She was confident that her physical appearance alone would draw considerable attention.
‘The lieutenant serving on the front lines is actually a young woman.’ This explosive revelation would undoubtedly detonate like a bomb, igniting a fervent desire for gossip among the military police.
It would be particularly effective against the Lanforthians.
In her previous life, such trends were notoriously prevalent in Great Britain. Lin Yu had every reason to believe that the Creator God, who seemed too indolent to even establish common customs, would similarly preserve this particular aspect.
Whether this stemmed from laziness or a darker, more mischievous humor, she couldn’t say for certain; even if she knew, she would feign ignorance.
She would then add a few more dramatic wails, claiming the commander was unjustly treating ‘him,’ threatening to send ‘him’ across the river to a certain death if ‘he’ disobeyed. The truth of these accusations was irrelevant; they merely needed to be explosive enough to provoke that officer into personally emerging to berate her for her outrageous fabrications.
She would then casually drop, ‘Hehe, I’m actually a girl,’ before making her escape, leaving the bewildered military police and their superior officer to gape at each other.
Such a degree of chaos would surely provide an opportune moment for everyone else to slip beneath the bridge and plant the alchemical explosives.
This audacious plan, however, was ultimately not put into practice.
Instead, she opted for a similar yet more conservative plan: she would embody a survivor vehemently demanding justice for her fallen comrades, publicly denouncing the commander as a ‘soldier-loving’ (TL Note: A sarcastic term implying a commander who sacrifices soldiers for their own gain.) scoundrel and vowing to execute him with her pistol.
Her threat to assassinate the commander carried ample shock value, and all the profanities she had previously taught to others could now be deployed to great effect.
Lin Yu meticulously prepared all the necessary phrasing, casting one final, almost ceremonial glance at their fallen comrades’ bodies.
It was a mission she might never return from, yet its execution felt strangely devoid of reality. How peculiar.
Her gaze met Yang Xi’s, only to immediately flit away from the man she considered the primary culprit. “I meant what I said,” she murmured, “I won’t let you die before me…”
‘If your lifelong ambition and deepest desire is to fight for the Emperor until your very last drop of blood, and I sacrifice myself to ensure you complete your mission… would that not, in some way, be fulfilling your final wish? Could it be considered a repayment of your kindness?’
She left the words unspoken, merely questioning herself in the quiet depths of her heart, much like the countless unanswered dilemmas that had plagued her before.
Bidding farewell to everyone, she advanced alone, striding directly towards the Lanforthian military police.
She walked like a lamb to the slaughter.
“Wait!” a voice called out. “I can request an artillery barrage; that way, you won’t have to put yourself in harm’s way…”
The speaker was not Yang Xi, but the squad leader overseeing the mission. “If we explain the situation to the Commander,” he insisted, “the artillery unit will certainly cooperate with our operation. Just a few scattered shells would be enough to disrupt the Lanforthian formation.”
“It’s better not to trouble them,” Lin Yu replied. “The artillerymen suffered heavy casualties from the Lanforthian assault this afternoon; those who weren’t killed were wounded. They deserve their rest now.”
Lin Yu declined his well-intentioned offer, resolute in her decision to proceed alone to the military police and draw their attention.
“Besides,” she added, “I might not necessarily be gunned down by them. You should have faith in my linguistic abilities. I’ve escaped the clutches of death countless times; a mere handful of rifles pointed at me is hardly a novel threat.”
She was no longer certain if these words were intended for Yang Xi or the squad leader. Her vision, fixed on those dark eyes, had blurred, and her heart swelled with an inexplicable surge of emotion.
It was an emotion she couldn’t articulate, much like the nature of her relationship with him. Were they friends… or adversaries? Or merely entangled in a high-interest debt (TL Note: A ‘Goryeo loan’ (고리대금) refers to a loan with exorbitant interest, implying a heavily compounded burden of favors and life debts.) compounded by numerous favors and life-saving graces?
She needed to find time to speak with him alone, to properly untangle this knot, either after this mission concluded or once the war finally ended.
Should she be fortunate enough to return.
And if she didn’t return… would he live on, burdened by guilt? Would he spend the rest of his days, as she envisioned, trapped in the shadow of countless debts owed to her? Would he carry an unpayable, eternal burden of gratitude for the remainder of his life?
Perhaps she was indulging in a touch of self-pity.
Lin Yu knew, however, that for that idiot Yang Xi, the Emperor would always hold the paramount position in his heart.
In the presence of his supreme Imperial Majesty, and in the face of his glorious mission to serve Diacla and pledge unwavering loyalty to the Emperor, mere life-saving graces or personal favors owed would invariably recede into the background.
If, amidst the brutal intensity of battle, he could occasionally recall her, a comrade who had once fought by his side, that would already signify a considerable depth of sentiment.
A flicker of reluctance stirred within her.
Just a faint trace.
She took her first step forward, then her second, and immediately, her third. Her gait, initially heavy, gradually lightened, then quickened into a brisk pace.
It was then that a familiar voice echoed from behind her: “I’m coming with you.”
Her lips parted, a faint murmur escaping them, before Lin Yu spun around, retorting with an exasperated tone, “You don’t even speak Lanforthian. What good would you be there?”
“I can help draw some of their fire.”
She patted the revolver holstered at her waist. “If you’re so eager to ‘eat lead,’ I can oblige you right now.”
“Should negotiations fail and a firefight erupt, I can retaliate alongside you.”
“Forget about you fighting back with me,” she scoffed. “Even if ten of you charged in, we would still be at a severe disadvantage in terms of firepower.”
The young woman and the youth exchanged words across a distance of over ten meters. The others, displaying remarkable discretion, afforded them both time and space, refraining from interrupting their conversation.
“I don’t understand,” Yang Xi began, shaking his head. “Your words earlier clearly indicated you wanted me to accompany you on this mission to draw attention. Why are you now preventing me from coming along?”
“Let me tell you,” she retorted, “there are countless things in this world you fail to comprehend, and this is hardly the most significant. To chase after infinite questions within a finite lifespan is, by its very nature, an act of extreme arrogance and unparalleled foolishness.”
She invoked a cascade of grand philosophies, all to mask the profound bewilderment that resonated within her own heart. Just as he failed to comprehend her, she, too, found herself utterly baffled by him.
After all, who truly relished risking their life, constantly teetering on the precipice of reincarnation into yet another foreign world?
Her life had yet to truly experience its enjoyable phases; to die now would undoubtedly be an immense waste. To be reincarnated into another world before even beginning to savor this one would render all the hardships of her childhood utterly meaningless!
The fear that should naturally accompany the prospect of death inexplicably dissipated at this very moment. With him by her side… would even dying not feel painful?
It felt like the kind of hackneyed, melodramatic development one might only find in a romance novel.
‘That’s not it at all.’
‘I’m merely occasionally susceptible to the influence of an idiot. The sway of a fool who can self-importantly declare “For His Majesty” and march gallantly to their death is truly profound; even someone who isn’t a humorous right-winger can be similarly affected.’
Lin Yu ceased her attempts to dissuade him, turning once more to face the military police. She tacitly allowed Yang Xi to follow, maintaining a distance of roughly ten meters behind her.
Having once been a foolish youth herself, she could, to a slight degree, comprehend his motivations.
The Lanforthian military police, identifiable by the “MP” emblazoned on their helmets, immediately spotted the two individuals approaching the bridge. They swiftly organized a detail to intercept and interrogate them.
[You two, over there! Halt! What is your purpose here?]
[What for? To screw your mother! To screw that bastard battalion commander and his entire family!]
Lin Yu unleashed every vulgarity she had meticulously gathered, converting them into fluent Lanforthian. Epithets like “son of a beach” peppered her tirade.
Her gentle, almost sweet voice, spewing such profanity, created a strangely captivating contrast—a bizarre ‘moe’ effect. Naturally, the Lanforthian military police, thoroughly doused in a torrent of curses and confusion, were utterly incapable of appreciating this phenomenon.
Yang Xi, unable to comprehend Lanforthian, remained oblivious to the spectacle.
She alone, with no other outlet for her surging emotions, unleashed every venomous word she possessed, aiming them squarely at the enemy’s leadership.
[That son of a b*tch actually abandoned us like this, right in the middle of the Diacla encirclement! The promised reinforcements never arrived! Our entire platoon is down to just a few survivors, and if I ever see him, I swear I’ll risk my own life to put a bullet in his head!]
Her impassioned, righteous tirade indeed caused quite a commotion. Many, predominantly the military police tasked with guarding the bridge, turned their heads, captivated by her radical outburst.
[If your intention is to kill our regimental commander, Lieutenant, the Diacla have already accomplished half of your task for you. Please calm down and cooperate with our inspection. The cost of this offensive was indeed too high; everyone is suffering.]
“…Eh? Half?”
The Diacla word that had inadvertently slipped from her lips instantly put her interrogator on alert. [Officer? What did you just say?]