Trailing behind Nangong, her steps heavy with exhaustion, Lin Yu felt as though her legs might give out at any moment.
The aching throb in her soles consumed her entire attention, leaving her largely oblivious to whatever Nangong was saying up ahead.
The logistics area was vast, even larger than the university campus where she had studied in her previous life.
Facilities and buildings of all kinds lined both sides of the dirt road, teeming with people hurrying to and fro.
Amidst her weariness, the only thing that truly registered was the reappearance of civilian laborers hauling supplies within the logistics area, just as they had been during her previous visit to consult with Commander Yang about their plan.
Elsewhere, several heavy cannons were being pulled forward by both human and animal power, their flatbed carriages laden with dozens of crates of gleaming magic stones and scores of crates filled with orange-yellow cannon shells.
“Come over here, look at this.”
The trio eventually reached the very rear of the logistics area, where the small train station they had been ejected from earlier lay at the periphery of their vision.
The logistics area, being part of the military control zone, was cordoned off by soldiers with simple security lines, clearly marking prohibited entry zones.
These signs, weathered and faded, appeared to have been erected at the very outset of the war.
A minimal number of military police guarded the security lines, beyond which gathered crowds of unknown purpose.
Upon closer inspection, they seemed to be… a group of small vendors?
Given the constant flow of civilian laborers and soldiers, local people had naturally congregated to hawk their wares.
It was for the same reason Lin Yu had first boarded the train; she hoped none among them would turn out like her.
Nangong completely ignored the armed, smoking military police officer beside the signpost, striding purposefully forward until she stood before an old man and a young child, both dressed in civilian clothes.
“Oh, how adorable…”
The old man and child held leashes in their hands, the other ends of which were tied to several… puppies.
The dogs varied in size, all of them a sandy yellow hue; the larger ones appeared quite endearing, while the smaller ones had a habit of baring their teeth at passersby.
Nangong reached out and roughly ruffled the head of one of them. “Is it for sale?”
Before she could even give it a second rub, the puppy looked up and began licking her hand, making her giggle with ticklish delight.
The old man and child chattered away at Nangong, but she didn’t understand a single word.
Neither did Lin Yu.
Appearing here and speaking an utterly incomprehensible tongue, they were likely Outlanders (TL Note: ‘Shanwai Ren’, referring to people from outside the mountain provinces, often a different nationality or cultural group), citizens of the warring nation.
Nangong quickly retreated a couple of steps, turning to Lin Yu. “I’m entrusting the negotiation to you,” she requested. “Tell the grandfather and grandson that I want to buy this one.”
Suddenly having such a weighty task thrust upon her with a pat on the shoulder, Lin Yu found herself utterly bewildered. “Wh-why is this falling to me again?”
“Aren’t you a Mountain Dweller?” Nangong declared with a baffling assertion before Lin Yu. “You should be able to communicate with people from foreign mountain countries, right? Hurry, go! Or someone else will buy it.”
Though “inside” and “outside” were but a single character apart, the distinction between Mountain Dwellers and Outlanders was actually far greater than that between a brain and a large intestine.
At least the latter were both organs within the same body; these foreign mountain countries, however, possessed their own languages and kings, and it had been two or three hundred years since this land had spoken the Diacla language (TL Note: A fictional language spoken by a specific cultural group in the story).
Lin Yu flatly rejected such an unreasonable demand, stepping back half a pace herself. “Everyone in the Inner Mountain Provinces speaks Diacla, but who knows what they speak outside? Don’t ask me to go haggle.”
Before she could finish her sentence, her boot struck something hard, and her back collided with something else.
“Ugh…”
Someone’s shoetip had been stepped on by Lin Yu, and their chest had taken a bump.
Behind Lin Yu stood the companion Nangong had inexplicably brought along, the same fellow Lin Yu had inexplicably dragged into the medical tent.
He had been silently trailing behind them both, uttering not a word, making not a sound, leaving Lin Yu wondering what purpose his presence served.
Nangong stopped pressing Lin Yu and instead turned to him. “Do you speak the Outlander language?”
Shaking his head, as expected, he was merely an ordinary Private First Class; his foreign language proficiency couldn’t even compare to Lin Yu’s.
With none of the three understanding the language, acquiring an adorable little local dog from the “local folks” would likely prove quite an ordeal—
Not through force or coercion, but by using exaggerated gestures to convey their intentions.
Ultimately, after much gesturing, Nangong managed to purchase the largest, fattest, and strongest of the lot for dozens of coppers, while the child from the foreign mountain country tearfully bid it farewell.
“But Nangong,” Lin Yu couldn’t help but ask, pulling the leash as they walked back, “where do you plan to keep it? It’s not really suitable to have pets next to the medical tent, is it?”
Dusk was rapidly settling.
In its new, unfamiliar surroundings, the little dog raced along the dirt path with such speed that Lin Yu could barely hold onto its leash.
“Not keeping it. Tonight, we’re having dog meat hotpot.”
“Huh?”
‘It wasn’t bought as a pet, but as food?’
Lin Yu’s gaze, fixed on the end of the leash, sharpened considerably.
The little dog was still frolicking merrily, utterly oblivious to the fate of being stewed in a pot that awaited it.
“Dog meat hotpot is a specialty of our Inner Pass region. How about it? Want to try some for dinner tonight? If you’re in, I’ll go invite the others and get some side dishes ready.”
“…”
Noticing Lin Yu had suddenly fallen silent as they walked, Nangong abruptly slammed her right fist into her left palm. “I almost forgot! Girls your age are always fond of cats and dogs… Alright, no hotpot tonight. How about we send it to Commander Yang for him to look after?”
“It’s not about the hotpot.”
Lin Yu didn’t pity the dog; she pitied *him*—the child who had so reluctantly parted ways with the little dog.
‘He must have sent his best friend off with the thought, “You’ll surely have a better life with them,” utterly unaware that tonight it would become a hearty meal in someone else’s belly.’
Moreover, Lin Yu wasn’t keen on meeting up with her seniors for a meal just yet.
Even if that devilish Commander Yang didn’t attend, Lin Yu still found it difficult to endure the gazes of her seniors.
Especially the gazes of those who were about to become her “love rivals.”
“I’m heading back to the trenches today. You all can have the hotpot…” Slowly reeling in the leash and giving the little dog a rub on the back of its neck, Lin Yu handed the leash back to Nangong. “I might need some time to recover before I can face Commander Yang again.”
‘Perhaps I’ll never be able to face him again.’
A moment later, she leaned in and whispered to Nangong, “I’ve been secretly practicing the magic you taught me, and I can now use it three times consecutively. That should meet the standard for transferring to another unit as a healing mage, right?”
“…”
“If he continues to pester me, I’ll apply for a transfer to another unit. Other front lines must be sorely lacking someone like me… Nangong, would you be able to introduce me then?”
Between acceptance and refusal, she chose escape.
Her two months as a medic had been far too comfortable, drawing her into a quagmire she ought not to have entered.
She should be focusing on her duties as a medic, prioritizing the treatment of the wounded above all else, rather than fretting over romance and marriage.
If Commander Yang’s actions were to impede her ability to heal and save lives, she would have to leave him, even if it meant abandoning the comrades, seniors, and Nangong herself, whom she had only just managed to grow close to.
“It’s not that serious, is it? Are you sure you want to transfer?”
“Yes, it’s exactly that serious.” She knelt down and gently flicked the little dog’s forehead. “This doesn’t depend on me; it depends on Commander Yang.”
It yelped, dodging away, then circled twice before hiding behind Nangong’s legs, even wrapping its leash halfway around her.
Just as she would dodge Nangong’s flick to her forehead.
“Commander Yang told me there’s an offensive scheduled for tomorrow night, so things might get busy. When I’m not in the medical tent, it’s best to have all the seniors come out and help.”
“I heard about that,” Nangong replied. “Look, all those cannons have been brought back, haven’t they? That’s why I thought we should have one last meal together. Who knows, it might be the final meal of this war, and victory could be ours the day after tomorrow at dawn.”
Nangong, aware of the upcoming offensive, had invited Lin Yu to dine with them, but Lin Yu’s resolve to leave was firm.
“I’m going back to the tent to get some tools and medicine for the front line.”
“Alright, then I’ll be off.”
“And don’t forget that excuse.”
“My memory is better than yours; I won’t forget.”
Standing at the fork in the road leading to both the medical tent and Commander Yang’s quarters, Nangong waved goodbye to her.
The little dog also barked a few times, expressing its displeasure at her forehead-flick.
Her excuse for leaving Commander Yang’s residence—that injuries had appeared on the front line—would be instantly exposed if Nangong didn’t cooperate.
Though, if Commander Yang were to seriously investigate, he would undoubtedly discover there had been no casualties all day…
At the very least, she had tried to cover her tracks.
Just as she faced her destiny, faced the story that had been a tragedy from its very inception, at least she had struggled.