Chapter 99 Even Demon Generals Don't Get Along

[The Demon Camp]

In an army of over ten thousand soldiers, a strong hierarchy had to exist.

Usually, chains of command were centralized from the bottom to the very top. However, in this case, things were a bit different.

Of the five hundred Middle Class Demons that led the army, ten of them were of the highest rank, giving them the greatest authority in the army.

The other Middle Class Demons were divided under the banner of the respective ten Demons they were assigned to—same as the ten thousand Demons.

That meant the army was, in fact, divided into ten groups, each having a number of one thousand and fifty.

Not only was it much easier to organize a chain of command, but it also granted efficiency in their logistics and strategy.

As a result, each Demon Camp could effectively handle an angle or position without wearing out the chain of authority.

Using this method, the Demons could surround the City Of Dulum while maintaining their string level of hierarchy.

In essence, their formation was airtight!

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"Today... we take down this place." A deep, authoritative voice echoed within a dark tent's walls.

The owner of the tone looked like a terrifying being—having long hair covering most of his face and neck, like a lion's mane.

He was dark, though. Dark-skinned, and dark-haired. His eyes brimmed with crimson fury and the way everything around him shuddered spoke well of his authority.

He was all alone in the dark tent, but this Middle Class Demon wasn't speaking to himself.

Seated on a grand chair, a table was set before him. Resting gently on the desk was a glowing sphere.

The Demon Race knew it to be the Divining Orb, and there existed various kinds. Ranging from seeing far distances, to seeing even the future, Divining Orbs were notorious for a variety of functions.

However, the ones that could achieve such mean feats were rare—only exclusive to the Upper Class in the Demon Hierarchy.

The one this Mid-Demon utilized was simply for communicating with those in his immediate vicinity—the other Mid-Demons who served as Generals, like him.

~Agreed. It makes me annoyed we have to remain in this place.~

~They're giving some of our footsoldiers trouble thanks to the pesky weapons they have~

~I wish I could just go in there and kill the lot of them.~

~Have you forgotten the purpose of this exercise?~

~Yeah, yeah! I get it!~

More voices came from the Divining Orb, and the Dark Lion-like Demon sighed.

Each Demon General had one Divining Orb, so they could use it to communicate with each other instead of traversing their respective jurisdiction to pass a message across.

It was efficient and useful.

However, why did it feel like the Demon Generals were abusing its use to simply rant? This wasn't the purpose of such a sacred item.

"Can we get back to topic?" The Lion-Headed Demon said to his comrades.

He was already scratching his two protruding horns—something he only resorted to when he was upset.

Unfortunately, his words seemed to vanish with the wind.

~Ah, so what we're talking about isn't on topic?~

~Come on, you know what he meant.~

~Zip it, fatso! I wasn't talking to you!~

~Hahaha! I like that one.~

~Can you all just be serious? This is why we're only seven in this meeting, and not ten. The rest don't take us seriously.~

~Pfft, that's their business! Those stuck-up bastards.~

~I know, right? Acting like they're better than us when we're in the same rank.~

~Well... you have to take into account their level of power...~

~Tch! As if that matters if we have the same rank as Generals.~

~Maybe you should say that to their face.~

~...~

The Lion-Headed Demon could only sigh in even more exasperation.

This back-and-forth was pointless. It was slowly drawing closer to the afternoon, and the plan was to wipe out the humans before the end of the day.

Usually, it would have been done sooner, but the Adventurers miraculously got their hands on some powerful weaponry that made them more formidable than normal.

'We would have interfered, but...' The Mid-Demon scrunched his face as soon as he remembered the rule he and his comrade had to follow.

They simply had to make use of their subordinates to achieve victory.

'It doesn't change the result, though. Now that. we've surrounded them from all ends, we'll use a pincer attack to wipe them out.'

Faced with an overwhelming assault from all angles, the Adventurers wouldn't stand a chance.

'That's what we're meant to be talking about! Not this!' The Mid-Demon's growl leaked from his slightly opened jaws.

He knew who was to blame for all the mischief, though. Still, they were a team, so he had to tolerate everyone.

"Perhaps we should just close the meeting. There's no formal need to coordinate ourselves, to begin with. As long as we maintain our chain of command and close in on the targets, the work should still be done."

~Damn straight! See? This whole thing was pointless.~

~Um, I think it's because you—~

~Shut it, fatso!~

~Welp, I guess this means we're as good as done here...~

~I suppose. Unless there's something else you want to say?~

The Lion-Headed Demon stroked his mane as he explored his mind to search for something else to say.

Unlike his comrades, he was not that wild a character. As much as he had the pride and strength of a Demon, he was not interested in underestimating or overestimating his opponents.

He simply wanted to get the job done as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

'Maybe I should caution them against hubris...'

"I would like to implore everyone to—"

>BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!!!<

A loud explosion interrupted the Demon's voice, causing his body to shake as the ground trembled.

"W-what is that?" His face looked around the tent, wondering what could have wrought something so loud and devastating.

~Hmm? What's going on over there?~

~You think the humans have begun their assault?~

~Would they be so foolish? It's practically suicide. Welp, I won't blame them... they're dead anyway.~

~Are they capable of something this powerful?~

As he was listening to the countless comments of his colleagues, the Lion-Headed Demon suddenly felt a presence emerge.

"T-this is—?!!"