Take Off Your Coat
I stepped down from the truck and awkwardly followed behind Sergeant Müller.
No matter how much I looked around, I couldn’t see any other trucks.
I was starting to seriously doubt whether this was really the new recruit processing center.
“You okay?”
“Yes.”
“If it’s because you don’t see the other kids, I’ll tell you why.”
“…Thank you for your kindness.”
“The Imperial Mana Examination Bureau and the Central New Recruit Processing Center is a place for bastards with talent in mana, just like you.”
I nodded.
“In other words, the other children didn’t have the aptitude, so they were sent elsewhere.”
“That’s right. The unlucky ones who happened to be males over fifteen with no aptitude but still got drafted anyway.”
Unlucky ones, huh….
I didn’t particularly regret it.
Because this was the life I had chosen for myself.
Becoming a noble’s concubine with no choice in the matter and living as a breeding sow wasn’t my taste at all.
It was disgusting. I hated it.
Even though I had lived fifteen years as a girl named Chloe Winterland, those twenty-plus years of my previous life couldn’t simply be erased.
Considering that a person’s identity is usually formed during childhood, mine had already been set as male.
The idea that it could change afterward was nonsense.
Ah, but still, the appearance of a beautiful young girl made it easy to earn sympathy. That was definitely an advantage.
“What are you thinking about so deeply?”
“…I was thinking the building is impressively large.”
“It’s a relief to see you still have some childlike innocence.”
“I will correct that.”
“No, it’s fine in front of me. I’m the conscription officer, so we’ll be seeing each other often.”
So I could trust and rely on him.
Was that what he was trying to say?
He was such a predictable adult.
‘And that’s exactly why I like it!’
At that moment, a voice rang out.
“Over here! Over here!”
There was quite a distance from the main gate to the building, yet someone was waving at us right in front of the entrance.
The moment Sergeant Müller saw the silhouette, he frowned.
“Tsk.”
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s a guy I hate.”
Badmouthing someone right in front of a private who had just enlisted? He must really despise the man.
The silhouette that had been visible from afar began running toward us and reached us in the blink of an eye.
I was honestly a little startled.
It was an absurd speed.
From the building entrance to the main gate was easily over fifty meters….
The man opened his mouth.
“What’s this? A new recruit next to you?”
“…Yes. That’s correct.”
“Sergeant Müller, we’re friends, aren’t we? Speak more casually.”
“No.”
“That hurts my feelings.”
Up close, his build was surprisingly small.
Narrow eyes and a cheerful expression. He wasn’t particularly tall either. About average height, I’d say.
No matter how you looked at him, he seemed more suited to being a noble than a soldier.
And of course, he was handsome this time too.
A good expression might come out of this.
As if noticing my gaze, the man’s eyes turned toward me.
“Nice to meet you. What’s your name?”
“Chloe Winterland. I am scheduled to enlist.”
“I see. I’m Julian Weiss. I may not look it, but I’m a lieutenant, at least for now.”
A lieutenant…?
I screamed internally.
Sergeant Müller stepped in front of me like a shield.
“Lieutenant Weiss.”
“…Yes.”
“It would be fine if I took this child with me, wouldn’t it?”
“Pardon?”
“As you know, a vacancy opened up in my platoon this time. So with the authority of the stars, I was supposed to receive a mage, but it’s been delayed quite a while, hasn’t it?”
…Platoon. Vacancy.
If I got caught by this man, I would be sent to the front lines. I instinctively knew it.
By the way… the authority of the stars?
Was this man one of the stars?
Sergeant Müller began responding skillfully.
It didn’t seem like this was the first time he had dealt with this kind of behavior.
“Lieutenant Weiss, I’m sorry, but this recruit has not yet completed registration. It would be best if you came back after the enlistment procedures are finished.”
“Hmm… Is that so?”
“Yes. That’s correct.”
Lieutenant Weiss looked at me with eyes full of regret before quickly leaving.
“Well! Can’t be helped!”
His tone was strangely cheerful.
The moment Lieutenant Weiss was a fair distance away, Sergeant Müller let out a deep, loud sigh.
“Haa…”
“What’s the matter?”
“Let me tell you in advance. No matter what, you must never go to Lieutenant Weiss’s platoon. Sacrifice some other kid instead.”
“Understood.”
It seemed Sergeant Müller valued me more than the other children.
I wasn’t sure why.
Maybe he was overlapping me with someone else.
That was usually how it went in war.
I liked that.
‘By the way, that lieutenant… is he the same type as me? There’s something off about him.’
[Static]
I faithfully followed Sergeant Müller’s advice and sent another child to Lieutenant Weiss’s platoon in my place.
I praised them, saying they were far more outstanding than I was.
Julian Weiss.
At the time a lieutenant, he was one of the eleven stars existing in the empire. His alias was Catastrophe.
What follows is information I learned later.
The child who went to Lieutenant Weiss’s platoon in my stead survived there for two days.
I still don’t know if that was the right decision.
Since I survived, from my perspective it was clearly the correct choice.
But sometimes I resent myself for making the right decision.
I… wanted to enjoy their suffering. I had no intention of killing them. I….
Ah, ugh….
I will resume the story.
As one might expect, at the time I felt no guilt or regret whatsoever about driving a girl to her death. That was the kind of human I was.
—
I asked Sergeant Müller a question.
“What will happen to me?”
“You’ll go as a sniper or scout.”
“…A sniper?”
“Branches are generally operated as infantry, artillery, cavalry, scouts, and medics.”
The moment I heard it, World War I came to mind.
Trench warfare?
‘No. Based on the books I read at the orphanage, if I try to guess the current era….’
An era without machine guns, airplanes, or tanks.
Or rather, an era where magic and mana had replaced them.
‘If I had to classify it, it would be the early stages of war.’
My insides felt complicated.
Sergeant Müller observed my reaction, then began speaking again in a slightly exaggerated, theatrical tone.
“However, the empire has two special branches.”
“What are they?”
I acted like the child he wanted.
Eyes sparkling with interest.
Lips slightly parted in anticipation.
When Sergeant Müller saw my expression, the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
“Snipers and assault troops.”
Sniper. Assault troops.
Familiar names.
A sense of unease washed over me.
If the empire was similar to that country from my reality….
With a hint of suspicion, I asked.
“Did we start this war?”
“What? They didn’t even teach you something that basic?”
“…No.”
“In this war, we are clearly the victims.”
The look in Sergeant Müller’s eyes as he said that… was filled with a desire for revenge.
He composed his expression again and began explaining my branch.
“Since you have an aptitude for D-class magic, you’ll go as either a scout or sniper. If I were to recommend one… a scout.”
“It would be dangerous, I suppose.”
“It would.”
“I think being a sniper is just as dangerous, though….”
“It’s your choice. After all, mages have value simply by possessing mana itself.”
In other words, there was little chance of being sent to the front lines unless something serious happened….
It was somewhat hopeful news.
“Make the choice yourself. This is as far as I go.”
“Understood. Thank you for guiding me.”
“The next eight weeks will be tough. It’s usually three months, but it seems they’ve shortened it recently.”
“Yes.”
“…Try to emphasize A-class magic if you can. You might be able to go into artillery.”
“Yes.”
I bowed my head in farewell to Sergeant Müller, then turned around and headed back toward the new recruit processing center.
I felt a little regretful.
.
.
.
The moment I opened the door to the new recruit processing center, the pungent smell of cresol disinfectant stung my nose.
It was the kind of difficult term you’d see in an AI translation or a foreign book, right?
It meant the disgusting stench created by the sweat odor of hundreds of humans mixed with the harsh smell of disinfectant desperately trying to cover it up.
The reason I knew the smell of cresol disinfectant was because of the company.
My boss at the company had asked me to chase away wild boars that kept digging up his parents’ cherished vegetable garden, and the repellent we used back then was cresol disinfectant.
Even now, I still couldn’t understand what kind of person would make such a request.
After finishing my brief reminiscence, I naturally joined the line.
Though I called it a line, the number of people wasn’t that large.
As Sergeant Müller had already told me, people with mana aptitude were rare.
My turn came in less than a few minutes.
“Next!”
A non-commissioned officer with a strangely irritable face called me.
‘Ah, I really dislike people like that.’
Memories of the physical examination I received at the military manpower administration came back, triggering my PTSD.
My documents were already placed on the non-commissioned officer’s desk.
‘…Huh?’
Something felt off.
I had only decided to enlist after receiving the aptitude test at the orphanage, so how were my documents already here…?
‘Sergeant Müller didn’t even enter the processing center.’
There might be something in the crystal orb that automatically investigates a person’s personal information.
Since there were only five types of magic in the world… it was probably star magic.
‘In that case, other countries might be struggling quite a bit with identity verification and control.’
With all sorts of thoughts running through my mind, I sneaked a glance at my documents.
Chloe Winterland
Age: 15
Height: 149 cm | Weight: 37 kg
A [ ■ ]
B [ ■ ]
C [ ■ ]
D [ ■■■ ]
E [ ■ ]
The non-commissioned officer threw out a remark.
“You’re eligible for specialized branches. Your physique falls short, so infantry is impossible. That leaves artillery, engineers, medics, signal corps, and so on.”
“…Sergeant Müller, who brought me here, recommended scout or sniper.”
“Hmm. The front lines, then.”
The non-commissioned officer who only seemed irritable appeared to be trying to show me consideration.
It was quite unexpected.
Should I apologize for judging him too hastily?
Nah, that would be too sudden.
This kind of expression and situation had a decent flavor to it too.
Ah, what kind of consideration?
All of those branches either had no chance of standing on the front lines or were safer than being a scout.
Though signal corps and engineers were a bit risky.
“If we’re going by aptitude, scout or sniper would be right. However, with this level of mana, artillery is also a decent choice.”
“…Is that so?”
“Artillery is definitely a branch with almost no chance of standing on the front lines. As long as you have enough mana to fire the cannons. If you can fire even a single shot, you’re artillery without question.”
He was a kind person.
With this appearance, it really was easy to win people’s favor.
“…Then take off your coat and wait.”
“…Pardon?”
Oh no.
This was the side effect.
