Gale turned back to Anesia and asked, “What is it?”
“...I thought I should thank you first, since it was thanks to you that we were able to receive the reward.”
A word of thanks, was it?
As Gale listened to her, he recalled what she had been like in his previous life.
The empress of the battlefield who had bloomed from House Kindelly.
He had only seen her in person a few times, but as a member of the Imperial Knight Order, she had been known to be endlessly benevolent to her allies and merciless to her enemies.
‘This is my first time actually talking to her, and this is what she feels like.’
Gale said to her,
“You don’t need to thank me. I was able to move because you led the squad members and held out.”
“I know that too. But if every squad member had only moved according to my instructions, first place would have been out of reach. I just wanted to say it turned out this way because you stepped forward on your own.”
So she wanted to say I disobeyed orders after all?
Seeing her strangely upright nature made him feel somewhat relieved.
Ever since returning to the past,
Gale often felt this way whenever he confirmed that the righteous people he knew had not changed.
Anesia spoke to Gale, who was smiling.
“Why are you smiling?”
“No. I just thought of a few things.”
“That’s all I wanted to say. If we move together again next time... I’ll be counting on you then.”
When Gale nodded, Anesia turned and joined the formation under the drill instructors’ guidance.
Gale, who had been watching her, followed after her as well.
***
After the Pontey training, the atmosphere of the following lessons changed rather noticeably from before.
He had expected it to some extent, but for some reason, rumors began spreading among the candidates that Gale might be Wilhelm’s hidden child.
As the story that Gale had broken the incarnation’s sacred relic spread among the other instructors, Gale became the most interesting candidate in the training camp at the moment.
Was that why?
In every lesson or training session that followed, the instructors in charge looked for Gale.
“Who is Gale?”
“That would be me.”
“You’re better-looking than I expected. Come out and demonstrate.”
The training camp was fundamentally a competition between cadets, but even among the instructors, there was a competitive structure of their own.
Given the nature of the Imperial Army, which handled all sorts of incidents and accidents throughout the Empire, capable talents were no different from achievements.
Compared to the proud nobles, Gale was a commoner who would be relatively easy to handle, and since he had been recognized by Wilhelm, he was practically the finest talent they could ask for.
Of course, from Gale’s perspective, as someone aiming to graduate at the top of the training camp, receiving the instructors’ attention was a positive situation, but it did not come with only advantages.
Since there were high nobles with great pride among the candidates, some did not like seeing Gale, a commoner, step forward.
“So in the end, it’s all connections, isn’t it?”
“Hey, he heard you.”
“So what? If he doesn’t like it, he’ll tattle to his daddy and get us expelled or something.”
After finishing the morning lesson, Gale was moving to the dining hall for lunch when a group of candidates passing by muttered those words.
Joseph, who had been listening beside him, flared up and clenched his fist tightly.
“Hah. I seriously can’t listen to this anymore.”
Gale patted Joseph on the shoulder.
“I’m fine, so just ignore them.”
“Gale. How long are you going to let them keep doing this? If you leave them alone, they’ll just keep saying nasty things.”
“There’s nothing we can do. If we fight, we’re the only ones who lose.”
Fights between candidates were forbidden in the training camp.
They were probably provoking him openly because they knew that too, but since causing trouble could lead to expulsion, he needed to act carefully.
Gale soothed the fuming Joseph.
‘Honestly, that level of provocation is almost cute.’
Wherever one went, there were always people who envied others and tried to tear them down.
To Gale, who had heard countless insults amounting to personal humiliation while crawling across the floor of an Imperial Army training ground in his previous life, that much gossip was practically praise.
Not only was there no need to care what those bastards said, but ever since returning to the past, Gale’s only concern had been the Golden Dawn Society.
Gale turned his gaze and looked at Kuff, who was quietly walking toward the dining hall from one side.
Perhaps Kuff soon felt Gale’s gaze.
“...!”
The moment his eyes met Gale’s, he hurriedly ran into the dining hall.
Two days ago, after returning from the medical unit, Kuff was said to be suffering from severe aftereffects.
While Gale was absorbing the mana contained in the mana stone inside Dumbir Mansion, Kuff had continued to be struck by the mana waves, and he had already reached his mental limit.
In that state, when Gale unfolded his mana, Kuff wet his pants, fainted, and was transported to the medical unit.
‘I was going to ask if he knows about the Golden Dawn Society at this point....’
When Kuff collapsed, Gale had wondered what would happen, but the real-time video transmission device in the mansion could not show intangible forces such as mana waves, so after a simple investigation, Gale had been cleared of suspicion.
Kuff, too, had remained silent about Gale during the investigation that followed, and the incident had quietly come to an end.
‘Still, in that state, he doesn’t look like he’ll be causing trouble anytime soon.’
Gale did not think this had completely erased the possibility of Kuff joining the Golden Dawn Society in the future, but he was certain that if he continued stepping on the sprouts of those who would negatively affect the future like this, positive changes would surely occur.
After finishing lunch and returning to the barracks, Gale confirmed that Joseph, who was lying on the bunk bed, was snoring. Then he immediately sat cross-legged and circulated his mana.
With his eyes closed, Gale quietly felt his mana and recalled the moment he had absorbed mana in Dumbir Mansion.
At the time, Gale had used Tyrant to dominate the surrounding space, then absorbed the mana pouring out of the mana stone and formed his circles.
‘There’s still a sharp feeling left.’
Perhaps because he had formed the circles in such a rush, an uncomfortable sensation still lingered inside his body.
When forming circles with mana, the body and mind had to be stable, and one had to focus the mind, follow the flow of mana, and slowly accept the mana into the body.
But in the mansion, he had forced mana in and bound it inside his body, so the unrefined mana was rebelling.
Since that day, Gale had circulated his mana every day and focused on stabilizing it. At present, it had stabilized significantly, but he still felt discomfort.
‘I’ll definitely correct it today.’
Gale steadied his breathing and slowly rotated the mana that had soaked into his body.
Three circles engraved within his mana heart.
Two of the circles were organically connected to each other, but one isolated circle spun rapidly on its own, as if refusing to allow their approach.
If he continued leaving it as it was, that uncontrolled circle could eventually go berserk and cost him his life.
“Kgh....”
Mana that leaked out during the process of handling his mana circles stirred up the inside of his body, and blood sprayed from his mouth.
But he did not care and continued the stabilization work.
Only when his entire body was soaked in sweat from the heat boiling up from his mana heart, and the front of the uniform he wore was drenched with blood, did Gale finally succeed in stabilizing his mana circles.
Looking at the circles now stably connected within his body, Gale let out a relieved sigh.
“I really can’t get used to the things that come out when I circulate mana.”
After cleaning up around his body with water-attribute magic, Gale checked his physical condition.
As his mana circles began functioning properly, vitality slowly returned to his sickly body.
But when Gale recalled the dangerous moment from just now, he vowed never to raise his tier this hastily again.
‘If I keep doing this, my life won’t last.’
The reason Gale had pushed himself this hard to raise his tier was because impatience had taken root in his heart.
Whenever he saw traces of his previous life in the people around him, Gale felt his heart pound.
He knew well that there was not much he could do until he entered the Military Police, but even so, the pressure that he had to do something weighed down on his entire body.
After finishing his mana circulation, Gale got up from the bed, sat at his desk, and opened his notebook.
The only things that could free him from this anxiety were thorough planning and execution.
That was all.
***
Time passed, and the second week of training was nearing its end.
After finishing the practical evaluation for interpersonal suppression held in the afternoon, Gale returned to the barracks with Joseph.
Joseph, who had been thrown over several times during class, scratched his back and looked at Gale.
“You went pretty hard back there.”
“That’s because you were being too careless.”
“I was serious! No, more importantly, we do the same training and eat the same things, so why am I flabby while you’ve turned into a stone?”
Gale let out a laugh at Joseph’s foolish question and climbed the stairs. When he did, a woman with navy-blue hair was standing in front of their door.
“Ah, you’re back now.”
When she turned toward them, the insignia of a second lieutenant was revealed above the name tag on her chest.
Gale and Joseph immediately raised their hands in salute.
“Thank you for your service, ma’am.”
At that, she smiled brightly and said, “You’re Gale, right?”
“That’s correct.”
Gale answered loudly and slowly examined her appearance.
Blue eyes shining beneath navy-blue hair.
The name engraved on her name tag was familiar to Gale as well.
First Lieutenant Barania.
In his previous life, she had been Deren’s adjutant.
“The one I have business with is Candidate Gale, so you may go inside.”
“Yes, ma’am. Understood!”
After Joseph entered the room, Barania turned to Gale and said, “Do you have any plans afterward? I don’t know the training camp schedule very well.”
The suppression practical evaluation that had just been held was the last item on today’s schedule, so Gale answered that he was free.
“Then could you spare me a little time? There’s somewhere we need to go together.”
“Somewhere we need to go, ma’am?”
At that, she smiled and said, “Yes. It isn’t anything bad, so you don’t need to worry.”
The two left the barracks and slowly walked along the orderly path.
Gale silently followed her, thinking about their destination, when Barania spoke first.
“I’ve heard a lot about you. Rumors are already spreading quite a bit.”
“Is that so?”
“You’re the first one to break the incarnation’s sacred relic. How did you come up with that idea?”
Even if he told her that there had already been someone in his previous life who had done such a thing, she would never believe him, and he had no reason to tell her that either. So Gale gave an awkward smile.
“I was lucky.”
“You’re really as modest as I heard. I think you could be a little prouder of yourself.”
After that, Barania asked several questions about life at the training camp and his relationships with his peers, and Gale answered honestly without embellishment.
As they talked about various things, the two arrived in front of the headquarters building.
“Is this your first time in the headquarters building?”
He had been here in his previous life, but since he had never visited after enlisting in the Imperial Army this time, he answered that it was.
Then she said,
“I think someone like you will be coming here often.”
“Will I be training here?”
“Hehe. It isn’t that. You’ll know when the time comes. If I get the chance later, I’ll guide you personally.”
Gale followed Barania up to the third floor of headquarters.
As they entered the long corridor, a luxuriously carved door appeared at the end of the hall.
The nameplate beside the door stated who owned the office.
[1st Military Police Battalion Commander’s Office]
Lieutenant Colonel Deren Armezia
Looking at the nameplate, Gale thought.
Deren had been someone who had changed the department he worked in several times even before, so Gale had been curious where he belonged at this point in time.
‘So he was in the Military Police at this time. This is actually better.’
While Gale was thinking that,
Barania carefully knocked and said in a small voice,
“This is Barania. I have brought the candidate you mentioned.”
“Oh! Come in.”
At that, she smiled and opened the door.
When they stepped inside, a luxurious office unfolded before them.
Beyond the desk placed at the front, an old man with a sly expression was smiling brightly.
“Oh. Gale... no, should I call you Candidate Gale now?”
“It has been a while, sir.”
It had only been about two weeks since Gale met him at the qualification exam, but seeing his good-natured face made Gale feel strangely glad.
There was one other person in the office besides Deren.
“So that is the boy? The candidate you praised until your mouth ran dry?”
The man turned his back and looked toward him.
The insignia of a lieutenant colonel, marking him as a field-grade officer, glinted.
The moment Gale looked at his face, he spoke in a small voice.
“Raskal...!”
In that instant— along with the sound of something falling, time stopped, and the world was dyed in black and white.