Chapter 24 : Confusion within (2)

During the First World War, the Nonyoung Empire had a despicable practice known as the “White Feather” culture.

If women found men who had not gone to the battlefield, they would swarm around them, pin a white feather to their clothes, and subject them to public humiliation.

“Hey, you there! Why haven’t you gone to the front lines?”

“I’m a military doctor, working at the hospital—”

“Save your excuses! Aren’t you ashamed of running away alone? What a coward!”

As expected, the consequences were severe.

Women, who often didn’t know any better, couldn’t distinguish between deserters, draft dodgers, soldiers on leave, or those assigned to rear duties.

So, as long as they saw a man, they immediately subjected him to mura-hachi—a form of social ostracization that was terrifying in its own right.

(This term refers to an insidious form of social harassment. It’s genuinely scary!)

As a result, men who had their honor trampled became furious, leading to brawls and further destabilizing the social order.

And now, that very same scene was unfolding in real time within the Allein Kingdom—except in a more barbaric and outdated fashion.

“Halt! You appear to be of conscription age. Why have you not voluntarily enlisted?”

“I-I have a family to feed—”

“Silence!! Possessing a fit body for the army but refusing to enlist is no different from desertion!”

Men were being forcibly conscripted in a manner oddly reminiscent of the Marine Corps.

(Then again, the social structure of this era isn’t too different from Marine Corps literature anyway.)

If they spotted a man of suitable age, they would grab him.

If his identity was unclear, they arrested him.

Meanwhile, in the background, endless praise was being sung for the king and the greatness of the Allein people.

Oh, and what’s this?

A war donation box?

They had already raised taxes to the extreme, and now they were collecting additional donations?

“What is this… a scene from hell?”

Even the hellscapes from demon-slaying games had more structure than this place.

Truly, tyrants are worse than demons.

“You there! Why are you just standing around idly?”

Damn.

I got caught staring.

“Present your legal identification. Judging by your appearance, you don’t seem to be from our country. How did you end up here?”

“For work. I’m employed at the Academy.”

As soon as I presented my Academy faculty ID, the hostile expressions of the military police softened considerably.

It seemed the prestige of being affiliated with an institution that educated talented individuals from across the continent held weight even here.

I had been considering asking Kalia to handle things if necessary, but thankfully, that wasn’t needed.

“M-my apologies! Please forgive our rudeness.”

“It’s fine. But it looks like there’s a severe shortage of soldiers? If recruitment officers are patrolling even the capital…”

In the future—say, in the late 19th or early 20th century—such a question would likely go unanswered.

By then, governments would have realized the importance of secrecy and controlling information.

But whether due to naivety or simply not having been ordered to keep quiet, the soldier readily shared what he knew.

“…You must not speak of this elsewhere.”

“Don’t worry. I’m extremely tight-lipped.”

The military policeman glanced around cautiously, then leaned in and lowered his voice.

“To be honest, the war isn’t going well. We’ve been trying to drive out the kram forces that invaded our territory, but we keep failing.”

“The enemy must have solid defenses?”

“That’s part of it, but we also lost several key strategic points at the start of the war. It’s not easy to launch counterattacks when we’ve already lost the advantageous terrain.”

Well, that made sense.

Allein had been getting utterly trounced from the beginning.

Even if they had managed to stabilize the frontlines and reorganize their forces, the massive losses they had suffered were undeniable.

Turning the tide of battle wouldn’t be easy.

“Since we’re attacking from a disadvantaged position, our soldiers are dying in droves. No matter how many we recruit, it’s never enough.”

“That’s unfortunate. I hope the war ends soon.”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

While this situation was highly satisfying for me, a question suddenly arose in my mind.

Since when did Allein start relying on mass conscription?

Wasn’t their military traditionally composed of voluntary forces and noble retinues?

“This might be a bit out of the blue, but when did you start recruiting soldiers like this?”

“Ah, the order was issued in the last week of the month before last. We were instructed to accept volunteers from among the citizens.”

Wait, volunteers?

Did they just say “voluntary enlistment”… while forcing people into the army like the Marines?

“That seems a bit… coercive, don’t you think?”

“We have no choice. Each recruiter has a quota to meet. If I fail to meet mine, I’ll be punished.”

Clearly uncomfortable, the soldier sighed and handed me a recruitment pamphlet.

“At least we have these. Some guys get so riled up after reading them that they enlist on their own.”

Hmm… what kind of propaganda are they using?

Curious, I skimmed through the flyer.

[To the Beloved Citizens of Allein]

You are a superior people.

You are prouder and more exceptional than anyone in the world.

A people who have overcome countless hardships to build a magnificent civilization!

However!

Your homeland now stands at the edge of destruction!

The vile invaders of Navre and Kram have trampled upon our sacred land and threatened our very right to exist!

Already, four cities have fallen, and countless villages have been occupied.

At least hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens suffer under foreign oppression!

Brave sons of Allein!

Shall we submit here and now?

Shall we turn a blind eye to the terrified cries of our oppressed brethren and pursue only our own comfort?

No! We must not give up a single thing!

We must reclaim our people and our land!

Join us!

Join this great holy war to defend our nation!

Stand with the king and fight for our homeland’s glory.

After reading the last line, I couldn’t help but mutter:”Not bad.”

It was a crude piece of writing.

By attempting to juggle nationalism and military recruitment, it failed to properly execute either.

The wording was redundant, overly drawn out, and lacked impact due to excessive repetition.

A piece meant to rally people should use short, powerful phrases—not this meandering prose.

Had I written it, the results would have been at least a hundred times more effective.

But at the same time, I found it impressive.

These people, who had always viewed commoners as nothing more than a resource to exploit, were now attempting mass propaganda—even if poorly executed.

Had they been inspired by Helvetia’s methods?

“Well, I should get back to work now. If I stand around chatting any longer, it’ll look suspicious.”

“Take care. Stay safe out there.”

“Oh, and one more thing, Professor. You should be careful when going out. Lately, crimes targeting foreigners have been on the rise…”

An increase in crime, not right after the war started, but just recently?

And specifically targeting a certain group?

Could this also be the result of rising nationalism?

I simply nodded and waved in response.

*****

On my way back to the Academy, Kalia spoke in a low voice.

“The war is becoming more intense. Even a monarchy like this is adopting conscription.”

“Indeed.”

Conscription, at its core, is a system designed for total war.

It involves mobilizing the general populace as military personnel rather than relying solely on a specialized warrior class or professional soldiers.

In other words, it means the state is willing to wager its entire economic and industrial foundation in order to win the war.

A reckless strategy—one that only makes sense when total national mobilization is the only path to victory.

And yet, Allein, a country that doesn’t even share a border with Helvetia, had embraced conscription.

What does that tell us?

“It means other nations have already implemented it or are preparing to do so.”

The world is changing.

Countries are shifting toward wars that consume vast amounts of national resources.

No matter which side wins, the defeated nation will be utterly devastated—and even the victors won’t escape unscathed.

Everyone is racing towards an end where both winners and losers alike are left in ruins.

Just as I had hoped.

Just as I had guided them toward.

“Rae—no, Ishmael. Are you satisfied with how things are turning out?”

Her voice carried a hint of exhaustion.

I firmly shook my head.

“Of course not. We’re still far from done.”

I am a hungry man.

Do you think I’d be satisfied with just this?

A Pyrrhic War?

That’s not nearly enough.

What I seek is Ragnarök.

If war is inevitable, then both the victors and the vanquished should be left in ruins.

The defeated should be obliterated, and even the victors should suffer so greatly that they collapse under the weight of their own losses.

Unless that’s the scenario, I will never be satisfied.

“That said, Helvetia is in for a rough time…”

It’s a nation that overcomes its inferior size through superior doctrine and strategy.

Recently, they completely absorbed the Papal States and gained support from the Haikal Kingdom, so the power gap must have shrunk.

Even so, they’re still at a severe disadvantage.

Should I prepare some kind of new gift for them?

*****

I barely had time to ponder the idea before I received a new report from the organization—one that forced me to revise my plans.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake. These lunatics.”

I never imagined they would go so far as to create a People’s Assault Corps.

Turns out they weren’t just Duce—they were Führer all along.