The Sky Over Norden

JUNE, UNIFIED YEAR 1923, THIRD PATROL LINE, NORDEN THEATER, NORTHERN MILITARY DISTRICT

Why am I out here fighting in a war? My conscious self, assigned the identity of Magic Second Lieutenant Tanya Degurechaff, poses the question again as I clasp an orb in tiny hands, leave the rifle that’s serving as my scepter on the ground, and soar into the sky.

How did I end up like this?

“Fairy 08 to Norden Control. Fairy 08 to Norden Control. Acknowledge.”

A single dot stands out over the gloomy, overcast skies of Norden. This miniscule speck blending into the clouds is none other than one of the Empire’s mighty aerial magic officers. Due to a sick twist of fate, if I take a look at myself, I’m cursed to see a little girl participating in a war. The uniform and computation orb are proof that I’m a soldier. Through scientific means, the sphere I carry controls the supernatural phenomenon known as “formulas,” which allow mages to influence the world with their will. As implied by the modern name of the ancient orbs, courtesy of science and magic, this fruit of magic engineering has unraveled the numeric values of the world.

My mission is to act as an artillery observer from a predesignated airspace while maintaining a comfortable ground speed at an altitude of six thousand feet.

“Fairy 08, this is Norden Control. We read you loud and clear. No problems tracking you.”

Talk about a piece of cake. This is just an air support mission at the border between the Empire and the Entente Alliance. But this vigilant spotter magician, maintaining her flight formula with the computation orb around her neck, must look surprisingly small.

And I am pint sized. It makes people wonder if my age has hit double digits yet. Moreover, I have a petite frame, even for a girl. Comparing Tanya’s height to the physically blessed body of my previous life is absolutely mortifying. It was miserable to hear that Tanya’s neck was too narrow to properly wear the aviation throat mic headset.

“Fairy 08, roger. I’ve reached the mission airspace. Reading you loud and clear,” I say. I’m already resigned to the voice spewing from my mouth, though the high-pitched tone makes me feel like something’s haunting me. No matter how accustomed to hearing it I become, I can’t stand it. Whenever my tongue can’t keep up with my mind and I end up nearly biting it or stuttering, I feel utterly humiliated.

“Norden Control, roger. Proceed to your assigned mission.”

Of course, the army is seriously something else for having no qualms even after hearing that girlish partial lisp. Perhaps it’s simply a matter of being pragmatic, but the military has adopted the position that a person’s aptitude for the magic arts can be a sufficient condition for military enlistment, since aerial mages focus on air combat. In the Empire, where that has been taken to its logical conclusion, age limits for mages are a thing of the past. Hence why the army has no problem deploying someone who looks young enough that they should still be with their guardian, if only as an artillery observer.

“Fairy 08, roger. The area is all clear. I say again, area is all clear.”

“Norden Control, roger. There is an infantry battalion assigned to your observation area. Call sign Goliath 07. Barring new orders from airspace control, continue to perform your observation duties until the area is pacified. Out.”

The demands of the Empire’s geopolitical position have played a large role in this method of procuring human resources. Surrounded by world powers due to historical circumstance, the state has been forced to face potential enemies in every direction. Securing the military strength needed for their large territory’s national defense is a perpetually pressing issue. In order to resolve the problem, the General Staff’s frenzied efforts have reached the point where they’ll exploit anyone within reach.

“Fairy 08, this is the Provisional Corps Artillery Battalion, call sign Goliath 07. How copy?”

This being the case, the army apparently thinks nothing of tossing a young girl out to the border on air patrol if it can use her. I am quite literally a child soldier.

“Goliath 07, this is Fairy 08. Reading you loud and clear. I’ve confirmed the enemy infantry advance. Sending data now. Acknowledge.” I bet the sight of a young girl flying through the air, her adorable voice confined to a matter-of-fact register, must seem terribly surreal. When you get down to it, a proper army is supposed to be composed of proper adult soldiers. That’s only common sense.

But it isn’t just static in the signal—hearing women’s and children’s voices on the mic has become commonplace among mages. The armed forces have a practical exception in place for just about everything. More than anything, the harsh days in service exhaust decent people, so any initial discomfort over allowing a girl to participate in combat has long since worn off.

“Goliath 07, roger… Base piece starting calibration fire.”

That’s why the aerial mage enlisted as Second Lieutenant Tanya Degurechaff is serving as an artillery observer during this battle in the northern reaches of Norden, calmly and skillfully delivering periodic reports via the radio set on her back that’s nearly as big as she is. But actually, it isn’t as though I don’t question or doubt what I’m doing flying out here.

“Impact confirmed… Looks like a close hit. Looks to be within the allowable error margin of ten meters. Fire for effect.”

“Goliath 07, roger. Commencing fire mission now.”

While my blue eyes attentively look below, there’s no denying they hold a glint of frustration. Why was I reborn into this world, made the opposite gender, and now stuck fighting a war?

The most annoying things are the physical changes. A child’s body is horribly inconvenient. At first, even though girls develop quicker than boys, the size difference was simply too great to maneuver my body with the same equilibrium I had trusted for years. On top of that, I’ve keenly felt how much I’ve become a helpless child on multiple occasions since joining the army.

I couldn’t hold a gun. It was too big. In the end, I couldn’t aim worth a damn, and the recoil ended up bruising my shoulder. When I sparred, there was a streak of pity on my partner’s face whenever he threw me.

Until I could see the world as three numeric vectors with the computation orb and get the hang of superposing the realm of numbers with magical interference formulas, I had to crawl on my belly with arms and legs that refused to obey me. Because they depended on brains, not brawn, the magic arts were the only area where I succeeded, if only barely. The constraints of my body couldn’t trouble me, and I could soar across the sky as long as I superposed the world with my formulas.

Perhaps I was able to overcome any reservations I might’ve had about magic due to its usefulness as a tool. But why must I use a tool simply because I have it?

Oh, I get it. It’s essential that we’re able to use an ICBM when the time calls for one. That’s why it’s necessary to make provisions for their maintenance, drills, and operations. That said, is there any reason we need to have ICBMs in the first place? In that same vein, gossip about seemingly strained relations with neighboring nations is hardly new.

The Empire and Entente Alliance have been struggling for quite some time with unofficial border conflicts. But in the international politics arena, at least, there’s nominally no dispute over this territory.

The problem isn’t acknowledged because the Empire is such an incredible powerhouse. As far as Tanya is concerned, it’s a simple matter, comparable to how nations surrounding the Soviet Union independently avoid border disputes with it.

…Well, was. The only regrettable part of discussing the Empire’s strength is that it has to be described in the past tense.

Multiple isolated accidents have occurred along the border. There has been “unintentional” fire on both sides, which led to firefights due to misunderstanding. All such incidents were resolved at the level of the local commanding officers, but there’s no denying the continually mounting tension.

Under normal circumstances, if the Empire entered a state of “semi-war” at this point, Tanya’s position would allow her to fall back to the rear echelon and serve in noncombat roles. After all, Warrant Officer Tanya Degurechaff had been a cadet attending the military academy up until the outbreak of hostilities. A greenhorn would only get in the way on the front lines, so it would be normal for her to serve somewhere in the rear, such as in the Technical Arsenal or Logistical Command, once the Empire began making preparations in anticipation of war.

Yet despite the unsettling state of world affairs, Tanya’s optimistic superiors decided this was all merely brinkmanship diplomacy. Thanks to them, she was stuck completing her training out in the field. The flight patrols she took part of in coordination with the army were only intended to serve as an extension of the education she was receiving at the academy. Having lost her opportunity to withdraw to the rear, Tanya was officially commissioned as a second lieutenant and deployed upon completing her training. She was also assigned the call sign Fairy 08. Clearly, people were obnoxiously comparing her to a fairy. Based on outward appearances alone, she was a puny kid—really—an incredibly young child. On top of that, she had blue eyes that seemed to reflect a strong will and short blond hair tied back to make it easier to manage. And considering her pale, clear skin complexion as well, her call sign did start to seem appropriate.

The trouble began right after Tanya officially assumed her new post in the field with the border army. The administrative unit was composed of direct promotes from the magic officer training school and local relocations. As a new transfer, Tanya was forced to accept orders to stand by for forty-eight hours. Assuming it was a traditional training exercise conceived by the brass to test their capacity for coping and maintaining alertness, Tanya had reluctantly suited up and gone on duty twenty-four hours ago.

Then the emergency warnings came flying in from security outpost positions scattered along the border with such impeccable timing that it surely made the devil smile. Apparently there had been signs that the Entente Alliance was planning to conduct a large-scale cross-border operation.

The Entente Alliance’s new policy direction had already been a cause for concern. The reshuffling of executives, resulting from a change in administration, and the ensuing rise in nationalism had required a dramatic shift in doctrine. Honestly, the Entente Alliance’s operation was carried out with such ridiculously poor planning that not only Tanya but also everyone in the Imperial Army was left wondering, Why now of all times? Before they knew it, the Entente Alliance was scattering notices demanding imperials to withdraw—a declaration of war.

In other words, the Entente Alliance had insisted, Imperial soldiers are to withdraw from our nation’s territory within twenty-four hours. Perhaps a lowly company officer was incapable of understanding the Entente Alliance’s reasons, but maybe the assumption was that the Empire would avoid full-blown military engagement since regional conflicts were extremely politically sensitive.

If the Entente Alliance couldn’t face reality, it’s possible it would go down in history for all the wrong reasons. Are they stupid? Or so people wondered. Perhaps they devised some great plan that will lead them to victory?

Despite being unable to comprehend the Entente Alliance’s agenda or objective, the Empire nevertheless maneuvered its finely tuned bureaucracy and military organizations according to protocol. They played it by the book and made preparations to intercept enemy forces. As a cog for her country, Tanya had no choice but to put in work commensurate with her pay. Admittedly, at this point she rather optimistically predicted that all this was mostly for internal propaganda.

After all, there was no way the nearby Federation would want two neighboring nations fighting on its doorstep. Everyone expected this to hold the Entente Alliance in check, whether through mediation or intimidation. Moreover, the Commonwealth and Republic were propping up the Entente Alliance. Surely they would put the brakes on this suicidal advance for fear that all the aid they had provided would be wasted. Yes, the vast majority of officers and soldiers were certain of the future. Military folk were realists by nature, after all.