Chapter 41

Chapter 41

[Translator – Angel Dust]

[Proofreader – Prototype]

Chapter 41

Fiance? Fiance?? Me? So, am I going to be Karl’s wife?

Oh my. Oh my! How so desirable! Ah, no! Shameful words!

“Eh, oh my?”

“Rav?”

“Hehe. By your reactions, it must be true!”

No! Calling me fiance! You shouldn’t say such things! We’ve only just become slightly closer, haven’t we, Karl?!

What if he gets overwhelmed and pushes me away even more!

I have to stop her. It’s not like that between us, I need to step up and make it clear.

Although someday it might really become like that, it’s not now. That’s how it should be...

“Lavrenti?”

“Feel free to just call me Rav!”

“Ah, okay. Rav. I’m really glad to meet you.”

“Yes! Nice to meet you! Oh, but you can speak comfortably!”

“Oh dear. Can I really do that? You’re an esteemed person.”

Yes. She’s an esteemed person. Calling me ‘Fiance’... Hmhm. That’s not it.

No, no! Decorum! She received a Silver Merit Medal, so I must maintain manners!

Right! So, I behave with manners. Not because she called me ‘Fiance’!

“Rav.”

“Yes, Master.”

“It’s not like that between us. Apologize to Selena quickly.”

Karl?! It’s not exactly his fault, but isn’t it a bit much to ask for an apology?!

“Eh? Isn’t that so?”

“No. It’s just that I made Selena uncomfortable because of that long ago.”

Of course, it was uncomfortable! But now it doesn’t bother me at all! I’m not uncomfortable at all!

I even wish it were like that! So, Rav, you’re just—

“If that’s the case, then I’m glad... No. I’m sorry. Selena. I made a mistake.”

“...No, Rav. It’s okay. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Okay. If anyone did anything wrong, it was Karl. And me.

I suppressed the sigh that was about to come out. It seemed like we had a long way to go.

...Wait, was there something before the apology just now? Must be my imagination?

* * *

It was almost a disaster. Our barely recovered relationship almost fell apart again.

Selena’s mental state was on the brink of collapse after the public confession incident.

And I, getting heavily scolded, also had my mental state shattered into molecules.

I don’t want to recall that time as much as possible.

Thanks to that, I went through hell in the military and faced all sorts of things.

Selena must have had a tough time too, full of guilt and hardships.

“Let’s sit down for now. There are a few things I want to ask while we’re at it.”

“Yes, Master.”

First of all, I will ask why she’s calling me ‘Master.’ Definitely.

“Congratulations on your discharge. When did you get out?”

“A few days ago. I don’t think the ink on the certificate is even dry yet..”

“It hasn’t been that long since I got out either.”

Then suddenly, I notice the Silver Merit Medal on Rav’s chest.

Both Selena and I, we were quite curious about that.

“You even got a medal. You must’ve been told to just stay in the army, right?”

“Oh, this? Master is right. On the day of my discharge, they kept asking if I had any intention of staying.”

“...And you endured that?”

“Yes? Oh, should I have gotten angry?”

I would’ve done more than just get angry, I might have split the skull of the person who kept asking like that on the day of their discharge. Isn’t that crossing the line a bit too much?

Just sending that child home alive is something that would have made Jesus and Buddha give up their seats and say, ‘You are too nice.’

“Did you also save people like Karl?”

At that moment, Selena, who had been quietly listening, asks subtly about the medal.

Could Rav also? So, is that why she’s calling me ‘Master’?

If that’s the case, it makes sense. If you were inspired by me and did it—

“No. Selena. That’s not it. I haven’t saved hundreds of lives like Master. I’ve only killed to stay alive like any other soldier.”

On the battlefield, a soldier kills the enemy. It’s natural. Nothing to be ashamed of.

But to get a medal for it means you’re not just killing like everyone else.

*

People join the Imperial Army for various reasons.

Some do it to prove themselves. Some do it to gain courage. And some, just because they’re pushed into it.

From that perspective, I could say I was the third.

“Your reason for enlisting is quite shocking, Miss Lavrenti. To shut people’s mouths, you say.”

I still remember the female officer in charge of women’s enlistment shaking her head.

But what could I do? I have six younger siblings under my care.

My parents were surely good people. They raised us with all their might.

They always showered us with affection and worked day and night to ensure we didn’t starve.

I loved my parents. And I loved my siblings too.

So, I left home and enlisted in the army.

For my family. To lessen the burden and share it once discharged.

“I don’t want to know what kind of people you were outside or what you did! I’m not curious, and I don’t need to know! Do you know why?!”

“We don’t know, mam!”

“It’s because you’re no longer ‘people’! From now on, you’re soldiers! Because within the Imperial Army, regardless of what you were outside, you’re all just the same soldiers!!”

Training was tough. Those who couldn’t adapt properly were all disciplined.

I, too, felt the urge to give up several times. I cried because I missed my parents and siblings.

But I couldn’t. I had a family to take care of.

As the eldest daughter, I had an obligation to lighten the burden of both parents.

...But never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would end up on the battlefield.

“Private Lavrenti. You’re being transferred from logistical support to a rifleman position.”

Was it because my shooting scores during training were somewhat good? That’s how I became a rifleman.

At first, I thought it was fortunate. At least I wouldn’t have to fight elves with a spear.

However, soon I had no choice but to abandon that thought...

“Value your gun more than your life!”

“If you miss, be prepared! Do you know how expensive ammunition is?!”

Wasn’t our empire the best in guns and gunpowder...? And yet this...?

I thought it was just a matter of shooting, but it wasn’t. It was mandatory to hit for the sake of our empire’s citizens.

But, wait... That’s easier said than done. How difficult it is to hit the target.

Of course, I wanted to shoot well. Just thinking about the taxes my parents paid for these bullets.

And finally, the battlefield we encountered... was hell. It was a nightmare that I never want to recall.

“Aaaah!”

“My arm! My arm!!”

“Get him to the rear immediately! Quickly!”

As days passed, the situation worsened. We became more like beasts than humans.

It was only by the presence of those who had been with me until now that I could barely hold on.

One day, we received orders to move to a place far from our frontline.

At first I thought we were going to the rear, but then I realized it was a reserve for a counterattack.

And there, by chance, I met him.

“You’re really great if you’re good at shooting. Karl.”

“Sorry for the noise, Sergeant.”

While everyone else was resting, there was a man practicing with his gun alone.

At first, it was out of curiosity. I approached, wondering why he was doing that.

And during our brief time together, I heard stories about shooting from him.

“Look. Don’t pull the trigger right away, but calm your breath first...”

“Control your breath well. Don’t close your eyes. The muzzle should always face forward.”

“Posture is also important. Find a place to support yourself like this. If there isn’t any...”

“In my previous life... No. I know a guy who crawled 1500m just to shoot.”

“You’re doing well. From what I see, you could really become a sharpshooter.”

It was a brief encounter. But more than anything, it was intense.

Until then, I had always been filled with a sense of obligation.

But he, not as a duty, but with words of praise, lifted me up.

It was the first time someone sincerely, brightly praised me.

‘That’s why I’m so glad, Master. You said you had no relationship with her.’

If there was a relationship, we’d be talking at gunpoint... Oh, no. Am I going crazy?

* * *

“...”

That’s the reason Lavrenti called me a master.

But from what I remember, despite saying that, I didn’t hit a single shot next to Lavrenti, did I?

[Translator – Angel Dust]

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