I Was Mistaken for a Great General of War

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I informed Lucy of the dessert shop’s location, and after leaving the headquarters, I hopped into a jeep, heading towards the military supply factory that Lieutenant McCall mentioned.

After about 30 minutes of driving, the driver smoothly hit the brakes.

The jeep gradually slowed down and came to a complete stop at the entrance of the ruined military supply factory.

“We’ve arrived, Commander.”

I nodded once to the driver, opened the door, and stepped outside.

As I entered through the partially destroyed front gate, I saw some patrol units gathered not too far away.

The soldiers chatting turned their heads at the noise.

Upon spotting me, they quickly saluted.

“Commander! We’ve been waiting for you!”

Accepting their salute casually, I approached them.

“Where is the laboratory?”

“Oh, this way,” replied Lieutenant McCall, pointing to the floor.

Turning my head, I saw a staircase leading down underground beyond an open steel door.

“An underground base, huh? These kingdom folks really love making things underground.”

“That’s right. Maybe because they’re allies of the United Nations, but their actions are just like rats.”

Lieutenant McCall’s joke elicited dry chuckles from the nearby soldiers.

I too offered a faint smile and turned to Lieutenant McCall.

“You’ve gotten funnier. But how thorough was the search?”

“It was just a rough situation assessment. It doesn’t seem like they set any traps, so you can look around comfortably. If you don’t mind, I’ll accompany you, Commander.”

“No. I’ll go alone. You stay here to guard the entrance with the soldiers.”

“Yes, understood!”

Hearing the response, I descended the stairs into the underground.

With each step down, the surroundings grew dimmer, so I pulled out the flashlight I had and flipped the power switch.

Click—

The light from the flashlight illuminated the path ahead.

At the bottom of the stairs, there was another steel door, which was left ajar—perhaps Lieutenant McCall had opened it.

Cautiously entering inside revealed a floor coated with epoxy.

On the shiny floor were long desks and various experimental tools displayed.

Things like flasks and microscopes, to be precise.

Some of the instruments looked so unusual that I couldn’t even figure out their use.

‘What on earth were they doing here…?’

I wanted to assess the situation, but it seemed everything related to their research was cleared away; aside from the tools, nothing was left.

As I surveyed the dusty room, I noticed an automatically opening door.

Stepping inside, I entered a wide corridor.

On both sides of the corridor were iron bars, and in the partitioned areas resembling cells, there were beds and utensils scattered around.

It was a prison-like structure, but there were no people to be found.

Given that all the doors were open, it seemed they had been taken away.

Taking a deep breath, I continued walking.

I was headed towards another steel door at the far end of the corridor.

Reaching the end, I grabbed the handle of the steel door and pulled.

Creak—

The door opened partially and then stopped.

Regaining my composure, I yanked on the handle with all my might.

The door swung wide open, sending ash swirling around.

‘…Ash?’

Confused, I looked inside to find the ground covered completely in ash.

‘They burned something in large quantities.’

If it was something that could be burned in bulk here, it was likely papers.

Documents containing records of the laboratory’s research.

‘But this is sloppy. There are clear signs of hasty escape all around.’

They must have built this underground base to conduct research that shouldn’t be known to the world.

Logically, they would normally dispose of experimental equipment and the utensils and beds in the cells properly when evacuating.

The fact that they hadn’t means they were pressed for time during the retreat.

‘They probably didn’t expect the imperial army to enter the city through the supply routes overnight.’

It’s likely they burned those valuable research materials out of urgency.

They probably fled without checking whether the documents were properly incinerated.

After surveying the surrounding area, I easily spotted unsold papers.

Of course, they weren’t intact.

The top and bottom were burned halfway.

Still, it was a sufficient amount to ascertain the events that transpired.

I picked up several sheets from the floor and brushed off the ash covering the surface.

As I did, the text on the paper became legible.

『…The final goal is to develop cutting-edge combat weapons that can change the tide of war. If it’s possible to turn humans into weapons through the fusion of magic and science, then subduing the empire’s ambitions and the kingdom re-emerging as a great power isn’t impossible…』

Many parts were burned, making it difficult to read other words.

I flipped the page.

『…Although most magic has been put into practice, there still exist proven effective magics. Magic Arrow granting enhanced attributes and temporary physical boosts can be used by most soldiers, but special techniques like optical camouflage or gravity field generation require high talent.』

I turned the page.

『…What would happen if talent could be artificially formed? For instance, if ordinary soldiers could possess the strength of imperial guards? This experiment, originating from the initial question, involves injecting enhancement substances into volunteers with high magical aptitude…』

I flipped the page again.

『…In conclusion, all were failures. All volunteers exhibited abnormal magical reactions, leading to vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, confusion, hallucinations, and self-harm. The degree of magical enhancement was minimal, and it is believed they cannot be used in combat. Moreover, regarding whether those who underwent such torment would pledge loyalty…』

I turned another page.

『…Recent data provided by the United Nations indicates that a successful subject has emerged. Currently, it is unique, and its magical enhancement far exceeds expectations. Thanks to this, our research team pays homage to the United Nations and will name the code for future projects after this subject…』

After reading the last part of the page, I narrowed my eyes sharply.

『…Naming it the Lucy Project.』

The Lucy Project.

That’s exactly what was written at the bottom of the report.

*

After securing the report, I exited the laboratory and had Lieutenant McCall keep the discovery of the laboratory confidential.

To clear my thoughts, I patrolled the nearby area, eventually heading towards the dessert shop where I had promised to meet Lucy in the afternoon.

Upon entering the shop, the soft classical music soothed my ears.

As I admired the quaint Gothic décor, someone waved their hand from a table by the window.

“Captain! Over here!”

Turning my head, I found Prien.

For some reason, Lucy was sitting next to her.

Surprised by this, I approached and asked.

“Cadet Prien? I didn’t expect you to be with my aide.”

“I came to grab some dessert and accidentally spotted Lieutenant Lucy. When I heard you were coming, I decided to wait. Oh, by the way! I ordered everything on the menu, so you can just sit down.”

“You ordered the menu? You?”

“Yes. When I heard from Lieutenant Lucy that you were craving éclairs, I decided to save you some time and placed the order in advance.”

Is that so? It wasn’t too bad, so I agreed and sat across from Prien.

Glancing over at Lucy once more.

‘…She was a test subject? Lucy?’

The game never mentioned Lucy’s past, so I was hearing it for the first time now.

Moreover, weapons like Lucy didn’t appear until the end of the game.

Well, there was one more in the enemy country, but that person purely had exceptional talent, so that was an exception.

Which meant their cutting-edge weapon development project keeps failing into the foreseeable future.

‘But still…’

How could Lucy, a test subject of the United Nations, pledge her loyalty to them?

Is there something I still don’t know?

As I pondered this, my gaze locked with Lucy’s.

Her blood-red eyes seemed particularly sinister today.

“Captain? Is there something you’d like to say?”

Searching for an excuse, I stammered.

“Just… thought you looked especially lovely today.”

My unexpected compliment seemed to take her by surprise, as she blinked several times before subtly nodding.

“…Thank you.”

I sighed in relief, thinking I had dodged a bullet, but soon felt Prien’s gaze on me.

Prien was giving me a look that seemed less than pleased with my compliment to Lucy.

Just as I was wondering what was going on, a waitress approached with a tray.

“Thank you for waiting. Which one of you ordered the éclair and coffee?”

“That’s me,” I raised my hand.

With a smile, the waitress set the éclair and coffee down in front of me.

Next, she placed mint chip ice cream in front of Prien and Lucy.

Lucy looked at the ice cream for a moment, then turned to the waitress.

“Um, excuse me. I think there’s been a mix-up with the order.”

“What? That can’t be…”

As the waitress faltered, Prien interjected.

“No, it’s exactly what was ordered. You can go back now.”

Thanks to Prien’s bright smile, the waitress awkwardly nodded and returned to the counter.

Once the waitress was out of earshot, Prien maintained her smile and said,

“Lieutenant Lucy entrusted me with the menu order, right? Since you didn’t express a preference, I thought you’d like the mint chip ice cream.”

Well, even so, wouldn’t it have been polite to at least ask the subject?

Feeling it was a bit much, I turned to Lucy and a chill ran down my spine without me realizing it.

Lucy was glaring at Prien as if she were going to kill her.