Chapter: 4. The Reason for Strength
Speaking of the army configuration of the Demon Race, it can mainly be divided into five Demon King’s Legions based on their respective jurisdictions.
The First Legion is the royal guard directly under the Demon King, and is the most genuine Demon King’s army, directly guarding the capital of the Demon Territory, Canbino. It can only be commanded by the Demon King and the Queen, with no other generals having the authority to mobilize it.
Historically, the First Legion has always been the main force of the Demon King’s army, and there have never been exceptions.
But in this generation… the situation seems to have subtly changed?
The Second Legion, previously led by Xue Feiya, has now become the main force of the Demon King’s army.
This situation is rather frustrating for the Demon King.
He initially appointed Xue Feiya as the commander of the Second Legion, intending to give his daughter some training and let her experience the difficulties of being part of the royal family. Little did he know, upon joining the army, she made changes here and there and proposed a series of peculiar strategies.
Under her management, the atmosphere in the army became harmonious, and even the overall strength of the soldiers rose significantly!
She even overshadowed her father; Xue Feiya, do you understand the nuances of human emotions at all?!
The Third Legion is stationed at the border fortress Lide Qidu.
In fact, they do not have a fixed location; wherever they are needed to guard the borders, they will expedition there to fill in the gaps in the army.
The Fourth Legion is led by the Six-Winged Demon Jeffrey family, being the only army not directly commanded by the Demon King’s family.
The existence of this army isn’t due to lack of centralization, but rather to give the nobility their own army, which is a tradition of the Demon Race. If they are truly capable, they can declare war on other legions, but unfortunately, contrary to this rule, historically, the Fourth Legion has always been the most loyal.
—Because they know they cannot win.
The Fifth Legion is a recent newcomer, stationed in the northern border of the Demon Race. They have a small but strong army, primarily comprised of elite members of the Demon Race, used to deter the high-level races in the north from acting recklessly.
The Fifth Legion’s ability to take on such a responsibility began after Belis voluntarily became their commander.
But this dedicated Belis is currently still reflecting in front of a wall.
At this moment, she feels genuinely ashamed!
“Damn it… There’s already this embarrassing situation before we even reach the Demon King’s Castle… Ah, Queen Sister, how did you manage the Second Legion back in the day? I always feel like no matter how hard I try… no… I’m sorry, Queen Sister, forget I said anything.”
“Hmm?”
If you suddenly sensed that your sister was pouting, would you pretend not to hear it?
Oh, perhaps that question was inappropriate.
You don’t have a sister.
But Xue Feiya does!
She can tell that Belis was especially eager to know the answer to that question.
However, Belis thought that if she asked, it might irritate Xue Feiya, so she swallowed her words.
Belis is not as competitive as she once was, nor does she see Xue Feiya as her rival anymore.
But that doesn’t prevent her from wanting to become more outstanding.
At the very least, she wants to be someone truly worthy of being the sister of the queen.
But she knows that the Queen is very irritated with handling political and military affairs, and must absolutely dislike her bringing these up…
What she didn’t expect was…
Suddenly, Belis found support on her shoulder.
The time spent reflecting in front of the wall was rather long; having her shoulder gently supported suddenly provided a comfort she hadn’t felt in a while after fatigue.
Moreover, it was the Queen who had come to sit close to her.
The Queen actually approached to lean on me…?!
Could it be that my efforts are finally being rewarded…?!
“Queen Sister…! You…”
“Oh dear, the orange fell on the seat and got squished into orange puree. Tsk tsk tsk, this is delicious when eaten, but how disgusting when squashed. Belis, scoot over a bit; I’ll clean it up when we get there, I’m too lazy to move right now.”
“……”
Queen, just go ahead and stab me to death!
Hehe… But regardless of the reason… The Queen smells so good… It feels as pleasant as being in a flower field or a warm quilt.
Belis tilted her head, squinting her eyes against Xue Feiya’s shoulder, and that indescribable feeling of comfort seemed to melt away the icy, snow-covered world outside into a warm spring breeze.
Xiya, sitting across from them, took off her straw hat and smiled silently.
Xue Feiya…
That orange you just dropped was clearly intentional, right?
Xiya’s smile appeared a bit stiff, and seeing it made Xue Feiya’s mood feel a bit chilly.
But Xiya wouldn’t say anything at this moment, would she?
Well, Xue Feiya is maintaining her family relationships, providing appropriate comfort to her sister when she is sad, which is reasonable, fitting, and beyond reproach.
Xiya, I’m very happy that you understand me…
But could you not smile while your forehead muscles are bulging?!
Don’t use so much strength, relax…! Relax!
And Livra, what are you shaking your head about?!
Oh, and that Fire Lizard, merely grunting and shaking its head seems to be saying — you guys are really childish.
You, Fire Lizard, are the most infuriating one here!
Sigh, the atmosphere is rather unpleasant, so it’s best to resolve this matter promptly.
Xue Feiya half-formed a fist, and like a cat paw, she patted Belis on the head, seamlessly connecting to an answer to the question she just couldn’t bring herself to ask.
“You want to know how I managed the Second Legion back then, right?”
“I…”
“Oh, actually, I didn’t specifically manage it; it was mainly about going with the flow.”
“……”
Belis thought, I don’t think I’ve asked yet?
But Xue Feiya had already begun to speak at length.
“At first, when Father appointed me as the commander of the legion, I refused. It sounded really troublesome, but there was nothing I could do; since I had to go, I went. When I arrived there, the soldiers were all fiercely ready for battle, as if they would be uncomfortable if they didn’t kill anyone on the battlefield. They were harmed by the traditions of the Demon Race, thinking that fighting for glory means they must die on the battlefield, but they completely do not understand the beauty of life, nor do they realize how sad their families will be after their deaths.”
What Xue Feiya said is somewhat progressive, but it’s understandable because her previous thoughts did not belong to this era and world.
Belis, however, was not sure why, even though she didn’t fully comprehend the depth of Xue Feiya’s words, she placed her palm gently over Xue Feiya’s, giving her some warmth.
At the same time, Xiya’s gaze softened a little.
Xue Feiya always tends to express her most vulnerable side when speaking in a seemingly indifferent tone.
In her previous life, she couldn’t save Xiya from dying due to illness.
In this life, she experienced Belis’s phase of becoming stronger regardless of life and death, even resorting to forbidden spells at the cost of her life.
Do you know how much she values family in her heart?
The long time it took for Xue Feiya to forgive Belis may not have been due to coldness, but rather because she didn’t cherish her own life.
You think that it doesn’t matter if you die.
But have you ever considered how painful it would be for the ones still living?
So, with such an obsession in her heart, after joining the Second Legion of the Demon King’s army, Xue Feiya developed disdain for those soldiers’ indifference towards life and death, disregarding their family’s advice, and pursuing the notion of military achievement.
She never thought about changing others, nor did she have an interest in doing so.
But being designated as a legion commander by her father, right?
So, however she managed the army, there shouldn’t be a need for others to evaluate, right?
In any case, she was already there; she couldn’t let herself be unhappy every day due to their extreme values.
Thus, Xue Feiya issued her first command after arriving at the Second Legion.
“I told them, since you all like to kill and show off your might, unfortunately, our Second Legion isn’t particularly remarkable in the Demon King’s army. You aren’t even qualified to gallop on the battlefield! Good things like expeditions don’t come to you!”
“So instead of rushing to kill the enemy, how about proving you have that capability step by step? Rather than killing people, let’s start by catching fish! The northwest of the Second Legion’s station is a vast expanse of glacial lake, endless and uninhabited. Perfect, go catch some big fish for me! If your strength isn’t up to par, always thinking about killing is simply being overly ambitious.”
Belis listened with great interest, frequently nodding her head.
She covered her mouth with half a smile, feeling that this decision truly carried the Queen’s style.
“I understand, the Queen wants them to train at the glacial lake. I know that place; it’s not only home to ordinary fish, but also various fierce fish-type magical beasts. The largest ones are said to be as big as dragons. The magical beasts there are quite strong, indeed suitable for building strength. But… that place feels even more dangerous than the battlefield.”
“I… Ahem, let’s call it that.”
“As expected of the Queen, she always knows how to come up with such gradual methods! Ah… I can’t do that. I was too impatient back then, always demanding too much from the troops as I prioritized my own desire to grow stronger. In the end, my progress wasn’t as fast.”
“……”
Listening to this, Xiya felt a drop of cold sweat rolling down her forehead.
Xue Feiya…
That fleeting glance you just had clearly indicated — you originally had no idea there were fish-type magical beasts there, did you?
Was your initial plan just to take everyone fishing?!
Well… The reality is, that’s indeed the case!
Xue Feiya’s original intent was to live the kind of life she liked.
It’s better to enjoy together rather than alone; fishing by yourself isn’t as good as fishing together!
But little did she know that the place known as the “Fishing Paradise” was filled with those unreliable fish!
When she handed a fishing rod to each soldier, she thought it would be a comfortable fishing experience.
However, the giant, ferocious fish leaping out of the lake, bigger than houses — what in the world were they?!
It wasn’t war, but it resembled war.
Under Xue Feiya’s leadership, the Second Legion of the Demon King’s army engaged in a death battle with the magical fish tribe that lasted for years.
There were blood and tears, and there were cries.
There was strength, and there was regret.
In those extraordinarily harsh years, every soldier of the Second Legion understood what it meant to have the will to fight.
They had been too naive in the past…
[Commander! Rest assured! My third squad has already made up their minds! We have been arrogant and deserving of death, unable to defeat mere big fish… how could we sweep across the world?!]
[Ahhhh, Commander! My arm was bitten off by a fish!! I’m going to die!! Ah… thank you, Commander… thank you for your healing magic!]
[Oh my… the Commander is actually grilling the Phirox Great Fish! We fought for a year and didn’t even scratch its surface… Long live the Commander! Mighty Commander!]
Now, whenever she recalls those soldiers crying out loud, Xue Feiya still has nightmares.
She truly didn’t know that the glacial lake was such a place!
Initially wanting the army to return, there’s a phrase: riding a tiger, difficult to dismount.
The decisions have been made, and somehow, as the soldiers continued to battle the big fish every day, their morale only grew higher. The order to return home was something Xue Feiya could no longer bring herself to say.
Moreover… seeing everyone work so hard to catch big fish made her heart feel a sense of relief!
Fine, directing this killing spirit towards big fish is better than always thinking about killing people; may you all repent early.
What she never expected was that after these few years, everyone truly became stronger, their will as unyielding as steel.
Even more astonishingly, news of the Second Legion conquering the northern glacial lakes was hailed as the biggest triumph for the Demon Race in a decade, with Princess Xue Feiya’s innovations and the soldiers’ unyielding spirit being widely praised.
Xue Feiya herself was the most active in fishing back then, setting an example for others and earning the respect of the entire Second Legion.
Sigh… Enough of this.
If I say more, I’ll want to go fishing again.
Oh, by the way.
“Say, Belis, I forgot about this. During my time away from the Demon Territory, the Second Legion should have replaced their commander, right? Who took over the position?”
“Uh… there was an attempt to replace… the appointment was given to a Five-Wing member of the Sap family, but…”
“But…?”
“But he was beaten up by the soldiers… and is now recuperating at home. I’ve heard he’s afraid to go out… The soldiers of the Second Legion are so passionate, insisting they absolutely refuse a new commander, demanding to flatten Olus and welcome back the Queen… So… this position can only remain vacant. After you return, Queen Sister, you may need to go address the Second Legion to calm everyone’s emotions…?”
“I’m seriously going to be sick.”
