EP.31
Academy 4th year head professor Padre von Hausenburg’s laboratory.
Normally, only academy professors of other subjects or teaching assistants who act as his assistants would come in, but today a special guest came into his lab.
A gold epaulette that only officers of lieutenant colonel or higher can attach to military uniforms. A cavalry sword that symbolizes the authority of the commander.
A man who seemed to take great pride in his rank of ‘Lieutenant Colonel’ came in and greeted the professor with a salute.
“Loyalty! “I am Lieutenant Colonel Pommel von Hendrick, commander of the 1st Battalion, 4th Regiment, Constance Division!”
The professor who was sitting inside the lab greeted him briefly, then pointed to the sofa in front and said.
“This is going to be a long story, so let’s sit down and talk.”
“Yes, I understand.”
The lieutenant colonel sat down following the instructions of the head professor in front of him, and the padre said with a rotten expression on his face.
“As you know, His Highness the Crown Prince cares very much about that captain who was selected as the third-class meritorious person of the Rhineland Front. If you care enough, the secret agent planted in the personnel department of the Chief of Staff will tell you, ‘If Captain Jaeger performs well in this mock battle, we will have to issue a promotion order to major.’ “They reported that.”
Upon hearing those words, Lieutenant Colonel Pommel was so surprised that he widened his eyes and pinched his thigh hard.
He and other prestigious nobles also say that being promoted to captain at the age of 28 is relatively quick.
The thought that a guy who would just turn 20 next year would be promoted to ‘major’ made me feel sick and I couldn’t believe it.
“Is that true? “He became a major at the age of 20. Isn’t that the same rate of promotion as other princes who have only experienced military service?”
“But what can I do? On the surface, it is advertised that they took over Lezhin Castle thanks to the outstanding tactical abilities of Division Commander Stefan and His Highness the Crown Prince. After reviewing internal records, it is the opinion of the Chief of Staff that without Captain Jaeger, Weinberg Castle would have been breached in an instant. “Because there are clear circumstances, we cannot raise objections carelessly.”
“I was promoted to major at the age of 35, and I was the 5th fastest among 250 riders. But if a 20-year-old major appears, the morale of the other noble officers will plummet.”
The two people are outwardly saying that the Chief of Staff is being too hasty and that there is concern that the morale of other officers may be low.
There were two main feelings underlying it.
One of them was because they were disgusted by the fact that they were orphans and born into prestigious aristocratic families, so they rose in the world faster than they did and yet achieved great honors that they themselves could not obtain yet.
As for the rest, they support the 3rd Prince’s faction, but the fact that the Crown Prince’s faction has an officer who is likely to be promoted to major even though he is 20 years old.
It is difficult to overcome the limitations of being the third prince and accumulate achievements worthy of succeeding to the throne.
This is because it is obvious that the standard will rise because of a guy named Peter Yeager.
If the third prince they support does not ascend to the throne as emperor, his future position as a professor and political career will be completely over. Anyone can’t help but feel anxious.
However, even when they were alone, Professor Padre spoke in a worried voice, as if all of this was because he was worried about the empire.
“yes. Even though he is a member of the royal family, how can it be right for a mere orphan to be promoted to major at the age of 20? It doesn’t make sense. Such rapid promotion is nothing short of an insult to commanders who have devoted themselves honorably to their country for decades. And we cannot allow him to run rampant any longer for the sake of the Empire. So, lieutenant colonel. You and your battalion will soundly defeat Captain Jaeger in this mock battle. “Can you do it?”
At those words, the lieutenant colonel pounded his chest and said.
“No matter how much it is said that Peter Jaeger is the most capable commander in the unit and made great achievements on the Rhineland front, the first battle site. You may not know him, but the soldiers under him are babies. However, the battalion under my command is an elite unit that has undergone a long period of training and combat. So, in a head-to-head match, I will definitely win.”
“Obviously, the reason Captain Jaeger was able to win the last Rhineland battle was because he took advantage of the constantly changing war situation. However, if you face an enemy of the same size on the plains in the center of the basin where you cannot use terrain features, the outcome will depend on the soldiers’ skill level.”
“So don’t worry about anything. I will definitely deliver the news of victory to His Majesty the Third Prince. If I win, the Chief of Staff will also doubt Captain Yeager’s battalion command ability. If you do that, not only will your promotion to major be thwarted, but you won’t even be able to do the trick of being entrusted with a battalion. It is believed that some will say that His Highness the Crown Prince’s eye for talent is somewhat lagging.”
As the two men talk, the reason why Captain Jaeger’s promotion to major is discussed is because of the Crown Prince’s full support and, although unofficially, he was the number one contributor to the Rhineland Front and a capable commander.
Among these, if only the title ‘competent commander’ is removed, the Chief of Staff will lift the special exception provided to Captain Yeager.
Although he will be promoted at a faster rate than academy students of the same rank, it is highly likely that it will take at least 6 to 7 years to be promoted to major.
In this situation, Professor Padre spoke again with a very serious expression and voice.
“But if you fail, Captain Yeager will be promoted to major and become as strong as a lion with wings. If that happens, His Highness the Third Prince will express considerable disappointment and regret to you.”
It’s a disappointment and a pity to say the least, but it means that the lieutenant colonel who joined the 3rd Prince’s faction will be subjected to a terrible punishment of at least honorable discharge and at most dishonorable discharge.
So, for a moment, the lieutenant colonel imagined being dishonorably discharged, his family’s reputation being ruined, and his children being ignored by other nobles in return, and his face frowned.
“But if you succeed, you will receive good results in this second colonel promotion review. As a student platoon leader, I defeated a guy who received the ‘Silver Knight’s Sword’, which is rarely awarded to commanders below the rank of major general, so of course I should be promoted. Then, let’s see it during the mock battle.”
Professor Hausenburg said that and issued an order to congratulate the guests, and the lieutenant colonel hurried out of the office.
Padre, who was left alone in the lab, gritted his teeth and muttered.
“My son, Mike, also played an active part on his own Line Land front and killed the enemy platoon. I made a request to the Personnel and Staff Department, but since I failed to get a promotion, they are going to discharge me to captain! “You bastard, you ruined my son’s future, so you should suffer as well.”
**
Basin of Mount Pelain on the day of the mock battle.
In the wide plain in the center, my battalion, Peter Yeager, and the opposing battalion, Lieutenant Colonel Pommel, are each armed and staring at each other.
I know I’m trying to be on guard because I’m a war hero, but no matter how I think about it, I’m just trying to catch a (temporary) battalion commander.
Even though we are the same battalion commander, I think it is a bit too much to bring in someone as high as a lieutenant colonel, but if you feel unfair, you have to overcome it with your skills.
Meanwhile, on the hill surrounding the plain, seating was provided for not only students and professors attending the academy, but also officers and nobles who came to watch the mock battle.
According to what I heard on my way up here, there are not many mock battles at the battalion level taking place near the islands.
Is it because it’s a fantasy world like the Middle Ages, so there isn’t much entertainment?
Before the match began in earnest, I looked around and saw that the VIP seats prepared by the Academy and the spaces that could be used as spectator seats were filled with spectators.
People were looking in the direction where the colonel and I were and saying something, but we couldn’t hear clearly because they were far away.
After a while, an officer wearing flashy plate armor came out and explained the rules.
There was a lot of rhetoric in the beginning and the end, so it felt like I was listening to a CSAT reading comprehension passage.
In short, the message was to fight fairly and not to attack if possible, which could result in fatal injuries to the opponent.
In that sense, wizards were excluded from the mock battle, and the enemy knights were dismounted and fought like infantry.
These are rather unfavorable conditions for us.
Because even though the knights have dismounted from their horses, the power of human weapons wearing plate armor is still a threat.
When the officer in charge of the proceedings made a gesture, a trumpet sounded and he spoke loudly.
“Captain Jaeger and Lieutenant Colonel Pommel, order the battalion to form formation!”
With that command, we drew our swords and raised them to the sky as we had previously decided.
The soldiers who saw this formed their formation as they had been trained.
Lieutenant Colonel Pommel’s battalion, like the Reich Imperial Army on the Rhineland front, had infantrymen with long spears forming a much longer rectangular formation, with archers standing in front of it, ready to greet us.
Our battalion, on the other hand, followed my instructions and had infantrymen with long spears in the center standing in a rectangular shape like the lieutenant colonel’s unit.
25 crossbowmen were placed at the four corners, and 100 soldiers carrying pins were placed at the rear of the square.
After all the preparations were made, the officer in charge of the proceedings gave a signal to wait a moment.
For a moment, I thought about how the soldiers were trained.
They made a lot of cloth using the newly developed spinning machine and sold it to purchase helmets, upper body armor, and various weapons for the soldiers.
Through daily cantering and basic physical training, repeated training for each weapon, students were taught the physical strength and skills to wield the weapon.
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I added the money I earned to the meal plan, which was enough to cover the minimum meal required as a soldier, and allowed me to eat things like salted meat and cheese once every three days to build up my body.
Perhaps that’s why, among soldiers who have just entered their mid-to-late teens or early 20s, I often see one who has grown noticeably taller and larger than before he came under my wing.
In addition, I, who knew the battle strategies of the times that people in this world did not know, formed the formation and created the strategy.
I am fully prepared to win this battle by an overwhelming margin.
So, as a last step, I spoke loudly and confidently to boost the soldiers’ morale.
“Lieutenant Colonel Pommel, thank you for giving me the opportunity to learn so much! “I will do my best to deal with you.”
At those words, Pommel spoke in an angry voice.
“I’ll show this little guy who doesn’t know the sky is high, that there is a place above!”
As soon as he finished saying that, the trumpet sound that signaled the start of the battle rang out loudly in the basin.
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