“Ah, I see...” Benny replied, her voice uncertain.
The idea that Sanchez was following her around for such a reason felt so sudden and surreal.
At that moment, the door to the laundry room creaked open, and Milphy walked in.
“Mr. Milphy,” Benny greeted him with a polite nod, and she quickly instructed Sanchez that showing respect to seniors was the first step to true strength. Sanchez, taking her words to heart, bowed deeply to Milphy, who looked utterly overwhelmed by the gesture.
After introducing the two of them, Benny facilitated a brief exchange to ensure they got along well.
From there, the conversation naturally shifted toward discussing other senior soldiers, all in an effort to help Sanchez acclimate better.
“Platoon leader Taro has been completely drained ever since that incident, so he’s perpetually tired these days,” Benny explained.
“Yeah, as long as you don’t bother him, he won’t bother you. He’s not really invested in the platoon anymore,” Milphy added.
Sanchez furrowed his brow in confusion, glancing between Benny and Milphy. “What incident are you talking about?”
Benny and Milphy exchanged awkward looks.
...Neither of them actually knew what that incident was, so they couldn’t provide an answer.
“Well, there’s just... an incident,” Benny said vaguely.
“Yeah, one of those incidents,” Milphy echoed, just as unhelpfully.
They continued introducing the other seniors, until the subject of Salvia came up.
“Miss Salvia is...” Benny began, her expression softening into a gentle smile. Just saying the name seemed to brighten her mood. However, before she could continue, Milphy interrupted.
“Miss Salvia is a bit... out of her mind.”
“...Well, I suppose she can be a little, um...” Benny trailed off, trying to correct herself. Then she snapped back to her original thought.
“Miss Salvia is an amazing person. She’s so kind.”
Milphy shot her a skeptical look as if questioning her sanity, but Benny paid him no mind.
“She’s the person I admire most. The reason I’ve been able to adapt to military life is all thanks to Miss Salvia.”
“But she’s still a bit crazy,” Milphy muttered.
“...Well, okay, that’s not entirely untrue.”
Despite her agreement, Benny’s admiration for Salvia was unwavering. She could go on for hours praising her.
‘Miss Salvia is a genius.’
It wasn’t just about Salvia’s shooting skills, though those were impressive. Benny’s respect for her went much deeper.
‘She’s so clever...’
It wasn’t just about intelligence or memorization or knowledge. Salvia had an exceptional ability to read the room, assess situations, and act accordingly. She could subtly influence those around her without them even realizing it.
Moreover, Salvia was kind. Benny recalled how Salvia had helped her overcome her struggles when she’d been struggling to adapt.
‘I wish I could be more like Miss Salvia.’
And so, Benny couldn’t help but idolize her.
“Miss Salvia is truly incredible...” Benny said dreamily, picturing her in her mind.
Milphy sighed dramatically, his expression one of utter exasperation.
“Ugh... Whether it’s the seniors, peers, or juniors... is there a single normal person in this platoon?”
But Benny ignored Milphy’s grumbling, lost in her own thoughts.
‘Oh no, I almost forgot something so important!’
Her eyes widened as she turned to Sanchez and declared, “And no matter how beautiful Miss Salvia is, you can’t even think about her! She’s definitely going to marry Mr. Aquila, so don’t even try!”
This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.
“...What?” Sanchez blinked, visibly thrown off by her sudden proclamation.
“What are you talking about, Benny?” Milphy chimed in, looking genuinely concerned for her mental state.
But Benny, unfazed, stood firm. “That’s my biggest joy in life right now! When they get married, I’m going to play the piano accompaniment at their wedding!”
“...Uh... okay?”
“Just look at them! You can tell just by looking at their faces that they’re meant to be together! I really hope they tell me first when they decide to get married...”
And so, whether intentionally or not, Benny left Sanchez with a very strong impression of Salvia.
***
"Sanchez."
While working on the repair project together, I called Sanchez, who was digging furiously beside me.
Thankfully, there were no other platoon members around. It was the perfect moment to sneak in a question about the black magic artifacts.
Of course, jumping straight to asking about the artifact would be too obvious, so I decided to ease into it by casually bringing up black magic first.
"Sanchez, since you were a mercenary, do you know any black magicians?"
At my question, Sanchez, who had been shoveling like a mad bulldozer, paused and looked up.
"Black magicians, ma'am?"
His tone was as blunt as ever.
"Yes, I’ve known a few."
"How did you get along with black magicians? I heard a lot of young Arkons die because of them," I said, remembering something Winter had mentioned before. The thought had stuck with me ever since.
"That's true, but the black magician I knew didn’t exploit Arkons. Of course, I’ve also encountered black magicians who did," Sanchez replied, his expression serious.
"There was one who used Arkons so ruthlessly that they couldn’t even remember who they were anymore. So I... uh... dealt with him."
"Ah, I see...."
As expected, Sanchez’s strength was terrifying.
It felt like the right time to move on to the main topic.
"Sanchez, what kinds of artifacts did you bring with you?"
"Artifacts, ma'am?"
"Yeah. Items that grant special powers or abilities," I clarified.
At that, Sanchez seemed to be recalling the items he had once possessed.
"I had a fan that could change the weather, candy that sharpened memory, a cursed doll that could stop someone’s heart, a rabbit doll that lets you control your dreams...."
‘Candy that sharpens memory!’
That immediately caught my attention. It sounded incredibly useful.
...But the rest? Honestly, I was a little shaken.
"I see... So you brought a rabbit doll with you in your bag, huh, Sanchez...."
"Yes."
"......."
Even so, everything he mentioned sounded valuable. It was a shame those items had been confiscated by the company commander. Not that I needed all of them—I just wanted the candy to sharpen my memory.
"How do you use artifacts like those?" I asked.
"All black magic requires a price," Sanchez said, his rough face now serious, adding a layer of intensity to his explanation.
"The most important principle of black magic is this: power always comes at a cost."
"Okay, but how do you actually use them?"
"For example, the fan that changes the weather requires ten human fingernails."
"...What the hell...."
And just like that, my interest in the memory-enhancing candy evaporated. No matter how useful it seemed, if something came with a warning label like "don't even think about it," there was always a good reason.
"So... ten fingernails, huh."
I had no intention of paying such a price to recall my life back on Earth. My memories of the original story weren’t that crucial anyway. Honestly, if I clearly remembered Dalin enjoying her carefree, pampered existence while everyone was obsessed with her, it’d only make me more annoyed.
For now, I’d settle for the satisfaction of simply remembering my original name.
‘Who would’ve thought my curiosity about black magic artifacts would end like this? So anticlimactic.’
Life really is unpredictable.
After awkwardly nodding along to Sanchez’s explanation, I prepared to resume digging. But this time, Sanchez surprised me with a question.
"By the way, are you close with the 85th batch?"
"...Huh?"
The 85th batch of morally bankrupt lunatics? I had no connection to them. Why would he bring them up?
"Your tone sounds similar to theirs."
"...Do you want to die, you bastard?"
"Especially just now. That phrase sounded very much like something they’d say."
...Was this guy trying to piss me off on purpose?
No way—I refuse to believe I’m as twisted as the 85th batch. Absolutely not!