Youjo Senki - Volume 12 - Chapter 4.4

DECEMBER 16, UNIFIED YEAR 1927, THE ILDOAN ROYAL CAPITAL

The Imperial Army officials quickly made themselves at home in the Ildoan capital, setting up the base for their occupation in the most lavish hotels and government facilities they could find. The Empire’s bureaucracy is already rearing its head.

Tanya, following orders to appear at the base in the capital, is shockingly required to go through three checkpoints and two separate, mind-numbingly bureaucratic sets of paperwork before finally gaining the permission to set foot on the base itself.

I immediately motion to question the officer on duty about arranging a meeting but get caught off guard by something unexpected.

“Where is the general?”

“He just finished his inspection and has left the base.”

“So I missed him.”

What unfortunate timing. I wanted to speak with him to maybe find out what were the chances of being sent to the east once more. That being said, it appears General Zettour didn’t forget to leave me a souvenir before departing.

“This is from the general.”

The duty officer holds out an envelope.

“An order to return home…? I see, so we really are withdrawing from the capital.”

The Empire still has the eastern front to worry about. Compared to the east, the campaign in Ildoa is winding down, with the most pressing matter being the shift from attack to defense. Wherever we end up next, this is it for my days under the Ildoan sun, and my gut tells me that we’ll be slugging through the muddy ground in the east before long. That’s where the real battle is happening.

Unfortunately, there couldn’t be a worse place to search for my next job than the eastern front. Given the choice, my first pick would be getting stationed in the west, and Ildoa would be my second choice. The one place I don’t want to end up is the east, but getting worked up over it won’t help. All signs are pointing in one direction.

Now that I’m ready to accept my fate, I stand up and head for the hotel café. I may as well get one last cup of good coffee. If nothing else, Ildoa still has some of the best beans around. Evidently, I’m not the only one who thinks this.

Both the lounge and the café of the hotel that currently houses the Empire’s command staff are overflowing with Imperial soldiers, making it impossible to get any peace and quiet.

All I want is some time to myself…

Just as I get ready to leave, I spot a familiar face who also just gave up on coffee after seeing the line snaking out of the café.

“Oh, if it isn’t Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff.”

“Hello, Lieu…er, sorry. Colonel Uger. Congratulations on your promotion.”

“Oh, right.”

Colonel Uger gives a wry chuckle as he pats the new insignia on his shoulder.

“I’m only a regiment commander for show.”

“It is still a tremendous honor, regardless of the circumstance.”

A promotion means advancing in your career. Even aboard a sinking ship, it’s only natural to feel somewhat envious of an acquaintance’s promotion. Of course, Uger’s promotion means a more influential connection for Tanya. What’s not to love about that?

“Are you free, by any chance?”

I would never let a chance to mingle with powerful coworkers pass me by.

“Of course. I’d love to join you.”

“Great. General Zettour left behind his car for me. Let’s take a quick drive.”

I happily follow Uger out of the hotel and into a parking lot where his civilian vehicle is parked. He offers me the passenger seat, which I find a bit strange at first, only to realize that Uger will be driving. Looks like there aren’t enough people to assign someone to driving duty.

In the meantime, I’m a bit excited about where this conversation may take me. The Ildoan city roads whiz by as Colonel Uger drives along. After a short while, he eventually speaks up.

“It really is a beautiful city, isn’t it? This might sound strange to say as this city’s occupiers, but looking at these streets reminds me of a time before the war.”

Colonel Uger flashes a smile as he says this.

“Make you wish we could keep them, eh?”

“I’m sorry, Colonel… I’m sure you’re the last person who needs to be told this, but do you think we could preserve this beauty if we were to fully occupy the city?”

Colonel Uger nods slightly with an indifferent expression on his face. He holds on to the steering wheel, facing forward, but eventually feels a pair of eyes waiting for the conversation to continue.

“What are you suggesting?”

“A city as big as this consumes a vast number of resources. It would be a nightmare for us to keep it supplied if we kept it under military control.” I stare out the car window at the cityscape. “Take a look for yourself. The vast amount of rations and other aid being passed out to refugees… We have somewhere around five hundred thousand soldiers in Ildoa right now, but the city’s population is easily double or triple that number, if not more.”

And those people consume endlessly.

“I can understand the need for distributing provisions to maintain order while we take what we need, but we cannot maintain this for long. The army will cease to function as an organization before it even comes down to a fight.”

Logistics seems mundane at first glance, but people need to eat to live. If they can’t, then they will fight to survive. This is why the Empire needs to keep this city fed. Failing to do so will create a massive nightmare for the army.

“This isn’t a problem we can afford to deal with right now. The Ildoan peninsula may enjoy a bountiful harvest, but with its supply network as good as dead, we can’t get the food the land produces to the people who need it.”

“Ha-ha-ha. You never change.”

Colonel Uger gives a vague nod and rubs his neck.

“I’m glad you are able to keep logistics in mind while you lead from the front lines. Honestly, it would make my job so much easier if we had more commanders like you.”

“People need food to live. It isn’t that difficult of a concept.”

“That’s the truth. Even the toughest of soldiers are helpless against an empty stomach.” Colonel Uger, the man who is in charge of the Empire’s railways, clenches his jaw after he says this.

“Considering the entire surrounding region is essentially a battlefield, it isn’t our place to insist the city’s people fend for themselves. We need to keep these people fed, even if it’s getting increasingly difficult for us to provide for our own people.”

“I figured a frontline commander would be one of the last people to suggest willingly surrendering such strategic ground.”

“It requires too much to hold and defend the capital. With how tight things are in the east, it isn’t sustainable to have our forces here for too long.”

“You really haven’t changed. I always feel jealous of how smart you are when we talk.”

After offering that compliment, Colonel Uger continues to drive. Ildoa’s central train station is coming into view. Despite the heavy security, Uger is let through as soon as the guards see his face. In fact, the military police stationed near the checkpoint where they are checking cars stand at attention and salute as the car passes. Thanks to this, we can move freely without being stopped by anyone. Once inside the station, we walk to the train platform, where Colonel Uger points to a freight train.

“What comes to mind when you see this?”

I take a moment to size up the train before answering.

“That it’s fully loaded.”

The freight train is packed with containers. It’s the only notable thing about the train, and it seems to be the right answer because Colonel Uger responds with a satisfied look.

“It’s loaded with Ildoan goods. We’ve taken their gold and silver, their raw resources, their machinery, weapon parts, and everything else a country needs to fight a total war. The payment is those provisions you were talking about earlier.”

“The city still seems quite beautiful despite all that.”

Colonel Uger gives an awkward smile as he continues.

“We made sure not to break anything, but make no mistake—we’re taking everything of value. We have a requisition team going through the city like a bunch of looters.”

I nod in understanding.

“Ah, so we’re systematically pillaging their city.”

It’s certainly the most effective way to steal, and something countries around the world have been doing since the dawn of governance. It’s also somewhat of a specialty of the Empire’s. We’re pros when it comes to scrounging up what we need in faraway lands we’ve occupied. The Empire will, without a doubt, find and acquire whatever it needs from every place of note in the city over the next few days.

“Like a swarm of locusts.”

“Well put. We’ve hit not only the banks and the palace, but are raiding all of the art and historical museums as we speak.”

“So we are the destroyers of culture. They’re going to hate us for this.”

Colonel Uger gives a slight wave of his hand and corrects my remark.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to give you the wrong impression. We’re not actually stealing any cultural artifacts. Anyone caught pilfering art or cultural objects will immediately be court-martialed and turned over to Ildoan authorities.”

Now that I wasn’t expecting.

“Why is that…? I mean, it’s always good to respect culture, but is there a reason…?”

“It’s the general’s courtesy toward this nation, or so I’ve been told.”

“General Zettour’s?”

Somehow, I find that hard to believe. It isn’t difficult to understand why someone would want to respect cultural artifacts for political reasons or a personal sense of honor, but this kind of logic doesn’t apply to General Zettour. That man operates on a completely different level.

“How magnanimous of General Zettour. But…we soldiers tend to look at things from a practical standpoint. I doubt that he’s the kind of person to exempt cultural items out of the goodness of his heart.”

Colonel Uger’s grimace suggests he agrees with my sentiment. It likely isn’t possible for an officer who’s worked directly under the general to reject the idea outright. We both know that soldiers are logical creatures who loyally serve a master known as necessity.

“Well, if there are cultural items left behind in the city, it will make it harder for our enemies to attack it.”

“That may be true, but I feel like there’s more to it.” I ponder the possible reasons for a moment. “Perhaps serves as bait with poison in it.”

“That’s an interesting idea, but what makes you think so?”

“A beautiful, empty city. The Empire has nothing to lose even if the city is destroyed. Is the plan to make it seem like the enemy caused the destruction through urban combat?”

A pleasant smile appears on the colonel’s face.

“It’s good to learn that even you make mistakes.”

Colonel Uger chuckles to himself. Seeing Tanya get something wrong is a first for him.

He’s genuinely amused, but I notice a hint of darkness behind his expression.

“You’re correct about this being poisoned bait. But regarding the cultural artifacts, it’s nothing more than a matter of priority—stealing art and historical items won’t impact our ability to continue fighting this war.”

“What…?”

“Sure, they could be worth something if we can sell them, but who is going to buy anything from us? We are prioritizing raw material, food, scrap metal, and heavy machinery. Cultural goods aren’t worth anything to us right now.”

When I hear this, I heave a deep sigh. The Empire, isolated and alone, can’t afford to waste its time on anything but food and resources. I’d laugh if it wasn’t so heartbreaking.

“How terrible.”

“We’re not even at the worst part yet. You didn’t hear this from me, but…the general wants to turn the capital into a gorgeous pile of ashes to lure the enemy ships to the peninsula.”

“The enemy…what?”

This I did not see coming. He wants to bring the enemy ships here? To attack them?

“I’m sorry, but is this meant to be a ploy to raid their merchant navy?”

“Ha-ha-ha. You sure are making guesses with more regular common sense today.”

I scowl at his response. It seems I need to reconfirm how exactly Colonel Uger sees me. Just as a precautionary measure.

“Colonel, I…”

“Oh, I didn’t mean anything by it. Honestly, I had the same reaction when I first heard the general’s plans. But it makes sense when you think about it. With the capital’s broken logistics network, the city has essentially been reduced to a resource-hungry market of consumers.”

“That’s true,” I say with a nod. “You’re the expert, so I shouldn’t need to say that the incredibly laborious task of feeding this resource-hungry city falls on our army’s logistics department.”

Colonel Uger nods, then offers up some new information in a distressed tone.

“Right now, the Empire has some special trains running.”

“Special trains? For logistical purposes?”

“In a way, yes. They are running from the north to the capital. They’re bringing refugees down here.”

“The Empire is transporting refugees…?”

The capital is a funnel for resources, difficult to defend, and carries many of its own logistical issues due to its current population. Why would the general want to bring even more Ildoan refugees here?

“I’m sorry, Colonel, but are we doing it against their will…?”

“No, the refugees are given a choice to take the train. That said, occupation is despised up in the north of the country, so it isn’t difficult to convince them to leave.”

“Ah, I see now!”

All these consumers and no supply chain to fulfill their demands. Hearing that the army was bringing more people here paints a very clear picture. It is beginning to make sense why the general wants the enemy ships to come here.

“There will be a mass migration to the capital, which we will return to the—what are they calling themselves, the Alliance? Though southern Ildoa is a major agricultural region, I doubt they will be able to feed the entire country without fertilizer and grain from the north.”

General Zettour is sending the unneeded masses down south, in a way that makes the Empire seem humanitarian. By letting the people escape martial law by transporting them to their nation’s capital, he’s removing potential partisans from the north. It also allows the Empire to pressure the enemy, but…there’s something I need to point out that seems too good to be true.

“One wrong step and we’ll be committing a war crime.”

Assuming the enemy will care for these people could be a grave mistake.

“We need to believe in the Unified States.”

“Are we expecting them to use ships meant for munitions to bring food for the refugees?”

When I see Uger give a small yet firm, affirmative nod, I fold my arms and consider what I’ve learned.

It’s a good plan. A sort of attack on the enemy’s supply lines. It could even be considered a strategic attack. It isn’t rare for military tactics to come in the guise of humanitarian acts, and fortunately, there is a good chance the enemy will oblige us. No sensible person would stand by idly while the people of this city starve, and the Ildoan and US forces are run by sensible people.

At the very least, their sense of reason hasn’t been charred by the flames of war yet. Not the way the Empire’s has been. The enemy shouldn’t have the capacity to ignore the result of the Empire’s foul tactics and still fight a regular war. That’s what the Empire is relying on.

“It would seem that we are betting a great deal on this hope. Moreover, we’re hoping that our enemies will act accordingly… That doesn’t feel great to hear.”

“Nope, it sure doesn’t.”

It’s honestly a terrible thing to have to consider. What’s most aggravating is the likelihood that the enemy can and will comply. If one thing’s for sure, it’s that Uncle Sam has no lack of resources!

I’m sure that the Unified States will probably give Ildoa all the food it needs. And it’ll probably make it happen without any real planning. They’ll just brute-force the problem thanks to their inconceivable wealth and resources!

“What a miserable state of affairs.”

“So you feel the same way…? This is a bad time to be a good person.”

“That’s for sure. It’s the worst for those of us struggling to keep the fight up on the battlefield.”

The Empire is running short on everything. In this war of attrition, the so-called Alliance is backed by the biggest sponsor. Talk about an unfair competition.

Feeling particularly resentful, I can’t help but speak my mind.

“I’m hoping I remain a just person through all this, but war ends up justifying even the most unreasonable of things at times.”

“I commend your sense of righteousness.”

The colonel lets his shoulders drop as he pays me a compliment—the compliment seems genuine.

“This war has been hard on us all. As someone used to seeing his coworkers burned out by it, I respect you a great deal.”

“There is nothing righteous about what we are doing.”

I know he’s speaking from a place of envy and self-pity, though I would never say that out loud. I also can’t reject his comments outright due to his rank.

After a brief moment of thought to find the right words, I mutter softly.

“As a human being, I don’t want to give up the desire to improve.”

Colonel Uger winces, as if he fully understands the sentiment.

“That’s right. That’s how people are supposed to be.”

“Yes, people never stop striving to improve themselves.”

To become more intelligent.

More righteous.

More capable.

I am a firm advocate of lifelong learning. Standing atop the shoulders of giants is possible only after those giants have been built. This is the essence of the civilized world and human society, which were born from curiosity and hard work!

“You’re right about that. Thank you, Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff. You always teach me the lessons I need to learn.”

“No, I only said what I believe is appropriate.”

When he hears that, Colonel Uger smiles warmly.

“Sorry for having you make the trip out here with me. I’ll have a car take you back. Stay safe.”

“No, it’s been my pleasure. Until we meet again.”

Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff, the tiny giant herself, showed a perfect, textbook salute before making her way out of Ildoa’s central train station. She climbed into a new vehicle Colonel Uger had arranged to take her back to her troops.

Seeing her go, Colonel Uger returned to his own temporary place of work, where he would continue to wrestle with numbers and figures.

“It’s going to take forever to figure this all out.”

It was a job the colonel took upon himself, primarily because his current job was, as General Zettour so blatantly stated, a temporary position.

His plan to requisition Ildoa’s freight trains and locomotives had already been drawn up. He’d already devised multiple theoretical plans while he familiarized himself with the Ildoan railway network. Other personnel from the railway department had also been dispatched to help acquire what they needed.

While the occupation of the capital and the subsequent requisition plans were all very impromptu, knowing that this position was only temporary allowed him to power through it. Most of it was routine work anyway. Honestly speaking, if Colonel Uger really had at it, he could get through it quick enough to get a few days to himself before he returned to serve under General Zettour once more.

Uger wasn’t the type to allow himself that privilege, though. Even if he was nothing more than a colonel for show, the work he was doing was real. He didn’t resent the work he had to do to ensure the trains ran smoothly—that was his pride as a railway worker.

Uger quietly laughed at himself. “We may be fighting this war…but we can’t allow ourselves to lose what makes us human.”

Uger stared at his palms, looking at the white gloves he wore. There were small ink stains on them. These were considered badges of honor in the rear. But how many stains were there that couldn’t be seen? The same hands that held his wife and children were treating the Ildoan people as numbers on a page, using them as a weapon against the Alliance.

Was it right for the military to do this? Uger knew it was what the Empire needed in its current state. He understood this intimately, but he also knew that it was wrong, and it was only out of necessity that he was promoted.

“General Zettour… I…I…never wanted to be promoted like this.”

Uger felt compelled to complain out loud, something that was happening more and more as of late. He hated that he had become a colonel. When he heard that Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff had rejected a similar promotion, he thought it was out of a pure desire to remain on the front line, being the warrior that she is, but…

“It must have been a matter of morals…”

Yes, she’s a fighter, but…

Lieutenant Colonel Degurechaff had a firm sense of what it meant to be a just person that she refused to stray away from. She was far better than the supposed colonel, who let those around him decide everything. These thoughts may have been born from jealousy of the person whom he considered the manifestation of righteousness.

“Orders are orders, but…your heart is your own.”

Uger straightened his hat before firmly saluting toward the deep blue sky. He knew that the young lieutenant colonel wouldn’t see it. This gesture was for his own satisfaction, but even so, the soldier known as Uger wanted to believe in a greater good.