Taming the Soldiers - Part 2
“So….” Veins bulged on Sitri’s forehead. She looked furious as she slammed her hand down on the table. “You’re saying you can’t teach me!?”
“Yes.” Nahen replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world. To make matters worse, he had Seere perched on his lap. Seere, oblivious to everything, was happily playing with the whale plush and white bear Nahen had recently bought her.
‘…Why a whale, of all things?’ Sitri recalled her first meeting with Nahen and shuddered. She shook her head to clear it, then shouted at him. “You’re really trying to pick a fight with me!!”
“But we’re in the middle of integrating Your Majesty’s forces into Lady Seere’s faction. I simply don’t have the time right now. It’s not that I’m refusing because I don’t want to.”
Sitri’s brows furrowed sharply at Nahen’s words. She could see right through his intentions, yet she could only sigh and nod. After all, she was the one in a hurry.
“Fine… So I just need to convince them, right? Then you’ll have some time to teach!”
“Oh, really? If Your Majesty steps in, that would be perfect.”
All according to plan. Sitri clicked her tongue inwardly. Someday she would make this sly man pay for this…
‘…or so she thinks.’ Nahen could read Sitri’s thoughts clearly. Having played the game dozens of times, he understood the character Sitri better than anyone—perhaps even better than Sitri herself.
‘If that’s what she thinks, then I’m grateful.’ If her desire for revenge became the driving force that strengthened her resolve, that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Nahen set Seere down from his lap and stood up. “Then let’s go right away.”
Nahen and Seere visited the training grounds again today. The only difference was that Sitri accompanied them this time.
When they arrived, Rin emerged from her office to greet them.
“Lady Seere, Lady Sitri. What brings you both here?”
Sitri glanced at Rin’s cat ears and spoke as if she recognized her. “So you’re Rin El Laza.”
“I didn’t expect you to remember me.”
Sitri let out a dry laugh at Rin’s reaction. Rin El Laza had served as a legion commander since the previous generation. Who wouldn’t know one of the former second-ranked Demon King’s key forces?
“How could I not recognize one of Seir’s Four Swords?”
“I abandoned that title long ago.”
“Hmm, I see….” Sitri gave a brief assessment of Rin’s answer. “Is it guilt for failing to protect the previous lord?”
“!”
Seeing Rin’s stiff expression, Sitri let out a short chuckle and patted her shoulder a couple of times. “That was a tasteless joke. Sorry~.”
“…It’s fine.”
Nahen sighed at Sitri, then turned to Rin. “We’ll be visiting the third training ground for a while. That’s all right?”
“Of course.”
Nahen said nothing more upon seeing Rin’s displeased expression. Offering clumsy comfort might only make things worse.
‘I’ll have to speak with Sitri about this separately later.’ Causing trouble with this faction in such a manner wasn’t ideal.
Nahen led Sitri and Seere toward the third training ground.
“Huh?” A soldier spotted them and froze. Epsilon immediately shouted, “Focus on your training!”
“Lady Sitri?”
“What?”
Epsilon turned his head at the soldier’s muttering. There stood Sitri, accompanied by Nahen. Epsilon and the other soldiers dropped to their knees on the spot.
“Lady Sitri…!”
“It’s been a while, Epsilon.”
Though they now served under Seere, they remained loyal to Sitri, their former master. Seeing her, Epsilon and the soldiers’ faces lit up.
‘They look like dogs who just found their owner. Their expressions completely changed.’
When Nahen’s face showed slight displeasure, Sitri quickly spoke up, glancing at him. “You lot.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“I hear you’re not listening to orders?”
“…Pardon? What do you mean?”
When Epsilon asked with a bewildered expression, Sitri answered simply. “You’re not listening to Lady Seere or anyone else. Why are you acting this way?”
“Lady Sitri, what are you saying? We are loyal only to Your Majesty……”
“Exactly! So why aren’t you listening and forcing me to come all the way here?”
Sitri frowned and revealed one crucial fact to Epsilon. “Lady Seere and I are allies. You know that, right?”
“Yes? Ah, yes, we know.”
They knew they had been incorporated into Seere’s forces as part of the alliance, but they had assumed it was merely nominal. Epsilon was well aware that Sitri had always extracted massive compensation under the pretext of support.
“It’s not a joke. We’re truly close allies!”
“Pardon?”
Why bring up a close alliance now? “Since when?”
“We signed the agreement recently. That’s why I transferred you all to Lady Seere’s command.”
“That……”
That was news to him. As Epsilon looked bewildered, Sitri continued. “So you are a unit symbolizing the solid alliance between the 71st and 72nd floors.”
“Symbolizing… the alliance…?”
Sitri averted her gaze, feeling a twinge of guilt over her lie, but Epsilon and his subordinates, who dared not look directly at her noble face, didn’t notice.
“If you swear loyalty to Lady Seere, our alliance becomes stronger. But if you refuse to listen, what happens then?”
“W-well……”
“I want this alliance to continue.” Sitri narrowed her eyes slightly. “Yes, especially for the war that will soon break out. This alliance is indispensable.”
Epsilon was confused. But as someone more loyal to Sitri than anyone, he organized his thoughts briefly, then bowed his head deeply in understanding. “…I understand, Your Majesty. We have been discourteous.”
“I’m no longer Your Majesty. Who are you loyal to now?”
“We are—”
Epsilon and his subordinates rose in unison and saluted. “Lady Seere’s army!”
Sitri smiled faintly at their salute and turned her head. Nahen stood there. At his expression that seemed to say “See?”, Nahen chuckled inwardly.
‘As expected, she’s quite useful.’
Rule through fear would eventually cause division. Though Nahen had issued threats at the training ground yesterday, that was only a temporary measure. Coercion alone couldn’t quell the discontent in their hearts.
That was why Nahen had brought Sitri into this matter. He had judged that if the words came from Sitri’s mouth, they would accept them. Their loyalty to Sitri was immense, after all.
Sitri’s mention of the alliance and her reassurance that “You weren’t transferred because you’re useless, but as support forces to maintain the alliance” was an excellent approach.
‘It’ll be much easier to command them from now on.’
Nahen gave Sitri a thumbs-up in approval. Seere, watching blankly, then raised her own thumb as well.
#
Through Sitri’s clever maneuvering, even Epsilon’s formerly rebellious unit was successfully integrated. Nahen smiled with satisfaction at the excellent result.
“Wow, as expected of Lady Sitri. You solved the problem in one go.”
“Don’t act smug. You planned this all along.”
Sitri made a natural demand of Nahen. “Now, you’ll teach me, right?”
They had moved to an empty training ground rather than the one used by the soldiers. He had intended to teach anyway, but it seemed he had kept her waiting too long.
“Of course. I did promise.”
Nahen gently released Seere’s hand for Sitri’s lesson.
Tap!
“Hm?”
Seere immediately grabbed him again. She held Nahen’s hand tightly and refused to let go, just like when she hugged the white bear.
“Seere, can you let go for a moment? I need to teach……”
“I don’t want to!”
Nahen and Sitri were both taken aback. Seere puffed out her cheeks and clung to Nahen’s hand. Then she declared once more in a determined voice, “I don’t want to let go!”
“…Hmm.”
Nahen decided this was simply a child’s stubbornness. It would be easier to find another way than to persuade Seere right now.
“Then come here.”
Nahen lifted Seere effortlessly with the arm whose hand she was holding. Sitri immediately protested. “Nahen! You said you’d teach now!”
“I can do it like this.”
“What?”
“This was today’s lesson plan anyway.”
Sitri’s body trembled for a moment. Nahen’s demeanor shifted, and his demonic energy spread throughout the training ground. It was an overwhelming presence that even Sitri, a Demon King, could feel pressing down on her.
“Hit me once.”
Nahen smiled confidently. “The training is to land a single strike on me.”
“…Are you joking?” Sitri growled. “I need to become stronger than my original power! With my current strength, maybe, but my former power is far beyond what this kind of training could help with!”
“I don’t think so.”
“What?”
At that moment, the concentration of demonic energy dominating the area grew even stronger. The previous pressure now felt like child’s play.
“Kugh!?”
“Let me make one thing clear.”
Nahen protected Seere with his own energy so she wouldn’t feel the pressure. Thus Seere remained unaware, smiling brightly in Nahen’s arms. A massive demonic beast resembling the giant whale from before began to manifest around Nahen. Sitri stiffened just as she had before.
“I am stronger than Your Majesty was in the past. So this will be plenty helpful.”
Looking at Sitri, whose body had gone rigid from tension, Nahen reminded her of the training objective. “Break free from my energy and land one hit on me.”
#
For Nahen, Sitri’s growth was of utmost importance. Perhaps it was nearly as crucial as Seere’s own growth. The reason was simple. She would become Seere’s most reliable ally in the future.
‘To reach the pinnacle, Seere needs Sitri.’
When a Demon King rises in rank, personal strength matters, but a Demon King’s forces and influence are even more significant factors. And the easiest way to expand one’s forces and influence is through alliances. If the allied Sitri grows stronger, it naturally becomes Seere’s strength as well.
Therefore, Sitri’s growth was necessary for the path Seere would walk. ‘For that…’
This training was essential. For Sitri to remain useful, she ultimately needed to regain her sealed power. The place where her power was sealed lay in the mid-tier ranks—layers ruled by Demon Kings ranked 31st or higher. To defeat a higher-ranked Demon King, one must be able to move even under intense demonic pressure. The Demon King guarding the sealing stone that held Sitri’s power would naturally possess stronger energy than Sitri currently did, so such situations would arise frequently.
This training was preparation for that. Sitri would continuously emit her own energy to push back Nahen’s and secure her own space. Through this, Nahen believed Sitri could adapt to the pressure of demonic energy while also increasing the capacity of her circuits by repeatedly releasing her power.
Nahen spoke to Sitri. “Now, all you need to do is hit me once.”
“Kugh… Are you joking? How… am I supposed to…!”
Sitri felt an enormous pressure, as if a thousand-pound weight had been placed on her entire body. Watching her, Nahen deliberately provoked her weak spot. “At this rate, how will you ever regain your sealed power?”
“You…!”
“It seems impossible to me. Perhaps you should give up on recovering your power.”
“Have you… said everything you wanted to say…!!”
Sitri tried to rise while trembling, but if it were that easy, Nahen wouldn’t have proposed this training in the first place. Neutralizing Nahen’s scattered energy with Sitri’s meager power and creating space for herself to act was no simple task.
“Krrgh!!”
Unlike the struggling Sitri, Seere remained in Nahen’s arms, staring at him with wide eyes. She looked completely unfazed.
“Teacher.”
“Hm?”
“Lady Sitri looks like she’s having a hard time.”
“She is. That’s the point of this training.”
Seere tilted her head, clearly not understanding. Nahen gently patted her head and spoke. “Watch carefully.”
“Okay?”
Nahen had started to speak aloud but swallowed the words. He worried that young Seere might become frightened if she heard. Instead, he thought to himself something Seere couldn’t possibly imagine.
‘Once she grows a little more, this is training she’ll have to do someday too.’