Episode 52: Underground Organization
Small mountain top but seemed so far away, thought Second Lieutenant Frau, commander of a musketeer unit belonging to the Imperial Army's 13th Platoon.
A few hours had passed since the Imperial Army's 80,000 strong had surrounded and attacked the 10,000 Kingdom Army holed up in this small mountain, as it had done yesterday.
Despite using their numbers, the Imperial troops still could not even set foot on the mountainside, only piling up needless and unnecessary deaths.
Every time she rested her body on the blood-soaked mountainside, covered in blood and mud, Frau felt a shiver run down her neck at the thought that she would soon be doing the same thing.
(But my greatest desire is to get back to the hot springs as soon as possible and bathe.)
She has short, bob-cut, dull orange hair and ill-fitting bottle-bottomed glasses that the frame was the same color as her hair.
Her ample breasts, which pushed up her uniform as much as possible, would normally attract the lustful attention of men hungry for women on this battlefield, and the jealous and envious eyes of the females, but now they were just breasts, covered in blood and mud, and her gender was only visible at a glance.
(Well, now that I can think of the slimy feeling as unpleasant, I am still a human being ~)
When one no longer feels it, one ceases to be people. Is that her own creed, or is she simply tired of this situation of just lying face down and stopping against the rain of bullets pouring down from the mountaintop?
Anyway, Frau brings her right hand up to her chest and hooks her fingers into the crevice of her blouse, which has been getting tighter and tighter lately and pats it down to remove as much mud from it as she can.
That's when it happened.
"Hey, you there!"
"Y-yes!?"
She was suddenly yelled at from out of sight, and she freaked out! Frau, forgetting that she was in the middle of a gunfight, involuntarily straightened her back.
She turned her head in the direction of the voice and saw a large, heavily bearded man, also an Imperial soldier.
Judging from their relatively neat appearance, they must have been members of the unit that came to replace the others.
"Affiliation and rank!"
"Eh?"
"I'm asking you where you belong and what rank you hold!"
"Y-yes! Second Lieutenant Frau, commander of the 13th Platoon Musketeers."
The question was asked so vigorously that Frau bit down hard at the spur of the moment.
Before that, she had difficulty standing up to salute and do other things, as she looks like she is lying on her back against the slope of the mountain.
And apparently, this large Imperial soldier came to blame Frau for that.
"Don't stop there! Let the Kingdom take as many lead pellets as they can!"
"B-but if I get up in this situation......"
"Just get up!"
"Y-yes!"
When Frau said to the large man, who yells at her one-sidedly to hurry up, his attitude said that he doesn't care.
Frau was about to whine, but then she saw the armband on the large man's arm with the words "viceroy" on it, her mouth froze.
Frau's eyes tear up slightly at the sight of those words, which indicate that he is the so-called "officer of the battlefield" who has certain privileges on the battlefield and can execute soldiers like Frau at his discretion without waiting for a court-martial.
(Am I going to die no matter how this turns out?)
Immediately after that, her face expressed a sad smile covered in blood.
"Why in the world are you here alone any ...way!?!?"
With a dry crack, a small hole appeared between the viceroy's eyebrows.
The man's body rolled down the slope of the mountain as if gravity was guiding him.
......It seems that he had eaten the lead pellet himself before offering it to the kingdom's soldiers.
(A-awawa, it's too accurate!)
Frau is frightened at the sight.
She had no idea that they would take aim and shoot at that viceroy who had stepped into this safety zone, even if he only had one leg. That's how scared Frau with her muddy tits is.
With tears in her eyes, she hurriedly re-draws the safety zone in her brain and shrinks back down tightly. But by doing so, her chest holding the musket is compressed and she could hear her heart beating undeniably. She frowned as she realized that it was the fastest and most deafening heartbeat she had ever heard.
To begin with, for Frau, the fact that there is such a highly skilled musketeer squad at the top is unexplainable.
She had been informed of the battle situation up to yesterday and had chosen this place as the safest place to climb to the top of the mountain, but why was she in this kind of danger?
"[Our God of Death. The look in his eyes]"
That's when it happened.
Several soldiers approached Frau, muttering a peculiar code and wearing white battle gear that hid everything but their eyes.
Then, the sharp gaze of the captain, who must have uttered the sign, pierced Frau's orange eyes.
No, it is not just the gaze.
Also the look around Frau's flank, who was huddled on her knees with her musket on the slope of the mountain. The muzzle of their muskets literally presses into the area between her eyebrows.
Enemy or ally? Or is it a poor lamb that has wandered off, just like the man who just rolled away?
"[For our Queen] desu~"
But Frau, immediately recognizing that it was none of the above, sang the words that followed.
"......Sorry I'm late, Second Lieutenant."
Then, a soldier who seemed to be the captain said so and bowed its head, and lowered the muzzle it was pointing at her to the mountain surface covered with blood and mud.
"I didn't wait at all~. A mole soldier who does nothing but flatter Her Majesty the Queen~."
"......"
"Don't look at me like that~. It's just a little joke."
The venom and lies spewed out within less than three seconds of meeting, the girls [Knights of the White Rose], who are used to being told words of contempt by this type of person on a regular basis, remain unconcerned and lean their bodies against the mountainside in a similar fashion next to Frau.
"So, you're the captain~?"
"Yes. I am the head of the Order."
"......I am honored that the Captain of the Order has come to assist me in person."
"How's the operation going?"
Despite the implication, the leader of the Knights of the White Rose, who is in front of Frau, asked without moving a single eyebrow.
Frau looked at the headquarters of Lieutenant General Rojisko, who had dispatched them here, with a distant look on her face.
"Simply put, all we need is one more confirmation and the mission is complete. I can't wait to get home and take a bath~."
"In other words."
"Yes, we don't have that confirmation yet~."
When Frau said that, the Knight Commander is silent for a while, and then said.
"Then, if we drop the enemy position just above us, we can get confirmation of that, right?"
"I'd love to do that, but~."
"Eh!?"
Frau suddenly took the arm of one of the Knight of the White Rose, who was on the opposite side to the Knight Commander, that is, on her left side, and threw her out of the safety zone she had drawn.
Immediately after that.
Poof!* And without a pause, as if by design, the knight is shot by the musketeers of the Kingdom Army who are positioned above Frau and the others, and like the viceroy, she rolls down the slope of the mountain as a corpse.
"!"
The girls [Knights of the White Rose] could not remain silent when their allies were killed in such a manner.
Immediately, one of the knights thrusts a musket in her hand at Frau. At the same time, however, Frau also took out a knife, which she had hidden in the cleavage of her large breasts, and pointed the tip of the blade at the neck of the knight next to her.
As the density of their mutual murderous intent is quickly rising, Frau says, smiling and plastering a smile with lies on her bloodstained face.
"I think you moles understand how difficult it is to secure a position, right?"
"You!"
She heard someone in the Knights biting their teeth.
She didn't care about contempt or sarcasm. But they are not mature enough to remain silent after having one of their own killed so easily.
"Put the gun down."
"But Commander..."
"Just put it down. That was my fault."
The Knight Commander, however, tells Frau that she is the one to blame.
"If you don't do it quickly, my hand is going to slip."
"...!"
One of the members clenched her teeth. As she has no choice but to lower her gun, but there is still an uneasy atmosphere coiling between the two.
However, Frau doesn't care about such an atmosphere and releases the Commander in her arms.
Frau is agitating the knights even more. But only the Commander did not lose her composure and lies down on her back next to her again.
"I have a suggestion."
"......I don't know if I can use any of the strategies that Mole-san comes up within her head though~?"
Even with a blade at her throat, and knowing that Frau would never show hesitation to the Knights, the way she stands next to her is the most reprisal she can muster against Frau. In fact, her words are filled with murderous intent.
"We found an animal trail on our way here."
The Knight Commander said that if they followed the animal trail, they would at least be able to reach the same location as the Kingdom Army musketeers positioned overhead without being noticed.
"However, the number of the enemy is unknown, so even if we surprise them with this number of people, we will not be able to......"
"The total number is fifty."
As she was about to continue, Frau casually announced the number of the Kingdom's troops encamped above.
"Well~. If there is such a loophole, then let's do it quick~."
And only the Knight Commander knew that it was not a lie.
"Then we'll do it right away."
"Then it's decided~."
Once the plan is set, the rest is fast, and the knights (including Droopy Boob Woman).
The Knight Commander leads Frau and her subordinates to the animal trail, and Frau, who follows behind, gives directions without trying to hide her disapproving attitude.
As if the process of getting there had been revealed only to them in advance, they reach the rear of the musketeers of the Kingdom Army without being spotted by the enemy forces.
And although her orange hair sticks out through the thick grass, the Kingdom Army musketeers, who can be seen below, still have their awareness and muzzle pointed down below them.
"Well, then, it's time to get to work~."
With the casualness of a person looking for a friend at a rendezvous point, Frau focused on the layout of the Kingdom Army's supplies in her field of vision and made a close observation.
And then.
"The more troublesome the premonition is, the more mysterious it is."
Exhaling a sigh, Frau hid in the grass again, turns to the Knight Commander, and told her.
"I ask you to send a message to the Lieutenant General. The contents of the message should read, 'They have abandoned their obligation to fulfill their duties'."
On the other hand, most of the knights looked at each other, which was unusual, and were a little puzzled.
But Frau's gaze was fixed on one person.
"Ilia."
"Y-yes!"
When she answered her call, the Knight Commander said, "You heard her, right?". And as a reminder.
"Go down the mountain at once and tell Lieutenant General Rojisko what she just said, word for word."
"Y-yes, I understand."
Frau gave a smile at the sight of the knight, who had no idea what was going on between her and the Knight Commander, and continued talking to the Knight Commander, who was watching the knight called Ilia descending the mountain.
"Also, I want you to aim and shoot at the rope that is hidden over there."
"Rope?"
When the Knight Commander asked back, Frau quietly pointed to the spot.
As she was led, she peeked through the overgrown grass at the place indicated by the fingertip, and immediately after that, the Knight Commander's expression became distorted for the first time.
Seeing that, Frau, ecstatic at finally being able to peel off her iron mask, whispers softly in the Knight Commander's ear as if she were the devil herself.
"Even a savage mole can't tolerate destruction~."
"......It's outside the scope of the mission."
"Arere~, are you really going to overlook it?"
The pupils in her orange-colored eyes are small like a cat's, and both ends of her mouth, which turned upward sharply like a crescent moon.
No one can see Frau's face. But her words and tone of voice strike a nerve with everyone in the Knights of the White Rose, including the Knight Commander.
But Frau doesn't stop. Frau, who hated the [Knights of the White Rose] more than anyone else and finds them unpleasant, will never stop.
"Shall I give you an excuse?"
“…………I don't need it!”
That sweet talk, wrapped in sweet sighs, is in some ways a clear and deadly poison.
The Knight Commander, who had overlooked it, bit down hard on her teeth, and then, as if to shake something off, pointed the muzzle of her musket at the ropes.
Simply put, the rope she was referring to was cleverly hidden between the trees that stood at either end of the road leading to the summit, crawling along the ground.
And beyond that, a large amount of ammunition. The Knight Commander immediately understood that they were probably intended to be used as traps when the place was abandoned.
However, if she detonated it by shooting it, the fact that "she" was in a position to be the first to receive the impact of the explosion slowed the Knight Commander's movement.
"Armes-sama, the detached unit that was sent down should encounter the enemy......."
Right after pulling the trigger.
It took less than a few seconds for the bullet, fired so fast that it left her conflicted feelings behind, to run under the feet of the girl who appeared to be the commanding officer, a brown-skinned girl called Armes, with purple hair trimmed at the shoulder, and the rope was cut.
A moment. After being blinded by a flash of light, a huge explosion sounded, and a shockwave that knocked down trees and overgrown grass hit everyone present.
Rising pillars of fire and black smoke. And as soon as the residue of the deafening explosion sound fell away, numerous screams of despair could be heard.
Frau, surrounded by flames, smiles bewitchingly and speaks to the leader of the kingdom's army, who is probably watching the scene from the top of the mountain.
"You gave us the list, but you took advantage of it to slow down our offensive, and to top it off, you have so much ammunition on hand that you are using it as a trap. Most of the Kingdom Army's leaders have probably already retreated, and there are probably less than a thousand of them here."
After arriving here, Frau first checked for traps.
She immediately recognized the size and number of traps, comparing the ammunition used with the number of enemy forces, instantly saw that the Kingdom Army had no intention of keeping the promises they had made behind the scenes.
"They were outnumbered, but they had the brains and the ability to come up with a plan and keep us at a standstill for half a day. If they weren't the enemy, I would have scouted them for a post at the major general level for the sake of the empire~."
"Is that it...?"
"Hmm~?"
At Frau's comment, the Knight Commander, who had been quietly watching the scene, which she had caused, finally opened her mouth.
"Is it enough to make you say that... one of the [13 nameless]?"
"At least I'm a notch or two better than you, who are content to sit on top of a lot of moles."
And, Frau adds,
"I happened to be enjoying my vacation at a nearby hot spring, and they went to the trouble of inviting me to come to this terrible battlefield. If the kingdom weren't a worthy opponent, I would have executed the commanders and everyone else in the headquarters."
At Frau's thoughts, the Knight Commander felt a cold sweat break out on her back.
Frau, one of the thirteen nameless.
When the empire was founded, the thirteen unparalleled loyal subjects followed the emperor and built the empire into what it is today. However, their achievements were only mentioned in all the documents, and not a single name was left behind.
The Thirteen Nameless is an underground organization, the highest-ranking organization in the current empire, but only a few people have a complete grasp of what it really is.
Each of them is absolutely unique in his or her field, and their loyalty is not to the nation but only to the current emperor.
However, their excessive loyalty is also characterized by a complete lack of awareness of the need to sacrifice their allies.
This is also the reason why Frau deliberately sent one of the Knights to her death just to save her the trouble of explaining the current situation.
In such an organization, Frau is the one in charge of intelligence.
It was inevitable that she, who is able to assess people, things, and information correctly and instantly, was sent to this place.
"Now that we have a good grasp of their traps and how they think, all we need to do is notify the entire army, and in a few hours this battle will be over~."
So when she says it's over, it's over.
The efforts of others, and even the miracles of chances, were now unreasonable because she was able to put them into information and come to a conclusion.
"......"
Is it possible to be named among the nameless thirteen because of such unreasonableness? or is it because she was able to surpass such unreasonableness that she was named?
And she, the leader of the Knight of the White Rose, who remained on the scene, muttered to the girl with dark purple hair and brown skin who had disappeared in the still burning flames she had caused, as one of those who had suffered such unreasonableness.
"I am sorry, my fellow countrymen."
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