Chapter 2 : Let me tell you little bit about my story (2)

Ten years ago.  

That day, when I was possessed by a girl whose name I didn’t even know, I set my top priority to survival.  

Of course, at first, I didn’t have a complete absence of desire to return to being a man.  

In fact, even now, I still flinch and get startled occasionally.  

Let alone back then; how confused I must have been at that time.  

But already, ten years have passed, and that time was not one to leisurely ponder over gender identity.  

I was being targeted by a monster that would eat people.  

Would gender matter in that situation?  

I just had to survive; I would do whatever it takes.  

Thus, the ‘Winter War’ began because of me.  

In fact, until now, the Empire had never even established the concepts of the end of winter and war.  

It had only been unilaterally ravaged. 

But once I appeared, the story changed.  

The only flame of power that could oppose the end of winter.  

On top of that, the discovery of a new material called Sun Iron, refined by my flame.  

Thanks to this, the concept of war was established.  

Rather, the Empire began to mobilize all its forces to hunt down the Wendigo, as if to repay all the humiliation and disgrace it had endured until now.  

My Vendetta Legion was established then.  

“The Emperor has formally issued an imperial decree.” 

“I have been appointed as the commander of the Northern Suppression Army and as the Grand General.” 

“Therefore, I intend to give you the title of General.”  

“What’s the reason?”  

“To keep the promise I made with you.” 

“Did you not ask for freedom to hunt down the Wendigo?”  

“Establish your own troop that you lead. I will help you.”  

The young lord of the Baikal territory, Raipen von Baikal, who believed in me until the end and helped me, was recognized for discovering me and was appointed as the Grand General commanding the Winter War.  

I had just felt a limit on my own, so I thought it would be good to have my own troop prepared solely to hunt the Wendigo, and when Raipen made the perfect proposal, I accepted it without hesitation.  

So why did I name the troop I lead Vendetta?  

“Vendetta means revenge.”  

What? The glory of the Empire?  

The salvation of the people?  

That’s just a beautifully wrapped cover for my selfishness.  

My ultimate goal is survival, after all.  

I want to live. 

I want to survive.  

Just for that goal, I will use everything I can.  

Even if it’s wrapped in false ideals.  

That’s why at the very least I want to take revenge for those who lost their lives caught in my selfishness.  

No matter how strong I am, war is war. 

Sacrifices are inevitable.  

And for those who bravely fought and died, the only thing I can do for them is one thing.  

“Blood must be paid with blood. For every soldier lost, I will kill ten Wendigos, and for every ten soldiers lost, I will kill a hundred Wendigos.”  

“…….”

“The only way we can show our condolences to them.”  

I do not feel guilt.  

That’s why this is much more selfish than atonement.  

Too petty to be called justice.  

“It’s revenge.”  

For me to survive.  

And to fulfill the grievances of those who lost their lives.  

Well, that was how it was ten years ago.  

Now, having exterminated all the Wendigos and brought peace to the Empire, my animosity has greatly subsided.  

No, to be honest, if I reveal my true feelings, it’s the hope that Korean men yearn for.  

Yeah.

I want to be discharged.  

To be more direct, I want to live comfortably and leisurely.  

I always felt that way, but recently, the desire to be discharged has been creeping up.  

Oh, of course, having money and power would be nice. 

I know that well.  

No matter how comfortable it is, the military is still the military.  

The military’s unique closed atmosphere and limited freedom were as bad as poison for me, who had been enjoying freedom in modern society.  

In the past, it was bearable to some extent.  

Why?  

Because my life was in danger.  

The Wendigo was drooling in front of me.

And behind me were the villagers’ pitchforks.  

What could I do? 

To survive, I had to seek refuge in the military.  

Fortunately, due to a manpower shortage, they accepted everyone, regardless of gender, or else I would have died long ago.  

But now, things are different.  

The end of winter threatening the Empire has already come to an end, and there is no longer any force threatening my life within the Empire.  

If there is any, it would be the noble alliance, but………………  

They only check my movements.  

They don’t directly seek to take my life.  

If I die, it would be the same as reducing the Empire’s military strength. 

Of course, being in a high position and doing nothing, and merely attending golf outings, I wouldn’t refuse that.  

However, there are no such positions in the Empire.  

Those who do not work have no right to eat.

Show an example if you are in a high position.  

This is a saying that anyone from the Empire knows, and many nobles believe that following this saying is honorable.  

In other words, being in a high position means having more work.  

Let alone.  

I am the guardian deity of the Empire.  

A war hero who led the Winter War to victory.  

Every day, countless tasks come pouring in.  

Even after working and working, I wonder how there could be so much.  

It’s not a lie; it feels like I’m back in a black company I worked at in my previous life.  

“I just want to be discharged and live comfortably.”  

All the monsters targeting me have been exterminated.  

At least, there are no threats to my life in the Empire.  

At this point, shouldn’t it be time for me to be discharged and live leisurely?  

But when it comes to actually being discharged, there are things I have said until now that make it a bit…  

No, a lot so.  

During the height of the Winter War, no matter how much I led the Vendetta Legion, the opponent was such a transcendent monster.  

Morale would often plummet.  

“We can’t win.”

“Right, who would seriously support a mere execution unit?”

“Just kill us! You’re going to kill us anyway!! We’re the abandoned ones!!”

“Ah, here we go again.”  

Maybe because they lived such a rough life, they would break down mentally and cause trouble.  

But as the commander, I couldn’t react like that.

So I shouted with all my might.  

Those inspiring quotes.  

“You are the shield of the Empire. You will stand before the Empire, and I will always stand before you. Do not be afraid; fight with courage!!”

“Do not move foolishly. Be calm as a mountain!!”

“I am very greedy. I will never throw away what is mine.”

Hmm.  

I wish I hadn’t said the last line.  

It’s not a lie; I somehow managed to persuade those who didn’t want to be abandoned to join the Vendetta Legion and even assured them that I would never abandon them.  

If I suddenly get discharged here, no matter who I am, there’s no way that would be possible.  

Ethical reasons aside, if they feel betrayed by this, the ones I raised will instantly become tigers.  

And those tigers would be the ones to bite my neck.  

Besides that, I’ve left a lot of mess behind.  

So I couldn’t just say I was quitting.  

But that doesn’t mean there are no ways at all.  

As mentioned earlier, the noble faction dislikes me, the Emperor’s faction, holding military power.  

No matter how much they shout for justifications, if they have no power, it’s just trash.  

However, since I, who hold all military power in the Empire, belong to the Emperor’s faction, how much would that annoy them?  

Yeah, I get it, I understand well.  

So I plan to go along with it.  

What if I respond adequately and then step down as if I have no choice?  

What can I do? 

They’re telling me to quit.  

I have no choice but to resign, right?  

Honestly, as a modern person, how can I resist becoming a wealthy idle person?  

I absolutely can’t resist.  

On top of that, I also have the justification of not wanting to cause trouble in the Empire, which has now found peace.  

Ah, it’s perfect.  

So perfect that I can’t find any flaws.  

Judging it to be perfect, I went to the Emperor with the justification the noble alliance presented.  

It was to delegate the command of the legion and get discharged.  

“Hmm, I see. I understand for sure.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty. I hope you understand my intentions………….”  

“In the end, the point is that the nobles are the problem.”  

“……Yes?”  

It was a truly perfect plan, except for the Emperor’s reaction being different from my expectations.  

The Emperor labeled the noble alliance, which was trying to pull me down, as ‘traitors’.

“Those who threaten the position of the national hero Wolfgang Leonhart, who saved the Empire, are challenging my authority. I will deal with them as traitors”