Fred, who had just left his mother's embrace, now found himself face to face with Halberton.
The legendary tactical genius.
From Fred's perspective, this middle-aged man wore a warm, sincere smile. While his features weren't particularly handsome, they gave off an exceptionally reliable impression.
He seemed like the reassuring uncle next door, though he appeared much younger than Fred had imagined.
Considering there were still six years until the main storyline would truly begin, this made sense.
The man probably hadn't even reached forty yet this year.
While Fred was observing him, Halberton was similarly studying the boy.
Red hair, blue eyes - he looked like a mix of Eurasian and Atlantic descent.
What struck Halberton most was that the boy showed no trace of fear or intimidation under the gaze of a rear admiral.
Given Fred's achievements, if he couldn't even manage this much composure, Halberton would have suspected the credit had been falsely claimed.
From what he could see now, it really had been this boy who stopped the Drake.
"Fred, on behalf of the Atlantic Federation, I thank you for your contribution."
Copernicus, being close to Ptolemy, housed many military families.
Not to mention that Copernicus also fell within their protection zone.
The fact that they had bypassed the alert and Ptolemy's radar to steal a Drake-class ship and reach this location - if Copernicus had actually been lost, many people would have had to take responsibility.
"You flatter me. The success of this operation relied on everyone's desperate fighting. I believe they're the ones who truly deserve thanks."
"..."
After Fred spoke, the room fell into silence once again.
Halberton observed that the boy didn't seem to be merely being modest but appeared genuinely serious. He felt both astonished and secretly satisfied.
This thirteen-year-old child, fresh from the battlefield, hadn't been blinded by the immense credit before him.
His attitude showed no arrogance whatsoever, remaining instead gentle and rational.
These qualities were far more precious than the boy's earlier performance.
"Would you like to join the military? By my side."
Finally, Halberton broke the silence and asked.
The boy suited his tastes perfectly, with a conduct style remarkably similar to his own. If he could have such a person as his successor, becoming the Atlantic's guardian deity, then he could depart this world content.
Of course, it would require gradual cultivation.
But he believed that with the boy's talent, he could surely surpass his teacher.
If anyone familiar with Halberton were present, they would have been shocked by his words.
After all, this was the first time he had actively invited someone to join the military.
Hearing this, Fred was unusually taken aback for a moment.
He had considered that this tactical genius might encourage him, but he never expected a direct invitation.
If he joined Halberton's faction...
This thought had barely surfaced in Fred's mind before he dismissed it.
If Halberton's influence had truly been sufficient to contend with Blue Cosmos, the future events wouldn't have occurred, and the current situation wouldn't have happened either.
He still couldn't remain in the Atlantic.
Moreover, he didn't want to work all the way until Halberton's age without being able to retire.
That would be exhausting.
"I'm sorry, General Halberton, I haven't considered that possibility for now."
Fred lowered his eyes and replied politely.
"Alright, but you're always welcome here."
Hearing this, Halberton didn't press further. Instead, he stood up and approached Fred, firmly grasping his hands with both of his own.
"You've done well, child."
"Thank you."
Feeling the warmth and rough texture of the other's palms, Fred returned the firm handshake.
Done well...?
But did this incident actually exist in the original world?
How much impact had his presence brought to this world?
Could it be that this danger occurred because of him?
Such thoughts flashed through the young man's mind only briefly before being suppressed.
He couldn't change his own existence.
If he were afraid of change, he wouldn't have taken the first step.
If he withdrew now, everything would spiral completely out of control.
It's just that things had reached this point.
This was no longer the SEED world he was familiar with - he needed to grow stronger quickly.
Perhaps his future plans would need to change as well.
...
While Fred was making plans in his heart, Andrew, who had successfully infiltrated disguised as a merchant ship, looked at the intelligence in his hand and Miha before him, still finding it hard to believe.
His handsome face was now full of question marks.
"That's roughly the situation. As for why Fred is so capable, I don't understand either..."
Miha looked at the young man before him with some unease.
He couldn't help feeling somewhat fearful.
Although the other appeared to be only in his twenties, for someone this age - even if he was a Coordinator - to become the captain of a disguised fleet fully demonstrated his capabilities.
"Hmm..."
Unaware of what the other was thinking, Andrew simply sank into his own thoughts.
That Fred - what talent!
To be able to devise such a complex plan alone.
And he was a Natural at that.
This made Andrew even more interested in befriending him.
"What a pity."
Andrew sighed.
It was unfortunate that his current identity couldn't appear openly, otherwise he would definitely go have a word with that interesting young man.
Across from Andrew, hearing the young man's words, Miha felt all his hairs stand on end.
Pity? Pity what?
Could he be thinking of...?
"Um, sir! I don't think Fred dislikes Coordinators! He's one of the doves!"
Miha didn't know what he was doing - as a spy, he was actually defending his surveillance target.
Of course he had considered this possibility before, but he had imagined the other would at least be a great beauty, and if they got together, it would probably be like those 007 plots he had seen before.
But why was this different from what he had imagined?
He was defending a man.
Though still fearful after speaking, Miha surprisingly didn't regret it.
Probably, if he hadn't spoken up, that would have been something to regret for a lifetime.
"Hmm?"
Startled by the other's outburst, Andrew came back to his senses and gave Miha a meaningful look.
"Is that so~"
His voice carried multiple inflections, somewhat sinister, making Miha's shoulders slump even further.
If things really went bad, he should tell Fred to run quickly.
After all, if he could reach Ptolemy, he should be safe.
"Alright, I was just teasing you."
Andrew couldn't help but chuckle, his handsome young face instantly softening with warmth.
The boy before him was quite an interesting person too—not some machine-like spy—and he found himself rather fond of him.
"This time he saved many lives. No matter how ruthless one might be, they wouldn't immediately treat him as a threat to eliminate."
At least he wouldn't. As for what Patrick thought, he truly couldn't say.