Duty Night Confessions
“Alright, let's hear it.”
“Aw, come on, platoon leader. Romance talk is kinda embarrassing.”
“You told everything to Gary, but not me? While you were on leave, I handled the latrine construction, anti-guerrilla training, and the disciplinary hearings...”
“I'll spill!”
Hah, gotcha. If I'd pushed harder, he would've caved and offered to buy me a round too. Damn periods make me relentless.
“So... there's this childhood friend back home...”
“Hey, Gary. Got any snacks while we listen?”
“Aw, where am I gonna find that?”
“Kidding.”
“...”
Iwan clammed up, so I snapped my fingers. He picked up right where he left off.
“Anyway, we've known each other forever, and right at the end of my leave, I ran into her on the street by chance. But after so long apart... something felt different from how I remembered her.”
Or maybe you're just marinated in army life now?
“Fell for her hard, just like that... So I asked her out for a meal and started thinking about a good gift.”
This guy's got some guts. Bumped into her by chance and locked in a date right away? Then again, he bolted on leave the second he heard I was coming, so maybe he's got that decisive streak.
Iwan kept rambling. Couldn't swing anything pricey on short notice, but he wanted something to show his heart, so he bought a bouquet and handed it over.
“And I confessed right then too...”
“And?”
“She said it was too sudden and asked for time to think.”
...That's it?
If anyone had seen my face right then, they'd say all expression had drained away. Iwan caught the disappointment in my eyes and hung his head.
“What could I do? A spark just ignited outta nowhere.”
“Didn't say a word.”
“Your face said it all.”
“Didn't.say.a.word.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
Iwan sighed heavily and turned the tables on Gary.
“Your turn, Gary. Spill your love story.”
“Huh? I already told you when I first enlisted.”
“Platoon leader hasn't heard it.”
“True, but all of a sudden...!”
Cornered by Iwan's prodding, Gary caved. He'd fallen for the youngest daughter at the local grocer and popped in daily to buy snacks. But he never mustered the courage to confess and enlisted instead, cutting off all contact.
“On my first leave after enlisting, the shop had new owners... Never saw her again.”
“Why enlist without confessing?”
“Guess I was scared back then. Ran away from it. And missed my shot.”
“I see. Something good'll come along someday.”
“Thank you, ma'am.”
After consoling Gary, Iwan pointed at me.
“What about you, platoon leader? Got any romance tales?”
“You wanna hear mine?”
“If you're sharing.”
“Nothing to tell. Never dated.”
They exchanged glances, then looked back at me.
“Ah, arranged marriage or something?”
“Nah, no engagements or political matches. My status just scares guys off.”
“Hmm...”
They nodded like it made perfect sense. Sure, we're chatting casually now as fellow duty officers and squadmates, but step outside the army, and it's princess versus commoners—a chasm. Even nobles tiptoe around imperial family; commoners must be terrified.
Iwan seemed to realize he'd boldly pried into a princess's love life.
“...Just curious, that's all.”
“Who said otherwise?”
Gary pinned it down quick. “Apprentice Knight Iwan, 1st Squad Leader of 3rd Platoon, 3rd Company, 1st Battalion, Silver Eagle Corps, asked the question. Upper Private Gary, Deputy 1st Squad Leader of same, had zero involvement—please note that...”
“Not pinning blame anyway.”
They both sighed in relief. Meanwhile, Iwan shot Gary a betrayed glare. Gary pretended not to notice—of course.
Evening personal maintenance flew by. Being in the mountains, sunset hit early, making it feel even quicker. Personnel wandering the base headed back to barracks. Admin clerks, buried in paperwork, cheered as they filed out.
In Korean army, it'd be evening roll call now. But no evening roll call here—all volunteers. Even modern volunteer nations skip it often. Korea's conscript system gets flak for human rights violations over it anyway.
Of course, duty personnel muster still happens. Night watch and sentry shifts gathered in front of admin.
“Anyone sick?”
“No, ma'am!”
“First time on duty for me, so might pop by posts for fun—or not. Stay sharp?”
“Yes, ma'am!”
“Dismissed.”
After sending them off, just us three duty folks left in admin. Now the all-nighter begins... but boredom hit already. Burned through chit-chat too fast during maintenance. Not close enough for deep talks, so topics dried up.
“Anything fun?”
“Duty commander'll visit, per tradition.”
“How's that fun...”
I scolded Iwan's nonsense and thunked my head on the desk. Something to do would've helped. No computers, no phones—just endless zoning out.
......
Quiet.
No clue how much time passed. Felt like we were just breathing. Glanced over—Iwan, that punk, already nodding off.
You mentioned the duty commander first!
Annoyed, I zapped a bit of mana at his head. His hair sparked; eyes flew open. He looked around, met my gaze, and cleared his throat awkwardly.
Gary stared blankly at the mana clock's glow. Each tick thirty minutes? About an hour gone?
Then the light shifted one notch.
“I'll wake the watch.”
Hour and a half in, Gary stood. One duty task: rouse sleeping night shift.
Barracks have night watchmen, central clock tower too—but dark nights hide clocks, so duty officer times the rounds.
Gary soon returned with two soldiers in full combat gear.
“Upper Private Lendo, 1st Squad—here on admin business.”
“Private Second-Class Neon, 1st Squad—here on admin business!”
Hm, second-class private. And that dopey look...
“Alright, Neon. Ever pulled outpost duty?”
“F-First time!”
“Don't yell and wake folks.”
“Sorry...”
I checked their gear. Helmets good, bows ready. Arrows stocked at the outpost anyway.
“Roger. Safe travels. Senior, watch your junior.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
They left; relieved shift returned soon after. Checked gear, no issues reported beyond scheduled 2nd Battalion night shooting. Sent them to bed.
Ah, back to the grind.
More time dragged. Iwan nodded off again. Tempted to crash like him. But company clerk specifically mentioned duty commander visit—no slacking.
Waiting endlessly sucks too. Brainstorming, I figured patrol beats sitting. Moving around's less dull.
Patrol's a duty officer task anyway—check sentries.
One outpost slot empty on wall duty. Same reason duty commander might visit me—I could visit them.
“Gary, thinking of patrolling the walls.”
“Ah, yes, ma'am?”
“Any gaps at wall outposts? Shortcuts for surprise duty checks?”
Gary chuckled, getting it instantly.
“There's a quick climb path.”
“Show me.”
“Official route's the stairs, but irregular bricks right under the outpost.”
“Climb those?”
“Yes.”
“But most troops know that, right?”
“Exactly—makes 'em complacent. Especially first-timer platoon leader fresh to base; no way she'd know and use it.”
“Nice. Thanks for the tip.”
Before leaving admin, reviewed passwords: Approach “inkfish bravery”; response “greatsword.” Okay, wall-climbing time.