Cinder Outpost

Cinder Outpost

Ohlion Continent

Planet Zorix 1I

April 3rd

Year 9025

One very boring road trip later, Xaren and the rest of his batch finally arrived at their new Outpost—the place they would call home base for the foreseeable future.

This was where they would be deployed for battles and assigned missions. The Cinder Region Outpost, much like their previous base, was an upgrade compared to the facilities they had access to as unranked demons.

Upon arrival, they were ushered into the barracks and assigned dorm rooms. After settling in, they were given a short orientation tour of the facilities they should be aware of before being directed to the training grounds.

By the time they arrived there, the afternoon drills were wrapping up.

Xaren's batch was split across different Army Companies. Each standard Company housed 200 to 250 soldiers, organized into 4-5 platoons, with each platoon further divided into 8-10 squads.

Xaren, Ilya, Carack, Bjorn, and 11 others were placed in a platoon led by a Captain—a low-rank demon like them but at a significantly higher level.

The Captain introduced the newcomers to the rest of the Company and encouraged them to "get along and get to know each other" before departing.

No sooner had the Captain left than one of the veterans—a demon from the group that had been in the company longer—strode up to the newcomers.

He was at least 5 feet tall, with very short black hair and similarly coloured eyes, along with sharp facial features.

Xaren was chatting with his usual group of Ilya, Carack, and Bjorn when the demon's loud, condescending voice cut through their conversation.

"I don't know where you talentless lot, who took two months just to figure out how to use your wings, came from, but you need to learn the ground rules around here."

His demeanour oozed an air of superiority, as if he were trying to establish dominance over the new arrivals.

"I, Ralguth, am the boss around here. I'm the leader of this company, so you'd better obey me."

He puffed out his chest as he spoke, his cronies trailing behind him nodding in agreement with his declaration.

Carack, however, tilted his head slightly and asked with a note of curiosity.

"Typically, the leader of a company is ranked higher than everyone else in it, but judging by your uniform, you're a Private like the rest of us.

Private First Class, sure, but that's not exactly enough to lead a squad, let alone an entire company.

So, tell me, Ralguth—was your position as leader officially appointed by the Captain who just left, or did you just decide to crown yourself?"

Ralguth's brow twitched at the question, and he shot Carack a sharp glare.

The silence that followed spoke volumes—Ralguth's inability to claim outright that he was appointed by the Captain made it obvious that his so-called leadership was self-proclaimed.

His cronies, standing behind him, glared at Carack as well, but their expressions betrayed unease. They knew they couldn't risk lying about something so easily disproven, as punishment for this would be severe.

Carack, on the other hand, couldn't help but wonder why they even bothered with the facade in the first place.

The whole charade seemed like they were just fishing for trouble.

But despite having been seen through easily. Ralguth wasn't about to back down. Instead, he attempted to justify himself with a smug air of superiority.

"It doesn't matter. I've been the one leading this company during battles, and it's only natural for me to be the leader. I'm a noble after all—born better than you common folk.

What's more, I'm the strongest person here. Or…"

Ralguth paused, his gaze narrowing challengingly.

"…do you dare to contest that?"

At the mention of his noble status, Ilya and Xaren exchanged surprised glances. They both ignored him taunting them into a fight and recalled Floch mentioning how nobles occasionally sent their offspring to military outposts like this as part of their "tests."

If Ralguth truly was a noble, it aligned with that notion. However, it hardly concerned them.

Floch had made it clear that nobility couldn't throw their weight around in the military. So, even if Ralguth's claim of nobility was true, it didn't grant him authority, and certainly not the title of leader.

Even without that, Xaren didn't believe Ralguth could be appointed for anything within their platoon as he was nothing more than a Private.

'In demon military structure, companies are led by Captains, platoons by Lieutenants, and 4–16-man squads by Sergeants.'

Over the past few months, wing training wasn't the only thing Xaren had done. He had also gained a deeper understanding of demon society, leveraging Floch's willingness to share information with him.

In conclusion:

'I have no reason to listen to this guy.'

With that thought, he and Ilya turned away, both opting to ignore the self-proclaimed leader.

As for the other 11 members of their group, they weren't fond of Ralguth's attempt to boss them around, especially considering they were all low-ranking newcomers.

His provocative words about challenging him hit a nerve.

"You think you're the strongest?"

One of them snapped, releasing a pulse of demonic energy in an attempt to intimidate Ralguth.

Xaren turned his gaze toward the speaker and immediately identified him as a bull demon, the hot-blooded type.

'The guy looks ready to charge.'

The rest of the group wasn't far behind, a wave of murmured discontent spreading among them as they braced themselves for a confrontation.

Watching this, Xaren spoke up.

"I don't think that's a good idea, but hey, do what you want."

His voice carried little weight amidst the brewing tension, but he wasn't surprised no one was paying him any mind.

Meanwhile, Ilya, wholly uninterested in the brewing conflict, had already walked off toward the weapon storage area, muttering something about needing to check something on her Runeblade. Bjorn, equally indifferent, had turned to strike up a conversation with some others who were gradually distancing themselves from the commotion.

Carack, however, found the situation intriguing and decided to stay, curious to see how things would unfold. He also took the opportunity to remind Xaren of how he had complained about boredom and the lack of entertainment during their road trip.

The reminder prompted Xaren to join Carack in spectating. Both of them stepped back a little, giving space for the would-be fighters to settle things themselves.

◇　◇　◇

As the first fight began and Ralguth unleashed his demonic energy, Xaren raised a brow in mild surprise.

"Oh wow. Seems he isn't all talk."

"These guys have been here for over a month, so they've likely racked up more levels than we have."

Carack remarked and Xaren nodded in agreement as they both watched Ralguth deal with his opponent in less than a minute.

"Well, they may have higher levels, but our stats are probably on par with theirs," Carack added and Xaren nodded in agreement once more.

Thanks to their long overdue rewards for killing that Level 100+ giant in Hamqua, he and the others had Stats well above the average for their levels.

"If one of us fought him, how do you think it would go?" Carack asked, turning his gaze away from the fight to glance at Xaren.

Without looking away from the brawl, Xaren offered his honest assessment.

"Well, he's fast, and his striking strength is impressive. But he wouldn't land a single hit on me.

As for you, if you keep your distance and avoid his initial charge, you could hit him hard with ranged magic. He seems to be strictly a close-range fighter."

Satisfied with the response, Carack turned his attention back to Ralguth. After a moment, he asked again.

"What about Ilya?"

Xaren chuckled.

"Pfft… He wouldn't even realize he'd lost."

As Carack and Xaren talked, the second demon, undeterred by the first's defeat, lunged at Ralguth with a flurry of attacks, only to be promptly beaten into submission just like the first.

The third demon, seeing the fate of his comrades, hesitated only briefly before charging in.

But the result was the same. A punch to the face sent him reeling, and a quick follow-up knocked him unconscious.

The remaining six demons exchanged uneasy glances. The fights had been decisively one-sided, and now, they were starting to think better of challenging Ralguth, whose strength was beyond their expectations.

Around them, the silence from the rest of the 200-plus company members spoke volumes.

Either they were too afraid to speak up, or Ralguth had already cowed them into submission. Some of them were even cheering Ralguth on.

Three of the remaining demons, unwilling to back down, decided to take him on together. With a battle cry, they charged at him, thinking they could overwhelm him with numbers.

Seeing this, Carack leaned forward, a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"How about a bet, Xaren?"

He sported his usual grin, clearly enjoying the unfolding scene.

"Rather than betting on the outcome of the fight, let's bet on how long it takes for the demons to lose."

Both of them didn't think they could win against Ralguth anyway.

Hearing Carack's suggestion, Xaren narrowed his eyes, studying the two sides of the fight about to unfold.

"I'll give them at least three minutes," he mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Carack shook his head. "Two minutes, max."

Xaren snorted, shaking his head at the confidence in Carack's words. But as the fight began to unfold, his expression quickly turned dark.