Surviving as a Low-Ranking Soldier in a Trash Game-Chapter 52 : Chapter 52

Chapter 52
I didn't understand what he wanted to say, but the atmosphere was incredibly heavy.
His flickering eyes proved that Sergel was deeply troubled, even at this very moment of speaking.
"I need to discuss something with you. I don't know if I can call it a discussion... No, I think it's better to just call it a discussion."
"A discussion... Hmm... a discussion, you say..."
I wasn't keen on it. I was Unit 917's Field Commander.
This wasn't a position I'd sought, but regardless of how it came about, I'd ended up with the title, so I intended to diligently carry out the duties that came with the role.
However, managing and counseling soldiers was a commander's job.
That meant Selina should be doing it, not me.
"Unfortunately, it would be more efficient to ask Selina for counseling."
"It's something I can't discuss with the Commander."
"Hmm..."
I wasn't keen, but he'd said it like that, making it difficult to outright refuse.
When I nodded, Sergel, relieved, approached me.
"Shall I step aside?"
"Please."
"Yes!"
As if on cue, Ririsa darted away.
Just moments ago, Byan and Latia had been arguing over the unappetizing sandwich, and the crew members had been moving busily.
But whether they'd read the mood and cleared out, or simply didn't want to get involved in troublesome affairs, when I collected myself, only Sergel and I remained on deck.
"My brother called me yesterday."
"Your brother, you mean Count Dman?"
"That's right. He called me in private and gave me this."
Sergel took out something he had carefully kept in his pocket and handed it to me.
The small letter, neatly folded in half, bore countless traces suggesting it had been folded and unfolded at least dozens of times.
I took it in surprise.
"Open it."
Sergel urged me on with an expressionless face.
Just as when I received the letter, I unfolded it as if being pushed.
There was only one line written on it.
<I demand the custody of Rian Kaltz.>
"......?"
I wondered what this was.
Why would Count Dman want me?
I could surmise that I had left a deeper impression than expected during the last meeting, and as a result, Count Dman planned to recruit me... to that extent.
Selina had also said it wasn't impossible to recruit soldiers from other units.
Still, an unanswered question remained.
A figure of Count Dman's stature would have sat Selina and me down together to discuss it.
He was, after all, the guardian of Achimlab Fortress and a high-ranking noble; it was hard to imagine him disregarding honor.
Of course, he might have acted this way, judging that Selina would never send both me and Sergel simultaneously.
But it's hard to believe he would throw away his honor just to gain two soldiers.
"I still don't understand Count Dman's intention."
"......? Why suddenly my brother's name... Oh, I apologize. I left this out."
Sergel's composure broke for a moment as he quickly pulled something new from his pocket and offered it to me.
It was an envelope.
As I examined it, wondering if there was anything special, I froze.
The seal stamped on the envelope.
It was the emblem of Odin.
"Odin again... More importantly, where did you find this?"
"It was apparently placed right in the center of his bed. He's the type of person who tries to handle simple matters on his own, so no one is allowed into his bedroom without permission. It was the first time in my life I'd seen my brother's face so pale."
Of course, he would have been.
He must have been terribly frightened.
A place where entry was strictly forbidden, and even more so, his bedroom where he was exposed and vulnerable.
If a letter with Odin's seal blatantly stamped on it had been placed there, I would have shrieked in terror too.
This meant that he had been exposed to the risk of assassination without his knowledge and had been unable to react.
"Is there a possibility it's someone's trick?"
"Traces of strong magic remained at the scene. After tracking it, we identified it as the magical signature left by Odin's named... Leisia, the Red-Eyed Witch."
"......"
"Odin... I understood it intellectually, but it was the first time its dread truly hit my heart."
"...Sergel."
"Yes, Field Commander."
"Why did Count Dman show me the letter?"
Anyone who wasn't a fool would understand what Count Dman was thinking.
Count Dman refused Odin's proposal.
It was a foolish thing to do.
To Achimlab Fortress, Odin was like an uncontainable natural disaster.
If handing over a single low-ranking soldier meant that natural disaster would avoid them, wouldn't it be logical to accept the proposal?
All he had to do was close his eyes, smack me on the back of the head when I knew nothing, tie me up, and hand me over to the enemy.
"......"
My mind was conflicted.
I didn't even know how to express this feeling.
"The Dman family has protected Achimlab Fortress for generations. White Hero is an enemy of the Alliance. The Dman family does not negotiate with enemies."
"...Yes."
"However, there's one thing you should know. Would you answer?"
"If it's something I know."
"Why is Odin demanding you, the Field Commander?"
Sergel wore an expression of utter incomprehension.
This question was likely his own, but also Count Dman's.
Even if Count Dman, not Sergel, had been standing here, the same question would have been posed.
"The Field Commander defeated Odin's named and achieved great merits. And Odin is known for pursuing and killing those who slay their soldiers to the ends of the earth. From that perspective, I can understand why Odin would target the Field Commander."
"......"
"However, Odin demanded the custody of the Field Commander. This is the first time such a case has occurred. So I wanted to ask if there's anything you can pinpoint."
Sergel's gaze was sharp.
No, he was his usual self, but I felt it like a guilty conscience.
The person who wrote this letter was probably Leisia.
Unlike Balta, who had condemned me as a traitor and tried to kill me unconditionally, Leisia was rational, so she was likely making these unnecessary efforts to have a conversation with me.
However, I still had no choice but to weigh White Hero against the Alliance.
I couldn't be sure that Odin would take my side, so blindly abandoning the Alliance now would also be a foolish choice.
In the end, there was only one answer I could give, then as now.
"I don't know either. What Odin is thinking..."
"Is that so?"
"But one thing is clear."
"Please tell me."
"Odin might intervene in this war."
"......"
* * *
Why aren't we moving? Did the person who serves the medium-sized [airship] go to work in the morning?
They say he's unemployed.
Apparently, they were originally going to drop mana bombs from above the clouds to break through the fortress defenses and then charge, but those bombs were stolen.
No, why exactly was an Alliance airship there at that time, in that spot?
Exactly.
I really don't get it.
For now, they're going to act defensively until they can destroy or retrieve the bombs, as the enemies might use the stolen bombs for a surprise attack.
Early in the morning, I was holed up in my room, using Eye that Seeks Truth to peek into the players' chat window.
Even though many students and working adults would have been absent, the chat was incredibly active.
Most of them were bewildered, unaware of the current situation.
Indeed, even I thought the situation made no sense.
They must have been fully prepared.
It was dangerous to pass through a thunderstorm with bombs, so they must have hidden the airship above the clouds in advance, considering the weather conditions, and were aiming for the perfect timing.
It was more than enough that their grand plan, which they naturally expected to succeed, had been discovered and thwarted before it even began, and on top of that, the airship carrying the bombs had been captured entirely.
They must have thought, "How could this be?" All sorts of profanity, like "The AI uses map hacks," and "It's a broken game after all," were rampant.
Perhaps because there were so many emotional posts, no truly useful information was appearing, just like yesterday.
Knock knock.
As I heard a knock, I instinctively deactivated Eye that Seeks Truth.
When I opened the door, there was Selina, looking incredibly tired.
"Rian. The meeting is over. Since you were the one who proposed it, I thought you'd be curious about the outcome."
"Of course I'm curious. What happened?"
"First, numerous strategists gathered and proposed various plans, but ultimately, there was no special way to overcome the current situation. Because of that, the idea of using Rian's strategy came up, but... a problem arose with that strategy."
"A problem?"
My brows naturally furrowed.
I wondered if there was any room for problems.
Although it was a plan presented on the spot, it wasn't a flimsy one.
It wasn't some ingenious or groundbreaking strategy, but a meticulously calculated one.
I had successfully executed similar strategies several times in the past, which is why the calculations were finished quickly, but there should have been no flaws.
So, to hear of a problem now was something I couldn't comprehend.
"Explain in detail."
"According to Rian's plan, at the last moment, the airship carrying the bomb needs to have an automatic navigation system inputted and be pushed deep into enemy territory... But to do that, the detonator needs a timer system."
"...Don't tell me it doesn't have one?"
"It doesn't."
"......"
Crazy bastards.
I barely swallowed the curses that rose to my throat.
Mana bombs weren't just simple bombs.
Even if a strong impact was applied to mana compressed to its limit, it would only increase the mana density in the surroundings; an explosion wouldn't occur.
To detonate the bomb, an essential command needed to be entered, and naturally, almost all bombs used a timer system.
Otherwise, it would explode the moment the command was entered, and the person who entered the command, stuck to the bomb, would be caught in the explosion and killed.
But the bombs prepared by White Hero didn't have that timer system applied.
In other words, they weren't planning to drop the bombs from a high place in the first place, but rather to penetrate deep into the airship and the heart of the fortress and explode together, a suicide squad.
No matter how sky-high their loyalty to the Queen was, those White Hero bastards were all lunatics.
"Then we'll have to change the strategy."
"No. The strategy will be carried out as is."
"...Why?"
"There's no time. We've detected signs that White Hero is plotting something again. Due to a lack of intelligence, we can't figure out what they're up to. Furthermore, the flow of the dragon's blood is unstable, so we can't even use anti-aircraft guns. The judgment was made that if White Hero's attack continues for too long, there will be no way to withstand it."
I was speechless.
It's easy to think that war is decided by brilliant strategies and major battles, but that's not the whole story of war.
Supplies also play a crucial role in determining victory or defeat in war.
The fact that those supplies were running out meant that Achimlab Fortress had reached its limit.
The thought that the last resort to overturn this harsh reality happened to be the strategy I devised made my stomach churn.
If it failed, I would bear part of the responsibility.
'Does it even matter?'
Come to think of it, if it failed, everyone—the people who would blame me, the people who would point fingers, and even I—would all die.
So, was there anything to worry about?
"By the way, you managed to find a volunteer. Tell me the volunteer's name."
If this operation failed, everyone would die, but conversely, if it succeeded, everyone could live.
However, even if the operation succeeded, there was one person who was absolutely destined to lose their life.
That was the person who would activate the mana bomb's timer.
It was an act of sacrificing one's life for others.
How could it have been easy to find someone with such noble self-sacrifice and courage?
It would at least be polite and proper to know their name.
With that thought, I looked at Selina, but for some reason, she let out a small click of her tongue with a very bitter expression.
With her gaze lowered, she uttered a shocking single sentence in a low voice.
"Sergel Fram."