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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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“Did you get some rest?”
“Definitely better to sleep under a roof. I feel much better,”
the 3rd Platoon Leader said with a chuckle, having woken up after resting in the cave. During the past two weeks, Sergeant Erwin Luce, with his easygoing nature, had become somewhat friendly with Lumia Blyue and Roxana Elim, comfortable enough to exchange jokes.
“Where did Company Commander Enoch go?”
“He went to inspect the platoons. The 4th Platoon will be switching out with the 3rd soon.”
“He’s really diligent. Completely different from our previous company commander, who only ate, slept, and took dumps.”
Erwin’s eyes sparkled. He’d initially been disappointed by Enoch’s unassuming appearance, but after learning he was the legendary magic officer who’d been promoted in just one month, his respect bordered on worship.
And there was Sergeant Claude. The war hero, the Butcher of Thunder! How could he, Erwin, question the Company Commander acknowledged by Sergeant Claude Rain himself? Erwin was ready to obey any order Enoch Levandal gave, as long as it was based on ‘rules’ and sound judgment.
“Haha… he’s certainly an impressive person”
Lumia replied with a faint smile. Just then, a gunshot rang out.
Bang!
The three of them turned towards the sound. West. Sergeant Hilton Calia’s 4th Platoon’s area. The gunshot wasn’t alone.
Bang! Bang!
Several shots followed, confirming it wasn’t an accident.
“Platoon Leader Erwin! Assemble your platoon immediately!”
Lumia was the first to react. With Enoch absent, she had to act quickly as the Company Adjutant. Roxana was next. She sensed a surge of mana following the gunshots.
“Company Adjutant! It might be too late to move the troops! They’ve used magic. The Battalion Commander’s bombardment is coming!”
“…!!!”
Lumia hesitated for a split second. Sony Zeppelin’s bombardment was merciless. Even Lumia, with over two years of military experience, had never witnessed anything like it. They’d minimized casualties last time thanks to the magic barriers deployed by Enoch and the other magic troops, and their quick maneuvers.
Currently, engaged in combat and using offensive magic, they were vulnerable to bombardment. There might already be casualties.
“Platoon Leader Erwin, head west as soon as your platoon is assembled! We’ll move first!”
It might not be the right decision, but it was better than having the Company Commander or the 4th Platoon wiped out.
Do your best. That was the adjutant’s mindset, as emphasized by Second Lieutenant Enoch Levandal. Lumia believed this was the best course of action.
“Yes, ma’am!!”
Erwin Luce dashed into the cave and bellowed, “Everyone!! Move faster!! Our allies are about to be bombarded!! Get ready! Five seconds!!”
Assembling the troops in five seconds seemed impossible, but Erwin Luce and his 3rd Platoon did it. The 3rd Platoon emerged from the cave, fully equipped.
“Double time, march!!”
“Forward!!”
It took them mere minutes to catch up to Lumia and Roxana.
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“Hmm.”
Josef was genuinely impressed as he observed the situation. While it was barely a tenth of Sony Zeppelin’s full power, it was still a formidable attack. A hastily erected 2nd-grade magic barrier wouldn’t offer much protection.
Without a barrier, an entire infantry platoon without magic resistance could be incapacitated in an instant. Archmages were forces of nature, ‘one-man armies’. However, the 1st Company’s response exceeded Josef’s expectations.
Under the 2nd-grade barrier deployed by the Company Commander, they were using colorless offensive magic to weaken Sony Zeppelin’s attack. Even a weakened attack from an Archmage wasn’t easy to intercept.
‘Roxana Elim, was it? They say a mage with Mana Heart Disease is as good as an Archmage. Seems true.’
Then there was the 3rd Platoon, waiting midway. Their reaction was swift, unbelievably fast for a unit that had been resting. While it seemed Company Adjutant Lumia had made the right call, mobilizing troops based on that judgment wasn’t easy.
A smile spread across Major Josef Lewandowski’s face.
‘Their coordination is excellent, after only two weeks.’
He’d been slightly concerned about appointing a newly commissioned officer, less than a year out of the academy, as Company Commander, but his worries were unfounded. Josef wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Sony Zeppelin, the one orchestrating the attack, was practically jumping with excitement.
“Are they crazy!!! How are they doing that? Intercepting my magic with Magic Missile?!”
It wasn’t 100% accurate. Barely half of the ten missiles hit their targets. But even that was impressive. And the remaining attacks were completely blocked by the magic barrier deployed by Enoch Levandal and Lumia Blyue.
“Where did he come up with that idea, Enoch?”
“I don’t know. But it’s certainly… impressive.”
“I told you! That’s not a platoon to be trifled with!”
She’d initially planned to use them as bait to persuade Enoch Levandal, then reassign them to a less important position. The most extreme option was to select a company for demotion and push them in that direction.
But Sony Zeppelin was the one who formed this battalion. And she was also the commander of the Special Response Brigade, the 8th Assault Magic Infantry Battalion’s parent unit. Who would dare to object?
But the more she read the squad members’ files, the more intrigued she became. They were too valuable to be left to waste. So she assigned them to the 1st Company. Partly to see why Second Lieutenant Enoch Levandal was so fond of them.
The result exceeded her expectations. Satisfied with their performance, Sony Zeppelin deactivated the magic circle.
“Chief of Staff.”
“Yes, Battalion Commander.”
“Let’s leave them alone. We’ve seen enough.”
“I agree. Their survival for the remaining 36 hours is the only concern now.”
“They’ll manage. They won’t fail because of that, will they?”
“Shall we test the 2nd Company next? They should be having their meal now.”
They say not to disturb even a dog while it’s eating… but this wasn’t about dogs. This was training disguised as real combat. There was no need to be considerate of meal times.
“Sounds good. A bombardment during mealtime adds to the realism.”
“Understood.”
Sony Zeppelin turned and moved towards the 2nd Company’s position. It didn’t take long for the merciless bombardment to begin there.
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“Whew.”
I finally had a chance to breathe. I was glad I’d set up a backup position. While it wasn’t a cozy cave, the cliff face provided some shelter from the wind.
“I-I’m so sorry…”
Platoon Leader Hilton, the cause of this whole mess, looked utterly defeated.
“It’s all my fault.”
“It’s not your fault, Platoon Leader Hilton, you did your best…”
I was about to offer words of comfort, but Erwin cut me off.
“Nonsense!! What are you talking about, 4th Platoon Leader?! Why blame yourself?! It’s that clueless Yeti’s fault!”
“Huh…?”
“Magical beasts are hostile to humans. If we’d left it alone, it might have attacked passing civilians!” Erwin placed his hand on Hilton’s shoulder.
“You did well.”
“…Indeed. Platoon Leader Hilton did the right thing, as 3rd Platoon Leader said. And you handled your troops well, too.”
“Really…?”
“Yes, but please report any magical beast sightings to the Company Commander immediately. That way, the entire company can respond accordingly.”
“Understood.”
Despite her dramatic first impression, Platoon Leader Hilton was surprisingly timid. I’d checked her traits in the unit management window and read her profile and disciplinary reports from her previous unit. She seemed to have a split personality.
During the engagement with the Yeti, she’d become a completely different person the moment I mentioned “real combat”.
‘A war maniac and a berserker. Interesting.’
It wasn’t interesting at all… but now that she was in my company, I had to see it through. I’d managed to lead the initial reject platoon this far. As Claude said, I had no idea how she would develop.
Growl—
“Oh.”
Lumia’s stomach growled loudly.
“S-Sorry! I suddenly got hungry now that I’ve relaxed.”
“That made me hungry.”
“Eek…”
I chuckled at Lumia’s flushed face. Bell, who was teaching Roxana how to build an igloo, and the nearby soldiers also started laughing.
“Well, we still have over thirty hours to go. Let’s hunt some wildlife.”
With the cliff at our backs, we could safely light a fire.
“I saw some arrowroot earlier. If you clean the dirt off, it’s edible even raw”
Claude said, leaning against a large tree. So, that’s what the 1st Platoon members were chewing on earlier.
“Good. Then let’s disperse and regroup here in exactly 30 minutes.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Lumia, can you move with that rumbling stomach?”
“C-Company Commander—!!”
Lumia squeaked in response to my teasing, and the exhausted soldiers’ faces brightened. Right, surviving this training was the top priority. I stood up, thinking about the long hours ahead.
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