By Zephyria ‘Is he taking revenge for pushing his hand away?’
Leonardo thought as he looked around the inside of the tent.
The inside was spacious. It was sturdy enough that almost no drafts came in, and it had a cot, a side table, and a chair, probably because it was a place used by the Corps Commander.
The beds were placed one on each of the left and right walls, and judging by the fact that Agrizendro’s luggage was on the right cot, mine seemed to be on the left.
Leonardo approached the left bed and gently pressed the thin mattress. It was so fluffy that it was hard to believe it was a cot. It was a rather luxurious sleeping arrangement that was unimaginable in such a remote place.
‘It’s good to be high-ranking.’
The reason he told me to share the same tent was to keep an eye on me because he didn’t know where I might go, but thanks to that, I was able to enjoy what the commander enjoyed, so that one thing wasn’t bad.
But soon Leonardo came back to reality and predicted that tonight’s sleep would be more uncomfortable than ever. He sighed softly, released the cloak he had fixed on his shoulder again, and placed the magic rings and gloves he had been wearing on his hand on the side table next to the bed.
At that moment, he heard someone opening the entrance of the tent and coming inside. Leonardo quickly turned his head.
Hugo, who bent his back slightly and came in, glanced at Leonardo once and went straight to his bed on the right. Then he began to take off his black protective vest, various protective gear, and finally his combat uniform top.
Leonardo was organizing his place when he glanced at his back.
A thinly compressed, high-elasticity compression armor was revealed under the combat uniform top, and when he took it off, a common black military T-shirt that many people wore inside their combat uniforms caught his eye.
It was so common that anyone who received military supplies such as the Imperial royal guard, the Imperial Army, or the Council would wear it, but seeing him wearing it, it didn’t seem so common.
The stretchy black T-shirt clung to Agrizendro’s body, revealing curves that allowed one to guess his muscular body even through the clothes. The broad back and the firm-looking forearms with tendons revealed under the short sleeves were Hugo’s bare skin, which Leonardo was seeing for the first time except for his face and hands, so he couldn’t help but look.
Hugo was organizing his clothes and spoke to Leonardo as if he had eyes in the back of his head.
“Do you like the place?”
At his question, Leonardo quickly came to his senses and replied.
“Uh… well, it’s not bad.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”
Hugo neatly folded his clothes and placed them on the side table, finishing his place roughly. Then he turned back to the entrance of the tent and said to Leonardo.
“If you’re done, let’s go out for dinner.”
When Leonardo nodded and got up from his seat, Hugo went out first, lifting the cloth at the entrance of the tent and waiting for him. Only after Leonardo, who followed immediately, came out completely did he lower the cloth he was holding again.
Looking around the scenery, bonfires were crackling in front of the tents, and some members were distributing meals while spreading out a large deck in the center. The meal seemed to be warmed-up combat rations, but everyone was sitting in a circle and enjoying dinner quite satisfactorily, as if even that felt delicious because the day had been hard.
In front of the tent used by Hugo and Leonardo, bonfires and simple chairs were already spread out in a circle. And there, the adjutant Flynn and several members wearing armbands were sitting and eating first. Among them, there was a familiar face.
A woman with long black hair tied up high glanced at Leonardo while eating. Then, she turned her eyes coldly again and focused on the food in her bowl.
For a moment, Leonardo was thinking about where he had seen that somewhat familiar face, but in the meantime, Hugo pulled out a chair and said to him.
“Sit down.”
Hugo sat right next to the chair he pulled out for Leonardo to sit on. Leonardo wanted to sit one space away, but he didn’t want to refuse the favor, so he just plopped down in the seat he had prepared.
“Commander, here you are.”
“Thank you, Flynn.Flynn handed Hugo the combat rations and utensils that he had previously transferred into a container. Then he approached Leonardo and handed him the same thing, saying.
“Here, it’s yours.”
Leonardo took it with a slightly puzzled look and looked into Flynn’s eyes. It was because he didn’t expect him to have taken care of his as well.
“Thank you.”
In response to his answer, Flynn replied lightly, “Yeah,” and went back to his seat as if it were nothing. However, there was a pleasant smile on his lips.
Leonardo stared blankly at the food that was being warmed up and steaming. In fact, he had eaten more combat rations than anyone else here, so he didn’t have high expectations.
Food made for the convenience of wartime focused only on high calories and long-term preservation, so there was a limit to how well it could be made. There was even a rumor that it was deliberately made tasteless because if it was too delicious, there would be a problem of not being able to control one’s appetite when isolated.
So he thought the taste would be similar to that of the military here… but when he actually saw it, the composition was quite diverse and the contents were substantial, which was a bit unexpected.
Stew, dried bread, omelet, sausage, and other small snacks from the sealed pack were neatly plated in the container. Flynn’s delicate personality seemed to stand out.
Leonardo took a spoonful of stew and sniffed it.
‘The smell is good.’
The first impression wasn’t bad. As soon as he put it in his mouth, his thought that it would be the same as what he ate in the military was completely overturned. It was quite delicious for combat rations.
While he was silently marveling inwardly, he suddenly felt a gaze and looked to the side, and Hugo was looking at him. Leonardo also looked at him, and suddenly realized that he was eating the same food as the general members and asked.
“You eat the same thing too?”
Hugo nodded lightly and asked back.
“Is it unfamiliar?”
“A little.”
“The Council eats the same food regardless of rank when performing missions in remote areas where it is difficult to obtain food. It’s one of the many different aspects from the military you know.”
That was certainly the case.
In the military, it was unimaginable for someone as high-ranking as a commander to eat the same combat rations as ordinary soldiers. No, before that, the commander only gave orders from headquarters and would never be directly involved in actual combat. He himself had rarely seen one of the few commanders of the Imperial Army directly on the battlefield.
Thinking that way, Leonardo suddenly realized that the person next to him was an incredibly high-ranking person in military terms.
But what Leonardo felt while being with the Council for only a short time was that the system and atmosphere of the military and the Council were quite different.
Unlike the military, where a clear hierarchy divided by rank and thorough top-down command were important, the Council seemed to have ranks and rules, but it didn’t seem to be as conservative a culture as he thought.
They shared opinions more freely, and superiors seemed to accept the opinions of subordinates to some extent. In addition, during operational meetings, instead of unilateral orders from above, everyone put their heads together to discuss how to come up with better strategies.
And above all, ‘the most capable commander leads the vanguard’ was the most impressive difference from the military that Leonardo saw in the Council’s appearance. He didn’t know what the details were, but the Council he saw had a younger and more horizontal culture than the Imperial Army and was closer to a merit-based system.
As the things he had felt unfamiliar with for a short period of time gathered one by one and became a big difference, Leonardo’s expression darkened a little.
In the past, he had made a ‘wrong decision’ as those who criticized his actions that day said. He himself thought that the decision was not wrong, but that thought gradually wavered as he heard all kinds of harsh words, to the point where even he couldn’t be sure.
So, before the central branch’s procession entered the peninsula, he was worried that the plan based on his words might be a wrong decision. But the man in front of him said that he didn’t have to worry because his role was to review and approve it and take final responsibility.
Leonardo had seen countless executives in the military who passed on responsibility, but he had never seen a commander who would say such things to someone who no longer held any position.
Leonardo stared blankly at Hugo’s face and thought.
‘If I had been in the Council, would things have been a little different?’
Hugo, who saw Leonardo’s dark expression, was silent for a moment and then cautiously asked him.
“Does it suit your taste?”
Leonardo looked down at the stew in his hand and nodded.
“It’s delicious.”
He immediately took another spoonful of stew and put it in his mouth. As if to prove his words, Hugo smiled faintly as he looked at Leonardo, who ate well.
“There’s a lot, so eat more if you’re not full.”