Chapter 4

  After thinking about the issue for a bit, you decide to go with two admittedly rather simple solutions for the Empire's quite urgent problem so that the General Staff wouldn't begin something as silly as a debate on the matter. To your knowledge, there was not a single mage in the history of the Empire that made it so far up the ranks that he could hold his own in such a debate, so it would be useless. It was the reason why you despite your trust in the higher ups couldn't help but think that it would be better for the Empire as a whole if the current matter and problems of the same nature were actually solved one step at a time by mages like yourself, not that you would ever write them that.

  Both of your proposals were designed to limit the mana pollution on the battlefield as was requested, and though they did so at the price of the Empire's reputation in the world, you were fully standing behind both of them, the safety of the Fatherland should always come first after all. For one, you proposed that the Mage Battalions of the Empire should for now focus on saving mana when moving around out of combat by simply taking turns carrying their wingmate so that only eighteen flight formulas would be active for each Battalion. Certainly not a pretty or awe-inspiring solution, but it would do, and in the end that is all the General Staff would need to see to get it approved.

  While you were sure that your first motion would struggle a bit before passing with the image of the Empire being stained a little, your second proposal was assured to get approved right away, even if the Empire would lose some mages in the process. A mage that's killed is one that will never again bring mana to the battlefield after all, and you're sure the higher ups in Berun haven't forgotten that the Empire has the advantage of a greater population against most of its neighbours, making even a terrible and unrealistic trade of one to one a win for the Fatherland.

  Overall you were quite satisfied with your suggestions, though you're still of the opinion that it would have been nice if there was no problem in the first place, you guessed most of your fellow Imperials were a little too relaxed if this all slipped them by till now. The western border was really a mess, with the core of the Great Army being stationed just a bit further inland not even the veterans had any tension in them despite the usual acid spewing of the Republic's diplomats and leaders. And while everyone still knew that it truly was a fragile peace that had to end at some point, even you were doubting that the Republic would ever willingly decide to fight the Great Army head on.

  This usually wasn't a bad thing, but that some of the Fatherlands defenders live in some kind of bubble wasn't sitting right with you, especially with how you and your Battalion had the short end of the stick if such problems added up and the Republicans actually show some spine. After thinking on it for a few days, you decided that you would have to put some effort into bringing your Battalion up to imperial standards and then some, simply because this wouldn't do. For while the Fatherland would of course happily reinforce you as long as your Battalion was performing, you had no interest in seeing the troops under your command die, especially not to something as absurd as imperial negligence of all things.

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  But even with your mind made up you didn't believe that you could do what the peers of your instructors had judged to be a waste of time and resources, you had no experience as a teacher after all. The only thing you could do for your men was to teach them something simple that would get them for a short time out of danger should the Empire come to blows with the French. You learned that you had to expect the worst case scenario as an imperial officer, and so just like your instructors had taught you, you would plan for the worst, and then hope that you could get the chance to do exactly that to the enemy, yeah, they were truly sadists to the core.

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