10

When we moved toward Parast, three Armunale were already there.

As we approached the town, those three stepped out from within, watching us warily.

We stopped for a moment, sending the infantry unit forward.

"Reinforcements?"

"Looks like it."

"Then we can focus on maintenance."

The infantry unit made contact with the Parast soldiers, and once they’d relayed our presence, the alert from the Armunale in town eased.

We confirmed it, then moved forward slowly. Stepping into the town, it felt… different. Not just the reinforcements. Supplies had arrived too. The place was in ruins—but buzzing with life, stronger than before.

The townsfolk’ve all fled to another town, but the way the support maids and maintenance crew are running around—it’s got that same buzz, same feel as the academy.

We follow the soldiers’ lead into town, stop after a ways, and climb down from the mechs. Batis and the others do the same, shutting down their units and stepping out.

“Then we’ll head back to headquarters to report.”

“Understood. I’ll head back to our squad’s tent.”

Gotta check in with Orell and the others, and get the mechs looked over—can’t keep putting it off. The last maintenance I got from Soare was barely enough to keep them running. No real fuel refill, nothing proper.

“See you later, Eld.”

“Yeah, see you.”

I wave back at Batis, watching him go, when I spot a blonde maid sprinting toward me from down the road.

“Eld-kun!”

“Ange?”

I catch Ange as she throws herself into my chest, then set her down on the ground.

“Ange, you came all the way out to Parast too!?”

Support maids are supposed to stay back from the front lines—tending to the wounded, handing out rations. I’m surprised she’s come this far, especially since Parast’s been the main battlefield. Normally, she’d have been fine just waiting in Parast, or even back in Jakarta.

“Yeah, I was assigned to help with rations and treatment in Parast to assist Salsa. And when we left, we got word that the front there had settled down a bit.”

“So that’s how it is…”

“Are you okay, Eld? What happened to your bandages!? I heard the captain was seriously hurt, so Mirage went that way… but—”

“Ah, just a scratch to the head—nothing to worry about. Captain’s got a bad injury, I heard, but I was told he’s still breathing. That’s all that matters.”

“Phew… glad to hear that.”

Ange let out a breath just as one of the soldiers came sprinting over.

“Lord Eld, the knights are gathering at the temporary headquarters.”

“Got it.”

Another meeting, huh… well, with reinforcements arriving, maybe we’ll get to head back to Jakarta soon. Or maybe this is where we push hardest? Enemy forces seem to have pulled back, at least.

And if all the knights are gathering, that means Orell and the others are probably there too. Saves us the trouble of moving. Even though we just split from Batis and the others, we’re meeting up again already.

“Eld, let’s go.”

“Yeah.”

Ange tugged my hand as I followed her toward the large tent where the temporary headquarters had been set up.

I stepped inside, nodding to the guards as they saluted.

Already there, thirty-one team members stood gathered, and a few familiar faces dotted the crowd. Plus, a few squads I’d never seen before.

We hurried to our own unit’s spot.

“Eld, you made it through alright, eh?”

“Hear you were a real hero out there.”

“Just thanks to proper maintenance. We’ll need more supplies soon.”

“Leave it to us. Still, don’t reckon there’ll be much fighting after this.”

“Them, you mean?”

Our eyes landed on three squads radiating old-pro vibes. Never seen them in Jakarta, and they had to be reinforcements from the capital.

If so… the capital’s guard, maybe?

"Second to Fourth Royal Garrison, if you please. Top-tier, no question. Might even be the finest fighting force in the whole kingdom."

"So if those folks showed up, that means the other sectors haven’t been hit, right?"

If the other blocks had been invaded like this one, they wouldn’t have had the luxury of sending everyone here. Even one unit each to different blocks would’ve made sense.

So if all of them came here… then this block’s the only one under attack. Sure, it’s not impossible that the others held firm and only this fortress took the hit—but that’s practically zero. Almost nothing at all.

While I’m thinking that, knights keep arriving one after another. Even the maintenance crew got summoned—before I know it, the tent’s packed with people. Still, there’s room to spare, probably because this tent’s big enough to hold a proper crowd.

Then, when everyone’s gathered, all eyes turn to the last one to step inside.

“Commander Sam showing up in person?”

“Likely worried about the damage. That guy doesn’t usually come this far forward.”

So it’s bad, huh. Well, one fortress burned down, two towns, and a few villages—gone. And the commander only left Jakarta while enemy craft were still circling the country.

“Good of you all to gather. Now, let’s begin the meeting.”

If I had to sum up the meeting? Really, really sleepy... I mean, I was already nodding off during a small gathering like that—how could I possibly stay awake at one with twice the number of people?

I think I zoned out for half of it, but hey, Ange took solid notes, so it’s all good.

Basically, the plan was to send reinforcements to Salsa, dispatch supplies and troops to Soare, and have them rebuild their defense using the existing units.

According to the report from the team that checked Salsa’s condition, the outer walls were in shambles from those mercenary attacks, and the gates were shattered. Since repairs will take time, the defense will have to be stronger than before during that period.

The fortress itself is so badly damaged it’ll be a while before anyone can live there—basically, we’re looking at open-air camping for now. And on top of that, the builders are swamped with the town’s reconstruction, so they’re busy as bees.

We’ve already asked for architects from other towns, but they’re not as nimble as soldiers, so rebuilding’ll take time, probably.

In the meantime, the townsfolk are getting tents and rations regularly—seems like regular troops are bringing supplies from other places.

As for us, though, the plan’s set: we’re heading back to Fortran with Batis’s squad and the other damaged units.

Three-one’s machines? Only three monitors left, and the cockpits are wide open. We ran ‘em like that in a pinch, but now that we’ve got a breather, it’s only right we fix ‘em proper.

“About what we expected, huh?”

“Right you are. Now we can really get ‘em fixed.”

“Think we could swing by the commander’s room on the way back? Heard she’s at Hylene’s clinic, didn’t we?”

Hylene’s the town just before Parast, where this emergency clinic’s set up. The captain was brought there right after getting hurt—heard she’s been staying at the clinic ever since.

Ordinary soldiers would just be laid out on cots in a field hospital, but the captain of the Armunale unit? Of course she gets special treatment. They’ve given her a private room at the clinic, and she’s getting specialized care there.

“Yeah. We’ll need to talk about what comes next.”

“Once the meeting’s done, just ask the commander. Originally, the Armunale unit operates independently, so I don’t see any problem.”

“Yeah.”

The meeting went on, deciding things like deployment locations and supply units, and after about two hours, we were finally let loose.

Honestly, it’d be easier if the retreat team just said upfront they’re pulling out… we need time to prepare, you know?

“Then I’ll go ask the commander.”

“I’m coming too.”

“Alright, then I’m counting on you two. We’ll keep getting the retreat ready here.”

“Understood. Thanks. Well then, Ange, let’s go.”

“Mm-hmm.”

We step out of the tent, following the commander back to his office tent.

When I call out, he stops and turns, flexing his muscles like he’s showing off. His jacket’s straining, though—kinda worried about him, is he okay?

“Wait, you’re Eld, right?”

“Yes, Third Eleven Armunale Unit’s deputy pilot, Eld.”

“Same here—support maid Ange.”

“Hm. So what do you two need from me?”

As he says it, the commander slowly starts unbuttoning his jacket.

Uh, I was thinking—could we swing by the captain’s clinic on the way out?

Hmm, Bodwan was definitely at Hylene’s clinic, wasn’t he?

Yeah, Miraj just got assigned as the squad’s support maid, but we’ll need to talk about what happens next, too.

No fatal wounds—definitely not. But the real trouble’s somewhere else.

When he’d be back on the front lines—whether he’d even recover enough to come back at all.

The captain’s injury was a complex fracture in his left hand and left leg. I don’t know how advanced healing magic is in this world, but I can’t imagine it could fully restore limbs crushed down to the bone.

That means even getting the captain back into the squad is looking shaky.

That means I’ll inevitably be promoted to lead pilot, and we’ll have to figure out how to handle the team captain role from now on—plus replacing the other members, and all that.

When I said that, the commander tore open his shirt with a flourish, revealing his impressively toned side chest. …Need this pose?

Ange, just a little longer… your eye’s twitching.

“Fine. I’ll allow you to detach from the unit during the retreat. I’ve heard about Eld’s performance in this battle. Talk things through properly and come back with a plan.”

“Thank you.”

“Commander! What on earth are you doing?!”

Just as we were saluting and turning to leave, a shout came from behind us.

We turned to look—Arnold, the deputy commander, stood there with his face red as a beet.

“How’s this? These muscles, aren’t they splendid?!”

“Splendid? That’s not the point! You’re tearing up another shirt again! This one’s paid for out of expenses, you know! And showing up like this in front of the troops—what kind of example is that?!”

“I did take off my jacket properly.”

That shirt’s been torn up at least a dozen times already… or wait—judging by the commander’s stories, he used to rip through the jacket too, back in the day…

“Is that Eld, standing there?”

The deputy commander, half-hidden in the commander’s shadow, finally noticed me and turned his gaze my way.

I gave a proper salute, returning the greeting.

“Deputy Commander Arnold, it’s been a while.”

“You’ve been making quite the name for yourself lately. I’m glad to hear you handled the harmonica piste well. Makes me proud.”

That weapon’s a real doozy, isn’t it? Others still can’t quite figure out when to use it, but once you get the hang of it, it’ll be a proper powerhouse.

Yeah. You just proved that yourself. Your战绩’s already been reported. Four enemy craft down, one captured—definitely earning you a medal. When you get back to Fortran, have the ceremonial outfit ready.

Ceremonial outfit, huh. The Armunale unit’s uniform is technically formal enough for such events, but apparently it still looks a bit shabby in front of the king.

Gotta get to a tailor when we get back to Fortran.

Understood. Thank you for the heads-up.

Your actions are inspiring the people. Keep it up, now.

Hah!

"R-right, sir, we're off! You've got plenty of clothes with you, so we'll get you changed in no time!"

"Mmmph…"

"What's that 'mmph' for…?"

Just leave it at that—the way the commander was being led away, he looked like a child being dragged off to bed.

The clack of footsteps echoed down the quiet hallway.

This is a clinic in Hyuren. A private ward, to be precise.

Only nobles and high-ranking military officers got to stay here. Just being allowed in here was proof enough that you were someone important to the nation.

Following the nurse's lead, we walked the corridor until we stopped in front of a single door.

"Here it is."

"Thank you."

I glance back—thirty-first squad’s bunch giving me the stink-eye, urging me forward. But why me? Why am I leading? Shouldn’t it be Orell, the deputy, stepping first? Wait—just this morning I thought the same thing.

So I knock.

“Eld, Thirdty-First Armunale. We’re here to visit, with the rest of the team.”

“Come in.”

A woman’s voice from inside. Miraj. Probably.

I push the door open and step in. The others follow right behind.

The room’s pretty much like a pre-war hospital ward—white walls, clean, quiet. No fancy machines, thank the stars. In the center, a bed, surrounded by curtains you can pull shut if you want privacy.

A big window faces south—easy to see the town from here.

The captain lay on the bed, propped up on his elbow, left arm and leg in casts, with Mirage standing beside him.

“Everyone, you really didn’t have to come all this way.”

“No, we were just finishing up our business here—about to retreat to Fortran.”

“Captain, I brought flowers for your recovery. Do you have a vase?”

“Right here. Shall I fetch some water and arrange them now?”

“Yes.”

Ange showed the bouquet she’d bought on the way. Mirage stood and pulled a large vase from the cabinet.

The two left the room to get water.

“How’s your progress, then? Think you’ll be back on duty soon?”

Orell jumped straight to the point.

The captain frowned, then answered.

“Honestly, it’s tough. They said I won’t be able to move like I used to—no cutting it out, but still. Rehab’ll get me back to daily life, but I’m done with piloting Armunale.”

“Then I’ll move forward with Eld as temporary captain of Squad Thirty-One, per regulation.”

“Wait a second! What’s a temporary captain even mean!? Logically, it should be Orell taking over the role!”

I blurted out, flustered, and Captain Bodwan stepped in to explain.

“Only the pilot can be captain of the Armunale unit. The command chain’s built around the pilot’s role. So since I can’t pilot again, Eld’ll step up from co-pilot. It’s not official until the ceremony’s done, mind you.”

“That’s impossible! Sudden captain? I mean—”

Can’t even do recon right by myself yet. How could I possibly give orders when I haven’t even grasped what everyone else does?

I was about to say that—when Blois cut me off.

“Not true, I think? Eld-kun handled things just fine after the captain was carried off, didn’t he?”

“Yeah. Gave us clear orders, he did.”

“I didn’t have any issues with it, either.”

“Saying that, now, are we?”

“Is that so? I was just desperate back then. Thrilled to be able to pilot the Armunale.”

I didn’t even realize I’d been rearranging things around me—just so I could move.

“That’s exactly right. The captain’s orders? They’re just like that. The job of the Armunale team leader is to make it work for you. Though, if you get too selfish, people’ll start hating you.”

“…I understand. I’ll take over as team leader.”

“I’m counting on you.”

Captain Bodwan said that, then reached into a nearby drawer and pulled out something, handing it to me. It was the badge marking the leader of the Armunale squad.

I took it and pinned it onto my chest, right over my uniform.

"Take care of Eld, all of you. If there's anyone who can pilot like Eld, he's the one who could represent our nation."

"Leave it to us. More like, Eld's already outshining you. After you were carried off, he fixed your machine and racked up kills."

"Really?!"

Seems the captain hasn’t gotten word of my combat record yet. Well, priorities are with command, so it’ll probably be a while before that info reaches here.

"This guy took down four enemies and captured one—using a machine with the front armor completely gone."

"What in the world…"

When Ritz proudly announced my战绩, Captain Bodwan’s eyes went wide with shock.

“Could’ve gotten a Double-Headed Lion Medal with just one more machine. But the enemy pulled back.”

That was truly a shame.

“With a man like this, there’s nothing for you to worry about. Rest up properly and tend to your wounds.”

“Will do.”

The mood lightened a bit when Ange and the others returned.

We reported what we’d been up to after the captain had left, wrapped up our hour-long visit, and headed back to Fortran.

Second Pilot’s chapter ends here.