Orc Subjugation Battle (2)
As soon as the battle ended, I turned to look behind me. My eyes met Arisha's, positioned in the center. I could feel her gaze fixed on me, as though she were pondering something. Soon, as if she had read my intent, her lips parted.
[…We’ll resume the march.]
I turned my head forward once more and returned to my assigned position. At the very front, in the vanguard, I began to walk. Footsteps followed shortly after—the sound of soldiers marching behind me.
“Kuk kuk. Not bad, rookie.”
“…What do you mean, sir.”
The seniors walking beside me chuckled and praised me. It was the kind of meaningful laugh they wore when they wanted to tease someone.
“You don’t know the mood back here because you’re walking in front, or are you just oblivious?”
“……”
I gave no reply. The footsteps of the soldiers following behind were far quieter than before. At the same time, I could feel their gazes fixed on the back of my head.
“Kya. Our rookie sure knows how to assert dominance.”
“Normally this would be unnecessary. Still… things should go pretty smoothly from here on.”
That was the seniors’ reaction. I agreed with them to some extent. Normally, an act of dominance like this was meant to crush the other side and enjoy the advantage of standing above them. Even if we belonged to different squads, we were still comrades in the same defense force who had to watch each other’s backs in battle. There was no need for it, especially when the other side hadn’t been rude. But after this incident, I had proven that my scouting ability and senses were superior to anyone else’s. If they trusted my judgment, it wasn’t such a bad development.
“……”
I glanced sideways at the soldiers of the 1st Search Unit maintaining formation beside me. As expected, I felt their curious gazes flicking toward me. It was the look one gave an unfamiliar creature. Being the sudden center of attention felt strange, but if the march and scouting went smoothly because of it, that was fine by me.
Two more battles followed. Both were against low-threat monsters like goblins and hounds. With no losses at all, night fell upon the subjugation force as it continued its advance.
I worked with the seniors to set up camp. We pitched tents, claimed our spots, and began checking our gear.
“Oh. Rookie, mind checking mine too?”
“Hand it over, sir.”
“Kuk kuk. Thanks.”
“Can I ask you as well?”
One by one, the seniors from the Search Unit gathered around me. Checking equipment at camp had somehow become a fixed routine for the 2nd Search Unit.
“What? That kid knows how to maintain weapons too?”
“Can we ask you to do ours?”
Just as soldiers from other units began inching closer, the Search Unit seniors waved them off.
“Shoo, get lost! Our rookie’s busy!”
“Don’t even think about abusing him, you lot!”
“Isn’t what you’re doing abuse already?”
The soldiers looked incredulous.
“Hey now. We treat our rookie well. Without him, we wouldn’t even be able to go on missions anymore!”
It was a ridiculous sight, like swatting flies to protect the evening side dishes.
“So he knows how to maintain weapons.”
Silence fell. The seniors flinched, their shoulders twitching. Standing there was someone none of them had expected—Baren Polgram, the squad leader of the 2nd Subjugation Unit they had returned with from the previous mission.
“…G-Good evening, sir!”
The words burst from one senior’s mouth. His stiff salute betrayed his bewilderment. The other seniors reacted similarly. Their expressions all seemed to ask, “Why is this man here?”
“I’d like a word with that soldier. Would you step aside?”
“……”
The seniors hesitated, exchanging glances. They tried to gauge Baren’s intent. Though he wasn’t their direct superior, he held the same rank as Garan, so refusal wasn’t an option.
“…Understood.”
The campsite fell silent in an instant. Once the boisterous seniors carefully withdrew, only the crackle of burning firewood filled the quiet.
“I’ll keep it brief. Join my subjugation unit.”
“…Pardon?”
It was an abrupt offer. I couldn’t help but ask again, unable to fully grasp it.
“Your talent is wasted rotting away in a mere search unit. So come to my subjugation unit.”
“……?”
I hadn’t misheard. I never expected to receive such a sudden recruitment offer here, at this moment. I couldn’t answer. Honestly, it wasn’t a welcome proposition. My first impression of Baren hadn’t been good to begin with. He was the man who, despite losing nearly ten soldiers in the orc engagement, had tried to push a reckless operation to cover up his failure. After returning, the rumors I’d heard about him were far from favorable. The most recent news was that he’d been demoted from squad leader to ordinary soldier because of this operation’s failure.
“…I heard you were demoted, sir.”
“I’ll be promoted again soon enough.”
Though my question could have been seen as rude, Baren brushed it off without concern.
“I’ve only temporarily lost my position. Once this operation ends, I’ll earn merits again and take command of a squad. When that time comes, come under me.”
Baren didn’t wait for my reply. He spoke as though certain I would never refuse. Having said his piece, he turned and left.
“Whoa. That guy’s really pushy.”
Once the campsite quieted again, several seniors emerged and crept closer. Their expressions, tongues clicking, were uniformly displeased.
“Hah, I got nervous for nothing. I almost saluted without thinking just now, you know?”
One senior had nearly raised his hand, overwhelmed by the imposing aura Baren still carried despite his demotion. He then whipped around to face me.
“Rookie! You’re not actually thinking of switching squads, right?”
“No. I have no intention of transferring.”
Only after hearing my answer did the tense atmosphere seem to ease.
“Haha. Really?”
“We were listening from a distance and freaked out thinking you might actually agree!”
“I told you eavesdropping isn’t good… Sorry.”
Relief, exaggerated reactions, awkward head-scratching—various responses filled the air. I asked the seniors,
“I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“Why is that man so obsessed with achievements?”
Baren clung to his merits with an almost fanatical intensity. It was beyond comprehension.
“Because he wants to succeed.”
A familiar voice cut into our conversation. The seniors looked bewildered at the newcomers.
“Eh? Lee Sunho? And Vice Captain Serdin? What brings you here?”
“He was heading this way, so we followed.”
Lee Sunho scowled and glanced at Baren’s retreating figure in the distance. Calling him “that guy” instead of “squad leader” made his opinion clear. He then turned his gaze back to me.
“What did he say to you?”
“He told me to come under him once he takes command of a squad again.”
“Hah…”
Lee Sunho openly frowned. Serdin’s expression wasn’t much better either; it was the reaction I’d expected.
“He never changes.”
Disgust laced his words. I asked Lee Sunho,
“What does ‘wants to succeed’ mean exactly?”
“It means exactly what it sounds like. Success. More precisely, getting promoted and climbing higher. That’s all he thinks about.”
Serdin added to Lee Sunho’s explanation.
“He’s originally from Central Command. He got pushed out in some internal political struggle and was sent here, to the 9th Defense Division on the front lines. So he’s been waiting for a chance to rack up merits and return to Central Command.”
Central Command. The moment I heard those words, unpleasant memories surfaced.
“Central Command… It’s legendary among soldiers.”
One of the seniors muttered in a low voice.
“It’s the highest command organization created by the alliance of countless nations. It controls the war situation on every front, allocates budgets and troops, and formulates strategy. Being assigned there is practically the same as having both ability and honor recognized. Some even call Central Command the Golden Fortress. Once you’re in, wealth and power follow.”
That was why many became soldiers with the goal of entering Central Command from the start. The words felt utterly alien to me. To a low-ranking soldier like myself, to the slave soldier I had been in my previous life, it was nothing more than a fortress in the clouds. In that sense, Baren’s obsession made a little more sense.
“He wants to set foot in that Golden Fortress again. Because he’s already tasted it once. But now he’s stuck here, exiled to this remote defense division.”
If his goal was to enter Central Command and rise through the ranks, then his fanatical obsession with achievements was understandable. The problem was that the obsession went too far.
“That’s why he sees his subordinates as nothing more than tools to fill his own record. The last operation… was the same.”
Lee Sunho wore a bitter expression. He seemed to be recalling his squadmates who had died miserably in the previous mission, repeating the name as though chewing on it. Baren had loudly declared that the ten soldiers who died back then had met an honorable end. Their sacrifice had been noble, stepping forward so that he and the surviving soldiers could live.
“What a load of bullshit.”
What kind of faces would they have made if they’d heard Baren’s words? I would never know. The dead had no voices. Yet Lee Sunho clenched his fists tightly, as though he could never accept it.
Standing beside the furious Lee Sunho, Serdin spoke with a bitter look.
“And the reason he pushed so hard back then… was probably because of you all.”
“Pardon?”
As the seniors and I stared in confusion, he continued.
“That man has always been strangely conscious of Captain Garan.”
“Of our captain?”
“Ah, I’ve heard something like that before.”
One senior nodded in understanding.
“Squad Leader Baren… has an intense sense of rivalry toward Captain Garan.”
Even though there was no longer any need to call him squad leader, habit made the words slip out naturally. Serdin nodded in agreement.
“Captain Garan is highly respected. He’s originally from this side, not a noble, and has no particular thirst for power.”
“Yeah, our captain really does look out for the soldiers.”
“That’s exactly why that guy’s gone mad. The fact that he, who came from Central Command, is seen as inferior to Captain Garan in popularity, reputation, and ability.”
“…I see.”
It was called rivalry, but it was probably closer to an inferiority complex. Unable to satisfy his desire to be recognized for his merits and abilities, he could only watch as that recognition went to someone else. Perhaps that was why he had been so hostile back then. I recalled Baren’s reaction when I had rescued the 2nd Subjugation Unit’s soldiers—he had snapped at Garan.
Lee Sunho looked at me and said,
“The reason he’s after you probably isn’t just because you’re strong. He also wants to weaken Captain Garan, the rival he’s so conscious of, in any way he can.”
“That’s true… Right now, our search unit’s core strength is this guy. And if he transfers squads, his girlfriend the priestess will probably go with him. Two birds with one stone, isn’t it?”
Hearing the senior’s words, Serdin looked surprised.
“So the rumor about them being lovers was true?”
“…No, it isn’t.”
I let out a small sigh and denied the rumor for the umpteenth time.
“Anyway, I just wanted to tell you because it seemed like you were overthinking it.”
“…Thank you for the advice.”
Having said their piece, Lee Sunho and Serdin returned to their own tents.
“It wasn’t really advice or anything… but yeah. I wouldn’t recommend joining that guy’s squad.”
“We’ll be going now. Get some rest.”