Veteran Streamer in a Reversed World

In the middle of a city filled with gunfire and screams.
At the site of a fierce bloody battle where troops from both Jibro and Solomon armies were being torn apart, Arisugawa Akira was walking slowly.
Dust was swirling everywhere, and flames were rising from various parts of the city, but she paid no heed.
Her staggering figure walking along the main road without any cover resembled that of a drunk.
Her uniform was stained dark red with dried blood and dust, and her helmet was lost somewhere, exposing her disheveled hair.
Warm blood flowing from her forehead and nose slid down her lips, gathering at her chin before dripping to wet the ground.
Her unfocused, hazy eyes wandered in the air, not knowing where she was heading, and her hand clutching a dagger smeared with flesh and yellow fat was covered in blood and spasmed intermittently.
A sweet smell came from her slightly parted lips, and a stream of bloody water flowed from her ear holes where only sharp tinnitus could be heard, but she kept staggering on.
The city center, once the living ground and peaceful daily backdrop for countless people, had turned into ruins riddled with violence and hatred.
In an instant, it had become a chessboard where the dangerous gambles of generals from both sides unfolded.
And Akira and her comrades were merely chess pieces sacrificed in the process.
Pawns that could be sacrificed anytime, in any number, for strategic victory.
A deception tactic for Solomon Army’s successful river crossing operation.
A small decoy unit draws the attention of the Jibro Army building defensive positions across the river, and while the Jibro forces are distracted and dispersed, the main force overcomes the weakened defenses and crosses the river.
To thoroughly deceive the Jibro Army, concentrated artillery fire is directed at the decoy unit’s operational area, and air support is used to create maximum disturbance.
As a result of faithfully carrying this out, the operation succeeded, and the Jibro Army’s defensive forces concentrated on the decoy unit to which Akira belonged.
She and her comrades fought desperately to buy time somehow and succeeded in entering the city.
In the urban warfare that followed, her unit was completely annihilated.
Armored forces became scrap metal to anti-armor weapons ambushing in alleys and buildings, and infantry died like insects to bullets and shells flying from all directions.
Akira’s comrades were no exception.
A comrade who disappeared leaving only a red mist of blood after being directly hit by a shell.
A comrade who fell while trying to take cover, then became a rag after being repeatedly confirmed killed before they could do anything.
A comrade who died when they stepped on a mine, and the crushed bone fragments tore through their flesh as they rose.
For ridiculous reasons, comrades fell one by one, and as the enemies drew closer, magazines became lighter.
The moment she realized that the last bullet fired at the enemy soldier approaching close by failed to penetrate their body armor, she threw her rifle at the enemy’s face and drew her dagger from her waist.
She was merciless like a madman drunk on blood, and terrified like cornered prey.
She stabbed, slashed, bit, and tore at the enemy.
Her heart pounded as if it would burst with adrenaline gushing out madly, and her body moved before her head could comprehend and judge the situation.
After such a chaotic melee ended, Akira alone was left standing.
The plates of her body armor had turned to powder after stopping multiple bullets, and her entire body was covered in wounds from being beaten by the enemies.
But she survived.
The sensation of cutting through human flesh still vividly present in her grip made her realize she was alive.
Akira staggered on.
It didn’t matter where she was heading.
She just wanted to escape from the horrific scene of slaughter she had created.
“…”
How long had she walked aimlessly like that?
Before she knew it, she had reached the outskirts of the city, and a Jibro Army tank revealed its massive form before her eyes.
It was an enemy tank that appeared from around the corner without warning, but Akira didn’t react.
She had long since abandoned any hope of returning alive.
Akira spread both arms wide to block the tank’s path, preparing for the gunfire that would follow immediately.
However, the tank’s machine gun did not spit fire.
The Jibro tank commander had no intention of wasting machine gun ammunition on a single unarmed infantry.
She gave the order to advance, and the tank slowly approached to crush Akira.
“…”
Thinking it was a more horrific death than expected, Akira closed her eyes.
“…?”
But no matter how long she waited, the anticipated pain did not come.
Akira slowly opened her eyes, and then instinctively stepped back from the heat that suddenly hit her face.
Yellow sparks were spewing madly from the gaps in the turret of the tank, which had a hole in its side.
Confused by the sight that looked as if it had been hit by an anti-tank rocket, Akira was roughly pushed and fell by someone’s hand.
Soon, with an intense vibration, the tank’s ammunition cooked off and the turret fell off, scattering hot metal fragments in all directions.
But Akira was unharmed.
She looked with a dazed face at the soldier who had pushed her into an alley and saved her.
“…!”
It certainly wasn’t a sight that could be called in good condition.
One eye was bandaged with a blood-stained bandage, and the face was dirty with dust and soot.
But even so, a beauty that could not be hidden filled Akira’s eyes.
The sunlight shining through the dispersed smoke behind the soldier created a halo, doubling the mysteriousness.

“…?”
The soldier opened his mouth and said something to Akira, who was staring blankly.
Having temporarily lost her hearing, Akira could only understand the meaning after seeing his lip movements.
-You did well.
“…!”
She couldn’t even hear his voice.
She didn’t even know the soldier’s name.
Yet, Akira’s heart, which had been beating erratically, calmed down in an instant.
The tension in her hand from combat stress relaxed, and the dagger she had been holding fell to the ground.
“…!!! …!!!”
That day, for the first time, Akira wept in someone’s arms.
She was able to release, at least a little, the guilt of surviving alone with a single word of comfort from a man whose name she didn’t even know.
The man didn’t panic at Akira’s sudden tears.
He just carefully held her and dusted off the dried blood and dirt on her back.
Reminded of her father’s embrace, Akira burrowed deeper into his chest.
She felt human warmth with her face buried in his arms.
After some time had passed like that, when Akira finally calmed down in the man’s arms.
The man’s comrades approached and informed that the operation had ended successfully.
In the original operation plan, the decoy unit’s attack was assumed to fail, but thanks to the unexpected good fight put up by Akira’s unit, the main force succeeded in landing and even occupied the strategically important city, achieving two goals at once.
As the remaining Jibro forces in the city were cleaned up and the sun was setting beyond the horizon, Akira was escorted to the medical unit.
Fortunately, as her temporary hearing loss recovered, she was able to communicate normally with the medic.
The man who had saved her saw her off until she entered the field hospital guided by the medic.
“…”
Akira stopped briefly at the entrance of the tent and turned to look at the man.
He waved his hand with a faint smile.
Hesitating and moving her lips, Akira finally managed to open her mouth.
“…You.”
“Hm?”
“Can you tell me your name?”
“…Oh, I forgot to introduce myself.”
The man scratched his cheek sheepishly and smiled.
“Chris Kim. Corporal from the 1st Infantry Regiment of the International Legion.”
“Chris…”
Akira quietly repeated the man’s name.
It was just muttering a name, but somehow a corner of her heart felt warm.
Akira was about to say something to the man who had introduced himself as Chris, Sunghyun.
If only Sunghyun’s comrade hadn’t interrupted.
“Chris! What are you doing? You need to go change the bandage on your eye!”
“Ah, I’ll be right there!”
Only then did Akira realize that the bandage Sunghyun had on his eye was seriously contaminated.
Not only was it soaked in blood, but it had turned yellow from dust, looking quite bad.
“Well then, get treated well. Let’s see each other again if we get the chance.”
“Ah…”
Before Akira could say anything, Sunghyun walked away quickly.
Akira’s hand, stretched out with regret, only brushed the air helplessly.
“…”
But at least she had learned his name.
If fate exists, they might meet again someday.
Akira thought this as she wrapped her hands to her chest and smiled faintly.
She met him again some time after this.
On the day the Cerberus Platoon was established.
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[…Passengers, please be careful not to leave any luggage behind.]
“…Ah.”
Did I doze off?
Awakened by the pilot’s announcement, Arisugawa Akira yawned and woke up.
A smile full of excitement soon appeared on her face as she checked outside the window with eyes still not fully awake.
Beyond the airplane wing was the peaceful scene of Incheon International Airport.