Lord of Disease (JP-GL) 76

76: A Letter from the Commander of the Dark Knights

Liz clapped her hands together.

“—Alright, the meeting will now begin. Please be serious.”

“Alright, Liz. I’ll be serious. What’s the agenda?”

“I’ve received a private letter from the Commander of the Dark Knights.”

“Private?”

“Regarding that, there are two things I need to report concerning the Dark Knights. First, a request for a ‘joint training exercise.’ And second… well…”

“What is it? Is it classified?”

It was rare for Liz to hesitate.

“No, but… it’s just… something I don’t want to tell you, Master…”

“…And you’ve called a meeting for this?” I couldn’t help but tilt my head.

“Yes, but… Master… are you a patient person?”

I smiled reassuringly at Liz’s hesitant question.

“Yes. Patient enough to plan a three-year extermination of humanity.”

“Isn’t that a bit short?”

“That’s one way to look at it.” I nodded seriously at Rebecca’s exasperated comment.

“…Will you listen without getting angry?”

“It depends. But I don’t think I’d get angry at you, Liz.”

If you got angry at your subordinates for bringing you bad news, they’d stop bringing you bad news.

—And that was far more terrifying than only hearing good news. I think I read that in a business book once, or maybe it was an ancient Chinese philosopher.

“…Well, it seems there are some, mostly younger members of the Dark Knights, who doubt your abilities, Master. They want the Lord of Disease to participate in this ‘joint training exercise.’ Of course, that’s not explicitly stated in the request, but there’s a faction that’s eager to… unmask the Lord of Disease with their swords. It seems the incident with Lathus-sama… the leader of the Beastman Army… has been misinterpreted…”

“I see.”

“…You’re not angry?”

“I’m tired of hearing about it.” I waved a hand dismissively.

I wouldn’t be able to serve as the Lord of Disease… no, as a supreme commander… if I got angry over every little thing.

“I see…” Liz breathed a sigh of relief.

“What did Bridget say?”

“Bridget? You mean Bringit Finis?” Rebecca raised an eyebrow.

“Yes. That’s what I call her.”

“I heard you two were on bad terms, but it seems you’re actually quite close.”

“…Am I?” I couldn’t help but wonder.

—Am I still her friend?

Liz spoke.

“It’s… complicated. You haven’t had a proper conversation in over a year, have you?”

“But she said it was okay to call her a friend.”

“Wasn’t that just a social nicety?”

“But she said it in private.”

“And then you made her angry and you’re on bad terms now, right?”

“I-I did, but…”

“…What did Bringit-sama say?”

As Liz pressed me, my voice trembled, and tears welled up in my eyes. Samarkand came to my rescue.

“The Commander said to humor them, to let them blow off some steam. —She’s leaving the method entirely up to the Lord of Disease.”

“—Oh?” I regained my composure and smiled, a hint of defiance in my eyes.

“Accept it, Liz.”

“…Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.” This was the perfect opportunity to crush the arrogance of those upstarts.

“You’ve already formulated a plan, haven’t you?”

“Indeed. My master is a brilliant strategist.”

I declared to a marveling Samarkand and Harken,

“I’ll figure it out as I go!”

“…I admire your decisiveness.”

“A truly admirable recklessness.”

“Liz, is she always like this?”

“Pretty much. Well, some of her ideas aren’t bad… but it’s usually up to us subordinates to make them work.”

“…Well… that’s probably the most important part…”

“But why did you decide so suddenly?”

“Bridget… still thinks of me as a friend.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You don’t have to. —It’s a secret.” I put a finger to my lips.

“…Master… you and my sister… there’s nothing… going on… is there?” Liz looked at me, her eyes filled with suspicion.

“It’s not what you’re thinking.”

She was leaving the method up to me.

My method.

How could I not take that as a sign of her trust, as a friend?

…What if she was just counting on the Lord of Disease’s ruthlessness?

“Just give me the materials. I’ll think about it seriously.”

“I’d appreciate it if you’d look at the materials before making a decision… as your subordinate…”

Now that she mentioned it, I think I’d thought the same thing when I was a subordinate.

“I’m sorry. —But I trust all of you.”

“We are grateful for your kind words.” Samarkand’s lips curled into a satisfied smile.

“If it is my master’s trust, I must not fail to meet it.” Harken rattled his jawbone, laughing.

“…That’s not fair, Master…” Liz chuckled, exasperated.

“I’ll do my best. ‘Master’?” Rebecca smiled sarcastically.

Now that I thought about it…

I wanted to work in a place full of smiles.

“I’m counting on you.” I smiled back at everyone.