The Big-Eared Guy Is the One I Least Trust
The big-eared guy is the one I least trust.
“Jaebeom, are you okay?”
“...Yeah, I’m fine. Go do your business.”
“Sorry, sir. Rest well.”
“Thank you.”
I’m so fucking tired, I’m going to die.
I dragged myself into the coffin-like bedroom.
“Hey, where the fuck is that bastard?”
“That... no matter how much I look, there’s no sign of him.”
“Ha... fuck.”
The sound of muffled voices came from beyond the door.
A new recruit who ran off somewhere during a task.
Instead of that recruit, I silently completed the task.
Then suddenly, my legs gave out and I collapsed.
“Jaebeom, you haven’t even gone home since that call...”
“Sorry, sir.”
I hadn’t slept for several days.
Thinking about it, how long has it been?
What date is today?
“You guys too, you bastards. Are you just watching?”
“Sorry, sir.”
“Meeting that angelic senior and eating a hot pot makes it so comfortable, right?”
Good! Keep going!
Convey my pain to them clearly!
“If it continues, will it be okay?”
“Sorry, sir.”
“If it’s sorry, does the military life end? Install some common sense, huh?”
Sorry, juniors.
If you don’t do this, you won’t even look at me!
“Quickly go catch him. I’ll handle the Jaebeom task.”
“Understood.”
She’s tsundere.
As expected, my reliable direct subordinate.
The sound outside the door faded away.
Three days ago.
I was cleaning the deck.
Someone placed a hand on my shoulder.
“Seabeam, let’s talk for a moment.”
“Yes, Chief. Want me to light a cigarette?”
“That... come to the chief’s office today.”
The person who usually smiled cheerfully and joked looked at me with a completely serious expression. Sensing something was off, I quietly followed. As we walked down the narrow corridor, dozens of questions arose in my head.
Is it because of the upcoming discharge that’s bothering you?
I’m a bit of an ace, you know. This guy’s popularity.
Or is it because of that spectacular new recruit who joined this time?
Shit, you said you were going to take a shit earlier, where did you go?
“A plane crash happened.”
But what does this mean?
We’re over the West Sea.
It’s not a ship accident, it’s a plane crash?
“...The family members said they were going on a trip to Jeju Island?”
The phone call from the night before departure, where my sister was teasing me about going to Jeju, came to mind. But how does the chief know this fact? Is he going on a trip to Jeju too? I don’t know.
“By requesting a suggestion to the captain, I accelerated your discharge by two weeks.”
Discharge? You accelerated my discharge by two weeks, so I should be happy, but oddly, I didn’t feel like celebrating.
“Sorry. What I can do for you is nothing but this.”
The discharge was accelerated by two weeks?
Why are you apologizing?
It must be a honey trap movie or something. Hehe.
“Once we dock at the port in three days, the discharge process will be immediate, so go home right away.”
The accelerating engine sound of the warship pulled me out of the memory. The rumbling ship swayed slowly with the waves. Today, that swaying felt unusually vivid.
“...Where the hell did that bastard hide? Damn.”
While thinking such meaningless thoughts, I couldn’t resist the sleep demon and fell asleep.
> F.A.C.T.S ACTIVATED
What the hell is this?
Wait! Fighting unfairly with facts.
Let’s fight fairly with provocation and fabrication.
> WELCOME BACK, CAPTAIN
My body sat stiffly on the vibrating chair(?). I had no memory of sitting down and falling asleep.
“...Huh?!”
As soon as I realized I was sitting, pain surged through my entire body. My whole body burned as if it had been thrown onto a hot iron plate. My organs felt twisted, and nausea rose. My teeth chattered even though I wasn’t cold, and my head felt like it was about to split. The world spun around me.
“Captain Elia!”
> SYNCHRONIZATION EXECUTED?
Even as the world spun, that damned program window stayed fixed in front of my eyes. The pain intensified like climbing stairs. Extreme thirst added to the agony. My voice, squeezed out through my constricted throat, came out thin, almost like a woman’s.
“Call the medical bay! Right now!”
My body, still sitting on the chair, tumbled to the floor with a thud. It hurts, damn it, it hurts too much. Sister, please help me.
“Medical bay! Medical bay, immediately to the bridge!”
The echoing broadcast only added to the chaos in my head.
> SYNCHRONIZATION EXECUTED?
That damned program window blocked my vision.
Execute, or don’t—figure it out yourself.
> CONFIRMATION: SYNCHRONIZATION EXECUTED
“Ha, aah! U-ugh-!”
“Captain! Just a little...! Please endure just a little!”
With the message to execute synchronization, pain like tearing at my brain followed.
Amid all this, my eyes were flooded with countless pop-up windows, as if I had connected to an illegal site. This bizarre phenomenon felt unreal, but it didn’t matter. The horrific pain flooding my body made even the unreal feel real. For the next ten hours, I desperately wished I could avoid that damned program window...
Done... or is it? Anyway, it’s a hospital. I have to go to the hospital.
Wait, we’re out at sea. Is there a hospital nearby?
More importantly, give me some medicine. Even painkillers would do.
“M, ugh, ugh, damn, medicine—medicine-!”
“-It looks like a seizure. First, administer a sedative...!”
“Chloe, take the captain! I’ll take her place-?!”
What the hell?
While the person is dying, from the beginning it’s captain this, captain that—
Captain saved my life?
Call a doctor! Call a doctor!
Annoyed, I grabbed the senior’s shoulder.
“Captain?”
“The big-eared guy is the one I least trust.”
An out-of-the-blue, cheesy ding echoed in my head.
Hyung, you were right.
“...You, Bi...I, this... bastard.”
“...!”
“Yuri Bi, weapons control officer! The captain is calling!”
To steady my body in proper posture, I desperately fumbled around. Then someone wrapped an arm around my waist and helped me sit back in the chair.
Wait, so where is this? The captain is looking for someone, so it must be a ship.
My whole body was soaked in cold sweat.
I couldn’t steady my body. Panting, I tried to stabilize my breathing. Strangely, the title of tomorrow’s morning news article popped into my head. “Navy soldier found on foreign ship, under investigation for leaking secrets.”
“Captain, Yuri Bi is here!”
That damned captain... why are you staring at me while asking why I’m looking for your captain? During my military life, I’ve only seen the captain’s face on promotion day and birthday, but today I’ll hear the captain’s voice for the rest of my life. I tried to swear loudly, but my voice wouldn’t come out.
At that moment, a sharp pain flashed in my left shoulder, and without realizing, I stretched my left hand forward.
“Ah...! Port side, twenty degrees, angle one hundred ten! It’s the long-range Nautilus Cannon!”
“Aye aye ma’am! (AYE AYE MA’AM!) Port side twenty degrees, angle one hundred ten!”
> NAUTILUS CANNON CHARGING
With someone’s shout, a heavy clang echoed across the entire ship. I couldn’t understand the situation at all. Struggling to lift my head, I tried to look around, but due to the hazy vision, I could only make out things nearby.
A black uniform and black beret that exuded immense pressure. There... I don’t know well, but isn’t this kind of cosplay illegal? Was a party held during the joint training?
“...Cos...?”
“...! Understood! Corpse Squadron, immediately to firing standby!”
“Corpse Squadron firing ports open. Corpse Squadron firing ports open. All pilots standby.”
The broadcast rang out again.
I’m going crazy. What exactly are you trying to do?
Are you all enjoying yourselves?
I’m going to die. Do whatever you want.
I dropped the outstretched hand.
“F, fire-!”
With a bang, the place where I was sitting shook violently. Wait, during a cosplay party, you’re doing cannon firing practice? Are you serious?
“That’s...?! In the world!”
“I, I destroyed the Nightmare Gate!”
“I-I can’t believe it...! One shot at the gate?!”
Everyone, shut up. This situation is unbelievable. While the person is dying, they’re doing cosplay and cannon firing practice next to them? Captain or whatever, just lower the ship. I’ll expose everything.
“...All... everything...”
“...! Understood! All Corpse units, sortie!”
“Corpse sortie. One through one hundred twenty. Fire. Fire. Fire.”
Hey, let’s stop saying that. Huh? Please. Saying that is so hard. These guys keep interrupting me every time I try to speak. No matter how much I’m a seaman, this is too much treatment?
“Medical bay, I’ll administer a sedative-”
At that moment, someone holding a syringe approached my exhausted front. Instantly, a chill ran down my spine and my neck stiffened.
“Get away...!”
What? Are you joking?
You didn’t even get a prescription from the doctor, what kind of shot is this?
Bring the medicine, medicine.
Bring the Tylenol.
“Move- move! Move... ugh, this bastard-!”
“-Captain! It’s okay, it’s a sedative!”
“...Shut up, move! You all are going to court-martial-”
Someone firmly grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. I struggled, but I couldn’t escape. Screaming with my torn throat, the taste of blood with a bitter aftertaste filled my mouth as my tonsils tore.
A tingling pain in my throat.
Mom, Dad, sister’s faces flashed by.
I missed them.
Meanwhile.
On the Aegis Coalition’s super-heavy cruiser Valkyrie.
Commodore of the 03rd Fleet, Karina Cherny let out a deep sigh.
What she needed most was absolute trust and cooperation based on strict military discipline.
But...
“Command control officer. What was that flash just now?”
“It was the Nautilus Cannon. It appears to have been fired from the Obelisk.”
A strategic optical weapon, the Nautilus Cannon, fired without her authorization. And far away, the Unknowns’ massive carrier burning and collapsing.
“...W-what?! Are you sure?!”
The communication officer’s shocked cry.
“Fleet commander! I, I destroyed the Nightmare Gate! Communication from observer!”
Dead silence fell in the fleet command control room. Naturally, everyone there doubted what had just happened before their eyes. Their eyes slowly fixed on the alien mothership collapsing in the distance.
“From Horn to Valkyrie. Gate destruction confirmed!”
“From Babel to Valkyrie! We received a communication that it seems to have been destroyed!”
“From the frontmost Busero to Valkyrie. Complete destruction confirmed!”
Gate destruction reports pouring in from the ships in the front. After a long silence, cheers finally burst out from all directions.
The Unknowns’ Nightmare Gate.
A circular planetary invasion super-giant mothership, 30,000 km long and 15,000 km wide. Destruction condition: Find and destroy a fingernail-sized nuclear core somewhere. Always in stealth mode. Impossible to confirm with the naked eye.
Detection condition: None. Symbol of planetary destruction.
Only a red mist and ominous gamma lightning hint at the mothership’s appearance. To date, only two destructions in the entire galaxy. No Aegis Federation radar technology can detect it. The only countermeasure: Block all alien creatures summoned by the gate. And hold out until the gate’s portal closes. Originally, it would have been a war with the fate of the planet Cephusus on the line. A cruel war with an uncountable number of expected casualties. In other words, the Nightmare itself.
That mothership—
Before the attack even started, in a single shot.
“Command control officer, how did the Obelisk find the hiding place of the Nightmare Gate? The Obelisk wouldn’t have a radar as good as an observer. More importantly, did you accurately aim the nuclear core and fire?”
“It’s impossible to speculate. It can only be called a miracle...”
“A miracle, you say...”
The David-class assault destroyer.
Captain of the Obelisk, Elia Edelvine.
She had been acting on her own for a day or two.
But this time, she crossed the line.
“...It’s tough.”
Her actions outside common sense were eating away at Karina’s focus. She had come to the fleet control room with her red uniform buttons neatly fastened and hair neatly combed. But now the uniform’s buttons were all undone, the shirt was rumpled, and some hair was sticking out.
“The gate is disappearing! They are retreating!”
The panicked Unknowns hurriedly retreated.
“...All fleets. Maintain red alert status. Fifteen minutes until mopping up.”
“Aye aye ma’am! (AYE, MA’AM!)
Communication with the Obelisk hasn’t connected since earlier. The captain not receiving the fleet commander’s communication means two things. Either the captain is dead or refusing orders. The former is unlikely. So this means one thing.
“Elia, Edelvine.”
She muttered and stood from the fleet commander’s seat, looking out the window. In the distance, the sight of Corpse assault fighters being launched en masse from the Obelisk for mopping up came into view. Of the 562 ships under her command, only one was independently fighting without obeying orders. She recalled the past.
Meanwhile.
“You will be my subordinate captain.”
Aegis Fleet Commander Luden Edelvine handed her documents. This old man personally? Usually, he would have finished with a single order. It was a rare sight, so she paused with her coffee cup and blinked.
“Commander. My fleet should already be fully assigned.”
Luden’s complicated expression.
She instinctively sensed something was wrong.
“Read it.”
When she opened the document, a familiar ship appeared.
Assault destroyer, Obelisk.
Former captain Laura Estelt had been demoted to vice-captain.
And the one who took her place was a rolling stone.
“...What is this?”
Even looking at it stung the eyes, a white-haired one-eyed elf woman. One eye filled with rotten blood stared at her from beyond the document.
Rotten fish eyes.
Her eyes were eerie, full of the aura of death.
“You demoted the captain of the Obelisk to vice-captain without consulting me?”
A moment of silence.
He seemed to carefully choose his words.
“It’s not a demotion. Just a change. She became captain through proper procedure.”
“Proper procedure... so there’s a proper procedure even the fleet commander doesn’t know?”
“Indeed. Hehe!”
Tsk, you’re such a schemer.
“One thing. She is the survivor of Sector 09.”
“Survivor of Sector 09? I heard there were no survivors there.”
“She is the sole survivor of that place in every sense. Well, believe it or not is up to you.”
After saying that, Luden took a deep drag on his cigarette and added one more line.
“...Hmph, think of her as a parachute. She is also my precious adopted daughter.”
Thinking about it, he had mentioned adopting a daughter recently. An adopted daughter with such a dark heart. This girl must have suffered a lot. Karina set down her coffee cup and thought deeply about the weight of this command. This old man wasn’t stupid enough to appoint an incapable person as captain.
Was the parachute just a surface reason?
Anyway, she had no choice.
One month later.
The captain of the assault destroyer Obelisk changed.
Meanwhile.
And time returned to the present.
“Command control officer, how many military violations has she committed so far?”
“...Six acts of insubordination, twenty-one instances of insincere attitude toward superiors, three acts of assault, thirteen instances of spontaneous actions during operations... no, including this one, fourteen.”
Records were records.
Now, no one in the fleet didn’t know her.
Mainly in a bad sense.
“Parachute captain.”
“Rolling stone.”
“The Aegis’s disgrace.”
All were Elia Edelvine’s nicknames.
“I will give the order.”
Until now, we had been treating her as Luden Commander’s adopted daughter, but this was no longer acceptable for military discipline. It took two months to make up her mind. If left like this, she would forever become a loose colt. Looking at the pouring meteor shower, she opened her mouth.
“Arrest her and bring her before me.”