Chapter 5 : Victory

I declared a charge and furiously cut down enemies at the front line.

Dodging artillery and cutting through the enemy.

I issued new orders to the troops.

Running like that while being malnourished inevitably took a toll on my body.

But I ignored that state thanks to the awakening effect caused by licking the blood on my face and clothes.

“..Haa… Haa………….”

I ran like a madman.

My uniform was already soaked.

Blood and stains covered my face.

I was out of breath.

Each time that happened, I licked the blood off my face.

“Uugh…”

Disgusting.

Corpses were scattered before my eyes.

It was impossible to distinguish friend from foe among them.

The blood splattered on me was a mix of human and vampire blood—I could no longer tell which was which.

Only the blood flying into my eyes remained visible.

That red, hot blood never left my sight.

‘…This is bad…’

I hadn’t drunk enough blood—my vision started to blur.

Red.

Everything was red.

And then—

“GYAAAH!!!”

“No!!”

“M-My arm..!!”

From behind, I heard the cries of my precious soldiers.

My mind cleared up a little.

I looked down at the vampire squirming beneath me.

‘…I have to cut it down.’

‘Survive. I have to survive…!!’

‘This time, I’ll make it out alive… ugly, more desperately… I’ll claw my way through…!!’

CRACK!!!!

Thinking that, I drove my blade through the vampire’s heart.

“Khak…!!”

I twisted the sword handle 90 degrees and gouged out the heart.

All strength drained from my body.

But I couldn’t lose strength here, so I bit my lip.

Then I tasted my own blood.

The taste of my own blood didn’t disgust me.

Sharpened by pain, I looked around.

“Commander!!!”

“GYAAAH!!!”

“Damn it…!!”

“Medic!! Medic!!!”

A soldier calling out for me.

A soldier with his arm severed.

A soldier laughing like a madman.

A soldier howling at the vampire.

A soldier cursing at the vampire through tears.

A soldier who, after killing a vampire, was crushed by guilt.

A soldier clutching a dead comrade, unable to move.

A soldier carrying his severed hand, looking for a medic.

Once, they were someone’s family.

Now, they were nothing more than expendables.

As I looked upon them—

My head went cold.

‘I must save them.’

I had to save them.

These poor souls, caught in the higher-ups’ political games, needed to be saved.

I pulled my black sword from the vampire’s heart beneath me.

“All forces!!! Survive!!! I will not allow you to die without my permission!!!”

I raised my sword, wiping blood from my face with my blood-soaked sleeve, and shouted.

“Uwaaaa!!!”

“Down with the vampires!!!”

“For the Empire!!”

“For His Majesty the Emperor!!”

And those who threw themselves willingly for their homeland responded.

SPLASH!

“Khak!”

“Forgive me. I took your life in a cruel way.”

Vampires don’t die easily, even with their heart pierced.

You must sever their head in one blow for instant death.

So gouging out the heart like I did was an act of cruelty.

I looked at the vampire soldier whose life was fading.

“I’ll at least make it painless now.”

Saying so, I sliced the vampire’s neck with my blade.

Only then did the vampire’s glowing eyes fade.

There was no time or reason to mourn.

I licked the blood from my cheek.

The taste was still disgusting, but strength returned to my body.

The heat of the blood splattered on me proved again that I was still alive.

BOOM!!!!!

BANG!!!!

THUDUDUDU!

With indiscriminate bombing, earth shot up into the sky and came crashing down on me.

Gripping my sword again, I used the blood on the ground to cast blood magic.

“…For the Empire.”

I muttered absentmindedly and moved like I was sliding, stepping on the micro-exploding blood with blood magic.

The blood on my sword also triggered tiny blasts just before striking an enemy, adding thrust to each swing.

My eyes turned red.

Seeing that, the vampires realized I was one of them and fell into panic.

TICK!

At last, I heard the faint explosion from my blade, and I swung it fast.

SHUNK!!

Jumping high, I decapitated three vampires in an instant.

SPLAAASH!!!

Landing and slipping in blood, I used the momentum to run wild across the battlefield.

SHUNK!!

SLAASH-SLAASH-SLAASH!!

I deliberately stepped only in blood puddles, so wet squelching sounds echoed beneath my boots.

Before I knew it, my boots were filled with blood.

The more blood entered my mouth—

“Uugh…!!”

The more nausea I felt, and the clearer my mind became.

As a result of running madly across the battlefield—

We finally succeeded in opening the gates to the enemy’s main fortress.

My operation ended here.

From here on—

‘…Valentine.’

“Loyalty.”

It was Erik’s turn now.

Support arrived from Erik, who had been waiting in the rear.

“…Haa… uugh..!”

Feeling the urge to vomit, I collapsed to the ground, not even waiting for my superior to salute.

Erik frowned as he looked at me.

“…S-sorry….”

Holding back the nausea, I stood up and gasped for breath, using my sword to support myself.

“I will report now.”

“Currently, the remaining vampire forces are holding out in the stronghold……..”

“…We’ve just succeeded in neutralizing the entrance.”

Only then did that bastard who finally acknowledged my salute say “Understood” and told me to rest.

“Th-thank you……………”

I collapsed disgracefully onto the blood-soaked muddy ground.

“…I survived…”

The relief of surviving…

Overcame the shame.

Erik clicked his tongue as he looked at me.

‘…You bastard, do you even understand how desperate I was?’

I wanted to shout that,

But I was just too sleepy, so I leaned against the wall without even brushing off the mud and closed my eyes.

“Haa…haa…”

Breathing heavily, I felt like every muscle in my body was screaming.

How much time had passed like that?

We were pulled back to the rear, received treatment and resupplies, and went into rest.

“Captain, is it really okay to see the superior like that?”

“Eek?!”

“…Crie.”

“I’m sorry!”

I sat next to Kriha with a displeased look.

It wasn’t unreasonable for Kriha to be shocked seeing me.

After all, I was completely drenched in blood.

‘…Huff…haa…’

I grimaced with discomfort as I lit a cigarette.

Thankfully, it was in plastic, so only the plastic was soaked in blood.

“…Major, that’s against regulations…”

“If you bring up no-smoking one more time, I’ll toss you over there with the corpses.”

“…Yes! I’m sorry!”

Kriha, silenced, soaked a rock-hard biscuit in water.

“…Honey, give me that.”

“K-Kyle? The Major is here… you can’t…”

Kriha froze as Kyle tried to act all lovey-dovey in front of me.

Considering he just got punished recently, it was lucky.

I shrugged as I watched the two of them.

The war’s over anyway, so who cares.

Now that Erik’s here, even if artillery rains down, we’ll somehow hold out.

That’s the story the system wants.

“…Oh? Major, aren’t you angry?”

“As long as you don’t overdo it.”

When I said that, Kriha’s face immediately brightened.

How is that guy the same mad hunting dog who just massacred the enemies?

I let out a small chuckle as I saw him.

“Pfft…!! Hahaha…!!”

Then suddenly, the tent went silent.

I looked around at my subordinates’ dumbfounded expressions.

Shiver shiver shiver.

“Captain Jenny? What’s wrong?”

Jenny was either drinking or spilling water from her canteen.

Kriha, with a blank expression, inched closer to the stove, unsure if she meant to warm her hands or burn them.

Even the usually stone-faced Kyle looked stunned.

“…?”

I tilted my head in confusion, and Jenny finally spoke.

“M-Major… y-you can smile?”

I had no idea what she meant by that question and replied with a serious tone.

“What?”

“Gasp…s-sorry! I-it’s just, it’s the first time I’ve seen you smile…”

Jenny trembled as she begged for forgiveness.

Now that I thought about it, ever since I came to this world,

I might not have smiled even once.

Even back in my original world, I didn’t smile much.

The last time I remember smiling… was after receiving my terminal diagnosis.

“…Was I really that unsmiling?”

I asked, exhaling cigarette smoke.

All of them nodded in unison.

All I could do was shrug.

“…I smile too.”

“I do too…”

I hesitated for a moment, then smiled faintly.

“I’m human, after all.”

It feels like I’ve been living too harshly in the chaos of war.

Now, a world I don’t know is approaching me.

I have no idea how things will unfold, or when I’ll die.

What the system will do, or where my life will go.

Even where to get blood is uncertain.

But for now, I just decided to smile.

Because this was my first true achievement since arriving here.

Just for today, as a sign that I’ve survived this long.

“…Everyone, thank you… for being my subordinates.”

I said that with a gentle smile.

But for some reason, I started to feel a sting beneath my eyes.

“…Sorry… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cry.”

Tears kept flowing down my cheeks.

Just for today—let me cry my heart out.

With that thought, I cried and cried, just for that one day.

The next day.

“A flag of surrender!!! Surrender!!!”

“The vampires have surrendered!!!!”

With the sunrise at their backs,

I stared at the scene I had once seen in a game with a blank expression.

The season was slightly different, but the sight was still…

“…Beautiful.”

“Beautiful indeed.”

It was a beautiful sight.