The Only Way to Escape the Empire
The Only Way to Escape the Empire
There was a game called 'Empire of the Emperor.'
It literally translated to 'The Emperor's Empire,' and it was one of the fantasy war games set in a near-modern era.
The main goal of the game was to stop the Empire, a militaristic nation attempting to unify the world based on its overwhelming national power.
It wasn't hugely popular, but it was my favorite game because of the incredibly rich interactions between the NPCs.
For instance, even among the same peasant class, if the region and nation were different, the values they held were all different from each other.
The soldiers didn't just move mechanically, either; they each harbored their own discontent, and if the command staff didn't address it, desertion and mutiny would occur.
Furthermore, depending on the player's actions, an NPC who was an ally could become an enemy, and conversely, an NPC who was an enemy could become an ally.
It was, truly, a goated game!
Just adding a slight variation to the playthrough would initiate an entirely new story, so for me, it was the best game ever.
If it had one flaw, it was that no matter how you played, the Empire was always on the path to destruction.
To begin with, the player-controlled protagonist belonged to the Allied Nations, the Empire's enemy, so it was unavoidable.
The problem was that this 'unavoidable' thing had happened to me.
"As you gentlemen know, the Allied Nations are forming an encirclement around the infantry division that has entered enemy territory, at distances of 3km from the first defense line and 5km from the second. As you all surely know, we must break through this to reverse the tide of the war."
I looked at the man currently speaking in a solemn voice.
The middle-aged man with a scar on his wrinkled face was a figure I knew all too well.
【Commander, 1st Mage Mechanized Army Operational HQ, Brigadier General Heinrich Schmidt】
He was a named NPC you inevitably encountered if you played the game.
'Which means....'
It aligned perfectly with the fact that I was currently in the world of the game.
I wanted to deny it, but the operational map spread out on the command table at headquarters and the eagle-shaped emblem unfurled imposingly behind Heinrich's back were a constant reminder that I was inside the game.
And as far as I knew, there was only one place that used that eagle-shaped emblem as the symbol of its military.
『Holy Bavarian Empire』
Right. This was the heart of the Empire, whose defeat was already determined in the game's ending.
And what was I doing in the heart of that Empire? After sifting through my memories, I recalled my title.
【Operations Planning Staff Adjutant, Imperial General Headquarters, Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner】
In a cruelly ironic twist, the operations planning staff adjutant at the Imperial military headquarters was none other than me.
If I had recalled my title without knowing that the Empire's defeat was inevitable, I probably would have popped champagne, thinking my elite career path was guaranteed.
But knowing that the Empire's defeat was inevitable, this title was less valuable than garbage.
'In the ending, it was clear....'
The leadership of the Empire, a war criminal state, would not be able to avoid execution.
As long as I was part of this place, I too would vanish, becoming the dew of the execution grounds.
That was the one thing I couldn't let happen. I hadn't lived my whole life just to die a dog's death.
If it were up to me, I would apply for a discharge, but in the Empire, the mandatory service period for officers was 8 years.
It meant it wasn't a job you could just quit because you wanted to.
Then what did I have to do to get out of here?
Breaking out in a cold sweat, I clenched my fist as a sudden, quiet realization came to me.
'Dishonorable discharge...!'
If I was adjudged as unfit by a court-martial, I could get a dishonorable discharge.
If that happened, I would no longer have to submit to military control.
It meant I could become a free man and leave the Empire—
"Second Lieutenant?"
My shoulders flinched at Heinrich calling my name.
When I raised my head, Heinrich and the other military officers were staring intently at me.
"You've been looking down at the operational map and seemed to be deep in thought about our army's situation since earlier. Have you thought of some stratagem?"
I was thinking, sure. About the only way I could escape the Empire, that is.
Feeling pressured by the gazes of the high-ranking officers, I hesitated for a moment, then coughed dryly.
While doing so, the abacus beads in my head started clicking rapidly.
'...This might just be an opportunity for a dishonorable discharge.'
Why had Heinrich asked me for a stratagem? Because I was the adjutant to the operations staff, so he assumed I must have picked up a thing or two by now, and was giving me a chance to speak.
He probably just wanted to set aside the opinions of the rigid, inflexible high-ranking officers for a moment and hear the opinion of a passionate young man.
He didn't discriminate based on status or person when embracing opinions. That was the kind of man Heinrich was.
But I didn't have the slightest intention of living up to Heinrich's expectations.
Because I didn't have the remotest desire to remain a sailor on a sinking ship.
"Commander, Sir."
So, for the sake of my dishonorable discharge, I made up my mind to give a wrong answer, not the right one.
"If I may be so bold, Sir, by what route do you plan to send the relief force to rescue our army that is isolated in enemy territory?"
"Hmm. According to the opinion of the staff officers, I intend to advance them through the hilly country of the Tevaita Mountain Range. According to news from the intelligence department, that is where the enemy's vigilance is the loosest."
"The Tevaita Mountain Range...."
After a moment's pause, I spoke.
"Then I earnestly request that you reconsider that decision."
In an instant, the inside of the meeting room was engulfed in silence.
It was only natural for them to be shocked that some newly commissioned second lieutenant was asking them to reconsider a decision reached after considering the staff officers' opinions and the intelligence department's reports.
Amid the unpleasant silence, the eyes of the high-ranking officers glaring at me were frightening, but I continued calmly.
"Sir. Do you not find it strange? I am referring to why the enemy's patrol security is lax only in the hilly country of the Tevaita Mountain Range, while it is tight everywhere else."
"It seems suspicious in your view, I take it?"
"Yes. It seems exactly as if the enemy forces are tempting us. What I mean is, it looks like they are encouraging us to advance through the hilly country of the Tevaita Mountain Range."
It was complete and utter bullshit that only sounded plausible.
Because, in the first place, the central intelligence department's report was certainly more accurate than my delusions.
Even so, I pushed ahead. My goal right now was a dishonorable discharge to begin with.
Therefore, it was important to make myself known as an incompetent figure through nonsensical sophistry.
"The enemy forces will surely be lying in wait, having set up a trap near the hilly country of the Tevaita Mountain Range."
"Your basis?"
"My gut feeling is telling me so."
As I asserted myself resolutely, one of Heinrich's eyebrows twitched.
Letting out a short, hollow laugh, Heinrich tapped the operations table.
"Your rank and name?"
"Operations Staff Adjutant Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner."
"Good. Daniel Steiner. What you are saying now is a direct refutation of the staff officers' opinion. You are well aware of that, I presume?"
"That is correct."
"If we heed your words, we will have to carry out an all-around reconnaissance mission, and the advance schedule will be delayed by that much. Can you take responsibility for the outcome?"
It essentially meant, prepare yourself for disciplinary action if we accept your opinion and it turns out to be nothing but needless worry.
It was truly the very scenario I had been hoping for.
"If my prediction is wrong, I will gladly take off this uniform and withdraw from the military."
No sooner had my words ended than the meeting room buzzed with commotion.
The sounds of tongue-clicking and people speaking out without reserve could be heard from here and there.
Among them, the operations staff officer, who was my direct superior, furrowed his brow and opened his mouth.
"Second Lieutenant Daniel! This is excessively impertinent! Do you know where you are...!"
The operations staff officer, who was about to shout at me, stopped mid-sentence and closed his mouth.
Because Heinrich had raised his hand to restrain him.
"Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner. There is no harm in being careful, so I will place my trust in you this once."
He smiled as he continued speaking.
"However, keep it in mind: a word, once spoken, cannot be taken back. If your words end up harming the Empire, I will convene a court-martial without a moment's hesitation."
In that moment, Heinrich's dark eyes narrowed thinly.
"Is that understood?"
An immense sense of pressure sent chills all over my body.
Was this what it meant to be a man who had climbed to the rank of general officer after going through all sorts of hardships?
He was a figure who knew how to imbue even a single word with gravitas.
At any other time, I would have been crushed by the atmosphere and bowed my head or averted my eyes, but as long as I was aiming for a dishonorable discharge, I had no need to avoid the commander's gaze.
Without avoiding Heinrich's eyes, I gave a thin smile.
"That is exactly what I had hoped for, Commander, Sir."
*
The next morning.
Imperial GHQ officers' dormitory.
Tok-tok─
At the sound of knocking, my eyes slowly opened.
Turning my head to look at the alarm clock, it was not yet wake-up time.
A knock at this early hour? Who could it be?
As I was blinking my eyes, half-asleep, the knocking sound came once more.
"Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner! The Commander summons you! Get up!"
At the word 'Commander', my eyes snapped wide open.
"Ah, understood!"
After answering hurriedly, I rose from the bed, quickly changed into my uniform, and opened the door.
Beyond the door stood an officer dressed in an Imperial military uniform just like mine.
Seeing the three diamonds on the shoulder epaulet, he was a Captain. My superior officer.
"......Are you Second Lieutenant Daniel Steiner?"
"I am. But, why has the Commander summoned me?"
In truth, I could guess. He must have sent a large-scale reconnaissance force to the hilly country based on my opinion, only for them to come back empty-handed.
In wartime, wasting manpower was a sin, so the Commander must have summoned me to rebuke my incompetence.
Heinrich would denounce me as human trash and then soon convene a court-martial.
Once that happened, I just had to admit my guilt and take off my uniform. It was a free pass to a dishonorable discharge.
Depending on the situation, I might even end up going to prison, but spending a few years in jail was far better than losing my head as a member of the leadership of a war criminal state, so I could endure it.
The moment I felt inwardly relieved that things were going according to plan, a smile spread across the Captain's lips.
Was he sneering at me? No, wait. Something felt strange.
"You may rejoice, Second Lieutenant. Thanks to your intuition being exactly correct, our army was able to prevent damage in advance. The Commander has summoned you to discuss a reward for that."
......What?