Chapter 15
After parting ways with Princess Selvia, my platoon members and I quickly washed up and waited for the time being.
I wanted nothing more than to get out of this wretched Northern Front as soon as possible, but after spectacularly wrecking a jeep, I had to deal with various administrative procedures to obtain a replacement.
Afterward, I took over a vehicle from the special operations company and headed straight for General Staff Headquarters.
Just as on the way there, we drove nonstop for four days and finally arrived at the entrance to General Staff Headquarters, where a magnificent large fountain had been installed.
Feeling the weariness of the journey, I opened the passenger-side door and got out, then saw my platoon members climbing out of the nearby transport vehicles.
The platoon members quickly disembarked, then gathered smartly by squad and stood before me without anyone having to tell them to.
Here and there, I saw soldiers with bandages wrapped around their bodies, presumably because they had been wounded in the enemy attack, yet smiles had blossomed on their faces as if they had forgotten they were injured.
‘They must be happy that they don’t have to worry about enemy attacks here. I understand.’
If I had been a soldier, I would have been making the same expression.
After taking my time to look each of them over, I opened my mouth.
“You’ve all worked hard. You performed your respective duties admirably on the Northern Front. Moreover, remaining calm even when faced with an unexpected enemy attack is something worthy of praise.”
“You worked hard too, Platoon Commander!”
“It’s a shame we couldn’t fight more! We should’ve burst more of those bastards’ balls!”
When one or two hot-blooded soldiers shouted loudly, laughter broke out among the platoon members.
Under ordinary circumstances, I would have warned them, but we had just returned from a victory.
I didn’t want to ruin the warm atmosphere for no reason.
“There will be plenty more chances to burst the Allied soldiers’ balls in the future, so don’t worry. And as for the rest of you…… Never mind. What’s the point of giving a speech? Dismissed, everyone, and enjoy the victory.”
When I finished speaking, the soldiers snapped off crisp salutes.
After returning their salutes, I was about to head into General Staff Headquarters to submit my report when I paused.
Prien had approached as if he had something to say.
“……What is it?”
Perhaps because I was tired, my voice came out low.
Prien looked somewhat frightened, but then gathered his courage and opened his mouth.
“Lieutenant Daniel Steiner! Ah, I wish to discuss matters concerning the future!”
“Hm? Ah. You men will now be assigned to a battalion directly under Headquarters. If Headquarters doesn’t call for you, train there.”
“Th-That’s not what I was trying to say…….”
Then what was it? When I stared at him in exasperation, Prien took a deep breath and looked up at me.
“If I may be so bold, I want to become an officer like you, Lieutenant Daniel!”
“An officer?”
“That’s right! Fighting on the Northern Front made me strongly want to serve the Empire like you!”
Although it was somewhat out of the blue, Prien becoming an officer was the natural next step.
The timing was simply a little early. Normally, a soldier would first receive a promotion to private first class and then decide to become an officer after some time had passed.
I didn’t know what had caused this change of heart, but there was no reason to refuse him.
“I’ll tell my superiors that you wish to serve as an officer. Since you have a record of rescuing Her Highness the Princess during the enemy attack, your commissioning should be relatively straightforward.”
Prien must not have expected to actually receive permission, because his face filled with surprise before he turned toward me and delivered a vigorous salute.
“Thank you! Thank you so much, Lieutenant Daniel!”
I wondered whether I really deserved that much gratitude, but I didn’t feel particularly bad about it.
After giving him a perfunctory nod, I walked into General Staff Headquarters.
As soon as I entered the Operations Staff Room, I was overcome by a powerful desire to escape.
“Lieutenant Daniel! No, should I call you Captain now? Hahaha! Either way, we’ve all been waiting for you!”
While Ernst, the Chief of the Operations Staff, welcomed me, the staff officers erupted in cheers.
I glanced around and saw that everyone was standing at their desks and applauding.
Even worse were the flowers and balloons decorating my place in the staff room.
In the middle of those laughably crude decorations, which must have been put up by the soldiers, sat a new nameplate.
【Operations Staff / Captain Daniel Steiner】
The nameplate somehow looked a little more luxurious than before.
Before I could even ask what it was, Ernst signaled to one of the nearby soldiers.
The soldier approached carrying a small box and held it out to me with both hands.
It was a familiar box, resembling the one Captain Phillip had given me before.
“Congratulations on your accelerated promotion, Captain Daniel Steiner!”
I had a feeling that was what it was, and when I accepted the box and looked inside, I found a captain’s insignia and shoulder boards neatly arranged within.
As I stared down at them with a sour expression, Ernst spoke with a satisfied smile.
“I did tell you to go earn some achievements, but I never expected you to finish the job so splendidly and come back. On top of that, you even risked your life for Her Highness the Princess! The bigwigs up top no longer look at you with prejudice!”
……It was the first time I had ever seen Ernst smile so brightly.
Of course, a subordinate’s achievements were his achievements as well, so he had every reason to be pleased.
As for me, I could only sigh at the thought that my dream of being discharged had moved one step farther away, but I couldn’t show my true feelings in a place with so many eyes on me.
“You flatter me. As a soldier of the Empire, I merely did what I was supposed to do.”
Therefore, the best I could do was accept Ernst’s handshake with a smile.
*
I spent the week following my promotion in a whirlwind of activity.
Most of the reason for those busy days had to do with interpersonal relationships.
Perhaps because I had received two accelerated promotions in succession, I had become a celebrity within General Staff Headquarters, and invitations from people who wanted a famous person by their side never stopped coming.
Most of them approached me by asking whether I would like to share a meal with them, but their ulterior motives were painfully obvious.
They wanted to recruit me to bolster the prestige of their military factions.
Considering the politicians connected to those factions, I shouldn’t even dip my ankle into their pond.
So I evaded every invitation by claiming that I was busy, and Ernst, our Chief of the Operations Staff, seemed to like that attitude quite a lot.
I could tell from the way he would stop me on my way out of the officers’ mess and launch into a rambling conversation.
“So do you know what my daughter said back then? She told me she’d beat up those Allied bastards in my place, so I shouldn’t go to work tomorrow and should stay home to play with her. She was so adorable…….”
Ernst was famous for never engaging in small talk, yet for some reason, he never hesitated to bring up his family whenever he saw me.
In other words, he was showing favor only to me…… Honestly, it was a little burdensome.
The favor of a direct superior could be more uncomfortable than one might expect.
Especially when the relationship became personal rather than remaining professional.
Just as I was beginning to feel a creeping urge to cut him off,
“Daniel Steiner! You devil’s spawn deserving of divine punishment!”
my shoulders flinched at the shout from behind me.
When I turned to see who it was, an officer in an Allied uniform was glaring at me while bound in rope.
“You bastard! You despicable piece of trash─!”
When the Allied officer tried to charge at me, a soldier kicked him behind the knee.
“Ghk!”
Thanks to that, the Allied officer pitched forward and fell flat on his face.
The soldier who had kicked the Allied officer behind the knee bowed his head toward me with a flustered expression.
When I raised a hand to signal that I was fine, the soldier hauled the Allied officer to his feet and shouted at him.
Watching the scene, I opened my mouth in puzzlement.
“That man…….”
“Ah. I heard the Northern Army was transferring a senior officer prisoner to Headquarters, so I suppose he arrived today. You know him well too, don’t you? You captured him yourself, after all.”
I nodded.
During the operation to kill Colonel Jeremy, that was the officer who had shouted for the soldiers to surrender after taking the first shot.
‘I remember his rank was major…….’
As I fell into thought, Ernst clicked his tongue and spoke.
“I hear that, since he’s a field-grade officer, our side has been trying to make things easier for him, but it hasn’t been going well. He used to work for Allied intelligence, so he’d be a valuable recruit if we could win him over.”
I see. As I watched the back of the Allied officer being dragged away by two soldiers, a good idea suddenly crossed my mind.
“……Chief.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“If it’s all right, may I take charge of interrogating that man?”
Ernst stared blankly for a moment, then tilted his head.
“It isn’t forbidden, but it’ll add to your workload on top of what you already have.”
“That’s all right. He seems worth the effort.”
Thanks to that, Ernst let out an admiring exclamation.
“What magnificent patriotism. Honestly, you make me feel downright shabby.”
Ernst seemed moved, and nodded to indicate his permission.
But I was merely wearing a sinister smile as I plotted something diametrically opposed to patriotism.
‘This might be…….’
Maybe I could escape the Empire without going through a dishonorable discharge.