Chapter 268 (1/2)

Within the fort of the troops responsible for the Lulugal Forest, located in the eastern region of the Dark Continent, people were moving about in a rush.

The Eastern Army Lulugal Forest Stationed Unit Fort.

That was what the building was known as, but it was actually a recently built fort.

The troops stationed there were also quite new compared to the other units.

To be exact, there was once a building and a unit with the same name in the past, but that’s an entirely different thing.

During the 「Demon King of Harmony Attack Incident」, in other words when Ykslass attacked, nearly the entire unit was annihilated by one of her subordinates, the Black Knight Claude.

There were a few soldiers that survived, but since it was such a miniscule amount, it was decided that a new unit would be created entirely instead of building the organization back up again.

Since it’d be a bit cruel to have them operate at the same building where that mass murder took place, the 「Lulugal Forest Stationed Unit」 was assigned a brand new building.

And the one chosen to be the new unit’s commander was a survivor of the old unit, Lumon.

Lulugal Forest was not a particularly important strategic base of the military, but in order to prevent the same tragedy from happening again, they made revisions on their manuals that described what to do in emergency situations, reinforced their war potential and training regimes, and so on. There was a lot to get done.

Most of the heavy work was put onto the commander’s shoulders, but it was fair to say that he managed to carry out most of it rather skillfully.

Lumon had rather soft and adorable facial features for a Mazoku, as well as being competent enough to be acknowledged by the other Mazoku.

It was perhaps because of this that his popularity with the female Mazoku had been rising lately, and the fort had a much higher female-to-male ratio than before.

When the blue-haired young man Lumon Transferred to the entrance of the fort, the female Mazoku nearby let out voices of excitement.

「Good morning, Commander Lumon!」

「Good morning. Did you work the night shift? Thanks for your hard work.」

「Yes, yes! What are your plans for today…?」

「I’ll be on duty from now until tomorrow afternoon. I hope you all do your best.」

Lumon made similar exchanges with others as he made his way to his office.

「Oh, Commander Lumon! Good morning!」

「Commander Lumon, about today’s lunch…」

「I’ve brought my own.」

Lumon responded to everyone with smiles as he walked towards a certain female Mazoku who was waiting for him.

「Commander Lumon… Sorry for bringing this up all of a sudden, but there is a mountain of documents that require your approval. Please head to your office to take care of them as soon as possible.」

「Yes, of course, Hooly. Shall we head there together?」

Hooly watched as Lumon slipped past her and headed forward after saying those words. Making a glance to the other female Mazoku who were greeting him earlier, she began catching up to him in a hurry.

Lumon and Hooly weren’t lovers, but she felt that their relationship was something close to that.

They’ve known each other since before the Zadark Kingdom had been established. In mankind’s terms, they’d be something like childhood friends.

After the Demon King of Harmony Attack Incident, she felt like Lumon had changed, but he still had various gestures and habits that reminded her of the past Lumon.

The reason why she considered their relationship to only be something 「close to lovers」 was because she felt a wall between them.

His words were kind, and he was thoughtful as well, but… there was something off.

The past Lumon had a very gentle personality that made him easily loved.

He had changed a little more after Hooly expressed her concern over him during a previous occasion, but… it was difficult to say that their relationship had turned back to normal.

It also was a bit troubling for her to see all these female Mazoku that were pining for him all of a sudden.

Upon reaching his office, Lumon turned around with a smile as if he didn’t realize what Hooly was feeling deep inside at all.

「All right. I’m ready to start taking care of those documents, Hooly」

「Oh… yes.」

Hooly let out a small sigh as she took out the documents she was carrying under her armpit.

「Let’s start with yesterday’s report. None of the patrols noticed anything out of the ordinary. In regards to the magical power density levels, there aren’t any signs that Majuu transformations will occur. There haven’t been any visitors. The documents that require approval should be piled on that desk over there. They are mostly concerning matters involving equipment, and I have piled them in order of priority.」