"Congratulations on your promotion, Second Lieutenant Max."
The regimental commander personally pinned the rank insignia to my shoulder.
The single silver diamond that had shone there was now two, gleaming side by side.
"The bravery and resourcefulness you displayed in this recapture operation have become an example to the entire Imperial Army. For this, you are awarded the Imperial Iron Cross."
"Loyalty!"
I shouted, short and loud, and raised my hand in salute.
The moment the award ceremony ended, my comrades swarmed around me like bees.
"Hey, Max Jaeger! So you're a first lieutenant now! Doesn't this call for a proper round on you?"
"First lieutenant only half a year after being commissioned as a second lieutenant? That's a crazy fast promotion! Aren't you going to become a legend at this rate?"
"If it hadn't been for him in the valley, we'd all be dead. Who would've thought he'd smash a mortar position all by himself?"
Voices full of praise and envy surrounded me from every direction.
They slapped my shoulders in a frenzy, and the clamor of their chatter made my head throb.
I forced a smile and waved them off.
"All right, all right. I'll see you next time. I'm tired, so I'm heading in first."
Only after escaping the noisy commotion did my ears finally find peace.
*
Before I knew it, I had arrived in front of my barracks.
The moment I opened the creaking door and stepped inside, the tension drained from my body.
I sat in a chair for a while, fiddling with the first lieutenant insignia I had just received.
The cold sensation of metal. It felt as though I could hear my comrades' envy and praise all over again.
'An example to the entire Imperial Army, huh…'
A hollow laugh escaped me.
Example, my ass.
I closed my eyes. And then, the artillery battle in the valley five days ago unfolded before me once more.
Shiiiiiiik—!
With an ear-splitting whistle, a mortar shell exploded right beside me. Dirt and pebbles rained down, and the shockwave slammed through my entire body. When I came to my senses for a moment, the lower half of the comrade who had been right next to me was gone.
Along with a ringing in my ears that felt like my skull was splitting open, my heart pounded like mad. I was on the verge of freezing in panic.
[Skill “Indomitable Mind” is active.]
[Resistance to all fear and confusion statuses has greatly increased.]
A dry system message echoed in my head. Then the fear surging toward me subsided as if it had been a lie. My heartbeat steadied, and my reason returned.
I barely managed to raise myself and aimed my rifle toward the mortar position.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
That was how I brought down the mortar position.
I slowly opened my eyes.
Even now, my fingertips were trembling faintly, but with a sensation like cold water being poured over my mind, calm soon returned.
It was all thanks to this thing called a “skill.”
Until six months ago, I had been an ordinary civilian living in Seoul. A non-regular contract worker, no less, tormented by every kind of workplace abuse and overtime. Naturally, I knew nothing about war or combat. At most, my experience in the army was all I had.
The reason I had ended up in this situation was because of a game. A game I had clung to in order to forget my miserable reality.
[Heart of the Empire: Eagle Chronicle]
A 20th-century-style strategy simulation game where other races such as orcs and elves existed, and so did magic, but the main forces were trenches, barbed wire, and a hail of shells.
I had been obsessed with that game. I must have poured hundreds—no, easily thousands—of hours into it. In reality, I was a nobody, but in the game, I was a great commander who led countless battles to victory.
But that only lasted so long. I had long since picked every last bit of meat off the bones of the vanilla game without mods. I needed new stimulation. That was when I discovered a strange file in a corner of some nameless overseas forum.
"Fuck… that damn mod."
Yes, downloading that “compilation pack” had been the root of the problem. Even the title had been suspicious. [Harem Overlord Compilation Pack].
It was some insane nonsense that supposedly turned the existing bleak, blood-soaked battlefield into a passionate romance with attractive female officers.
That day, too, I had come home late at night, worn down by overtime. I filled my stomach with a convenience store lunchbox and was tipsy from the canned beer I had downed in anger. I don't know what I was thinking, but I installed that mod file without much thought.
[Mod installation complete. Experience a new Empire!]
With eyes half-closed from exhaustion, I clicked the “Start New Game” button. That was the moment. My last memory was of a flash bursting from the monitor and swallowing the entire world in white.
And when I opened my eyes again, I was no longer myself in my studio apartment. I was in the barracks of a dusty field training camp, wearing an unfamiliar military uniform, having become an Imperial Army second lieutenant named “Max Jaeger.”
The price for wanting to escape my miserable reality was far too harsh. You could call it a forced job transfer from one hellish reality to an even more hellish one. A second round of military service—there could be no nightmare more terrible.
'Fuck, does this even make sense?'
I clutched my head. I wished this really were a dream. I wanted to throw everything away and run.
'…Should I just desert?'
[Skill “Indomitable Mind” is active.]
[Resistance to all fear and confusion statuses has greatly increased.]
…It was a situation that made irritation surge up inside me, but the skill adjusted my mind so that it followed the most effective line of thought.
'Desertion is irrational.'
Under the influence of the skill, a clear conclusion formed in my head.
'If I desert and get caught, I'll be shot. Even if I somehow manage to hide, I'll become a fugitive.'
The odds of surviving intact while avoiding the Imperial Army's pursuit and the gunfire of war were extremely low.
The method with the highest chance of survival was to remain in this army and make full use of the power I had been given—my skills. Paradoxically enough.
"Skills."
Letting out a sigh at the conclusion forcibly brought to mind, I called out the skills. Then a window that only I could see appeared like a hologram.
[Skill “Indomitable Mind” is active.]
[Skill “Minimap” is active.]
Fortunately, perhaps because [Harem Overlord Compilation Pack] was a cheat mod, it had given me overpowered abilities from the start.
[Indomitable Mind] and [Minimap].
Those were the two skills I currently possessed. The very first skill was fixed as [Minimap], and I had obtained [Indomitable Mind] after leveling up as a reward for successfully completing some training.
That was when it happened.
With a clear ding, another translucent window appeared.
[Rank increase confirmed (Second Lieutenant -> First Lieutenant).]
[Congratulations on your promotion!]
[Your level has risen to 3 due to promotion.]
[You may acquire a new skill. Please select one from the list below.]
1. [Bullet Time]
Detailed Description: When activated, you enter a hyper-accelerated state in which you perceive the flow of the world, excluding yourself, as slowed to 1/10 speed for up to 3 seconds. Usable once per day. The number of uses increases as your level rises.
2. [Status Analysis]
Detailed Description: Grasp information about a target within your field of vision. Basic information such as [Name], [Race], [Affiliation], [Status: Fatigue, Injury, Anger] will be displayed at the edge of your vision. Can be used not only on people but also on equipment and facilities. As your level rises, you can view deeper information.
'What the…?'
So my level could rise even when I got promoted? When I leveled up from 1 to 2, it had definitely been a success reward for training.
But my level had risen through promotion as well. It seemed there were more ways to level up than I had thought. There hadn't even been a choice back then.
In any case, I began to read through the skill descriptions slowly. Both [Bullet Time] and [Status Analysis] looked incredibly useful.
First, [Bullet Time].
As the name suggested, it was an absurd ability that let me dodge bullets. It was a skill that could drastically increase my chances of survival on the battlefield as soon as tomorrow. As a soldier rolling around directly on the front lines, there was no sweeter temptation.
However…
I shifted my gaze to the second skill, [Status Analysis].
Survival on the battlefield. Of course it was important. Nothing was more important than one's life. But [Bullet Time] was ultimately a crisis-avoidance tool, closer to one-time insurance. Once per day, for a mere 3 seconds. Getting through that brief instant would not change the tide of the battlefield.
'…In the first place, it isn't very useful when mortars are raining down.'
I recalled the last battle. Shells had continued to fall over a wide area. In a situation like that, even if I had [Bullet Time], there was a high chance I still wouldn't have survived.
But [Status Analysis] was different. It provided an informational advantage beyond simple survival. And Status Analysis was continuous. Through information, I could prevent dozens, hundreds of crises in advance. In the end, the latter clearly raised my long-term odds of survival.
My hesitation gone, I reached out toward the translucent window floating in the air.
[You have selected the skill “Status Analysis.”]
[You have acquired a new skill!]
With a ding, information about the skill flowed into my mind.
I could understand how to use it naturally, as if I had been using it for a long time.
'Shall I test it out?'
I turned my gaze to my military uniform.
[Name: Imperial Army Combat Uniform (Low Grade)]
[Grade: Common]
[Durability: 78/100]
[Status: Slight smell of gunpowder and sweat has seeped in.]
[Special Effects: None]
'Oh-ho.'
It was fairly intuitive and detailed. Next, I used the skill on myself.
[Name: Max Jaeger]
[Race: Human]
[Affiliation: Imperial Army 7th Infantry Regiment]
[Rank: First Lieutenant]
[Status: Slight fatigue, slight excitement due to promotion]
'Usable. When my level rises, I'll probably see more.'
That was when it happened.
A green dot began moving on the minimap floating in one corner of my vision.
The minimap.
You can think of it as the minimap in an ordinary strategy game. On a square background, dots distinguished by green and red were displayed in real time. A green dot approaching meant an ally was coming here.
Knock, knock, knock.
"First Lieutenant! It's me, Private Erich!"
It was a youthful voice. Instead of answering, I grinned and activated my skill. When I fixed my gaze on the tightly closed wooden door, the information beyond it unfolded before my eyes.
[Using skill “Status Analysis” on “Private Erich.”]
[Name: Erich]
[Race: Human]
[Affiliation: Imperial Army 7th Infantry Regiment]
[Rank: Private]
[Status: Nervous due to an errand from a superior, awe toward superior and slight fear]
'…It can even show that?'
For a moment, I held my breath. I hadn't expected it to reveal inner thoughts as well.
"What's all the commotion about?"
I stood up, lowering my voice and pretending to be as indifferent as possible. When I opened the door, Private Erich stood there at attention with a tense expression.
"It seems you need to come out immediately. They're looking for you, sir."
"Me? Who?"
Erich gulped dryly and spoke.
"Captain Seraphina, sir."
'Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me…!'
Was the superior he meant the new company commander I'd heard was coming?
I immediately took out my uniform again and put it on. As quickly as possible, but with precision. After confirming that even my cap was perfectly in place, I opened the door at once.
I walked down the corridor. Though “walked” was all it was in name; my pace was practically a run.