EpilogueWith their leader, Sladder Honeysuckle, captured, the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate’s morale and ability to continue with its operation dropped considerably.
The Baby Magnum could no longer continue fighting, but the “unrefined old-fashioned methods of fighting war” such as foot soldiers and tanks allowed the Legitimacy Kingdom to succeed.
And so the war with the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate that began in Antarctica and continued into the Legitimacy Kingdom’s Amazon district was finally over.
The Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate had originally been a large organization that supported a large part of the Capitalist Corporations. The Capitalist Corporations insisted the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate had gone on a rampage they had been unable to stop, but they were still unable to avoid all responsibility. Most likely, the Legitimacy Kingdom would be able to gain a few advantageous treaties with the Capitalist Corporations.
Similar responsibility could not be tied to the Information Alliance. They had intended to advance their military across national borders and into the ruins of Amazon City to carry out Sladder Honeysuckle’s request, but intentions were no more than intentions. They had not actually carried out those intentions, so they were able to evade any responsibility.
“It seems the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate will be judged under Legitimacy Kingdom law,” said Heivia.
Quenser and Heivia were inside an Object manufacturing plant in the Amazon district. The princess’s Object was undergoing repairs for all the damage it had taken during the various battles. The giant box-like facility was similar to the ones in shipyards. However, they had not brought the Object to the plant. Instead, the plant had been broken down into parts and set up around the damaged Baby Magnum.
As he watched giant cranes removing the broken and unmoving main cannons, Quenser replied to Heivia.
“Well, we did manage to end this in our territory.”
“It seems both the Capitalist Corporations and the Information Alliance have requested we hand over Sladder Honeysuckle and the others, but they both know it’s a ridiculous request. Going along with it would be the same as admitting extraterritoriality,” said Froleytia as she smoked her long, narrow j.a.panese-style kiseru languidly while leaning against a metal railing.
Quenser looked at the face of his bluish silver-haired commander.
“…Honeysuckle and the others? …So what’s going to happen to the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate now?”
“Who knows. Even here in the Legitimacy Kingdom people are arguing over whether we should simply execute them or if we should try to get technological information out of them. If you had just shot him there, this would have been a lot simpler. I told their major general that we would do just that.”
“…”
“Did you not shoot him because your circ.u.mstances were similar?”
“I don’t know.”
Quenser shook his head.
Sometimes he felt like doing what he was doing was taking a hugely roundabout course. He had left his safe country school to come to the battlefield as a battlefield student in order to learn about Object design. He had felt at the time like he was doing something similar to skipping a few grades, but he now sometimes felt like it would have been faster to have just continued studying at the school.
However, there may have been things one could not learn in a school.
For example, the faint hatred Quenser had glimpsed in Sladder. And the feeling of not being able to pull the trigger at the last second. Those things would not necessarily be of any use, but they were also things he was unlikely to ever forget.
Especially if he ever actually designed Objects to send to the battlefield.
“But it did make me think about why we are fighting.”
“?”
“I wondered if it was really necessary to kill Honeysuckle back there in order for us to survive.”
“You soft b.a.s.t.a.r.d,” muttered Heivia.
Quenser agreed with him.
The princess had been carrying out some work elsewhere, but now she approached them. She had likely been informing the maintenance soldiers how she liked the “feel” of the controls so they could carry out the overall repairs of the Object. She had been the one in the most danger during the entire incident. Her expressionless face looked more weary than usual.
“They say the repairs should take 2 weeks. We cannot move until then,” she said.
“I did call in another Legitimacy Kingdom Object from another area. Even if something unexpected happens, we won’t be forced to deal with it ourselves,” said Froleytia as if she was double checking the schedule.
The princess turned to Quenser and said, “Thank you for everything.”
“You too,” said Quenser before looking up at what was in the center of the plant.
It was the giant weapon known as an Object.
While looking up at that ma.s.s of steel that had been damaged too badly to move due to numerous attacks, Quenser muttered, “…The destruction of an established theory, hm?”
That was what Sladder Honeysuckle had said his objective was.
However, it might have been Quenser and Heivia who had pulled that trigger.
Yes.
It was them who had been destroying Objects with plastic explosives.
“It isn’t just us. More and more people are starting to think about destroying Objects without using one themselves.”
“The established theories of history are overthrown surprisingly easily. Textbooks saying iron was first used by the Hitt.i.tes in 1400 BCE said something completely different the following year.”
“Is this really a good thing?”
“Who knows.” Heivia shrugged. “But this Object-focused world is the result of something from the past being overthrown.”
…And after that nice ending line, Heivia suddenly grinned.
“Hey, by the way, Quenser. Didn’t we do quite well this time?”
“Ahn? What do you mean?”
“You blew away that Break Carrier Object, right? And I stopped the explosion of the Iguazu Dam. Not to mention that you captured the Ma.s.s Driver conglomerate’s commander alive. We prevented a three-way war between the Legitimacy Kingdom, the Capitalist Corporations, and the Information Alliance, so do you think we’ll get medals?”
“Oh!! You’re right, you’re right! It was pretty much all positive things!! The positives weren’t cancelled out by negatives brought in by the odd expectations of the higher ups this time! Now I can get a full bank account and draw closer to being a designer. And you’re that much closer to inheriting your n.o.ble family! Hooray! Hooray!!”
As those two idiots cheered and raised their hands in the air, their silver-haired, large-breasted commander cut them off while puffing out some sweet smoke from her long, narrow kiseru.
“…What are you saying? It was the princess that finished off the Break Carrier, not Quenser. That doesn’t count in your favor.”
“Hah?”
“And I may personally commend you for the defense of the Iguazu Dam, but from a purely ‘chain of command’ perspective, Corporal Bilany Saronno’s front lines scouting unit will likely be determined to be in the right. In other words, you were obstructing an official operation, Heivia. Especially since I never officially gave you permission.”
“Eh?”
“And the operation in the ruins of Amazon City was carried out by the entirety of the 37th Mobile Maintenance Battalion. You may have just so happened to be near Honeysuckle, but it was not an independent action, so you get no special commendation for it. The entire unit might, though.”
“…Wait, we did all this and get nothing?”
“…You’re kidding, right? Please tell me you’re kidding.”
“I’m not done yet. You altered the trajectory of that small satellite in Antarctica which made us lose the chance to kill the Capitalist Corporations major general in that moon villa. That counts against you.”
“Uuh!?”
“Oh, and it seems you were treated to food and drink at a local coffee plantation in the Iguazu district. I said you could rest somewhere, but receiving goods from foreign civilians during a military operation is another minus.”
“Uuuh!?”
“And Quenser, you grabbed my b.r.e.a.s.t.s and slandered your commanding officer. That is a major minus.”
“What the h.e.l.l did you do, Quenser you lucky b.a.s.t.a.r.d!?”
“Um, there were various circ.u.mstances that played into it…and don’t you have a fiancée!?”
As the two idiots started arguing, a cold look entered the princess’s eyes. However, Quenser was completely oblivious to this change.
Meanwhile, Froleytia continued speaking as if none of that was going on.
“Overall, the minuses are more prominent than the plusses. You need some military training in order to preserve the order of the unit. I’m thinking something like 300 lashes with a horse whip.”
“That would tear open our entire body!! We’d be so covered in red no flesh color would remain!!”
“…Froleytia, are you still holding a grudge about that t.i.ts thing!? I’ll admit that feeling was well above average, but aren’t you putting too high a value on your b.r.e.a.s.t.s!?”
“Hmm. If you like, I could go with 10 lashes with a horse whip and 1 candle.”
“Wait, wait! That would turn us into wax models!!”
“No, this has gone well beyond the level of kinky. This has made its way to the absolutely bizarre!! I’ve never done anything to my commanding officer’s b.r.e.a.s.t.s, so why do I have to receive the same punishment as Quenser!?”
“Oh, do you want to die?”
The two idiots shook their heads at Froleytia’s question.
Their commanding officer smiled and said, “Then win back my trust with results. Do your job. Take a quick ride on a transport plane and destroy a certain G.o.d d.a.m.n Object in a distant country.”