When the first-year students returned to the camp and received the orders passed down by Izumi, they all looked at each other awkwardly.
Among them, Hayama Hayato, who happened to be in the same class as Izumi, forced out an embarrassed smile.
"So… it seems Izumi-kun thinks we're too weak."
He scratched the back of his head.
"Looks like we'll be stuck doing odd jobs from now on."
Hearing that, the others could only sigh helplessly.
After all… it was the truth.
They were simply too weak.
At that moment, Hikigaya Hachiman spoke up with his usual dry tone.
"Honestly, this is already a pretty good deal."
"If we were assigned to another corridor, we'd probably have been cannon fodder by now."
He shrugged.
"Think about that attack earlier. Without Izumi-senpai and people like Le Fay holding the line…"
"There's no guarantee we'd even be alive right now."
Unlike the others, Hachiman saw the situation very clearly.
He had absolutely no complaints about Izumi's arrangement.
With their level of strength, they couldn't really contribute much to combat anyway.
Instead of throwing them into battle, Izumi had assigned them to clean up the battlefield.
That was already generous treatment.
Even if they were part of the so-called elite class, compared to second- and third-year students, they were still lacking.
In fact, even some of the upperclassmen had to help with cleanup and finishing blows.
Hayama nodded slowly after hearing Hachiman's words.
"I know that."
He sighed.
"It's just… frustrating."
"I thought I could help. But it turns out I can't do anything at all."
After all, anyone who came to the battlefield hoped to accomplish something.
But right now?
They didn't even have the opportunity.
Hachiman snorted dismissively.
"Oh please."
"Instead of worrying about achievements, maybe focus on how to stay alive."
"Izumi-senpai already gave us a chance to survive. Don't waste it."
With that, he turned and walked away without looking back.
Beside him, Totsuka Saika hurried to catch up.
For Hachiman, survival mattered far more than glory.
Because if you died—
Nothing else mattered.
Hayama watched them leave and sighed quietly.
Still, he didn't argue.
Deep down, he understood Izumi's intention.
This arrangement was meant to keep them alive.
No one in the camp was foolish enough to run up to Izumi and demand to participate in frontline combat.
After all—
No one wanted to die.
However…
Izumi's real intention was something entirely different.
He simply wanted to free up his "loli squad" from doing cleanup work.
That was all.
As for protecting the lives of those students?
He hadn't even thought about it.
Whether they lived or died had nothing to do with him.
If they died, they died.
Not his responsibility.
After all, he wasn't the one killing them.
If Izumi ever heard their assumptions, he would probably complain endlessly about it.
...
After repelling the previous attack and issuing his orders, Izumi returned to the camp.
Then he casually went back to rest—
Holding Ophis and Avrora as pillows.
...
The next morning arrived quickly.
The camp became lively early in the day.
The logistics team had already been organized the previous night, so breakfast preparations started at dawn.
After everyone finished eating, training resumed immediately.
Various instructors began teaching combat techniques and spells at full speed.
They no longer held anything back.
Whether the students could learn them or not…
That was their own problem.
This was a battlefield, not a classroom.
Special circumstances required special measures.
If someone managed to learn a skill, that meant a higher chance of survival.
If they failed to improve…
They had no one to blame but themselves.
Meanwhile, the patrol teams strengthened their surveillance around the camp.
But Izumi didn't stop there.
While patrols were ongoing, he also had Katō Megumi lead a group of Hassan spirits to scout further and further outward.
Little by little—
Their territory expanded.
Watching this strange strategy, Rias Gremory couldn't help but feel speechless.
"Are you serious about this?"
"You're expanding our territory?"
"What if they attack again?"
"If the area gets too large, we won't be able to defend it!"
Izumi chuckled lightly.
"That's nothing to worry about."
"The bigger the territory, the better."
He smiled calmly.
"Besides, the forces under my command aren't limited to the people you see here."
As he spoke, a pleased expression appeared on his face.
After all—
He still had an entire army of Heroic Spirits.
If the territory grew larger?
That was perfect.
When the time came, he could simply summon the magi from the Type-Moon world and occupy the entire region.
Hearing this, Rias fell silent.
"If you say so."
"Just don't end up playing yourself into a corner."
Izumi waved his hand dismissively.
"Relax."
"I know what I'm doing."
After all—
Between Izumi, Ophis, and Avrora…
They had three SSS-class powerhouses.
If even that wasn't enough to secure a single corridor—
Izumi might as well go back home and become a farmer.
And so…
Izumi's forces slowly expanded outward.
At the same time, they reinforced their defensive perimeter.
The camp's territory grew larger and larger.
During this period, the EXE World launched several more attacks.
But each one was easily repelled.
As Izumi's territory continued to expand—
The living space of the mechanical lifeforms of the EXE World grew smaller and smaller.
Naturally, this unusual situation soon attracted the attention of Regalzeva.
Inside a massive palace within the EXE World—
Regalzeva received the latest frontline reports.
A hint of surprise appeared in his mechanical eyes.
"How interesting."
"It seems Corridor No. 4 has produced a rather remarkable individual."
As he spoke, he began running calculations.
Moments later—
He reached a conclusion.
"…Perhaps this is an opportunity."
In his eyes, Izumi looked like a reckless upstart.
He had fought the DxD World many times before.
But none of their commanders behaved like this.
Normally, once they captured territory, they would reinforce their defenses and focus on resisting attacks.
Yet Izumi was doing the opposite—
He was boldly expanding his camp and slowly devouring the territory of the EXE World.
If Regalzeva sent a powerful subordinate now…
Perhaps they could break through and invade the opposite world directly.
The more he calculated, the more feasible the plan seemed.
He had already obtained Izumi's information.
The frontline reports included detailed data about him.
His power level was comparable to Great Red—
But in Regalzeva's eyes, that was all.
With that thought, he stood up and walked toward a massive chamber.
Inside stood a gigantic humanoid machine over five meters tall.
Regalzeva looked up at it.
"Lugatium II."
"This should be the perfect chance for you to test your strength."
After the original Lugatium had been destroyed by Izumi in a single strike, Regalzeva had reconstructed a new version using its database.
Not only did this mechanical giant inherit Lugatium's abilities—
It had also been further enhanced.
This was the greatest advantage of mechanical lifeforms.
Even if they were destroyed—
As long as the data remained,
They could always be rebuilt again.