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E3-20201119-JV-NF-ORI
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[chapter I] A Journalist’s Memories of
the Eastern Front
The words operation, military campaign, pitched battle, and decisive battle
instantly bring to mind images of hard, brutal fighting. And certainly, any
situation described this way will undoubtedly involve combat.
But on the eastern front, it was a slower trickle of blood that drained the
two opposing armies.
When veterans talk about the eastern front, they think of the infinite
skirmishes that occurred in the massive theater of operations where major
maneuvers simply didn’t happen.
It was the same on the Rhine.
That was another place where towering piles of corpses lurked behind the
words nothing to report.
Those minor engagements don’t appear in history books and are hardly
ever remembered. But there is no doubt that much of history was decided in
these moments, and now those who gave their lives sleep in silence.
My name is Andrew.
I am one of the embedded reporters who visits these forgotten
battlegrounds no one speaks of.
I took up my pen intending to write a memoir, but my preface has gotten
awfully long. Maybe I’m too much of an empath.
Or perhaps by telling my story, I hope to escape my past?
The air in the Federation feels chilly no matter what the season. For better or
worse, it’s tricky for someone from the Commonwealth to say that the tribe
that lives in these parts is friendly. These Communists are a superstitious lot,
after all.
My name is John Doe, the man without a name. Sometimes people with
good manners lovingly call me Mr. John.
Unfortunately for me, it seems the Commies think I’m a spy—what an
outrageous error. Officially, I’m nothing but a simple visa issuer from the
Commonwealth who gets sent all over the place in the name of my king and
country.
Of course, as a gentleman, I should probably keep the truth a secret.
Having entered the Federation, I toy with that idea in my mind to relax a
bit. Even if I’m only a messenger, I feel more nervous than I have been since
my very first mission.
It’s bad enough that I actually feel relieved when I find the person I’m
looking for and finally make contact. That’s rare for me these days.
“Hey there, Colonel Drake. What a relief to see a familiar face.”
“Why, if it isn’t Mr. Johnson. Can’t believe you made it all the way out
here. You weren’t attacked by any savages on the way over, were you?”
“Luckily, I’m playing at being the savages’ friend at the moment.”
When Tanya answers the General Staff’s orders to report to the eastern
army’s forward base, it’s under the assumption that Colonel von Lergen or
Though his job as inspector was only nominal, this unexpected opportunity to
directly observe the situation in the field was more than welcome.
It didn’t exactly compare to leisurely desk work, where he could kick
back in an easy chair with a smoking pipe, but it did allow him to see things
he couldn’t as the deputy chief of the Service Corps back at the General Staff
Though at night they conducted a thorough blackout, the General Staff Office
was a fortress that never slept, like the beating administrative heart of the
Empire.
So though it was nighttime, Lieutenant General von Rudersdorf was
roused from his dozing by the clamorous ringing of the telephone.
“General von Rudersdorf, it’s Lieutenant Colonel Uger. Terribly sorry to
bother you while you’re sleeping, but I have a report.”
“Thanks. What is it?” He was used to calls interrupting his light sleep.
When Rudersdorf urged Uger to continue, the lieutenant colonel made his
report apologetically. “There was another nighttime raid on the lowland
industrial zone.”
The aerial war in the west was in a lull, but both sides were doing
everything their cunning could come up with to harass each other; it was
turning into a spiteful conflict far removed from the sort Rudersdorf
preferred.
“…They couldn’t stop the enemy planes?”
“The air force was in charge of interception; they’re drawing up the report
of their accomplishments now. The ratio they managed to down wasn’t bad,
but if we want to stop every enemy, we need numerical superiority…”
He’s serious, thought Rudersdorf with a wince and asked about the
important part—how they would respond. “Colonel Uger, what’s Zettour
doing about it?”
“The other day he coordinated with the Foreign Office to denounce the
attacks for violating the law of war. These are bombings on population
centers with no warnings, so they’re publicizing that fact to third parties and
condemning them.”
Whoa, hold on. Rudersdorf’s mouth fell open.
“…I had heard about it, but can the Service Corps expand their activities
so much without running shorthanded?”
“All we’re really doing is compiling the damage reports.”
It wouldn’t do to forget how Zettour had warned him not to work his
subordinates too hard when they were already so understaffed.
JUNE 18, UNIFIED YEAR 1927, THE EASTERN LINES, SOLDIM 528
If I write that fortifying the position at the Soldim 528 position is going
slow…is that a contradiction? A position not being a position yet does seem
to go against common military sense.
But that’s where we’re at in reality. There’s a serious shortage of
materials. As a result, we’re having to make do with what’s on hand using
that creative ingenuity known as the wisdom of the field.
A classic example would be using an underground storehouse as a
subterranean trench, perhaps? And that is exactly where Lieutenant Colonel
Tanya von Degurechaff has posted herself.
At that moment, about to face a major Federation Army offensive, she is
savoring a light nap in her uncomfortable, underground pseudo-bed.
A familiar sound comes closer.
It’s always the sound of shell impacts that wakes her.
“…Tch. As usual, it’s a bit too loud for a pleasant wake-up call.” Jumping
up and putting on her cap, she remembers the Rhine, dwelling on the
irritating memories. They say memories are beautiful, but there was nothing
beautiful about the Rhine.
Tanya shakes her head. Some things are an improvement.
For instance, the environment.
Instead of soaking in muddy trenches, she can go straight to the battlefield
from a crumbling, partially submerged pseudo-bedroom; that should probably
be celebrated as a cozy work-from-home situation.
The officers crowding the war room at B Group HQ all wore severe
expressions as they peered at the map spread out in the center of the room.
That part was fine.
Staff officers staring at a map is as natural as human beings breathing.
There was just one problem: The inspector and supervisor nominally in
charge, Lieutenant General von Zettour, was glaring around the room,
demanding someone speak, but apparently, a cat was holding everyone’s
tongues hostage.
“Gentlemen, I need your thoughts. The Lergen Kampfgruppe has been
surrounded for over a week.”
The staffers of B Group glanced at one another, trying to pass off the
responsibility of replying.
“The Lergen Kampfgruppe is completely isolated in enemy territory—”
When, after taking their time, one of the officers finally spoke up, what he
said was awfully trite.
“Gentlemen, apologies for the personal announcement, but you don’t
mind, right? It turns out I can read maps, too.” Zettour decisively cut him off.
“If you take into account the enemy unit intel scribbled here, it’s clear that
Soldim 528 is an isolated stronghold.”
In other words, it was also impossible to misunderstand the Federation’s
desire to recapture the strategic urban rail stop… That said, it was a shock
that despite the huge battle raging in the south, they still had enough troops to
deploy in such numbers in the central area—which was decidedly not where
the hottest action was happening.
Striking at enemy manpower was a necessity—especially now, while they
The mind of a unit commander under siege is often torturous. Thus, adequate
sleep is necessary to maintain mental health. Sleep is one of the mind’s best
friends. It’s rare to find a person who hates sleep.
Which is why it’s a commander’s right to request not to be woken up
except in case of emergency. Put another way, anytime I find Tanya being
dragged out of bed by her adjutant, First Lieutenant Serebryakov, there’s
good cause to expect trouble.
Yet, here we are again.
“Sorry to wake you, Colonel. It’s an urgent message from high
command!”
My adjutant has burst in to wake me up again. It’s not as if it’s
Serebryakov’s fault, but when it happens this often, I’d like to express my
discontent. Sadly, as a member of the military, I’m not permitted to sleep
soundly when high command has an emergency.
“Urgent? Give it here.” Bracing herself for another unreasonable demand,
Tanya reaches out for the telegram, but the concise text throws her. “From
General von Zettour to the ‘Lergen Kampfgruppe’: ‘Colonel von Lergen,’
On the endless expanse of land, the visible man-made objects were tiny dots.
Little grains scattered here and there. From a bird’s-eye view, they were
probably easy to overlook as inconsequential blips.
But those who approached would surely gasp at their majesty. They were
the very definition of massive—the best armor modern technology had to
offer: This was the Imperial Army’s armored division on the attack.
Leaving ruts in the ground, nothing blocking their path, the group was
headed straight for Soldim 528. In the lead was the commander’s tank
equipped with a large wireless set to keep everyone together, and behind that
were several vehicles also fully loaded with communication devices.
That was fairly unusual, but it was a move that manifested the
commander’s mentality. On the eastern front, where armored warfare
frequently took place on a large scale, it had become normal for the unit
commander to be there on the front lines in order to make snap decisions;
there was nothing rare about that.
But the curious glances from the tanks and infantry trucks traveling
around them—from the no small number of seasoned armored division
veterans maintaining their formations perfectly—said that something about
the commander’s cluster was peculiar.
If you lent an ear to the radio, the answer would be clear immediately.
“We’ve made contact with the enemy. It’s a Federation Army defensive
The Federation Army units dealt with the charging imperial armored units
according to regulations. The reserve forces were assigned rapid-response
duty and intercepted the imperial rescue units trying to make a breakthrough.
Though Federation doctrine emphasized numerical superiority, they didn’t
necessarily have it on the receiving end of Lieutenant General von Zettour’s
charge. Still, what they lacked in numbers, they made up for with ability.
The Federation Army’s handling of the situation, on battle lines ruled by
the fog of war, was exceedingly close to perfect. The carefully prepared plan
was enacted without a hitch, and the pet they had kept safely in their pocket
for just such an occasion—a full armored division—was decisively rushed
over.
Even the Imperial Army General Staff was forced to recognize their
enemy’s organized resistance as something worth imitating.
Without excessive interference by political officers, plus their burgeoning
pursuit of military logic, the Federation military organization had built itself a
reliable defense. Perhaps it was by the book, but when you have the ability
and opportunity, there is nothing more solid than a frontal attack.
If the imperial relief unit had been short on nerves, the Federation surely
would have won. Their counter-advance would have shattered the imperial
will to fight along with everything else; they probably could have even made
a long-range march of it.
If there was one fatal miscalculation the intercepting Federation troops
The rewards of victory are many and various, but one that is guaranteed is the
right to chase down fleeing enemies. No matter the era or place, there is
nothing that feels better than firing at your enemy’s knapsacks.
I mean, you get to attack their backs, you know?
Once a general pursuit is ordered, everyone has to go whether they want
to or not.
Among the bravely charging units ordered to hunt down the enemy are
Tanya and the rest of the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion. It’s full speed ahead
In the plain office, the commissar of internal affairs…the devil in the guise of
a human, Loria, was cocking his head in surprise.
“We lost?”
Across the desk, a career soldier, with the rank of colonel in a uniform
with no wrinkles, flinched as a chill shot up his spine; he broke into a cold
sweat as he nodded in silence.
“Against the Imperial Army’s B Group?”
“…Yes.”
There was fear in the voice he had to squeeze out. This colonel had known
Loria for some time and was able to speak his mind to a degree…but having
witnessed firsthand the commissar’s severe reaction to failure, he was
probably having a hard time relaxing.
To put him at ease, Loria gave a casual shrug and put on an intentionally
cheerful expression. “…Well, I don’t mind. We managed to win in the
critical cities down south.”
“You’re counting this as a victory?”
“Comrade Colonel, I’m surprised. You’re a soldier, yet it seems you lack
common sense for a military man. From a military standpoint, we can surely
call this a win.”
Even if it’s better to be feared than loved, binding people with fear alone
is for fools.
“Comrade, I’ll be frank. Our comrades-in-arms are doing a good job.”
Fear is like a medicine you administer as needed. The right amount keeps
the organization functioning smoothly, but the side effects from too much are
extreme.
“But…”
The Federation Army officer was still hesitant, and Loria delivered his
conclusion matter-of-factly. “We bore the brunt of the imperial attack in the
Are there any heroes out there who bought the books in one fell swoop after
seeing the anime? I’ve heard rumors that I only half believe, but in any case,
please mind the difference between bravery and recklessness.
Nice to meet you, hello, or perhaps long time no see. This is Carlo Zen
(@sonzaix).
Soon the manga will pass the novels in terms of number of volumes. How
in the world did this happen?
When I consider the reason, I feel it must be that working on the anime
took up some time, but if I think about it harder, I also get the feeling I’m just
slower these days. Thus, I truly appreciate you comrades who always wait
patiently for new volumes.
Perhaps this is wisdom of the crowd, but in the sense that many people
have discovered various ways to enjoy The Saga of Tanya the Evil, I think we
can say that the anime has achieved favorable results. I am indebted to the
anime staff, as I relied on them a great deal. Now I simply have to carry on
the extremely easy work of releasing more volumes at a constant pace.
Strangely, my only worry is that I don’t seem to be staying on schedule; in
that sense, manuscripts are kind of like summer vacation homework. That
said, I vow to do my summer homework according to a plan.
I have the feeling I made the same vow every year of elementary, middle,
and high school, but looking at it another way, that means I’ve held fast to the
idea all these years, so I hope you’ll acknowledge my tenacious integrity, if
nothing else.
It’s thanks to all of you that a guy like me can continue writing and
making books. I really owe the designers at Tsubakiya Design, the
proofreaders at Tokyo Publisher Service Center, my editors Fujita and Tamai,
and illustrator Shinotsuki.
And thank you as always to you, the readers who stick with me. I hope to
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