"It looks like we're about to win."
On the night of a day spent relaxing in a warm house, we heard such rumors from soldiers patrolling the area.
"They say we've already taken half of the capital today."
"That's great. I just want to go back home and enjoy Vanya soon."
According to the rumors, our victory was almost certain.
General Truk probably didn't expect the battle to turn into urban warfare so suddenly.
The enemy's defense network within the city was surprisingly thin.
"We're liberating civilians who were under enemy occupation one after another."
"They're rebellious though. Far from being grateful, they seem to resent us."
General Truk had prepared multiple trenches surrounding the capital, Josegrad.
While the trenches were strong and durable, it meant that was all the time they had for preparation.
Just as we had no time to prepare supplies, the Workers' Council had no time for full preparations either.
It looks like the benefits of this reckless attack, urged by the high-ranking Sabbatian officials, have finally paid off.
"Well, the citizens will calm down once we drive out the enemy terrorists."
"I'd like to end this battle as quickly as possible."
The Workers' Council absolutely could not afford to have their trenches breached.
Their damage would not be limited to just losing their crucial defense network.
Now that we had secured a warm place to sleep, we were no longer bothered by them biding their time.
The time when merely defending the trenches could lead to our self-destruction was over for the Workers' Council.
"Hmm…"
"What's wrong, Aust-chan?"
"No, I just have a bad feeling."
It was a smooth success that is almost too good to be true.
But if this success was achieved because we fought through the enemy lines with our lives on the line, then so be it…
"It just feels like things are going too well."
"Well, isn't it good if things are going well?"
"No, Touri is right. It is in good times that disasters strikes. It is precisely when things are going well that we must be more vigilant."
The enemy's General Staff are probably now pale-faced and pulling their hair out.
Our victory is imminent. They might even be considering surrendering or retreating.
Despite such an overwhelmingly favorable position, I have a feeling that even in this situation, we are being "manipulated by someone's hand."
If this is overthinking, then that would be for the best. However, let's remain vigilant and stay calm in our duties.
I headed to the briefing with that in mind.
***
"Hahaha, there's no need to worry, Touri. The battle is already won."
"Isn't it possible that the current situation is exactly what the enemy wants?"
"That's impossible."
That evening, Sylph returned to the house where we were staying and held a modest celebration.
Apparently, Mr. Gorski will be receiving an award on behalf of the platoon at a later date.
"Certainly, there could be a strategy to lure us into the city and then encircle us."
"Yes."
"But it would be stronger to continue defending the trenches than to execute such a strategy."
At that gathering, I was caught by the drunken Sylph.
She was in high spirits, opening a chessboard and making me play against her.
"If the enemy were to use the city as a decoy, it would be easier to deal with them. It would be a foolish plan where they might even lose the support of the people they've gained."
"That's certainly true."
"Well, it's possible that they might resort to that plan as a last resort, but there's no way I would fall for such a crude plan."
She drank her vodka as if she had already won.
It might have been the first time I've seen Sylph without a wrinkle on her forehead.
"Touri. If we win this battle, you'll be at the goal. As promised, I will prepare a proper house and fortune for you. You can raise your child with as much love as you want."
"Thank you."
"But for me, winning this battle is not the goal… I'm just standing on the starting line."
Sylph declared, still looking pleased.
Even she seemed to get a little elated in the face of certain victory.
No, rather, she might be more pleased about "being able to avoid killing anyone."
"We've managed this far. Without a doubt, it's thanks to you. I thank you."
"It was nothing."
"From here on, I will have to do what I can."
Sylph, cheeks flushed from the alcohol, exhaled white breath while thinking about something.
"Finally… We can finally put an end to this foolish war. No one will have to be killed anymore. The peace we cherish is right in front of us."
"Yes."
"Tomorrow will be the final battle. Arrangements have already been made for the reorganization of Gorski Platoon."
"The final battle, huh?"
"Yes. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I'll need Gorski to give it one last push. Just a little more, lend me your strength, Touri."
"Yes…"
Sylph smiled with genuine joy at my affirmative response.
***
The next day…
We suffered a severe defeat.
"…"
It seems that the enemy had set up a defensive position in the city overnight.
Although still incomplete, they had managed to establish a solid defense network.
Despite this, General Blake probably thought we could easily win by riding on yesterday's momentum.
Full of confidence, he ordered a frontal assault without any strategy.
Naturally, we were soundly defeated by the well-prepared defenses.
"Ah, well, you see…"
However, Sylph had expected General Blake to give such a command.
She had predicted that he might do just that.
So, Sylph had obtained permission from General Blake to take a separate course of action to secure victory.
That separate action was…
A surprise attack on the enemy guerrilla forces.
"…Didn't you say yesterday that we had already won?"
"Ah…"
The Workers' Council forces had been conducting guerrilla operations while hiding within the city.
There were small units hiding around the city that launched surprise attacks on us.
This tactic proved highly effective in a city with many places to hide.
This is a classic and effective defensive strategy that is typical of General Truk.
"I'm sorry…"
Upon hearing this information, Sylph judged that not dealing with the guerrilla forces would result in tremendous damage.
However, it is difficult to wipe out the guerrilla forces lurking everywhere.
So, Sylph targeted the guerrilla force's supply lines.
She predicted a likely location for the enemy's frontline supply base and planned to attack it.
It went well up to that point, but…
"We were completely read."
"I thought I was going to die…"
"Damn it… so much for a 'winning battle.'"
The surprise attack was completely anticipated.
We charged ahead with great enthusiasm only to find enemy position empty, and we were immediately met with gunfire from all directions.
"Gorski, Touri. I'm really sorry. You saved us."
"It's nothing."
I had a bad feeling, so I had requested Sylph to assign Gorski Platoon to secure the rear under the pretense of being injured.
Thanks to that, Mr. Gorski managed to create an escape route and secure an exit the moment we were surrounded.
We really might have been wiped out without Mr. Gorski.
"I was overly complacent. What ignorance and foolishness."
…Well, this could also be said to be Sylph's bad habit, or weakness.
Her proposed strategies were always calculated based on expected value.
"…If there had been a supply base here, and we had struck it, the battle would have been over."
"There wasn't one here, though."
Sylph always chose the strategy with the highest return among the options she could think of at the time.
Even if there was some risk involved, if the potential return from success was great, she would adopt it.
She was a commander who achieved overwhelming victories in most battles, but with bad luck, she could easily lose as well.
This was the "danger of Sylph Nova" that her father, Brustav, had feared.
"Really, can't you just stop being so self-satisfied?"
"It's clear that a kid as a commander just won't work."
"…"
Even if safer strategies existed, she would choose a "riskier but more effective" option.
This was her way of trying to reduce unnecessary casualties as much as possible.
Because the longer the battle dragged on, the more we had to continue looting from civilians.
"Sylph…"
"…"
But losing here meant losing everything.
It seemed that this was Sylph's first experience of increasing damage due to her own actions.
"I wish we had just advanced alongside General Blake."
"That would have caused even more damage, wouldn't it?"
Even geniuses make mistakes, but the soldiers don't understand that.
Sylph listened to the soldiers' grumbling while biting her lip.
In reality…
Although Sylph had lost repeatedly up to this point, the enemy commander Truk was by no means an incompetent leader.
Since the Sabbatian government forces had repeatedly used surprise tactics, Truk probably anticipated that there would be some sort of surprise tactic this time as well.
It is a fundamental principle of military strategy not to repeat unconventional tactics.
Sylph herself had begun to underestimate her enemies to the point that she had forgotten about such things.
"I'll think of a new plan… Give me some time."
On the day we narrowly escaped from a potential catastrophe, she quietly returned to headquarters alone.
***
From this day, the front line became once again stalemated.
Our successive victories seemed to have sealed our win, but the enemy's morale remained unexpectedly high.
Even though we had achieved a series of victories, we were still in a very disadvantageous position. We had merely managed to level the playing field through clever tactics.
There was no way we could win by launching an unplanned attack on momentum alone.
"Hah…"
Even though we had finally entered Josegrad, the hellish situation continued.
No, in some ways, this might have been the true beginning of hell.
"The enemy general is indeed a fine strategist. I can't find any openings to attack…"
Sylph Nova, our last hope, had finally run out of strategies.
She had devised several plans, but all of them had been countered by General Truk.
Soldiers were stationed in all underground passages and back alleys that could be used for surprise attacks.
Magical traps had been set everywhere, and any careless attempt at a surprise attack would leave our forces burnt to a crisp.
Determined not to let the city be further ravaged, the enemy soldiers continued to fend us off with high morale.
Sylph had no choice but to attack head-on without relying on clever tactics as long as General Truk remained in command.
And so, a long, drawn-out standoff began within the city…
***
"Hey, Aust-chan, could you check on the wounded for me?"
"What's the matter?"
Certainly, having taken over the city allowed us to avoid freezing in our makeshift beds.
However, the houses we had occupied originally belonged to the citizens.
We were taking someone's home and property and were living comfortably.
Many citizens had been evicted from their homes under the pretext of "renting" them out and were moved to large shelters like community centers.
Some, unfortunately, had no lodging and were forced to camp out.
…These actions generated unimaginable resentment from the citizens.
"I got hit in the head with a stone while patrolling the city."
"I was attacked by an old woman demanding her son back. I got cut pretty badly."
"…"
The Workers' Council had most of the citizens of Josegrad on their side, so there was a lot of resistance within the city.
The Workers' Council used resources seized from the wealthy to distribute food, while the government forces, under the pretense of "liberating the capital," repeatedly plundered from the citizens.
It was obvious which one would be more welcome.
"When I shot and killed the old woman, the citizens looked at me with terrifying eyes. But I might have been killed myself if I had ignored her"
"Ugh, it's impossible to walk around the city carelessly. Even though it's my hometown."
We were the invaders.
While the Workers' Council was trying to change the country, we were hindering that effort with our looting.
The Sabbatian Army had no allies. No one to praise our life-risking battles.
"…What are we even fighting for?"
Even the soldiers, who had initially been considerate towards the citizens, were beginning to become disheartened by the persistent hostility.
Who is it that we're risking our lives for?
Why were we, who had marched through hell to get here, being harassed by citizens who were living comfortably?
It didn't take long for these feelings to take root.
***
One day, while Gorski Platoon was patrolling the city, we came across a troubling scene in front of a house.
"Stop it! We don't need you! Why won't you just leave us alone!"
It appeared that a young female citizen was being surrounded by Sabbatian soldiers.
Her eyes were blazing in rage as she clutched a kitchen knife in one hand, her face contorted with fear as she shouted.
"Get out! Leave Josegrad! We have no food or alcohol to give you!"
In front of the woman stood a soldier, bleeding from his shoulder.
The soldier had been stabbed by the woman in her resistance.
"Is that all you have to say?"
"Pointing guns at civilians? You filthy scum!"
"You're the one who first drew the knife, you bitch!"
The soldier was likely requisitioning supplies from a private residence under military orders.
As a result, the woman had attacked him in defense.
Of course, the woman's entire family was then killed.
You can't simply let someone who raises a hand against a soldier go unpunished.
It's worth noting that this house had already been plundered by another unit.
After massacring the family, the soldiers searched the house for food and found only a few cans of food left.
"This house will be used as a garrison starting tomorrow. Report this to headquarters."
"Understood."
The house had three children.
The mother must have thought her children would starve to death if more food was taken.
So, she resisted with a knife against the soldiers who came to requisition food.
The remains of the family were left by the roadside.
No soldier would expend their energy to bury them in the extreme cold.
Thus, for a while, the bodies remained lying in the streets.
Three children's bodies were piled up.
The youngest child was about the same height as Sedol, around 4–5 years old.
The body was eventually covered with snow, forming a large bump on the road.
***
Corpses do not decompose in extreme cold.
Since microorganisms are inactive, the only change is that the moisture in the skin freezes.
"Ugh…"
I couldn't bear to look at it, so one day I decided to borrow a shovel and bury it myself.
On the way back from patrol, I gathered my platoon mates and approached the bodies.
"Wow, is that a child?"
"Is this what happens when you die in the snow?"
The innocent face of the child, wrapped in snow, had become wrinkled like an old man.
His eyes were half-open, and he looked as if he was smiling for some reason. He was frozen face down and dead.
"Ah…"
I've heard that frozen bodies look beautiful, but small wrinkles form because the moisture in the skin freezes.
The body was frozen and hard. When I picked up the child, it felt like I was holding a lump of iron.
"Aust-chan, calm down."
"If you're going to cry, go back inside. Your tears will freeze."
"I'm sorry… When I think about this child being Sedol…"
"Okay, okay. Let's head back for now. Aust-chan can't handle this."
When I realized that the little boy's smiling expression resembled Sedol's, it became too much for me.
Overcome with nausea and sorrow, I couldn't continue with the burial.
***
During this time, the Sabbatian government forces continued their massacre of civilians throughout the city.
The Sabbatian soldiers did not kill civilians because they wanted to. Who would want to kill their fellow citizens, the people of their own homeland?
However, their comrades might be killed if they ignored civilians who turned against them.
There were also orders from General Blake to: "consider resisting civilians as traitors and execute them as examples," so killing rebellious civilians was the only option.
In the spring of that year, as the snow melted on the main street…
Countless bodies of those shot to death were visible throughout Josegrad, and the gruesome scenes were recorded by various artists.
Most of the bodies lying on the main street had turned pale and were naked, their clothes having been stripped away.
Those whose homes had been burned or who had been forced to sleep outdoors stole clothing in order to survive.
The clothed bodies were mainly people who had starved to death inside their homes.
Some of the bodies were missing limbs, suggesting that they might have resorted to cannibalism within their families.
Those who were executed were hung from trees in the streets and their bodies were displayed for public viewing as a warning to others.
They bore signs of severe torture, their final moments marred by evident suffering.
The sight resembled a religious painting, yet it was a real, unimaginably tragic scene that happened in reality.
Their homes and food supplies were taken, they were executed if they resisted, and they starved to death if they obeyed.
The citizens of Josegrad that year undoubtedly lived through hell.