Chapter 1505 (2/2)

Superintendent Jym twisted and pulled a large scroll off of his desk. While he was doing so, Randidly looked sideways at Octavius, who had spent most of their journey over here reminding Randidly to think before speaking around the stern Superintendent. Meanwhile, the effusive and antsy Superintendent Jym continued to speak as he unrolled the scroll. “One-fifth of the surface area of the Rally Station will now be dedicated to your elite team. Per your orders, we’ve begun erecting ten solitary training pods in your area-”

“My orders?” Randidly frowned, unable to stop himself from feeling somewhat annoyed that someone had so obviously approached the Superintendent and used his name to change the training arrangement. Still, Commandant Wick did strike Randidly as someone that overbearing...

His irritation only got worse as Superintendent Jym flinched from the obvious display of disapproval on Randidly’s face. “Believe me sir, we are staying very close to the request made by your representative. We… your sterling and unimpeachable reputation proceeds you! We understand how exacting your standards are. If you look at these plans-” Jym was so close to Randidly that he couldn’t avoid noticing the sheen of sweat across his skin as the Superintendent put away the general plan and pulled out a scroll that showed the details of the training pods. “You’ll see that we are sparing no expense with the materials. Consider this a gift, from The Fifth Cohort Rally Station. We are deeply invested in seeing you succeed. Ah… I hope every one of your recruits will fruitfully enjoy your instruction.”

Randidly gritted his teeth to keep himself from reacting with a sarcastic comment. He didn’t like the fact that he didn’t really know what was going on. But for now, he could only roll with it. There was no reason to worsen whatever misconceptions this man had about him. What Randidly was really reacting to was the fact that Commandant Wick had moved behind the scenes. Was it really a move just to increase the resources that Randidly had access to? Or more likely, were these training pods connected to a broader plan?

Still, Randidly’s gaze slowly turned serious as he focused on the scroll that Jym offered to him. He recognized some of these Engraving patterns. Gradually, Randidly began to grin. Heh. I can work with this. “Have you begun Engraving yet?”

Instantly, Superintendent Jym flushed. “Ah… we only heard about… about your requests a few days ago, so we haven’t had the chance-”

“Forget it,” Randidly announced decisively. He waved his hand and turned away, as though he couldn’t bear to look at the scrolls any longer; if he was going to be made out to be a brutal dictator, he was at least going to enjoy the benefits. “Don’t bother to bring the Engravers in. I will need to handle this myself.”

“Of course, Head Drill Sergeant, anything you say,” Superintendent Jym parroted, tossing the schematics scroll across his office like it was an oozing, virulent plague bearer. In the obsessively clean office, the crumpled scroll against the wall was extremely eye-catching. “Do you need any other assistance?”

Randidly kept his expression mild as he did some mental calculations. He was actually quite getting into this persona that had been made for him. Despite the violence usually required to cultivate such a reputation, he couldn’t deny it certainly made the people around him more amenable. So instead of speaking, he gave a pointed glance at Octavius.

Octavius cleared his throat. “I believe that for now, we will inspect the grounds. Perhaps you could find a guard to escort us…? Oh, in addition, we would like files on all of the other Drill Sergeants that were hired. To understand their… standard.”

Superintendent Jym’s eyes bulged at the sudden request, but a single glance at Randidly seemed to make him rethink any objections he had. Randidly walked away while the man complied, both so he didn’t need to constantly feel the anxiety and slight scent of madness from the Superintendent but also so he didn’t roll his eyes at this obvious attempt by Octavius to gather information.

So Randidly walked down the hall and out of the central building. The guards carefully avoided catching his eyes as he waited outside, to the point that Randidly moved about twenty meters away from the doors so their frantic emotions didn’t disturb him. Then he closed his eyes and began to steadily refine the details of Yggdrasil.

He opened his eyes again when someone walked out of the headquarters of the Fifth Cohort Rally Station, but it wasn’t Octavius; it appeared the documentation request was much more time-consuming than Randidly had expected. The individual who walked out was tall and slender, reminding Randidly vaguely of Expira’s impression of elves. Like Randidly while under the influence of Yggdrasil, the man’s shoulder-length hair was emerald. His golden eyes flashed as they caught the light.

The man glanced at one of the guards. “Let’s work hard together in the future. It’s the average soldier like us that will make the difference, you know. Most of Command doesn’t know anything about the actual war. We will be the ones fighting and bleeding, so don’t be so stiff. If you have any problems, you can come to me for help.”

Both of the guards regarded the elf man coldly. Neither responded. Randidly’s lips twitched; although the two lizardmen guards were staring at the elf with all the enthusiasm as a dog owner regarding a runny shit, their attentions had clearly shifted toward Randidly. Heh. As Head Drill Sergeant, do I count as Command…?

The elf’s enthusiasm faltered as the guards did their best to glare at him. But very quickly, he caught sight of Randidly and immediately brightened. He said to the guards, “have a good day,” then strode confidently over toward Randidly.

The elf had a wide smile on his face. “Hello friend! I’m Lay’mel Tuuellethe, a Drill Sergeant here. Did you just arrive? I know those guards can be rather unfriendly, but it’s just because a VIP is supposed to arrive today. Heh, in one way it’s understandable, but in another, it is extremely tragic how much effort is put into sucking up to superiors in the military. ”

The two guards paled and looked up at the sky. Randidly had the strangest sensation that they were mentally sending him assurances that he wouldn’t be reported for disciplinary action if he were to smite Lay’mel Tuuellethe into a puddle of gore right in front of them. The certainty Randidly conveyed to him about this, just from reading the guards’ emotions, was honestly impressive.

Lay’mel leaned forward, a conspiratory expression on his face. “Apparently, the Head Drill Sergeant is a real brute. He sent one of his lackeys from Nexus High Command to prepare for his arrival. When he saw the space he would be given, he went on a rampage and demanded more; now average Drill Sergeant’s like you and I will be using the service tunnels for our daily training, only allowed to head up to the surface based on a rotation schedule. At first, the Superintendent rejected the request… but then the Head Drill Sergeant had the Superintendent’s son conscripted on a minor prior infraction and placed within his own camp for ‘special training’.

“And the worst part…” Lay’mel dragged out the phrase, savoring the obvious interest on Randidly’s face. “Is that the Head Drill Master is taking pages out of the Xyrt Brigade’s playbook. He has made training chambers that are exactly like the torturous isolation chamber the Xyrt Brigade uses to deal with particularly rebellious recruits. Extreme, barbaric stuff. Already, there is a lot of antagonism directed at this extreme new Head Drill Sergeant.”

Such is my life, Randidly sighed inwardly.