Chapter 3. Going To School At This Time!?

Dressed in full military regalia, I went to the store and greatly surprised the old lady at the counter.
“Oh my, quite a grand outfit today.”
“I tried it on for fun. Anyway, did the sweets I requested arrive yet, ma’am?”
“I secretly ordered a small quantity for you.”
“Yahoo! Thanks, ma’am!”
The snacks at the store had a typical lineup. 
That’s why I had made a request.
I compared the websites of various confectionery manufacturers, giving them more serious consideration than I did during work. 
I piled chocolate snacks into my shopping basket and paid in high spirits. 
The sight of a person in perfectly dressed military attire joyfully buying sweets at the store seemed surreal to those around, who occasionally cast curious glances my way. 
Unfazed, I returned to my office with a bag full of chocolate treats, wearing a beaming smile.
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The Next Morning
Taking advantage of the zero-minute commute, I indulged in extra sleep and barely made it to my office just in time for work. 
Today, there were no scheduled operations after consecutive days of missions. 
With no other assigned tasks, I found myself with idle time in my office. 
If I got too bored, maybe I should take a paid vacation in the afternoon?
Since returning to 
Japan, I had just learned about the existence of a vacation system. 
Eager to try it out, I pondered taking the day off since arriving at the office and opening the door to my office.
“Good morning, Hayami-san.”
“Good morning, Major Kamiya. The Marshal is calling for you, even though it’s early in the morning.”
“The Marshal? What could he want so early? He mentioned no planned operations today…”
If there was an urgent need for rescue operations, I would have been awakened in the middle of the night. 
So, the matter wasn’t related to that.
“He’s granting you some time off and permission to go out?”
“That would be nice.”
“Remembering our promise to have sweets outside, Hayami-san.”
“You remembered that!?”
Overwhelmed with emotion, Hayami-san blushed. 
Come to think of it, was her health okay after yesterday?
“The Marshal instructed you to come alone without your aide.”
“Understood. I’ll be back soon.”
I headed briskly to the Marshal’s room.
After knocking, I entered the Marshal’s room. 
Despite being even larger than my office, it felt cramped with several high-ranking officials gathered inside.
Huh? Was there a meeting going on?
“Good morning, everyone…?”
My half-hearted greeting, due to lack of sleep and the scrutinizing gazes from the officials, caught their attention.
“Good morning, Major General Kamiya.”
Sitting at his desk with folded hands, Marshal Tachibana also seemed somewhat worn out.
“Good morning. It seems everyone is tired. Hangover, perhaps? Despite the victorious celebrations in various theaters until yesterday. Well, it seems everyone overindulged in the victory parties.”
I thought it might be due to the aftermath of the continuous celebrations. Drinking too much at consecutive victory parties would lead to a hangover, after all.
“Major General Kamiya, your conspicuous shopping in the building’s store with that eye-catching outfit was reported.”
“Oh, I see. My bad.”
I probably revealed myself unintentionally.
“The information that a minor is freely wandering around the Joint Chiefs of Staff Headquarters in military attire has leaked to the media. It’s quite troublesome. We had to allocate considerable resources to suppress the media.”
The power of the state is frightening. 
Even in Japan, information control and other capabilities seemed to have been upgraded in this chaotic civil war era.
“Regarding the future, though…”
“What is it? Are you sending me to some battlefield again?”
My eyes would likely have lost their sparkle by now. 
I had recently forgotten a bit, but resignation was rearing its head again.
“No. The results of the ultra-long-range remote saturation bombing operation were tremendous. Freezing such capabilities would result in significant losses for our country. Japan has shown other nations that it possesses such a trump card. Sealing this power would only benefit enemy nations. So…”
“Then, what’s the plan? Lock me up in this building until I come of age? I might explode from stress and end up selling myself to the media.”
If I wrote an exposé about my half-life, it might sell reasonably well.
“That’s why I came up with a brilliant idea. The problem is that having a minor freely entering and leaving the military’s core is problematic.”
“It’s not like I’m doing it because I want to wander around as a minor.”
“That’s where we come in. You should be placed in where a minor won’t attract attention.”
“A place where minors won’t attract attention?”
“School.”
“Well, that makes sense. People my age typically attend high school.”
“For you, we’ll have you attend the Special Soul Armor Academy, a school fully funded by the military.”
“Oh… So, it’s to attend school to deceive public eyes.”
“Exactly. Although you might think it’s strange for a Major General to go to school at this time.”
“No, that’s fine. It’s much better than being sent to some battlefield again.”
In fact, as someone in the military, I had long ago given up on the idea of school life. 
Being able to experience it myself was secretly delightful.
“Special Soul Armor Academy is a school corporation entirely funded by the military. The plan is to arrange things so that you can participate in operations while attending the academy.”
“Oh, so you intend to make me work there.”
It’s like doing a slightly dangerous part-time job as a high school student.
“Well then, Major General Kamiya, you’ll be assigned to the Special Soul Armor Academy. You’ll be given a vacation as a preparation period until the entrance ceremony. That’s all. Also, considering you might be seen wandering around this building again, leave immediately.”
If the instructions were to stay inside the building, it was now the exact opposite.
“Yes, sir! I humbly accept the mission.”
However, a sudden change in plans was not a big issue. 
At any rate, I could finally go outside.
The prospect of school life excited me.