Chapter 131
Chapter 131
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: Backstab (2)
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The 3rd Squad, which Schleman belonged to, returned to the garrison after completing their mission for a shift change.
What greeted them was a strange atmosphere permeating the garrison.
'What the hell?'
It was starkly different from the vibe before they had left for the shift change.
Some places felt hectic, while others had a subtly sharp edge to them.
Just as the 3rd Squad entered the garrison.
"We're done. We're pulling out of this alliance!"
Schleman's steps halted abruptly at the furious shout echoing from somewhere.
'What the hell is that?'
Wearing a bewildered expression, Schleman quickly headed toward the source of the voice.
The other squad leaders of the 3rd Squad followed one by one, and soon they spotted several people in confrontation.
Schleman approached them.
"What's going on?"
The sudden arrival of the group.
And when they realized the one speaking was Schleman, many flinched, their shoulders twitching.
They seemed to be gauging the situation.
Then one squad member yelled with an angry face.
"This is all because of you!"
"What?"
It was absurd to Schleman.
They had just finished their assigned mission and come back, and now this out of nowhere.
But what came next was even more ridiculous.
"As long as you're colluding with Yuri Holland, we're leaving this alliance."
"......?"
A question mark floated above Schlemans head.
'What collusion? Colluding?'
Seeing Schleman frozen, some wore faces like the reckless fool had finally screwed things up.
'Idiot! Telling that to Schleman!'
But others looked relieved, like it was a weight off their chest.
There was intel about someone colluding with Yuri Holland.
And Schleman was a prime suspect.
This had originally been just talk among the squad leaders.
But some squad leaders said they should keep it among themselves to prevent chaos.
Others argued they needed to inform the squad members too.
If the current squads were proper units following a strict chain of command, there'd be no need to tell the members.
But the squads made up of the 50th Cohort were different.
The squad leaders weren't truly their superiors.
They were just representatives of the squad members.
So some squad leaders told their members, and the info spread like wildfire to everyone.
This sparked heated debates everywhere about the issue, and now opinions were split among all the squad members.
With trust already broken, was there any point in keeping the alliance?
There might be other colluders besides Schleman.
They shouldn't be swayed by unverified info.
Debates erupted in an instant, and with squad members leaning toward distrust, some squads were even talking about breaking the alliance and leaving.
And right then, Schleman and the 3rd Squad returned.
Facing dozens of gazes, Schleman, clueless about the situation, asked with a hardened expression.
"What are you talking about?"
Those who had been advocating to watch the situation explained.
It was the story Gilbert from the 2nd Squad brought back from his mission.
The expressions of the 3rd Squad's squad leaders shifted rapidly as they heard it.
But no one changed as quickly as Schleman.
"So that bastard... no, I'm the one pointed out as possibly colluding with Yuri Holland."
"...It's not just you being singled out—most opinions are that you're the colluder."
"Ha?"
A deflated sigh escaped Schlemans lips in disbelief.
He responded firmly to the stares directed at him.
"I'm not."
Immediate rebuttal followed.
"You need to prove you're not colluding."
"What proof!"
It was frustrating and absurd to Schleman.
How was he supposed to explain something he didn't do?
In his rising frustration, he shouted.
"Why the hell would I collude with Yuri Holland? What's in it for me!"
Someone countered again.
Exactly what had been said among the squad leaders.
"But forming this alliance isn't exactly beneficial to you either."
"...."
"Let's hear it straight. Why did you form this alliance?"
"To deal with Yuri Holland..."
"So this alliance was only ever to take down Yuri Holland and disband?"
"Of course."
"You put this much effort into an alliance just to take down Yuri Holland and disband?"
"...Is that a problem?"
Even as he explained, they still eyed him with suspicion, and he realized.
'Ha... It's already past the point where I can talk my way out.'
No matter how hard he tried to explain, they wouldn't believe him.
Distrust had already taken deep root in them.
'I was only gone a few hours... What the hell happened in that time? Where did it all go wrong?'
The spark Yuri had lit had grown into a blaze too big for the late-arriving Schleman to extinguish.
And so that day.
For the first time, deserters emerged from the alliance of 13 squads.
* * *
Crunch crunch.
The 14th Squad, once part of the 1st Platoon.
They left the garrison and entered the forest.
After wandering the woods for a while.
One squad member muttered.
"We did the right thing leaving, right...?"
At first, swept up in the mood, they had pushed to leave the alliance, but now that they were out, anxiety set in.
Even if temporary, having dozens of comrades versus just seven made a huge psychological difference.
The 14th Squad leader scoffed at the anxious voice.
"So what? You wanna go back now? I said we should stay neutral and watch, but you guys were the ones who decided to leave."
"Ah, we know."
"We're not saying we wanna go back for sure."
The squad leader clicked his tongue inwardly at their hesitant looks.
'Tch, should I have just stayed and pushed harder?'
But even if he had argued, the mood-swept members probably would have rushed to leave anyway.
And their impulsive choice led to this situation.
"Haa..."
Letting out a big sigh, the squad leader stopped and asked his members.
"Anyone have ideas on what to do next?"
Their future plans.
That was the priority now.
They had left, but unlike before with the clear goal of catching Yuri Holland, they had no plan now.
The members just looked at each other, unable to suggest anything easily.
That's when it happened.
"Me! I, I have an idea!"
A cheerful voice rang out from among the squad members.
It continued.
"How about we just join Yuri Holland's side?"
The 14th Squad leader tilted his head.
"Yuri Holland's side?"
"Think about it. They still have a lot of people, and they're moving to take down Yuri Holland."
"Yeah."
"But will they keep doing that?"
"...What do you mean?"
A coaxing voice responded to the squad leader's question.
"They've got a new goal besides taking down Yuri Holland now."
"Another goal?"
"The new enemy."
"......?!"
The 14th Squad leader's eyes widened as he realized who that new enemy was.
"Surely that new enemy isn't us?"
"Of course. In an 'us or them' situation, a squad that left the alliance is the enemy, right?"
"W-Well, yeah."
"Now they've got two options: take out Yuri Holland and keep the alliance to hunt the deserters, or deal with the deserters first then Yuri Holland."
"Ah...!"
It was a very plausible scenario.
Just as the squad leader and members' faces hardened.
The voice continued.
"So that's why we join Yuri Holland's side."
"The enemy of my enemy... can be a friend?"
"Yeah, exactly! You're a friend who gets it, huh?"
The squad leader nodded at the joyful voice.
Then he smiled toward where it came from.
"Good idea."
The moment he praised it, the squad leader's smile vanished.
'But... whose voice is that?'
Only then realizing something was off, he counted the squad members' heads.
'One, two, three... seven?'
The 14th Squad had seven including himself.
But weren't there more than seven heads in front of him now?
The startled squad leader hurriedly checked faces and spotted an unfamiliar one.
Jet-black hair.
'Wait... black hair?'
Quickly assessing, the 14th Squad leader's pupils shook violently.
He frantically drew his weapon and yelled at the black-haired figure.
"Y-Yuri Holland!"
At his shout, the squad members around the black hair scattered in shock.
Revealing Yuri's black-haired form clearly.
He grinned and waved cheerily.
"Hey, friends. This is Yuri, star of 'Take Down Yuri Holland.'"
Seven pairs of horrified gazes followed his greeting.
'When the hell?!'
'He was right behind us and we didn't notice?!'
'If Yuri Holland had seriously ambushed us...'
They'd already be rolling on the ground.
Only then did the 14th Squad realize Yuri's feat of wiping out multiple squads wasn't exaggeration.
Chills ran down their spines.
Yuri withdrew his waving hand as he watched them.
The fresh smile on his lips vanished too.
Instead, a chilling voice directed at the 14th Squad.
"So, wanna be friends with me or not?"
The heavy presence in his voice, like the cheer never happened, made them swallow dryly.
"W-What if we don't?"
"Don't? Is that even a question? If not friends, obviously..."
Yuri smirked and drew his sword.
"You're the enemy."
The killing intent in the gleaming white blade made clear what choice they had to make.
The entire 14th Squad nodded with awkward laughs.
"H-Ha, let's be friends!"
"Friends are great!"
"Y-Yeah, enemy's enemy is a friend!"
Threatened at swordpoint, they were forcibly recruited into the newly formed 'Yuri Alliance.'
And this was just the beginning.
Afterward, Yuri's threats and persuasions continued toward other defecting squads.
Those swayed by his smooth tongue and cold killing intent joined the 'Yuri Alliance.'
Among the new recruits was 9th Squad Leader Clarice.
Watching the groups merging into another force, he recalled his conversation with Gunter the day before.
* * *
Clarice was watching the departing squads.
'Already three squads defected?'
In just a day, three of the 13 squads had left the alliance.
A significant loss of forces.
The mood among those remaining wasn't great either.
Not distrusting each other like the defectors, but not fully trusting the alliance like before.
As this icy tension lingered.
Gunter approached Clarice.
"Unexpected."
Gunter, arriving out of nowhere, said that upon seeing Clarice.
Clarice's brow furrowed.
"What is?"
"You were the first to suspect Schleman... yet you're not defecting. That's what I mean."
Clarice responded to Gunter's calm gaze with silence.
After a moment of quiet.
Gunter asked.
"Have you dropped your suspicion of Schleman?"
Clarice broke the silence with a curt shake of his head.
"No, I still suspect Schleman."
"Then why stay instead of leaving?"
"Stupid question."
"Stupid?"
"Isn't the most dangerous enemy the one you watch closest?"
"Ah..."
Gunter nodded slightly at Clarice's words.
"I see. I asked something too simple."
Clarice had a point.
If Schleman was suspicious, watching him up close was wise.
The short exchange ended.
Silence flowed between them again.
This time, Gunter spoke first.
"I'm well aware of the Ban family."
The prestigious house that tamed barren land in the Tabul Administrative District.
They fed the district with the spirit of selfless sacrifice, earning the title beyond noble house to heroic clan.
The people's support in Tabul was absolute.
Hence calling it the Anti-Kingdom.
Its fame reached the continent's northernmost tip, so Gunter knew it well.
A knightly house with unmatched renown among many.
Since Clarice was a scion of that famed knightly house.
And believing he held a knight's honor.
Gunter considered asking Clarice a difficult favor.
"By any chance..."
Gunter paused, then forced the words out.
"...would you consider leaving this alliance?"