The Suasong City Hall—the enemy Corps commander's office—was now mine. The moment I plopped down into the chair, system messages flooded in as if they had been waiting.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
[You have perfectly completed Operation Reap!]
[You have occupied the strategic stronghold 'Suasong' and destroyed the enemy Corps command structure.]
[Through maneuver warfare bordering on impossible, you have shattered the enemy's common sense and minimized allied casualties.]
[You have acquired massive EXP as a reward!]
[Level increased from 18 to 20!]
[Available Skill Points: 3]
'Not bad at all.'
Leveling up even a single level had become a grueling task lately, but thanks to the large-scale operation, I had jumped up at once.
I invested the points without hesitation.
[Would you like to enhance the 'Material Conversion' skill?]
'Yes.'
[The 'Material Conversion' skill level increases. (Lv.2 -> Lv.3)]
[Material reconstruction process optimized, reducing the burden on the mana circuits.]
Material reconstruction process optimization.
'At this level, could I churn out 88mm shells without coughing up blood?'
I had been about to test it out, but decided against it since I didn't want to dirty such an expensive room.
[Available Skill Points: 2]
'As for the two remaining points...'
I suppose I'll save them for now.
I turned my attention to the final system window.
[Congratulations! As a special reward for reaching Level 20, the following skill is provided.]
[Flavored Semen]
Detailed Description: The user can freely set the taste and scent of their semen (Default: Fishy). Additionally, it grants a small amount of vitality recovery and skin-beautifying effects to any woman who consumes it. This skill cannot be leveled up.
'What the hell is this now.'
Well, it was free anyway.
Soon, a knock sounded.
Knock, knock.
"Combat Group Commander, I have brought the person you asked for."
It was Hanna's voice.
"Come in."
The heavy mahogany door opened, and Hanna entered in a crisp uniform. Behind her, an elderly gentleman followed.
The enemy general, now a prisoner. Lieutenant General Henri de Dubois.
Just a day ago, he had been a big shot of the Republic in charge of the entire Rosenheim front. Now, he wore a shabby field uniform with his rank insignia torn off.
"So you are... Max Jäger."
The voice of the old general whose eyes alone still blazed fiercely. Instead of answering, I used a skill first.
'Status Analysis.'
[Name: Henri de Dubois]
[Affiliation: Republic Army, 2nd Corps]
[Rank: Lieutenant General (POW)]
[Status: Collapsing values, cognitive dissonance, extreme sense of futility]
And.
[Hidden Trait: Blind Devotee of Field Manuals - Attempts to interpret all tactics through logic alone]
'Just as I thought.'
A textbook great commander. That was both his strength and his fatal weakness.
"That is correct, General. I am Lieutenant Colonel Max Jäger, commander of the Jäger Combat Group, Imperial Army 7th Infantry Brigade."
I answered with a deliberately courteous nod.
"Lieutenant Colonel... To think it was merely a lieutenant colonel."
Henri let out a hollow laugh.
"How in the world did you do it?"
Before long, he asked with a serious expression. Even if he accepted defeat, this much he simply could not understand.
"I'm talking about the National Route 4 approach. The place where our engineers had laid four hundred anti-tank mines. How on earth... did you break through there?"
I shrugged.
"I was lucky."
"Luck? Fine, let's call it luck. Then what about here?"
Henri's gaze drifted to the swamp on the map.
"The ground bearing capacity of this wetland is fifteen tons at most. Your tanks are around forty tons. They should have sunk..."
"Not every wetland is muddy. If you look closely, you'll find bedrock zones."
"Hah, lies! How could you possibly know that by sight!"
Henri began to pour out words.
"Ever since I was captured, I have done nothing but think. I ran simulations in my head hundreds of times!"
His voice rose to a fever pitch.
"Do you know what conclusion I reached?! Either my staff were spies, or you possess X-ray vision. If neither is true, then none of this can be explained!"
He glared at me with bloodshot eyes.
"Tell me. Was there a traitor among my staff who handed over the minefield maps? Or did you receive the wetland terrain maps? Please, tell me it was so. Only then... can I make sense of my defeat."
I felt like I understood that sentiment. The feeling of meeting an overwhelming opponent in a game. The sense of futility and rage one feels when defeated by an overwhelming gap that neither skill nor common sense can explain.
Usually, people would say this: That bastard's a hacker, I lost because I ran into a hacker.
I really was a hacker, so it was a remarkably apt analogy. Meeting Henri's desperate gaze, I told him the cruel truth.
"Regrettably, the Republic's officers were honorable. There was not a single traitor."
"...!"
In the end, Henri's expression crumbled.
"Hah, hahaha...."
He staggered as he spoke.
"No traitors, no intelligence leaks... Then you mean you fought relying solely on intuition and clues...? With that alone, you pierced through the fog of war and made split-second decisions... What kind of... absurd talent is this...!"
[Status: Awe, loss of will to fight, fear of an incomprehensible being]
He looked at me as if looking at something inhuman.
"A monster... You're a monster... To think something like you was hiding in the Empire."
"I'll take that as a compliment, General."
I rose from my seat and saluted politely.
"Hanna, escort the General with courtesy. See that he receives the highest treatment befitting a general officer according to Imperial POW regulations."
"Yes, Lieutenant Colonel."
Completely drained of strength, Henri was led away by soldiers. He could not tear his eyes from me until the very moment he left.
*
A few days later.
The Imperial capital, Eisenburg. The Imperial Palace.
"Hahahahaha! Exhilarating! Truly exhilarating!"
Emperor Ferdinand IV's boisterous laughter filled the audience chamber. He sprang up from his throne, waving the battlefield report submitted by the General Staff.
"In just two days! You annihilated the main corps of those haughty Republic bastards? And with such an unprecedented maneuver cutting through the forest!"
The Emperor looked around at the lined-up officials with an expression of deep emotion.
"Did I not say so! The young blood of our Empire is not bound by outdated field manuals! Behold, what a beautiful victory this is!"
Field Marshal Ludwig, standing before him, nodded in satisfaction.
"Your Majesty speaks most wisely. According to the detailed report from the Western Front Command, the enemy 2nd Corps Commander Henri de Dubois was captured, and the three enemy divisions retreating from Rosenheim were effectively... wiped out along National Route 4."
"'Wiped out.' A harsh expression, but one I like!"
Ferdinand IV rejoiced like a child. Ludwig breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. Max Jäger, part of his own faction, had finally caused a major incident. And in a very positive direction.
This meant his position within the military, as well as the standing of the Stahlberg house, would be solidified. His daughter Erica was also attached to that combat group, so she could share in the merits.
At that moment, a middle-aged man in a crisp tailcoat stepped forward, adjusting his glasses. It was the Imperial Prime Minister, Count Leopold von Kalenberg.
"Your Majesty. However, there is one matter that concerns me."
"Concerns? Hearing news of victory and speaking of concerns, is my Prime Minister not too fearful?"
"Suasong is the core strategic point of the eastern Republic. We may have occupied it militarily, but administratively it remains unstable. Remnant soldiers and angry citizens are mixed together, leaving embers that could spark into a riot at any moment."
At Leopold's point, the Emperor's expression grew serious.
"Hmm, you make sense. To secure supply lines, the city must be stabilized."
Leopold did not miss the opening.
"If I may, Your Majesty. It is urgently necessary to dispatch an administrator."
"Dispatching an administrator."
However, Field Marshal Ludwig showed an uncomfortable expression.
"The bloodstains on the battlefield have not yet dried, Prime Minister. Are the pen-pushers going to stick their spoons in first on land the soldiers risked their lives to capture?"
"Please do not misunderstand, Your Excellency the Marshal."
Prime Minister Leopold responded calmly.
"Maintaining order and supplies in occupied territory requires highly developed administrative capability. I acknowledge Colonel Falkenheim is an outstanding field commander, but controlling tens of thousands of citizens and restoring city functions is an entirely different matter. A military approach... would only breed resentment."
The Emperor rested his chin on his hand and watched the two men's debate with interest. The check between the military and the cabinet—this was precisely the aesthetic of balance that the Emperor enjoyed.
"You have a point. It would indeed be problematic if he dealt with the citizens with the same aggression he used to smash Henri's corps."
"Exactly so, Your Majesty. Therefore, we must dispatch an experienced professional administrator..."
"However!"
Ludwig cut in.
"As it happens, we have just the right man for the job."
"Oho."
"That hero, you mean."
"Out of the question!"
The Prime Minister immediately objected.
"He is only wearing the rank of lieutenant colonel provisionally under wartime exception. Just a few weeks ago, he was a mere captain!"
A peculiar silence fell over the audience chamber. Leopold did not miss the gap and pressed the attack.
"Granting governance of a city of fifty thousand to a single captain? This is a matter of the Empire's prestige, and an act that disregards the administrative system. It is beyond the capacity of a greenhorn officer."
It was a biting remark. Murmurs could be heard from the conservative nobles. Indeed, there was a limit to how unconventional one could be.
"Hah, is the Prime Minister still obsessing over pedigrees? That 'mere captain' captured Henri, the Republic's corps commander. It is not the rank that proves ability, but ability that proves the rank!"
But Field Marshal Ludwig sneered.
"Your Majesty. Lieutenant Colonel Jäger practically managed the affairs of the 7th Brigade at Rosenheim. He is also an administrative prodigy who perfectly defended against even Colonel Zwingli's inspection."
Ludwig looked at the Emperor with eyes full of conviction.
"More than anything, what Suasong needs now is not weak conciliation, but solid charisma."
Emperor Ferdinand IV looked back and forth between the two men.
The Prime Minister arguing for regulations and procedure. The Marshal arguing for results and ability.
After considering with his chin in his hand for a moment, the Emperor soon flashed a mischievous smile and slapped his knee.
"Very well! I am not stingy with heroes. The Prime Minister's words have merit, but this time, I wish to side with the Marshal."
"Your Majesty!"
"Lieutenant Colonel Max Jäger is hereby appointed as Acting Garrison Commander of Suasong for one month! I shall delegate full authority, so let us see whether he wields the pen as well as the blade. I am curious to see how far this hero can go."
The Prime Minister smacked his lips bitterly, while Ludwig smiled in triumph.