Chapter 127: Chapter 125: Order of Return

“We’re back. Did anything happen while we were out?”

“Big brother, it’s an order from that guy. He wants us to come back.” Lappy said.

“That’s right, Captain. We received an order telling us to return in the message orb. No specific time was given. Since it was in his voice, there’s probably no room for complaints.”

“Is that so? Was It likely to be sarcastic anyway? That guy has a bad personality.”

The tired smile in response to my question came from Sharl, Tigar’s wife. The message orb was like that projection orb we used in the infiltration mission four years ago, a device to deliver voices to distant places.

If powerful spiritual arts were activated nearby, sometimes sending and receiving messages could be challenging. However, the ability to deliver orders without delay to distant locations was a revolutionary technology. This was also a creation born from analyzing weapons captured from the Republic Army, where the distant Supreme Commander gave direct orders.

Abandoning soldiers of the Republic Army without hesitation seemed to be the policy of this Supreme Commander. Not only the frontline soldiers but even the white-armored soldiers were discarded without hesitation. For example, in the case of the Carnela Port, the port was left in ruins with its allies, rather than being recaptured. The word “ruthless” falls short to describe his personality; it is more tepid and indifferent.

Not only the Imperial Army but also the coalition forces on the Central Front made use of this technology. Thanks to this message orb, the Imperial soldiers who command us on-site were not accompanying us.

Currently, the one directly giving us orders and commanding us is not Marcellus. The latter has been promoted and praised for his accomplishments at Carnela Port and his skills in handling demons. Marcellus is now the regimental commander of the Demon Regiment and should be having a hard time dealing with Karelvo’s rampaging demons on the Eastern Front.

And so, the Imperial soldier who commanded the Special Operations Unit deployed on the Central Front… to put it mildly, he was the worst kind of man. He saw us as nothing more than tools for his own advancement. The first words he spoke to us were, “Die for my promotion.” He didn’t even introduce himself at that time, so even now, we still didn’t know his name. That’s why we referred to him with disdain as “that guy” or “him”.

It seemed like he had ingratiated himself with Karelvo and gained the title of commander of the Special Operations Unit. He would constantly berate us and assign us nothing but dangerous missions. Surely, he planned to use us to fulfill Karelvo’s desires and then dispose of us.

If he were a superior like Marcellus, I would want to help him, but with that man, I would rather be the one killing him. He never shows up in dangerous situations, but if by any chance he were to face a crisis, we would gladly turn a blind eye. Far from building trust, we had grown to loathe him on the same level as Karelvo.

“But if it’s an order, there’s nothing we can do. Let’s return immediately. Sharl, how are you feeling?”

“I’m fine for now. Let’s move while things are stable.”

I was particularly concerned about Sharl for a reason. It was because she was pregnant. The child in her womb was, of course, Tigar’s and will be Leo’s sibling. Her belly had grown considerably, and according to other female comrades, she could give birth at any moment. We must escape from here before she goes into labor.

Sharl cradled a baby in her arms. However, the sleeping infant nestled in her embrace was not her own child. The baby’s parents had descended from the surface and into our underground hideout.

“We’re back. Sharl, did our little Law behave well?”

“Yes, he was such a good boy and slept peacefully,” Sharl replied.

Tuhru, the mother, took the baby from Sharl’s arms. The father, Linardo, was with her, and they both had been instrumental in the recent attack. Tuhru, who wielded a war hammer effortlessly on the battlefield, crushing armored soldiers, now displayed a gentle, motherly smile as she accepted her child. Linardo, too, couldn’t hide his comfortable expression. It was evident that he found his child adorable.

The child of Tuhru and Linardo, named Lawqum, was the first child born since we became demons. He resembled his mother, Tuhru, with his white hair, and he was a boy. Moreover, he was born as a demon from the moment of his birth. Yes, this child was a demon.

We realized this immediately after he was born. As Lawqum let out his first cry and was taken into the arms of Tuhru’s sister, Farl, we noticed that both of Lawqum’s arms were covered in white scales, and he had a lizard-like tail protruding from his lower back. The tail was short and covered in soft, white, downy hair, and I thought it was quite beautiful.

Lawqum was born to two demon parents made by Orvo, which seemed to be the reason he could transform from demon to human form, just like us. Although he couldn’t consciously switch between the forms yet, it appeared that he inherited traits from both his parents based on his appearance at birth.

The entire special operations unit celebrated this birth, but it also shocked the nations that possessed demons. They learned that demons could not only be artificially created but also bred through mating.

Demons were highly valued as a means to bolster military strength, but the process of creating them was shrouded in secrecy by the Empire. Every country secretly desired to produce demons within their own borders and had considered using demon reproduction as a method.

However, despite the attention it received as an alternative to relying on the Empire, there seemed to be no country attempting such experiments now. This was because demons’ growth rate was similar to that of humans, requiring about ten years before they could become capable fighters.

The advantage of demons was their ability to provide immediate combat power, so waiting for ten years seemed counterproductive. Nevertheless, Marcellus secretly informed me that the number of human females sent to the Empire as raw materials for demons had undoubtedly increased.

I wondered whether their considerations revolved around the prolonged war or the aftermath, but that was something I couldn’t discern. What I did know was that new demons would continue to increase in numbers.

Incidentally, it seemed that even in the Empire, the birthplace of demon production, Karelvo prohibited experiments on demon mating. The official reason was that they didn’t know what would happen if synthetic beasts were bred together. After all, the technology to create demons originated in Orvo, and it was indeed uncertain what might occur from crossbreeding.

However, Mika, who served for many years, asserted that the true reason was Karelvo’s fear of diminishing his value if demons were to increase beyond his control. He’s truly a petty man, that one.

Regardless, we were fortunate that our female comrades were not forced into situations where they were violated merely to increase the number of demons. If anyone had dared to suggest such a thing, we would have rebelled against the orders. At least Tigar and the others surely would have.

“Mom, I’m home! I had a great performance out there!”

“Oh, you did well. I’m proud of you.”

Leo was bragging about his own accomplishments to Sharl, who handed over Lawqum to Tuhru. Leo had indeed played a significant role in the recent attack, and it was typical of him to brag about it to his mother.

Sharl listened to Leo’s story with a mixture of joy and pain. As a mother, she didn’t want her son to be on the battlefield. On the other hand, she couldn’t bear to keep her son, who possessed combat skills, in a safe place while his comrades risked their lives fighting. That’s why she had to suppress her true feelings and let him go to the battlefield.

Until now, she had supported the two as a spiritualist, but ever since becoming pregnant, all she could do was hope for her husband and son’s safe return. She must have been anxious deep down, but she didn’t show it. On the contrary, she took charge of those who were on the standby team. I thought she was a woman with a much stronger heart than me.

“Let’s save the rest of the stories for later and get going. They told us to return from enemy territory, so let’s be grateful and do as we’re told.”

“You’re right.”

“””Alright, Chief!”””

After confirming the teams’ safety, Tigar and Zald began preparing for the retreat, clapping their hands to signal the returning raid team and the standby team. Following the instructions given by the two, our comrades quickly started packing their belongings.

I was acknowledged as the leader of this unit by all my comrades. However, the influence and commanding abilities of the two, Lugall and Kadaha squads, who were remnants of the Atonement Soldiers, were strong. Whenever we divided the unit into two or more groups, one of them would take charge in my absence. That’s how significant their presence was.

In truth, it might have been better to have two separate units led by them. But the commander of the Special Operations Unit was that man. If we were to split the unit without permission, he would probably be unreasonably angry, yet granting permission seemed unlikely.

So, we decided to create a code name for our use only. After all, that man wouldn’t come to the battlefield. He wouldn’t punish us for doing as we pleased in a place beyond his reach.

The chosen code name was “Chief.” The Atonement Soldiers were originally created to slowly destroy the remnants of the defeated countries, tormenting them along the way. While no one knew the details of that time, having a leader who referred to himself as the “Chief” allowed everyone to behave as if the once-destroyed country had been revived. It was something we could only do in a place where he couldn’t see us.

“Is everything ready? Then, let’s head south.”

After confirming, I touched the wall on the southern side of our hideout, turning that part into sand. Then, I moved the sand northward, filling the hole leading to the surface while continuing to dig the underground passage towards the Coalition Army’s side.

In the battle to reclaim Carnela Port, I acquired the knowledge of constructing underground passages, and since then, we have been moving underground as a group to infiltrate the Republic’s occupied territories. After repeating the same process for four years, I had become proficient in using a series of spiritual techniques efficiently.

By continually digging the south side and filling the north side, our hideout pseudo-moved through the underground. We continued southward at a pace similar to walking, and at this rate, we could return in less than a month.

“We’ve caught something!”

“Looks like tonight’s dinner!”

As I dug, various creatures like earthworms and insects dwelling in the soil would be exposed. It became the children’s task to catch them. It served as both a means to secure food and a training exercise to improve their agility.

Although these children hadn’t yet seen the battlefield, they had undoubtedly grown over the past four years. Unlike Leo and the others, they started training relatively late, but being demons, their physical abilities were exceptional, and they learned quickly. They would soon stand by our side on the battlefield.

And so, safely descending from the deep corners of the occupied territory, we returned to the frontlines of the Coalition Army. It happened as planned, during late summer, about a month later.