“We’ll actively support your desertion.”
“......”
No.
Even if you’re a squad leader, what kind of trash line is that?
“To be precise, it’d be a dispatch, not a desertion.”
“Ah, right. That’s true.”
“It wouldn’t be good if the other troops catch wind of it. Let’s keep it between us... and go. To another region.”
...I had been planning to desert.
But only as a plan I kept to myself so none of the unit would notice.
I hadn’t even revealed that hidden plan, yet here I was getting backing for it.
Honestly, it threw me a little.
No, wait.
“Minjae.”
“Mm?”
“Didn’t you say earlier that this was what you were going to do anyway?”
Earlier.
Minjae had definitely said he’d intended to do this from the start.
“Yeah. Truth is, I was going to propose it even before I heard your story.”
“Why...?”
Even before I laid out the intel I’d been keeping to myself—
Sergeant Lee Minjae had been set on sending me to another region.
“The reason’s simple. We met your vassal recently.”
“Ariella?”
I couldn’t help but widen my eyes.
‘Was it while I was unconscious?’
I glanced around.
Judging by the looks, it hadn’t been a pleasant experience.
Soldiers’ expressions pinched by degrees.
I could guess why easily enough.
‘Because Ariella is a monster who has, in fact, killed members of our unit.’
Thanks to the effects of my cuisine,
the camaraderie among our troops has been amplified to the extreme.
Because of that, our unit shows absurd cohesion in this world.
‘There’s no way they’d be mild about a monster who once killed unit members.’
On top of that—
Even Lee Minjae, who usually pursues what benefits us,
vehemently opposed it when I took Ariella as a vassal.
Because of that,
after I showed her to Minjae,
I almost never showed her to the other soldiers or even hinted she existed.
At most the squad leaders know she’s around.
Outside of them, practically no one knows I command a vampire as a subordinate.
‘I’ve been careful to keep her from running into the unit whenever possible...’
But this time, it looks like they crossed paths after all.
“Maybe because she’s been guarding you nearby, but she even tossed us pointers on how to deal with you.”
“This one did?”
At that, I widened my eyes and glared at the shadow.
‘You little...?’
—...M-My, Master!? That’s not—!
Ariella’s status is something like a slave-soldier.
The squad leaders are, for all intents and purposes, my comrades.
Setting aside raw might and influence,
their standing inside the unit is overwhelmingly higher.
‘And she had the gall to lecture the squad leaders, who are basically my comrades.’
Had she gotten cocky just because some time had passed?
I shot the shadow a look, then answered Minjae.
“Sorry. I’ll put that straight—”
“No. You don’t have to say a word. Every bit of it was on point.”
“...What?”
“Couldn’t even argue.”
Arms folded,
Minjae ducked his head like he was a bit ashamed.
“As that one said, we’re leaning too hard on your name.”
“Leaning...?”
“We loaded you with too much. And we kept doing it even knowing how much it put you through.”
Put me through?
‘...If anything, I probably handle less admin than most of the unit.’
You know how it is.
As guild leader, I basically dump the paperwork on Lieutenant Kim or Sergeant Lee Minjae.
“We can’t keep going like this. Especially since we’re putting so much on you, I figured we should at least let you do one thing you want.”
“Uh-huh...”
“So the conclusion was to help you desert.”
He cut off there,
then pulled something from inside his jacket.
“What’s this...?”
“Open it.”
In my hands,
a small notebook—standard military supply.
Pocket-sized.
I opened it as he said.
Something was written inside.
[ Gyeonggi Province ]
[ Private Jang Hongsu — Paldal Neighborhood, Suwon City ... ]
[ Family — XXX, XXX ]
[ Private Lee Jaeho — Baeksa Township, Icheon City ... ]
[ Family — XXX, XXX, girlfriend XXX ]
“...?”
“If we’re sending you anyway, we should squeeze the most benefit out of it.”
Names and addresses of soldiers.
And names of their family members or close acquaintances.
“You’re worried about your family. If they matter to you, crossing the Wall makes sense. Even if it isn’t you, for us to survive in this world, we’ll eventually have to dispatch someone.”
“Then this is...?”
“If you’re going, we’ll send you with full support. In °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° exchange, we should work efficiently.”
Minjae said it with arms folded, all confidence.
“As I said, we’ll actively support your desertion.”
“Uh-huh.”
“In return... look after the soldiers’ families. It might be a little tough... but you’re capable of it, aren’t you?”
“...Right.”
On top of not being from Gangwon,
I’m not the only one worried about family.
We’re all suppressing that worry with my food by force.
But everyone’s got their family lodged in a corner of their mind.
“I didn’t tell the soldiers you’d be heading for Gyeonggi Province. Instead, I asked them for related info in case we ever move into other regions.”
“So this notebook is the compilation.”
“More precisely, it’s only the ones from Gyeonggi. You’ll be busy just finding your own family... but can you do it?”
At that,
I looked down at the notebook and murmured,
“This might get burned while I’m crossing that Wall, so...”
“Can I do it,” he asks.
No need to nod to a question like that.
“I’ll memorize as much as I can.”
“...!”
“It’s been ages since I had to memorize anything. Can’t promise I’ll nail it.”
“Ha. Just do it like when we were recruits, memorizing senior info. It’ll come back quick.”
We’ve decided I’m going anyway.
I can handle a little more workload for the troops while I’m at it.
“Alright, that’s settled!”
As the talk wrapped to a degree,
Squad Leader Lee Sanga rose and said,
“My production team will start making fire-resistance gear today.”
“Fire-resistance gear? Is that possible?”
“We picked up a lot of know-how making the poison-resistance gear. Fire resistance is more common than poison resistance, and there are more materials. Worst case, we can match the Protective Suit’s performance.”
“...Production is busted.”
“You say that as a production-class yourself, Commander?”
Lee Sanga shot back, half exasperated at my idle gripe.
Corporal Seo Suhyeok followed her comment.
“We should ask Grandpa Park and the engineers whether we can fabricate any special equipment. It’s important that Sergeant Shin be able to cross that Wall, but we don’t even know if his current kit can withstand that heat.”
“Ah, right. Leave that to me too. I think it might be possible.”
“Hm? ‘Might be possible’?”
“You know the seal covering the underground chamber and the ore lining the walls?”
The high-grade mineral plastered all over the mine.
Was she talking about [Orichalcum]?
“The engineers say it can be used in many ways depending on how it’s processed. If we reinforce it with the vein’s mana and confer fire resistance, then...”
“It might endure that heat?”
“Yes. The problem is that mining it right now is hard, and we don’t know the ‘how’ of [how to process it]... but if we ask, they’ll make it happen somehow. I’d love to make something big enough for a person to enter, but that’s unrealistic. If it’s a small bag-sized container, maybe...”
“Impressive. Then we should also think about what to put inside. Military maps would be mandatory to start with...”
Before I knew it,
I—the person in question—was left out,
and the squad leaders had started seriously discussing ways to send me to another region.
“Come to think of it, just like you often say, Youngjun—”
“Hm?”
“You’re not that much of a saint.”
“Out of nowhere?”
Sergeant Lee Minjae,
in the middle of the meeting,
suddenly said that.
I had no idea what he was getting at.
“Sending you to another region might be how we save the people there. But you were hesitating because you were only thinking of your gain, weren’t you?”
“......”
I wasn’t hesitating so much as
boldly plotting a desertion.
“By your logic, we must save humanity to survive. To do that, we need to send you to other regions.”
Right.
Because I hadn’t considered the part that helps others
and only weighed what benefits me, I’d been hesitating about desertion.
From a certain angle, that was foolish.
“Trust us, and go.”
“Minjae.”
“If Gyeonggi Province is intact, you’ll find your family. If it’s dangerous, step up and help them. That’ll increase the number of humans still alive. And, hmm.”
He paused mid-sentence,
then stroked his chin.
“In the worst case, Gyeonggi might already be ruined.”
“Huh?”
“You might make it across only to find no people, just monsters overflowing. In that case, hmm.”
He looked at me,
then smirked and continued,
“Well, grit your teeth and survive.”
“What kind of advice is that?”
“When that Wall opens, we’ll come get you. Until then, just hold on, no matter what.”
At that light line,
smiles tugged at the squad leaders’ lips.
“Ha! If it comes to that, Sergeant Shin’s going to have a rough time.”
“Ah! Maybe we’ll be able to cross the Wall before that, if we’re lucky? You know, if Vimana hits Level 3 or something.”
They were workshopping ways to send me,
and even cracking jokes so I wouldn’t stew in guilt.
Watching them, I thought:
‘Lucky. Really.’
I’d planned to desert alone
because I figured the squad leaders would oppose it.
Me being away would weaken the unit’s fighting strength.
It was natural to think they’d object, since they’d be the ones staying.
‘It was a misconception.’
Maybe they balked a little at first.
But as time passed,
they decided—of course—to help me.
Even though my absence
might hurt them.
‘They’re good people.’
I renewed that resolve.
I may be heading into other regions,
but that absolutely doesn’t mean I’m leaving them for good.
This place, more than anywhere,
is where I must return—
‘My unit.’
A faint grin.
“Then that’s the plan. I should get to my preparations.”
“Sir? Preparations?”
“I need to seriously prep fire-resistance cuisine, and I need to memorize what’s in this notebook... and I’m going to go see the spirit, too.”
At that,
Sergeant Lee Minjae paused a beat,
then opened his mouth.
“The spirit? You mean Jung Sua?”
“Huh? Ah. I phrased that badly. Not her.”
I tapped the floor with the toe of my boot.
“I mean the spirit of this fortress.”
“Ah...”
“It said it has a counselor function.”
I hadn’t told the squad leaders,
but that thing is the one I shoved the Perk Quest in front of as the condition for me to sneak out.
That quest is, for all intents and purposes, complete.
I should be able to hear more now.
“If that’s the case... understood. We’ll handle things here. You handle whatever prep you can.”
“Okay.”
“Since we don’t know the situation in other regions, the sooner we dispatch you, the better. As soon as all preparations are done, we’ll send you right away. You’ll have to hustle, Youngjun.”
“Ha. Suits me.”
No time to rest.
I left the room, the squad leaders behind me.
Maybe because a plan I’d been shaping with a twinge of guilt had flipped into something backed by everyone—
even though I was off to handle a pile of work,
my steps felt oddly light.
“I’ll take that part, then...”
“If it comes out that he’s leaving his post, that’d be bad, so make sure it doesn’t...”
After Sergeant Shin Youngjun left the room,
and they’d spent a while hashing through the plan—
“Hm!”
“This should do for now.”
Once the meeting on that plan
had wrapped to a reasonable point,
the squad leaders—who ordinarily would’ve gone straight to their respective duties—
were a little different today.
“...Um.”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I want to bring up.”
Squad Leader Lee Sanga
spoke up in a small voice to the other leaders who’d stayed.
“Some of what the Commander said... a few bits stuck with me.”
“Stuck with you? Like what...?”
“For example, that...”
Carefully, Lee Sanga
brought up what had been bothering her.
“That... stat called Divine power.”
“...Ah.”
“And among the things that lump of flesh underground said, there was, well...”
Cautious still,
she spoke the word that had come up in the meeting.
“Things like ‘Transcendence.’”
With the other squad leaders holding their tongues,
the one who picked it up was the Warrior Section’s leader,
Corporal Jeon Gwangil.
“Sergeant Shin answered like he hadn’t the faintest idea.”
“Mm. But to me—between the text that appeared when he gained that stat, and that conversation—the meaning that comes to mind is just one.”
They’d finally pried the topic open.
“Am I the only one?”
“......”
Every squad leader’s expression
went hard.
