A day after Shana and her entourage arrived in the Rigel Continent, Marion and the Valkyries, who numbered over five hundred, went to visit the 69th Battalion on Sector 13.
"He's younger than I thought he would be," one of the Valkyries whispered to her friend after finally seeing the most famous Rookie in the world.
"Right. Did he really fight against a Majin Prince?" another Valkyrie asked. "I can easily crush his head like a watermelon without any problems."
"Well, those stories might just be an exaggeration of what really happened. Maybe he was just there, watching the battle from the sidelines?"
"Well, Rianna said that he was fighting in the front lines. But she was guarding the Grand Ballista, so she can't be sure if he really fought the Majin Prince, right?"
The Valkyries, composed of only female Wanderers, talked without even bothering to lower their voice.
It was as if they were trying to see how Zion Leventis would react to their words.
Cristopher and Colbert, who were respectively Thirteen's left and right hand men, frowned as they looked at the beautiful ladies whom they were ogling earlier.
After hearing their words, they looked at the ladies in disdain as if they were staring at pigs who had been rolling around in filth for an entire day.
Perhaps noticing the two's disgusted expression, the Valkyries all glared at them. However, the two weren't fazed at all and even confidently matched the ladies' gazes with a contemptuous look, as if they were insignificant creatures that held no importance whatsoever.
"Battalion Commander," Marion saluted the teenage boy, who was nearly half her age. "Forgive my girls. They're just talking nonsense."
"Don't worry, Ma'am," Thirteen replied as he saluted back to Marion. "I'm already used to it."
His subordinates had also acted like that when they first joined his Battalion. Now, they had somewhat turned into decent and very loyal soldiers who no longer questioned his every order.
"Zion, I'd appreciate it if we don't talk formally," Marion said with a smile. "I don't want a stiff environment, so just be casual, okay?"
"Understood." Thirteen nodded. "Have you all been briefed about the rules set by the Dvalinn Federation for all the outsider groups entering the Rigel Continent?"
"Yes," Marion replied. "The one I disliked the most is the flying ban. We mostly use Pegasus Avatars, so not being able to use them will limit our fighting abilities."
"The moment any of you ride those Pegasus and fly to the sky is the moment you die, Miss Marion," Thirteen said in a serious tone. "That might work in Solterra, but the Rigel Continent is different. There are Rank 6 up to Rank 9 Sovereigns wandering these lands.
"Some of the Jinns and Majins can fly, so if you are seen riding on Avatars in the sky, you will definitely become their target. Please, I cannot stress how important it is for you to follow the flight ban as if your life depended on it."
"You heard him, girls," Marion stated as he glanced at her Valkyries. "No flying or you die. Do I make myself clear?"
"""Yes, Ma'am!"""
The Valkyries raised their voice as if trying to intimidate the 69th Battalion with the intensity of their reply.
"No shouting as well." Thirteen couldn't help but facepalm after hearing the girls reply loudly.
These monsters, which were mostly Rank 2 and Rank 3, were some of the most common creatures inhabiting the area where Thirteen and his men were stationed.
green armor, they thought that the Night Wolves were using some kind of trick to annihilate them.
The Goblin Archers retaliated, but the Night Wolves were simply too fast and immediately distanced themselves from their enemies.
After evolving into an Alpha Monster, their speed, agility, and strength had increased drastically, making it impossible for the Wargs, which the Hobgoblins were riding, to catch up to them.
Thirteen had taught the 69th Battalion a simple battle strategy.
"Hit your opponents, but don't let them hit you back."
This tactic was what allowed them to thrive in Sector 13, where a battle could erupt at any moment.
After weeks of fighting as a team, they had grown familiar with using each other's strengths to their advantage.
Cristopher, Colbert, Pietro, and Piper, who were riding on Blaze Skunks, weren't moving as fast as their comrades.
In fact, they were at dead last because Blaze Skunks weren't monsters who specialized in speed.
Seeing that there were stragglers behind, the Goblins decided to change their targets and aimed for the four Skunks, whom they planned to vent their anger.
However, when these skunks all turned around and raised their tail, a very bad feeling crept into the minds of the Hobgoblins, who had stepped into the fifty-meter-mark range of the Blaze Skunks.
Without any warning, the four Blaze Skunks unleashed a flaming spray that instantly made every monster they hit scream in pain.
Just like giant flamethrowers, the Blaze Skunks burned down their enemies, with some of them even melting on the spot due to the acid that was imbued on the hellish flames.
But that wasn't all.
The flames were also very foul-smelling, making the Wargs, who had sensitive noses, disoriented. They flailed around, sending their riders flying off their backs.
While this was happening, the Night Wolves turned around and annihilated the stragglers who had fallen into disarray.
The Goblin Captain had already died after being bombarded with the combined firepower of the four Blaze Skunks, so there was no longer anyone who would give them any orders.
Since they had lost their leaders, the first thing that the Goblins did was run.
Unfortunately, they couldn't outrun the Night Wolves, so they were killed one by one until only their corpses remained on the battlefield.
The Valkyries, who watched the battle from start to end, were stunned because they didn't expect to see such a scene after they arrived in the Rigel Continent.
The majority of them thought of the 69th Battalion as a joke.
But after seeing them in action, they believed that they wouldn't be able to fight as effectively as them, which made them look at the teenage boy, who was looking at his subordinates with a faint smile on his face.