Youjo Senki Vol 1 Chapter 5

Military Headquarters, Conference Room One

 

“The situation in the west has finally stopped deteriorating.”

 

That day Brigadier General Zettois, who had a grasp of all related combat logistics gave his report in the Conference Room situated within the Military Headquarters. This report allowed everyone feel at ease for the first time in ages, signifying that the harsh battle condition in the west was gradually stabilizing.

 

“Regarding the overall battlefront, we are still slightly suppressed.”

 

From the map displayed in the conference room, they could see the western forces holding their ground stubbornly. Although they were unable to react in time, allowing the Francois Republic to push their battlefront deep within the Empire's territory, they were still able to prevent the Republican forces from entering the Rhines industrial area. It goes without saying that the combat units at the frontlines were almost at their limit, and the troops were fighting all the while being covered with wounds. They were forced to make emergency transfers from the capital, and to commit their units into the fray in stages.

 

Even though the situation was easing up, the entire battlefront was still being suppressed. Some of the bases in the rear were already within range of enemy Mage assaults.

 

“On the other hand, the mustering and reorganizing of our main forces has been completed.”

 

The western army’s resistance was tougher than the limits that were set by plan 315 and helped the Empire gain the extra time they needed. Within this period, the Empire managed to deploy their army, and reorganize the front line units.

 

And of course, there was a heavy redeployment of units from the northern front to the western front. But the large scale reassignment was constrained by the railways’ operational capacity. In the end, the progress fell behind schedule significantly. But on the grand scale, the regional armies received reinforcement from the army, and thus could regain control of the battle and reorganize their fronts.

 

“... In reality, they just managed to make it in time.”

 

However, the expressions of the Staff Officers showed were not that of relief. Brigadier General Zettois and the members of the General Staff Office that were present had the common consensus that time and a speedy reaction was a problem. Time, time, time. This was an element that was hard to avoid in a war.

 

Even though the redeployment of the army made it on time, the way the General Staff Office saw it, this was a dangerous period. The army that was formed on the foundation of rapid deployment through the Internal Mobilization Strategy spent a lot of time on domestic transport. This meant that their strategic options were not as flexible as they had predicted before the war.

 

In order to make up for this, they would treat the standing unit in the central as backup forces. However, the numbers from the western frontline showed that a few reinforcement units would be insufficient. Even with excellent reaction speed, the amount was still a big issue.

 

“As expected, we absolutely need to recommend for an increase in the number of units capable of immediate mobilisation.”

 

“The Operations Department also agrees that a freely available unit should possess a certain level of mobility and combat prowess.”

 

The essence of the problem was with the swift mobilization of the army. This was a consensus view in the military. To ensure smooth large scale movement, they hoped to adjust the timetable of the railroad. After all, the traditional tactic of the Imperial Army was to focus their prowess on a single front to achieve victory, speed was everything.

 

However at the same time, just like Brigadier General Zettois had advised and Brigadier General Rudelsdorf had concurred, they agreed that it was necessary to reserve a certain level of forces that could be deployed swiftly, and strongly urged for the creation of a strong quick reaction unit. If there was a chance that the large scale deployment of troops would not be able to make it in time, there would absolutely be a need for firemen to contain the fire just in case.

 

“Other than that, the Logistics Department proposed the research of a national defence strategy under the assumption that we would be fighting on two fronts.”

 

At the same time, they swiftly reviewed their foundational strategy. The risk of them achieving victory on one end only to have the other end falling apart had grown too large in the recent years. No matter how good it looked on the surface, the old strategy had reached the end of its usefulness. As a result, the officers of the Logistics department with Brigadier General Zettois at the head held strong suspicion towards the Internal Mobilization Strategy.

 

This opinion was questioning whether they should ‘change the fundamental assumption, and resolve ourselves to a war on two fronts?’ They feel that the concept of letting the local forces focus on defense while the continental army launches the offensive was no longer feasible.

 

“I’m not objecting to the research… But on the actual battlefield, we have to avoid a war on two fronts.”

 

And of course, it was military taboo to split one’s forces, this was an ironclad rule no matter what era it was. ‘Defeat the enemy on one side with all their might, then deal with the enemy on the other side’, this was the basis of the Internal Mobilization Strategy which had taken deep root within the General Staff Office.

 

Most importantly, in the eyes of Brigadier General Rudelsdorf and the Operations Department members, gathering enough forces with a combined military might that could easily crush the opponent enemy was the standard strategy that could not be denied.

 

“I agree that we should have a fallback plan, but the opinion of the Operations Department is that we should focus on avoiding such a situation.”

 

“Lieutenant General Rudelsdorf, that would be hard to achieve, considering the geopolitical elements of the Empire.”

 

“I can’t refute that, but the worse scenario for this proposal would be having inferior numbers on all fronts.”

 

After achieving regional supremacy, during the time they secure victory, the local forces would need to stubbornly stall for time. This strategy was born out of the history of the Empire being surrounded by great powers and their geopolitical necessity. In a nutshell, if they had the power to fight on two fronts, they wouldn’t need to work this hard in the first place.

 

“What if the situation doesn’t allow it? The strengthening of our forces on all fronts was in a way unavoidable if we are to improve our Internal Mobilization efficiency.”

 

However, despite the significant size of the regional forces, it was still crumbling before the Republican army. If the continental army didn’t make it in time, the western industrial area would be overrun. If the internal mobilization strategy fails to support one of the sides, it would be infeasible.

 

Therefore, the priority at the moment was to increase the capability of their defences, so the opinion of Brigadier General Zettois and the others might not be wrong.

 

“... Considering the current situation, it is very difficult to reorganize the army in broad strokes. Are there any other better alternatives?”

 

However, even during peacetime the reorganization of the army was a grand process. Asking headquarters to forcefully reassign units during an intense war would be going too far. This would be akin to changing all of the strikers and defenders in the middle of a soccer game. The best results they could hope for would only be a complete mess.

 

“Well then, I propose the formation of a quick reaction unit. Right now, we need to improve our response mobility, and deploy forces at the right time and place.”

 

The topic brought up was the formation of a quick reaction unit which was mentioned long ago. The wish for a highly mobile quick reaction force on the scale of an army was something which had been frequently advocated by many others. Especially the staff officers led by the Deputy Chief of Logistics Zettois, who had been pushing for it heavily as of late.

 

“Alright, the Operations Department agrees with this. But I have to say, this would be dependent on the scale.”

 

The Operations Department that would be putting the unit into active use also agreed, expressing that they acknowledge the need to improve reaction speed. They thought the continental army could fill that role. However, the scale of the continental army was too large, so they could no longer fulfil that mission. If not for the heroic stand by the western forces, the western industrial areas would have fallen, and they would be drafting the terms of a peace treaty right now.

 

“On this point, I would like to highlight that the readiness of the quick reaction force from the western and central army are outstanding. The Logistics Department would like to propose the strengthening of our reserve forces by enhancing the central army.”

 

And so, Brigadier General Zettois suggested strengthening the central army’s forces. Turning the reserve forces that would normally be dispatched during emergency situations into a permanent standing unit ready for deployment. This proposal would form an unutilized unit, which should typically be avoided in military practices, but in face of reality, they couldn’t care that much.

 

“But we have to take the eastern and southern army into consideration during the formation of this unit.”

 

“What a pain. It is abnormal that only the western army is earning merits.”

 

“There would be a drop in the vacancies to War College via war merits recommendation, and lesser chance to be posted to central. There is no doubt that the regional army would find this hard to accept.”

 

Even the Imperial Army has to consider all sorts of problems that could occur during reorganization; the fact was that the western army had earned more merits and bonuses than the other regional armies because of the hard fight they put up. However, due to budget constraints, there was a limit to the bonuses and positions they could grant, so the other regional armies would be given less than the norm. A considerable portion of the officer’s manpower allocation have gradually began to warp. Officers that were advancing ahead of their peers, and even their seniors in rank kept popping up. The eastern army also had to reluctantly give up some of their allocated slots for War College to the western forces.

 

“I don’t want to take the consequences this will have too lightly.”

 

“That’s true. Especially the eastern army that is losing out the most, their dissatisfaction is really strong.”

As mentioned by the Personnel Department, this was a development that their department did not wish to see. The eastern army was being neglected because of the merits earned by the western and northern forces. The soldiers who were enjoying the privileges in key positions for the defence of the eastern zone were suddenly facing a deterioration in their treatment. With their promotion delayed indefinitely, it was normal to feel dissatisfied and uneasy. It wasn’t just the earning of war merits, they were also worried about being surpassed by their peers and juniors. The problem hadn’t really surfaced yet, but their anxiety and frustration were becoming serious.

 

“The eastern army did not participate in the war against the Federation or Republic. They might be the ones keeping the peace in the east, but those who are just idling won’t be looked upon favourably.”

 

“The lack of battle experience would also be a problem. We need to achieve an adequate balance.”

 

Other than that, how they feel was also a problem, but the imbalance in combat experience was a bigger issue. They couldn’t fight a war with just the western army. They had to assume that the eastern troops would enter the war some day. If they just idly sit by before heading into war, it would be too much of a waste.

 

Even so, they couldn’t draw out a large number of veterans from the intense battles of the west in order to educate the eastern army.

 

“So your intention is to use the eastern army as the foundation to set up a flexible unit?”

 

In that case, the most practical method would be to pick personnel from the eastern unit to form a quick reaction task force. Brigadier General Rudelsdorf of the Operations Department was asking the Personnel Department whether they should use personnel from the eastern army to do so.

 

They didn’t have the means to let them experience war, but this was much better than letting the unit stay away from the atmosphere of war, Rudelsdorf’s proposal was based on this judgement. Not only would this lighten the burden on the western army, it would allow both sides that were about to fight over the budget get along peacefully.

 

“I want to make this an experiment on tactical mobility too, on the scale of a corp.”

 

Even so, proposals would always be accompanied by an adversary. Brigadier General Zettois and others might place heavy emphasis on the experiment on battlezone mobility, but resources were limited. Even if one agreed with their proposals, depending on the scale, it might be hard to accede to them. The division scale experiment they proposed in conjunction with the rail department was too extravagant during war times. It might be an idea that could revive the concept of a quick reaction army, but the opposition was very strong.

 

“I disagree. There are only two strategic reserve divisions in the east.”

 

In the perspective of the Operations Department that actively engages the units, there was no way they would agree to personnel being drawn away when reserves were limited.

 

“The scale is too big. We can’t allow the defences of the east to weaken.”

To them, when their predecessors organized the continental army which left the western forces weakened was a lesson. In the end, the tough battles experienced by the west was a failure of the national defence policy. Considering this point, even though they were far away from the battlefield, it would be dangerous if they drew too much people from the eastern army.

 

Aside from the main forces, the east’s reserve was only one corp. That was why they oppose taking any more units from the reserves that were already at bare minimum.

 

“How about taking men from both, the eastern and southern army?”

“That would have to wait until the situation in the north is resolved.”

 

If they could finish off the Federation to the north, they would be able to spare the effort. But the problem was, despite the continental army destroying the enemy main forces, they still needed time to suppress them. If they drew forces from the south and east at this time, that would be akin to putting the cart before the horse. There was no point in forming a unit that could reinforce any front that needed it if it would weaken the border defences.

 

“Well then, I want to experiment with something else. How about forming a wing of mages and placing them directly under the command of the central quick reaction force?”

 

The proposal raised by the Logistics department as the next best option, was actually the one they wanted to implement. The idea of a ‘quick reaction mage wing’ conceptualized by the department with Brigadier General Zettois leading the way, had already been submitted to the General Staff Office.

 

“You mean the ‘quick reaction mage wing’ idea? I agree with that proposal.”

 

If the experiment was limited to a scale of a wing, it wouldn’t affect the overall battle operations. From their perspective, although the usage of the mage wing would be incorporated as part of the overall tactics for an entire army, even if all of the members of the wing were to be withdrawn, the overall operation for the army could still proceed as normal.

 

For this point, they very much welcome the making of a mage wing which could be deployed on the front line flexibly as part of their reserve forces.

 

“You want to draw away one full mage wing?”

 

“The eastern army would be able to spare them. More importantly, a mage wing is easy to transport by air, and fast to deploy.”

 

Some may worry about the weakening of the eastern army, but they would be refuted because of the fast deployment time. A mage wing consist of 36 men. It was easier to transport than an army company.

 

Even if the 36 men needed 45 days worth of regulation supplies, it wouldn’t strain the logistics too much. If necessary, they could leave from the west and deploy in the east within a day.

 

“... Well then, we agree with the experimental mage wing. Let’s place it under the direct command of the General Staff Office.”

 

It was unlikely for the proposal to be rejected in the first place.

 

“Let’s shelf the idea to set up a quick reaction division, and see how the mage wing performs.”

 

The formation of a quick reaction division didn’t pass through, but fortunately, the experiment was approved. Setting up the quick reaction mage wing would definitely aid the formation of the quick reaction division in the future.

 

“Alright, on to the next item.”

 

Seems like I can keep the promise. After feeling relieved, Brigadier General Zettois relaxed his shoulders secretly. He then focused himself on the next topic.

 

 

U.E Year 1967 June 23rd Londinum WTN press conference room.

 

There were many mysteries around the existence of the World War.

 

Especially information about the Empire, even though they were heavily affected by the chaos at the end of the war. There were speculations that the two armies committed many taboos, but these were still covered under deep veils of secrecy. I once covered that war as a war journalist with ‘World Today’s News’. Like many people from my generation affected by that great war, I wanted to know the truth.

 

I had no intention of passing judgement. It was just pure curiosity about what exactly happened. Along with the comrades who agreed with my thoughts, we sought to uncover the truth behind the war, and proposed in the editorial meeting in WTN to make a documentary.

 

To be frank, we didn’t know where to start, and I wasn’t sure what to do. But fortunately, my superiors and comrades who understand me were willing to lend me a hand.

 

However realistically speaking, we were still filled with doubts about where to start. What was the truth behind the war? Won’t it differ for each person? There were all sorts of opinions, and it was hard for us to decide on the approach. Even though several secret documents had been declassified, not only did they make it hard to understand the whole situation in detail, it brought further confusion.

 

Back then, we focused on the information that was declassified by the United Kingdom earlier. We started investigating the battle of Darca that happened near the end of the war. This was seen as a diversionary attack, the southern battle which was widely discussed by the masses.

 

The sinking of the High Britannia flagship ‘Hooter’ of the 2nd fleet, along with the 7 vessels under its command in this battle was well known. Why was the fleet destroyed so suddenly? It must be the reason why the information was classified.

 

At first, we suspected that the United Kingdom wanted to bait the Empire with false information, that’s why all their units were gathered at Darca. The assumption was that in order to conceal the main objective of the surprise attack against the Empire, the United Kingdom offered the 2nd fleet as the sacrifice.

 

Wasn’t this classified in order to hide this truth?

 

We imagined that such a scheme happened on the battlefield. In fact, I had heard about this dirty affair when I was a war journalist, so we thought we could find evidence to support this theory. But after reading the declassified information with such assumption, our expectations were led astray.

 

“The worst day of the United Kingdom’s navy, was caused by xxxxxxxxxxx.”

 

This was the only sentence that was declassified, and all personnel related to the military kept their peace and refused to answer.

 

At this moment, it was probably fate that an acquaintance related to this historical battle brought an interesting tidbit. He hinted to me that I could uncover the truth by analyzing the rumours from the battlefield.

 

The 11 redacted characters xxxxxxxxxxx could be found on many battlefronts. Going by the way he put it, this might be a code word for a high level officer or spy. Referencing xxxxxxxxxxx with tarot cards, we dubbed it the ‘Eleventh Goddess’ and began our investigation.

 

The results were astonishing. The ‘Eleventh Goddess’ appeared in almost all major battles within the Empire. It’s first confirmed appearance was two years before the war, reported by the intelligence department of a certain country within the borders conflict zone. After that, we wondered whether the code referred to an intelligence agent or a spy.

 

However, we noticed something strange. Some of the people who experienced battle on the frontline had reacted to the name ‘Eleventh Goddess’. They expressed that ‘this is the worst joke I have ever heard.’

 

Did we lump together several things into one because they all coincidentally had 11 ‘x’? When we thought about that, we tried using the words to differentiate places, and calculated the number of ‘xxxxxxxxxxx’.

 

After that, we discovered the battle that had the most number of the redacted ‘xxxxxxxxxxx’.

 

Aerial battle in Rhine (also known as the key battle of the Great War). In the most intense battle zone where Rhine was feared as the place with ‘30% sky, 70% blood’ hosted the bloodbath between mages in the sky.

 

Coincidentally, my colleague Craiger and I were both WTN war journalist who witnessed the aerial battle of the Rhines. Everyone must have heard about ‘Rhine where the devil dwells’, ‘Graveyard of the Named’, ‘The battle where even silver will rust’ and so on. The incredulous names might seem other worldly, but I was certain that it was all true. I could judge by experience that a real devil did exist on that battlefield.

 

For example, let’s assume that we made quick friends with a mage in a bar. It wouldn’t be a surprise if six short hours later, we attended the funeral of that mage who had been blown to bits. I experienced that three times.

 

‘Over there, humans are no longer humans.’ That’s what an aerial mage officer who I got along great with said before dying in battle, I could still remember it as if it just happened. That battle was a congregation of the madness of men.

 

All sorts of report surrounding the battle of Rhine were covered in heavy veils of secrecy even now. Many of the things were probably the result of the abnormal conditions of that bloody world.

 

However, ‘Eleventh Goddess’ showed her absolute presence in the Rhine aerial battle. This piqued our interest. Even though we knew it would fail, we still asked the military about the details. They only told us the information we ‘needed to know’, the obstacle before us was tougher than we imagined. The officer who worked in the General Staff Office only said that in all earnesty.

 

He mentioned that he wanted the information to be made public after we were unable to contact him. Just when we were about to query him further, he was already uncontactable. Until this day, we still wrote in our memo that we couldn’t contact him.

 

He wished to say just one thing anonymously, and here it was, as promised.

 

‘V600’.

 

We continued chasing after this riddle. In order to know what exactly happened during that crazy era.

 

(Author: Andrew, WTN field reporter)

 

 

Kriegel 3rd street Zolka restaurant

 

Originally, the classes in the War college were spread out and allocated a generous amount of time. And so during times of war, a lot of the lessons would be cancelled, and the content would lean towards practical battle application. Some of the trainees comment that the classes had improved in quality. Uga once experienced a two year course being trimmed down to less than a year, and found the content more gruelling than usual, so he agreed with this assessment.

 

He once thought that his talent would never lose to his classmates, but after training together with the group of brilliant stars, he felt that the world was really vast. But he felt really fortunate.

 

My parents never forced me down the career of a soldier, but when they heard I got into Officer Cadet School successfully, they were happy for me as if it was their own joy. The greatest happiness in my life was in meeting my wife that I wasn’t worthy of.

 

My newborn was unbelievably cute too. I probably had the mindset to ask about things I would never notice in the past because I was now a father to a daughter.

 

In a serene restaurant near St. Gregorios Church. Just like what I enquired earlier, I saw the figure of a little girl ordering lunch with a rifle and Operation Orb sprawled on the table. According to my friend in the Military Police, she would dine here every Sunday.

 

According to him, this was the only restaurant near the church that allowed its patrons to enter with weapons.

 

“Captain Uga, such a coincidence to see you here.”

 

When I realized, First Lieutenant Degurechaff had noticed my presence by following the gaze of the waiter, and stood at attention to salute me. I returned her greeting and walked to her seat. After ordering something light, I gave him a tip and asked him not to come near us for the moment.

 

This wasn’t a topic I could bring up easily in public.

 

“It’s not a coincidence, I just heard that you are always here. Is now a convenient time?”

 

“Of course, please have a seat.”

 

Her uniform fitted her nicely and didn’t look out of place on her, as she offered me a seat. To be honest, if Lieutenant Degurechaff wore casual clothes, I probably wouldn’t be able to find her. That’s how well she suited the uniform. She was a soldier worthy of the rank of First Lieutenant despite her age of eleven.

 

Aside from standard issue items, there wasn’t anything worth mentioning among her personal belongings. If I really had to say, it would be the newspaper laid out on the table she was making annotations on, and the Londinum Times and WTN special report she was using as reference. It did occur to me that the language courses in the War College recommends learning the languages of neighbouring countries.

 

The Londinum Times and WTN from a neutral nation were excellent learning material that could be easily obtained. But these couldn’t really be considered personal belongings.

 

“Captain, do you dine here often?”

 

She stopped annotating on the newspaper, and she probably didn’t mean to, but her gaze sent a chill down my spine. She was a petite girl who was also one of the few prides of the nation, the Ace of Aces. But as a father, I couldn’t suppress the urge to question her.

 

“Degurechaff, pardon me for asking, but why were you willing to join the army?”

 

“... Hmm?”

 

How should I ask this? Despite the myriads of thoughts in my mind, it would be meaningless if I ask in a too roundabout way. After troubling over it, what came out of my mouth was this blunt question. The query was too simple, which made it hard for her to understand my intentions.

 

I never thought I would see the puzzled face of Lieutenant Degurechaff. Even though she was known as the steel masked girl, her face still showed emotions. I thought she lacked expressions, but she still had a human side about her. It might be careless to do so, but that made me relieved.

 

“Oh right, I hope you don’t treat this as a question from a Captain, just something that a classmate is asking you.”

 

I didn’t want to hear the superficial words one would normally give to their superior, what I wanted to know was her real thoughts.

 

“Since you have such outstanding talents, there should be many career paths you could pursue. Why insist on joining the military?”

 

If she only had exceptional talent as a mage, there wouldn’t be many options for her. Since the army craves for excellent mages, if one possess the talent for combat, they wouldn’t mind the issue of age too much. So someone as talented as her might be forcefully conscripted by the army at such a young age. If that was all, she would just be treated as a weapon.

 

But even after her conscription, she would be given a deferment because of her age. However, she relied purely on her talents and made it all the way to War College. Just eleven years old, and she successfully became one of the honourable Twelve Knights of War College, although she was ranked last.

 

If she relied solely on her inborn magic power, she might just stop at the stage of being a weapon. But with her talent, she should have many options, be it in engineering or research. In fact, the Imperial College accepts students skipping grades, and would waive fees for exceptionally talented students, and would even grant them scholarships. There was no limits to the paths available to her.

 

“... My late father was a soldier.”

 

“Late… My apologies.”

 

When I heard the word ‘late’, I understood immediately. It wasn’t anything rare, the Imperial soldier had always been neighbours with death. No matter who it was, they might die at any time.

 

All those who passed away had their own family, and the kins they left behind.

 

“Please don’t mind. It’s a rather common occurrence now.”

 

However, Degurechaff smiled as if she didn’t mind. As if she had already gotten used to it. But I felt that it was a tragedy for her to understand this at such a tender age. Did she enlist for the sake of vengence?

 

“I didn’t have other paths to take as an orphan. Orphans simply didn’t have the right to choose.”

 

However her answer was beyond my imagination, a completely unexpected response.

 

“But, if you can enter Officer Cadet School, couldn’t you receive higher education too?”

 

After all, she had the brains to overcome various obstacles and make it here at such a young age. From what I know, there should be many benevolent people who would be happy to help such a talented child. Why did she have no other choice?

 

“... Captain, pardon me for being blunt, your family background is really good right?”

 

“Not at all. I had a happy childhood, but my family is just average.”

 

My father was a middle ranking civil servant. My mother hailed from a plain family. We didn’t know any powerful people worth mentioning. At most, my grandfather was in the navy, and was happy that I joined the military.

 

However, what Degurechaff said next dealt an indescribable blow to me.

 

“Sigh, it makes me envious. Orphans don’t get to choose, and can only live one day at a time.”

 

From her tone, she seemed to be thinking about her days where she often starved. I didn’t say it out loud, but the air about her seem to be telling me of her pitiful past. The unbelievably heavy atmosphere made me lean back onto the back of my seat. When I realized it, I was already suppressed by her atmosphere.

 

“... The surviving kin of deceased soldiers should be able to claim death gratuity right?”

 

“Captain, I am a bastard child who never saw my mother’s face before. If not for the orphanage, I would have died.”

 

An orphanage affiliated with the church. I understood immediately. This might be an unfortunate beginning, but because the church saved her, that’s why she was so dedicated in visiting the church. Was that the reason why she prays so sincerely?

 

But, even so...

 

“I don’t know how to put this, you are still a child. You shouldn’t be a soldier anymore.”

 

Even though it was delusional to think one could quit the army during times of war, she shouldn’t give up on seeking other career paths. Soldiers were beings that get to eat free meals. That might be so, but they had to die when the time comes.

 

It was a tragedy for children to take on such work.

 

“... Captain Uga, are you questioning my abilities?”

 

However, Captain Uga only realized he had said something unnecessary when Degurechaff asked her question with a pale face. He carelessly slipped words of pity towards a soldier who held both fame and glory.

 

“I am not questioning your ability! I just feel that a child like you shouldn’t be on the battlefield.”

 

It might sound like an excuse, but those were my true feelings. The Lieutenant probing at me with her eyes was still a child. A young girl that should be protected. No matter who it was, they wouldn’t want to send their daughter to the battlefield.

 

Just the thought of sending my newborn daughter to the battlefield was enough to make me insane. Her father who gave his life in defence of the Empire wouldn’t wish for her to do that too. As a father, I was certain of that.

 

“This is military duty. As a soldier, this couldn’t be helped.”

 

But she said that without any hesitation as a soldier. She embodies these very words literally. This wasn’t just some talk by a soldier about principles, but an entity that became a soldier with no other choice, whose ego was shaped into that of a soldier.

 

Then, where was her real self?

 

“Are you serious about this?”

 

However, I still asked, despite knowing it was meaningless. Yet her eyes were serious, determined to not misunderstand my true intentions. If it was a joke or a lie, she wouldn’t have said it so firmly.

 

On top of that, she was a veteran of many battles, the weight of her words were completely different from people who didn’t know how the battlefield actually was. Her firm conviction had been baptised by gunpowder smoke and lead.

 

“... Captain, for you to be speaking like this, has something happened?”

 

She probably found Uga’s worries to be suspicious. To keep up appearance, Degurechaff raised this question to the other party before her, which made Uga feel ashamed.

 

“My child had just been born. I heard it is a girl.”

 

“Congratulations, Captain.”

 

Even though she congratulated me respectfully, her action that simply followed basic courtesy felt lonely to me. Instead of the love for the child, the congratulations seemed more like a reaction to happy news. Her eyes seemed to be looking at a world that had nothing to do with her.

 

“Whenever I see you, I would often wonder if my daughter would need to take to the field too.”

 

She had already opened herself a lot, and I heard her frank opinion directly from her. But I couldn’t overcome the sense of wrongness that was hitting me.

 

“What is wrong with this society that sends children that should be cherished into battle? Don’t you think so?”

 

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to say. I could only express the emotions welling up within me in honest words.

 

I could feel her gaze seem to be seeing through something. To be frank, even I didn’t expect to lose control to such an extent. But since I said it out loud, I couldn’t run away anymore. In the end, Lieutenant Degurechaff who was observing me spoke slowly like a shrine maiden announcing the prophecy of the gods.

 

“... Captain, you are a person with common sense. I would advise you to resign.”

 

Her words turned our position around.

 

“I was wondering what you want to say. This is the time where we are needed to clean up the mess and avoid the flames of war from spreading to the next generation. It is too much to ask me to retire.”

 

“You are a person who was able to retain his conscience even after knowing war. If you were to resign, you definitely have the capability to become a powerful force elsewhere.”

 

You should do that. She clenched her petite hands placed on the tables as if she was emphasizing that—— You should resign.

 

“I am a soldier. I am nothing more than that.”

 

“No, Captain. You still hold your rationality. Allow me to advise you shamelessly as a classmate, you should retreat to the back before the curtains are drawn for this crazy stage play.”

 

“Such a thing wouldn’t be allowed.”

 

This was war. The situation that would allow me to stay idly behind a desk job was over. And I couldn’t abandon my comrades, my batch mates, my brothers in arms and leave shamelessly. I had sworn with my friends standing with me in formation that I would never leave just like that.

 

“Captain, to live on is also a battle. This too is for the sake of not sending your daughter onto the battlefield.”

 

“... I will consider it.”

 

I couldn’t refute her. Despite feeling against it, I couldn’t say anything more. I was suppressed by the aura of a eleven years old child. I had no words.

 

“There isn’t much time, please decide soon.”

 

“You are talking just like a staff officer.”

 

“That’s the only education I have been receiving.”

 

It seemed like I don’t have any more effort to spare. I was asking a War College trainee to not talk like a staff officer, that was absolutely meaningless. After all, the education we were going through intended to mold us into high level staff officers or advisors.

 

That should be a compliment instead. There wasn’t any other way that my words could be more wrong. Even I noticed it subtly, and was rather shaken.

 

“... I see. It is as you say.”

 

It is as you say —— That’s all I could say. My vocabulary were really limited huh.

 

“Ah, our lunch is here. Let’s dig in.”

 

“... Yes, let’s eat.”

 

 

 

I met Captain Uga at noon, he seemed to be mentally shaken after his child was born. Yes, I agree with the theory that becoming a parent would induce psychological changes.

 

Anyway, Captain Uga would now drop out of the high flying path in War College. The fascist who dictated that one should convince the other party when they were mentally defenceless was definitely a demon like genius. This way, his evaluation would drop because of his wish to be stationed at the rear, and Captain Uga won’t be stupid enough to protest. That way, my ranking as one of the top two graduates out of my batch of a hundred would be furthermore guaranteed. Thanks to this, even though it would just be for my generation, I would be addressed as von, and become a staff officer.①

 

Going to War College was a rare experience after all. If my ranking was too high, things would become problematic after that, but I wouldn’t be able to act freely if my position was too low. With this point in mind, if I could earn an outstanding evaluation and obtain the honourable title of a Knight of War College, it wouldn’t be too bad, but that would still be dependent on my results and my relations with the trainers.

 

Considering the fact that I was suspected of lacking a drive and fighting spirit, this rank was adequate. I just need to adopt a more proactive attitude in the future. I had been down on my luck recently, so I have to watch out.

 

Nevertheless, let’s leave it at this for today. Captain Uga paid for my lunch just now thanks to my gift of the gab. Dinner would be hosted by the General Staff Office, I wonder what the menu would be. It won’t reach the standard of the navy, but I heard the quality of the dining hall in the General Staff Office wasn’t too bad. I was looking forward to it.

 

 

General Staff Office (Army) First Dining Hall

 

Just as when a batch of trainees from a certain War College was sharing tales of their exploits in one of the restaurants within the city, similar conversations was also happening inside the First Dining Hall of the General Staff Office.

 

However, the main difference was that the meals were restricted by formalities and tradition.

Long ago, the Imperial Army built an extravagant dining hall inside the General Staff Office. Not only did the soldiers complain that the dining hall was a waste, even the officers couldn’t use it conveniently, so it wasn’t evaluated well. However, a single sentence from the navy had turned all that around, which was ‘Even the dining halls of the army are unnecessary’.

 

In response to the navy mocking them, the army countered by proposing to cut down the unnecessary facilities on warships.

 

Which was ‘Just what the hell are those people who fight wars inside a hotel thinking’.

 

And so, the army united as one, and treated all criticism against the dining hall to be traitorous. After that, in order to make a show of the army utilizing the dining hall, conferences related to the army would often be hosted over a meal in the dining hall. When he received the notice for the lunch meeting, Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen was just placing his bag onto his office desk in the Operation Department after finishing his inspection tour of the northern and western front. Nevertheless, Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen was already used to this.

 

However, the problem was the topic of the lunch meeting.

 

“I object. I strongly object to this.”

 

The moment he opened the letter, Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen couldn’t help but open his eyes wide, he absolutely couldn’t accept this. His brooding over this matter had even caused him to lose his focus during the morning work session. And thus, Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen who barely touched any of the food before him, was the only one among the high level officers to oppose the plan.

 

“Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen, I respect your opinion, but you have to put aside your objective views.”

 

Yet unfortunately, his direct supervisor, Brigadier General Rudelsdorf who was serving as Deputy Chief of Operations did not support his view at all. After all, this was the proposal that would improve the strategic direction of the war that he had been waiting for. He probably wouldn’t let it go easily. But regardless, in the eyes of Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen, this was simply too dangerous a case to let go.

 

“We absolutely can’t let her command the Quick Reaction Wing. Going by her character, she won’t stop advancing until everyone in unit are wiped out. This would be throwing the lives of the mages away!”

 

Lieutenant Degurechaff would be promoted to Captain the moment she graduates from War College. It made him afraid, but he could still resolve to this much. Lehrgen thought that he could assign her to the vacancies in one of the research labs or the training team and had let his guard down. He never imagined that the higher ups were planning to form an experimental unit under the command of Captain Degurechaff!

 

Good lord! This is absolutely a nightmare. She is too dangerous. That war theory was her strong point.

 

“You have expressed this several times, but the instructors in War College had evaluated her as someone who values the lives of her troops.”

 

There were some instructors in Officer Cadet School who supported Lehrgen’s view that she was too blood thirsty.

 

However, the views of the instructors in War College were different. Even when pushed to the limit during her staff officer training tour, she would still cherish the lives of the soldiers and avoid wasting them. This isn’t something superficial—— That was their conclusion. In the General Staff Office where everyone were graduates of the War College, this evaluation was something which held a lot of weight.

 

The report stated ‘Strong desire for combat. Despite that, she retained the common sense to avoid suffering losses.’ In short, they saw this as an excellent quality.

 

“Aren’t you bound by your prejudice too much?”

 

“... Didn’t you see her report from Officer Cadet School?”

 

Unwilling to give in, Lehrgen brought up the negative review that he had uncovered previously. However, as a staff officer who graduated from the War College, Lehrgen knew very well who his superiors would give more weight in regards to. The creature known as soldiers would respect the judgement from their own group more.

 

“Just think of it as her growth after being educated. War College says that she will be fine.”

 

The evaluation would probably be the opposite if she caused any trouble in War College. However, her great results and her achievement of being selected as a War College Knight had flawlessly covered for everything.

 

“Instead of being the result of education, her actions are closer to that of her true nature! We can’t give the Wing to her!”

 

At the very least, he had to raise his opposition. Even if this might hurt his career as a high ranking officer, he must not shy away from his obligation as a soldier. If they handed a Wing to her, the Wing would most likely be killed before even engaging the enemy. This was something he simply couldn’t accept as a soldier.

 

“Mainly because she is too young, and her rank is below the criteria!”

 

“It has been decided that Lieutenant Degurechaff will be promoted to Captain. Instead of leading a Squadron, she is a talent that should command a Wing.”

 

“The Empire can’t afford to let capable soldiers lay idle. You should know that.”

 

Yet the higher ups had already decided on the course of action. When he heard Brigadier General Rudelsdorf admonishing him, Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen understood that. Resolving this took priority in order to improve their reaction time. There might be some lingering problems, but the big wigs would definitely turn a blind eye to it.

 

“If that is so, we should send her back to the Training Department, or work as a research personnel. She is still a child. Do you not understand just how terrifying the naivety of children can be?”

 

He tried coming up with alternate proposals. Traditionally, the General Staff Office welcomes debate. They believe that gathering viewpoints from more perspectives would reduce the flaws of their plans.

 

“Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen, I will listen to your views. But this matter has already been decided.”

 

“This is the decision of the General Staff Office. I believe you know what that means.”

 

On the other hand, anything decided through debate would leave no room for opposition. They promote absolute scrutiny in their discussion, but once the matter had been decided, they would request everyone to work together and execute it without delay. If someone couldn’t do so, they would be expelled from the General Staff Office.

 

“... Ugh, pardon me.”

 

So it has been set in stone—— Lieutenant Colonel Lehrgen wallowed despairingly. He never thought the epaulette of the staff officers would ever look so wicked, but he still suppressed his emotions. No, he would normally never go against central to such an extent. Despite all that, he was still very uneasy.

 

“Very well. We will proceed as planned and let Captain Degurechaff create a new Wing.”

 

“When the rostering is done, prepare the notification letter for her promotion to Major and her assignment as a Wing Commander.”

 

“That would be all. We will move on to the next topic.”

 

… Was this really fine?

 

 

 

“Seeing it once is better than hearing about it a hundred times.”

 

This was Tanya’s frank impression for the food on the plate that was served to her by the orderly.

 

Tanya knew this was a dish called Schlachtplatte. She didn’t mind the mixed platter of meat, and on top of that, it was braised, something almost impossible to do on the battlefront. Living in the trenches meant a diet with vitamin C was hard to sustain, so using a luxurious cooking method that would waste it was something that could only be found in the rear.

 

Considering the fact that people returning from the front lines would dine at this restaurant, including dishes that could only be found in the rear into the menu was a good idea. Another thing they took into consideration was that the cost of the meal was the same as of the ones in the frontlines, a careful way to show that the rear wasn’t splurging.

 

Everything was fine so far. So far.

 

The problem was that instead of being sour, it just tasted salty, and the pork was half cooked. If it were not for the potatoes, the platter would only be fit for the trash bin. This surprised her greatly.

 

Furthermore, the bread being served was K-brot②. This seemed to be done in order to advertise the bread, but to be frank, the navy’s rye bread was probably more nutritious and delicious. If it was up to her, she would beg them not to forcefully mix flour with potatoes to make bread, but to make normal food with them separately.

 

If she went to the navy’s dining hall, she would definitely get something nicer with the same budget.

 

The reason for this was simple. The army would never leak this out, but the facilities of the dining hall used up too much of the funds, so they had to take some of budget from the kitchen to cover the shortfall, which was almost an open secret. And unlike the navy, the army had a culture of not minding poor food, and that failed to stimulate the creativity of the chefs. Not just that, with the kitchen staff changing frequently, they didn’t have the skills to keep up.

 

Even the K-brot was served because it was the cheapest and least popular. The food in the army dining hall of the General Staff Office couldn’t even hold a candle to the mess hall of the junior officers, and it was pointless to compare it to the senior officer dining hall, which was the pride of the navy. The stubbornness of the Army in refusing to accept the accusation by the navy that this was a waste of budget was mind boggling. To be honest, it could compete with the United Kingdom in being the lowest standard of the culinary world. No, it might be worse than Haggis.

 

This wasn’t a taste that would entice anyone to go over on their own.

 

“... How does it taste, Captain? This is the speciality of the General Staff Office.”

 

That’s right, on their own. Oppositely speaking, this was a meal that was especially ordered by the General Staff Office’s Colonel Kodru, from the Personnel Department, and Brigadier General Zettois from the Logistics Bureau. So she had to eat. Or rather, she had no other choice but to eat.

 

“Yes, if I have to tell the truth, this is an excellent dish that reminds me of how I feel at the frontlines. I am very impressed.”

 

“Hahahaha, quite the splendid answer, isn’t that right, Sir Zettois?”

 

And that was why Tanya had to speak her mind while keeping her manners in response to Brigadier General Zettois’ question. Even if she was expected to endure coarse food, this was just too much.

 

He probably liked her answer a lot. Colonel Kodru laughed heartily and muttered: “Let’s rename the dining hall as ‘Reminiscence of the Battlefield’...”

 

“Your attitude is admirable, Captain, but you don’t need to hold back.”

 

“No, I have eaten my fill. Please don’t mind me.”

 

Honestly speaking, they didn’t seem to be enjoying their meal either.

 

“Really? You are still growing, it isn’t good to eat too little.”

 

“Yes Sir, but I have a tiny appetite. I will try to eat more.”

 

They had to use the dining hall in the General Staff Office because of the position they were in… And Brigadier General Zettois who was forced by the army to frequent this place had probably asked all new staff officers the same thing. Tanya felt that this was similar to how some of the professors in War College liked to play pranks on the students.

 

However, that was only during the meal.

 

After Colonel sent away the orderly who came to clear the plates, asking them to not come near after serving coffee, they started the meeting in earnest.

 

“Let’s get started on the main topic. Ah, it’s a bit late, but congratulations on your promotion, Captain Degurechaff.”

 

The moment she graduated from War College, she received the notice on her promotion to Captain. The one who approved of this was none other than Colonel Kogru himself. His well wishes felt really empty.

 

“Thank you for your kind words, Colonel.”

 

She wasn’t tall enough and barely reached the dining table by sitting on a high chair. Even if she straightened her back, she had to look up at the other party. Despite this, Tanya acted like a model officer and offered her thanks in a cheerful voice.

 

At the very least, in a huge organization like the military, that behaviour was very laudable.

 

And the Colonel from the Personnel Department was smiling kindly too. Even though he adopted this attitude to urge the other party to follow, etiquettes weren’t meaningless. At least for negotiations, this was a tool that might help identify the opponent’s weakness.

 

She spoke loudly, in contrast to the indifference held in her heart. She had already received her promotion notification.

 

The Colonel already knew this and didn’t need to make a show of congratulating her. What they were going to talk about next would be the key points.

 

“Not just the promotion notification, we also need to decide which unit you will be assigned to.”

 

That’s right. The career path of a War College graduate. The posting of the War College graduates wasn’t decided by the director of training, but laid in the hands of the General Staff Office.

 

This small group of people with a strong sense of camaraderie held the authority for personnel resource matters. It was obvious that displeasing them would not end well. And the reverse was true too.

 

“If possible, I would like to hear your opinion as a reference.”

 

“My deepest gratitude.”

 

The so called reference that Colonel Kodru mentioned would be pretending to listen to what I have to say. Anyone who worked in personnel affairs would have experienced times where they ignored the personal opinions of the promotees when appointing office, which wasn’t that rare.

 

No matter how friendly the people from the Personnel Department looked, I can’t let down my guard. Or rather, I know they are the type who lived in the world of superficial words. That’s why I have to respond with superficial words too.

 

“However, I am a soldier. If there is an order, I will humbly accept whatever unit I am posted to.”

 

A blatant lie. Saying that she would humbly accept whatever unit that was, would be better than startling the snake within the grass under most circumstances. And of course, she had to be careful to not pick the short straw.

 

“Very well. These are the documents for you.”

 

The Colonel seemed very pleased, he carefully took out a stack of staff requisition forms and handed them to me. They were all from front line units. And all were in urgent need of mages and officers. Although there were some units recuperating in the rear too. It seemed that many units wanted me… One wrong move from me, and I would be thrown into the harshest place without any choice.

 

“Oh right, the General Staff Office also submitted one.”

The last paper he proffered was simply a request by the General Staff Office for me to be posted there.

 

“Considering the merits you achieved, the Personnel Department would not dictate your choice. So pick a unit you like.”

 

“There are too many to choose from, I don’t know which one I should select.”

 

In actual fact, I didn’t have a choice. The General Staff Office which controlled personnel selection just wanted me to know how many units wanted me.

 

However, the General Staff Office was already asking her to join, what kind of fool would refuse? It was impossible to reject.

 

“That’s true.”

 

The Colonel urged me after thinking carefully. This might just be an act, but he seemed to be sincerely advising a young girl who was troubled by her career path. He was an excellent actor to mold such an image of a character. But long before he assisted with my poor acting, it was obvious that this was a third rate screenplay where the ending was clear as day.

 

“No matter what era it is, there are no easy jobs.”

 

“That’s right.”

 

I kept my back straight as I answered. It seemed that the other party was busy, and didn’t have time to accommodate my bad acting skills.

 

“I don’t know where the General Staff Office would post you, but good luck.”

 

“I am grateful, Colonel.”

 

Wishing me luck was a personal expression. In short, it was a message that showed his personal goodwill. He seemed to have grasped something and was evaluating me highly.

 

Which meant that it was a lie he didn’t know where I would be posted. I should assume he already knew. What do you know? Tanya wanted to ask, and unconsciously tilted her head slightly like a child.

 

In response to her quizzing gaze, the Colonel nodded sagely and stood up.

 

“It’s regretful that we couldn’t enjoy dessert together, but I need to make a move first.”

 

 

“Thank you for your hard work, Colonel Kodru. See you later.”

After speaking his piece, Colonel Kodru left the dining hall swiftly. With his eyes on the Colonel’s departing figure, Brigadier Genera

Chapter end