Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Meal
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Indeed, Gwen's defense had worked.
Listening to their conversation, it seemed she was on good terms not only with Gianne but with the other cooks as well.
“R-Really? If that’s the case, I’m relieved, but…”
Gianne seemed to accept Gwen’s words.
“If Gwen says so, it must be true.”
“Ahem. It seems we misunderstood.”
“He's still suspicious, but... then again, no one in their right mind would try something like that at this hour.”
As the situation seemed to be resolving, the cooks returned to their stations one by one and resumed their work.
“What brings you to the mess hall? Reconnaissance team members don't usually get assigned to kitchen duty.”
As elite soldiers, the reconnaissance team members had high-risk missions and were always busy, so they were exempt from various tasks like kitchen duty, fortification construction, and groundskeeping.
So it was only natural for Gwen to wonder why Carlyle was in the mess hall.
“Are you perhaps hungry?”
“No.”
Carlyle shook his head.
“Not me. There's a little one who's making a fuss about being hungry…”
“Who?”
“Right here.”
Carlyle pointed to his chest, where the hatchling was curled up.
“Oh? Did you find a cat?”
“Yes, something like that.”
“It must be so cute.”
Gwen's face flushed slightly.
“Can you show me? I-I really love cats. Hehe.”
“I'm sorry, but I don't think I can. It's a bit fierce…”
“Oh, dear.”
Gwen looked disappointed.
“Do you think you could ask the cooks for some food?”
“Like cat food?”
“No. For example, something like a steak?”
“Could we possibly get something like that in the base's mess hall...? We could?”
Gwen's answer changed the moment Carlyle held out two gold coins.
It was an absurdly high price for pet food, but he gave it to her since he had no smaller change.
Besides, he had picked up dozens of gold bars and various treasures from Antiros's Laboratory, so he felt he could afford this small extravagance.
“Is it possible? You can keep one, Private Gwen, and use the other to persuade the cooks…”
“I'll try!”
Gwen approached the head cook and whispered something to him.
“I heard. You need a steak?”
The head cook was a man larger than most combat soldiers, with massive forearms.
“Sorry, but we don't have any beef. It's not supplied often to a remote mountain base like this.”
“Is there anything similar?”
“We have venison. With enough butter and oil, it'll be just as good as beef if cooked right.”
“Then could I ask you for that?”
“Of course. Hehehe.”
The head cook shot Carlyle a wink.
“Come find me anytime for something like this. I've always got some meat stashed away for myself... whoops.”
“…”
“Ah, anyway! I have enough spare ingredients to handle your request, so feel free to come by anytime.”
“I will.”
“Then, just wait a moment.”
Having received Carlyle's request, the head cook rolled up his sleeves, personally retrieved ingredients from the pantry, and began to cook.
Though he couldn't be sure, there was a high probability the ingredients had been secretly set aside, but Carlyle didn't make an issue of it.
After all, Carlyle was the one in need, not the head cook.
* * *
The head cook, Andre, had skills that exceeded expectations.
“Here you go, your order is ready.”
There was venison steak, mushroom soup, a salad of fresh vegetables with a tangy dressing, bread baked with plenty of butter, and even potato purée.
It was even served with warm milk and tea.
At this point, it could hardly be called mess hall food.
“This is excellent.”
“For what I was paid, this is the least I could do. A gold coin is a lot of money.”
“True.”
In this world, a single gold coin was worth about 1,000 US dollars, so it was by no means a small sum.
“Just so you know, I can't give you any alcohol. I have some wine stashed away, but if we reek of booze this early in the morning, we'll both be court-martialed on the spot.”
“Yes, well. I don't really need any alcohol anyway.”
“I'm not saying it's completely off-limits. If you're really craving some, come by later when no one's looking. I can spare a glass or two.”
“I'll do that.”
“There are too many eyes around, so don't get caught eating somewhere else. Just eat here. If you guys get in trouble, it'll be a problem for me too.”
“Understood.”
“Well then, enjoy your meal.”
Belying his rugged and massive frame, Andre gave an elegant, old-fashioned bow and then drew a curtain around them.
Thanks to him, Carlyle and Gwen could eat their breakfast in quiet privacy.
“Here, food.”
Carlyle cut a piece of the venison steak and tucked it into his tunic.
“Nom, nom. This is delicious.”
“Happy now?”
“Give me bread too.”
“…”
“After the bread, soup.”
*Throb!*
A vein pulsed on Carlyle's forehead.
‘Acting like a king. I should just abandon it…’
If only it wasn't a 12-star potential.
“Haaaak!”
The hatchling growled.
“…”
Carlyle wanted to snap back, but he couldn't bring himself to do it in front of Gwen.
“Is the little kitty angry?”
“What?”
“It sounded like it was angry just now.”
“It's nothing, don't worry about it. It's just a bit picky. You should eat too, Private Gwen. Before it gets cold.”
“Okay.”
Busy taking care of the hatchling, Carlyle himself barely ate.
Whether it knew this or not…
“Yaaawn. So sleepy.”
The hatchling gulped down the milk, gave a long yawn, and then fell fast asleep again.
‘What a carefree life. And here we are, about to die.’
Carlyle glanced at the hatchling in his tunic, snorted, and bit into a piece of bread.
The steak was cold and unappetizing now, so he intended to fill up on bread and potato purée.
“You're so devoted.”
“Me?”
“You're taking care of the little kitty before you've even eaten properly yourself.”
“It was just making such a fuss, I couldn't ignore it.”
“Still, that's not an easy thing to do. You're a very considerate person.”
“But why are you so familiar with me?”
“Because you're handsome?”
“…”
What kind of logic is that…
“Oh, by the way, I'm going on leave soon!”
Gwen said with an excited expression.
“Leave?”
“Yes! Only three days left! It's for fifteen days, so it's pretty long!”
“You must be looking forward to it.”
Having served in the military in his past life, Carlyle understood how she felt better than anyone.
Whether in this world or his previous one, the excitement of a soldier about to go on leave was universal.
“I really am! I miss my mom! And my younger siblings! It's already been six months since I last saw them, so I've been dreaming about my family every night! Hee hee!”
“I can imagine.”
“Don't you think you'll be getting leave soon too, Private Carlyle?”
“I doubt it. I've only been enlisted for a month. There's no way I'd get leave already.”
“Come on.”
Gwen said, as if that was ridiculous.
“You'll probably get a reward leave soon.”
“A reward leave?”
“After all you've done, there's no way Lady Helen wouldn't recognize your contributions.”
“Not likely.”
Carlyle couldn't even imagine Helen granting him a reward leave.
He and Helen were currently in a sort of hostile, symbiotic relationship; their rapport could not be described as good, not even as an empty pleasantry.
“Hmm. Even if she knew, I think she'd pretend not to.”
“Lady Helen is someone who clearly separates her public and private duties. Even if she doesn't like you, she'll grant you the reward leave. I guarantee it!”
“Hmm. We'll see.”
Carlyle didn't get his hopes up.
Not for anything.
‘Leave… will I even be able to go?’
An inexplicable sense of anxiety washed over Carlyle.
Right now, Bowden Fortress was like a candle in the wind—no, in a typhoon.
The entire base was in a life-or-death crisis. Could anyone really go on leave?
No, this was a time to worry about survival, let alone leave.
Of course, as a combat engineer, Gwen had no idea how things were unfolding, which was why she could be so full of anticipation…
‘I shouldn't say anything. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.’
Carlyle didn't have the heart to shatter Gwen's expectations.
Serving here in the Blood-Soaked Land of Kuberin meant living with death always at your side, regardless of whether you were in a combat or non-combat role.
What made it possible to endure such a harsh environment was, of course, leave—a hope for the future.
Carlyle didn't want to crush Gwen's hope.
He wanted her to be happy, at least for a little while, looking forward to her upcoming leave until she learned the truth.
Even if that anticipation was destined to shatter into despair.
* * *
“Hey, rookie! Rookie!”
*Flinch!*
Carlyle barely managed to open his eyes at someone's call.
Normally, he would have shot up at the slightest call, but after last night's dungeon exploration mission, his eyelids felt as heavy as lead.
Furthermore, while the senior soldiers on the exploration team had gotten about three hours of shut-eye, Carlyle hadn't slept a wink because he'd been feeding the hatchling, making it incredibly difficult to wake up.
At most, he had only dozed off for about fifteen minutes.
“I know you're tired from the all-night mission, but get up.”
Lifting his leaden eyelids, he saw a man with a bizarre, shaggy head of hair looking down at him.
It was Wilson, known to the reconnaissance team by the nickname 'the Barber'.
‘I'll never get used to that wig.’
How much resentment must a man hold to not only scalp barbarian warriors but also make a wig from their hair and wear it around…
“Here.”
Wilson offered Carlyle a hand.
Though he could have gotten up on his own, Carlyle took the offered hand.
Carlyle wasn't so clueless as to refuse the gesture, especially from Wilson, who had always looked down on him.
“Up you go!”
Wilson pulled Carlyle to his feet.
“You that tired?”
“No, I can manage. Just a bit sleepy.”
“A Sigmund is a Sigmund, after all. To think a rookie could endure that forced march so easily.”
“Haha…”
“Anyway, formation is in five minutes. Wash your face, wake yourself up, and get out here. The mana stone mining operation is about to begin.”
“Yes, sir.”
It seemed the mana stone mining operation ordered by headquarters was going ahead after all.
‘At this rate, it would be better if a battle just broke out.’
It might be better to face an all-out war, no matter the opponent, than to have their forces picked off one by one by the Butcher Tribe or Crowley while recklessly carrying out the mining operation.
That way, he could at least try to hold out until reinforcements arrived using the Iron Fortress item he acquired from Antiros's Laboratory.
In other words, the best course of action in the current situation was to hole up in the fortress and focus solely on defense.
The problem was the subsequent investigation by headquarters.
If it was discovered that they hadn't conducted the mining operation, or if they failed to secure the minimum number of mana stones, not only Helen but the entire unit would surely be reprimanded.
‘This situation is so damn twisted.’
Carlyle splashed cold water on his face and bit his lower lip.
All for some damn mana stones…
“Orders are orders. *Hoo!*”
Carlyle let out a deep sigh and immediately headed for the assembly point.