The first day of the new recruits' arrival finally drew to a close. Rin sat in her Legion Commander's quarters, which was a private villa-style building standing independently in the officer residential area. The interior decoration and furnishings were quite exquisite and high-end, much like a noble's mansion.
Rin stretched lazily and lay on the luxurious mattress. It was already late at night, but Zhi Feng, who was nominally a deputy general but effectively a secretary, was still diligently and conscientiously reporting the day's situation to Rin with a document in hand.
"…That's roughly it. The detailed specific situations can only be understood by going into each team. But, Big Sister, is doing it this way really okay? It feels like the policies and guidelines we are implementing are completely contrary to the path the Empire is taking."
"You mean, soldiers leading new recruits, and officers sharing hardships with soldiers?"
"Mm."
"What's the difference between a troop like that and stagnant water?"
Rin sat up and said seriously to Zhi Feng:
"The reason for emphasizing and magnifying the power relationship between superiors and subordinates is to make those in the lower ranks feel unwilling, envious, and eager to escape their current situation and climb up. Later, I will gradually refine and classify the ranks and treatment between officers and soldiers, with a military martial arts duel system every three months, where the strong ascend and the weak descend. What I want to give the soldiers is not fair treatment, but a fair ladder."
At this point, Rin couldn't help but recall a certain Little Knight King from her previous life, sighing for her.
"Only by letting everyone see the hope of climbing up and the danger of falling down, with such upward and downward flow and exchange, can the entire military camp come alive. The lower ranks will strive desperately to climb up, and the upper ranks will not dare to be negligent to maintain their positions. So-called gentleness, equality, they are useless! Scum must be treated differently!"
The will of the Demon King!
At this moment, Rin's unconscious words and actions revealed her Demon King's will! Zhi Feng suddenly felt an urge to soften her knees and kneel, unable to help but prostrate herself before this girl who was even younger than herself! But after a momentary daze, Rin returned to her usual relaxed and carefree demeanor.
"Speaking of which, Big Sister, is such an exhaustive training really okay? After such a thoroughly exhaustive training like today, the soldiers probably won't even be able to stand up tomorrow."
"Don't worry, the food they ate for dinner tonight included ingredients from high-level Danger Beasts I hunted in the Forest of Dangerous Species, combined with some medicines I personally concocted. Although it won't allow them to fully recover overnight, it's enough for them to keep moving. They will continue training with this physical exhaustion. As long as their will doesn't break, their physical strength will grow by leaps and bounds imperceptibly. Only when they are on the verge of touching death, with only a thin membrane separating them, can a person's potential be maximized."
Things having reached this point, Zhi Feng could not but sincerely admire Rin. After all, Rin, who had walked through the Nasuverse (Moon World) with blood and scars, was unmatched in both mind and personal strength in this world. After all, from the very beginning, the height she stood at was completely different.
At this moment, Rin suddenly raised her delicate eyebrows, as if she had discovered something very interesting. Zhi Feng couldn't help but ask curiously:
"What's wrong, Big Sister?"
"Nothing, a few fellows still have enough energy to come towards us. From their footsteps, they seem to be experts in assassination."
Because the new recruits had just arrived, their mindset and current physical condition were unable to handle guard duties. Therefore, the entire military camp city was currently monitored by Wind God Winged Dragons patrolling back and forth in the clouds. The Wind God Pterosaurs' vision could be shared with Rin. When they detected a situation, their vision would automatically connect with Rin through yatsufusa, feeding back any unusual activity in the camp to Rin.
"Under such intense physical exertion, it's impossible for anyone to be able to move normally immediately. It seems they used some kind of forbidden drug. They must be assassins from a Native outside the borders, coming to assassinate me."
"What?!"
Zhi Feng was startled and subconsciously drew the sword she carried, though it wasn't her preferred weapon. However, as a deputy general, her primary duty was to protect her commander's safety. She couldn't always stand behind and watch her general charge forward while she cheered her on.
Rin smiled subtly, looking at the fully alert Zhi Feng.
"They're already outside the window."
"Bang!"
At this moment, a bedroom window was suddenly shattered, and a spherical object emitting pink smoke was thrown in. Zhi Feng, with her keen reflexes, swung the sword in her hand, using its flat side to bat the suspected poison grenade back the way it came.
However, just as Zhi Feng swung her sword, four or five more objects, also emitting pink smoke, were simultaneously thrown through the shattered bedroom window. Tohsaka Rin sat on the bed, smiling indifferently. Due to the inertia of her swing, Zhi Feng couldn't react in time, and the four or five smoking spherical objects landed on the floor, bursting silently, releasing a large amount of thick pink smoke!
Tohsaka Rin's delicate nose wrinkled, catching a strong, hallucinogenic scent.
Heavenly Silk Incense, Drunken Dragon Hemp, Ancient Dream Viper's Gall... a super-strong anesthetic?
Tohsaka Rin silently watched Zhi Feng, who had fainted and collapsed to the ground after inhaling the first whiff of the scent, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart for the girl:
"Another one turned into cannon fodder..."
Then, Tohsaka Rin looked at the five assassins who had flashed in through the window, forming a semi-circle around her. They were completely wrapped in tight black burlap, with only their eyes visible—a truly standard assassin's attire.
Tohsaka Rin sat on the bed, her hands resting on yatsufusa, which was still in its scabbard, calmly observing the assassins who had suddenly burst in. In contrast, the assassins, who should have had the upper hand, were intently focused on Tohsaka Rin.
The pink smoke came and went quickly; even in the windless room, it dissipated without a trace in just a moment. Tohsaka Rin glanced at the weapons in the assassins' hands and immediately raised an eyebrow.
"Three Teigu, what a grand gesture. This isn't something an ordinary assassin organization could afford. It seems some big shot wants my life."
Tohsaka Rin held yatsufusa's scabbard in her left hand, calmly stood up, and narrowed her eyes as she looked at the five assassins. Among them, only the two on the outer edges used ordinary weapons, while the three in the center all wielded Teigu.
A pair of silver iron gauntlets, a strangely curved, eerie green rapier, and a pair of dark, shadowy short swords. These three items were infamous among the 48 Teigu recorded in the Empire, known as the four great assassination Teigu, forged specifically for assassination, much like Murasame. Currently, the Empire only had one Murasame left, while these three had been lost four hundred years ago to a famous assassin organization—
"I wonder which big shot paid a hefty price to enlist the Assassin Society - Belger to take my life. Even three Teigu Users have been dispatched... or perhaps the Teigu Users of the Gaia Foundation have also come along?"
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