Rustle! "Mage Corps, Seventh Army, Sixth Battalion, No. 14 Mage Soldier Mobile Squad Leader, Warrant Officer John Maslow, reporting to all officers. May the Empire's glory be with you all."
"No need for formalities."
Inside the command post, Dormammu sat at the head of the table. Seeing John, neatly dressed and earnestly saluting him with respect, he could not help but smile.
Although he had always been known throughout the Empire as rigid and stern, Dormammu himself felt that he was actually quite adaptable.
To him, as long as the objective could be achieved, the process did not matter.
That much was evident from how he had not only refrained from punishing John for altering the mission without authorization, but had even rewarded him instead.
As such, he personally did not care much for such cumbersome etiquette.
Of course, that might also depend on who was doing it.
After all, John Maslow was a young man who had surprised him twice. Dormammu always found himself unconsciously giving him a little more favor and expectation.
At that thought, the smile on his face deepened. To the astonished gazes of the Seventh Legion's senior officers, he actually rose to his feet and beckoned John over.
"Come, John. Sit beside me. Don't be so restrained. Once the meeting begins, if you have any thoughts, just speak directly to me."
"...Yes, General."
Under everyone's envious or jealous stares, John felt his scalp tingle.
But faced with such an enthusiastic invitation from his immediate superior, he did not dare refuse. He could only force a stiff smile and take a seat beside him at Dormammu's gesture.
After John sat down, for some reason, he suddenly felt the command post fall into a brief, deathly silence.
From Olaf, the battalion commander seated at the far end, he could even read an expression that seemed to say, You lucky bastard, the General thinks so highly of you.
Honestly, I don't want this honor at all.
How was this any different from carving the words "the Empire's number one bootlicker" onto my forehead?
Once the Allied Forces defeated the Empire, I'd definitely be dragged out and shot as a diehard imperial loyalist, right?
And it would be the kind where they emptied an entire machine-gun belt into me.
Damn it, Dormammu, you old bastard, you weren't a good person either! And here I was trusting you so much before!
John felt like crying without tears, but with Colonel Jett's encouraging gaze on his left and Dormammu's approving look on his right—
Even though he felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles, John could only put on an unruffled expression.
As though he truly were that ambitious young Empire's Hero.
"Alright, now that everyone is here, it is time to begin today's meeting."
Seeing that no one objected to his decision, Dormammu did not waste any more time. He interlaced his fingers on the conference table, then turned his gaze to the adjutant behind him and said softly,
"Major Kode, report on the current situation in the Walden Region."
"Yes, General."
The adjutant named Kode answered in a deep voice, then stepped before the group and reported with his chest raised and head held high.
"Thanks to Warrant Officer John's surprise attack yesterday, after the Allied Forces lost the restraint of their Anti-Magic Devices, our Mage Soldiers have completely driven back three Allied Forces legions and successfully occupied three towns and seventeen villages within the Walden Region."
"Although scattered Allied Forces remnants are still active in the region, at the current pace of our clearing operations, we should be able to eliminate all remaining enemy troops within roughly three days. As for this operation in the Walden Region, according to currently available data, we have seized sixteen intact magic devices and captured approximately two thousand Allied Forces soldiers, including fourteen officers. The highest-ranking prisoner is a brigadier general. The exact number of enemy troops killed is still being counted."
"Our Mage Soldier casualties currently stand at 1,342, of whom 876 were killed and 466 suffered light or severe injuries. Among the fallen were thirteen low-ranking commanders and one mid-ranking commander."
"The unit that suffered the heaviest losses was Captain Baronov's Thirteenth Battalion. All seven companies were wiped out, and an application has been submitted to headquarters to dispatch new personnel for its reorganization."
"In addition, casualties among the non-organic army units sent by Imperial Army Headquarters as reinforcements are still being counted. The figures are expected to be finalized at 3:50 p.m., at which point I will immediately report the exact casualty numbers to you."
"At present, after our forces captured..."
"..."
Listening to Colonel Kode's rhythmic report, delivered in a style like a teacher lecturing in class and carrying an inherently hypnotic effect, John gradually began to feel drowsy.
But reason still made him suppress the urge to yawn. Instead, he stared blankly at the conference table before him.
His mind began wandering to what dinner the mess hall would prepare today.
The latest novels were first released on 69shu.
Beef stew with potatoes? Or a roast meat set meal?
Of course, a bowl of noodles would be even better.
After all, the Empire's Bread was, in some respects, nearly as hard as bullets.
Just two days of this food had already made his jaw muscles start developing again beyond his control.
If this staple-food style continued, then Colonel Jett, with his perfect jawline, would undoubtedly be a preview of John's future.
While John silently complained to himself, Dormammu, seemingly unaware that Warrant Officer John's mind had wandered far away, was discussing postwar arrangements for the Walden Region with the Empire's senior officers. They seemed to have run into a difficult problem.
Everyone's brows were tightly furrowed. One after another, they lowered their heads to stare at the teacups before them as though they could somehow make flowers bloom from them.
At the head of the table, Dormammu's expression was also dark and uncertain.
Just as he was preparing to randomly pick some unlucky bastard and forcibly assign the task to him, he suddenly noticed John beside him, whose expression was perfectly calm.
Seeing John's bored look, as if he were saying, You can't even solve such a trivial matter? How will you shoulder great responsibilities for the Empire in the future? Dormammu's eyes immediately lit up. He then smiled and asked the bewildered John,
"John, judging by that look, you seem quite interested in this task?"
(End of chapter)
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