My name was Delian. I was a man of the demon race and served as a Deputy Chief of Staff in the Demon Kingdom Army.
Deputy Chief of Staff... To be honest, it was a title I didn't quite understand. My vague understanding suggested I was meant to command the military, but how did that differ from being a General? Or a Strategist? I could tell from the name that I was supposed to be second to the Chief of Staff, but the Demon Kingdom didn't actually have a Chief of Staff. I didn't even know what such a person was supposed to do.
And yet, there were four of us holding that title.
The Demon Kingdom was rife with these mysterious positions—the Four Heavenly Kings, Lieutenant Generals, Colonels, Consuls, and so on. I knew the reason, of course. We had simply adopted the titles used by the Ancient Devils and the Ancient Kingdoms we once fought. Or rather, someone decided those titles sounded prestigious, so we mimicked them without knowing their actual functions.
In practice, using these titles was surprisingly effective during negotiations. However, it created a massive disconnect between a person’s actual duties and their perceived status. In an extreme case, you might have a common soldier calling himself a Grand General. While we might laugh about it internally, it caused endless friction during external diplomacy. Our titles were losing all credibility.
To fix this, the Demon Kingdom had been trying to reorganize the hierarchy for a long time. The prime example was the Four Heavenly Kings. Very early on, they were designated as the Demon King’s special assistants—the most important figures after the King himself. That was a successful reorganization.
As for the rest? Well, you could probably guess how it was going based on the fact that my own title was still a mystery. It hadn't been sorted out yet.
But honestly, I thought we were doing a decent job. If anyone wanted to call us "laid-back," I’d invite them to try it themselves. Could you imagine telling someone, "Your title doesn't match reality, so stop using it"? Or worse, "I’m going to assign you work that matches your self-proclaimed title"?
Families had been using those titles for generations. Telling them to stop would cause an immediate, messy conflict. Even I would have resisted. No matter how nonsensical the title, one develops an attachment to it. Besides, I was the adjutant to General Gratz, the man who commanded the entire Demon Kingdom Army. The title of Deputy Chief of Staff wasn't entirely inaccurate for someone in my shoes. At least, that was what I chose to believe. Pointing out the discrepancies was a quick way to get everyone to hate you.
Regardless, titles didn't matter right now. What mattered was the lecture before me.
Village Five had requested an explanation of the Demon Kingdom’s military, which led to this event. Normally, someone of my rank wouldn't bother with such a thing, but I had volunteered. In exchange—if you could call it that—I had requested that the Village Head of the Village of the Great Tree attend. I’d thought it was a long shot, but the Village Head actually showed up. I owed a debt of gratitude to the Lord Demon King and Lord Beezel for that.
General Gratz being here was a surprise, but it was fine. With the Village Head in the room, my primary goal was already half-finished. Now, I just had to get through the material concisely. I addressed my main students: Lilius, Rigul, and Ratte. I promised to keep things simple and easy to understand. They gave me a spirited response, which made me want to do my best for them.
The lecture focused on the military system of the Demon Kingdom and how our forces were structured. Broadly speaking, there were two types of military forces: the Regular Army employed by the kingdom and the Territorial Armies led by nobles and Tribal Chiefs.
The Regular Army was built through state recruitment, consisting of the First through Twenty-ninth Armies, plus the Royal Guards. Our total numbers exceeded two million. While I wanted to say they were all full-time soldiers, that really only applied to the Royal Guards and the First, Second, and Third Armies—about three hundred thousand men in total.
The First through Seventh Armies served as our main invasion force, while the others were defensive units stationed across various regions. The size of each unit varied wildly, so it was important to pay attention to the details. The Royal Guards were independent, answering directly to the Lord Demon King. Moving a massive army was an ordeal; you couldn't just snap your fingers and have them ready to march. It took weeks of preparation. Because of that, the Royal Guards existed as a flexible force the Demon King could deploy immediately whenever necessary. Within the army, being part of the Royal Guards was considered a supreme honor.
Then there were the Territorial Armies. These were composed of conscripts raised by nobles or the various races and tribes that followed the Demon Kingdom. Their total numbers were estimated to be between three and five million. The range was so wide because, frankly, no one knew the exact count. We just handled it with a vague "close enough" attitude. Did that cause problems? Absolutely. It was a nightmare. If you didn't know how many soldiers you had, you didn't know how much food to bring. Usually, we just over-prepared and hoped for the best.
However, the Demon Kingdom Army faced a much larger hurdle: we were a multi-species nation. I asked the boys if they understood why that was a problem.
Lilius was the first to answer. He suggested that equipment couldn't be standardized. He was exactly right. Standardizing gear was nearly impossible when you had so many different races. Even for a simple spear, you had to craft different versions for different hands. Some races couldn't even wield spears at all.
Rigul added another point: different movement speeds. He hit the nail on the head. Strides varied by body size, and some races could use horses while others couldn't. Centaurs were incredibly fast, but other units couldn't dream of keeping up. It was a logistical disaster.
Ratte guessed that language was the issue. He was close. The Common Tongue had largely bridged that gap, though a few races still struggled. I pushed him to think broader.
"Cultural differences," he realized.
That was it. Everything from diets to sleep cycles varied. It was almost impossible to get everyone to act in unison. But the worst part was their attitude toward combat. The discrepancies were staggering. Some would run if they were outnumbered, others refused to fight if they were grouped with different races. Some only wanted to snipe from a distance, while others insisted on a bloody melee.
That much was manageable, but it got worse. There were those who only listened to the strongest person in the room, those who charged when told to wait, and those who charged when told to retreat. Some wouldn't stop until they collapsed from exhaustion, and some would literally stop for a tea break in the middle of a battle.
I could see the skepticism on their faces, but I assured them it was true. These races existed, and they were part of our army. How did we conduct a war with such a chaotic mix? Under normal circumstances, you couldn't.
But we had no choice. Humans had come at us with the intent to exterminate every non-human soul. We had to fight back. So, we prioritized communication above all else. We tried to bridge cultural gaps and racial quirks through dialogue. We respected each culture while trying to find the right placement and instructions for every unit.
It wasn't as easy as I made it sound. Commanders changed frequently due to the realities of war, and even members of the same race didn't always act the same way. The personality of the commander was everything. Because of that, the military's upper brass had to be in constant contact with the field officers.
I looked at the Village Head. "Have you followed everything so far?" I asked. General Gratz tried to interrupt, but I told him to wait for the Q&A session.
Once I was sure the Village Head was with me, I moved to the real point.
"I have a bit of a predicament," I explained. "A certain General has stopped attending the necessary gatherings for our commanders, claiming his family is too important. While we call these events dinner parties or drinking sessions, they are actually vital for communication. It isn't just fun and games."
I understood the importance of family—I valued my own—but networking with fellow officers was part of the job. It was a problem for everyone if he skipped out, especially since he was the most effective commander we had.
I was talking about General Gratz. For the last few years, he’d been rushing home early every single day. His presence at the Royal Castle had dwindled significantly. The other commanders were getting restless; they didn't like being led by someone they never saw, and Gratz had been flatly refusing to socialize.
I looked directly at the Village Head. "As for why I’m telling you this... well, General Gratz mentioned that you were the one who told him he should prioritize his wife above all else."
The Village Head seemed to realize the situation. I thanked him for his understanding and asked him to handle the matter. I promised to get back to the lecture for the boys.
My goal was achieved. Even the Demon King and Beezel had been worried about Gratz's recent behavior. I hoped this would finally fix things.
I apologized for the detour and moved on to the next topic: conscription methods within the Demon Kingdom. The lecture ended smoothly after that. Lilius and his brothers were incredibly inquisitive, which was refreshing. Part of me wished they’d join the army one day, though I knew that was unlikely.
In the end, thanks to the Village Head's intervention, General Gratz began attending the commanders' gatherings again. It was a massive relief, and the other officers were thrilled to have him back.
However, there was one thing that caught my attention. Gratz had started visiting the Noble Academy almost every day. He’d visited before, of course, but now it was constant. I wondered if he had somehow managed to bring his wife there. If that was the case, I didn't see why he had to be so secretive about it.