Living Off the Land Is Tradition (2)
Living Off the Land Is Tradition (2)
In the Earth author's World War 2 writings, there's a story like this.
It says the biggest headache for the mighty US Army wasn't the German or Japanese forces, but the US Marine Corps.
These Marine bastards, lacking supplies, specialized in 'local procurement' of materiel from their allies in the Army.
There's this utterly preposterous plot point that they stole everything, from weapons and ammo down to underwear.
'But between Lady Hildea's forces and Lady Carlton's forces, who's the victim and who's the perpetrator?'
"Haah."
Marquis Carlton let out a sigh, then stared at Hildea with cold eyes.
"Commander-in-Chief, you're seriously doing this?"
"We are simply reclaiming our supplies. Please follow orders, 4th Army Commander."
"I'm telling you, there was nothing but a few books, really! If I'd known this would happen, I would never have opened the supply boxes!"
"If you were in my position, Commander of the 4th Army, would you believe that?"
"...I wouldn't believe it."
While the two beautiful commanders exchanged heated words.
Physical fights had already broken out between the knights and soldiers.
Our troops, pumped full of 20,000 kilocalories, had spread out in squads and were ransacking the barracks.
Why were they showing such practiced skill, as if this wasn't their first or second time?
"Stop them! Stop them, I said!"
"You sons of bitches! I'm telling you, there were only a few lewd picture books in there!"
"Whether it's snack bars or barracks coffee, we've never even laid eyes on them, you bastards!"
"Shut up!"
"We know you bastards siphoned everything off!"
"You think we're going to believe that!"
Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!
Brawls broke out everywhere.
Fortunately, they were fighting with scabbards still on, swinging them like clubs without drawing their swords.
It seems they still have some awareness that we are allies.
"Commander-in-Chief, how about asking the owner of the goods then?"
Marquis Carlton turned her head and looked at me.
When our eyes met, I flinched.
"Second Lieutenant Piel, right?"
"Yes, that is correct. How do you...?"
"I could tell at a glance. You're standing at the treasured distance from the Commander-in-Chief."
A 1.5-meter gap is the treasured zone?
"Answer honestly. At this rate, we'll spill the blood of allies right in front of the enemy."
"Commander of the 4th Army!"
"Commander-in-Chief, be quiet. Unless you intend to make your lieutenant commit perjury."
"...."
Hildea shut her mouth, and Marquis Carlton looked at me confidently.
"I know everything. You mixed in empty decoy boxes on purpose to prepare for inspections. Right?"
"Your Excellency the Marquis Carlton."
"Will you call me Rebecca?"
As she said that, Marquis Carlton gave a wink.
She seemed to purposely shake her upper body so her chest slightly quivered, but that must be my imagination, right?
"Commander."
"I said Rebecca."
"...Yes, Commander Rebecca."
I thought I just heard the grinding sound of Hildea's teeth.
Seeing her slightly crestfallen expression, I can guess what she's thinking.
「What if what Rebecca said is true?」
The anxiety is written all over her face, plain to see.
This woman is worrying for nothing.
'More important than the truth is the face of my immediate superior who holds my evaluations. I'm your subordinate.'
Like it or not, I have to roll under Hildea for 10 years.
To freely utilize the supply cheat, I need a high rank and a large unit, and Hildea can make that happen.
"Commander Rebecca, I humbly advise that everyone will regain peace if you provide the appropriate compensation that the Commander-in-Chief desires."
"...Hah."
Rebecca smacks her forehead.
Her long tied-up hair, rippling near her chest, shows her emotions of feeling mortified and driven crazy.
'Looking at this, she really did order her subordinates to steal it. Their acting on their own, my ass.'
The brawls and shouts between Lady Hildea's forces and Lady Rebecca's forces intensified.
Rebecca, who had been irritably scratching her head, looked at Hildea with murderous eyes.
"If the Commander-in-Chief comes out like this! Then I have no choice but to press down with my title!"
Pat!
A flash of light burst.
Before I knew it, Rebecca had vanished right before my eyes.
Hildea shouted urgently.
"Sir Basel! Protect Piel! Move away from me!"
"Yes!"
Kwaang!
The moment Hildea swung her sword, a deafening blast erupted from the air.
Something had flown at Hildea, and she had deflected it with her sword.
Only then could I see it.
Rebecca standing tall on a roof far away.
She held a massive, thick bow as tall as she was, and was drawing the string toward Hildea.
Pajijijik!
A blue Aura rippled at the tip of the arrow.
I was astonished.
'A Bow Master!'
If a Sword Master exists at the pinnacle of the sword, then a Bow Master exists for the bow.
Normally, a Sword Master is rated more highly.
This is because in a direct duel, a Sword Master will win without exception.
However, if a Bow Master determines not to give you any distance, a Sword Master cannot catch a Bow Master either.
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang!
Aura Arrow rapid fire repeatedly flew in, and Hildea deflected them with her sword while trying to close the distance.
During the brief moments Hildea had to concentrate to deflect the Aura Arrows.
Rebecca had already moved to another location in an instant and was drawing her bowstring.
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang!
Is this a medieval fantasy tank vs self-propelled artillery duel?
My heart swells with manly... no.
They seem to be at the point of a life-or-death struggle, but is it okay for front-line allies to do this?
"Hmm, the commander seems to be going extremely easy on purpose today?"
"Sir Basel?"
What? That's her going easy?
Only the area around me was quiet.
Perhaps because Sir Basel was standing guard with a fierce, menacing look, no one approached.
"Sir Basel, the truth is that cart..."
"Don't say anything."
Basel smothered my words with a meaningful gaze.
"It is a fact that Marquis Carlton's forces plundered your cart."
"...."
"We can use this chance to tighten the discipline of the 4th Army and also pick up some supplies on our way back. It'll be over soon anyway. There's no human who can beat a Sword Master one-on-one."
I looked around.
Everyone was fighting fiercely, emitting killing intent, but no one was dead or crippled.
Both our army and the allied army were waging hand-to-hand combat, swinging with their scabbards still on.
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
Could this be a kind of friendly match to relieve war stress?
I must be crazy. I'm imagining all sorts of things.
Jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng! Jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng!
At that moment, a sharp metallic sound suddenly rang throughout the barracks.
As if time had stopped, everyone froze in their movements.
Even Sir Basel's relaxed expression changed to that of a veteran soldier facing true combat.
Hildea quickly approached my side.
Jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng! Jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng jjaeng!
The sharp ringing grew louder and faster.
It felt like my eardrums would burst.
Kurrrrrng! Kurrrrrrng!
Suddenly, I felt the ground vibrate.
It felt like an earthquake approaching this way.
Rebecca, her face pale, dashed over here in an instant.
"Commander-in-Chief! It's the Ancient Tree Legion!"
"By the authority of the Commander-in-Chief, I hereby declare a full-scale defensive battle."
"Understood!"
The knights and soldiers moved in perfect order.
The atmosphere of fighting each other to the death just moments ago vanished, and they became comrades who could trust each other and watch each other's backs.
Hildea said with a stern face.
"Second Lieutenant Piel, under no circumstances are you to leave the side of myself or Sir Basel."
It seems like overprotection. But I like it all the more.
"Sir Basel, if necessary, take Second Lieutenant Piel and return. You must bring him back alive."
"Yes, Commander."
The mood was far from ordinary.
I cautiously asked.
"Is it a dangerous enemy?"
"It's a legion of plant monsters commanded by Elf Druids. Each individual isn't that fatally strong."
"So the numbers are overwhelming."
"It's good that you understand quickly. It's not just the numbers that are overwhelming."
Hildea looked toward the distant horizon and spoke with a trembling voice.
"It will be a war of attrition. Follow me. You need to see this as well."
I followed Hildea up to a high watchtower.
"What do you see?"
"I don't see anyt—... Hot! Are you saying all of that is the monster legion?"
"Yes."
A green fog, starting from the incredibly distant horizon, was surging in like a tidal wave.
There were so many of them.
The vast plain looked as if it was gradually being dyed green.
I wondered why the fog was that color, but it wasn't fog — it was a legion of plant monsters.
Hildea's voice was heavy.
"It's going to be a very long night."
***
The tree monsters were very large.
Their mobility was slow, and their attacks using branches and roots were not agile either.
But they were not easily neutralized by ordinary attacks.
And their numbers were vast, and they pushed in endlessly.
"Johnson got tied up in the branches! Help him!"
"I'm coming!"
One soldier had his whole body bound tightly in tree branches.
A nearby knight rushed in and cut the branches away with an Aura-laced sword to free him.
The damage wasn't major, but it was steadily accumulating over time.
I kept watching from the watchtower with Sir Basel.
'I can't see the end of it. They keep coming.'
It was literally a swarm.
"Second Lieutenant Piel, what artifact is that?"
"It's a simple tool that helps you see distant objects well. It's not quite an artifact level."
"May I take a look?"
"Yes, Sir Basel."
I handed over the binoculars.
After scanning the horizon with the binoculars, Sir Basel let out an admiring voice.
"Truly, these are outstanding Magic Eye Glasses. To think things so far away could be seen this clearly."
Basel handed the binoculars back.
In this world, there is an artifact like binoculars called Magic Eye Glasses, made by the Magic Tower.
Judging by Basel's words, their performance seems crappy.
"The Commander-in-Chief isn't using any Aura Blades at all. Is there a reason?"
"Because it will be an extremely long, drawn-out battle. She is minimizing stamina consumption."
Rebecca's forces were conducting rotation warfare, alternating the front lines.
When the knights and soldiers who had fought their hardest retreated, the second line immediately filled the gap.
The exhausted knights and soldiers fell back to the rear, sprawling on the ground to rest and replenish their meals...
'How can you fight eating stuff like that.'
Watery soup and brick biscuits.
This was the combat diet provided to the exhausted knights and soldiers.
"Sir Basel, how does a tree legion invasion usually unfold?"
"We just hold on until they all fall. For at least two days."
"Is that all?"
"Then what can an army do in front of those numbers?"
So it's a battle of endurance in the end.
But how long can we really hold out like that?
This isn't a problem that can be solved by sheer willpower.
I called over one soldier from Hildea's forces, quickly wrote an order, and handed it to him.
"Return to the Commander-in-Chief's Official Residence immediately and deliver this order to the orderlies. And bring all the supply boxes stored in the Quarters Warehouse."
"Yes!"
"Second Lieutenant Piel! Those supplies belong to our 3rd Army...!"
"Do not worry."
I calmed down Basel, who was flaring up.
"Supplies will come again soon. Protecting the 4th Army's front line here is what's important right now."
***
'I'm hungry.'
Commander Rebecca drew her bowstring with blurry eyes.
Her consciousness was hazy.
It was because she had been fighting nonstop without rest.
She had devoured brick biscuits like a madwoman in between, but her calorie expenditure was far more severe.
Just then, the logistics officer urgently reported.
"Commander! We're running out of food!"
"Even release the emergency reserves!"
"We already did!"
"Damn it! Then slaughter the warhorses too!"
"Ha, but..."
"This is no time to be picky! Slaughter everything you can except the people!"
Just as the logistics officer was about to retreat, swallowing blood and tears.
Rebecca saw a commotion in one corner of the rear barracks.
Cube-like things were piled mountain-high to one side.
The soldiers were grabbing and eating them ravenously.
'What are they eating?'
Surprised and approaching, Rebecca was able to see.
The soldiers were madly stuffing themselves with something shaped like rectangular blocks.
Only then did she see Piel nearby, controlling the meal distribution.
"Second Lieutenant Piel, what is this? It doesn't look like the food called snack bars."
"It's a combat biscuit. Please eat it and regain your strength, Commander."
"...A biscuit?"
As if entranced, Rebecca picked up a palm-sized block and put it in her mouth.
The surface was hard, but with one bite, it crumbled crisply in her mouth without resistance.
A chewability on a completely different dimension from the 'biscuits' that boasted strength rivaling bricks.
Concentrated energy surged down her esophagus with tremendous force.
"This is insane! This is a biscuit?"