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Bermuda Chapter 57
🕑 Added 2024-04-16 12:18:48 +0000 UTCChapter 57
At that moment, when Leonardo was being dragged around with his arm outstretched and a blank expression, a group of people in combat uniforms suddenly approached Hugo and him. As Hugo stopped walking, the one who seemed to have the highest position saluted Hugo and spoke.
"Loyalty, Bruno Amos, Deputy Commander of the Council's Southern Branch. Greetings, Council Commander."
"Loyalty, it's been a while."
Hugo responded with a salute. The Deputy Commander of the Southern Branch, who gave an overall impression of a bear with his large build and thick body, continued speaking to Hugo with a slightly nervous demeanor.
"Hazelnut, the Deputy Commander, boasted that he would come back, so I thought he would come... I didn't know you would come in person, Commander."
Hugo let out a small laugh.
"Well, there were various circumstances."
Bruno, the Deputy Commander of the Southern Branch, carefully opened his mouth while looking at the handcuffs bound to Hugo's hand and Leonardo, who was standing a little behind with a very disgruntled face.
"Then, that person is..."
Hugo also glanced at Leonardo and then turned his eyes back to Bruno, nodding.
"Yes, it's Leonardo Blaine."
Bruno, who had been sparing his words, took a step closer to Hugo, lowered his voice, and spoke with a slightly worried face.
"...Commander, are you really thinking of having him participate in the subjugation?"
At the words filled with various concerns, Hugo tried to put on an expression that there was no problem.
"If any issues arise, I will take responsibility."
'I can hear everything, you bastards.'
Leonardo was annoyed by this situation of being treated as a person of concern even after coming all the way here. Moreover, with Hugo Agrizendro acting as if he was his guardian, saying he would take responsibility and whatnot, he just wanted to abandon everything and desert.
However, since he had received a promise that they would never look for him again if he helped with the subjugation, he thought that staying quiet and pretending not to hear was the way to quickly escape the situation, so he eventually blamed his own predicament and turned his head away.
Hugo looked around Bruno and asked,
"Where are the battalion commanders of the Southern Branch?"
"Currently, all three of them are inside the peninsula. Two battalions are stationed near the northern mountain range, and only one battalion has succeeded in entering the 7th peak by clearing a path in the east. However, there is a monster nest nearby, and the surrounding peaks are undergoing subtle volcanic activity, so further entry is blocked."
"Hmm..."
Hugo, who was lost in thought for a moment, asked again,
"What about the operations officer? I'd like to hear more details. Is there a planned entry route?"
At Hugo's words, Bruno turned around and gestured, and one person who had been waiting in the back hurriedly approached.
"Loyalty, Gray Scott, unit commander of the 12th Battalion of the Council's Southern Branch. Currently serving as the operations assistant for the Elder Millie Peninsula subjugation operation."
"Loyalty, report on the current progress and future direction."
As soon as Hugo finished speaking, a makeshift table brought by the members was placed in front of them, and an operational meeting unfolded, marking the map based on the data analyzing the terrain and emerging monsters of the Elder Millie Peninsula.
And Leonardo also stood a little behind Hugo, as much as the slack of the connected chain allowed, and listened to the planned route mentioned by the operations assistant.
"Near coordinates 827, 34, 1129 in the eastern zone of Elder Millie, there is a nest of 'Sigals.' Sigals do not have the habit of forming groups and do not have a high tolerance for high temperatures, so they have the smallest number of individuals among the monsters inhabiting the peninsula."
"..."
"Currently, two companies of the vanguard of the 9th Battalion of the Southern Branch have approached near this Sigal nest. The plan is to first eliminate them, use the location of the nest in a dormant volcanic area to set up an intermediate base camp, and move from there."
"Sigals... They are violent and dangerous creatures, so it will take some time. What's next?"
"Beyond this, we need to pass through an active volcanic zone to enter the next section. The 'Drocs' inhabiting that area have a keen sense of smell for the scent of blood, so we plan to lure them with animal blood and dispose of them near the coast. Drocs are large in number, but they are vulnerable to water, so if we surround them on three sides and drive them towards the water..."
Gray Scott, the operations assistant, and Bruno Amos, the Deputy Commander of the Southern Branch, continued their passionate explanation while moving the model pieces on the map. However, Hugo seemed to be dissatisfied with their plan. Although he was listening, his expression did not show agreement.
"Then, is the western zone empty?"
"In the west, the army of Parren is stationed in the plains and cooperating in the extermination of monsters, but the path leading into the interior beyond the plains has more monsters and active volcanoes than the east, so it seems they are also unable to enter recklessly."
"The army of Parren?"
When Hugo narrowed his brows and asked again, Deputy Commander Bruno glanced around a bit and then continued.
"Currently, their side is also in a situation where monsters are crossing the border and causing severe damage, so a part of their army has entered the interior of the peninsula. In fact, it is difficult to clearly divide the borders on the peninsula right now..."
Bruno trailed off in the middle of his explanation.
No matter how much it was considered abandoned land, it was not the right thing to talk about another country's army entering the territory and even receiving help from them in front of the Council Commander, especially the Duke of the Empire.
When Hugo swept his gaze over them with eyes that seemed to have a lot to say, all the commanders of the Southern Branch lowered their heads deeply as if they had committed a sin.
Seeing their appearance, Hugo let out a small sigh. How could he solely blame them for the situation turning out like this? If there was a problem to point out, the biggest issue was that the Imperial Army, which should have rushed here first to protect the borders, was absent and shirking responsibility.
Hugo crossed his arms and quietly looked down at the map. It seemed like there could be a better strategy, but since the terrain of the peninsula and the types of monsters were not fully grasped, it was difficult to hastily issue operational orders.
At that moment, while Hugo was pondering, a voice was heard from behind him.
"Rather than that, how about doing it this way?"
When he turned his head, Leonardo was standing behind him with his arms crossed and a displeased expression.
As all three people who were in the operational meeting looked at him, Leonardo suddenly approached the table, stood next to Hugo, and opened his mouth.
"The reason Sigals remain on the peninsula despite their lack of tolerance for high temperatures and small number of individuals is that they have the strength and size to prey on other types of monsters. If it were me, I would avoid the Sigal nest, go to the active volcanic zone, and lure the Droc horde, which has a keen sense of smell for blood, to the Sigal nest."
He continued his explanation while moving the model pieces on the unfolded map.
"While the two groups are biting and tearing at each other, if we pass through the active volcanic zone via the empty Droc habitat, we can go quickly without much effort, right? And in the west of the peninsula, although the plains are convenient for approach in the early stages of entry, they are vulnerable to defense as they are open on all sides, making it difficult to control the monsters. However, Parren has many well-trained cavalry units, so they excel in battles on the plains rather than in the mountains."
"..."
"So, if some companies of the Council drive the monsters out from the foothills in the western region, and the Parren army eliminates the monsters at once on the plains, a joint operation that saves time and benefits both countries would be a good method, in my opinion."
After finishing his words, Leonardo crossed his arms again and looked at the map as if reviewing the operation he had mentioned.
In the midst of that, he suddenly felt the atmosphere around him become strange, so he raised his head.
The three men who had been discussing the operation until just now were staring at him silently.
Leonardo blinked his eyes, not understanding their bizarre expressions, and then frowned, speaking as if he couldn't comprehend.
"What's with those eyes?"
The three men all stared intently at Leonardo's face. And first, Hugo, whose elegant eyebrows had gained strength, grabbed Leonardo's arm with a serious expression and asked,
"Leonardo, have you been to the Elder Millie Peninsula before?"
Leonardo, who glanced at Hugo's hand tightly gripping his arm, nodded his head reluctantly.
"A few times before, for a mission."
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
At his question, Leonardo made a dumbfounded expression.
"You only asked if I knew about the Elder Millie Peninsula, not if I had been there."
At that, Hugo looked down at Leonardo with a slightly displeased face, but since his words were true, he didn't pursue the matter further. Instead, he turned his head to Gray Scott, the operations assistant, and asked,
"What is the operations officer's evaluation of the operation this guy mentioned?"
Gray Scott, who had been staring at Leonardo with a blank expression, came to his senses at Hugo's words and lowered his head again, silently gazing at the map for a few seconds. He seemed to be in deep thought, and after a while, as if he had made a decision, he raised his head and managed to open his mouth.
"It's ingenious."
He spoke as if referring to Leonardo himself, not the operation Leonardo had mentioned. At Scott's utmost praise, Deputy Commander Bruno looked at him with a slightly surprised face. It was because he knew well how strict of an operations officer he was.
"I'd like to recruit him to the operations command to that extent."
At the blatant praise directed towards him right in front of his eyes, Leonardo blinked his eyes and made a slightly awkward expression. However, as if nothing had happened, he immediately changed his expression, grinned, and said,
"Of course, I'm such a high-quality resource."
Hugo looked at Leonardo, who had quickly become energetic, with a bit of disbelief, and then chuckled and replied,
"Since you're a high-quality resource, recruitment may be difficult, but we can receive your assistance."
Eventually, he solemnly commanded the personnel waiting in the back.
"Commanders of each unit, assemble in front of me."
Comments
Jesse Gibson
Soooooo true. Hugo has been such a frustrating character and I hate the condescending attitude he has which he doesn’t realize he has. But he totally thinks he’s better than everyone. Super annoying-my worst type of person I can’t handle.
Sophie
I keep thinking that it would be awesome if somethings happen to Hugo and then he and Leo wreak havoc with those higher up. I’m just not sure who could be above a duke and a commander. The world development seems a bit ambiguous, but maybe it’s so we can figure it out. Right now, we’re not sure what’s going on. I hate mystery, i like knowing everything at the same time as the character. Good thing Leo is a fun character to read about because i’m not sure i’d still be here
Jesse Gibson
Ah yea I get he can’t sit still and do nothing since they supposedly “promised” to leave him be after-which I HIGHLY DOUBT- so he wants to get this over with. I get it. But man… still want to punch Hugo in the face. You want to recruit him but make sure to demean and humiliate him as much as possible while asking him for help but basically take all his power away that he needs to help with.. makes no fing sense. Arhhh so angry these last couple chapters and my hearts been pounding from being so angry. 😡
