I Became an Officer in Another World in Just 5 Minutes - Chapter 179
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
Episode 179
No one can stop Colonel Schultz no matter who goes.
Then it’s right to sacrifice the relatively weaker person and have the rest organize the soldiers even one second faster.
‘It’s absolutely not because he’s easy, but all calculated strategy.’
I am absolutely, absolutely not some senseless officer who gets swept up in personal evaluations and emotions.
“How could you do that to the Regimental Commander.”
“Even if it’s difficult, try to buy as much time as possible. Your role is the most important in this final.”
“I’m the most… Understood!”
I don’t know exactly what struck him, but Lieutenant Barus’s eyes changed somewhat.
‘That guy would be perfect for getting scammed somewhere.’
He’s lucky he wasn’t born in South Korea where voice phishing and spam run rampant.
Anyway, Lieutenant Barus rushed toward Colonel Schultz like that.
In that gap, I rushed toward the soldiers to organize them…
“Number 5 down!”
“Huh…?”
The referee’s call came not long after the match started.
I heard it was number 5.
This is definitely… Lieutenant Barus’s number.
“What’s your name.”
“Lieu…Lieutenant Barus!”
When I turned my head, Colonel Schultz was asking the name of Barus who had completely collapsed on the ground.
And his reaction after that was.
“Your skills are useless. Who do you think you’ll lead with swordsmanship like this?”
A voice so ruthless it felt cold.
Right now, Colonel Schultz was genuinely disappointed, no matter who looked at him.
‘Sorry about that.’
But what can you do.
About being weak yourself.
“Hmm.”
Colonel Schultz, having finished with Lieutenant Barus, turned his head once to survey the surroundings.
And the target that entered his sight was, unfortunately as expected, me.
“Let me see your skills.”
As soon as Colonel Schultz targeted me, the soldier in front naturally stepped back.
‘Damn, is this the second time?’
Still, the positive thing I can see is that Lieutenant Barus probably lowered Colonel Schultz’s expectations.
“I’ll do my best.”
Since I really have to do my absolute best.
I closed the distance first without holding back and swung my wooden sword.
Thwack!
An attack that was blocked, naturally hitting empty air.
What was shocking was the difference in hands gripping the wooden swords.
‘No way, I’m using both hands and that guy is holding it with one hand, so why is it blocked so easily?’
The laws of physics are definitely wrong.
“Still, the Lieutenant has solid fundamentals. Admirable, unlike people these days.”
“Th…thank you.”
Unexpected praise.
As expected, masters evaluate fundamentals first.
‘The effort paid off.’
If I gathered all the practice dummies I’ve cut down to build these fundamentals, they’d form a mountain, with some exaggeration.
‘Too much exaggeration?’
Anyway, that’s how much I struggled.
“Try blocking this.”
While I was planning another attack.
Colonel Schultz swung his wooden sword toward me.
Thwack!
I naturally expected it to contain tremendous rock-like force, but just putting my sword up was enough to defend.
However, the problem was what came next.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Shoulder, neck, abdomen, side.
Attacks coming at different parts each time.
I wanted to counterattack, but I really couldn’t extend my wooden sword by the slimmest margin.
‘Damn, it seems like he’s calculating to make it barely blockable. Isn’t this crazy?’
I can’t even gauge how much difference there is in our skills.
“Ugh!”
Defense that barely continued.
Colonel Schultz, watching me like this, nodded as if satisfied.
“So this is your level. Let’s stop here for now.”
I thought it would end peacefully since he said to stop, but Colonel Schultz swung his wooden sword.
‘I have to block this too.’
Instinctively raising my wooden sword to bring it to the sword path…
“Huh…?”
Suddenly, a blue light flashed from Colonel Schultz’s sword-holding hand.
And at the same time.
Thud! Thump!
“Ugh.”
The wooden sword that was in front of me suddenly disappeared.
When I came to my senses, I had fallen to the ground with throbbing abdominal pain.
“Number 1… Number 1 down!”
And I heard Sergeant Orwin’s voice.
I had allowed the attack.
‘Wh…what the hell.’
Clearly both my eyes were following the wooden sword.
But it disappeared.
‘He can use mana…? No, more than that, is this even possible?’
I could only call him a complete monster.
“Let me see the skills of the remaining officers as well.”
Colonel Schultz, having cleanly finished me off, began personally breaking down the officers one by one.
Naturally and regrettably, we had to settle for second place.
* * *
“Currently, the enemy’s Third Army Corps is stationed at Belzium Castle, and the scale is estimated to be between 30,000 and 40,000.”
“It seems the intelligence gap hasn’t been filled yet.”
At Crown Prince Louis’s words, General Ir, the Western Investigation Corps commander, bowed his head.
“Yes, especially since the damage to Belzium Castle was severe, we’re doing our best, but it will take time.”
An intelligence network isn’t something that’s laid down overnight.
Skilled agents are deployed, operate within, and expand their radius.
Some operations take at least several months, or even over 10 years at the longest.
“If we assume the worst-case scenario of 40,000, wouldn’t it be right to consider our forces insufficient?”
The Crown Prince turned his head and asked Major General Gadus, who was appointed as deputy commander of this Western Expedition Army.
“Yes, it won’t be easy to break through the well-built Belzium Castle with just a difference of 10,000 men.”
Of course, we’re confident we can achieve victory if we somehow open the city gates or cross the city walls, but the enemy isn’t an automatic door.
“First, we need to gather as many additional troops as possible.”
Belzium Castle had more forces assembled than initially expected.
This naturally meant the Western Expedition Army would also have to increase in scale.
‘The stakes keep getting higher.’
As both sides’ forces grew, the weight they’d have to bear in defeat would inevitably increase.
“But Your Highness, won’t the Commander-in-Chief be joining us?”
At Major General Gadus’s question, Louis nodded.
“Enemy movements have noticeably increased on multiple fronts, so he can’t leave his post.”
The provocative movements of the Adits forces, whose momentum had soared to the heavens.
Especially lately, reports of suspicious naval activity in the vicinity of Yalc Island were coming in daily.
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Regarding Rimircastle and Belzium Castle, you and the commanders here are the greatest experts of all, so there’s no need to feel disappointed. Everyone has their place.”
As Louis said, even if Bast came, Major General Gadus would still be the top expert here.
He might provide strength like a totem, but the Crown Prince was already fulfilling that role more than adequately.
“I’ll do my absolute best.”
With the weight of responsibility increased, Major General Gadus’s voice carried more determination than ever.
“Let’s end the meeting here. I’ll personally ask His Majesty about gathering additional troops.”
“Thank you!”
At Louis’s words, Major General Gadus responded with a vigorous voice and bowed his head.
‘This is really convenient.’
The greatest advantage of working with the Crown Prince.
It was none other than the overwhelmingly fast processing speed of tasks.
‘If I had tried to do this myself, it would have taken at least two days.’
First, I’d have to write a detailed plan and report it to the Commander-in-Chief.
Then the Commander-in-Chief would review the content and report it to the Emperor.
Military matters were processed with top priority, but they could still get delayed if there was too much work.
However, the Crown Prince didn’t need such procedures – he could just contact directly through the communication device.
“It’ll be tough, but please endure a little longer.”
“Yes! Loyalty!”
“Loyalty!!”
Louis received the commanders’ salutes and left the conference room.
“This is difficult.”
Once the watching eyes disappeared, Louis let out a heavy sigh and relaxed his tense body.
‘We’ll need at least 20,000 more.’
Managing 50,000 was already challenging, and thinking about adding another 20,000 was already giving Louis a headache.
“I should have brought Lieutenant Paran no matter what.”
When forces increased, the biggest problems were meals and supplies.
In Louis’s eyes, Paran Oclo was the Empire’s greatest expert in all these areas.
“He would have operated things in a much better way than now. What a shame.”
The command post had related officers, but their suggestions didn’t meet Louis’s expectations.
‘Isn’t there a way to steal him away?’
He’d been in a state of giving up since the Emperor’s rejection, but the more he worked, the more he kept thinking about it.
“He definitely went to the 1st Ground Operations Regiment, 1st Infantry Battalion.”
There wasn’t really a proper method, but just to see his face.
Louis boarded an ordinary carriage that could conceal his identity.
“I… I greet His Highness the Crown Prince!!”
“I’ll be traveling quietly, so act as usual.”
“Yes…! Where shall I take you?”
“To the 1st Ground Operations Regiment, 1st Infantry Battalion.”
At the Crown Prince’s words, the coachman mentally traced the route once, then nodded.
“I’ll transport you safely!”
The task of escorting the future Emperor.
Would there ever be another time in his lifetime to be this close to royalty?
He gripped his trembling hands as firmly as possible and drove the horses toward the 1st Infantry Battalion.
“We… we’ve arrived.”
“Good work. Can you wait here for me?”
“Yes…! I’ll wait for days if needed.”
“It won’t take that long.”
Amused by the reaction, Louis showed a faint smile, put on a plain hat, and entered the infantry battalion.
“Waaaah!!! Wait, the Regimental Commander is coming out?!”
“That guy’s from the Imperial Knights.”
“Game over. That bastard Edok is taking the prize money like this. What luck.”
The bustling voices of soldiers could be heard.
Following the sound, the Crown Prince walked a bit further in and discovered twenty soldiers facing each other with wooden swords.
‘Did they organize a tournament?’
Soldiers sitting and eating, and talk of prize money.
It wasn’t difficult to guess it was a tournament.
‘This should be interesting.’
Unable to miss such entertainment, Louis found an empty spot and settled in.
“Begin!”
The match started with a signal from a soldier who appeared to be the referee.
He naturally expected Colonel Schultz and Lieutenant Paran to face off, but contrary to expectations, it was some lieutenant heading toward Colonel Schultz.
‘Is that guy the most skilled?’
That’s what he thought at first, but it took only 5 seconds for Lieutenant Barus to be eliminated.
Then followed the duel between Lieutenant Paran and Colonel Schultz.
Clack! Clack! Clack!!!
“Oh.”
Unlike the lieutenant before him, Lieutenant Paran successfully defended.
That sight looked quite impressive to Louis’s eyes.
‘His skills aren’t bad.’
Of course, Colonel Schultz was probably going easy on him, but his movements and technical level were definitely not those of someone from a merchant family.
“Ugh!”
However, the difference in skill was clear.
As Paran was gradually pushed back, Colonel Schultz finished with a serious attack, deciding the match.
‘So his achievements at Hasmon Fortress weren’t accomplished through brilliant mind alone.’
Though Lieutenant Paran had lost, that was natural.
Judging by the process, his skills were considerable for his age.
“There was a reason he was sent to the infantry battalion.”
However, even so, giving up on Paran wasn’t an easy matter.
Especially since he’d witnessed it again.
His brilliant mind.
“10-on-10 training, that would be effective for a situation facing actual combat.”
The very next day, orders came down to the Western Expedition Army to develop combat instincts through 10-on-10 mock battle training.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————