Abyssus Abyssum Invocat Read online

  Then Tanya realizes something strange and freezes.

  …Has someone who was never the type to make jokes picked up a sense of humor? Even if it’s a lousy one? That’s not a good sign at all.

  Both Colonel Uger and I are straitlaced types. Even if I don’t know him well enough to make declarations about his character, I’m confident that he’s not the type to make jokes. The officers selected for war college are either idiosyncratic or sincere, like me.

  Both Uger and I are on the serious, hardworking side. I deviated from—or I guess you could say acquired a sense of sarcasm from—my environment; a major factor was my harsh experiences on the forward-most line. War can’t be fought with a straight face, so I had to cultivate a sense of humor up there. But Colonel Uger shouldn’t have had the same need.

  This is…extremely uncharacteristic of him. Why is he trying to joke around anyway? His eyes seem to be smiling, but they’re not.

  “…What’s this?”

  “Arabica coffee I received from an officer stationed down south. I figured it’s hard to get any on the front lines, so I stuffed two kilos’ worth in my staff pack. By the way, I roasted a hundred grams, and the rest I sealed up well in some bottles.”

  “Well, well. You have my thanks.”

  Colonel Uger laughs as if it’s nothing and hands the pack to Lieutenant Serebryakov, then he takes the seat opposite Tanya.

  …So he’s even being considerate of conditions soldiers face on the front lines. That’s ideal for a General Staff officer serving in the rear, but to be honest, Uger isn’t the type to be comfortable mixing business and personal errands like this.

  In other words, he’s here to talk about something so bad that his conscience made an exception? I can’t show it, but my mental state can be compared to how a bomb disposal technician feels when sent to the site of a huge explosive about to go off at any second.

  “I thought I would come visit my classmate for the first time in quite a while on the pretext of observing the front lines. When you’re doing desk work for the General Staff, you start to pine for chances to get some air.”

  “Well, commanding a Kampfgruppe is a pretty fun job that affords lots of discretion.”

  “I’m jealous. Seems like I’ll be the only one whining about my personal problems.”

  Lieutenant Colonel Uger, one of the few serious classmates I had among the monsters in the General Staff. Yet he wants this to look like a private conversation?

  That has to mean he has something to discuss that he can’t let other people hear. An unofficial message. That’s a warning sign if there ever was one.

  Holy hell.

  He’s going to bring up something massive. The higher-ups who are always trying to shove extra work off on those out in the field can rot.

  “Heh, there’s nothing I can do about that. I get to be out and about and do as I please. I’ll have to lend you an ear, then! Oh, Lieutenant Serebryakov, go grind some beans and make us coffee. Do a thorough job and take your time.”

  “Understood. I think it will take a little while—yes, probably a half hour or so—but I’ll prepare two cups of coffee.”

  I don’t think I put too much emphasis on that last bit. It’s excellent that my adjutant picked up on that subtle cue. She performs a beautiful salute and politely takes her leave.

  I see her out and lock the compartment door.

  “Okay, then…,” says Tanya, returning to Colonel Uger. “What are we actually going to talk about?”

  “Oh, nothing good… I never thought I’d have to say something like this to our own troops. It makes me sick. If you were old enough, I would have brought us a stiff drink.”

  This straitlaced military man wants to drink on duty?

  “Hmm?” Though the surprise she can’t voice reverberates in her head, Tanya feigns calm and limits her reaction to merely cocking her head.

  “Colonel. General von Zettour is concerned that this offensive is sprawling too much. He’s especially opposed to expanding the combat front any farther.”

  “That makes sense, doesn’t it?”

  Tanya nods without thinking.

  Lieutenant General von Zettour’s idea is actually a staunchly safe plan. If we’re going to focus not on expansion but on reorganizing our forces, we can focus on the work without tripping through the mud and snow.

  In order to operate in the swamp of the east—not to mention the fearsome cold—without getting stuck, preparation is essential. I can’t say his comment is anything but logical.

  “The problem is General von Rudersdorf’s view.”

  “…You mean the opinion of the Operations Division?”

  When he answers yes, Tanya stiffens. It’s fine for the guys in charge of actually planning operations to have their own ideas. But someone who prefers a flexible style of operation, like General von Rudersdorf, could become the seed for trouble, opposing a safe plan.

  “…And what is the general’s view?”

  “The guys in Operations are prioritizing time.”

  “Colonel Uger, you mean they don’t want to give our enemy any more breathing room?”

  “Exactly. They’re anxious about giving the enemy time to reorganize.”

  Colonel Uger lays out the logic of the Imperial Army General Staff’s Operations staffers. It’s problematic, to be sure, but when I listen, it’s as correct as Zettour’s view.

  On lines of this scale, reorganizing units and tidying up positions is practically unavoidable. After all, a disorderly army scattered about the field loses much of its effective fighting power.

  On the other hand, a force that’s reorganizing can’t attack.

  The pressure we can rain down on the enemy would drop dramatically. In other words, if we stop to reorganize our lines, the Federation Army will also get a grace period. Yes, if nothing else, time would be granted to all in equal measure.

  If that happens, our enemies will definitely reorganize as well. Essentially, it’s a never-ending dilemma.

  “Apparently, the guys in Operations and General von Rudersdorf want to surround and annihilate the Federation’s field army even if this offensive seems impossible. That means…,” he says, looking out the window, and Tanya understands what the higher-ups are after, even if she doesn’t want to. “…They want to resolve things as soon as possible.”

  “…You mean because winter is coming?”

  It’s still August. But it’s the end of August. Even if we’re prepared for September, it’s highly improbable that we’ll still have weather suitable for military operations by the end of October.

  “Our time is limited, but it’s not entirely hopeless. The higher-ups want to push for a massive envelopment using our army’s mobility.”

  The fact that Tanya doesn’t scowl the moment she hears this, that alone is a feat of self-control.

  One month can be guaranteed but not two. It’s absurd—a massive gamble. It’s far too great a risk to attempt a major operation now of all times. If only she could criticize such a criticism; it would be like a huge weight lifted.

  But whether in the market economy or out on the battlefield, there’s no chance of victory without taking a risk.

  “And what does the General Staff think we should do?”

  “Opinions are split.”

  It would probably be rude to nod and say of course they are.

  But it’d be good for Tanya to smile vaguely. People wouldn’t be surprised to see her accurately forecast the General Staff’s mood as sunny with a chance of explosions.

  “The guys in Operations are aggressively optimistic. They’re saying they still have time to engage in a battle to encircle and annihilate the enemy. They say they’ll get it done if they have two months. But it’s those two months that we’re not sure about…” He continues, “On the other hand, the Service Corps guys we’re closer to are angry. Their general demeanor seems to be ‘You really want to put our already fragile supply lines in danger?’ As long as it isn’t g
uaranteed that we’ll have two months to conduct operations, the Service Corps seems to want to use the remaining time to prepare for winter before snow makes that difficult.”

  “You make it all sound so arbitrary, Colonel Uger.”

  Uger responds with a “Hmm,” perhaps because he’s aware of that. Tanya doubles down on the discussion.

  “Another thing to consider is that if we give the enemy time to reorganize, we may end up having to support the front in a prolonged fight with weakened supply lines. The Service Corps’s plan entails risk, too.”

  “Theoretically, yes. But vexing as it is, the logic on both sides of the debate is sound.”

  He’s right about that.

  That’s what the root of the issue is, Tanya considers internally. Truthfully speaking, there are all too many occasions where people are required to pick the better of two lousy options. Maybe if we had perfect information, it would be different, but we can’t know everything. We have to use what’s on hand to reason out the best option.

  “Considering how slow-moving our enemy is, the aggressive plan’s chance of succeeding might be higher.”

  If taken one thought at a time, Colonel Uger’s gripes are logical.

  “If the enemy can’t use their time effectively…and if our side can use our time effectively…then there’s a benefit to us reorganizing and building a stronger foundation.”

  If, if—it’s a parade of conditionals. Sheesh, there are too many unknowns.

  “Colonel Uger, may I say something?”

  He nods. “Of course.” Not that she’s particularly happy to see it before she hits him with something that has been bugging her.

  “All I’ve heard is that our upcoming mission will be escorting the main army. I’d appreciate it if you could tell me how this debate in the General Staff affects us…”

  It’s impossible to think of getting transferred away from the front and receiving a visit from her old classmate as sheer coincidence.

  Reading too much into events will only lure me into concocting a ridiculous conspiracy theory. But it would be a lie to say there is nothing deliberate going on here.

  “The generals’ opinions clash. But for better or worse, they’re both pragmatists. They both detest empty theory.”

  “I agree. They’re both soldiers who place importance on what’s occurring on the actual battlefield.”

  “Which is why, I guess you can say…Colonel von Degurechaff, I really feel for you. They don’t want a clash of theories but to have their ideas verified on the battlefield.”

  Tanya almost tilts her head quizzically at the word verified. No, hold on. Verifying things on the battlefield would mean… Right as that thought comes, Colonel Uger continues, rapidly delivering the conclusion.

  “To put it in extreme terms, they’ll make their decision after reconnoitering the enemy army.”

  “And we should lodge a formal protest about how awfully leisurely they’ll be about it. Where are we going to get the time for that?”

  “Unfortunately for you, whether we attack or defend, it will take time to prepare the troops…meaning there is time for a survey.”

  Argh. Her bad feeling about this begins ringing the alarm bells, but it’s too late.

  “Their conclusion is simple. While supplies are being stockpiled, your Kampfgruppe will go check out the enemy.”

  “Recon-in-force?”

  “Not quite. It’s a mission to defend a salient.”

  Tanya knows it’s bad manners to glare at people.

  Still…

  Colonel Uger just told her that command wants to put her in a dangerous area, giving her plenty of reason for her gaze to bore into his eyes.

  “There is one area where we’ve deliberately given the enemy time to regroup. We want you to engage them and get a feel for how powerful a force they have. In a nutshell, it’s a probe. We want you to perform an experiment on a strategically unimportant piece of land that we’ve left for them on purpose.”

  The brass wants us to be coal-mine canaries that let them gauge the danger by seeing when we sing and when we can’t anymore!

  We’re even lower than guinea pigs!

  “This is a terribly rude question, but…are you saying my unit has been ordered to go and die to ascertain which of the two generals is correct?”

  “That’s a harsh way to put it, but…yes. The General Staff’s problems are the General Staff’s problems. In other words, we General Staff officers have to solve them among ourselves.”

  As far as Tanya knows, I suppose it should be said…

  General Staff officers, including Colonel Uger, have a sense of duty for their office that is, for better or worse, too strong.

  Noblesse oblige is the nice way to put it.

  Obligations of the elite is haughtier but also honest.

  But a guy like Colonel Uger isn’t the type to share that kind of thought out loud. That’s what an elite should be like. A representative like Uger conveys his nobility though actions not words.

  Yet, he’s talking about it…in terms of General Staff officers? I can only assume that there’s a huge land mine afoot.

  “I beg your pardon, Colonel Uger, but the way you’re talking, it sounds like perhaps something happened?”

  “…Yeah. It’s classified, but…I’m the one getting you involved in this, so…I would say it’s my moral responsibility to inform you.”

  He looks up at the ceiling of the train compartment and doesn’t even try to conceal his sigh; he must be in quite a state. Looking closely, I can see that the fatigue hasn’t completely left his eyes. Most noticeable is his utterly exhausted tone.

  There was at least some life in that voice until just a minute ago, but it suddenly turned weary.

  “Supreme High Command has been in an uproar for some time now. The government, the General Staff Office, and the court have all been a barrel of fun lately.”

  He certainly doesn’t sound like things over there have been very enjoyable. More like he’s stopped caring.

  “On top of that, we can’t ignore public opinion. We’re getting a storm of complaints from around the Empire. Everyone says we should ‘get it over with.’ It’s no wonder there’s a gigantic hurricane blowing through the General Staff Office.” He groans and quietly adds, “The voices calling for a swift resolution have grown to the point where we are feeling the pressure. And I can’t say this publicly, but this argument between General von Zettour and General von Rudersdorf is an extension of domestic politics. Their positions and duties are simply too different.”

  Mumbling that he’s said too much, he turns to the window and clams up. Tanya understands how he feels, of course.

  I see, public opinion.

  I was just reading that wartime newspaper full of rows upon rows of garbage stories with nothing else in it… The national mood is a monster, and it appears to be growing more insistent by the second.

  I don’t know who planted the seeds, but since they weren’t harvested, this is the obvious result.

  It would seem that the more decent a person is, the harder their life is. Well, it has to be better than the front lines. I want to work in the rear like Colonel Uger.

  At the same time, I realize it’s not easy. For example, General von Zettour is in charge of the Service Corps. Put in extreme terms, the person in charge of acquiring resources for the war domestically is compelled to face a never-ending stream of problems.

  From the perspective of private demand, the Empire is pouring its limited resources into the bottomless pit known as the eastern front—and at a horrifying rate that is probably difficult to comprehend for people outside the military. The way things are currently, the discontent of all the civilian sectors that are getting the short end of the stick must be incredible.

  No, it’s impossible to even imagine.

  Reading just one of these ridiculous newspaper articles makes it plain to see.

  It’s too dangerous to have the person writing news art
icles so out of sync with the actual situation on the battlefield. Being intentionally vague to protect military secrets is sensible. But if the people disseminating information simply don’t know anything to begin with, we have some serious work to do when it comes to following best practices in communication and conveying intel.

  We’re just like an underperforming corporation. We’re one step away from that classic, vicious cycle of savagery and emotionally fueled blunders.

  “…Colonel Uger. I’ve received the orders, and my unit will follow them. We will head to our new location and conduct combat missions.”

  “All right. Well, saying, ‘Sorry to cause you trouble,’ would be insensitive even coming from me. Colonel, I can’t guarantee any additional supplies, but as your former classmate, I can say this much: I’ll do everything in my power to maintain the supply lines for you.”

  The person bowing, openly relying on Tanya, is a mid-level General Staff officer in charge of handling supplies. Normally, he would be able to make anything happen if it was necessary for the war effort.

  Yet the most he can promise is to keep the lines open?!

  “Have things really gotten that bad?”

  “They really have. I’m sorry.”

  I want to groan at the ceiling. The situation is dire.

  A lieutenant colonel in the General Staff working directly with railroads and logistics can’t secure extra supplies for the Salamander Kampfgruppe, a single unit that’s deploying on orders straight from the General Staff?

  He can promise only the existence of some supplies?

  This isn’t a brigade or an army but a Kampfgruppe pulled together from a hodgepodge of forces! The protest rising up in Tanya’s throat is not incorrect.

  But the suffering in Colonel Uger’s grimace! Nothing else could more accurately convey the true feelings of those stationed in the rear.

  This must be why General von Zettour is vehemently opposed to the expansion of the front no matter what. More importantly, he can’t possibly divert any more national resources for military use. Tanya empathizes with his struggle so much she feels sick.

  It’s also extremely frustrating that, paradoxically, she can understand why General von Rudersdorf and his men propose a swift resolution. The commanders aren’t wrong when they say the campaign on the eastern front, where vast quantities of resources are being exhausted, needs to wrap up as soon as possible.