"…Ah, it's you."
"I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you the other day."
A few days after I got drunk and made a fool of myself…
I went to Mr. Gorski's house to buy some more Vok and apologize.
"I've spoken rudely in many ways."
"That's fine. People lose their reason when they're drunk."
In response to my apology, Mr. Gorski remained expressionless and said, "That was expected."
He must have been intent on getting me drunk from the beginning.
"…Have you been able to let out everything that's been building up inside you?"
"Yes."
It seems that was a Sabbath-style baptism.
Unable to refuse strong alcohol offered by a superior, many lose all sense of reason while getting drunk and embarrassing themselves.
This creates more opportunities for teasing and makes it easier for new recruits to fit in with the unit.
It's a much better baptism than tricking someone and throwing them naked into a homosexual's room.
"Well, how about we sober up and talk for a bit? We didn't even have time to have a leisurely drink together the other day."
"Understood."
However, we haven't really been able to converse because of my rampage yesterday.
Mr. Gorski invited me into his private room with a straight face.
"My family is drinking, but don't mind them."
"…Yes."
First thing in the morning, children and elderly were munching on bacon and drinking in his family's living room.
People really do drink alcohol as if it were juice in the Sabbath.
"How are your injuries since then?"
"Fortunately, they've completely healed."
"You were punched quite fiercely, but are there no scars?"
"There's no way that would leave a scar. My superior officer beat me much more severely."
"I see, that's good then."
The first thing Mr. Gorski said was concern for my injury.
Gunshot wounds and cuts are more likely to leave scars. Most other wounds can be easily healed with healing magic.
So really, there are no scars or anything.
"I'm sorry for inviting you into my room. I wanted to talk to an Aust soldier for a moment."
"Yes."
"I want to know what our enemy thinks, what they feel as they fight."
I found myself alone in his private room after a brief exchange with Mr. Gorski's family.
There isn't much in his room, just a large bed and a small round table.
"I don't care if the rumors are bad. Can you tell me what kind of existence the Lightning Spear Demon is in Austin?"
"I'm a medic, so this will be just hearsay from the infantry."
"That's fine."
I was asked to sit in a chair at the round table, facing Mr. Gorski.
He pulled out a box of chocolates from somewhere, opened it, and held it out towards me.
"Kamikiri, the Lightning Spear Demon, as the name suggests, is a golden-haired spear user who charges with lightning. I heard your charge in the rain is breathtakingly powerful."
"…I see. Well, that's about right."
Mr. Gorski looked a little amused as I told him the rumor about the Lightning Spear Demon while munching on the chocolate that was offered to me.
It's quite a valuable experience to hear the enemy's internal evaluations.
"Actually, I've been attacked by your unit once before. I was hit by a grenade and suffered severe burns, losing one of my comrades."
"I see, you were lucky."
I remembered this Sabbatian ace very well.
This is because his unit was the cause of the death of Salsa, my comrade and fellow recruit.
"You are very lucky to have survived the attack of my troops. You would normally be wiped out."
"…Yeah."
Because I had not obtained permission to use the [Shield] beforehand, Salsa was killed in battle.
Even now I still have nightmares and regret that I didn't receive proper training in using [Shield] from my platoon leader earlier.
Come to think of it, Mr. Gorski and I have a deep-seated connection.
"Your assault still haunts me as a trauma."
"I see."
Mr. Gorski listened and gave a faint smile.
Yes, if you think about it, the person in front of me is the enemy of that kind and humorous Salsa.
Realizing this again, I felt an indescribable sense of unease.
"Ah, I won't apologize… That's the nature of war."
"Yes. I was just sorting out my feelings a bit."
"That's fine then."
It seems Mr. Gorski saw through my cloudy emotions, but he didn't mention it.
The order to charge came from the Sabbath's General Staff, and it is the job of Sabbatian soldiers to kill us according to the plan. Mr. Gorski is not to blame.
In the future, I shouldn't let such emotions show on my face to avoid causing disputes in the village.
"Then, next I want to hear some information about the Sword Demon."
"Sword Demon…?"
"An ace of Austin who carried a long sword and broke through the Sabbath trenches many times."
Mr. Gorski mentioned the name "Sword Demon".
I had never heard of the Sword Demon, but for some reason the name reminded me of a certain ace.
"He was a short-haired soldier in his 30s who was born in the wrong era, running between the trenches with only a sword in hand."
"Maybe that's Platoon Leader Garback."
"Oh, if you know him, please tell me. That man is my greatest nemesis."
When he heard the name Garback, he glared resentfully at his lost left arm.
Could it be that Platoon Leader Garback was the reason why Mr. Gorski was injured and had to retreat?
"Is he still alive? And is he even human?"
"That person had some monster-like qualities, but he was still human… Probably."
He was so monstrous that even his allies questioned his humanity.
To the Sabbatian soldiers who faced him on the battlefield as an enemy, he must have been a true monster.
I would love to hear how he was perceived on the Sabbatian side.
"The Sword Demon… What is Platoon Leader Garback's reputation among the Sabbatian Army?"
"He's a crazy assault maniac."
"That's the same evaluation we had."
Platoon Leader Garback is even treated like a madman over here too.
"No matter how you look at it, he was too far ahead, and even if we tried to punish that, the people surrounding him would just get slashed to death. There was no way to stop him in close combat."
"Yes, even from the perspective of a subordinate, his fighting skills were incredible."
"And he's not just skilled with swords, he's also skilled with [Shield] and firearms. Even if we shoot at each other from long distances, it's almost impossible to kill him. Who was he, really?"
"I don't know…"
Mr. Gorski exclaimed in genuine dismay.
Having experienced several retreats, I've come to realize once again just how excellent he was.
When you think about it, it's also strange that he managed to easily retreat dozens of kilometers from the Western Front to Marshdale while protecting his subordinates in the midst of a hail of bullets.
Garback Platoon was the only one whose unit's losses were limited to two rookie soldiers.
"The final blow came when I lost this arm. That day, I was the first to wound the Sword Demon."
"You wounded him?"
"Yeah. I caught him off guard and attacked him, and it went well. I ended up firing a bullet into the Sword Demon."
"That's incredible. How did you manage to shoot Platoon Leader Garback?"
"I first cut through his [Shield] with my spear, then my subordinates and I surrounded and shot him down. I was sure we had finished him."
Mr. Gorski let out a big sigh.
As you know, Platoon Leader Garback did not die on the Western Front.
Well, there's no way he would die just from being riddled with bullets.
"But in the next moment, my left arm was severed and flew through the air. Despite being shot in the stomach, he still swung his sword."
"…"
"If you looked closely, most of the bullets were deflected by his sword and [Shield]. My subordinates who attacked alongside me were chopped to pieces."
"That is…"
"But one shot definitely hit the Sword Demon's stomach. My surviving subordinates confirmed it."
Platoon Leader Garback continued fighting despite being shot in the stomach.
At the time I was on the Western Front, I just thought, "This guy is crazy, fighting even after being shot."
"We shot him right in the middle of his unarmored stomach. I was sure we had finished him, so I retreated. I left my left arm behind and escaped with my life."
"…"
"But that man is crazy! He didn't retreat even after being shot in the stomach, and continued to hold the base."
However, after being shot in the stomach a few times on the battlefield, I realized something. If your stomach is shot through, it's almost impossible to move no matter how determined you are.
If you try to move, the bleeding becomes more severe, and the intense pain spreads throughout your abdomen, making you curl up.
Cold sweat flows like a waterfall, and the pain is dozens of times worse than a stomachache, continuously burning through your brain.
Perhaps Platoon Leader Garback really was a monster.
"In order to create an opening for that man, many brave soldiers led a suicide charge and were killed in the line of duty. As they all let out death cries, I swallowed my tears and fled. I believed I had brought down the Sword Demon."
"Ah, well…"
"But he continued fighting after that, annihilating the reinforcements that had come after me and then retreating with ease. Most of the subordinates I had nurtured with care were killed in the line of duty, and I myself was wounded and forced to retreat to the capital."
…However, sweat started to trickle down my forehead as I listened to Mr. Gorski's story.
I realized that maybe I was involved in that story.
"After that, the Sword Demon was still seen charging energetically on the Eastern Front in good health."
"…"
"That man was the only one I ever thought I couldn't win against. How could I fight a man who continued to fight calmly even after being shot through the stomach?"
Gradually, memories of the Western Front come back to me.
Yes, it was when the Sabbath launched continuous offensives, and Austin had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to break the front line.
After Rodri, Senior Gray and I risked our lives to secure the third trench, Platoon Leader Garback returned mortally wounded—
"That might be my doing…"
"…Huh?"
Reflecting on the past with Mr. Gorski, it became clear that "Sword Demon" was indeed the nickname for Platoon Leader Garback.
He was confirmed to have survived being shot in the stomach on the front lines, and was treated as a monster by the Sabbatian Army.
"Was a medic like you assigned to an assault unit? Does Austin's Army have surplus medics?"
"I don't think they did…"
I was surprised that Platoon Leader Garback had been fatally wounded, but it turns out the person he was fighting with was the Sabbatian ace, the Lightning Spear Demon.
Caught by surprise and in his exhausted state, Platoon Leader Garback still managed to force Mr. Gorski to retreat despite being mortally wounded.
Afterward, he survived thanks to my makeshift surgery, and we retreated to the rear under Senior Gray's cover.
"At least, it was indeed a fatal injury… He wasn't a monster after all."
"Yes, it was a wound that would have been fatal if not treated promptly."
Mr. Gorski glared at me when he heard the fact that the platoon leader would have died if it wasn't for me.
"Ah, how vexing. Do you know how many sacrifices we made to shoot that man in the stomach?"
"…I don't."
"If it weren't for you, the deaths of Bulya, Nikov, and the others would have been avenged…!"
My actions had undermined Mr. Gorski's hard-earned victory over Platoon Leader Garback.
Having lost his left arm, Mr. Gorski was forced to leave the front line and survived the Battle of the North without taking part in it.
Platoon Leader Garback, who managed to overcome even a fatal wound, lost his life during the retreat.
Fate really is a fickle thing…
"…I won't apologize."
"Yeah. That's how it should be."
With tears welling up, Mr. Gorski bit his lip and said:
"You were just doing your job."
"…"
"The true villain is war itself."
He murmured.
***
"What kind of soldier was the Sword Demon in your opinion?"
"He was violent, terrifying, strict, and incredibly reliable."
"…Well, that sounds like a typical assault soldier."
We continued to chat with each other, as if to lick our wounds caused by the battlefield.
"Seeing him cut bullets with his sword, I thought he was inhuman."
"Ah. Well, cutting bullets isn't that difficult."
"…Huh?"
When I brought up Lieutenant Garback's inhuman bullet-cutting ability, Mr. Gorski revealed he could do it too.
Come to think of it, this man was a fierce warrior who fought on equal terms with Platoon Leader Garback.
A battlefield ace is someone who has the "answer" to bullets.
"Don't look at me like I'm a monster."
"Then how should I look at someone who can cut bullets easily?"
"Hmph, it's just like a magic trick. There's a secret behind it."
Mr. Gorski looked slightly offended by my dumbfounded expression. He grabbed a small, steel spear propped up in the room.
"Watch."
He deployed a large shield for me to see.
It was a sturdy V-shaped shield, no less impressive than Platoon Leader Garback's.
"For example, imagine you are shooting at me from the front in this state."
"Yes."
"Most of the bullets coming at me will be deflected by the shield."
"Yes, that would happen."
"So just ignore the bullets that are off-center. They won't hit anyway."
Mr. Gorski stared at me with a piercing gaze while holding his spear up high.
I felt a chill as if I was facing off against the Sabbatian ace.
"Bullets coming from an oblique angle will generally not hit you. It's hard to hit a target moving sideways."
"Yes."
"At least in my case, I've never been hit."
Indeed, with low-rate-of-fire guns, it's hard to hit a target moving sideways.
The standard strategy in FPS games was to move sideways and hop around in the enemy's line of fire.
In this world, where bullets tend to be deflected to the side due to the presence of a shield, the standard strategy is to shoot at enemies in front of you rather than aiming at enemies at an angle.
"The problem is a bullet coming straight at you, aimed at your torso. A bullet aimed at the center can't be deflected with a [Shield]."
"Right…"
"To counter this, you simply need to slice straight down the center ridge of the [Shield] in line with the gunfire. If the bullet is off-center, there's no issue, and if it's coming straight at you, you can deflect it."
Mr. Gorski revealed the trick to me.
I see, even the formidable Platoon Leader Garback didn't cut bullets by pure reflexes.
"Wasn't the Sword Demon also highly skilled with [Shield]? If he deflected bullets effortlessly without a shield, then he'd indeed be a monster."
"…Platoon Leader Garback was an incredible user of [Shield], which was unusual for an assault soldier."
"That makes sense."
Hearing this, it's conceivable as a human skill, albeit an extraordinary one.
Reacting to gunfire and instantly slicing straight down the center is still quite a feat.
"Practice it sometime. With the [Shield] deployed, just swing any weapon straight."
"Y-Yes."
"It looks impressive and is great for parties, despite its relatively low difficulty."
"For parties…"
Thus, I was able to deepen my friendship with Mr. Gorski, the enemy of my comrade Salsa.
To him, I was probably considered the enemy of his dear comrades.
However, unless we forget our past grudges, a peaceful world will never come.
"Come on, keep your arms closer. You're small, so an upward slash would be better."
So I swallowed down all my difficult emotions.
The Sabbatian ace, who had begun drinking Vok at some point, taught me a party trick that would help me survive on the battlefield.
Incidentally, according to other Sabbatian soldiers in the village, Mr. Gorski is the only one who considers this "bullet cutting" as a party trick.
"Cut it up quicker! It's not right, the angle isn't perpendicular to the ground."
Since I was considering a career as an entertainer in the future, I decided to learn this "bullet cutting" technique, but… There was no sign of me being able to master it.
You need to cut at the same speed as the bullet, which is well beyond my physical abilities.
In other words, it's only possible for someone like Platoon Leader Garback.