Corps Commander Deon Hart (7)
Saying he wouldn't keep me waiting long—how touching, I could almost cry. Really, there's no need for that. He can keep me waiting as long as he wants. Honestly, I'd prefer it if he kept me waiting until I die.
But Ashild is the type who never breaks his word. He's not going to forget that promise. In other words, no matter when, the moment when I have to cross swords with that terrifying guy is definitely going to come.
"Demon-nim?"
"Ah."
Now that I think about it, he said something at the end… Right, he asked if he could come watch.
I suppressed the sigh that almost escaped without thinking.
There's no good reason to refuse.
Well, at least it's better than sparring. I should probably take comfort in that.
I nodded reluctantly, and a faint smile flickered across his usually stern face.
"Thank you."
"No need to thank me…"
It's weirdly uncomfortable when someone who slaughters humans like a madman on the battlefield acts so polite.
If only he'd drop the honorifics. Heck, if he were just a little bit cocky, I'd feel more at ease.
"Um, then… can I come too? I'm curious about how the 0th Corps trains."
Why is Idelia trying to come when she doesn't even get along with Ashild? Oh—wait, is this espionage?
Seems like she's hoping to gather some useful intel. Well, tough luck.
"You're free to come if you want, but…"
I feel a little bad for Idelia, but my training method is basically "neglect."
Literally just leaving them be and dropping by occasionally to watch. That's the whole thing… she's probably going to be disappointed.
Still, I couldn't bring myself to say outright that I just neglect them, so I quietly started tidying up.
I piled all the still-full dishes onto the tray, stood up, and, as if waiting for that cue, both Jaykar and Ashild—who had long since finished eating—stood up too with their empty plates in hand.
Idelia, who had already cleared her dishes earlier and come over, glanced at my plate and tilted her head.
"You've finished eating?"
"Yes."
"Are you feeling unwell or something…?"
"Yeah, a bit."
Because of you guys.
I swallowed those words that almost slipped out and answered calmly. Jaykar, looking concerned, studied my face.
"Shouldn't you see the doctor, then?"
"I'm fine."
No matter how nice Ben is, if I keep bothering him with trivial stuff, who knows what'll happen. He is a demon, after all.
I shook my head, remembering how part of his face was covered in snake scales—like he was trying to advertise his demonic nature—and handed my tray to a servant.
Once we stepped outside, the other corps commanders followed me out en masse. It was an unexpected sight, and for a moment, someone's image seemed to overlap with mine, making me flinch and instinctively stop walking.
This feels like…
"I look like the Demon King, don't I?"
It made the already constant stares feel even more intense. I just wanted to have a quiet meal and leave unnoticed—how did it end up like this?
The atmosphere made it seem like I was expected to head straight to the corps now. I stood there awkwardly, glancing around, when someone came running up from the distance.
"Jaykar-nim!"
What now? After everything that's happened, I'm automatically on guard.
It didn't take long to figure out whether they were friend or foe.
"Jaykar-nim, your adjutant says there's a backlog of paperwork, and you need to return quickly…"
Ah, an ally.
"...Come to think of it, I did see a stack of papers on my desk. Don't tell me that's all of it?"
"Yes, I believe so."
A heavy sigh escaped.
Jaykar ran a hand down his face, openly showing his irritation and frustration, but soon pulled himself together and looked at me.
"Looks like I won't be able to come today after all, as you've heard."
"Yeah, that's a shame."
Not disappointed at all.
I silently praised the demon who had just delivered the good news and looked back, once again thankful for the day I'd drawn a clear line when it came to paperwork.
Back then, even while saying it, I was shaking in my boots, afraid I'd lose my head, but now that I think about it, that was one of my best decisions. Thanks to that, I never have to be hounded by my adjutant.
By the way, my adjutant, who ended up with nothing to do because of me, is currently off in the human realm. I'd been too bored, and he left saying he'd find me some new puzzles or cubes. Of course, I still have to be careful since he's a demon, but he's honestly as kind and thoughtful as Ben.
"C-come to think of it, I'm in a tight spot too."
Ashild, who was standing next to me, let out something between a groan and a sigh.
He ruffled his hair nervously, let out a deep, floor-shaking sigh, and looked at me with a guilty expression, as if he had no choice.
"I think I'll have to postpone the visit as well. I'm really sorry, especially after I was the one who asked."
"No, it's fine."
Really, it's fine. No need to apologize.
I tried to make it as clear as possible that it was totally fine and sent a loving glance toward the demon who had brought the good news. He flinched like a petty thief caught by the guards.
Didn't seem strange to me. Honestly, it would've been strange if he hadn't been nervous, standing there in front of a bunch of corps commanders. Plus, he was delivering the news that their paperwork was piling up—it's natural to be scared.
"Um… and Lady Idelia… huh? Lady Idelia? Where did she go?"
The attendant, who'd been cautiously glancing around, suddenly widened his eyes and looked frantically in every direction.
'Idelia? She was just here… huh? Where'd she go?'
Wait—was I the only one who didn't notice her leaving?
Nope, apparently not. Ashild and Jaykar were also glancing around with expressions that mixed annoyance and reluctant admiration.
Where'd she run off to all of a sudden? No way she ditched to avoid paperwork… right? I mean, she is a corps commander, after all.
"She ran off again."
"She's getting better at it by the day."
Seriously?!
I'd forgotten for a moment—corps commanders aren't normal.
The attendant must've realized she ran off too because his face crumpled, looking less like a frown and more like he was on the verge of tears, totally forgetting who he was talking to as he started complaining.
"Have you seen Lady Idelia's adjutant lately? He looks like a walking corpse. If that were all, I'd just feel sorry for him, but the problem is, he's throwing a fit and threatening to resign…"
"…That sounds rough."
"No, no… I've said too much. I'll take my leave now. If by any chance you spot Lady Idelia…"
"I'll be sure to catch her and toss her in front of her adjutant."
"Yes, please, I'd really appreciate it."
The attendant bowed deeply and stepped back, looking like he was planning to search the area a bit more.
And as his figure started to fade from view, Jaykar and Ashild both turned to me at the same time.
"See you next time."
"I'll be in touch again soon."
"Y-yeah, good luck with the paperwork…"
…Oops. Guess that wasn't the right thing to say.
Both of them let out synchronized sighs at my half-hearted attempt at encouragement.
For a second, I worried they might snap, but thankfully, they just turned around silently and dragged their feet reluctantly back to their duties.
And me…
I guess I'd better head over to the corps now.
There's no deadline or anything, and I could totally put it off, but if I do, the corps commanders might finish their paperwork and come find me.
Right now—when everyone's busy and out of the way—is probably the best chance I'll ever get.
So, forcing myself to resist the urge to head back to my room, I turned my steps toward the 0th Corps' private training grounds.
God, I don't want to go.
Since lunch had just ended, the training ground was completely empty.
Well, yeah. Who wants to go running around right after eating? That's just asking for a side stitch.
I was seriously tempted to just turn around and head back, but if I left without even seeing a single corps member's face, it wouldn't really count as checking on them.
So, deciding to wait it out, I pulled a wooden sword from the rack and trudged over to a corner of the training ground, sitting down with my legs crossed.
As I fiddled with the hilt—discolored from use—I couldn't help but notice again:
Maybe it's because it's from the demon realm, or maybe I'm just weak, but damn, it's heavy. I could swing it if I really wanted to, but at that point, it wouldn't be me swinging the sword—the sword would be swinging me.
This cursed lack of strength… I can't even properly handle a wooden sword, let alone a real one.
That's why, when I was first dragged out to the battlefield, all I could do was dodge and run without ever properly holding a weapon. Later, the weapon I finally chose for myself was a small, light dagger.
"Gah."
A small noise snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked up to see what seemed like a corps member, standing at the entrance of the training ground, staring at me with a pale face.
Since this was the 0th Corps' private grounds, he must be one of ours. Here to train? Pretty dedicated.
…Or so I thought, but the moment our eyes met, he turned tail and bolted out of there.
"…"
What the hell? Why show up if you're just going to leave?
Or—wait. Is it because of me? Did he take one look and decide to rally everyone else to stay away until I leave?
Sigh.
Yeah, what was I thinking? A mere human trying to act like a corps commander…
Forget it. I've done my part.
I mean, it's not like I really did my part, but my conscience was yelling that this much was enough, so… good enough.
I stood up to return the wooden sword to its rack. Just as I took a step, I felt a tremor in the ground.
At first, I thought I was imagining it…
Thud, thud, thud, thud.
Far off in the distance, a cloud of dust started rolling in, and that's when I knew for sure.
What the hell… what is that? Monsters? Do we even have monsters inside the Demon King's castle?
Oh wait, there—shapes, vaguely human.
Ah. Figures. It's the legionnaires. Our side.
"…"
Time to get out of here.
I don't know what's going on, but I've got a bad feeling about it. I can check in on the legion later. No, scratch that—this feels like the universe telling me I have to put it off.
But while I was hesitating, the group had already rushed over and lined up right in front of me, fast and perfectly in sync.
"…"
"…"
A heavy silence settled over the training grounds.
Unlike the dead quiet around me, my mind was racing.
What is this? Are they telling me to hurry up and leave now that I've had my look? When should I leave? Now? Judging by those eyes… yeah, now seems good.
I gave a quick nod to show I was about to head off and had just turned around when one of them—probably their spokesperson—called out to me, hesitantly.
"Um, Demon Lord?"
"Yes?"
"May I ask… what brings you here…?"
Why did that sound like, "Why are you here when you've got nothing to do?"
Even if that was the implication, they weren't wrong, so I couldn't exactly snap back at them.
My hands, twitchy with nerves, wanted to grab at my collar, but I figured holding onto the sword looked a lot more dignified than fidgeting like that.
Gripping the wooden sword tighter, I answered,
"I was curious."
About the skills of our legionnaires.
Every time I've come by, they've been training nonstop, so I trust they're above average—but still, I've wanted to see it with my own eyes at least once.
Though, judging by their attitude, that's probably never going to happen unless something really unusual goes down.
Crushed under the weight of their unspoken please just leave pressure, I turned to put the wooden sword back on the rack.
I tried my best to move naturally, without looking shaken—but I must've been more tense than I thought.
My feet tangled up.
Ah, my trusty wobbly legs, coming through for me again!
I'm gonna fall!
If I went down now, it'd be humiliating as hell—and that's the best-case scenario.
The rumors that'd start if people heard the human tripped over his own feet? Yeah, no thanks. I don't even need to imagine the fallout.
Thinking falling = death, I threw one foot out in a desperate bid to steady myself.
As I crouched low to stabilize my center of gravity… something whizzed over my head.
"Demon Lord!!"
I instinctively glanced up, just in time to see… something drift lazily down in front of my eyes.
Looked like a bit of white fuzz—wait, that's my hair?!
Freaking out, I straightened up and twisted around, and something smacked hard into my elbow.
Followed by a pained grunt.
"Urgh!"
"…?"
By the time my vision caught up, the intruder was already doubled over, clutching their solar plexus and trembling.
My eyes widened at the all-too-familiar sight.
"A… human?"
No tail, no horns, no scales. Unlike the demons, who always have some feature that sets them apart from humans, this guy looked exactly like one of us.
I had about half a second to wonder how a human had even gotten into the Demon King's castle before my eyes landed on the sword in his hand.
An intruder.
And wait—did I seriously just elbow this guy in the stomach by accident?
Well… lucky me. That could've gone really badly.
My heart still racing, I tightened both hands around my wooden sword and raised it.
Human or not, the fact remains: this guy trespassed and attacked me. No room for hesitation.
In fact, if I didn't finish this now, I could end up in serious danger.
I gritted my teeth, threw my whole weight behind it, and brought the sword down with all my might.
CRACK!