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.CHAPTER 08.
At Elliot’s words, he slowly closed his eyes and replied in a quiet voice.
“Yeah. Not everyone can survive anyway. Only the strong make it out alive.”
Earlier, he had said that he didn’t want to lose a single subordinate, but they all knew the truth.
If you’re weak, you die.
Every month, at least one member of the unit was killed. Facing a Class-1 monster, it was impossible to expect every recruit to come through unscathed. In the worst-case scenario, the entire company could be wiped out.
April casually turned her head to check whether the recruits were still following behind.
They all looked rather dazed, but thanks to the harsh physical training they’d endured, none of them appeared exhausted despite having marched for a long time.
Among them, however, one recruit stood out more than anyone else.
A fire-attribute aura user. Aquila will probably survive. But…
Pretending not to stare, April swept her gaze over the other recruits.
The rest don’t have much hope.
…Though that one is harder to judge.
Her eyes settled on Salvia.
Salvia looked tired, but she stubbornly kept up the pace, refusing to fall behind.
She was the most eye-catching female recruit in this batch.
There weren’t many women in the Border Defense Force to begin with, but Salvia was exceptionally beautiful.
Coral-colored hair.
Golden eyes.
Delicate, lovely features.
True to her name, she looked like a single flower in bloom.
That girl’s got guts.
April had worried because Salvia looked so fragile, but despite that appearance, she had never fallen behind during training.
In the Border Defense Force, the “strong” weren’t necessarily the most talented.
The ones who survived were the crazy ones.
Even if their abilities were lacking, the truly relentless always found some way to stay alive.
Please… don’t die.
Keeping the same stern expression as always, April glared toward the rear and shouted,
“Hey, Salvia! You look like you’re struggling!”
“S-Sorry!”
Salvia’s eyes widened in surprise before she hurriedly straightened her expression.
Watching that, April smiled with satisfaction before facing forward again.
Yeah… You only survive if you’re ruthless.
At that very moment, Salvia had only one thought.
That crazy bitch is at it again.
By the time we had ventured deep into the mountains, we still hadn’t found a single trace of any monsters.
After walking for so long, my clothes were soaked with sweat. My feet, which had only been sore at first, had swollen so badly that my boots felt painfully tight.
Along the way, we met part of Beta Platoon and continued together, but there was almost no interaction between us.
The veteran corporals greeted friends they knew from other platoons, but the recruits had no such connections. Their joining us didn’t really change anything.
If there was one difference, it was that overall command had shifted from Alpha Platoon’s platoon leader to the captain of the 18th Company.
Meanwhile, the sky had grown even darker.
The dense canopy blocked most of the light. Once the sun set, we wouldn’t be able to see anything, so we had to hurry.
“We’re camping here for the night. Prepare to set up camp.”
“Yes, sir!”
The company commander gave the order, and the platoon leaders of Alpha and Beta immediately began issuing instructions.
The captain looked considerably older than us. Like the rest of us, he appeared to be a demi-human, and despite the chaotic situation, he remained remarkably calm.
“Louise, you’re in charge of organizing the night watch.”
The senior soldiers continued discussing their assignments.
A moment later, Leon walked over and ordered us to pitch the tents.
“Ishina, teach the recruits how to do it.”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
Ishina beckoned us over shyly.
“Watch carefully, everyone. You secure it like this.”
Following her instructions, Linia and I anchored the opposite side of the tent into the ground.
Late at night.
Deep in the mountains.
With swollen feet.
Suddenly, I felt overwhelmingly miserable about my life.
“What did I do to deserve this life…?”
“I know exactly what you mean.”
Linia nodded while silently tightening a knot.
“In my next life… I just hope I’m not born as a demi-human.”
As she spoke, she absentmindedly touched the long scar running across her eye.
I glanced at her without thinking before quickly looking away, pretending I hadn’t noticed.
“Curious?”
“Huh?”
“You’re wondering how I got this scar.”
“Oh… No. If it’s something you’re uncomfortable talking about, you don’t have to tell me.”
It was obvious there had to be a painful story behind it.
I didn’t want to reopen someone else’s wounds for no reason.
Linia remained silent for a moment before speaking softly.
“I’ll tell you… if we make it back alive.”
“No! Wait!”
A powerful sense of doom hit me.
This world is literally a novel!
She just raised a death flag!
“H-Hey! Take that back! Right now!”
“Take back what?”
“That was a death flag! Don’t say things like, ‘I’ll tell you when we get back alive!’ Just say you’ll never tell me!”
“What’s a death flag?”
“Just say it! Say you won’t tell me even if we survive!”
“Uh… O-Okay. I’ll never tell you how I injured my eye. Ever.”
“There. Much better.”
I nodded with satisfaction.
Whew… Linia almost planted her own death flag.
That night, I was inside a cramped tent with April and Yuri.
The mountain air after dark was freezing, but since we were packed tightly together inside the tiny tent, we could at least feel each other’s body heat.
I couldn’t decide whether the tent being so cramped was a blessing or a curse.
“Salvia. You were briefed about night watch, right? If someone wakes you up, get up immediately.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And you’ve memorized all the emergency procedures for nighttime incidents?”
“Yes. I memorized everything.”
Only after confirming several more things did April finally close her eyes.
How am I supposed to sleep like this?
The tent was cramped.
It was cold.
Worst of all, we had to sleep wearing our boots so we could respond immediately to emergencies.
My sword also lay beside my head, ready at a moment’s notice.
Certain I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep, I shifted around, trying to find a comfortable position.
“…Hey. Are you insane?”
“Sorry…”
Yuri’s icy voice from right beside me immediately forced me to lie perfectly still again.
In the end, I simply shut my eyes and tried to sleep.
But it felt impossible.
Seriously… who could sleep in a place like this…?
As I lay there silently complaining—
“Hey, rookie! Wake up! Hurry!”
“Y-Yuri?”
Yuri’s pitch-black eyes were wide open, almost like those of a demon, as she violently shook me.
…Huh? When did I even fall asleep?
Honestly, I used to sleep more comfortably slumped over a school desk.
The fact that I’d managed to doze off so quickly in this freezing, cramped tent only proved how utterly exhausted I was.
Well… I guess I did manage to sleep.
Still half-asleep and blinking blankly, I slowly sat up.
Yuri grabbed my shoulders and shouted impatiently.
“Emergency! A dragon! A dragon’s appeared!”
“…I-I beg your pardon?”
A dragon?
Why was there suddenly a dragon here?
My sleep vanished instantly.
Hadn’t the scale of this story suddenly skyrocketed?
Before I could even understand what was happening, I snatched up my sword and sprinted out of the tent after Yuri.
“…Ah!”
The instant I stepped outside and saw it, I instinctively staggered backward.
An enormous, hideous dragon covered in ocher-colored scales.
It roared deafeningly as it rampaged.
The soldiers surrounded it from every direction, slashing at it with swords enveloped in aura, all struggling together against a single dragon.
Anyone could see they were hopelessly outmatched.
Yet not one of them retreated.
“Don’t fall back! No matter what happens, we cannot let that dragon reach the village!”
I heard the company commander shouting.
Frozen in shock, unable to move, I suddenly felt Plato grab me by the arm.
“Get a grip, Salvia! Dragons breathe fire! If you lose focus for even a second, you’re dead! Get into position! Why aren’t you in your position?!”
His shout finally snapped me back to reality.
I hurriedly searched for my assigned place.
Second squad… Number Five…
But the only thing I could remember was the number I’d drilled into my head.
I couldn’t remember who was supposed to be standing beside me.
“Wake up! Your position is right here!”
Plato barked and shoved me to his right.
Only then did I remember.
Plato stood on my left.
Karl stood on my right.
Karl’s entire body was trembling.
“We’re waiting behind First Squad! Keep your eyes on the battlefield!”
Elliot, the command officer assigned to Second Squad, shouted.
“Haa…”
Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to focus on everything unfolding before me.
Behind the dragon and on its right, Beta Platoon was engaged in battle.
Alpha Platoon fought from the front and left.
Within Alpha Platoon, First Squad charged directly at the dragon.
Our Second Squad remained lined up behind them, waiting for orders.
C-Can I really do this?
Seeing a real dragon made my entire body shake.
It was nothing like the dragons from fairy tales.
Its grotesque, terrifying appearance crushed the will to fight.
Even the veteran soldiers battling it seemed unable to accomplish much.
Every time the dragon took a single step forward, the soldiers clinging to its body were thrown off effortlessly.
Even so, they gritted their teeth, rushed back in, and continued swinging their swords.
I still stood there, frozen, unable to fully process what was happening.
Then—
“Hey! You! On your right!!”
Plato shouted in a voice more desperate than any I’d ever heard.
Confused, I turned to look.
“…Ah.”
Only then did I see the aftermath of the dragon’s slaughter.
Karl…
was lying there dead.
