Surviving on the Northern Front with Gukbap

What Happened That Day (10)

I am, slow.

Seok—.

Schutmann's sword cut through Lantz's blade,

and even as the blade reached the battalion commander's neck, 'I'm so slow I can't get between them.'

It made me furious.

Of course, even if I had arrived quickly,

the flow might not have changed.

But that didn't stop me from feeling frustrated.

Pit—.

Schutmann's sword drew closer to the battalion commander's neck.

The sharpness of the beige aura brushed the old man's rejuvenated throat.

A red drop of blood spattered.

And at that moment—

Pop!

The battalion commander disappeared.

Not just him, but Lantz and Schutmann, who were beside him.

Pop, splat!

Only traces remained, as if the air had collapsed and been sucked away.

"?!"

It was only after the three vanished that my brain recalled what I'd forgotten.

I'd been too focused on the fight and missed it...

'The curse of 10 has activated!'

The battalion commander had received 666, struck away the shadow soldier's aura,

and then, five seconds after the new eyeball appeared and rolled.

During those five seconds, he must've exchanged blows with Schutmann, and the number that showed up was 10.

'With the pattern of 10, both Lantz and Schutmann, who were close by, were sucked into another dimension!'

I almost felt my strength collapse with relief, but I held it in.

The curse was triggered only after the battalion commander's flesh was cut by Schutmann's sword and blood spattered—he wasn't dead yet.

'The worst number just saved the battalion commander.'

But thinking deeper, it wasn't all good news.

The three of them were now dragged to different dimensions and had to deal with the shadow hordes,

but it was obvious who would clear and return the fastest.

'Schutmann, of course.'

The battalion commander might break through much faster now that he was a 5th-rank,

but he couldn't be faster than Schutmann.

'Lantz is the one I'm really worried about.'

Even having heard all the explanations about the curse artifact's patterns, Lantz was still only a 4th-rank.

Whether he could survive and clear the pattern of 10 was questionable,

but for now, all I could do was wait and hope for their safe return.

'Let's start by calculating how long it'll take the three to come back.'

The battalion commander: three minutes. Lantz: at least five, maybe seven with caution.

Schutmann...

'At most, two minutes. Damn it.'

That's disgustingly quick.

So what did I need to do before then?

The answer was clear.

'I have to send the 2nd Company's forces back first.'

For now, Schutmann was the biggest problem,

but before long, the beastkin would launch an all-out assault.

I couldn't let my men die to Schutmann before then.

The first priority was to shore up the defensive posture.

With this decided, I turned my course and ran to the green bastard.

"Commander Hank!!"

Hank—the one who'd been sent flying by Schutmann's brutal blow.

He was sitting up, his face twisted.

There was blood on his lips, so the impact had clearly left its mark.

When I reached Hank, I extended my hand to him.

"......"

This asshole hesitated for about two seconds before finally taking my hand and standing up.

"The battalion commander is still alive, right?! Huh?!"

"The artifact's curse is still active. He's alive. But that's not the issue..."

I pointed at the 2nd Company's troops who were standing at a loss and continued.

"First, we have to send these men back to the garrison. In a moment, Heroni will launch a full-scale assault—if we want to defend, we need—"

"No."

Hank cut me off.

I had no idea what my face looked like right now.

"2nd Company will stay by my side until we catch that rabbit beastkin."

My fists trembled.

Frustration and rage were boiling up inside me.

'Should I just punch him once?'

I barely held myself back.

Unlike a game where you have unlimited lives,

I only had one life.

To protect it, I had to go with reason and probability, not emotions.

'Endure, Ian.'

Deciding to persuade him as calmly as I could, I opened my mouth.

Of course, my fists were still quivering.

"Earlier, I didn't explain properly because I thought you'd fall apart. Hooo... Are you planning to chase and kill the caster of this curse, even knowing where he is?"

Hank opened his mouth—then quickly closed it.

Good, he's not a complete moron.

"Exactly. There's no way the rabbit beastkin who used the curse artifact would still be in the enemy garrison. He'd have run deep into Heroni's territory by now."

Unless the caster dies, the curse continues indefinitely.

In other words, the rabbit beastkin must already be far away.

Whether he understood or not, Hank's chin muscles began to tremble.

"So you're telling me to just accept the battalion commander's death?! Huh?!"

Hank's gauntleted hand grabbed my collar,

the other hand ready to punch me.

Tears welled up in the corners of his eyes again.

'Bloody hell. What a daddy's boy.'

This was annoying.

I could understand a little of what he felt,

but it didn't change anything.

"There's a difference between ideals and reality. You have to accept reality to see the future. That's what a commander does, right?"

Another tear welled up and rolled down Hank's cheek.

I met his eyes directly.

"If you, commander Hank, can't accept the battalion commander's death—"

I pointed at Pab's head, which was rolling on the ground.

"Everyone will end up like that. Is that what you want? Do you want everyone who serves you to die like Pab?!"

Hank frowned fiercely, glaring at Pab's head.

"Outsider! Don't disparage the honorable death of a soldier of the North as a dog's death!!"

"No! It was a dog's death. A death caused by a commander's mistake and a wrong order is a dog's death!"

"!!"

"Because of you, a promising platoon leader who dreamed of command died in vain! Get a grip, will you?!"

I relentlessly jabbed my finger at Pab's head, shouting,

and thankfully, I saw Hank's gaze waver slightly.

At the same time, his pupils seemed lost in confusion.

"No. No. Pab... Pab's dream was..."

Hank's voice grew smaller and smaller,

and I waited for him to finish...

'Oh, I can't take this anymore.'

Ugh, damn it. This was my limit.

This brat needed a real scolding.

It was absolutely not because he reminded me of my childhood, after losing my own father.

... Absolutely not.

"Hey! You idiot! Get a grip! Are you or are you not the son of Battalion Commander Kratan?! Damn brat, stop whining already!!"

"...?!"

"Do you think acting like this will bring your father back?! Would your father like this?!"

Ah, that felt so great.

Letting loose after holding it in made it feel twice as refreshing.

Exhilarating.

Meanwhile, Hank seemed taken aback by my outburst, his lips twitching in surprise.

I'd braced myself to dodge or counter if he threw a punch,

but instead, he wasn't moving—he seemed willing to listen.

So, a sudden memory popped into my head and I blurted it out.

"If you're his blood, act like the battalion commander. What did he say to you before the curse hit him? Huh?!"

Just before Hank lost control,

the cursed battalion commander had said this to him.

― Please, Hank."

I couldn't imitate his voice, but I repeated the words.

― Please, be my pride. I want to see you at your best in the end."

At the time, I hadn't thought much about it,

but perhaps it was the final words—a father, sensing death, leaving a will to his son.

The fact that I remembered it at this moment felt almost miraculous to me—

Slowly.

Hank loosened his grip on my collar and pulled his hand away—

Thud!

"Ugh!"

?? Instead of letting go, he feinted and jabbed me?

Clutching my nose, I nearly swore at him, but—

"You're being rude to a superior, lieutenant. I ought to punish you, but it's an emergency so I'll let it slide."

I was left speechless.

'Did he just call me Lieutenant?'

What was this strange feeling?

I was called 'Lieutenant' even though that's my own rank, and yet I felt dirty inside.

Drip.

"Ah."

It's because my nose started bleeding. Damn it.

'That bastard and I are truly oil and water. One day, I swear I'll kill him.'

While I held back my curses and wiped my nose on my hand,

Hank shouted at his subordinates.

"From this moment, I resign my post as company commander!"

...... Dude? What are you doing right now?

'I can't for the life of me understand this madman's actions?!'

I was too dumbfounded to speak.

If I felt this way, how stunned were the 2nd Company's men?

"C-Company Commander?! What...?"

2nd Company's 2nd Platoon Leader, Ramon, asked,

but Hank answered with a refreshed look.

"Therefore, Ramon! From now you're the acting 2nd Company commander! Understood?!"

Ramon's face turned pale at the sudden promotion,

but Hank pressed on undeterred.

"So stop hanging around here and get out! Join up with the other troops near the garrison!!"

Only then did I realize Hank's true intention.

'So he wants to move as a son, not a soldier now.'

It looked like he intended to go after the rabbit beastkin alone.

If this wasn't true madness, I didn't know what was.

'Old man, did Hank take after his mother's side?'

Come to think of it, the rejuvenated old man via OOPArts and Hank looked nothing alike.

Not in temperament either; they only really shared the green hair.

As I was mulling this over—

"Ian! Commander Hank!"

A familiar voice made me look up.

Ralph was running toward us from a distance.

Luckily, there were no other soldiers around him.

He must have come out to look for us after the defensive line was established and we didn't return.

'Perfect timing.'

With Schutmann appearing soon,

I had another 4th-rank to fight by my side.

Thinking this, as Ramon led the 2nd Company away, "Are you alright, lieutenant?"

A beat later, Zaiya approached to ask me.

Ricky was beside her.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

My mood was terrible, and my nose was throbbing,

but at least I'd pulled the 2nd Company back.

When newly-minted acting Company Commander Ramon moved off with his men,

Ralph, arriving in front of us, asked:

"What happened, Ian? Where's the battalion commander? And is that...?"

Ralph frowned when he saw Pab's head.

Before I could even begin to consider where to start explaining, Hank cut in.

"Lieutenant, you already knew that the squire—that bastard—was Granfen's enemy?"

Ralph's eyes widened in shock.

"What?! You're saying Sir Schutmann is the enemy?! What in the world...?!"

As Ralph made a fuss,

my mental gears ignored Hank's question.

'If it gets out I knew Schutmann's identity first, this jealousy addict daddy's boy could lose it again.'

He was insane enough to do just that.

So instead, I only answered Ralph's question.

"Schutmann will break the curse of 10 and reappear soon. After that, we have to stop him. Until the battalion commander and Captain Lantz return."

"Why?! But why fight Sir Schutmann...?!"

"You can ask about the reason after we kill Schutmann!"

My frustration made my voice rise,

but Ralph only frowned harder.

"Wait, you mean we have to fight the White Fang's squire?"

Different from the other company commanders, Ralph was thrown by the sudden idea of fighting Schutmann.

Well, getting orders straight from the battalion commander via Brain Voice and hearing such things from me would feel completely different.

But I had no time to worry about Ralph's mental state.

I must have wasted about two minutes arguing with Hank and sending the troops off—

'Wait?'

—just as I thought that, "Ian!!"

Ralph hollered, raising his sword.

The Big-Jaw's trembling eyes were fixed on someone behind me.

Luckily, Hank's fist moved faster than his mouth.

Whoosh!

Hank's gauntleted strike shot out past my back.

Simultaneously, I reversed my grip on my kitchen knives, turning my head.

'Schutmann!'

There was the expressionless bastard.

I instinctively drew out my mana.

To stab Schutmann with my reverse-grip kitchen knives.