before dying

Third, and based on the other two, the drow would either give up o this planet or start a stronger offensive soon.

A force like his wasn't supposed to be here. Their arrival and easy success completely upheavaled the current status quo of the D-Rank Area. His mission was a training opportunity for his squad, a provocation, and probably even a way to kill some enemy D-ranks with potential.

Finally, fourth, the enemy would answer to that provocation in kind.

Shen had been right to first focus on getting his unit used to each other. They were currently meeting weak foes, but enemy elites would arrive at the latest in half an hour if their teleportation time was the same as the drow's. That's when the real training would begin.

"We'll now get attacked from all sides," Shen said. "It'll be the perfect stress test for our squad. We'll keep the current battle plan unless a change is required."

He had been planning on deploying his aura to protect his squad in an emergency but decided against it. If stronger foes would come, their power would likely be based on what they saw now. He wanted to battle stronger opponents, but this was a warzone, and he wasn't that stupid.

Show too much strength or potential now, and a few C-ranks, instead of D-ranks, would come. The drow were probably prepared for that, but there was no reason to needlessly risk his life. Who knows, despite their preparations, whichever C-rank drow was around might lose, and then he would die a dog's death out of his arrogance.

His mission also meant he couldn't just kill every enemy around and leave, even if he might be able to. He had to conquer the circles. Each circle took one Standard minute to change hands. Even disregarding the time to move and kill his foes, he would need to stay around for at least seven minutes, and that was plenty of time for enemy C-ranks to decide to get rid of a D-rank that was showing too much power.

So he decided to engage the enemy in another, much safer way: progressively displaying his power to meet potentially rising challenges.

Hopefully, that would be enough to let him safely leave this place with his mission accomplished.