The War's Conclusion
Haa...
"...It's sweet."
A hazy puff of smoke slipped from my lips. The smooth draw was exquisite, as always. I endured my hunger by sucking on this emblem of victory. It wasn't that I hadn't eaten. It was just that...
"...Ugh, dizzy."
I was short on blood. Without the ability to absorb nutrients, anything I ate was nothing more than waste inside my body. It had already been four days since I left the front lines for the rear because of that damn banquet. If I didn't return to the battlefield soon, things would get dangerous.
"...Damn it. If only I'd drunk blood on schedule."
My body might have grown a little more. I stared down at my unimpressive frame. My height was awkward for a soldier who ran across battlefields. My body was hopelessly frail. The system had kept me from becoming skeletal, at least.
"...I guess having the luxury to survive lets me think about crap like this."
I let out a small laugh and began preparing to return to the front.
"I don't want to starve to death."
I crushed the shortened cigarette into the ashtray. It went out with a sharp hiss. I pulled out a fresh one and lit it.
"Haa..."
These days I couldn't endure without a cigarette. The hunger was too fierce; I needed something in my mouth at all times. Eating food in this state only made the hunger worse. Fasting was preferable.
I was puffing away mechanically when it happened.
-Knock, knock.
Someone rapped on the door to my office. For a moment I considered taking my legs off the table, but...
'...Whatever.'
Too bothered to care, I simply adjusted my cap.
"...Enter."
The moment I spoke, a woman with golden hair and blue eyes burst in with a bright grin.
"Salute...!"
"What is it, Kriha?"
"Didn't you say you were quitting smoking?"
"...Not this again."
Kriha. A loyal subordinate who had been with me since my days as platoon leader. I'd dragged her everywhere and worked her like a dog, yet she never once complained. She was a good kid. She did worry about me excessively, though.
"...How many times do I have to tell you this is bad for your health?"
"Captain Kriha. Stop nagging and state your business."
When I frowned and spoke, she demanded a salute first.
"...Just talk. I'll consider it your punishment for lecturing me about quitting."
"Major... please......"
"...Please?"
"Hup...!"
She was clearly insane.
"...You're a captain now, yet you still act like a private?"
"How long am I supposed to watch your back?"
I rose from my seat and blew a stream of smoke beside the prostrated captain.
"Answer."
"I'm sorry...!!"
This was Kriha's problem. The moment she saw me she started babbling about how cute I was and lost all military discipline. Back when she was a corporal and I had become company commander, she'd spoken informally to me and ended up getting beaten until she was covered in dust. Of course, the habit never actually died.
"...It's a miracle you even earned a nickname."
Even this idiot golden retriever had one. The Sword Saint's Mad Dog. For the record, the Sword Saint in that title is me. I rampaged so wildly that the name stuck. The sight of me charging through bullets and magic with a sword must have left quite an impression.
"Excuse me."
I sat down squarely on top of Kriha, who was still pressing her forehead to the floor.
"Kugh......"
"If your posture breaks, it's ten strikes."
If discipline was lost, you simply beat it back in. On the battlefield, losing discipline meant only death. I hoped she would at least remember she was a captain.
"...So. Your business?"
I exhaled smoke and asked. Kriha finally spoke.
"The young lady of House Behamount has requested... an audience."
"...Tell her no."
"...B-but this is already the fifth refusal."
The war was in its final stages. I needed to gather as much blood as possible right now, yet these nobles refused to leave me alone. Breathing heroic influence into a failing family had been a mistake.
"Tell her I'll go next time."
"...Answer."
"Yes, understood...!"
Kriha's legs were trembling. Fifteen minutes was actually impressive. I hopped off her. She collapsed with a heavy thud.
"Tomorrow we return to the front."
"Yes...? But the banquet isn't over yet."
If I waited any longer I felt like I would die. I couldn't say that, so I simply let my eyes glow as I spoke.
"...Do the vampires wait for us?"
"While you fawn over those old pigs,"
"your company crosses the line of fire."
"...You should be thinking about returning immediately."
When I put the cigarette back in my mouth, Kriha shot to her feet and saluted.
"Dismissed."
"Yes!"
I chuckled and slipped a pack of cigarettes into the breast pocket of her uniform.
"...Major? I don't smoke."
"Give them to Kyle. He'll be happy."
"...Captain Kyle and I promised to quit smoking until we get married."
Hearing that death flag, I clicked my tongue and glared at her.
"...Didn't I tell you not to talk about marriage in front of me?"
"Ah... S-sorry."
"Whatever. Get out."
I kicked her in the rear. My office fell quiet once more. I stared at the rainy scenery outside the window.
-Drip. Drip.
Gazing at the blurred sky, I murmured.
"...Now a story I don't know will begin."
"......"
I had removed every threat. I had grown close to the nobles and forged strong ties with the imperial family.
"...Eryk."
I had even placed a collar on the masterless hunting dog who worried me most.
I had finished preparing to step into a story I didn't know. When I closed and opened my eyes again, I would face the ending of Glory of Victory 1. In this world, every trace of the Vampire Kingdom's history would be erased.
"...The last vampire."
"Not bad."
Muttering to myself, I tried to sleep to forget my hunger. Of course, I couldn't fall deeply asleep.
"...Major."
"...Ah, Kyle."
"Salute. The carriage is ready."
A red-haired man with a scar over his left eye. Kyle spoke to me in a flat, emotionless tone.
"Salute... Did you receive the cigarettes?"
"Yes, thank you."
Kyle thanked me with an utterly blank face. I yawned as I looked at him.
"...Major, this may be forward, but you seem even thinner than before."
"...Captain Kyle, since when have you been staring at my body so closely?"
"I'm sorry. I was simply worried."
Kyle kept his eyes forward in perfect at-ease posture, face expressionless.
"...Mind your own business."
I answered somewhat irritably and felt a headache surge forward. The world spun.
"...Haa... I'll be going."
"Yes."
Even breathing was difficult. I had to return to the battlefield quickly.
I checked my watch.
"...An hour and a half."
An hour and a half was far from enough for proper sleep. But after five years on the front, where catnaps were the norm, I had grown used to even this.
"Let's go, my other half."
Muttering, I picked up the black blade. A sword crafted exclusively for me, dark as night. Despite its size matching my body, it was incredibly light. Only slightly heavier than the mop I had once smashed into Eryk's head.
I opened the compartment at the bottom of the perfectly balanced hilt. About 50ml of blood emerged. Since it had been over a week, its condition was poor.
"Ugh...!"
I let the blood fall onto my tongue and swallowed while fighting back nausea. Fresh blood was awful, but...
"...Kgh......"
Old blood was utterly vile. Fishy, bitter, reeking of rot. Disgusting. So incredibly disgusting. Yet because it was still blood, my hunger slowly receded. The revulsion faded, and a fragile sense of stability returned.
Only then could I manage a simple meal.
"...I need to eat quickly and leave."
Even this small amount of blood wouldn't digest fully, but it would be enough to last until I reached the battlefield. My small body had decent energy efficiency, after all.
"...Delicious......"
The sandwich I hadn't tasted in a whole day was so good it brought tears to my eyes. In the mirror I saw myself crying over a single sandwich. The reflection of an extremely frail girl.
Looking at that sight, I...
"...Goddammit."
I cursed.
Less than a day after setting out, we arrived at the battlefield.
"Major...!!"
The moment we reached the front, a woman with gray hair and golden eyes came running.
"Salute."
"...Salute. Captain Jenny, brief me."
Jenny, who had held operational command in my absence from the capital, began her report.
"...Currently, the soldiers' morale has dropped sharply due to the Major's absence."
"With the commander gone, we halted our advance and fought only defensive battles. We've reached our physical limits."
"They've rested for now, but..."
"It appears the defensive line will collapse soon."
A worse report than expected. I crushed the cigarette I had been smoking.
"...Haa... This is exactly why I shouldn't listen to those filthy pigs......"
There was no real problem. Raising morale was simple. And the more sacrifices, the better for me.
"...We will proceed with the operation."
I grabbed the amplifier and headed for the forward trench where soldiers were blocking incoming shells.
-BOOM!!!!
-BANG!!!!!
Soldiers trembled every time a shell landed nearby. They were already at their mental limit. Yet they were soldiers. They had no choice but to charge when ordered. If so, at the very least...
"...I have to take away their fear."
I had to remove even their fear.
The magic stone in the amplifier reacted to my power and glowed crimson.
After I spoke, the first to raise a sword and charge toward the enemy was none other than me.
-Uwoaaaaah!!!
-For the Empire!!!!
-Filthy vampires!!!
-Exterminate the bloodsuckers!!!
With thunderous war cries, my subordinates charged after me.
This operation would bring heavy casualties. But we would win.
'...Because I will make sure their deaths aren't meaningless.'
I would ensure their deaths held meaning. That was the only apology I could offer the soldiers I had already killed with my own hands.