I Won’t Let the Execution Battalion Die, ~Even If the Empire Falls, We Want to Survive~ - Chapter 40: Ghost Road ⑤

I was surprised by the mounted messenger’s words.

“Penderltaine Fortress? That’s even further ahead. Are you cavalry from Penderltaine Fortress?”

“Yes! The battalion commander is waiting there.”

“Understood, good work.”

Since reporting back was part of the messenger’s job, I read the command document quickly without asking various questions.

Reading it, I roughly understood the situation.

“I see, Dr. Buho is sufficient for this checkpoint.”

Essentially, the state of “conducting a checkpoint here” seemed important. That alone would make Yuo Nevilnel hesitate to use this highway.

Conversely, since that seemed to be enough, there was apparently no need to be particularly zealous here.

As I’d feared, I’d done something completely unnecessary.

“Command received. I’ll head to Penderltaine Fortress immediately with Second Lieutenant Crimine.”

“Yes sir! I’ll relay that message! Well then!”

After a sharp salute, the messenger mounted his war horse with practiced movements.

I returned a light salute and saw him off, then immediately called Second Lieutenant Crimine.

“Second Lieutenant Crimine! We’re leaving this checkpoint to Dr. Buho! Let’s go!”

“Ah, continuing our trip?”

Second Lieutenant Crimine poked her face out from the body search tent looking happy, so I shook my head apologetically.

“Sorry, we have battalion commander’s orders to go to Penderltaine Fortress.”

“Ehh…”

Second Lieutenant Crimine made an extremely sour face. I was being glared at with resentful eyes, but this was completely my fault.

“Sorry. I’m really sorry.”

“When you apologize that much, it makes it hard to complain.”

“No, I’m entirely at fault.”

Then the middle-aged line infantry who’d been with me earlier were grinning.

“Being young is nice, Lieutenant.”

“Looking the other way is the wisdom of age, isn’t it?”

“Hahaha, certainly! Excuse us!”

Including my previous life, I was probably about the same age, but since no one knew that, this always happened.

Sighing, I considered the best move from here.

“I’m leaving here on battalion commander’s orders, but be conscious of queue length for the checkpoint. If it gets long, you can handle it lightly, but adjust so the queue doesn’t disappear completely.”

The NCOs saluted.

“Understood. So we should make it appear we’re conducting checkpoints?”

“Exactly. Thanks for understanding quickly.”

Veteran enlisted men and NCOs were indeed easy to work with.

They seemed reliable enough, but I informed Dr. Buho just in case.

“Doctor.”

“What is it?”

The completely relaxed Dr. Buho poked her face out from another tent. Had she really been writing documents?

“Second Lieutenant Crimine and I are heading to Penderltaine Fortress on battalion commander’s orders.”

“Eh, you’re leaving?”

“I’ve told the NCOs what’s necessary, so please follow their instructions.”

“That’s backwards. Well, it’ll probably work better that way.”

Dr. Buho understood her own strengths and weaknesses, so she nodded readily. She was eccentric but not difficult to handle.

She looked somewhat proud as she stared intently at my face.

“This checkpoint probably isn’t very important after all. That’s why they left it to me, and elites like you get called by the battalion commander.”

“That’s an exaggeration. We’re just short-handed.”

“No no, I’m happy. I’m your ardent devotee.”

I doubted that.

I gave a wry smile to Dr. Buho, whose seriousness I couldn’t gauge.

“Then I’ll work hard so as not to disappoint your expectations, Doctor.”

Then I whispered softly in Dr. Buho’s ear:

“A quite dangerous situation seems to be developing. If the NCOs recommend withdrawal, please definitely accept it.”

“Hyah!? Eh? Ah, yes! I’ll do what the NCOs say!”

She suddenly became flustered. Even this eccentric doctor was anxious about this kind of mission.

“It’s fine, trust these comrades.”

“Ah, yes! I trust them!”

Her voice was louder than usual. Good if she felt more confident.

When Second Lieutenant Crimine came over, Dr. Buho hurriedly hid behind her.

“What’s wrong, Doctor?”

“Your superior is really a bad man. My underwear got wet.”

“Excuse me?”

Second Lieutenant Crimine turned toward me with movements like a cursed doll. She was smiling but her eyes were scary.

“Lieutenant?”

“What…”

It seemed like I’d done something, which was clearly wrong.

Dr. Buho hastily intervened:

“No, it’s not like fingers or tongue were inserted or anything? Just words.”

“I’m sure he whispered wonderful words to you.”

Why was this becoming like a scene from hell? This wasn’t the time for such things.

I decided to explain to Second Lieutenant Crimine along the way and cleared my throat lightly.

“We can’t delay battalion commander’s orders. Let’s go, Second Lieutenant Crimine.”

“I understand, but…”

“The ‘but’ is unnecessary.”

“Understood.”

Second Lieutenant Crimine saluted with a pouty face, and I finally managed to leave this place.

Hey Meinen, this is because you died in action…

*****

Penderltaine Fortress was one of the fortresses serving as a key point in the capital’s defense, located near the highway heading north. We passed near here when heading to the Kavaraf region too.

“It’s still a huge fortress, Lieutenant.”

“Yeah, considering the cost and materials makes me dizzy.”

“My family bought a ruined castle, but even though it was smaller than this, repairs took ten years. It cost more than the purchase price.”

“I see…”

That sounded like a story from another world. Oh wait, this was another world.

Wars in this era involved lining up line infantry and cavalry for charges, so fortresses protected by solid walls and lined with cannons were virtually impregnable.

You couldn’t capture them without bringing siege artillery, which of course wasn’t simple.

“Penderltaine Fortress is an early modern fortress, with its greatest feature being walls designed to defend against artillery. Unlike traditional bows and catapults, cannonballs have power and travel on low trajectories.”

“Lieutenant, is that story going to be long?”

I thought Second Lieutenant Crimine would at least listen to fortress discussion since she was a soldier, but apparently as a quasi-noble daughter, she wasn’t interested.

I cleared my throat lightly.

“Then I’ll summarize briefly. That fortress is purely a military base. It’s different from executioners like us.”

“We’re soldiers, but we don’t fight wars.”

“Right. It’s a somewhat uncomfortable atmosphere.”

I felt an unpleasant premonition as I gazed at the dark, imposing structure gradually approaching.

What was the battalion commander planning to make us do by summoning us to such a place?