We're Going
We're Going
Even medieval people know that plants draw life force from sunlight.
Without me needing to explain, the commanders realized that elves, like plants, gain strength from sunlight.
Hildea grabbed my elbow and shook it in excitement.
"That's it! So this was your hypothesis, that it could be confirmed once day broke!"
Rebecca also glared at the elves' photosynthesis with her arms crossed and muttered.
"Incredible. So this is the secret of the elves...."
"To think they draw power from sunlight. Doesn't that put our kingdom's army at too great a disadvantage?"
"I was always furious, wondering what the hell those bastards ate to never get exhausted, and they were living off sunlight all along!"
"We were already losing the supply battle from the very start!"
After the soldiers had dragged all the elf prisoners away.
Knights here and there burst out in lament mixed with frustration.
I could feel their grief over just how hopeless a fight they'd been waging all this time.
Our side had such poor food that we couldn't even train mana properly, and we had to carefully manage our stamina even in battle.
Meanwhile, the enemy got by on sunlight alone, to the point they'd completely sealed up their own anuses.
Huh? Wait? Sealed up?
'Just because they have no anus doesn't necessarily mean they lack internal digestive organs. They could be vestigial, or homologous structures might remain.'
If my hypothesis is true....
As I was organizing my thoughts, someone placed a hand firmly on my shoulder.
Vice-commander Dvil, holding a mortar in one hand and placing the other on my shoulder, looked at me with solemn gravity.
"As you all have said, we have been losing the supply battle until now. But now, no longer. We have Major Piel, do we not!"
Vice-commander Basel raised both clenched fists high in response.
"That's right! We have Major Piel!"
"Vice-commander-nim, who drove away the darkness and made the elf archers reveal themselves?"
"Piel did!"
"Thanks to whom was Commander Rebecca able to snipe the elf assassin hiding with darkness camouflage?"
"Piel!"
Dvil hoisted me up onto his shoulders.
Damn, I'm not really into this kind of emotional excess.
"Our hero Piel! Without Piel, the 4th Army would have been annihilated that day, and our 3rd Army would have collapsed unable to hold out!"
"True, so true!"
"That we were able to punish those elf bastards in last night's brutal battle instead, is all thanks to Major Piel!"
Hildea also drew her sword with a chaeng! and shouted high.
"Major Piel has not only perfectly resolved our corps' food problem! He enabled us to achieve a great victory with minimal casualties in last night's battle, which could have ended in annihilation!
Our victory is all thanks to Major Piel!"
Ugh, embarrassing.
I don't really like being excessively praised like this in front of everyone.
But with Hildea and Rebecca, and everyone else celebrating with the intensity of people ready to rip out their hearts and throw them, I couldn't show that.
"Major Piel! Let us hear your thoughts!"
"Yes, Piel. Tell us, quickly."
Hildea and Rebecca urged me on.
Over 30,000 troops were looking at me, their eyes burning bright.
For the sake of morale if nothing else, I figured I should ride this atmosphere.
"I did nothing but use some surplus luminescent magitech. Last night's victory is thanks to all the officers and soldiers who fought without sparing their lives under Commander-in-Chief Hildea's brave leadership."
First, humbly deflect the credit to everyone.
"We've won a great victory, so you must all be hungry, right? The special combat rations I've been saving, really really saving! I'm going to distribute them in bulk right now!"
"Waaaaah!"
"Special rations! Special rations!"
"Long live Major Piel!"
"Long live the Supply Officer-nim!"
Why is everyone so happy?
At the word 'special rations,' they're going absolutely crazy, practically glowing with joy.
'They've been reduced to Pavlov's dogs....'
Even Hildea and Rebecca are beside themselves with delight, practically drooling.
"Piel! What are the special rations?"
"What delicious thing are you going to feed us now? No, wait, before that, can you really feed this many people? Out here in the field like this?"
Just then, Hildea whispered quietly into my ear.
"Major Piel, surely you're not planning to feed grilled chicken skewers to this many people?"
At first I thought she was worried about running out of food for herself.
But that wasn't it.
"If that is the case, as commander I truly want to thank you. On such a special day, if everyone could taste such a delicacy, I think it would make me truly proud."
Hildea, I'm sorry for misunderstanding....
"Unfortunately, no. I don't have that many grilled skewers."
The number to feed is roughly over 30,000.
It's not that I couldn't feed them grilled skewers, but it would take too long and be too cumbersome.
I'd have to request an insane amount of barbecue charcoal too.
In this situation, a food that can be distributed to everyone instantly and bring great satisfaction?
No matter how I think about it, there's only 'that,' right?
"It's a noodle dish."
Everyone flinched in shock.
"A noodle dish!"
"That's absurd! How do you prepare such high-class food out here in the field? And you're giving it to this many soldiers?"
In this medieval land where flour is precious, and pure wheat flour is even more precious.
Due to the difficulty of noodle-making techniques, pulling noodles thin is hard, and long-term preservation as dried noodles is beyond their wildest dreams.
I'm worried this might be too cruel to them.
【Requesting supply of 150,000 units of Chil-do Jumbo Lunch Box (729g / 3,269kcal).】
【Budget : 150,000】
Large-capacity cup ramen.
It's one of the food items provided in consideration of Korean-American soldiers, possible because America is a multi-ethnic nation.
Instant ramen, completed just by pouring hot water and waiting a moment, is the best choice for 30,000 elite soldiers hungry after battle.
'Good timing. I should teach them how to use kerosene in advance while I'm at it.'
【Requesting supply of kerosene (JP-8).】
【Requesting supply of kerosene burners (extra-large capacity).】
【Requesting supply of bottled water (large capacity).】
【Field-use water heater (super-large)....】
I received the supplied materials one after another, pretending to pull them out of the subspace bracelet.
As the supplies poured out endlessly, everyone gaped in astonishment.
"How is this possible? When did he even pack all that water?"
"What in the world are those super-large pots?"
"So that's why the Supply Officer-nim told us not to bring any cooking tools!"
"He said field meals would be snack bars!"
"Is this... an oil drum?"
"This looks like some kind of magical device that runs on oil. I've never seen such an intricate design before."
I shouted loudly to those around me.
"Alright, everyone! Prepare your meals according to the supply soldiers' instructions! First, we'll boil water!
Supply soldiers! I'll show you how to light a fire with this magical device, so make sure to properly instruct the soldiers!"
I also explained the precautions.
Kerosene flames are toxic so never heat food directly, what not to do, what must absolutely be observed....
Since they're not stupid, they understood all the key points after just one or two demonstrations.
Several super-large water heaters were activated, and the water began to boil.
And finally, I took out the Chil-do Jumbo Lunch Box.
"Five per person! Tear open the small sealed packet inside and sprinkle the powder! After eating, gather the sealed packets and containers together and bring them back! Pour in hot water and eat after 3 minutes!"
"What kind of food is this? I've never seen anything like it!"
"This is a noodle dish? It doesn't look like noodles, more like some kind of snack?"
"I-it's soft! It seems like it would be delicious just eating it like this?"
"I said absolutely do not eat it raw, pour hot water on it and eat! If you eat it raw, it won't taste good and you won't get enough calories!"
Hildea, who had already torn open one cup ramen and was chewing it raw, was startled out of her wits.
"I-it can become even more delicious than this?"
Goodness.
What am I going to do with this Sword Master young lady.
***
Dvil held his five cups of ramen sprinkled with powdered soup and waited quietly for his turn.
To think this would become a noodle dish just by pouring hot water on it.
He couldn't believe it.
He poured the boiling water that the supply soldier ladled from the water heater into the five ramen containers.
He closed the lids and waited quietly, and at some point, an insanely delicious smell began to waft out.
As the smell of ramen began to spread in all directions, everyone let out groans of agony.
"Keuk, what is this smell...."
"I-I can't endure it."
"How can it give off such a delicious smell?"
"So this is a noodle dish!"
Dvil screamed internally as if in agony.
That's not it, noodle dishes aren't like this.
The noodle dishes he had eaten before were absolutely not like this.
The noodles weren't this thin, and they didn't give off such a stimulating aroma.
Unable to endure the 3 minutes, Dvil opened the lid after just 2 minutes, and his eyes wavered at the shocking visual.
Thin noodles beautifully loosened in bright red broth.
Steam rising gently.
Small bits of ingredients floating alluringly.
He took out the fork he always carried in his pocket and lifted the noodles. More tense than when he had received his knighthood, he reverently put them in his mouth.
"...!"
In that moment, a powerful explosion swept through his mouth.
The violence of an intense flavor he had never experienced shattered everything within him.
Cup ramen, containing the essence of modern Earth food engineering.
The savory pheromones wildly emitted by MSG conquered his unresistant tongue far too easily.
'Delicious...!'
The taste of ramen eaten while watching the morning sun rise, after finishing a desperate late-night battle.
It was as hot and intense as if he had put that brilliant sun into his mouth.
Simply shocking, just astonishing.
Before he knew it, silence had fallen all around.
Everyone was quietly, hurriedly busy chewing noodles and swallowing broth.
Dvil thought.
'After a battle in the field... have I ever had such a satisfying, filling meal?'
He hadn't.
Forcing brick-hard biscuits into an exhausted body — that was the entirety of field meals.
'In that short time, to distribute such incredible food to this many soldiers.'
Having witnessed the true extent of Piel's supply capability, Basel felt chills run down his spine.
This wasn't fear.
'If Piel becomes the overall supply commander of the Ainshuvan Front...! No matter how fiercely the elves attack, we can hold out! We can win!'
He could see soldiers silently streaming tears.
It surely wasn't just because it was delicious.
The taste of heaven injected into their tongues and stomachs in such harsh conditions had overwhelmed them, bringing back memories of those grueling field meals of the past.
Even Dvil himself felt that way right now.
Having gathered the empty containers and soup packets together as Piel had instructed earlier, Dvil picked up the mortar he was still in charge of and approached Piel.
Standing before Piel, who was flanked by the two commanders, Dvil set down the mortar and spoke with a voice full of resolve.
"Major Piel, will you not entrust me with the use of this magical device?"
"Lord Deville?"
"I'm not asking you to give it to me. I know it's useless without projectiles. I am offering you my hands, my eyes."
Dvil recalled how Piel had admired his marksmanship earlier.
"Use me as the archer for this magical device. I will never disappoint you."
***
Hildea's territory.
Ragged, defeated soldiers were trudging along, visibly worn out.
They were the knights of the 1st Army who had left their devastated barracks.
The territory's residents didn't flee in fear, but instead showed interest in their miserable state.
At the front, a small-statured girl with red hair wearing a robe muttered while waving her magic staff listlessly, her eyes devoid of spirit.
"Deserting, deserting, deserted, deserting...."
A senior among the haggard-looking knights asked.
"Acting Commander-in-Chief Luna-nim... where do we go now?"
Luna, the red-haired mage, stopped.
The knights stopped as well.
Luna slowly turned around, and her red eyes were no longer clouded.
A flame, sharper and hotter than ever, was blazing within them.
"Everyone listen carefully. The damn Ainshuvan Front is over. We're going to the capital."
"Commander-nim?"
"C-could it be rebellion?"
"The 1st and 2nd Armies are finished. But the 3rd and 4th Armies still remain. We have to go and turn the rear upside down! Then those bastard nobles in the rear will increase supplies to the 3rd and 4th Armies, if only to avoid dying themselves."
Luna's eyes blazed with fighting spirit.
"We go to the capital. We'll fight a new battle there! And we will become fertilizer for the 3rd and 4th Armies!"