42

Three days after returning to my base, I had solved one problem, but now I crossed my arms and groaned before a new concern.

The data disk player I had brought back turned out to be broken, refusing to make even a sound, but I accepted that with resignation.

The pepper mill being small and giving me trouble was fine too.

In the end, I managed to make coarsely ground black pepper, and the improved taste of roasted meat delighted me.

That said, it was still wild game.

Its flavor was fundamentally inferior to the meat of livestock raised for food in the Empire.

I knew there was no helping that.

However, by obtaining spices in Canaan and using them in meals to improve my diet, I had encountered a new problem.

(I’m sick of meat. I want vegetables.)

Yes, I craved vegetables with all my being.

I had no desire to eat random wild plants.

I wanted properly cultivated vegetables.

When I was human, I had been in that nonsensical mood of, “As long as I have meat, I’m good, meat!!” but now that my meals consisted only of meat, I desperately longed for vegetables.

I also wanted fruit.

Though I had brought back sugar, it had surprisingly few uses.

Licking it directly felt wrong—I wanted to preserve fruit in sugar or boil it together into something.

So where would I procure them?

When it came to vegetables and fruit, elves naturally came to mind first.

Indeed, their diet gave that impression, but it wasn’t unbalanced—they ate meat in moderation too.

Still, taking them head-on was not something I would get away with.

Naturally, that idea was rejected.

As for Seizeria to the east, most of its agriculture was near the capital in the interior.

There might be some rural villages in the remote areas, but in a nation overrun with monsters, that was unlikely.

Thus, I had no desire to go that far, and so I rejected that option.

The south—too far, and those two nations had never had fertile lands; at worst, I might not even be able to secure decent food there.

Of course, rejected.

That naturally left the Kingdom of Canaan.

And here, I couldn’t help but think, “Canaan again?”

Having made such a bold move recently, acting too often could cause problems later.

Specifically, any disruption to distribution would directly affect my harvest.

Canaan’s resistance itself was not a concern.

So this time, I would target a remote farming village.

I did feel hesitant about pillaging a place that might be wiped out by monsters at any time, but the people opening farmland in such remote areas were rarely upstanding—most were exiled troublemakers sent there from the cities.

It was simply that the “monster” threatening them happened to be me, so there was no need to worry much.

If a remote farming village disappeared, the kingdom’s upper echelons wouldn’t get involved, information wouldn’t spread easily, and the overall impact would be small.

In other words, it was a brilliant idea.

I was a genius.

Pausing for some self-praise, I fetched a map from the room I used as storage.

Although it was two hundred years old and a little unreliable, the terrain was still accurate.

From this map, I picked out places where villages were likely to exist and prepared to head there.

After memorizing the map through close study, I began preparing to set out.

I couldn’t carry a map of this precision with me, so I carefully stored it back in the warehouse.

It was one of the few remaining records showing the old Imperial territory, so I had to cherish it.

Having obtained something like this through idle facility exploration, I figured I might find more if I searched further.

When I had time, I would thoroughly ransack one or two more rooms.

Since I could still use a little electricity, I might even find information about the Genetically Enhanced Soldier Project.

With preparations ready, I checked my supplies and went up to the ground level of the facility.

After carefully closing the door, I packed an iron griddle and various tableware into my backpack in the kitchen, then made a final check to be sure I’d forgotten nothing.

Shouldering my pack, I set out.

My first destination was the frontline city of Emeriēdo near the Canaan border—the blank zone northeast of it.

I guessed Emeriēdo’s food was produced there, so I would visit the candidate locations from west to east.

But before that, I would spend the night at the elf-watching base.

Since I had been away from that mission, I needed to check for changes, and if I didn’t resupply water there, I wasn’t sure where the next source would be.

With Imperial-made containers now in hand, I had doubled my water carrying capacity from five liters to ten.

Unlike bottles, they wouldn’t break, and since no padding was needed, they were easier on my backpack’s capacity.

My spirit sharpened at returning to duty.

I must truly have been a soldier of the Empire at heart.

Even brief training had given me this awareness—I owed thanks to my instructor.

By noon, I arrived at the base and immediately set about preparing for duty.

I didn’t remember my instructor’s face very well, only that he had been a loud-mouthed man.

It was a little early, but I was restless, so I couldn’t help it.

Excited, I watched from the cliffside base, waiting for the elf girls to come to the river.

An hour passed—it was about time.

To kill time, I imagined camera positions and angles for when I could someday use a video camera, eagerly awaiting the elves’ arrival.

But evening came, and no one appeared.

From the camouflaged observation point on the cliff, I stared blankly at the river with no expression.

(What… what the hell happened!?)

I screamed in my heart.

But I was a soldier of the Empire.

I had been instructed, “Remain calm at all times.”

Since there was still the possibility nothing had happened today, I decided to wait at least one more day.

Concluding that, I went to secure dinner.

Telling myself, “It was just today,” I calmed my heart, dismembered prey without thought, and ate it grilled.

At night, after securing water and processing more fish, I placed them in the cooler box.

Then I washed the griddle and iron skewer used for grilling, and since I had nothing else to do, I went to bed early.

The next morning, after eating the stored fish, I resumed surveillance duty, but no matter how long I waited, Number 6 and the children never came.

I checked other observation points too, but I found no one, and night fell.

There were no new discoveries, and the day was wasted.

(One more day! Just one more day!)

Not wanting to lose my emotional oasis, I lost my composure.

As a result, I wasted another whole day.

In short, no elves came to the river at all.

(This has to mean something happened.)

The following morning, rising slowly from bed, I reluctantly accepted the fact.

But there was nothing I could do against the elven nation.

Thus, until their problem was resolved, my surveillance mission was effectively suspended.

Naturally, there would be no announcements, so I had no idea when the “Number 6 Theater” would resume.

I barely restrained myself from screaming aloud, focusing instead on breathing to stay calm.

(That’s right. This is temporary. God is saying, “Eat vegetables quickly.”)

If it was God’s will, so be it.

Somehow regaining my peace of mind, I prepared to carry out my original goal.

After breakfast and checking the camouflage on the cliff, I left the base.

For a moment, I wondered if the elves had stopped coming because they had noticed me, but I dismissed the thought—monsters wouldn’t change their patterns just because of my presence.

(Then could it be a problem in the Republic…?)

I had no way to know for sure, but what could trouble elves that much?

I was a little curious, but meddling with them was out of the question.

So I quietly headed toward my destination, though my steps were heavy, and I crossed the Canaan border much later than planned.

After skirting around Emeriēdo to search for villages, I found the first point a complete miss.

To be precise, there was no village—only an abandoned one.

Since I was there anyway, I looked around.

Wild dogs had made it their home, suggesting humans hadn’t been there in a long time.

Exploring further, I found it had been destroyed by monsters years ago and left that way ever since.

Naturally, there were no vegetables or any food to be found, so I thought of moving on to the next location, but by then night had fallen.

So I decided it would be better to either find or make a place to sleep here.

Since I didn’t know if I’d find lodging tomorrow, one night here wouldn’t be bad.

Luckily, there was a warehouse that could serve as shelter, and I spread out the straw I found there as bedding.

Covering it with cloth borrowed from nearby, I had a simple bed.

With my sleeping arrangements prepared, I decided to sleep.

May tomorrow bring something good.