True. Preserving people's lives would become paramount.

[That's just how war is. He's seen enough of it to know it, and he's aware that Alucard has seen more. And yet...he considers his next words for a moment.]

But preservation of life is not all that matters. Arts, literature, the meaning we find in such things — our appreciation for it is part of what sets us apart from animals. I do not think it a poor use of time to attempt to preserve it, while there is time.