Jeremy glanced at his phone. The call was from an unknown number.
Normally, Jeremy would never answer calls from unfamiliar numbers, but since he had just arrived in the capital, he decided to pick up the phone.
As soon as the call connected, a voice came through—one that Jeremy was very familiar with. It was the Colonel, the one who had escorted Jeremy and Bonnie to the capital.
"Didn't you carry out the mission? Why didn't we see you around the Endless Abyss instance?" The Colonel questioned coldly.
Although the tone of the Colonel's voice was similar to before, Jeremy could tell that there was a hint of anger in it.
"Wasn't I supposed to carry out the mission on my own? I entered the Death Abyss instance this afternoon already. I've gathered enough information, and I've included everything in the report." Jeremy replied.
"Is that so? I recall the task requirements were quite clear. You were supposed to be at the Death Abyss instance after dark." The Colonel's voice came again, this time less angry, but still stern.
"It's fine, if you want me to go there now, I'll head over right away!" Jeremy snapped, hanging up the phone and quickly heading to the Endless Abyss instance.
When he arrived, he noticed several people gathered around the instance. One of them was the Colonel. The other two appeared to be quite young and weren't wearing military uniforms, which meant they were likely players from the Apocalypse game, possibly even unofficial ones.
"You finally showed up! We've been waiting for you for a long time!" One of the Apocalypse game players smiled at the Colonel, then turned to Jeremy with a mocking tone.
"You guys didn't have to wait for me at all. You could've just stayed away! It makes no difference whether you're here or not." Jeremy, not one to ignore a stranger's mockery, retorted sharply.
Jeremy's words immediately infuriated the two Apocalypse game players.
"Do you have any idea who we are? You have no idea what kind of consequences you're inviting by messing with us!" One of the players hissed angrily.
Jeremy tightened his grip on the Mortal Combat weapon in his hand and fixed his gaze intently on the player.
"Are you threatening me?" Jeremy asked in a calm voice, but his words carried an overwhelming sense of pressure.
Seeing the expression on Jeremy's face, both Apocalypse game players hesitated slightly. They didn't respond to his question and even took a few steps back.
"Enough!" the Colonel interjected sharply. "Stop the bickering! Our mission is to explore the Endless Abyss instance. Does your arguing help with that in any way?"
At first, the Colonel hadn't planned to stop the Apocalypse game players from mocking Jeremy. He, too, had been somewhat dissatisfied with Jeremy's previous actions. But when Jeremy displayed such a strong aura of pressure, the Colonel felt it was time to intervene and put an end to the potential conflict between the players.
The Colonel turned his gaze to Jeremy.
"Could you really be in that small town?" the Colonel muttered to himself.
As for Jeremy, he was quite satisfied with the Colonel's response.
Though the Colonel hadn't been particularly polite, he had been fair and hadn't targeted Jeremy in any way. Jeremy felt that if everyone at the military headquarters acted as the Colonel did, the overall situation would likely be much better.
After Jeremy returned to his quarters, he went straight to rest.
However, while Jeremy was resting, the Colonel didn't take a break. He immediately took Jeremy's report and headed to the military headquarters building in the city center of the capital.
Although the Colonel's rank wasn't particularly high, the tasks he was assigned were of utmost importance. The Endless Abyss instance was one of the high-difficulty instances that the military headquarters was closely monitoring.
When the Colonel submitted Jeremy's report, everyone involved in monitoring the Endless Abyss instance was left stunned.
"Are you really sure what he wrote in the report is true?" One of the high-ranking generals asked in a tone of deep skepticism.
"I didn't accompany Jeremy on his mission, so I can't fully verify that everything he said is accurate. However, from the first part of his report, it seems he did manage to get deep into the Endless Abyss instance. Even if he didn't encounter the instance's boss, he was very close to it. We can start preparing for the final confrontation," the Colonel replied, his voice filled with excitement.
Clearly, he had long been eager to eliminate the Endless Abyss instance once and for all.
However, to the Colonel's superiors, the idea of eradicating the Endless Abyss instance was still a bit too ambitious.
"I think we can't afford to act hastily. Since Jeremy's previous actions were successful, let's have him continue exploring the Endless Abyss instance. If he can clear it out on his own, we won't have to take any unnecessary risks. That would be the most advantageous course of action for us at military headquarters."
"After all, the enemies we face aren't just the monsters within Apocalypse Game's instances. We also have internal enemies within the Federation to consider."
The higher-ups at military headquarters had many things to consider. Thus, they needed to safeguard their own power and avoid unnecessary exposure to danger.
Upon hearing this, the Colonel's face fell in disappointment. But he also knew that completely dealing with the Endless Abyss instance would take time, so he couldn't afford to be too impatient.
"I understand. I will assign Jeremy a new mission as soon as possible. His upcoming tasks will all focus on the Endless Abyss instance. I also hope he will be able to assist us..." The Colonel's voice trailed off, but his resolve was clear.
The Colonel only hoped that Jeremy could bring him more intelligence.
The reason for this was that the Colonel wanted to be the one to clear the Endless Abyss instance himself. Only by doing so could he avenge the many comrades he had lost there.
The Colonel had lost numerous companions in the Endless Abyss instance. He even suspected that some of the townspeople Jeremy had mentioned, who lived in the small town within the instance, might have once been his own comrades transformed into something else.
The higher-ups at military headquarters approved of the Colonel's plan. They, too, were eager to gauge the true extent of Jeremy's strength. If Jeremy's abilities turned out to be exceptionally powerful, they would make sure to win him over to their side.