"Speech"

'Thoughts/Voices'

[Names/Titles]

Flashback/Dreams

Proofread by: An Exile

Volume 3: Prologue

Reinforcements eventually arrived a week after the disaster. With their arrival, many things occurred simultaneously.

When the disaster first broke out, most of the residents within the city were swiftly evacuated past the walls of the city. Perhaps it was a foreseen event, but the city's layout was developed such that there would be multiple evacuation routes. It prevented congestion along the bigger routes and allowed for the people to be evacuated as quickly as possible. Once everyone was outside, the local knights stationed relief zones right outside of the gates and along the outer walls of the city. The gates and walls of a city which once repelled invaders from the outside are now used as a cage that trapped danger beasts.

For three times a day, soldiers would distribute rations at designated locations within the various relief zones. Initially, the rations were enough to keep people going for a few days. However, once news of the low quantities of rations became clear and apparent, a panicked frenzy ensued among the people. It was just one step short of a full-blown riot.

Thankfully, the local knights were able to bargain with some of the officials, nobles, and businessmen stationed in the city before the disaster and forced them to give up whatever amounts of supplies that they have been hoarding for themselves. With this, rumors were spread and the frenzy was quelled.

However, the number of mouths to feed far outweighed the supplies that they obtained. Whatever amount of supplies they obtained was simply not enough.

To make things direr, the initial wave of reinforcements does not carry excess supplies to distribute to civilians. They are required to ensure no danger beasts would leak into densely populated areas outside the city. Sections of the city further away from the new exit points of the Labyrinth were first reclaimed and after careful survey, deemed to be safe for habitation after a week. Through the careful use of information manipulation, morale was raised and everyone was now distracted from their fears of limited supplies. Through the use of clever information manipulation, morale was raised and everyone was now distracted from their fears of limited supplies. The presence of even more soldiers assuaged people's concerns as everyone now looked forwards to the eventual day their beloved city would be taken back and they would finally escape their life of hard earth beds and shared living spaces within flimsy tents.

Newly arrived knights would direct operations into various parts of the city, lead by the initial vanguard forces put together by the local knights. Successful expeditions into the city proved vital in verifying exit points leading into the labyrinth where danger beasts would spawn from as well as assessing the overall damage that the city had endured. With more manpower, various critical roles such as guarding safe zones, law enforcement, rationing supplies, etc. were juggled with more ease than before.

Complex issues that had surfaced at the start of the crisis have died down.

Black markets were manned by the local gangs and opportunistic merchants, whose lavish prices were determined by the fears of people. Public outrage was incited by the upper class, all of them wishing to maintain their interests during trying times. Crime of all sorts and degrees emerges from the woodworks, born from the restlessness of people and fueled by old grudges or new resentments. From decade-old vengeance, motivations, desires, and schemes to opportunistic objectives and on-the-spur designs; all of them reach their completion as circumstances now present favorable conditions for them.

Once complex issues, now they slowly unraveled themselves as they were forced back and under the presence of knights. Numerous factions who had once thrived and operated under the gray areas within the law and sold protection as a commodity were forced back into their shadows from the presence of their lord's authority. They bolstered public confidence, buying themselves precious time to solve past issues, as well as to plan for future ones.

However, a major issue remains. On top of all these issues, the soldiers and knights would occasionally come into scuffles with the Adventurers and Mercenaries. It was only due to the promise of gold that these scuffles have not escalated to destructive extents. There existed bias in each group towards the other groups, but each of them was willing to ignore them and simply cooperated out of mutual self-preservation.

However, with the recent developments in the gradual reclamation of the city, these issues became more and more prevalent.

…

"Here are the next batch of reports, Milord." The knight that had arrived before him was young, almost too young. He was the lowest in the hierarchy of knights under his employ due to being granted the role as a result of his family having a history of having produced knights in previous generations. "We should be expecting the return of the Fifth Legion within the next two hours. The Second Legion is preparing to depart while the Third Legion is on standby."

Receiving a nod in his direction, he placed himself at attention. After a hastily salute, he marched out of the room. The man currently swamped with paperwork noted that he was still quite stiff regarding his actions. Perhaps he still wasn't accustomed to such work. He made a mental reminder to find some excuse to have him placed in an office more often.

Any onlookers would have the intriguing sight of an Earl swamped with paperwork within a small office room. Hadarone sat within the confines of his office, hands constantly moving across the dozens of pieces of paperwork stacked on his desk. His creased brows could not help alleviate his current predicament, just like his daughter's meddlings before his arrival. There seemed to be no end to the paperwork gathered on his desk, but he was at least able to start at a steady pace to deal with it. Slowly, the stacks of paper began to pile up on the completed section of the desk.

He could only mutter curses when a knock on his door interrupted his rhythm.

"Come in."

Luckily, it didn't take much to detach his emotions from his words, given that his mind was too fixated on the pen he was holding to be angry at the one who disrupted his work.

His somewhat competent secretary poked his head into the room through a crack he made in the door. He was a capable knight on the battlefield, gaining some notoriety as a butcher whose sword could effortlessly cleave through bone. Of course, stories from the frontlines were usually exaggerated, primarily for the sake of catching attention and interest.

However, even the best soldiers under his employ would find themselves behind an office desk at some point in their career. Under the current Earl, accumulating hours of administrative work was required of experienced knights before they could be promoted to a higher station. It often meant that they would be stuck doing menial errands or miscellaneous tasks under some of the commanders or if they got lucky, placed in a post near the Lord they serve.

Unfortunately, this didn't exempt anyone from the slog that was paperwork.

"Milord, I believe the meeting you called for is starting in five minutes. They are awaiting your arrival."

His secretary's words took several moments longer to be processed in his tired mind, and he only stared at his secretary before his mind caught up to the reason why he was at his door. The conference he had called for earlier would be between the commanders of each legion. He could only lament how time had passed by without him even noticing.

"Thank you. I'll be heading over now." He finished the paperwork he was working on before reaching into the completed stack of papers and fished for specific documents that he would be using. He gestured towards his efforts for the past few hours. "Please help send these documents to their respective desks."

He was already out of the door before he knew it. Various people saluted him as he passed them by, and he waved to dismiss them back to their duties. Arriving at the door to the meeting room, he encountered a small group already standing guard outside of the entrances. They also saluted him before allowing him through the doors.

"Milord!" As one, all of the knights within the room stood and saluted. Only after he took a seat would they allow themselves to be at ease.

"Thank you all for arriving on such short notice. I must apologize to those on breaks and off-duty. I have called this meeting to address some of the issues I have noticed and plans further down the line." He took a glance at the others seated at the table. The minute-taker was recording the address on some paper. The swift motions of his hands showed great experience in this field of work. The Earl mentally noted that he should have him placed elsewhere and have someone else take over his job as a minute taker in future meetings. "Before we begin, is there anything I should be informed that I've yet been briefed on?"

Glancing around the room, he saw a man raising his hand. It was the commander of the Fifth Legion. It appeared he had returned from his expedition from one of the exit points of the Labyrinth.

"Milord. My expedition into the Labyrinth has so far been uneventful. There has been no sign of any foul play. However, there has been more evidence of the Revolutionary presence."

He sifted through the documents that he brought. Detailed reports by front-line soldiers indicated mangled corpses of Revolutionary Soldiers spotted in numerous locations throughout the city. Most of the reports suggested scuffles with mercenaries resulted in their deaths, judging from the various stab wounds and fatal injuries found on their bodies. To have more evidence of their presence within the Labyrinth was concerning. Much of the circumstantial evidence pointed to their intervention in recent events.

"Yes, I have received multiple reports from the other Legions that there had been their corpses on the surface. For them to be in the Labyrinth as well… has there been any concrete evidence that points this disaster to their involvement?" He questioned the commander before him. He could notice a few other stares directed his way, each of them measuring his words and their weight. He could see some of them forming dangerous speculations. He resolved himself to keep them in line.

"None. There had been no evidence of explosives used and no indication of any tools that could have caused such widespread damage. Our speculation is that should there be foul play involved, whatever methods they employed would have already been taken away before we arrived here."

He was already resolved for this outcome. He could already feel the headaches he would get while thinking of explaining the situation to relevant parties. He could already picture how those conniving bastards would be pressing this advantage.

"Continue sending men down into the Labyrinth. We need to find any useful information that exists. Since so many of those revolutionaries died down in the depths of the Labyrinth, it shows that there is something down there that they were interested in." He paused as his eyes lingered on them, making sure that they had fully understood what he wanted.

It went unsaid that this was merely a show, to buy as much time as possible. Should something be found, it would come as a surprise. He did not expect that there would be anything of worth to him anymore down in the Labyrinth.

"As for the surface, what are your assessments?" With each Legion tasked with one objective, each with varying levels of severity, it becomes clear who was expected to answer this question.

"Basic infrastructures in the less affected areas are intact. Most of the damage was localized around the new exit points near the center, north, and west side of the city. Based on the detailed reports received from expeditions, Danger Beasts within the Labyrinth closer to the surface have been successfully suppressed back into lower floors. I would find it appropriate to have the outer cordons of these areas removed. The inner cordon should be sufficient as of now."

This was somewhat good news. Public unrest has already been made significant and people have started to voice their discontent with the speeds that they were performing. Most of the civilians are no longer empathetic toward them after having calmed down from being put into such a high-stress situation. Current public opinions linger on how long they must wait before the city is considered safe enough for them to resume their normal daily lives. The longer they wait, the more disgruntled they are. It would be another mess for him to clean up once the public learned of the revolutionary army's involvement in their current circumstances, which he assumes is only a matter of time.

"Understood. I'll–"

An audible disturbance at the door interrupted his train of thought. The guards were doing their best trying to hold back a storm from entering and disrupting the room, but it was ultimately futile. The voices that he could hear from the door were enough for him to develop a migraine.

'It's just one thing after another.' he thought to himself.

He looked to one of his adjutants stationed in the room and wordlessly conveyed his intentions. It was some kind of mutual understanding between subordinate and superior, developed after a long period of interaction inside a working environment. The adjutant nodded and went to the door to silently lead his daughter in.

"As I was saying, I do not have any disagreement towards removing the outer cordon. I assume the sweep of the city has already revealed no other threats?" He looked to the commanders involved and received a nod of affirmation. "Then, if possible, I would be looking to remove the outer cordon and focus our soldiers mainly around hot zones. We must also ensure that there would be no possible breaches and begin moving civilians back into the city. Any further questions?"

He paused, waiting for any of the commanders to voice their opinions. His eyes darted to his adjutant, who was now accompanied by his daughter. It can be considered a relief that she still holds some common sense to not make a scene during the formal meeting that she was not invited to.

"If there are no further questions, then this meeting is concluded. Dismissed."

Everyone stood up from their seats, gave a salute before promptly leaving the room.

"Father, I–" he silenced her with a look before prompting her to follow. The walk back to his office was silent, and his ordinarily loud daughter did not even speak out once. Several times during the walk he had glanced back at his daughter. She seemed to be in thought, thinking about something.

As a father, he could predict what his children were thinking about at any time. Success rates might be unstable, but at least it has times when it works. Adding in the circumstances that were surrounding his daughter when she arrived in this city and how she had essentially offended all of the upper-class people, it was not surprising if she was somewhat afraid that he was angry.

He took a seat at his desk, and she gingerly stood at the front, silently watching him work. He could tell that she was hesitant, constantly biting her lips as she wondered when it would be a good time to speak up. He was content to wait for her, hands moving between the stacks of paperwork that had piled up even more during his absence.

"Father!" With just one word, he realized his parental intuitions were wrong. She was silent not because she was fearful of his anger, but simply waiting for him to speak first and had grown tired of waiting. He directed his gaze towards her before it fell back down onto the paperwork.

"I can hear you just fine, there is really no need to shout in this place." He could only wonder where his once shy and polite daughter had gone. The girl before him was someone else entirely. Wearing the steel-colored armor of the knights and strapped with a sword that would have any common lady of nobility struggle to even carry it, much less lift it with one hand. She certainly did a marvelous job of driving away suitors. Perhaps he should not have exposed her to sword training when she was young.

"Why?" It was a relief she remembered how to use her indoor voice. "Why did you have me escorted back here? I was doing just fine clearing out the labyrinth and hunting down Danger Beasts."

"Just be glad I didn't strip you of your armor and sword. I've had half a mind to bring you back here in chains had you resisted." His pen stopped as he nursed his head. The list of problems that his daughter had caused brought nothing but headaches. The amount of damage control needed for his daughter's actions would have almost rivaled that of the city.

"With your actions, you have caused us to lose the support of the nobles and officials stationed here. You have interfered with their business and even removed the security arranged for them. Not to mention your little stunt of extorting the affluent businessmen of this city into handing over their supplies to aid your little campaign in the city to wipe out danger beasts. Sure, you distributed them to the civilians to quell the public's disgruntlement and promised to compensate the nobles, officials, and businessmen, but remember that those promises are empty. You may be my daughter, but you have no say regarding any of the affairs involving our house." The list goes on and on.

"But Father, if I didn't do all that, there would have been more people dead, and retaking this city would have taken even more time and manpower. Worst-case scenario, the danger beasts from within the city would have flooded out and we won't be having this conversation in this location." He would need to be blind to have not seen what effects his daughter's actions brought.

He could only let out a sigh as his hands resumed the process of scribbling words and signatures onto pieces of paper and moving paper from one location on the desk to another. He decided to give his daughter a break. She may have caused trouble, but her accomplishments this time were also just as significant.

"I am aware. Just… think more before you act next time." His words had an instantaneous effect, as his daughter practically beamed at him. So much so that he could have seen literally rays of light shooting out from her smile. "And stay in this place right now. Quite a few people have their eyes on you. It's best if you don't appear and cause me more trouble."

'If only she had brushed up on her manners, posture, and her way of speaking. She'd be seen as a fine lady.' He could only helplessly lament to himself.

He continued with paperwork, only being interrupted to rest his hands from the soreness. At some point, his restless daughter had vacated the room and went outside, probably to find something to do.

News of his worrisome daughter arrived a short while later and had sent him running out of the door.

'I told you to stay here so that you won't cause trouble. So why are you fighting Honest's Rakshasa Demons?'

Afterword:

Sup. It's been a while.

A really big thank you to my proofreader, An Exile for helping me with this chapter. His help went beyond just simple grammatical amendments.

As the title of this chapter suggests, this is merely a prologue. A short chapter of around 3000+ words. Not much to talk about in the story, so I'll talk about things outside of this story. The entire chapter is in the third person's perspective. I'm trying out a way of writing that makes it obvious which perspective it would be. Hopefully, it works out well.

First on the plate. I have essentially lost faith in FF. net's ability to update people on new chapters. It had already happened twice, and I think it is just too many times. I have made a discord link to help with just general updates. You can also chat with people here too if you want to, but I mostly made sure that you only interact with people by choice. Link: discord. gg/ VQQyrdmXnq

Secondly, my other story. I made a story that compiles all of my one-shot ideas. I'll still publish each chapter as separate stories of their own, but I'll be putting it into a compendium for easier access (for me and hopefully for you as well). There are just some thoughts and ideas I have had compiled into individual chapters, so most of these are really just a spur of the moment inspiration. If you have those and wish to use my ideas to write your own, go ahead. Just let me know so I can read it as well. If you want me to continue writing them, feel free to let me know too. Do take note that this would only contain story ideas that revolve around 1 or more anime series.

Finally, the story length. I decided to give the 'somewhat shorter chapters, faster updates' idea a try. Hopefully, I can have more updates regarding this story.

Anyways, not much to talk about. See you in the next chapter

Happy 2022! (Kinda late but better than never amirite?)