Debuff Master

The next morning, an order to the entire 2nd Battalion to gather at the drill ground was announced.

“All forces! Attention!” Sorscimus, the deputy of the battalion commander, screamed at the top of his lungs, “Salute to the Corps Commander!”

“Salute!”

The entire battalion roared and greeted the corps commander standing on the podium.

“It’s nice to meet all of you, my fellow comrades. I’m your corps commander,” Overlock said, and then he started his speech, “The corps commander is delighted to see each and every one of you, and as your corps commander…”

Overlock referred to himself in the third person as ‘the corps commander,’ and he spoke in a very stern military form of speech.

The officers were ready to listen to another boring monologue given by a commander, and some of them seemed to be steeling their resolve for it.

However, what came afterward was no boring monologue.

“The corps commander is greatly moved by the efforts you have made, 2nd Battalion, and the corps commander could not help but be deeply moved by the efforts of the Alligator Squad led by Carell de Biermann. Squad Leader Carell de Biermann and Private Sieg! Come forward!”

Carell seemed confused at what was going on as he made his way up to the podium, but it was different for Siegfried.

‘It looks like the rumors have spread all the way there. I thought it was only going to reach the division commander at most…’ he thought.

Siegfried, who had Fallschirm dancing at the palm of his hands, had been expecting a high-ranking officer to come and congratulate them.

“Nice to meet you, Squad Leader Carell.”

“CAPTAIN CARELL GREETS THE CORPS COMMANDER!” Carell screamed at the top of his lungs in response to the three-star general’s greeting.

“You must be that Adventurer. Nice to meet you, Private Sieg.”

“Private Sieg greets the corps commander,” Siegfried nonchalantly replied. He wasn’t nervous at all, as befitting of an Adventurer, even though he was in front of a three-star general.

“I heard that both of you have worked really hard until now. The corps commander is someone who greatly respects the achievements both of you have made, so I personally wanted to congratulate and reward you for your merits,” Overlock said before taking the medal his adjutant, Guinness, had extended over to him before continuing, “I am hereby promoting the Alligator Squad’s, Squad Leader Carell de Biermann. Squad Leader Carell, step forward.”

“Huh? Do you mean me, sir?”

“Who else is the squad leader aside from you? What are you doing? Hurry up and come.”

“Y-Yes, sir!” Carell clumsily rushed toward Overlock.

“A soldier is bound to get promoted quickly on the battlefield, especially a skilled commander like you,” Overlock praised.

“CAPTAIN CARELL THANKS THE CORPS COMMANDER!” Carell screamed at the top of his lungs in response.

“You’re going to pop my eardrums,” Overlock grumbled.

“I… I APOLOGIZE TO THE CORPS COMMANDER!”

“I can see that you have our military discipline deeply instilled in you, that’s good. Now, come closer.”

“Yes, sir!”

Overlock replaced the medal with three diamonds on Carell’s chest into a medal with a single (*).

“Congratulations, Lt. Commander Carell.”

“Huh…?”

“You are no longer a captain but a lieutenant commander.”

“I do not quite follow what you mean… by that, sir…?”

“Hoho! How am I supposed to explain if you ask me that after achievements have you made?”

“B-But Corps Commander-nim! This is too much…”

The reward Carell received was certainly too much. He was a newbie among the newbies since it had only been a year since he officially became an officer, which meant that it was far too early for him to become a lieutenant commander.

“The corps commander is aware of that as well, but you are in no way lacking when taking into consideration how you endured those hardships and led your men to victory. So you don’t have to worry about anything. Just embrace your promotion.”

“Corps Commander-nim…”

“I look forward to your continued hard work.” Overlock tapped the young knight’s shoulder before he turned and said, “And Private Sieg...”

“Yes?”

“I should promote you as well. Does it make sense that a war hero like you is still a private?” Overlock asked.

Overlock was right.

“Yeah, it doesn’t make sense that he’s still a private.”

“How stingy was the battalion commander that a war hero like him is still a private?”

“Will he get a three-rank promotion?”

Even the troops seemed to agree with their corps commander’s words.

“Private Sieg. The corps commander is—”

“…?”

“—thinking of appointing you as an officer. What do you think?”

“An officer?” Siegfried was taken aback by the sudden proposal.

Why?

The system here at the Arachnid Temporary Outpost explicitly placed the Adventurers under the command of the NPCs, and it was safe to assume that there was no way an Adventurer could even become an officer.

“Of course, I’m well aware that you are the type to personally fight on the frontlines rather than to stay back and command troops, but there are no rules that say that a commanding officer should always stay back and relax. A true commanding officer should know how to command his troops while he is engaged in combat himself.”

“So what are you trying to say?”

“I’m thinking of appointing you as the battalion commander of an independent battalion.”

“…!”

“What do you think?”

A message popped up in front of Siegfried’s eyes.

[Alert: Lt. General Overlock has made you an offer!]

Yes: Yes, I wish to become the battalion commander of an independent battalion! No: No, I do not think that position suits me.

He was given a choice.

‘What should I do?’ Siegfried contemplated whether to accept the offer or not, but it did not take long for him to make a decision. He had to level up anyway, so he had been planning to stay for quite a while here at the Arachnid Temporary Outpost.

‘I guess it’s better to be a commander than a soldier. I’ll have more freedom, and I won’t have to sit around and wait for commands,’ he thought.

He then agreed to Overlock’s offer, “Yes, I will do it.”

“Oh! I didn’t expect you to accept my proposal! Alright, I am hereby appointing you as the battalion commander of an independent battalion. Here, take this,” Overlock said as he removed the private rank badge on Siegfried’s chest and replaced it with the rank badge of a lieutenant colonel (**).

[Alert: Congratulations!]

[Alert: Your achievements have been recognized, and you have been promoted from a private to a lieutenant colonel!]

[Alert: You have obtained a title!]

[Alert: You have obtained the title ‘Another Legend’!]

Then, the details of his new title popped up in front of his eyes.

[Another Legend: 777]

[You are the 777th Adventurer to be promoted to an officer!]

[Type: Title (Achievement)]

[Rating: Legendary]

[Effects: Leadership +500, Fame +500, All Experience Points gained from clearing quests will increase by +2%]

The effects weren’t that good, but it was a symbolic title. There were around three hundred million players playing BNW, and the fact that he was the 777th player to become an officer meant that it was a pretty remarkable feat.

“Then, I look forward to your continued efforts. We can slowly discuss the specifics about your battalion’s formation,” Overlock said.

“Thank you,” Siegfried replied.

“Congratulations, Lieutenant Colonel Sieg,” Overlock added with a smile.

“Lieutenant Colonel Sieg thanks the corps commander!” Siegfried replied with a salute.

Clap…! Clap…! Clap…! 

The troops gave Siegfried a round of applause.

“Now, shall we start the court martial? Bring in the criminal!” Overlock commanded the gendarmerie[1] knights.

“Heok?!”

“H-He’s…!”

“What the hell? Why is he over there?”

The troops were stupefied to see the criminal.

“The battalion commander is wearing a prison uniform!” someone shouted.

It turned out that the criminal was their ex-battalion commander. He was wearing prison garb and was tied up as he was dragged out by the knights.

***

‘I’m sure the corps commander had no choice but to court martial him,’ Siegfried thought with a cold smile while looking at Fallschirm. Siegfried already knew that this was going to happen sooner or later.

Fallschirm had gone overboard with his antics. A skilled commander should have the guts to sacrifice his troops to attain victory, but that was only going to be the case once or twice at most. Fallschirm had driven the conscripted soldiers to their deaths and even went as far as stealing the merits they had earned, so the higher-ups couldn’t just turn a blind eye to it.

Why?

It was all because it would be difficult for the army to earn the loyalty and trust of their officers if Fallschirm wasn’t punished. The officers could even resort to mutiny or desertion after killing their commanding officers. On top of that, the falsified reports had earned the ire of every single one of the officers superior to Fallschirm.

This all stemmed from Fallschirm’s excessive desire to get promoted.

A judge advocate wearing a white mask appeared and said, “Criminal Fallschirm, listen up. You have abused your powers as a battalion commander and poorly carried out your duties, and you have mistreated your subordinates as well…”

The judge advocate listed Fallschirm's crimes before sentencing him. “The court martial has decided to sentence you under Article 6 Clauses 19 and 23, Article 7 Clauses 5 and 6, Article 11 Clause 2. The criminal Fallschirm is going to be stripped of his position as the battalion commander of the 2nd Infantry Battalion and will be excluded from all promotions for the next ten years. And…”

It seemed that Fallschirm wouldn’t get executed.

“You are hereby demoted to the rank of Private for a year and start your military career all over again afterward. Failure to carry out your sentence is punishable by hanging.”

Wasn’t it strange that capital punishment seemed to be the better choice for Fallschirm?

“N-NOOO…!” Fallschirm screamed.

“Yahoo!”

“Yeeesss!”

“Make way for the new recruit!”

“Hey, newbie! Why don’t you come to our squadron?”

“Hahahaha!”

Meanwhile, the officers seemed to welcome the sentence handed down to their ex-battalion commander.

Fallschirm would have to serve as a private for a year, and he had to start from scratch all over again?

The sentence was more than enough to kickstart the adrenaline of the officers who had suffered injustice at the hands of Fallschirm, and they weren’t even affiliated with the Alligator Squad.

“N-No! Judge Advocate-nim! Please! Anything but that!” Fallschirm begged.

“No, that’s it. Go away,” the judge advocate sternly replied, and then he added, “This punishment has been passed in hopes that you will understand how those soldiers you abused and drove to death felt.”

However, Fallschirm continued to beg. “Please…”

“You may request to change your sentence to hanging if you don’t like it.”

“…”

“The decision is yours to make, Fallschirm.”

The sentence handed down to Fallschirm was no different from the death penalty. It was going to be excruciatingly difficult for someone who was previously a lieutenant colonel to suddenly be demoted to a private.

“Please just send me to prison instead! I want to be locked up instead, so please…!”

“Restart your military career from the bottom or be executed by hanging. You may only choose either of the two.”

“Judge Advocate-nim…!”

“This is the verdict. The criminal, Fallschirm, shall be given twenty-four hours to decide.”

Bam! Bam! Bam! 

The judge advocate slammed his gavel down three times, concluding the trial.

“I… I’m a private…? I have to start from scratch?” Fallschirm muttered in disbelief. However, nobody felt sorry for him.

“Come to our squadron!”

“We will show you lots of love if you come to ours!”

“Are you good at picking up soap?”

“I’ll drill you until you shit blood! Kekeke!”

The officers went into a frenzy as they tried to recruit Private Fallschirm to their squadron.

***

Two days later, Siegfried became the battalion commander of a battalion mostly composed of Adventurers, and he was given his own tent to use. Carell was also transferred to Siegfried’s battalion, and the young knight was now his direct subordinate.

[Alert: You are almost Level 100!]

[Alert: You may learn a new skill once you reach Level 100!]

Siegfried was now close to Level 100.

‘I need to gain one more level to hit Level 100, and after learning a new skill, what comes next? I should probably just increase my level to Level 150 here,’ Siegfried thought before exiting his tent with Carell.

He had a lunch appointment with another battalion commander to discuss strategy and their future plans.

They were about to leave the other battalion’s barracks, but Siegfried saw a familiar face at the barracks.

“Hmm? Ohh…”

A sinister smile appeared on Siegfried’s lips when he recognized the familiar face.

“Carell.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t you think he looks familiar?”

“Huh? Is that Fallschirm?”

It turned out that the familiar face was none other than Private Fallschirm, who was a lieutenant colonel just a few days ago.

In the end, Fallschirm ended up choosing to restart his military career rather than be executed by hanging.

Search bit.ly/3iBfjkV for the original.

1. Fancy way of saying military police. Decided to go with this term since police and knight in the same sentence sound weird. ☜