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Mein Krieg (Youjo Senki/Tanya the Evil OC)

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Well, given that they are both on the commissioned officer track, it stands to reason that they will both start out as leutnants with their own sets of troops below them.
 
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Chapter 6: Lessons of strategy
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    • Chapter 6: Lessons of strategy​


    The following morning, the wakeup was not very pleasant.

    I remember it very well because, unlike my still-sleeping comrades (particularly Rommel, who was snoring loudly and annoyingly), I was already awake. My sleep was so light that I always woke up before everyone else. Call it a habit from my time at the orphanage. I doubted cadets would behave like the pranksters typical of my childhood, but early morning alertness was a habit so deeply rooted in me that I could not disobey it.

    I was looking enviously at my comrades when suddenly a terrible thought occurred to me. We were in a military academy. And in military academies, just like in normal barracks, it was likely that the wakeup would be performed by loudspeakers and screaming sergeants who would come to wake us in a "violent" way.

    And then, another though: I was already awake. If I could get ready and dressed in my uniform before the Major arrived, I would gain more points in his eyes.

    For a few seconds, I wondered if it was a good thing to wake up my comrades and persuade them to do like me. However, in the end I decided not to do it. Apart from the fact that I would have wasted time explaining my idea to them, I would have risked getting some insult or worse. We were not friendly enough for me to want to risk it.

    Then I got out of my cot, being careful not to produce any noise that could wake them up. I put my bare feet on the floor of the dormitory and moved, guided by the little light that illuminated the room, towards my uniform.

    I do not deny that it was difficult to dress in silence and with very little light, moreover with the fear of producing a noise that would alarm my dormant comrades, but in the end, I succeeded in my intent. I would have liked to have a mirror with which to check if the uniform was crumpled and was instead in good order, but the only mirror that we had available was located in the public bathroom, and to reach it I would have to go through the whole dormitory.

    Fortunately, I still had two hands and a sense of touch, so I checked the uniform carefully, hoping that if there was something wrong, I could notice it before the Major.

    I was just finishing up checking myself when I heard a noise coming from outside. I croaked my ears, trying to figure out what it could be. Then I understood:

    It was a military trumpet, the alarm clock for the academy cadets.

    Nothing happened for several minutes. Then, suddenly, I heard footsteps coming from outside and several lights in the entrance hall to our dormitory came on.

    I knew what was going to happen. Immediately, I stood in a position near the edge of my bed, beating my boots against each other. I know I made noise because I heard Rommel stop snoring. Nevertheless, it was too late.

    Three seconds, and then the door of our chamber opened, filling the room with light and making my companions moan in protest. I looked at the door. There was a sergeant, accompanied by two men of the military police. He did not seem too happy.

    I was hidden from his sight by a bed, so he could not see that I was already awake and in uniform. For the moment, at least.

    "Get up! Get up!" thundered the sergeant with full lungs, clapping hands to produce noise "Rise and shine, sweethearts! Stop sleeping and put on your uniforms!"

    Hearing the noise, and seeing the sergeant, my comrades understood the situation and suddenly lost any trace of drowsiness. In a few moments, they went out of their beds (except Rommel, who fell out of it) and started desperately trying to dress in their uniforms back.

    The sergeant took a few steps forward, continuing to bombard us with words.

    "Move move move, maggots! You have an entire day in front of you: you better get dress before…"

    Suddenly, he stopped. The sergeant was now looking at me, motionless.

    "Cadet Frederick König, are you dressed already?" The sergeant shouted at me

    "Yes, sergeant!" I said and saluted.

    The sergeant kept looking at me for a few seconds. For an instant, I worried if I did something wrong: maybe it was against the regulation to dress up before the Reveille?

    He grunted, but he did not say anything. Apparently, dressing yourself before being ordered to do so was not against the regulation.

    "Very well" he finally said, nodding to me "I like to see a soldier eager like you!"

    Then he proceeded with his inspection, leaving myself grinning internally, and my comrades to look at me with envy…
    ​

    After using the first hour to cleaning, grooming and dressing ourselves, we had basic drill and physical exercises. The exercises were hard, and their heaviness was exacerbated by the weariness we almost all had.

    However in the end, after five hours of suffering, we went to the cafeteria to enjoy a quick breakfast. When we arrived, we noticed with pleasure that some tables were still half-empty, a sign that there were still some cadets who were being scolded by their respective sergeants.

    First, I went to take my morning ration of calories. I took a tray and lined up with other cadets waiting for my turn to arrive. Meanwhile I looked around, trying to spot Tanya.

    Looking carefully at the hall, I saw that she was already seated at one of the tables furthest from where I was. She was drinking a cup of something which I assumed was hot chocolate, and she was reading a small booklet. I do not know why, but I could not help thinking about that day when we met at the station, the day our old life ended.

    Fortunately, it was not too long before my turn came. Quickly, I passed in front of the employees of the cafeteria, which provided to supply me with a sufficient quantity of calories to survive the entire morning. The only drawback? The inevitable hot chocolate, a thin substitute for a coffee.

    Once I took my food, I went as fast as possible to the table where, until then, Tanya was alone.

    "Can I afford to keep you company, princess?" I said looking at her.

    Tanya did not raised her eyes to look at me, and neither did she turned her head. She just stopped drinking her chocolate and nodded in silence.

    "So," I said sitting right in front of her "What's the plan?"

    "Do you remember what we studied yesterday?" she asked to me in a neutral tone

    "And how!" I answered doing a little check-up at the same time "If I want to, ask me anything about On War of von Clausewitz!"

    She smirked "Well. In the first lesson of the morning, they will probably interrogate us about what we have learned yesterday. We absolutely must impress the Major so I hope for your sake that you remember everything!"

    I nodded "Ok, received! By the way, do you happen to know what the schedule for the day is?"

    She took another sip of her chocolate "If I heard correctly, after lessons we have an hour of physical exercise. I shouldn't have to point out how even in this it is of vital importance that we do our best. Then, after lunch, we have more lessons and physical exercise…"

    I groaned, preparing myself to return to my cot dead for the fatigue.

    "Look" she said suddenly, looking at me "I know this task is daunting, but we must not give up! If we let our guard down and send the wrong message to the Major, our careers are already over. And so our chances of finding a place in the rear!"

    "I know…" I said, trying to keep up my confidence.

    Trying not to think about these things, I turned to my breakfast, trying to swallow as much as possible.

    The food was not bad. Indeed, after so many years spent on bread and soup, go back to eating something solid (and similar to my native food) was something beautiful. In a few minutes, I had devoured my entire portion, leaving the bowl before me empty.

    Looking up, I noticed that Tanya was not proceeding with the same appetite.

    "You're not hungry?" I asked her.

    "Not much" she said without looking up from her little book.

    "Can I?" I asked hopeful.

    "Go ahead…"

    I was about to accept Tanya's invitation and proceed to eat as much as she had left her breakfast, when we suddenly heard a very loud whistle come from the entrance of the cafeteria

    It was a sign that breakfast was over, and we had to reach the class.

    In a few minutes, we got up and headed towards the class, leaving behind us all the leftovers…
    ​

    "In the following situation, what is the best combat strategy?" Major Vetter asked to the class.

    Tanya and I remained silent, concentrating on the drawings on the blackboard before us. The Major had just exposed us to a situation in which one of our army was forced to face an enemy army superior in number, and he wanted to know if, in our opinion, there were ways to defeat the enemy army.

    I looked back without turning. It was evident that many of my classmates had not studied enough to be able to hypothesize a satisfactory answer, and so nobody dared to speak.

    I smirked. This would have been even easier than expected.

    I raised my hand.

    "Yes, cadet König?" the Major focused on me.

    "Sir" I said standing up "In the following situation, the victory is hard, but not impossible. And it can be achieved through three easy steps."

    The Major walked to me. It was apparent that my answer had lit his curiosity.

    "And tell me: what are these steps?"

    "First, I would force the enemy to divide his forces into smaller groups. Then, I would create a superior force of attack to the individual corps of the Enemy's Army. And finally, I would try to destroy the individual enemy corps individually, exploiting a superior ability to move through the battlefield"

    The Major continued to look at me for a few seconds, before turning back to the map drawn by him.

    "What do you think of the plan proposed by your comrade?" The Major asked to the class "Do you think he's right?"

    Nobody in the class answered. It was clear that they were all too afraid to say their opinions.

    "Well, no one?" the Major said, looking at the cadets "Well, it looks like we will have to do it the old way. You!" he suddenly said, pointing to a random cadet

    The cadet, taken by surprise, seemed to shrink a few millimeters "Yes sir?"

    "What do you think of the reasoning of Cadet König?"

    "Well, sir" he said prevaricating a little "I believe… I believe he is right!"

    "Oh, he is right? Would you care to tell me why?"

    "B-because… because this way it's possible to destroy the enemy force little by little, thus enabling our forces to gain the upper hand, sir!"

    The Major moved towards him, a menacing glare on his face.

    "So, you are saying that you support his idea? Too bad…."

    I saw the cadet shiver. And I with him.

    "…because it's right. And if you knew that, you should have been the first to answer!" said the Major.

    The cadet and I looked each other, sharing a complicit smile.

    "Let's change battlefield" the Major said erasing the blackboard and starting to draw a new strategic map "Let's suppose the following situation: you are in charge of a garrison along the border. You receive information of an imminent attack from the enemy, with which you are still technically at peace. You also know that the best defense strategy you have is to carry out a pre-emptive attack aimed at destroying as many of the enemy's units as possible. What would you do?"

    The Major turned to the class. Many of the other students they were studying the map carefully, trying to find an answer to the difficult question. Personally, I was also analyzing the difficult question, trying to find a presentable solution.

    However, I did not see any of them.

    Attacking was the best option, but attacking without proof an enemy who whom you were still technically in peace would have been a real diplomatic disaster, and safe way for a demotion or the firing squad.

    I was so busy thinking of a possible solution that I almost did not notice Tanya getting up next to me.

    "Cadet Degurechaff!" the Major shouted, making me and the other cadets in the class look at her "Do you think you can answer my question?"

    "Yes sir! However, to get a complete picture of the situation, I need to ask: are high ranking officers present in our side?"

    The Major thought for a moment "No. Let's suppose there are not."

    "In this case, sir, obviously attacking the enemy without a state of war subsisting between the two sides would be seen as a serious violation of international law and would lead to a diplomatic fallout and public relations. However, knowing the intentions of the enemy, one could without any difficulty prepare the troops to implement a mobile defense, which may initially contain the impetus of the enemy attack and then allow a counterattack aimed at destroying the way of retreat of the enemy. In this way, once you have forced the enemy to open fire first, you can proceed to its elimination without any problems."

    The Major looked at Tanya for another instant "Very well" he said grinning at us "That's an idea. I was hoping for something more brilliant, but at least you think! You others" he said looking angrily at the class "try to bang your heads on the books until you learn!"

    The looks we received were numerous, and of all shapes. Many, including those of Rommel and my other comrades, were impressed and excited, a sign that we were able to surprise them in the right way. An excellent prerequisite for starting up future high-potential relations of friendship.

    Other, were not so friendly.

    Apparently, the idea that an eight-year-old boy could know better the military doctrine had made more than one cadet angry. I still remember the weird glares they gave to us. Many were of pure envy, and would have been without consequences, but others?

    It was then that the class bell rang.

    "Very well!" the Major said "Since apparently you are still far from planning a strategy, in the afternoon I will ask you about the strategies of von Clausewitz and the guidelines to follow in battle. Try to learn them well, because this time I will choose who must answer the question!"
    ​
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Should have answered something like creating a false-flag attack to blame on the enemy and use as pretext to launch your preemptive strike before they have fully moved into position.
     
    yinko said:
    Should have answered something like creating a false-flag attack to blame on the enemy and use as pretext to launch your preemptive strike before they have fully moved into position.
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    I remember reading about this sentiment in another fanfic, the Empire would follow the technical and letters of laws to a tee - all while pissing on the spirit.

    Following the canon, Tanya would soon become a Major, commander of an all-mage special unit. I think we should have Konig breaking the norm, giving him command of a mixed front-line unit would be a good idea. Of course, both of the two would be complete and hilarious back-fire from their attempts to stay behind the front.
     
    yinko said:
    Should have answered something like creating a false-flag attack to blame on the enemy and use as pretext to launch your preemptive strike before they have fully moved into position.
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    Doing that without any governmental authorization would get the officer in charge court-martialed. And fabricating a casus belli like that is liable to backfire as it's very unlikely that other countries would believe it.
     
    ComradeH said:
    I remember reading about this sentiment in another fanfic, the Empire would follow the technical and letters of laws to a tee - all while pissing on the spirit.

    Following the canon, Tanya would soon become a Major, commander of an all-mage special unit. I think we should have Konig breaking the norm, giving him command of a mixed front-line unit would be a good idea. Of course, both of the two would be complete and hilarious back-fire from their attempts to stay behind the front.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Well, that was what the Empire was accused of, though it was an exaggeration. It's true that they did interprete some laws and treaties in creative ways, mostly Tanya either directly or indirectly like with her paper on how to interpret wartime law so that shelling cities was legal, but it was by no way a national doctrine, and in the same line of reasoning it was typically the most efficient option. Aren was an important hub for the supply of the frontline, and a long siege, especially with the Francois army supporting the rebels, could have starved the frontline and risked the entire war. The main thing was that Tanya applied what we in our history discovered in the modern wars to a pre-WWI world, which still held ideals like chivalry and valor as the highest virtues to strive for, because everyone was for the most part still working with doctrines developed during the time of the muzzle-loaded muskets. In honesty for the most part all the Empire really did was adapt to the changes technology caused in how wars are fought quicker than anyone else, and the complaints were a mix of propaganda and sore losers whining.

    While your idea for a mixed regiment for Frederick sounds interesting, I don't think it'll happen. My guess is those two will be kept together, in part because of the title-pic. Note that both Frederick and Tanya are wearing a Silver-winged Assault Medal and what looks to be a Type 95-computation-orb. How Being X managed to swing events that both children would test one of the orbs at the exact same time so that the "miracle" happens to both I do not know, but either way it's a good indicator that both will be combat-mages. And honestly speaking mages are difficult to group with any other unit, because essentially all land-based units are too slow to keep up with them, and planes typically fly at heights and sometimes speeds average combat-mages can't equal, so a mixed unit would probably be rejected as impractical by Central Command. And though this could just be a reference for how our OC has stolen the role of story-protagonist, in the title-pic Tanya does not look happy with Frederick, so we might assume that he, whilst initially mainly by riding on Tanya's coattails, might unintentionally leech off some of Tanya's glory and possibly even start to overshadow her in the eyes of Command, simply because of the old sexism that old military men if given the choice would rather glorify a young man rather than a young girl. Best case they have to share glory, though if we assume that one is the wing's commander and the other the Second-in-Command that would be rather difficult since Weiss stated military protocol does not allow for a commander and his second-in-command to be wing-mates, assumably to ensure they're not both wiped out by a lucky artillery-shell or something.
     
    I just at this point want the entire military hierarchy to decide that the pair are star crossed lovers who are too professional to admit to their relationship. Therefore they keep conspiring to assign them together, possibly even to the front where... relationships between officers are more relaxed... than the safe back lines where they could never be together. :)

    Obviously this would be years and years into the future for all you crazy people getting ideas. Until then they can use the excuse of they are the same age/compliment one another etc.
     
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    Chapter 7: First flight
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    • Chapter 7: First flight​

    Academy for Officers of the Imperial Army, The Empire
    17 June, Unified Year 1921    ​

    It had been about a week since we entered the Academy, and both Tanya and I were perfectly integrated into the difficult rhythms of military life.

    As far as I could tell, military life was not too different from any other style of life. You just had to remember some important rules: make your bed every morning, stand up straight and when an officer speaks to you, finish the sentence with "Yes sir".

    The environment where I felt most comfortable was the library. Here I could find numerous sources on the most famous battles, war tactics and strategies, from Hannibal to Napoleon, from Julius Caesar to Frederick Redbeard. Learning the strategies and the tricks of these great leaders, I learned how to lead an army, win a battle and especially how to respond to the questions of the Major. Getting good grades was rewarding, but getting good grades while other people barely managed to get by was something that could put you in a good mood even if you had corvee work to do.

    However, do not think that being the first in the class is all good and beneficial: to get those good grades I had to work hard, both in terms of time and in terms of concentration. In addition, my good marks on the theory of war were mixed with my "unpromising" physical and motor skills.

    Here is something that neither Tanya nor I had thought about when we volunteered: the physical lessons of the Academy were not tailored for eight-year-old children. To survive such exercises, we could rely only on our determination, or to be precise, on that of Tanya, because if it had been for me, I do not know if we would have made it.

    Fortunately, apparently wizards already enjoyed a certain privileged position within the academy, so things changed after a few weeks. What we would do from now on would be less traditional physical exercises (although we still did a lot) and more exercises designed for wizards, where our magical ability and not the physical one would make the difference.

    Tanya and I were just intent on listening to the words of our magical instructor, a blond man who answered the name of Ludwig. The lesson we were facing today, the first of the "magic" course, was the basic lesson: how to fly. Apparently, learning to fly was the most basic thing a magician could do.

    For this, Tanya and I were already equipped for the big test.

    Each of us wore the following equipment: over the uniform, we wore a heavy jacket, similar to that of pilots, that in the intentions it would have to protect us from the cold of high altitude. In front of us, at the height of the pelvic region, we wore a large container, used as a storage of magical energy. The container looked more like a military armored backpack: It was all in gray-green color (the only decoration was the imperial cross in white color on the top pocket) and it was made in steel and a fabric similar to Kevlar. The container was connected by a kind of pipe, to a special over-boot we had to wear on the right foot, and that would have allowed us to fly.

    Finally, at the height of the neck, attached with a pendant, we had the Operations Orb.

    The Orbs were some kind of steampunk tool that we, as mages, should have used for interfere with reality through magic according to our will. From what little I had managed to make me tell about the Orbs, they were some kind of high-performance calculator that allowed us to process the world data and convert mana for the use of the wizard owners.

    Furthermore, they were intended to serve as an emergency device: if a wizard found himself overloaded with magical energy, the Orb would allow him to discharge the excess of energy in an easy and safe way. Finally, they would protect us from possible magical influences or corruptions on our mind.

    We had been wearing the Orb for a few days already and frankly, it was hard for me not to stop thinking about them occasionally. They were something incredible and fantastic at the same time: technology designed to allow greater control over magic, something that science itself (at least, in my old life) refused to believe in.

    It was something that should not have existed, but that I had before my eyes (or rather, around my neck) at the same time.

    Tanya nudged me on the side, distracting me from my thoughts. It was then that I realized that Ludwig had stopped giving his speech and was now watching as the first cadets in line started to make their first flight attempts.

    "Try to listen to the important instructions, you brainless doll" Tanya hissed in my ear.

    "I was listening, miss nuisance!" I replied to her, keeping my eyes focused on the other cadets.

    Flying is something that, according to many high intellectuals and scholars of the medieval/renaissance age, the man is not allowed to do (at least, not by himself), and, at least at the beginning, the other cadets seemed to confirm this. Of the first trees, two could not even get up off the ground, while the third, which at first seemed to be on the verge of rising, he ended up turning upside down and bumping into the cadet behind him.

    Only on the fourth, the impossible happened.

    The man was called Otto Nottebohm, and he was a wizard from Imperial Ostland, a region of the Empire bordering and disputed with the Federation, the local equivalent of the USSR. At first, I thought that he too would have failed, but I had been watching him for just a few seconds before I saw him come off the ground, and then he rose up into the sky to a height of at least ten meters.

    I looked at him breathlessly, unable even to think. I was seeing a man who could fly without any mechanical support, supported only by magic. If someone had told me that I would see something like this in my past life, I would never have believed it.

    The row proceeded. Other cadets tried to fly, with different success. Little by little, the time when Tanya and I would have to fly approached.

    "Tanya?" I said, trying to keep the tone of my voice low.

    "What happened?" she said without even looking at me "Are you too afraid to try?"

    "Not at all. Rather, I want to ask you something…"
    ​

    After another ten minutes, Tanya's turn finally came. I watched with excitement as I saw her little body rise above the ground and rise higher and higher in the sky. Mentally, I counted how many meters Tanya rose from the ground: one meter, two, five, and ten!

    At ten meters off the ground, I saw that Tanya had stopped and looked down at where we were gathered. I was tempted to ask her how the view was from up there, but then I realized that it was useless: as soon as she would come down, it would be my turn and I could see with my own eyes the spectacle that now stood before her eyes.

    Finally, after a few more minutes, Tanya began to descend. Little by little, like a leaf carried by the wind, her altitude diminished until she landed, regaining contact with the ground.

    "It's up to you now doll-face," she said passing next to me.

    "I'm born ready, princess," I answered her while walking to the launch point.

    As soon as I was in position, I started to focus and concentrate myself on the duty, following the directions of Ludwig. As I concentrated, I felt the Orb around my neck lightening up as the magic of my body flowed into it. And then, I felt my body begin to rise and rise in altitude, like a balloon.

    The first thought that came to my mind as I pulled away from the ground was a complete wonder: I was flying. I was really flying. There was no way to describe how cool this was. It was like being in a child's dream, so beautiful that you would never want to wake up again.

    But immediately I chased away those thoughts. This was not the time to get stupid child fantasies: I was a cadet of the Academy, a soldier, and I had an objective to reach.

    "Higher, higher" I said to myself looking up at the infinite celestial sky. Mentally, I wondered how high I could get up. Certainly, an imperial wizard had to be able to operate at a height sufficient to be practically safe from most of the enemy's land-based weapons, and at the same time sufficiently low that he could hit the enemy with his own weapons. And that meant ... how much? Twenty meters of altitude? Thirty?

    At that precise moment, a bird flew by me. I followed him with my eyes, bringing me to realize something that until then, immersed in my thoughts, I had not noticed.

    The sun was setting, right in front of us. Its golden rays, albeit in a waning phase, still illuminated the Academy and the whole valley in front of it, up to the mountains in the background, and made the vision look like a romanticist painting to me. Now I knew how the wanderer felt in the famous painting "Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer" by Caspar David Friedrich.

    It was a magnificent sight, of the kind that makes the man feel small in front of Mother Nature.

    Someone else in my place would have felt entranced, and would have wondered if such a spectacle was proof of the existence of a superior being. I was just annoyed. I did not need to ask myself philosophical questions; I already knew from direct experience of the existence of something that had the arrogance of calling itself "God". And I knew that he was also a cold-blood bastard with delusions of grandeur. The fact that I had irritated him could also be discussed, but being reincarnated as a small orphan of a nameless orphanage in the middle of a war meant being cruel to the core.

    "…König, do you hear me?" a voice rose from my wireless communications speakers.

    I stopped reasoning about Being X and answered "Cadet Frederick König speaking"

    "You'd better stop rising and begin the descent before I accuse you of attempted desertion" answered Ludwig with an authoritative voice.

    It was then that I realized that I had risen too much. Definitely too much.

    I stopped focusing my energy on the rising and in a few minutes, I started to go down again. Gradually I saw the world below me expanding gradually, until I re-entered the same place from which I had risen.

    "Well" said Ludwig looking at me with a grim look "It seems that the idea of a firing squad is still enough to keep you in line…"

    I stood still, at attention, motionless as a statue. What punishment would I have received for this? The penalty for those who deserted was death by firing squad. And though I was just distracted, I doubted that a military officer could have distinguished the difference.

    "Sorry for what happened, sir" I said "but I wanted to test at most my limits"

    "Oh yeah?" said Ludwig looking right into my eyes "Well, I can assume you're telling the truth, that you're just distracted. This time, I will let it go, but try to be more careful. Do you understand me?"

    "Yes sir!" I said, relieved that I had been pardoned "By the way, sir, can I ask you how much high I was?"

    "Why do you want to know it?" Ludwig said.

    "Just curiosity, sir"

    Ludwig nodded "You've managed to reach a height of eighteen meters, cadet!"

    "Thank you sir!" I said, trying to get on the back of the line as fast as I could.

    "Good work into almost getting a punishment, you dumb head," Tanya said as soon as we were together again.

    "Sh-sh-sh, little princess" I said, pretending to listen to something she could not hear by herself "Do not you hear it? Apparently, I have risen to a height much higher than you have. This makes me the official winner of our small competition"

    She looked at me with a disinterested look "So? We did not make a bet or something"

    "It still proved I fly better than you!"

    "In your dreams!"    ​
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Merry Christmas.


    "God is an arrogant being with delusions of granduer", says the 8 year old who was twenty seven, in Japan and is now one another world and back in time.

    Would it not be that our imaginings of god were that which was delusional?
     
    So, anime-verse confirmed. Mages don't use flight gear in the manga, or the novel, I think. This means no mountain-cleaving death-beams for Tanya... Which is all good, to be honest. Manga!Tanya is way too powerful.
     
    It probably shouldn't have taken a radio signal to attract his attention. I mean, seriously, call it 20 yards and you are still in easy voice range especially for a drill instructor. That said, he needs to get over his distractibility. Even if it is really cool to fly pay attention deary! Otherwise you are going to get yourself killed.
     
    Ok, wow. This might be the anime verse but you are definitely taking incorrect liberties in regards to the equipment.

    As shown in one of the episodes, the orb around the neck is all they need to conduct spells. Evidenced by the sleeping Viktoriya about to cast a spell and the other person panicking.

    Plus, it isn't every mage can fly. Only the strongest power can do so. But this past is the novel only, I think?

    But hey, if you want to make such drastic changes, that is fine.
     
    @CCMax does have a point as the cut off for mages to be drafted into the Army is those that can sustain flight spells, which is also the requirement to be recognized as at least a C class mage. To just what extent the flying gear vs orbs vs nothing is required for various levels of spellcasting is up for debate. For the most part it seems people agree you don't NEED an orb to cast spells but they are weaker and must be simpler and you can't cast multiple ones at the same time without one. That with an orb you can cast several at a time, and that the rest of the flight gear obviously has something to do with things but it isn't really ever specified as to what. We've seen examples of spells without it in the anime, and the LN makes a fair deal of the rifles being magical focus' as well, so it could be that the rifles are focus's for offensive spells, the flight gear a focus for flight spells, both specialized while the orbs allow you to either supercharge either, could be used to replace either, or are simply there to allow more versatility.

    TLDR - Do what you want, there's no hard and fast facts I've seen to describe exact roles and requirements of gear.
     
    Chapter 8: Playing the Hartman
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    • Chapter 8: Playing the Hartman​

    Academy for Officers of the Imperial Army, The Empire
    5 March, Unified Year 1922    ​

    More time passed. Tanya and I were now among the top students of the academy. Our grades were very good, and we had good relationship with some officers in key position to help us make military life and training more bearable.

    The training lessons ... I believe I will never forget them. Move at night, in the dark, between the mud and the dirt, always alert in fear of betraying ourselves with noise. The "enemy" in these maneuvers were trained soldiers, armed with dogs and mana detectors, and the goal was to try to escape from right under their noses.

    It had been a difficult trial, tough and full of unpleasant surprises, but it was worth it, for what followed. Apparently, the major had been so surprised by the fact that we were able to complete all the objectives, he had decided to mention us in his end-of-course report for his superiors.

    The Imperial Army is a meritocracy, designed to promote the best elements within it. Therefore, because of both our high grades and Tanya's "signaling" theory, she and I were chosen for a quick graduation. Evidently, the international situation was growing more and more fraught, since the imperial military command had established to fast track the top students of the various academies to get more soldiers out in the field.

    Tanya was in first place in the ranking, while I was a little lower, in third place. Therefore, both she and I were "selected" for the special accelerated course.

    Tanya was not particularly disturbed by the amount of work that awaited us. She thought about everything with a free market logic: everything was legal, there were no rules. In fact, even for his decision, we decided to stamp our theses "plagiarizing" some great military leaders of our old life: Oda Nobunaga her and Erwin Rommel me.

    In particular, my thesis focused on the tactics Rommel used several times in his North-African campaign, first against the British first and then Americans: attract the enemy to an area previously designed to act as a trap, and then destroy it.

    "How's the work going?" I asked to Tanya through the wall of books, research notes and paper that were our sources.

    "Very well" she said in a tone of voice which indicated she was concentrating hard "However, I suggest that you stop asking unproductive questions and focus on completing your work before the time is up".

    "Ok, I understand" I said, focusing my gaze once again on my still half-written thesis "By the way, would you like for us to check each other's theses before delivering them?"

    "I do not believe it's a good idea," she said, without looking up from her work "Everyone's work is personal. And I do not think I have enough time to correct all your mistakes"

    I groaned, before focusing on my work again.

    During our last few days of cadet life at the Academy, both Tanya and I worked hard in order to give the best impression of us to our superior officers. However, fate (or someone we knew) had a surprise for us…
    ​

    "You want us to become instructors, sir?" Tanya said at my right.

    We were now in a large office, lavishly decorated and tastefully furnished. In particular, we were in front of a precious wood desk and set before a painting depicting a late eighteenth-century war scene. We were standing in front of the desk, side by side, and we carefully watched the man we had before of us.

    Brigadier General Christof Weitz was not a particularly handsome man. His forehead, wide and spacious, had long since begun to lose hair, leaving a sad desert in its place. Moreover, his morbidly obese physical constitution betrayed an unhealthy love for alcohol and good food, which made him in my personal opinion the ideal candidate for a heart attack. However, he was the commander-in-chief of the Academy, a powerful and respected man and above all, an officer with a rank higher than mine.

    His word was Law, and as such, it had to be obeyed.

    "Yes" he said drinking a glass of golden beer "Apparently, you two are the first-class students with the highest grades, and have demonstrated that you possess all the qualities and skills necessary to carry out this difficult task"

    I stood completely still, trying to analyze with a clear mind what he had just told us. From what I had understood, this was a proposal that was made only to cadets with the highest potential, and in case of refusal it would not be renewed. Moreover, I did not know if it was possible for me to refuse this offer, especially coming from the chief of the Academy.

    I mentally analyzed the proposal made to us. Was it a good idea to accept?

    "Your proposal flatters and honors us, General" Tanya said, "We welcome the opportunity to serve in the development of new recruits!"

    Once again, Tanya had caught me off guard, answering in my name before I could even think of an acceptable answer.

    "Very well!" said General Weitz looking at us "Go to the staff office and report there. I expect you both to start service by tomorrow morning!"

    "Thank you sir" Tanya saluted. I saluted too; still speechless she had managed to entangle me in such a way.

    Later, once we were outside the General's office I took Tanya aside and asked her the question I was waiting to ask her.

    "Just one word: why?" I asked to her once I was sure no one could hear us "Why did you accept the General's offer in my name too?"

    Tanya smiled. It was a different smile than I usually saw it: it was colder ... and wicked.

    "You know" she said in an almost mocking tone "I think that's why in our previous life you were a simple employee and I was a manager: you lack the initiative to seize the opportunities before you."

    I was amazed (and even a little offended) by those words: I always considered myself as a person who knew how to seize opportunities. Hell, it had been precisely in an attempt to seize an opportunity that I had ended up here in this shota body, in this world and in this age because of an entity with great powers and a greater bad temper!

    "What do you mean?" I asked her, my eyes full of anger.

    "I mean," she said keeping smiling "what was the aim of my plan?"

    "To" I said after checking that really nobody was listening to us "to work up our way in the military hierarchy before the war breaks out, so that we can get a safe place in the rear."

    "And tell me: how we could climb the hierarchy if you're afraid of taking on the smallest role of responsibility?"

    "B-but I thought we could focus on our career once we had done graduation" I responded to her "Now it's too early. We are already overworked and if we also take responsibility for training the younger cadets ..."

    "That's the point," she said looking at me firmly "If we can manage this task too, we have good chances to impress our superiors ... in the right way"

    Anxiously, I thought about it, trying to come up with a good counterargument. Seriously, between studies and exercises our existing commitments already leave us with little spare time. And being an instructor is certainly not something that can be done in the spare time.

    Yet, Tanya was right.

    At that moment, it was of the utmost importance that we demonstrate our skills and abilities, and any occasion to make a good impression was welcome.

    Furthermore, Tanya had already accepted in my name. If I had said something when she had spoken, maybe I could have got away with it, but now... if I had refused a proposal after having openly accepted it, I would have done considerable damage to my career. And my career was the only thing that could save me from the front lines once the war started.

    "But…why did you accept the offer even on my behalf?" I asked, no longer angry but just curious.

    "If I had left it to you, you would have compromised everything we have done before. I saw your look: you were about to refuse. However, if you had done it, the general would have been angry with us, and our careers would have ended. So, putting things in perspective ... I just saved you and your career."

    "But…why?"

    "Why?" she repeated with nonchalance "Because I need you, idiot! Maybe you have not noticed, but you are the only person here except me who comes from another universe. You are the only one who can fully understand me, and this makes you the perfect ally for my strategy!"

    "Strategy?" I asked, insecure about what she meant.

    "Yeah" she said moving closer to me, so that my ear was a few millimeters from her mouth "My plan for getting a peaceful place in the rear and, at the same time, revenge on that damned Being X"

    "And you believe that ..." I started to say, before I noticed something.

    Or better, someone.

    Until then I had not noticed him, but Rommel was there, with a stack of documents in his hands and his gaze focused on us.

    "Ahem, Tanya?" I said, pointing to Rommel with my eyes.

    She turned around, just in time to see Rommel grin at us.

    "You!" she said moving away from me and striding toward my roommate "What are you doing here?"

    "Well" Rommel said, trying to justify himself "I was bringing these documents to the General, and since you were right outside the door, I thought not to disturb. By the way, what were you doing together?"

    Tanya began to open her mouth, but before she could formulate a single word, I beat her on time.

    "We were discussing what the General has just told us. Apparently, our grades are good enough to give us the chance to educate some new novice cadets as trainers" I said, earning the wonder of Rommel and Tanya's disapproval.

    "Wow" Rommel said incredulous "Does this mean that from today you will be my superiors?"

    "Not exactly" I said to reassure him "We will simply have the authority to educate and discipline new cadets in shape. However, it is not exactly like a promotion. Consider it more an extra job that the princess and I will have to work on."

    "I understand," said Rommel "Do you know what? I still cannot believe a child beat me in courtship. But you're really cute together!"

    I looked at him smiling until he disappeared behind the same door from which Tanya and I had left a few seconds.

    We were alone again.

    "What a fool, do not you think? He's very physically gifted, but I bet he does not even know how much..."

    I stopped as soon as I realized that Tanya was looking at me. With the mother of all the death glares.

    "What's up? I asked her grinning nervously. Angry Tanya was certainly not something I wanted to see.

    "Satisfy my curiosity" she said with a dark look "By chance, have not you told yet to Rommel and your other roommates that we're not a couple?"

    "Well, I tried."
    ​

    Apparently, a rite of passage that all the cadets undergo on their first day at the Academy is being bombarded with insults and provocations by a sergeant or an older cadet. A kind of initiation, which serves to immediately make the enthusiastic and optimistic cadet understand what military life is really like.

    And now, I was in front of the same scene that I had lived a year before. However, this time the instructor was I.

    I already knew what the most obvious problems would be: most of the cadets were young adults or men, who would hardly accept the leadership of a child.

    My physical appearance did not help me much: who would ever take an eight-to-nine-year-old boy seriously? Moreover, with a pretty and tender face like mine?

    Precisely for this reason, they probably gave us this job. At the Academy, we studied to become officers, but no officer can be such if he cannot impose himself and being obeyed by his soldiers. Therefore, we had to earn the respect and esteem of our subordinates ... in the hardest way.

    I took a deep breath and looked at the cadets before me. They were all men of probable age between eighteen and twenty-five. Everyone was dressed in their new uniforms and looked at me with bewilderment

    I did not need super-hearing or telepathy to know what they were thinking: you could read it in their face. In all likelihood, they wondered where their instructor was, and what a child was doing there.

    Only when I opened their mouth did they understand.

    "Cadets!" I shouted as far as my vocal cords could allow me "Welcome to Hell!"

    I took a break to see the effect my words had had. The perplexity of the cadets had turned into pure confusion. Some moved their eyes nervously, in disbelief at the scene in front of them: a cute-faced child who suddenly starts yelling like a sergeant.

    "I am Frederick König, cadet of the last year of the Academy and your instructor. I was given the order to verify if there are true men among you who are able to survive the course of the Academy. And to be honest, I do not think so!"

    One of the cadets in the second row grimaced. It was clear that he did not take my speech seriously, so I decided to overplay my hand.

    "Do not think that since I look like an angel, the wings are about to come out! I will be ruthless, inflexible and cruel with you! I will slaughter you with gymnastics, with the discipline, with the rules and if you do not know how to hold, you will have only one option!"

    "The baby is crying, maybe he wants milk!" a voice I did not recognize echoed from the last rows.

    "Who said that?" I yelled, genuinely angry "Who the hell said that? Who is the filthy, cheap-looking comedian who wants to clean the bathrooms so badly?"

    Nobody spoke. I got off the small podium from which I was talking until a few moments before, and I went quickly to the last rows. If there was one thing that made me angry was if someone teased me, especially if the joke referred to my "juvenile" physical appearance.

    "So? Nobody said that?" I said, trying to find the culprit with the aid of sight alone "If the culprit does not report publicly within three seconds, I will have you all clean the toilets until the end of the course!"

    The soldiers remained silent.

    "One!" I screamed as loud as I could "Two!"

    "Sir, I said it, sir!" suddenly said a cadet to my left.

    I looked at him carefully. He was a boy of about twenty, with blond hair and blue eyes. Probably, he could not hold back his own humor.

    And now…he would learn.

    "Well, damn!" I said, trying to look as calm and cute as possible "You are honest. I admire honesty. Hell, I like you. Would you like to come with me to the cafeteria and have a nice ice cream?"

    Without waiting for his answer, I gave him a very strong kick right in the middle of his legs. I know I hurt him because his expression contorted in pain and he almost fell to the ground.

    "You jackass!" I said going back to my drill sergeant façade "It's better for you to keep your mouth shut, because if you open the dustbin you have under your nose again, I'll put my gun inside and pull the trigger!"

    I looked up to see if this action had had any effect on the others. Apparently yes, because I saw some (the closest ones) quiver of nervousness.

    "And this applies to all of you! You are not here to discuss or to think, you are here to obey! To serve our glorious Fatherland! From now on, you are allowed to speak only when you are questioned in person. Moreover, every time you talk you will start and finish the sentence with sir! You understand me?"

    "Sir, we understand, sir!" the cadets shouted around me.

    "Good!" I said before focusing again on the cadet I have just kicked in the groin "As for you, Mr. I-do-not-know-when-to-keep-my-mouth-shut, you are assigned to cleaning the latrines for the next three weeks! You understand me?"

    The cadet said something I did not understand, so I slapped him on the right cheek.

    "What the hell. Try to speak clear!"

    "Yes-yes sir…" he finally managed to say, still holding his groin (or what was left of it)

    "Very well" I said extending my hand to help him pull himself up "Come on, get back on your feet!

    He started to hold on to my hand, but before he could catch me, I kicked him again. In the same point as before

    "Lesson number one, mister: your enemy will not fight fair. Remember it!"

    The cadet looked at me with a look of pure hate, but this time he kept his mouth shut, perhaps because he understood what would happen if he did.
    ​

    "Did you really kick him in the balls?" Tanya asked me in an almost surprised tone.

    "Yes" I replied to her "I know I should not have done it, but that cadet had provoked me, and I ..."

    Tanya put her hand on mine. I looked at her, waiting for a look of anger or criticism, but instead she was watching me smiling.

    "Do not worry. Our new role as instructors includes this too. You have not done badly, in fact, I think you did very well!"

    "Well? I literally kicked a man under my command! In the groin!"

    "So?" she asked in an almost rhetorical tone, "Keeping unruly recruits in line is the duty of an officer…"

    "But not like that!" I said, shocked by her indifference "Here we are talking about human beings, like us. I agree with you on the discipline, but we cannot exaggerate!"

    Tanya's smile cooled, becoming progressively less human and more demonic.

    "Frederick, seriously? Do not tell me that you feel pity for them? They chose to enter here in the Academy of their own free will! They have not been forced! Now they have to pay the price of their choice!"

    I took a deep breath. What Tanya had said should not have surprised me so much. I had learned at my expense, through our long and troubled "friendship", that she had a domineering personality with a serious superiority complex. She saw people around her as rivals or as resources, not as human beings, and treated them as such.

    Yet, I could not help being undermined by such a lack of ethics.

    One thing, in particular, scared me: what would have happened if, by acting the bad officer, I would have become it for real? What if I could not take the facade off? And if little by little, this personality had the upper hand?

    In my previous life, I admit, I had never been a sweet and kind person, but everybody has standards. And being cruel without reason, just because you had the chance to be it, it was very far from my standards!

    This was insane, this was sick, this was…psychopathic!

    "..rick? Frederick, are you listening to me?" Tanya's voice brought me back to reality.

    "Huh?" I answered, desperately trying to remember what I had not heard

    Tanya sighed, "I was telling you that tomorrow we have a joint exercise with our units. Therefore, it is better for you to put your cadets under pressure, so mine will not win too easily!"

    I smiled. Tanya's jib was enough to drive from my mind all the concerns that had afflicted me up to a second before.

    "Do not hope too much about your victory!" I said, restraining myself from making a mouthful of it "My cadets are in great shape and cannot wait for a challenge."

    "But mine would rather die than disappoint me" Tanya said with a mischievous smirk.

    "If so, why not make a little competition?" I said, excited by her provocation

    "What kind of competition?" she asked to me.

    "A very simple one. Tomorrow, let us see our two units in action, and the victory will go to the commander whose units manages to get the best score!"

    Tanya smiled again, before extending her hand and shacked it with mine.

    "See you tomorrow, artichoke!"

    "Prepare to lose, princess!"    ​
     
  • Threadmarks
    • "What do they feed the children in that orphanage? I could understand one of them being psychotic, but there's two of them right now."

    And Tanya should see the shipping as a blessing, really. It's annoying, but nobody will start talking about her having to start looking for someone, or worse yet, have someone come looking for her.
    It's a smokescreen that keeps social obligations and suicidal hopefuls at bay.
     
    Trunko said:
    Tanya sighed, "I was telling you that tomorrow we have a joint exercise with our units. Therefore, it is better for you to put your cadets under pressure, so mine will not win too easily!"

    I smiled. Tanya's jib was enough to drive from my mind all the concerns that had afflicted me up to a second before.

    "Do not hope too much about your victory!" I said, restraining myself from making a mouthful of it "My cadets are in great shape and cannot wait for a challenge."

    "But mine would rather die than disappoint me" Tanya said with a mischievous smirk.

    "If so, why not make a little competition?" I said, excited by her provocation

    "What kind of competition?" she asked to me.

    "A very simple one. Tomorrow, let us see our two units in action, and the victory will go to the commander whose units manages to get the best score!"

    Tanya smiled again, before extending her hand and shacked it with mine.

    "See you tomorrow, artichoke!"

    "Prepare to lose, princess!"
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    I'm eagerly awaiting the competition between whatever unit Frederick creates and Tanya 203rd Air Mage Battalion. It will be like:

    Frederick: Tanya battalion just took down Dacia, so we are going to take out Legadonia! Do you understand men!

    Men: Sir, yes Sir! (Man, he really must like her to take out Legadonia just for her).

    And when the two battalions meet they will be fawning over how cute they are together, when suddenly Rommel appears to tell stories of their time at the academy.

    ...

    This will be awesome.
     
    I hope this story continues to live. But I wonder, if Tanya will make an elite quick reaction force of mages, what will Frederick make? Infiltration specialist unit? Extreme long range artillery mage? Another elite quick reaction force? Elite field medic/cook group?!

    Can't wait until Tanya explodinate herself and how Frederick will respond or even try to top it off.
     
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