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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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“Alright! That’s it for today’s schedule! Time to go home… Why do you all look like that?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
“That’s right! It’s nothing, Brigadier General!”
“Hmm? You look like you’ve been up to some mischief.”
Was she really an Archmage? My ears burned again at her sharp observation.
“Well, if it’s nothing, then it’s fine. Let’s go back now. To where we belong.”
“Yes, all the luggage has been packed. Including yours, Brigadier General.”
“As expected of the Captain! You’ve got a good sense.”
The dispatch schedule to the Reinhardt Empire, which had started at the beginning of September, ended today. Sony Zeppelin, along with Count Ferdinand, had completed the final improvements to the Graf Ferdinand, and in return, had received another airship.
As soon as production was completed at the factory, it would be delivered to our battalion’s hangar. This would further strengthen the combat power of the 8th Assault Magic Infantry Combat Group.
And since we had obtained the local license production rights for the armored train from Captain Johannes and Dr. Mercedes Musk, we would be collaborating with Reinhardt again as soon as the development of the Grizzly 57mm howitzer was somewhat complete.
If that happened, we would be able to secure at least two armored trains before the war. They were essential weapons to block the Soviet Empire’s initial offensive.
“Ah, that was fun. Right?”
“Yes. We made a lot of good connections.”
“I’ve been hearing Captain Enoch’s name from all over. So we decided to name our newly received Diabola 3 ‘Enoch’!”
“……Please don’t.”
“Why, it’s good, isn’t it?”
As we exchanged idle chatter, we once again boarded the royal carriage heading to Ukraine.
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Enoch Levandal and his party departed from the Reinhardt Empire and returned safely to Ukraine.
The new recruits who had joined the combat group had also completed their basic physical training and were only waiting for the jump training. With the return of both the deputy commander and the battalion commander, the progress of the training could be further accelerated.
They relentlessly pushed the troops, went through the training curriculum, and handled all sorts of administrative paperwork, while also maintaining contact with the connections they had made in Count Ferdinand’s territory.
And thanks to not neglecting technology research and internal affairs, the 57mm howitzer that Enoch Levandal had so eagerly awaited was successfully developed on schedule.
“One, two, three, fire!!”
BOOM!!
The 57mm shell that hit the hill exploded in a crimson flame. The size of the fireball wasn’t very large, but it was more than enough for infantry use.
Enoch asked the lieutenant colonel who was observing the live-fire exercise next to him, “What do you think of its performance, Lieutenant Colonel?”
“What kind of question is that? This thing is insane. I’ve never seen a cannon with this kind of performance in my life. The best artillerymen in the world have always been the Pry, but it won’t be long before Ukraine takes that title!”
Lieutenant Colonel Jan Bloch, the head of the artillery department at the Central Education and Technology Research Center, praised it with sparkling eyes.
Of course, the caliber itself was a little smaller than a modern mortar at 57mm, but since the technology had been secured, it could soon be applied to field guns like the 75mm.
Even to Enoch, it was a pretty good result. And the 57mm was actually for anti-artillery purposes. The Soviet Empire had probably not yet modernized its artillery.
As a country with a long tradition of a shattered economy, it was characteristic of them to pour in all sorts of conventional firepower in the early stages. A
few cool bombardments on the swarming army would surely make them scatter like moths to a flame.
And while it might be relatively inefficient against enemies in trenches, it would be a very effective means of attack against enemy artillery deployed in the open.
“And how is the development of infantry support mortars coming along?”
“That’s also going very smoothly. It’s a muzzle-loader, not a breech-loader. We’re just improving the cannons we’ve always used.”
“Good.”
In any case, what Ukraine needed most was a weapon that could effectively project modern firepower. There was a limit to the numbers that could be stopped with only magic bombardment.
The biggest advantage and disadvantage of magic soldiers was that the one firing the bombardment was a person.
Unlike ordinary artillery, which could fire all day long without any problem as long as the ammunition was plentiful and the barrel was fine, if magic soldiers were operated in that way, the already small number of troops would surely become like dried squid due to mana depletion.
This was the biggest reason why magic soldiers were destined to become obsolete in the future.
“By the way, Captain Enoch, are you sure you don’t want to come to ‘Gigyoyeon’? Brigadier General Viktor Zelensky was really disappointed.”
“Haha… I’ll go if I get the chance.”
“Yes, with your ability, you’ll probably be a major in a few years. Then it would be perfect for you to perform a staff role here.”
Lieutenant Colonel Jan Bloch chuckled and patted Enoch’s back. At first, he had wondered who this upstart was who had been promoted to captain in seven months, but he was really something.
“You were the first person to emphasize the importance of artillery in the Ukrainian army. In future battlefields, artillery is the only way to survive, but those frontline field commanders with shit for brains won’t listen.”
It wasn’t for nothing that his nickname was the bull. Jan Bloch spewed out harsh words that would make anyone flinch.
“All they do is call in female soldiers to drink, and I was about to go crazy being under those idiots who know nothing about troop management or strategy!”
“You’ve been through a lot.”
Enoch Levandal listened to the lieutenant colonel’s fiery complaints and chimed in. Although his language was a bit… extreme, it was certainly the reality of the Ukrainian army.
“But it’s a good thing I have such a reliable junior officer! Ah, since we have a lot of time anyway, how about we go to a pub I know well? My treat!”
“I would be honored to accompany you.”
“Hahaha!! Good, good! Work hard, play hard! Isn’t that right!?”
Enoch Levandal had always been resourceful. He continued to expand his sphere of influence through meetings with people related to the Ukrainian army, especially those in the central government.
And when one side starts to stand out, there’s always a backlash. As the favorable views of Enoch Levandal within the military increased, the hostile views also grew thicker over time.
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“I’ve prepared some warm tea. Please rest a little. And I’ve brought last week’s Wilson Times weekly.”
“Thank you, Lumia.”
As soon as he entered the office, the silver-haired adjutant greeted him. The misunderstanding from that day had all been cleared up, so he didn’t have to blush and run away like a teenager anymore.
But it was impossible not to be a little conscious of it. I tried not to show it and sat down, raising the teacup. The fragrant scent of black tea tickled my nose.
“You should rest a little too, Lumia. You don’t have any particular schedule today, do you?”
“No, sir. I have a counseling session with the new recruits today. I’m in charge of it with Second Lieutenant Belle Meyer. I also need to sort out some personnel to be assigned to the newly established company that the battalion commander ordered and deliver it to the personnel department.”
Ah, come to think of it, was that so? I had been so busy lately that I had momentarily forgotten what Lumia’s duties were.
“Second Lieutenant Eugene will be in charge of the 4th Company. And Second Lieutenant Erwin Luce will probably be in charge of the 5th Company.”
“Eugene and Erwin, not bad.”
Erwin Luce had been in our company, so I was well aware of his capabilities. Although he had a tendency to be excessively by-the-book, that was precisely why he was a very stable commander.
Since the newly established 4th and 5th Companies were essentially reserves, he was a perfect talent for the commander of a reserve company that had to be deployed in urgent situations.
And Second Lieutenant Eugene Gilbert was a non-commissioned officer who had been under Lieutenant Nikolai Hilbert of the 2nd Company.
His original rank was master sergeant, and since he was relatively older than the other platoon leaders, he was a talent who stood out for his veteran experience.
In terms of pure tactical skills, I remember him being the best non-commissioned officer after Claude Lane.
He had actually served as a scout team leader at the Lymansk Armory, and he had calmly responded to the mutant attack and minimized casualties. Like Erwin Luce, he would be a good choice for the commander of a reserve unit that had to preserve its strength as much as possible.
“Now we’ve finally become a battalion combat group.”
I glanced outside. The forest, which had been turning red and yellow, was gradually revealing its bare form. The clothes of the soldiers walking around outside were also quite thick compared to a few weeks ago.
As the new recruits had completely adapted to the unit, winter was approaching.
“I’ll have to check if there are any bandit groups or monster lairs that the central government has requested to be suppressed soon.”
“Real combat experience is important.”
Excluding those who had been inevitably discharged due to injuries or other minor reasons─ more than 90% of the newly replenished recruits had completed all parachute training courses.
Now that they had had enough training, it was time to deploy them in real combat, a tradition of the 8th Assault Magic Infantry Combat Group.
“I hope it’s a bit bigger this time.”
“We also need to test the 57mm howitzer deployed on the newly acquired Diabola, right?”
“That’s right.”
“The Enoch ship. It’s cool.”
“Ugh…”
Lumia chuckled and threw a light joke. Was Sony Zeppelin someone who would listen to me? She had finally named the 3rd Diabola airship, acquired from Reinhardt, ‘Enoch.’
I felt like I wouldn’t be able to sleep if it was shot down. But the fact that we could provide some fire support before the troops were deployed was a very satisfying part.
The aviation platoon personnel were also beaming at the fact that they could operate cannons instead of just waiting in the air.
“Now, we’ll request further improvements…”
It was at that moment.
Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding-ding─!!!
A sharp bell rang out. The first to react was my body. I immediately stood up and looked at Lumia.
“Do we have any training planned?”
“No…!?”
Thud, bang!
As I was about to go out to see what was going on, the office door burst open and Chief of Staff Josef Lewandowski appeared.
“Captain, we need to prepare for deployment right now. An emergency support request from the south!!”
“Emergency support… sir?”
As I was just standing there dumbfounded, Joseph added in a serious voice, “The Azov bastards have launched a large-scale invasion of the Quornen region.”
“What?”
“Two coastal cities have already fallen, and an emergency deployment order has been issued to all battalions under the Special Operations Brigade by the Duke’s command. Prepare as soon as possible!”
It was war.
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