Humans are warm-blooded animals that require an enormous amount of energy to maintain their body temperature.
The primary source of this energy is food.
By eating food, we are able to sustain life even in extremely cold places.
"Hey, aren't we short on rations today?"
In the end, General Blake and the officials were not satisfied with just securing Fort Rusovets. We resumed our advance towards the capital.
No matter how you look at it, this is an extremely reckless offensive.
Both ammunition and rations were already nearly depleted by the time Fort Rusovets was captured.
The food supply was expected to run out by the time we reached the capital if we continued to eat as usual.
"We're told to make do with half the food we've had so far while marching."
"Share one ration between two people."
General Blake therefore limited his troops' food intake to half of their usual amount during the march.
He ordered the soldiers to share one person's ration between two, attempting to conserve resources.
"Don't mess with me, you've eaten too much! It's more than half gone!"
"The original amount was already small; it's exactly half now."
"Don't lie! Give me my food back!"
This was a disastrous policy.
Fights broke out among the soldiers, leading to widespread conflict.
Injuries increased, bandages were wasted, and the soldiers grew even hungrier.
"This is due to your lack of leadership. Why don't you at least get a firm grip on your subordinates?"
"I apologize…"
General Blake blamed the lower-ranked commanders, issuing a decree that, "if a fight breaks out, the entire unit will be punished."
If a fight broke out, the entire platoon would be deprived of food as a collective punishment.
"You guys are fighting again?! I'll kill you!"
"Eeek!"
So platoon leaders in each unit used violence to quell fights between soldiers in the name of discipline.
This only worsened relations within the units. The morale that had been boosted by capturing the fortress began to decline.
"…Here. I don't need to eat that much."
"That's no good. Eat properly, Aust-chan."
"You're looking pale."
In this state, the Sabbatian Army forced their way to the outskirts of the capital, Josegrad.
1,000 soldiers fell during this forced march, nearly equivalent to the size of three companies.
In other words, three companies had been annihilated just by marching.
The scale of this loss was greater than during the capture of Fort Rusovets.
"These soldiers have families too. The reason for suffering such casualties being 'the whims of the powerful' is unacceptable."
Soldiers who dropped out were left abandoned on the roadside.
Officially, they were to "return to the base due to illness."
In reality, they were abandoned.
No rations were left for the abandoned soldiers due to the food shortage.
The fallen soldiers, suffering from hunger and frostbite, listened to the footsteps of their comrades marching away as they drew their last breath.
What were they feeling at that moment?
The Battle of Josegrad, the most brutal experience of my life, was already this horrific even during the march.
They say that life becomes cheap on the battlefield, but this was the first time I had seen an army where human lives were treated so carelessly.
And I, too, had never been so indifferent about the lives of others before.
***
The cold robs us of our ability to think.
Even with the high-performance Sabbatian cold weather gear, marching in sub-zero temperatures is extremely harsh.
In fact, I've been feeling unwell since the temperature dropped.
My body felt feverish, I spent more time feeling dazed, and I felt like I was going to collapse if I let my guard down.
I probably had caught the flu that was going around.
In these freezing conditions, even a slight breeze sent piercing chills down my spine due to my feverish state.
In the Sabbath's winter, humidity is more important than temperature. As humidity increases, the coldness of the wind intensifies dramatically.
It had been snowing heavily previously that day and a strong seasonal wind was blowing. Even though the snow stopped, the humidity was so high that frost formed on my coat.
Exposing any skin on a day like this would result in frostbite. I kept my hood up, covering my head and mouth, breathing into my coat to keep my body heat from escaping.
Even after doing all of that, my body wouldn't stop shivering.
"H-Hot, it's hot…"
Even I, who had more stamina and better fuel efficiency than the new recruits, was pushed to my limits.
It is not surprising that so many new recruits dropped out in such a situation.
"Arizonov just collapsed while completely naked."
"Why did he suddenly start stripping?"
For example, our comrade Arizonov suddenly went mad, stripped off his clothes, and collapsed naked. He fell asleep, never to move again.
The body's hypothalamus malfunctions if it gets too cold, making you feel hot.
This phenomenon is called paradoxical undressing. If I hadn't trained, I might have ended up like this.
"…Touri, are you alright?"
"I-I'm fine, Mr. Gorski."
"…Alright."
I was so physically and mentally exhausted that I had no energy to worry about others.
When Arizonov collapsed, just glancing at him was all I could manage.
Maybe Mr. Gorski was trying to get me to treat him.
That would have been difficult given my condition at the time.
"Yes! I get to eat a full meal today since Arizonov is my meal partner."
"Don't be ridiculous. We should share it with everyone. Arizonov was our comrade."
"Shut up! How can we share such a small amount? I'm taking all of it today."
At first, the soldiers were worried about their fallen comrades, but as the march continued, they began to rejoice at the deaths of their comrades.
In the dead of winter in the Sabbath, not eating properly means death.
They must have been so desperate that they celebrated when their comrades died because there would be more food to spare.
The army was slowly but surely being overtaken by madness in the extreme cold.
Meanwhile, officers like General Blake were also on reduced rations, but they were transported in warm vehicles.
Without the need to march in the freezing cold, having their food halved wasn't as severe.
Therefore, General Blake did not understand the gravity of his order to reduce food intake by half.
He apparently even thought it was a brilliant idea.
With many sacrifices, we finally advanced our troops to the eastern and western outskirts of the capital, Josegrad.
There, we would begin a bloody battle against enemy soldiers who were originally civilians.
It's likely that no one, including Sylph Nova, had envisioned the outcome of this battle before it started.
***
We arrived near Josegrad in such terrible conditions and were completely exhausted.
I had experienced a grueling retreat through the mountains of Marshdale without food or water, but this time was undoubtedly more severe.
The weather was mild back then and the forest provided shade from direct sunlight.
It was tough not being able to drink water, but we found a water source along the way and were able to take a break.
This march, however, was different. Besides the mental terror of knowing you would die if you collapsed, the extreme cold relentlessly sapped our strength.
It would have been genuinely life-threatening if the march continued for a few more days.
"Hey Aust-chan, your eyes look hollow. Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm… managing somehow."
In reality, I had fallen ill and nearly collapsed several times.
Each time, Mr. Gorski carried me for about an hour to let me rest.
I felt reassured on his large back.
"…It's no wonder. This girl doesn't have enough fat to fight the cold."
"You're doing well keeping up with us for your size."
I was probably suffering from hypothermia.
Lacking sufficient fat reserves, my body temperature was more easily drained compared to the male soldiers.
Resting by the campfire at night significantly improved my condition.
"Aust-chan, you're small enough. You should crawl into Platoon Leader Gorski's sleeping bag."
"It'll be warm by him."
"That's fine, but take off your jacket and pants before getting in. The snow on them is cold."
I had no choice but to sleep in Mr. Gorski's sleeping bag in nothing but my underwear.
In fact, apart from myself and Mr. Gorski, there were many other soldiers sharing sleeping bags together.
However, they were a little hesitant to invite me both because I'm from Austin and because I'm a woman.
"Aust-chan can relax. Platoon Leader Gorski likes men."
"Honestly, I wish I could share a sleeping bag with Platoon Leader Gorski. I'm jealous, Aust-chan."
"Huh?"
I felt uneasy about sleeping next to a man, but Mr. Gorski seemed safe.
I trusted he wouldn't do anything inappropriate… but still, I hadn't realized how common that kind of thing was in the military.
By the way, sleeping next to him was very warm.
Mr. Gorski even smelled nice. Maybe he was wearing cologne.
On the other hand, Mr. Gorski mentioned that I felt chillingly cold.
***
"Everyone, prepare for battle. It seems the enemy is lying in wait."
"I can't run anymore…"
Finally, we arrived at the plains just before the capital.
Our condition was beyond exhausted.
The temperature had dropped further. A blizzard had also begun, worsening visibility.
"The blizzard's getting worse. Are we officially in winter now?"
"Yeah, winter has arrived. My piss froze earlier."
The Sabbatian winter was colder than I had imagined.
The hammer of the gun is frozen, making it difficult to load a bullet.
Just by lightly licking my lips, I felt an incredible coldness and almost fainted.
"I can't stand this anymore. Why do we have to stay outside all day in the middle of winter?"
"My body won't move…"
The soldiers were reaching their limit. They were on the brink of collapse without even engaging in combat.
Marching in the middle of winter without food is obviously unreasonable for a unit with many new recruits.
They were succumbing to the cold and were no longer in a position to fight.
"Well done, everyone. We will rest today and regain our strength."
Even General Blake realized the severity of the situation after seeing the soldiers' condition.
The day before we were to attack the capital, we built igloos and gathered around a campfire, giving us time to inspect our weapons and recharge our energy.
"Eat as usual today. Tomorrow is the decisive battle."
That day, we received our full rations.
I huddled with the members of Gorski Platoon, sharing the warmth of the fire and eating a full meal.
The cheerful atmosphere from our departure is no where to be seen. Everyone laughed with dead eyes and dry voices.
As our dripping snot melted by the fire, Gorski Platoon, which had already lost five members, silently crawled into our sleeping bags.
***
"Mr. Gorski."
"What's the matter, Touri?"
That night, while lying in his sleeping bag, I quietly asked Mr. Gorski about the plans for the next day.
"How is Sylph's condition?"
"Are you worried about her?"
"Yes."
As a high-ranking officer, Sylph traveled in a transport vehicle just like General Blake.
Platoon leaders like Mr. Gorski would go to the transport vehicles, and detailed operational information would be communicated to us through them.
"She's our lifeline. If there's any chance of winning this desperate battle, it relies on her shrewd strategies."
"Yes, Sylph has grown into a very reliable figure."
Honestly, I couldn't see any chance of winning.
It will be difficult for soldiers to perform as well as they normally do in this cold weather.
The same goes for me. I don't think I can move as quickly in this temperature as I have on past battlefields.
Meanwhile, our enemies were staying warm inside their homes, eating hearty meals and waiting for us.
With such disadvantages in terms of logistics, morale, and performance, a crushing defeat is inevitable.
"Don't worry. She looked very tired and had messy hair as she briefed us on the operation."
"Is that reassuring?"
"There's no need to worry. Sylph worked on the plan until she was thoroughly exhausted. I only know a partial outline of it, but I'm sure it's an incredibly effective plan."
Mr. Gorski mentioned that Sylph looked exhausted.
Although not as slim as me, she is slender. For a woman her age, I wouldn't say she had a good physique, at least.
I'm worried she might be unwell.
"If she catches a cold, her aide Elijah will take good care of her."
"That's true."
"More importantly, Touri, are you feeling okay? Tomorrow is the final battle."
"I'll do my best… I still have a reason why I can't die yet."
Regardless, it's good to hear Sylph was diligently preparing the strategy.
For now, I'll place my trust in her strategic brilliance that had once thoroughly tormented Austin.
"Well then, good night Mr. Gorski."
"Yeah. Get plenty of rest."
And so, I drifted into sleep amidst the warmth of Gorski's muscular chest
The last peaceful night before the Battle of Josegrad slowly passed.