Chapter Text
What a disaster of a meeting.
Immediately upon the conclusion of the commanders’ conference, I exit the council room, not wanting to linger long enough for one of the other attendees to try to involve me in some scheme or their plans for the upcoming battle.
As I walk towards my office, I realize that recently, I have had no chances to let my mind wander besides these all too brief periods of transit. Not that it particularly matters, since anything I can think about merely adds to my stress, though Bloe’s most recent outburst stands out in that regard. Nontheless, this is what my mind turns to as I traverse the long and empty corridors of the Demon Lord's castle.
After such a show, of course I am fraught with worry over his well-being. However, recent times have prevented me from taking any action to address such concerns. One might look back on my previous attempts to rein him in and deem that I have become discouraged, blaming my past failure for my current inaction. This assessment would be incorrect. Though I admit it is disheartening, Bloe’s stubbornness is not the core of the issue. The truth of the matter is yet more insurmountable; the work required of me by the Demon Lord simply leaves me no time to act. Even the walk to my office has already come to an end. Alone, I let out a sigh I wasn’t aware I had been holding as I enter and seat myself at my desk.
In my office, I begin to arrange the papers required to formalize the deployments that were decided in the meeting. Although I recognize the Demon Lord’s overwhelming power, the fact remains that she has left nearly all administrative matters to myself, leaving me to wither away under mountains of paperwork. In fear of what might happen were I to refuse, I carry on nonetheless.
Some hours later, as I begin to fill out the forms relating to the 5th army’s deployment, I receive a knock on my closed office door, to my dismay.
“Come in.”
As the door opens, I continue to work, not raising my gaze. However, after several moments of silence, I look up to see a greatly unexpected visitor in the form of Lady White. Though far from a common occurrence, she has visited me before with requests, but never before has she had the courtesy to knock, normally opting to simply teleport into the room.
To be frank, Lady White is perhaps even more terrifying than the Demon Lord herself. When we first met, I judged her a lesser threat, as she did not stand out nearly to the degree of her other companions. Knowing her as I now do, though an incomplete picture it may be, I cannot help but wonder how I ever took her lightly.
Though I have never seen her abilities firsthand beyond her clear mastery of dimensional magic, the work she often leaves to me paints a horrifying picture of what she is capable of. Though she has yet to burden me with any affairs directly related to the 10th army, since and even before she was established as its commander the things she has emotionlessly asked me to cover up have ranged from disturbing to outright appalling. Though I know not the means by which she executes her schemes, she is unmistakably a force to be reckoned with.
This is all to say nothing of the sheer pressure her mere presence exerts on those around her. Her words are carefully calculated to never reveal more than is absolutely necessary. Her movements are elegant, yet subtly unnatural, evoking some ancient instinct which insists that her humanoid form is a deception. Although her eyes never open, one can feel them gazing into their very soul should she deign to direct her attention towards them. In contrast, it requires great effort to even perceive her beyond the overwhelming whiteness of her skin, her hair, and her attire.
In the face of her appearance before me, without knowing what she has come to request of me, and seeing no intent on her end to break the unnerving silence that so often accompanies her presence, I am left with no choice but to steel my resolve and ask what her business is.
"Lady White, do you require something of me?"
After several more moments, she speaks in monotone, her face inscrutable through her unchanging expression and ever-closed eyes.
“Do your best, Balto.”
Stunned, I fail to reply. During my stupor, Lady White speaks once more.
“Never give up, Balto.”
And with that parting phrase, she vanishes as abruptly as she normally appears.
Truly, I can never be certain of what is going through Lady White’s mind.