No Beast Girls on the Western Front

Page 88

Both of them understood the meaning of that last sentence, so Payne didn't say it aloud.

After a pause, Payne continued, "In the end, they only have one requirement for orcs: obedience. That's enough."

"Because as long as the orcs are obedient, even if they are stupid and don't understand anything, the soldiers at the front who accept the orcs won't say anything."

"If they risk using new methods to train orcs, and then get complaints from the front lines saying, 'Why can't the orcs you've trained even obey orders?' they'll be the ones to blame."

"Doing more may lead to more mistakes, doing less may lead to fewer mistakes, but doing nothing is definitely the best course of action."

"Whipping is currently the most cost-effective way to make orcs obey."

Pine didn't know how long Mary had been away from her family and struggling on her own, but he thought the young woman clearly still had a lot to learn.

It's not political knowledge from textbooks, but the unspoken rules of how society operates.

After listening to Payne's story, Mary fell into deep thought and remained silent for a long time.

Only then did Payne, who was hoarse from talking, finally realize that there was a cup of coffee in front of him, and quickly picked it up and took a couple of sips.

Hmm, it's sweet enough, kind of like a cappuccino. It seems Mary has remembered his preference.

He vaguely remembered the first time Mary invited him to have coffee. When the bitter juice, like Americano, entered his mouth, he momentarily thought he was drinking Chinese medicine, and even had the illusion that he had returned to Earth...

I don't know if Mary's taste is just that unique, or if she's trying to act like an adult in front of Payne.

However, to be fair, in Pine's mind, coffee shops in the early 20th century were supposed to be places for the wealthy to relax.

However, in this world, while the people who come to the coffee shop aren't the poor people living in slums, judging from the clothes of the few customers currently in the shop, they are all just ordinary people.

Is it because Minnesota is a border city with many people doing cross-border business that people are willing to target the lower-tier market?

Since he had nothing better to do, Payne unconsciously applied the knowledge he had learned from Earth to analyze the world.

Mary's sigh drew his attention back to the matter of the beast girls: "Sigh, it's such a waste to have a bunch of people who don't understand the true power of beastmen train them."

Payne was about to agree, but after thinking for a moment, he had a different idea: "On the contrary, I think they actually know very well how powerful the orcs are."

"Or rather, almost everyone in society knows about it."

"That's why they have to make the orcs fear them, so that they can better control them."

"Being obedient is more important than displaying one's talents."

Chapter 138 CXXXVII. Meeting My Pen Pal (Part 2)

After a brief moment of thought, Mary agreed again: "Yes, it is precisely because orcs possess great power that people want to create them and use them..."

Payne could tell that Mary's gaze was full of questions, as if she might ask at any moment, "Where did you learn all this knowledge and these views?"

But she ultimately didn't ask that question, instead keeping the conversation focused on the beast girls that Payne was most concerned about: "So, for this situation... what other solutions can you think of?"

Payne lost interest in joking at the beginning and just shook his head regretfully: "In my opinion, there is actually no solution."

"Orcs are such special intelligent beings; they were created by humans using technological methods."

"This is unprecedented in the thousands of years of human history, no, in the hundreds of millions of years of the entire ecosystem."

"The Dexter people have worshipped the creator goddess Iya for nearly two thousand years, and now their mentality can be said to have touched Iya's authority with a single finger."

"The attitude towards creation is simply to do whatever one wants."

"However, as you know, I don't believe in God, so I firmly believe that everything that happens in this world has no divine element and must abide by the inherent objective laws of things."

"Improvements in the treatment of orcs will be based on the premise that humans have no choice but to rely on orcs, and that orcs truly realize just how powerful they are."

"Take this war as an example. Only when Germany's manpower is almost exhausted and orc soldiers have to be sent to the battlefield in organized units can we say that the orcs' situation has begun to improve."

Hearing Payne's opinion, Mary rested her head on her hand with some worry, "How long will this war last..."

Payne couldn't resist mimicking General Hank's words again: "'Under the command of His Majesty the Wise and Great Emperor, the Dexter Empire will soon utterly defeat Fasford and achieve the greatest victory in history!'"

But after cooling down, he said, "In my opinion, this will take at least four years and double in value."

In previous conversations, Mary had already gleaned from Pine's pessimistic attitude towards the war.

But hearing him give such a precise figure for the first time today, she was shocked and even had an unrealistic thought:

Could this guy be a prophet?

Or is he an astrologer?

Or perhaps he is the messenger of the goddess Iya on earth? Judging from his desire to help the orcs, he does indeed fit the doctrine of "caring for all living beings."

Is it possible that he's a time traveler? This act of providing a precise point in time is very similar to the plot of the wildly popular science fiction novel "The Time Machine" from a few years ago…

Of course, these far-fetched thoughts only lingered in Mary's mind for a short time before she was further astonished by the time span given by Payne:

"...You mean, this war will last at least another year and a half? And possibly even double?! How...how did you come to that conclusion?!"

Payne immediately realized he had said too much—he had simply taken the length of World War I from Earth and used it directly.

Then, based on the vast territory, large population, technological level, and war potential of the Fasfulo Empire and the Dexter Empire, he roughly guessed that they would last longer than Germany and France on Earth. Doubling was just a casual remark, nothing more.

Not wanting to reveal his identity as a time traveler, he could only awkwardly say, "Just guessing, don't take it seriously, hahaha..."

But Mary clearly didn't believe he was just guessing. After the initial shock, she thoughtfully flipped through the notebook she carried with her, remaining silent for a long time.

Not wanting to disturb her thoughts, Payne continued to sip his coffee while looking around at the scenery... Hmm? Wait a minute, is it finished?

He tilted his neck back almost 90 degrees but didn't drink another drop of liquid. Only then did he realize that he could see undissolved sugar granules at the bottom of the cup.

Tsk, this cup is really small.

These ordinary shops probably won't offer refills, and as the war progresses, they might even run out of sugar altogether, replacing it with industrial saccharin.

Mary is now considered a working-class person, so it would be a bit embarrassing to ask her to buy another drink. However, he couldn't bear to spend his own money, so Payne could only sit in his seat and look out the window at what the five beast girls were doing.

Since orcs weren't allowed in the coffee shop, Payne had to have them "stand guard" outside.

In front of this small café is a small square with a fountain, surrounded by trees that are at least fifty years old. The shade of the trees completely covers the sidewalk in front of the café, preventing direct sunlight.

Ruby chose to climb a tree to skip class, Stephen leaned against a tree to slack off, Lacey was so hot that she was lying on the tree root sticking out her tongue, and Shawn was fanning herself with her hat. Only Alpha stood there at attention meticulously.

If an annoying officer or military policeman happens to pass by, Alpha should remind them to be mindful of their image and call him out to prove that their instructors have not failed in their duties.

Alpha is alive and well, that's great.

Just as Payne unconsciously smiled, he heard the sound of a notebook closing. He turned around and saw Mary looking directly at him, saying:

"I still find it hard to believe that such a large-scale war could last for four years."

"It's incredible to me that this war has been going on without stopping until now."

"Based on my observations of a large number of people, the initial fervor of the war has completely subsided, and many people have become numb."

"They no longer believe that this war can bring them any benefits, and therefore have become indifferent to it."

"However, due to government propaganda, the social atmosphere, and the fact that life is still manageable, there haven't been many anti-war voices."

"But His Majesty the Emperor should understand that this war will not lead to anything, so the most rational course of action is to call a halt to the war."

"am I right?"

While Mary's conclusions were very encouraging, Pine, as someone who had lived through the world a century after World War I, was far from optimistic and offered some objections based on his extensive knowledge as a 21st-century Earthling:

"First of all, if His Majesty the Emperor truly cares for the country and its people and can make rational decisions without a trace of personal emotion, then this war should not have broken out."

"Secondly, the two empires have a long history of grudges and deep-seated conflicts. As this world war has dragged on, the death toll on both sides has certainly exceeded ten million. Such a blood feud cannot be easily resolved."

"Finally, I think I need to give you a brief introduction to 'sunk costs'."

Chapter 139 CXXXVIII. Taking care of the furry friends

In any case, forensic work is much more comfortable than being stuck in a camp or trench. Once Pine started talking, he couldn't stop, chatting with Mary until it got dark and the coffee shop, which was about to close, started to kick people out.

Because Minnesota is still under curfew, all shops close after dinner time.

Although Pine ultimately failed to persuade Mary, and both sides held their own opinions, Mary seemed to have a great time, as she even treated Pine to a light meal at a coffee shop for dinner, which made him feel a little embarrassed.

However, it must be said that, being a chef who works in a shop, his cooking skills are indeed much better than Tomato Head's.

However, this is based on the premise that the supply of materials in the rear is still sufficient. It is estimated that in another two years, ordinary people will not have much good food to eat.

After the meeting, neither of them saw the other off. One went straight to the accommodation provided by the newspaper, while the other went directly back to the army camp.

Both of them were very busy. Mary had to finish her manuscript, and Payne had to go back to report within the stipulated time because he had a task to complete tomorrow.

As for the relationship between the two, Payne felt it was difficult to say.

He had no feelings for Mary, but he greatly admired her as a smart girl who put her words into action.

As for Mary's feelings for him, he felt that they were at least good friends, but there was no deeper emotional connection between them.

He felt things were fine as they were; after all, he wasn't particularly interested in humans, and he had a bunch of furry friends to take care of.

Today is another day of sleeping in the stables, so there are a few things to do before bedtime:

"Alpha, take off your clothes so I can check your wound again."

"Huh? No need, the doctor said I'm basically recovered..."

"Listen to me, I'm just worried about you."

"Then... that's fine."

Alpha then took off his uniform, and Payne carefully peeled off the bandages, gently touching the rough, ugly skin that was covered in scabs.

"How are you feeling? Does it hurt?"

"Ah...no, it doesn't hurt at all."

I don't know if it's just my imagination, but Alpha sounded a little embarrassed.

"Does it really not hurt at all?"

"If I had to say... it's a little itchy."

"Is it because I touched it?"

"Um...no, it itches sometimes too. Could it be because of sweating?..."

"Do you still have the medicine the doctor prescribed?"

"Yes, but I think..."