My Desertion Would Be Faster Than Heros' Obsession-Chapter 31Vol 2.

"Anyway, I glanced around and finally got to the point with Dalin."

“There’s actually a bit of a problem.”

“A problem? What kind of problem?”

“I got caught committing treason.”

“Pfft—Cough! Cough! I—I’d appreciate it if you never acknowledged me in public again...”

“The government doesn’t have our names yet!”

“Oh, haha, I thought Lady Salvia was on the run again.”

Dalin grinned in that infuriating way of hers, and I glared daggers at her.

“Anyway, there’s something you can help me with. Dalin, what’s your battalion commander’s name?”

“Uhm... Go... Goblin? I think? Something like that!”

“...You mean Gavle?”

“Oh! That sounds about right!”

Damn it. I had forgotten that Dalin was terrible at remembering people’s names. Some things never change.

“How the hell did you become a company commander when you still can’t remember names?”

I gave her a hard time, but at least the battalion commander hadn’t changed. That was good news. I leaned in a little closer, lowering my voice.

“Dalin... have you noticed anything suspicious in your battalion?”

“Suspicious...?”

“Has any of your commanding officers said anything to you? Something out of the ordinary?”

Come to think of it, Dalin was technically an officer now.

That meant—could she already be involved with the revolutionary group operating inside the Snowy Mountain Battalion?

Dalin furrowed her brows in thought before finally responding.

“Oh, now that I think about it, I did overhear something...”

“Ooh, what was it?”

“Lady Salvia, are you familiar with the legend of the Snowy Mountain Battalion?”

“....”

“They say a ghost haunts the battalion. It drains the souls of soldiers and, if it happens enough times, the victims eventually die completely.”

...What the hell?

Who the hell spread that fake legend I made up?!

I sighed deeply. I was a fool for expecting anything useful from Dalin. I should just get straight to the point.

“Dalin, I need you to deliver a letter for me.”

Originally, I had refused to entrust the letter to anyone, but if it was Dalin, I could trust her. She’s a company commander now, so she should make fewer mistakes. Probably.

I pulled out the letter—but then, a new concern came to mind.

When would I receive a reply?

I had to leave the North eventually, and while the battalion commander could send me a letter, I couldn’t send one back.

“...Before that, can you find out when the next civilian support mission will be?”

Dalin tilted her head in confusion, then shouted cheerfully.

“I have no idea, hehe!”

“...How do you not know?!”

I felt my temple throb as I grabbed my neck out of frustration. Is this what Ishina felt when dealing with me? If so, I really owed her an apology.

“Ah!”

Suddenly, Dalin clapped her hands together, as if she had just remembered something.

“Oh! We still need to clear snow in the neighboring village! So we’ll be coming down tomorrow as well! If you go there, we can meet again!”

“Good. I’ll head there at the same time tomorrow.”

The neighboring village was close enough to reach on foot.

I handed Dalin the letter and spoke in a serious tone.

“Dalin, I have a mission for you.”

“A mission?!”

Her eyes sparkled with excitement.

“First, deliver this letter to your battalion commander. No one else can «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» see it.”

At my words, Dalin’s expression lit up.

“So... you’re assigning me a mission?!”

“...Yeah. A mission.”

Seeing how excited she was about the word “mission,” I leaned in and whispered even more dramatically.

Dalin’s face was practically glowing.

“Yay! I’ve always wanted to do something like this! Stealing information from my own organization!”

...That wasn’t exactly what I meant.

Wait a minute. Actually, getting inside information from them wouldn’t be a bad idea.

The source of this c𝐨ntent is freёnovelkiss.com.

I still didn’t know how big the revolutionary group was, who was involved, or what methods they were planning to use.

If I wanted to work with them, I needed information.

“...Dalin.”

“Yes!”

“Do you actually want to become a spy?”

“KYAAA!”

Dalin shrieked in pure joy.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“A spy?! That’s something I’ve always wanted to do! Back when I worked as a maid in the Duke’s household, I dreamed of being bribed by an assassin and leaking information—but unfortunately, nothing like that ever happened!”

“...Uh-huh, I see.”

For some reason, I was suddenly very grateful that Patty and Matty weren’t here.

If those two joined Dalin, things would become unbearably chaotic.

Since it was about time for Dalin to return to her unit, I gave her one final instruction.

“Dalin, here’s what you need to do...”

***

‘Who could it be?’

Gavle, the battalion commander of the Snowy Mountain Battalion, stared tensely at the letter in front of him.

A short while ago, Dalin, the troublemaker of a newly appointed company commander, had delivered it. She claimed someone in the village had entrusted her with it.

But who in the world would go about delivering letters this way? His family could send him letters directly through the official channels, so it wasn’t from them.

Feeling a strange tension in his chest, the battalion commander ripped open the envelope.

And what he found inside was a letter from someone he had never expected.

To My Former Battalion Commander,

How have you been, Commander? This is Salvia. Do you remember me? The soldier with the red hair?

After being discharged, I’ve been working toward the goal I always had in mind. As someone once put it, it’s something that matches the color of my hair.

And for that work, I wish to seek your advice.

I would like the opportunity to meet with you in person to hear your counsel.

Please send your reply through the person who delivered this letter.

—Salvia

‘Salvia!’

She had been discharged for quite some time, but he could still picture her vividly.

She was the boldest soldier he had ever encountered—someone who had gone so far as to mess with her own company commander and get herself kicked out of the battalion.

And then there was that comment left by the previous battalion commander:

"Holds beliefs as red as her hair."

That note had been particularly memorable.

The reason Salvia was writing to him was crystal clear.

She was preparing for a revolution.

The "work" she mentioned was exactly that. And now, she was reaching out for his advice, looking to form an alliance.

Salvia was testing the waters with him.

‘She has no fear.’

She was subtly probing him without explicitly stating her intentions. Her finesse in wording things this way was remarkable.

Closing his eyes, he carefully considered Salvia’s proposal.

‘If it’s her... she might be worth it.’

But this was not a decision he could make on his own. He had comrades who had shared his vision for a long time, and they had to move together.

‘I’ll need to send some letters.’

Gavle began drafting messages to the scattered members of his inner circle within the military.

Meanwhile, outside the window, a pair of sharp eyes gleamed as they watched the scene unfold.

‘Tas, Gabriel, Crimson...’

Dalin quickly scribbled the names onto her notebook, having glimpsed them on the envelope.

Playing spy made her feel oddly competent. She almost burst into laughter but barely managed to hold it back.

Of course, she couldn’t stop grinning like a fool.

‘This will earn me Lady Salvia’s favor!’

Truth be told, Dalin had a natural talent for recognizing power structures.

When she had first joined the Cledore Mountain Battalion, she had immediately identified the real movers and shakers in the unit and wisely kept her head down.

But her admiration for Salvia had gone beyond mere political instinct—it had become genuine loyalty.

‘Lady Salvia hasn’t changed a bit since being discharged.’

That meant that, for the sake of her own future, it was in her best interest to stay close to Salvia.

Still grinning, Dalin clutched her notebook tightly.

***

“So you sent letters to those people?”

“Yes! And I wrote down exactly which military units each of them was stationed in!”

“You did great!”

Reading Dalin’s notes, I looked thoroughly pleased.

This brat— it seemed that after becoming a company commander, she had actually grown sharper than when she was a mere soldier.

It had been a day since our last meeting, and, as promised, I had met Dalin again in the neighboring village.

Of course, the poor soldiers were still shoveling snow like their lives depended on it.

‘So the revolutionary group isn’t just in the Snowy Mountain Battalion—it’s spread throughout the imperial army.’

The revolutionary movement I had been seeking wasn’t confined to just one battalion.

It had spread across various units in the imperial military.

Which made sense.

A lot of Arkons had decided to commit to long-term military service.

Even though they were technically imperial soldiers, living off the empire’s wages, they still harbored resentment toward the government.

It was only natural that a revolutionary network had formed among them.

Everything was going smoothly.

...Well, except for one thing.

‘This is going to take a while.’

Since Gavle needed to consult his comrades, he hadn’t sent a reply yet.

And I had no idea when Dalin would next be deployed for civilian support.

So did that mean I had to stay in this village until then?

“Haaah...”

I sighed, thinking of my other comrades who were surely waiting for me elsewhere.

If things took too long, I might have to send them a letter instead.

Rather than leaving on the next carriage, I could use that carriage to send a message.

That way, they wouldn’t worry about me.

For now, I had to focus on what was most important.

Since my alliance with the Second Prince’s faction had fallen apart, I needed to secure a new one—at all costs.

“Dalin.”

I called her name in a serious tone, and her face lit up with excitement.

She was clearly expecting another mission.

“Yes! Please give me your orders!”

“...You really are going to have to become a real spy.”

“...What do you mean by that?”

“You need to infiltrate an organization.”