That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Charming Demon

Humanity and Monsters

They all sat there quietly, awaiting Hinata's arrival. Several paladins were stationed behind each commanding officer, the rest of the two divisions remaining on their feet in their assorted gear.

Soon, the heavy door creaked open.

"Sorry to keep you. Let us begin." Hinata said once she entered the room and with that, the meeting commenced.

Behind Hinata, shaded by some bamboo blinds, the Holy Emperor Louis was taking in the joint conference at his seat next to him, the Godly Messanger Sophie. But just as proceedings were set to begin, Saare immediately threw them into disorder.

"Whoa, whoa, where do you get off being late? Not only did you fail to keep Veldora from waking up, but you even let a new demon lord be born. And you're the fool representing us? If this is a joke, I'm not laughing." Saare said in an annoying tone.

Even though Hinata was the acknowledged leader, not all her soldiers were particularly enthusiastic about the orders they carried out. Having lost his position as their leader, Saare was the head of the anti-Hinata faction.

"You are being rude, Sir Saare," Renard coldly stated.

Arnaud nodded to his fellow paladin. "He's right, boy. If you have an issue with our captain, I'd happily work it out with you."

"Oh," Grigori fired back from his seat next to Saare, "you fancy-pants knights wanna start a fight with us? Awfully pretentious of you, considering you only act that way around opponents polite enough to lose on purpose!"

"What?"

"You seem interested in a quick death."

The meeting had grown almost immediately intense.

Hinata's face did not change after hearing how insulted she was and how her fellow knights were, too. None of them seem to remember in whose presence they are. More importantly, being mocked in front of Sophie left a distasteful taste in her mouth.

"How could you, as the representatives of the God Luminous, let minor feelings such as envy guide you? Saare, do I need to make you remember what responsibility your rank brings with it?" Sophie's voice rang from behind the curtain through the room.

Any single one of the Holy Knights present felt the pressure coming from the words of the Godly Messanger. They instantly fell into silence, and even Saare, the brat, didn't dare talk back at her.

"I don't care about your opinions towards me but remember what we have to do and that you are in the presence of the Holy Emperor Louis and the Godly Messanger Sophie" Hinata declared

"Saare, if you'd like to take my place up here, you're welcome to my seat anytime. I'll need to test you out first, though. Keep that in mind." Hinata added clearly-she knew she would win.

Hinata's words went beyond mere frustration and well into the realm of murderous intent-if they kept carrying on, she was fully prepared to start slashing away.

The audience was smart enough to pick up on that. It was rare for her to show that much emotion.

"It is true that I've let that slime glitch through my fingers. Even more important now is how we are going to deal with this." Hinata said

"Good for us is that the forest was a perfect picture of peace. Despite Veldora's resurrection, I spotted groups of merchants entering and exiting the area." Litus began her report of her scouting work.

"How is that working? Are they engaging in trade with the demon lord?"

"We should think about Veldora first. The records say he is extremely belligerent, causing a swath of destruction wherever he goes, but I haven't seen any sign of that yet."