By Zephyria “What’s going on when the sun’s already down?”
Venom Thesaurus, the 8th Division Commander of the Central Branch, opened the door of the small conference room and entered with a swaggering gait. Because of his height, which was taller than even the Legion Commander, those gathered inside thought that the leader who had summoned them had arrived and were about to get up from their seats, but stopped.
“It must be about the Peninsula. You weren’t planning on leaving work on time at this hour, were you?”
Noel Presentia, the 11th Division Commander, whom no one knew when he had arrived, grabbed Venom’s shoulder tightly with a brightly smiling face. Venom roughly shook off his arm as if telling him not to touch him, and glared at him with an unpleasant expression.
“Don’t pretend to be friendly.”
Beyond Noel, who shrugged his shoulders and went in first, Meterion, who was sitting in a chair with his arms crossed and his eyes closed tightly, came into Venom’s view.
Meterion had already thrown off his combat uniform and changed into a snow-white uniform. Venom deliberately passed in front of him, checked his face, and threw a word at him.
“Did you pocket something on your own? Rivera had dark circles down to his chin, but you look good?”
“Thesaurus, are you crazy? Why are you picking on someone who’s been through hardship?”
Verity Sharma, the 5th Division Commander next to him, scolded Venom. Meterion put strength on his forehead and half-opened his eyes, but since there was someone who was scolding him instead, he didn’t bother to add anything. He just closed his eyes again, making it clear that he was tired.
The number of people was small because not everyone had gathered yet, but the atmosphere in the conference room became quite chaotic with Venom’s appearance. Andreas, the 4th Division Commander, who had hurriedly returned from his commute and was fixing his loosened tie, muttered as he saw the dark shadows flickering at Venom’s feet.
“That guy is being unusually difficult today.”
“Looks like the terrible seven-year-old has come out today.”
Maria Angel, the 9th Division Commander, with a gentle smile, answered Andreas’s mutter, saying that she liked the occasional commotion.
Venom Thesaurus, the 8th Division Commander, could control shadows, but to be exact, it was more accurate to say that he had become one with several shadows. The shadows that stayed at his feet each had different genders, ages, and personalities, and Venom’s tone and behavior would change depending on the shadow that took the lead at any given time.
However, since he couldn’t decide that as he pleased, it sometimes seemed like an uncomfortable ability to have his ego taken away by others. However, Venom could also partially control the darkness, which was a higher concept than shadows, and he also had a secret skill of absorbing shadows wandering along the road to find out information or secrets.
The flaw was that there were many shadows that told lies or made up rumors, so the reliability was low…. Anyway, seeing that Venom was talking so much today, it seemed that a meddler who needed attention had taken the lead.
In the meantime, the conference room door opened and closed several times, and other Division Commanders arrived one after another. When Dellua, who had dark circles down to her chin, appeared, unlike Meterion, most people sent light applause to express their appreciation for her hard work.
Even in the midst of her exhaustion, she thanked them for their welcome, greeted her colleagues whom she had met after a long time, and then took her seat. Shorendo, the Vice Commander, subtly approached such Dellua.
“Division Commander Rivera, do you know why the Commander summoned us?”
“Huh? Well, I haven’t heard anything other than personal orders…. Maybe it’s because of a briefing on the Peninsula situation?”
“Um… I guess so?”
Shorendo nodded in agreement and encouraged Dellua, saying that she had worked hard once again. But after returning to his seat and sitting down, he had a questioning look on his face for some reason. It wasn’t the first time they had gathered at a late hour, but it was strange that only the Division Commander-level people were summoned, excluding the Vice Commanders or adjutants, who were the main attendees of the meeting.
Even in the midst of that, the people being summoned continued to arrive, and before they knew it, there was only about a minute left until the assembly time. Everyone had gathered in one place, except for two Division Commanders who had expressed their intention to be unable to attend due to being in other regions, Loren Ophians, the 2nd Division Commander who had transmitted the summons order, and Agrizendro Legion Commander, who was the person in question. It was the highest attendance among the meetings held recently.
Since the Commander, who usually appeared 5 minutes before the start of the meeting, was not showing his face yet, the Division Commanders occasionally checked their watches, wondering about Hugo. Nevertheless, no one grumbled about being suddenly called out at a late hour. The fact that the person who was virtually the most exhausted on the day of returning from the subjugation had issued the summons order meant that it was a very important matter.
Because of that, some of them agreed among themselves to cheer when the Commander came in, regardless of the reason for the summons. Just in time, the voice of two familiar people could be heard through the slightly opened crack in the conference room door, as if the last person to enter had a long tail.
As the voices gradually became clearer, some pushed their chairs back and got up from their seats. It was the moment when they raised both hands to clap under the leadership of Vice Commander Shorendo.
But the conversation that was heard from beyond the door was somehow unusual.
“Wait, Hugo. It’s not certain, so don’t push it too hard―.”
“It’s not certain? Do you know what could have happened because of this?”
Unlike usual, Hugo’s angry question echoed through the hallway, following Loren’s urgent dissuasion. Those gathered in the conference room sensed something was amiss and darted their eyes from side to side. About five seconds later, the heavy soundproof door burst open.
Bang!
The door collided with the wall, creating a loud noise. The chilling cold air brought by the Legion Commander permeated the conference room. The atmosphere froze instantly, and the blue light in his eyes quickly scanned the assembled battalion commanders. His gaze was fierce, as if he would seize and destroy anyone.
The hands of the battalion commanders, who had been about to applaud, instinctively and stealthily lowered.
Only Shorendo, looking bewildered and cautious, offered a word.
“…Um, Commander. You’ve worked hard—”
Loren, who appeared next, frowned and shook her head vigorously, as if telling him to say nothing. Shorendo’s listless voice quickly ceased, and the battalion commanders all became tight-lipped.
Meterion, who had been sitting alone with a nonchalant attitude, also unfolded his arms and slowly rose, as the situation unfolded differently from what he had expected. Hugo met his eyes with a fierce gaze and headed towards the head seat. The sound of his boots crossing the silent conference room was unusually loud.
As everyone’s attention focused on one spot, Hugo, without further ado, presented the Magic Stone handcuffs he was holding.
“Do you know what this is?”
The Magic Stone handcuffs dangled and swayed from side to side, illuminated by the light. Everyone knew it was handcuffs, but the Legion Commander wouldn’t be asking such an obvious question.
Everyone remained silent, passing the buck, as if a great disaster would occur if they spoke carelessly.
Even the usually smooth-talking Shorendo couldn’t easily open his mouth at this moment. He merely mouthed to Loren, who stood beside Hugo, asking what was going on.
However, Loren also remained silent with a troubled expression. Thanks to this, an uncomfortable silence continued for ten seconds, and Hugo abruptly threw what he was holding forward. He clearly threw it lightly, but the result was not light.
Clatter!
The heavy handcuffs and chains rolled loudly across the center of the table before falling to the ground.
“…”
“…”
Some shoulders twitched, and some widened their eyes at the Commander’s unprecedented behavior. The mark where the corner had struck the large table was clear.
Before long, a bleakness descended that was incomparable to the earlier atmosphere. In the midst of it, Hugo quietly opened his mouth.
“Answer me. Why is an outdated Magic Stone handcuff here?”
It didn’t take long for the battalion commanders to react upon hearing the word ‘outdated.’ As murmurs followed, Hugo sighed and pressed the crowd with a fierce gaze.
“The one who wore that outdated handcuff was Leonardo Blaine, who was dispatched to the Peninsula. Throughout the subjugation, he had a hard time due to side effects he himself didn’t know the reason for, and because of that, he had to be under the close watch of the commanders, including myself. You all know why without me having to say it. Battalion Commander-class wouldn’t be unaware that outdated handcuffs cause serious control instability problems.”
“…”
“Then you all know what it means for that handcuff to be here.”
Hugo, who had been speaking calmly, bit his lip and lowered his head for a moment. He slowly closed his eyes and opened them, raising his voice in a rare display.
“Because of that, a person was almost buried alive! Due to someone’s intention or mistake, an innocent person almost became a murderer!”
His anger, which he couldn’t suppress, leaked out through his clenched teeth. The deep chill devoured the surrounding oxygen, making it hard for the battalion commanders to breathe.
“If Leonardo Blaine hadn’t been an excellent controller, the probability of an accident happening due to this would have been 100%. Even in the Peninsula, which is full of dangerous elements, we couldn’t trust our allies, and he had to fight in a situation where he couldn’t even trust himself—”
“…”
“Wasn’t it agreed that the battalion commanders would take turns in charge of the armory and equipment management room to eradicate corruption and irregularities? But how did this happen? Do I really have to suspect my subordinates and monitor them one by one?”
Among the white uniforms with lowered heads, Hugo’s navy blue combat uniform, bearing the marks of his hard work, stood out uniquely. Hugo looked back at his subordinates with a cold gaze, unable to say a word, whether due to shock or guilt.
Loren, who had been watching, carefully placed her hand on his shoulder. Hugo, glancing back, realized that he had been overly excited for a moment and let out a long breath. He then frowned deeply and tightly closed his eyes before opening them.
“The person in charge of the equipment management room just before the dispatch, and anyone who has visited the workshop within the last three months, come forward.”
A colder voice echoed through the conference room. The battalion commanders glanced around, sizing each other up.
Soon, after a brief silence, several people, distributed far apart, stepped forward from their seats. Everyone’s eyes turned to them, and the three turned around behind their chairs and walked out.
Noel Presentia, the 11th Battalion Commander, lowered his head as if he would accept any words. Venom Thesaurus, the 8th Battalion Commander, clicked his tongue, uncomfortable with the atmosphere. And Meterion Kleinder, the 3rd Battalion Commander, with an expression that indicated he was annoyed that the situation had turned out this way, stood in front of the head seat in turn.