Although Altair was always cracking unfunny jokes at me, forcing enthusiasm onto juniors, and basically embodying everything about a boomer attitude with his overbearing leadership...
‘No way.’
There was no way I’d let the Altair I’d grown fond of just die like that!
Fine, I’d once been the type to mutter, “I wish the male leads in this reincarnation romance would just obsess over me already...” Sure, those clichéd romance novel tropes had long since flown out the window, but...
This time, I was putting my faith back into the power of reincarnation romance novel logic.
“I’ll twist the original story as much as I can.”
...Wow, saying it out loud really makes it feel like I’m in a reincarnation novel. I’ve always wanted to say that line.
‘Anyway, I’m saving Altair, no matter what!’
***
Not long after, we were all gathered at the training field of the 16th Company, weighed down by heavy gear and our respective weapons.
It was my first time at another company’s grounds, but there wasn’t much difference. A mountain is a mountain, after all.
All the soldiers gathered here were part of the Cleodore Mountain Battalion.
In front of us, the battalion commander was giving a “short pep talk” about today’s march.
Of course, he called it a “short pep talk,” but judging by how Taro’s dark circles seemed to grow heavier with each passing minute, it was anything but short. By now, Taro’s face was completely shadowed with fatigue....
Naturally, I couldn’t let my urge to bolt from this training field show, so I kept my expression as blank as possible.
Finally, the battalion commander’s voice rang out, signaling our departure.
“16th Company! Move out!”
With his shout, the 16th Company started moving. Since our unit, the 18th Company, was at the rear, we would follow after the 17th.
‘The march has begun.’
Winter’s lines from the original novel resurfaced in my mind—another detail I’d pieced together after recovering my memory.
“Salvia managed to shoot and kill that monster, but just barely. By the time she succeeded, my comrade had already lost his life.”
“Oh, Salvia... You mean that Salvia?”
“...Yeah. You’ve heard the stories, then. She shot the monster, Skarper, and completely obliterated its head.”
That dialogue had given me a crucial piece of information: the name of the monster—Skarper.
‘I can’t lose track of that monster, Skarper.’
With that resolve, I stayed alert, my eyes wide open, determined not to miss a single thing happening around me. My focus stood out in stark contrast to the exhausted expressions of the other soldiers who clearly wished they could stop walking.
“Wow, good job, Salvia~. Love the enthusiasm!”
Altair’s cheerful laughter and a friendly slap on my back were slightly annoying, but I stayed focused. My goal was to remain sharp and survive this march where dropouts were known to pile up.
“Very dedicated,” Winter added, his cool voice cutting in.
I wanted to explain that I wasn’t some overly enthusiastic recruit who took training too seriously, but his tone made me seem like exactly that.
‘If someone didn’t know better, they’d think I was overreacting.’
Finally, it was our turn to follow the 17th Company, and our march began.
‘I’ll save Altair, no matter what.’
***
‘...Maybe I should focus on saving myself first.’
A little while later, I was completely drained.
Damn it... I want to desert right now.
Obviously, the gear was heavy, and on top of that, I wasn’t carrying a sword like most others but a gun, making my arms feel even more strained.
“Ugh, huff, huff...”
The steep uphill path forced harsh breaths out of me. And to make things worse, the path was littered with gravel. A rocky incline on an unpaved road—absolute hell.
‘...No, I’d better not complain. If I do, they might actually make us pave this road ourselves.’
That’s how the military operates, after all.
Sweat poured from every inch of my body. The excruciating pain in my feet from earlier had now dulled into numbness, while my shoulders ached and my legs felt like lead. Sweat kept dripping into my eyes, stinging them.
‘At least we don’t have to wear bulletproof helmets.’
But even so, the uncomfortable uniform was unbearable. Damn that overzealous original author for making everyone wear this garbage!
‘I’m going to die before Altair does at this rate...’
Meanwhile, the very person I’d been keeping an eye on—Altair—seemed completely unfazed. Unlike me, he looked energetic and fresh, as if this grueling march was a stroll in the park. It was almost ridiculous that I was worrying about him.
Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I glanced up at the sky. The moon had already risen.
‘I want to sleep...’
This march spanned 300 eds in total, but the absolute worst part was that it was a non-stop march—no sleeping, only brief rests here and there.
For context, an “ed” was the unit of measurement used in this world. While I couldn’t make a precise comparison, from my experience, it was practically equivalent to a kilometer. So a 300-ed march was nothing short of a nightmare.
My fellow recruit, Blue, had mentioned that 300 eds wasn’t even the worst of it. According to his seniors, they used to march 400 eds back in the day.
“Short break!”
The call came from a voice I couldn’t even identify anymore. The moment I heard it, my legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the ground.
“Salvia, are you okay?”
“I’m not sure...”
With my eyes closed, I replied to Ishina, hoping to snatch a moment of rest. But before I could even settle in—
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“Move out again! 16th Company, switch positions to the back of the 18th Company!”
The command to move came far too soon. It felt like mere seconds had passed. Blinking back tears of frustration, I forced myself to stand.
The soldiers of the 16th Company looked just as miserable as I felt, dragging themselves to the rear with lifeless expressions. The rotating position system was designed to prevent the rear units from falling behind and expending more energy.
“Not there, this way.”
Aquila gently nudged me to guide me to my spot.
“Thanks...”
The words came out slurred. My strength was completely spent. I was scraping the bottom of the barrel of my stamina, and there wasn’t even a drop left to squeeze out.
As the march resumed, fatigue morphed into drowsiness.
“Dragging your feet makes it harder,” Ishina advised.
“Yes...”
I mumbled a response, trudging along, even as my eyelids drooped dangerously.
“Salvia.”
“Huh?”
Aquila’s voice snapped me out of it, and I suddenly realized the scenery around me had changed.
...Weird. The landscape had shifted completely in an instant.
“Salvia.”
“Yeah.”
...And there it was again—another change in scenery.
‘What’s going on?’
It felt like I was teleporting. Yeah, teleporting would make sense in this world of fantasy novels, but why was I—
“Ah.”
Yet again, the surroundings had shifted. That’s when it hit me.
I’d been sleepwalking.
“...Ah.”
Another new view.
Forget saving Altair; I needed to figure out how to save myself first.
‘Where even am I now...?’
This was bad. No matter how I looked at it, I wasn’t in my right mind.
***
My mind was hazy. It wasn’t so much physical pain as it was the overwhelming sleepiness that numbed me entirely.
I marched like a machine, my consciousness flickering in and out as the world around me blurred and changed.
‘Altair...’
I knew I had to stay sharp and keep an eye on him. But this wasn’t a problem I could solve with sheer willpower.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes...”
I replied absentmindedly to a voice I didn’t recognize at first, only to later realize it had been Karon. By the time it registered, it was too late to ask, “Karon, are you doing okay?”
His voice had sounded strong, unlike mine. As expected of one of the original novel’s male leads. His physical abilities were on a completely different level.
It made sense. In the original, Karon was described as the strongest among the male leads.
‘How much energy does that guy even have?’
I started imagining how much physical activity it would take to tire him out—enough to stop pestering me for attention all the time. But then I realized that treating him like a non-human wasn’t the best mindset, so I dropped the thought.
“Damn it, I’m going to die...”
The curse slipped out before I could stop it. Strangely enough, the moment I swore, I felt slightly more awake.
“Feeling a bit better?”
Finally acknowledging my sorry state, I admitted it.
“Karon...”
“Yes?”
“I’m done for...”
“What are you talking about?!”
“I think I have to admit it now...”
Karon looked at me with a puzzled expression as I murmured in a tearful voice.
“Cursing makes the work less painful...”
“Ah, I see.”
“When the seniors from the 85th batch said that, I thought it was nonsense... but now I’m just like them...”
God, to think I had something in common with the infamous 85th batch, known for being utterly unhinged. I couldn’t believe it. I refused to believe it.
“Damn it, I’m going to die!”
Unfortunately, I felt even more awake after yelling that out. Damn it, so this was my truth, my reality.
“Ugh, when is this going to end?”
“Haha, I thought it was something serious, but it’s nothing to worry about,” Karon replied cheerfully, his voice brimming with positivity.
“Nothing to worry about...?”
I couldn’t believe he thought my descent into chaos was normal.
Lost in self-loathing and grumbling, I was jolted back to reality by a loud voice.
“Wow! It’s home!”
Everyone whipped their heads toward the source of the sound, startled. My drowsiness vanished instantly.
A soldier from another platoon was smiling joyously, staring into the distance beyond the forest. He looked ready to bolt toward whatever he saw.
“No, stop him! Grab him!”
“Don’t let him go!”
Several seniors jumped in to restrain him, pinning him down as he thrashed and shouted about “home.”
“...What the hell?”
When did this turn into a horror occult story?
Karon and I exchanged bewildered looks. Ahead of us, Taro turned his head slightly to explain.
“He’s hallucinating.”
“Hallucinating...?”
Caught off guard by Taro addressing me, I asked cautiously. He shrugged as if it was no big deal.
“When it gets too cold, when you’re too tired or dehydrated, it’s normal to start seeing and hearing things.”
“...Oh.”
Marching was more dangerous than I’d thought.
Why the hell was I stuck in this insane world, suffering like this?
“During the crown prince incident... I experienced hallucinations too...”
As I fumed inwardly at this world, Taro muttered and turned back forward. He spoke as if even forming words was too exhausting.
‘Poor guy...’
Ever since the crown prince ambush incident, Taro always looked utterly drained. No wonder. Just how much had that event broken him?
The crown prince was a cool-toned character, so wouldn’t a guillotine’s silver blade suit him perfectly? One day, I’d make sure he experienced the taste of revolution.