How Much? What Did You Just Say?!

"How much? What did you just say?! Ugh, Captain, I'm really going to throw up. Really, please let me get out of the car. I'm begging you!"

In the back seat of the jeep, Wendy, who had "voluntarily" ridden with John, had endured half an hour of hellish bumps.

Her face immediately turned pale, her pupils trembling as she pleaded with John beside her.

She was so stupid. Really.

She had known that Warrant Officer John was a petty sore loser, yet she still couldn't resist teasing him.

Now that she had truly experienced this hellish ordeal, she had deeply understood one thing.

Sometimes, people really needed to restrain their urge to court disaster.

Otherwise, the one who ended up suffering would definitely be themselves.

At this point, the original force had already split up. John was leading a hundred men, including the 14th Squad, toward the nearest village on the map, Stone Village.

Logically speaking, a settlement like this should at least have a relatively level dirt road. It shouldn't have been this bumpy.

But unfortunately, the recent stretch of rainy weather had turned the unmaintained dirt road into a mess of potholes.

On top of that, damn Stone Village was surrounded by mountains, with rocks scattered everywhere.

Combined with the fact that this jeep had no shock absorption system whatsoever, the force of the impacts and vibrations while driving was self-evident.

Even a professional driver would probably have their brains shaken smooth after sitting in this hell wagon for an hour!

No, he had to talk to the Empire's research department later. Those idiots absolutely had to install shock absorbers on every jeep.

Otherwise, before he even retired, he might die from an infection after his hemorrhoids burst!

That was far too humiliating a way to die. He had to avoid it at all costs!

John swore repeatedly to himself.

Then he glanced at Wendy beside him, whose eyes were beginning to roll back and whose throat kept convulsing. Realizing that this idiot was nearing her limit as well—

He understood that if they kept toughing it out, Wendy the idiot would probably vomit all over him.

Having completed his revenge, Warrant Officer John wisely stopped while he was ahead. He immediately ordered the soldier driving the jeep to pull over, then fled the hell wagon as though escaping for his life.

"Saved!"

The moment they got out, Wendy and John sighed at nearly the same time.

But when John saw Wendy looking as though she had narrowly escaped death, as if she might cry from joy the next second, a nameless fury suddenly rose in him.

This idiot had only experienced half an hour of it, while he had spent a full two hours in that damned hell wagon earlier.

Two hours! Did she know how he had survived those two hours?!

Sure enough, that punishment had been far too light for this moron. He had to step it up. He absolutely had to!

At that thought, John's gaze toward Wendy began to flicker.

"Cough, cough. Captain, I remember seeing signs of remnant troops operating near Stone Village on the map. Two scouts alone might not be enough to investigate, so as vice-captain, I have to go help them."

Almost at the same instant, Wendy noticed John's cold gaze. Realizing that her petty captain seemed to be planning to torment her again—

Alarm bells immediately went off in Wendy's head, and she casually made up an excuse.

Then, without waiting for John to agree, she decisively slung her Mage Pack onto her back. Magic power burst forth from her body, and she shot into the sky, fleeing as fast as she could.

It was as though a demon were watching her from behind, ready to drag her into hell if she was even a second too slow.

In the blink of an eye, Wendy vanished completely from John's sight.

You ran fast enough. I'll spare your life this time.

Seeing Wendy admit defeat, John lost any desire to keep punishing her.

Then, using the excuse that he wanted to walk for a while, he forced a smile and refused the driver's invitation to get back in. Under the other man's regretful gaze, John slipped into the army formation and walked with the troops toward Stone Village.

Just as John was pondering how he could carry out his fabricated "bribery" plan once they reached that godforsaken little village, in a way that would convince the Empire's Inspection Forces—

After an unknown amount of time, a burst of magic power sounded. The next moment, Wendy appeared before him.

Why was this idiot back again? Wait, this scene seemed strangely familiar.

Could it be that this idiot had really found the Allied Forces?

Sure enough, Wendy, you idiot, were sent by the Goddess of Misfortune specifically to ruin me!

Looking at Wendy's delighted face, John faintly sensed that this idiot's villain-attracting constitution had activated again. All he felt was despair.

Just as he prepared to keep his expression under control and endure the coming blow of "good news"—

Wendy's excited voice suddenly rang in his ears the next moment.

"Captain, I just intercepted a merchant caravan. They were acting suspiciously and traveling along back roads."

"I suspect they're Allied Forces spies planted in Walden Territory. After discovering that they'd been defeated, they tried to flee with funds, so I had them detained."

"Captain, would you like to interrogate them personally?"

Huh? So it was just an ordinary merchant caravan. False alarm, false alarm!

I knew it. There was no way I could be this unlucky, that even a random excuse I made up would come true.

Hearing that Wendy had not found any trace of the Allied Forces and had only discovered an ordinary merchant caravan, John immediately let out a sigh of relief. His hanging heart finally settled back down.

Then he shot a resentful glance at the idiot who had thrown his emotions into turmoil and snapped irritably.

"Isn't it just a merchant caravan? What's there to make such a fuss over? Just question them a little and let them go. Wendy, you idiot, have you forgotten that we're carrying out an important mission? This concerns the safety of all Walden Territory. Where would we find time to waste on some insignificant merchant caravan?"

"But Captain, I really think these people are suspicious. Not only did they bring a lot of guards, they were also carrying a lot of valuable goods."

Wendy spoke with a wronged expression.

Wasn't it normal for merchants to hire guards? Besides, it was only a small caravan. How much money could they possibly have?

This warrant officer earned 500 D a month. Did a bunch of poor merchant trash really deserve a personal interrogation from him? Was this idiot taking him far too lightly?

Besides, if word got out that he had seized a Kingdom merchant caravan, and the Kingdom defeated the Empire in the future, wouldn't he end up charged with robbery once the matter came to light?

Going to prison over goods worth a few hundred D was something only an idiot would agree to!

At that thought, John curled his lip in disdain, then impatiently waved Wendy away before lecturing her earnestly.

"It's only a small merchant caravan. How much money could it have? Hurry up, inspect them casually and let them go. Have you forgotten what the Maslow Quotations say? We are the upright Imperial Army. We absolutely do not oppress the people."

"Sergeant Wendy, it seems your moral cultivation still needs improvement. Remember to read more Maslow Quotations. Write it out from memory ten times and hand it to me later, understand?"

"Oh, I understand."

Hearing that, Wendy immediately looked ashamed. She also felt that Warrant Officer John was right. Her moral cultivation really did need improvement. How could she waver in her convictions over goods worth a mere 500,000 D?

Sure enough, compared to Warrant Officer John, she was still far behind.

With that thought, Wendy immediately said respectfully to John.

"Understood, Captain. I have grasped your lesson. I'll immediately have the soldiers release this merchant caravan, and I'll also admonish the other soldiers in the unit so they won't do anything that damages the Empire's image in the future!"

"Very good. Correcting your mistakes after recognizing them is a good thing. When it comes to recognizing errors, Sergeant Wendy, you are now a qualified Imperial soldier. I am very proud of you."

Seeing that Wendy was no longer causing trouble, John nodded in satisfaction and gave her the usual bowl of empty encouragement.

However, considering that the Inspection Forces might ask about the details later, he decided to put on a show and casually asked Wendy another question.

"By the way, did you check what goods they were carrying?"

"I did. It was all common gold and luxury goods. There was quite a lot of it, worth around 500,000 D, I think? But after hearing your lesson, Captain, I have deeply realized my mistake. How could we great Imperial soldiers abandon our beliefs over mere money?"

"Oh, only 500,000 D? That's not much. It's only a few months of my sal—"

John curled his lip dismissively, but then, as if he had finally realized something, his words abruptly stopped.

His pupils began to contract wildly as he stared in utter disbelief at Wendy, who was grinning foolishly after being praised, like a naïve simpleton.

Perhaps because his emotions were too intense, the upright Warrant Officer John, who never took ill-gotten wealth, couldn't stop his voice from trembling.

"How much? What the hell did you just say?!"

(End of Chapter)