WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Little Prince in the Ossuary

Chapter 99

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Spark (2)

#Ember, Fort Roberts (2)

The regimental commander spoke.

“It may be a little late to say this, but you did excellent work in that last operation. You fought those lunatics well.”

“It was a tragic incident.”

After hearing the young officer’s reply, Colonel Laughlin, the regimental commander, gave a faint smile.

“A model answer. Yes, you are right. But it could have been even more tragic. The baby might never have seen the light of day, those thugs might have murdered patriots, and this country might have lost you. Who could have imagined something like that?”

With a sigh, the colonel offered Gyeoul a seat.

“Sit down first. I did not call you in for something that ends in a minute.”

“Yes, sir.”

As he took the empty chair, lightning flashed across the window. A few seconds later, the glass rattled. Even though the typhoon had entered a lull, thunder still rolled now and then in the distance. Thick clouds still covered the sky outside, hiding its bare face. It looked like only a matter of time before the rain started again.

The colonel got to the point.

“I will ask directly. Are you afraid?”

“......”

By coincidence, it was a question he had already heard on the way here. A girl’s voice overlapped in his mind, and Gyeoul hesitated for a moment. It was enough for the colonel to misunderstand. The dark-skinned colonel nodded.

“I thought so. I reviewed your latest combat record. You almost died.”

“It was an accident.”

“On a battlefield, luck counts as skill. To become a good soldier, you need the attitude to accept bad luck. That matters even more for an officer like you, who has had strong fortune so far. Accept it. You can die at any time.”

This did not sound like casual talk. Gyeoul was curious. Was this connected to why he had been called in today?

“So then...”

It was connected.

“Lieutenant. Have you considered stepping back from the front line?”

“What do you mean, sir?”

“Exactly what I said. If you want, you no longer need to risk your life.”

The colonel pulled out two forms and placed them side by side on the table.

“You have earned the right to choose. You may be young, but you have already shown courage and devotion that others could not match in a lifetime. The Medal of Honor proves it. I am not telling you to leave the military, of course. I mean there are ways to help people without fighting directly.”

“I am sorry, sir, but I still do not want to put down my gun.”

“Read these first, then speak. They are worth reviewing.”

Even though he could guess what they were, Gyeoul followed the colonel’s suggestion. One was a letter of appointment, and the other was a transfer application to a certain unit. The name on the second form stood out.

‘Quarantine War Tactical Support Group?’

Unit transfers were normally based on personnel orders within the military. But a small number of special units filled their ranks by screening applicants. Gyeoul knew quite a few units in that second category, but he had never heard the name on this document. It seemed to be a random Situational Computation value unique to this world setting.

‘He said I have the right to choose, so does that mean I have to pick one of these two?’

The title in the appointment letter also sounded unfamiliar. Either way, there was not enough information.

As soon as he looked up from the papers, the colonel continued smoothly.

“I will explain them one by one. First, this one. It is an appointment as an audit commissioner for the military government office that will be established soon.”

“Military government office?”

“Hm, to be exact, we should call it the Mid-California Refugee Military Government Office. From now on, the military wants to formalize refugee management more officially. To be frank, administrative support so far has been lacking in many ways.”

The colonel hesitated a little, then explained more of the background.

“To be honest, that is not the only reason... It looks like the people above are watching public opinion.”

“I would appreciate more detail.”

“To put it simply, the presidential election is coming. Political fighting still goes on, even in times like this. Truly pointless... One side of the troublesome public opinion is favorable to refugees. They strongly criticize the government policy of using refugees as manpower. They say the government is exploiting people who have no real choice.”

“Are they saying the government is trying to shift onto refugees sacrifices that U.S. citizens should bear?”

“Exactly. They say it is morally wrong. I think some of it is also rooted in a belief in this country’s superiority, but that is my perspective, so take it with a grain of salt.”

The colonel called it his own perspective, but to Gyeoul it was a perfectly reasonable Insight. People came here asking for help, so America protects them, because America is a great country. Not everyone thought that way, but some probably did. Gyeoul gave his view.

“It is partly true, but I cannot agree. This is a time when everyone has to do their best to survive. I do not think we need to divide refugees and U.S. citizens.”

“That is how I see it too. Sooner or later, we all have to fight together anyway. This is a war with humanity’s survival at stake. Why would order matter? The people in the rear, and those above, do not really know the field. To be fair, that applies to me a little too. Hm, a little? Yes, probably a little. Or not?”

Colonel Laughlin questioned himself in an uncertain tone. It was comic, but not an act.

Gyeoul asked,

“By the way, Colonel, may I ask one thing? I do not fully understand. Even now, under a declared national emergency, is the presidential election still proceeding normally?”

“This country held an election even during the Civil War. Of course, today’s crisis is far bigger, but the opposition says there is no reason to postpone elections because we have held the blockade line for almost a year. Citizens seem to feel the same way. Times are hard from every angle, so people have many complaints. They say elections are needed to calm that down too. Well, perhaps His Excellency the President is exhausted and wants to quit? Ah, that last part was a joke.”

Even as he said it, the colonel looked awkward.

“Soldiers are not supposed to care about politics. Anyway, in the public opinion I just mentioned, your share is not small. People ask how bad refugee treatment must be if someone your age had to pick up a weapon.”

“I do not like that.”

“Understandable. There are all sorts of people in this world... The other troublesome public opinion is even less pleasant. That side is made up of lunatics who want to deport refugees altogether. People swept up in baseless rumors.”

“Rumors?”

“Yes, rumors. There are many, but the most malicious one says refugees are spreading disease. Since that vague announcement by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of people who believe it has risen sharply.”

“Do those people happen to hate Chinese people in particular?”

“Well, yes. Sounds like you have heard things too. Or did you infer it?”

“Both.”

Gyeoul remembered Li Ailing. When they seized the small town north of the base, she had confessed that she feared Chinese people would become scapegoats used to suppress public dissatisfaction.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had implied that the plague might be a biological weapon. A weapon made by China, a Chinese failure in management. That was likely the story blind believers now accepted, while ruling out the possibility that China had been the first victim.

Colonel Laughlin continued.

“Even beyond Chinese people specifically, fear of refugees is spreading little by little. They hate people trying to cross from the Mexican border, and they hate people making illegal landings on the east coast. As small infection incidents increase in the east, extremists who say we should shoot every last one, refugee or not, are gaining support. Mostly in the south. Still, they are only a minority, but I do not like that their numbers are growing at all. Politicians, though, cannot ignore it.”

“Either way, both sides would see creating a military government office negatively. So that is why you need me.”

“We have no choice. People who like you are everywhere. I think the Captain Harris incident will increase that even more. Actually, can it even increase further? Even stiff-necked rednecks probably cannot bring themselves to say they dislike you.”

“So the decision is to disclose that incident in the end?”

“I would say it is almost certain. The people above must have run the numbers. After reviewing the combat records, even I felt disclosure was the better option. The incident itself is highly sensitive and negative, yes, but depending on how it is framed, it is also very dramatic.”

The colonel took his time choosing his next words. He seemed to have too much to say and was sorting through it.

“There were many striking parts. Starting with your warning to Captain Harris, then the way you pushed into an offensive despite inferior numbers, that was excellent. Your direct move to catch the enemy detachment on the flank was a strong call, if you were confident you could pull it off. In the end, it was the right decision. I heard Lieutenant Colonel Capston, commander of 3rd Battalion, handled your training. Did you learn that from him?”

For Gyeoul, that part had only passed briefly in his journal. Looking at the augmented reality overlay from Intelligence correction, he answered calmly.

“Yes, sir. I heard there were officers and NCOs in Iraq who acted as I did.”

“The lieutenant colonel taught you well. Yes, there were brave people like that. But for better or worse, none of them were on your level. The line between confidence and recklessness is always blurry...”

“I apologize, sir.”

“No need to apologize for that. Anyway, many other moments felt like watching a film. The part where you trapped the Trickster with a trap, and the part where you were buried alive. Same with those mutants running on water. Above all, after that long night, the moment the baby was finally born was moving. The Ministry of Defense public affairs office will go crazy over it. But.”

He paused for emphasis.

“Even if everything feels like a movie, your life is not a movie. You cannot reshoot it, and you cannot rewind it. There seems to be a lot of talk above about how close you came to death this time. They told me to confirm your intent.”

The colonel urged him once more.

“Think seriously about it. A heroic tale that ends in death is no different from tragedy to people.”

Gyeoul put on a proper smile.

“If the people above are willing to respect my decision, does that not mean there is enough benefit for them either way?”

“Not exactly a new Insight.”

“In that case, my answer is the same. I still want to fight.”

The colonel shrugged.

“So your mind is set... I had a feeling from the start this was how it would go. I guess there is no point recommending this side. Still, it is headquarters’ order, so at least take a look.”

He tapped the remaining form with his fingers. Gyeoul asked,

“What kind of unit is this Quarantine War Tactical Support Group? I have never heard of it.”

“It was just created, so that is natural. It belongs to Special Operations Command, and externally it will be described as handling only the most dangerous missions. In reality, it is the opposite.”

“So it is for publicity.”

“It is not that they never fight. Just think of it as carrying out missions in environments where safety is clearly guaranteed, with full rear support. And of course a public affairs filming team will follow them around 24/7. You will likely meet civil affairs and psychological warfare officers, or politicians, more often than fellow soldiers.”

“I hate it.”

“You did not even think for a second. Sergeant O'Connell said he is joining.”

“Who is that?”

“You do not know him? The man who has taken down three Grumbles so far, made a name for himself in many ways, and received multiple Silver Stars. He even appeared in recruitment ads. Though the whole look with him talking about bastards was a bit odd.”

“Ah.”

More ammo and more bastards. Gyeoul thought he knew who it was.

Even if Gyeoul was clearly in a class of his own in this world setting, he was not the only war hero. TV news was always full of people like that.

============================ Author's Afterword ============================

#Income

I calculated Gyeoul's current income, and with the Medal of Honor recipient pension included, it came out to over 60,000 dollars a year.

Tremble tremble. The author ended up envying a character in his own novel...

#Q&A

Q. Kongja-nim: As someone who knows theology, when a church appears in a novel, I usually close the book or skip it. Most of them are not professional, so why do they want to act like they know everything...

A. The Full Gospel Saints are not a normal religious organization. The story openly calls them a cult and describes them that way, so if you equate that with real churches, you put the author in a very awkward position...

Q. ChicStreetCat-nim: @O Great Old One.... I have caught a terrible flu... Please bless me...

A. My blessings are only about childlike innocence... hmm... should I call the Yog-Sothoth next door for you?

Q. Dohwawon-nim: @You are a Great Old One, yet from the way you ride down on a meteor, you are not such a high race after all!

A. That meteor was my booger, actually...

Q. EverBlueSky-nim: @For the author's childlike innocence, I am dropping 1 coupon and leaving

A. Because I received one coupon... the author's willpower filled by 1 point.

Q. Omitted-nim: @Secret Files Tunguska, by any chance do you know this game?

A. Hmm... never heard of it before. Is it horror?

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