GATE: Thus The Imperium of Man Fought There

Thus, They Are The Imperium of Man

Night has passed in the Falmart. JSDF was hiding behind the stone wall of Italica. As Raias had asked them to protect the city, they only complied because, in their hearts, they believed the man. It was unnatural, as the power behind that man's figure was beyond their comprehension.

"Hey, Sir," Kurata asked Itami, who stood beside him. These two men are currently at the top of the wall, darkened by the dead torches.

"What's wrong, Kurata?" He asked; his eyes still used night vision to scan the land beyond the wall.

"I know it was weird, but. Captain Raias managed to put the entire not only us but the Italican army as well. It was unthinkable to command men that were completely unknown to your faction. He coordinated for this wall to be seemingly heavily guarded, yet it was only on the inside. Why?" Kurata asked innocently.

"Hah," Itami sighed. "Besides, he has the highest order at this place to command the army. He is two and a half meters in height, imbued with that charisma... I can see why they complied. And for the tactic... Call me stupid, but they intended to fight the entire army by themselves."

"A-Are they insane?!" Kurata shouted in horror.

"I won't call them like that." The older JSDF said sternly, which was unusual for the carefree figure of Itami Youji.

"I don't understand." This question made Itami sigh.

"The fight with the Fire Dragon. Did you forget that?" The Lieutenant answered, caressing the back of his neck.

"W-Well, I can't sleep because of that moment. Well, maybe I'm overthinking stuff." The younger men awkwardly.

"Hey, Kurata. Your face. Are you sick?" Itami pointed.

"U-Um. I think I am?" He said, unsure.

"Since when is your face as pale as a corpse?" Itami lit up his night vision, inspecting deeply on Kurata's face.

"I-I don't know. But I think it happened when Raphael... Made that strange aura on us?" Kurata sorely concluded.

Hearing that sentence made Itami touch his chin in wonder. When that happened, Lelei, Tuka, and Rory felt some sickness. Yet, the cause is unknown. Not only them but his team felt the same thing.

To his curiosity, Kuribayashi did not affect by that sickness. She is the only one who did not feel the sudden blast like most of them. No, she was affected, but it was significantly less exposed.

"Hey, Kurata. Is there something different about me?" Itami asked, pointing at himself.

"To be honest, sir. Your demeanor. It is much sterner and more anxious." The answer made Itami frown.

"And the others. Did something different about them from your perspective?" The leader of the 3rd Recon Team asked.

"Mostly, yes."

"We need to speak with Captain Raias to further dig into this information." Itami pinched his nose in exasperation.

"Speaking of him. They talked about something called Longinus Agitatus. What actually is that?" Kurata said, causing the older lieutenant to snap.

"Longinus Agitatus. Kuwahara also mentioned that name as God-killing stuff." Itami said, wondering about this discovery.

"Why he claimed it to be God-killer stuff?" Again, Kurata asked innocently.

"I've read about it. Longinus is a name that came from ancient Rome. It used to be a man who stabbed Jesus Christ using a spear." Itami recollected his memory, closing his eyes to remember better that said event.