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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Angel Dust]
[Proofreader - Prototype]
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Side Story 5
"Keuhk!"
These bastards.
What? They don't even scream when they die?
They shout ‘Long live the elves!’ and curse the Empire with their dying breath?
Tch!
"Bullshit."
How lightly do they take death? How little do they respect war?
Spouting such nonsense that actual veterans wouldn't even scoff at.
Why are those who remain stoic in the face of death so highly praised?
Because it's difficult. Even the strongest hearts can't easily do that.
Let alone these pests, who are not even trained soldiers, just disgruntled terrorists.
What do they know?
With a swift stroke of my greatsword, the struggling elf turned into a corpse.
I thought it would feel strange to see blood after so many years, but it's just... ordinary.
Not enjoyable, but not something that makes my hands tremble either.
"..."
I looked around.
Fierce hand-to-hand combat was raging everywhere.
In the past, it was us who were being pushed back, but now it's Luzernes.
The elves were screaming and thrashing around excessively.
In contrast, the reserve force moved like reapers, their faces expressionless.
My old comrades and I had already broken through the Great Forest.
Every time we did, they would spout nonsense about traitors guiding us or the Empire having prepared for war long ago.
It's absurd. It wasn't us who spat on peace, it was them.
They backstabbed the peaceful Hyzens and threw a punch at the Empire when it extended a hand.
It's like a madman resorting to violence, and the only solution is physical therapy.
"Sergeant, it seems we'll break through this area soon."
"What are the casualties?"
"A few seriously wounded, but mostly minor injuries."
The reason we were able to break through the Great Forest so quickly…
And the reason we were able to minimize casualties...
All of us, including myself, are veterans of the Southern Great Forest War.
We are seasoned soldiers who have spent at least a year on the battlefield and survived to the end.
Even though time has passed, we've become intimately familiar with the Great Forest and the elves.
“It seems they've forgotten how they were able to corner us in the past.”
I nodded involuntarily at the words of Sergeant Casey, who was next to me.
During the Southern Great Forest War, the quality of the Luzernes army was exceptional.
In terms of numbers, training, morale, and cause, they were in no way inferior to the Empire.
Based on that, we fought a series of fierce back-and-forth battles.
However, as time passed, their qualitative advantage gradually diminished.
While our Imperial Army also suffered heavy casualties, the proportion of seasoned soldiers increased.
Meanwhile, the Empire had a population tens of times larger.
'Some of the seasoned soldiers were sent to the rear to train new and reserved troops, weren't they?'
On the other hand, Luzernes was fighting for their survival and didn't have that luxury.
On top of that, the elves were divided into Luzernes and Hyzens, so they couldn't possibly make up for their already insufficient numbers.
By the end of the war, the Empire had a much higher proportion of seasoned soldiers.
More drastically, even if Luzernes survived, the Luzernes 'army' was effectively dead.
Almost all of those who fought in the war were dead and buried.
"Sergeant Casey is right. I can't believe they're the same Luzernes we fought a few years ago."
"Exactly. They're just a second-rate, no, third-rate group of ragtag soldiers."
"I heard they lost all the elite soldiers who fought us in the past, and it seems to be true."
Indeed. The current Luzernes are just a bunch of guys with misguided beliefs, only pretending to be soldiers.
They've never been in a proper fight, just drunk on their own arrogance, so the outcome is obvious.
"We'll stop here for today."
"Sir? We can still keep moving."
"We have some wounded, don't we?"
"They're just minor injuries. Some scratches and a bit of blood, that's all."
I shook my head.
"We've achieved our initial objective. To be the first to break through the Great Forest before the regular army, to demoralize Luzernes and secure victory in the preliminary battles."
"But..."
"Our task now is not to advance further, but to rendezvous with the Hyzens forces."
It's not that I'm not disappointed. I want to reap more of those damn elves' necks with my own hands.
I want to ask them if they're happy now that they've dragged me and my comrades back into this hell.
But considering my current position, it's right to find a different approach.
More than anything, I want to send these men back home safely.
Some have already lost their lives at the hands of the elves.
"Reaching this far with a thousand men is already a significant achievement. Going any further would stretch our supply lines too thin and could be dangerous."
"...Understood."
"So we'll change direction here. Let's leave the rest to our juniors."
I didn't break their arms or anything. Hmm, let's just say I poked an eye out.
That should be fatal enough. Go get 'em, juniors.
* * *
“….”
“….”
“….”
“….”
The Hyzens military command was not just tense, they were frozen stiff.
Were they afraid of the approaching enemy? They wished that was the case.
At least an enemy could be fought and repelled.
But the ones they were about to face was not something they could fight.
"Are you sure they broke through the Great Forest?"
"It's impossible. The Southern Imperial Army has just finished organizing and entered the front lines..."
"But according to the informants, it's true."
The Hyzens elves couldn't be ruthless towards their own kind, even if they were enemies.
But in return, Luzernes betrayed them, shouting about their pride and the glory of the elves.
And their former comrades, swayed by empty promises, joined them.
The reason they hadn't completely suppressed the remaining Luzernes wasn't solely out of kinship.
If they pushed too hard, those guys might do something desperate out of sheer spite.
Right now, the Empire was keeping quiet, considering the justification and domestic sentiment.
But if they got even a single piece of evidence, they could take over the South in an instant.
That's why they joined hands with the Empire, but tried not to give them that justification.
Ironically, thanks to those useless fools causing trouble, they gave the Imperial Army a reason to march south towards the Great Forest once again.
"It's difficult to maintain an 'equal' footing with the Empire anymore."
"We need to actively eliminate the Luzernes and wait for the Imperial Army."
"Remember, don't give the Empire any reason to turn Hyzens into an enemy."
"Cooperate unconditionally. If things go wrong, we could all die."
There are no eternal friends in international relations. National interest comes first.
If the Empire no longer sees the need for an independent elven nation, they will become enemies.
At the very least, they should not be given a reason for that to happen.
"Commander, the Imperial Army is nearby."
"Let's go greet them. You've set aside the supplies for them, right?"
"Yes, sir."
The good news was that the Empire and Hyzens were still allies.
They had fought together against a common enemy in the past, so they wouldn't see all elves as enemies.
The command, who went out to meet the first unit to break through the Great Forest,
"Sergeant Karl Adleheit of the 1st Southern Reserve Regiment of the Imperial Army."
They let out a gasp as they looked at the young man who stepped forward and extended his hand.
"The recipient of the Legion of Honor Medal."
"It's an honor bestowed upon me by Hyzens."
This wasn't the Imperial Army's main force, the regular legions.
These were men who had left the military, and even the battlefield, years ago.
I had heard that discharged soldiers in the Empire were eligible for the ‘Selected Reserve.’
But that was only for three months. After that, they became ordinary citizens.
They couldn't be forced to fulfill their national defense duty.
Yet, despite the years that had passed and their lack of obligation, they once again took up arms and stood on this battlefield. They fought and won.
"The regular legions of our Empire will soon cross the Great Forest and arrive here. You can discuss the joint operation with their commander then."
"Then, what about you...?"
"We've eased the burden on our juniors. You could say we're a kind of a guide. Or... yes, let's call it a Pathfinder."
The Hyzens command subtly glanced behind Karl.
Indeed, they were worthy of being called a vanguard.
Veterans who had fought countless battles in the last war and survived.
If they had cleared the path, the regular army following them would be able to advance at tremendous speed.
Soon, Luzernes would be buried in the ground as soon as they rose up.
'But there's one thing to worry about...'
The ones who shot, slashed, and stabbed their comrades were 'elves' like themselves.
Would the veterans of the old battlefield be able to look kindly upon those elves?
"Well, well, if it isn't you. Long time no see."
"You're still alive, human."
"I've told you a million times, it's Casey, not human."
Sergeant Casey, who was next to Karl, was talking with a Hyzens warrior.
They were patting each other on the shoulders and asking about each other's well-being, looking quite close.
He wasn't the only one. Those who recognized each other were already chatting with the Hyzens warriors.
There was no animosity or wariness. It was like greeting a relative they hadn't seen in a long time.
"We fought on the same battlefield."
Karl answered the commander's puzzled look with a smile.
The battlefield is a world where you're either an ally or an enemy, where alliances are forged and broken in the crucible of conflict.
But ironically, it's precisely because of this that sometimes, those who seem like they could never get along become closer than anyone else.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Angel Dust]
[Proofreader - Prototype]
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