Chapter 35:
She didn’t cry until the end, but turning away from Eleanor, whose eyes glistened with unshed tears, wasn’t easy.
Still, Usher turned his back on her. He couldn’t just stand by and close his eyes while his close friend was walking the line between life and death, and boys not even sixteen were being conscripted into the army.
“Why did you come back, Captain Fitzman?”
But among the new recruits assigned to his unit, Logan found Usher and looked at him in disbelief.
“If it were you, Major, I think you would’ve done the same.”
“No, I wouldn’t have.”
Logan firmly denied it. Yet Usher knew that if the roles had been reversed, Logan would’ve made the same choice.
“How long has it been since you got engaged, and you already left Miss Hudson alone?”
“We haven’t had the wedding yet, actually.”
Usher replied with a slightly indignant face. He even grumbled that if Logan thought he was already married, he should’ve stopped referring to Eleanor as ‘Miss Hudson.’
“…You haven’t gotten married yet?”
“My father said, ‘How can you have a wedding when the major’s been dragged off to war and his fate is unknown?’”
Usher replied as if it were nothing.
“But it must’ve been urgent for her safety.”
“We’re already engaged. Charles Hudson won’t dare lay a hand on her. I also asked my parents to look after Eleanor before I left.”
Usher tried not to speak too casually. They might be friends outside, but inside the military, the chain of command was absolute.
“Idiot.”
Logan spat, turning away.
“Are you calling me stupid for not getting married yet? Or for returning to the army?”
“Both.”
Logan replied curtly as he took off his military jacket. Over the past year, his body had become stronger, and his scars more numerous. Especially the mark on the back of his neck looked like a deep wound. They were all remnants of brutal, fragmented battles.
“I’ll handle any regrets later, so don’t worry.”
“You talk big.”
“What’s the current status on the battlefield?”
“Enough that everyone finally realizes this isn’t a joke.”
At Usher’s serious question, Logan untied the loosened bandage and answered. The dried blood on the cloth had turned brown. Usher watched with a bitter heart.
When Logan had first joined the army, everything seemed like a game. Since it wasn’t a war directly involving Reden, many soldiers treated it lightly. Battles were simple affairs, with rows of riflemen shooting upon command.
But Logan believed there was no chance of victory with that kind of mindset. Even if this war wasn’t directly tied to Reden, war was still war. A single bullet could blow your head off, take a leg, or rupture your organs—it wasn’t a joke.
‘Anyone who’s not alert today will have a hole in their belly and be dead tomorrow.’
Despite Logan’s warning to take combat seriously, a soldier who had laughed it off was shot in the head the very next day. Even though the bullet didn’t hit exactly where Logan had said, the reality of his warning shook the others, and their attitudes shifted drastically.
“After witnessing the deployment of modified fighter planes in Kiele recently, the tension is even higher.”
The existence of fighter planes capable of long-range bombing was terrifying. Several squadrons had already been wiped out by just a few such planes.
“I’m starting to wonder if the king threw me into this knowing it would happen.”
Logan muttered. Of course, he didn’t really believe the king was that foresighted.
“I heard that our Defense Ministry has been improving the range of shooting-type aircraft, though it’s a bit behind Kiele’s. They’ll be deployed with the air force soon. It should shift things to our favor.”
He spoke with a calmness that seemed out of place for someone at the heart of a war. Then again, despite the delay, Logan had reclaimed the border region of Rouen that Kiele had taken, and pushed forward to the land adjacent to Kiele. He even took back their temporary barracks.
Sure, the king may have had petty reasons for sending Logan to the battlefield—but his capability surely played a role too. Usher quietly assumed as much.
“Then, do you think we’ll make it back alive?”
Usher asked, half-joking. Logan, washing his hands in a bowl of prepared water, lifted one corner of his mouth in a grin.
“Isn’t that obvious?”
* *
But despite Logan’s confident words, the war only dragged on.
Whenever one side upgraded its weapons or systems, the other developed something even more advanced. And because the allied forces were unfamiliar with the region’s terrain and weather, they were at a disadvantage—even with a numerical edge of 2 to 3.
The fighter planes were a remarkable advancement, but even that progress was halted when Kiele resorted to suicide bombings. The madness Kiele displayed was not something the allied forces could hope to match.
“…We need reinforcements.”
Eventually, Logan clenched his teeth and requested additional support. But since the capitals of the allied nations were unscathed, higher-ups assumed the situation wasn’t critical and subtly reduced the support.
As time passed, casualties increased. People died by the day, by the week, by the month. Slowly, there weren’t enough soldiers.
“…Are they insane?”
And then came the child soldiers. Usher let out a hollow laugh of disbelief. The new recruits standing in loose formation looked to be about fourteen or fifteen at best.
It wasn’t like there weren’t able-bodied adults. But seeing how dire the situation had become, they must’ve pulled back instead of stepping forward. The ones who came were likely poor children pushed by desperate families or tempted by money.
“You. How old are you?”
Logan asked the boy standing furthest back—he was the smallest of the bunch.
“T-Twelve… I mean, fifteen!”
“Twelve?”
Though he quickly corrected himself, Logan wasn’t deaf. Usher frowned and repeated the question.
“Speak clearly. How old are you?”
Under the pressure, the boy looked as if he might cry. But in the military, tears didn’t excuse you from answering. Usher stared him down with a fearsome expression, a far cry from his usual gentle face.
“T-Twelve… sir.”
The boy stammered. At that, Usher was rendered speechless. He didn’t even know what to say.
Until now, the youngest soldiers had been fifteen. Since sixteen marked adulthood, they figured fifteen-year-olds were close enough in physique. Of course, if there had been enough adults, they wouldn’t have needed to recruit teens at all. Had Reden really sunk this low?
“Aren’t there age limits for recruits?”
“We don’t accept anyone under fifteen.”
That was the answer he expected.
Then how did this twelve-year-old get in?
“How did you apply when the age limit is fifteen?”
“They said I was big for my age and people would believe I was fifteen… so…”
The boy replied tearfully. His size did resemble that of a typical fifteen-year-old.
“Were you checked at the recruitment office?”
“Yes… sir.”
But even after a few words, it was clear this child wasn’t fifteen.
“What’s your name?”
“Jonathan Watson.”
“Milton! Separate Jonathan from the others. If there are any more under fifteen, keep them with Jordan.”
“Yes, sir.”
It wasn’t the soldiers from Kiele who deserved a gun to the head. It was whoever let a child like this enlist. What kind of depravity let this happen?
“Major.”
Usher knocked on Logan’s door, and a voice called him in. Logan, shirtless and in the middle of a workout, met his eyes.
“What is it?”
“One of the recruits is twelve.”
Logan, who looked like he was ready to kick Usher out if it wasn’t important, paused.
“…How old?”
“Twelve, sir.”
Logan scoffed, then frowned like Usher.
“They sent a twelve-year-old in response to our request for reinforcements?”
“He lied and said he was fifteen because of his size, but anyone could tell he’s a kid after talking to him.”
“Insanity.”
Logan muttered coldly.
“What should we do?”
“What else? Send him back. Immediately.”
He answered with clenched teeth, as if it didn’t even warrant consideration.
“Understood.”
Usher bowed to leave, but someone else knocked on Logan’s door. Despite Usher still being inside, Logan allowed the visitor to enter.
“Major! I have good news!”
It was the incompetent officer who had brought in the boy soldiers from the capital. Logan was just about to unload his fury when the man beamed and announced his “good news.”
Logan decided to give him a moment of grace—if the news wasn’t truly good, he’d get kicked in the shins.
“A messenger from Kiele has arrived!”
And it turned out, that was a rather appropriate judgment.
