Mistaken for a War Hero

Chapter 10
Accidental War Hero

For a moment, I thought I had misheard, but Frienne’s eyes were filled with certainty.

“…The telescope.”

“Yes, Lieutenant!”

Taking the telescope from Frienne and observing the canyon entrance, I frowned.

As she said, a company-sized unit was marching towards us.

But why were they coming to Edelkrall Canyon, a minefield?

Confused, I examined their formation and let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.

‘They’re marching in a column of ten. And two soldiers are walking far ahead of the rest.’

The soldiers at the front were literally a minesweeping team.

If there were no explosions along their path, it meant there were no mines.

So, Jeremy’s unit was following the footsteps of those at the front.

‘The soldiers at the front… don’t seem to be doing this willingly.’

Zooming in with the telescope, I saw fear etched on the faces of the soldiers leading the way.

Would they volunteer to be at the front while trembling in fear? Absolutely not.

It seemed highly likely that some kind of threat had been involved.

Turning the telescope, I saw a soldier in the rear ranks, about 30 meters away, openly aiming his rifle at the soldiers at the front.

Shoot to kill if they deviate from the path.

Jeremy must have given a similar order.

‘Using his subordinates’ lives to check for mines…’

It was a truly devilish idea.

Though, it wasn’t particularly surprising, considering the even more horrific things that had happened in the history of warfare.

Sighing, I lowered the telescope and looked around.

“The target is approaching. All squads, prepare for battle.”

As soon as I finished speaking, the platoon members crouched down and took out the rifles slung over their shoulders. Then, they checked the mana cylinders attached to their other shoulders.

Those cylindrical objects, containing various mechanical devices and counters, were the Empire’s cutting-edge war equipment.

Their function was to store mana from the body for use when needed, allowing soldiers to utilize up to twice their usual mana capacity during battle, depending on the individual.

This meant that the Empire’s soldiers could fight twice as effectively as soldiers from other nations.

Of course, this was a slight exaggeration, considering it was based solely on numerical values, but it wasn’t an overstatement to say that the invention of the mana cylinder, called the pinnacle of magic engineering, had made the Empire a superpower.

‘Indeed, no nation can defeat the Empire in a one-on-one all-out war…’

The problem was that the Empire’s overwhelming national power had earned it the fear and resentment of neighboring countries.

I was reminded once again why I wanted to escape the Empire, and I checked the counter on my mana cylinder, just like the others.

After confirming it was working properly, I took a prone firing position at the edge of the cliff.

The soldiers followed suit and lined up along the cliff.

As Jeremy’s company gradually entered the depths of the canyon, I whispered, just loud enough for the soldiers to hear.

“I’ll take care of the enemy commander. As soon as I open fire, you focus on suppressing fire and block their escape route. Prepare magic bullets.”

“Magic bullets ready!”

The soldiers echoed my command in hushed voices and channeled their magic power into the hands holding their magazines.

This temporarily imbued the bullets with magical power, increasing their destructive power and penetration.

Magic-infused bullets surpassed most magic spells and were incredibly easy to use, requiring only the infusion of magic power without any incantations.

Just as the development of firearms led to the disappearance of medieval knights, the proven effectiveness of magic bullets had relegated magic to a relic of the past, except for a few practical applications.

It was a prime example of technological advancement undermining romanticism.

‘That aside…’

If I succeeded in killing Colonel Jeremy here, wouldn’t that add another merit to my record?

With the princess watching from behind, I had to fight, but achieving another success here would be like throwing away my chance to escape the Empire.

Then what should I do? I felt Sylvia’s gaze as I opened the scope of my rifle.

Shouldering the rifle and looking through the scope, I saw Colonel Jeremy walking in the middle of the formation.

The scope’s magnification wasn’t high enough to see his face clearly, but judging from the high-ranking officer’s uniform he was wearing, that had to be Colonel Jeremy.

If I succeeded in killing him here, I would surely be promoted.

That couldn’t happen. I didn’t want to be further entangled with the Empire.

‘In that case…’

I just had to become a fool who failed to kill Colonel Jeremy despite the opportunity.

‘I need to act as if I missed the shot.’

Making my decision, I slightly shifted the barrel and aimed at the soldier walking next to Colonel Jeremy.

I took a deep breath, held it, generated a magic bullet, and pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The bullet cut through the air and pierced the soldier’s head.

Following my shot, the gunfire of the platoon echoed continuously, deafening my ears.

Glancing up to survey the rear, I saw about 17 Allied soldiers collapsing with blood splattering around them.

It was a decent first volley.

However, the enemy commander was still alive.

If they realized that the number of soldiers killed in the first volley was only around twenty, they would quickly figure out that we were just a platoon.

As far as I knew, Jeremy was a cunning rat. He would surely deploy a mana barrier and try to escape, either forward or backward.

Many soldiers would die in the process, but would Jeremy, who used his subordinates as a minesweeping team, care?

If Jeremy escaped, I would become an officer who failed his mission.

‘Come on, run away quickly, Colonel Jeremy!’

I looked through the scope and waited, and there was Jeremy’s company in a state of disarray.

Someone who appeared to be an officer started shouting something and then put down his weapon.

‘…Huh? Why are they putting down their weapons?’

Confused, I watched as the enemy officer and soldiers, one by one, knelt and raised their hands.

It was a clear sign of surrender, an expression that they had no will to continue fighting.

Frienne, who had been firing next to me, also tilted her head in confusion.

“…They’re surrendering?”

“No, it could be an enemy deception tactic. They might be planning to attack us with their guns when we go down…”

As soon as I said that, the officer shouted something and threw his gun towards the minefield.

The soldiers followed suit, throwing all their weapons into what appeared to be the minefield.

“…It’s definitely a surrender.”

What was the reason? I couldn’t understand it, but since the enemy had surrendered, the operation was over.

“Everyone, get up. We’re going to capture them.”

***

After descending into the canyon, I ordered the platoon members to restrain the prisoners and then approached Colonel Jeremy, demanding an explanation.

More precisely, I wanted to know why they surrendered.

“You shot and killed the Colonel!”

Colonel Jeremy—no, the imposter wearing Colonel Jeremy’s uniform—looked at me and yelled.

“We were ambushed. Moreover, if you have such accurate intelligence that you even know we switched clothes, it was clear we couldn’t win. If we fled forward, there was a minefield, and if we fled backward, it was certain death.”

In short, the soldier I killed with my first shot was actually Colonel Jeremy disguised as a regular soldier.

Having lost their commander in an instant, the company’s morale plummeted as they judged the enemy to have the upper hand in every aspect, leading to their surrender.

‘Damn it…’

As I ran a hand over my face in disbelief, one of the enemy soldiers clenched his fist in frustration.

“Damn it…! Those damned Imperial soldiers! If we had known you were just a platoon, we would have fought back! You devil…! Tricking us all! Go to hell—”

Thud! With a dull sound, the soldier collapsed onto the snow.

Frienne, who had been listening to the conversation, had struck the soldier’s neck with the butt of her rifle.

Looking coldly at the fallen enemy soldier, Frienne turned to me and saluted.

“Lieutenant! We have captured 87 enemy soldiers, excluding the 18 who were killed in action!”

Hearing Frienne’s report, the reality of defeating a company with just a platoon sank in.

As I exhaled a cold breath and remained silent, Frienne added,

“…Aren’t you happy about achieving such a feat? Ah! Of course, such a result is only natural for you, Lieutenant. I apologize for my rudeness!”

What was this woman talking about? As I frowned, the camera shutter clicked.

I closed my eyes in surprise, then turned my gaze towards the source of the sound to see Sylvia standing there.

Lowering her camera, Sylvia looked at me with an approving gaze.

“Congratulations. The operation, from planning to eliminating the target, was flawless.”

“Wait, that photo you just took…”

“When we return to the capital, I’ll order… no, I’ll ask them to publish it in the newspaper. A war hero who captured a company with a platoon has been born; I should gladly help you, shouldn’t I?”

I wanted to tell her not to, but she was the princess. I had no right to refuse.

Sylvia, seemingly pleased with me, stepped closer and playfully nudged my waist.

“How does it feel to be a war hero?”

“…”

It felt awful.

But I couldn’t say that to the Empire’s princess.

Collecting myself, I spoke as calmly as possible.

“It’s absurd to call me a war hero when I simply did what was natural for the Empire. What I did was just one of many battles taking place on the front lines. Therefore, I’m worried that publicizing this battle in the capital might seem like making a fuss.”

I was indirectly asking her not to publicize my achievements in the capital.

However, Sylvia was momentarily surprised by my words, then gave a faint smile.

“Indeed. As I’ve heard, you are a true example of a soldier. I’m tempted to snatch you up as soon as possible.”

…I felt like she misunderstood something, but it was probably just my imagination.

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