Chapter 54 - 3rd Commander
Captain Rol stood in the vast, polished lobby of the National Exterminator Agency Headquarters in Area 5. The building was an architectural marvel, all sweeping glass and dark steel, humming with the quiet, terrifying efficiency of the most powerful organization on the continent.
Currently, Rol was trying very hard not to look annoyed.
He stood in front of one of the twelve identical front desks that lined the eastern wall. Behind it, a sharply dressed attendant was looking at him with a strained, twitching smile.
"Captain Rol," she said, her voice perfectly polite but carrying an edge of practiced exhaustion. "I am verifying the system now. Yes. It appears you have been summoned."
"For the fourth time," Rol said flatly. "In three days."
"Yes, sir," she confirmed, tapping a holographic screen. "And this time... it’s a direct summons from the 3rd Commander."
Rol’s grey eyes widened a fraction. The 3rd Commander. One of the ten S-Rank Exterminators in the entire country. The top brass usually didn’t bother with debriefings unless something had gone spectacularly wrong, or someone was about to get fired. Or killed.
"Understood," Rol sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Twentieth floor?"
"Yes, Captain. The executive elevator is waiting for you."
Rol turned away from the desk and walked down the wide, brightly lit corridor toward the executive lifts. He was a B-Rank veteran, a man who had stared down Calamity beasts without blinking, but the idea of facing an S-Rank Commander made his stomach churn. The NEA command structure wasn’t known for its forgiving nature.
He reached the elevator, pressed his palm against the scanner, and the thick metal doors slid open silently. He stepped inside and turned around.
Just as the doors began to close, a hand shot into the gap, forcing them back open.
A woman stepped into the lift.
Rol blinked, his breath catching in his throat for a split second.
It was Claire V. Bronn.
She wore a full black, body-tight suit that left absolutely nothing to the imagination, the front zipper pulled down just far enough to be a distraction. Her long blonde hair tumbled over her shoulders, the tips fading into a striking red that matched her piercing, dangerous eyes. She looked stunning, professional, and entirely out of his league.
"Claire," Rol said, his voice coming out a little rougher than he intended.
She turned, her red eyes landing on him, and a genuine, easy smile spread across her face. "Rol. It’s been a while. How long has it been? Three years since the academy?"
"Four," Rol corrected automatically, feeling a faint, embarrassing warmth rise to his cheeks. He quickly looked up at the floor indicator, mentally cursing himself. They had been in the same Exterminator training class. Even back then, he’d had a massive, secret crush on her. She had always been at the top of the class, effortlessly brilliant, while he had been the sturdy, dependable guy who took a few too many hits.
"Four years," Claire mused, leaning against the glass wall of the elevator. "And look at you. Captain of your own response unit. Moving up in the world."
"You’re one rank above me, Major," Rol pointed out, forcing a chuckle. "And I thought you were working out of the Geo Ford Extermination Agency?"
Claire’s smile turned a little sharper. "I was. Temporary assignment. The NEA needed someone to keep an eye on certain developments in Area 17. Now I’m back where I belong."
Rol nodded, trying to ignore how good she smelled. "So, what brings you to the twentieth floor? Finally getting your own command?"
Claire’s expression sobered, the playful banter dropping away instantly. "The spot dungeon in the Northern District. The three-star."
Rol’s posture straightened. "You’ve been summoned for that too?"
"I read your preliminary report, Rol," Claire said softly, her red eyes locking onto his. "The unregistered humanoid. The Crowned Beast."
"The directors think I’m crazy," Rol grunted, crossing his arms. "They think it’s an anomalous Calamity Lord. I was standing twenty feet from it, Claire. I’ve been reading mana signatures for eleven years. That wasn’t a beast. I don’t know what it was, but it wasn’t a beast."
Claire looked at the elevator doors. She knew the truth. She knew exactly who the Crowned Beast was. Hide Volter. The boy she and Annie had interrogated just weeks ago, the boy who possessed an S-Rank potential class with no talent. But her report on Hide had gone directly to the Commander—it was classified above Rol’s clearance.
"The 3rd Commander read your report too," Claire said smoothly, changing the subject. "He wants to hear it from you personally."
Ding.
The elevator stopped at the twentieth floor. The doors slid open to reveal a massive, opulent hallway lined with dark wood and gold accents.
They walked side by side in silence until they reached the heavy, double oak doors at the end of the hall. The brass plaque on the wall read: Commander Maddox. 3rd Division.
Rol took a breath, preparing himself to face one of the most powerful and intimidating men on the continent. He reached out and pushed the doors open.
The office inside was massive, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a panoramic view of Area 5.
Behind a sprawling mahogany desk sat the 3rd Commander.
He looked incredibly young—barely in his early twenties—with messy, unkempt hair and a relaxed, boyish face. And currently, there was a young, very flustered secretary sitting sideways across his lap, her hands busy unbuttoning her blouse.
Rol froze, his brain completely stalling.
Maddox blinked a couple of times, looking from the half-undressed girl on his lap to the two Exterminators standing in his doorway.
There was a moment of absolute, deafening silence.
Maddox looked down at the girl and offered a bright, completely unapologetic smile.
The girl let out a mortified squeak, scrambled off his lap, hastily pulled her blouse together, and sprinted past Rol and Claire out of the room, her face burning bright red.
Maddox sighed, leaning back in his expensive leather chair and resting his boots on the desk. "Shame," he muttered. "We were just getting to the paperwork."
Claire marched forward, slammed both of her hands down flat on his mahogany desk, and glared at him.
"You are nearing your hundreds, old man," Claire snapped, her red eyes flashing. "Have you absolutely no shame?"
Maddox coughed, bringing his boots down and placing his hands neatly on the desk. He looked at them with the innocent expression of a scolded child.
"I think I taught you both to knock before storming into a room," Maddox said cheerfully. "No? Did I forget that lesson at the academy?"
Rol finally found his voice, a weary smile breaking through his professional mask. Maddox had been their combat instructor back in the training classes. He had looked exactly the same back then.
"You’re as shameless as ever, Commander," Rol said, walking up to stand beside Claire.
"And you’re as stiff as ever, Rol," Maddox laughed, leaning forward and resting his chin on his hands. The playful, boyish demeanor suddenly slipped away, replaced by the heavy, suffocating pressure of an S-Rank powerhouse.
"Now," Maddox said, his voice dropping an octave, turning deadly serious. "Let’s talk about this Crowned Beast of yours."