Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: A Fight in the Rain
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“Is it that dangerous to mine mana stones on a rainy day?”
“It is.”
Kudo answered Carlyle's question.
“For an attacker, these are optimal conditions, wouldn't you say? The sound of the wind and rain will hide their presence. If the downpour is heavy, it also limits visibility, so we’ll have a hard time with our patrols.”
“Ah.”
Carlyle nodded in understanding.
Since the mana stone mining operation took place outside the fortress, the defending side was always at an overwhelming disadvantage.
“Does this happen often?”
“Commander Helen doesn't usually order mining under such unreasonable conditions. She always prioritizes the sappers' safety.”
“Then what about today?”
“If the pressure from high command is severe, even Commander Helen has no choice. What power does a field commander have to refuse an order from her superiors?”
“True.”
Carlyle nodded as if he understood completely.
In the end, Helen was just another victim of the ‘orders are orders’ mentality.
Not that any soldier wasn't…
“Seeing as there's a strategy meeting, it looks like they plan to conduct simultaneous operations across several areas.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“There are many types of mana stones, aren't there? We need to mine various kinds, so they'll probably split us into teams to work separately.”
“Doesn't that make it even more dangerous?”
“Of course.”
“...”
Carlyle was at a loss for words after hearing Kudo's reply.
He couldn't even imagine how much pressure high command must have applied for Helen to push forward with the operation despite such terrible weather.
‘As if some mana stones were that important.’
Of course, Carlyle didn't voice that thought.
To dismiss them as trivial would be foolish; in this world, the importance of mana stones was greater than one could imagine.
Through highly developed alchemy, mana stones were treated as a nearly all-purpose resource of immense importance.
Alchemy, magic, medicine, food, metallurgy, fuel, and so on.
Used in all sorts of fields, the people of the continent practically staked their lives on the amount of mana stones they could mine and possess.
Just a month or two of an unstable supply was enough to make the continent's economy stagger…
“Still, don't worry too much. The barbarians aren't unaware that we're reluctant to mine in this weather, so there's a high chance nothing will happen.”
“That’s a relie—…”
Carlyle suddenly stopped talking and frowned.
“What is it?”
“I have this unpleasant feeling, like someone is glaring at me.”
“Huh?”
Kudo scanned the area, but there was no one in sight who could be staring at them.
Except for one thing.
“Perhaps it’s that barbarian?”
Kudo grinned and pointed to Bjornsen's head, impaled on a pike in the distance.
“...Don't be ridiculous.”
Carlyle snorted.
How could a severed head on a pike possibly glare at someone?
- ...
Grimungandr was also silent.
Since [Malice Detection] hadn't activated, it was clear there was no actual threat lurking nearby.
“Must be your imagination.”
“I suppose so.”
The reason Carlyle agreed with Kudo was that this was the first time he had seen a severed head up close.
No matter how desensitized Carlyle was, having something so grotesque nearby was bound to give him such thoughts.
Like making eye contact with a dead fish at the market.
“Anyway, it’ll be quite a sight when the fight for you breaks out.”
“Fight for me?”
“Because everyone will want Private Carlyle on their team.”
“Me?”
“Having that Succession Sword provides an immense tactical advantage, doesn't it?”
“Ah.”
Carlyle understood Kudo's meaning and nodded.
“Come on, let’s head inside. We should grab a bite before the strategy meeting starts to keep our strength up.”
“Alright.”
Carlyle and Kudo entered the barracks.
The dead eyes glared fiercely at Carlyle's back.
* * *
The meeting began.
Just as Kudo had said, the mana stone mining operation was to be conducted simultaneously across several areas.
With various types of mana stones in short supply, it was the only way to meet high command's demands.
“Therefore, the sappers, as well as the reconnaissance team, will be divided into three squads. I, Reconnaissance Captain Begman, and Private First Class Kudo will each command a squad.”
After saying so, Helen assigned members to each squad by rank.
“The squads should be composed as follows…”
All eyes turned to the last remaining member of the reconnaissance team.
“...”
Carlyle squeezed his eyes shut as everyone's gaze fixed on him.
It seemed Kudo's prediction about a fight breaking out over him was about to come true.
“We’ll take the rookie.”
Wilson, a member of Helen’s squad, quickly tried to pull Carlyle over.
“Now, that won't do.”
Marder blocked Wilson’s path as if to say, ‘Not a chance.’
He was in Kudo’s squad.
“What are you talking about? The rookie is coming with us!”
Daurian, the ‘Ogre,’ a reconnaissance scout bigger than most barbarians, also joined the fray.
Daurian was in Begman's squad.
“What bullshit is this? The rookie belongs with us!”
“Just you try and take him.”
“Oh? You want to go?”
Just as expected, a squabble broke out.
Grimungandr’s [Malice Detection] was so useful it was practically a cheat code, so it was only natural that every squad wanted Carlyle.
As the commanders, Helen and Reconnaissance Captain Begman didn't voice their desire to take Carlyle, having their pride and positions to consider.
But the rest of the scouts were different.
Their chances of survival were on a completely different level with Grimungandr around, so everyone vied for Carlyle.
This led to arguments, the atmosphere grew hostile, and they were on the verge of coming to blows.
“Enough!”
Unable to watch any longer, Helen stepped in to break them up.
“As for who gets Private Carlyle…”
Helen squeezed her eyes shut as if the words were difficult to say.
“We will decide fairly, with rock-paper-scissors.”
She clearly couldn't quite accept that Carlyle, the troublemaker, had somehow become a precious resource everyone wanted.
“Looks like I won. Haha.”
Kudo, the victor, smiled.
“Ooooh!”
The scouts in his squad cheered.
“Tsk.”
“Fine, take him then!”
“Don’t forget it’s our turn next time.”
The scouts in Helen's and Begman's squads clicked their tongues in disappointment.
“Private Carlyle.”
“Yes, Commander Helen.”
“Follow me for a moment.”
Helen led Carlyle to a secluded spot and handed him a letter sealed with red wax.
Seeing the Sigmund family crest stamped on the wax seal, it was clearly from the main estate.
“This is for you.”
“Oh?”
“There's some time before the operation begins. If you want to reply, read it now and write a response. The messenger hasn't left yet, so you can send it with him.”
“Thank you.”
The letter was from Maranello and Evangeline back at the estate, and its contents were nothing special.
It asked after Carlyle’s well-being, expressed their concern, and wished for his safe return.
‘A reply, huh.’
Carlyle briefly debated whether to write back.
While he was grateful they had written first, the thought of replying felt somewhat embarrassing, and he wasn't inclined to do so.
‘I’ll see them when I go on leave anyway, so there's no need to reply… Ah.’
Just as he decided against it, a thought struck him, and he looked for a quill and parchment.
‘Right, why should I get my own hands dirty?’
Carlyle wrote a very simple and concise reply to Maranello and Evangeline, telling them he was doing well.
Then, he wrote another, separate letter addressed to Maranello.
A letter containing a very significant message…
Carlyle borrowed some wax from Helen to seal the letter and handed it to the messenger.
“Please deliver this to Head Chamberlain Maranello at the main estate. It’s a very important letter, so please deliver it as quickly as possible.”
“Ah, yes.”
The messenger was startled to see Carlyle, but his polite demeanor clearly put him at ease.
Even if he was a private, he was still a direct blood relative of the Sigmund family and the second son of Grand Duke Guntram, the Lord of Decaron.
It went without saying that he couldn't be treated lightly.
‘Well, I’ve sent the letter, so I expect a reaction. If there isn't one, there’s nothing I can do.’
With that thought, Carlyle began to prepare for deployment.
* * *
Whoooosh!
The rain poured down so fiercely that it was impossible to see ahead.
Clang, clank!
Clang!
In the harsh weather, the sappers, relying on nothing but their raincoats, swung their tools tirelessly, mining for mana stones.
Meanwhile, the reconnaissance scouts kept watch on the surroundings, preparing for a potential enemy ambush.
Even when the sappers took a break to shelter from the rain under a tent, the scouts couldn't rest.
Ensuring the safety of the sappers mining the mana stones was the reconnaissance team's top priority.
As a member of the team, Carlyle also stood guard in the pouring rain.
“Um… brother.”
Gwen approached Carlyle, who was standing watch, and spoke to him.
Carlyle didn't care whether Gwen called him ‘brother’ or not.
He might have corrected her if it had happened once or twice, but at this point, he figured it was better to just let it be.
“Here, have this.”
Gwen held out a piece of rain-soaked bread.
“I’m fine. You should have it, Private Gwen.”
“We ate while we were resting, but you haven’t had anything, brother.”
“That’s the job of a scout.”
“But…”
Just as Gwen's face fell.
“Refusing a kind gesture isn't good form, you know.”
Kudo remarked as he passed by.
“Private Carlyle.”
“Yes?”
“As your commander, I'm giving you a ten-minute break. Rest for a bit.”
“A break, all of a sudden?”
“You've been at it for four hours. It’s about time you took a short break.”
Having suddenly been granted a break, Carlyle reluctantly accepted the bread from Gwen.
As Kudo said, it seemed rude to refuse her kindness.
“Thank you so much for yesterday.”
“Yesterday?”
“Don’t you remember saving me?”
“Ah.”
That had indeed happened.
Carlyle had saved Gwen when she was in danger.
“No need to thank me. This is a battlefield, after all.”
“Still.”
“So why did you enlist? You’re not much of a fighter.”
Carlyle had been curious about that.
He couldn't understand why she, who seemed to have not an ounce of athletic ability, was serving in such a dangerous place.
“My mother is very ill. And my younger siblings are still too young.”
“What about your father?”
“He was killed by barbarians three years ago. My older brother also died in action here a year ago. So I’m the only one left to take care of the family. Hehe.”
“I see.”
Carlyle felt he shouldn't have asked, but he nodded in understanding.
It was a common story.
It was no exaggeration to say that there was no one in Decaron who hadn't lost family to the barbarians.
Perhaps for that reason, Decaron had a much higher ratio of female soldiers compared to other territories.
So many men had died in the war against the barbarians that the population ratio had skewed, naturally leading to an increase in the number of female soldiers.
‘This is the average life for a northerner, I suppose.’
Carlyle thought of the harsh lives of the northerners as he took a bite of the bread Gwen had given him.
Though half-soaked with rain, the bread was tough and hard, and it gave off a strong smell of old flour.
‘They could at least give us better food.’
Just as Carlyle had that thought.
Voom!
Grimungandr, hanging at his waist, vibrated faintly.