" - and that's the general gist of it, Lieutenant General Hazama. I came from a different kind of Japan, one with sorcerers and curses lurking in the dark."
Lieutenant General Koichiro Hazama, the highest-ranked military commander of the JGSDF in the Special Region, was currently bound to a chair by a cursed spirit that manifested itself as a sentient metal chain. The Lieutenant General's whole base was crawling with cursed spirits.
The cursed spirits, as explained in full detail by the Buddhist monk who lazily and dismissively introduced himself as Suguru Geto, were present all around the base. They were invisible at first, almost ethereal. However, several of the soldiers felt their presence and soon thereafter perceived it.
The JGSDF soldiers, Military Police, and some deputized Special Region locals fought back but were killed by beings beyond their comprehension. The whole base was currently on high alert, with the red lights blinking on and off while the sirens remained howling on full volume.
However, the base was mostly barren. The remaining personnel and civilians who had surrendered were rounded up in the barracks by the cursed spirits who could talk.
The rest had either fled via the gate or were scattered in Alnus. The dome guarding the Gate was now closed, the cursed spirits made no attempt to chase the survivors.
The Lieutenant General was currently experiencing the worst day of his military career, maybe ever, and the cause wasn't the Gods nor the Empire. It was merely one Japanese sorcerer from another point of reality, another world.
"If you're Japanese, why are you doing this!? We could work together, advance our country, and turn it into a major power. With your knowledge, sorcery, and experience. The whole world will finally realize that Japan is now a power not by industry or economy but by the monopoly of the supernatural."
He paused for a moment, catching his breath.
"With magic from the Special Region and sorcery. Our country will return to its former glory, but better and a shining beacon of democracy and progress."
The lieutenant general ended his offer, trying to pierce the Buddhist monk's patriotic heart if there was any. However, he was mainly buying time for the response team.
Suguru hummed, scanning the outside view via the lieutenant general's office window while shaking his head and crossing his arms.
"I am not really a patriot, and I have no interest in anything other than satisfying my curiosity and ambition. Besides, if you want me to become political or a patriot..."
Suguru hummed, uncrossing his arms and scratching his head while looking at the ceiling. "I am a Nara resident, and my original ideals won't fit with the modern world." He casually revealed that he had no reason to hide now.
"Nara? You live in Nara City?"
"Yes, but no. I lived in the Nara Period."
Suguru then stretched his arms and body; his expression was warmer and chipper. The expression of a man whose stress and growing anxieties were suddenly lifted, there were hardly any calculations beneath his eyes or inside his mind.
"It's like transferring into a new school or a city. You've shed your problematic past, you meet new people, you experience new things, you learn new things, and more importantly, no one is stopping you from doing what you're doing."
"It truly is a breath of fresh air. No damned six-eyes brat, no hedonist cannibal to manage, no plans yet to enact, just a new kind of freedom."
Suguru waved his hand, the chain cursed spirit unentangled itself, freeing the lieutenant general from the restriction and the chair. "From the start, I had no desire to exterminate or destroy this whole base. I was merely defending myself."
The lieutenant general, still enraged by the destruction of the base and the mass murder of his troops, rose from the seat, barely controlling his quiet fury. He didn't acknowledge the Buddhist monk's words; the claim of self-defense was as believable as Itami's excellent and diligent work ethic.
He merely kept his mouth shut, not acknowledging the Buddhist monk, Suguru Geto's audacious claims. An effective way to counter personalities like these is merely to shut your mouth and wait for an opportunity to strike.
Suguru remained smiling, unthreatened by the lieutenant general's hardly concealed hatred.
The wide, heavily armored dome now rattled, slowly opening with mechanical grace. The reinforcements had arrived. The JGSDF on the other side knew that the Alnus Base had been overrun, overtaken by the supernatural.
However, they were still under the impression that whatever was on the other side was either an army of fantastical beings or medieval soldiers under the command of the Empire who, for once, managed a decisive tactical victory against the JSDF.
The Lieutenant General eyed the radio behind him; it was a simple mobile radio that could be tuned to specific military frequencies, and he knew all of them. He still believed that with the proper introduction of modern weaponry, anything can be solved.
The ambushed base and soldiers managed to eliminate some of the cursed spirits after all. That cockroach monster was problematic but still vulnerable to lead. The lieutenant general was scheming beneath his stoic façade.
"Go ahead, feel free to warn them, but let it be said that my curses are neutral; they won't attack unless they are attacked first," Suguru said, teasing.
"You're a disgrace to Japan."
"Your feeble words honestly mean nothing to me. However, I must say that it really was quite a refreshing surprise to see Japan become an imperialist country once again. The special region loophole was ingenious: declare that everything beyond the gate is technically yours, and now you have free rein."
"We're not an imperialist power! We're merely establishing relations with an empire that has repeatedly attacked us. We're introducing progress, democracy, good relations, and education. Aspects that this region lacked."
The lieutenant general fired back; he had heard those imperialist accusations before, and the protests conveniently ignored the humanitarian efforts of the JGSDF.
"Ah, Benevolent Assimilation, but with a few steps above then? You're doing what the old Americans are doing. I guess you're the modern version of William Howard Taft? Though in this case, it's not the White Man's Burden but instead the Japanese Man's Burden?"
The Lieutenant General shut his mouth; he sparsely recognized the words and names that the insulting Buddhist monk said in front of him. However, the comparison of old colonialism and what the JSGDF was doing in the special region right now further enraged the powerless lieutenant general.
Japan faced accusations of imperialism, yet the JGSDF made every effort to avoid repeating the mistakes of past colonial powers. They were a progressive democratic nation under attack by a primitive empire; what they did was restrained compared to what other countries would do in a similar situation.
Tanks and armored infantry vehicles flooded out of the Gate, the dome now fully opened, taking their positions with disciplined grace. Within a moment, they had formed a barricade that shielded the infantry from behind.
The area in front of the armored column was flooded with cockroaches; at first, there were hundreds, then thousands, then hundreds of thousands, then millions. Entire tents, destroyed trucks, and bases were covered with cockroaches.
The JGSDF response team were shocked, some shaking but nevertheless held their positions. If they fail here, the foreign powers may intervene to stabilize the Gate.
The JGSDF response team immediately fired, firing with disciplined precision. The heavy machine guns from the infantry fighting vehicles, the cannons of the tanks, and the small arms fire of the infantry killed the cockroaches by the thousands every second.
However, in the middle of the path, the silhouette of a tall humanoid figure slowly revealed itself, the one responsible for the most deaths in the base.
"I like the taste of irooooooooooooon."
(In the next chapter, cursed spirits will clash with the JGSDF. I will put foreshadowing from now on.)