Chapter 11: Commendation or Exile?
"What has been found?" Nia and Meiduo were a bit puzzled.
"The guy who wiped out seven senior enemy commanders above colonel level, including a vice admiral division commander and a lieutenant general chief of staff, is actually this person who was with you." A young combat staff explained excitedly.
An older colonel laughed and said, "A few months ago, we received news from the front line that an enemy division-level command unit was annihilated. It was said that during the night, an energy machine gun was used to sneak attack from the southwest part of the base, killing and wounding more than thirty enemies who were sleeping in the barracks, including seven senior officers."
The colonel flipped through a stack of documents on the table and handed one to Meiduo, saying, "Here, this is the one." Meiduo and Nia looked at the document together as the colonel continued, "When this news came, everyone was very excited. The President's office even sent someone to verify it, preparing to commend the hero. But no matter how much we investigated, we couldn't figure out who did it. No one from the New Rome troops was in that area that night, and the Air Force didn't launch any such attack. The Federation's propaganda department has repeatedly urged the front line command to find the Federation hero to boost morale. But after thorough investigations, no one came forward to claim the credit. We can't just find someone to take the credit. Such a thing, if exposed, would be a huge scandal."
The young combat staff nodded, saying, "When I saw the coordinates of that area, I felt they'd be familiar. I thought, could it be... And wouldn't you know it, I hit the mark! The time, place, and weapon all matched, with battlefield recording equipment as evidence. Now the guys in the propaganda department are overjoyed. Who would have thought this guy would take out an Imperial Army command post just like that? Those poor souls didn't know what hit them."
Nia and Meiduo looked at each other, both thinking, "That Fatty was just trying to run away. And such a guy could become a Federation hero?" At the thought of the sleazy Fatty soon becoming humanity's most wretched hero, the two women felt a chill.
When the war simulation network in the lab was completed, the front line command decided to talk to Fatty. But, who knew, this coward thought he was going to be executed...
Upon hearing that he was a hero, Fatty immediately became happy. Actually, he didn't care much about being a hero; saving his life was the best news. Besides, he was rather confused about how he became a hero.
The entire front line command was equally bewildered after hearing the report from the Constitutional Soldier Captain. Everyone looked at each other, thinking they should have just picked someone at random to take the credit. This kind of hero, once publicized, might become a bigger scandal than a false claim.