There were a lot of black sheep in the fight again that day, and Lena was only able to exhale when it was over.

Pararaid was still on when she suddenly heard Krena's voice. After the battle, all processors usually cut off communication with the handler, but for some reason the girl lingered.

"If it's that hard for you, you'd better stop.

Krena spoke completely indifferently, without a trace of concern in her voice.

"We can do just fine without your leadership, nothing bad will happen. Just because we can't see you doesn't mean we don't feel your fear. This is very disturbing and distracting in combat.

Rena was right, so Lena wasn't angry, and on the contrary, she was a little glad that someone had decided to talk to her about it.

"And you and the rest of us—" Isn't it scary?

Processors couldn't afford to turn off pararaiding. Of all of them, Shin was the only one who could accurately discern the number and location of enemies, no matter where they were, and a great deal depended on this information in battle.

Rena shrugged.

"Not really. We're used to it, and you can't surprise any CPU with death screams, with or without Shin.

Lena felt that she was hiding behind this feigned indifference. Not fear, but a dark and heavy mixture of rage, regret and bitterness.

"Blowing up with your juggernaut is the best death. We have seen many times our comrades writhing in agony with their arms and legs torn off, their faces flayed, their torsos burned to flesh and their entrails spilling out. Compared to this, the screams of people who died a long time ago mean nothing.

It was as if she was trying to suppress the pain aching deep inside. And tears.

Lena felt Krena press her lips together. I heard her teeth grinding.

"Everyone who serves in the First District feels the same way... Whoever dies, we will not be surprised.

"I see...

At the beginning there were 24 of them, but yesterday another one died, and now there are only 13 left.

Raiden threw a hopelessly broken radio into a regenerative furnace from an autonomous factory.

They gathered in their usual line-up, and at the usual time, Lena got in touch again. "Good evening," rang out in the pararaid, and Raiden replied:

"I hear you very well, Major. I apologize right away for the mess and the idiots who are present here.

Lena froze in surprise.

Shin was usually the first to answer her, not Raiden.

— ... Where's Captain Nouzen, is he all right?

Seo, who was sitting at his sketchbook, snorted.

"How did you get it, Major Mirize. All these titles of ours are just beautiful words, and you know it very well.

The captain was considered the head of the detachment, followed by the deputy, and then the warrant officers. However, this command structure existed only for appearances: in fact, the "officers" did not have any special powers, did not receive a salary, and were treated like everyone else. The "tip of the spear" consisted entirely of experienced processors who were in no way lower in rank than captains or senior lieutenants; After being transferred to the detachment, most of them were "demoted" to junior lieutenants or warrant officers.

Be that as it may, Lena responded to this taunt quite calmly.

Raiden noted with interest that she seemed to be getting bolder lately.

"First Lieutenant Suga and Junior Lieutenant Rikka also call me Major all the time. Any problems?

— ... yes," was all Seo said and grinned.

Lena said that she could be addressed simply by her first name, but no one called her that. She clearly understood what was behind this, so she herself tried to behave in a detached manner with the processors and used addresses that emphasized their subordinate position.

The handler spoke to them regularly, but their relationship was not close enough for them to call each other by their first names. In every conversation, it was implicitly read that the friendliness of the processors was feigned, and they only treated her as a member of the oppressive class.

— ... So what's up with Captain Nouzen? Maybe there's something wrong with today's fight...

"No, I don't.

Raiden glanced at the partition that separated them from the next room.

Everyone except Krena and Anjou were present today, and each was going about his business as usual, except that the meeting place was Raiden's room, not Shin's.

Not a sound came from behind the thin partition.

"He's just sleeping. Tired.

Shin started nodding his nose during dinner, and when Raiden walked into the commander's room, he was already lying on the bed. Raiden picked up the kitten, which was meowing in displeasure, and pulled up the curtain over the bed, so that nothing would wake Shin up until morning.

In the three years they've known each other, this has happened quite often. Though Shin said he was used to everything, it was a heavy burden to hear the Legion all the time, even from a distance.

The pararaid's lowest synchronization level prevented Shin from hearing exactly what he was hearing, so Raiden and the others were left wondering what kind of world their commander was in. Shin set the pararaid to maximum synchronization only once, and the handler on the line committed suicide shortly thereafter. He was a bastard who liked to harass them with meaningless orders, deliberately giving false information and confusing the newcomers, causing them to die. Eventually, Shin got fed up with this, and during another fight, he disconnected from all the processors, leaving him alone. Immediately afterwards, the handler disappeared, and the next day the military police reported that he had committed suicide.

Not only did Shin live in a world full of terrifying screams, but lately there have been also unhappiness in the squad. The curator said bitterly:

— ... The Captain, like all of you, must be having a hard time getting harder... If the deaths continue, then...

— ... "Yes," Raiden said curtly. It's not just Shin who is affected. Everyone in the squad is exhausted, and this is starting to take a toll on the battles.

Since the creation of the Tip of the Spear, 11 people have already died. Any good unit is able to function normally in the event of the loss of about half of the permanent staff, provided that it is reorganized. Since the number of attacks and units of the Legion remains the same, the load on each member of the squad increases in this case. As soon as the number of enemies per CPU exceeds the acceptable limits, the depleted squad begins to make mistakes more often, and its number decreases even faster.

Despite all this, a replacement has still not been sent even for the three processors that died first, back in February - Cujo was one of them. Lena bit her lip and said sympathetically:

"I'll try to speed up the replenishment. I will do my best to send people here in the first place.

Hart glanced quickly at Raiden. He chuckled.

"Mm... Truth be told...

"Your squad is operating in a key sector of the front. You have the right to be the first to receive a top-up. In the meantime, I'll ask for help from other units... Try to be patient a little longer.

— ... yes," Raiden nodded absently. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Hart and Seo shrug.

— ... Listen, Anjou... I thought...

There was no one in the shower room except two.

Anjou carefully washed her long silver hair while Krena stood under the barely warm jets of water.

"What?"

"We'd better cut off communication with her.

For some reason, Anjou's eyes sparkled with laughter.

"Worried?"

"Wh-what...

Rena shook her head in confusion. What is it carrying!

"What nonsense! Why would I, let alone that girl.. Simply... she wasn't scared of Shin, and it could have been done for her," she finished quietly, licking her lips.

Rena hated the curator. She was sick of the way Alba was constantly pretending to be a saint. For all that, however, she appreciated one thing in Lena: the curator did not consider the man dear to Krene to be a monster.

"Neither Shin nor Raiden say anything... If she found out, she would stop contacting herself. And that would be better for everyone.

"Yes, probably... Kaye-chan used to say the same thing...

"It's not because you're a bad person. It's just better to stay away from us."

"And I think Shin-kun and Raiden-kun are silent for the same reason that Kaye-chan is. They must be afraid of hurting her.

Kaya is gone. In the past, not a single trip to the shower was complete without her complaining about her figure, which was too thin and not feminine enough. All the girls loved to laugh about it. But now the shower room was empty: neither the cat-like lithe Kaya, nor the other girls noisily discussing something not meant for men's ears.

Of the six, only two survived.

Realizing this, Krena suddenly looked at her friend.

"Listen, Anjou.

"What?"

"May I?...

Anjou froze, stopped soaping her hair, and shrugged.

They'd known each other for over a year, but they'd never showered together. Before that, Anjou had never been seen naked by anyone, not even girls.

"Yes, why not. There's no need to hide, there are only two of us left anyway.

Drops of water ran down his snow-white skin. Anjou's body was disfigured by scars, old and new. Rena had just as many of them, but a few strange marks on her back caught her attention—they didn't look like battle wounds in any way.

Her long hair obscured an inscription that drew her eye, and Krena forcibly averted her eyes. I think it said "whore's daughter." Alb's blood flowed into Anjou, but the distant ancestors of one of her parents were from Celeste.

— ... You know, Daya-kun... When we met, he complimented my hair. He understood that I was letting them down to hide the scars, but he said they were too beautiful to hide.

Anjou spoke softly, but in the middle of a sentence she could not contain herself, and her voice broke. His pale lips curled into a sort of smile and trembled like an animal.

"Daiyi-kun is gone, too. I can't get used to it...

Krena thought Anjou had burst into tears, but it wasn't. Brushing her wet hair, she turned and looked at her with her usual calm and kind smile.

"You won't tell me anything, will you, Krena-chan?"

She didn't say what or to whom. There was no need for that.

Rena lowered her eyes.

— ... No. I know I don't have the right to do that.

When Rena was transferred to the Tip of the Spear, she was truly scared.

She knew what rumors were circulating about this squad. I've heard about the headless, red-eyed "God of Death" who was in charge of the front line.

This nickname alone caused goosebumps, because all veterans with personal call signs survived only on the blood of fallen comrades. But Shin stood out even among them.

He was a gravedigger. Time and time again, he came within a hair's breadth of death, but he managed to keep himself alive and pay homage to those around him who continued to die. In battle, there was no one closer and more disgusting than the god of death, and Shin took his name.

Krena had heard rumors that his entire party, with the exception of the Werewolf, had been wiped out. That he, as his nickname suggests, brings death and uses his comrades as human shields.

It was only later that she learned that Sheen, from his very first assignment, had always been thrown only into the hottest spots of the front.

It happened after another fight.

One of the squadmates was blown up by an infantry mine. Intestines fell out of him.

He was in pain, but he was not dying, and no one could help him.

Shin quietly walked over to the man writhing on the ground and dropped to one knee. Raiden twitched as well, but Shin motioned for him to stay put.

With bated breath, Rena watched as the Gravedigger drew his pistol. Each processor had the same one – for defense or suicide.

That's when she found out that Shin had another duty.

"I know it's hard, but try to remember something good." Anything.

The dying man smiled faintly. With evident difficulty he spoke:

"The promise... You'll lead me too, won't you?...

— Yes.

A blood-stained hand went up and touched Shin's cheek, but Shin didn't even raise an eyebrow. Lana has never seen anything more beautiful.

She finally understood why all of his older comrades and Raiden had occasionally called him the God of Death.

Because he leads. Bears names. And souls. All the dead follow him to the very end.

For processors that were destined to remain without a grave and sink into oblivion after death, processors that did not know what would become of them tomorrow, this was a salvation that cannot be compared to anything else.

And then she fell in love with him. To the core.

She was glad that she would be by his side after his death. The fear is gone. It was after that incident that Rena began to take very good care of her gun. If the same thing happens to her, she must be able to take care of herself, and until then, she must fight. Together.

However...

Rena turned off the water by turning the faucet and looked up at the sky. She's still alive. She must not allow herself to die.

Her God of Death led the souls of all who had ever died fighting alongside him.

But who will take care of Shin's own soul?..

†

"Hey, eighty-six!" That too.

Supplies had been sent from behind the wall that could not be produced in a conventional or autonomous factory, and now there was a reception going on, which happened no more than once a month.

Shin was checking the containers against the list when he heard the haughty voice of one of the transporters.

When he looked up, he saw a lean officer in uniform nodding to him, with two soldiers with rifles standing behind him, just to intimidate him. Both rifles had a safety catch, but they were not even loaded. Given that the soldiers were quite close, Shin would have been able to tie everyone down long before the shooting began. But it didn't make any sense.

— From the curator. The special warheads you ordered. To think what a care! As to real people...

 

Behind the officer's back were massive, sealed containers covered with "ammunition" markings.

 

Shin frowned suspiciously and said nothing. He didn't remember any special orders.

The officer bristled unpleasantly. There were a lot of rebels among the Eighty-Six who couldn't stand this kind of treatment, but this guy seemed more serious. No words could disturb his calm.

"You've got a girl, aren't you?" Apparently, you have earned her favor. A naïve princess like her was clearly easy to appease with words alone.

Shin suddenly looked directly at him.

"Then maybe you'll let me practice on my wife?" She probably misses her nights.

"Oh, you bastard...

The officer was about to take off, but Shin's gaze made him cool down. There was not an ounce of menace in his red eyes, calm as ever, but it was worth getting into a fight: a pig kept in comfort and safety behind a wall was no match for a monster that lived in battle. Shin walked over to the container, skirting the petrified officer. The cargo number was indeed on the list, and the waybill contained Lena's signature, which had already become familiar over the past months.

Shin's gaze suddenly rested on some scribbles in the bottom line.

— Rune Palace?

After a moment's thought, he remembered everything and widened his eyes.

†

Parties were held in order to socialize: to establish contacts, participate in negotiations and gather information.

Of course, not all conversations were about art, music, philosophy, and other lofty and useless topics, but even understanding this did not make such gatherings any more interesting.

Tired of the greedy glances and whispers, Lena left the main hall of the luxurious Perele Palace, stepped out onto the starlit terrace and sighed.

She had never liked partying, but this one was especially unbearable because more and more men were taking an interest in Lena and engaging in age-appropriate conversations with her. The Mirize family was rich and of high birth, and many wanted both.

However, Lena was not interested.

The black silk dress was in keeping with the dress code, but when paired with black jewelry and a white flower, it looked like a mourning garment. During the whole evening, Lena did not take a drop in her mouth and diligently pretended to be a houseplant, which she was quite successful: the noble ladies occasionally threw hostile glances at her, but generally ignored her presence. After exchanging a few sentences with a surprised Annette and a somewhat preoccupied Karstahl, she limited herself to accepting a few compliments about her raid device from girls with flowers in their hair and, obviously, wind in their heads ("what a beautiful choker!").

Such behavior was clearly against etiquette, but Lena did not care.

They've shut themselves off from reality in their own small little world, where they can compete in piety and hunt for status and wealth—what could be more stupid? And that's while the processors are dying one by one...

The raid device suddenly turned on.

— ... Major?

"Captain Nouzen—" Did something happen? She replied quietly, immediately grasping the device with one hand. All the battles that happen so late should essentially be outside of its jurisdiction, but only the curators of other, more numerous units can afford this.

However, Shin's voice was completely calm.

"You didn't get in touch at the usual time, so I decided to get in touch myself. Is everything alright? If you don't feel comfortable talking now, you can postpone it to another day...

"It's all right. What's going on?

So it's time for a daily conversation with the Tip of the Spear? She turned her back on the palace as if she were on the telephone, and stepped out into the dark garden over which the young moon was glowing.

"I wanted to report that the 'special shells' had arrived.

In the jet-black sky, illuminated only by the stars, a huge fiery flower bloomed.

It exploded into brightly colored snakes, and they began to fall to the ground, disappearing into the darkness like snowflakes. There was a crash, and a meteor immediately streaked the sky from the bottom up. Passing through the cap of fire serpents, he released another flower into the night.

The whole action was accompanied by childishly sincere shouts of joy, which was not at all surprising, given that most of those present had last seen such a thing only in childhood. Flashes of fire snatched for a second the mesmerized faces with dancing shadows.

Considering that it was not necessary to organize such a thing in the vicinity of the base for various reasons, they all came to the football stadium among the city ruins. The processors and maintenance crew scattered across the long-overgrown field, leaving the juggernauts at the edge.

The crew was brought in by Fyde, who was now engaged in fireworks: after carefully arranging the tubes for launching, he ignited them one by one with a torch for cutting metals.

Shin stood alone beside his juggernaut and watched the fiery flowers bloom in the sky.

"Thank you for the fireworks."

The Pararaid's synchronization level was slightly higher than usual. Lena could hear the shouts of joy from the rest of the processors.

She suddenly thought that Shin had set up the pararaid so that she could hear what was going on around her, and that made her happy.

"Today is a holiday, the anniversary of the Revolution. You used to watch the fireworks with your older brother and family. Like the rest...

She bought these fireworks recently, in one of the many stores that are always littered with such things in the run-up to the holidays. A bottle of good liquor, and the quartermaster packed it into ammunition containers. Fireworks are as flammable a material as ammunition, and given that cargo is transported on transport planes, fireproof containers were the best fit.

Lena was aware that it was a bribe, but she even felt some pleasure, because otherwise she would not have been able to get her way.

"It's such a tradition, yes... Are you also launching it now? Presidential fireworks?

"Mm...

Lena walked across the terrace and looked at the administration building. Apparently, the fireworks have just begun. In the night sky, to the thunder of the national anthem of the Republic, the remains of a five-colored ball disappeared.

Appreciating the skill with which the fireworks were made, Lena smiled coldly.

"Yes, I can see him. But the sky is too bright.

The party lights merged into a blinding mess. The dirty sky paid the price for the insatiable consumption of its inhabitants, who thought only of comfort. The fireworks that were supposed to be the pride of the Republic were barely noticeable.

There was no one among the party guests or the people making noise in the neighboring streets to watch the spectacle unfold in the sky. The presidential fireworks were obviously more beautiful than the standard handicrafts that were sold in the market, special people worked on it, but here they did not surprise anyone.

"Your fireworks must be very beautiful. And the sky, too—it's always dark at night.

The black night sky, the clear air, the enthusiastic spectators – yes, the fireworks in one of the far corners of the front must have been beautiful.

"I wish I could see him with you," Lena almost said, but she overcame herself. You can't say that. She could get to the front even now, one wish was enough for that. However, Shin and the others fought against their will, and she couldn't come back with them. All this "together" is nothing more than an illusion, and therefore one should not allow oneself such desires.

In the end, Lena said:

"Someday we will have to watch the presidential fireworks together. You'll laugh.

Shin smiled stiffly.

"I don't remember him being that bad.

"You'll check it out for yourself." After the end of the war and leaving the service, together with his comrades...

She stopped. Daya. Six people who died one after the other.

"I wish Junior Lieutenant Iruma and the others could see it too..." Forgive me. Again, I'm out of time.

"Nothing. It's the first time we've had a funeral salute, so I think Daya and the other victims are happy too. They never liked to be sad.

Shin chuckled as he imagined Kino having fun. The commander was clearly unconscious, and the pararaid transmitted them more vividly than usual.

"Besides, Anjou has finally burst into tears. And she always keeps everything to herself, so I wanted to thank you for that, too.

Daya and Anjou had known each other for a long time and were very close.

"Warrant Officer Em can't forget—"

"It's natural. You haven't forgotten either, Major. My brother...

After a moment's hesitation, Shin continued.

"I was glad to hear that... After all, I didn't remember it myself.

Lena heard that faintly trembling voice and couldn't believe it.

Shin had never expressed his feelings like this before.

"Captain Knowzen . . .

"Major, you're going to remember us, aren't you?"

The commander asked this question as if in jest. Neither the intonation nor the voice gave any reason to suppose that there was anything serious behind it.

This time, however, they were more synchronized than usual. Just a little bit...

And that was enough for Lena to feel the burning desire that was hidden behind his words.

"Will you remember us?"

"At least for a second after we die."

Lena shivered and closed her eyes.

No matter how strong they are. No matter how many battles you've endured.

Death was always breathing down their backs.

"Of course I will. But...

It was her duty. Her, Vladilena Mirize, curator of "Tip of the Spear". She sighed and finished the sentence firmly.

"But before that, I won't let you die." No one else.

However...

No matter how many petitions Lena submits, no matter how many applications she writes...

Not a single person was ever sent to the Tip of the Spear.

†

Four people died that day.

They made the usual sortie through the Legion's forward positions. The bridgehead for the gathering and further movement of the enemy's main forces was actually a trap. An ambush lurks in a seemingly safe area.

Shin, as always, had predetermined the location and number of units waiting for them, so the plan was to flank the ambush site and launch a surprise flank attack.

For some reason, there were no mayflies, and Lena's radar clearly showed the absence of any other enemy forces, but just before the collision, several people, including Shin, managed to sense something. "Something's wrong," Raiden muttered, and his feelings reverberated over to some of the CPUs, which seemed to be the main reason why they had managed to survive all along.

The fighter's instincts were in no way inferior to the ability to find the Legion by their voice.

At the same second, the radar sounded an alarm and a projectile fell from the sky on a diagonal trajectory.

Only those who did not lose their heads from the signal and allowed themselves to react instinctively to the situation were able to survive. The griffin (juggernaut Chise) did not have time to dodge the projectile and exploded; Fawnir (Kino's juggernaut) was hit by shrapnel, and his point also disappeared from the radar. The remaining juggernauts were thrown back by a strong shockwave, some could not resist and fell to the ground, and the second and third shells fell on them from the sky with terrible explosions.

An auxiliary computer calculated that the firing point was 120 km east-north-east. They had never seen such long-range guns in the Legion. Moreover, the shells were extremely fast. The estimated muzzle velocity exceeded 4000 m/s, which was slightly beyond the capabilities of the artillery.

The ambushed vehicles turned out to be nothing more than cannon fodder, the purpose of which was to keep the Tip of the Spear in the firing zone. Such a clever and cold-blooded strategy, which even took into account the CPU's plan for a flank attack, was nothing compared to what the Legion had demonstrated before.

If Shin hadn't spotted the observation machine in time and dealt with it, and then the gun suddenly stopped at the tenth shot (apparently some defect in the newly developed mechanism), they would not have been able to retreat, no matter how experienced they were.

The processors got away from the last pursuers, and in the end, their losses amounted to 4 people. Chise, Kino, Touma, and Kroto were killed.

There are only 9 juggernauts left.

Less than half of the regular roster. Even less than a dozen...

"I...

Lena couldn't utter a word in terror.

My mouth was dry. My heart was pounding with a terrible premonition. She blurted out hurriedly:

"I'll ask for a replenishment right away." Today. This is... So weird...

In Tip of the Spear, there has been a shortage for a long time.

Due to the small number of processors, the processors were exhausted, and the defensive line could hardly be maintained only with the help of fire support and sorties from neighboring units. Senior management was well aware of this, but no one did anything. Requests for fire support and sorties were duly granted, but for some reason requests for reinforcements were always rejected. Lena tried to take advantage of her good relations with Karstahl and begged him to do something, but even he, the Major General, was powerless, so the squad did not get a single man.

Shin replied curtly.

"Major."

"I'll talk to the Major General again, he'll do something." You'll need any help now...

— Major Mirize.

Lena fell silent.

"We all don't care.

— ... yes," Raiden agreed, as if speaking for everyone. The others maintained a tense silence.

— ... What are you talking about?...

"Major." Stop it. No matter what you do, it won't do anything.

"Captain Nousen, what have you got—"

"There will be no replenishment. In general, not a single person...

— ... I...

Everyone except Lena knew the truth. Shin said quietly.

"We're going to be destroyed. We were sent to this unit to be executed.