I! Cleaner!

*Did we really have to blow up the Sky Clipper? Did it mean that there might be backups or something on this ship?*

*After checking the soul state of middle-aged Joshua and finding he wasn't lying, Leon couldn't help but frown slightly, understanding that Joshua must have seen something in the future.*

*Perhaps there was some oversight, or maybe the ship had some problem that would lead to war breaking out again in the future. The middle-aged Joshua, not wanting this to happen, had to risk being caught by Leon again to sneak into the Boarding Tower and stop him from retreating, insisting that the entire Sky Clipper be completely destroyed.*

*So... was he a half-ally this time?*

...

"You can't trust him! He's definitely not up to any good!"

Just as Leon was pondering whether to heed the advice, the burn-scarred Teague squinted his eyes and said,

"If we really blew up the Sky Clipper, that bastard could open the door and run off, so what do we do then?

Never mind anything else, there are five, six, seven, or eight patrol groups down there combined with at least two or three thousand foot soldiers. Even if I burned myself out, I might not be able to break through."

"Teague is right."

The portly Oliver sighed, then followed up with a worried analysis,

"I saw on the way over, that this large area beneath the tower is cleared out completely, not even a stone pile for cover. They wouldn't even need to get close. Just two rounds of cover fire, and they'd push us back into the tower.

And worst of all, it's less than five hundred meters out of the patrol zone to where an entire mechanical unit is stationed. The military's powered armor is just too sturdy, with the outer armor, inner armor, and an insulation layer adding up to a total thickness of over ten centimeters. Even small-caliber shells can't penetrate it. In that case, we might truly be waiting to die."

*Indeed, this problem was even more critical.*

After hearing their words, Leon's brow furrowed even deeper.

The original rebels might have agreed to the raid on the Boarding Tower and even the destruction of the Sky Clipper, as they had the option to escape at any time using middle-aged Joshua's "Beyond the Gate." But now that he had been driven out of the rebels, there was no chance he would help again.

So even if what middle-aged Joshua said was true, the moment they blew up the Sky Clipper and attracted the attention of that mechanical unit, apart from himself, all the other rebels would likely meet their end here...

"Should we cooperate just this once?"

*After repeatedly weighing the outcomes in his mind, Leon took a deep breath, chose to trust middle-aged Joshua, and extended an olive branch sincerely,*

"We'll take care of blowing up the Sky Clipper; you handle getting everyone on the ship away safely, how about it?"

Despite the fact that there was tension between middle-aged Joshua and himself, and Joshua was also cozy with the Aquarius Director, his obsession with saving the Kingdom was strong enough to birth the anomalous object "Gate of the Other World," so it was unlikely he'd lie about that part.

*On one hand, there were the rebels who entrusted their lives to him and were willing to join him on this adventure; on the other hand, there was the potentially drawn-out war of countless deaths and injuries,* if he could really have it both ways, cooperating with him this once wouldn't be a bad idea.

Upon realizing Leon had "backed down," middle-aged Joshua smiled contentedly from a hundred meters away, then abruptly withdrew the smile.

"Not a chance!"

???!

In the astonished eyes of the rebels, middle-aged Joshua, who had risked coming to warn them, leaned against the Boarding Tower's steel frame, arms crossed, and sneered,

"Back in the valley, didn't you dismiss my decisions and disagree with sacrificing lives for our objectives? Great, it's your turn to make choices now.

Forget about any cooperation. I will never open the door for you. Either sacrifice them to achieve your goal, or retreat with your tail between your legs like a dog and watch the Sky Clipper return to Crolock.

Choose! I want to see how well you do compared to me!"

"..."

...

"Damn it!"

"Nathan! Don't go too far!"

"Bastard, I'll take you down!"

Joshua's taunt completely ignited the rebels' fury. The most impulsive of them, the burn-scarred Teague, burst into flames, ready to charge and attack.

Yet just then, the Holy Spirit pendant on Leon's chest flickered, and Teague, who had charged seven or eight meters, paused, forcibly pinned to the spot.

"You can't fool me."

Pulling the burn-scarred man back, Leon said with a frown,

"Avoiding the information from getting back is one of your top priorities. You wouldn't let things go south with us over such a trivial reason and watch the Sky Clipper return to Crolock?"

"That's true, I indeed wouldn't want that to happen."

Acknowledging Leon's judgment candidly, middle-aged Joshua locked eyes with him maliciously,

"But I also don't want you alive!"

Watching Leon's brow furrow tighter, middle-aged Joshua said venomously,

"Before I came, I looked... I know what you want to do! You cannot coexist with the Kingdom! If you really leave the tower, I'll still lose everything in the future! Though working with you temporarily avoids war, it will eventually destroy my Kingdom!"

"..."

"They may not understand, but you should know whether I'm telling the truth or not, right?"

*Indeed, it was all true, and he was genuinely ready to let the Sky Clipper leave.*

Gazing at middle-aged Joshua, whose temples had turned a patch of white, who was willing to expose a bit of the future just to "convince" him, Leon fell into silence, then asked,

"Apart from seeing the further future, you must have also seen what happens today, right? In the 'today' you saw, how did I choose?"

At Leon's words, Joshua paused for a moment, then turned away and muttered,

"You already know."

*Indeed... I already knew what choice I'd make.*

Looking at Joshua hidden at a safe distance, and the maintenance door behind him left slightly ajar, Leon couldn't help but sigh, saying calmly,

"Open the door for the others, I'll stay behind to blow up the Sky Clipper."

"Leader?!"

Hearing Leon's words, the rebels all shook with emotion, their eyes welling up with gratitude, while also strongly protesting,

"How about... I stay behind?"

"No! We can't agree to that!"

"Maybe there's another way..."

"There is no other way; this is the best option right now."

Waving to silence the rebels, Leon reluctantly explained,

*"The moment he appeared here, we already had no chance of retreating safely. With so many patrol guards below, just one firework could bring everyone here, so whether or not we blow up the Sky Clipper, the final result would be the same.*

*Rather than achieving nothing and then being hunted down, it would be better to exchange terms for your safe retreat, and I'll go get it done, right?"*

"But you..."

"Enough with the 'buts,' go on."

*Pushing a bit more, Leon soothingly reassured them,*

"Have you forgotten? I have the Undying Body. This half-baked prophet might not really be able to kill me. Go on, don't worry!"