It should've been an ordinary retrieval mission...

“Your target this time is a power station near a village. The village has been occupied by rebels, and they’re planning to seize the power station.”

“You have twelve hours. The enemy has a squad, two .50-caliber Brownings, and no heavy weapons. You’re authorized to engage at will.”

“Copy.”

Over the radio, the military commander finished giving us our orders. We all went radio silent, ready to enter the combat zone.

I held my beloved HK 417, with its 20-inch barrel, mountain camouflage, and patrol-style handguard. This .308 NATO rifle could provide enough supporting fire when needed. Through its Canadian ELCAN SpecterDR 1.5–6x scope, the little houses in the distance emerged from the blowing dust.

Once I’d confirmed the mission, I turned to look at the bald Black man beside me. He was smoking and taking in the view.

“Eric, what’s Uncle Sam planning this time? Why bother seizing a place this remote?”

“Who knows? They’ve played a pretty good hand here. Europe’s situation in 1940 might play out all over again. We just follow along and get our cut.”

With that, he tossed away his cigarette butt, checked that his SAW hadn’t gotten any dust in it, then gave me a stern warning.

“I’d advise you not to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong, Firmiana. You’ve been in this line of work for three years. You know the rules.”

I shrugged and spread my hands.

“I was just curious. Anyway, are there any survivors in that village?”

“No idea. We’ll find out when we get there.”

“All right. Synchronize your watches.”

At that, all five of us checked our watches at once. The LED display on my MTM was bright even under the blazing sun.

“Get ready. It’s 2:24. Synchronize.”

Three of them adjusted their watches to zero and looked up, waiting for instructions.

“The mission’s simple. George, you and Joel find a spot two hundred yards out and provide support. Matong, you’re with me on the advance. NK, take the left flank. Ray, take the right. If you see anyone with a gun, open fire. Don’t hold back—but don’t hit any civilians.”

“Roger,” everyone answered in unison.

The corner of my mouth twitched. I shook my head and sighed.

This muscular Black giant in dark sunglasses was carrying an eighteen-pound squad automatic weapon, and he wanted to clear a village with me as a designated marksman team?

Forget it... Back in Myanmar, he’d used a 20mm anti-aircraft gun on a pickup truck... I’d gotten to know the madman by now...

He’d even wanted to fire an RPG indoors that time. We’d barely managed to stop him.

I’d have to find him a psychologist when we got back...

“The target’s about two kilometers away. The surrounding terrain isn’t exactly open, but there aren’t many good places to hide, either. We’ll take it before dawn. For now, move out and get ready.”

“Roger!” The next morning, at 4:00 a.m.

“Mmph...! Mmmph!!”

Shhk.

The claw knife tore open his throat. Blood sprayed a meter away. The sentry on watch struggled for a moment, then died, revealing the bloodstained shadow behind him.

I’d planned to stuff him into the bushes, but after thinking it over, I realized there was no need to hide him.

Because what came next was simple.

A night of blood.

Gunfire rang without pause. Flames flashed, and the muzzle flashes gradually tore through the darkness, ushering in yet another blood-red dawn.

The battle was over quickly. It was simple, too.

The enemy were little more than an untrained rabble. Most were still dreaming when they were woken by the noise—and lost their lives before they could make sense of what was happening.

They died without even knowing what hit them.

“Clear! Matong, go check that house. I’ll call George and the others over.”

After Eric confirmed there was no one alive in the building, he held up four fingers to me. I signaled back, kept my rifle raised, and headed toward the last house in the village.

My footsteps were very light. I shouldn’t have made a sound. Even if someone inside was waiting with a gun, they wouldn’t hear me coming.

And yet I heard something... a soft rustling, the sound of fabric rubbing together...

And intermittent sobbing.

A hostage... or bait?

I didn’t hesitate. I slammed the door open and shouted, “Freeze!” My tactical flashlight swung toward a pitch-black corner.

On the crude bed, a bare-chested rebel was about to take the white girl beneath him with him. She was begging and crying, her slender wrists bound so tightly they’d bruised purple. Tears dampened the long brown hair behind her. I found myself staring for half a second.

“!!”

The man spotted me and cried out in surprise, reaching for the M1911 at his waist.

Bang!

I didn’t hesitate. A 7.62mm .308 round punched into his forehead, blew out the back of his skull, then lodged in the wall along with blood and flesh.

“Ahh!!”

After witnessing it all, the girl—who looked only fourteen—shrank into the corner, trembling. Like a kitten abandoned by its owner, she stared at me and the HK 417 still smoking in my hands, terror in her eyes.

“Clear!” Once I’d confirmed there were no more threats, I shouted toward the outside, then turned to look at the captive girl.

“What’s your name?” I asked in English. “K-Karina...”

“Heh. That’s a nice name, Karina.”

“You’re safe now.”

“Huh...?”

The girl let out a tiny, confused sound. She looked at my smile and hesitated for two seconds before throwing herself into my arms and bursting into tears.

And that... was how Karina and I first met...

Later, we learned that she was Venezuelan. She and her parents had been on their way to start a new life in Turkey when pirates captured them. She was sold here and made a slave.

Her owner had planned to run away with her. At least he’d get to have his fun with her along the way—but I blew his head off first.

Everyone else in the village had fled long ago. Since it was close to the power station, the rebels had chosen it as a temporary place to regroup. They’d barely arrived when we showed up.

And brought the scythe of the God of Death with us.

Reality really was that cruel.

Still, we’d found an unexpected prize: Karina.

She was a remarkably clever girl. She spoke Persian, Pashto, English, Latin, and Mandarin. She was an excellent cook, knew how to treat wounds in an emergency, and, most importantly... she always wore a captivating, healing smile. With the gentlest words, she soothed our pain.

“Don’t be afraid. I’ll help you.”

A smile that could make anyone forget their pain.

For a team walking along the edge of a cliff, she was a gift worth more than a thousand pounds of gold.

Karina.

She was an angel on the battlefield.

The flower of hope for all of us.

She had nowhere to go, her parents were missing, and all her identification was gone. We reported her situation to our superiors and tried to get her an entry permit, but the process would take three months.

During that time, Karina traveled around with our team. Maybe it was because I’d saved her, but the girl was especially clingy with me. In her accented Mandarin, she’d ask me to tell her stories.

“Heh... At first, I found it annoying... but then I realized...”

“I’d already started treating Karina like my little sister...”

Thinking of that, I sat on the edge of the bed and gently stroked Eileen’s silver hair, shaking my head.

An immeasurable sadness slowly filled my chest.

The delicate girl before me had curled herself into a ball. Tears glimmered in the corners of her eyes like tiny stars, making her all the more pitiable.

“Mom...”

She murmured, her shoulders curling in pain.

“Mmm...”

“......”

I watched her without a word and gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

【This system still thinks we should just kill her. One and done, and no one would come looking.】

“......Hey, don’t you think you’ve got a bit of a violent streak? Want me to format you?”

“Besides, Eileen’s so cute. If I still had a body, I’d want to kiss that little face.”

【So that’s why, you damn lolicon.】

I hurried to my feet and covered my head, not sure whether to laugh or cry.

“Hey, I’m just being realistic and honest. There are so many slaves in this world—I can’t save them all. And I’m no philanthropist. What happens to them has nothing to do with me. They can blame this damn world.”

But then I changed my tune, looking at Eileen’s lovely little face, as cute as a finely crafted doll’s.

“But if I bring home a cute girl and take her in, then get to see her lovely smile, my days are brighter even if I don’t expect anything in return.”

I spread my hands and shrugged helplessly.

“That’s just how this world works. If you’re cute and have a pretty face, your luck’s better. Someone might even fight a dragon for a bite just for that face of yours. Besides, I need a local who understands this world to stay by my side. There’s too much I can’t figure out on my own.”

I paused.

“Eileen is my first choice.”

【But... what exactly does this cute girl named Eileen have to do with Karina?】

Paper-chan cut right through the pretense. I lowered my head and gave up, slumping into the chair as I stared at the dim ceiling and gave a self-mocking smile.

“Karina died...”

【How?】

I took a deep breath. Remembering what she’d looked like when she died, I answered in a choked voice.

“She was...”

“Killed because of me...”