"Princess Delphine!!" Hayatobi snapped. The sudden, thunderous vibration in his voice was like a physical blow, shocking Delphine into a stunned silence.
"You already lost people in this mission!! And these guys here are too exhausted to continue. Look at them, if the devil cult could ambush you here with a Leader, what do you think will happen in Ragon city?!!" He yelled at her, his silver eyes flashing with the cold pragmatism of a man who had survived a thousand battlefields. "By now! That city would be running with Devil Cult members, a right military force will help settle this!!"
"But... But..." Delphine clenched her fist so hard her knuckles turned white. In the private theater of her mind, Xavier's smiling face appeared—the way he looked in the Imperial Garden, promising to wait for her. If she waited for the slow-moving cogs of the Imperial Army, she might only arrive in time to find his corpse.
