I, who was eager to retire, became an Imperial General.

Chapter 23 Can't Hear? Let's Start Over!

"Tap, tap."

Inside the Imperial Army camp, John walked quickly, his face grim and somewhat frightening.

At this moment, he had no time to care about the little tail following him. His mood was extremely gloomy, and all he wanted to do was find some muscle-bound scoundrel and make him immediately abandon that damned plan to appoint a deputy general.

However, when he finally arrived at the rest area where the Black Hawk Special Forces were located, he heard the worst news he could hear from the guards on duty outside the tents:
"I regret to inform you, Warrant Officer. Colonel Jet received orders from the General 13 minutes ago and has already led his troops out on a mission. He will probably not be back for a while."

Finally, seemingly recalling the colonel's instructions before his departure, the guard paused and added to John, whose face was ashen:
"By the way, the colonel also said that if you come to visit, he asked me to tell you that the list of personnel required for your mission has been confirmed and submitted to His Excellency the General. If you have any questions, you can discuss them with His Excellency the General."

"...I understand, thank you for passing on the message."

You're welcome. May the glory of the empire be with you.

"..."

John gave a forced smile and nodded to the guard, then turned and left without hesitation.

He was very angry, and you could vaguely feel the veins throbbing in his temples.

At that moment, he even felt like eating that bastard Jeter alive.

This guy had completely calculated that even if he went to Dormammu to complain, he wouldn't be able to change the current situation, so he played this trick on himself.

After all, John wasn't stupid. Back in the command post, Dormammu made a decision immediately after hearing about the person Jet recommended.

John simply wouldn't believe that the so-called vice commander was the girl who called herself Leia Binott.

So, these two scoundrels, one old and one young, are completely in cahoots.

Even if he went to that old man Dormammu to request a replacement, he would probably just get a cold shoulder in the end.

I knew those two were no good!
Now everything's ruined!
After realizing that his painstakingly devised survival plan had collapsed once again due to the schemes of these two people.

John was now extremely anxious, like a cat on a hot tin roof, and he became restless and uneasy.

Although if he obeyed this appointment and then shifted the blame to Leia, his plan could still proceed.

But the thought of Leia helping him just moments before, only to have him turn around and push that poor girl in front of that dragon girl, making her die in his place, was too much to bear.

Just thinking about it for a moment made John feel a pang of conscience.

He felt that the term "useless person" referred to someone like him.

When it's time to do good, I always unconsciously become a little wary; when it's time to do evil, I always hesitate and be timid.

In short, they are more likely to cause trouble than to accomplish anything.

Damn it, use your brain, John! You're smart enough to think of a way that satisfies both sides!
John rubbed his temples, his head aching, and instinctively walked forward, his mind racing, trying to find a way to ensure Leia's safety while also getting through the mission safely, based on the information he had gathered.

Just as John was racking his brains over this, a loud recitation suddenly reached his ears, interrupting his thoughts: "As a soldier, one must take upholding the honor of the empire as the primary goal!"

"At the same time, we must steadfastly follow His Majesty the Emperor's directive to consolidate the current territory of the Empire!"

"..."

Wait a minute, why does that sound so familiar?
Hearing these strangely familiar words, John suddenly stopped in his tracks, then looked around blankly.

Only then did he realize that he had unknowingly wandered into the rest area where Squad 14 was located.

To be precise, he arrived near his own tent.

And in an open space directly in front of him, he saw a figure that felt incredibly familiar – his beloved vice-captain, Wendy Brown.

The words he had just heard also came from Wendy.

The other party somehow obtained a green booklet, which seemed to have something written on it.

She was reading aloud the contents of the document, while in front of her stood the members of the 14th Squad, and a group of other Imperial soldiers surrounded her.

At this moment, he was looking at the members of Team 14 in the arena with a curious and puzzled expression.

"Keep reading! You think you can be a magic soldier if you're reading so softly? I can't hear you, start over!"

Wendy, holding the green booklet, shouted at the soldiers, her round face filled with pride and smugness, as if she were performing some sacred task.

Upon hearing Wendy's reprimand, the members of Squad 14 not only felt no shame, but seemed to agree with their vice-captain's words, and began to chant them loudly and energetically, their faces turning red and their necks bulging. An outsider might have thought they were members of some kind of cult.

"As soldiers, upholding the honor of the empire must be our primary goal!"

"You bunch of useless trash, have you not eaten? I can't hear any loyalty to the Empire in your voices at all. Start over!"

"As a soldier..."

"I can't hear you, try again!!!"

Wendy became more and more excited as she scolded them, her round little face turning bright red as she smugly enjoyed the pleasure of disciplining the soldiers.

The next second, a hand landed on her small head covered by chestnut hair. With the sudden force of the merciless iron hand, she immediately frowned and instinctively wanted to turn around and give the bastard who attacked her an elbow strike.

But upon hearing that incredibly familiar voice in her ear, she froze on the spot, cold sweat beading on her forehead.

"My dear Vice-Captain Wendy, can you explain to me what exactly you're doing right now?"

John gritted his teeth as he looked at his idiotic subordinate, whose eyes were darting around and whose face was filled with guilt.

……

(End of this chapter)