But Rusalka couldn’t help feeling terribly empty at resorting to force to end their quarrel. “Is this all just a result of my inability to communicate properly…?” “I suspect there is probably a more relevant point for you to improve on than that, Major…” As Rusalka closed and opened the hand that had been tormenting Lisbeth, she heard a familiar voice address her from behind. Turning, she posed a question. “What exactly is my shortcoming, then, Natalie?” “About that. If I might make a suggestion from an ordinary point of view…I suppose I would call it a lack of confidence and a difficulty with interpersonal relationships.” “…So then it is because I’m inarticulate…” “I don’t believe that’s necessarily connected to your alarming reliance on physical force.” The girl with bright-red hair tied back—Natalie Chase—crossed her arms as she made that comment. She was a member of Sigrdrifa and another of Rusalka’s subordinates. Rusalka raised her eyebrows at Natalie’s suggestion as she considered her hand. “That’s true. I’ve gotten in the habit of relying on strength because it is efficient, but I should be using my words, given my position. I’ll reflect on that going forward.” “I understand the feeling well, though. Those two are quite the troublesome nuts to crack.” “I suppose that’s to be expected of the outstanding talents the commander scouted for us.” While Natalie commiserated with her, Rusalka let an idle complaint slip out. Though in her case, her complaints tended to rest somewhere in the gray zone between irony and actual praise. “The commander…” Natalie rolled the phrase around in her mouth a bit. “He’s certainly eccentric, but he has a sixth sense when it comes to people. And when it comes to judging someone by their abilities rather than looks, he’s quite reliable.” “Yes, that’s true. But…” “But there’s a limit to all things, right? We’re soldiers fighting on the front lines for all humanity… There must be some standards to maintain the dignity of the International Peacekeeping Organization.” “Exactly! That’s exactly right.” Rusalka was in total agreement with Natalie’s frank assessment. Indeed, Alejandro Ostley, the base’s commanding officer and the overall commander of the Sigrdrifa task force, was an unconventional officer who did not really fit into any preexisting molds. A large number of the soldiers gathered at Holm base under his meritocratic system would have been drummed out of the service for various reasons in a peacetime military. Given that he had brought them all together and consistently achieved concrete results, there was no arguing that his finds were not capable. In fact, if he had not been the commanding officer, it was doubtful Sigrdrifa would have been able to operate as smoothly as it did, and there was little chance that Rusalka would have ever become its squadron leader, either. That was just how much of an outcast she was on the European front. But the situation had changed, and she was able to fly again. And the impetus for that had been none other than Alejandro, a fact for which she was eternally grateful. However, Rusalka was still terribly tormented by the cost of his involvement. Since— “Colonel Ostley’s frivolousness can only be called a failure of character, especially as the commander of a base who is supposed to be a role model for all the soldiers under his command. Pushing practically all the paperwork onto his executive officer and wandering around the base at all hours. And even forcing me to drag him out of pubs in town…” “A-ah, I see. That sounds quite troubling…” “Yes! It really is! He’s unbelievable.” “…Kicked the hornet’s nest…” Rusalka started listing all of Alejandro’s sins at length, the menacing look on her face overwhelming Natalie as the olive-skinned girl next to her—Alma Conturo—murmured a languid comment. Alma looked up at Rusalka with a seemingly expressionless face and tugged her sleeve. “Rusalka, he’s calling for you. The commander.” “The commander? Then I’ll go after the briefing to—” “Don’t worry! We can take care of that.” There was a disapproving look on Rusalka’s face, but Natalie emphatically interrupted her. She had always had a strong desire to get ahead, so she most likely wanted to make a proper impression and demonstrate her position to the newcomers, Lisbeth and Leili. And Rusalka could not be sure how long she would be tasked as the squadron leader for Sigrdrifa, so she decided to respect Natalie’s initiative. “Understood, then I’ll leave the briefing to you, Natalie. Alma, help her out in case anything happens. And you, too, Shannon—I see you hiding back there.” “…If you insist…” Rusalka smiled wryly at Alma’s standard low-energy response before saluting the two girls. They saluted back as she quickly left the hangar for the changing room. Changing out of her flight suit, she headed to the base commander’s office. She would not have minded just going straight there, but given that she was almost certainly going to be met with a snide comment if she did, she decided to avoid that possibility altogether. Watching her quickly leave— “Th-thank you for that, Alma…,” Natalie murmured gratefully. “It’s just a hornet’s nest… Rusalka’s enjoying it—her current life.” “I think that’s quite problematic all on its own. After all…” Natalie turned around, stopping there. Following her gaze, Alma turned around as well. Behind them was the line of Sigrdrifa’s Deus ex Machinas, fresh from the battlefield. Looking at them, Natalie clenched her hand, pressed against her chest. “…We’re on the front line for all of humanity. And the major is our Sigrdrifa, the one guiding us to victory.” 3 “What, you showered first? Splendid, splendid.” “It was either that or suffer another one of your snide remarks, sir.” “Snide remark? What, me? I never said anything about you smelling bad. Just that you had the scent of a woman freshly returned from battle.” “It’s not an issue you can resolve with careful phrasing, sir.” Rusalka’s eyes narrowed as she took umbrage with his indelicate response. The handsome blond commander—Alejandro Ostley—grinned like a lion. They were in the office given to the commanding officer of Holm military base. The man sitting in the chair behind the desk with an air of brazen audacity had none of the solemnity and gravity befitting his rank and position. There was no denying that the unique atmosphere he cultivated was part of why he was beloved by his subordinates, but— “It would perhaps be better if you carried yourself with some awareness that you are standing at the front line of all humanity, Colonel. Could you please conduct yourself with a more appropriate attitude in order to provide a proper example to the troops?” “That’s a tough ask. What exactly would a more appropriate attitude be?” “If I might be so bold… To start with, wear your uniform properly, properly shave yourself, stop leaving all your work to your subordinates, maintain an upright and dignified posture barring exigent circumstances, cultivate your subordinates’ strengths while identifying their weakness—” “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. If I did all that, I wouldn’t be me anymore. That would just be someone else entirely.” Leaning over the desk and propping his head up on an idle hand, Alejandro looked nonplussed as Rusalka counted off the traits she wanted in an ideal commanding officer. He continued as he leaned back comfortably in his seat. “Just learn to love the officer you’ve already got. I’m everyone’s base commander, a father figure, a first among peers, and a big brother.” “…Be more studied than anyone else while also spurring others to constantly improve themselves. And also, drink with more moderation and eat your vegetables without complaints.” “You were still going?! You might as well just tell me to step down so someone else can take over and be done with it.” “No.” Rusalka stopped her enumeration after Alejandro let loose with an exaggerated complaint. “There is no replacement for you, sir. That is our greatest problem.” After all the abuse he had just endured, Alejandro’s eyes sparkled at that. But no matter how much she disliked that response, Rusalka wasn’t the type to lie. No matter how many flaws he had that she wished he would correct, Alejandro had more than enough qualities to recommend him—indeed, ignoring his flaws, he had qualities no one else could match: his innate instinct for skillfully handling his subordinates and a nigh superhuman mastery when it came to dealing with pillars. His natural ease and jovial character were good for morale as well, almost like he was a man born for leading soldiers in wartime. That was Alejandro Ostley, the man in whom the International Peacekeeping Organization (IPO) had placed their hopes. “Ooooh, so that’s it. I’m irreplaceable, huh? Looks like you get it, too.” “Yes, sir. So, given that you cannot be replaced, there is no choice but for you to change yourself. I will summarize all my requests and provide them to you in writing.” “You know, there’s always the option of just accepting me for how I am, right, warts and all?” “I would hardly call that a feasible option when it is wholly unreasonable…” “Don’t say that with such a genuinely confused look.” Alejandro seemed to be enjoying himself as he shrugged in the face of Rusalka’s dubious expression. But she refused to back down. “I look forward to the day when you finally give in to my demands, sir. When that time comes, I will personally comb out your hair.” “You’re definitely the type who remodels all your lovers to suit your preferences. It’s scary to imagine what might happen, given your thoroughness.” Trembling at Rusalka’s faint smile, Alejandro changed topics, putting both his elbows on the desk as the childish glint in his blue eyes disappeared. “First of all, well done out there. Let’s hear your report. How is the squadron doing?” The air around him changing in the span of a single breath, Alejandro transformed into the imposing war hero befitting his position. Rusalka straightened, struck again by how stunning his transformation could be, even if she thought it was utterly unfair. “We successfully pushed back the host of tertiary pillars without any losses. In the near future, we will likely encounter the secondary stationed in this region. Natalie’s and Alma’s coordination and proficiency continue to grow by leaps and bounds. Though as ever, their bickering is…” “That just goes to show how well they get along. Are there any issues with coordination in the rest of the squadron? There’s talk about some Valkyries from Japan coming over. Officially, they’re reinforcements, but—” “But the true purpose is to share knowledge with new Valkyries, right? From the data you gave me, several of them seem to have significant potential, but…” Approximately twenty Japanese Valkyries would be traveling from the distant land of the rising sun to join their base’s personnel. On paper, they were a crack force of highly skilled Valkyries who had achieved impressive results. They were unmistakably junior in terms of training, but their aptitude was undeniable and apparently a sight to behold. “The state of war in the region, geopolitics, and all sorts of other things play a part. Asia has suffered relatively little impact from the pillars so far. Unlike Europe, where a crash course scramble for pilots was the only choice, they’ve had the leeway to choose and train only the cream of the crop.” “I hadn’t expected girls even younger than Alma and Natalie, though.” “I doubt anyone feels especially good about it. But they were volunteers, and there’s no arguing they have top-class aptitude. We can’t afford to ignore that potential.” Rusalka was ashamed of the current state of affairs, but she buried that away in a corner of her heart. Alejandro and all the other soldiers felt the same regret. “…Returning to the report, regarding Alma…,” Rusalka said with some hesitation. “Go ahead.” “She is still somewhat of a concern, but she has grown less distant from the rest of the squadron compared to before. She had felt depressed about lacking a role before, but she has become significantly more cooperative.” She was never much for talking, and it could be hard to tell with her usual expressionless demeanor, but Alma had a strong drive to fight for humanity. And unlike before, now that she could fully wield her abilities for the cause, she was gradually starting to rise into contention as one of the top aces among Valkyries. “However, she still needs support from Natalie for the time being.” “Still, her, a top ace, huh? Imagine that. In that case, she’s going to have to work a bit on her public speaking skills in order to be a proper role model for all the rookies looking up to her.” “She has her own positive traits. There’s no need for a girl her age to force herself to change. And the next generation of Valkyries can surely learn a lot just from seeing how she flies.” “That’s a pretty different response from the one I got…” “Please don’t expect to be treated the same as a teenager, sir.” Rusalka sighed as she protested his peevish protest. It wasn’t the sort of attitude a grown man should have, but she also knew it was just another of his ploys to tease her, so she ignored the bait. “Questions about Conturo aside, there’s no need to worry about Chase and Stewart. Their stability is impressive. Stewart in particular. She’s almost too unflappable,” Alejandro concluded. “She was always the sort of pilot who could keep her cool even after taking a hit, but since joining Sigrdrifa, she’s gotten more and more reliable every day. Perhaps it’s because she has grown to trust the people around her.” “Or maybe because she’s taken to being a role model with rookies joining the team.” “” Rusalka remained silent as Alejandro had a hollow laugh at that. Gauging her reaction, he shrugged a little. “I’ll admit they’re a handful.” Just that was enough to make it clear they were both thinking about the same subject: one of the biggest problems the Sigrdrifa Valkyrie squadron was dealing with. “So? Are we going to be able to use the rookies Crown and Haltija?” Alejandro asked, finally broaching the topic. “In the air? Or on the ground?” “Both, obviously. Not that I’m worried about the air side of the question. I trust my eyes. I wasn’t running around the continent looking for top recruits for nothing.” “Yes, that certainly isn’t the most pressing problem.” Rusalka nodded as Alejandro physically pointed to his eye in a show of extreme confidence. The latent potential of all the new Valkyries he had found was undeniable, and their future performance would far outstrip what Rusalka could offer. And among his recruits, Lisbeth and Leili were particularly ahead of the pack. They had so much potential, it was possible to dream that they might even eventually reach the level of the First, if they could fully utilize their innate power and instincts. However, while they possessed indisputable talent, their behavior on the ground was intolerable. Rusalka launched into her explanation, saying, “Viewed individually, Leili doesn’t have any major problems. However, there is a concern that anytime she’s paired with Lisbeth, her inability to cooperate might become a problem.” “Because she has such a talent for adjusting to her wingmates, even if she can work well with less skilled Valkyries, her balance gets thrown off when she’s paired with someone with similar capabilities.” “As for Lisbeth, she makes absolutely no effort whatsoever to work with Leili or anyone else for that matter. From a squadron leader’s perspective, her egotism is unacceptable.” “She lost her family to the pillars. There are more than a few people in the army who joined up for revenge. She was a good fit for a Valkyrie, and there aren’t many people who can match her ability.” Alejandro pensively closed an eye as he raised Lisbeth’s background. It had been just under two years since the war with the mysterious invaders had begun. The havoc caused by the still entirely unknown enemies increased every day, all around the world. Ironically, the more they advanced, the more casualties there were, which led to even more people volunteering for the army. Lisbeth had been one of them. “” Alejandro Ostley’s force was fighting day and night to reclaim stolen land on the European front. Having been tasked with such a heavy burden, the IPO had also given him free rein to place any Valkyrie under his command. The force he had gathered represented the greatest concentration of humanity’s fighting power, Sigrdrifa. And— “—That makes you, the squadron leader, my right hand.” “Reluctantly.” “You’ve gotten a lot less respectful with me lately.” “I’ve learned that attending to your moods is a waste of effort, so I’ve chosen to devote my time to more productive pursuits.” If she was being more honest, her reluctance was really just lighthearted jest. His words and his decisiveness had guided her when she had been scared to fly and unwilling to climb into her Deus ex Machina, stuck in limbo between being a Valkyrie and not feeling worthy of the name. At the end of the day, she was quite proud to be flying under his command. That said, she had no intention of telling him that until after the war was over— “You’re even more of a romantic than I am.” “—? What do you mean, sir?” “Forget it. So is there anything you need me to do about Crown and Haltija?” Brushing off her question, he furrowed his brow while pondering the topic at hand. “No, sir.” Rusalka shook her head. “Their training is part of my job. I won’t neglect my duty.” “…You seem awfully excited about it. Don’t bully those two girls too much.” “I would never. It’s just…” “Just…what?” “I can’t deny a certain excitement at the thought of inflicting all the various hells I suffered as a rookie on them.” “Well now, aren’t you just the model of a soldier!” That probably was not intended as the literal praise it sounded like, but Rusalka didn’t bother digging into that line of thought. She just saluted and then turned to leave. “I’m looking forward to your results. I’ll be counting on you, Rusalka.” Rusalka sighed slightly as Alejandro left her with his usual parting words. “Yes, sir, I know. Since, by whatever quirk of fate, I’ve ended up as your right hand.” Whatever quirk of fate that had been with them ever since they shared a pint in that pub. 4 “So is it true that you and the colonel are getting it on, Major?” “Wha—? Lisbeth?!” And with that blunt question, Rusalka’s renewed spirit was balanced on the precipice yet again. They were in the mess hall at Borne base, in the corner reserved for Valkyries. That question came just as Rusalka had come over to eat with her subordinates. The opening salvo was Lisbeth’s, immediately followed by a chiding from Leili. Rusalka’s sky-blue eyes narrowed as she stared down Lisbeth, who was smirking at her. Feeling curious gazes from others as well, she responded flatly, “Not even remotely.” “What?! Really?!” “Why are you so shocked, Haltija?” asked Rusalka. “Ugh, um, apologies, ma’am…” Leili must have been pretty badly shaken, since she totally forgot her usual decorum. Her cheeks turned red as she apologized, and Lisbeth chuckled at her. “You’re the kind of girl who’s a sucker for fads, aren’t you, Leili? Always tryin’ to act cool, but look at you now.” “H-how rude…! Take that back. You take that back this instant, Lisbeth!” “Ha. Screw that, little miss perfect. Not until you admit I’m better than you.” Lisbeth gestured with her fork provocatively as Leili’s eyebrows arched in unbridled anger. An explosive situation had formed in the blink of an eye, and a nervous mood filled the mess hall. “We’re eating here. And there are others watching as well. Need I remind you of your manners? Again?” But while the people around them were watching nervously, Rusalka quietly interrupted their argument. Perhaps recalling what had happened in the hangar from the dangerous tone of her voice, the two of them immediately fell silent. “And that question as well. You two are both promising prospects the task force commander scouted personally. He is responsible for you, and your actions reflect on him. Both the good and the bad. You should think carefully about what that really means.” “…Yes, ma’am. There is no excuse.” “” Faced with Rusalka’s reprimand, Leili apologized. However, Lisbeth was sulking in the seat across from Leili, sullenly refusing to open her mouth. “Lisbeth? I couldn’t hear you.” “Fine, fine. I get it! I get it, Major! Satisfied?!” Lisbeth slammed the table as she stood up. Glaring at Rusalka, her eyes had a decent edge to them, but for someone who had been in the armed forces as long as Rusalka, there was no way that would be enough to get her to back down. “Just what I’d expect from a major who worked her way up from the bottom. The howls of a little girl aren’t enough to get a rise out of you.” Lisbeth scoffed. “I won’t deny that. It sounds like you have some thoughts you’d like to share, though.” “Damn straight, I do! Of course I do!” Thumping her chest, Lisbeth turned her fangs on Rusalka. She almost looked like a growling stray dog. “I should show respect just ’cause you’ve been in the army a long time and you’ve got a fancy rank? There’s no way I can do that. ’Cause you’re way weaker than I am, Major.” “Lisbeth!” Leili sprang out of her seat, sharply scolding Lisbeth. But Lisbeth’s face just curled into a sneer as she snorted. “What? Aren’t you thinking the same thing? Major Evereska’s ability as a Valkyrie is clearly lower than us newcomers, was it?” “That’s… But that’s different from showing proper respect to a superior officer. Even you…” Leili trailed off. “I’m right! I don’t have money, and I didn’t go to any special schools, so why do you think I am standing here? Because I’ve got talent as a Valkyrie. ’Cause I’ve got a talent for killing the enemy!” Leili caught her breath at Lisbeth’s menacing response. It was an incredibly narrow-minded perspective on things, but there was some truth to it as well. The reason Lisbeth was in the army despite not even completing the dramatically condensed basic training was because she had one-in-a-million potential as a Valkyrie. And in terms of sheer combat strength, she had already caught up to Rusalka, and even surpassed her in some respects. To the point that she viewed herself as an instrument for killing the enemy. “I won’t ever acknowledge anyone weaker than me. You can grab my head with that vise grip of yours as hard as you want, but that’s nothin’. The gaping hole in my heart hurts way more, and the only thing I can do to fill it is kill every last one of those bastards…!” “” “You think I can do that while taking orders from people weaker than me? Why don’t you reflect on your own strength and come back after, Major.” Lisbeth’s eyes were filled with derision as she glared at Rusalka, as if she was staring down an enemy. Saying her piece, she picked up her tray and made her way out of the mess hall. “W-wait, Lisbeth! Ummm, I’ll talk to her, Major, so…” Leili frantically cleaned up her tray as well and chased after Lisbeth. The other Valkyries nearby all watched awkwardly as the unpleasant scene unfolded. “…Haaah…” And left alone at the table, Rusalka massaged her brow and heaved a heavy sigh. It was a pretty intense explosion. Taking the brunt of that youthful impulsiveness, she was left with a hefty sense of disappointment in herself. “She really let you have it, didn’t she?” Natalie carried her tray of food over with a grimace on her face. She sat next to Rusalka as the two empty seats in front of them were filled by Alma and Shannon. Surrounded by her subordinates from her time back on Hamburg base, Rusalka broke into a big smile. “You saw, huh?” “With that big of a performance, it’s only natural you’d draw attention.” “They got you, Rusalka. You let them walk all over you.” Rusalka looked a little embarrassed at Natalie’s and Alma’s comments. Her expression drooped a little bit as she looked at the clock. “A bit late for your meals, no?” “Wellll, about that—we were giving the rookies some time to themselves. Figured they were still in the phase where they would want to talk among themselves,” Shannon explained. “I see.” “If anything, I was surprised to see you trying to mingle with them. I was afraid it might spark an odd mood if we did. Actually, it sort of did end up that way from the looks of it.” That easygoing stream of consciousness was Shannon Stewart’s unique way of communicating. But her thoughts and the things she focused on were always on point, and she could wield that perceptiveness in combat as well. Which was why Rusalka winced just a little bit. Because it meant she had no excuse. “Well, given it’s you, ma’am, I’m sure you were going along with them in order to give them—or more specifically, one of them—a chance to vent.” “That’s how it was with you, too, Natalie,” Alma pointed out. “I—I was not just venting! In my case, it was a reasonable protest founded on genuine chagrin and indignation!” Natalie faced Alma head-on, strongly objecting at being grouped together with Lisbeth. And as she watched them, Rusalka thought back to her old relationship with Natalie. Before Sigrdrifa was formed, when Rusalka had not flown in a long time, Natalie had been strict and forceful in confronting her. But now she understood the reason behind her belligerent stance at the time. “Natalie’s attitude toward me back then was…” “Love, definitely love.” “Right, love… Wait, love?” “No, it wasn’t!!” Natalie yelled at the top of her lungs. Tripped up by Shannon’s perfectly timed interjection, Rusalka’s conclusion got twisted, and Natalie went bright red. Natalie then turned to the provocateur and pointedly interrogated her, demanding, “Shannon?” But Shannon simply took a sip of water and made a point of obliquely avoiding her eyes. “So what are you going to do?” Ignoring the exchange going on over her head, Alma continued on the previous topic. Alma pointed to herself as she asked her question in a flat voice. “Want us to talk to the rookies?” “” “That reaction is upsetting…” “Sorry, I was just surprised.” Rusalka had stared in shock at Alma’s unexpected proposition. It was a proposal for them to interject themselves into Rusalka’s problem. And Alma was not much for proactively seeking out interactions with others in the first place, so for her to suggest that… “You’ve changed as well, Alma.” “No. I’ve always been nice.” “That’s true.” Natalie looked like she wanted to say something but prudently decided not to butt in. The attitude of her reliable juniors—no, sisters—caused Rusalka’s expression to relax a bit. “I appreciate the thought, but please leave them to me. I’m the squadron leader, so I have to live up to the responsibility that position comes with.” “Okay. Good luck, then.” Putting her hand to her well-endowed bosom as she said that, Alma nodded in response. The way that she accepted it without digging in was just like her. Seeing that, Natalie and Shannon glanced at each other and shrugged. “If you are going to insist, then allow us to observe you in action.” “If it looks like it’s not working, then just say so quickly. It’s kind of turning into my job to be there with some follow-up lately.” Natalie’s response was stiff and unsociable, while Shannon just breezily waved her hand, both imparting their own sort of encouragement as Rusalka nodded. She had been tasked with this job by Alejandro and her younger sisters, so she wanted to properly follow through for all of them. “And more than anything, there’s the very valid question of why I’m still flying when I’m clearly lacking in firepower. I wouldn’t be able to face my old comrades if I let that go unanswered.” The three of them had their own responses to that. But Rusalka knew that the reason they did not try to defend her overaggressively or fret about her was because of their faith in her. That was why she had said that—to spur herself to not let things remain as they were. 5 “Still, though, I think the major’s going to have a hard time with them.” After they watched Rusalka clean up her tray and leave, Shannon murmured the thought pensively. Despite her lackadaisical manner of speech, she was very sharp. Natalie looked up from trying to get Alma to eat everything on her tray. “Then perhaps we should help out, too?” “Mm, that’s probably gonna be a little hard. Leili aside, Lisbeth is openly hostile with the major, and that’s probably just something that’ll have to be settled between the two of them.” She took her time getting to the point, but her answer was clearly sound. The reason Natalie wanted to grimace in frustration was because she knew Shannon was right. “You’re the squadron XO, Natalie. You worried? Or upset? Thinking of staging a coup to graduate from being second-in-command?” “Please don’t joke about something like that. What happened before is in the past. Right now, I hardly have any complaints about the major. Though I do have thoughts about her insisting on being so self-deprecating.” “It’s love.” “Yep, definitely love.” “No, it is not!!” Natalie indignantly grabbed Alma’s and Shannon’s ears for teasing her again. The two of them were still yelping in pain when Natalie sighed. Unlike the Rusalka who had been unable to fly, Natalie thought highly of how she handled being the squadron leader for Sigrdrifa and didn’t believe her management of it had any glaring oversights. She believed that with time, Lisbeth and the other rookies would come to understand just how large Rusalka’s roles really were, and she expected they would change their opinion of Rusalka eventually. But— “I…” “—? What is it, Natalie?” Alma furrowed her brow when she noticed Natalie’s eyes narrowing slightly. Natalie shook her head at her friend’s question. “The battlefields change and our roles change, but the worries never go away… We’ve cleared out quite a large number of pillars from around Holm base, but the crux of it all still hasn’t shown itself.” “…Mistletoe…” Alma grimaced as Natalie nodded curtly. Mistletoe—the code name that had been assigned to the secondary pillar that currently stalked the region around Holm base. It was the powerful enemy the Sigrdrifa task force was hunting under Alejandro’s command. In addition to small-scale tertiary pillars, large secondary pillars had also been dispatched to counter Valkyrie deployments around the world. And among those secondary pillars, Mistletoe had a particularly powerful special ability. Sigrdrifa had already fought with it twice but hadn’t managed to finish it off in either encounter. They couldn’t move on to another battlefield with such a dangerous pillar still lingering around. Because of that, they were stuck in a holding pattern, unable to advance, which was the primary cause of the impatience and unease currently plaguing the base. “The longer we let it get away from us here, the worse off things get for all the other fronts… Mgh.” “Worrying about it and praying about it aren’t going to make the enemy decide to show up. You’re overthinking it.” Shannon smushed Natalie’s cheeks between her hands as she started pondering the wider European front. Revealing a look that she would normally never let anyone who knew her see, Natalie shuddered. “Wh-wh-wh—…?” “You’ve aaalways been a worrywart since back in training.” “Stories about Natalie? I’m interested.” “Really? In that case, I have pleeenty to tell.” “You two…” Alma’s eyes were sparkling with excitement as Shannon broke into a grin. At a loss for how to deal with her friends, Natalie heaved a sigh. But because of that, the darkness that had been encroaching on her heart moments earlier had already dissipated. “Sheesh, if that was your aim from the beginning, there must be better ways to go about it,” she muttered softly to herself. After all, if she actually tried to bring it up, they would obviously deny doing anything of the sort. With such reliable comrades, it felt silly to try to put up a facade. It was like her heart was always laid bare when dealing with them. Which was all the more reason she needed to be particularly careful when around them. “Natalie? Are you mad?” Alma asked. “…I’m not mad. I’m exasperated. You’ve reached a respectable position in terms of abilities, but you two still act like trainees. At this rate…” “At this rate, what?” Alma cocked her head, and Shannon also had a quizzical expression. Seeing that, Natalie gently put her hand to her chest. “It will be a problem if the major has to keep worrying about you two on top of everything else. Right now in particular, when she’s struggling to deal with the rookies constantly at her throat, you should avoid adding to her burden.” “Your suggestion will be taken under consideration going forward…” “That’s a rather uninspiring response—you mustn’t cause more problems for the major, Alma.” Her expression softening, Natalie put her hand on Alma’s cheek. Alma narrowed her eyes at the ticklish feeling, but even though she furrowed her brow, she did not reject Natalie. “Yep, it’s love.” “I told you before—that’s not it!” “Owww.” Her hand shifted from caressing to pinching. Alma’s cheek stretched more than she expected, and she almost lost herself for a moment in curious testing. “Hey, Natalie.” Watching the two of them horsing around, Shannon had one eye closed, and her expression was a bit different from her usual disinterested look. “Are you hiding something from us?” “When put that way, I suppose I’m having trouble hiding all my general daily annoyances with you two.” “” Shannon fixed her with a steady gaze, and Natalie returned it with a steady gaze of her own. Finally, Shannon relented. “Fine. In that case, I’ll keep out of it and leave you to your business.” “N-no fair. Don’t just leave me here.” As Shannon tried to escape, Alma, with Natalie still pinching her cheek, grabbed on to her shirttail. Shannon’s expression displayed a clear and obvious disinterest in getting dragged back into it. 6 And just as Rusalka’s subordinates had feared, the situation really showed no signs of improving. “It really just isn’t going well…” Her well-defined brow was wrinkled as Rusalka dwelled painfully on her lacking abilities. She had put on a brave front for Alma and Natalie, but her interactions with Lisbeth really were not getting any better. Of course, from Rusalka’s perspective, she could not afford to just spend all her time training rookies. In addition to serving as the squadron leader of Sigrdrifa, she also worked as Alejandro’s right hand, however unwillingly, and that meant she had to divert some of her attention to the management of various aspects of Holm base. She got some help with all that from Alejandro’s subordinates, who had been with him longest, as well as Major Michelle Heyman, the leader of the radio operators and Rusalka’s exclusive operator during combat. Even so, it was still an enormous amount of work. She made a point of making time while dealing with all that to interact with Lisbeth and Leili, who was trying to help in her own way, but they were still like oil and water. “Ability as a Valkyrie, huh…?” Looking down at her hand, Rusalka reflected on the, by now, very familiar insult. It had finally reached a point where, when it came to ability as a Valkyrie, Rusalka, the last active-duty second-generation Valkyrie, could not match anyone from the third generation or the even newer cohort that Lisbeth and Leili were a part of. They were fundamentally different in terms of raw power, which opened an insurmountable gap between Rusalka and them. In the fighting just the other day, the number of enemies Rusalka had shot down was far fewer than any other member of the squadron. Lisbeth gloating about getting three times as many kills was still fresh in her mind as well. Of course, the number of aerial victories was not really a measure of how much someone had contributed to humanity’s survival, but— “It won’t be long before they pass me in total kills, too.” In terms of her entire career, she had flown more than ten times as many missions as them, but they were already closing in fast on her total number of enemies shot down. But Rusalka was not feeling particularly vexed by that. “” In the past, she had felt envious of her younger sisters, who had joined her in the sky later, a powerful jealousy of what gifts they had been granted. She knew now that it was probably a sort of heroic ideation out of a desire to make up for the guilt of being the only survivor and a regret for the horrible thing she had said to her best friend. But it had been Alejandro who had forced her to realize the error of her ways. It was precisely because she had been saved by him that she wanted to convey to Lisbeth somehow just how dangerous it was to fly through the skies fueled by hatred and dwelling on dark, negative emotions. But as ever, she refused to listen to Rusalka because Rusalka was weak, leaving them stuck in a peculiar impasse. Maybe I really should just eat my words and ask Alma or Natalie for some help with this… “I wouldn’t really mind if it was only my reputation at stake here… But I don’t want to betray his trust. And if something happens to Lisbeth first, it might be too late.” It was simple to declare she would handle it herself, but actually making that happen was turning out to be far more challenging than she had imagined. And so she started thinking about possibly asking for some help. Natalie had offered to assist at any time if she wanted it, but considering all the factors at play, Rusalka was surprised to find herself thinking Shannon might be the right one for the job. Alma had her own strengths as well, so Rusalka hoped she wouldn’t take it personally that she had been cut from the list of options from the outset. “Maybe I should try talking to Shannon about it tomorrow.” Most likely Shannon would be put out a bit, since she tended to dislike getting involved in annoying jobs, but at a root level, raising the unit cohesion of the squadron was for her sake as well, in a way. As she considered how to convince Shannon with that sort of rhetorical argument, Rusalka opened the door to her room. She thought back to what had happened that day in order to write her daily report before going to bed. And then with gratitude for another day coming to an end— “It’s been a long time, my child. Have you been well?” An unexpected voice greeted her as soon as she entered her room. Her breath caught in surprise. It was not an issue of someone being there or not or the door not being locked. The reason she gasped was not because she had a surprise visitor but because of who that visitor was—and because of the awe she felt when face-to-face with that familiar figure. “What is it, Rusalka? Do you not recognize me?” “N-no, of course I do. I was just surprised to see you here.” Rusalka frantically shook her head as he cocked his head slightly. Then belatedly, she knelt and lowered her head in a reverent bow. There was a clear and dramatic line between that and the standard military salute that indicated an instinctive submission to the figure before her.
Chapter 18
34 min read