[Iris Lefay]

"How are you so unaffected by this biting cold?"

Carlo asked, shivering as the icy wind whipped against his face.

I chuckled, rubbing my bare arms and tracing my fingers over the scars that marred my fair skin.

"The Karsus Duchy is in the North, and the winters there are brutal. The attic where I lived was the coldest place. I had no blankets, just a thin nightdress that barely covered my cold naked body."

I smiled at him, letting the memory linger for a moment. "You get used to the cold when you endure years of it."

Carlo grimaced, his face contorting with both cold and discomfort. "I knew Duke Karsus was cold-hearted and ruthless, but I never imagined he'd be this cruel."

I shrugged, my smile fading slightly. "Well, he only promised my mother that he'd keep me alive."

After a moment, I tilted my head and looked at him. "I've been meaning to ask, what led the Devereux family to send their son to the Shield?"

Rubbing his hands together for warmth, Carlo replied, "I wanted to prove myself to my father. I need to show them that I'm capable of leading our family."

A chuckle escaped my lips. "So the wee lad of House Devereux came here due to a succession crisis."

He frowned, shooting me a look. "Wee lad? I'm older than you."

"And I'm your more experienced senior," I retorted, my tone light but with a teasing edge. I then returned my gaze to the sky framed by the mountains of Les Anciennes.

"They should be within sight," I said, squinting over the rugged peaks, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Argo or its escort helicopters.

"Have you seen the list of recruits?" Carlo asked after a pause.

I shook my head. "Nope. I've been busy speaking with the High Queen."

"Ah, the High Queen requested your presence," Carlo remarked, a hint of envy coloring his tone. "She must've been surprised to learn you're dating the vice-captain."

"She was pretty cool with it. Heck, she was delighted." A soft smile tugged at my lips. "She truly is an awesome queen."

"Yes, she is," Carlo agreed, pulling up the list on his holographic display. "But you need to see this."

My eyes widened as I scanned the list, my jaw nearly hitting the ground. "Holy Incarni! Minerva? How many are there in total?" I asked.

"Two hundred recruits. A hundred and ten females, ninety males," Minerva's cold voice spoke through my earpiece.

I swallowed hard. "Did we hit the bloody jackpot? None of them are below B rank!"

"I guess we did. Perhaps it's due to the current circumstances?" Carlo suggested, the understatement clear in his tone.

I nodded, "Could be. We'll certainly need the extra help, especially when those suckers are appearing at night."

Just weeks ago, daemons had surged out of the Tear during the night without warning.

Almost all the Deathwalkers that had been hastily summoned to the battlefield were slaughtered.

"Those sons of bitches blend seamlessly with the darkness and seem to grow stronger at night," I muttered, my fingers lightly brushing over a large scar on my exposed waist.

That one was courtesy of a daemon's barbed spear that had torn into my side a week ago during a particularly nasty night battle.

Mordred hasn't stopped poking me there since, wearing that damnable mocking grin of his that made him look cute on his devilishly handsome face.

"And there's a new type of wraith with an incredibly venomous bite," Carlo added.

I sighed. "Wonderful. Those undead fuckers will soon develop immunity to stakes in the next update."

Carlo chuckled lightly but shook his head. "Careful, Captain. That might become a reality."

I pored over the list again, noting some promising recruits. "I've heard that the Ragnarok Empire and the Order of Lux have agreed to send warlocks to the Shield," Carlo mentioned.

Rolling my eyes, I replied, "About damn time! The Kingdom's been protecting the world from daemons for decades and perhaps centuries, and now they decide to send reinforcements? More meat for the grinder, I suppose."

"That's quite accurate," he agreed.

The powerful gust of bitingly frigid wind that followed announced the arrival of the chopper squadron escorting the Argo.

I watched the massive craft emerge from behind the mountains, gracefully gliding toward the airfield.

A smirk spread across my face as the Argo approached the empty airfield, its silhouette growing larger as the Deathwalkers bustled around, preparing for the landing.

"Shall we welcome the fresh meat?" I quipped, my grin turning a little wicked.

Carlo shot me a sidelong glance, rolling his eyes. "Please don't go overboard with them."

Winking at him, I said, "Don't worry, Master Devereux. I'll behave."

*******

"What part of 'not going overboard' did you not get?"

Carlo grumbled as he led the thoroughly traumatized recruits toward the Shield's main doors.

Their faces were pale, and a few stumbled slightly, still shaking from the “lesson” they’d just endured.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

The stone eyes of dragon engravings seemed to watch us as we approached.

I shrugged, casually cleaning the blood from my face and hands with Carlo’s handkerchief. "Those five recruits were incredibly annoying."

"Sure, they were arrogant, but did you really have to amputate their limbs?" Carlo asked, rubbing his temples as if nursing a headache.

I frowned. "Oh c’mon, I wasn’t that cruel."

"Not that cruel?" He stared at me incredulously. "You tore off a young woman’s leg and slapped her in the face with it!"

"She kicked a ball of condensed lightning at my face!" I defended.

"Then show her the difference between your skills—don’t start ripping legs off!" Carlo retorted, his voice rising with exasperation.

I waved him off dismissively. "Relax. Perry took them to Althea. They’ll be fine."

Carlo sighed in defeat, running a hand through his hair. "Well, I’m just glad Vice-Captain Mordred wasn’t here. He would’ve skewered them and sent them to Althea like bloody kebabs."

I grinned, flashing a smile that was probably more menacing than reassuring. "That’s my Mordred."

Carlo threw his hands up in the air. "I give up!"

Turning to the recruits, he motioned them toward the entrance. "Alright, gentlemen, follow me!"

"And you lovely ladies, come with me!" I chimed in, flashing a sweet smile that probably only heightened their terror.

One of the recruits flinched as I spoke, her face pale.

Carlo shot me a glare. "Stop that. They’re terrified."

"Fuck off, Carlo. You handle the men," I said, still smiling as I looked at the women.

None of them dared to meet my gaze.

*******

"Processing Room 12."

Minerva's voice echoed in my earpiece as I led the female recruits down the well-lit hallway within the Shield.

"I suppose we need the space with this many recruits," I mused aloud, knowing Room 12 was one of the largest processing rooms.

"For someone with a penchant for sadistic violence, you do have moments of clarity," Minerva sniped back.

"Can it, you pile of vacuum tubes," I shot back.

"Ah, it appears Iris Lefay is slated for another night battle," she said, far too casually. My bracelet beeped as she registered me for the next night time battle against the daemons.

"How petty can you be?" I snapped, my frustration bubbling over.

"Um, Captain Lefay? Is something wrong?" a soft voice interrupted from behind me.

It was one of the recruits—a young girl, probably around eighteen, with light brown hair and wide blue eyes.

She was at the front of the group, and despite everything she’d just witnessed, she didn’t seem afraid to speak to me.

I smiled. This is the type of Deathwalker we need.

"Nothing. Just talking to our annoying resident AI," I reassured her with a wink, continuing toward the processing room.

"It's on the left," Minerva chimed in just as I was about to turn right.

Right. I knew that.

We took a left turn and walked for a minute before arriving at a door labeled:

Processing Room 12.

The door slid open, revealing a Deathwalker exiting, tablet in hand.

"Ah, Captain Lefay! I've just completed the routine checkup." He smiled, extending the tablet towards me. "Please review this and confirm."

Scanning the report, I raised an eyebrow. "The safety barrier is malfunctioning?"

He nodded. "Yep. It tends to activate randomly and severs communication with Minerva. Just exercise caution."

I frowned. "Can't we get another room?"

His smile was sympathetic. "Unfortunately, the other large rooms are either under maintenance or occupied."

"Is it true, Minerva?" I asked, but there was no response.

"The barrier’s activated," the Deathwalker sighed, knocking on the shimmering blue layer between us.

He walked back into the room, fiddling with controls for a moment before it flickered off. "I've just repaired it."

Finally, Minerva's voice returned, sharp as ever. "Yeah?"

"Can we switch to another room?" I inquired.

"The only available room is farther away and will take more time to reach. Also, spoiler: we have an imminent attack."

I sighed. "No need. I’ll manage."

Turning to the Deathwalker, I nodded. "I guess we’ll be here, then."

He nodded back. "Very well. Just watch out for the barrier." With a salute, he walked past me and the recruits. "I’ll take my leave."

"Wait," I called out, "What's your name?"

He paused, then smiled. "The Fairy of Tenebris is curious about my name?"

I shrugged. "Just wondering."

"Jeko Hess," he replied with a slight bow. "A pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise. Thank you," I replied with a nod.

He bowed again and disappeared down the corridor. A prickle of unease crawled up my spine.

There was something about him that lingered, but I shook it off.

"Weird," I muttered before entering the room.

The recruits assembled inside the massive hall filled with rows of capsule-shaped pods. I turned to face them. "Alright, ladies! Time to take off those cozy layers. That includes your underwear or lingerie."

Stunned silence.

"What?" the leading recruit asked, looking at me in disbelief.

I rolled my eyes. "Get naked for processing. Minerva needs to scan your entire body to register you as Deathwalkers. It’s standard procedure, nothing inappropriate."

I added. "If you are the shy type, you can take off your clothes in the pods."

Some recruits sighed in relief, heading for the pods, while others reluctantly began undressing. I leaned back behind the control table.

"Minerva. Fire up the pods," I ordered, my fingers tapping the tablet. But no response.

"Fuck," I muttered, rising to my feet just as a faint blue shimmer flickered on the walls. The barrier was up.

I looked up the procedure to fix the barrier shown on the tablet and my hand hovered over the controls to use them.

Suddenly, a voice from the door stopped me in my tracks.

"Captain Karsus."

I whipped around. One of the recruits stood by the door, hands behind her back, her eyes cold.

My blood ran cold. "What did you call me?"

I had introduced myself as Lefay—there was no way anyone would know my old name unless they’d seen me before. But who?

Her face looked unnervingly familiar.

I searched my fragmented memories for anything. That's when I realized.

A face from my past, one of many who looked down on me during my nightmarish life in the Karsus Estate.

She's the maid of the brother I killed.

"You," I snarled, stepping toward her. "What are you doing here?"

She didn’t answer. Instead, she pulled out a glass canister filled with swirling crimson smoke.

My heart stopped.

"Your brothers send their regards," she sneered, her smile dripping with malice.

Instinct kicked in. I dove back as she pressed a button.

"Shit!"