How a Two-Life Scoundrel Lives - Chapter 111

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 111】

 

Flap!

 

A three-eyed hawk landed on the window of Helen’s office.

 

“Ah.”

 

Helen, who had been handling administrative work, turned her gaze as she realized the hawk was Hugin.

 

“Good work.”

 

“Coo coo.”

 

Helen gave Hugin some water and dried jerky as a reward, then untied the note attached to its leg.

 

‘Hmm. A large enemy force. This is good intelligence. Though the return might be delayed.’

 

As soon as Helen read the contents of the note, she immediately went to find Krabel, the Battalion Commander.

 

“It’s already been three days. When the hell is that damn bastard going to be brought back?”

 

Krabel pressed her as soon as he saw Helen.

 

“…Phew.”

 

A long sigh escaped from Helen’s lips.

 

Krabel had been nagging Helen so much for the past three days that she was now openly sick of it.

 

‘Is there any news?’

 

‘How long do I have to wait?’

 

‘Damn it all! How long are you going to make me wait!’

 

Krabel would come find Helen or summon her at all hours to ask about Carlisle.

 

How fed up must Helen have been to sigh first at Krabel’s questions.

 

“A report just came in from Corporal Marder, who was deployed on the operation to apprehend Private Carlisle.”

 

“Really?!”

 

“They’ve currently secured Private Carlisle and apparently reached an agreement for him to return to the unit.”

 

“Oh! That’s wonderful news! What a relief!”

 

Krabel grinned from ear to ear with joy.

 

“So are they coming back right now?”

 

“You’ll have to wait a bit longer, it seems.”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“Please look at this.”

 

Helen pointed to the map laid out on the large table.

 

“This is a report that a large enemy force is currently passing through this area.”

 

“Hmm?”

 

“So the plan is to wait for a while and return once the large enemy force has passed.”

 

“A large enemy force… How big are we talking?”

 

“They say over a thousand men.”

 

“…!”

 

Krabel was shocked.

 

The Blood-Soaked Land of Kuberin, with its densely overgrown primeval forests and rugged mountain terrain, severely limited the deployment of large forces.

 

But over a thousand men…

 

The Barbarians were clearly trying to completely dominate a specific region.

 

“This is no ordinary problem. Listen here.”

 

“Yes, Battalion Commander.”

 

Krabel ordered his aide.

 

“Immediately halt all mining operations and order the troops to return to the unit.”

 

“Yes sir.”

 

“And you send another messenger to tell that bastard and the 3rd Company reconnaissance soldiers not to move rashly and to wait until safety is secured.”

 

Krabel ordered Helen.

 

“I’ll send the 1st and 2nd Company reconnaissance teams to conduct search and reconnaissance operations, then share the gathered intelligence. You relay that to your subordinates.”

 

“Understood.”

 

“Where exactly is that bastard’s current location?”

 

“Here.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

Krabel stared intently at the map with hawk-like eyes.

 

“It seems things have gotten seriously complicated.”

 

“What do you mean by that?”

 

“That bastard’s location.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“As you know, this place cannot serve as a strategic stronghold. It’s a rare open field with no topographical advantages whatsoever. Naturally, it would be vulnerable to defense as well.”

 

“I made the same assessment.”

 

“But from here to here.”

 

Krabel’s finger pointed to the areas already occupied by the Barbarians and where Carlisle’s group was hiding – namely, Antiros’s Research Laboratory.

 

“As a forward base for those Barbarian bastards to attack our fortresses, this open field would be quite useful.”

 

“But as you mentioned earlier, isn’t it terrain that’s vulnerable to defense?”

 

“Vulnerability to defense can be sufficiently compensated by deploying large forces. You must never overlook that point.”

 

“…!”

 

Helen was startled by Krabel’s sharp observation.

 

It was something even Helen hadn’t thought of, so it really caught her off guard.

 

“Listen here, 3rd Company Captain.”

 

“Yes, Battalion Commander.”

 

“I don’t like admitting it, but you’re quite a capable officer. Though you still have many immature aspects.”

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. The Kuberin region’s rugged terrain and environment leave no room to think about deploying large forces. It’s not strange that you missed this. Haven’t you been serving only in this area?”

 

Krabel was a more capable commander than expected.

 

He too, like Helen, was someone who started as a common soldier, received knighthood, became an officer, and rose to Battalion Commander.

 

Regardless of his personal character, his advice was worth heeding.

 

“I will keep the Battalion Commander’s teachings in mind.”

 

“Good. However…”

 

Krabel squeezed his eyes shut as if the very thought was terrible.

 

“It seems we’re screwed. The enemy is going to establish a position right where that damn bastard is hiding.”

 

“Th-that’s…”

 

“That’s right. Your subordinates are isolated right in the middle of enemy positions.”

 

Helen’s face turned deathly pale.

 

* * *

 

After confirming that the Barbarians were establishing positions, the atmosphere inside the research laboratory became rapidly gloomy.

 

“A-are we screwed now?”

 

“Well, pretty much.”

 

Carlisle answered Begman’s question.

 

“Damn Barbarian bastards! Of all places to establish positions, it had to be here!”

 

Begman exploded in frustration, but that wouldn’t change anything.

 

“We should wait until deep into the night when the Barbarians are asleep, then slip out quietly.”

 

Kudo offered his opinion, and everyone agreed.

 

However, it took less than an hour for Kudo’s proposal to be shattered to pieces.

 

Thud, thoom!

 

“This thing is damn heavy!”

 

“Stop complaining and move it faster! You lazy bastards!”

 

The barbarians had piled up construction materials like bricks, rocks, and logs at the entrance to the research laboratory, leaving them completely unable to move.

 

“….”

 

Carlisle’s group lost their words upon seeing the construction materials piled up at the entrance.

 

“Then let’s escape through the ventilation shafts. Haha….”

 

Kudo made another suggestion, but even that wasn’t feasible.

 

There were a total of 5 ventilation shafts in the research laboratory.

 

However, of the 3 ventilation shafts large enough for people to pass through, the barbarians had built bathrooms in them, and the remaining 2 were only large enough for small animals at best, making escape impossible.

 

“F-For now….”

 

Lieutenant Melvin mustered his courage and spoke up.

 

“H-How about we quietly hide until the, the enemies clear away the materials piled at the entrance?”

 

“Well, we’ll have to.”

 

Carlisle nodded and listened to Lieutenant Melvin’s opinion.

 

Since he had spoken up as an officer, Carlisle couldn’t ignore it.

 

“Let’s wait and see for a day or two as Lieutenant Melvin suggested. There’s no way out for now.”

 

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

 

Begman nodded and then looked at Marder.

 

“When Hugin returns, report the current situation to Sir Helen again.”

 

“Yes, Captain.”

 

Marder nodded at Begman’s instruction.

 

“How can the butler be so unlucky? Ugh! What a fate!”

 

“I’m annoyed too, so stay quiet. Like anyone’s having a good time.”

 

When the baby dragon grumbled, Carlisle spoke curtly.

 

“Just endure it for a day or two. Once they clear away the materials piled at the entrance, we can slip out then.”

 

“It’s so frustrating!”

 

“Who isn’t frustrated? Bear with it.”

 

Carlisle spoke decisively and headed back to the bedroom.

 

Since there wasn’t much to do anyway, he planned to just lie around and sleep.

 

“I’m coming with you!”

 

Beatrice followed closely behind Carlisle.

 

* * *

 

“Ah.”

 

Helen sighed as soon as she received Marder’s second note.

 

It was only natural that Helen felt uneasy upon hearing that Carlisle’s group was trapped in Antiros’s research laboratory with nowhere to go.

 

After all, Helen was the one who had allowed Carlisle’s group to stay at Antiros’s research laboratory in the first place.

 

‘I have to rescue them somehow. They’re there because of my careless judgment.’

 

With that thought, Helen went to find Battalion Commander Krabel and reported this situation to him.

 

After all, as the 3rd Company Captain, she couldn’t not report to the Battalion Commander.

 

“So it turned out that way after all. My prediction was right.”

 

“Yes, Battalion Commander.”

 

“Thanks to that, we have a safety measure.”

 

“Excuse me…?”

 

“Since things turned out this way, if something goes wrong, we’ll say your subordinates were isolated during the operation.”

 

“My subordinates’ lives are in danger, and you’re thinking about avoiding responsibility first? Really?”

 

“Is there a law against that? I have to survive too.”

 

“You call that something to say?”

 

Helen was truly dumbfounded.

 

To think he would seek his own way out first in this situation….

 

“Your subordinates being in danger is one thing, and me finding my way out is another. Why are you getting so worked up? Did I say I wouldn’t rescue your subordinates?”

 

“That’s not the point….”

 

“Sorry, but don’t jump to conclusions. That scoundrel and the scout members are my subordinates before they’re yours.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

“Tell them to continue hiding for now. According to reports from the company reconnaissance team and 2nd company reconnaissance team, the enemy’s numbers are roughly around 1,500. We can’t rescue them with just our battalion’s forces.”

 

“Then….”

 

“I’ll request support from higher command, so wait a bit. Don’t whine like a child.”

 

Helen was dumbfounded.

 

‘After constantly pestering me for three days straight.’

 

However, Krabel was utterly shameless, as if he had completely forgotten his own behavior.

 

“And as you well know, the season of war is approaching. The higher-ups won’t take this incident lightly either.”

 

[Season of war] was an expression referring to autumn in the Northern Region.

 

Winter in the Northern Region was very difficult for combat due to frequent heavy snowfall and severe cold.

 

Moving troops carelessly would likely result in isolation due to snowstorms, so battles rarely occurred in winter.

 

So until the snow melted, the front lines would become fixed, creating a ‘temporary ceasefire’ based on seasons.

 

As a result, battles naturally occurred frequently in autumn.

 

This was because both the barbarians and Decaron tried to occupy as much territory as possible before winter came and mine magic stones stably.

 

That’s why both Decaron and the barbarians alike called autumn the [season of war].

 

Since it was precisely that time now, the Blood-Soaked Land of Kuberin had become no different from the most dangerous region in this world.

 

Both sides not only deployed large-scale forces but also made the extreme move of redirecting strong warriors who had been active at the front lines in other regions to Kuberin.

 

“Ah, of course I can’t guarantee it. From the higher command’s perspective, there will be battles in various regions, so they might not have the capacity to send reinforcements.”

 

“Excuse me…?”

 

“Why are you so surprised? It’s not like troop shortages during the season of war are anything new.”

 

Krabel frowned.

 

“If there’s no support from higher command, what happens to my subordinates—no, what happens to the Battalion Commander’s subordinates?”

 

“You’re asking something obvious again. If the situation comes to that, they’ll have to escape on their own. What else would there be?”

 

Krabel answered as if asking why that would even be a question.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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