Lieutenant Colonel Eleanor Bonaparte was in great shape—not just a little good, but fantastic.
Perhaps it was because, at the tender age of twenty-five, she had taken charge of all the city defenses in Tulong and the command of over three thousand soldiers, and was about to decide the fate of seven hundred thousand residents. She was positively radiant.
Eleanor decided to celebrate by working overtime, so she spent the night inspecting the city defenses, monitoring enemy movements, and contacting the outlying supply depots. By now, she had gone a full twenty-four hours without sleep.
You might wonder how a chief of staff who had only arrived six months ago had become the highest-ranking commander. Well, that was because Colonel Herr, the commanding officer, had gone on vacation last month, while Lieutenant Colonel Hamm, his deputy, had "suddenly" come down with acute gastric ulcers three days ago. On his way to the hospital, he had "accidentally" broken his little finger, and was now recovering there. So everyone had deliberated and decided that Miss Bonaparte—the only "Moonian" in Tulong, and supposedly only there to pad her résumé—should officially take over the defense of the entire city.
Miss Eleanor neither demurred nor recited poetry. She accepted the post with perfect composure.
"Honestly, I'd rather do it myself than let those groundhogs make a mess of things." That was how Eleanor explained it to Major Dorset.
The latter commanded Tulong's armored grenadiers, a force of three hundred men. They were the only elite unit in all of New Jade Gate fully equipped with AS-56 Dragoon powered armor. What's more, they were bona fide "marines"—nicknamed "gorillas"—and ranked so far above the "trash" in the garrison that the two weren't even in the same league.
If Eleanor wanted to take control of Tulong, she had to win these men over.
Fortunately, Major Dorset was fairly respectful toward the chief of staff. This had absolutely nothing to do with his former job as security chief to Eleanor's father, General Karon Bonaparte.
Absolutely nothing!
"Regardless, the enemy has already amassed over a million troops. Satellite and drone surveillance have both confirmed it. Even with reinforcements gradually returning from the outlying depots, the whole city has only a little over three thousand people. We don't know if the Outer Ring Fleet's reinforcements will arrive in time... We're facing a tough fight!"
Forty-year-old Major Dorset spoke with sober prudence, but Eleanor thought it was all obvious. Still, he was one of her father's men. When she was little, she had called him Uncle Louis, and he had called her Young Miss. She could at least humor him a little.
"They're just over a million primitives, and who knows how many are old people, children, and women dragged along to make up the numbers. You know how primitive people fight."
"Even a million pigs can rush forward like a flood! And haven't the reports already said they have firearms and armored vehicles? The drones just spotted them setting up positions on Hill 6 outside the city. They're probably building an artillery position! We can't tell what type of guns they have yet, but if they're heavy siege guns, I don't know how long Tulong Port's shield can hold."
Eleanor nodded. "At least the reconnaissance department finally did something useful... Hah. Over a million nomads gathered from every direction, and they only thought to report it once they'd formed an army and were on their way here. Their chief deserves to be shot for that alone."
"Uh, the head of reconnaissance, Lieutenant Park Young-nam, was shot by you yesterday..."
Eleanor acted as if she hadn't heard. She lifted a finger and irritably twirled the ponytail draped over her shoulder, then asked offhandedly, "What about Yuli... Have we heard anything from any of the supply depots that lost contact?"
Major Dorset knew what the young lady really wanted to ask. He hesitated, then gritted his teeth and said, "No. Also... the satellite scan just confirmed that Depot 12 has been completely destroyed. Its personnel should have managed to break out."
The major's belated reassurance didn't help much. Eleanor grew even more irritated and strode off on her long, shapely legs.
"Where are you going? Governor Yamadera wants to see you."
"Tell him I'll be on the parade ground."
A little over ten minutes later, Governor Yamadera came jogging to the parade ground. The short, stout Japanese man, already over fifty, was clearly unaccustomed to exercise. He was drenched in sweat by the time he arrived, only to find every "senior officer" of captain rank or above gathered there. Miss Eleanor stood in full view of them all, tinkering with an AS-56 multipurpose combat mech.
Even the youngest officers present were about ten years older than the chief of staff. Yet they all stood in mute awe as the "little girl" cheerfully handled the weapons with murderous intent.
Was this crazy woman planning to execute me with that powered armor? The governor let out an awkward laugh and couldn't help wiping his sweat with a handkerchief. He simply couldn't put on the airs of a governor in Eleanor's presence. Her education, ability, and connections were one thing. More importantly, Eleanor was a commissioned officer of the Commonwealth Supreme Command, a naval lieutenant colonel directly under the Space Fleet. She was paid by the National Defense Council, and was nothing like the "garrison trash" appointed by the governor's office.
Economic dependence determined one's place in the hierarchy! That wasn't something Mr. Lu Xun had said. It was something Teacher Li had taught.
"...Um, Lieutenant Colonel Bonaparte. Could we discuss this in private?"
"Let's talk here, Your Excellency. As you can see, I'm slow-witted and busy with military affairs. I simply don't have the time to think about anything else apart from matters of military importance. Since everyone's here, we can speak freely."
Governor Yamadera hesitated for nearly a minute. In the meantime, Eleanor had already set about polishing and waxing the powered armor.
"Lieutenant Colonel, can Tulong really be defended?" the governor finally asked.
"That's not for me to say. You can ask them." Eleanor fiddled with the mech's gun barrel. This wasn't some defective model used by the garrison. It was the Marines' mainstay equipment, armed with a 9mm Vulcan cannon.
The officers swallowed. A dark-skinned major who looked the most like a soldier stood at attention and saluted, shouting, "Under the wise leadership of Commander Bonaparte and Governor Yamadera, the city defenses will be completely secure!"
The governor noticed that he'd put "Commander Bonaparte" before "Governor Yamadera" and nearly fainted. After all, Major Sangha was the man he himself had appointed as Tulong's garrison commander.
"Lieutenant Colonel, what I mean is... The nomads have the numbers. We, um, really don't need to hold out here! There are still two merchant ships in the spaceport. We can still leave now. While there's still time! I hear the nomads are setting up artillery outside. Once they get their anti-aircraft defenses up, we won't be able to leave."
The governor actually knew that the nomads were setting up artillery? Eleanor glanced at the officers, who quickly lowered their heads.
Well, no matter how Miss Chief of Staff had won these people's loyalty with her outstanding per—(per)suasive charm, she hadn't been here long enough to brainwash these scheming old hands.
"Lieutenant Colonel, let's withdraw. You're the commander. Aren't you supposed to preserve our forces?"
"You've given me a whole new perspective on military command." Eleanor smiled and nodded. "But if we withdraw, what about the more than six hundred thousand people in this city? What about the seven hundred thousand Commonwealth citizens of New Jade Gate?"
"Well, there's nothing we can do. Besides, the nomads aren't the uncivilized savages they used to be. We can settle this through diplomacy. May the Spirit of the Universe protect them. They'll be fine."
"You've given me a whole new perspective on diplomacy and faith, too." Eleanor smiled and shook her head. "At any rate, a soldier's duty tells me I can't run away from this place. But this is already a war zone, so Your Excellency, as a civilian official, is free to leave. I won't stop you, and I have no authority to stop you!"
Me? How am I supposed to escape? If I really run off alone, how will I find someone to take the blame? Do you think I'm asking you to come with me because you're pretty? You're the military commander. If we escape together, I can say I left because I had "complete faith in the military commander's judgment." I mean, withdrew together.
You're a rich young lady, and a top graduate of the Defense University. At worst, you'll be put on ice for a few years. But it's different for me! If they prove I "deserted in the face of the enemy," losing my position will be the least of my problems. Couldn't you spare a thought for an ordinary kid from a common family who worked his way up to where he is today?
Governor Yamadera couldn't say any of that out loud. He considered his words, about to say something more, when two soldiers dragged a second lieutenant onto the parade ground. The governor stared at them, stunned and confused. Then, a moment later, he finally recognized the man's face and was horrified.
"Second Lieutenant Ayer Cruise?" Eleanor asked casually, still tinkering with the mech's weapons.
The second lieutenant, in his early thirties, was nearly a puddle of terror. He trembled all over as he looked at Miss Bonaparte, his lips quivering, unable to speak. He cast a pleading look at the governor, who was sweating again.
"Let me ask you this. It's been three full days since headquarters issued the reinforcement order, yet not a single soldier from Depot 12 has arrived. So why are you—and your airship, which was assigned there—here in Tulong?"
Major Dorset glanced at Eleanor, then continued staring straight ahead, pretending to be a statue that couldn't hear a thing.
"I, I, your subordinate, I..." After stammering like a broken record for half a minute, Cruise finally remembered what to say. "I, I had to make a living! A shipload of spices earns me five thousand each time! That's all, I swear, that's everything! I'm willing to hand it all over! Please, please, Commander, I have a family, I have children, I have three kids to support... W-w-wah! Governor Yamadera, save me, please save me!"
The short, stout governor suddenly shouted, drowning out Cruise's pleas completely. "Miss Lieutenant Colonel, I think we should show humanity's indomitable spirit and courage and keep resisting! We must never compromise with primitive natives. That's common international practice!"