The next morning, I woke up with my heart and mind still haunted by yesterday's events. What if Hellraider refused again to take part in activities where we had to be together? Surely Commander Gruzhnil would ask me what had happened to him.
After finishing my bath and breakfast, the barracks chief who informed me that Grelmure wanted me to meet him at headquarters. When I arrived in the corridor near the main entrance of the headquarters, I saw Grelmure coming down from the upper floor. I approached him and he immediately greeted me.
"I want to take you again to Commander's private office,"
I hoped that he didn't know about the new problem that had occurred between Hellraider and me. We walked to his office. Inside, I saw Gruzhnil sipping a warm drink while enjoying his meal. When he saw me, I was asked to sit on the sofa in the sitting area. Gruzhnil temporarily stopped his breakfast.
"I have received a report from the training instructor yesterday that you were able to complete the exercises better than all the cadets there. So I think you don't need to continue the following days of training. Today, coincidentally, I will conduct a surprise inspection at the energy center on Planet Grivendal. You already know the main energy source that powers our empire. So I want to take you to see it directly."
"Will the commander also bring Sir Hellraider?" I made sure.
"It seems unnecessary. This is not part of our imperial tactical defense. Let him enjoy his day off. I am certain he is spending his time continuing to practice his weapons."
I felt relieved hearing that. If Hellraider were asked to come, either he would immediately refuse or spend the whole day glaring at me with his angry expression. That would not make me comfortable. I was asked to accompany Grelmure to wait in the main hall while Gruzhnil finished his breakfast.
There, Grelmure chatted with me about my opinion of being here. I said that both the native citizens and the soldiers of The Graendall had welcomed me warmly even though I was not from here. He asked whether Hellraider and I wished to settle as citizens of Grivendal. He would propose it to the imperial senate if I agreed. Honestly, I was not yet certain whether to accept or not. I said that I no longer knew how to return to my world and my goal for now was to follow Hellraider wherever he went until his matter was finished.
Grelmure seemed taken aback by my answer. He said there was no need to rush the decision and that the opportunity would remain open. Soon after, Gruzhnil approached us and we departed for the shuttle unit building at the base. Upon arrival, a shuttle had already been prepared for us. I went together with them and two high-ranking officers of The Graendall.
This aircraft's interior was somewhat different; the seats were arranged like business-class seats on airplanes in my country. I sat beside Commander Gruzhnil. While airborne, I asked whether there was only one military base on this planet and whether similar bases existed on other planets.
"Of course there are military bases in other regions but this is the main one. Each planet also has a central military base followed by smaller bases in other regions. Each planet is led by a high commander like me."
He asked about the authority system in my world. I explained that in my region, the highest authority was held by a president elected every four years by citizens and didn't hold absolute power. Every decisions had to pass through representative members. The military functioned strictly for national security. My planet was not ruled by a single authority. There were other territories called countries, some led by presidents and others ruled by kings.
They laughed at my explanation. One of them said such a system was highly ineffective and prone to disputes that hindered progress and expansion. Gruzhnil added that Grivendal had once adopted a similar system, but it resulted in rebellions and territorial fragmentation. I simply remained silent with a faint smile.
After some time, I felt the aircraft descending. Gruzhnil confirmed that we were about to reach our destination. After landing, we disembarked. I then saw a massive refinery-like structure on land with mountains behind it. In the mountains, there was a gigantic tunnel where aircraft transporting materials and mining trucks moved in and out. We entered the building, and someone hurried toward Gruzhnil.
"C-Commander… why do you often come suddenly like this?! You could at least inform me before visiting!" the man said. Grelmure informed me that he was the mining director here. Yes, I was now at the largest starstones mining site in the entire Grivendal Empire.
"If I informed you, you would immediately create an environment that appears diligent and hardworking! I don't like such things! Take us to the inner mining area!" Gruzhnil said coldly to the director.
We headed to a massive elevator located in the center of the refinery building. Inside, Grelmure said we were heading down to the Starstones mining zone deep within the planet's layers. The descent took quite a long time; perhaps the drilling truly reached extraordinary depths to access the deposits.
When the elevator stopped and we exited, I found myself in an enormous cavern. There were many constructed facilities and small vehicles assisting with mining and transporting starstones to the surface. Numerous workers were resting and joking around. When they saw Gruzhnil arrive with a stern face, they immediately scattered back to their stations. He asked Grelmure to accompany me to observe the mining process up close while the director would delivered accountability reports.
Grelmure and I approached one mining station and were welcomed by its supervisor. He explained to me how the stones were mined. I learned that Starstones were also radioactive and could not be handled with bare hands. The workers used advanced robots to mine them.
The supervisor explained that to cut Starstones into smaller pieces from larger chunks, they used laser energy derived from enriched Starstones. The Starstones here were in their pure form. After being collected and transported to the surface, they would be sent to the enrichment facility located 100 kilometers from the mine via a high-speed underground train.
I observed the Starstones directly. They resembled rough white crystals similar to diamonds, with golden light shimmering within.
After observing enough, Grelmure led me back to Gruzhnil. He emerged from a medium-sized building that appeared to function as both a control room and meeting room. I saw the director bowing his head. Had he been reprimanded by Gruzhnil because the workers were too relaxed?
We exited the refinery-like building and returned to the aircraft. I wondered why Gruzhnil did not head toward the mountain mining tunnels for inspection. Had he only come to meet the director?
Inside the aircraft, I asked Gruzhnil why we had not inspected the mountain site as well. He replied that the primary purpose was to question the director about the declining Starstones output over time. The director explained that deeper exploration could endanger the land above. He had formed a special team to research potential new mining sites, believing there were many untouched deposits elsewhere. Gruzhnil had spoken firmly to him because The Emperor had instructed to secure more energy resources, as he wished to soon conduct another expedition to the realm of hell.
"Is the expedition still to hunt the Demon King again, Commander?"
"Actually, we no longer focuses on avenging the deaths of Grhemolus and Grhemus. However, during the seventh expedition, The Graendall discovered a type of stone with greater energy potential than starstones, called dreadstones. But this stone is extremely dangerous. Prolonged exposure can drive victims insane and transform them into something resembling the inhabitants of hell. The stone is kept in great secrecy at the planet's main energy facility. I ask you to not spread this information, which is known only to internal high-ranking members of the military order."
I nodded in understanding. Grelmure, who was seated near the window, suddenly called me.
"Johann… look out this window!!! That is the main energy plant and the Starstones enrichment facility!"
I stood and looked through the indicated window. From the aircraft, I saw vast building complexes. The energy plant structure resembled a nuclear power plant in my country, only much larger, and the enrichment facility looked like an arrangement of aircraft hangar complexes.
A large train station near the mountain transported Starstones from the mine. The entire complex was heavily guarded by various assets of the military order. I also saw two graganthurions patrolling at opposite ends of the complex area.