A War Hero With No Regrets – Chapter 7

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Whoosh.

The vegetation fluttered in the pleasant night breeze.

It was a different atmosphere from the Graveyard, which was all gray concrete, let alone a garden.

He couldn’t even remember how long it had been since he had peacefully looked up at the night sky like this.

Every day had been an extension of the front line, so it was no wonder.

It was quite a different feeling, Luthers thought.

“Wow, Commander. Look at this. The moon is shining brightly.”

“It is.”

“Do you want to see the lake too?”

At the urging voice different from usual, Luthers burst into laughter and approached the railing.

It was certainly a different scenery from the daytime.

The brightly risen moonlight shimmered on the water surface, and the yellow evening primroses blooming on the waterside swayed gently in the wind.

Luthers was just silently taking in the scenery.

Arwen, who had been chattering beside him, must have been completely captivated by the scenery as well, as she no longer opened her mouth.

Suddenly, he imagined.

The sight of running around the waterside with children who looked just like his wife’s hair.

He would go fishing by the lake with his son every weekend, and pick evening primroses with his daughter to make a pretty flower crown.

All together happily.

Peacefully without any worries.

Imagining that, Luthers unknowingly smiled a pleasant smile.

“…So Arwen, how did we decide to build the house?”

Luthers asked Arwen, turning his head.

But there was no one there.

Only a tree that had grown haphazardly stood there alone.

“…”

Was it another illusion?

As soon as he realized that fact, the warmth he felt at his fingertips faded away.

Her voice that had made his heart at ease also sank into the depths of his unconscious mind.

Unbearable silence and pain once again engulfed Luthers Edan’s mind.

His lips were parched.

After all that fighting, there was no way Arwen would be by his side, was there?

Luthers took out a cigarette from his pocket, feeling a burning thirst.

It was the strong cigarette he always smoked.

A makeshift solution to relieve the stress that accumulated on the gunpowder-filled battlefield.

The war was over, so there was no need to smoke anymore, but it was already stuck to his mouth.

Click.

A blue flame rose from the old metal lighter.

As he lit the cigarette in his mouth, a heavy smoke was sucked in beyond his throat.

“Ha…”

He exhaled a breath.

Luthers looked at the lakeside again, puffing out smoke.

The scenery that was so beautiful just a moment ago now looked so lonely.

A full moon that had risen in the night sky without starlight.

“…”

He couldn’t forget.

That smile, that voice, that scent.

At the same time, he remembered that death, blood, tears, and the screams mixed with pain.

The voice that whispered love was the last breath when Arwen’s life ended.

The touch of the hand he held was that of Lea, who had endured the horrible torture of being caught by the Titans.

The tears that soaked his collar were those of Charlotte, who blamed herself for not being able to save everyone.

The screams that kept ringing were those of the countless soldiers and subordinates who had died countless times.

Even after leaving the Graveyard, the memories of numerous cycles clung to him like ghosts.

It wasn’t strange for ghosts to cling to him after being in the graveyard for so long.

Should he just die like this?

The building looked quite high at a glance.

If he fell head first, he would die instantly.

But he was also afraid.

What if this curse-like ability activated once more?

If he went back to before the victory and faced them again, could he bear it?

No.

Even now, it was this painful, so it would be several times more painful then.

Luthers stamped out the burnt-out cigarette.

Because he had decided not to do anything he would regret.

If he had wanted to, he would have held onto Arwen at the Graveyard.

The moment he pushed away her hand, Luthers had already crossed a river from which there was no return.

Instead, he could smoke all the cigarettes he wanted.

Now there was no one to nag him.

Just as he was about to put another cigarette in his mouth.

Rustle, swoosh.

An artificial sound of cutting through the grass was heard.

As he reflexively clenched his fists and took a defensive stance, his eyes met a woman who appeared from the thick grass.

“…”

“…”

The woman who was startled and froze.

Although it was night, it was easy to recognize her due to the bright moonlight.

The survivor of Forbidden Lake he had encountered a few hours ago.

Karin Maven.

Did she come out to see the moon too?

Perhaps it was him who had disturbed someone’s peaceful rest.

Luthers put the cigarette he was about to light back into the pack.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

No matter what his position was, he was still a rolling stone.

Luthers Edan didn’t want to interfere too much with their daily lives.

However, unlike earlier when she was just crying, Karin Maven turned her gaze and tried hard to open her mouth.

“…Ar-are you the newly appointed commander?”

“Something like that.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. During the day, I… I wasn’t very conscious.”

Luthers didn’t bother to say more.

He just nodded, reacting as if he understood.

In the midst of being busy taking care of himself, where would he have the time to care about others?

Since he hadn’t voluntarily taken the position of director, he had no intention of being strict.

Especially now that the war was over.

“You can… smoke… I’m going down now.”

Swoosh.

As Karin completely emerged from the grass, her appearance was fully revealed.

Her appearance, which he couldn’t see well when she was lying down, was more serious than he thought.

Thinly emaciated arms and hunched shoulders.

Disheveled hair that hadn’t been groomed for a long time and dull eyes.

Seeing her slyly wrapping her arms around herself, he thought that she might have self-harmed.

Even though it was summer in the northern hemisphere with a low average temperature, it was still a bit too hot to wear long sleeves.

But it didn’t really matter.

Her business was her business.

Karin would also find it burdensome for an outsider who didn’t even know her face or name properly to interfere.

Just as Luthers himself had felt.

That was the case until a rumbling sound came from her stomach.

“…Ah.”

Karin hurriedly stepped back, looking embarrassed.

Luthers, who had been contemplating whether to take out a cigarette or not, finally put the cigarette pack back into his pocket.

After all, seeing the stored food, there was no way she had eaten a proper meal.

“Let’s go down together.”

“Ye-yes…?!”

“I haven’t had dinner either. No matter what, you have to eat, don’t you?”

Luthers said so and began to move his steps indifferently.

“You don’t have to come if you don’t feel like it.”

Karin hesitated, not knowing what to do, but eventually had no choice but to follow him.

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Luthers tightly tied his apron.

It was a green apron that matched well with the olive-colored t-shirt he was wearing.

Commander- no, now director, but still, it was a very unusual sight for a former general and current field-grade officer to wear an apron.

From the fortress commander to the lowest-ranking soldier.

It wasn’t such a rare scene in the Graveyard, where everyone was close like a family, but Karin was staring blankly at Luthers with her eyes wide open.

“Just wait a moment. There’s not much ingredients in this fortress to begin with. I don’t even have a clue what to make.”

Supreme Commander Arthur Philias said he would provide convenience in many ways, but there was a procedure for everything.

For the time being, he had no choice but to live with the available ingredients for a few days.

There were few mouths to feed, so it wasn’t particularly difficult.

With the apron on, Luthers Edan rummaged through the shelves of the communal kitchen.

He said the boiler room was functioning normally, so there should be no problem with the gas supply within the fortress.

As long as the gas was properly supplied and there were suitable ingredients, cooking wasn’t a very complicated task for Luthers.

The skills he had accumulated during the forty regressions were not only related to combat.

What caught Luthers’ eye at the right moment was dried pasta.

It was a typical preserved food and had various cooking methods, making it an ideal ingredient for military meals.

Luthers took out the pasta and asked Karin.

“Do you like pasta?”

“…Ah. Ye-yes, I like it.”

“That’s a relief.”

It would have been troublesome if there were no other usable ingredients besides pasta.

Luthers nodded and placed a pot full of water on the stove.

Although pasta had various uses, considering the currently available ingredients, aglio e olio was the answer.

Cream pasta required milk and whipping cream, and tomato pasta obviously needed tomato sauce.

Needless to say, rose pasta required both.

In the end, the only option was aglio e olio, which could be made with olive oil, garlic, and other basic spices.

Once he decided on the menu, Luthers continued cooking without hesitation.

He cooked the pasta in the pot and poured olive oil on a large wok.

Thinly sliced garlic like flakes was a bonus.

From knife skills to stir-frying, Luthers’ movements were close to those of a professional chef.

Even Karin, who had no particular knowledge of cooking, could easily realize that he was very good at cooking.

In no time, aglio e olio made with oil, well-cooked pasta, and pasta water was completed.

It was a very basic form without parsley, cheese, or bacon, but even that was enough to whet Karin’s appetite, who was hungry.

Gulp.

Karin swallowed her saliva.

She had followed him in a daze, but while she was contemplating whether to eat or not, a steaming bowl of pasta was placed in front of her.

“Ah…”

How long had it been since she had seen proper food, not preserved or instant combat rations?

But Karin didn’t need to hesitate.

“It’s been quite a while since you had a proper meal. From now on, I’ll prepare meals at this time, so come out and eat if you want.”

She stared at the man wearing a green apron at those words.

Wasn’t it an invitation to eat together?

As if to prove that, Luthers lifted the remaining pasta in the wok and said.

“You can eat here if you want, or take it with you. But I’ll be eating in my office, so leave the remaining dishes in the sink.”

And that was really the last of it.

Without much conversation, Luthers took his portion of the food and left the kitchen.

She stared blankly at the director’s back.

Then she carefully picked up the tableware and tasted the pasta.

“…”

The first proper meal in months.

“It’s delicious…”

The dish made by the newly appointed commander was more delicious than she had expected.

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