Chapter 259

< World War II - Passing the Bomb >

May 12, 1942

The capital of Germany, Berlin

A bright spring, with summer just around the corner.

Right in the city center of Berlin, all the way to the road leading up to the Brandenburg Gate.

A procession of units returning from the Eastern Front continued.

It was a scene where the citizens lining both sides of the street cheered and handed flowers to the soldiers.

Smiles bloomed on everyone's faces.

The soldiers rejoiced, even shedding tears at Prime Minister Theodor Heuss's welcoming speech and Commander-in-Chief of the Army Erwin von Witzleben's declaration thanking them for their hard work.

Minister of Defense Dietrich Schacht, who returned from the front line with the units, even created a brief comedy by getting photographed while hugging and showering his wife and Vice-Chancellor, Claudia Schacht, with kisses.

The banquet held after the triumphal return ceremony was prepared with great sincerity, and it was a scene where all the veterans were satisfied.

It was a time when not only the high-ranking officers in their separately prepared banquet but also the enlisted soldiers, who had to live amidst all the dirt and gunpowder smell on the battlefield, enjoyed the prepared meals with happiness.

Clemens Fleck, who had received a special promotion and was now a Colonel, clinked his wine glass with Roger Michael, who had been his Chief of Staff and was now a Lieutenant Colonel.

"Congratulations, Colonel."

"Congratulations to you too, Lieutenant Colonel."

The two looked at each other, chuckled, and sipped their wine.

Clemens sipped his wine and smacked his lips.

"Well, it's not bad, but it's not quite my taste.

I'm definitely a beer enthusiast at heart…"

"You're a proper high-ranking officer now, aren't you? If you want to become a General, you need some political skills too. Get used to at least this much."

"Even that high and mighty Dietrich bastard is a beer enthusiast, so whatever."

Clemens replied with a shrug, making Roger chuckle, but Clemens's next words froze Roger's expression.

"Besides, I'm going to be discharged anyway."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah."

Roger pinched his forehead with his hand.

Manstein had told him that Clemens submitted a discharge application, so he came to feel him out pretending not to know, but to think it was actually true.

Unable to hold back his frustration, Roger asked.

"…No, why on earth? It's weird coming from me, but you're still in your early thirties. A Colonel in your early thirties! A war hero whose name everyone in the German Army knows, and a friend to the most famous politician in Germany.

A path has opened up for you to aim for General without even going through the General Staff course. And you're throwing that away?"

"It is a bit of a waste, but honestly… it feels like clothes that don't fit me."

Saying that, Clemens scratched his head.

"No, what kind of bullshit is that! Does the German Army look so easygoing that they'd give you clothes that don't fit? You're being incredibly obnoxious right now, you know?"

It was an even faster promotion than Roger Michael's, who had graduated from the General Staff College in the same class as Dietrich Schacht and had smoothly followed the promotion course while being favorably watched by Chief of the General Staff Manstein.

Although he was secretly feeling some jealousy that this laid-back guy was doing better than him, as a soldier, Roger couldn't just let his friend throw away such a golden opportunity and leave.

"Uh, is that so? My bad. Still, wouldn't a position like a General suit someone like you better than me?"

"…Clemens…"

However, Roger's momentarily touched mood was shattered in the very next instant.

"Besides, I'm going to get discharged and live happily with Karina. We decided to go to Posen and open a restaurant. Karina says she wants to be a doctor."

Roger trembled all over.

"A-A restaurant?"

"Yeah, you know I can cook a bit, right? So…"

"The war hero who built up military merit in the Spanish Civil War, the Poland War, the attempted coup by the Nazi remnants, and the Eastern Front, becoming the top prospect of the Army, wants to do what? Take off his military uniform and be a restaurant owner?"

"Uh, well. T-That's what I intended to do…"

"Crazy talk!"

Clemens's words were mercilessly cut off by Roger.

"Hey, are you out of your mind? Anyone you ask would say you're crazy! The war is over now, so why? Why on earth? Let's be honest, do you know how much your pension will be once you get a star? Isn't it a waste to kick that away?"

"Uh, i-is it?"

At Roger's impassioned speech, Clemens started to be swayed.

But then, Clemens narrowed his eyes and spoke up.

"But why are you stepping up as if this is your own business? Honestly, if I'm gone, doesn't that mean a promotion competitor disappears for you?"

Roger felt a pang of guilt inside, but he decided to act shamelessly.

"Between us, do you think I'd be petty enough to worry about something like that? This is all just me wishing the best for a friend!"

Of course, Roger was about half-sincere.

'No, common-sensically, a promising prospect of the Army with a guaranteed bright future is kicking away that flowery path to be a restaurant owner? Does this even make sense!'

"…Isn't this a trap set by that bastard Manstein…?"

Roger felt a second pang of guilt at Clemens's muttered words, but.

Feeling a cold sweat running down his spine, Roger recalled his conversation with Manstein.

-Hey, Lieutenant Colonel Michael.

-Yes, sir! His Excellency, the Chief of Staff!

-You know, I thought I had treated Colonel Fleck quite affectionately.

-O-Of course, Your Excellency! Thanks to Your Excellency assigning him to important positions, he has also achieved tremendous military merit…

-Then, why is he running away?

-Excuse me?

-I am asking why Colonel Fleck's discharge application has made it all the way up to my desk.

-What??

-To think a Chief of Staff doesn't even know his own Regimental Commander has applied for discharge, I'm disappointed.

Lieutenant Colonel Michael.

-I-I am terribly sorry, His Excellency, the Chief of Staff.

My own shortcomings…

-Hahaha, don't be so flustered! If anyone saw this, they'd think I was going to eat you alive.

Laughing so heartily, Manstein had put his arm around Roger's shoulders and whispered softly.

-But you know. I just don't understand why the guys I treat well so casually throw off their military uniforms.

Your War College classmate did it, and now your friend too. It's almost as if they're saying, 'Your goodwill means absolutely nothing to me.

' It's a misunderstanding, of course, right? I believe it's a misunderstanding.

-O-O-Of course it is, His Excellency, the Chief of Staff!

The incredibly petty Manstein was still holding a grudge over Dietrich abandoning his military uniform without lingering attachment despite all his flattery.

But now, the toy he was rolling around instead of Dietrich—no, the subordinate he cherished—was escaping from the military as if casually imitating that guy?

Manstein could not stand for it.

-Therefore, Lieutenant Colonel Michael.

As a member of the General Staff, I will trust that you can at least prevent the discharge of the Army's unmissable prospect and your close friend.

-U-Understood! His Excellency, the Chief of Staff!

Roger was desperate.

It was because after that conversation, Manstein had turned around and muttered something just loud enough for him to hear.

-If you can't even do that much, shouldn't you take a little trip to Asia?

This was not him selling out his friend to save himself.

It was merely a struggle to stop his friend from abandoning a flowery path and walking down a thorny path, yep.

…Come to think of it, since this whole mess happened because that Regimental Commander bastard didn't even inform his own Chief of Staff about his discharge, it was indeed Clemens who was in the wrong.

Having finished his internal justification, Roger began his desperate persuasion.

"Think about it carefully! It's not like you're going to just enjoy casual dating and be done with it like me; you're planning to get married and have kids! You need money!"

"I-Is that so…?"

"Hey, hey, let's think about this honestly. If you run a restaurant, how much money would you even make? Right now you two might be madly in love, but it only takes an instant for a poor man to lose his confidence! On top of that, isn't your future wife a bit tough? If you're not careful, you'll end up trapped as a henpecked husband for the rest of your life."

"Gasp!…"

It's working!

Like a promising General Staff Officer, Roger decided to drive a wedge right here and achieve victory.

"Just close your eyes and hold out until retirement! The war is over now anyway, so there's no thorny path ahead. If you just sit at a desk ordering staff officers around and get a star, huh? Even after you get discharged, you can boast that you were a star, and you won't ever have to worry about looking pathetic in front of your wife!"

"Uh, well… I'll ask Karina about it, at least."

"Good thinking, you bastard.

Now, here. To the future General Fleck!"

"Y-Yeah, thanks."

Clinking his glass, Roger drained his drinking glass in one gulp and thought.

'Fuck this. Playing politics in the military sucks!'

He had absolutely not passed the bomb to his friend.

It was a good thing for Clemens anyway, and it was good for him too since he avoided being dispatched to some backwater like Asia.

Wasn't this exactly what a win-win was?

Roger decided to look at the bright side.

That is, until he received his next set of orders.

-

May 15, 1942

The capital of Germany, Berlin – Army General Staff

Thanks to his close friend's soul-stirring persuasion, Clemens, after deep consideration, pacified Karina and reported to his superiors that he would cancel his discharge application.

And the very next day, he was summoned to the General Staff.

"The Chief of the General Staff is waiting for you. Please go in, Colonel Fleck."

'Ugh, why is this damn Manstein looking for me?'

Regretting his cancellation of the discharge application after just one day, Clemens took reluctant steps and entered Manstein's office.

As soon as he entered, the thick smell of cigarettes stimulated Clemens's nose.

He was a smoker too, but even so, this was-

Still, the military was the military; Clemens snapped to attention and saluted.

"Reporting to His Excellency, the Chief of Staff!"

Manstein returned the salute, then stood up from his seat and approached him.

'Gasp! Why is he coming closer!'

"Ahahahaha! Welcome, 'Jewel of the Army' Colonel Fleck."

Clemens was startled, but Manstein approached with a very cheerful laugh and stood before him holding a cigar in his hand.

"Do you know how much I worried when you said you were going to take off your military uniform? I couldn't be happier that you've changed your mind, even now."

"T-Thank you, His Excellency, the Chief of Staff."

'No, since when did you like me so much to act this friendly!'

Clemens wanted to protest like that, but in the military, rank is king.

Furthermore, rumors were circulating that Field Marshal Witzleben would soon retire, and the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Army itself might be abolished.

Even the Field Marshals who had served as Army Group Commanders were all preparing to retire since the war was over, and if that happened, Manstein would practically become the leader of the German Army.

Clemens regretted his decision to cancel his discharge application for the second time.

While he was thinking that, Manstein ostentatiously pulled out an envelope.

The moment Clemens saw it, he noticed that it was his discharge application.

"H-His Excellency, the Chief of Staff.

After careful consideration-"

Before words like 'I think it would be better to just get discharged' could even come out, Manstein deliberately tore it into pieces with his hands.

"Hmm? What was that?"

"N-Nothing."

Looking at Manstein, whose face was full of smiles, Clemens regretted it for the third time and cursed the close friend who had egged him on.

"Ah, anyway. Colonel Fleck. Since you submitted a discharge application and then canceled it, the unit you will be assigned to has been newly designated."

"Uh, is that so…?"

But the Chief of the General Staff called him in to personally deliver that news?

While Clemens was wondering, Manstein spoke as if tossing it out casually.

"You'll have to take a trip to Asia."

"…Excuse me?"

"I mean Asia.

India, the Republic of China. Haven't you heard of them?"

"…What??"

Clemens completely froze right there.

"After a month's period for rest and receiving volunteers, we have decided to dispatch a military force of 200,000 to Asia under the command of General Walter Model. Poland, Finland, and Ukraine have also agreed to dispatch some forces under the condition that we slightly reduce the equipment payments they owe Germany."

While Clemens's head was buzzing, Manstein, pleased about something, beamed with a smile and smoothed out the collar of his military uniform.

"You'll be joining that dispatched unit as a Division Commander. You'll be getting a star.

Congratulations, aren't you happy?"

"Y-You tricked me, Roger!!"

Clemens shouted out without realizing it, but instead of scolding him, Manstein smirked.

"What a regretful thing to say, your friend didn't know either. I just decided right now that you're going to Asia."

"H-His Excellency, the Chief of Staff, I…"

"Hmm? Surely a war hero the German Army boasts of and an honorable Prussia officer didn't cancel his discharge with the thought of getting an easy job in the military, getting a star, and then taking a hefty pension, right?"

'I'm from Bavaria, you damn Prussia Junkers old-timer!'

If he had lost his mind just a little bit more, he would have spat it out loud, but with desperate effort, Clemens managed to keep it as just a thought.

Clemens let out a despondent sigh with a lifeless expression, and Manstein laughed with an extremely satisfied face.

"Don't make a face like that.

I'm doing all this because I want my cherished subordinate to do well. Do you think getting a General's star in your thirties is an easy thing? You will become a legend of the German Army!"

"…"

To the already resigned Clemens, Manstein breathed in one final, devilish whisper.

"Speaking of which, since you'll be going a long way to suffer as a Division Commander. Because I cherish you, I will e.

s.p.

e.c.

i.a.

l.l.

y. support whoever you want to take with you.

Now, tell me. Who would you like as your Chief of Staff?"

The next day, Roger Michael received his orders.

[Your friend s.p.

e.c.

i.a.

l.l.

y. nominated you and said he absolutely! wants to go with you as his Chief of Staff.

Thinking about sending a staff officer I cherish to Asia makes me so sad I can't sleep, but it can't be helped. Just consider it helping a friend and take the trip.

]

"…You tricked me, Manstein!"

A scream echoed.