MAP
-x-X-x-
-x-X-x-
-x-X-x-
JULY 25, UNIFIED YEAR 1927, THE IMPERIAL CAPITAL
Any era where heroes are needed is bound to be a time of misfortune.
Cao Cao, for example, is hailed by many as a brilliant leader who brought China out of troubled times. The legend of his triumphs is quite the story, to say the least.
But what happens when his legacy is examined from a different angle?
Say, through the lens of a peasant who lived as a subject of the Han dynasty.
Given the choice, would they willingly choose to live through the tumultuous times that made it possible for Cao Cao to etch his name in the annals of history? Surely most people would much rather prefer the stable times he created for many who lived under the dominion of the Han dynasty after he rose to power.
In the absence of problems that require heroic intervention, there simply is no need for a hero. Naturally, the reverse is true as well. The only reason people scream is because there is something to scream about.
The same can be said for the Empire.
Its citizens banded together for a common cause—the Heimat. The Empire sent each of its territories the call to arms.
In service of this unifying cause, there was no substituting the Empire's endless official propaganda, which caused its people to believe in more dangerous lies.
There was essentially no end to the war in sight without the Empire coming together.
Tanya von Degurechaff, lieutenant colonel for the Imperial Army, believes without a shadow of a doubt that there are far more calls for unity than could ever be supplied.
And what unity that could be found is far outstripped by how much is needed.
The delicate balance of supply and demand has been destroyed.
Any rational, logical person who believes in the market's integrity would be furious at the current state of its imbalance.
"…We're no longer in a position where we can let the free market determine what's right."
This sense of helplessness is met with a sigh Tanya can't keep to herself.
A mutually exclusive contradiction is building up inside of her.
The ideal market is a rational one curated under the rational supervision of rational people. When it comes to capitalism, the market's integrity needs to be as absolute as one of the Ten Commandments.
I can understand the concept of bounded rationality.
I can also acknowledge that there are limits to rationality.
Even when taking this into account, one must respect the supremeness of rationality as a model.
But oh, how awesome the reality of this world!
Those who loudly claim they wish for peace have not the slightest idea of what they actually want to buy.
"The Empire is a chimera… The army desires peace, the government desires peace, the people wish for nothing but peace, and yet, the extent to which they're all seeing different dreams while lying in the same bed is unbelievable."
The mess that the Empire created for itself brings a wretched smile to Tanya's face.
The Imperial Army is an instrument of violence subordinate to the nation- state known as the Empire. Therefore, in terms of its principal-agent relationship, the Imperial Army merely has to fulfill the Empire's version of peace.
This issue is, the Empire doesn't want peace. What it wants is "victory."
Does it desire victory to draw peace out of the current armistice agreement? No.
A victory to create reconciliation as a pathway to peace? No.
A victory to satisfy the Empire? No.
The victory they desire is nothing more than winning for the sake of winning.
It no longer makes any sense. Using fire to fight fire can be logically sound depending on how the fire is used, but having the fire department dispatch a tank instead of a fire engine every single time is a colossal mistake.
It makes me want to scream. It's obvious they've completely lost sight of their goal.
And they call this a country? There was no strategy to any of it—the war machine simply careens toward its next battle!
While the Empire's utter lack of strategy should be the central focus of my concern, I'm completely taken aback by the straightforward manner in which we pitch ourselves toward more overt violence.
This may not make sense to those of you living in times of peace in the modern world. Let me explain.
Let's say that you were hired to run a storefront for a fast-food chain.
Let's call it Reich's.
One day, for whatever reason, the owners of the chain and its shareholders come along and instruct you to "maximize profits as quickly as you can," without saying anything else. They have the utmost confidence that Reich's is going to take off but don't have any other information to offer: no plan, no goals, and no directions.
They also don't grant you any additional budget or authority over how the shop is run.
Should the operation fall through, it would be the employees who find themselves in trouble. How could they lay such a task on their employees without any guidance?!
No worker could bring success to their company under these impossible conditions.
To put it bluntly, this is precisely what the Empire's doing when it demands victory from its people.
Any employee at that fast-food place with even an inkling of common sense would immediately start looking for a new job.
It's not as if employees live for the corporation. They only work there to pay the bills.
Why should they pledge their allegiance to a restaurant chain? Who in their right mind would do such a thing?
Practically every human being with a brain can agree on the above.
However, some organizations operate on the premise that their members are inseparable from the group. This mirage of unity is the essence of what a nation is, and it is fully capable of deluding even the most intelligent, most civil, and most educated of citizens.
Love and hatred, good and evil. Or the greatest, most evil creation of the human race—the modern conception of the nation-state.
For Tanya, the mighty Leviathan from the parable would have been a cuter foe. It's tragic really. The Empire's version of the Leviathan is a chimera with three heads.
It's a system with three branches. The royal family and parliament dictate prestige and tradition, the bureaucrats ensure the nation continues to operate, and the Imperial Army firmly enforces the will of the other two branches.
The army, the bureaucrats, and the politicians form their own scrum.
This scrum acted as the word of God during the dawn of this nation. Despite this—nay, due to precisely this, the nation's founders eventually made a single, elementary mistake.
From the way Tanya sees it, her predecessors were wise and rational.
This is what made their mistake inevitable.
Their mistake? Putting far too much in the hands of their successors. You see, intelligent people often operate on the simple premise that their successors will be just as wise and capable as they were.
The permanence of the system, in which its three heads work together to make it as robust as possible, is unconditionally defined by the Imperial system as "a given for excellent human resources."
Left to its own devices, a system that meets these requirements should grow into the most powerful nation in the world.
Fortunately and unfortunately for the later echelons of the Empire, the three heads indeed pursue their sole purpose during their "rapid rise to power." The knowledge and institutional traditions established by their predecessors were out of reach for the Empire, but the shackles that weighed it down were also light.
The chimera then sought to leapfrog its shortcomings with a system that relied on the talent and drive of individuals, who in turn—for better or worse
—oversaw its rise to superpower.
As a result, the three heads each began to pursue their own goals. This can only end in one way: Each of the heads unconsciously believes that they are the "brains" that move the single shared body, and thus, each tries to pull it in their own direction.
It's a classic case of there being too many cooks in the kitchen. What the country needs right now is unity.
The Empire cannot afford to waste even the slightest amount of time or resources on infighting with the number of fronts they are fighting wars on. Tanya isn't the only one who thinks this way, either. Any logical soldier fighting for the Imperial Army would have the same cold recognition of what is transpiring.
Tanya laments to herself the misfortune of the situation.
"The army is the only head that has unity… To be fair, this unity only extends to the realm of warfare."
Looking at it from a different angle, the army has maintained its sanctity by making itself an independent organization that exists within the Empire instead of acting as a member of the Empire.
What happens when each head of our chimera tries to assume absolute control over its own part of the body?
Each part will split up, break apart, and wander off on their own accord.
They each call for unity, but none of the heads show any intent of cooperating. The people may be united, but the beast surely isn't.
This may suffice during times of peace, but a country that can succeed under such governance in times of adversity does not exist anywhere.
This poses a dilemma for soldiers who are ardent patriots. Foreign invaders need to be met with unity—that much is a given. The question is, what constitutes unity?
There are too many heads on this chimera.
This sort of governance is something the army loathes. When it comes to thinking up strategies, the more heads the merrier. The issue is, once a singular goal is set, there can be only one head that commands the beast. The chain of command must be absolute to head off any confusion and eliminate all chaos.
This principle couldn't be more evident from a purely militaristic standpoint. It's imperative that battles are fought as one cohesive whole and
not divided.
A second chain of command is nothing more than fuel for confusion—let alone a third.
This should be painfully obvious to anyone who cares to study how the Empire has lasted this long in a war waged against the world. A mere glance at the grandiose treaty that binds the armies of the Federation and the Commonwealth is only further confirmation of this self-evident truth.
A divided army is little more than rabble. Even if there is a great horde of them, dealing them a crushing blow is a simple matter.
When one hundred soldiers must confront a force twice their number in battle, the chances of them winning despite the number disadvantage are slim to none. However, if those same one hundred fight twenty separate battles against ten soldiers at a time, then there is little doubt the force of one hundred will carry the day.
This common sense is drilled into every military commander at a very early stage. Nearly anyone who has stepped foot on the battlefield has learned these rules from firsthand experience.
This is the line of thought that brings Aerial Magic Lieutenant Colonel Tanya von Degurechaff to where she is now, as she haplessly stares at the ceiling in frustration.
"The army is unified. I only hope the same can be said for the nation." So we have three heads on a single body.
Now here's a question:
What is the quickest way to break out of this chimera predicament? "Are they trying to justify their actions on the basis of necessity…?" The first solution that naturally comes to mind is a surgical one.
You could simply snip off the two extraneous heads.
Sadly, this way of thinking is far too simplistic. Even if the surgery could be completed successfully, it would be a terrible joke if the patient dies right afterward. Only a fool would try a stunt like this. Unfortunately, the Imperial Army is not for want of fools who have no idea what they're doing outside their realm of expertise.
What's more, these fools have only ever been taught how to perform surgery.
In fact, they've never learned how to find any other kind of solution.
The question To snip or not to snip? never occurs to them. If they
encounter a problem, their natural reaction is to reach for their bayonets and perform surgery. It's simply a matter of when and where they operate, not if.
Perhaps worst of all, it's almost admirable how well they perform elective surgeries.
Take a high-ranking general like Lieutenant General Rudersdorf. There isn't a doubt in Tanya's mind that he is perfectly capable of such a thing. Though it's agonizing to criticize him and the rest of the brass as shortsighted, it's simply a fact that they are incredibly good at waging war. Too good.
It goes without saying that their intelligence isn't lacking.
The people who become staff officers all undergo a multitude of strict evaluations that scrutinize their ruthlessness, how calculating they are, and most importantly, how spiteful they can be—rigorous evaluations that Tanya has yet to undergo. It couldn't be clearer that the lieutenant general always keeps surgical removal as an option in the back of his mind.
The thought wouldn't crop up unless it was necessary.
But… Tanya shudders as a terrifying possibility crosses her mind.
People like the lieutenant general don't act according to their personal desires; they act to do whatever needs to be done.
To put it more clearly, the sort of screwups that put the final peg in their failing company's coffin tend to be made by exemplary employees who were most loyal to the company. What could possibly be more miserable than getting pulled down by the death throes of an organization's failed attempt to salvage itself?
Which brings us to the present. It's high time for Tanya von Degurechaff to take her patriotism and hurl it into the nearest rubbish bin.
It's clearly outlived its usefulness. "This is ridiculous."
Is she getting paid enough for this? Absolutely not.
Should she have to share her doomed country's miserable fate? Even entertaining the idea is absurd.
There's no reason she should have to do work that's clearly above her rank and pay grade. Talk about labor standards.
Insufficiencies in the military system, structural failures of state institutions, and worst of all, the loss of any chance of salvaging the strategic situation. The only options left are hardly worth considering.
As it is now, the Empire is like a business barely scraping by from month to month, and Tanya is one of its loyal employees.
People who do good work need to be given commensurate rewards. Another way you could look at it is that money is the truest sign of faith and sincerity. As a concept or an ideology for structuring a society, it's perfectly reasonable. Tanya has no problem respecting her contract, either.
This social contract, however, is only legitimate if it can ensure stable employment and commensurate pay.
Now that it's plain to see that the Imperial Army's ship is in fact the Titanic, is there any reason she should have to stay aboard? If you want to live, then the only option is to run like mad for the lifeboats. This is the plank of Carneades in action.
In conclusion…
"I'm finished here… It looks like now is the time for a career change."
Tanya feels absolutely no remorse in leaving, even if it's considered defection. It's only natural to flee a sinking ship. And just as important is securing a path to retirement!
-x-X-x-
-x-X-x-
-x-X-x-
JULY 26, UNIFIED YEAR 1927, THE IMPERIAL GENERAL STAFF OFFICE
Human beings are creatures who are bound by their experiences and environment. No matter what knowledge they possess, no one can transcend this natural law. Take a beautiful sunny day, for example. Through the filter of war, even this beautiful sky could be reduced to low cloud cover and be a cause for concern.
It's impossible to take the world at face value. Humans are social animals; they have no choice but to close their eyes to embrace reality.
This is all the truer for members of a society with its own rules and regulations. Any person who is part of an organization will grow to personify that organization's culture.
Colonel Lergen was no exception to this rule.
He recognized this more than anybody. The man knew full well what being a senior staff officer for the General Staff meant.
Much to his chagrin, this awareness only deepened whenever he had to meet with someone from outside his bubble.
He walked down the familiar corridors of the General Staff Office as he made his way to the conference room, a wry smile coming unbidden at the thought of his upcoming meeting.
It was strange really.
It takes two to wage war, and when it comes to ending them, negotiating is an inevitable part of the program. It's not as if there was a way for the General Staff Office to bring an end to the war all on its lonesome.
Despite this fact, the Foreign Office and the General Staff Office were
about to meet for the very first time.
The military and the Foreign Office had largely ignored each other up until this point. Their mutual tendency to avoid each other under the assumption that each branch should handle their own business had amounted to a colossal waste of precious time.
Time that had been bought with the bodies of young soldiers. The fact that years had gone by before this meeting was finally scheduled was nothing short of a sin.
For better or worse, the representative from the Foreign Office showed up on time and arrived before the very punctual Colonel Lergen.
"A pleasure to meet you, Colonel. I'm…"
"Your reputation precedes you, Counselor Conrad. I'm glad you made the trip here."
The suited man extended his hand to Lergen, who was mid-salute. He noticed the offer belatedly and gave a somewhat strained smile before lowering his hand to answer in kind.
They exchanged a handshake rather than salutes.
It was a simple social gesture, but it threw Lergen off. The man's grip was…so incredibly limp that he had to consciously avoid shuddering.
It wasn't the hand of a man who'd ever held a tool, much less a weapon.
This weak man was lucky to be born in the Empire of today—no, this was not the time to be having such idle thoughts. Lergen shook his head and set his eyes on the man across from him.
What he saw was a handsome, honest-looking man. At a glance, his counterpart seemed slightly older than himself…far too young to be a counselor for the imperial Foreign Office.
"I must apologize, as all my predecessors have been discharged."
"Oh… It is I who should apologize. Did my face give my thoughts away?" "Yes, it did. Well, perhaps it's also because it's a bit of a sensitive topic
for me." Counselor Conrad wore a slight grin on his face at this point. "I'm all too aware that I'm terribly young for my current position. I may be crossing a line by pointing this out, but are you not in a similar situation? You are awfully young to be a colonel in the General Staff Office, are you not?"
"You'd be surprised how quickly a man can climb the ranks during times of war… I'm not sure if you're aware of this, Counselor Conrad, but it isn't strange for recruits fresh out of the military academy to become lieutenants
and lieutenant colonels as soon as they hit the battlefield."
"Fresh blood is a good thing to have in an organization." The counselor rubbed his chin playfully as he cracked wise. "We can leave the old bags to their card games."
He was clearly referring to his seniors at the Foreign Office.
By the sound of it, his workplace was a stressful environment for more junior members like himself. Colonel Lergen realized he was probably letting off some steam.
"Now then, Colonel, let's get down to business. We're both in the same boat. We need to clean up the mess our predecessors have saddled us with. I hope we can work well together."
Lergen was beginning to have hope that this counselor would pull his own weight after all. While he still had his reservations about whether the man truly grasped how much of a mess they were in, the fact that he didn't recite tired jargon like a broken record was a good sign.
"That's quite the scathing opinion you have there. Or…is it possible that's the reason you've blessed me with your presence today? You're getting my hopes up that changes may be on their way."
"Changes?"
"As a representative for the military, I would like nothing more than to work hand in hand with the Foreign Affairs Office."
Though the colonel wasn't honestly expecting much to change any time soon, he was met with a surprise.
The counselor nodded back with a look of indifference about him. "Affirmative."
"What?"
"I'm saying you are correct, Colonel Lergen. We are but servants to the mighty Empire. We are but cogs in the machine that keeps the steel triad ticking. The government, the bureaucracy, and the army." An ever-so-slight smirk adorned his handsome face, and there was a stark fervor to the tone with which he spoke, hinting at the disdain lurking just beneath the surface. "The state of stagnation we find ourselves in today is the result of our isolation from each other. Now that we have realized our mistake, it's only natural we change course. Am I wrong?"
"No, I agree."
The counselor sitting before him began to display his animosity with a
smile.
"It's quite simple, really, lest you be a fool. Unfortunately, our respective branches of the Empire think only the others are fools—a duet of obliviousness and ignorance." He scoffed, his tone growing angrier as if to emphasize just how disgraceful the situation had become. The man was unable to hide the sheer rage he felt. "We have fallen far from the sage tripartite that supposedly forms the basis of the Empire. Am I wrong?"
This was exactly what currently plagued the Empire. Lergen couldn't help but agree with the man.
The Imperial Army espoused "military reasoning." That was the only language it knew. The imperial council, the imperial family, and the government cared about nothing besides public opinion. And as a result, the bureaucratic organization that kept the Empire running simply continued to call for the preservation of the status quo.
The three gears no longer meshed.
To top it all off, each gear thought it bore the mission with the highest priority.
"The dysfunctional Supreme High Command is beyond salvation. Well, no one is innocent when it comes to our current predicament. In that regard, I should make it clear that I think the General Staff Office bears the largest responsibility."
Colonel Lergen sat at attention, acting as if he was taking the criticism to heart. The next thing the counselor would bring up, however, would shock him.
"Lieutenant General Zettour, in particular, has had an immense impact on the state of affairs with his rampant maverick behavior."
"The lieutenant general…? My apologies, but I'm afraid I cannot agree with that statement. The deputy director has been doing everything by the book. Could you elaborate?"
"During the battle with the François Republic, the leadership was kept in the dark about various military affairs. As a man of the military, Colonel, you may not see the problem with this. From the perspective of this nation's people, we were all but ostracized. Moving forward, I'd like to request we share information equally."
"That's not our job."
This was all the General Staff officer, who had heard this complaint a
million times before, could say in response. The counselor was upset about nothing more than a simple misunderstanding. From the General Staff Office's perspective, the army wasn't being stingy with information at all.
"There seems to be some confusion. After all, we believe we are already sharing all information that needs to be shared."
"Of course you do. But, Colonel, a high-ranking officer such as yourself is surely aware of how Lieutenant General Zettour was involved with the arrangements that were made in the rear."
"…Are you implying he didn't share all the necessary information? The army shares what it knows and does its job. It's not like we're speaking in the presence of the emperor."
"Colonel… I must admit, I'm jealous of the General Staff Office." "Come again?"
Counselor Conrad let out an exasperated sigh at Lergen, who was taken aback by the remark.
"I hear your operations are carried out brilliantly. The General Staff Office sounds like a phenomenal, intellectually stimulating work environment. I can only assume they recruited all the Empire's best and brightest."
"Forgive my arrogance, but it's only natural. A staff officer needs to be
—"
Counselor Conrad cut off Lergen mid-sentence with more disparaging words.
"Thanks to you, us civilians have a hard time coming up with a satisfying explanation."
Lergen stared at him in open confusion, which was met with yet another deep sigh.
"You can't possibly think calling out morons for what they are suffices as an explanation, do you? You must be out of your right mind. Explanations need to be broken down. They need to be so easy to understand that even an idiot can understand them."
"And who exactly are the morons?" "The common people you detest."
Lergen scowled at the counselor's scathing cynicism. He had gone too far.
Lergen had never felt that way about the masses even once in his entire life. "Well, Colonel. I'm assuming by the face you made that you disagree with
my evaluation?"
"I don't feel like I've ever disrespected anybody based on class."
Counselor Conrad raised his hand to his chin and stroked it with a big grin on his face, openly skeptical.
"So you're the type who doesn't mind explaining the same thing over and over again. You'll go out of your way to help someone understand something they only comprehend a small fragment of, yes? What an excellent educator."
He had a point, and it genuinely rattled Lergen. He and most of the other staff officers were expected to comprehend and remember information after hearing it just once.
They were evaluated strictly on how efficiently they could handle their work.
It was the essence of a staff officer's duty. He couldn't deny that they were absorbed in trimming the fat wherever it could be found.
"It seems you understand at last what I'm talking about. Good. That will make this a quick conversation… After all is said and done, this is only a problem for you when dealing with outside organizations."
"As embarrassing as it is for me to admit, you've made me realize my coworkers are all highly capable communicators."
Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff came to mind. She understood what needed to be said or done. This made her easy to work with. The same went for Colonel Calandro of Ildoa.
It went for his superiors, Lieutenant General Zettour and Lieutenant General Rudersdorf, too.
To put it bluntly, this applied to many people in Lergen's mind. This included those who worked under him as well. He never had to add any extraneous detail when he handed Lieutenant Colonel Uger an assignment.
Both his superiors and subordinates were quite responsive.
Their mutual military knowledge acted as a lingua franca, and they used shared tactics to complete their mission. What's more, they were all capable people who shared a common sense of pride in their duty.
When it came to communication, Counselor Conrad's grimace let Lergen know everything he needed to about the status quo.
"…So you're saying we haven't communicated enough?"
"To put it bluntly, yes. I believe it's worse than that. Of course, the Foreign Office is not without faults of our own. Communication has been
poor on all fronts."
Counselor Conrad took a moment to fish out a small case from his inner pocket before picking a cigar.
He cut it, then took out a match and—as if to show a sign of companionship—offered Lergen the case.
"Would you like one, Colonel?" "If you're offering, I'd love to."
"Of course. These cigars are superb. They were a present for the vice- minister's office."
Lergen could tell their quality by the fragrance wafting around the counselor as he smoked. He could also tell by the seal that they had only been recently imported. They likely came through Ildoa… He was surprised the counselor was able to get a hold of them. Obtaining cigars like this was no easy task, even for the General Staff Office.
"I procured these to give as a gift, or at least that is what I told my irksome supervisor. Smoking one will make you an accomplice in my crime… There'll be no explaining this away when the ministry comes after us."
Counselor Conrad said this joke with the most serious of expressions.
It was hard to tell whether he was joking at all. Lergen let out an awkward laugh as he took a cigar.
"Never thought I'd see the day where I enjoyed meeting someone from the diplomatic corps."
Counselor Conrad brought his hands together in a gesture of wholehearted agreement, then put on a look of satisfaction.
"I'm glad you see it my way. You've guessed correctly—we both stand to gain something by working together. What's most important is your will to cooperate. Am I wrong, Colonel?"
"I agree with you, but wouldn't what we stand to gain be more important than our intent?"
"How very diplomatic of you, Colonel. Will does indeed come before ability. It's what drives all action. Ability without intent is worse than useless."
Counselor Conrad let out a quiet chuckle.
"You only need to look as far as my predecessors. On paper, they were all a competent bunch."
He held out his hand and began counting with his fingers as if he was naming the seven virtues.
"Multilingual, well connected, educated, sophisticated and cultured upbringing—they were all fine people with pleasant demeanors, and they each had a thorough understanding of the arts. Each of them a noble diplomat who has every confidence in the free market and the justice system. You couldn't ask for a better group of people."
He lowered all but one finger, which he used to poke his own head with the most serious of expressions.
"They all lacked drive. I assume your office is plagued with a similar problem?"
"I'll admit, mistakes were made during our initial confrontation with the Entente Alliance…"
"And now we're paying for those early stumbles. It's precisely the reason our branches have operated independently up until now. That needs to stop now. We need to start working together. I only hope we can start without delay. God forbid, we need to make preparations."
Regardless of how he felt on the inside, Lergen responded in a calm manner.
"Whether it be the army or the bureaucrats, I believe preparations for the worst must always be made."
It didn't matter what he felt. This was a sort of political stance Lergen had come to acquire as a staff officer—a military bureaucrat.
It was the exact sort of politics he loathed, but nevertheless, he was able to adapt to their way of thought with significant ease. He surprised even himself.
It was humiliating. He was also slowly but steadily becoming a political animal. As much as he loathed the idea, necessity is the mother of invention.
The same went for the counselor—it was the reason they were meeting in the first place.
After they calmly shared a brief stare down, the tension came to an abrupt end.
"You're absolutely right," Counselor Conrad said as he nonchalantly averted his gaze and gave a slight nod. "That being said, I don't see the need to dig new graves on the assumption of more failures. Rather than mourn our losses, why not work closely together to do what needs to be done?"
Lergen took a moment to think before he spoke.
What Conrad said undoubtedly sounded nice on paper, but Lergen didn't appreciate officials from other branches and their political games. There was no way for him to discern what hidden meanings might have been hiding behind the proposal. He tried to read between the lines. A moment of anguish passed as he pondered the bureaucrat's potential ulterior motives.
Unable to come up with anything, all he could do was agree with the premise.
"…You make a strong point." "Excellent."
"What is it you find excellent, Counselor?"
"Oh," Counselor Conrad began to explain as if he was apologetic for not laying it out earlier. "I imagine the current stagnation occurring on both the eastern and western fronts is far from ideal. So I've come here to tell you how we view the current situation. We're deeply concerned about the situation and wish to figure out some sort of exit strategy."
"You're saying this as a Foreign Office official, I assume."
"But of course. As a member of my organization, it would be best for both of us if we could find a way to cooperate. This is why I think we should share the information at our disposal."
The way he speaks… He has no reservation about saying all this openly.
Conrad was remarkably easy to read for someone in charge of foreign affairs. This was likely why a strange feeling began welling up inside Lergen. He couldn't quite nail down the exact cause, but if he had to choose a word, the most accurate one was probably jealousy.
He was jealous of this man.
Given the current state of affairs in the Imperial Army, would it have even been possible for them to reach a consensus and propose something like this to another branch of government?
The ominous words Plan B flashed through Lergen's mind, but he brushed the thought away.
If everything went smoothly—if the army could fall in line with the Foreign Office—it would rid the Empire of its problems.
With a big smile on his face, Colonel Lergen extended his hand toward Counselor Conrad.
"It brings me the utmost happiness to be able to unify under the Empire flag."
"So you mean…?"
Lergen answered with a nod.
"There shouldn't be any objections from the army. If there's a way for us to end this war together, then they'll be open to it."
"…I must be honest, Colonel. This is a huge relief." "May I ask the reason for that?"
"Of course," Counselor Conrad said as a puff of smoke escaped his mouth and billowed out past the cigar. "I was worried. Worried that there wouldn't be anyone in the General Staff Office that I could talk to in these troubled times."
The counselor's criticism was harsh, but Lergen was a staff officer. That didn't come as any surprise.
"I've come to realize the importance of maintaining a level of sobriety during these times of total war. War is nothing more than rationalized violence."
Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff was a perfect example.
She didn't indiscriminately use violence as a means to an end.
She was an officer who had fully adapted to life during all-out war, though it would likely be for naught in the end. Lergen couldn't deny that she was a logical servant to the country, but there was something off about her.
At the same time, she wasn't like a runaway freight train. She could restrain herself when the situation called for it.
She was an officer through and through. She was measured, disciplined, and capable of taking the right action at the right time. It would be impossible to not hold her in high regard. One needed to look no further than her many accolades as a field officer—her record spoke for her. Lergen could only respect the young girl.
…In that regard, if that were the sort of field officer Counselor Conrad had in mind when he came to meet Lergen, it was perfectly understandable how he may have expected someone tougher.
After a brief self-reflection, Colonel Lergen realized that Counselor Conrad was standing up with a look of satisfaction about him.
"Colonel, thank you for today. I'm glad to have been able to meet you. I'd like to make the necessary arrangements to put things in motion. Is it okay for
me to come by again tomorrow?"
"As they say, one must strike while the iron is hot. Let's get started right away."
-x-X-x-
LATER THAT DAY AT THE OPERATIONS DIVISION AT THE GENERAL STAFF OFFICE—THE DIRECTOR'S OFFICE
"It's Colonel Lergen. I'm coming in."
"Hello, Colonel. What did the visitor from the Foreign Office have to say?"
"It appears they have also begun to fear for the worst. In that light, they have the same goals as we do. They know it's going to be a bumpy path to victory…but they believe that if we're able to work together, then there may still be a way out."
He glanced up at Lieutenant General Rudersdorf's face, which was deathly pale.
"That's good, assuming we can make it." "Are we limited by time?"
"You'll need to ask the Ildoans about that. They'd tell you there's still some sand in our hourglass."
Lergen's brow creased at the blatant remark. He didn't need it spelled out for him that the Empire was in a bind.
"…I didn't think you were one for sarcasm, sir." "Colonel, you're such a bumbling idiot."
Lergen let out a single small gasp. In all reality, Lergen recognized that he himself wasn't one for making jokes. Lieutenant General Rudersdorf was… probably just griping to let off some steam.
The remark certainly caught Lergen off guard, though.
The general was under immense pressure—tormented by the lack of hope in the war. Perhaps it was a coping mechanism that allowed him to carry on.
That said, Colonel Lergen, who had stood by his side all these years, had not failed to detect this change.
The Lieutenant General Rudersdorf from the past would've spoken much louder, with a firmer tone. Could it be that he's on his last legs?
"…It feels like everyone is running around without any idea of what to do. The turmoil of war is harsh. Fighting for all-out victory comes at a heavy price."
"We could use diplomacy to find an acceptable compromise. I believe it stands to reason that if we pour our resources into this, there may be a way to make it happen."
"Would you consider that a victory?"
Colonel Lergen answered the question with a firm tone. "It is a victory."
Lieutenant General Rudersdorf gave him an intense, stern stare that said,
Go on.
"I believe it's an ideal way for us to end the war. It would be a way for us to make the enemy accept our demands. Could it not be considered a different means to the same end?"
It wasn't a courageous victory. The war would effectively be ended by an armistice after so, so many had lost their lives.
An end to the fighting is still an end. It wasn't something to brag about, but sometimes the best medicines taste the most bitter. This was why Colonel Lergen remained steadfast about this proposal, even if he knew it was sugarcoated with hope.
"In terms of national defense, I believe this would be a clear victory." "That only holds true if we can bring the war to an end on favorable
terms. You and everyone else, you only talk about the future—about what you hope will happen. It's fine to talk about the harvest, but you need to sow the seeds and toil in the fields for there to be one."
"You're unmistakably correct, General. This is precisely why now is the time to prepare the soil, even if it costs us precious time."
"Oh?" Lieutenant General von Rudersdorf had a look of interest about him. "Are you unfamiliar with farming, Colonel? You need to have the soil ready by spring. By the looks of our calendar, we should be getting ready to start harvesting the crops by now."
He pointed out that it was already summer with a lighthearted laugh, but there was a flaw in his logic.
"If we're talking about oats, then you have a point… But timing depends
on what you're trying to cultivate." Lergen was determined to stress that it was far from too late.
"What are you getting at?"
The glance aimed at Lergen was incredibly imposing, but Colonel Lergen kept his composure and continued his retort with a casual tone.
"I simply don't want any distractions. That's all. I want to have a clear mind when the time to harvest the homeland—the Heimat—comes around."
"I couldn't agree more, Colonel. As of late, there are too many trivial details that need to be hashed out despite the lack of 'time.' It's quite a shame."
He emphasized the word time as he shook his head with exhaustion.
"We are soldiers for the Heimat, for the Empire. We'll simply do whatever needs to be done. We can't hope for anything beyond that."
"I couldn't agree more."
"We need to try what we think is best. And hopefully, we choose the right way to go about it."
They both shared a sense of anguish at the notion that this was the best they could come up with. It was why Colonel Lergen decided to bet everything on making sure this new direction would bear fruit. Ignoring the call of duty was the last thing he'd ever do.
His love for the Heimat was more ardent than most.
"Colonel, work together closely with that…Counselor Conrad from the Foreign Office. No matter which path the Empire decides to take, we have to make do with whatever we've got."
"I'll see to it immediately. Would you mind if I borrow Lieutenant Colonel Uger?"
"…If you don't mind being met with the unbridled fury of the soldiers stationed on the eastern front—first and foremost, Zettour—when the trains stop running on time."
In these dire times, that was hardly enough reason to not secure Uger's help. Lergen knew what he needed to do, and he needed Uger to do it.
"I can endure that. This is for the Heimat." "Perfect."
Lieutenant General Rudersdorf slowly rose from his chair. He gave a hearty chuckle as if a load had been lifted off his shoulders.
"If there's a way out of this with the limited time we have, then that's the
best solution. I'm counting on you, Colonel." "Of course, sir. You have my word."
"Now, I'll give you everything you need. You are acting on my authority.
Do what you think is best."
Colonel Lergen thanked the general before giving a firm salute and taking his leave.
The colonel looked down at his watch. It seemed like there was a bit of time before his next appointment.
He took a moment to think about his day so far. His guard had been up from the moment he rose from bed.
The colonel had spent the morning meeting with Counselor Conrad, then Lieutenant General Rudersdorf.
Both these meetings were quite productive. But that progress came with a price… He found himself terribly tired. His body wanted a break to ease his mental fatigue. It didn't help that his less-than-stellar K-Brot breakfast only seemed to add to that fatigue.
At any rate, there was no escaping hunger.
Now that he had some time, Lergen figured he should grab something to eat… even if it meant dining at the General Staff Office's cafeteria.
Back in the olden days, he almost always would've eaten out instead. It was the obvious choice, considering the striking difference in quality and taste compared to the cafeteria fare. The war changed everything.
"It's more convenient if I eat in… To think the day would come where that argument would be enough for me to put up with that terrible taste."
Without the war, this probably would've never happened. After all, this was about the only place that could make eating out every single day a reasonable proposition. For everyday use, the banquet room at the General Staff Office was now a more logical choice.
Lergen was all too familiar with how total war had a funny way of making the impossible possible.
With that in mind, he made his way to the extravagant banquet room, where he would down some criminally bland food before grabbing some hot
water and drinking cheap tea in his office before it was time for his next meeting.
At the exact same moment he reached the door, he heard a sound coming from the other side.
"It's Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff, sir."
It was an elegant knock. Degurechaff had made some incredible accomplishments as a field officer. Even the stricter officers from before the war would have nothing to say about her greeting. There weren't many soldiers who carried themselves as she did. All officers were meant to be examples for the rank and file, but Degurechaff was likely the pride and joy of the military academy and the General Staff Office.
It was regrettable that they couldn't make more like her. But not too many. Too many Degurechaffs on the battlefield could very well lead to the apocalypse.
Either way, Lergen admired her.
"You're right on time. Punctual, as always."
The aerial magic lieutenant colonel stared blankly in response. Lergen had no doubt it was because she never would've guessed in a million years that she'd be complimented for showing up on time. Being punctual was an essential part of life, but to Colonel Lergen—however fundamental it may be
—it was important and praiseworthy.
He was pressed for time. All the problems of the Empire were related to timing.
Colonel Lergen thought for a moment… The aerial magic officer who stood before him, Degurechaff, had never let him down. She had gone too far on more than a few occasions, though. That said…Lergen knew that sometimes desperate times called for desperate measures. He appreciated her decisiveness, especially now, when time was in such incredibly short supply.
"Thank you for the kind words, Colonel. I've come prepared for whatever suitably unreasonable orders you might have for me."
"How keen of you. We'll be sending you to the west in the coming days."
-x-X-x-
[Image]
-x-X-x-
"The west?"
Colonel Lergen began to share the details with her.
"You heard correctly. We're going to give Lieutenant General Romel a single pawn. Think of it as a symbol of the General Staff Office's affection for him. I realize this is sudden and unexpected in the middle of a raging war…but I hope you'll produce results."
Abrupt, unofficial transfers such as this usually required haste, but the fact that they went to the trouble of keeping it discreet like this meant there was still a bit of time. Lergen recognized that this was a strange contradiction, but the Imperial Army was an organization that lived by the words Eile mit Weile. Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.
This was especially true for colonels and lieutenant colonels.
"Yes, sir. I'll gather my things and head west. The General Staff Office has been quite considerate lately… How nice of you."
"Lieutenant General Rudersdorf is a compassionate man." "Understood. Shall I deploy my Kampfgruppe?"
"No, we only need your aerial magic battalion. We want the other troops to focus on recuperating."
The calm lieutenant colonel saluted to show she knew her orders and would carry them out to the letter. How Lergen wished he could show her response to every imperial soldier.
Her conduct was exemplary. Her silence was impeccable. And yet, there was something about her stare that he couldn't ignore.
…Considering the Empire's current state, Lergen felt he should probably elaborate on what he meant by the General Staff Office's affection for Romel.
"There's something else I'd like to mention, Lieutenant Colonel." "Sir?"
"The time has come for us to prepare for the worst. I want you to do your best to keep us from slipping over the brink. Please keep the bold and rash decisions to a minimum."
"Colonel, I'm a soldier—a simple officer who follows orders. I'll plan for the worst, and then I'll carry out my mission to the best of my abilities within the realm of my jurisdiction."
This was another formality. It was the exact response Lergen had wanted to hear, but she was no longer an officer who needed to assure anyone that she would carry out her duty.
Her textbook response was almost painful to watch. She was clearly trying her best to draw a line in the sand and emphasize that she was a soldier and nothing more. Lergen used to be that way, too. He hated politics.
"Lieutenant Colonel Tanya von Degurechaff, I feel like I'm getting to know you better as of late. I'm just curious as to where on earth you picked up that remarkable nose of yours."
"What do you mean, Colonel?"
He knew the answer to his own question. It was only natural for a hunting dog to have the nose of a hunting dog.
She had most likely already caught on to their Plan B.
It also made a strange kind of sense why Lergen thought he was getting worse at explaining things to people. He had spent too much time working with someone like her. Counselor Conrad was right—he needed to relearn how to break things down into laymen's terms.
He stifled a self-deprecating laugh to focus on the task at hand. Colonel Lergen jumped back into the moment and began telling Degurechaff what she needed to know.
"On that note…there's something I want you to do while strictly adhering to a schedule."
"Yes, sir. What is the schedule?"
"I need you to head to the eastern front on some official business. You're going to deliver a secret letter to General Zettour on behalf of General Rudersdorf. After that, I've arranged for you to spend some time preparing in the east. When that is finished, you'll return to the imperial capital. You'll head west after that."
-x-X-x-
LATER, AT THE GENERAL STAFF OFFICE BANQUET HALL
The banquet hall at the General Staff Office was always filled with officers who had just finished their lunches. This tendency was quickly becoming a routine.
People who thought this was how it always was didn't know the times
before the war.
It may have been hard to believe, but as far as General Romel knew, the General Staff Office banquet room was merely for show. Taste wasn't a factor in the equation. In fact, this venue was famous for serving the world's worst-tasting meals.
But look at it now—it was packed full of officers. Even if the most alluring delicacies from around the globe were waiting outside, the ever- shifting war situation kept the senior staff officers too busy to eat anything besides the bare minimum.
This was why most of the officers at the banquet hall could be seen inhaling their food as quickly as they could to avoid tasting it. After this, they would smoke whatever cheap military tobacco they had on hand to wash the taste out of their mouths. For what it was worth, the officers refrained from tossing their cigarette butts to prevent the building from becoming a complete mess. Nevertheless, it was a far cry from what most people imagined when they thought of the prestigious General Staff Office.
In fact, most visitors who saw the scene in the past few days would have a hard time believing this was the center of military operations. This was all the truer for someone like Lieutenant General Romel, who hadn't been there in a while.
His disgruntlement with the vain olive wreath that had been placed over his head kept him from noticing right after his return, but…he found the state of the General Staff Office so disconcerting that it now seemed impossible to ignore.
From victory on the Rhine front to the struggling expedition in the southern continent…the drastic changes that had occurred in between made him feel like Rip van Winkle or Urashima Taro.
He had heard rumors, of course, but it was still a shocking sight to see for himself.
"…Not all old habits are bad. Maybe I didn't need to eat before coming to the General Staff Office."
He scoffed to himself as he walked down the same carpet that hadn't changed his entire tenure there. There were far more people here now than he could ever remember.
The halls were abuzz with activity.
Though it felt calm from the perspective of a field officer… This was the
General Staff Office. Not too long ago, anyone who made noise for no good reason would have gotten an immediate tongue-lashing.
But look at this place now!
It was like he had wandered into a completely different building. The first thing he noticed was how the place was in total disarray. Romel was a firm believer in squaring away this sort of chaos with planning and order!
The sanctity of the General Staff Office had been lost. It was like a drunk, tottering man now.
This was supposed to be a place where soldiers marched in unison, a symbol of order, the temple of war. Has the death of thousands stripped something important from these sacred halls?
The lieutenant general shook his head and continued down the hall.
He headed deep into the General Staff Office building to a room that hadn't changed much despite the current state of the facility…and Lieutenant General Rudersdorf appeared exactly on time to welcome him in.
They exchanged salutes and jumped right into the thick of things.
The meeting was about the fortification of the defensive line as well as the establishment of a command-and-control framework on the western front. Frankly speaking, the orders to establish a command center there weren't coming from the General Staff Office directly, and it was still unclear whether or not a coup d'état was in the works.
Well, something along those lines was bound to happen out of necessity. He wasn't so old and senile that he didn't have some idea of what the head of the General Staff Office was thinking.
Nevertheless, out of all the infinite possible scenarios, he knew only one future awaited him. Their contingency plan was, as the name suggested, a mere contingency.
He didn't know Lieutenant General Rudersdorf's true intentions. This whole Plan B could be a feint of some sort. Regardless, General Romel's job wasn't to trick his comrades. He was a soldier, and his job was to fight wars. He would simply focus on gaining momentum on the western front.
There wasn't a doubt in his mind that the General Staff Office would use his excellent military service to their own advantage. He knew he should just focus on the war; there was no time for him to get caught up in petty games and politics.
This is why he had nothing but gratitude when he received his orders that
explicitly told him to head west.
"I must extend my thanks for deploying White Silver with me to the front.
It'll make things much easier."
Degurechaff was a talented aerial magic officer and an excellent staff officer. She was a rare diamond born in a generation of so many lumps of coal. An officer capable of handling the workload of two or three, maybe even four officers.
She was also a hunting dog he could discuss the contingency plan with.
It was no mystery why Romel was grateful to have her under his command. Unfortunately, there's usually a rain cloud waiting to rain on every parade.
"I must apologize—it will take some time before she's able to deploy. Know that Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff won't be there as soon as you'd like her to be."
"May I ask why?"
Romel's expression tightened up a bit, though not enough to say that he was in a bad mood. The reaction was perfectly understandable.
…He liked to think of soldiers he was promised as checks. They couldn't be considered proper currency until he cashed them in. The reason for this was because reinforcements sent from the top usually ended up being fake checks.
He wanted cash in hand as soon as he could get it.
So he fixed the general with an intense stare and asked him why directly, but the answer he'd get was an unexpected one.
"Personnel has been riding me about getting her to spend both her summer vacation and the vacation time she has yet to use. Her summer vacation only just began as of today."
Lieutenant General Romel unconsciously—no, quite consciously—raised his voice.
"A vacation? Did you say vacation?!"
There had to have been a better excuse than that! The thought of a veteran aerial mage taking some time to relax and enjoy their summer during wartime was preposterous.
"My apologies, sir. But I must ask… Are you… Is the General Staff Office going to allow this?"
Romel thought of strategists as priests for the merciless god of necessity.
They were fully capable of sacrificing their subordinates' vacation time for the sake of advancing war goals. Should the need arise, they were even willing to revoke already promised leave.
It went without saying that it's vital for the human mind to rest from time to time. But at the end of the day, farmers in the field of strategy were slaves to necessity. Not only that, but the person standing before Romel could easily cancel the aerial magic officer's vacation with a single phone call.
Stifling a chuckle, Lieutenant General Rudersdorf clasped his hands together while giving a slight shrug.
"Taking time off is important, no? It's simply a breather for Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff while she runs a small errand for us in the east. We're having her deliver a secret document for us."
"Oh? And Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff has to be the one to deliver this particular document?"
She was an aerial magic officer and an exceptionally skilled one with ample experience. Whatever she was delivering, it must've been a crucial set of papers.
General Romel had a good guess as to what the all-important package might be—a message regarding Plan B. Most likely a direct line of communication to General Zettour.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. It is a simple mission for her so she can take her vacation time. Think of it as a treat for her. She'll be able to do some sightseeing in the east and meet with Lieutenant General Zettour."
"Hopefully, heading to the eastern front will actually be relaxing for her." "Yes. Let's pray that it will be."
Lieutenant General Rudersdorf casually muttered this to himself. It was evident to Romel that he didn't want to discuss the subject any further.
Romel almost felt bad for the tiny lieutenant colonel. She could never catch a break. He could only hope that she would get some real time off in the east before she came to the west, where he fully intended to work her to the bone.
"Well, if that's the case, then I understand." "Good."
Lieutenant General Rudersdorf let out a single pointedly deliberate cough before getting back on track.
"Then it's decided. I look forward to your performance on the western
front."
"You'll appreciate the results of our time in the south."
Lieutenant General Romel gave a salute before leaving the room. Once he was in the hallway, he heaved a leaden sigh.
The path back was a dim one as well. The halls he passed through might as well have been one long, decrepit rathole.
Even a cat wouldn't have wanted any part of this place. Romel was becoming afraid of the godforsaken General Staff Office.
It was scarier than the battlefield in its own way. He wanted to get out as soon as he could. The man who had endured hard fighting in both extreme cold and heat knew he would never get used to the doublespeak he encountered in his own country.
The same country that he was duty bound to protect from foreign threats as a soldier.
…He just couldn't shake the feeling that he was getting into something that went well beyond his duty. It was far too difficult for him to fully grasp the mess that was Plan B.
Things were getting too complicated.
If he were to liken the situation to a battle, it was as if his troops were strewn all over the place. It flew in the face of the tried-and-true principle of focusing the troops on a single target. Was he expected to pull off a miracle in this thick fog of war?
It was fodder for disaster.
"General Rudersdorf might be too far gone."
He couldn't help but feel the general was in over his head. Something about the whole thing just didn't add up.