episode_0013

Bernitz looked embarrassed by my sudden swearing. However, this embarrassment was short-lived, and Bernitz soon gathered his emotions and said this.

“What are you planning to do in the future?”

“In the future?”

“I should have told you. You can’t go against custom. Are you okay with the North becoming your enemy?”

“… ”

Honestly, it’s scary. But I didn’t rush in without thinking.

I thought. How would Biene Franz act in this situation? Wiene Franz is probably in a worse situation than I am. This is because Binet Franz was an emerging noble, and all of Binet Franz’s subordinates were nobles. You must play an active role in war when all your subordinates are enemies. How difficult is this situation?

Compared to Biene Franz, I am still in a better situation. So, there must be some way to escape this difficult situation. And a way to clean up the corruption in the North.

“That’s nothing for you to worry about.”

“I hope so. Let’s go out. I wish you good luck in your future journey.”

“I hope so.”

Bernitz went out first, and I followed him.

—–

After this, the first thing I started doing was securing my side. Just because it was in the North, it wasn’t all in one place. I had my servant search for high-ranking northern soldiers who had not benefited from corruption. It was definitely there. This is because it was physically impossible for all soldiers to commit corruption.

The results came out just a week after I requested the servant to investigate. It seems that there was a fringe military faction in the Northern Army that did not commit corruption.

I don’t know whether he joined a fringe faction because he couldn’t commit corruption, or because he couldn’t stand corruption. That was something that only they themselves would not have known about. What was certain, however, was that there were some who were not part of the mainstream faction, and they wanted a new leader.

I contacted them right away. They were all of different ranks compared to their age. As they were a non-mainstream faction, they were all rejected from promotions.

Among them, there were those who committed minor crimes. These were violent incidents, neglect of work, and other things that did not lead to dismissal, but could be problematic for promotions.

However, it was not the time to separate hot and cold rice. I gathered as many non-mainstream people as I could and brought them into my faction. These fringe factions were pleased with the emergence of a new line of commanders, while the mainstream factions were nervous.

Among those gathered, the most notable were three.

First of all, Ensign Mario. This soldier, a 47-year-old middle-aged man, had the same name as the main character of a certain game, but his appearance was completely different. He was a skinny and nervous-looking man, and although he had no criminal record and had done nothing wrong, he simply hated corruption and did not join the mainstream faction. As he was a man of such integrity, he was first in line for appointment and was very familiar with military personnel. This person was one of my closest associates.

Next was Sergeant Andre. This man was a large man, but he was hated by the mainstream faction for assaulting his superiors, so he could not join the mainstream faction and was blocked from being promoted. He was muscular and handsome, popular with soldiers, and good at fighting, so he seemed perfect for use as a bodyguard.

Lastly, Sergeant Rao. This young soldier, who is similar in age to me, shows amazing abilities when it comes to reconnaissance. But why is it non-mainstream? He’s a former northern bandit who surrendered. As a result, they are not treated as human beings in the military and are naturally ignored by mainstream factions. But because he had the ability, we brought him over to our side. It would be helpful on the battlefield.

After attracting dozens of officers to my faction, led by three people, I began looking for my people in earnest, centering on Second Lieutenant Mario.

“Although a lot of people have gathered, it is still weak compared to the mainstream faction. In war, the mainstream faction has sworn soldiers, and in administration, the mainstream faction has more than half of the administrative officers. We need a bigger impact. You can’t win with quantity, so you need quality. A more capable person… ”

So, for example, I would like to have someone with an ability level of around 90. If there were only two or three such people, it would not be unreasonable to create a corps that could not be defeated by me and the sworn soldiers.

“For that kind of person, Captain Chloe is perfect.”

“Captain Chloe?”

Wasn’t he the captain who was caught for that corruption?

“Yes. There was a character named Captain Chloe. He was a man who displayed truly genius abilities in military administration and supply. With that woman, there was no problem with supply no matter how far away the expedition went. It’s a pity that Captain Chloe doesn’t exist now.”

“Captain Chloe was arrested for corruption, wasn’t she? Then isn’t it a mainstream faction?”

“Although we cooperated with the mainstream faction, we were not a mainstream faction.”

What is the logic behind saying that you drank alcohol but did not drink and drive? Just when I was seriously thinking about whether I could trust Mario, he spoke.

“Captain Chloe is from Arcadia Academy. They also said he came from an elite background that never missed the top spot. So, of course, he was assigned to the Central Army, but it is said that he was not promoted much in the Central Army.”

“Why?”

“Because I come from a commoner background. Promotions were passed down to contemporaries from noble family backgrounds. They say grades are everything in school, but as I got older, I realized that background is everything. So, it is said that he applied to the Northern Army. The northern region is a barren place with the lowest support rate from nobles among the five counties, so it was thought that fair competition among commoners would be possible.”

“But when I opened the door, it turned out to be a hotbed of corruption.”

“Yes. Moreover, if you do not participate in corruption, your path to success will be blocked. Captain Chloe had no choice but to engage in corruption not because she needed money, but because she did not want her career to be blocked. Other soldiers also knew this, so when corruption became an issue, Captain Chloe was the first to be raised as a scapegoat.”

“Indeed… ”

I didn’t bother to find out about Captain Chloe, but there was a situation like that.

“Then isn’t it the same as ultimately engaging in corruption? It is said that he is a person who can do anything to achieve success, but if he has dabbled in corruption once, wouldn’t he be able to do it a second time? He seems like a person who can go over there at any time.”

“No. Captain Chloe is the calculating type. They will not forgive the mainstream faction that used them and abandoned them.”

“Hmm… The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Then let’s say we’ll bring Captain Chloe to our side. How are you going to get fired? I heard that Captain Chloe will almost certainly be dismissed due to this corruption incident?”

“There is a way about that.”

I listened closely to what Ensign Mario was talking about. And the method was much more interesting than I expected.

——

“… Captain Chloe is dismissed from all positions in accordance with the following military laws!”

Chloe was frustrated by the judge’s words. All she wanted was to rise above this difficult time. He just wanted to check if his abilities were real.

But commoners were not even given that opportunity. The empire was deeply rotten from within, and no matter how capable they were, the commoners were just commoners.

But Captain Chloe tried to struggle. He overturned his fate as a commoner and tried to get ahead somehow.

But it failed. In the end, she was unable to throw off the shackles of being a commoner and sank. With the name commoner.

“It’s really the end now.”

The good news is that she had planned a plan B for situations like this. Fortunately, she was a genius in administration and supply who graduated at the top of her class from Arcadia Academy, and because she was such, many top centers in the center coveted her.

And the moment she was about to board the carriage heading to the center.

“Captain Chloe.”

A familiar voice sounded in her ear. It was Ensign Mario. He was a person that Captain Chloe had always envied. Although Lieutenant Mario was of low status, he was from a noble family, and because of that, he was able to remain in the military without engaging in corruption.

“Captain? Please speak comfortably. I am a civilian now.”

“Then let’s call her Miss Chloe.”

Captain Chloe smiled bitterly at that. This was because he really felt that he was no longer a captain.

“So, what’s going on? It looks like you didn’t come to say goodbye to Ensign Mario’s personality.”

“There is someone you are looking for.”

“Me? Why?”

“You will know when you go.”

Chloe was displeased. I didn’t want someone I didn’t even know who was telling me to come. So the moment I tried to refuse…

“The new commander of the Northern Army needs Captain Chloe.”

Ensign Mario whispered.