Chapter 84 : Military Rebellion (1)

Under the deliberate sabotage and passive complicity of the so-called elites,the novels written by Ishmael spread like wildfire.

From hand to hand, from lips to ears.

They were secretly distributed and passed around, evading the eyes of surveillance.

There were even cases where handwritten copies were shared due to a lack of books.

Clumsily transcribed onto scraps of leather from the battlefield or the backs of used papers.

“Damn, isn’t this totally our story? Rolling in the dirt, suffering until we just drop dead.”

“Well, at least the guy in here survived a few years. Our neighboring platoon didn’t even last three months before they were all corpses.”

“Our old battalion commander was a dumbass like this too. No skills, just greedy, always yelling at us to attack.”

Among frontline soldiers and lower-ranking noncommissioned officers, All Quiet on the Western Front was especially popular.

Since they were always being tossed into rough conditions, it was easy for them to directly empathize with the content.

The misery of losing one’s values and morals while gradually losing their humanity day by day.

The quiet tragedy of losing everything, and finally even one’s life.

It didn’t feel like someone else’s story, and they liked that.

“No matter how hard you try and struggle, in the end, you just lose the one you love… what a hollow feeling.”

“There’s no guarantee we won’t end up like that too.”

“Suddenly I feel depressed. Once this war ends and we go back home, what will we have left? A worthless name, a few meaningless medals? Just the emptiness of wasting a few precious years of our lives?”

“I can’t even go home. Those pig bastards from Allein took over my hometown.”

In contrast, mid-to-senior noncommissioned officers, rear-line troops, and lower-ranking officers preferred A Farewell to Arms.

These were people who worked in relatively safer areas, not directly participating in combat.

Their main tasks were things like transporting supplies, managing supply routes, and taking care of the wounded.

So they were more drawn to stories that resembled the work they did.

Stories of soldiers dying in droves without emotion didn’t quite match their reality.

[Numbers and dates were the only things tied to places that we could speak of and assign meaning to.

Abstract words like glory, honor, courage, and sanctity felt almost obscene compared to names of villages, rivers, regiments, or dates.]

[Catherine came to mind. But in a situation where it was unclear if they could ever meet again, thinking about her only made him feel like he was going insane. So he decided to think of her only a little.]

Of course, just because their situations were different and they empathized with different characters didn’t mean their takeaways were different.

Whether it was All Quiet on the Western Front or A Farewell to Arms, both captured the futility and transience of war superbly.

[With the rain falling outside the window and that night spent at the hotel, the room had been filled with a bright, joyful, and pleasant air. When the lights were turned off, the soft sheets and the comfortable bed made his heart race.]

[It felt like he was finally home, like he was no longer alone, like even if he woke in the middle of the night, the person he loved would still be there beside him.]

[…Even after sending people out, closing the door, and turning off the lights, it was no use. It felt like saying farewell to a statue. After a moment, I opened the door, left, and departed the hospital, heading back to the hotel in the rain.]

Losing subordinates, losing honor, losing status.

The protagonist, who bravely enlisted, lost everything to the war and barely escaped with his lover.

But even in the refuge chosen—Switzerland—he ended up losing that lover as well.

The absolute pinnacle of futility.

If only he had stayed put, he might have at least kept his meager position.

But because he foolishly got involved in the war, he lost his life and his spirit was devastated.

“Ah, I want to desert.”

“Can’t we just surrender and end the war here? I don’t want to risk my life fighting in formation anymore.”

“Why the hell did I stupidly volunteer for the army in the first place?”

Everyone except the high-ranking officials and top officers, who believed the disorder was well censored, grew weary of the war.

Then a massive emergency broke out.

“Sir, it’s a big problem!!”

“What is it?”

“The Hispania Empire is halting all military supply exports!!”

Our lifeline was cut off.

*****

Finally, the anticipated crisis erupted.

We’d been waiting for it to happen, but it came later than expected.

“Goods will disappear from the market for a while. It’s okay since we already stocked up on what we need.”

“Better stock up more just in case. Who knows how long this supply shortage will last.”

In the newly established temporary Allein branch office,we grumbled as usual while reading reports.

It was sent directly from the northern port city.

“Countries that suddenly lose imports won’t hold out. At best, they’ll starve and whimper.”

We had discussed this before.

If the supply lines provided by Hispania to various countries disappear, continuing the war as it is now will become impossible.

At best, a severe weakening of war capability.

At worst, the economy collapses, and mass bankruptcies follow.

Since the combatant countries have now developed some self-production capacity, the latter is unlikely… but civilian suffering is certain.

“But why did it take so long to stop exports? Hispania’s stock market crashed at least four months ago.”

“It’s an international issue. Communication has its limits. Trade doesn’t just stop overnight.”

After Hispania’s economic crisis hit, the Artium Empire’s offensive failed, epidemics spread, and even subversive novels were distributed.

Why didn’t this turmoil spread to neighboring countries earlier?

Simple.

Because this isn’t an era of advanced finance like 21st-century Earth.

“Even if stocks become worthless, it takes time for the whole industry to collapse.”

Even during the Great Depression on Earth, the United States didn’t collapse overnight.

It took quite some time from the news spreading, investors selling off, to factories and companies across the country going bankrupt.

It’s the same here.

There must have been limits to how fast the shock in the financial market spread throughout Hispania.

Especially since this is an era without advanced communication technology.

‘But slow doesn’t mean it won’t affect eventually.’

The current situation is the result.

The sudden halt of supplies happened at this ironic timing when the soldiers’ mental states are breaking down.

Even comfort items and military equipment for the soldiers, whose patience and morale are tested day by day, are about to run out.

“It’s slow. The things between your legs react instantly when I touch them.”

“…That’s because you’re always sucking on it.”

“Oh, thank you for the compliment, dear.”

I should just stop talking.

Anyway, now that it’s come to this, many people will suffer.

Especially Kram and Navre.

Will their living standards collapse like Germany’s in the late First World War?

Back then, there was no bread made from steamed turnips, and people even mixed sawdust and chalk to eat.

Ah, of course, even in such times, nobles and royals would be slicing veal steaks every night in their splendid mansions.

‘Because it’s still an era when the upper class doesn’t know what caution is.’

It was a time when the rich indulged themselves while the people starved to death without concern.

A noblewoman covering a freezing person with her cloak was considered a great act of kindness.

It will still be 200 years before the time comes when the upper class cares about the sentiments of the lower classes.

“Sigh.”

“W-wait a minute. There, uh… haah…”

I sighed and gently stroked Kalia’s head.

With my other hand, I touched the tip of her tall horn.

She purred like a cat and blushed softly, pressing her soft chest against me and burying her head in my neck.

Feeling the warmth of my beloved, I inwardly worried.

‘What kind of new nonsense will these bastards come up with next?’

What terrible stupidity will those assholes pull off?

I can’t help but worry.

They’d better have a pretty impressive track record.

Well, my own affairs are much more important than that anyway.

“I-Ishmael… I think I’m in heat. The lower part of my belly keeps getting hot.”

“Kalia?”

“Then take it off.”

“Huh?”

“Take it off.”

Tomorrow I’ll have to put some ointment on my waist.

*****

Unfortunately.

Ishmael’s worry came true spectacularly.

Right there in Navre.

“Damn it. Which unit is consuming the most military supplies right now? The 3rd Corps in the east?”

“More than that, it’s the navy. Every time they fight, they fire thousands of cannonballs.”

“Since imports are no longer an option, we absolutely must conserve supplies. Forget about the aftermath for now—let’s first save whatever we can!”

“Won’t there be strong opposition? They’re talking about disbanding and reorganizing intact units—would they accept that?”

“We have to endure it. The country can’t hold out; what does that opposition matter?”

Supply deliveries have drastically decreased.

Food is at 80% of the usual amount, gunpowder and ammunition at 50-60%, and firearms and cannons are at similar levels to gunpowder.

Fighting as before, there’s no way to handle the consumption rate.

“For now, it’s best not to touch the army. They’re barely holding the enemy back with what they have.”

“In that case, it’s definitely…”

The only feasible measure is to disband units that have poor cost-effectiveness.

But the army was out of the question.

Since all but the west are enemy territory, disbanding land forces would mean losing the frontline.

The only choice left was the navy.

Since the war started, the navy hadn’t been very active, so reducing the number of ships was the only option.

“Contact the fleet command. Tell them to prepare for a large-scale naval battle. Order them to lead the fleet and attack the Helvetian navy in the ocean.”

“Yes, sir.”

Disbanding the fleet and scrapping ships would sully the navy’s honor.

Though the situation was dire, at least let them fight gloriously and die with honor.

Let them vanish honorably.

With this in mind, Navre’s leadership gave reckless combat orders, and—“What the hell is this nonsense?”

“The enemy outnumbers us more than two to one, and they want us to go out and fight a full-scale war? Are they trying to get us all drowned and killed?!”

“Raise your weapons, comrades! If we’re going to die anyway, let’s get revenge on the high-ups before we go!”

The sailors, unable to accept this, erupted in fury, killed their superiors, and started a rebellion.

This was the prelude to what later became known as the Gdansk Naval Base Mutiny.