I’m A Hero?!

A whole month had flown by since the battleship capture incident. It was now April, a new year having begun. During that time, the refurbishment of the captured battleship progressed rapidly. One could say it was treated as the highest priority, with all available resources and personnel mobilized.

[Mythos]

“A battleship named Mythos, huh. I don’t know who named it, but it’s a pretty decent name.”

Looking at the nameplate, Ian couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed with emotion. The moment had finally come—he was about to command the battleship he had so long anticipated. They had recruited a large number of new personnel, and simply familiarizing themselves with the ship had taken a considerable amount of time.

“So this is mine now, huh.”

Honestly, he hadn’t expected to capture a ship. His original plan was to infiltrate the POW camp, use mental manipulation to make someone blow up the battleship—or at least steer it to land. In hindsight, it was an extremely reckless plan. The chance of failure must have been incredibly high. From what he heard, there had even been an incident where someone tried to seize the bridge of an imperial flagship—but failed.

“They all ended up dying.”

He was once again struck by how terrifying mental manipulation could be. The ones who had sailed the ship into port were all captured at the time the bridge was seized. But not long after, they all died, as if their bodies had given out. It was likely they had pushed their bodies beyond their limits and couldn’t hold out.

“To carry out an imprinted command to the point of death… it really is a frightening ability.”

He was reminded of just how dangerous psychics had been on Earth. Now he understood why so much effort had been made to eliminate them—just as they had tried to eliminate him. It made sense now.

Regardless, Ian turned to his deputy captain sitting at the bridge and asked,

“How is it?”

“It’s absolutely magnificent.”

Deputy Captain Derian’s eyes were gleaming. Who would have thought he’d one day ride—let alone command—a Pullea-class battleship, the pride of the Doicheun Empire? Even now, it felt like a dream to him.

“More importantly, congratulations on your promotion. How does it feel to be a Commander?”

Derian now bore a new rank insignia on his chest. For his major contributions during the capture mission, he had been promoted by one rank. Even Ian’s aide, Mardin, had risen to Captain. Ian, being royalty, didn’t have promotions, but seeing his subordinates advance was still a source of pride.

“It still hasn’t fully sunk in. I didn’t expect the promotion to come this quickly.”

“You’ll get used to it. But you’ll have to earn more achievements and reach Colonel, right?”

“Of course. I’ll do my best to make that happen.”

Seeing Derian’s determined expression, Ian nodded, as if he had no doubt it would happen. Meanwhile, through the high bridge far superior to any cruiser’s, the battleship’s full structure came into view.

“The guns… everything’s just massive.”

Naturally, in time, even such ships would be rendered obsolete by larger vessels with even greater firepower. Eventually, such gigantic battleships would no longer be necessary. Knowing that, Ian wasn’t particularly worried.

‘By then, it’ll be fighter jets ruling the battlefield.’

With his historical knowledge, he could easily anticipate the battlefield’s future. And when that time came, he likely wouldn’t be involved in such battles.

‘I wonder how much they’ll pay me.’

Although Ian currently owned the ship, he had no intention of keeping it. He planned to hand it over to the kingdom—and was quietly anticipating the compensation he would receive. At the very least, he thought, he’d earn enough to live a lifetime of leisure.

“How’s the ship’s condition?”

“Absolutely perfect. The only disappointment is that we can’t sail into the open ocean right away.”

“That can’t be helped for now.”

Although they had secured the battleship, the waters around them were still controlled by the Doicheun Empire’s colonial fleet. They were restricted to coastal areas. It was frustrating—after all, having such a powerful ship and not being able to sail far with it was a waste.

“For now, let’s proceed with sea trials.”

“Yes, sir!”

Derian responded with a bright voice, clearly thrilled by the idea. The bridge was already bustling with activity. Compared to before, it was filled with several times more crew, and Ian felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

“Captain, please give the order to depart.”

Having completed preparations, Derian turned to Ian, who nodded and gave the command in full view of the crew.

“Depart.”

Pwooooo—!

A deep horn blast echoed as the ship began to pull away from the port. Flying proudly from the mast were both the royal family’s standard and the flag of the Polia Kingdom. Many onlookers had gathered at the port to witness the grand departure.

As the Mythos slowly picked up speed, two cruisers followed behind. They were both Lamit-class armored cruisers, one of which was the Luda, Ian’s previous ship, now carrying newly assigned crew.

Even nearby ships joined in, whistling and cheering at the sight. Once feared as an enemy vessel, the Mythos was now an ally—and everyone felt reassured by its presence.

And so, the battleship Mythos moved proudly through its sea trial. They carefully maneuvered beyond the range of enemy cannons before circling back to port.

One could imagine the Doicheun Empire seething with rage at the sight. A month ago, the battleship had been captured, and although they had tried to retrieve it, the awakened Polia Kingdom forces had set up a solid coastal artillery defense. The enemy no longer dared to approach.

Eventually, they gave up and withdrew. Having lost two battleships, the Doicheun colonial fleet was now severely weakened.

The sea trial concluded without any issues in ship performance.

They had already scheduled further experiments, including test-firing the main guns. A few more days passed—and then Ian heard something completely unexpected.

“What do you mean?”

“As I said, His Majesty the King has granted you a special rank, Your Highness.”

“His Majesty granted it to me?”

Hearing Admiral Nudelria’s words, Ian was taken aback. A special rank, given to him by the king? It was completely unexpected. He couldn’t help but wonder what the king’s intentions were.

“That’s right. You will now hold the rank of Mustaq, Your Highness.”

“What is that?”

“As mentioned, it’s a newly created title. You can consider it a rank that falls between Colonel and Brigadier General.”

In other words, it was a rank just below general. Ian found himself bewildered by the unexpected promotion. But then again—did it even matter? As a prince, he already received treatment equivalent to any military rank. Just as he was about to dismiss the thought, Admiral Nudelria added his congratulations.

“Also, congratulations. You are now officially part of the navy.”

“What do you mean? I’m in the navy now?”

“Receiving a rank means just that. You will be officially enlisted in the navy from now on.”

“No, how did this happen? I planned to return to my normal life once the war ended.”

“You’re free to do that. Given the special nature of your rank, it comes with great flexibility. Still, I hope you won’t forget you’re part of the navy.”

Admiral Nudelria clearly saw Ian joining the navy as a good thing. But for Ian, this felt like a bolt from the blue. Being bound to any organization was never in his plans. It all stemmed from capturing that battleship, didn’t it? Would this go away if he handed over the ship? That thought crossed his mind.

“More importantly, have you heard any news from the capital?”

“What news? Did something happen?”

“You must’ve been too focused on the battleship to notice. It seems rumors about you have been sweeping through the capital.”

“A—about me?”

“It seems the royal court is actively promoting you, Your Highness. They’ve been spreading the story that you captured an enemy battleship, created the trench system, and installed barbed wire for superior defense. Because of this, everyone’s praising you—calling you a hero.”

“A h-hero? I’m no such thing.”

Ian was stunned. A hero? And the kingdom itself was responsible for spreading it? He couldn’t make sense of it. Seeing Ian’s troubled expression, Admiral Nudelria spoke in a concerned tone, despite his earlier congratulatory words.

“This may cause other nobles to start keeping a close eye on you.”

“Yes… I suppose it would.”

“Still, not everyone is against you. You do have allies, Your Highness.”

“Really?”

“According to my personal sources, the one who most strongly supported you during the royal council was none other than Count Dimentis, commander of the Capital Defense Command. Have you two met before?”

“Count Dimentis?”

“Yes. He was very outspoken in your favor. To be frank, there were plans to have the kingdom seize full ownership of the battleship by offering compensation.”

“You mean… the ownership?”

“They were discussing transferring full rights to the kingdom with some form of payment. But Count Dimentis invoked international law and put a stop to it.”

‘Ugh, why’d he stop it? I wanted to sell the ownership for money…’

Ian couldn’t help but feel that Count Dimentis had gone too far with his loyalty. Wait a minute—was it his doing that led to him getting this special rank too? As if confirming Ian’s suspicion, Admiral Nudelria elaborated further.

“I heard it was Count Dimentis who suggested creating the Mustaq rank for you.”

“I see.”

“He must think highly of you. Of course, being someone deeply loyal to the royal family, he likely acted out of concern that the royal family’s honor would be damaged over the ownership issue.”

Admiral Nudelria thought it was just a fortunate turn of events that worked in Ian’s favor. He had no idea that Count Dimentis had not just become Ian’s supporter, but had pledged absolute loyalty.

Regardless, Ian now found himself in a position that would draw intense scrutiny from the nobles in the capital. He even considered relinquishing the title and transferring ownership—but with the public already watching him, it was too late.

Before long, amid these conversations, Ian was officially granted the newly created title of Mustaq. Everyone treated it as expected; from their perspective, Ian’s achievements were more than worthy of it.

Time passed quietly in this new situation, and before long, June arrived. Then, suddenly—an unexpected report came in.

“The Doicheun Empire’s colonial fleet is retreating?”

“That’s what we’ve heard.”

“What? Why? Have they received reinforcements? Are they planning to find a new invasion route?”

Perhaps reinforcements had arrived from the homeland. Or maybe they’d received new battleships to replace their losses. Until recently, Ian and Admiral Nudelria had been working on counterattack plans. With so little time left before their offensive, this sudden shift was unsettling.

“That doesn’t seem to be the case. Their movements look more like a full-scale withdrawal.”

“A withdrawal? They’re just pulling out?”

“They may no longer be in a position to continue the war.”

The truth was, the Doicheun Empire hadn’t sent battleships here in some time. The reason? The Moria Empire and the Noma Empire, after a long silence, had begun making military moves.

Their ongoing support of Polia had been part of this, along with pressure applied to the Doicheun Navy. Now in the second year of the war, with little to show for their efforts, the Doicheun Empire was likely feeling the weight of the situation.

Had they fought a direct 1-on-1 battle, the Polia Kingdom would likely have fallen quickly under their full might. But with the two other great empires keeping Doicheun in check, they had never been able to commit their full strength.

‘Wait… could the war really be ending like this?’

If so, it would be wonderful news. It would mean Ian wouldn’t have to fight anymore. Perhaps he could return to the royal palace, to his mother and little sister. Of course, by next year he would come of age and need to become independent—but anything would be better than staying on the battlefield.

Just as he was thinking this, Admiral Nudelria urgently called for him—with news that he planned a surprise attack on the retreating imperial forces.