"The troops that weren’t captured that day must have used black magic for something sinister."
I spoke with the childlike voice I wanted to hear, but countless questions still remained.
"The Second Prince is already dead—he doesn’t even exist. So how is he supposed to seize power? I’ll never understand how the minds of those in high places work."
If I had reincarnated as a noble lady of the imperial court, I probably would have a solid grasp of this country’s political landscape.
But while others played politics in the palace, the best I could do was play politics in the military. XX.
Ishina, deep in thought, lowered his gaze before speaking slowly.
"This must be their final desperate struggle... But who knows what kind of effect black magic will have when it’s activated at the cost of dozens of lives."
Still, we didn’t have time to sit here and ponder. Right now, we had to follow our superiors' orders and move.
"Let’s talk later."
"Alright, Salvia. As soon as we’re discharged, we’re getting married."
Even in this situation, Aquila was still determined to make sure I wouldn’t forget his proposal. Naturally, Ishina and Karon weren’t about to let the opportunity slip either.
"Salvia, I’ll be waiting if I get discharged first."
"Salvia, you mustn’t abandon me!"
...Yeah. It definitely felt like everyone was getting obsessed with me.
In moments like these, it was best to act like a naive, clueless protagonist. After all, those with sharp instincts often pretended to be oblivious.
"Ahaha, yeah, sure~"
I put on a clueless heroine act with an empty laugh and quickly rejoined my unit.
My juniors were just as flustered as I was by the sudden turn of events. They were equipping their gear as ordered, but it was clear they had no idea what to do next.
"Commanding officers, gather!"
"Yes, sir!"
Right on cue, the battalion commander of the Snowy Mountain Battalion called us over, and I rushed to join the other officers.
Once we were assembled, the battalion commander addressed us with a solemn expression.
"I’m sure you’ve already heard the gist of it. The Second Prince’s army is currently marching toward the capital. We happen to be positioned along their route, so it’s our job to block them."
As he said, we were stationed at a training ground just outside the border. If the enemy forces were passing through this area, it made sense that we’d be mobilized for an emergency mission.
Then the commander confirmed something I had already suspected.
"The Second Prince’s army has joined forces with black mages."
Everyone except me widened their eyes in shock. Meanwhile, I sank into thought.
‘What’s the best course of action in this situation?’
For a brief moment, I considered whether it would be possible to ally with the Second Prince’s army for the sake of revolution.
...But no, that wasn’t an option. The Second Prince’s faction had been oppressing the Arkons for years. They were just another enemy.
All this meant was that we now had two opposing factions to deal with instead of one.
If we played our cards right, we might be able to exploit the conflict between them for our own benefit, but for now, I had no concrete plan.
Well, in the end, I was just a soldier in the Border Defense Army. All I could do was follow orders from above.
"The Second Prince’s forces will use black magic for something. Do not let your guard down."
Tension spread among the gathered officers.
We had already participated in a suppression mission against the Second Prince’s army before, but our primary duty had always been fighting monsters. Lately, we had been assigned to more conflicts against people, but it was still unfamiliar territory.
"Since black magic is involved, we need to be especially vigilant. However, our soldiers are strong. If we follow orders and work together, we can get through this without casualties. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!"
Of course, no one was actually confident about that. But no one was stupid enough to say, "No, sir."
***
After that, we began our march.
As we moved in formation, civilians in the nearby villages noticed the commotion. They peeked out with wide eyes before hurriedly shutting their doors and windows.
"This is so damn annoying."
Walking at the front of our squad, I clenched my teeth and grumbled.
"Ugh, XX. I just want to hurry up and get married. I just want to live a romance! But this world won’t let me! Clearly, the problem is that this world doesn’t understand the beauty of love!"
"Salvia, do you truly intend to get married?"
Luna, marching behind me, asked in a surprised tone.
"Yeah, how many times do I have to say it?"
"Well... I suppose you and Aquila really do suit each other. You make a wonderful pair..."
Luna muttered in an odd voice before her eyes suddenly sparkled with curiosity.
"Then, Salvia, when exactly did you fall in love with him?"
"Huh?"
I paused at Luna’s question and thought back.
When did I start loving Aquila?
Was it from the first time we met? When he caught me at the waterfall? When he started looking out for me?
No matter how hard I tried to pinpoint the moment...
"I don’t know."
"Ah, so it’s one of those naturally growing loves! Is that it?"
"...I guess?"
I had no clear answer. But one thing was certain—I did love Aquila.
There were plenty of reasons.
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He had saved me countless times, always looked out for me, taken burdens on my behalf, spent the most time with me...
Most importantly, he understood me better than anyone.
I considered myself a rather fickle person, but Aquila knew my temperament even better than I did.
And after losing so many comrades, I often felt unsettled and confused. He likely felt the same. He was the only one who could share those emotions with me and ease my anxieties.
I never had a single defining moment where I fell in love with him. Rather, there were too many moments to count. That’s why I couldn’t pinpoint a starting point.
I had too many reasons to love him. So I simply had no choice but to love him.
***
We set up an ambush along [N O V E L I G H T] the route where the Second Prince’s army was expected to pass.
Everyone concealed themselves among the trees and underbrush, but to be honest, I didn’t think it was a very effective ambush. Our navy-blue uniforms stood out too much.
All I could do was hope that the enemy would be moving too quickly to notice us.
Holding my rifle at the ready, I felt a familiar tension settle in my body.
This mission would be different. This time, I would have to use this gun to kill another human. And since they were armed too, it meant that people on our side would also die or be injured.
I wanted to flee from this battlefield we had been forced into. But even now, the golden mark on my wrist glowed ever so subtly, reminding me of its presence.
As long as this mark remained, desertion was impossible.
"This is a little scary..."
Luna whispered beside me. I nodded slowly.
And then—
"They're coming."
A deep tremor ran through the ground.
...Before, whenever Winter said things like that, I’d think, Wow, as expected of Winter. But now, even I could feel it.
The Border Defense Army truly was a hell of a place.
Judging by the vibrations, a significant number of soldiers were approaching. Since the Snowy Mountain Battalion was the strongest, we were stationed at the very front—meaning we would be the first to engage them.
I saw them now. Soldiers marching in formation.
There weren’t too many of them, but we couldn’t forget—these were soldiers who had the aid of black mages.
"Now—"
The battalion commander had just begun to issue his order when—
Our eyes met with theirs.
In that instant, we knew.
We had been spotted.
"Fire!"
The battalion commander shouted.
We all raised our rifles, fingers tightening on the triggers—
Boom!
One of the enemy soldiers hurled something in our direction.
A deafening explosion roared, and thick smoke engulfed us.
"Aaagh!"
Startled cries echoed around me, but no one was actually screaming in pain.
Despite the loud noise, the explosion itself hadn’t caused any harm.
"It’s a smoke grenade!"
So that was their plan—to throw a smokescreen and slip away!
"Move! Chase them!"
The commander gave the order just as the smoke began to clear.
And then—
"...Huh?"
The scenery in front of us had changed.
The grassy forest we had been hiding in was gone. Instead, we were standing in the middle of a barren, rocky mountain.
"Where... are we?"
The Second Prince’s army had vanished without a trace. The only ones left were us—soldiers of the Border Defense Army—staring at each other in stunned confusion.
But after spending this much time in the army, it wasn’t hard to figure out what had happened.
"Black magic..."
The grenade they threw must have been infused with dark sorcery.
We had either been transported to an unfamiliar location—or worse, trapped in an illusionary space.
A sense of unease spread as our scattered troops regrouped.
I scanned the area, searching for any familiar faces.
"Huh? Where are we?"
"Beats me. Where are we?"
"Whoa! Should we climb that mountain over there?"
"Hmm, what about that one?"
"For the love of god, please shut up...."
Amidst the overly cheerful voices of Patty and Matty, I spotted Jason, furiously pulling at his own hair.
It seemed that some of the soldiers trapped here with us were from the Cledore Mountain Battalion.
"What the hell just happened?"
"It’s black magic. No doubt about it."
Since the officers were gathered near me, I could hear their hushed conversation clearly. Their faces were grim as they rubbed their temples in frustration.
"I was once part of the Special Forces for Black Magic Investigations. I recognize this—it’s a type of black magic that creates a pocket dimension."
One of the officers spoke with certainty.
"A pocket dimension? So this isn’t a real place?"
"Exactly. However, creating a space like this requires a sacrificial ritual. The process is so complex that it’s rarely used."
"Then... the corpses and magic circles we found near the Second Prince’s base recently..."
"Ah, that explains it!"
Hearing their discussion, I recalled what Aquila had mentioned earlier.
They had discovered signs of a large-scale sacrifice—dozens of people killed.
So this was the result of that ritual?
...But seriously, why is this army incapable of proper preparation?
Why did they only ever react after the disaster had already struck? Couldn’t they have predicted this and come up with countermeasures beforehand?
While I was silently fuming over the Border Defense Army’s incompetence, the officers continued their debate.
"I don’t know much more than that, but I do remember that these spaces have a major flaw."
"A flaw?"
"Yes. If creating a pocket dimension was as easy as sacrificing a few dozen people, black mages would have used them all the time—to store supplies or escape from danger. But they don’t. That means there’s a huge drawback to using this spell."
"That makes sense...."
It was true. Any black mage worth their salt wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice dozens of lives if it meant gaining such a powerful tool.
So there had to be a reason why they didn’t use it more often.
Either this place harbored some hidden danger, or...
Once you were trapped inside, there was no way out.
In other words—
We had just been caught in a lethal black magic trap.