"I'm sleepy now," Levi declared, his voice flat, his gaze still fixed on Riku. The chilling pronouncement hung in the air, underscoring the gravity of the situation he'd just laid bare. Without another word, he turned, his figure a stark silhouette against the bonfire's distant glow. Before he vanished into the night, he tossed one last command over his shoulder. "Thin out the crowd. Don't let our general have any more... trouble."
With a silent shimmer, the scouts dispersed, flowing towards the throng of women like an encroaching tide.
"heard what commander Levi said?," one of the leading scout said.
The women began to disperse, their jealous murmurs replaced by uneasy rustling as they grudgingly retreated.
A smaller group of scouts converged on Erina. "Go back to where the other girls are sleeping," one of them instructed, her voice devoid of malice but firm. "It's for your own safety."
Erina, no longer playing the part of the smitten lover, turned to Riku, her earlier amusement replaced by a very real, slightly annoyed expression. "My reward?" she whispered, her eyes narrowed. "What about my tea leaves and my new clothes, Riku? And those favors?"
Riku met her gaze, his own exhaustion and frustration evident. "You're not getting any," he stated bluntly, the words cutting through the tension. "You just narrowly avoided being assassinated by my fan club, Erina. Consider your survival your reward."
Erina let out a frustrated huff, but she didn't argue further. She shot him a look that promised future reckoning, then turned and stalked off into the thinning crowd, disappearing among the last few retreating figures.
Soon, the tent was quiet again, the immediate threat of the 'adoring public' gone. Only one scout remained by Riku's side, she was Shirline.
As Riku began to process the night's events, another scout, Ember, drifted back to the tent opening. "General," Ember's voice resonated, a low, smooth tone, "are you uncomfortable with Shirline being here? Since she's also... a girl. We can have her removed if you wish."
Riku looked at Shirline, who remained utterly still. He felt no strange pull, no unsettling 'charm' effect. Her presence was simply... calm. Practical. "No," Riku replied, his voice tired. "I don't have any problem with her."
"Understood," Ember 'rogered,' he went outside, leaving Riku alone with the silent, ever-watchful Shirline, surrounded by the unsettling quiet of the newly settled village. The fire still crackled outside, and the sounds of distant construction hummed, but for Riku, the night felt long, and the path ahead, uncertain.
The quiet of the tent, broken only by the distant hum of the village and the crackle of the bonfire, settled around Riku and Shirline. The unspoken tension of the earlier drama still lingered in the air, but with Shirline, there was a different kind of calm. Her presence was a grounding force, silent and unwavering.
"Shirline," Riku began, his voice low, "report on the village's status." He needed to refocus, to push aside the absurdity of his personal predicament and return to the relentless march of the Great War.
"General, the basic shelters are complete. Water collection is underway, and a provisional sanitation system has been established. Food rations are sufficient for the next three days. Morale, despite recent... events," she paused, a faint, almost imperceptible tremor in her voice that Riku interpreted as amusement, "is stable due to the festivities."
"And defenses?" Riku pressed, leaning forward.
"The outer perimeter is being marked," Shirline reported. "We've identified key choke points and natural barriers. Preliminary plans for watchtowers and basic fortifications are being drawn up. However, General, our long-term defensive capabilities remain limited without more resources and time."
Riku nodded slowly. "I know. We need to consolidate. What's the status of the other races? Any new movements, any changes in their territories?"
"No significant shifts in the last 24 hours," Shirline confirmed. "The Disguise network remains intact, providing sporadic updates. The Old Deus continue their skirmishes, their energies flaring across the continent. The Phantasma remain largely isolated. The Dragons... they hold their skies. No clear signs of immediate large-scale offensives from any major faction targeting our current location. It seems our sudden appearance went largely unnoticed, or perhaps, dismissed as a minor anomaly."
Riku ran a hand over his face. "Dismissed. For now. But they won't dismiss us forever. What about the Ex Machina? Any new sightings, any unusual energy signatures from their network?" He asked the question, as he always did, the hope and dread warring within him.
"Negative, General," Shirline said. "No new data on the Ex Machina network activity that deviates from their standard operational patterns. They remain a constant, low-level threat, highly efficient in their resource gathering and tactical eliminations."
A heavy sigh escaped Riku. Schwi. Always Schwi. His deepest, most private mission. He still couldn't bring himself to explain it to his people, not fully. Not when the System remained a hidden, omnipresent threat.
"General," Shirline continued, "the calculations indicate that our current position, while remote, is strategically viable for short-term consolidation. However, resource scarcity will become a critical issue within the next two weeks. We require stable access to metal ores, advanced refining capabilities, and a more diverse food source."
"I understand," Riku murmured. "Any news from the scouts who went to gather resources?." He felt the exhaustion begin to creep in, a profound weariness that went beyond mere physical exertion. The weight of his responsibilities, the constant internal battles, the endless strategic calculations, all pressed down on him.
"They'll probably come tomorrow." She said
"Shirline," he said, his voice softer, "what are your observations on the village morale? Beyond the surface-level stability?"
Shirline's form seemed to slightly shift, a subtle acknowledgement of the deeper question. "Beneath the relief, there is fear, General. Uncertainty about the future. A longing for permanence that this nomadic existence denies. And... a heightened emotional state among the female population." There was that slight, almost imperceptible tremor again. "Your presence, General, acts as both a unifying factor and a point of considerable, sometimes volatile, contention."
Riku groaned. "Yes, I'm aware of that" He let out a dry, humorless chuckle.
Riku leaned back, closing his eyes. "Just... let me get some rest, Shirline. My brain feels like it's been put through a meat grinder."
"Understood, General," Shirline responded
Riku opened his eyes just as Shirline completely vanished, leaving him alone in the quiet tent. He was sleepy, utterly, deeply sleepy. The weight of the world, and the ridiculousness of his life, finally threatened to pull him under. He lay back on his bedroll, staring at the canvas ceiling, the soft hum of the village outside a constant reminder of the fragile life he was fighting to protect. And somewhere, in the vastness of Disboard, the Ex Machina continued their cold, efficient existence, with no memory of a golden-eyed leader who still carried a broken promise in his heart.