****
The first battle had essentially ended in our victory the moment the enemy's suicide attack failed.
No matter how badly damaged our own Sky Fortress was, it wasn't to the point where we'd lose to their small-scale Sky Fortress.
Thanks to that, the Croisen Imperial forces retreated after suffering heavy losses, allowing us to toast to our triumph.
"Haha, Brigade Commander Lawrence, you did outstanding work! Your contributions today were enormous!"
"You're too kind, sir."
"Too kind? Nonsense! If you hadn't spotted that suicide attack, the damage would have been catastrophic!"
A single short phrase: "It's definitely a suicide attack—evade."
Yet no one present was unaware that those words had been the decisive factor in our victory.
Count Otis couldn't stop praising me, and since I wasn't used to such situations, I scratched my cheek awkwardly with a grin.
"At the same time, suicide attacks were attempted on three other battlefields, but ours was the only unit that detected the anomaly in advance and defended the fortress."
That meant they'd attempted four attacks and succeeded in three.
Even though the overall war situation could be seen as a major defeat for the kingdom's forces, the nobles clinking wine glasses with the division commander showed no trace of worry on their faces.
I had no idea where they got such nerve.
"I've informed the provincial army commander that today's victory is thanks to you, so expect a decent reward."
The reward would probably just be a medal for now.
Since the war was still in its early stages, hoping for anything substantial was unrealistic.
Moreover, if this war ended in a massive defeat, there'd be no talk of merits or rewards—so no need to get ahead of ourselves with the kimchi soup just yet.
"Thank you, Your Excellency."
"It's nothing. When a subordinate earns merit, it's the superior's duty to ensure they receive the appropriate reward."
Some people cunningly claim their subordinates' achievements as their own, but seeing this made it clear that while Count Otis might be indolent, he was a man who thought straight.
"By the way, I heard an interesting rumor about you."
"A rumor?"
As I expressed puzzlement, the young lord from Viscount Resti's family—who was representing his territory in the war alongside me—picked up the count's words at just the right timing.
"I've heard it too. They say Brigade Commander Lawrence tamed a mysterious giant eagle."
"Yes, yes. They say the sight of you communing with that pitch-black eagle was truly mystical."
At the mention of Black Eagle, my face flushed slightly, but I played it cool and brushed it off.
"I'm not sure about 'communing,' but it acted like it understood every word—smart as can be. I was just intrigued enough to look after it."
"Come on, that's communing right there. You think animals really understand human speech?"
Count Otis roared with laughter at whatever struck him so funny and slapped my back.
"A black giant eagle like that is probably an Altaire, the breed from the holy site of Everhill. It's a rare species born with innately pure mana despite being a flying beast, said to cover ten thousand li in one go."
I feigned amazement at the unknown fact, watching the explanatory young lord from Viscount Resti's family.
In truth, I already knew.
"Once tamed, it never betrays its master and throws itself into danger without hesitation."
Even I could tell Black Eagle was clearly modeled after an Altaire.
If Grand Duke Lucas had given some flashy sub-support character obsessed with appearances, people would have pestered him about what it was, making it a hassle to manage.
Good thing they sensibly based it on a real-world species.
"Like a total dog? Dogsu-ri."
Was that meant as a joke?
I furrowed my brow for a split second, but the people around burst into laughter at Count Otis's dad joke.
Among them, the young lord from Baron Aden's family stood out, clapping and wiping away tears in masterful flattery.
Sure enough, buttering up the boss seemed like an essential skill for any office worker, no matter where you went.
"Oh dear, our Brigade Commander Lawrence doesn't get it."
It wasn't that I didn't get it—I just didn't want to play along.
But I belatedly put on a surprised expression and replied.
"That was some sharp wit, sir. Sorry, I'm a bit slow on the uptake with that sort of thing."
"You do come off that way. You play a lot of games, but surprisingly stiff in conversation?"
After that, Count Otis kept tossing out jokes to liven up the mood.
But as the dad jokes dragged on without end, the people around started struggling to react, their expressions growing strained.
"Your Excellency, since the enemy has retreated, may I use a personal communication line?"
The count stroked his chin as if pondering my request.
Then he nodded readily, as if granting a favor.
"Consider it my personal reward to you."
"Thank you, sir."
The thought of finally logging into Chronicle Online brought a genuine smile to my face, while the nobles around beamed with relief that the count's nonsense had finally stopped.
***
Week 2 of the war.
Casualties from the conflict were steadily rising.
Sky Fortresses and Vanguards especially had high attrition rates, with new units and equipment constantly rotating in, and more soldiers dying from stray shots.
Amid all that, Adrian's unit was consistently profiting and earning high praise.
"Vice Commander, the brigade commander requests your deployment. Five Croisen Imperial Vanguards are approaching via the mountains from the 3 o'clock direction—please respond."
William, the vice knight-commander waiting in the Vanguard ready room, let out a small sigh at his subordinate's report and rose from his seat.
Four Vanguards from Viscount Lawrence's territory followed behind him.
-Beep! Beep!
Moments later, one wall of their ready room slid open amid blaring alarms, and the Vanguards stepped onto the hoverboards fixed to the floor at the entrance.
The hoverboards resembled skis, but half the size.
They glided out of the ascending train like that, soon accelerating to terrifying speeds.
[Full armament.]
[Yes, sir!]
At William's command, their minimal breastplate armor—which only covered the chest—transformed into a seamless full-body suit.
It looked just like the mechanical suits from the superhero movies Adrian used to watch back on Earth.
The chest even had a glowing blue force device, making it seem less like a similarity and more like a direct homage.
In fact, since the developer of Force Armor, Grand Duke Lucas, hailed from Earth, it was entirely plausible.
Thanks to that, Adrian always gushed about how cool the Vanguard gear was, his face full of nostalgia whenever he saw it.
[Sir William.]
[Yes, what is it?]
William, hurtling forward at over 300 km/h on his hoverboard, tilted his head at the comm signal and Adrian's hologram.
Adrian continued in a tone suggesting it was just a hunch to keep in mind.
[They're coming down the mountains with plenty of cover, yet exposing themselves like that is suspicious. Could be a trap, so don't get too close—engage at a distance where you can harass them.]
The terrain ahead was perfect for an ambush, no doubt.
The enemy count on sensors matched what was visible, but after two weeks of war, Adrian had always made sensible calls that minimized friendly losses.
So Vice Commander William decided to follow Adrian's orders over blindly trusting the sensor readings.
[Understood, we'll do that.]
[Good. Good luck.]
William relayed Adrian's instructions to his men.
[Well, better safe than sorry.]
[Got it.]
In the past, no one would have listened to Adrian, but things had changed a lot in just two weeks.
No one ignored him anymore.
Of course, lingering bad impressions meant some suspicion of "he'll slip up eventually" in the back of their minds—but if Adrian kept performing like this, even that would fade soon enough.
And...
[Underground!]
The incident that skyrocketed trust in Adrian happened right then.
As if his warning had been prophecy, five more Vanguards burst from underground—the sensor blind spot.
What was a 5:5 fight instantly became 10:5.
[Fall back! Harass while retreating!]
Blue force swords swung from both sides simultaneously, five trails of light clashing against ten to threaten the enemy.
[Hup!]
Fortunately, the first exchange landed no solid hits on either side.
They'd maintained enough distance to react to the attacks.
If they hadn't heeded Adrian's warning and stayed vigilant, William and his team would have been wiped out in seconds.
['Doesn't mean the situation's good. We're still in crisis.']
William now had to fend off twice as many Vanguards while awaiting reinforcements.
It'd take at least five minutes for backup to arrive, and holding out unscathed was impossible.
-Kaboom!
But then.
Something beyond everyone's expectations occurred.
Had it even been a full minute since contact?
As William sweated bullets and acrobatically held on, Adrian's voice echoed through comms.
[Sir William, advance.]
At the same time, ten blue lights streaked in from the rear to support them, slamming into the enemy.
It was the reinforcement unit from Count Otis's personal knights, under the division commander.
[H-how?]
Friendly reinforcements: ten Vanguards.
The standoff flipped to 10:15 in an instant, averting disaster—but the speed of it defied logic.
Didn't this mean they'd requested support ahead of time?
[Sir William, out for a stroll? Why aren't you attacking?]
Adrian's relaxed voice snapped William out of his daze.
Who was out for a stroll now?
But war waited for no explanations—seize the advantage while you could.
[The enemy has the mountains at their back. They're the ones who can't get support easily now, so let's take down at least five.]
[Yes, sir.]