episode_0007

“Gilbert is the commander. For the sake of convenience, I will ask for your understanding in speaking this way.”

Gilbert thought a lot about how to speak until his cadets arrived. Normally he would have done it politely, but the reaction in Gilbert’s body was worse than expected. It was nice to be able to read the memories left in the body and to be able to write without having to be conscious of the nobility that was ingrained in one’s body, but there was also a trade-off.

One of the reasons was that it was difficult to completely abandon Gilbert’s original asshole-like appearance. It’s okay not to get into accidents, but these are small habits.

In particular, the words and actions of belittling and ignoring the other person gave me a chilling sense of discomfort. I tried to ignore it and correct it, but the more I endured it, the closer I came to having a panic attack, so I had no choice but to give up on correcting it.

Instead, a compromise in words and actions was found. As the pride of the nobility was strong, it was possible to be polite to nobles of high status, and it was possible to avoid using a somewhat harsh, but derogatory tone to people of low status. As a result, now that I have taken on the role of commander, I have been able to take advantage of the special nature of my position to have a somewhat stiff tone of voice towards unspecified people.

Although the dissatisfaction of several high-ranking nobles was visible, fortunately there were no cadets of higher noble status than him, and more than anything, the negative rumors brought about by his reputation as an asshole played a role in turning his words and actions into silence. It meant that I would not mess with a crazy dog for no reason.

“The entrance mock battle will begin 30 minutes from now. In order to establish a smooth command system, a group of 10 people will be formed with a lieutenant under the commander and a lieutenant under him.”

In any case, it was natural that when a battle broke out, it would not be possible to see and coordinate the entire situation. There might be a way to just let Gilbert himself take it easy behind the scenes, but it was clear that only then would he get a bad evaluation in the entrance mock competition. The fact that he took on the role of commander in such a small-scale mock battle and just sat back was not evaluated very well.

Although it was titled a mock war, strictly speaking, it was a local war. The goal was to first recapture the opposing team’s position or annihilate the opposing team within a limited area. In the meantime, being the commander and being stuck in the back couldn’t have helped the evaluation.

Of course, from the point of view of character creation, it was possible to receive more special abilities, but this is reality, and in order to show tangible results to the Lithuanian Count, one should not hesitate. If that overlapped with the image of a crazy person, there was a risk of being branded as trash who only cared about preserving the body.

“Then, we will quickly select adjutants and leaders. If there are any applicants, please come forward.”

With Gilbert’s words, another meaningless search began. I was dissatisfied with being under that bastard Gilbert, but Demeia Academy was not gentle enough to accept such dissatisfaction. Since they had to show noticeable results somehow, they thought it would be more advantageous to wear an armband than an ordinary member of the team.

However, because Gilbert’s notoriety was so widespread, they hesitated as they looked at each other.

“If there are no applicants, we will appoint them randomly. Because we don’t have much time.”

“I will do it!”

The first person to raise his hand at the urging of Gilbert, who did not want to waste time on an exploration battle, was a man with brown hair. Even though I searched through my memories, I couldn’t find who it was, so it seemed like they were either minor nobles or commoners.

Gilbert nodded, comforting the remnants of arrogance that still remained.

“What’s your name?”

“It’s Hans!”

“Are you a commoner?”

“That’s right.”

Hans could barely calm his trembling body under Gilbert’s expressionless gaze. Gilbert’s notoriety spread widely even in the territory where he lived, and it was already a famous anecdote that he beat a commoner to the point of death because he was in a bad mood while walking down the street. I began to worry that a commoner might step forward without even knowing the topic and that he would do something wrong.

“First, I will appoint you as a deputy. Hans stay out of this way.”

“Oh, I understand!”

Fortunately, I was relieved that it passed without saying anything, and with a very disciplined look, I went to the place pointed by Gilbert and took an unmoving posture.

At this point, there was an influx of applicants again. They started raising their hands without saying who would go first, and the leaders were decided early on. In the case of the lieutenant, it was changed from Hans to another nobleman. This was not Gilbert discriminating against Hans, but rather consideration.

They were concerned that Hans, a commoner, might be persecuted by the nobles while sitting in the position of lieutenant. In fact, the changed adjutant was the daughter of the author, and perhaps because he had a negative view of Hans, who was first appointed as adjutant, when the adjutant position was changed, his frozen face softened.

However, the team members did not view Gilbert’s consideration favorably. I thought they were discriminating against commoners and trying to appoint women as lieutenants.

“Then first, Chief Hans.”

“Yes!”

“Meet the commander of Team 2 and suggest forming an alliance. I told them that the time to disband the alliance is when the two teams fall apart.”

“Is there a reason there are 2 teams?”

This was a question from Angelina, who took over as deputy. I was in favor of quickly forming an alliance, but I was curious about the reason why they were talking about two teams.

“Because the relationship with the commander of Team 3 is not good, the possibility of an alliance being achieved is zero. There is a possibility that the commanders of Team 4 will have severe disagreements. The team that remained through the method of elimination was the leader of Team 2.”

Gilbert’s original plan was to form an alliance with Lily the moment he identified her. I tried to act as a mid-boss to help the main character grow, but as soon as I realized that my relationship with her was terrible, I completely changed my plan.

Team 4’s commander was out of the question because he was a bit unruly, if not more so than Gilbert, and naturally, the only person left was the main team.

Of course, there is a possibility that they may have already formed an alliance with someone else, or they may reject the alliance itself, so it was natural to check with other leaders as well. Even if you make an original plan, if it goes wrong, you have to plan it again right away.

“Leaders Bentley and Alex go to meet the commanders of teams 3 and 4, respectively, and come back with the same proposal.”

“Are you preparing for when the conversation with team 2 doesn’t go well?”

“That’s right, Deputy Angelina. Even if team 2 is the best choice, I don’t know how the other side will turn out.”

“It’s not bad. Don’t forget to check whether the three leaders have formed an alliance with another team. Because we have to keep the worst-case scenario in mind.”

Gilbert looked with different eyes at Angelina, who was giving additional instructions. Even though he was a character whose name I had never heard of in the original work, his understanding of the situation and the orders he gave were quite clear. Originally, it seemed like Gilbert was well-equipped to be an adjutant, as he knew in advance what he was going to add.

“Commander, why are you looking at me like that?”

“I think I chose a capable lieutenant.”

“That’s an interesting opinion. I don’t think it’s something the commander would hear.”

Gilbert did not bother to reply to the harsh criticism. Because this guy’s reputation didn’t help at all.

However, Angelina was actually revising her evaluation of Gilbert. The appearance of Gilbert, who was widely said to be the count’s bastard with no ability, was completely different from the rumors.

Angelina thought that Gilbert knew what position he was in and knew exactly what obstacles it would pose to forming an alliance. It was worth giving high additional points for understanding the opponent’s tendencies, one’s own notoriety, and the commander’s tendencies, rather than thinking that an alliance would be formed just by asking for it.

Although there were times when he seemed to be justly condescending and had a look that put pressure on him, he was actually in a good mood considering his position as the successor to the Hart family. Especially when I thought about the rumors that followed him, I almost believed it was someone else.

‘We’ll have to see how far that goes.’

Angelina watched Gilbert silently looking at the strategy board and waited for the team members to arrive.

After about 10 minutes, the leaders returned. There were approximately 10 minutes left before the mock battle began.

“Let’s hear the report first from Captain Hans.”

“As a result of suggesting an alliance to Team 2, they politely declined.”

“I see. Next, Manager Bentley.”

I was very upset, but I didn’t make the mistake of showing it outwardly. Since each of the commander’s actions could affect morale, Gilbert just kept a poker face and listened to the next report in silence.

“Team 3 also declined. Looking at the atmosphere, it seemed like they were trying to put our team down first.”

“I guess so. The last Captain Alex.”

“Team 4 was also the same. It was clear that they had already formed an alliance with somewhere.”

The worst situation that could be imagined has come. It was unclear how the alliance structure was established, but it was certain that the Nakdong River duck egg was in control.

The atmosphere suddenly worsened upon hearing that all proposals for alliance had been rejected. Considering the difference in personnel between the three teams that had become enemies since they had brains, there was a high possibility that they would lose without being able to do anything.

Gilbert sighed inwardly as he saw the rapid decline in morale. It was a bit depressing to see the situation that I had experienced become a reality. Perhaps the reputation he has is unbelievable. Or, the problem seemed to be that the commander cadets were given the idea that they might unite and sink together.

‘There’s nothing we can do.’

For now, I erased the alliance I had already forgotten from my mind. In this case, there was only one thing left.

Gilbert, holding the baton in his hand, pointed to the position on the tactical board.

“Then explain the next best strategy. Let’s all focus.”

The name of the operation he set up was one.

It was a rotten water technique.