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Chapter 15 – A gun or three

"Herr Oberst, we are approaching Rosario. You should check out the view." A pilot said through the intercom.

Toshiro turned around to the window and looked through it. He saw a small city, but to the east of it, in the middle of a jungle, he saw a gigantic military complex. Everything was paved in concrete, except for some kind of testing grounds in the east. Toshiro saw a big building in the middle, and smaller ones scattered in even distance between each other, and also some big hangars, more apart from the rest of the buildings. The north of the facility was a big airstrip, leading to a few enormous hangars.

He sat down back on the bench.

"Well, I'll be damned… Nice place…"

The plane approached for landing. It landed smoothly and taxied to exactly two girls standing before a Kübelwagen, both blondes, but each distinct from the other. The co-pilot shot out of the cockpit, opened the door and unfolded the stairs.

"Thanks…" Toshiro mumbled, took his chest and went outside.

Out of the two blonde girls, Toshiro knew one, and only the fact that she was wearing a lab coat under a trench coat and glasses distinguished her from her twin-sister, Erica.

"Hi, Ursula. I see that my uncle must have cut your budget, since the welcome committee is a bit… lacking…"

"Heehee… No, we're just busy you know… But nonetheless, I'm happy to see you again, in less… morbid circumstances… Um… Could you bend over a bit?"

"Suuuuure…" Toshiro said uncertainly and bowed down.

Swiftly, Ursula landed a kiss on his left cheek.

"I'm glad to see you too, Ursula! What did I do to deserve such a passionate greeting?"

"Heehee… Well, I recently returned from Belgica, and the three there persuaded me to pass on this kiss."

"Ah… Well thanks. How are they?"

"Fine. It's rather peaceful, almost serene, despite it being so close to Karlsland. And of course they all miss you dearly."

"I'll probably have to visit them after this is over…" Toshiro said and looked to the small Karlslander at her side. "And who is your little friend?"

The blonde Karlslander saluted and started reciting. "Oberfeldwebel Helma Lennarts, Erprobungskommando 131 "Halb" 3. Staffel!"

"Age?" Toshiro asked.

"Thirteen, date of birth, October 10, 1931!"

"Well, that was fast… Ursula, is that the famous Helma that's flying my Striker prototypes."

"Yes, Toshiro, the very same. Although with some help, since she's a bit… small as you see…"

"Nothing will stop me from helping to develop better ways of making the mechanized air infantry even better!" Helma shouted seriously.

"Are you always so serious?" Toshiro asked.

"Yes sir! We Witches are the pride of the Wehrmacht, and have to behave accordingly! And you sir, should cut your hair! Your haircut is of length not suiting soldier fighting for Karlsland!"

"And you're totally not afraid that I'm the nephew of the Kaiser and I could make things happen to you?"

"No sir! Your status should make you refrain of undertaking such actions, because it could damage the reputation of the Kaiser and the whole nation of Karlsland in extension!"

Oh you little…

Toshiro kneeled down before Helma and grabbed her cheeks.

"Bwut are you bewing, Beww Obewt?! Bit dobnt but you to bew bings bike bis! You hab a biance!"

"If you stop being a miniaturized Trude on dope, I'll stop bothering you. You should really behave according to your age…"

"Twube? You been Hawbban Bawbown? Nebew! Bees my bow mobew!"

"Then I won't stop pulling your cheeks, simple."

"Bwut… Bwut…"

"Trude is strict towards everyone, but I know her motivation. And you just look like some pretentious kid to me, who thinks that her shit doesn't stink."

Helma looked a bit to the side silently. Toshiro released her cheeks and rubbed them a few times.

"Now… My name is Toshiro, but even deaf people probably heard about me…" Toshiro said while extending his hands towards Helma.

"H-Helma… A proud Karlslander, a test pilot and soldier…" She said confidently and grabbed his hand. "But that hair really doesn't suit you… And I'm saying this as a girl…"

"Thanks for the advice, but I'll keep it longer for a wee little bit. While we're at it, if there's something you want to bitch on about me, let it rip now."

"Hmmm… Not much… Only your size is a bother, because I have to use support while flying the prototypes designated for you… But I'm actually proud to be here with you as a person… An Oberst, with a fiancé and the nephew of the Kaiser… And…" She poked at the Knight's Cross he was wearing. "… with such a decoration, and a three-digit kill count starting with a two… And a movie star…"

"Just don't tell me you're my groupie or something…"

"Um… Uh… I'm member number seven…"

"Jesus… Well, I met member no. 2…"

"Inge? Heh… How nice…"

"Um… You two…" Toshiro heard a silent voice from his side.

"Hmm? What is it, Ursula?"

"You can talk later, we have to move on in case a plane wants to land…"

"Ah, okay."

"Um, Toshiro…"

"What is it, Helma?"

"Can I ride shotgun?"

"Heheheh… Sure you can. It will be a bit tight in the back with that chest, but if I can make you happy…"

"Thanks…" Helma said with a small blush on her cheeks, which could easily be mistaken with frostbite during such weather.

They boarded the Kubelwagen and Ursula drove towards the big building in the middle.

"The hangars you saw at the end of the runway are mostly used to assemble prototype planes. Only one of them is an actual hangar for normal planes."

"Anything interesting in there?"

"Heehee, of course! This is the technological mother lode of Neue Karlsland after all!"

"Then I look forward to a proper tour."

Then, Ursula pointed out to the large hangars to the south.

"Those are the prototype panzer assembly hangars. If there's something worth showing, it surely is that place."

"Another reason to be giddy…"

"And that small building is my workplace." Ursula said and pointed out to a small building, the size of a one story house, surrounded by a red circle in which nothing else was present.

"Huh? Why is it so detached?"

"Well… Prototypes tend to explode in my face…" Ursula said a bit ashamed.

"Oh… Well, prototypes are prototypes…"

"Yes… I'm still working on your new Striker, but I think a day or two and it will be ready for a test flight."

"And I will do it!" Helma shouted with pride.

"I don't know, Helma…" Ursula said with a bit of uncertainty. "Toshiro is here, and I bet he wants to test it himself…"

"But… But it's my job to test the new Striker prototypes! I have been trained to do so, and I can't allow Toshiro to undertake any risks…"

Toshiro's hand started moving towards Helma, as he was making a pincer motion with his fingers.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop!" Helma shouted and guarded her cheeks.

Toshiro moved his hands back.

"Maybe I can give you the privilege of the first run, but I'll get the first flight, okay? I can't let such a sweet girl get bruised because of something failed, right?"

"Mmmmm… Okay… Still better than nothing…"

"How nice of you two to get along already, heeehee..." Ursula giggled and continued on. "The weapon testing labs are near the panzer testing field, so we basically missed it. And, Toshiro, that's the place you should visit today. Your primary arsenal upgrade is ready, with a secondary one pending final tests. But for now, let's get you to your room. And you have to get to know Gisele and Christa."

"Who are they?"

"The first one is the receptionist in the main building, and the second one was testing your cannons."

"Was?"

"Well… The latest prototype under development is a bit tricky to handle… But let's not go ahead… We're here already."

Ursula stopped before the building and killed the engine. Toshiro took his chest and jumped out of the car. They entered through the door. Toshiro could hear the banging of a single typewriter, and he saw the one doing so.

There was a young witch with short, bob cut black hair, torturing a typewriter behind a desk, which was standing beside a staircase. From the place she was sitting, she also had limited view of the side corridors.

Ursula, Helma and Toshiro approached her, with no reaction from her side. From up close, Toshiro could see that the girl was rather young, and rather well built.

"Gisele…" Ursula said, trying to be louder than the typewriter.

Nothing. Gisele continued to type furiously.

Ursula looked hopelessly at Toshiro and nodded her head towards Gisele. Toshiro simply took the typewriter from her, watching as she was still trying to type for a few seconds.

"Huh? Where's my typewriter…" She wondered and looked up. "Wah! A guest! Herr Oberst, give me back my typewriter please!"

"After we go through the pleasantries…"

"Ah, okay… Welcome to the Rosario Experimentales Hochwissenschaft Forschungsinstitut, Herr Oberst. I'm Unterfeldwebel Gisele Maurer, and I'm the receptionist here. And I believe you are Oberst Toshiro Edelweiss, right?"

"Yup. In the flesh."

Gisele looked under her desk and pulled out something. It was single key with a number plate attached. 404 was the number stamped on it.

"This is the key to your room, Herr Oberst." Gisele continued with her polite tone. Your room is in the east wing, fourth floor, access through this staircase beside me. Dinner is served at 1500, and the mess hall is also in the east wing, but on the ground floor. What else… I wish you a pleasant stay, and now please give me back my typewriter!"

"Okay, here you go." Toshiro said and returned to heavy machine to its place, picking up the key beforehand.

"Thank you, Herr Oberst. I have to quickly finish typing what I'm typing, or Professor Von Braun will kill me!" Gisele shouted and started banging the keys again.

"Come on, Toshiro…" Ursula sighed. "When she starts typing, it's no helping for her…"

"You don't have to walk up with me. You can go back to working on my Striker."

"Ah… Yes, I forgot you're a grown man, heehee… Okay then… I'll go back to the car, and wait for you. Drop your chest in the room, look around it and let's go see your new gun. Helme, come. You can go with us."

"Yes ma'am!" Helma yelled and followed Ursula.

What an energetic girl… Fourth floor, east wing… Whatever, time to move my ass...

Toshiro moved up the stairs, passing on some people on the way. He finally wound up on the fourth floor and in the east wing. The room was on the left wall, fifth counting from the staircase. Toshiro inserted the key and turned it. The door opened with ease.

Well, not baaad! Halfway between the hotel room in the Ritz and the room in Adi's home… I like!

Toshiro dumped his chest under the wall and fell on the bed.

Hmm… Not too soft, not too hard… This I like too… Well, I won't linger any longer, or Ursula might get mad.

Toshiro ran down the stairs, past the still-typing Gisele, and out of the building. Ursula and Helma were waiting for him in the car, this time the latter sitting in the back.

As Toshiro sat on his seat, he asked, "Not wanting to sit on this seat, Helma?"

"No. I realized that rank seniority goes over my personal wishes, and that I should give my favorite place to a man worthy of sitting there."

"Jeez, whatever… But…" Toshiro made a pause and smiled wryly. "…you could sit on my lap…"

Helma's cheeks burned and her eyes almost exploded as she heard this.

"R-R-R-R-really? Would it be o-o-o-o-okay to h-h-h-have s-s-such a p-p-p-privilege?!

Toshiro looked at Ursula and she shrugged.

"Sure. I want to please my fan number seven, right?"

"Oh… But I don't know… Your fiancé…"

"Please, Helma… As long as it's just a friendly sit-over, she won't mind. And I'm serious."

"Be sure to decide quickly, because it's unwise to do it while I'm driving." Ursula chimed in.

After making some weird noises and rubbing her knees together, Helma quickly squeezed between the front seats and sat on Toshiro's lap with a smile.

"Hah! Now I'm surely better than Inge!"

"Depends…"

"Huh?"

"She gave me a kiss on both cheeks."

Helma was simply shocked hearing that.

"N-N-N-No, I won't kiss you…"

"But Inge didn't get something different…"

"Huh? What?!"

Toshiro removed her side cap and started patting her on the head. Helma relaxed visibly and her face was now full of glee.

Ursula smiled and drove on to a small building before the tank testing grounds.

"Helma, we're here." Ursula said.

"Oh, already?" She asked. "Awwww…"

"Hey, I patted your head for over a minute. And wipe that drool from your face…" Toshiro sighed.

Helma's face flushed as she started wiping her face with the sleeve of her coat. Toshiro opened the door and Helma quickly disembarked from the car, with Toshiro slowly following her, as she in turn followed Ursula. He saw that another Kübelwagen was parked before the building.

They entered a small workshop the size of Ursula's. The smell of grease and gunpowder filled the air as Toshiro went off through the small entry corridor. Then, he entered the main room, which was filled with various cannon parts. He could see a sliding door in the far part of the room, probably going out to the east. He also saw a big construction made out of concrete with a cannon mounted inside it.

Then he saw two people in the room – a rather tall, dark haired witch in her late teens and an older man, the businessman type, with his slowly graying hair swept back.

"Toshiro, this is Herr Alfried Felix Alwyn Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach."

The man approached Toshiro with his hand extended.

"It's nice to finally see the intended user of my weapons in person, hah! Pleased to meet you, Oberst Edelweis!"

"I think the feeling is mutual… So, I guess you are a representative of Friedrich Krupp AG?"

"Well, not only a representative… I'm the CEO..." Krupp told him with a theatrical whisper.

"Oh, heh… Sorry, but I'm not knowledgeable about everything going on in the country…"

"Even your dear uncle needs advisors… Ah, how was the cannon my company produced for you?"

"My first one? Nice, very nice… But I sent it to my cousin in Cyrenaica once I got my replacement…"

"Yes… Yes… It's was a bitter failure that I didn't get the contract for your upgrade… But now, I procured TWO models, haha!"

"Indeed, so I heard… But both Krupp? That's nice…"

"I bet you're dying to see them, am I right?"

"Not exactly dying but… whatever…" Toshiro said and turned his head around. "Ursula, who's that?"

"That's Leutnant Christa Waffenman. She's part of the team adapting the guns from Herr Krupp to your use, and the sole test shooter."

"Pleased to meet you, Herr Oberst." She says only raising her hand from the distance.

"Huh, not going to shake my hand?"

"I'd rather not…" She answered reluctantly.

Toshiro looked baffled at Ursula but he got an answer immediately.

"She has an abnormally strong Super Strength magic, but it's also hard to control…"

"I see… Well, fuck this shit…" Toshiro said and approached Christa. "Hand, now."

"Mhhhmmm… I don't know…"

"Come on, I can take it…"

'If you insist, Herr Oberst…"

As soon as she squeezed his hand, her St. Bernard dog ears manifested, and Toshiro felt as if his hand was stuck in a vice. He countered by using his own strength magic and the pain stopped.

"Oh... And you didn't even use your magic…"

"I am, but they just don't manifest like in case of 99.99% of the Witches, heheh…"

"Oh… Did it hurt?"

"Only a bit. Nothing compared to having my hand partially de-gloved."

"Ouch… That must have hurt…"

"Yeaaaaah… Like hell… Anyways, since you were working on my new guns, why don't you present them to me?"

"I'll be glad." She answered with a small smile and approached one of the tables covered with cloth.

She uncovered it, and Toshiro saw a brand new cannon under it, with a can shaped muzzle break.

"This, Herr Oberst, is the 8.8 cm NaK 45/2 L/71 ME. As you can deduce, the caliber of the gun has been upped, and the barrel length was accommodated to it. But, since you're obviously not blind, you can see that the body of the gun was shortened considerably and the mag well moved forward. This is thanks to us developing an experimental top-opened breech. But we couldn't shorten the gun just like that, since it would create an imbalance, so in the back, there's a counterweight and a gyroscopic stabilizer mounted, thanks to which the balance is almost ideal, although the guns still tends to dive a bit."

"A top-loaded breech… A gyroscopic stabilizer… My… You really aren't dwindling fingers here…"

"Heheh, thank you, Herr Oberst."

"Why not test it?" Krupp asked anxiously.

"That's why we're here for. Although Christa said the gun behaves nicely, she has a bit different… parameters than Toshiro." Ursula said and pressed a big green button on the panel behind her. The door in the far side of the room started opening. Christa reached under the table and pulled out a full mag.

"Still using ABCBC-HE rounds." She said. "The penetration improved at least fifty percent, and the explosive charge is about 20% bigger, compared to the 75 mm."

"Nice to hear." Toshiro said and picked up the cannon from the table. "Ooof, it's a bit heavy but… the balance is really good! Mag please?"

"Nu-uh, safety regulations…" Christa said and pointed out a sign.

"No shooting before the red line… And that would be where?"

"The red line is the guide rail for the door mechanism. There's a small roof extending after it, so we don't have to worry about atmospheric conditions."

"And what about that gun mounted in that concrete contraption?"

"Let's not change the subject for now. Please proceed past the red line, Herr Oberst."

"Okay, okay…"

Toshiro walked past the red line. He could see a few tank wrecks, mostly Pz I's and Pz II's, decommissioned, rusting, and full of holes. He heard a few knocks on the side of his gun and then, Christa placed a mag on the top. Toshiro popped it in and ran the autoloader. He heard the familiar sound of the pneumatic mechanism.

"Fire away, Toshiro." Ursula said and plugged her ears with her fingers.

Toshiro aimed at one of the Panzer II's in the far. He pressed the trigger button and the weapon kicked like a mule, spewing an enormous fire from the barrel. But despite the fireworks and deafening sound in the semi-enclosed space, the projectile hit the target, and exploded.

"Niiiice!" Toshiro shouted.

"You can fire off the rest!" Christa shouted back.

"Okay!"

Toshiro fired off the four remaining shells and he turned around under the cannon, since the long barrel didn't enable him to turn around where he stood.

"How was it?" Krupp asked.

"Magnificent! I can't wait to test it on a live target!"

"Haha, that's the spirit! The investors will surely want to hear that!"

"Now, Toshiro, place the cannon where it belongs and… let's go to the other one…"

"Don't tell me…"

"You really are sharp, heehee…"

Toshiro went and placed the cannon on the table and he returned to the gun mounted in the concrete contraption.

"This is a prototype construction based on a serial production gun. For now it's called the 12.8 cm NjK 82 L/55, adapted off the Neuroijäger Tiger Ausf. B. As you can see, it is a rather robust construction... It has no autoloader because… well… Look at this yourself." Christa turned around and pulled out something from a locker behind her. It was a projectile and a cartridge, both separated from each other. From what Toshiro could guestimate, the projectile was about a half meter long itself, and the cartridge was almost a meter long. Christa approached Toshiro and placed both in his hands.

"Wow, the projectile is damn heavy…"

"It should be… A 128 millimeter Pangergranate 43, APCBC-HE as you can guess. Weighing 28.3 kilograms with 595 grams of explosives inside, this projectile has an even bigger penetration than the 88 you just fired. Even with your aptitude, making one-piece ammunition would overcomplicate everything about the gun, so we decided to use the original two-piece ammunition."

"I see… But how do I carry the ammunition into battle then?"

"We've made a special vest for this occasion…" Ursula said. "Christa, if you please…"

Christa turned around and she pulled out a Feldgrau vest with two ammo containers attached on to the back.

"This is a vest to be worn when engaging into combat with the gun. An eight slot, spring loaded cartridge container directly on the back, and an eight slot double row container on top of it meant for the projectiles, everything designed with you in mind, Herr Oberst."

Toshiro put it on and wiggled a bit around.

"Well, it fits nicely and the weight is evenly distributed… What about a new rack for the 88?"

"We postponed it until everything here was checked." Ursula said. "So I guess you want to fire the big gun now?"

"Yeah…"

"Christa, please give Toshiro the cannon."

"Roger."

"Toshiro, give me the projectile and cartridge, I'll load it into the container so you'll have a go at how it works."

Toshiro turned around and gave Ursula the heavy munitions.

"Umm… If you'd kneel…" She huffed

"Ah, sure…"

Toshiro knelt and Ursula went behind him.

"The projectile is twist-secured, Toshiro, so after sliding one in, you have to turn it right to secure it, or back left to make it loose." Ursula explained and inserted the projectile into its container. "The cartridges are spring-loaded, so you have to push the little square part on the upper-left of each cartridge slot to release it." Ursula said and pushed the cartridge down with an audible click. "There you go."

"Okay, thanks, I got it."

In the meantime, Christa has liberated the cannon from its shackles. The gun was basically an orange-yellow frame mounted to the breech of the cannon. He saw three hydro-pneumatic recoil buffers in a neat row atop of the breech, and an ammo tray behind it. He could see a handle on the side, which was used to operate the breech mechanism, and one to hold to while firing. A shoulder pad, scope and IR emitter were mounted to the frame, although the last was now on top of the gun.

Christa approached Toshiro and handed him over the gun.

"Hooooly shit heavy… And a tad on the unbalanced side…"

"Those aren't the only problems…" Ursula mumbled. "The recoil is violent despite the muzzle break, three recoil buffers and the fact that the gun recoils on sliders… Christa got roughed up after she fired the first test shot, so after that we performed ballistic tests while the gun was fixed to that concrete thing you see…"

"Then I'll be extra careful, okay?"

"Oh I hope…"

Toshiro went behind the red line and he pulled the lever that opened the breech. He inserted the projectile and pushed it further down with the cartridge. After closing the breech manually, Toshiro started aiming. He took aim at the Pz I at the far end of the shooting range. He braced himself, pumping his magic towards his Super Strength. After he pressed the trigger, the bang almost deafened him and it pushed him two meters back. A little dizzy he opened the breech, seeing the enormous spent shell flying to the ground, still smoking heavily.

Note to self – use Sacred Flame when shooting this thing.

"The recoil is barely tolerable, Ursula…"

"But it's a feat that you've managed to shoot it and still be on your legs, Toshiro."

"I envy you, Herr Oberst…" Christa mumbled.

"Heheh…" Toshiro said and looked through the scope. "It seems that Pz I just got ripped apart…"

"Pretty much the defining feature of the gun, heehee…" Ursula giggled.

"So, Oberst, how is it? Is the money I invested in this project worth it?" Krupp asked.

"Yeah, although I doubt I'll use this in normal battle. Maybe as some kind of special support weapon, but not on a daily basis… But yeah, it's indeed worth the money invested."

"Ah, hearing it from the horse's mouth makes me easy. Farewell then, Oberst, I have to go back to Buenos Aires to give a report to my investors."

"Nice to meet a man whose company provides the means to defend humanity. Aufwiedersehen, Herr Krupp."

"I'll go and drive you to the plane…" Christa said and followed Krupp.

"So, what now?"

"Now, we wait, Toshiro."

"Oh? Do you have a surprise for me?"

"Heehee, yes. But let's wait for Herr Krupp to leave…"

"Okay…"

"You can take off the vest now by the way."

"Ah, I'm still wearing it… Where can I dump the cannon by the way?"

"Place it on a free table, I'll have Christa do a checkup later."

Toshiro placed the gun on the table and the vest beside it.

"Well, I think the two are gone so…" Ursula reached one of the crates and pulled out a gun he heard of but never actually saw in person. "This is an MG 151/20/3 made by the Waffenfabrik Mauser AG. It has the same caliber as the Type 99 only a bit shorter bullet cartridge, which we countered using a stronger propellant. We dumped the cooling system, since the gun cools itself quite nicely. We retained the reflex sights, and we ever added a detachable scope. We also added a stock and under mounted hand grip so you can actually use the sights. You'll have seven types of ammunition to your disposal, but I urge you to use the Minengeschosspatrone 151."

"Why?"

"Because the Neuroi seems to be very fragile when shot with those. I wished we could have delivered you this cannon while you were still in Romagna, but we had shortages, and you haven't exactly complained about the Type 99…"

"Nah… It was nice. So, I'll be able to squeeze off a few rounds now?"

"Yes, I was hoping for it." Ursula said and bent over the crate again and pulled out an ammo drum. "Hundred round ammo belt inside."

"So I guess my new ammo backpack will be also modified accordingly, right?"

"Yes. Now, let's go to the red line."

Toshiro walked forward and crossed the red line. He looked at the label on the drum.

Minengeschosspatrone 151 ohne L'Spur, 100 stück, 18.6 gram Nitropenta Fühlung… No tracer, boo…

Toshiro popped in the drum and pulled the charging handle. He brought up the gun to eye level.

"You can press that little button below the scope for it to spring in place." Ursula said.

Toshiro did so and the scope popped in before the reflex sight, providing a small degree of magnification but limiting his field of view at the same time. He just squeezed the trigger and fired away.

Hmmm… It fires much faster, and the bullets also seem to move a bit more vigorously…

Despite not having tracers, the bullets provided a nice light show, especially since the clouds came over the institute. After a few second he could only hear a dry click sound.

"Well, fun's over."

"How do you like it?"

"I'm sold."

"Then please place the gun in the crate with the drum detached, and I'll give you something.

"Kay."

Toshiro approached the crate from which Ursula pulled out the gun and placed it back inside after detaching the drum. Ursula rummaged a cupboard and pulled out a stack of documents, thicker than two Bibles.

"Manuals, Toshiro. I heard you like them."

"Indeed. As a mechanic, I like to know how stuff works, and since reliability is my pet peeve, I want to know how I can prevent… hmm… accidents…" Toshiro said with a sly smile.

"Are you perhaps implying something?" Ursula asked with a pouty face.

"I don't know… Maybe…"

"Don't worry, Toshiro. We are extra careful after your… adventures…"

"Well, I'll take your word for it. You're the cute twin sister of my ersatz sister after all, haha!"

"Heehee… To be honest, we always wanted a little brother… But you are kind of off the charts, hahaha!"

"Heh… So… What now?"

"Go and read all this I gave you. Take your time. Then you can eat dinner. And read some more. And you can eat supper later. And read some more. And go to sleep."

"I somehow hoped for an extended tour…"

"Toshirooo… Please, you've had enough fun for today. But tomorrow, hoho, I promise you that you won't know where to go first!"

"Oh? Why so?"

"Well, as I said, your new Striker will be ready for its first flight, and… we'll be testing a tank tomorrow…"

"A tank… Hmmm… You have my attention… Okay, I'll follow your guidelines on "How to spend a day forcefully bound to your room." Toshiro said while taking the papers from Ursula.

"I hope you're not mad at me…"

"Nah… If I were, I would just ignore you and walk around on my own…"

"Heh… Have a good day, Toshiro. I really, really promise you'll have soooooo much fun tomorrow."

"If not, I'll spank you, literally."

"I think my bum is safe, heehee…"

Toshiro went on foot to the main building. After passing the rabidly typing Gisele he landed in his room. After a round of reading, Toshiro decided to go to the mess hall. After a bit of searching, he found it.

It was almost identical to the one in the OKW HQ, but it was a bit smaller and the walls weren't painted white but yellow, giving off a more cozy feeling. Immediately, Toshiro saw Helma and Ursula in the line, which was already twenty people long. Around the half of the line, he saw Christa. Making a disgruntled expression must have been enough, because Helma waved him in vigorously. Toshiro approached her.

"Toshiro, should I get you food so you don't have to stand in line?"

"If it's not a bother for you…"

"It would be an honor for me, as a member of your fan club and as a soldier of the Wehrmacht!"

"Heheh… Okay, you can do it."

"Jawohl!"

"Please, Toshiro, take a seat for us then." Ursula said with a smile.

"Sure, Ursula."

Toshiro looked around and saw a free spot. He moved towards it and sat down. After only two minutes, Helma came in with two platters, one of which she placed before Toshiro and said, "Bitte Sehr!"

"Thanks. This reminds me of Buenos Aires, you know?"

"How does it remind you of Buenos Aires, Toshiro?"

"Inge was also getting food for me, since she was always in line before I even got to the mess hall, heh…"

"Haha, and now I'm the one fetching you food! So much win!" Helma cheered and pumped her fist in the air.

"Yeah… Let's wait for Ursula now."

Another minute passed, and Ursula was at the table with them.

"Now, it's totally like in Buenos Aires, with two girls assisting me at dinner, heheh…"

"And who were the other two?" Ursula asked curiously.

"Adolfine and Inge."

"The Generalmajor must really like you, right?"

"I treat her like she's my aunt, and although she didn't say it, she probably treats me like her nephew or some distant relative. I don't blame her…"

"Well, half of the Wehrmacht heard about her unfortunate relationship… How is she in those matters now, if I may ask?"

"A-Okay. I even made some… arrangements…"

"Hmmm?"

"I'll tell you if it's successful. Male solidarity, heheh…"

"Ah well, it doesn't concern us anyway, right, Helma? You don't even look around for boys yourself."

"T-T-That's somewhat true… But boys aren't my concern right now! Now, I have to work hard for the sake of my country! Intersexual relations can be postponed towards after the war!"

"You really are like a smaller Trude…" Toshiro sighed and started eating.

Afterwards, Toshiro resumed his reading session, up until supper. After supper, during which Toshiro spotted Einstein eating toast, he read some more, and hit the hay after testing out his bathrooms shower.

I guess I made a little gamble by including Ursula's excursion from the upcoming Operation Victory Arrow first episode, based only on one PV, but whatever…

And if you want to praise/rant about my story, please leave a signed review, so we can continue via PM's. Seriously, I don't bite. Unless provoked :]