Army: The Return to the Hell of Warfare

Chapter 6: Officer School

A few weeks passed and I was discharged from the hospital. I started getting used to having escorts now however, the nickname of ‘Rusted Silver’ still annoyed me quite a bit whenever I hear it being uttered by civilians and soldiers alike.

Due to my honorary noble status, I was given a small house in the Empire’s capital of Berlun.
On my way to my house, I was greeted by a messenger from The Imperial Army Officer School and he brought a letter for me.
The letter said:

“Major Katarina Von Staufenberg,
We hope this letter finds you well. We, the board of Directors of the Imperial Army Officer School would like to thank you for your valiant defense of the Empire during the Norden Incident and we would like to congratulate you on being awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds and your promotion to the status of nobility. As such, we would like to invite you to the Imperial Army Officer School both as a student and as a lecturer. We have decided as the board of Directors to invite you as a lecturer to allow Officer cadets to learn from someone who has experience in the frontlines rather than learning purely through theories and textbooks.
           
                With kind regards,
            Brigadier General Hans Erich Von Moltke”

I was ecstatic. I can’t believe that I was invited to enroll and be a lecturer in the Imperial Army Officer School and by Brigadier General Von Moltke no less. I couldn't even hide the excitement from my face, I was smiling from ear to ear.
“YESSSS! THIS IS FINALLY IT! I’m finally on my way to a comfortable life in the rear. Now, I just have to prove my worth to the Board of Directors then they would recommend me to the General Staff which would result in my comfortable position in the rear, away from the dangers of the front” I said to myself.

“Major, you’re being invited to the Imperial Army Officer School?! Congratulations Major!” Reinhardt and Zettour Congratulated me. Later on that night, we proceeded to have dinner at the Capital with my treat to them to show as thanks for their hard work as my escorts.
This would be my final night with them as first thing tomorrow, I will be departing to go to the Imperial Army Officer School and will stay in its dormitories and because of this, it was deemed that I no longer need an escort as I will be given a private room that will be patrolled every night due to my status as both a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and as a noble.
The following morning, I said my goodbyes to both Reinhardt and Zettour as I boarded the staff car provided to me. As the chauffeur drove the car away, I waved my goodbyes to both Lance Corporal William Reinhardt and Second Lieutenant Tanya Zettour.
“They’re good people. I hope I’ll see them again” I said to myself before the car sped off and I could no longer see the two of them.

After a while, the car finally arrived at the gates of the Imperial Army Officer School. The school is considered all over the continent as the place where the best officers in the continent are produced, envied by all nations due to the quality of officers and Generals it has produced in the short span of time that the Empire has been established.
The car continued to drive inside and went to the Office of the Board of Directors. The chauffeur told me that he will take care of my baggage and have it sent directly to my room.

After the staff car left, I took a deep breath and mustered the courage to knock on the door.
“Come in!” the person inside replied.
I opened the and said, “Excuse me. Good morning! Major Katarina von Staufenberg reporting!” I said to the person inside. Little did I know that the person inside was Brigadier General Hans Erich Von Moltke himself! He was in a meeting with what I assume to be the other members of the board of Directors discussing something that I assume to be academic matters or something about the war against the Northern Entente Alliance.
“I apologize for the intrusion Sir. I’ll show myself out immediately.” I said in apology so as to remain in the Brigadier General’s good graces.
“No no no, stay inside here Major. It’s a good thing that you’re here actually” Brigadier General Von Moltke said to me as he gestured to me to go near the table.
The Brigadier General then suddenly rose up and started a fiery speech, “Gentlemen! This young girl is a survivor of the Northern Entente Alliance’s act of aggression against our Fatherland. Will we stand here and remain idle while our troops keep getting attacked by the savages of the North?! Or will we stand up and fight back against their tyranny?! Will we let more children like her be sent to the front?! Gentlemen! I implore you! Not as the Brigadier General of the Imperial Army, not as the Chief of Staff of the Imperial General Staff, but as a citizen of our Fatherland! We have already resisted them at Norden, now, we must show them our fangs! We must now bite Gentlemen!”
The others in the room erupted in voice of cheer and agreement to the Brigadier General.
Little did I know that the others weren't actually members of the board of Directors but actually are magnates of large Imperial businesses, influential members of the parliament, and high ranking members of the Imperial Court.
After a few hours of meeting, talking and preparing for my position as a lecturer, I was finally able to go back to my room.

When I arrived at the building where my room is located, I was saluted by the other Officer cadets, I saluted back to them in response. As I continued walking the hallway towards my room, I heard some soldiers saying my nickname that I detest so much, ‘Rusted Silver’. I glared at them and saw them shiver out of the corner of my eye.

The following day was a rest day, I knew that Brigadier General Von Moltke would be in the campus so I decided to walk around and try to increase my value as a human resource in his eyes.
When I didn’t find him, I decided I should just head to the library to try and study up about the Empire and the other countries.
When I arrived at the library, I was surprised it was pretty empty considering it was a free day. I decided to try and look for books that were related to the topic I was searching for.
After looking for quite some time, I finally found the book however, it was situated into a shelf that was way above where I could reach. As there were no stools near me, I could only go and try to reach the book as much as possible hoping I could budge it to move close enough that I can have the book fall.
When I was about to reach the book, a figure suddenly approached me from behind. When I looked back, I was shocked because it was none other than the Brigadier General himself. I immediately stood straight and saluted him.
“Good morning Brigadier General! My deepest thanks for your assistance in reaching the book.” I said immediately. I suppose a soldier going to the library and studying up should increase my value within him. “It’s a really good call that I went to the library then,” I said to myself.
“At ease, Major” Brigadier General Von Moltke said.
He went ahead and took the book that I was trying to get and took a look at it.
“Hmm. ‘On the Nations, it’s People and Leaders’? Isn’t this a pretty complex book for your age Major?” Brigadier General Von Moltke aksed.
“Ah, no, Brigadier General. I was actually planning to study up on the nations around the Empire”
“Just call me General Von Moltke, Major,” General Von Moltke said to me as if trying to ease the air of tension between us.
“Understood, General Von Moltke,” I responded
“Anyways Major, why is a young girl like you suddenly interested in this topic? Shouldn’t you be interested in things such as flowers or dresses?” General Von Moltke asked.
“Well, General, I’ve never really had interest in those things (considering I’m actually an almost middle-aged man on the inside) and as a soldier, I wanted to learn more about the countries surrounding us,” I answered him with confidence.
“Oho? Why is that Major?” The General asked, it looked as if I had piqued his interest with my answer.
“General, I believe this is not for my rank to have a say in this matter,” I responded. “It’s always important to know your place when speaking to superiors. Rookies would always get carried away when asked. But I’m not like them” I said to myself.
“HAHAHA! Interesting! Well then Major, let’s just treat this as if a normal inquiry then,” General Von Moltke said to me
“Understood, Sir” I responded
“This isn’t the place to have such a discussion. Let’s go to my office shall we?” The General said.
“Allow me to accompany you, Sir” I responded
“HOLY SH*T! I’m going to be invited to the office of the Brigadier General himself!” I said to myself as I jumped with joy in my mind