A Miracle in the Game Becomes Reality, Episode 19
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A Miracle in the Game Becomes Reality, Episode 19
6. War Begins (3)
The first battle was, for all intents and purposes, won by us the moment the enemy's self-destruct attack failed.
No matter how much damage our allied sky fortress had sustained, it was nowhere near enough to be defeated by the enemy's small sky fortress.
Thanks to that, the Kroyzen Imperial Army retreated after suffering heavy losses, and we were able to toast to victory.
"Hahaha, Brigade Commander Lawrence, you've done well! Your performance today was outstanding!"
"You flatter me."
"Nonsense! If you hadn't noticed the self-detonation, the damage would have been tremendous!"
Just a single short warning: "It's definitely a self-detonation, so dodge it."
But no one failed to realize that those words were the decisive factor in our victory.
Count Otis kept praising me nonstop, and since I wasn't used to this sort of situation, I scratched my cheek and smiled awkwardly.
"At the same time, self-detonation attacks were attempted in three other theaters as well, but only our unit noticed something was wrong in advance and defended the fortress."
That meant they attempted four attacks and succeeded in three of them.
Even though, looking at the overall situation, it could be said the kingdom's army had suffered a crushing defeat, there wasn't a trace of worry on the faces of the nobles clinking wine glasses with the division commander.
I had no idea where they found that kind of nerve.
"I informed the provincial army commander that today's victory was thanks to you, so you should receive a fairly decent reward."
As for a reward, the only thing that would be handed over immediately would probably be a decoration or medal.
The war had only just begun, so expecting a proper reward would be unreasonable.
Besides, if this war ended in a major defeat, there was no chance of any merit-based rewards, so there was no need to start counting our chickens before they hatched over immediate compensation.
"Thank you, Your Excellency."
"Think nothing of it. It's the duty of a superior to make sure a subordinate who has earned merit receives a fitting reward."
Some people cleverly make a subordinate's achievements their own, but from this, you can tell Count Otis is a bit lazy, yet still has his head on straight.
"Oh, come to think of it, there's been a strange rumor going around about you."
"A rumor?"
When I expressed my confusion, the young heir of Viscount Resti, who had participated in the war representing his territory alongside me, timely picked up the count's story.
"I heard it too. That Brigade Commander Lawrence tamed a mysterious giant eagle."
"Yes, yes. They say the sight of you communicating with the jet-black eagle was truly mysterious."
When the story of Black Eagle came up, my face flushed slightly, but I forced myself to brush it off as if nothing were wrong.
"I'm not sure I'd call it communication, but it's incredibly smart, almost as if it understands human speech. I'm just taking care of it because I found that amazing too."
"Come on, that's what communication is. Animals can't really understand human speech, can they?"
Count Otis laughed heartily, apparently finding something very amusing, and patted my back.
"If it's a large black eagle, it's probably a species called Altair from the sacred land of Eberhill. It's a rare flying beast that is born with exceptionally pure mana and is said to be able to travel ten thousand ri in one go, which is about 4,000 kilometers."
Looking at the young heir of Viscount Resti, who clearly had a talent for overexplaining, I expressed my amazement as if hearing something I didn't know.
Though in truth, I already knew all of it.
"Once tamed, it never betrays its master and will throw itself into danger without hesitation when its master is in trouble."
By my reckoning, Black Eagle is definitely modeled after Altair.
If Duke Lucas had given it some flashy sidekick loaded with pointless flair, people would have kept nagging him about what that was, so it would not have been easy to manage.
It was fortunate that they sensibly based it on a real species.
"Totally a dog, then? Dog-eagle."
Was that supposed to be a joke?
I furrowed my brow for a moment, but the people around us burst out laughing at Count Otis's dad joke, apparently finding it hilarious.
Among them, the young heir of Baron Aden was especially impressive in the art of currying favor, clapping while even tearing up a little from laughter.
As expected, no matter where you go, flattering your superior seems to be an essential skill for a working adult.
"Oh dear, our Brigade Commander Lawrence doesn't seem to understand what I mean."
It wasn't that I didn't understand it; I just didn't want to.
But I put on a belatedly surprised expression and replied,
"That was incredibly clever of you. I apologize. I'm a little dull when it comes to this sort of thing."
"That's exactly how you come across. You play a lot of games, but when you actually talk to you, you're surprisingly stiff, you know?"
After that, Count Otis kept cracking jokes to liven up the mood.
But as his dad jokes showed no sign of stopping, the people around him gradually seemed to find it harder to react, and their expressions became strained.
"Sir, since the enemy has retreated, may I use personal communications?"
At my question, the Count rested his chin on his hand, looking as if he were pondering it.
Then, as though he were being generous, he readily nodded.
"Consider it my personal reward."
"Thank you."
The thought that I could finally log into Chronicle Online made me smile sincerely, and the nobles around us beamed as they rejoiced that the Count's nonsense had finally stopped.
* * *
Second week since the war began.
The damage from the war has been steadily increasing.
In particular, Sky Fortresses and Vanguards have been dropping out at high rates, so new units and new equipment kept coming in, and the number of soldiers dying to blind attacks also grew.
Amid all this, Adrian's unit was consistently making gains and receiving high evaluations.
"Deputy commander, there is a deployment request from the brigade commander. Five Vanguards of the Croysen Empire are riding down the mountain range from the three o'clock direction and he wants us to respond."
In the Vanguards-only ready room, Deputy Knight Division Commander Billyum, who had been on standby for deployment, let out a small sigh at his subordinate's report and rose from his seat.
Four Vanguards belonging to the Lawrence Viscounty followed behind him.
-Beeep! Beeep!
A moment later, one wall of the ready room they were in opened with a loud warning siren, and the Vanguards hooked their feet onto the hoverboards fixed to the floor of the entrance.
Hoverboards were similar to skis, but looked like their size had been cut in half.
They slid straight out of the medical train, and soon were shooting forward at a terrifying speed.
[Full armament.]
[Yes!]
At Billyum's command, the flimsy breastplate-style gear that had only covered their chests became a suit that wrapped their entire bodies without a single gap.
It looked similar to the mechanical suits from hero movies Adrian used to enjoy watching back on Earth.
There was even a force device installed in the chest area that emitted a blue glow, to the point that it felt less like a similar design and more like a direct homage.
In fact, the developer of the Force Armor, Grand Duke Lukas, was originally from Earth, so it was entirely plausible.
Thanks to that, whenever Adrian watched the Vanguards arm themselves, he would always wear a nostalgic expression and repeatedly murmur how cool it was.
[Sir Billyum.]
[Yes, go ahead.]
Billyum, racing forward at over 300 km/h on his hoverboard, tilted his head as he looked at Adrian, who appeared via a communication signal and hologram.
Adrian continued, saying this was only a conjecture, so he wanted him to take it as reference.
[It is suspicious that they are deliberately exposing themselves while coming down a mountain range with plenty of cover. It could be a trap, so do not get too close and begin combat from a distance where you can keep them in check.]
The terrain in front of them was indeed perfect for setting up an ambush.
Although the number of enemies showing up on the detection equipment matched what they could see, Adrian, who had observed the battlefield over the two weeks since the war began, had consistently minimized allied casualties with sound, reasonable judgments and responses.
Therefore, Deputy Commander Billyum decided it was better to follow Adrian's instructions than to trust only the visible signals on the detection devices.
[Understood, I will do that.]
[Good. Take care.]
Billyum relayed Adrian's orders to his subordinates.
[Well, there's no downside to being cautious.]
[Understood.]
In the past, no one would have listened to Adrian's orders, but a lot had changed in just two weeks.
Now, no one ignored Adrian anymore.
Of course, because of the bad image he had built up until then, a lingering doubt of "it's still too early to tell" remained tucked away in a corner of their hearts, but if Adrian continued to perform like this, it was certain that even that would soon disappear.
And then...
[Underground!]
An incident occurred that greatly boosted their level of trust in Adrian.
As if his earlier warning had been a prophecy, five more Vanguards appeared, breaking up through the ground—the blind spot of the detection devices.
A 5-on-5 battle instantly turned into 10-on-5.
[Fall back! Pull back while containing them!]
Force Swords imbued with blue light were swung by both sides at once, and streams of 5 and 10 rays of light crossed as they menaced the enemy.
[Ugh!]
Fortunately, the first exchange of blows did not land a solid hit on either side.
This was because they were at a distance that was sufficient to respond to the enemy's attack.
They were only able to do so because they had taken Adrian's warning to heart and kept a thorough watch on their surroundings; if William and his subordinates had approached carelessly, they would have been wiped out in an instant.
*That didn't mean the situation was good. They were still in a crisis.*
William now had to hold off the attacks of twice as many Vanguards while waiting for reinforcements.
It would take at least five minutes for reinforcements to arrive, and it was impossible to hold out without suffering any damage.
-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA!
But then.
Something happened that was beyond everyone's expectations.
Had barely a minute passed since they encountered the enemy?
Adrian's voice rang out through William's communicator, who had been hanging on like a circus acrobat while breaking out in a cold sweat.
[Sir William, move forward.]
At the same time, ten blue lights flew in from the rear as if to support them, and surged toward the enemy.
They were reinforcements from the Otis Marquisate, which was directly under the corps commander.
[Wh-what?]
Allied support: 10 Vanguards.
In an instant, the standoff shifted to 10:15, allowing them to escape the crisis of death, but this swift reinforcement made no sense by ordinary standards.
Did that mean they had requested support in advance?
[Sir William, are you out for a stroll? What are you doing not attacking?]
The one who snapped William out of his stray thoughts was Adrian's leisurely voice.
At this rate, no one could tell who was out for a stroll.
But whether he understood it or not, this was war, and as long as there was an advantage to be taken, he had to take it without hesitation.
[The enemy has their backs to the mountain range. Since it's now harder for that side to receive support, let's take at least five of them.]
[Yes, understood.]