Total War of the Regiment

Early the next morning, before dawn had even broken, I was jolted awake by a faint commotion drifting in from outside the barracks. It was the moment I'd pushed myself up from a bed still bearing the traces of the previous night and was hastily pulling on my uniform trousers.

Knock, knock-knock!

An impatient knocking shattered the silence.

"…Who is it?"

I frowned. Who could possibly be looking for me at this ungodly hour?

Status Anal—

But before I could activate the skill, the door swung open on its own.

"Hey, Max Jäger! You—!"

Twin-tails red as flame. Erika von Stahlberg stormed in, shouting with full force—and then froze solid at the scene inside the room.

Her eyes swept over me, standing there in nothing but my trousers. Then they traveled to the bed behind me, where they finally landed on Hanna, who had just been roused by the noise and was pushing herself upright. The blanket slipped smoothly down from her shoulders, baring her pale, silken skin. The marks I'd left on her over the course of the night were laid bare without a shred of modesty, and the red welts clustered across her chest stood out with particular vividness. Hanna belatedly grasped the situation and barely managed to clamp both hands over the mouth about to let ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠out a scream.

"……"

Erika said nothing. Her eyes flickered wildly, darting between Hanna's bare body, the bed sheets crumpled into ruin, and me, standing there half-naked. The subtle, thick atmosphere hanging over the room—apparently even a maiden like Erika knew exactly what it meant.

"You… you two… right now…."

Erika's face flushed crimson in an instant. No, it went past crimson—nearly bursting red. Overwhelmed by extreme embarrassment and discomposure, she floundered as though she were the one standing naked in the room.

…What timing.

I clicked my tongue inwardly and, this time for certain, activated the skill.

Status Analysis.

She came to repay a debt, huh.

Looking at her status window, the situation made sense. It seemed she'd come to express some manner of gratitude for yesterday. For a girl with pride like hers, that must have taken tremendous courage. And then, of all things, she'd walked in on this.

Erika flung something toward me with a trembling hand. A small bundle.

"Y-you perverted bastard! Disgusting! Just drop dead! I never needed your help, not for a second, not ever! Don't get any ideas—just die! Die, I say!!"

She shrieked the words, spun on her heel, wrapped both arms across her chest as though protecting it, and fled. The door slammed shut behind her with a deafening bang.

I picked up the fallen bundle from the floor. Peeling the wrapping back carefully, I found a small, elegant silver flask inside, engraved with the faint crest of the House of Stahlberg. When I unscrewed the cap, the sharp aroma of premium whiskey stung my nose.

"……"

I stared at the flask for a moment, then couldn't help but smirk. She had a surprisingly cute side to her.

Two days of sweet rest flew by in the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blink of an eye. 3rd Platoon was fully recharged, and morale among the men pierced the heavens. They were especially rowdy over the reward money we'd just been paid.

"Woooo! Look at this! That's three months of my salary right there!"

"I could buy every one of my little brothers and sisters back home a full wardrobe and still have change left over…."

"And whose fault is that, huh? It's all thanks to the Platoon Leader! Three cheers for Lieutenant Jäger!"

"Hey, since we've got money now, should we have a nice long round of cards?"

"Which son of a bitch just said gambling?! Did you already forget what the Lieutenant told us about staying out of trouble?"

Then, on the morning the rest ended, a new order came down to the entire company.

"All officers, assemble immediately in the regimental operations briefing room!"

A messenger had come to our company. This time it was an order directly from regimental command. I clicked my tongue and rose from my seat.

So the holiday's over already.

I hurriedly straightened my uniform and stepped outside—and was greeted by a scene unlike anything usual. Not just our 2nd Company, but the officers of 1st, 3rd, and 4th Company—even the artillery battery and engineers attached directly to headquarters—were all filing out of their respective barracks and heading toward the regimental HQ.

I entered the regimental headquarters, a massive stone building. The interior was filled with the sound of officers' boots echoing through the corridors. The usual quiet had vanished without a trace.

When I pushed open the heavy doors of the operations briefing room, dozens of officers had already arrived. The room was packed shoulder to shoulder, with barely room to stand. Every officer in the regiment was drawn up in formation by company, while the regimental commander and his adjutant stood before the enormous operational map at the center of the room.

I pushed through the crowd to find where our 2nd Company was positioned. Captain Serafina stood at the front, and behind her, from the left: 1st Platoon Leader Walter, 2nd Platoon Leader Erika, and 4th Platoon Leader Franz. As 3rd Platoon Leader, I slipped into the gap between Erika and Franz and took my place.

"……Tsk."

That was all it took—I heard her click her tongue at me. I turned my head to look at her. Erika.

"Wh-what are you looking at?!"

I hadn't done a thing, and yet she snapped at me in a small voice. She shifted her weight, then raised both arms to subtly shield her chest. Seriously, how worked up about it could she be?

I brushed it off and quietly activated the skill.

Status Analysis.

Her condition hadn't changed one bit. Apparently, she'd thought of nothing else for the entire two days of rest. I stopped paying her any further attention and turned my gaze forward, fixing it on Serafina. She was the one who mattered.

Status Analysis.

Faint premonitory signs, is it.

I frowned slightly. The last thing I needed was for that time bomb to go off at a critical moment. If it became necessary, I might have to reach straight into her body without delay.

"The recent operation in the Ashen Forest was a great victory."

Before long, the regimental commander, having confirmed that everyone had assembled, began to speak. He addressed the room slowly, his gaze sweeping across the briefing room.

"We completely neutralized one of the orcs' main encampments and inflicted massive damage on their supply network. The performance of 2nd Company, led by Captain Reinhardt in particular, was outstanding."

His gaze lingered briefly on Serafina. She bowed her head in silence.

"But the real fight starts now."

At his words, the air in the briefing room grew several degrees heavier.

"The orcs we face are not a single power. They are a tribal confederation—an alliance of many tribes. The Black Fang Tribe, the Blood Claw Tribe, and… the bastards who have plagued our Empire more than any others."

The tip of his command staff tapped down on the Ashen Forest region.

"The Ashen Claw Tribe. The encampment we annihilated in the Ashen Forest was one of their forward outposts."

The commander's staff swept slowly across the map, and the officers' eyes tracked it in unison.

"Just yesterday, critical intelligence came in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from the front-line reconnaissance teams."

Several officers swallowed dryly.

"The Great Chieftain of the Ashen Claw Tribe—Gromnar Ironfist."

At the mention of the name, low groans escaped from some of the officers' lips. For months, it had been a name that haunted the Imperial Army like a nightmare.

"He has appeared. Having lost their large encampment, the enraged chieftain is now personally leading his main force toward the front lines."

The commander's eyes gleamed.

"Strike off the head, and the snake dies. This is our chance to crush their chieftain and their main force in a single blow. Once the Ashen Claw Tribe collapses, the other rabble tribes will scatter on their own."

His staff came down hard on the map.

"The success of this operation means more than simply securing the Ashen Forest. It will be a decisive turning point—one capable of flipping the entire board of the Empire's Western Front."

His voice rang throughout the briefing room.

"Failure will not be tolerated. The fate of the Empire—and the lives of every one of us gathered here—hangs on this battle."

Before those grand words—the fate of the Empire—the officers' faces hardened, each taking on a different shade of dread.

The fate of the Empire, my ass.

From where I stood, none of that meant a thing. What mattered was how much EXP this board would pay out—and whether I'd survive it.

"Now then, I will explain the operation."

At the commander's glance, Major Helga, who had been standing beside him like a shadow, stepped forward. She received the command staff from him and pointed it at the map.

"This operation will be a regimental all-out war."