Satose had been responsible for logistics ever since their time in the Dungeon World. She had managed an entire familia with flawless precision, which was exactly why Izumi trusted her.
Seeing her accept the task so readily, Izumi smiled and continued.
"Sona, I'm leaving the patrol operations to you."
"You can freely deploy the students and the younger members in the camp."
Entrusting patrols to the calm and tactical-minded Sona Sitri was undoubtedly the best decision.
She was a strategist by nature. There was no one more suitable.
Sona nodded firmly.
"I will carry out the mission without fail."
She was genuinely pleased by Izumi's trust. There was no way she would disappoint him.
"Megumi, I'll leave reconnaissance to you," Izumi said next.
"I'll release the Hassans. I'm counting on you to gather intelligence."
"If you encounter danger, retreat immediately. Don't get caught up in unnecessary battles. Understood?"
Megumi Katō nodded calmly.
"No problem. I know what to do."
She had grown much stronger now. She understood her role.
Izumi continued assigning tasks.
Rias Gremory was placed in charge of organizing the students and leading combat responses whenever the EXE World attacked.
Other roles were quickly distributed.
Matou Sakura and Natsuki Minamiya were assigned transportation of combat personnel. If enemies appeared, they would immediately use spatial magic to move fighters to the front lines.
Lefiya Viridis was tasked with gathering the mages and teaching them quick-deployment combat spells.
One by one, every position was filled.
No one was left idle.
After completing the assignments, Izumi turned to Asagi Aiba.
"Asagi, I'm leaving communications to you."
"Monitor the entire camp. If anything happens, report it to the relevant units immediately."
"If there's a problem anywhere, notify us at once."
Asagi nodded.
"Understood. I'll keep watch at all times."
With her overseeing everything, any issue would be detected instantly.
Once all preparations were complete, everyone moved to their positions.
The entire camp began operating like a giant machine.
To ensure Izumi's orders were transmitted efficiently, a small secretary team was even assigned to him.
It consisted of Vignette Tsukinose April and Yukino Yukinoshita.
Izumi could only sigh in exasperation at the arrangement, but he didn't refuse.
Even if their combat abilities were limited, they were extremely capable in administration and support.
After everyone settled into their roles, night fell completely.
The patrol teams led by Sona and her peerage departed.
Some of Izumi's younger elite fighters, who specialized in night operations, joined them.
Nighttime was always the most dangerous period.
Although many problems had been resolved on their first day, no one relaxed.
If nothing unexpected happened, the enemy would almost certainly launch a night raid.
Izumi had the power to crush this entire front line.
But he couldn't.
If he did, the EXE World would simply abandon this route and attack another dimensional gate.
That would place other fronts in grave danger.
If even one gate fell, their rear lines would be exposed.
That was unacceptable.
After a simple meal, everyone returned to their posts.
The students and younger members rested under the supervision of their teachers.
They needed to conserve strength for the battles ahead.
Around midnight—
Asagi was suddenly awakened by her AI.
At the same time, the camp's alarms blared.
The entire base lit up instantly.
After a brief moment of confusion, order was quickly restored.
Students grabbed their equipment and rushed out.
The moment the alarm sounded, Izumi had already awakened.
In an instant, he teleported to the outer perimeter.
There, not far from the camp, a massive army of mechanical soldiers and beasts was advancing.
Above them—
Several SS-ranked mechanical dragons hovered in the sky.
Without hesitation, Izumi spoke into the air.
"Asagi, have Sakura and Natsuki-sensei move everyone here."
"The enemy is here."
Asagi's voice immediately responded.
"Understood. Deploying now."
Watching the approaching tide of steel, Izumi didn't hesitate.
He soared into the air and launched his attack.
Behind him, massive black holes appeared one after another.
Energy gathered into spheres and shot forward.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
The first defensive battle of this front had begun.
Izumi was immediately targeted.
The mechanical dragons opened their jaws and fired destructive beams.
At the same time, Sakura and Natsuki began teleporting the combat forces.
The battle erupted instantly.
Izumi did not dodge.
Behind him was the camp.
If he avoided the attacks, the base would be destroyed.
He waved his hand.
Space itself split open.
A massive rift formed before him.
The dragons' attacks vanished into the crack.
The next moment—
They reappeared among the enemy forces.
BOOM!
Before they even reached Izumi, more than half of the invading army was annihilated.
Yet the mechanical army did not falter.
They felt no fear.
No pain.
They simply carried out their orders.
Even after losing half their numbers, they charged forward without hesitation.
Izumi frowned.
He hated enemies like this.
Fearless. Tireless. Completely obedient.
"…What a disgusting bunch."
The battle had only just begun.