The recruits stood at attention, sweat already dripping down their foreheads despite the cold and dreary winter day.

"Your first task will be to follow me as we circle through the outskirts of the town, running through the snow-covered clearing.

"Eura, I'll leave the rear to you," I ordered to Eura, who was wearing revealing clothes despite the cold, which drew some scoffs and whispers from the other soldiers.

Eura stepped forward with a smirk, her long black hair falling over her shoulders. "You got it, Commander," she said, her voice filled with confidence.

We set off, our boots crunching in the snow as we circled around the town. The recruits struggled to keep up with my pace, their breaths coming out in heaving gasps as they tried to push through the cold and the physical strain.

I was too, but I didn't show it. Instead, I kept a steady, strong pace, my eyes scanning the area around us for any signs of danger.

As we emerged from the town's outskirts and into the snow-covered clearing, I noticed only eight recruits could keep up. Still, I kept going with them, knowing that every soldier was valuable in a battle.

We marched further, and soon the cold started to penetrate through our bones. I could see my breaths as I exhaled and felt my fingers starting to numb despite the gloves I had on.

It took some time, but we finally reached the starting point. The recruits who kept up with me collapsed in the snow, panting and gasping for air. I gave them a few minutes to catch their breaths before addressing them.

"Good work. You all did well to keep up with me," I said. My voice was firm and commanding.

"My Lord, if I may dare to ask... are you truly human?"

The question caught me off-guard. I turned to face the recruit who dared to ask me that. She was a young woman, probably no more than 20 years old. Her eyes were fixated on me, and I could see the fear and awe in them.

"Why do you ask?" I replied, doing my best to keep my tone neutral.

"Well, you've been leading us through the snow for some time without any sign of fatigue or struggle. And even in this freezing temperature, you don't seem bothered at all. It's just... impressive, my lord. Your body looks like a child, but everything else... how do I say it... mature?"

I smiled at the young man, amused by his curiosity. "Let's just say that I'm a bit different than most humans," I said cryptically.

The truth was, I wasn't entirely human, considering there was a Devil Slime living inside my body. But of course, it wasn't necessary to tell the recruit that. The Atlas System announced the Devil Slime as a "threat to the world." Saying that to this recruit would obviously make me public enemy #1.

The young woman nodded, clearly not satisfied with my answer, but she didn't press further. Instead, she fell back into step beside me, and we continued on in silence.

We waited for the rest of the recruits to arrive, the cold wind blowing harshly against us.

Eura arrived several minutes later with all of the remaining recruits.

What the hell? Why are they all in a single group?

As I observed Eura and the recruits approaching in the distance, I began to see that Eura was walking normally with a group of soldiers jogging slowly. She was dragging two bodies behind her, one in each hand.

"What happened?" I asked as they got closer.

"They couldn't keep up," Eura replied with a shrug, tossing the unconscious bodies to the ground.

I took a step forward, examining the recruits. One was shivering violently, his lips turning blue. The other had collapsed from exhaustion, his chest heaving with each ragged breath.

I nodded, understanding Eura's decision. "Leave them," I ordered, and Eura nodded before returning to her position.

I turned to the remaining recruits, who were staring at me with a mix of fear and reverence. "This is the harsh reality of war," I said. "Those who cannot keep up, who cannot endure, will not survive. We have no room for weakness."

I gestured to the two bodies on the ground. "They have failed their first test. It's up to you to ensure that you do not meet the same fate."

The recruits nodded solemnly, their eyes glinting with determination.

"This week will test you. It will push you to your limits and beyond. But if you can endure it, if you can become soldiers worthy of our cause, then you will truly make a difference in this world."

I turned and began to march back towards the town, the recruits following closely behind.

As we walked, the wind howled around us, but I barely felt it. My mind was focused on the task at hand, on honing these young men and women into the soldiers they needed to be.

We reached the training grounds.

"Eura, I'll leave the rest to you," I said, turning to her. "Make sure they're pushed to their limits."

Eura nodded, a small smile playing on her lips. The recruits looked nervous as they followed her inside. I grabbed the two unconscious recruits and brought them to the mansion's courtyard.

I entered the mansion searching for traces of Ruvia.

I entered his room but found it empty.

"Fuck. Where the hell is he?" I muttered as I passed by my room.

"Ahhh yesss♡, don't stop♡, ohhhh deeper ♡, harder ♡, mmhmmmmm ♡."

I heard moaning coming from my room. My heart raced as I slowly pushed open the door, revealing Ruvia on top of my bed, sniffing my used clothes and pillow while masturbating his dick and ass at the same time.

"Ohhhh, masterrr♡. I love it when you're rough with me♡," Ruvia moaned as he licked my dirty underwear and chewed on my dirty T-shirts.

"Ugh," I felt sick. My face turned green as I watched what he was doing. "What the hell are you doing, Ruvia?!"

"Ahh, you're back master ♡," He moaned as he turned towards me, licking the fabric softly, causing his body to shake. "I missed you so much♡. I wanted to see your face and smell your scent, master♡."

"We just saw each other yesterday!" I exclaimed in disbelief.

Ruvia pouted at me. "But masterrrr, your scent is so delicious♡," he whined as saliva dripped from his mouth.

"Stop doing that, Ruvia! It's dirty. You could get sick!" I yelled, feeling disgusted.

"Ahh…I'm sorry, masterrr♡," Ruvia pouted as he laid down on the bed, his face looking sad.

"Ugh… Ruvia… Get out." I flinched as Ruvia slid his mouth over my dirty underwear, licking every inch and chewing on it. "Agh… Stop! Don't do that!"

"Aww… but masterrrr," He whined as he continued sniffing my dirty clothes. "I was just so lonely without you that I wanted to smell you and touch you♡."

"I need you to heal two injured soldiers."

"Yes, master," Ruvia smiled with a bit of drool dripping from his mouth.

Sighing, I tried to ignore Ruvia's odd behavior and walked out of the room.

After several seconds, Ruvia emerged from the room. He looked a little pale, and his eyes were slightly glazed. His outfit, which can transform into mud or a wedding gown at will, was a little ripped. It had the ability to self-repair. Did he do that on purpose?

Ruvia walked up to me with a dazed yet serious expression. He smiled at me, showing all of his sharp teeth.

"Aah…master," Ruvia smiled as he licked my cheek with his rough tongue. "I knew it ♡. The real deal tastes heavenly♡."

"I love you master ♡." Ruvia grabbed my hand, and we walked towards the courtyard hand in hand.

As we arrived at the courtyard, two young men were lying down on the ground. I looked at Ruvia and asked, "Can you heal them?"

"I'll see what I can do, master... [Evil Light.]" A blinding light flashed from the ground and engulfed the two recruits. They stood up after a few seconds and looked at me with a confused expression.

Soon enough, they recovered their wits and gave me the summary of the incident.

"Do you want to continue or not?" I asked the two.

They shared a look of hesitation, but eventually, they shook their heads.

"I see. Well, it's your choice. I wish you good luck in your future endeavors." I dismissed them, and they walked away, but not without giving me a bow of gratitude.

"M-Master…" Ruvia sheepishly smiled back at me. I could tell that he was embarrassed yet happy. Yet, he was also giving off a serious look. "I would like it if we shared the same bed from now on ♡. I want to be by your side, master."

This guy's so shameless, but he's so cute.

"Yeah, sure. I'll indulge that selfish desire of yours, but you'll have to stop licking and chewing my used underwear." I replied with a smile.

Ruvia puffed his cheeks in a childish manner, but I could see the happiness in his eyes. He had been gaining more of his confidence back since the first time I saw him.

"I will do my best to be by your side, master." He said before we walked back into the mansion.

A smirk appeared on his face. It was a wicked smirk that had an intent to it.

"I'm looking forward to our first night together ♡."