Chapter 159: Handyman Cedric
Aside from a single pillow and a tiny mattress, nothing else was there. No table, chair...not even some random posters or something. There's a comfort room at least, but that's not entirely a good thing because this one's clogged and it reeks like a fucking sewer.
'Thank god I haven't eaten anything yet. Geez, disgusting freaks.' Cedric cursed whoever was the last user of this room.
He could totally change rooms to not deal with this. However, he already explored the entire complex with his senses and discovered that all the comfort rooms in the individual rooms were clogged. Those that aren't are already occupied.
Maybe it wasn't a good thing that he let the others choose the rooms first, cause now he has to deal with this.
Judging by the uncomfortable faces of his teammates, he figured that they probably don't know how to fix something like this, so yep, he's totally gonna have to deal with all of this.
'Thank god for small mercies.' Cedric sighed as he formed a symbol in the air which eliminated the foul smell.
He didn't have to be on his knees and get his hands dirty either since he could just make symbols to deal with this bullshit...literally.
It didn't even take him 10 minutes and the room was spotless and smelled like flowers once he was done with it. The comfort room was no longer clogged and was returned to its pristine condition. It's usable now, at the very least.
Since they were only staying here for two weeks, he didn't mind having only a pillow and a thin mattress. He doesn't need that much sleep anyway. He could totally last two whole weeks without sleeping so long as he could rest.
'Though, it wouldn't hurt to make this place a little more comfortable. After all, it's gonna be our home for the next two weeks.'
He understood that life on the frontlines was supposed to be horrible, but since he could make things a little easier and comfortable, why wouldn't he do so?
The ventilation of the room was poor, it didn't even have a window. has electricity, yes, but that's only after he fixed the fuse box. Even then, he could guess that even the simplest act of turning on the light here would make this room scalding hot.
How the previous tenants endured these living conditions was beyond him. Thankfully, he could change things and doesn't have to endure the same kind of discomfort.
An array formation solved everything that he didn't like in this room. All of a sudden, cold air swirled in the room causing him to sigh in relief. Even though there were no windows here, it was fine since the array was connected outside and could absorb winds and convert them into cold air to be supplied in his room.
'Free air conditioning, hell yeah!'
Once he had done this, he went outside to see his teammates looking troubled. He sighed to himself and took care of their problems as well. He copied what he did with his room to theirs. By the end of it, his teammates were looking at him like he was some kind of god.
He also took pity on the traumatized cadets and did the same to their rooms. Upon arriving at their respective rooms, he saw them sleeping uncomfortably, lying in a puddle of their sweat. Once he was done with his work though, he saw their expressions easing up and their breathing even.
Cedric only took care of the occupied rooms though. He didn't touch the rest since he didn't have to. From what Captain Silverwing said about the previous tenants of this place, they will most likely return whether they get promoted or not. They could handle it then. This wasn't his responsibility in the first place.
'Okay, the complex is mostly clean now. The bathrooms are useable, the problems of the occupied rooms have been fixed, and the electricity was working just fine.'
'I also added a formation which functions like a telephone line in each room connected to the rest of the complex. We could use it to communicate even without leaving our respective rooms. It's also more convenient to use since all it will take is a finger press.'
'There's a problem of food but we have rations, that should suffice for now. Still no gas, but we don't even have anything to cook so that can be solved later.'
'Overall, this isn't bad. This team's very lucky to have me.'
Cedric felt good about himself, though he didn't show it in his face.
He knows that things will only become more challenging from this point onwards but that's fine, he's ready to take it on. He doesn't know about his teammates though.
Since he had already taken care of most of the problems, he rested in his room and waited for the captain to call him into his office.
**
Knock Knock!
"Come in!" Cedric heard from the other side of the door.
He pushed the doors open and saw Captain Silverwing behind a desk buried in mountains of paperwork. He ignored the sight and saluted, then he said:
"#1 of the Cadet Troops, reporting for duty, Sir!"
"Ah, you're here." Silverwing didn't even look up and he didn't have to. Cedric already knew that the man sensed his presence as soon as he stepped inside this building.
The captain then stood up and took a stack of documents out of the nearby drawer. He then walked in front of his desk and handed the documents to Cedric.
"Study these properly and teach it to your team. I'll give you the entirety of tomorrow to do so. I will personally conduct your tests the day after. Fail, and I will reduce the Merit Points you receive. Understood?"
"Sir, yes Sir!" Cedric replied vigorously.
"Good. And here."
Silverwing handed him a tiny blue bead with a hole through it. A look of confusion appeared on Cedric's face as he received it.
"This is the tool we use to call the Hellhounds," Silversing explained seeing his confusion. "The hounds will not answer your calls even if you perfectly mimic the sound if you didn't use this to make it. This information is confidential so don't go around spreading it, you hear?"
"Yes, Sir!"
"I believe that with your memory, you already memorized the tune?" Silverwing asked to which Cedric nodded. "Good. Use that tune along with this to summon the hounds if you need them. Play it for longer and you will summon a bigger one to play with you."
Cedric's eyes glittered in recognition. He knew what Silverwing was trying to say.
The hounds, or Hellhounds as they're properly called, were True Demons. This, he already discovered this as soon he laid eyes on them. At first, he was surprised to see the army using actual demons as tools to instill terror in their people but from what he observed so far, the hounds were all enslaved.
Each one has a collar that has a very complicated formation engraved on it. Cedric counted at least several thousand symbols weaved meticulously in that formation. It's a slave collar, that's why they weren't killed and used as tools instead.
Cedric's 『Demon Lore』 allowed him to view the database of Demons straight out of Acala's folders. Of course, he knew about the Hellhounds. He also knew the 'bigger one' that Silverwing was talking about and that's why he's shocked.
'To think that they could enslave that rowdy thing too...'
"Like I said earlier, you are in charge of your squad. Your first patrol is scheduled by the end of this week and they are right now, there is a huge chance that your squad won't return intact."
"The situation beyond these walls is complicated. Even we couldn't predict everything that's gonna happen. Therefore, you can only rely on your skills and strength to fend for your own."
"As the Interim Squad Leader, you should help your team increase their overall survival chance. Because if you don't, you will be one of the responsible parties that caused them to die."
Silverwing crossed his arms and continued: "I've read about your file. I know that you are impressive. I also know that you are capable of doing more. I have no doubts that you are one of the people in your entire batch who treats this experience as a smelting trial - a way to become stronger."
"You study Field Command, and even though you haven't even come halfway through your first academic year, you should've learned a thing or two already."
"Aside from being the strongest of your batch, this is also one of the main reasons why I put you in this position. And I'll be expecting decent results from you. Am I clear?"
"Sir, yes Sir! I will do my best." Cedric wouldn't lie, he's flattered by Silverwing's trust in him.
"I know you will," Silverwing smirked. "Alright, you have everything you need. Now, shoo. I have mountains of paperwork to deal with."