A group of high-ranking officers from the facility were gathered in the meeting room.
They were all in uniform. Not ceremonial dress, but standard-issue military attire.
I stood out like a sore thumb—a lone teenager in sandals and an Officer Academy Tracksuit, looking like some delinquent kid squatting in front of a convenience store during summer break.
Prince Thomas held the highest rank here, and he sat at the head of the table with a dignified air.
I was technically a spouse of the Imperial Family, but my rank was only Captain and I was still a teenager. I tried to take a seat near the bottom of the table.
“Leo, why are you sitting there? Come sit beside me. We’re brothers, after all, even if it’s by marriage.”
Stop it.
The smiles on the officials’ faces froze. Seriously, stop it.
Don't go messing with the chain of command.
I tried to communicate with the base brass through eye contact and desperate gestures.
[He’s the one saying it.]
[Re-strain. Him.]
[Impossible.]
[Fine! Just do whatever!]
I gave up and sat next to Thomas.
In situations like this, my wifey was much easier to deal with. Having been raised in both the Inner Palace and the military, she never needed the chain of command explained to her. Whenever she told me to sit beside her, she always had a specific reason in mind. All I had to do was follow her lead and provide backup if something went sideways.
It was overwhelmingly easy.
In Thomas’s case, however, he was simply a nice guy. He was acting out of pure goodwill.
No, he really was a good man, this Brother-in-law Thomas.
But he didn’t understand military culture in the slightest. And because his intentions were good, it made things all the more difficult.
Sitting beside Thomas, I leafed through the documents.
The incident at the base had been glossed over and recorded as an “unannounced night exercise proposed by Captain Kamishiro.”
The base commander clearly wanted to claim, “We knew this was happening all along.”
I suppose he couldn't bring himself to write down that a squad of starving trainees had been caught stealing potatoes. That would be a lifelong embarrassment. Ha ha ha!
As I flipped through the pages, the commander glared at me with an expression that suggested he’d found his father’s killer.
Don’t you dare say a word. I’ll kill you!!! his bloodshot eyes screamed.
I stayed silent.
Ha ha ha! I’ll make sure the commander buys me a meal with his own money later.
“According to these records, you were attacked by unidentified creatures during the exercise,” Thomas noted.
The next page showed photos of the mysterious claw marks we’d found. The notes mentioned the unusual number of digits.
Then came the dissection results.
Biologically speaking, there was no way to definitively label something a Zork. They crossed every species boundary—some were like crabs, some were mass of tentacles, others were humanoid. There was no single genetic sequence common to all Zork. One could argue that “Zork” wasn't actually a single species at all.
The humanoid ones could even breed with humans. Biologically, they were human.
Then again, you had cases like the Grand Chamberlain or the sixty-year-old Alexia who could transform into monsters. There was no regularity, no common thread.
These invisible monsters were the same. We’d encountered invisible Zork before, but those had been a different beast-type.
As for how they were transparent? The mechanism remained a mystery. Humanity had equipment that could project background images onto a surface to create pseudo-invisibility using AI, but those were easily detected by infrared leaks, heat signatures, or sound.
This was something else entirely—a technology beyond humanity’s current reach. It would likely take years to unravel the secret.
“So, what exactly are these monsters?” Thomas asked.
It wasn't in the report. What were they?
“We don't know,” an officer replied.
“What do you mean?”
“They don't match any creature in our database. If I had to compare them, I’d say they resemble bears, but they’re far too distinct to be a subspecies. At most, we can describe them as a human-bear hybrid.”
Whoa.
Another hellish detail. I really wished my life would stop turning into a nightmare the second I stepped outside.
“Does that imply someone created them?”
“That, along with everything else, is currently unknown.”
Well, of course it was. It had only been half a day. There was no way they’d have answers yet.
“I see. I understand.”
When Thomas spoke, the commander flinched. He must have felt the pressure of Thomas’s status.
Stop it, Brother-in-law. Public officials are weak against that kind of pressure from the higher-ups.
Normally, my wifey would have drawn some stupid comment out of me to lighten the mood right about now...
“Regardless of what the enemy is, the result is the same. We will station troops and protect this outpost. Brother-in-law, will you lend us your strength?”
“As you wish.”
The rest of the talk was purely practical, focusing on troop placement and logistics. I just had to follow orders.
The base commander clearly wanted us gone. It wasn't because of some career-minded ambition; he just had no idea how to handle us or Thomas. Since Thomas outranked him, he let the Prince do as he pleased, while choosing to keep me under a short leash by making sure I did absolutely nothing.
I didn't feel like being meddlesome or going on a rampage for no reason, anyway. As long as everyone was safe, I was happy.
The meeting wrapped up after about an hour. The commander seemed surprised that I hadn't tried to interfere.
In fact, he was so relieved that his mood improved drastically, and he promised to send over some extra food supplies.
People often get the wrong idea because I'm a muscle-brain, but I’m actually the type who can handle a civil discussion.
When I returned to the separate quarters, we were issued mats and blankets. Since this looked like it would be a long haul, they’d provided these instead of sleeping bags.
That commander... as expected of a veteran, he was the type to pay attention to the little details.
We all set up our sleeping spots in the communal room. I left the girls to their own room.
We used a forklift to move supplies like flour, frozen vegetables, and fish. They’d given us permission to use them.
However, there was no rice. They said it would be distributed tomorrow.
So, for dinner, Kevin and the others made okonomiyaki. We also ate the portable rations we’d looted. They were freeze-dried, not canned.
I tossed a cube-shaped zousui mix into some instant miso soup and added hot water.
After waiting a few minutes, the meal was ready. The portion was pretty small, though...
“Here you go! Sorry for the wait!”
Nina brought over the okonomiyaki.
She was a goddess.
I was starving and ready to dig in... but that was when it happened.
“Hello, Leo.”
Thomas had arrived, with his guards trailing behind him.
I can't tell if this is a private visit or an official meeting!
I saluted while still wearing my Officer Academy Tracksuit. The others followed my lead, standing up to salute as well.
“Ahaha. This is just a private visit. Everyone, at ease.”
At Thomas’s command, everyone sat back down to eat. They were all acting ten times more refined than usual—especially the girls.
“Would you like some, Brother-in-law?”
“Oh, that looks good.”
“Your Highness!” the guard exclaimed, but Thomas silenced him with a smile.
“If there were assassins here, I would have been killed long ago. These people are warriors of that caliber. Come, join us.”
Nina brought over more okonomiyaki. She really was a capable woman.
“Leo, what do you think? Oh, this is delicious!”
“I just hope this isn't related to the Grand Chamberlain. It’s commoner food, you know.”
“I see. Does Veronica eat this kind of thing, too?”
“When we’re together, we eat the same things.”
Come to think of it, she ate the standard food on the ship without complaining. In that sense, my wifey was a rare member of the Imperial Family who actually understood common life.
Man, I really missed her.
“Leo, you cook as well, don't you?”
“I do when I’m on kitchen duty.”
“I think I finally understand why my expedition failed. I’ll protect you with everything I have. Don’t you worry.”
For some reason, Thomas was smiling.
It didn't feel like a death flag or anything. It was just that his demeanor had changed slightly. He seemed... softer than before.