06. The Simple Job of Only Shooting A Bow
How can I, a peasant, become a Platoon Leader?
The reason is because I came from Geirias Mountain Range.
A peasant from Geirias where strong monsters (for the people in Central Nation, that is) live is a Hunter who hunts them.
...To put it bluntly, the earth is so barren that it's impossible to subsist just by growing crops so there's no choice but to hunt monsters in the mountain.
Bones and hide can be sold as raw materials, the meat can be eaten.
Even if it cannot be eaten, we consume it. After all, other things that can be eaten are scarce.
There is also the grave reality that if we do not hunt monsters, our lives may be threatened.
As such, Geirias natives are actually a collection of people who have confidence in their own abilities --- compared to farmers commonly living in other areas, that is.
Majority of farmers are NPCs with the lowest rank E but Geirias natives are D-rank. There are even some C-rank.
Soldiers who receive regular training are deployed to the front lines.
Our unit receive the same treatment as them.
Excluding others who came from different regions, Geirias natives were formed into a commando unit and was given free reign to make an assault against the enemy army.
Isn't telling us "Act at your discretion," the same as letting us go wild?
And at the same time, if we come across monsters that strayed off the battlefield, we were ordered to eliminate them.
If I had to say, that latter is our main mission.
This time the place where our country is squaring off against the enemy, Chloe Plain, is infested with monsters.
Monsters that live in plains are generally small fry E-rank.
The problem is about the stronger monsters who prey on them.
East of Chloe Plain, adjacent is the area Schwarzwald --- commonly called as Black Forest (although that's according to the game setting...). When winter comes, the monsters living there come out to prey on weaker monsters.
Their average rank is C.
Even amateur adult men can probably defeat them if they fight in a group but it's risky against high-level ones that occasionally appear. It might be stronger than the enemy soldiers in the worst case scenario.
These monsters will be eliminated before they approach the area where military is deployed.
For natives of Geirias, this is an easy job. We only shoot arrows from a distance.
If it's not possible to get rid of them before they approach, we switch to hand-to-hand combat.
"I wonder why they can't have the war in summer? Then the monsters won't come attack, right?" mumbled my childhood friend as he kept a lookout on the swaying meadow with slowly withering grass.
While pulling the string of the bow in my hands, I answered, "Chloe Plain accumulates water and turns into a marsh during summer. Insects hatch and apparently they annoy even monsters. That's why it can't be cultivated into farms and is also inhabitable to humans."
"Is that information taught by your grandfather? He really is knowledgeable."
"Right?"
The truth though is that the stuff about Chloe Plain came from my previous life's knowledge.
The reason I was well-informed regarding unusual things although I was supposed to be ignorant of the ways of the world, I made it seem like everything was taught by my grandparents.
I heard that they came to Geirias Mountain Range from some place. Then they settled at the outskirts of the village.
I don't know why because I never asked but perhaps it has something to do with my grandmother, who had the same skin color as me.
Well, it's a grandson's arbitrary guess.
They were certainly people with extensive knowledge.
Thanks to them, I could eat majority of monsters.
"-----The repairs are done. I guess we should go soon. Call everyone, Arowa. Oh, from here onward I am the 'captain'."
"Sir, yes sir!"
My childhood friend who received the bow I passed on straightened his back and saluted.
As I saw off his rapidly retreating figure with a wry smile, I stood up from the ground where I was sitting and rotated my shoulders.
I was underestimated after I shaved my beard and turned from a barbarian to a man with delicate features.
As a consequence of also having a noble patron, it spurned the contempt towards me. I was also sexually harassed.
Although the comrades who came from the same village and hunted in the mountains with me - including Arowa - showed a cooperative attitude, other village natives assigned into the same platoon did not.
I had no choice so I executed the "basic training for fresh recruits that's very military-like" until we arrived at Chloe Plain.
No one wants to die, right? I myself don't want to.
And how can super novices not die in the battlefield? There's no other way but training, is there?
Anime, manga, movies and light novels - I utilized every single chuuni-like knowledge I had from the previous life and the men who were mere farmers underwent transformation.
Let me say this frankly.
It was super fun~~~!!!
***
"So you've gathered, maggots?"
I stood in front of 28 subordinates equipped with bows and lined up in precisely two rows.
I inspect each and every one of my subordinates before departure. Inspecting whether there is insufficency in preparations is a small-scale advantage.
I kicked the abdomen of one person whose fur belt around his hips is loose.
"----Didn't I tell you put on your armor the way I instructed if you don't want to die?"
"I-I apologize, I just---!"
"I also told you to either answer 'yes, sir' or 'no, sir'. Say it again!"
"Yes, sir!"
...I'm having too much fun that I'm probably unintentionally overdoing it, although it's too late now to think of this.
Is it just my imagination or is everyone looking at me with gazes of ecstasy?
The guy I kicked just now, I have a feeling that he pressed not on his abdomen but somewhere a bit lower, but I'm sure I'm just imagining things.
Yes, it's just my imagination.
"Today we are also moving to the outer perimeter of the Black Forest. If you discover an enemy, annihilate them. If you come across monsters, also exterminate them!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Do not be haughty. Do not be brash. You maggots' strength is nothing to note. Surround monsters in groups and make a sport out of killing them!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Absolutely do not neglect to report. As long as you dumbasses cooperate, there is no enemy you cannot defeat. Now, shall we start again today?
-----------Destroy!"
The deep roars of agreement echoed in a section of Chloe Plain.
Oh, a bird flew away. Sorry for being loud.
By the way, the 'yes, sir' and 'no, sir' replies were easily transmitted because a previous transmigrated person already popularized it.
Seemingly, I wasn't the only one who straightforwardly followed our chuuni-like desires.
***
Each holding bows which served as their weapons, my subordinates broke into a run towards the Black Forest with a lowered postured.
While following after them, I looked back behind me.
Because of the trees and shrubs growing sporadically and the fully-grown grass that reached one's height, the visibility of Chloe Plain is bad.
Perhaps, our army and the enemy forces encamped at the vicinity of the center of the plain will have a confrontation.
Looking at the bounds of one's distant view, it still does not look like a full-fledged war will happen.
------------ Nevertheless, the clash of both armies will happen in the near future.
Footnotes:
"East of Chloe Plain, adjacent is Schwarzwald --- commonly called as Black Forest..."
>> In the raw text, Schwarzwald is written in English as Black Forest while the nickname is the literal Japanese translation, kuro mori. So I used German and English to get the feeling across. Coincidentally, there's an actual Black Forest in Germany.
"By the way, the 'yes, sir' and 'no, sir' replies were easily transmitted because a previous transmigrated person already popularized it."
Probably because 'Yes, sir' and 'No, sir' were said in English so the protagonist found it necessary to explain the lack of language barrier. Remember the language in this world is supposed to be Japanese.
Translator's Corner:
It's the birth of do-S protagonist.
For those confused, the positioning should be like this: Claciel's enemy soldiers and Ticia's and Ragion's army are facing opposite each other in the center of Chloe Plain, although quite a distance away. Kariya's platoon mobilized to the east near the perimeter of the Black Forest, using it as cover to snipe enemy soldiers from their flank i.e. they should be in the boundary between Chloe Plain and Black Forest. Because the terrain is a plain, they cannot walk out in the open but have to travel within the forest to avoid being seen, hence the concern about monsters.
I don't think I translated the narrative well enough to get across the message. I hope the explanation above helps.